French Riviera

The French Riviera was definitely on my hit list before we leave the UK. For whatever reason, France had always been on my mind as a glamorous and beautiful place (Most likely bc of how it is portrayed in film). But nevertheless...I wanted to visit both! We went to Paris last summer, and are also going again in July with Mike and Catherine! We are so excited to get to take the babies to Paris! I am so glad Jared and I were able to take this holiday down to Nice and Monaco!

Have I told you how much I love this company's holiday policy?? If I haven't already...I will tell you again! Brilliant!! As you have probably noticed by the amount of pictures I post from different places, we have been so blessed to be able to travel and utilize the time in the UK to see different countries!

This trip was different than a lot of our others in the sense that we have a 7 month old on our hands now! Camden was so much different on the plane ride to Nice than he was just one month ago on the plane ride to Houston. He was squirmy, whiny, loud, etc...Not the ideal candidate for a plane ride...but we did make it to Nice! We forgot to bring the carrier with us and poor guy had to stay in the pram more than his fair share! We will never forget the carrier again! :) We got to know Camden a lot more on this trip and also how Jared and I relate to each other in this new stage of his development. Nice was gorgeous and we got to see a lot, but it was a definite learning and growing experience for us more than anything. :) On to the photos!!

Camden enjoying the Beau Rivage Bar and Grill overlooking the water the first day when the sun was out. Jared and I both got to stick our feet in the freezing cold water, but it was late afternoon by the time we checked in to the hotel and got to the beach so we didn't get too much time soaking in rays! Plus, now that we have a little bubba with us, beach holidays are limited to us being somewhere under an umbrella. And since we didn't have one with us, we had to sit at a restaurant, etc. so he wouldn't fry up! It's also not as fun to be in the ocean by yourself...so we didn't really get a lot of time on the beach tanning. Next time, we are going to bring other friends or family along to any beach holidays so we can take turns with bub and being in the water! You live and learn!!
We did have so much fun with him though! He is starting to stand up and hold on to chairs, tables, etc. (We always have a hand on him, but I am convinced this boy is going to skip crawling and just go straight to walking). His legs are so strong! But this is something I have known since I was about 30 weeks pregnant and he was kicking me like crazy for 8 weeks before he came out!
Don't jump, Jared!!!
I was convinced when we saw this sign of a risque lady called "La Trappa" that this was a strip club, but nope...it was a restaurant! The Italian influence was massive here...we might as well have been in Italy!
Gorgeous sunlight most of the time we were there with a couple mornings that were cloudy and rainy. I always forget how a lot of coastal towns have weather that fluctuates so much.
This is the most precious picture of my boys! :) I also realised on this trip that Camden's hat is too small. I bought it 2 months ago and his head is sooooo much bigger now!
The Ascenseur up to Castle Hill. An old Castle used to be up on the hill until Napoleon burned it down...way to go...
The clouds parted as we were heading up the hill for a beautiful view of Nice.
Vieux Nice (Old Town Nice)
Top of the lift
Happy Baby! He has such a big smile these days! It's funny to go back and watch old videos and see how much more expressive he is now.
This picture looks fake to me...It looks nicer in this picture than it did in person...seriously!
I'm going to submit this photo to Rick Steve's website! Haha! We are a little obsessed with Rick Steve's! We always try to find stuff before we look at the guidebook to beat Rick!
We took a day trip to Monaco (Another place films idolize)...Their produce was insanely good! Better than the UK and I thought the UK's was amazing!
Walkway up the hill to the Palais. A very looooooong walkway...but there was a beautiful view of the Grand Prix starting area and port along the way. We just missed the Grand Prix by one weekend and all of the tourists and hoopla that goes with that! It was almost like we had the place to ourselves...ok...almost...until the cruise ships let out at the casino.
A little out of order (The lift up to Castle hill)
The view from the Monaco Palais
Me and Buddy chilin at the Palais
Some cool house on the pathway down from the Palace.
At Le Bar at the Casino in Monaco...they wouldn't let C in even though he was sleeping, so we had to go to the outdoor area. The under 18 rule at the Casino was strictly enforced!
A chapel close to the Monaco palace
The Casino (Casino Royale supposedly took place here...which for those of you who know me, know it's one of my all time favorite movies)
Train station in Monaco. Very fancy...this whole town was fancy...their public toilets were as nice as a fancy hotel.
View from the Train to Monaco.
So Camden has a new obsession with drinking out of our water bottles. It is so cute and he really loves the water. He loved swimming in Texas, he loves his bath time, and go figure, he loves drinking water! He make the cutest "ahhh" noise after he takes a sip! It's like...gosh people, you finally hydrated me! I was sooooo thirsty!!!

Hope you enjoyed your trip to the French Riviera! I will definitely want to come back here someday and explore some of the other smaller town in between Nice and Monaco. :)