Chateau-in it!

We met some wonderful friends in Lille, France where we ended the trip pretty quick because of all of the congestion. After making our ways through some of the crowds that were so tight we held on to each others shoulders and just went with the flow of traffic, we decided it was far too difficult with families. Next year I intend to go with some ladies and bring back some real treasures. If you can, Lille, France has the BIGGEST Antique and Flea market in all of Europe the first weekend of September. I discovered as we were leaving that we weren't even in the good part. My heart ached as I saw some fabulous stuff that we didn't even get anywhere near because we just didn't know where to go. Next year though - I'M READY!

Afterwards we bought a camera and we looked for a restaurant nearby. We found a Buffalo Grill in our GPS and decided to check it out. We couldn't resist. It was as cheesy as cheesy gets! It was fabulous! It was in this barn and totally kitted out with Cowboy and Indian motifs. The entrance had a totem pole.

Not pictured is a totally awesome multilevel Teepee playground...we figured after a day of street shopping that the kids had earned this treat!

At the table they served us popcorn and bread before even ordering. And of course we got headresses for our heads!

It needs to be said, I can't resist : One unhappy little Indian!

However, that changed when they brought out dessert...cotton candy!

If you think this place is only for the kids you are wrong. They had a very sophisticated menu. David ordered the filet mignon which was really good and I got skewers of buffalo meat. The buff was excellent as well! There are a few of these in France, so if you need a break from the norm this might be a great place to stop.

The next morning we got up, spent some time trying to get a hotel for that evening and were on our way to Chantilly by noonish.

Chantilly is a really great location because there is enough to do in Chantilly, but it isn't too far to Paris. If you are looking for something outside of the city, but close Chantilly is a great alternative. You could actually spend a lot of time in Chantilly.

Of course, on our way we stopped for some pastries and wandered around a bit through a nearby town. We ended up staying at the Chateau de la Tour and were so happy. They upgraded one of our rooms and the grounds were amazing! For more information http://www.lechateaudelatour.fr/home.html

This is the girls hotel room...pretty pink.

This was for David and I. Parker had a couchbed on the other side of the room. Very nice!

This was my bathroom. Large and extravagent...but not a lot of hot water.

Yes, that's right. There was a fake garden beside the tub.

Once we got settled we went downstairs and played some ping pong.

We discovered this board map.

And we set off....

First we found a tower...we were told by the children that there were chains and things in there when they looked in the window. Yikes!

Then we followed the trail to this beautiful area and played for awhile.

We rolled down a hill.

This is the backside of the Chateau.

We all got to relax a bit and enjoy the beautiful green and good weather.

We discovered this "prickly pear"...we are still not sure what this really is.

We found some on the ground and dissected them.

This is what was inside. Looks like a hazelnut...

This was the tiny dead one that Parker found.

Hunting for some more...

A love break...

A daddy attack...

The kids won...

After spending some time on the hotel grounds we still had awhile before our fancy french dinner so we went to a neighboring town and explored the church grounds.

Someone had a wedding that day so we used their remnants and had our own party.

We went to bed in our lovely Chateau and woke up the next morning refreshed and ready to go visit the Chantilly castle!!!!!!!!!!