Martin & Caroline Belle along with their 18 month old twins Baltazar & Maximme live in an upbeat cool area of Paris with bars, restaurants, clubs etc. As with many expectant parents having twins came as a bit of a surprise to the couple. They loved their apartment and were keen to stay put, so the solution was to rethink the family space creating & decorating a bedroom for their anticipated arrivals. The twins were born in October 2019. When the pandemic & lockdowns hit the city they moved out of Paris to be with family. It was 4 months before they returned to the capital. “Maybe Covid helped us with having the twins, the extra help and guilt free time away from work helped us get settled into family life and take care of them together and enjoy them. The twins are our first children - it’s quite a big change!” Dad, Martin Family Life Lolie interior picks The Belle family are back in Paris now but weekends are usually spent out of the city - in the countryside, or beside the sea. Their cool neighbourhood is perfect if you want to go out as grown ups, but isn’t ideal with kids. So any weekends left in Paris are spent looking at different areas in the city to see if they would better suit their family life. It’s difficult - the moment when we realised that the thriving urban hotspot we loved living in just a year ago, is not as enticing with a pair of twins in tow. “It’s funny in the beginning, we tried so hard to not stereotype” Dad, Martin The Twins are very different in many ways... in the beginning Martin & Caroline were always buying each toy the same, then the same colour, but then after a while they thought... "they’ve got to work it out for themselves.” Maxime is very caring, always giving hugs and kisses. At night when her parents return from work she jumps into their arms. She is very affectionate but sometimes the couple laugh that she plays and exaggerates with them - she would make a good actress they both feel. Baltazar is a boy who likes to destroy everything, Always doing what he isn’t supposed to do, he’s a strong personality. He can get very excited about destroying stuff but then he can also be very calm especially when he has a book in hand. What type of parents are you? Caring, thoughtful and very organized (twins.!...). An item you all treasure? My old guitar... the kids are passionate about it. What are the core ingredients that make your house a family home? Cosy, open (the twins play in the living room with us) and very quiet. The twins favourite toy? Firemen truck & balloons. SHOP OYOY SOFT TOYS