February 18, 2014

Well, as my family and friends back in the USA are having the weirdest winter ever, here in France it’s been mild and rainy. This is apparently their normal winter weather.  For the past two years as it’s been so cold and so wet or snowy I’ve been told that it wasn’t normal; since miserable winters were alI I experienced here I was beginning to believe they were lying!!  So, I’ll take this mild stuff anyday.  Yes, it’s dreary and wet, but temperatures are above freezing and often into the 40’s and low 50’s.

Georgia has had two major storms in the past few weeks.  The first hit with a vengeance and teachers ended up staying at school overnight with students, some kids slept on buses on the side of the road. There wasn’t much snowfall but when it freezes and the roads become pure ice, things get crazy and the whole city shuts down.  There were almost 1000 cars stranded along the highway.  Fortunately Lindsay and Calum made it in just before the freeze, another hour and who knows where Lindsay would have been stuck.  It’s nice to see people rally and help each other though, opening homes and businesses for people to sleep and eat and be warm. Tristan and Katie were in and safe as well in Alabama.

Then this last storm was crazy too….ross happened to be in Georgia for meetings.  He ended up housebound with Lindsay and Calum for the week. Instead of leaving Wednesday, he didn’t get back here until Saturday morning. They would skype and joke about being sick of each other and how they were bonding.  They were trying to figure out a way to do internet pinochle. We have a muti-year game going and those housebound days would have been full of many rounds of that. They had to settle for other games since we couldn’t figure out skype pinochle.  Lindsay will have several make up days into the summer at this point, but the schools had to close as the governor banned driving.  Then as I see the east coast and the major storms they’ve had, it’s been a long winter in the US. The joke is that for both storms in Georgia, within a week temperatures hit the 60’s…we joke you can get frostbite and sunburn all in one week. Having grown up in Buffalo, snow doesn’t bother me, but when the ice hits the south, that’s a condition that calls for a healthy respect. No one can drive on that. Even a salt truck overturned in Gainesville. Calum laughed as his college shut down for the week…in that town they ran out of road treatment in the previous storm and had no more left. So, they had no choice but to close.  Normally during a winter they might not even use the stuff, but this month, they needed double.

Ross and Lindsay did get a trip to Birmingham before the bad weather and had a day with Tristan, Katie and Liam. I got a nice facetime call with them, but Liam has discovered the red button and keeps saying “I push red button” He loves to disconnect the calls.  He is such a stinker, but a super cute stinker!  That morning as Katie was changing his sheets he saw the egg crate mattress thing and said “Hey that has a lot of nipples”…..we all laughed and laughed. They say he NEVER stops talking and has this big vocabulary.  He’s driving them nuts….but in a fun way.  He gets into all kinds of stuff and it makes me smile remembering what a little stinker Tristan was at this age.  From the Nana side it’s hysterical….from there side, not quite as much.

So, Ross arrived Saturday and then left Monday for Austria. Just a normal week in our lives! This year (2014) he’s been in China, Germany, Sweden, the USA and Austria. Yes, we’re only seven weeks in! Travel is supposed to slow down for a few weeks and then he’s off to Philadelphia in March.

As for me, I’ve kept busy here, I have a few friends I meet for lunch or coffee, plus a couple dental visits and grocery runs. I had been saving my set of Downton Abbey DVD’s for such an occasion. I’ve been marathon watching and have been through series one, two and three so far! Hey why not?

Ross did bring me back this book from Tristan….it’s signed by the author to me and everything. WELL…Tristan said he was at a work lunch in Atlanta (picture 6’7”, full beard and his nasty construction work clothes) so anyway as he left the toilet an older lady was waiting for him-creepy! She asked if he would he would help her play a trick on her table of lady friends.  If so she’d give him a free book. So he played along. He was to approach her table and say something like “Hey aren’t you that famous author so and so?” He is SO NOT what her typical reading audience would be. Her friends would then be shocked etc…..okay fine, so he has her sign the book to me figuring it’s not something he wants. I’m dying laughing here ….…the book is Grandma Takes a Lover….WHAT???? She wrote “Dear Lisa, I hope you enjoy my story about a grandmother who discovers it’s never too late for love….or lust” So I contact Tristan when Ross brought it and he just laughed and laughed…..and said “Well I didn’t want it” We’ve all had a good laugh…first her seeing him and waiting outside the toilets….and then the book…oh my! 

I had lunch last week with a friend I met on line. My kids were like “WHAT….you tell us all the time not to meet people online” , but I met her through a group of English speakers here in Tours….so it’s not like it was some weird chat thing. She and I met up last spring and got together again last week. It’s amazing to me how speaking English in a foreign land draws us together.  While at lunch I ran into a Scottish couple we’ve met a few times. They spend a couple months in Tours and then a couple months in Scotland back and forth. We seem to run into them each time they’re here though which is fun. I do run into people in town a lot now and love that feeling of belonging.  It will be very strange when I’m back in the US not to do the BIZ or kiss kiss thing….I really like it and find it so normal now. Plus I think it is way better than handshakes which spread all kinds if germs! With the biz, you never really do more than touch cheeks and make a kiss noise!  

I’m ready for visitors again…it’s been a while. I figured out we had guests 16 weeks last year and I loved that! Between that and my trips to the US the year flew by. Our next guests aren’t scheduled until May so it will be a while yet.  I do go back for a visit at the end of March so that will be nice. I’ve had three people want to come the exact week Ross and I already booked our cruise so that is a shame. We go the end of May for five days to Italy, Turkey, Greece and Croatia. I’m excited and hope Ross loves it.  He wasn’t keen on the whole cruise idea but this just seemed a great way to see a few places we’ll never be near again. I told him if he likes it, we’ll do more.  Lindsay hopes he hates it and that I love it and want to take her as my travel partner!!!

I am able to share now that Tristan and Katie are expecting again and the baby due in mid August. We are so excited and it will be good for Liam to learn to deal with a sibling.  They told us at Christmas since her folks were with us and they could tell everyone all at once.  It was early so we had to keep it quiet for a couple months. I’ve been bursting to share but waited……so Ross and I will do our annual US visit then! It’ll be crazier for me as I’ll go for camp in June/July, fly home and we’ll both go together in August. So, yes. Ross is gone a lot, but I am enjoying the perks of frequent flier miles!

Language wise I feel I’ve made a bit more progress.  I find myself in half French half English a lot which is crazy weird. But I feel like most people understand me, even if my sentence structure is horrid and I will NEVER figure out the gender of every word…I so mix up my Le and La for things which changes everything else….but they get it at least and then gently correct me. Somehow I thought this would be easier and by now I’d be pretty fluent-HA not quite! But, I am pleased at how far I’ve come and realize how difficult it must be for those coming to America and learning English. I feel like English must be a much harder language to master…we have so many homonyms and synonyms and so many words. I hope it makes me more tolerant and more helpful in the future. If I had it to do over again, my children would have studied languages while they were young…when I see what children can do it amazes me…..they pick up the languages without trying. I’ve seen it here firsthand with several children and am so impressed.

So I’m off….I keep hearing random people tell me they enjoy the blog even though at this point I don’t feel like much exciting happens, it’s normal  life just in a different culture and language. I’ll throw in some obligatory food pics…I do enjoy the presentation here. The first is a food truck guy here who does fabulous crepes and waffles!

January 2014

Bon Annee…..Happy New Year!

So, I’ve been trying and trying to figure out what to blog…..really not much shocks me here now and what was once weird is normal.  I’m in my January/February hibernation mode too….it’s never been my favorite time of year and when you are alone a lot, it becomes more of a month or two where you could stay in the house and just wear track pants and a sweatshrt.  Fortunately this year, the weather is so much better….it’s been in the 40’s and 50’s most days, some rain, some sun; but nothing like the past two winters of freezing temperatures and dreary days.  It helps everything when the sun shines.

I’ll go back and recap from Thanksgiving until now and see if I can find something exciting to write about!

Each year for the past eleven years, the Cirque Georget is in Luynes.  They actually live here year round now and teach circus classes as a sport.  Your child can learn tumbling, juggling etc as their activity. BUT, in December they do circus shows.  You may remember that last year I went with Lindsay, Calum and Liam and we had the best time ever. So, not what we expected but so fun. Well this year, for the first time they had elephants. One Sunday in early December they decided to have a Christmas festival in the village and have an elephant parade throughout the streets. Okay, call me crazy, but I informed Ross we were skipping church to go to the elephant parade! Plus we invited friends! It was hysterical, I mean there they were, the circus family riding the elephants right up the streets, no barriers, no police and the elephants were within touching distance. It was amazing and one of the most fun days ever. There were probably close to two thousand people in our little village for this event and there were booths with crafts, baked goods and various items. In the midst an antique car show which made for a busy day. PLUS, they sold cotton candy! I found out my friend Kelli loves it as much as I do so there we were, two adults waiting in line for our spun sugar treat!

I loved that throughout the day we had to  “biz” or do the kiss kiss thing with about ten couples or families. My visitors laughed and asked if we were showing off in how many people we could run into that we know. BUT, after two years in the village it is sooooo nice to be recognized and feel like you know people. Now at one point there was a lady Ross was “biz-zing” and chatting with…..my friend asked who it was, I replied “oh that’s Natalie, she cuts our hair”. So it’s random people in town, but we know them well enough to say hello and feel settled. Even this morning I ran into a lady in the pharmacy I know and of course everything stops and you biz and greet each other. I do love that part of the culture.

The next weekend I went to the circus with Kelli and her son Cohen.  We had front row seats and when I say the elephants were close, I mean we shrieked a few times; once as the elephant stuck its trunk in our laps and into Kelli’s bag. Another time as they sat on circle things and I could reach out and almost touch the elephants back. I kept thinking “if this thing leans back just a bit too far, we squashed dead”. We were separated by a two foot high wooden wall, just held together with hook and eye hinges. So not up to code in the US. We had such a fun day and it reminded me of why I will always go to the circus in Luynes each December.

One funny road sign I noticed too….”traffic perturbed”, then the dates. It meant there would be work coming for the dates mentioned and that traffic would slow down….I just thought it was a funny way to put it.

Then Ross and I left the 20^th of December to head to the US for Christmas. Several delays ensued and we ended up just waiting and waiting.  Finally four hours late we took off; when you planned to arrive at 8PM, a four hour delay is fun for all. Lindsay and Calum picked us up after midnight and we all crashed at the house. Since Tristan worked nights, he was gone when we arrived, asleep when we woke up the next day, so we didn’t see him until he got up for work about 5pm that day. Too funny how schedules can have people in the same house never seeing each other.  He and Lindsay are complete opposite and rarely see each other through the week.

The fun began the next day as Liam and Katie arrived.  Even in a short time, Liam changes so much and he was just so fun to be around.  His vocabulary is great and he learns something new each day.  Katie loved having a break and being able to go out alone and I enjoyed being able to stay in and play with Liam.  He’s taken over the family room with his train table and cars.

 He and Katie do this fun thing where she rolls out a big piece of white paper.  They then lay down and draw a town.  He tells her what he wants, a Chik Fil A, his house, the bank, Publix, Lindsay’s house, Nana’s house, school, daddy’s work, etc.  Then she connects them with roads and he drives from place to place. He colors and adds his own places too.  It’s amazing watching his imagination go and he designates a certain car to a person and remembers who goes where. He plays on it for days until the paper falls apart and we throw it away and begin again.  One day he and I played town on our fireplace hearth.  It’s all various stones and he picked each stone for a place and never wavered when we drove from place to place, hysterical!!! So we played lots of trains, town and then special games on Nana’s ipad.  I have a file of Liam’s games and activities and we sit and play….I love every second.  

Then Lindsay had introduced him to Nana’s big tub and he loved his bubble baths in it.  He counts down for the jets to go on and braces himself for them to go.  He spends an hour or so playing and goofing in the tub making bubble beards and talking.  Lindsay and I of course indulged this and loved bath time. Then we lay together on Nana’s bed and read books before bed. Moments I will always cherish! Lindsay and I love taking care of him together….it’s just easier with two of us and he LOVES the double attention!

What makes me laugh is that he considers it Lindsay’s house and Nana and Papa have their room in Lindsay’s house. In his defense, since he’s been born, we’ve lived here and she has been there, so he assumes it’s hers.  We laugh when asking for something and Katie says she doesn’t have any, he’ll say “Lindsay has some”….He tells me that to get to my house you have to go on an airplane and train, which is correct. This week as he showed Katie one of his many teensy tiny almost invisible boo boos, he asked for a bandaid.  She said she didn’t have any ….his reply “Lindsay has some”.

The holidays were spent enjoying family and relaxing. We invited Katie’s parents for Christmas morning and brunch so it was fun for us all to watch Liam open his gifts and play. I loved watching his 82 year old great grandparents on the floor playing town and trains with him.  He even got their names correct….Granma and Great Papa. We had to add the great to Papa since that is what Ross goes by too. He still loves his Unc Cal and everyone else ceases to exist when Calum is near.

I prepped on the 26^th (oh such fun) and had my colonoscopy on the 27^th. The procedure is so simple and quick, the prep not as easy! It went well and he said he went all the way to my stomach. All is well and the problems I’ve had for six months did get started by the use of multiple antibiotics, but then is compounded because I have no gallbladder there is a lack of bile absorption.  He prescribed a new medication which is working wonders. So, no more hunting out roadside trees and being in a panic going somewhere…..YAHOO!

Lindsay, Katie and I had a girls day out too. Part of my Christmas request.  We shopped, ate out and then got pedicures. We just talked and laughed and had a fun day together. Much needed for us all. Ross was on Liam duty since Calum and Tristan had work. Ross and Liam had a great day together too. We girls stopped at the Nike store where Calum works to get sneakers for Ross and me, plus a few clothing items. Hey 30% off plus his 30% discount…right up my alley. Fun to see him in his work environment. So obvious sales and marketing are the right choice for him!!!

Ross and I left for home on the 31^st, celebrating our New Year’s on the plane. Well, surprise, we got on the plane, they had a mechanical error, tried to fix it and couldn’t. So, we had to get off the plane and switch to another one. Fortunately they had another plane available and we just had to wait for the luggage and food to be transferred. Plus, there were empty seats so they upgraded us to business class from economy plus! Oh business class, how I have missed you. Ross is the top tier on Delta now so he was one of the first bumped. I like travelling with him, I get perks like that occasionally plus we can us the lounge.  Alone, I’m just a nobody and sit in the terminal like everyone else! The seats made such a difference in my comfort level for travel, I even slept a couple hours which never happens. We missed our train due to being three hours late but we were able to switch our ticket for the next one.  After a wait and the train, we made it home…well a taxi ride too, then home. We showered and crashed. Not much food in the house but we managed, it was New Year’s Day so even after a nap I couldn’t shop.

January brings us back to a busy month of travel for Ross.  Last week Germany, this week China and next week Sweden. I’m back to my French classes and life has settled in again.  After such a busy time in the summer and fall with visitors it’s quite quiet to me. I’ve been having marathon Hulu Plus sessions with Masterchef and Chopped. In between I’m at the dentist for a crown on a back tooth.  I’ve known it was coming for over a year, but had to deal with the abscess issue first. My dentist here loves me! I’m trying so hard to fight genetics with my teeth.  Both parents had issues and I work to keep my teeth and have them be nice! It’s so much cheaper here and my out of pocket is small, so I am trying to do as much as possible before I return to the US.

So, I’m off on this crisp, clear, sunny day.  In France we talk about the weather a lot when it’s nice…..just because it often isn’t so nice J Wishing you all the best in 2014…..

Also a few photos of our meal this past weekend. We do love eating in France!

November 28, 2013 Thanksgiving Day

 

Lately I’ve been getting some comments from family and friends that I don’t blog much anymore.  Well, there are two reasons….the first is that most things are so normal for me now that I don ‘t find as much humor in it all…..the second is that today is the FIRST day in over three months I’ve had just a few minutes to write.

So, normally I try to start where I left off….phew….that was August…..

Had my final (I hope) oral surgery on the tooth access.  My appointment was at 5:30 pm and I left the chair at 8:15.  I could hear my phone going off in my purse knowing it was Ross wondering where on earth I was.  This is where if Lindsay is reading she will start to go green and get nauseous….but the endodontist cut the gums and exposed the bone and then cut away the tissue and bone that was bad.  At one point I started feeling everything…the numbing had worn off-you know you’ve been there a loooong time if that happens. She re-numbed it and went at it again.  Now she is a specialist; our normal dentist is awesome and she trained on the US so her English is good….so much easier for us. But the specialist, while good at her job is new from the Czech Republic and has been learning French…she has a teensy bit of English…so we communicate in broken French and bits of English….but anyway, all stitched up I’m ready to go….you know it’s gone on long when the entire office of people have gone home for the night except the lady waiting to check you out.  I had to walk carefully as the cleaning lady had arrived and was mopping out the entire building….after about an hour and a half in the chair I had hit my limit, so all the rest was me trying not to burst into tears and just trying to make it through.  I kept it together enough to check out-the amazing part was that this 3 hour oral surgery cost in total 85 euros-less than $100!!!  I pay in full and get reimbursed so I always see the real cost…amazing.  I got to the car and called Ross but quickly said “I’ll be home soon, I’m just leaving” and hung up knowing if I talked to him I’d burst in to tears.  She had told me not to blow my nose, cough or sneeze for a week…..well I’m not a gentle sweet crier, if I’d started it would have been ugly and far too much for my incision.  For the graphic part, anyone who has had any oral surgery knows you need gauze and tissues for the way home…none provided of course, but since I had some tissue in my purse I could kind of spit out into them gently until no more bleeding.  I had prescription mouthwash, antibiotics (yes, that aggravated my other issue…for disgusting details read previous posts!)  but I made it home and it really was okay after that.  Much more painful and traumatic at the time then afterwards. 

This had happened on Tuesday evening and I had a re-check Thursday morning early just to make sure stitches were holding and it looked okay.   So, I took the bus downtown to the endodontist and low and behold the same bus I’ve ridden since we arrived here is suddenly not taking its normal route….panic sets in and I (with swollen face) ask. Oh, it’s now after September first and the trolley project which has been under construction since before we arrived has been completed and is running so they’ve changed ALL the bus routes. Plus it’s morning and the bus is swamped full of high school students on their way to school. I was able to get out of my backward facing seat and stand until I recognized where I was and then was able to get off the bus and walk a few blocks to the endodontist office.

My reason for taking the bus rather than driving was that my visitors were arriving that morning at 11. Their final destination: Niger Africa in October  to work as missionaries. So after my visit I got another bus to St Pierre de Corps to the train station. Knowing my car would never hold their bodies let alone luggage I had hired a taxi van to meet us all at 11:30….no problem, right????  WRONG! Their flight was late leaving the US, therefore they missed their train connection and had to wait for several hours before the next one….always fun when you’ve been on an all night flight with a toddler…and she’s pregnant! AHHHH…plus now they’re not arriving until 4 in the afternoon and I’m stuck at the train station with no car, pain pills and a swollen face.  I went to the little café and ordered a tea just to be able to use their comfy chairs…ended up pretty much staying there all day. Ross left work and met me for lunch but other than that I kept a steady order of beverages-no not booze…just tea, soda and water- going to keep my place in a chair with a back at the café.  I had brought my Nook knowing I’d have a little wait in the morning, but had I known it would be longer, I would have made sure it was charged up. ARGH!  So, once it died, I spent the time people watching.

Finally, Charles and Asia along with their 18 month old Micaiah arrived as well as Madison who is 18 and a family friend.  So I meet their train and of course it’s the double decker one with no luggage storage near the door and of course, they’re on the top level.  To top it all off they are on the car that is the farthest from the stairs…at the very end of the train platform……and then aren’t there two handicap people who need train personnel assistance to get off the train which takes forever…….So finally  they begin getting off with two cases each plus a big carry on each plus five or six of those giant Rubbermaid trunks.  Well, they are moving permanently to Africa so this was all the worldly possessions they had. It wasn’t going fast enough and now the conductor is yelling at me …loudly telling me in French they have no business on this train with so much, he could give them a fine and I better get them off right now or it’s leaving. So I am trying to be polite and explain and he is beyond reasoning…finally, they get the last trunk off-all things carried down from the second floor…now we’re on the platform and have to get ALL this stuff trip by trip to the taxi van which I re-scheduled, but she is on a time limit and has another fare. Three trips later, lugging it all, plus a jog stroller , plus a baby car seat…you can just imagine…we got to the taxi van and tried to get it all in.  Finally with some interesting packing and seating we were all in and headed home! Asia (5 plus months pregnant)was exhausted, had been up for 24 hours and had been peed on by a leaky diaper so she was done for the day!!!

After the excitement of their arrival and the realizing they forgot one suitcase on the train (it was never found even with Ross’ secretary Brigette working like crazy to find it) all settled into a nice routine and we had a lot of fun together.  They spent five weeks living with us and I hired a tutor to come to the house and work with them in basic French. So, we were step one in their culture shock of leaving America.  I would take Micaiah out while they had class and since I needed to shop 3x a week (only so much fridge room), many of our outings were to the grocery store.  We often finished and then had a snack at the little bakery café killing time.  We’d talk and play, etc….Is it bad that it got to be each time we’d enter the parking lot he’d clap and yell out “choco” which was his new word when he discovered chocolate?

I tried cooking lots of fun French meals to give them a taste of France. Charles and Asia loved it…..Madison however had grown up in a big family with I’m sure lots of good filling meals, but some of this was all new to him.  He has such a fun personality and he and Ross joked around all the time; and he was willing to try most things although some were hysterical seeing his reaction-goat cheese, blue cheese, duck, brussel sprouts etc……Ross has this thing for certain table manners and how to use a fork and knife properly so Madison called it his etiquette lessons.  He said he was going to get a bracelet with WWRD on it for “What would Ross do”….too funny.

They all did a lot of walking around our little village and once Madison discovered the patisserie he made twice daily visits and declared himself in love with patisserie lady! Yes she was my age and her husband did the baking…but he tried both bakeries in town and found his heaven on earth in one!!  He would moan at the thought of her strawberry tarts but managed to try pretty much everything she ever had in the shop.  He was very quick to volunteer to go get my bread for the evening meal since it involved a trip to town. We’d laugh as he would bring home things but later confess he’d already had something else on his walk home J I’m sure she saw increased profits for five weeks!

We visited a chateau together and had an authentic French meal as well as a visit to the Tomato Festival where we had a fabulous tomato based three course meal…..found out Madison hates tomatoes, but he was a good sport! Micaiah on the other hand adored tomatoes (and any fresh fruit or veg I bought).  I was buying cherry tomatoes in bulk and he’d walk by the dish and stretch his little arm up and grab them like candies.  Later as grapes started coming in he’d sneak them too.  I’d go to use them for something and poof, none left…it was hysterical.

So many fun memories of their visit and of course I cried when they left….I will always be thankful we had a small part to play at the start of their ministry.

Being much smarter and not willing to risk the wrath of the conductor we arranged a taxi van to take them door to door from our house to the airport in Paris…..a much improved idea than the train.

You’d think we’d be all quiet and settled after that visit but no….four days later Tristan, Katie and Liam arrived as Ross left for Malaysia.  Tristan and Katie went off to Paris for three days to celebrate their fifth anniversary and I got to have Nana and Liam days….I could bore you with story after story of how amazing he is and be one of “those” grandparents….just know we had a fabulous time, and he is pretty much superior to all other children his age in every way.

We went to the zoo and went at his pace which included twenty minutes at the glass face to face with a gorilla and another twenty watching ducks.  I put him on his harness which allows him to walk around but be restrained.  He’s so fast and he goes from thing to thing so it was perfect.  You should see the looks from the French people…..only dogs use leashes here….but I didn’t care, he was happy, I was happy and we had a fabulous day.  Also went to a mini chateau place and he and I were the only ones so we walked and played at our own pace.  Stops for meals and snacks were of course included. 

Ross arrived home before Tristan and Katie so we went out to lunch together….as we enter the restaurant…in a pitiful voice Liam pipes up “Papa, I need ice cream”….he asks for things all the time in a normal voice and with please and thank you but when he really wants it, the pitiful voice and “I need” comes out…it’s hysterical!!  Of course he got ice cream. One night he told me “Nana, I need oatmeal”…too, too funny!

When Tristan and Katie returned we had a week more together and Ross took off work to be with us.  We visited LeMans and Villandry as well as downtown Tours.  It was a great visit and we had soooo much fun with Liam, his vocabulary is huge so we could have real conversations.  He loves trains and construction vehicles…my funniest moment is when he was sitting on my lap playing with a dump truck…suddenly he says “up the hill, down the hill, up the hill, down the hill” and grins as he drove the truck up and down my boobs……..hysterical. We picked up rocks and went for walks and played games together on my ipad…….it went quickly but I knew I’d see them again soon.

In fact they left on the 26^th and I had a flight to go to the US on the 31^st for Liam’s 2^nd birthday. It was the back half of my ticket from April so I’ve had it booked for months. When they decided to come in October it just meant I got more time with them J

Well Ross found out he had business in the US, so he could make a quick weekend trip to Georgia before heading to Philly for meetings. So, we flew the same day from Paris to Atlanta but I went USAir (flier miles) through Philly and he went Delta direct.  We met up again in Atlanta that evening and got a rental car and drove home. Crazy I know and the TSA guy really questioned me as I got my luggage and sat to wait an hour for Ross’ flight to arrive…I guess most couples don’t fly the same day on different airlines to the same place.

We spent the weekend in Georgia with a day trip to Birmingham for the birthday party and then on the Monday both flew out of Atlanta to Philly-yes different airlines and I then continued on to Buffalo to visit my mother and sister in law for a whirlwind pop in visit. Then I flew back to Atlanta while Ross flew back to Paris.  I was able to do a few things in the house as well as visit a few friends.  Fit in a gastro visit for my “issue” and he agrees it’s probably from all the antibiotics from my tooth, but he gave me some meds which are semi-working and when I return to the US at Christmas, I have a colonoscopy scheduled for the 27^th. Just to make sure and then hopefully deal with it.  My doctor here said that was my next step, but since that IS NOT vocabulary I know in French I decided doing the procedure in the US was preferable. Plus, I’ll be dopey afterwards and Ross will be the one getting the info and I felt it would be better in English for him too J

A week later I returned to Paris….CRAZY…..in 13 days I was on eight planes and was in four states…..I needed a rest when I returned…but no…..just a few days later our friends Roy and Dodie from Canada arrived.  They were visiting us in France before leaving this morning to head to Barcelona where they’ll do a cruise for their 50^th anniversary.  We had a good week, Ross only saw them one day as he left the next for China. We spent a lot of time reminiscing about our Camp Li Lo Li days and mutual friends.  So fun!

They arrived late Saturday but their luggage didn’t (for three days) and of course here shops are closed on Sunday!!! So we headed to the Auchon in St Cyr. Normally I don’t shop there much but knew they had a good section for inexpensive clothing so we headed there. When we first moved here, I went there all the time since it was up the road for SKF and we shared a car. I could shop and then get Ross from work….but after I got a car I prefer the Casino for groceries. 

So, we’re walking down an aisle chatting away when behind me I hear a voice say “Are you American?” I whipped my head around to see a nice young lady who stopped when she heard us speaking English. (side note…….Now if you remember form an earlier blog, I met my friend Kelli in the grocery store a year ago because she heard me talking in English to Calum) Anyway, we explained that they were my Canadian guests but I was American living here. And being American in a foreign country and finding another American, you just spill your life story and suddenly share info.  She had just moved here this summer and plays volleyball here. (second side note…if you remember from a previous blog post, Kelli’s husband is here playing professional volleyball). So I chime in and say I know a guy on the men’s team. We chat and doesn’t she already know Kelli and David and we both had been invited to David and Kelli’s house for a Thanksgiving meal. Next morning I woke up to a Facebook friend request and I’m hoping it is the start of another new friendship.  Okay, this sounds creepy to so many back home and kind of stalker like to become friends after  one random meet in the soap and deodorant aisle…..but that is just the way it goes for me here and I love it!

It’s so funny here that I make friends in the oddest places and our common bond is that we are Americans living here.  David and Kelli are Tristan’s age and I’m assuming Amy (the girl I met)is right around there.  So I’m probably their mother’s age; yet we form a friendship out of similar life experiences and common language.  I LOVE THIS…in fact our other French husband/American wife couple friends are Jean-Pierre and Helene (probably around 65-70) and Nicolas and Esther (probably mid to late 30’s). None are in our age bracket and yet that doesn’t matter one bit, we’ve become friends and enjoy time together. I have another friend Bennie that I met online (no not like that) but through the Loire Connexion sight on Facebook which is a get together social group for English speakers in our area. We’ve only been to one of their events but I met her through a thread. We’ve been to lunch and are trying to get together for lunch before the holidays. So, so weird that the majority of my friends are English speakers…I have French friends but somehow English speakers keep coming in my path.  Even at church my closest friend now is Joy who is fluent in French but from the Philippines and speaks English.  She helps me understand everything!!!!

 It is SUCH a change from even a year ago when my calendar was pretty empty and I spent a lot of days alone. Now I’m back to being excited if I have some down time! Guess I’m really at home here and settled,  which is a nice feeling anywhere.  The newness is gone, I know how to get around, and have a life here…..amazing!!

So, that in a nutshell is my busy summer and fall. A few other crazy moments long the way and if I think of them I’ll let you know.  A few I can think of:

Tristan found out upon returning to Alabama that he was being pulled off his job site in Birmingham to do an emergency four month project in Atlanta at Turner Field (where the Atlanta Braves play). It’s a parking lot they need to dig up and then put in retaining walls and a giant water storage tank.  It’s a city block sized parking lot so it’s a huge project.  So, he is living in our Georgia house with Lindsay while Katie and Liam are in Birmingham. He works 7pm-7am and Lindsay is gone 6am-6pm…they really rarely overlap…he sleeps all day, she sleeps all night…it’s kind of funny. Calum is only home three nights a week so they’ve got a wild household going on.  

The question is whether Tristan will go back to Alabama when finished as his next job is starting in August in Atlanta.  It’s a multi-year project off 75  and we’ll all be so excited to have them close again. So it’s an up in the air time for them, and Liam hates not seeing his daddy L

This week Tristan visited over the weekend and brought Liam back with him to spend a few days with Lindsay as she is off school.  They’ve had a blast and I loved all the funny skype dates. Katie arrived yesterday and as I type Lindsay is knee deep in thanksgiving dinner prep for quite a crowd. I’m sure they’ll all have fun with each other and the guests Lindsay’s invited. Love knowing my kitchen is full and being used for a crowd.

One funny thing here is that I keep seeing odd shaped fruits and vegetables.  Some look quite naughty or at least that’s what I see.  So of course I take a photo….can’t resist!  Posting a couple and if they offend I’m sorry…..but they got me giggling! Plus a ladies dress at the train station…..oh my!!! I’m sick, really sick!!!!

Ordered my turkey from the butcher, it’s a huge production as turkeys  are not available here except at Christmas. Monday night we’re having a belated Thanksgiving with friends since Ross will be home.  Okay, it will be fresh…and I mean fresh as in probably killed that day.  He knows I want no feet or head!!!  But he got me one and it’s 5 kilos which is roughly 12lbs. No biggie except it will be over 100 euros!!!  They don’t celebrate Thanksgiving here, but I miss that so we Americans are sticking together!!!  So I’ll get two!!!  Lucky me, I have one tonight with one group and one Monday at my house with another….YAHOO!

Last thing…it’s an odd one and then I’m off. This has ended up being way too long, so if you stuck it out I’m really proud of you!

I get a note from Lindsay to call Living Proof ministries and the ladies name. So I call and it was about an order using my American credit card but my French shipping address. I love that they were checking for fraud. I had indeed ordered some Bible study stuff and had it sent here….. BUT…when I call she tells me she figured it all out already.  I ask how and she said from my blog…WHAT….anyway she had decided to do some research, googled me and found my blog and read it and understands now why I am billing in the US but shipping in France. We had a lovely twenty minute chat and it was like talking to a friend.  She had gone back to the start and read it all (brave woman)….so now she knows way lots about me!!!  She said she had shared the blog with a few friends at the office…does this make me Beth Moore’s best friend now?? Too funny….it’s just such a small world!

  So, I’m really off this time…so sorry for the delay, I’ll try to blog sooner so it’s much less to read J Happy Thanksgiving to all