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 26th
and I had a flight to go to the US on the 31st for Liam’s 2nd
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 27th.
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 50th 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!
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