What France Taught Me

On Tuesday afternoon we took a break from packing and went for one last walk down to the River Lez. We brought with us a small token to take part in a tradition that couples have been doing for years on the Pont des Artes in Paris and has recently started here in Montpellier - locking up our love for each other and this adventure. Living abroad here in France has been everything I could have ever hoped for. This...

Countdown: 2 Weeks

On Monday I looked around our apartment, at the stacks of built but empty boxes, the piles of things we want to get rid of, and stacks of books and clothes that needed to be packed, and I started to freak out.  It all seemed really overwhelming.  Also, 2 strange men had been in my apartment for the last 5 days repairing the damage caused by a flood in my upstairs neighbor's kitchen that happened a year ago....

Countdown: 4 Weeks

Holy shit, we're moving in a month. For the last few weeks we've been stuck in this weird place where we know we're moving, but it's just a little too early to start packing things up.  However, we're starting to realize that we need to Start Doing Things.  And oh my, is there a lot to do.  We've started selling off our furniture to friends and Michael's co-workers and we have boxes upon boxes of things to...

Countdown: 6 Weeks

Thank you all for your well wishes!  It's really happening.  We really only have 6 weeks left until we move back to the U.S.  When I think about it in those terms, it feels overwhelming.  How will we pack up all of our stuff, tie up all our loose ends, and squeeze in a few more trips, in just 6 short weeks?  I'm not sure, but somehow it will get done.  Oh, and flying across the world with a baby and a dog and...

Onward

On a cold Ohio evening in November 2002, I signed an offer letter that put me on a path to where I am today.  The letter that I signed that early winter morning promised me to a city I knew very little about.  A city I'd never experienced.  A city that, for a small town Ohio girl, seemed as far away as Siberia and as foreign as Tokyo.  But it was neither of those places - it was Boston.  Signing that letter was...

Baby’s First Passport

We're 15 weeks into this gig and, to be honest, Michael and I are still pretty Nervous Nelly first time parents when we're out and about with Ramona. Ok, so maybe it's just me. I don't know if it's being in a foreign country, parenting in a different culture, or the fact that we can barely communicate with the people around us, but I'm terrified of being in a situation where I'm out in public with Ramona and...

2012: Year in Review

So, I know I'm a bit late in this Year in Review post and that these types are posts are pretty superfluous, but I really wanted to do one anyway.  2012 was a really exciting year for us, for obvious reasons, and I wanted to have a recap of it that I could look back on whenever I want.  We continued travelling, spent a lot of time with friends and family, and most importantly, welcomed our daughter to the world....

Holidays in Montpellier, Part 3: Ramona’s First Christmas

Hmm, January 6th today.  Am I still allowed to write about Christmas?  I hope so because it was a special one - Ramona's first!  Last year we spent Christmas Eve driving home from our Italian Road Trip and didn't give a whole lot of thought to presents, stockings, or a tree.  But we wanted to do things differently this year, because even if Ramona won't remember her first Christmas, we will! We started off...

Holidays in Montpellier, Part 2: The Return of Grandma (and Grandpa!)

In mid December, Grandma came back to Montpellier.  And this time she brought Grandpa with her! I was really excited for Ramona to finally meet her fourth Grandparent.  She immediately greeted him with a big smile.  She always seems to be smiling with she's around her two Grandpas!  She's a charmer already. We had a really nice week with my parents.  My Mom was so amazed with all the ways Ramona had...

Holidays in Montpellier, Part 1: Thanksgiving

The holidays are here!  And we're just chugging along here in Montpellier.  It's been hard to get any "real" posts written but I wanted to just write a quick update and share some photos from our holidays so far. Michael's parents, Grandma Joy and Grandpa Todd, came over to France to celebrate Thanksgiving with us and meet their first granddaughter!  Their Grandparent resume is quite impressive, as they have a...