In Other News…

I know it's hard to believe, but we do have other things going on besides the Bonbon. Things like: - Grandma is recovering! Thank you all so much for your kind words and thoughts about my Grandma. If you don't know, last Tuesday my mom came home from work and found Grandma on the ground. She was moving and responsive, but couldn't remember what happened or how long she'd been down there. She was taken to the...

Very French Things

Some days, especially with all our friends here lately, I forget that I actually live in Europe.  In a foreign country.  Then all of the sudden I'll find myself doing something that jerks me back to reality.  We live in France.  Here are a few Very French Things I've done lately. 1.  Partied in a 19th century château.  Michael's co-worker and his girlfriend live on a family vineyard and had a birthday...

One Year in France

It's hard to believe that it's been over a year since we said good-bye to San Francisco and started our long journey across the country and back to the Midwest.  It's hard to believe that exactly one year ago today, after a very frustrating trip, we arrived in Montpellier, exhausted and scared without a place to stay.  Relatively speaking, a year is not that long, but in other ways our life before France seems...

Communication Breakdown

Since we've been in France for almost a year now (can you believe it?!), I thought I'd give you all an update on how our French is coming along.  It's been awhile since my last update, so maybe you think we're fluent now? Yeah right.  In a nutshell, here's how I'd describe our French:  meh.  It's a really difficult language to learn in your thirties.  I sort of feel as though we've hit a plateau...

Friday in France

A few of my random thoughts this Friday. Figgy's 7th birthday is on Sunday and Michael and I will be in Prague.  Fig will be with his second family, who absolutely adore him, but I am feeling oddly guilty about not being with him on his birthday.  Not like he knows, right?  Still, I feel like a bad mom. I'm pretty much completely obsessed with smoothies and someone probably needs to have an...

A New Season

Earlier this week, after a long day of travel returning from our trip to Stockholm, I sat down in my apartment and realized that our lives here in Montpellier are changing.  Seemingly overnight, the brutally hot summer days have been replaced with crisp morning air and fall leaves.  The bins in the fresh markets that once held peaches and almonds are now filled with chestnuts and squashes.  The throngs of French...

I Survived the East Coast Love Tour and All I Got Was This Lousy Blog Post

This is just a quick post to let you all know that I'm alive!  Sorry that you haven't heard from me sooner, but I'm sad to report that my trusty ThinkPad has finally bit the dust.  Yes, I am computerless and writing this post from our old, ancient, dinosaur of a Mac which I can't use to upload pictures or watch Slingbox.  But I can type and go on Facebook, so I guess I'm surviving.  I'm hoping to get a new PC...

Visit From the ‘Rents and A Freshly Cut Bed Beard

It's time to get on the road again!  On Sunday morning, The Hub and I are headed back up to Paris to meet up with my parents.  I'm really excited to see them and for them to have their first taste of Europe.  We'll be spending 2 days in Paris, 1 day in Versailles and then it's back down to Montpellier for 4 days.  It's going to be so nice to spend some time with them. When The Hub and I told my parents we...

The Haute Housewife Moves to France!

For the last few weeks I have been hinting at a big announcement and I think it is finally time to share it.  After nearly a year of persistence, hard work and patience, we finally made it happen…on April 22nd, Michael, Fig and I are moving to Montpellier, France! Living abroad has been a huge goal of ours, both as individuals before we met, and now as a family.  Michael and I have been talking about and...

A Joyful Life, A Joyful Bed Beard

This week has been a tough one, dear readers.  I spent most of the week in Rowe, New Mexico with my family, saying good-bye to our cousin Amanda, who passed away tragically one week ago today.  I want to tell you her story because I think it holds an important message to share. Amanda was a senior in high school, 18 years old.  She was a cheerleader and a straight A student with a 4.0 GPA.  She had 6...