Merry Christmas!

DaySpring E-Cards

Lucky

Cooper River Bridge Run in Charleston 2010- we ran, we saw, we conquered...


The girls after their first trip to the theater to see "Sleeping Beauty".


SA with D and Cat Cat after her spring dance recital.



Greenville's Duck Derby- 50,000 rubber duckies raced down the Reedy River and over the falls!


Dans le jardin- with my girls and our lovely, fragrant white jasmine.




I'm a lucky girl. Here's our picture from Greenville's Talk Magazine.

One Day He Will Set All Things Right

Why the long silence you ask?

Questions.
Lots of questions- unanswered questions about-

tragedy,
catastrophe,
suffering,
the death of a friend,
failures- my own and others'

Why?

I don't know but I recommend this book for those of you who have a relationship with God through Jesus and this book for my skeptic friends.

This I do know:

One day He will set all things right! All is not right within me and all is not right within the world. I have been redeemed and am a new creation in Christ Jesus, but I still struggle within this body and soul. I am looking forward to that day-when our bodies and when all creation will be redeemed. No more injustice, sorrow, pain, suffering, sickness, death, no more orphans, or cancer, tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, oilspills, or floods.


"For instance, we know that when these bodies of ours are taken down like tents and folded away, they will be replaced by resurrection bodies in heaven—God-made, not handmade—and we'll never have to relocate our "tents" again. Sometimes we can hardly wait to move—and so we cry out in frustration. Compared to what's coming, living conditions around here seem like a stopover in an unfurnished shack, and we're tired of it! We've been given a glimpse of the real thing, our true home, our resurrection bodies! The Spirit of God whets our appetite by giving us a taste of what's ahead. He puts a little of heaven in our hearts so that we'll never settle for less."
II Cor. 5:2-5



"For all creation is waiting patiently and hopefully for that future day when God will resurrect his children. For on that day thorns and thistles, sin, death, and decay—the things that overcame the world against its will at God's command—will all disappear, and the world around us will share in the glorious freedom from sin which God's children enjoy. For we know that even the things of nature, like animals and plants, suffer in sickness and death as they await this great event." Romans 8:19-22, TLB5

Three Princesses

The weekend before Valentine's Day, D and I had the privilege of attending the Sweetheart Charity Ball. It was a fundraising event that benefitted Greenville's Meals on Wheels. We found out that we would be attending only a few days before the event, so we had quite alot to pull together in the way of our attire and a babysitter in a short amount of time. That time feels like it is cut in half if it involves taking a toddler and a preschooler to shop, but though it was stressful getting everything together, we had a great time when we finally made it to the ball. There was a silent auction and a Chinese auction, and we won a Parent's Night Out from the Little Gym and a gift certificate to TGIF! The dinner was nice and there was dancing too, so of course we had to break out the South Carolina state dance, the shag. It was fun to feel like a princess for an evening!

Here is little princess Cat Cat dancing at the Greenville Library's Royal Ball. She really loves her "Finduwella" dress.

And here is my little princess SA practicing her curtsy at the Greenville Library's Royal Ball.

Cat Cat enjoyed riding this dragon at the Royal Ball.

Princess SA with her Princess Beauty wand.

The whole fam with a friendly knight in shining armor whom we met at the ball.

Princess Cat Cat is always happy to wear her "bootifull Finduwella dress".

For the Love of Food

Living in France definitely influenced my views on food and eating. The French love food! Preparing it is an art and enjoying it together is a major part of the culture. Everyone knows that, but the things that I was unprepared for were the very cautious attitudes that the French have toward things like genetically engineered food, pesticides, and processed foods. These things had really not been on my radar screen before living in France. I was concerned about the growth hormones that end up in our meat and dairy products since I had just had a baby, but I really wasn't into the whole organic or whole foods thing. I was surprised to learn that many mothers in France make their own baby food and their older children's snack foods- so they can be sure of just "what is in it". Soup came in boxes instead of in cans which was new to me, but those boxes became a staple for us, and then I found out that many French women make a soup every day! What?! "Why can't we just trust Gerber and Campbell's?" I thought. Anyway, I came around to their way of thinking a bit, though I still do buy Little Debbies on occasion. Shocking, I know!

D is always teasing me that I need to just whip up a soup "a la francaise" for dinner, as if I know how to just whip anything up- I'll need a recipe, thank you very much. I wish I had a familial culinary heritage like most of my French friends, but I don't, so I have to rely on cookbooks and recipes. I will say that I have come a long way though- from making babyfood and homemade jam to adding a few French recipes to my repertoire, but I still have lots to learn as well. I am pleased that now that I can read French, I can actually use some of the cookbooks that I have bought or been given over the years.


I haven't read the famous Why French Women Don't Get Fat book yet, but I plan to. I love that the subtitle of the book is "The Secret of Eating for Pleasure", and the author touts this as a French woman's manifesto. I have been doing my own research, and though I am still stumped, I am beginning to wonder if the secret of French thinness lies in the quality of the food. Why are Americans so much bigger than French people? And why is it so hard to lose weight here in America? That we don't walk as much is an obvious explanation, but I have been to the gym and or running for several hours each week lately, and I am seeing nowhere near the results that I had imagined. And lately I have noticed that a lot of people around me seem to be fighting the same battle. French women here say that they have all gained weight too since coming to this country and attribute it to our food. When I asked one friend what French expats do to remedy this weight gain phenomenon, she said they don't lose the weight they gained either until they go back to France!

When we came back to the States, I tried to shop for organic produce, dairy and meat for awhile, and after it became too expensive, I gave up. Lately I have been having the worst time trying to lose the weight I have gained since being back here, and I am wondering if going organic would help. Jillian Michaels, author of Mastering Your Metabolism seems to think so and a number of people I have been reading lately agree. I think I'm going to give it another try and then hopefully plant a garden for the summer. At least if I don't lose weight, I should be healthier, right? The good news is, that I love food and so do the French, so my love of food can't be the problem. And what I love about the French culture is that the preparation of the food is an expression of love for those who partake of the food. Anyone who has truly labored to prepare a meal knows and understand this, but in American culture, I think this labor of love often goes underappreciated due to the vast amount of fast/ convenience food that is available to us. In addition, the enjoyment of food with others is also something that is not taken lightly in French culture. Meals are much more of an event than they are for us in the US, and eating out is way more expensive so that casual acquaintances are not often found having dinner together. Eating out at a restaurant is something that close friends do together on special occasions. I absolutely LOVE the recent movie, Julie and Julia because I can SO relate to Julia Childs as a "large" American expat living in France learning French and how to cook but also because the movie portrays marriage in a positive light and cooking as a way of loving our families well. It is a must see!

"I'm in Shock"

This is what I said to the pharmacist at BiLo today. I mean, seriously. I was completely shocked. Here I was, picking up a perfectly normal prescription- for eye drops for my daughter with pink eye. We have had pink eye (i.e. conjuntivitis) a time or two. In France they always prescribed these orange eyedrops that stained everything. Thank goodness, they washed off of the children's faces and all of the linens and clothes that we stained orange during the treatment time. But, I mean, I KNOW I never paid more than 6-8 euros for the drops. That was after the mere 28 euro visit to the doctor. Today I called the pediatrician's office. I know pink eye when I see it. I knew exactly what we needed, and I didn't need to see the doctor. So I was hoping that they would just call in the prescription for me. Alas, no, they wanted to be sure that she didn't have an ear infection. My girls haven't ever had ear infections, thanks be to God, but I guess the doctor wanted to be sure. So, after going to what will be the $98 doctor visit, we went to pick up the prescription for antibiotic eye drops. "Are we sure this is bacterial?" I asked the doctor who told me that no, we can't be sure but by the time we culture the discharge, it would be so much worse that it is better to just go ahead and treat it as if it were a bacterial infection. What? I guess this is how the general population gets resistant to anitbiotics! Anyway, after 5 days of gooky eye, it was time to do something, so that is why I took her to the doctor. But, back to Bilo.

The total cost of the medicine which comes in a 3 ml bottle (that is LESS than a teaspoon, by the way) was $94.29!!!!!!!!!!! What?! Fortunately I only had to pay $71.51. Now D has a good job with insurance for which I am very thankful, but this is a shocking price for a 3 mL bottle of antibiotic eyedrops that I have bought several times over in France for a fraction of the price. I know lots of people are scared about the "socialist" agenda of Barack Obama's healthcare reform plan, but I definitely think our healthcare system needs an overhaul. I hope that we can anticipate change. I mean we will have spent $160 on an eye infection today and it is highly contagious, so if we all get it, that will be multiplied times 4. That means that one fourth of our alloted healthcare expenses covered by insurance for the year could go to everyone in the family being treated for pink eye. Whatever, I seriously need to move back to France. Even though I did not get to have the benefit of Security Sociale, since I didn't pay into the system there, we had a WAY better deal for helathcare than in our own country.

Running for Life

I am learning that it is important for me to have short term goals for myself in order to stay motivated. D has a reading list for himself for the year and he has inspired me to create one for myself as well. In the area of fitness I find that running races helps me to stay motivated and on the fitness path. So far, I have only run 5K races, but I am gearing up for a 10K and hopefully a half marathon. Today was a 5K sponsored by the Greenville News, Run Dowtown 5K Road Race. It was alot of fun to run with a fellow former expat from Clermont and try to keep up with her. She has already run a half marathon, so I tried to keep up with her until the hill towards the end of the race really caused me to slow down. The results of the race are posted here. It is such a great feeling to have accomplished even this small thing- running in a race and having finished with a time 5 minutes faster than I had in the first 5K that I ran back in France! You may remember this picture from a post of mine in June of 2006.



D is currently visiting with these, some of our very dearest friends in France. "Dig" was the one who inspired me and helped me to understand that short term goals and running really do help me to cope with life better- mentally, physically, and emotionally. I am looking forward to seeing her this summer when she visits the States. D is currently visiting (and working) in France and having dinner with these dear friends of ours. I am terribly jealous, but thankful that I will get to have him back home soon and to see my friend soon as well. Hopefully we'll find a half marathon to do together this summer. Or should we make it a marathon, Dig?

Thanks to D for inspiring me to read with a goal in mind, to Dig for inspiring me to run with a goal in mind, and to Granny and Poppy for making it possible for me to run today! Merci beaucoup!!!

Date Night

It was kind of hard to figure out how to incorporate date night into life in France, but now that we are back with family close by, and the girls are old enough to spend the night with their grandparents, I am loving this new found freedom to go out with my husband alone!


Off to Granny and Poppy's house... with their snazzy new Hello Kitty suitcases.



D's choice- a Persian restaurant in downtown Greenville.


We were seated on the heated patio next to a water wall/ fountain. I enjoyed my first taste of Persian cuisine. We had hummus and pita bread for starters followed by our main course of chicken stew for me, and a decadent slice of chocolate cake for dessert!

Thanks Granny and Poppy!

A Year of Firsts

2009 was a year of many firsts for us. Here's some of the firsts in pictures from our first year back in the States.

Oh How He loves Us

As Christmas approaches, I have been crazy busy as it seems most of us are in anticipation of the holidays- shopping for gifts, decorating, wrapping, baking, etc. There is just so much to be done at this time of year. It is easy for me to get wrapped up in the stress and forget the purpose of it all- celebrating the birth of Jesus. He is the reason for this season of celebration, but it seems He often gets left out and forgotten- even by those of us (myself included) who want to keep Him at the center.

Today I am staying at home all day in an attempt to bring order to the chaos of both my home and heart. This morning I've been listening to a song that really gripped me recently. So often I become discouraged by my own failures and shortcomings and this song reminds me that God knows all about me and loves me anyway. In fact He loves you and me so much that He sent His Son, Jesus to earth to live the life that we could never live and die the death that we should have died. That is what we are celebrating at Christmas- the birth of a Savior. He saves us from sin and saves us from ourselves! Now with my faith and trust in Him, I am free to live by His grace a life of love. The cry of my heart is that you too will know His love for you and be embraced by His grace and peace this Christmas!

"God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who has faith in him will have eternal life and never really die." John 3:16 (CEV)

"We consider Christmas as the encounter, the great encounter, the historical encounter, the decisive encounter, between God and mankind. He who has faith knows this truly; let him rejoice." Pope Paul VI

The Good vs. The Best

Lately we have fallen into the all too easy to slip into craziness of American living. One of the parts of living in France that I loved was the slower pace and the enjoyment of people and relationships. The time spent conversing around the table and over glasses of wine- I had begun to miss that as my very American family began to be involved in ever so many things. Last week I don't think we sat down to one meal together at home but had to grab food around town fitting dinnertime in between meetings and lessons. I had begun to prioritize time spent together around a meal but what do you do when good things begin to crowd your priorities out of the picture? Church on Wednesdays? Elder meetings? Ballet lessons? French lessons? Well, I decided to be the first one to take a stand against the craziness. I dropped my French class. This was not an easy decision to make as I really want to continue to learn French and especially to practice so that I don't forget what I have already learned. It was such a nice getaway, that French class... D would meet me in town and pick up the girls and I would stay for class all by myself! This is really a treat- to get to do something just for me without the kids. It was so nice to converse with adults about the regions of France and to practice my French with a real teacher who wasn't afraid to correct me. But this getaway contributed to the crazy pattern that had begun to steal away all of our time together as a family. Sure D fed and bathed them, and I came home to the kids almost or already in bed which was WONDERFUL, but someone had to stop the madness. After all there are only 5 nights in the work week. We prioritize church on Wednesday nights and the ballet lessons that we could afford happen to be on Tuedays at 6:00 which definitely infringes on dinnertime at 7:00 but I will just plan a crock pot meal for Tuesdays and we will have to eat out on Wednesdays or eat at home either super early or late. In general, I want us to eat good food together as a family every night. This is what I looked forward to when D traveled the world for 3 year- I looked forward to the time when he would actually be home and we could all be together as a family. So now, apparently, it is up to us to guard this time somehow and begin to say "no"- something that neither of us like to do. We want to prioritize family time in the evenings and also opening our home to others. This week we had the pleasure of having one of D's colleagues from France with us for dinner one evening. We absolutely LOVE to entertain and hang out with our friends, but when we allow ourselves to become so busy, there is no margin to fit anyone else into. I decided that instead of trying to keep up my French in a class of American women trying to speak French, it would be a better use of my time to actually invest in relationships with French people. This whole time and energy balance thing is getting more and more real to me as I get older. I would love to hear some of your stories and comments about how to maintain family time that seems to get crowded out by all kinds of good things. I believe that the health of the marriage and family is vital to the health of the kids, so I really want to find this balance in involvement in good things (church and extracurricular activities) and family life.

It's Better When It's French

Those of you who have lived with me know how much I appreciate funny commercials. I crack up pretty easily at commercials, in fact. In France they only show commercials between the programs which is really nice as you don't actually waste so much time watching commercials. But alas, without a DVR in this country, I find myself watching lots of commercials again, hence the appreciation for funny ones. Lately Hardees has some racy commercials which I do not endorse for the whole family, but I have to admit, there are a couple of pretty funny ones. I think the most recent one is especially funny as it addresses the American opinion of France and the French. It seems to me that many Americans consider it very romantic to go to or live in France. It is humorous to me that not only do the adjectives "European" and "French" sell luxury items in America, they sell hamburgers as well! The commercial features several English nouns which exist alone and also exist with the prefix "French" forming a new proper name in English (ex. french toast, french maid, french kiss). The new nouns that are formed when the word "French" is added, along with the accent of the person narrating the commercial, seem to show that Americans think that the word "French" is a synonym for sexy and, I guess, sexy sells. The slogan of this ad for the Hardee's "French Dip" is "It's better when it's French". You'll need to pause the music first and then click on the Hardee's link above to see the recent commercials. The first two crack me up. Hope you enjoy.

Legacy

The girls have started using new names for each other, and I think they are much more fun than using initials to refer to them, so I am introducing Sissy and CatCat on my blog today. I love being their mommy but from time to time I struggle with the mundaneness of the tasks of motherhood. Who doesn't? But today I am reminded that they are my legacy- hopefully not my only legacy, but they are the ones I will most likely have the most impact on in my lifetime. That's a weighty truth, isn't it? God knows I will screw up, albeit unintentionally, as I mother them. I pray though that they will know to whom they ultimately belong, that they will rest in and receive the perfect love that the Father offers them, and with it bless the world around them. They certainly bless me everyday. The words to this song, especially the chorus, really struck me as I was listening to it in the car the other day and pondering the brevity of life.

I want to leave a legacy
How will they remember me?
Did I choose to love? Did I point to You enough
To make a mark on things?
I want to leave an offering
A child of mercy and grace who
blessed your name unapologetically
And leave that kind of legacy

When I get caught up in the mundanenss of the everyday, my perspective is skewed because I am not seeing my life as part of the bigger picture. I really want my occupation in life to be bringing glory to God wherever I am. I really do want to bless His name unapologetically because He is worthy of all the honor and praise and glory that I can give and way, way more than that. But I am asking myself lately, "Is my life really bringing glory to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords?" "Not enough" is the response that will always answer that question because He is worthy of so much more than just my life, so I pray that the lives that I leave behind will bring Him more glory after mine is finished. Do you know what blesses me beyond measure? - when I hear Sissy and CatCat in the backseat singing "How Great Is Our God" or "Mighty to Save", hearing Sissy tell her memory verse for the week, "Tell people everywhere about Jesus." Matthew 28:19, and listening to her pray every night for our friends in France to come to know Jesus. I am blessed by God with those two little girls but I am blessed for the purpose of being a blessing. Now there's a seriously weighty truth!

"God blesses us (in order) that all the ends of the earth may fear Him."
Psalm 67:7

The Coconut and the Peach

Before we moved to France in 2005, Michelin provided us, along with the other soon to be expat couples, with a "cultural training" day. The title of this seminar was "Thriving in France", and this training was supposed to prepare us for cross-cultural living and the cultural differences that we would encounter in France. I was nine months pregnant with SA at the time and it was a whirlwind of a day, so I am sure that I forgot lots of things that would have been helpful, but I was pretty interested in this training that was specific to helping Americans prepare to live in France as I was in the middle of finishing my master's degree in Intercultural Studies at the time. I remember comparing American and French expressions and often quoted quotes which indicated values commonly held in each culture. I also remember one of our French instructors telling me about Picard where I could get "good surgeles" (already prepared frozen food). I am not sure if she knew the shock and exhaustion that I would experience when faced with the necessity of cooking more than I ever had in my entire life with no boxes or cans but entirely from scratch, but I was glad to know about stores like Picard while I was in France.

The thing that stuck with me from this class the most though was an analogy that was used to describe relationship building in each culture. Our instructors compared building relationships within the French culture to a coconut and building relationships in American culture (especially the South) to a peach. A coconut has a hard shell but once you "get in" it is full of sweet milk and fruit. (Is coconut a fruit?) Our instructors emphasized that it takes time to develop relationships in the French culture and advised us on tips like the gift giving that is important when you are invited into a French home and that being invited to someone's home is a really big deal. Once you have been invited you are "in" so to speak at least in terms of the coconut. During our time in France we enjoyed spending hours around the table of our home or the homes of our friends and enjoying meals together. It was often around the table that great discussions happened and relationships were built. Now we are back in peach country so to speak- where it is easy to get in but hard to go deep. It seems that Americans have many relationships on a superficial level so that even when you spend time together in each other's homes you can remain at the surface level longer- especially in the South where everyone is just nice. You can have polite conversations for hours and never really get past that hard peach pit. It seems frustrating to me right now, but I know that it all just takes time. I wonder how many meals we will share together before we are relationally at the point of sharing the first meal together in France? It is so strange to be back in my own country and have to adjust to my own culture all over again.

Franklin on the Fourth

My girls experienced their very first fourth of July in America this year! We spent a fun filled weekend in Franklin with Nini, Poppy, Aunt S, Uncle P, and the cousins which included pedicures and shopping for the mommies, coffee and reading time for the daddies, a double date night for the "young couples", ice cream, swimming and trampoline time for the cousins, and lots of good food and fireworks. We stumbled upon Franklin's main street celebration on Saturday and enjoyed the ambience and a pony ride as well. We made good memories and had a great time together! It is good to be back home.

Mighty To Save

I have been struggling to find joy in every day lately. In fact, some days I struggle to find joy at all. I know that this isn't the way that Christians are supposed to live. What kind of reflection of Christ is that to the world? Well, it's not a reflection of Christ; it's more a reflection of my failure and weakness. Thanks be to God, that He loves me in the midst of my failures and that HE made provision for me- in Jesus. You see, Jesus' death on the cross not only secured my pardon for sin that would separate me from God eternally after my death, it also provided the ability for me to live life to the fullest with Him in the here and now. He said, "I came so that everyone would have life, and have it in its fullest"(John 10:10). So, I am contending for the joy and the peace that I know is mine in Christ. You see that's what He promised us. He said it is His peace that He gives us- it's not the same as the peace that the world has- the peace that turns to panic in time of trial (as I often do). In John 14:27 Jesus said, "I give you peace, the kind of peace that only I can give. It isn't like the peace that this world can give. So don't be worried or afraid." The book of Isaiah says, "You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!" I desperately need this peace in these times of stress and difficulty and in this world of sorrow and pain. Right now I am choosing to trust Him and to look to Him, because I desperately need what He has to offer. Jesus said that we need to be joined to Him or to remain in Him. This is a daily decision, and He said, "I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete" (John 15:11). Lord, fill me today with your peace and with your joy. I need you, Lord, and I want the world to grasp the reality of who You Are- the true giver of life, joy, purpose, and meaning in life.

Watch this testimony of a girl I went to school with. She knows what she's singing about!

Mother's Day 2009

Le Renouvellement de la Cuisine est Demarré!

Et je suis contente! (The kitchen remodeling has begun,and I am happy!) My lights from my favorite store, "La Maison de Campagne" are hung, and as of today I have a farm sink with a Belle Foret oil rubbed bronze faucet. So, basically, the kitchen is starting its transformation, and hopefully I will begin my own as well. There is just something about being comfortable in one's own kitchen- loving the decor and moving around with ease because it just feels like home. I have admitted to everyone that I HATED the kitchen in the house that we bought and only agreed to buy the house on the condition that we wrapped a redecorating budget into the deal. So, we wrapped what I thought was a generous amount for remodeling into the deal and then I found out that actually everything is more expensive than I thought. Luckily, my father-in-law rocks and he helped us out on modifying both our island and sink cabinet and installing the sink. You see the key to my dream kitchen is the french country farmhouse look, and while I have compromised on many areas of the redecorating/ remodeling, I really wanted a farm sink. So, today, I got my dream sink installed. I know that sounds ridiculous, but it is key to achieving the look that I want for my kitchen- the look that will remind me of my fond memories of my house in the french countryside, and all that I learned while I lived there about cooking and enjoying life around the table. Take a look at these "before" pictures.










So while things are changing slowly they are changing surely. We got lights up, my island looks better as we took the doors off of one side in order to make a bookshelf for my cookbook collection, and today my sink and faucet were installed. We still have a long way to go with the walls, cabinets, and countertops, but it feels good to be on the way to a new kitchen that I know I will love! Here are the pictures that I took today:

On a Positive Note

In May there is a fresh produce market on Saturday mornings in downtown Greenville! I am way excited about going to check it out today. Hoping that it will be a shopping experience akin to our weekly market in Billom. I really miss that. I am so looking forward to the produce stands opening up around here too. I get tired of always having to go into a bigger supermarket to buy things- seems like I am always drawn to buy things other than just what we "need" - or I keep thinking, "I bet we are almost out of this or that and then what was supposed to be a 5 minute trip ends up being a 20-30 minute trip. But, wait, I am determined to remain positive. So, here goes:

10 Positive things about living back in the States:
1. Living close to family
2. South Carolina weather rocks! Sunshine most of the year is great!
3. I love my front porch swing!
4. SA is in a wonderful school where they are helping me to instill in her a love for God, His Word, and His world.
5. The language barrier has greatly diminished (although I do still have difficulties at times with "HoneaPAthese" ex. Do y'all understand the expression "Coming up a cloud"?
6. We have Target! And Old Navy!
7. We have Chick Fil A!
8. The Sportsclub has childcare!
9. Cooking in America is easier- recipes in English, ingredients readily found, etc.
10.D gets home around 5:00

There! See, and you all thought I couldn't be so positive!

Seasons

Spring rains are here. The Carolina jasmine is blooming along my back deck and the camelia is blooming in front of the front porch. Stripping wallpaper, painting a porch swing, and unpacking boxes have been my activities of late. I finally found the hardware to a very important wardrobe that I hope will bring organization to the playroom (which at present looks like it was hit by a tornado). How in the world will this task of unpacking and settling in ever be finished and everything in its place? Will everything ever have its own place? I hope so, because I think my heart will be more settled when all of our belongings are more settled as well.

Today I went to talk with SA's class about France. They sampled a baguette and some French cheeses. We sang "Frere Jacques" and I introduced them to the names of the colors and some farm animals in French. It was a short introduction to French, but it was fun to see SA proudly tell her class the names ofthe colors in French. Just yesterday we were listening to a CD (in French) and she asked me what they were singing about. I told her in French and she asked me to explain in English. Then while wating for an appointment she was playing with her French laptop that she played wtih for hours on end after Christmas before the move. This time she became frustrated because she didn't understand a game. She is forgetting already and it breaks my heart. I know that it will come back later when she begins to study or hang out with French people again, but I can't help but be sad. It is such a gift to be able to speak another language and I don't want her to lose the ability that she had. Everyone says that this is bound to happen when one returns to an English speaking country, but I guess I was hoping that it wouldn't happen to us.

I have just been opening every unopened box in search of the hardware for the wardrobe and as I was opening and going through boxes and boxes of stuff I came across a champagne cork in my jewelry. It is the cork of the champagne that we drank at the hospital after CG was born. A friend of mine who is a sage femme (midwife) came to visit me and when she learned of my "dechire" (tear) she smiled and said that CG was like "le petit bouchon du champagne" (champagne cork), so I kept this cork because it reminds me of my friend and of CG's birth. There are so many memories that we have of "la France" but it really seems like a dream now. We were just there 2 months ago but now we are here and everything is so completely different. I can't help but miss the familiar (never thought I would think of France as the familiar) and the home where SA lived from 6 mos to almost four and CG from 0-16 mos. I was a stranger there, but that little town and that little house endeared itself to me over the years. The neighbors were kind to me and we made some very good friends there.

This week we got word that our very kind next door neighbor passed away. He was the one who helped me when I got locked out of the house with SA in the house (see this post). He gave me a beautiful bone-handled pocket knife and told me that every good Auvergnate should have a pocket knife, so as I have been opening my boxes I have been thinking of him. His health started to deteriorate at the end of 2007, but he and his wife still always watched from their living room window and waved to us as SA rode her bike on the tennis court across the street from their house. He even walked over with his oxygen tank this past summer in order to help us with a plumbing problem. Before the move he became bed-ridden along with his wife and they called me a couple of times for help. We visited with them before we left and D prayed for them. He was such a kind man. He had seen many seasons of life, and he was God's provision in my life on several occasions. I am impressed by the importance of relationships today and how we touch one another's lives over the days, weeks, months, and years. I miss my home in France this week- my friends, and yes, even the language. It was a season of life for which I am grateful. Because of those relationships, I see the world differently. Because of that experience I hope that I am more full of grace with others.