The run

While I was on vacation I only got to run twice, and one of those was not under the best circumstances. So this mornings run, although short, felt great!

Last night

Last night I was so tired that I completely crashed while putting the girls to bed. I know we prayed, but I don't think we even got to share our favorite part of the day. At some point Lionel came to check on me, but I was so tired that even though I momentarily woke up, I didn't move - much less got up. At 11:35 I woke up again, and finally moved to my bed. The bad news is that I didn't get to do any of the things I had planned. The good news is that now I am truly ready to face the day.

Today

Today was my first day back in the office. For the most part I managed to hang in there, but I was definitely not at the top of my game. I was tired, and didn't accomplish much other than getting updates on the state of things. But I did enjoy seeing my work friends again ... and I must say that they said they missed me.

And the winning memory is ...

During vacation the girls spent quite a bit of time in the pool, going in it after breakfast, after lunch, and before dinner. But towards the end of the week, Bella started to complain that her ear was hurting. We figured it was because she had spent so much time in the pool, as being there seemed to make it worse, so unfortunately by Friday she was unable to get in.

Today, when I picked her up from school, her teacher told me that her friends were really happy to have Bella back. She also told me that when they asked her about her vacation, she simply responded with "I had an ear ache". Got to love her!

The return

This morning we took our [direct] flight back home. After the initial confusion caused by bad organization and lack of clear signs at the Paris airport, we finally made it past the check-in and security, and made it to our flight on time. The total flight time is closer to 8 hours, but the time during which you get to seat in the plane is closer to 9.

We had been afraid of taking that flight with Bella, but she surprised us and was a great traveler during the entire flight. So for me, it was the most relaxing 9 hours I've had in a while. I watched 3 movies, read at least 50 pages of my book, and even took a nap. I couldn't believe it! Also, I was lucky enough to get the window seat, with the girls sitting in front of us. That meant that when they needed something, Lionel was in a better position [literally] to get up and help. I am usually the one helping them put, so it was a nice break for me.

When we finally arrived, and were waiting for our suitcases to come out, we were remembering that last time around, when we took Sofia at 2 and a half years old, she was so sick and tired of sitting on the plane, that when we finally arrived she literally started to run in circles, letting go of all her energy, until she was all sweaty.

We had a great time in Europe, but tonight we were all happy to get back home to our beds, our shower, our toys. The sad thing of being back though is that I am going to miss spending the entire day with my girls.

Last day in Paris

Yesterday was our last day in Paris. Our train left Avignon at about 10:15 am, so we arrived back in Paris in the early afternoon. We went straight to Lionel' uncle's apartment, and then to grab some lunch without the girls, because they preferred to stay home. After that we rested a little - as much as we could in the hot apartment without AC - and went to a closeby small museum with the girls, Lionel's uncle, and Lola and Rose, who are the daughters of Celine, Lionel's cousin. We then hang out in the apartment until dinner time, when the cousins and corresponding spouses came over.  I socialized with them as much as my French allowed me, although I also missed a lot, especially the jokes. But it was a nice evening, and I was happy to see Lionel reconnecting with them. He clearly seemed to belong there, and I hope that he gets to come back soon.

The kids table

At the beginning of the week, when we first arrived at the rental house, we all ate together at the big table that could sit all 10 of us. But as the week went by, we quickly discovered that if we let the kids eat first they behaved and ate better, and us adults could actually have a stress-free dinner, with a good adult conversation, and without having to get up a million times.

The countdown

I love seeing in Facebook all the fun things my friends in Cincinnati are doing. Instead of getting depressed about our vacation ending soon, that makes me look forward to going home and doing all those fun things with them.

Today is our last day in the rental house.  Tomorrow morning we are taking the train back to Paris, where we will spend one single night, and Sunday morning we will be taking our last flight, directly to Cincinnati. We will arrive home on Sunday afternoon, and I guess that Monday morning we go back to the routine.

Avignon Medieval

This morning we went to Avignon, the nearest city to where we are staying this week. In my non-expert opinion, Avignon looks very much like Guanajuato, Mexico, or at least it very much reminds me of it. From the entrance to the city, to the many narrow streets, to the overall architecture. Currently, there is also a festival going on where there are many small, made-up theaters around the city. It is an arts festival, which based on what I read also includes mime and cabaret, and has become an international event. This is another similarity with Guanajuato and the Festival Cervantino.

Two of the main attractions are "Le Pont d'Avignon", and "Le Palais des Papes" - I didn't know that either one existed, but the history of "Le Palais des Papes" goes like this: The papacy temporarily abandoned war-torn Italy, and Avignon became the center of the Roman Catholic World during the 14th Century. During this time, the papal court became a wealthy centre for both learning and the arts, extending its influence across the region. The history of "Le Pont d'Avignon" only says that the name of the bridge is actually "Pont St-Benezet", and that it is the subject of the famous rhyme "Sur le Pont d'Avignon", which Lionel has been singing this week, and is now stuck in my head.

Sur le Pont d’Avignon
L'on y danse, l'on y danse
Sur le Pont d’Avignon
L'on y danse tous en rond

Monique's Birthday

I was pretty happy with myself that I was the first one to remember that Monique's birthday is tomorrow,  although I am pretty sure that Lionel also had it on his radar.  It appears Monique didn't expect anybody to remember, so I am glad that we did and that all of us actually get to be with her.  If my memory doesn't fail me, this is the first time ever that Philippe and Monique get to be with both their sons, and all their grandkids, for any special day - or any day at all for that matter. So as far as I am concerned, this is a special birthday.

I asked what she wanted for her birthday, and she said cake. Easy enough then, cake it is!

On that note, next year will be quite the year in birthdays for our family. In January my mom turns 60. In April, Lionel's brother turns 50. In June my sister turns 40, and in July Monique turns 75!

Grottes de Thouzon

This afternoon we went to some "grutas" that were literally a 5 minute drive from our rental house. The point was for the kids to experience something different, and [for me] to get out for a little while. The "grutas" were a cool 13 degrees Celsius which was a nice break from the heat, and going there certainly accomplished the above two objectives. But in general terms, the place was underwhelming. They were not as high, wide, or impressive as we adults would have hoped for, and quite frankly [Lionel loves the part that is coming] they are nothing like the Grutas de Cacahuamilpa that we have in Mexico. Nonetheless, Sofia liked them.

The Art Sale

This afternoon there was some drama because Sofia asked me if I would sit down and draw with her, to which I said yes. I told her I would do it at the table, and not on the floor, after I finished whatever I was doing at the time. So she went and got her markers, and sat down patiently waiting for me. Unfortunately, Lionel had the idea of asking Bella if she wanted to draw with us as well, to which Bella said yes. She then pulled a chair right next to me, and reached out for the markers and some paper. This made Sofia immediately upset, because (in her own words) she was looking for some mommy and Sofia time and as such, she didn't want Bella to sit down with us. Bella refused to leave, saying that she also wanted to spend time with me, and Sofia refused to give in. I gave Lionel a look that was meant to say "Seriously?!? Now you better help me!", so he asked Bella if she wanted to go hang out with him. The answer was still no, so Sofia was still upset, and I was still stuck in the middle not wanting to disappoint either one of them. This went on for several minutes until one of them - probably Sofia - had the idea of drawing a bunch of pictures together and pretending to have an art sale. So they collected all the stuff, and went upstairs to their bedroom to draw their pictures and get ready for their Art Sale. 

Eventually they called us into their Art Sale. I was the first one there of course, and I was welcomed by a paper sign at their door step that read "Art Store". They had arranged all their drawings on the bed, divided in three columns, depending on the price. Some of their drawings were free, some were 1 euro, and some - depending on the effort it took to make them - were 2 euros. It was all very cute. I carefully selected two of their drawings ensuring that I picked one made by Bella, and one made by Sofia so neither one of them was disappointed. I also helped them make labels that read "SOLD" so that they could put them in front of the drawings somebody had already selected. The cousins were taking a nap at the time, but Lionel, Monique, and Philippe all played their part as art shoppers and paid real Euros for their "masterpieces". That made the girls very happy and proud, and of course I was there ready to capture the moment.

Traveling [not so] light

As I look at all the stuff we packed, and all the stuff we have used so far during our trip, I can confidently say that we packed too much. I still think we did a good job packing all the clothes for the four of us, for 17 days, in one big suitcase and a small one. However, we definitely could have done even better. For instance, we brought couple pairs of pants for the girls, some long sleeve shirts, and sweaters, because we didn't know how cold the weather would be in Copenhagen. But now we know, and if we go back, we know that long sleeves are not necessary as long as they have a sweater. And no need to bring couple pairs of pants or leggins. One pair should be ok, as long as we are able to do laundry. I also brought couple sundresses because I though we would be going out for dinner and I didn't want to be the frumpy american with shorts and t-shirt while everybody else  was nicely dressed. But next time I will bring one at the most, after asking ahead of time if one will be needed. I also brought three pairs of shorts, one nicer than the others, which I also though I would wear on a night out - something that hasn't happen. Also, next time I will still bring my running shoes, but only one running outfit Vs two.

As I was folding the girls clothes, I also realized that I packed like 5 pairs of shorts for Sofia alone, plus 4 or 5 skirts for Bella - among other stuff. All that would be needed if we couldn't do laundry, but since we are able to do so, then we could have significantly cut down on all the packing.

I won't continue with additional inventory of all our stuff, but let's just say that if we end up coming back this way next year, my goal will be to just bring one suitcase.

5K in Provence

When Lionel and his brother were looking at houses for this summer, I told Lionel that he could choose as long as the house met one condition: That I would be able to go running. Everything else, I knew he would automatically take care of it. The house we rented is lovely, but unfortunately for me, the running part is not really an option due to the narrow country roads that are busy at all times of the day, and the local drivers not quite being used to seeing runners.  So if wanted to run, my only option was to run inside the property - that is from the front of the house to the end of the gravel driveway, and back. I ran for 33 minutes, so considering my usual pace, I am pretty sure I ran 3 miles (or 5km). To get there, I had to run to the end of the driveway and back a total of 30 times! I was very annoyed, and made me feel like a hamster on a wheel, but I needed the exercise.

Provence - Full day #2

Today was our second full day in Provence, which means it was our second day with the following schedule: Eat breakfast, pool, eat lunch, pool, eat dinner, showers, and go to bed. I actually broke out of the basic schedule by sneaking in 30 minutes of running AND tagging along to go the supermarket, but other than that it was a sitting-around type of day. Getting some rest is all good and great, but tomorrow is day 3 and as we all know, by day 3 I need a change. So whether it is going to a nearby town, going again to the supermarket, or to a local farmers market, tomorrow we should definitely get out of the house. That is my mission.