Best Spring Break Ever! We’re back from our 2-part roadtrip and we’re all smiles. I can’t wait to go through the photos and remember every detail. We spent today unpacking, hanging out in the yard and admiring everything that bloomed while we were away. It was fun to arrive home and remember that our house here is as pretty as any place we’ve vacationed. : ) When we went to the Dordogne region last week, Stephanie had this gorgeous welcome basket waiting at our hotel. It was full of regional goodies like wild strawberries, local honey and walnut oil. Wasn’t that the most thoughtful gift? Stephanie is a genius at details. I’ve never made a welcome basket for guests before, but receiving this made us feel absolutely pampered, so maybe I’ll have to copy Stephanie’s lovely idea. Do you do anything special to welcome guests? I’d love to hear your ideas.

These photos are of the Marqueyssac Gardens in the Dordogne region of France. Each year, they host a giant Egg Hunt on the day after Easter. The gardens are right near Stephanie’s house, so she invited us to join them for the hunt. I’m so excited! Doesn’t that first image look almost unreal? We are driving down on Easter Sunday — it’s something like a 6 hour drive. This will be our first trip south and I can’t wait to see what it’s like. images via Marqueyssac Gardens

I thought it would be fun to start this week with a tour of the studio (sometimes we call it the atelier) at La Cressonnière. Just outside the half bath, at the bottom of the staircase, is the entry way to the studio. Here is the door: I’m sitting in this room as I type. It is where I spend a good chunk of my day. And when the kids are home from school, if it’s not warm enough to be outside, they are in here too. It’s a wonderful room. The light is gorgeous. I can hear the birds outside and there’s plenty of room to spread out, even if I’m working on a big project. I love being in here. Come on in! …

La Cressonnière: StudioRead More »

For those of you who are curious about our school experience in France, I’ve packed this post with a whole bunch of fun facts. – School hours are longer here. For middle school, the day starts at 8:00 and ends at 5:00. For elementary school and preschool, the day starts at 8:45 and ends at 4:30. But, there are lots of breaks built in and generous lunch hours. – It’s a four day school week. On Wednesdays, there is no elementary or preschool. And the middle school has a half day — they finish up at noon. – Lunches are long — a full two hour break. Three courses are served and fresh bread is restocked, as it comes from the oven. According to our kids, their classmates finish all the food on their plates, have really good table manners and eat everything (except bread) with a knife and fork. – Ralph said he picked up a spoon to eat mashed potatoes and his friends gave him an odd stare. He asked what was up and they said spoons are for dessert only. …

More About SchoolsRead More »

I’m not sure if we’re being exposed to unfamiliar germs, or if it’s just been a harsh winter, but at least one member of the family has been sick since we arrived in France. Most recently, we enjoyed a round of pink eye, which kept Olive home from a field trip to the ocean, and Oscar home from a Carnavale parade. Being sick is such a bummer! To keep further sickness at bay, I’ve decided we need to step up the handwashing at Maison Blair. So I’ve been searching for ideas to encourage good hand washing habits. Here are three we’ve recently implemented: 1) We make hand-washing part of a few simple “routine reminders” I say throughout the day. For example, in the morning, I ask each child to remember their “hands, teeth, hair”. After school, I say “backpack, hands, snack”. 2) We sing a song while we wash, and we don’t rinse till the end of the song — so that we know we’ve washed long enough. (The ABC song is just the right length.) 3) We ask the kids to pick out the handsoap at the store (we use pump vs. bar because it seems to be easier for little hands to deal with). If they pick it out, they are more excited to use it. How about you? Any hand washing tips that work at your house?  

Would you like to read a little bit about the trip Mimi and I took to London? It was our first time seeing the city and thanks to your recommendations, I really think we had the ultimate London getaway. We stayed at the Grange St. Paul’s and it is literally across the street from St. Paul’s Cathedral — such a dramatic way to greet the city each morning.

There were loads of great restaurants nearby and even an adorable candy shop right down the street. We used the Big Bus Tour as our transportation (we could hop on right outside the hotel) and saw everything we hoped to see. We took a boat ride down the Thames to the Tower of London. Waved at Big Ben. Rode on the London Eye. Tasted our first Turkish Delight at Harrods. Took afternoon tea at Kensington Palace. Wandered around all seven stories of Hamleys toy shop. Ordered breakfast in bed. Took bubble baths in our swanky hotel room. And loved seeing Wicked.

We took so many pictures!

An unexpected treat: We’ve been working so hard on our French since we moved here, that it was a relief to be able to speak English freely — even for a few days. Can you believe how challenging it is to communicate in a new language? Makes me sweat!

P.S. — When Maude was very little, her nickname was Mimi, but in New York it sort of faded away. Here in France, she’s taken to introducing herself as Mimi again. I love it. It’s so cute and it feels so French, don’t you think? Do any of your kids use nicknames?

The kids are on a two week break from school. And it is soooo cold out there. (It looks like spring, but feels like dead of winter.) Consequently, we’ve been looking for good indoor activities and concluded that this is a perfect time to do some taste-testing. Today, we’re testing out a few products from the dairy aisle and tomorrow we’ll focus on candy. My favorite part about the dairy products is that many come in pretty little glass or ceramic containers. Of course, my brain immediately starts figuring out what sorts of things I could make or do with mini pots. Tiny flower arrangements for a baby shower. Votive holders. Little containers for mixing paint… What would you use them for? P.S. — I didn’t put anything in the photos for size reference, but these are all individual serving size — each one is only 2 or 3 inches tall.

It has been almost 2 years since our last family photo and I’m ready for another one. It’s definitely high time we had a family shot that includes baby June. So I’ve been keeping my eyes open for interesting family photos. This one by Max Wanger is so fun. What about you? Seen any terrific family photos lately?

We love a big wall calendar at our house, so I decided to make one this weekend. I used my kids’ watercolors — little tubes of gouache (pronounced gwash) — and oversize sheets of paper. If you haven’t tried gouache before, don’t be intimidated. It’s basically opaque watercolor, and it’s really easy to work with. Find instructions below. …

Watercolor CalendarRead More »

What a happy weekend. It was very rainy, but we did lots of exploring in our van anyway. We went to Rouen and saw the site where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. And we stopped at Ikea to pick up a high chair. On Sunday, we went to church. Our Mormon congregation here is teeny tiny — fifteen people not counting our family. And I have to say, I was delighted to realize how much of the Sunday School lesson (which was taught in French) that I understood. The drive to church could not be more picturesque. In fact, every time we get in the car to go anywhere I am stunned by the beauty of the countryside. Rolling hills, meandering rivers, picturesque farms, manor houses and cathedrals off in the distance. This building is at the entrance to the grounds of a castle, Chateau Carrouges, about 15 minutes from our house. We were driving by on our way home from church and decided to stop and check it out. Open grounds and we had the place absolutely to ourselves. Such a treat!

It’s fun to figure out the kids clothing scene here. I stop into every little shop and boutique I can find. Some are familiar brands like Jacadi and Zara. Others are new-to-me. Saturday we picked up June’s cozy little ensemble at a store called Verbaudet. It’s my favorite shade of pink — so muted it’s almost peach. I also window shopped at Cyrillus, which seemed so French to me — stripey boatneck tops and neutral colors. I love it all. Readers have been telling me I must visit DPAM (apparently it’s like a French Old Navy), but I haven’t happened upon one yet. Any other not-miss stores I should know about?

So what in the world should you pack if you are moving to another country and what should you leave behind? Great question. And the answer is a vague “it all depends”. Are you moving to a furnished apartment? How furnished? Will you need sheets and blankets? Will you be there for four seasons? What is the weather like? How much are shipping costs to your new city? How much baggage is allowed per plane ticket? How many kids do you have? How old are they? Will you be working while you’re there? Do you need work materials? And on and on and on… Clearly, if you’re contemplating a move abroad, your packing list will be very specifically tailored to your family and situation. In this post, I’ll tell you what we brought. …

What to Pack When Moving AbroadRead More »

This is a photo looking out our back window. Free range chickens! Roosters too. During breakfast, we hear the roosters making their morning hellos. Which I find very charming. Our next door neighbor runs a Petite Farm. She brought us some fresh eggs the other day and they were delicious. I’m not sure if my neighbor sells her eggs, but I hope so. I’d love to buy eggs from right next door. Wouldn’t that be lovely? She raises cows too, but I think they might be for beef, not milk. I’ll have to ask. The cows are pretty and white. At least two of the calves are still nursing. Baby June likes to stand at the window and watch the animals. We are working on our bawk bawks and our moo moos. I need to find out what French cows and chickens say. Do you know?

There have been sweet comments and emails asking more about food in France, so we took the camera to the market this morning and snapped some pictures so I could write a proper post. We love the food here. We’re so lucky to have easy access to fresh, local produce, and we think it’s wonderful that there’s a focus on what’s in season. When you buy something at the market, it will be placed in a little paper bag and the corners will be twisted up like this: The bag is filled with 4 small avocados because I’ve been craving guacamole. Question: should I feel guilty if I still crave non-French foods from time to time? : ) We also bought some gorgeous dried apricots. They were placed in a little bag too. We only wanted a handful or so, but couldn’t remember how to say quarter kilo, so we asked for a half kilo instead. Hah! At the dairy booth, we bought a nice big wedge of Carrouges cheese. We’ve heard it’s pretty mild and really, really good. I can’t wait to try it. We also bought a pint of fresh milk at the dairy booth. The milk was in big buckets and it was fun to watch them ladle it into this bottle: I’ve already had a glass full and it is wonderful. …

How We Shop & Eat in FranceRead More »

Here’s a fun little thing to show you. I was looking for a breath freshener and saw these at the supermarket. They’re called Lajaunie and they’re made in Toulouse. The “mints” are black bits — they look so small but have quite an impact. Very intense. The taste is somewhere between licorice and mint. I imagine the main ingredient is anise. Pretty packaging. To get out the bits, you twist the top and bottom till a little opening appears. The mints in the container make a nice shaking noise, so June thinks it’s a rattle. Want to try them? You’re in luck.

Here’s another mini-tour of La Cressonnière. Today, I’d like to show you the old stone floors and a the view down the pretty upstairs hallway. La Cressonnière dates to the 17th century. And it was added to in the 18th century. From what we understand, the stone floor in the kitchen and living room are original to the 17th century building. Apparently, in the summers, these floors and the thick stone walls keep the house very cool. (In the winter, that means slippers make a lot of sense, so that little toes stay toasty.) The photo above is actually of the floor in the hallway upstairs. But you can find photos of the living room and kitchen floors below. …

La Cressonnière: FloorsRead More »

Many readers have asked how Ben Blair and I are handling language learning for ourselves. The answer: French is the language we both studied in high school, and a little in college too. So we do know a few words. And I have to say, Ben Blair can do amazing things with the little bit he knows. So far, I have seen him interact confidently at all sorts of stores, at the school, on the phone and with our neighbors. He is so daring! But our little bits of French aren’t nearly enough, so we do have a plan. We are trying to hire a tutor who will come to our home and work with us Monday through Friday. Surprisingly, a tutor is proving hard to find, but I’m crossing my fingers it will happen this week. In the meantime, let’s all be inspired to learn a new language after watching this incredibly charming little video. Originally seen on The Paper Dialogues. Thanks for the link, Khali.

Are you curious about how we’re handling school while we’re in France? Today, I thought I’d write up a little report for you all about it. But first, let’s admire these pretty French school notebooks from Laughing Elephant. Aren’t they handsome? I love school supplies at any time of year and from any country. They make me want to write a book report. : ) Now to business. We have gone back and forth, back and forth on how to handle school for the kids while we’re here. But in the end found it was something that needed to be decided once we were actually here and could check out the schools and see how our kids were adjusting to the move. …

School in FranceRead More »

Here’s another peak of our rental home here in France. Today, I’ve snapped some of my favorite details from Olive’s Room. It’s actually Baby June’s room too, but my pictures of the gorgeous antique crib didn’t turned out, so we’ll revisit that yummy little tidbit later. This headboard is my favorite one in the house. Isn’t it lovely? Here’s a detail shot: …

Olive’s Room at La CressonnièreRead More »

We woke up to a fun surprise this morning. Eleven year old Maude set her alarm super early, so she could get up and play cupid. She set a fancy table for breakfast (with napkins folded into hearts) and sprinkled heart confetti around the house. So sweet! She also left a little gift at each place setting — a friendship bracelet that she made herself.

Breakfast was pancakes with raspberries and whip cream, and raspberry milk to drink.

What about you? Do you have any fun traditions for Valentine’s Day?

P.S. — Did you see the cute little felt hearts by Yeri Yun?