Jane and the ducks

Boat ride in Gent

 

La belle fete!

  

Friends & Family + delicious homemade cakes + champagne + cherries to pick + freedom to run around + wonderful presents + pinata + newborn baby to admire = a great birthday fiesta;-)

The Vest

 

How great is it to find a new cool vest on my bed when I come home? My mom is the best knitter (Lauren, you too, of course;-).

We went shopping in Roubaix today, a town with many factory stores. We found amazing things from Little Marc Jacobs at great prices... probably 70-80% off... We also bought lots and lots of shirts and underwear from Petit Bateau (the best of the best) and linen and other buttons and trims for future sewing projects at a ridiculously low price. A happy and sunny day!

Manon... 5 ans!

Happy Birthday little Manon! We always celebrate your birthday in France but I promise we will have a party with your friends from school when we go back home;-) I say that every year but it is more important now that you are getting a bit older and have best friends! I have a wonderful surprise for you this year! I think you will love your new doll because it is soft and pretty and special and more beautiful that I could ever imagine... (merci mille fois Penelope, it arrived this morning and we were still in PJ's when Mr. Le Facteur brought it;-) 

You also like tiny little toys and you can imagine and play on your own for hours, or sing and dance, all by yourself, not for show, just because you love it... XOXO 

 

Strawberry Fields

After the cherries on Tuesday (so yesterday;-), we picked strawberries today. A friend of my dad (a big thank you by the way) grows strawberries and he let the girls run in the fields and pick as many as they wanted! What a treat! They are huge, sweet and juicy and the best I have had a in a very long time!

 

Cherry Trees...

After a nice flight (Lily loved her AF dinner tray;-), we arrived in our small French village yesterday afternoon. Manon took a quick bath and changed in what I would call her hippie outfit to go pick cherries! What I really love about being here is to hear nothing else but birds and frogs in the morning...

 

Pinata Girl!

First thing we packed for our long stay in France this summer is the pinata for Manon's birthday! This is her favorite thing and we spent so much time looking for one in France last year that this time, we packed it (and the goodies too;-)... except for the carambars!

We're off!

 

Bye, bye DC! Be as hot and as humid as you like (we understand;-), we'll be back soon!

In the woods...

We slept in a little house, the children had a great time going on adventures, looking for fairies, catching fireflies... the parents enjoyed chatting and a little bit of wine... a perfect weekend except that I now have a tendinitis... yes, guess why? I went walking in the woods with Converse... note to self, Converse are not hiking boots! Remember it for next time! 

 

Summer!

That's it, the girls are on vacation! Little bouquets (I kept a few broken buds in a tiny vase and it tells me how long the bouquets will last in their respective homes;-) and little letters were given to their wonderful teachers. It's a great time of year for the girls (I can still feel the excitement on the last day of school, the freedom I felt) but there is also a bit of nostalgy of course... Teachers will be missed, Lily and Manon are growing, time is flying and I want it to slow down...

Anyways, we are going camping this weekend, I had to order a few sleeping bags because we are no outdoor experts, not yet;-) More on that when we return.