Frustrated.

Couldn't sleep last night for the fear of missing my alarm this morning.  You all know that I would rather drop off the face of the earth than be late for anything!  I didn't know how long it would take me to get to their apartment by 8 in the morning, so I set my alarm for 6:30 just in case!  After Laine called to tell me she got into Ole Miss (woo hoo!! Hotty Toddy!) I got up to begin the day.  When I arrived at their apartment Marie-Cesare was in a foul mood.  So, I turned on a DVD, Cinderella 2...in English!  Everything was fine until 'maman et papa' walked out the door.  She FREAKED out.  It is much easier when I pick her up from school and she doesn't see her mother.  

Alas, we finished the movie, got dressed and went to creative painting class.  It is just around the corner and is this huge open building with lots of windows and colors everywhere.  Her class is upstairs and today she made 'un crocodile' from cardboard with help from her teacher.  While I was sitting waiting, I couldn't help but notice some super funny art on the walls.  

The hippopotamus absolutely made me laugh out loud.  

After class her "Didou"(grandmother) met us and took us to lunch.  I had une omelette avec fromage et salade verte.  It really helps me to be around Marie-Cesare with her family so that I can know how to react to different situations.  Although grandparents are usually different and tend to spoil, her Didou was very helpful.  She is so sweet and tries to speak English with me, our conversations are hilarious.  It usually ends up in me nodding my head yes even if I don't understand and then she will just quit talking if she can't say it to me in English.  Went back to their apartment to pack her things for the next few days and to wait around for the window man to come fix the windows.  

It was decided a couple of days ago that since I will be here for the Christmas season, that Marie-Cesare and I will go down to Provence with her "Padi et Didou" the week before.  Chloe, Franck and Gaspard will join us Christmas Eve for a few days.  Awesome news to me!  

Tonight was the museum opening and although it wasn't anything I would have gone to if I didn't have a VIP ticket, it was still interesting.  It was full of toys and wall art from a century ago.  Many people walking around wearing black, drinking champagne, and eating beaucoup d'hors d'oeuvres.  I walked around, gawking at the beautiful clothes (and shoes!) and trying to figure out what everyone was saying as I passed by.  Probably would have had a better time if Chloe were there to explain some things, but...I'm glad I went!  I didn't haul my camera so I didn't get any good photos of the Louvre or anything over that way, but I will soon-promise!  

Dinner tonight? Stopped by la boulangerie around the corner on my way home and bought a piece of quiche au jambon (ham).  

And to congratulate Laine on her admittance to the best school in the south-une tarte aux fraises (strawberries)! 

haha, okay, so maybe it wasn't all for Laine but it was ridiculously good.  

Day Two.

Slept really late today, I don't know if its the jet-lag still, or I am just tired! I did some research on which is the best bank, and had the best currency exchange rate.  I found out that down by the Opera there is a great place that doesn't charge a huge fee, unlike many touristy places.  So, I took my US dollars and headed down to the metro.  

The Paris metro system is one of the easiest, most brilliant systems.  Its easy to use, unlike New York, where I constantly found myself getting lost or not understanding where I was going!  I stepped out of the metro to what was a very chic and business oriented area.  Lots of shopping and tourists everywhere.  Where I live in Courcelles, there are little to no tourists, which is VERY nice.  You just go about your business and don't have to worry with the crowds.  I did have a win today! I was in fact able to exchange my currency! Yay!  As I was leaving the area, I snapped a few photos and headed back to Montmartre to pick Marie-Cesare up from school.  

We went to the park after school....that was an interesting experience for us both.  She immediately jumped into this sandbox...well actually, dirtbox.  She was dirty from head to toe.  Later, around 5:45 I tried to figure out how to tell her, "one more time."  She just couldn't understand me, and obviously I would say it wrong.  So I would tell her in minutes which was easier...but she has no comprehension of time so that didn't work either.  I ended up kind of dragging her home, and bribed her with un bon-bon on the way home! haha.... 

Tomorrow was suppose to be our first full day together, then the museum opening tomorrow night.  Her teacher is out sick, and Marie-Cesare's grandmother has decided to take her for a few days back to Versailles.  I am taking her to the creative painting class tomorrow, then we are meeting her grandmother "Didou" for lunch and shopping.  Chloe gave me the invitation to the museum opening in case I wanted to go.  She said that she had to work late, and that I was free to use her invitation.  Sweet!  Too bad I don't have anyone to go with me yet!  I will hopefully still have the chance to go by myself!  

Thursday and Friday I offered to keep Lila and Nile for Sabrine since Laurent is out of town.  Just for an hour or two while she gets out of the house!  I mean, she does let me do laundry in her apartment so I don't have to carry it up and down 7 flights of stairs! :) The least I can do is watch her kids for an hour. 

Tonight, I did wander down a few streets once I realized how close I was to L'Arc de Triomphe.  Well, it looked close from where I was standing, but it was quite the hike.  

It is hugeeeeeee.  I mean, I knew it was big but I had no idea it was going to be so awesome! It was absolutely beautiful...minus all the cars honking at each other and going in 45 different directions at the speed of light.  

Then, I turned to get my first glimpse of Le Tour Eiffel!

Everything is so nearby.  You can be anywhere within 20 minutes.  I am so thankful that I am not in a hurry to fit everything in!  I don't know how you could come here for a week and see everything.  You would have to come 20 times!  

Turning in for the night, have to be at the Lachaize residence at 8:00 in the morning!  If anyone is up at 11:30 tonight, text me and be sure I'm awake!!  ;) 

Learning.

Today was my first day with Marie-Cesare.  I was nervous from the get-go, because she really only says please, thank you, and you're welcome in English.  I unsuccessfully spent the morning trying to acquire a Carte Imagine'Air...the yearly student metro pass.  I went to 5 different metro stations and none of them had the right paperwork I needed to fill out!  What is the point in offering the card if you can't sell it?! 

I then unsuccessfully went to every bank on every corner in Courcelles, and none of them can exchange currency.  Fortunately there is one more bank that was closed today so I'll give it a go in the morning.  I did however manage to go to the nearest Monoprix (scaled down Super Target) and get some milk, cereal (Cheerios!), funny shaped tomatoes, and eggs.  I stopped in the boulangerie on the way home and picked up a baguette.  Oh. my. gosh. C'est delicieux!! I have never tasted bread like this before...so crunchy crispy on the outside and warm and chewy on the inside.  Perfectly golden brown and handed to me as if I were going to just eat the whole thing on my way home.  

Took a picture of the building across my street.  All of these are taken with my phone, I hope to get my camera out tomorrow and take some quality shots!

I have to go to the OFII in the morning to fill out some paperwork.  Maybe go see if I can find my school.  I will go on the 22nd to see what level classes I will be placed in.  

My afternoon with Marie-Cesare was....very interesting!  I arrived about 30 minutes early to her school (to give me enough time if I got lost to get reacquainted with the area) so I walked around the corner and sat on a park bench to wait.  It is about 50 degrees outside...not hot by any means, but not cold either.  I couldn't help but notice that EVERYONE has on winter coats, scarves, gloves, hats, and boots.  It's hilarious.  Around 4:25 I walk back around the corner to the school, and there are about 50 nannies/au pairs/grandparents there to pick up their preschooler. I look around for anybody who speaks English or looks like they're from the US, just to make a friend. Nobody.  

So, I pick Marie-Cesare up from class number 2, and we very quietly walk back to their flat.  I learn more from her I think than she does from me.  She knows that I'm there to help teach her English, but being 3, she isn't as willing to learn as Gaspard.  I have to integrate ways for her to learn words through books and playing, instead of just speaking.  That is of course, when I can understand what she's asking me.  Gaspard is at his mother's this week, which is too bad because he may have helped me out a little.  

We played dolls, colored, play-doh, and read beaucoup de livre!  Then bathtime and dinner.  Some frozen meatballs Chloe asked me to cook and Coquillette, and egg based pasta. 

Chloe got home around 7:30 and Marie-Cesare went crazy!  She had been really good all afternoon and then when her mother walked in she was all over the place!  Learned how to work their dishwasher, where to put the dirty clothes, and not to forget the lotion after every bath!  

Wednesday evening we are going to some museum opening and meeting Chloe, I didn't get many details...but she said she would explain more in depth tomorrow.  

Climbed back up my flight of stairs tonight....I hope that no one can hear how out of breath I am when I reach the top of the winding stairway. ha!!! I imagine there will be some days when I think its just easier to sleep at the bottom!  

Arrival in Paris

Shout out to Holly and Laura!! We were suppose to be able to have a nice lunch Friday at the DFW airport (maybe peanut butter crackers…but the company makes it nice, ha!) but….my flight was 2 hours late because of weather.  I was able to see them for a mere 15 minutes, tops. You guys are the greatest!! I am sure you both took off work/school Friday, drove a couple of hours (minimum) all to see me in a crazed mess!! I love you both SO much and it means so much to me that you would come see me before I head off on my great adventure!

Franck, Chloe, and Marie-Cesare met me at the airport with open arms.  They all look exactly as they do in their pictures.  Marie-Cesare being this cute "little French girl with little French shoes" as Mike would say.  5 minutes into our car ride, Marie-Cesare started getting antsy and Chloe said it was because my hair was in a pony-tail.  What a peculiar girl already!  Chloe said that when she gets in the shower and puts her hair up in a clip, that Marie-Cesare hates it! So, I quickly take my hair down and everything is fine!  (Which means I might be getting a hair cut verrrry soon.  You all know how much I hate to have my long hair down all day.)  

As we're sitting in the back seat together on the 30 minute ride to Montmartre, she leans over and asks me to read a book.  I pick it up and its a very familiar title, Richard Scarry's, The Naughty Bunny.  I quickly open it to find that it's completely in French of course!  Good thing my reading skills are better than my speaking skills.  As I was reading the book, I noticed myself paying more attention to reading the words than putting any emotion into it. I sounded like a robot!  haha, but Marie-Cesare didn't seem to mind so we read it until the end.  

Once at their flat, Gaspard had gotten home from his friends house.  He is so adorable!! He had just gotten his top braces on, and still in that awkward don't want to smile stage.  He is so sweet to Marie-Cesare and they seem to love each other very much.  Chloe said they have their "moments" but most of the time they get along great.  

We left Montmartre, to head to my part of town, Courcelles.  Its a beautiful neighborhood with typical "picturesque" Parisian buildings.  The metro station is just up the street about a 3 minute walk.  I do have to walk up 7 flights of stairs (yes, 7) but that is the norm and something I will hopefully get use to.  Luckily we were able to use the small elevator with all of my suitcases!!  I met their friend Sandrine, and her two children, Lila(3) and Nile(4 months) who own my "chambre de bonne".   Lila is Marie-Cesare's best friend.  My "chambre de bonne" is small, but not as small as expected!  Everything is new...shower, small fridge, heater, mirrors, windows, new paint, so it is actually very nice.  No closet of course, but my things fit very nicely! 

 Chloe bought some basic groceries for my first night which was so sweet!  

First meal in Paris:  arugula and ham salad with mustard vinaigrette.  Jus de pomme to drink and a small chunk of hazelnut chocolate for dessert.  YUM. 

My French is going to be very good when I come home, I expect.  I guess I didn't think about how I would be thrown into this French speaking family that speaks French ALL the time!  Well, I did, but its so different hearing French spoken with an English accent that I've been use to in school all these years.  Communicating with Marie-Cesare and Gaspard is going to be difficult this first couple of weeks, but I'm ready for the challenge.  Going to my welcoming party today at 4, first trip on the metro to their flat!  

  Listening to the bells of Notre Dame as I wake up on this rainy, Sunday morning...

3 days!!!

Thank you Kaelah!

Thanks to some much needed help from Kaelah (and Mike of course), my blog is now acceptable to send out to all of you to read!! The past few post have been more for my personal interest, so that I can look back and remember how I was feeling during this whole process.  But-I promise to post as soon as I can after arriving in the city of lights!  

Although I am still so excited about going, I am getting nervous.  I am really doing this.  I am moving to another country where I don't know anyone, I have no idea where anything is or how to get around, and I am not fluent in the language.  Am I crazy?! Hopefully not, and hopefully just like every other situation life has thrown me so far I will adjust and be happy!  These are the kind of situations in which my perpetual optimism comes in handy.  Thanks to all my friends and family who have supported me...I am forever grateful and cannot wait to share everything with you!  

So blessed!

Since coming back from my whirlwind trip around the Southeastern United States, I have realized one thing.

I have the BEST and most supportive friends that ANYONE could ever ask for.  Period.

I spent some time with my sweet cousin's Landon and Melanie in Memphis....then the best weekend with all of my Pi Phi pledge class sisters at Stephanie and Reynolds wedding in Jackson, MS.  After that a short stint in Destin with my mom and sister, then to Atlanta to see my dearest...Margaret.  A few days later I drove back to the Eastern time zone to my favorite place in the world (yet), Cashiers, NC.  The leaves were beautiful this time of year and I drove around with my windows down and enjoyed the crisp, fall, chill.  I got to spend time with my favorite Ukrainian girls, Olga and Alona, and was able to have a quick breakfast with John!  I am going to say my "farewells" to the Square Market crew on Wednesday, and see some of my high school friends before I leave.

It was definitely crazy, but I (with a few of you reading this) am so glad that I was able to make this journey.  It was wonderful to see each and every one of you...and I am thankful every day that you are my friends and my support group.

Busy. Busy. Busy.

My last day of work is tomorrow, and I am very happy to say that I am honestly excited about it!  Sure, I would love to keep working through the end of the month and keep having what little bit of income I did have...but now I can concentrate on this amazing adventure I'm about to embark on.  I have been very torn about everything since I went to talk to my dad last week.  We don't always see things eye to eye, and our views on the next year of my life are as different as black and white.  But, c'est la vie.  I love him still the same and his opinion will always be important to me!

I am waiting on paperwork from Chloe and Franck, and after I get that I will be heading to Atlanta to apply for my visa.  All the paperwork will delay my trip until mid-November instead of the 1st.  Regardless, I am happy that I am doing all this paperwork myself because I have learned more about how each government works.

Chloe emailed me last week and said that Marie-Cesare started her first "creative-painting" class.  I can't wait to see what a 3 year old comes up with in a creative-painting class! :)

Spending the next couple of days in Memphis with my precious Landon and Mel, Stephanie and Reynolds wedding this weekend in Jackson with the Ole Miss crew, then Destin with mom, Laine, and her friends until Wednesday! I'll be busy for sure, but maybe it will keep my mind off this slow paperwork process!