Dinner parties and miracles

Please follow this link to my post for today: Thank you for reading!

http://mindofahummingbird.wordpress.com/2012/03/25/dinner-parties-and-miracles/

Hello Friday!!!

Hello Friday, you look GORGEOUS!

I'm linking up with Lauren from: http://www.frommygreydeskblog.com/  and here are my High Five For Friday personal highlights for the week.

1~ I finished a new crochet piggy bride and groom couple and I love them, especially their tails!

 Look at those piggy tails!!

2~ Count down to our Florida return has begun (10 days till lift off) and with that comes the packing and cleaning and trying on of summer clothes. I am thrilled to say that I can fit into several items in my storage bin that were not working a few months ago! (stands up and takes a bow).

3~ I have been bouncing around the idea of changing my blog setup and have just begun working with a Wordpress template as a possibility. Please check it out and let me know what you think but remember it is in the embryo stage. mindofahummingbird.wordpress.com

4~ My new crochet project today is a set of love birds. Stay tuned! Cute to the max! 

5~  In looking through photos I rediscovered this one from Paris. Sigh...I still wake up every morning hoping I'm still there.

Thank you for checking my blog out. I hope to see you again soon. And please let me know what you think about the Wordpress move. Merci! And have a fabulous Friday!

Paris-Day 2

I've been traveling quite a bit lately and because of that it isn't uncommon for me to wake up and have no idea where I am. So day 2 of Paris I did just that.  Blinked a few times, waited for my head to clear from the muddled dreams and as the fog cleared I heard traffic far away and the hammering sounds of construction.  I looked around the room and remembered....I am in Paris.  

Opening the window and stepping out into the brisk December morning, I drank in the sights and sounds, including the construction on the other side of our street where the Military Academy was. 

What to do with our brief, golden hours of daylight.  We head out to coffee.  Since we have been living in France long enough to understand the way things work, it wasn't difficult for us to find a cafe and order coffee and croissants. Paris isn't necessarily more expensive then any other city, its just as expensive. We drank our coffee and looked over our city maps while waiting for the croissants to come out of the oven. Well, we ran out of coffee before the oven could finish so, naturally, we needed more coffee.  Our bill for breakfast was as follows:

4 coffees

+

4 croissants

=

25 euros

or

$32.34

Needless to say, I wanted to dive out the window while Dennis was down in the bathroom.  Somehow, spending $32 on pastry and coffee seemed extravagant. Delightful but extravagant. 

After our breakfast debacle we walked toward Madame Eiffel to see how bad the crowds were at the tower elevators. And they were bad.  The tour buses parked on the side streets were a good indication. So we continued to the river where we discovered the boat shuttle that would bring you past 7 major sights and allow you to board and disembark all along the river, all day long. That was for tomorrow.

We continued across the river toward The Arc de Triomphe were we watched in fascination as eleven streets emptied out into the round about without direction or order. Complete chaos. I couldn't take my eyes away from the hornets nest of cars and buses, motorbikes and trucks swirling and vying for position around this massive monument that Napoleon commissioned in 1806 to pay tribute to his victories in battle. The foundation alone took 2 years to complete.  Sadly, the structure wasn't completed until 1836...not in time for the Emperor to see it for himself. However his remains were brought through the Arc before they were laid to rest in Invalides. You reach the Arc by passing through a tunnel under the crazy street above.  Walking around and through this beautiful 164 foot historical piece makes you feel tiny and brief.  For a fee, you can also walk up to the top and bask in the view.  It marks the beginning of the Champs-Elysees "the most beautiful street in the world".

Almost time to pack for Florida!

"I'm leaving on a Jet plane"

It's that time again for us. We have been staying here in France caring for my mother-in-law since the  beginning of January and come April 2nd we will be flying home for a long visit. In fact, for quite a while. The other siblings in the family, my husband's brother and two sisters, will be coming to take turns looking after their mother and visiting with her. So Dennis and I will be returning to his family in Florida for the month of April, May and a little bit of June! I already have plans to fly up to RI to see my family as well. I am really excited to be home again with everyone. I can't wait to drive our car again! It sounds small but believe me, once you are cut off from being independent you really enjoy the simplicity of getting in your car and just going.

I do worry about Miss Anna when we leave. Sadly, she cannot come home with us because there is no where for her to stay in FL. My step-son-in-law (that is probably not the proper way to write that) is very allergic so Mistress Anna must stay behind, soaking up the sun here in the South of France and keeping Denise and her visitors company. I wonder what Anna's journal entries will be like during the time we are gone?

                                                                                                                              April 2

Well...they left for the airport today. They seemed sad to leave me but I think they did it on purpose. All this talk about allergies and difficulty with my travel papers. It all sounds suspicious to me! Well, at least I can con everyone here to give me tons of treats and overfeed me while Sarah is gone! I'll be living the high life here in France while they sweat it out in Fl :) Hahahahahaha

At least that is what her eyes say when I pull my suitcase down and start selecting things to take with me. Anna sits in the hallway outside our room, head on her paws, with this look of absolute abandonment mixed with a "how could you?" look of betrayal. Its gonna be so hard leaving her!

In flux

I am trying to decide whether I should switch to a different blog setup. I want to get the most readers and followers I can and I wonder if a change would facilitate that. Since I know just about nothing about blogging and getting my blog visited, I'm really writing blind here. Any and all suggestions that you dear readers would like to make, I accept gratefully. And here is a link to a practice switch that I am thinking about.  http://mindofahummingbird.tumblr.com/  Please visit it and let me know what you think.

Should I stay or should I go?

Little One

Why can't I be more like my dog Anna? She is satisfied with one meal a day and it is always exactly the same. No complaints, no refusal to eat (except when she is on a hunger strike, which is rare) She only drinks water so we never have to make a run to Italy for her when the vodka runs low. All she ever wants to do is exercise, seriously...it is the biggest treat for her. Walking or running makes her happy. She can jump at least 4 feet effortlessly. And I never see her sweat.

Anna is always agreeable to anything. No decision makes her upset, she packs light, never gets cold or hot, requires no special attention or plan. She is spontaneous and always in a good mood.  She is very clean, willing to lick your hands, the dinning room floor or any other spot you require. Anna has no problems relaxing, often sprawling in the center of the hallway or any other place you need to walk through, particularly if you are carrying something heavy and//or hot. She has an uncanny way of knowing in advance where would be the most inconvenient place for her to lay and she promptly lays there.

She has no addictive habits like caffeine and never complains that her feet hurt, head hurts, stomach hurts or that she is tired. In fact, she never complains, no matter what. If we leave her home she doesn't throw a fit. If we wake her up early she never grumbles. Even if we were to stay up all night, with the TV on, she would only sit near enough to be pet, leaning against you.

Anna happily chews on her toys, never gum or candy. She never uses all the hot water and dirties several towels. In fact she produces no laundry what so ever. No personal body products are ever consumed by Anna. She never complains about her pillow or mattress, she happily sleeps on the floor! You never have to change her sheets or buy her new furniture and she never whines about the chairs being uncomfortable.

My mother-in-law Denise spends hours each day talking to Anna about everything and nothing. Denise calls Anna "Little One". Hearing Denise chatting away reminds me of something else extremely valuable about Anna. She keeps secrets. I mean, really keeps them. Although there are times her eyes seem to speak volumes, she never divulges even the raciest, juiciest of tales. She is a vault, locked down!

Anna is never a backseat driver. Nothing fazes her. You can miss the turn, stop short, even forget where you are going and she acts as if she doesn't even notice.

Hopefully no one else in the family will ever catch on to how much more valuable Anna is than me, otherwise I may get left out on the balcony.

Paris-Day 2

I've been traveling quite a bit lately and because of that it isn't uncommon for me to wake up and have no idea where I am. So day 2 of Paris I did just that.  Blinked a few times, waited for my head to clear from the muddled dreams and as the fog cleared I heard traffic far away and the hammering sounds of construction.  "Construction? Where am I?" I looked around the room and remembered....I am in Paris.  

Opening the window and stepping out into the brisk December morning, I drank in the sights and sounds, including the construction on the other side of our street where the Military Academy was. 

What to do with our brief, golden hours of daylight.  We head out to coffee.  Since we have been living in France long enough to understand the way things work, it wasn't difficult for us to find a cafe and order coffee and croissants. Paris isn't necessarily more expensive then any other city, its just as expensive. We drank our coffee and looked over our city maps while waiting for the croissants to come out of the oven. Well, we ran out of coffee before the oven could finish so, naturally, we needed more coffee.  Our bill for breakfast was as follows:

4 coffees

+

4 croissants

=

25 euros

or

$32.34

Needless to say, I wanted to dive out the window while Dennis was down in the bathroom.  Somehow, spending $32 on pastry and coffee seemed extravagant. Delightful but extravagant. 

After our breakfast debacle we walked toward Madame Eiffel to see how bad the crowds were at the tower elevators. And they were bad.  The tour buses parked on the side streets were a good indication. So we continued to the river where we discovered the boat shuttle that would bring you past 7 major sights and allow you to board and disembark all along the river, all day long. That was for tomorrow.

We continued across the river toward The Arc de Triomphe were we watched in fascination as eleven streets emptied out into the round about without direction or order. Complete chaos. I couldn't take my eyes away from the hornets nest of cars and buses, motorbikes and trucks swirling and vying for position around this massive monument that Napoleon commissioned in 1806 to pay tribute to his victories in battle. The foundation alone took 2 years to complete.  Sadly, the structure wasn't completed until 1836...not in time for the Emperor to see it for himself. However his remains were brought through the Arc before they were laid to rest in Invalides. You reach the Arc by passing through a tunnel under the crazy street above.  Walking around and through this beautiful 164 foot historical piece makes you feel tiny and brief.  For a fee, you can also walk up to the top and bask in the view.  It marks the beginning of the Champs-Elysees "the most beautiful street in the world".

From here we took the Metro and arrived at The Louvre were we spent several hours walking through vast rooms filled with artwork that boggles the mind. From Mona to Venus...there is seemingly no end to the painting, sculptures and artifacts. One of the most mind blowing pieces for me was the Egyptian artifact that was dated to the days of Moses. How is that even possible?

In all the guide books and all the blogs you read the advice to plan in advance what you want to see, otherwise you will get overwhelmed and tired.  We tried to do just that but once you are there, surrounded by so much history and beauty, its impossible to stop looking. When you sit down to eat a special meal, you eat and eat until you are ready to burst. That is what we did in the Louvre. We looked and looked and looked until we were so full mentally of art and beauty that I thought I was going to burst. Thankfully the museum closed at 6 PM and we were forced to get up from the art and history table.

Even the view outside was breathtaking with Madame Eiffel always watching us, like the moon following the car. No matter how many times I photograph her, its never enough. I always want to take just one more shot, from just one more angle. When I look back now, I wonder how I managed to walk through Paris at all without tripping as it seems as though I never stopped looking through my camera. Pinch me, I'm dreaming.

Paris-Day 1

My first thought as I climb up the metro steps and surface on a street in Paris, "I can't believe I'm hot and its 30 degrees and raining. I'm sweating". We stop at a perfect pastry shop to ask for directions to our hotel and a kindly women in a clean brown apron points toward the left and nods and smiles at us. So we pull our luggage (mostly my luggage) in the direction she waved us. Its dark and raining. We reach the corner of the street quickly. We look left and see our hotel brightly welcoming us across the street. I turn to Dennis and say "that was easy to find" and behind him I see this.

And then I think, "Where do I go from here? What do you do when you have fulfilled your oldest dream?"

There is so much to absorb. I want to stand on the street and just stare. But the rain moves me toward our hotel. Crossing the cobblestone streets and splashing through puddles. Our hotel is modest and clean. Nothing fancy except for the wonderful bathtub with endless hot water and of course, the view. 

I just want to stand out on that balcony and soak in the moment. Why is this tower of metal and light so magical for me? I can't say, not even standing with her right there in front of me. But I can't take my eyes away and I never get tired of looking at her.  The train ride was lovely, traveling from Nice to Gare de Lyon. Everything is happening so fast. In the blink of my eyes the countryside of France has fled by the window and we arrived in the basement of Paris. Changing from the train to the Metro system was easy, just lots of stairs to climb and tunnels to navigate.  In what felt like a few quick heartbeats we are in our hotel room changing clothes and heading out for dinner. Can this be happening? I am in Paris. I really truly am. I feel like a silly little girl again. I can't stop smiling. In many ways the journey here to Paris took years, long sad years. It was my dream to see this place, to walk the streets and drink deeply of her history and romance. I hoped and dreamed it but never felt certain that it would ever happen. That's how dreams are, right? Elusive. Paris was the theme of every calender and yearly planner I bought, every picture I hung in my room, every movie I watched. Napoleon was my obsession. France was where I always wanted to be. 

And now, I am living in the South of France and I am walking on a street in Paris, with the lights of the city twinkling around me, holding the hand of the best man I have ever known, someone who truly loves me and speaks French. How did this happen? Don't wake me up.

A year from now

I am that type of person. The kind who takes things like moments, dates, anniversaries seriously. I stop, reflect...feel sad about the passage of time and wonder about the coming year. The next thing.


Paris.  All I ever wanted was to see Paris.  I would dream of learning French and walking through the streets unconcerned and at home, like a native. I would wander in my mind along cobble stones streets and across bridges, listening to the history of a world I've never know, getting lost in the immensity of it all. 


I've never been to Paris.


I can't speak French 


And yet, in less than a month, I am moving to Roquebrune Cap-Martin, France. 


600 miles south of Paris.


A year and half ago I was living in a room off my parents' kitchen. Not even a bedroom but a living room off my parents' kitchen. With all of my possessions in a 5 x 10 foot storage unit, except for my dog and my shoes and my many many clothes. And my TV.


And now I am married and living in Florida, with my dog and some of the shoes and more and more clothes.  I am trying to pack three months worth of clothes into 2 suitcases that will weigh less than 50 pounds a piece.  Sounds like a math problem that requires paper and a number 2 pencil to figure out. 


Life is wild, if you let it be. If you live without fear or at least without letting fear rule you. I was afraid for years. After dreaming of Paris....I forgot how to dream and I boxed myself in with fear as my only companion. 


I still feel fear. And regret. I still worry about what could have been, or should have been or what I didn't do. And yet, even with all of that, I am moving to France. I am going to learn French. I am going to write more every day. This is what I promise myself, today, June 18. The 34th anniversary of my beginning. I will reach that goal I dreamt of when I was young and poetic and a wanderer of wooded places. In the years when I would sit on the rocks under the trees in the woods behind where we lived and dream of what could be. I will learn French and not be afraid of new places and new things because that girl, that young dreamer reading poetry out loud to the babbling brook at her feet and the chickadees in the branches over head, because she believes in me. http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&pwst=1&q=roquebrune+cap+martin+france&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&biw=1276&bih=595&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=0x12cde999c102ce85:0x23682a842cf14aa0,Roquebrune-Cap-Martin,+France&gl=us&ei=ok79Te6tKYnBtgf58u28Dg&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CCIQ8gEwAA