Pool time!

What a long week! With Roberts working in the US since last Sunday, Lauris and I have been spending lots of time with all of our new friends here in Clermont to help the days pass more quickly. Thank you to everyone who had us over! Only I may have to learn how to better invite myself over for dinner, although so far “help! Roberts is out of town for a week, can I come over for dinner?” seems to be working…

Halte garderie update: I believe Lauris is feeling more comfortable spending time at daycare. Thursday he spent close to three hours there, and I was told he only cried for the first little bit. He ate his entire lunch, attempted to gain access to the garderie's documents and cash box, and was in good spirits when I picked him up. This is good news for my French lessons, hopefully I won’t miss any more class.

Thursday for the first time I ordered pizza from Pizza Yvon, the trailer on the corner next to Jardin Lecoq. It has delicous pizza (when there are no potatoes on it!), is close to our apartment, and the proprietors are quite the characters, which is why up until now Roberts has done the ordering. I didn’t want to risk an order by phone, so I stopped by to give them my commande… the Marseillaise (chorizo, merguez, poivron, oignon and fromage) but SANS pomme de terre. The man frowned; you must have pomme de terre on this pizza! Non, non, sans pomme de terre, s’il vous plait. Je n’aime pas les pommes de terre, Sam I am. Finally he acquiesced, only to tell me that I must have it sooner than the 30 minutes I proposed. But that too was resolved, and I headed across the street to the park to let Lauris walk around. After bumping into another mother from the IWC playgroup we ended up back at the pizza place 10 minutes late… Uh oh! Some scolding looks, jabs at a wristwatch, and finally an offer of wine while I wait. Non, merci! No, but you must try! Oui, oui, you must! Non, merci… Then something I did not catch at which point I had to tell him I don’t speak French. This elicits a loud merde! Then a five minute monologue to all the other customers waiting around for their pizzas, I assume about non-French speakers! But before too much longer I was on my way home with my pizza, sans pomme de terre.

 The weather has only been getting warmer and warmer, I would really like my shorts from the shipment please! And so our busy week culminated in a visit to my friend Marine’s house, to grill out, take a dip in the pool and play with her three children, of which Maël is only a few months older than Lauris and so makes a perfect playmate. I was honored to be present for his inaugural walk! After a wonderful day spent relaxing outside, eating delicious food and watching Lauris charm everyone, I have decided that there is at least one thing Americans and the French have in common; the love of grilling when the weather gets nicer, and not only the love of grilling, but grilling with a cold beer in hand! My friend from French class, Joanna, joined us for dinner with her family, and the sun set to the sounds of childrens’ laughter and conversations in four different languages. A wonderful evening, and merci beaucoup! to the hosts!