Looking back (and forward!)

It's hard to believe that it is the eve of our first return to the United States since we moved here 5 months ago. In some ways it seems like we have been here FOREVER...and in others it seems like just yesterday.

It's funny - as a parent, you don't notice the change in your children as much as people that see them much less often.  Obviously, seeing them daily makes it difficult to notice the subtle changes in how they mature. It's the same way with our adjustment here in France - while it doesn't seem like much changes from day to day, we've made leaps and bounds since we arrived in August.  We went from a completely empty house to what feels like home - home enough to have welcomed our first house guest last month!  Audrey has not only started at school (after WEEKS of hoops to jump through) but she is thriving there.  What has also amazed me is her language aptitude. While we lived in the US, she understood French well but never utter a word of it.  Now, she speaks in complete sentences to Jean in French.  Incredibly, in the same breath, she'll look at me and change back into English.  I have noticed that she speaks exclusively to Thomas now in French.  Poor little guy now hears "Touche pas, Thomas !" screamed at him constantly instead of "Don't touch this!".

As for me, things are coming along.  I feel more comfortable with my French now and I have ventured out of my comfort zone more and more.  While my immigration papers are taking longer than expected, things are coming along.  I am also starting to think more seriously about my work options here which has me very excited to be able to take what I am most passionate about and weave it into our new life here.

That said, I am looking forward to our trip home.  It'll be a second Christmas for the kids and its nice to try and extend the holidays a bit.  I don't think that I have any huge cravings for anything in the US.  While I would hesitate to admit my former love of Dunkin Donuts iced coffees, I think the affair has ended (yes, I had Jean bring me one the morning he and Audrey came to visit me in the hospital after Thomas was born!). For now, I am looking forward to the kids to play with their cousins and to have the Christmas I remember as a child.  Hopefully those lovely thoughts will keep me going through the 15+ hour journey home with an infant and a toddler.  Oh, and just in time for a huge snowstorm in the Midwest.  Perfect!  Anyway, Merry Christmas all and wish us safe travels! 

Oh, and a little montage of photos from our first 5 months here in France...

           

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

I know...my space in between posts is getting longer and longer.  I've had a couple people ask about my next entry and truthfully it has been in the works for a while.  With Christmas right around the corner, we've been a little busier than normal.  I promise that a New Year's resolution will be to write more often!

For anyone who knows much about Strasbourg, it's a pretty cool place to be in the Christmas season. The Christmas Market or Christkindelsmärik have been around since 1570 and is a pretty serious tradition here. Here you can buy all your Christmas goodies and then some. For me though, walking around under all the lights with a cup of mulled wine and browsing the various stalls is an experience that can't be missed. Luckily my little sister Stefanie was here for the first weekend of it and I hope she enjoyed it as much as we did.

This year seems like it will mark the beginning of an era - partly because of the huge move we have just made but also because Audrey is now almost 3 and she'll start to remember traditions being set. Jean and I had a discussion about Santa since we wanted to make sure we were on the same page.  She was too young last year so we had to decide if we'd tell her about the jolly fellow or not this time around.  I wasn't crazy about his introduction since I have somewhat painful memories of finding out he wasn't real (long story...).  However, I was convinced otherwise and it looks he'll be making a visit to Alsace this year. It's a strange power that parents have in this sense - you can make your kids behave incredibly well for the month preceding his arrival with the threat of him calling the whole thing off.  At the same time, you have the ability to have your babies believe in the magic of Santa and see their eyes sparkle when his name is mentioned. I don't think I ever realized how it would be to be on the other side of the whole Santa thing.  I have to say - it's pretty darn cool.

Speaking of cool - it's downright cold here!  I don't think there's been a day in the past week that's been much over freezing.  Audrey has relished this wintertime wonderland (for a week straight she insisted on wearing her snow pants while in the house). Meanwhile little Thomas (who has had a couple nasty colds) and I have done more hanging out indoors. The picture to right pretty much sums it up kids' hangouts.

Here's a couple extra pictures from our first Christmas in Alsace.  Enjoy!