My extended family

I had changed my mind. There I was, in the Cleveland airport, saying good bye to my parents, and I really had changed my mind. One good bye led to another, then to another...I was stalling. Finally, I hugged my dad and he whispered in my ear, "Just go." Thank goodness he did, thank goodness I did. Here are my beloved french sister and brother. Like I have said before, I didn't know how much I missed them until I saw them again.

Here we are having the traditional Tarte Flambe in Alsace with french mom and her beau. Tarte flambe is a thin bread crust with a creme fraiche sauce. There's some form of bacon- more like a pancetta on it. When you go to a restaurant, they bring them out one at a time. The waitron keeps bringing the same thing out until you tell them to stop. It's very social and fun. It goes well with beer or white wine.

It was wonderful to be back in France. I felt like I was "home."

Comments

mimi and papa said…

Home is where the heart is and it is your good fortune to be at home with your extended family. Is it my imagination or does your french brother resemble your man? The three of you are family, no doubt and neither miles nor years can diminsh the bond. I'm so happy that you had the opportunity to be together once again! True love can only expand the love we have for everyone we love. Beautiful!

August 15, 2007 at 7:27 PM

Anonymous said…

HELLO ITALY! We have your "Nanny", and are delighted to say that she arrived here in the states with all the zest and pep that she usually keeps in her bag of tricks. We spent the evening out on the deck... don't worry, it hasn't changed much since you were here last... and have been hearing stories about your new home, including your lawn inspiration. Upon further investigation, we came upon this website that we thought you would find interesting, if not darn right mind easing.... I know, I know--- Now you'll FINALLY be able to sleep at night! WE'VE SOLVED THE MYSTERY FRUIT CASE!!! http://www.italylogue.com/planning-a-trip/summer-fruits-in-italy.html

Have a few glasses of vino for us all!

Love from Daphne, Velma, Scooby and the Gang, here in the Mystery Machine!

August 18, 2007 at 8:28 PM

Unknown said…

Everyone looks beautiful! Nikki is cute and Nat beaut! Glad you had such a hoot! Toot toot! XOX Sho Roc

August 21, 2007 at 1:41 PM

Spring break whirlwind!

I am sorry that I haven't posted this week. Diesel, I am so glad you figured out how to leave comments- we commented back on some of them! It was good to hear from you. I will try and do a catch up and post and then try to post more regularly next week...when time slows down, again. Nanny, I hope you made it home okay. The little engines were asking about you all day. We went over how you will be back, several times. I think they get it : ) Of all the weeks we have had here in Italy, I can honestly say, none of them have gone fast- except this past week. We drove Nanny to the airport this morning and it seems like we were just there to pick her up! This time, we went the right direction and it took much less time, fancy that. (You would think that with a map and a car we would be okay, but it is seriously difficult to get around here. You have to know several towns past your destination town that might be marked on the signs and then might not be. For example, you want to go to Ven...

Have a Very Merry Un-birthday to you, to you....

The tallest of the small is 6.5 years old. We had the usual half-birthday fun. At school, on her half-birthday, one of her friends told her that half birthdays aren't real. She mentioned this to me when she got off the bus. Then she asked me if half birthdays are "real." Hmmmmm. "What do you think?" I asked her (love that parenting technique). Well, she explained that lots of people don't celebrate their half birthdays, most people probably. But since we do, they are real for us. Sounds good to me : ) You get to celebrate their lives twice as many times- how can I resist, besides, it involves CAKE people! Happy half-birthday!

Italian Pottery

Once upon a time, we were on a mission to a town called Nove. We knew it was Wednesday afternoon and therefore some stores might be closed. We knew that we didn't have the exact store names. We knew that it would be several hours' drive away. We were on a mission to find beautiful Italian pottery . Some of you may know that My Man is 1/2 Italian. His grandmother did a bit of painting in her time. Sure, she was Italian, and sure she was painting on ceramics, but that isn't exactly what we had in mind . She would buy the white ceramic pieces and then paint them...no we were looking for something more in the line of "art." So, we set off. Aunt D is our trusty navigator- always. It is very difficult to navigate here and she really does a wonderful job. Uncle Crusty was at the wheel- he also does a great job. It's not easy to "just drive" while all the other eyes in the car try and figure out which way to go. As he says, he knows he's in trouble whe...

Italian Capers

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