In Military News

Congratulations to my dear sweet best friend. Yesterday he graduated Basic Training for the US Army. I couldn't be more proud.

After 74 days of nothing but rigorous training, long nights and early mornings and a lot of "DS BS" as he calls it, (Drill Sergeant bull sh*t - (pardon) - ), Connor is now one of the newest soldiers in the US Army! Doesn't he look great??

It was a tough two months for both him and me, but we made it through and have been texting as much as possible ever since. We have so much to catch up on.

I am so proud of Connor and all that he has accomplished. As I type this, he is on a bus on his way to Ft Sam Houston for 52 weeks of training to earn his MOS (Military Occupational Specialty) which is 68 Kilo, Medical Laboratory Specialist. Unfortunately for me, he is so dang smart that he scored a 95 on his ASVAB and chose the MOS with the second to longest training time. But, that aside, I know he is going to be learning so much that will put him on track to Med school and on to his dream of becoming a doctor.

Phase one complete (as we call it), onto phase two: AIT

 

 


On another Military note, My best friend got engaged to her boyfriend in the Marines. Just thought I would add my congrats the them as well and express how happy and excited I am for them! I love you Harmony!!

Abby

Je Suis en Charge

So, I'm not sure if this title is in French, or I just French-ized it.

Anyway, today I had a great day!

It was nice out today and I didn't have to wear my snow coat and use an umbrella, so that already was a plus. My day started out with a "goodnight" text from my Boyfriend (who is in a different time zone, so it was goodnight for him) and that made me SOOOO happy!! I haven't received one of those in 75 days while he was in Basic Training so it was a nice surprise. He's finished now, but more about that later.

I made it to school semi on time after dropping the kids off at their school, taking a bus, walking a bit, taking the metro, and then walking a bit more. There was a new professor today (I swear we have a new one every week!!) and after only a few minutes in the class I had already decided that he was the best so far. He was easy to understand, very positive and helpful. His exercises were very entertaining, thought provoking and I really felt like I learned something. We did a question game in which he asked questions like "Vrai ou faux: La Corse et L'ile de France" and  "nommez trois acteurs francais". There were 12 questions and together my 'equipe' (team) and I were able to answer 10 out of the 12! Not to brag or anything, but it was mostly me answering them....

After class I went with Karin (from Mexico) and Lucy (from England) to a Patisserie and I bought my weekly baguette and then treated myself to something I've never tried before. I bought what is called a Praddel and I don't know how I've lived without these things before. It..Was..Amazing..

When it came time to pick up the kiddos from school, it was so nice out, so I put on some happy music and walked my way to school with a skip in my step.

Les enfants et moi stopped at a local park on the way home and spent some time playing there. This signs says "For the security of each child, it is recommended that only children from the ages of 4-14 play on the playground. Oops...well I've always been told I look between 14 and 16 years lol so I jumped on and played with them until the playground got too crowded.

Unfortunately, it gets dark around 6 here, so we left for home about 5:30. My lovely mother sent me some flashcards to help teach the kids English, and they ended up being really awesome and fun. I started teaching them their colors and I LOVE to hear their accents. 

I got the chance to make dinner tonight.  I was kind of nervous, what do I make?? The family mostly eats really fresh things, which is great, but I really only know how to make Kraft Mac n Cheese.... I found some potatoes and chopped them up, doused them in oil and microwaved them. Then I cut up some tomatoes and made a special french sauce to go with. Then, because their kitchen is SO small, as I was moving around, I accidentally knocked a glass off the counter. Great...First time cooking and I'm already breaking their dishes. 

Nice one.

Anyway that was my day. I got to talk to my family tonight too, (Hi mom!!) I miss you guys. 

Abby

My Wednesdays.

Yesterday I spent the evening with some of the girls in my class. We went to a local pub in Lyon and sat and talked for a few hours. Everyone smoked and drank and we had a lovely merry time. Not me though, I don't drink or smoke. I did learn, though, that most of the people here roll their own cigarettes. It's cheaper I guess. Honestly it looks like people are smoking weed all over the place. That's probably why we don't have that in the US, because it looks too much like pot. Not that I would know lol, I don't smoke pot either.

The three lovely girls I hung out were from Brazil, Mexico and Hungary. Last night was one of the reasons why I LOVE language so much. Because even though we all speak different languages, we all share a common language in which we were able to hold a constant conversation the whole two hours. We talked about class, Harry Potter, Twilight, boys, why I'm not smoking or drinking, and lots of other stuff. It wasn't until we all left that I found out that these women were all in their late 20's!

Wednesdays in France, children don't have school. I don't know why, but it's kind of cool. I would have loved to have a day off in the middle of the week! I think it has to do with the fact that they have longer school days than in the US, I don't know. So I'm the Au Paire right? My job is to take care of the children while the parents work? Well this morning I got up at 7am as usual and went over for breakfast at 8am. Turns out Gilles was taking Jonas to their nanny across the street, and taking Lucile to Violin himself. I wasn't needed until 1pm to pick Jonas up from his nanny and bring him to dance....So what did I do? I went back to bed!! Slept straight until noon and then got re-ready for the day. 

After that was Lucile's Cirque classes. Yes, circus. With the huge tent and trapize and juggling and everything. When it was time to pick her up, I walked right into the tent and sat down on the bleachers to wait because I was a few minutes early. Aparently that isn't allowed and I got ushered out in French and the door flap shut on me. So I wasn't able to take any pictures of Lucile practicing but I did manage to get these:

 

My view on the way to cirque

In the mail today I got a piece of paper stating I had a package waiting for me at the post office (eek!!) So after dance and circus, I went in search of the post office. Turns out there is a post office a block from my apartment and I had been taking the metro all the way into town to send letters. Stupid Google. I got a lovely care package from my Mommy!! In it were some clothes I had realized I needed, scissors, tweezers, flashcards so les enfants can learn English, my favorite Bath and Body Works soap, my Go Army backpack from Connor, some mail, a letter from my dad with $3 in it (Don't know why...I can't use US dollars here lol), and LOTS and LOTS of chocolate :) Just in time too! I was out of the bag of Hershey's Hugs I brought with me and almost out of the Kinder chocolate bars I had to go buy. My mommy loves me :) 

In the evening, I played "pate a modele" with les enfants (Play-Doh). There was some clay in the box too and I made this: 

This My friends is a French "bonhomme de neige" (literally translated, its "good man of snow." I made a french snowman. Can you see his beret? Sigh, I am so proud of myself. 

So that was my Wednesday. 

-Abs. 

My First Day on the Job

Okay, vacation is over, it's time to get to work.

Today I was in charge of picking up the kids from school. They get out at 4:30 pm which is usual for Europe, but unusual for the US. Nice for me though because it gives me more time in the day to do things like sort and fold laundry, clean the table and do the dishes AND still have time to watch Downtown Abbey and Elementary.

Picking the kids up went without a hitch. When Jonas and I were waiting for Lucile to arrive, he started a conversation with a woman next to us (he knew her somehow). Jonas laughed and told her how I am american and pronounce the word"cuillere" (spoon) like "gruyere" (the cheese). Hey! I can't help it if we don't use those sounds in english!! Dang five year olds will tell anyone anything. I've been practicing and I think I've got it.

Despite my word mix up's, I managed to have a steady conversation with Lucile the whole way home. I told her about what I was learning in school and she told me what she was learning in hers. Sadly, it wasn't much different from the grammar that we just barely learned last week in my class....The whole way home, Jonas talked about how hungry he was and how much he wanted a snack. Sounded good to me, I'm all about food.

No mail from Connor or my mom today. Tant Pis.

As I did some dishes, I let les enfants play stupid zombies on my phone (yeah, yeah, bad au paire, letting the kids play such a game. But in my defense, Jonas found it on his own). Then we played some board games and after that I offered to read to them. Of course Lucile picks out a kids book with the MOST difficult french words EVER! After a few pages, Lucile asked Jonas if he understood what I was reading and he said "Pas trop" (not a lot). I asked why and he said it was because of my accent. Okay, so that needs some work. But it was fun to read, and Lucile was really good about correcting me and helping me pronounce the words. Next time though, I think I am going to choose the book.

Then there was dinner (meat) and bed. I played a game with Gilles and Mariette and then I returned to my apartment and started watching Elementary. I had an unplanned 2 hour Skype call with my BFF of 14 years (right Elizabeth??) and now I'm finishing this so I can go to bed...

Ok, you are caught up. Night all.

Abby

Our games we played today

My outfit for today. Sweater, tights, boots and a scarf. Typical french Items every french woman must have. 

French Food

I am a picky eater. 

It's true. 

I was a vegetarian for four ish years

I don't like bananas, apples, oranges (except clementines), pears, apricots, plums, peaches...lets' just say all fruits. I don't like peppers, mushrooms, onions, radishes, yogurt, ANYTHING seafood. I hardly ever eat pretzels, crackers, cereal, nuts....The list could go on and on. Basically, if its healthy, natural or sugar free, I don't like it. 

Before France, I pretty much ate, Ramen, Mac n Cheese, pickles, cheese, salad ( I love vegetables thank goodness), cheetos, powerade, and A LOT (I mean A LOT) of Chocolate. If it was junky, I ate it. 

There is no tolerance for picky eaters here I have quickly come to learn. Here, you are expected to eat everything on your plate and then wipe it clean with your bread. Ugh. 

I've found that it is also completely impossible to be a foreigner and a vegetarian at the same time. There is simply too much meat. I've also noticed that they are not so vegetarian friendly here when it comes to ordering meals at restaurants. The dish comes "as is", no substitutions. So I've had to give that up as well. It wasn't healthy anyway I suppose, but I still am not a big fan of meat. And they don't have ketchup!! So, I choke it down, or mix it with other foods to help mask the taste. 

This past month, I have eaten so many different foods, it's almost disgusting. I now like apples, peppers, fish, any and all kinds of meat (still bleh on that one), grapes, french cheese, mushrooms, turnips, chestnuts, nutella, qunioa, tomatoes, and anything else they see fit to put on my plate. 

Don't get me wrong, they don't punish me if I don't eat it, but they expect me too, so I feel obliged. 

And actually, I have liked most everything I've tried. I have eaten so many foods that I would never had touched back home. Back home, I would pick the potatoes and beans and carrots out of the soup. Now, I even drink the sauce. I have never been this adventurous with food, it's weird. 

Yesterday, I ate Curry. Chicken with rice and onions and spinach. Tonight, I ate a potato, carrot and some kind of kale/lettuce soup, except it was all blended up like baby food. It looked disgusting at first, but I had two and a half bowls. 

I eat normal stuff too, stuff I like, I mean. Rice, beans, salad. They only have one dressing here, "sauce" they call it. I decided, I never ever want ranch again in my entire life. Its dijon mustard, red wine vinegar, oil and salt and pepper. It's sweet and sour at the same time, and amazing with lettuce. I also have lots and lots of bread with is just OK with me, noodles, eggs, sandwiches, and stuff like that. It's not all foreign. 

I did have a french version of a pancake on friday. I'm not sure if it was more like a crepe or french toast. Unlike American pancakes, it had eggs in it which made it have a little more substance. They don't use syrup either. They top it with jams and jellies (which I still refuse to eat) and eat them with their hands. Not quite sure that qualifies as a pancake, but it was mighty delicious so I kept quiet. 

I will post some pictures, I realize these are bad examples of new things I've tried since they are mostly all junk food, but I don't really take pictures of my dinner since I don't want them to laugh at me. Here are somethings I've eaten so far. I am eating healthier I promise!!

First dinner in my apartment

Yes, this is a McChicken from McDonalds

Italian Gelato, My Favorite

Crepes

Hot chocolate from my favorite cafe, Cafe J'adore

French fries from a Kebab stand 

Orange chocolate thingamabobs.

Sermoyer, France

So I spent my weekend in Sermoyer, France. Don't ask me where it is, I haven't looked it up on a map yet.

It's a very small village (I called it a "Ville" (city) and I got corrected lol), and it's very, very, old.

Despite that, I found that there was enough to do there that kept me occupied for a weekend.

Saturday, Gilles asked me if I wanted to go for a little walk with him. Walk? Outside? Are you out of your mind? It's cold and windy, lets just watch TV instead. But, being the stranger in a foreign land, I've made a resolution not to sit around all day. I want to experience as much as I can. So I said ok and we got in the car! The car? What happened to a walk? Where are you taking me, Gilles? We drove to a cow pasture...really? We are going to "promene" (walk) in a cow pasture? Ok, I'll play along, but if my $50 Steve Madden Gamers get ruined, someone is going to pay.

So here we are, walking through a cow pasture, and he stops. He takes off his backpack and pulls out a kite. A KITE!! Not a trapezoid shaped kite, this one was like a parachute, or something you would go paragliding with. Gilles taught me how to fly a legitimate professional kite! It was SO awesome!! I made it do figure eights, circles and more often than not, nose dives into the ground. I was having so much fun, I forgot all about the well being of my Steve Madden's.

Connor, if you are reading this, I added "get a super cool kite" to my bucket list. You know what that means, I'm actually going to do it.  And when I do, you and I are going to fly it, and I am going to teach you how. Oh, and we will take a picnic too. Yeah, that will be fun.

As we were walking back to the car I got an idea...we are in the middle of nowhere, with only tiny back roads...Gilles, why don't you let me drive your awesome manual car...? Of course I didn't ask him that, but I did cross my fingers behind my back. As he put the kite in the trunk, I headed to the drivers seat....my hand was on the handle when he looked up and asked "tu peux conduire un petite peu?" YES!!! Oh I thought you'd never ask!!! I couldn't help but let out a squeal. I LOVE driving stick shift cars. I drive an automatic at home, so the chance for me to use my awesome manual driving skills doesn't happen often. But this guy didn't know that so I had to play it cool.

I. Did. Fabulous! Since I don't understand kilometers, I had to really listen to the engine to know when to shift up and down. And it seemed like my body took over. There was another car approaching and the road wasn't big enough for the two of us so I had to pull over. My mind freaked out. I was trying to drive and not his this car as well as try to figure out how to ask Gilles what to do in French, but my hands and feet did exactly what they were supposed to do. I don't know, I'm pretty proud of myself. :)

When we came back to the masion (house), we walked in to find Lucile and Mariette practicing music. Lucile (she's 7) had her brand new violin out, and Mariette (the mom) had her accordion. It was so fun to listen to them play together. Later Lucile sang a song accompanied by the accordion. It was in a different language...they didn't even know what language it was in...somewhere in Serbia they said. I don't know. But I thought, wow these kids are cultured. At seven years old, I was singing ring around the rosies, not a song from Serbia. Dang, I love Europe.

I also had the pleasure of experiencing something else new this weekend. I went with Francoise (the grandmother) and Jonas (he's 5) to visit a friend of Francoise's. She brought along with her an aquarium full of scorpion/stick bug looking insects. I have no idea why, and I didn't really want to ask. The fact that I had slept under the same roof as those bugs creeped me out enough. In turn, the friends showed us their aquarium full of what those insects are going to look like in 6 months. Picture scorpion/stick bug looking things except the size of a hamster. It was so gross!!!! I couldn't even get near them. Chills. All over my body.

Apparently this family mostly only eats what they can grow or make organically. That would explain the bowl of severed rooster heads next to the sink. And next to that was the hearts. Really people? Take it outside. Haha they laughed at my expression when they showed it to me. Luckily, after that horrible scene, I still had enough of an appetite to try this guys "french bread" as he said in english. It was natural of course, but actually probably some of the best bread I've ever tasted. It was really good.

Sunday, I went with Daniel (pronounced Danielle like a girl), (he's the grandfather) and les enfants (the kids) to the park. We took a little bit of a hike through the forest and he pointed out all this vegetation to me and asked what it was in English. Dude, I don't know! That's a tree, and that's a flower. That's all I know! I was able to identify an aspen tree though, that was good.

So, that was my weekend. Here's some pictures :)

I Belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

I Belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

Today I went on a bike ride with my Host Dad, Gilles. Together, we located the tiny tiny apartment sized LDS church. 

I was so giddy walking up the stairs, I almost hopped up all of them at once. This is a place I knew I could be comfortable, a place I knew I could be safe. Before I even opened the door, I heard music. 

You know what the first thing I noticed was? Even in France, the church smells the same. I don't know if it's because we use all the same furniture or interior decorating, but they do, they all smell the same. And oddly enough, it smelt like I was home. This was where I belong. I belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I knew that no matter where I was in the world, I would be welcome here. 

The musician turned out to be a couple of Missionaries playing the violin. 

"Parlez-Vous Anglais?" I asked. "Yes" one replied! One was French, one was Canadian, and the other was from Florida. When they asked where I was from and I said "Utah", they all laughed. Of course I was from Utah lol. If they weren't sure I was Mormon then, they were now. No non LDS person from Utah is going to walk into a church building in France :P 

I felt peace there. I felt excited. I can't wait to go to a Sunday Sacrement meeting soon. Unfortunately I will be travelling to the kids grandparents (Have I mentioned I am an Au Paire yet?) but next week will be the week I swear!! 

If any of you would like to learn more about what I believe, or what "Mormon" even is, click HERE to go to LDS.org, or HERE  to learn about other LDS members around the world and their stories. Also, its a great place to talk to the Missionaries, like the ones I just talked about, and get some questions answered. When in doubt, ask the Missionaries!! 

Later,

Abby