Privileged to be in Provence!

25/02/2013

Bonjour mes amis!

I hope you are well this fine Monday!

We are in beautiful, but rather chilly, Provence, in the south of France...

I can hardly believe it...

We are staying in this lovely farmhouse, with beautiful views, in a quiet village...

I'm going out to have some fun, so I'll try to check in occasionally, but if not, I'll tell you all about the beautiful area real soon!

Have a "Jewel" of a week!
Jan

One of my Favorites...

24/02/2013

Bonjour mes amis!

Sharing a favorite Verse with you today from Galatians 2:20,

" I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."

Have a Blessed Day!
Jan

Getting my "Chocolate fix"...

23/02/2013

Bonjour mes amis!

The other night I made quite a nice dinner...
Beef Roast with Herbed Red Potatoes, Salad, the most awesome Baguette...of course, I did not make the baguette myself...(the baguette was probably so awesome because we hadn't had a fresh one for a couple of days...).

Anyway, Jewelius had been cooped up in the house for a couple days, so I told him to come take a walk with me that afternoon to do a couple errands.  When we got to the Boulangerie, I told him we could get some Dessert for our awesome Dinner, and he could pick it...but please, something chocolate...because that's what sounded good to me us at the time...isn't it always a good time for Chocolate?

Jewelius chose Les Meilleux, and there were only three left.  First, let me share the box it came in...so cute...

And the Inside...WITH THE CONTENTS...

Looks tough to resist, doesn't it?

We were ready for dessert, but we honestly had no idea what we'd find inside...

Ahhhh!  Yum!  It had two layers of what we Americans would call, Divinity, and the chocolate layer between, and all around the ball was a nice, light (not too sweet) whipped frosting, and then it seemed to be sprinkled with tiny chocolate pieces...Wow!

Totally enjoyable...and now I got my "Chocolate Fix"...

When did you have your last "Chocolate Fix"?

Have a "Jewel" of a Day!
Jan

What do you do with old Baguettes?

22/02/2013

Bonjour mes amis!

We've made it to another weekend...the weeks are flying by...

Jewelius is off of School right now, which means...

Getting up Late...

and

Cooking him Hot Meals...

and

Easier Days...

So, the other morning, I made something for Jewelius for Breakfast...

French Toast!

(These words have new meaning for me now...

Do you know how many things we say in the U.S.

that use the word "French" in them?

Recently, while working with a Lady on her decorating,

I referred to her "French Doors".

What?

This is not what they call them.  Hmmm...

Where did this come from?)

So, what is French Toast to the French?  I don't really know, but here's what I made for Jewelius...French Toast made with leftover baguette slices!

And...he got a couple of slices with Sandwich Bread too!

And he enjoyed it...It was a good way to use up some extra pieces of Baguette.  Sometimes, I just freeze them to keep them fresh.

Last Sunday afternoon, however, we discovered another good use for old Baguettes in France...

Go to the Loiret and share them...

 with the Swans and Ducks...

We made a little trip to The Loiret with our good friends, Eva and Johannes, and our new friend, Sam, from Church (who happens to be a Texan from Abiliene)!  It was only a ten minute drive, and we had an afternoon of fun together.

First, we stopped to take a look at the Springs that are the source of the Loiret...

Then, we walked the path to enjoy the beauty of the day and our surroundings...

Along the way, we observed some beautiful Houses...

And one HUGE Dog that was gentle as could be...

And then we watched some Children giggle and throw old Baguette pieces to the Ducks and Swans...

I wonder if this is where the phrase "Lucky Ducks" comes from?  I've said it the whole time we've lived here...the birds in France are probably the happiest birds in the world...they get to eat baguette crumbs every day!!!

It was such a peaceful, relaxing afternoon...we'll be doing it again soon...

Have a "Jewel" of a Weekend!
Jan

About town in Bourges...

21/02/2013

Bonjour mes amis!

I do hope you are well today!

Yesterday, I shared some pictures of Saint-Étienne de Bourges.   Today, I'd like to take you to a few more places around the city of Bourges.

First, The Ramparts...It looks like there's some really nice apartments along here!  This Courtyard area was so nice and quiet to walk around...

Then, on to see a few things at The Decorative Arts Museum...

Isn't this a beautiful Entry to the Museum?

And this was the Courtyard in back, just up the stairs...

Anyone that has been to my house in Dallas, knows that I have a "thing" for Pitchers, so this photo was a "no-brainer"!

I also enjoyed getting a close-up of a couple of Paintings...

Then, we went on to Le Palais Jacques Cœur...

This man had some serious money.  He was Financier to King Charles VII, and he had this Palace built.  It was completed in about 1450.  There wasn't much furniture in the Palace, but there were lots of neat surprises to discover in the Gothic Architecture...

Check out the size of this Fireplace!

 These are some of the funny little details we noticed in the Fireplace...

I loved the sculplting over the Doorway!

This Tapestry depicts the story of Noah's Ark...

Another 3D scene over a Doorway!

Do they even make Door Latches like this anymore?  I Love It!

And, check out the curved Ceiling in this large Room...

More Fireplace Wonder...

And Details...

The Courtyard...

The Detail on an Outside Door...

This is beautiful to me...

Then, we walked around...
The Marais (the Marshlands) and the River...

This Path was Impassable at one point...

The Ivy was so pretty to me...

We enjoyed the views in Town as well...

This pretty Window Box made me smile...

Here's one last picture from town...

Because...as I always say...Have a "Jewel" of a Day!

Jan