FrenchWards: La premiere semaine de l'ecole

And now the question that we've all been waiting for to be answered...How was the first week of French public school???

Tres bien amis, tres bien.

Who would have guessed it but the boys seem to really like it. There have been some tears from Micah who is confused by having to go back to l'ecole after the 2 hour 45 minute lunch break. But I think he's accepted his fate and goes along happily now. I will admit that there's been a significant amount of pot de vin, bribery. As Americans, we wolf down our ridiculously anemic lunch in about 10 minutes of the 2 hour + lunch break, so I have been letting them do screen time, i.e. Minecraft at lunch. I plan on pulling the plug on this next week, we'll see how that goes.

Starting school was no small task for me. There a lot of forms and informational things that I had to google translate almost all of. I walk to each boys' school 4 times a day: drop off, pick up for lunch, drop off after lunch, pick up after school. It is a good time to see what people dress like, who is there to pick up/drop off, try to eavesdrop in order to improve my french.

It is rare that a mom doesn't work here. It really is a source of pride. There are mostly nannies and grandfolks at drop off and pick up. At lunch there are moms and dads, they too have long lunches. It is the main meal of the day. Delicious smells hang in the air as we go back for our sandwiches.

The weather continues to be spectacular. The scenery idyllic. The food, tres bon. We continue to not speak french very well and struggle with everyday things, but it is a small town, people see us coming. We are all getting used to it. My plan is to continue to think of learning french as my occupation until I feel comfortable.

Bob went into the university for the first time last week. It is not trivial getting to work. The trains are expensive, the buses are long winded and even if we get a car, there is a lot of traffic. We are trying to figure out the car thing. I actually like not having a car or a phone, but I think these things will be necessary.

Our hosts introduced me to another American woman in town. She, like Bob, is from Ohio. She's cute and very American, married to a french homme. They have 2 boys, 2 and 3 and a half years old. It will be nice to have their perspective and help with things. I will try to not lean on them too hard. I am a little bit of a glutton for the struggle. Life is so easy and good in Logan, I enjoy the shaking up. And really, that's a laugh.

A bientot mes amis.