J'adore Paris.

Dear Paris,

Thank you so much for welcoming me once again this weekend. My love and I had a splendid time. Both you and the weather were amazing!

We couldn't decide whether to come see you on Saturday or Sunday... Finally I made the decision for us and said, we're going! We packed our bags, raided the hotel for some snacks, and we were on the train (this spontaneity seems to be a pattern!).

We were trying to find a hotel while on the train but with the service being patchy, we had no luck. We didn't think it would be a big issue. As it turned out, it was not an easy task. First of all, we didn't realize you were hosting the French football championship that very night. Second, with it being a holiday weekend, we weren't the only ones who took advantage of the chance to come see your beauty. I was starting to get irritated and my love was starting to panic until we were finally (sigh of relief) successful. It ended up being more than we wanted to spend but was such a nice room - a studio complete with a large bathroom and a little kitchenette. The view from the room was so cute - beautiful trees and cafes, wide streets, and little girls prancing around in their Easter dresses.

We went out that night with old friends of his from school. They, too, were a couple. I haven't interacted with anyone my age since I've been in France so not only was it nice to meet his friends (that I've heard so much about prior to this meeting) but the change of pace was really nice. We went out to dinner and then after went out on the town.

Sunday we did so much bike riding that my butt literally was hurting the next day. We rode and rode and rode until my love had a flat tire. He took videos while I took pictures. He was coordinated enough to be able to take the videos while riding the bike. I had to stop every time I wanted to take a picture. We saw SO much of your beautiful city... seriously, my butt can attest for the fact that we were everywhere.

I was so exhausted after that long day of sightseeing, but I somehow managed to call my family then get dressed to go back to meet his friends (a nutella and banana crepe momentarily helped put a little extra spring in my step but the sugar high quickly wore off!). They had to meet to go over some work stuff. I kind of just sat there - understanding French is hard for me, understanding French when I am tired is impossible! I try not to get frustrated, but I want to learn faster!

Monday morning we woke up early and were off to see the Eiffel Tower again. I really can't get enough of it! We had a delicious meal in plain view of the tower, while I stared, amazed at the beautiful apartments surrounding me. Each is unique in its own way but there was a definite trend - little red awnings with white trim, flowers engulfing their balconies, wrought iron tables, trellises, and wide open windows. That is the dream.

We met up with his friends for a while after lunch and a bunch of touristic picture taking, and then we were back on the train headed east, headed home.

Paris, I so enjoyed seeing you again. You truly are a divine city. 

                             à très bientôt <3 Kaylan

N'oublie Jamais

So when I first arrived in France, we decided a good way for me to practice my French would be to watch movies in French. We've only watched one of the five we bought that night - N'oublie Jamais (The Notebook). I read the book way before it became a hit blockbuster, and I will admit that I actually still loved the movie which, for me, is NEVER the case. It is such a beautiful love story, and I don't think anyone, male or female, could deny that.  I could probably watch that movie 100 times and never get tired of it.

I think maybe I'm just feeling romantic right now after a wonderful weekend in Paris. We had such an amazing time, and I have plenty of pictures to share. We met up with a wonderful couple, friends of his from school. We ate good food. We saw so much of the city. And, I fell in love with Paris and my man all over again.

...And, it got me to thinking of The Notebook and how true romance is possible and how it isn't always easy. Our journey hasn't been easy, but as my favorite quote from the movie goes...

"So it's not gonna be easy. It's gonna be really hard. We're gonna have to work at this every day, but I want to do that because I want you. I want all of you, forever, you and me, every day." 

So look at me... I'm living in France. What am I sacrificing really? Sure, I miss my family and friends. I know that I will always go see them though. I will visit them often. It won't change my love for them or their love for me. France... could be worse. This is a wonderful place for people to come visit! If my love is here, that's where I want to be. And, that leads me to my second favorite quote from The Notebook...

"That's my sweetheart in there. Wherever she is, that's where my home is." And, it's true.

Vegetarian... no more.

me in front of a vegetarian restaurant in Paris

For as long as I can remember really, I have been a vegetarian. Slowly... my vegetarianism is creeping out of my life, and I don't know if I'm happy about it or not.

It all started 15 or 16 years ago when my uncle came from Seattle to visit us in NJ. He brought with him his then girlfriend. I was 8 or 9, impressionable, and totally smitten by this hippy-ish woman and her diet. I don't know now if I even knew before meeting her what a vegetarian was. However, she could have said she was a nudist and I, too, would have taken on that role. No one was too happy with my decision to be a vegetarian, but look on the bright side, it could have been waaaay more interesting!! So, anyway, I declared that very day that I was going to be a vegetarian, too. I'm sure my parents thought this was some phase and the next week (or day) I would be eating meat again, but that was never the case. In fact, the situation only developed into a more dedicated form of vegetarianism years later - I became a vegan.

The truth is, I didn't fully grasp the concept of vegetarianism at first. I was merely eating around meat... for years. All the while, however, I began to read teen guides to vegetarianism, watching documentaries and reading articles on animal cruelty and hormone treatment in animals, and so on and so forth. Pair this with the fact that I really do just love vegetables. I was never crying at the table about eating my brussel sprouts or lima beans, I was crying about drinking my milk. And, I was taking the cheese off my pizza since I was little. I know this is hard for people to believe, but I don't like cheese. People say, "How can you give up cheese?" It smells!!!!! I don't want to eat anything that stinks.

In middle school, I started to develop anemia (low iron levels), because I obviously wasn't doing the whole vegetarian thing correctly. I knew I had to start doing more than eating around meat. However, tofu creeped me out (still does but I've learned to use it creatively - i.e. you will never see me biting into a chunk of tofu but you might see me mashing it into a filling for vegan lasagna). I started eating cruelty-free meat... the fake kind. I developed a love for veggie burgers, faux chicken patties and nuggets, nuts, beans, etc.

**Side Bar - I think that being a vegetarian has actually made me much more conscience about what I am putting into my body. On a daily basis, I am thinking, "Did I get my protein? Did I get my iron? Did I get my calcium?" The first question most people ask me is, "How do you get your protein?" My usual response is, "Are you getting too much protein?" Protein isn't usually the problem with vegetarians as protein is found naturally in many items I love - peanut butter, nuts, beans, etc. However, I have spent so much time researching ways to get calcium and iron and have even taken supplements.

After 10 years of vegetarianism, I was getting bored. I couldn't imagine (at that time) eating meat again so I decided to take the next step and become a vegan. So on the first day of my junior year of high school (2002), I started. It was an easy transition. I hadn't voluntarily had butter or milk in years. The only things I was giving up were unhealthy sweets - ice cream, cookies, cake, donuts.

I accumulated a collection of vegetarian and vegan cookbooks. I learned how to adapt other recipes to fit my diet. I developed a love for being inventive in the kitchen (especially in college when we often had few items to work with in the pantry!). Coincidentally, I  seemed to meet other vegetarians very easily. At any given time in our house in college, we had other vegetarians living there. I was content, healthy, and feeling good about the food I was eating.

All the while though, my parents were wishing I would start eating meat. My mom would say, "Come on, Kay. Do you have to be vegan?" And then, I met a guy (I'm sure you've heard about him on this blog) that opened my eyes to a new idea... an idea that I could enjoy eating meat if it's not injected with hormones or if it's not killed in a cruel way.*** Here in France, my new French family purchase their Halal meat from the butcher. They know the guy; they know where he got his meat; they know how he killed it, blah blah blah... you get it.

***Vegetarians argue that there is no cruelty-free way of eating meat. It's cruel to kill animals. Meat eaters argue that animals were put on this earth for us to eat. And, I, after much debating, contrasting, and reading, do respectfully believe that the omnivores (the lovers of the meat and the veggies) are correct.

So after reasoning with this logic and making my decision to eat meat, I knew it would be a long road ahead of me... and it has been. I started eating fish a year ago, after what... 8 years (!!??) of being vegan and another 8 more of being a vegetarian. Just in the past few months, I have started eating cheese. I don't really go out of my way to put it on anything, but if it's on my food, I'll eat it (I'm so happy I waited until after college to start being less difficult when it comes to ordering a pizza because I would probably have 20 extra pounds on me if ordering pizza in college was effort-less).

I tried meat for the first time in 16 years when my love's Mom made it upon the first time I met her (AHHHHH - Holy Welcome to France). In her defense, I'm sure he did not enlighten her on the fact that I didn't eat meat. I'm sure it was good, but I was 1) under a ton of stress 2) nervous about meeting my French family for the first time 3) jet lagged after having just arrived from the United States and 4) did I already say under a ton of stress? let me reiterate... I was on an emotional roller coaster ride that was upside down the whole time 5) I didn't totally know if I was cool with eating meat yet and I certainly hadn't intended on my first experience being a massive plate of Moroccan meatballs... maybe 1 meatball? However, I graciously ate the entire serving (it wasn't easy) because I did not want to make a bad impression! (I should add that since it was brought to his Mom's knowledge that I didn't eat meat, she has been A-M-A-Z-I-N-G and has prepared every delicious vegetarian and fish dish she knows and I am so grateful.)

I ate chicken that my guy's father made last Friday night in an equally similar situation. I will admit that it was good. However, he was sitting there counting how much I was eating and urging me to eat more and asking why I wasn't eating faster while my love annoying significant other turned it into a joke and kept saying, "What's the problem? Don't you like it? Eat more."

I know there are stories out there about people who didn't eat meat for 16 years and then one day just decided to go to McDonald's and get a hamburger. It is not that easy for me. Although, I do dream of it being that simple! I am no longer accustomed to the texture of meat; and you have to understand, it's very different than that of the texture of vegetables. This won't be an easy transition for me, and I don't know if I even want to eat red meat. It's not even good for you! However, I will eat my fish and my chicken (for now!). Can't we call that a compromise?

I think I need to add a special shout out to my mother (and father) who have endured the unpleasant task of preparing dinner for two very peculiar young ladies - me, the former vegan and my sister, the one that doesn't eat anything with "fins or feathers." How ironic now that I have decided to eat only that which has "fins and feathers." Because nothing is ever simple in the Reabold house :)

Something cool.

So some of my favorite bloggers have collaborated to create an online women's magazine. It's creative, colorful, insightful and full of really neat ideas. I love the wine candle holders, the recipes, etc.! Check it out, and congrats to Camilla for turning her dream into a reality. She's living proof that we can do anything we set our minds on (and I have some ideas of my own that I hope to turn into a reality here in France)! I needed this kind of inspiration.

So.. what are you waiting for!? Go check out this amazing online magazine!

If you love soup as much as I do...

Try this (vegan) recipe for the most delicious soup! It's seriously good.

Curried Coconut Soup with Chickpeas

Ingredients:

• 2 T. olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 jalapeno chili, seeded and finely chopped (or substitute thai chili, if you prefer)
• 2 big cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 can chickpeas
• 1 cup chopped tomatoes, seeded and peeled
• 1 T. mild curry powder (but put more if you like, I usually taste and add as I go)
• S&P (to taste)
• 1 15oz can light coconut milk
• some fresh parsley on top
• white or brown rice, quinoa, or cous cous

Preparation:

In a medium pot, heal the oil over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, and chili. Let them soften (about 5 minutes). Add the garlic while stirring constantly for about a minute. Add the broth, chickpeas, tomatoes, and spices. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat and let simmer for another 10-20 minutes. Add the coconut milk. Let simmer for another 10 minutes. Last, put the fresh parsely on top.

Make the starch of your choice (rice, quinoa, cous cous) on the side. Spoon it into individual bowls of soup. After making the recipe several times properly, I made it for my Mom and decided to add the rice to the broth... it resulted in more of a thai curry-ish dish than a delicious soup. 

P.S. As you can see from the picture, if I have fresh tomatoes, I usually add them, too... fresh carrots, sweet potatoes, anything can be added, really.. even something that would add an extra boost of nutrients such as kale.

growing up...

We grow neither better nor worse as we get old, but more like ourselves.

              - May Lamberton Becker

*picture courtesy of my sister - back from the days when I was a strong carnivore ;)

pretty please :)

won't you follow me? scroll down to the bottom left! :) i'll be forever grateful.
 
                          x Kaylan

Stereotypes.

(sorry Brit Brit, I had to do it)

An employee at the hotel asked me a few weeks ago if it was, in fact, true that all Americans love sandwiches, BIG coffees, and McDonald's. I thought it was really funny that's what French people think of when they think of Americans. I asked my teacher if she had heard the same stereotypes and, indeed, she had. I remember, too, that upon my love's arrival to the United States, people asked him, "Is it true? Are they all fat?" I know Europeans also think Americans are - I don't know if I should say uneducated or naive - because we primarily only speak English.

My teacher asked me if I thought the stereotypes were true. Well, I do love sandwiches - a classic PB&J, a fully loaded veggie sub, a panini - I could eat a sandwich anytime. Does that mean all Americans feel the same way? ...Probably not.

I am a proud Starbucks Gold Card carrier (mostly because I know they always have soy milk) so do I love a latte..? I sure do. Does it mean I get the largest one? Sometimes. Do I think all Americans love a BIG coffee? Hmm.. I'm leaning towards a strong yes here. I mean, don't we all love the bottomless cup of coffee that is usually standard in American restaurants? Doesn't that beat the €2 espresso that takes you 30 seconds to enjoy finish? Okay, I see the logic... you get the caffeine jolt you're craving when on the go, but how about when you want to meet a friend for coffee and you've both finished your espresso in the first minute of sitting down? Do you sit with your empty cup for 2 hours? There's something nice about enjoying a large latte, slowing sipping while chatting or reading the newspaper.

As for the whole image that Americans survive on fast-food and McDonald's, I really do not think that is true. Of all the families I have known growing up, McDonald's was a treat. You had a good soccer game, you got McDonald's. You were in the spelling bee, you got McDonald's. It was your birthday, you could have McDonald's if you wanted. Was that how it was in my house? No. We don't really like McDonald's. I hadn't eaten any meat since I was 9. My parents prefer a burger on the grill with meat from the local butcher. I think the whole image of Americans eating at McDonald's is more prevalent in less fortunate areas of the country, because McDonald's is cheap (this isn't the case in Europe - McDonald's is actually pretty pricey). Unfortunately, people are eating at places like McDonald's because it's what they can afford. Buying fresh fruits and veggies is expensive and unfortunately not everyone has that luxury (this is where I should add a shameless plug about why government funding for the National School Lunch Program is so important because it brings healthy foods to kids plates and for some children, this is the only healthy meal - or the only meal, in general - that they are afforded).

Now, let me take on this whole issue of Americans speaking only English. Yes, it is 100% true. Most Americans are not bilingual or trilingual like they are in other parts of the world. However, everyone in North America speaks English. Does everyone in Europe speak the same language? No, they do not. Growing up in the United States, we traveled throughout many states, and we only needed to speak one language. Where I am living now in France, I am one hour from the borders of Switzerland and Germany. Guess what language we speak when we go there and we try to communicate? Ahhhh... you guessed right... we speak English!!!! When my love studied in Holland, he learned English. Why was that? Because English was a common language for the students to speak there. What I'm trying to say is, we were raised in a different culture - we have 50 states all with a common language. France is smaller than Texas. Don't you think it would be different if they spoke French in Connecticut, German in Pennsylvania, Spanish in New York, and Italian in New Jersey... yeah, it would, but that's not the case. And, trust me, as much as the rest of the world thinks we're stupid, most Americans I know are envious and would love to learn another language but it's almost impossible to become fluent in a language if you have no one to speak that language with.

Well, I think that's all... what stereotypes do Americans have toward Europeans? Share with me! That's my next topic to tackle!

A Dish Full of Delish - Vegan Muffins

These muffins are so good that even my non-vegan, carnivorous man requests them - daily. We love them. They are a perfect grab-n-go breakfast, a not "tooooo" unhealthy dessert, or an afternoon snack. I have made them for friends, family, co-workers, etc., and trust me, they are a hit! (The recipes have been adapted from several vegan and non-vegan cookbooks since most usually involve eggs or egg replacers, and I never have that stuff on hand). Each recipe makes 12 muffins.

Banana Muffins

pictured with chocolate chips

Ingredients:

• 3 very ripe bananas
• 1/4 cup oil or vegan margarine, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 cups flour (I use 1 cup wheat/1 cup white)
• 1 t. salt
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1 cup chopped walnuts or dark chocolate chips or 1/2 cup each!!! (optional)

Preparation:

Pre-heat oven to 360 degrees (which I've now learned is 182 Celsius!)

In a large bowl, mash the bananas with a potato masher or fork until soft. Add the oil or vegan margarine, sugar and cream together. (*Note: If the bananas are super ripe - especially yummy - you really can use let sugar because the bananas are much sweeter, but experiment with this. Trust me, you'll want to make these many times). 

Add to the first mixture the flour, salt, and baking soda. Mix it all together!

Grease or line a muffin pan, and fill each muffin about 2/3 full with batter. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour (I use 1 cup wheat/1 cup white)
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 t. baking powder
• 5 t. poppyseeds
• 3/4 cup soy milk
• 1/2 cup canola oil or Vegan margarine
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 T. lemon zest
• 2 t. pure vanilla extract

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, poppy seeds, and salt.  Make a well in the center and add milk, lemon juice, oil, zest (make sure you get both tablespoons worth of zest because it really does make the muffins so refreshing), and vanilla.  Mix just until all wet ingredients are moistened.  

Grease or line a muffin pan, and fill each muffin about 2/3 full with batter. Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

Well, enjoy!! :)

random thoughts and a note in my lunch box

 It's 9:30 in the morning here. I've already had a yummy breakfast of wheat toast with strawberry jam, fruit salad, OJ, and a double espresso. I read part of the newspaper. I went for a run. And, I'm writing to you now while taking a break between sets of sit-ups. It's been a refreshing morning. My plan for the day is to bring my French homework, the newspaper, a book, and some lunch to the park and recharge while enjoying the sunshine.

I think while in France I have become too dependent on my guy. I have been looking to him too much for translating, for money (since I'm not working)... well, looking to him for everything from directions, to entertainment, to converting to the metric system. However, I am finally starting to get better at being by myself so much. I find things to do to fill the gaps of time. I feel more comfortable walking around town, going into stores, and interacting with people. I go to his Mom's and cook or bake when I'm hungry or bored.

This is my life. I am here. I took a leap of faith. I am choosing to be here so I want to make the most of it. I moved halfway across the world with a guy I love. I want him to tell me he loves me everyday because those are words I will never get tired of hearing. I want to be able to say I've laughed and smiled everyday. I want to travel. I want to see the world. I want to live without limits. I want to learn something new everyday. I want to go to bed satisfied with the day that is quickly coming to an end.

But is it too much to ask for a note in my lunch box, too? Because maybe I'm 25 now... but I really miss those notes in my lunch box. They always turn a day around. Sometimes, I still need that. A girl always needs her Mom!

carpe diem.

My favorite little phrase has been carpe diem for as long as I can remember. However, for as much as I say it and think it, I don't live by these words enough... Sieze the day. This will be my mantra.

Many of my favorite bloggers have been posting about their goals for the Spring as seen here, and I think I'd like to do the same. How can I really live by the phrase carpe diem? What do I want? Well, here's what I came up with.

My Goals (in no special order of importance):

~run everyday (even if it's just a mile)

~start doing sit-ups and pilates 3x a week

~be more patient

~take some time for me at the end of the day to do important things like flossing and moisturizing (this is the only body I'm going to have so I should respect it more!)

~turn off electronic devices and store them under the bed after 10pm

~become fluent in French

~become more informed: read the newspaper everyday from front to back and watch the news (in French!)

~read more

~pray more

~find a new hobby

~resume old hobbies like playing soccer, basetball or tennis... anything to get outside more often

~communicate through handwritten letters and postcards once a week (too much of my across the Atlantic communication is through Facebook and e-mail)

~travel as much as possible

~drink a green monster shake 3-5 times per week!

~as always, drink more water! (I am ALWAYS saying, I'm thirsty but never doing anything about it!)

~and this one I kind of loathe - but... ughhhh incorporate some chicken into my diet (more on my 16 years of vegetarianism in another post!)

~be more appreciative of the little things in life


**Share with me any of your goals for the Spring or for your life, in general. It can be super inspiring to know what other people value/what other's goals are.

And, of course, have a fabulous weekend! My French family is visiting and I'm excited!

           xx Kay

a pretty minute in Paris!

I find the beginning of the video to be extra funny because I thought he was taking pictures. You can see me moving my face so as to pose for the various pictures I think are being taken! What a nerd I am!

a happy minute in Paris with me!

award winning sweets - count me in!!!

Over dinner the other night, my guy's brother enlightened us on Belfort's hidden gem - Pâtisserie KLEIN. Apparently, the grandfather, his son, and now, in its third generation, Stéphane Klein, have all been France's champions in creating art with chocolate and sugar. This barely recognizable little shop features some of the most beautiful and tasty creations. Now, I have been eating my fair share of sweets in recent weeks but Klein's candies and chocolates, as anticipated, were on another level.

my love's afternoon treat

mmm.. mine, the house specialty

cherries, lemon cream, and whipped cream

all chocolate with caramel, mousse, and biscuit

 We truly loved our afternoon treats. You can see they are very small (as are most portions in France compared to the US), but I swear, I couldn't finish mine in one sitting. It was so rich. My love, on the other hand, did not have a problem polishing off his Toyko-themed treat while saying, "Mmmmm" with every bite!

Klein's charges top dollar and people come from all over the world for 2, 4, 5, or 6 day classes on everything from pastry making to sugar work.  The classes start at €1500 which is over $2000 right now. I guess it is a small price to pay when you're learning from France's best!

The best part for us is - Klein's is located right next to the hotel! How did we not know about this place before!?

:)

Do you want me to tell you something really subversive? Love is everything it's cracked up to be. That's why people are so cynical about it. . . . It really is worth fighting for, being brave for, risking everything for. And the trouble is, if you don't risk anything, you risk even more.

             Erica Jong

The Pickle Jar Theory.

Yesterday my love sent me this e-mail (by way of a forward). I translated it from French (okay... I wasn't feeling that ambitious... I used Google to translate it from French) and here is the result. I think the "story" has such a beautiful meaning and so much truth that I had to share.

There once was a professor of philosophy who in front of his class took a large empty jar of pickles and without saying a word, began to fill it with golf balls. Then, he asked his students if the jar was full. The students were willing to say YES.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar of pickles. The pebbles rolled into the empty spaces between the golf balls. The teacher asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar of pickles. Of course, the sand fills all voids and the teacher asked again if the jar was full. The students unanimously answered YES.

Immediately after, the teacher added two cups of coffee into the jar of pickles and the coffee actually filled the spaces between the grains of sand. The students then began to laugh. When they finished, the professor said: I want you to realize that the pickle jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things like family, children, health, everything that is truly important. Our lives would still be full if we lost everything else and they were all that remained. 

The pebbles are the other things that count such as work, home, car, etc. The sand is everything else, the little things in life. If you put the sand first, there would be no room for anything else - the pebbles or the golf balls..  It's the same thing in life.

If we spend all our energy and our time for small things, we will never have room for the things that really matter. Pay attention to things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children (or grandchildren!), take the time to go to the doctor, dinner with your family, playing sports or practicing your favorite hobbies. There will always be time to clean, repair the kitchen, etc. Take care of the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set priorities, the rest is just sand..

One student raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented... The professor smiled and said: It's good that you ask. It was just to show you that although your life may seem satisfied, there will always be room for a cup of coffee with a friend.

So when it seems that there are "too many" things in your life, when 24 hours don't seem sufficient...Remember the jar of pickles and have a cup of coffee with an old friend.

what a wonderful weekend.

This past weekend was really great!

It started on Friday night. My love took me to the old city part of Belfort where we went to a traditional French restaurant. Everything from the food to the decor was so French. We both really enjoyed it.

Saturday morning we had planned to go to a G Star outlet store in Germany. He really likes the clothes there and the prices are really affordable. We both did some browsing and didn't find anything. However, it was such a beautiful day, and we didn't want to head back to Belfort just yet.

My uncle had written on my Facebook about how we should go to Freiburg and so we did. I didn't even realize we were going there until I started seeing signs and realized which direction we were headed. It was just wonderful driving with the windows down, letting the sun seep in, and having the freedom of going wherever we pleased.

The city of Freiburg was really cute! All of the architecture is, of course, very traditional German. There were so many coffee shops and pastry shops. Because it was such a beautiful day, every cafe was packed. Everyone was sitting outside; the streets were bustling; it was very jolly. It must rain a lot there, because all the streets had a little steam running down them. I guess how we have sewage drains, Freiburg has these open streams. They are about 1 to 1.5 feet wide. All the kids had these little boats on strings that they would pull along with them as they walked down the streets. It was very cute! *We didn't bring a camera, an iPhone or anything with us to take photos as the original plan was just to go to the outlets. We bought a disposable camera so I will post more about Freiburg when I get the pictures back!

After we returned from Freiburg, we went over to see his sister who was 9 months pregnant! She has another baby girl that will be 1 year this month. When we arrived, she was wearing her I <3 NY onesie that we brought from NY! It was nice to see the family!

We went back to his Mom's house where I prepared a dish I had been really looking forward to making. One of my favorite bloggers posted this recipe back in March. My love and I truly enjoyed the meal! I omitted the wine and instead added lemon juice. I also doubled the tomatoes since I love cooked, fresh tomatoes. I also added 2 peperoncinis to the pan because we didn't have any dried red pepper flakes and we wanted the extra kick they would have provided. We used all fresh ingredients - fresh shrimp (this turned out to be a bit of a pain as peeling, deveining, and cleaning the shrimp was quite time consuming but thankfully my love took the reigns on that project), fresh tomatoes, fresh parsley, even the juice from fresh lemons (I cut up lemon slices and cooked them in the pan, too). We served it over pasta. It was so delicious! I will definitely be making that again.

We were woken up at about 9 on Sunday morning with the call we had been anxiously awaiting - it was time!!! We hurried ourselves out of bed, threw some clothes on, and we were out the door. My job was to watch the baby while my love took the expectant family to the hospital. This, as it turned out, was not a job. The baby slept until 10. She didn't make a sound when she woke up. I kept checking in and eventually found her standing up in her crib. I was nervous she might cry when she saw me (thinking, you are not my mom!). However, she had a big smile which warmed my heart - I could see all 4 teeth!! We enjoyed the morning together eating, dancing, singing, and hide and seek (although not even a year, she is a very fast walker!!!)! I welcome the fact that this beautiful baby girl is the only person on this planet that enjoys my singing!! She also loves Lady Gaga (as she danced she said, "Gaga!")! It was so funny. Every time the music would come on.. she would start bending her knees and bouncing up and down or swaying back and forth. I just love her!

And now, she is a big sister!! Another beautiful, healthy baby girl was welcomed into the family yesterday... how exciting! Yesterday was my father's birthday so I was secretly hoping the new baby would be born on that same day, and to my delight, my wish came true!

On that note, Dad, hope your birthday was a good one!

After leaving the hospital, having a coffee back at the hotel with his oldest sister and her family (it was my first time meeting them and they were SO nice), we took a short drive to  Montbéliard. We took a walk and soaked in the last moments of the weekend together before Monday would arrive and bring with it another busy week. The weekend was such a happy one and we didn't want it to end.

Tour de France: Strasbourg

The truth is, even if we didn't travel on the weekends I would be happy. My love works SO much during the week which means I am alone all the time. I  look forward to the weekends, because I love getting to spend time with him. We can finally catch up on what's going on at his work and what I am learning in my French class. I love that! I didn't think it was possible to miss someone you see everyday, but now I know it is. However, it is really nice to get to see new places so I welcome the opportunity!

This past weekend, we took an impromptu trip to Strasbourg. Saturday morning we were sitting around and thinking about what we could do (it was such a beautiful day) when my love said, "Do you want to go to Strasbourg?" I said, "Sure, why not!?" He said, "The train leaves in 10 minutes so can you be ready in 5 minutes?" I said, "I guess we'll see!" We threw clothes in an overnight bag. I put my wet hair in a ponytail. We grabbed some stuff to do on the train, and we were off! We sprinted across the street to the station. The man said, "Train to Strasbourg leaves in 30 minutes!" (in French, but I understood!).  We laughed that we had hurried so much and we still had 30 minutes. I went back across the street to put some makeup on and to raid the hotel fridge for some snacks for the 1.5 hour train ride. He went to the ticket counter to purchase our tickets and to secure a hotel room in Strasbourg.

I studied my French on the train; he read the newspaper. We admired the countryside together. I would point things out to him (my mom's favorite trees), people riding bikes (I would say, "Look, it's my dad!"), and people wearing not enough clothes in their yards to be living next to where the train passes (if you catch my drift!). He would tell me the names of towns or what the names of certain things were in French. It was very pleasant.


Upon arriving in Strasbourg, I liked it immediately. It helped that it was just a perfect day weather-wise. The sun was shining; everyone was smiling; there were people laying on the grass basking in the sun, and the shops were full of people browsing. We walked all around and took a lot of photos. We had lunch right outside the beautiful cathedral (pictured above). We liked the food so much that we went back for dinner. We just walked and walked. It was a fabulous day.

Sunday was another beautiful day. We walked around some more. We had delicious Italian gelato (the line was out the door). You can't see that great (last picture), but they would make the gelato look like a rose on your cone. In the US, I am used to getting a cone with scoops on top, This was much fancier! I had pistachio, coconut, and dark chocolate. My love had lemon, strawberry, and chocolate. They had so many flavors including 3 different kinds of chocolate, nutella, a myriad of nut and fruit flavors, and specialties like caramel, dulce de leche, etc. It was very cute and doing a lot of business! After we had our gelato, we went and laid in the sun and people watched for the rest of the afternoon.

Overall, it was a good weekend. Strasbourg is in the Alsace region which is historically German. The architecture is much more representative of German style. I prefer the old, quaint look and feel of the French style. I definitely wouldn't want to live in Strasbourg (too many people could speak English and I would never learn French!!). However, I do think it's a nice place to visit. There were a lot of super high end stores there - Hermes, Gucci, Cartier - as well as my favorites - Zara and H&M. I hope my Tour Guide de France takes me back there someday!

...

picture taken in Strasbourg

I believe that two people are connected at the heart, and it doesn't matter what you do, or who you are or where you live; there are no boundaries or barriers if two people are destined to be together.

                      Julia Roberts

maternity jeans - something to laugh about...

 Don't be confused by the title of this post. I am not in need of maternity jeans (nor do I intend to be for quite some time). However, I do have a funny story about maternity jeans.

This past weekend my love and I were in Strasbourg (post about Strasbourg tomorrow!) where we spent the afternoon bopping in and out of the shops. We decided to go to Strasbourg on such a whim that I hadn't even packed for such warm weather. We decided to go to H&M where we knew we could find a cheap yet cute t-shirt for me.

I saw my love stroll over to the maternity section which was right near the ladies' section where we were browsing. What happened next has made me laugh every day since... (I am laughing as I write this).

I watch him as he takes a pair of maternity jeans into his hands, stares at the black fabric above the waistline and simply ponders this... he looks at me as to say, "What is this for?" However, I am laughing too hard to respond. The best I can do is point to the wall where the display is a bunch of pregnant bellies in maternity clothes. He drops his head, embarrassed and walks to the men's department. I continue laughing hysterically and walk to another section of the store. I am certain I looked like some sort of crazy person, because I just could not stop laughing picturing his baffled face. It was definitely one of those "you had to be there" moments but I assure you that the look on his face was priceless. He was seriously trying to figure out what that extra piece of stretchy fabric's purpose was.

So maybe you had to be there, but I am sure there are other women who have already had babies and once found themselves maternity shopping with their man and in a similar situation. However, your man probably had a clue by your belly what to expect in that section.

As I was walking down the street today, I thought of this little moment and began to laugh again. Sometimes we need something to laugh about and I am happy that my love and I can share these moments together. When two people can laugh at and with each other, that's a good sign. Every time I think of his face that day looking at those pants I will laugh. Then, I will proceed to look around to see if anyone is staring at me, wondering if I am, in fact, crazy.

Loved

The world is a crazy place. People are killing. Mother nature is killing people. There is turmoil in so many countries. There are so many people in this crazy world without water, food, shelter, and education - without so many things that I take for granted everyday.  I want to take a moment to show gratitude to the two people who have given so much to me. They have supported me, loved me, and provided for me [without judgment, despite my falls, and to no end]. Although I may be halfway across the world from you both, you are never far from my thoughts and are always near and dear to my heart.

*Mom and Dad

Celine really says it all. My parents were always the best parents (still are). They weren't the kind of parents that did a half-ass job. They were the kind of parents at every soccer game, at every race, at every THING - spelling bees, chorus concerts, science fairs... really, they were ALWAYS there - no event was too small. They didn't just go to events nearby, they would drive however many hours to be somewhere so that they would never miss a thing. I had soccer tournaments in Virginia, Pennsylvania, DC, NY, and even Canada. No matter how far, they were there. They were always the parents volunteering to drive my friends when their parents couldn't be there. That's just the kind of people they are.

Looking back, it seemed normal to me that my parents would dedicate so much (if not all) of their time to driving me everyday to soccer practice, to games, sitting through games, going to meetings at school, helping me with projects, taking us on trips. It isn't normal, and not everyone's parents were doing that. Every weekend was somewhere different with soccer tournaments. If it was a rare weekend with nowhere to go, they were hosting a slumber party. When we would wake in the morning, my parents would have donuts, bagels, juice, and my mom's delicious home fried potatoes and fruit salad waiting to greet us! I never would have expected anything different. They were and always have been so giving. Whether it was car rides, money, clothes, or time.

As I've grown up, my father is more of a silent cheerleader. He only questions me when he feels he really needs to, but even when he doesn't say much, I know he cares. He is the most hard-working man I know. He goes early to work in the morning to offer extra help to his students (free of charge, of course). He stays late grading papers. He coaches everyday - even the weekends. He is the kind of teacher/coach that takes so much pride in what he does. The fact that the government wants to cut spending on education, take away things they were promised and are entitled to, etc. is unfair for so many reasons, but it's certainly heartbreaking and cruel to people like my father who have dedicated over 30 years to being a teacher, a mentor, a friend, and to many students and athletes, a father figure. I am not saying that there aren't teachers that go in there and don't teach a thing and have the students trade papers so they don't have any grading of papers to do later (I have had some of those teachers), but they shouldn't be representative of the profession as a whole. Students of my father's from years back will still call, stop by the house, etc. to see what's up, get advice on which college to choose, or to invite him to their weddings.

My mother was also a great teacher. I can't tell you how many people I have met that have said, "Oh, Mrs. Reabold, she was my favorite teacher!" The reason I loved her being a teacher was because it meant she had the summers off (dad, too!). We would go to the beach everyday or swim in our pool. She is the kind of woman that would take my sister and I shopping and never even look for herself. She's so unselfish. I think sometimes she should be a little bit more selfish! My mom has always been the cutest person! She would sneak post-its with words of encouragement or a simple "love you!" note into our lunch boxes. When I was in college, she would always send me cute cards with a gift certificate to Starbucks or something inside! Whether I had received a good grade or the semester was almost over, I could always expect a cute card in the mail! I loved that! My mom is the kind of person everyone wants to be friends with because she is bubbly, funny, and kind (not to mention beautiful!!). She is one of those people who can always cure your bad day with a few sweet words. I really have an endless amount of nice things to say about my mom (and my dad, too!).

Overall, I have lived a truly blessed life. There is nothing like the feeling of knowing you are loved. With my parents, I never had to doubt that (even at my worst). Thanks Mom and Dad! You rock!



                                  xoxo your baby girl :)

if you press me to say why i loved him,

i can say no more than because he was he,

and i was i.

   -michel de montaigne 

       *quote compliments of the lovely wiley brunette

Reason #1 why you should get your hair done at the salon

Life is crazy!! If you don't think so already, you might reconsider after reading this post featuring my sister, Elizabeth (pictured below with me in Mexico).

My sister decided to dye her hair at home this week. She considered going to the salon but since salons are expensive, she went to a local beauty supply store and stocked up on what she would need for a little DIY project. Oh boy, did she regret that!

Let me set the scene for you. For any of you that know our family well, you know we have a dog, Bailey, that loves to run away. He is a beagle. Beagles like to sniff things. They run away; it's life. All of our good friends know to be careful when opening the doors. In fact, I can tell how well people know us by 2 factors: 1) in our house, back door guests are the best. I know someone really knows us if they knock on the back door or even better, just walk right in and 2) in our house, if you open the door and let the dog out, you have taken that risk and the rest of the work is in your hands. If you can't get your voice deep enough to get that dog into the fenced in "pool area" then God bless you, I hope you're not in a rush. You're either running, cruising around in the car, or making phone calls to the animal shelters and the police station (as annoying as it is when someone messes up and the dog gets away, we're all guilty so we actually do - while moaning about it - help each other follow the proper protocol required to locating him). So if you don't know, now you know.

Now back to the story. So Liz (as we fondly refer to her) put the hair color in her hair. She was told to start with just the roots. She has color only on the top of her hair. She is sitting and waiting the specified amount of time when she decided to let the dog out. The dog starts to run. She begins to chase him. Keep in mind that Liz was in the middle of a DIY at home project. Anyone that is anyone doesn't get dolled up for these kind of occasions. In fact, it is usually the contrary. Well, Liz was no exception on this day. She was wearing a ratty, old t-shirt, shorts (with no underwear), and 2 different but equally hot pink socks (1 solid, 1 polka dot). Combine that with the half head's worth of hair dye and I'm sure no makeup, and I have one hot mess of a sister running around chasing the dog.

Upon realizing that she wouldn't catch him, Liz gets in her car to go look for him. She said, "I was driving around looking like a lion or something because my roots were pinned down and the rest of my hair was like a fro." She is relieved when she sees Bailey (we always face the underlying fear of our mother's reaction if we are unsuccessful in our dog search). However, he gets away again. Liz then goes back to the house and makes the necessary calls to try to locate him.

After, she goes to speak with the neighbors to see if they had seen him with the same outfit and the hair dye still in her hair.  Just a few minutes later (sigh of relief), my sister gets a call that the dog is at a grocery store (about 2 miles away). She gets in the car to go get him only to realize that she has no gas. She then needs to go get gas. She realizes she forgot her wallet. She knows now that the clock is ticking. The hair dye was supposed to be in for 25 minutes and it has been 50 minutes!

In the end, by some miracle, Liz's hair color came out looking just fine and the dog was safely home. It is just another one of those examples of a situation where all is well that ends well. However, I think we can all agree on one thing... Liz, go to the salon next time!!! You deserve it after an experience like that!