A Typical Day

I guess I have been in France long enough to have fallen into a daily routine (having a child at school actually fasttracked this daily routine process!!!) I get up about 7:45am and Blue gets up at the same time.   I make my morning cup of tea and Blue gets herself dressed for school and then watches some cartoons while she is eating her breakfast (cream crackers with butter or cinnamon toast crunch cereal!).  It is my intention every school morning to leave the house at 8:30am but I am always a few minutes later than that by the time we get shoes and jackets on, find keys, etc.  Blue walks down to open the gate of our courtyard while I drive the car through the gate and she closes it and gets in

.                                                          The gate out of our courtyard:

The village of Issac is only down the road (about a mile) but our driveway is very long also and has quite a few pot holes so I have to drive slowly with my little Peugeot!!!!  Blue has to be at school at 8:45am and if I don't get her there at that time, the gate is locked and she has to ring the bell for the teacher to come with keys to open it.....highlighting her tardiness, so I try to be on time!

                                                        The gate to Blue's school yard:
                                       

Blue looking tres chic heading to school!!!!

After Blue is dropped off at school and I have another cup of tea at the house, Jess and I go for a walk to explore the extensive estate we are on. (Jess hasn't gotten the go ahead to start school yet)  There is so much to see and so many roads and paths and fields to explore that each outing is an adventure. In the middle of a field away from all the houses and outbuilding, there is a grove of trees and bushes that hides cave-like entrances into five underground chambers that must have been used during war time to hide from the enemy.  I hope I can find out more about the history of the estate and unravel some of the mysteries that surround it!

After our walk, it is time to pick up Blue for lunch at 11:45am.  We bring her back to the house and the girls play outside while I prepare something to eat.  Blue has to be back at school at 1:15pm, except on Wednesdays when she has no school in the afternoon.  Blue could stay at school for lunch but she hasn't asked to, so until she does, I will pick her up and bring her home for a break from hours listening to all french!  On Wednesday afternoons, we usually plan a trip further away to see some cool place that we have read or heard about and want to see.

When I drop Blue back at school, we normally go for a drive to explore the endless country roads and hidden villages.  If I need to, I also run to the Intermarche, the local supermarket chain in either Neuvic or Mussidan to pick up something to cook for dinner.  We are back to pick up Blue at 4pm.  In the evening, I light a nice fire in the wooden stove to make the house toasty and warm.  The girls and I chat while I make dinner and then relax for the rest of the evening.

Pictures from our walk this morning......