9 October
Saturday the kids went ice skating with the youth group. I cannot believe this was their first time ice skating. One was excited to go and one did not want to go at all. There are two other families near our village so we typically carpool with them. Because we do not have younger children we are usually the “bring home” transportation.
The skating rink is beside the aquarium at the end of the mall. I went a little early to go to the sports store for an upcoming trip. WOW! It looked as if over 75 people were waiting just in line to check out. Luckily, I did not find what I was looking for and left as soon as I could. Both kids had a good time and only fell a couple of times each. It was nice to see both kids engaged in conversations and goofing off when I arrived.
Sunday after church we were invited to the pastor’s house for lunch with another family. The pastor’s daughter is M’s friend here in France. She speaks both French and English. They teach each other words, like chaussure and poop. To give them credit they were watching a horse behind the yard (jardin).
We ate outside on this beautiful day. The meal was lovely and lasted until after 4pm. First was water and soft drinks with chips. Second, we moved to the tables and had lasagna, salad, bread and wine. Followed by a cheese plate for the third portion. Fourth and lastly, cheesecake and coffee. I think coffee is usually served separately after dessert, but they asked if we would like it with the cheesecake and we said yes please. Everyone spoke French but me, and everyone spoke English except the pastor’s wife, who happens to be from Brazil. The adults and the 2 high schoolers had good conversations while the 8 kids laughed and played together, 4 middle schoolers (Z is considered this age in France), and 4 elementary kids. It was a blessing to be invited and to share a meal with people from church.
Lees in France 