5 and Summer

Griffin turned 5 last Thursday!

Five!

It was also the last day of school

so lots to celebrate here.

Griffy and I had lunch at his 

favorite place...Frog.

And he picked out a new 

Eiffel Tower.

He wanted pizza for dinner

and of course we had cake

and presents.

We are so proud of you

Griffy!

You've become such a big 

boy!

Your family loves you so much!!

Friday..

the first day of summer vacation..

we went to the bookstore

to pick up some summer reading,

and out to lunch in the 

Jardin des Tuileries.

This past weekend was

fete du musique here in Paris..

Bands play all over the city

all night long.

And the sunsets in the evening

(10 pm!!)...have been just beautiful.

And we are off!

Thursday we fly to Iceland!

We will stay there for 3 days 

and then continue on to Boston.

We are really looking forward to

another summer on 

Martha's Vineyard 

and visiting family and friends!!

Happy summer!

Ralph's and Getting Lost in France

Saturday night Steve and I

had dinner at Ralph's with some friends.

I wanted to take everything in this 

picture home with me.

The vintage fabric pillows..

the table setting..

the cozy atmosphere.

The food was fantastic.

The service...well, probably the best

we've experienced here in Paris..

so far.

If you find yourself in Paris,

with a hankering for some good

American food..

Steve had the chili and the burger..

I had the crab cake and the lobster salad..

Go to Ralph's!

(and ask for a pack of matches on your way out..

you know I collect them..and Ralph's 

are navy blue of course!)

On our ride home from Giverny on

Sunday we got a little lost.

And I'm so glad we did!

We came across the most

charming little town

situated right on the banks of the Seine.

Complete with a medieval castle.

Richard the Lion heart, king of England and 

Duke of Normandy built Chateau Gaillard between

1196 and 1198.

The quaint little town at the base

of the Chateau..

I believe is Le Petit Andelys.

Gorgeous views of the Seine

Great for throwing rocks

So glad we got lost!

Father's Day at Giverny

Yesterday for Father's day 

we drove outside the city

to the beautiful home and 

garden of Claude Monet.

It would have been a perfect day

had Hannah been with us.

Today is her last final

at school and she insisted on 

staying home to study.

It was a lovely day to walk through

Monet's gardens...

..and see the famous water lilies!

I loved touring the home he shared

with his second wife Alice and their

8 children!

The famous yellow dining room!

We walked around the grounds and found a little

place to eat.

Giverny is such a charming 

little town..

stone houses

covered in climbing ivy...

and wild flowers everywhere.

Happy Father's day 

Steve!

Your family loves you!

The French Open and Thunderstorms in Paris

I think summer has 

arrived in Paris!

This past weekend we watched

the French Open finals

on the Champs du Mars.

We met a few friends there

and had a picnic.

Great tennis!

And on Saturday I met

David Lebovitz!

He was at our local English

bookstore signing his latest 

cookbook.

I love his blog!

And really looking forward to 

trying some of his recipes.

We have had some 

intense storms these past

two nights!

Last night I took this picture

just as a flash of lightening

struck...

(you can see the bolt and how the sky lit up)

and as the midnight sparkles began!

I was still awake listening to the storm

when the tower shut it's lights off

after the 1:00 am sparkles.

The lightening was amazing!

This is the last full week of school!

And I'm hoping to get some sleep

tonight

:)

Provencal villages and Cassis

Saturday morning there is a

fantastic outdoor market

on Place de Verdun in Aix.

Produce and cheese and

clothes and antiques.

Certainly my idea of 

a Saturday morning!

What a gorgeous Provencal market!

I had to remind myself that I had

only one suitcase!

I did of course pick up

a traditional French market 

basket!

Lots of lavender and 

herbs de Provence!

These artichokes

were beautiful!

After strolling the market

for a few hours,

I met up with my tour group.

I booked through 

Discover Provence

and it was perfect!

Only 5 of us..

me and the two honeymooners!

An Australian couple and a 

couple from Hong Kong.

Our tour guide Janika was 

friendly and very knowledgable.

Our tour started at a winery..

and after a bit of tasting we 

walked around the gorgeous 

gardens.

After the wine tour

we visited two perched Provencal 

villages.

We visited Asouis

and Cucuron.

The picture above was 

taken in Cucuron

where the movie

A Good Year was partly filmed.

It's based on Peter Mayle's novel.

I was thrilled to find out

that there was room for 

one more on the tour Sunday

to Cassis!

The Australian couple was back

 along with a couple

from Boston!

Sarah, the owner of 

Discover Provence was

out guide Sunday.

She was lovely!

I highly recommend her tours!

I want to go back and do her Provencal

cooking class!

Cassis is about a 40 minute 

drive from Aix.

It's an old fishing village.

When we first arrived we boarded

a ferry that took us along the coast

and into three separate calanques..

or sheltered inlets. 

This is one pictured above.

After the boat tour

we sat at an outdoor cafe

for a glass of Cassis' white wine.

We then drove up a beautiful windy 

road leading to Cap Canaille

where we had a gorgeous view.

Upon our return 

back in Aix..

the two couples invited

me for a quick bite to eat 

with them and then I was 

headed back home on the train

to Paris.

A perfect long weekend!