Parc Bordelais - Bordeaux - A Spring-like Afternoon

Parc Bordelais

Parc Bordelais - Signs of Spring

Yes, it's been a while since my last blog post - don't worry - I'm not abandoning my blog - life just got really busy for the past few weeks.  First, my oldest daughter had some synchro competitions, then a good friend from College visited for a few days, then the kids started break and in the midst of all of that - I'm studying to be a tour guide starting at the end of this month.  All of these things have kept me quite busy! I'm presently working on several different posts from our mini-vacation near Saint Jean du Luz, and our life currently.  If you follow me on Instagram, twitter or facebook - you will have seen some photos from our past few weeks.

I have to say that one of the things I do like about Bordeaux is that we have Spring!  Coming from New York State - I'm use to lots of snow, then rain and freezing cold temperature.  We often joke that it goes from Winter to Summer - but not usually until June!  So it still amazes me that the daffodils begin to bloom her in February, life is renewing itself.  We have had a rainy January and it's still raining from time to time - but over the past couple weeks - we have had also had more sunshine!! 

I love these moments - moments to sneak out and be outside in the sun.  It's great to get our Vitamin D!  These photos are from Parc Bordelais located in Bordeaux Centre.  My youngest daughter and I had an hour and a half together one afternoon after we dropped off - one of her big sisters for a sycnronized swimming competition.  This is how we spent an hour and half before her competition began.  

The interesting thing here is that it had rained all morning - and then the sun came out for a few hours in the afternoon before the rain returned later.  Perfect timing if you ask me!!

I think what amazed me most was that this was early February - everything was green, and flowers were coming out, life was renewing itself.  It looked and smelled like true Spring -we even loved watching all the animals!

Rabbits - running through bushes

Geese

Loved the flower beds

Birds

My daughter enjoyed  taking photos too!

When you are 6 - you find the playground!

Green!

Hanging out!

Snack time!

I love a cup of coffee and enjoying being outside!!

Renewing life...

Remember it's February here- Love Spring!

Photographing the flowers!

More flowers & green grass

One of the entrances

This is one of my favorite parks in Bordeaux.  There is so much to do here - walk, stroll, jog, bike, scooter, roller blade or just sit and enjoy!.  It's big enough to enjoy in any way one desires.  

So, I hope you enjoyed a little preview of Spring!  I know it's February and for many of my friends they have plenty of snow to deal with and will be for another month.  I do miss the snow - sometimes!  But what I love about living here - is that it's very easy to drive 2 hours away and find the snow - plenty of it!  I call it the best of both worlds!

So here's to Spring and Sunshine as we head very quickly to the beginning of March!! Do you love Spring - what's it like where you live?

Weekend in Photos - Ballet shoes & Parc Bordelais

This Weekend - A little ballet shoe shopping, catch up 
and Parc Bordelais

I don't usually write about the weekends...but this past weekend was in some ways ordinary and in other ways...pretty, what I would say French....just a reminder of where we live and how things are similar yet different.

I'll start back on Friday...I have to share these two wonderful delicacies...The first photo was my entree at a wonderful restaurant for lunch.  I met a good friend at  BU Baravin  in centre-city Bordeaux.  They are only open for lunches and have a limited but delicious daily menu.  This little duo was chilled beet soup served with a chilled pumpkin puree. Everything there is made daily and fresh.  I didn't take a picture of dessert - but the creme brulee with essence of lavender was heavenly!  I felt like it was very French and also so yummy!!  Need to find a recipe for this soup and try it at home.

After my lunch, as I was headed back to the tram, I decided to stop and get a wonderful treat for my girls. They miss American cupcakes and I just recently found a cute little cafe near the  Hotel de Ville tram stop that sells - American cupcakes.  They are actually made by Sophisticakes Bordeaux -  2 American women who have started a wonderful cupcake business.  As they say on their website:

We are two American girls living, working and playing in Bordeaux. Coming from culinary backgrounds and being cupcakes biggest fans, starting a cupcake business in France just felt right. We bake using only fresh local all-natural products and have adapted this American classic to the French tastes. We find true inspiration in the kitchen and are always developing new recipes and flavor combinations that result in delightful-looking and mouth-watering treats. Currently we operate as a catering and delivery company, but we hope to welcome you to our shop very soon! *Quote taken from Sophisticakes Bordeaux website


So I picked up 3 Oreo-Cookies & Creme cupcakes and brought them home...all three cupcakes disappeared in a matter of seconds after the girls arrived home from school...I got one little nibble - and I would say between my lunch and these...it was a four star cuisine afternoon!!

On Saturday, my husband took my oldest daughter to get her pointe shoes.  She was so excited!  Now, she has danced for years, and two years ago, got her first pair of pre-pointe shoes as she started exercises to strengthen her ankles.  But last year, due to our move in October, there was no room in the ballet (classique) class here at the local dance school.  She was able to start modern jazz.  So she restarted this year...and she gets to start right where she left off....on pointe..so off they went on Saturday, into Bordeaux to buy her pointe shoes.  Have to say, she was a bit excited as the shoes came from a Parisian store that has a branch here in Bordeaux...how cool is that?  

So after an hour of sewing - yes, for those of you who don't have dancers, one has to sew the elastic and the ribbons onto the shoe!  Viola - French pointe shoes!!

and the American-French dancer who will be enjoying these beauties....

Now, I said earlier that my weekend was a bit ordinary...that part was the normal routine of laundry.  With 5 of us in the house, it's a never ending job - just like back home...but there are a few differences here in France.  First of all the French washing machines are smaller than one's in the States - and secondly, they take a long time to wash!  About 2 hours or more depending on the cycle!  Needless to say, it just means we are always doing laundry!  Another difference is that my dryer is a steam dryer (like most of them) and also takes a long time to cycle through...therefore, we now tend to air dry most of our clothes on drying racks.  (Very European!) When I first moved here, I used my dryer a bit more, but I was never happy with the results, with the exception of bath towels that were always nice and soft...so as they say if you can't beat them, join them...

So as I was hanging my laundry outside - I glanced over to look at my beautiful impatient plant which is still in FULL bloom. This plant was given to me last Mother's Day by my youngest from her school - it was just a wee bitty seedling...and just bloomed this summer into this gorgeous beauty.   It just reminded me how warm it still is here...how even though the nights are beginning to cool off- the days are still hot....last week was in the eighties all week and this weekend - even though it was the first day of Autumn was 93!  Have to say, I'm enjoying this French weather.

So on Sunday, in the spirit of being in France, and knowing everything is closed here on Sunday afternoons - I took two of my daughters to Parc Bordelais for a nice walk and ride...it was a beautiful afternoon to be out..and as you can tell from the photos...so was half of  Bordeaux.

We enjoy this park a lot - there is lots of wildlife to look at - a few ponds, other animals, a snack bar , rides and a fun little train.  All makes for a picturesque stroll on a Sunday afternoon.

Another reason I picked a big park to venture around was to give my almost 5 year old daughter a chance to practice riding her bike.  She just learned at the beginning of the summer how to balance without training wheels but our driveway is a bit small.    You can see below, she had lots of fun but definitely had to dodge the mobs of people...good practice!  We had a few near misses but most people understood she was a new rider and gave way.  Maybe it's the look on her face as she concentrates.

As here she is with her big sister leading us through the park...It turned out to be the perfect place to practice riding.

I wrote an earlier post about Parc Bordelais - You can read it here:  Blog Post
This time I continued to be fascinated by all the unique things in the park - the trees, the wooden railings and of course, the flowers - still in bloom!!  Also being a different time of year, it's nice to see the difference and similarities.

So that was our weekend, a combination of normal family life  just mixing it in with the love of things and life that is French!  

Life this week in Photos..Parks, Friends and Baking

A little fun, a little sun, a little socializing and baking...

 So we enter into the final long weekend of May...I can't believe how many holidays there have been in France this month.  I was uploading photos from my small camera and enjoying all the parks, and fun times we have had just in the last couple of weeks..


The first photos are at the Site du Bourgailh - This great park in Pessac has so much to offer.  The other day we decided to walk through their tropical greenhouse...needless to say, my youngest enjoyed the hanging moss!

We enjoyed hiking in the Dordogne last weekend - our 4 day weekend.  I'll have to write a separate post on that whole hike in Campagne - a small village near where my in-laws live...but I had to share my youngest daughter just having fun...maybe her mother takes too many photos?

So this week, I spent time getting my oldest daughter ready for a trip with her class called Classe Verte or roughly translated to Outdoor Class - This is an 8 day trip and they are off to the Pyrenees Mountains for some hiking, exploring and outdoor learning.  Needed to outfit her with hiking boots, heavy socks, hiking shorts (not something a fashion conscious 11 year old automatically owns..).  We did fit a bit of time meeting up with new English speaking friends at Parc Bordelais in Bordeaux on Wednesday afternoon.   My oldest loves to order her own ice cream and beverages...I think she has a lot of fun using her French and I get a kick out of listening to her.  I still sit back in awe as I listen to my daughters speak French...just amazes me every time I  hear them rattle off a sentence and/or tell a story in French.

We were quite a group sitting at the cafe stand.  I think we totalled 4 families and 12 kids.  My oldest bring water to her sisters and new friends...and below my youngest enjoying her favorite snack - Ice Cream!  It's been a lot of fun here to socialize with both French speaking families and kids and also meet English speaking families.  My older girls find it fascinating to hear where everyone is from and what they think of Bordeaux.  

One of the fun things about heading off to a city park is to be able to take the scooters, bikes, skateboards or rip-sticks to ride on.  The girls always have a blast riding.  It's still though, funny seeing them on their way to or from riding on the city sidewalks!  City life is definitely different than suburbia!  They can even take their bikes and scooters on the trams - actually you see everything on the trams - bikes, scooter, strollers and even animals.  

Finally I ended my week, having a group of women at our house from the Bordeaux Women's Club.  This club has become my social network and I have met so many interesting women.  Anyway, one of the members held a healthy baking session at my house.  We made the best Banana Bread on earth and also coconut macaroons (not the French kind).  The best thing about these recipes is that they are healthy!  You should check out her blog at Healthy Indulgence - some great recipes and tips!   So as I head into our last long weekend in May - the weather is warm, sunny and lovely!  I'm thinking healthy foods and fun exercise! Looking forward to a fun weekend ahead!

Spring Showers, May Flowers...beauty of France

Loving the Spring Flowers....

So we have been having a bout of cool weather and rain...(rain, rain, go away).  It's been quite a strange Spring - 85 degrees in March - cool & rainy April - a bout of 95 degree weather in early May and now mid-60's.  I never know what to where each day....sweater, coat, umbrella...all three?


I have to say though, I am admiring all the beautiful flowers around this area.  I have always loved flowers - always marveled at other people's flower gardens.  I have never had the time to create and tend a large flower garden of my own...I'm often lucky if I get a few pots planted for my patio. 


Anyway, it's been great to photograph many of the beautiful plants and flowers here.  My youngest daughter also enjoyed just picking wild daisies on a hike this past weekend.  The fun of just taking in nature.


Just  a short post tonight to share my lovely surroundings over the past week and the beautiful flowers around me.


Hopefully all this beauty will bring warmer weather and sunshine!