Jour de Noël (Christmas Day)

This was one of our best Jour de Noël ever! Surprisingly everyone slept until 7am. Lilly was still asleep when Taylor and I arrived. Santa found his way and everyone was happy. Lots of goodies were stuffed in Christmas stockings and everyone had fun gifts under the tree. Of course our favorite gifts were the "Gifts of the Heart" that we make for each other. Grammie & Grandpa surprised us with some special "German Christmas treasures" and we surprised them with some "French treasures" - a scarf & a hat! It truly was a season of giving & sharing. Unfortunately for Lilly & Spencer someone gave them a cold. Lilly came down with a fever Christmas night so she wasn't feeling her best. It was wonderful to be together. We played lots of games, talked and ate good food. We feel like the luckiest family in the world. Thank you Grammie & Grandpa for hosting such a special Christmas!

Veille de Noël (Christmas Eve)

This was an especially wonderful Veille de Noël. We didn't have a lot of last minute things to occupy our day. In Germany EVERYTHING closes at 11am on Veille de Noël and nothing opens until the 26 or 27th. We did a last minute grocery run, played games & attended a short Christmas program at the church. In the evening Grammie fixed a German style raquellette dinner. It was delicious & we spent a good portion of our evening eating and visiting around the dinner table. The kids opened one present of pajamas (big surprise!). Even with new jammies it wasn't easy to sleep. The kids all slept on mats in Grammie & Granpa's living room right next to the Christmas tree. Taylor and I stayed at a hotel nearby. It was a very strange feeling to leave the apartment and wonder if Santa would really find his way to this little German apartment...but he did!

Père Noël (Santa Clause)

This year we didn't have a chance to see the real Père Noël. He doesn't seem to be around much in France. We wondered if we could sign up to be his helpers and use these great masks we found in a German department store? At the local market by Grammie & Grandpa's apartment Clara was greeted by one of those "santa helpers". He had a little bag filled with nuts, chocolate & fruits that he gave to Clara. She knew he wasn't the real dude so she was unsure if she wanted her photo taken with him.

Le Marché de Noël Allemand (German Christmas Market)

Now that life has slowed down a bit I want to catch up on our Christmas holiday adventures.
The day we arrived in Hamburg we visited le Marché de Noël Allemand . I have heard about the markets and they were everything I expected. Grammie & Grandpa knew all of the best booths to look at and we tried to see it all.
They have booths for everything. Gingerbread, candy, wooden figurines, nutcrackers, and lots of really good food.

Hamburg temperatures were freezing. We stopped at one of the beverage stands to warm up with a cup of hot cocoa. In Germany no one uses paper products. Aside from a napkin or paper bag you use real plates and cups. Hot chocolate was no exception. You could purchase a cup of cocoa for 3.25 euro. If you returned the mug you got 1.25 euro back. Of course we kept our cups. They made a great souviner.
The crowds were enormous but it didn't stop our fun. After all we were in Germany with our Grammie & Grandpa!

Pique-nique de l'arbre de Noël (picknick by the Christmas tree)

A family favorite during the holidays is to have a pique-nique de l'arbre de Noël. This is a tradition we have had for years and even though our l'arbre de Noël was very tiny and fake we still carried on "tradition"! It was especially fun to have the Wilson family to share the evening with. Our pique-nique includes a yummy feast and then entertainment. Every one in attendance is required to share a "talent". This year Clara did some fancy jump-roping, Olivia played her violin, Spencer showed off his fancy soccer moves, Lilly sommersaulted. The Wilson's surprised us with their stellar talents as well. Perhaps the highlight was when Dave & Claudia acted out a scene from a Brazillian soap opera. That night just before we put the kids to bed Taylor sprang a big surprise on our kids. He told them the next day they could play hookey from school and we would be going to Paris with our friends. Lilly literally jumped two feet in the air and started squeeling "Pa-ri, Pa-ri, Pa-ri"!

Pageant de le Nativité (Nativity Pageant)

Olivia and Clara were invited to join the Anglican Church Pageant de le Nativité. Children from all denominations participated and it was a really fun event. For three months the girls have met at a little church by their school. They learned an entirely new score of songs and a little dance. Sunday was the big performance. It was a new age genre and there was a lot of spunk to the music. Everyone did a great job. What was impressive was the fact that they related this nativité to the kids. Mary & Joseph travelled with a bike trailer rather than a donkey and the Angel Gabrielle was a "Hip-Hop" angel. We really enjoyed being a part of this event and send our thanks to all those who spent so much time organizing.

Melun ward

A few highlights from the Melun ward church Christmas party last night. You can see from the decorations and joint signs of Joyeus Noel and Merry Christmas they made us feel very welcome. This is truly a group of people who are full of fellowship and kindness. Dinner was served in courses and between each course they had music and speaking parts from the Nativity. It was neat to hear the nativity story read in French. Olivia was asked to play her violin and she did a lovely job. One of my favorite parts of the program was when 4 different groups sang "Angels We Have Heard On High" and then everyone joined in the chorus. One man sang in his native African dialect, another couple sang in French, the missionaries sang in English and the Reed family did American sign language. A Christmas memory we will not soon forget.

Elfe (Elf)

I had a good laugh yesterday while driving through the streets of Fontainebleau. There were a bunch of elfes standing on the sidewalk waving and being silly. My friend Tracie Thomas was in the back seat of my car so I tossed her the camera, slowed and we had a little conversation through the car window with this elfe. This is not a common sight in France. There was no Santa, just elfes. They must be on watch for the naughty and nice list!

Marche Noel (Christmas Market)

It was a cold cold day for the International school Marche Noël. All of the kids had to sit on the freezing pavement in the school yard for Christmas Carols performed by Clara's little choral group. Afterwards they were rewarded with free hot chocolate. There were all kinds of baked good and Christmas decor for sale. The kids were happy even if they were freezing. Nothing like a little Christmas spirit to keep you warm on the inside.

Lèche-vitrine (Window-shopping)

Taylor and I escaped to Paris for a day of Lèche-vitrine. We had hoped to find a few little items for Christmas gifts, but mostly we just wanted to wander around this amazing city and enjoy the ambiance of of the holiday season.

Presentation is a big deal in France. From homework, to cooking to Christmas decorations outside the shops Parisians KNOW how to make things look elegant!


One of Taylor's students from INSEAD knew we were going to Paris for the day. He insisted that we go to Angelina's for a breakfast snack. After getting off the train we headed straight there. It was worth it! Incredible hot chocolate. One of our guide books mentioned their hot chocolate, but said it was so rich you shouldn't order it before noon. That was no concern to us. Bon Appetite!


The dried fruit here at Christmas time is amazing! They have an enormous variety and it's just beautiful. Terribly expensive though.




I wanted to buy these pears to give the kids for the first day of Christmas. I changed my mind when I realized that 49,95 euros was like $75 for two pounds!











The foie grass won at a mere 210 euros per kilo. I'm not so sure I would have even known the difference between this stuff and the cheaper variety.

The bakeries have the best window displays. Of course, they are edible!