Excellent advice on how to Avoid the Swine Flu

Don't Do This!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our Tommy Boy Moment

Well,
While Todd and I were off to the city center for a nice dinner we had what I like to call "Our Tommy Boy Moment."

What most people may or may not know about Europe is that the streets and parking spaces are quite small.

The street Todd and I live on is a one way street. The parking spaces on the street are meant for parallel parking, residence are expected to fit there car into a tiny space in between two tall bushes.

These particular parking spots, if parked correctly, leave you with about a foot of room or less between the two bushes front and back.

Now here is where the story actually begins.

As Todd and I are get in the car we begin to pull out of the spot into the one way street. When we realized that the back drivers door is not closed all the way. Todd, quickly opens his door gets out to make sure the back door is shut all the way, when he spots a line of impatient drivers forming behind our car; all eager to pass him on this tiny one way street.

In order for us to avoid our angry French drivers, Todd decides we'll just reverse the car back into our original parking spot and let everyone pass us.

So, Todd quickly re-shuts the back door, hops in the drivers seat, throws the stick in reverse, and steps on the gas

However, what we both failed to realize is that we had pulled up slightly ahead of one of the large bushes that separates each parking spot. Secondly, we did not realize that we were a lot closer to the bush then we had realized. Lastly, and most importantly, we didn't realize that when Todd threw the car in gear and stepped on the gas had forgotten to shut his door.

So, as Todd and I are backing up frantically, trying to avoid a mob of angry Frenchmen, we realized that the bush had caught the door forcing the door the completely in the opposite direction.

Now, the first thought that came into my head was; "Thank goodness that wasn't me who just did that." And secondly, was "Don't laugh... Not yet, it's too soon."

With my hands over my mouth hiding my shocked grin, Todd and I looked at each other and we both were thinking the same thing... "That didn't just happen?"

That is when the timing was perfect for me to interject in a Chris Farleyish fashion:
"Whatcha do?"

And we both burst into laughter

Upon assessing our door completely distorted as it was, Todd could not get angry with the situation even if i tried because it was just too comical.

Thus resulting in what we call "Our Tommy Boy Moment"

"Human beings are the only creatures on earth that allow their children to come back home." - Bill Cosby

i love you mom and dad!

You think that's Funny??

Then laugh about it, For the sake of you health, LAUGH!

The Benefits of Laughing

The Spring of Life...

Being in France, i have come to witness an actual change of seasons.

Winter was horrible. The weather was cold and dreary. The trees were stripped of all their color so that only the true nature of the branches were showing, dark, brown, empty branches.
Winter seemed long and drawn out. I thought Spring would never come.

One morning i woke up early, got out of bed started to make coffee when i saw leaves. I thought to myself, wow, just like that leaves are out.

A week later trees were blooming, color seemed to be everywhere you looked.

Pink and White cherry blossom.
Dark Green New leaves.
Yellow tulips.
White Daisy.

It was as if God worked all night decorating so that i would wake up to a beautiful surprise!

One warm day Todd and I decided to go for a walk. As we were walking the Lord softly showed me through his stunning creation, that the season of our lives are no different than the season of weather.

Much like the leaves in fall, the things in our lives that are weighing us down that are not of God, things that produce no life, need to be stripped and removed.
Each leave must fall before the next season.

Winter cold, forsaken, and barren, in most areas this is when the sun is least felt. And it is often the longest of the seasons.
Our spiritual winter is when God is showing us who we really are. Naked, with nothing to hide behind. We may feel forsaken, we may feel as if we are producing nothing, and we may feel as if we can't feel the Son, and it may feel as if it will never come to and end.

One morning you wake up to tiny colorful sprouts. One morning you wake up with a sense of hope and perseverance. Knowing that winter is coming to an end and Spring is approaching rapidly. That if the dead leaves hadn't been removed, if it wasn't for the time of barrenness and nakedness, there would have been no room for the new life of beauty that Lord had planed for all along.

God was showing me that,
We MUST go through times of Winter, long, lonely, and as cold as they are, are necessary in order for new life to be brought out in us.

It makes the colors in our Spring that much BRIGHTER!

Luck of the Irish

Who wouldn't like to go to Ireland during St. Patrick's day?
So, when the opportunity presented itself to my husband and I we pounced on the chance like a cat and mouse.
First thing I noticed exiting the automatic doors from the airport was something so familiar to me and yet foreign at the same time.
Something that was native to me my whole life, yet seemed as if I was hearing it for the first time... the sweet, sweet, sound people speaking English.
For the first time in four months I could actually ease drop on a conversation, I could ask a question without trying to mime what I wanted, without blank stares and awkward, silent moments. It was as refreshing as a cool swim in summer heat.

Temple Bar, notorious for pub life, live music, crowded bars, and your occasional drunk on the street either crying or singing to themselves. Either way, it is quite the place to be anytime of the year.

There was an estimated 500,000 people in Dublin during St. Patrick's Day. I could swear 300,000 thousand of them were in Gogerty's Pub. It was as if I were drowning in a sea of green hats, people around you in ever direction. Getting to the bar was like an obstacle course, pushing, jerking, squeezing, sucking in, squat down, lean forward, with beads of sweat on my face, and my lungs gasping for air i finally made it. The next obstacle, getting a drink.

15 min later, Bulmers for Moi, and Guiness for Todd.
Ireland is exactly how you imagined it would be. Red headed freckles faces, live music, cheerful converstaion, drunkers singing old Irish Folk songs, singing their heart out all in unison, even Todd and I joined in, it's quite hard not to when the Irish make you feel so at home.

I'm not sure what it was about Ireland that made it feel like home. Great music, hospitality, amazing food, friendly faces, orange, white and green sequence bowa's? I'm really not sure.
I guess i'll just have to make another trip!

It's never the Destination.

As the plane slowly makes it's decent into Charles De Galle Airport, I desperately look outside my plastic window, as my heavy eyes squint, unsuccessfully trying to avoid the early morning sun beams. I was in search for something, anything Parisian, A distant Chateau, tiny streets filled with tiny little ant like dots, those famous "Round About", and yes even The Eiffel Tower.
However, much to my disappointment, flying into Charles De Galle Airport is NOT as excited as I had imagined. It was much like flying into Montgomery, Alabama and even that was a bit more eventful. The scene outside my private window slowly became clearer and larger, as the French flight attendant begins to prepare for landing, something is said over the intercom which the only thing i can make out is toilet... 7 minutes later... tires screeching.

My first couple weeks in France was quite stimulating to my very Americanized mind.
Seeing modern stores awkwardly placed in classic, vintage buildings, some which even date back to 1700. I quickly learned spiral staircases are NOT as fun as I had always imagined. They are very impractical, especially if you have large feet!

Cliché that are true:
The French do actually walk around with at least two large baguettes in hand.
The French take pristine care of their dogs.
The French also do NOT pick up after their dogs. ( it is not fun nor is it safe to constantly be watching what you step in)
Most French folk do not like Americans.

Cliché that are false:
Don't have any.

Adjustments:
Coming from a city where you can get a Starbucks Coffee at eleven o'clock in the evening, or if you really wanted you could get a sirloin steak at nine in the morning. Then suddenly being in a city where the closest Starbucks is an hour a forty-five minute drive into Paris, and only choice of fast food is McDonald's or KFC (which just opened in our town a week ago, it was very exciting, I even got dressed up for the event, It was a big deal!)

It's like I keep telling myself... It's NEVER the destination, it's ALWAYS the journey!


Copy link and past in URL bar to see the town we currently live in.
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/TRAVEL/getaways/06/23/reims.france/index.html