My cousin Alma and her dear husband Mike arrive this evening to stay with us! We have talked about this trip for years, and now it is here!
Every summer our families vacationed together, and as a child and into my teen age years I spent many overnights, and extended summer stays at their home. Our families are very close.
I am so happy, I think I spent most of my day running in circles in my thoughts and actions- guessing where their flight might be passing since they are coming from California. I tried to imagine what they might need and have it available. I must have arranged and rearranged everything in our home. You know how it is when you want everything to be just so!

Table set for drinks and nibbles… their coming!

               

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We stopped inside for lunch,

The interior

was my dessert.

                

Comments

• Chic lunching ladies! by pam
• So beautiful!💕 by Kathy
• Magnificent Corey! ♥️ by Leonie
• OMG I love it! Thank you for posting. I rode this once in the ... by Diogenes

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Do you want to come to France on a whim? Are you able to hop on a plane and join us in few weeks? Do you enjoying going ho the brocante, good food, shared experiences??

We had an unexpected cancellation due to one of our repeated guest needing immediate surgery. . If you can join us September 22nd-29th. DM me for details.

                

Comments

• I plan on it! by Marilyn Miller

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Like Adam and Eve, this fragile circle of stained glass captures a beginning. Gathered from the ash, a relic of what was, as the first beautiful breath of Notre-Dame’s rebirth.

Inside the sacred heart of Notre-Dame de Paris, the 14th-century northern choir screen holds scripture carved into stone. The colors are reborn. One panel captures the Nativity with intimacy. The polychrome panels stretch around the altar.

The entrance door to Notre Dame.

If these 13th-century iron scrolls could speak, what secrets would they tell? On the massive oak doors of Paris’s Notre-Dame. The central ring held an extraordinary power—any fugitive who grasped this Sanctuary Ring was instantly granted legal asylum.

But it’s the fluid design that carries the deepest mystery. Legend tells that the blacksmith, Biscornet, sold his soul to the Devil to forge something so impossibly beautiful. Centuries later, restored by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc.

Peek a boo surprise.

“In medieval theology, placing human figures, kings, or angels directly into the structural fabric of the church signified that the community of believers was spiritually built into the house of God.” 

Maybe it was the bright colors, that sense of joy they seemed to bring, like the song of spring after a long winter, that made me smile. It wasn’t that the cathedral felt depressing before, not at all. But there was something different about it now—an immediate sense of happiness, a shift in energy, a welcome hug, like coming home. I liked it. The church, in a way, seemed to focus on the death of Christ to me—the need for forgiveness, the weight of sacrifice. But with all this new color, it felt more like Easter, the Resurrection, a celebration of life. And why not?

To read more click here- Where I https://www.frenchlavie.com/2025/01/08/my-visit-to-the-restored-notre-dame/wrote about my first visit to Notre Dame after the fire.

                

Comments

• In reply to Marilyn Miller. ❤️ by Corey
• Thank you. Wonderful photos. The contrast with the cathedral ... by Franki
• Love, love the Notre Dame. That last picture is particularly ... by Marilyn Miller
• Beautiful and I am so glad it could be restored. Blessings by Jeanne Caron
• Beautiful – that stone face is incredible. The restoration ... by Diogenes
• How gorgeous! by Ali

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A welcoming drizzle after a sweltering summer accompanied us to the brocante. I felt sorry for the books, paper and fabric, silk flowers, and all the fragile, sweet things left out to endure the weather. 

Aubusson woven arm rest pieces: cost 200€

Pass I did. Though wishing they were mine. I have an armchair that would have made them a happy home.

Even so, I bought a few things—nothing big—I haven’t posted here as they are Christmas gifts. I don’t know if I have the patience to wait until Christmas to give them. That is an easy dilemma to have; waiting to share a gift.

Another reason I didn’t buy much was the cost. Most of these bits and pieces I can find less expensively in Provence. Thant soup tureen was reasonable – but carrying it home was not.

What little treasures have you found recently?

                

Comments

• Treasures so hard to resist. by Marilyn Miller
• In reply to Diogenes. Lucky!!! Delft pieces are rarely ... by Corey
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They say there are 250 steps to the top of the donjon at Château de La Roche-Guyon. That’s true… if you don’t count all the steps it takes just to get to the beginning of those steps.

My friend Erika and I have been wandering through France without planning every detail. When we came upon Château de La Roche-Guyon, we hadn’t intended to climb anything. We thought we’d stroll through the château and gardens, admire the views, and continue on our way.

But then we read Donjon.

The donjon has stood watch over the Seine Valley for centuries. It was carved directly into the chalk cliff itself. Imagine that—workers chiseling their way through solid chalk more than eight hundred years ago, creating a passage through the rock. The donjon’s steps have been worn smooth (duh), most of the steps are nearly knee-high, uneven and slightly slippery.

Had I known what was ahead, I would have dressed differently. Instead, I was wearing low-heeled shoes with absolutely no grip and a long, full pant/skirt that I had to gather up in one hand just so I could see where I was going. Not exactly the outfit one chooses for climbing a medieval donjon carved into a cliff.

Whenever I climb more than fifty steps, I have a little tradition. I say the name of those I love and care about. Sometimes I add a prayer. Sometimes simply speaking their name is enough. If there are more steps than names, I start again.

By the time I had gone through everyone’s names more than once, I reached what felt like step one thousand, I decided it was time to pray for my shoes to hold on.

When I finally reached the top, the Seine Valley stretched out below me— the view was spectacular. The climb was forgotten…

Almost.

Because then came the walk back down.

And there I was, descending a medieval staircase carved into a cliff I wondered if people coming up were questioning my attire, “…look at white haired lady is in a ridiculous get-up for climbing.”

Again, duh.

But then I thought—maybe I gave them a laugh.

And that made me laugh too.

Donjon in English is Dungeon

                

Comments

• In reply to Marilyn Miller. Even at the base it is beautiful x by Corey
• Oh so beautiful! If only I were young again, I would fly away ... by Marilyn Miller
• Dear Corey, I love your 'super help' whilst climbing. Mine WAS ... by Leonie
• Those are some steep stairs! You did your cardio for the day ... by Diogenes
• I adore your stair climbing tradition. Fabulous photo of you! ... by Kathy
• I love that you made time for a happy happenstance by Cynthia Bagwell

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