Wow, it’s been a long time since we made this big move!  This past weekend we packed 8 suitcases with as many toys and clothes we could to hold us over for 4-6 weeks, and checked into our hotel.  Yesterday the movers came and started boxing up our things.  They will spend 3 days packing and on the 4th day our big container will arrive and take it all to the boat!  I hope that everything arrives on time and without damage, and that these next 4-6 weeks of living out of suitcases won’t be too bad!  See you soon, Greenville.

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I was very surprised, and touched, that Makenna’s teacher and principal offered to have a going away party for her on her last day of school.  They invited me to join, and to read a book in English to the class.  Makenna’s teacher, Stéphane, had a treasure box that he has been putting things in throughout the year and he told Makenna she could choose something from the box as a souvenir.  She chose a mini trophy and he signed it.  The school staff also gave her a card with an origami dress that they had made and signed.  I was then invited to join the class and watch them have chorus with 2 other classes.  It was so sweet hearing them sing in French and it made me so sad that this won’t be the norm for her anymore.  Reese’s teachers aid, Emmanuelle, who was also the teachers aid for Makenna’s class her first year of school, was very upset and even cried because Makenna was in the first class she had worked with and she had watch Makenna and Reese grow over the last 3 years.  She wrote the sweetest note in both of the kids’ notebooks and gave us her address so we could write to her.  The school also asked for our address and said they want us to send them letters and photos and that they will do the same.  Several of Makenna’s friends were really upset, and had given her gifts throughout the week.  Makenna didn’t seem to be phased at all, I think because she has only been focusing on the gifts, attention, and the fun things she has to look forward to in the US.  For me, the last day of school was really tough.  My French friend, Charlotte, and I were crying saying goodbye to each other and I was really sad every time I thought about our daily life here ending.  I’m so happy we decided to send Makenna to the local public school rather than the international school, it gave us a chance to immerse ourselves more into the culture and the local community.  It was overwhelmingly kind and generous of the school staff and fellow parents/students to do everything that they have for us during this last week of school.  We hope to continue talking to our friends via Skype, and hopefully this will also help us with keeping our French.  Merci à l’école maternelle Aristide Briand!!

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Makenna’s friend’s dad hosted a little party, or goûter, at his house with some of her friends from school to say goodbye.  The girls had so much fun dressing up, painting their faces, having lots of desserts and playing the drums.  They gave Makenna a few small gifts for her to remember them by, as well as a cute poem.  I was so touched that they had this party for Makenna, and that her friends were genuinely sad that she would soon be leaving.

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With this weekend being the last time a group of our friends would be able to get together before we move, our Canadian friends suggested celebrating an early Canadian Thanksgiving.  Katie and Steve hosted, and they definitely know how to host a great party.  They made delicious poutine, held a chip tasting contest (where the prize was a plastic deer head), and had a Canadian trivia contest.  We all dressed in flannel or the infamous “weekend shirts” (denim shirts) that the Cooks like to wear.  One of the best parts of expatriation is the bonds you form with fellow expats because you are all going through the same thing, and you don’t have family around.  We’ve made some great friends here that I hope will all continue to be close for a long time to come.  I will miss this fun group so much!!

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We have attended several going away parties over the last 5 years, and sadly our turn has come around.  Our friends threw us a great party at the brasserie down the street from our apartment (Ryan and I chose to have it there because we have befriended Didier since we arrived and thought it would be a fun way to say goodbye at a place that was special to us).  Katie made a delicious cake that said “knock knock, who’s there? not the Pawlowskis!” and also brought the biggest bottle of champagne I have seen!  Staci made a sweet sign that included family photos of us and everyone brought food to share.  We received a group gift that was a print of a beautiful painting a fellow expat, Rob Buntin, had painted of Place de la Victoire and the cathedral.  I was so happy I cried!  It was by far the best souvenir we have of our time here.  Didier even made a very emotional speech about how he was sad to see us go after he has seen us pass his brasserie multiple times a day for the 5 years and has watched our family grow.  It was a really special evening and a memorable end to our expatriation.

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As we were getting closer and closer to moving, I knew I wanted family photos taken to remember our time in France.  Our friend, Miles, was kind enough to do it for us and he did a fantastic job!  We absolutely love the views from Parc Montjuzet overlooking the city, and the view of the cathedral at the top of Rue des Gras.  I can’t wait to frame some of these to put up in our new home!

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Reese started school this week!  In France, children start school at age 3 (and even before then, as they just need to turn 3 by December of that year).  This year, it is now obligatory for kids to start at age 3 and stay the full day, until 4pm, whereas before it was optional and parents could also choose to only send their child in the morning.  It’s a long day for the kids, but it’s a great solution for parents that work and it’s free!

Reese actually has 2 teachers that switch out on certain days/afternoons…so there is always one teacher and also an assistant.  The assistant, Emmanuelle, was also the assistant for Makenna’s class when she started school and we love her!

I’m learning to get into a new routine of bringing both kids at the same time and walking each of them to their classes.  The kids (sometimes) eat lunch together, and get to play with each other at recess.  Here, all of the children in the school have recess together which turns out to be about 140 3-5 year olds!  I remember calling preschools over the summer and they would tell me how there is a separate playground/play time for the different classes so the kids were only playing with their classmates, and I had to laugh.

Reese and Makenna are so happy to go to school together, even if it’s just for the short time we have left here.  I will cherish this moment in time where they can see each other throughout the day, I can take them to and from school, and we can walk there.

Oh yeah…and Reese turned 3 the day after he started school!  Happy birthday my little loulou!

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During Makenna’s first year of school, I accompanied her class on a field trip to the zoo that is about an hour away from Clermont.  It was so nice that I knew I had to come back with Reese.  We decided to plan a trip there with 2 families that we love and have become “framily” here.

The zoo is up on a mountain and there’s a lot of uphill walking, but also some amazing views of the area.  We saw lions, giraffes, a zebra, monkeys, tigers, lemurs etc.  There was a section where you could walk through the lemurs and the kids loved it!  We even saw one climb onto someone’s stroller.  The zoo is so large that it takes about 4-5 hours to walk through the whole thing, so we had a picnic lunch while we were there.  Needless to say, the kids were so tired by the end that they took a nap on the way home.

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While most people go on vacation over the summer, and Clermont can feel like a ghost town at times, we have stayed in town and had some quality time as a family and with friends that we are really going to miss when we leave.  It’s not quite over yet, but here are some photos of what we’ve been up to including:

• Hiking Puy de Dome
• Visiting the Michelin Museum
• Going to the splash pad with friends
• Family picnic in Jardin Lecoq
• Going to the lake with friends
• Watching a trapeze show in Jaude as part of the events that they put on throughout the summer

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We had to plan a last minute trip to Paris to renew Makenna’s passport in order to book our flights home in October.  We originally had an appointment in Marseille in August, but recently received an email that is was cancelled.  But, who could complain about HAVING to go to Paris?!  I quickly got to searching what last things we would like to see and do for our last trip there before we move back to the US.

We started out by visiting Musée Rodin, where we saw “The Thinker” (or as Makenna described it “le monsieur qui pense”).  The kids had fun walking through the gardens and finding the different statues.  When we went to check into our Airbnb, I was happy to find there was a Starbucks across the street, so of course we had to go there every day that we were there!

The next day we went to Musée D’Orsay which was really neat and we wished we had more time to look around.  We enjoyed the mini Statue of Liberty and I loved seeing the Van Gogh paintings.  My favorite, Starry Night, was on display in London, but there was a photo of it and after I showed it to Makenna she decided she loved it too.  Just next to the Van Gogh paintings was a statue of a man with a sword trying to fight a crocodile while protecting a woman and child….and when I asked Makenna what her favorite thing she saw was she said it was this statue!  It definitely wasn’t the answer I expected.  We had to head towards the Champs Élysée to go to the US Embassy, so we stopped at a salad and sandwich restaurant where I had the most expensive salad I’ve ever ordered…30 euros!  Makenna’s passport appointment went smoothly and when we were done the lady gave Makenna an American flag…just a little reminder that she is, in fact, American and not French.  It also happened to be my birthday that day and I told Ryan I wanted cupcakes, so he found a little cupcake shop that sold mini cupcakes which was even better because I was able to order 4 different flavors for myself!

There are many ways to see Paris, but we have not seen it by boat yet so I booked us a river cruise on the Seine.  We boarded the boat near Notre Dame, and it was so weird to see it closed, and without it’s spire, following the fire back in April.  We loved seeing all the beauty of Paris without being surrounded by crowds!

The last thing I had on my list for this trip was to visit the Montmartre area and Sacre Coeur.  After getting ice cream and letting the kids ride a carousel, we headed to “le mur des je t’aime” or “the wall of love” where the phrase ‘I love you’ is written in 250 different languages. We made the steep walk up to Place du Tertre where there are many street artists painting portraits or displaying their art.  I was hoping to find a painting to bring home, but there was nothing I loved at a price I was willing to pay!  Next we walked to Sacre Coeur which was a beautiful sight itself, but also offers an amazing view of the city.  We ended by having tapas at a little restaurant and it was delicious!  The walk back to the Airbnb was a long one, but I could never get tired of walking the streets of Paris.  Everything is just so old and beautiful and romantic!

It was a wonderful “last” trip to Paris, but I sure hope it’s not our very last!