"Au Revoir Paris, Hello Wolfeboro"

The above was a headline from today's (or perhaps yesterday's?) Boston Globe. It is via this article in the Globe that the country of France discovered their President Nicolas Sarkozy was going to (gasp!) AMERICA on his vacation!

The nation is all abuzz that 'Sarko" is once again going on what is seen as an "extravagant" vacation. Just after his recent triumph in the presidential election against female socialist Segolene Royale, he skipped off on a yacht of some milliondollar crony over in Malta, and les francais had much to grumble about that. Skits of him partying down on the decks of some massive boat abounded in all the political spindrivers in France.
Here's one of the photos - that's President Sarkosy in the white shirt. The only man in modern times to go yachting in Malta wearing a long-sleeved dress shirt and tie. Lordy....

Now his vacation to, of all places, Lake Winnapausaukee (who knows if I spelled that right) in New Hampshire is raising eyebrows and giving many the ammo they want to start hollering "Capitalist Lover!" and "American Wanna-be!" about the new leader of the Republic. The fear of Sarkozy trying to make France more capitalist and less socialist in order to improve the economy and the unemployment crisis has been lingering on the tips of many tongues for 3 or 4 months. Now with Sarkozy (who incidentally is very often compared to JFK - the USA's favorite tragic hero of Camelot) skipping off to trendy New England and renting a reported 21,000 euros per week property on the lake is seen as a sign that he wants to associate himself with the American lifestyle, or at least downplay the drama created after Chirac's heavy criticism of American's plunge into the Iraq war.

Perhaps "Nico" just likes a good hot dog, a rootbeer, whoopies pies, and a creemee, and the man knows where to go to get it. But I must admit to being thrilled he steered clear of the REAL piece of heaven in New England, and went next door to the not bad but slightly lesser neighbor on the other side of the Connecticutt River.

"The Rest of the Story"

Think I'm talking about Paul Harvey? No, rather the rest of our time in Vermont, as seen thru the following photos....
So those who complain that they haven't heard frome me in a while, follow me thru my last 6 days in Vermont:
Monday: Here we are in New Hampshire with an old St. Mike's friend, Erin (Haley) Cashman and her THREE kids!
Tuesday: My freshly baked raspberry pie in front of cousin Michelle and her daughters
Triathalon Man: Wednesday Thomas did three relatively major athletic activities - first, a 4 mile run with my brother Wes at 6:15 am
Second, we take Wayne and Estelle for a hike up Wheeler Mountain (whoops, actually it was Moose Mountain, hence the funny faces at the sign when we realized we weren't on the trail we meant to be on!)
Still Wednesday: Near Willoughby Lake, the athlete and his daughter and sister Joan take a hot dog and creemee break!
Still later on Wednesday - now a different lake - Seymour Lake, at the private beach of some friends Jeri & Cindy


The beauty of Seymour
Their dock - heaven!
Triathalon man out for a waterski - first time ever in his life and he got right up, never fell once!
Triathalon man shows off just how good an athlete he is by going one handed and reaching down to touch the water on his 2nd run of his life
End of the day on Wednesday with the group
Thursday - Lunch at OUR camp on Shadow lake with brother Ed & his wife Sandy - Estelle says get the damn camera out of my face please.....
Thomas & bebe down on the dock with Sandy
Thursday night, yet ANOTHER lake - Lake Parker in West Glover near where our American wedding was, at the camp of my aunt Cecile and uncle Ernest Davignon

Friday: off to Saint Johnsbury for lunch at Aunt Yolande's
Friday afternoon: bake a cake with Cole and Wayne
Saturday: Glover Day, the annual race and festival to celebrate Glover. Thomas ran the 5 1/2 mile race, and I walked it pushing Estelle. This photo is Uncle Paul (or Peter) with Estelle

And this photo is cousin Tyler seated with Uncle Peter (or Paul) pouring through the book sale
An exchange student with a local family is delighted to find a fellow Frenchman to speak to
Saturday afternoon: Barbeque at my dad's cousin camp on Shadow Lake, hosted by sister Mary & husband Danny. Joan showed up with a dish called "Ouillade", just like Thomas' last name. Went over lukewarm with the brothers
Relaxing on the beach at the camp

Pick a little, talk a little, pick a little, talk a little, pick pick pick, pick a lot, talk a little more
Joker Wes hollered out after I took this photo "I'M ON THE BLOG!" so here you go you goofus. Challenge: non-family readers may weigh in, is that Peter or Paul with Mary and Wes and Estelle?
Saturday evening: Sugar-on-Snow party in Barton. My dad's best man Bob and his wife Giselle Champagne (yes, that is her maiden name) were there and gave Estelle a nice gift - crucifix pendant
My sisters continue to help my daughter degenerate by feeding her sweets
Sunday: day of our Departure; Estelle has her last breakfast out on Grammie's porch- later on Joan showed up with some "poutine" - a Quebecois speciality so it wasn't really her last meal
Heather and Aunt Darlene come to say goodbye
Wayne and Joan take Estelle on her last walk around the house
The stragglers who stuck around to wish us well and safe trip
Madamoiselle pretends to be a grownup for a minute in a big person's seat on the plane
Tired from all the photos? Imagine how we feel! But seriously, a wonderful trip, and wonderful time, and a hard last goodbye to that house for us all.......

"Hey... You..... Guys!!!!!"

Back in Nice after 5 glorious, wild, poignant, hit-the-ground-running-every-morning weeks in Vermont. More on that later if I ever get the photos uploaded.
Meanwhile, how do you tell a one year old baby "I know you think it is daytime, but here where we are now, it is nighttime. So even if you don't want to sleep, please just lay quietly in your crib and don't make any noise for the next 7 hours because Daddy has to work in the morning." Not happenin'.
Instead, the whole family was up from 11 pm until 2:30 am, and one of our pass-the-time-jetlag-activities was to watch a cassette I brought back with me of The Electric Company special aired on Vermont's PBS station back in April.
Thomas said "That is Morgan Freeman singing "Easy Reader"? That is Bill Cosby? No way!" Then he learned how to make adverbs out of adjectives by adding "-ly", all about the silent "e", and the fabulous adventures of "Letterman". Trying to explain to my Frenchie husband the genius of Rita Moreno on this show, not mention that she makes one hell of an Anita in West Side Story - well, it's a challenge at one in the morning. In French. Holding a delirious baby.
If you were of the Electric Company generation, then you are with me. If not, well....you are missing out!

Road Trip Wedding!

Photos from the road:
Estelle in Boston with St. Mike's friends Skip & Dayna: after going up the Prudential Tower
Plymouth, Massachusetts for my sister Laura's wedding - Thomas and my brother-in-law Dan checking out the surf from our motel.
Estelle meets her cousin Emily for the first time. Emily was one of the witnesses at our French wedding 2 years ago.
Roaming the beach with Daddy and Aunt Lisa. Behind him are cousin Alexandra, and Darlene carrying baby Heather, and brother-in-law Danny (not Dan)playing with Wayne.
Cousin Cole getting busy with the sand
Sister Laura and "New Paul" (to distinguish him from brother Paul), officially man and wife!!!!
The blushing bride after the ceremony
Estelle and her ladies/cousins in waiting at the reception
Estelle and the real Estelle
Sibling singalong. We are singing "Fly me to the Moon" with nephew Addison on lead at the mike. From left to right: Wesley, me, Mary & Martha with Edwin behind, Addy on the microphone, then Cedric, Peter and Paul (or maybe vice versa, who knows), Lisa, and Lynn Blatt, Laura's best friend from high school in Vermont, and the bride! Joan is to the right of Laura but not in the photo frame.
Estelle meets cousin Caitrin, bridesmaid to her mother.....

Godson Wayne plays on the beach before leaving Sunday

Us with my cousin Debbie & her husband John who also came from VT

Downtown Plymouth with Aunt Lisa

Standing in front of none other than PLYMOUTH ROCK!
Last night staying in New Boston New Hampshire at Lisa's...Thomas learns a new "instrument".....

One Year & Whistlestop Tour

Estelle visits my Aunt Eleanor & Uncle Jake with cousin Chad
With college friends Robin and Becky and Robin's new 5 wk old baby Mary Beth (wow, glad Estelle is no longer 5 wks old!!!!)

With Aunt Suzie
Estelle with her cousins Matthew and Eliza who are both 20 and exactly 7 days apart from each other.

Finally, I get to eat a bagel sandwich. Hallelujah.

Estelle is entertained by her cousins Rachel and Alex

My high school friend Jane with her 3 children up from Florida manage to spend the afternoon with us despite everyone's whistlestop schedules! Here they are on the dock at Shadow Lake!

College roommate Kate comes up for a runaround with us

Daddy comes! yeah! Estelle and her papa jump in the lake!

Wayne graciously helps me decorate Estelle's birthday cake yesterday afternoon!

17 people came to Estelle's 1st birthday party last night! I had 3 of my brothers and 3 sisters in attendance with various spouses and children, plus Grammie of course!
The hat didn't stay on too long
Only one tiny corner piece of this cake was left when all was said and done. I had expert decorating advice from sister Martha.
Estelle reviews a homemade card from her cousin Lizzy
Daddy and Estelle, frosting in her hair and a new Vermont t-shirt on her front! What a birthday! And now, off to Boston and Plymouth for Laura's wedding!