I just had the chance to spend 11 days in France with my family. We drank wine and Coke Light (warmish). We ate fresh bread, and cheese, and more cheese, and chocolate, and Nutella…and some weird spread made of cookies that was strangely delicious. We walked, we (mostly kids) swam, we (mostly me) got horribly sunburned in that weird patchy way that almost diligent application of sunscreen can cause.
It was amazing.
Because having data access on my phone would have been insanely expensive, I turned e-mail off on my Blackberry. I was able to text, but in a very limited way. Calling cost $1 a minute and there are few people I want to talk to that badly who weren’t with me. I borrowed my Dad’s computer or my brother’s iPad once a day or so to make sure I wasn’t completely out of money and that the world hadn’t ended – but for the most part I was completely off the grid.
It was, as I have already mentioned, amazing.
So of course, my brain started thinking (as brains do) about how to keep all of this amazingness going.
We should move to France! My sister-in-law was in. My brother was on board.
We would move to France for two years. The kids would go to a French school and become well rounded and culturally immersed. They would help us learn how to say things like, “Please for the love of God put some ice cubes in my Coke Light.”
We would work at a winery…or in a little bookshop. Life would be so calm. And so French.
I would wear adorable outfits. I would find a way for my hair and French water to get along (during vacation they were waging a serious war…my hair was losing in a big way). I would carry a basket to the market and buy bread and cheese and more cheese. And we could drink the wine we had learned to make.
Ahhhh.
Then I suggested this plan to my daughter. I said, “What do you think? Isn’t this great? Should we move to France?”
And she said, with the wisdom that only an 11-year-old possesses. “Nah. They have Nutella at home. And the TV shows are in English. I like that.”
Foiled Again.
Keep swimmin' 
Sounded like a totally fab vacation !!! It’s my goal to have 2-3 month family Vacations overseas (France is first on the list) – not the commitment of a move – but longer than the usual vacation to get to more of the daily living type stuff :) maybe you can work toward that too :)
That would be great! Hope you can do it!
I was living vicariously through you and your family thanks to all the pictures. Every time I have a great experience on vacation I fantasize about moving there, wherever there is. It’s best to keep the romance alive by keeping the affair limited. That sounded very French didn’t it? ;)
Your daughter is very wise and you a very blessed!
I’m smirking a bit at the working at a winery, because my husband and I are (pretty seriously) considering moving to Napa/Russian River in about 5 years or so, and living in a big ‘ol farmhouse, potentially making it a B&B, maybe doing some winemaking ourselves … who knows. Of course, any venture would be in addition to our current careers, which is a major factor into the plan …
So jealous…that sounds amazing! Good luck!
Your daughter is right. If you lived in France all the time, it wouldn’t be so charming. My friends lived there for a year. They said you can only eat so many chocolate croissants, and then you’ve got to go home. And we do have Nutella here…
Darned kids and their logic :( But it is good to be home…with a new jar of Nutella in the cabinet!