This year, I have been infinitely blessed!
I have so much to share in this post! I realize it’s been a few weeks, but they have been busy and oh-so fun!
My friend was visiting for a week from Philadelphia, and we spent hours walking the streets of Paris, visiting museums, and enjoying the tastes, sounds, and sights of this beautiful city! It was such a pleasure for me to give a tour to someone who had never visited Paris and who was relying on me to navigate and communicate. It challenged me to step out of my comfort zone and she gave me the encouragement that I needed! I love that woman! We did a Pierre Hermé vs. Ladurée macaron taste test and of course, Pierre Hermé’s Caramel took top honors and was washed down with some celebratory Rosé at the Jardin des Tuileries at sunset!
We also co-hosted Thanksgiving dinner and invited some of FV’s friends for a fairly tasty gluten free feast!
On the menu:
Salad to start with apples and walnuts
A cute little turkey aka Un Grande Dinde (as I requested in the store, and implies “a fat chick”)
GF mushroom/leek stuffing with GF breadcrumbs and cooked outside the turkey
Roasted Garlic/Dill Mashed potatoes (Jane’s specialty!)
Sweet potato/butternut squash gratin with praline topping
Roasted brussel sprouts
GF Pumpkin Tart with homemade Chantilly cream.
It was pretty delicious for our first ever Thanksgiving as hostesses/host and were fairly pleased with the result!
As a special treat, Jane and I created a cocktail that you MUST try!
Pumpkin Pie Shooter:
1 part simple syrup (equal parts sugar/water boiled together)
1 part tequila
2-3 tbsp of pumpkin puree
Dash of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger-don’t go crazy on the “dashes”
Splash of heavy cream
Stir up this bad boy and serve it pretty little shot glasses with just a touch of Chantilly cream. YUM.
Jane also had to try escargot! They were mostly delicious, although I still prefer the snails
prepared by FV's grandfather every year for Christmas!
After Jane returned back to the US, we had FV’s brother and girlfriend for the weekend and enjoyed wandering the streets admiring the Christmas decorations that have taken over Paris. Some are quite impressive! The Christmas market along the Champs Elysées was a bit crowded as it was a Saturday, so we made our way to Printemps Terrace to enjoy the view and sip a chocolat chaud! We enjoyed our time with them so much!
My belle-mère also came to visit while FV was away on business! I enjoyed our time together as it was the first time we've spent just the two of us walking and talking through the streets of Paris! I am a very lucky woman to have married into such a loving family!
Oh! I've also started my French classes; I take them 3 hours/day, 5 days/week for 4 weeks. I'm learning a lot already and FV and I had our FIRST real, meaningful conversation in French for 30 minutes on Friday! It was amazing and I love being able to communicate in his native language. As a language nerd, I so appreciate his ability to communicate emotions and thoughts in his second language as easily as he does, but I'm also looking forward to the day when we can have 2 languages for communication!
So it's been busy over here, but I'm feeling so grateful and so happy for the amazing blessings and opportunities in my life!
Also, my favorite time of year has begun! Are you looking forward to Christmas this year?
My belle-mère also came to visit while FV was away on business! I enjoyed our time together as it was the first time we've spent just the two of us walking and talking through the streets of Paris! I am a very lucky woman to have married into such a loving family!
Oh! I've also started my French classes; I take them 3 hours/day, 5 days/week for 4 weeks. I'm learning a lot already and FV and I had our FIRST real, meaningful conversation in French for 30 minutes on Friday! It was amazing and I love being able to communicate in his native language. As a language nerd, I so appreciate his ability to communicate emotions and thoughts in his second language as easily as he does, but I'm also looking forward to the day when we can have 2 languages for communication!
So it's been busy over here, but I'm feeling so grateful and so happy for the amazing blessings and opportunities in my life!
Also, my favorite time of year has begun! Are you looking forward to Christmas this year?
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