Fun, fun, fun in France (even with a germ or two)

This afternoon, as Katie was throwing up in the car on the way home from lunch (into a sack and not all over the rented minivan, thankfully), Olivia leaned over and whispered to her Grannie.

"I know why Katie doesn't feel good," she explained. "I gave my germ to her."

And indeed it appears she has. Thankfully, Olivia is back to her usual genki self today (that's the Japanese term for "spirited" and one of a handful of Japanese words that still lingers in our family's vocabulary. We have noticed it is now filled with many new and wonderful French terms, too, including mon coeur (my heart), ma puce (my flea/sweetie), and mon petit chou (my little cabbage/dear). But Katie is clearly in the midst of battling the same bug. At least we know it's not appendicitis, and we're hoping her recovery comes as quickly as her sister's.

And a little sickness didn't stop us from having a good time these last days. We have hung around the house a bit more than we first planned, which is no hardship, and we have also made a few trips into Beaune for various food, shopping, wine, and walking delights. We also had the pleasure of having a gouter with Geraldine and Adele yesterday (who later were joined by Pierre, and the smile on Jack's face when he saw his older friend ride into the drive seemed to illuminate the whole village, at the very least). And today, we kept the girls out of school (this was pre-Kate sickness, post-Liv sickness), said goodbye to Sharon at the gare and wished her bon voyage as she headed north to Brittany to visit dear friends, and then had an AMAZING lunch at a stony cave called L'Incontournable. To all Burgundians... if you haven't been to this fabulous restaurant at 29 Rue Carnot... you should get there as soon as you can!

And in between all of this, there have been tasty meals at home (including a gluten-free goat-cheese quiche I made last night and a Mont D'Or feast tonight), walks to some of our favorite places in the village, and lots of book reading, wine drinking, clothes changing (by Kate and Liv who are thrilled with the sundresses Grannie brought), talking, and laughing. John and I even got our date in last night -- not to Ciboulette, which was "exceptionally" closed on a Wednesday night, but to an Italian restaurant that turned out to be just right.

We're hoping Katie is well enough tomorrow to head out on our Loire trip. Liv was in good form within 24 hours, so fingers are crossed that Kate will be too.

Here are a few fun photos of the last few days. What you can't see in the photo of Katie with the lollipop is that her smile comes not from the sugary sweet, but from the brioche in the bag that I just got for her. She is definitely picking up some French habits. And near the end (I think sixth from the end), you can see mom walking out of my favorite fromagerie in Beaune -- just like me, with a smile on her face.