trick or treat

Happy Halloween!



The first couple years I lived in Caen I tried to spread the Halloween spirit, but like so many others have said France just isn't with the program. Not that they should be, they have Carnival and that's fun too.



But they tried, I saw kids dressed up, even had a kid come trick or treating a few days before. When I asked why he was early he said he couldn't go on Halloween cause they were leaving on vacation so he's doing it early.



Yeah, that and broad day light just doesn't cut it kid.



So I stopped carving pumpkins and having candy ready. This year I was tempted to carve a pumpkin but seeing as how we are still in our appartment we don't have a real front door so I decided to save it for next year.



Late this afternoon as the sun was going down I heard the doorbell ring, thinking it was a late birthday present I scampered down the stairs. By the time I got there and unlocked the front door no one was there. I looked around the corner and saw a Mom and her kid walking away, the little boy was probably 3 or 4 years old and dressed up as a ghost. When I said I was sorry but I didn't have any candy the mom told the kid "make the lady cry" and he yelled "BOO!" It was so cute!



Then later once Mystery Guest got back from work we heard the doorbell ring again. This time there was a group of 5 kids, dressed up as witches, spiderman and monsters. When they asked for bon-bons I had to say I was sorry but no candy. I felt horrible! Here they were in the spirit of Halloween and I didn't have any candy! It didn't even feel like some lackluster imitation, I felt like I was back in the States for a minute. By the time I realized that I had some candy upstairs left over from treats for the lycee kids they had gone and no one else came to ring the doorbell.



Next year kids we'll have a jack-o-lantern and plenty of candy for you!!

Fall leaves

PS what do you guys think of the new header?

Everything and the kitchen sink... Seriously

sneak peak

Provided by Mystery Guest

parc asterix

Mystery solved.

Yes, yesterday's post was a picture from the Parc Asterix near Paris! Bravo ladies! Mystery Guest planned the whole thing for my birthday, it was a big surprise! He told me a couple weeks ago to keep the weekend of the 24th open. Then on Thursday he said I needed to pack an overnight bag... I had no idea what was in store for me!

We drove out to Paris Friday night after work and stayed with friends outside of Paris. Then on Saturday we went out to Parc Asterix! Totally kicks Disneyland's bootie!!! I had such a blast, there was some great rollar coasters, we did the water rides (and got soaked!) and even though it pretty much rained all day I had such a great time.

Thanks again M. Mystery Guest! You sure made my 28th birthday special! I got to feel like a kid again :-)

Guess where we were today...

No wheels yet...

Last night I had a driving lesson and despite what the other lady told me my drivers ed teacher doesn't think that I'll be ready for next week. It sucks because at 30 some odd euros an hour these lessons get pricey! Plus with les vacances starting Friday and me working all week it's very hard to get hours.. I agree that it's better to be well prepared before taking the test but I was SO disapointed after having my heart set on my birthday next week!
I was disapointed in myself as well, he picked me up at 7pm directly from the train station, I was beat after a long day of work, the sun was setting and my driving was crap!! I felt like I couldn't remember anything, stalled several times and made retarted mistakes.
I have another lesson tonight, same bat time, same bat channel. I'm going to try really hard not to embarass myself again.
So all is not lost, I have some hours scheduled and at the latest should take the test the end of November. I guess it gives me more time to look for a car...

Sent from my iPhone

in the oven

This is in the oven right now. Just thought I'd share :-)

heating up

Insulation is going in... la laine de verre is so much fun!!!

house

tubbin'

We found an uber-sexy bathtub today, nevermind the weird looks I got when I climbed in at the store, had to verify and it is indeed nice and deep to be covered by hot water and bubbles...

Can't wait!

Pizza Saturday

I recently started a tradition of Pizza Saturdays. See Mystery Guest works Saturdays and gets Mondays off, I work Mondays and get Saturdays off... So it's nice to have lunch together when he comes home on Saturday. That's when Pizza Saturday started, especially after having read the best pizza dough tutorial. I make it on Saturday morning if I have time, if not I've got a stock in the freezer. Since our easy-bake oven is so tiny we can only get 1 pizza at a time, but the recipe makes enough dough for 2 so I make it, divide it in half and freeze the second ball for next time.

To make the sauce I buy the small cans of tomato paste (concentrated) and use about half a can. I add dried garlic, salt, pepper and herbs de provence until its got a nice kick. Then I layer the veggies that we've got (anything from zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes, red peppers etc..) and then cheese (1 ball of fresh mozzarella cubed and a sprinkle of emmental) and then another sprinkle of herbs de provance. Whatever I want to get golden brown I leave for the top, this time was pepperoni!

Stick it in the oven for about 25 minutes and presto! Pizza Saturday!

(also YUMMY with pesto instead of pizza sauce)