Daily Life

It is hot hot hot now! I made it to the park at 8.15am this morning with JoJo and CassCass and the thermometre said 28 degrees - so who know what it reached by midday! There are more mosquitoes out as a result and also we have had an influx of cockroaches. Grr! Downstairs they have had mice so the poison was put out, and a few dead ones have been discarded of by the brave men of the house.

Speaking of poison, I watched a cat across the road writhing in agony yesterday and asked Bertie if they had rabies here. He replied that it must have eaten the poison. It was a sad sight and I said if I had a gun I would put it out of its misery. Later I saw it on its side and felt glad that it was at peace. Then Bertie pointed it out the next day walking along with no worries in the world!! Apparently cats really do have 9 lives! Good job I have no gun! He added that when he was younger, he always saw poisoned cats when it rained (it was torrential yesterday) and thought that it was the rain that poisoned them! Well, that may be a fair conclusion in London....

I would add that that very same cat is believed to be responsible for the recent mysteries in our house, where we have awoken to find a chicken carcass tipped on floor, but oddly enough other things too which you wouldn't associate with a cat! Thankfully my initial fear of giant cockroaches has proved unfounded.

One final cat story - the cat opposite caught an iguana today! Amazing, they are big creatures!

Back to the rain - following the incredible torrents yesterday morning, we had an infestation of flying ants, that got everywhere, even down my top! But they disappeared by the afternoon so I am not sure which predator got them but am very grateful to them!

Away from wildlife, Bertie's lessons are all but finished now, though the school term carries on till the start of July. Apparently no one bothers going to school after our town's fete which is next week, in honour of St Jean. Today in the town we saw them painting the town hall, putting up red and yellow banners and the podium. They have also resurfaced the road by LissaLou's school, a sure sign that the fete is on its way. Bertie says the town has to look its best!

Bertie does have one pupil every morning from 8-10am however, which has meant that LissaLou is late for school every day. No real loss, as the teacher is always chatting to people for the first quarter of an hour anyway... This pupil is hoping to be a footballer and has just been to France for a selection game. How exciting to think Bertie may have taught the next Thierry Henry!

Bertie's biggest excitement is his one and only water melon that reached maturity this week - a beautiful and tasty specimen it is, I can assure you. Now he is waiting for his melons and marrow. Papy brought home the latter weighing 5 kilos but apparently has had one weighing 22 kilos! Wow!

LissaLou has started to learn writing en attache (cursive) which is such a french thing. It really is impressive how nice it looks and that even small children manage it. I am not sure why we are so against it in the UK - I remember we were not allowed to write like that (or with pens) until perhaps year 5 and Bertie says that hasn't changed. We are doing her learning via a Dora book (what else!) and she is making a great effort, presumably as it is on her initiative.

After the drama of the dentist, Bertie finally took LissaLou to the doctors to see about a kind of fungal wound she has had for a while now (a recurrence of the one she had last November). You know you are in France when you go in for one wound and you come out with a prescription for....
Antibiotics for 6 days (disgusting despite its pinkness!)
Disinfectant spray
Cream
Plaster
Sellotape stuff
Doctor's visit: €26
First 3 items on prescription €20 !!!
We explained to our BIL how you would get sent away with a fly in your ear and empty hands in the UK! I told Bertie if all that doesn't do the trick then we will obviously have to amputate the foot...! (Joke, mum!)

CassCass currently enjoys playing with toothbrushes (don't ask!) and cycling Meddy's bike which now seems to live here, and taking lengthy afternoon siestas which mean she is up and about till waaaay too late at night!

As for JoJo, well he is into everything, climbing everything, risking his life and our sanity at every turn! He delights his Mamie and Papy with his little noises and by stuffing into his mouth with gusto any food they give him. He gets all excited when given food now and holds it, looks at it, turns it around, all the time whilst laughing and smiling and making oooh noises! He has a very cute crease between his eyes when he laughs, which I do believe is the same as his tonton who is here right now!

As for me, I have managed 8 letters this week so am feeling very pleased with myself! My BIL will post them in France for so much less than the €3 they extortionately charge me here (not to mention the hour long queue thrown in for good measure! I was so pleased at our last visit to the Post Office to see Mamie at the desk, so I nimbly joined her there and got seen to hey presto!)

I am also working on my packing up list, though it is best not to mention our departure to Mamie, it is the source of much sadness for her...

As it stands, we need to...
*Work out what we are sending by cargo, pack it up and send a good month in advance
*Change the Phone bill to Bertie's mum
*Get travel insurance
*Paint the house
*Bits of shopping
*Persuade Mamie to make us some ponch a coco and confiture de goyave
*Give away additional clothes etc (I will count one of these days, but would you believe these girls have amassed about 20 pairs of shoes between them!)
*Make a list of all the things to do on arrival

Definitely not as long as the list I had before coming!