November seemed to come and go very quickly. It's now December and the kids break up on the 22nd for Christmas and skiing in the Alps. So I have combined two months.
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| La Bastide with snow covered mountains in distance |
Autumn arrived and it became colder, however, on bright sunny days I realised why we lived here. It's beautiful, the Pyrenees snow clad, off in the distance and the gites quiet for the out of season, friendly French people and the lack of media news, unless I delved into the internet. newspaper or mail.
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| View of Santa Monica |
Janine took a well deserved break to visit her sister in Santa Monica, her first real break since the birth of our son Tom...now 10. We kept in touch via WhatsApp video and chat. I looked after our three children and got into a routine. This involved cooking, washing, baths, cleaning teeth, school and French homework! Janine relaxed and spent time un-winding, massage, enjoyed the café culture, sat on the beach (it's 20+ degrees all the time) and spent time with her sister Niki who is a world class nutritionist.
Life at La Bastide took on whole new meaning to me, ensuring we had the right food in the house, visiting the markets and friends...when I had a spare moment. I often went to bed at 9pm exhausted..........how do single parents cope?
When Janine returns we will plan the upgrades to the gites for the coming season. This will include upgrading the bathroom in the cottage to include a bath. An outdoor shower for the pool, dog enclosure for Lilou, chicken coop for you guessed it ducks...and chickens. We also removed the bamboo in the garden, as it's a menace, when we added trenches for water and fencing for the veg patch. By spring the trenches will be covered by the meadow flowers.
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| Realmont market ...coffee anyone |
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| Castres market |
Along with the normal shutting down process for the gites ,we went to the end of year Puycalvel Christmas walk with a sit down lunch of garlic soup, sausages with lentils, chocolate cake, cheese wine and coffee...perfect. We went to the magical winter market in Castres which the kids love.
I went on a surprise visit to the UK to see my mother, sister and brother. I also had some time to catch up with friends and my work mates. I was able to send cards, deliver and receive Christmas presents and see my father in-law and his wife. Excellent times at the pub eating traditional Christmas dinner and chatting. Some friends are at home for Christmas, some in far away places such as Costa Rica (go there its fab).
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| Holly in Lautrec |
We would like to say a big thank-you to all who came to La Bastide throughout the season, enjoyed the Apéro evenings, swam in the newly heated pool and enjoyed the peace and quiet of the countryside.
Joyeux Noel and have a great New Year from the Bunces
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| Lautrec windmill on a winters day |
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