plantronicsgamingheadsetssave

1) Crab cake po' boy, and the most amazing onion rings! 2) French Quarter colors 3) On the float, beads and booze at the ready 4) Dancin' in the streets 5) Royal Street

We've been living in Paris full time for three months now (after my 1.5 years of commuting from Normandy), and I have a few observations to make: There is a lot of dust.  And I mean a lot! I thought that living in the country, surrounded by vineyards and la garrigue would mean serious dust, but the Minervois has absolutely nothing on Paris. Our vacuum cleaner is getting quite the work out. Uber rocks. That's all I need to say about that. Watching the Eiffel Tower sparkle every night makes me happy.  Yes, we have that cliché "American in Paris" view. Which, as it turns out, is fabulous. I never thought I could be such a sap. Pedestrians are cocky. They walk right up to you and expect you to move out of  their  way. They step out in the middle of the street in front of oncoming traffic. They ignore the "Don't Walk" sign. They're lucky they're still alive. Access to such an abundance of ingredients from around the world amazes me. Spend 12+ years...

1) La Petite France 2) Tarte flambée - cream, bacon and onion perfection 3) Dusk 4) Bûche de Noël - classic and not so much 5) Almond studded kugelhupf

2015 was an interesting year. I spent a large portion of it living a half life - half in Normandy and half in Paris. When that finally came to a close in October, I couldn't have been happier. My husband wasn't as excited to move to Paris as I was, so after his initial excitement of having Indian, Thai, Lebanese and Nepalese restaurants on our doorstep wore off, combined with the devastating attacks in Paris on November 13, I was worried that he would be packing our bags and hightailing it back down south to our little house in the Minervois. But as time goes on, life goes on. As we wrap up the year and head into a new one, I am thankful that we are here, that we are living in this gorgeous city full of wonderful people who we are happy to call our friends, and that we are together. Today we're celebrating our 16th wedding anniversary, so this is just a simple way to tell him I love him and to wish him a very happy anniversary!

1) This is December 2) Choices, choices 3) New view 4) Stacked 5) Friends, fizz and latkes

Last Friday, after a three hour lunch with three very inspiring and intelligent women, I started walking. I walked and walked. And WALKED. From the Galerie Vivienne through the gardens at le Palais Royal , crossing into the Cour Napoléon and past the Pyramide du  Louvre , then across the Pont du Carrousel and past les bouquinistes on the Quai Voltaire before turning down the rue du Bac and into the 7ème arrondissement, taking time to do some people watching and to swoon over the gorgeous pastries at La Pâtisserie des Rêves  and les bûches de Noël at Des Gâteaux et du Pain . Just as the holiday lights were coming on and the Eiffel Tower started to sparkle, I jumped on the métro and headed home. It was a very good day.

1) Chocolat chaud 2) Evening light 3) Starry sky 4) 6ème arrondissement 5) 'Tis the season