Less than 24 Hours...

Today we celebrate the last Sunday (otherwise known as the-loneliest-day-of-the-week-during-a-deployment) alone before the Phil comes home from the deployment.

Key Words to this Celebration:

"Le Gouter"= the only authorized snack in the daily French diet. It's *usually* just for kids, and it's always around four to five o'clock (after school). It's always something sweet, never salty, and usually it involves chocolate in some way or another. This snack helps kids (and maybe me) make it from the 12pm lunch to the seven thirty/eight o'clock dinner. It's also an event in the daily lives of French people where it's easy to socialize and invite people over. (READ: I don't have to cook a four course meal for finicky French palates who assume Americans don't cook well. All I made was a cake, and kids will eat anything, even French kids).

Two Mom-friends from Lily's catholic school = when they come to my house for the "gouter"there are 9 children between the two of them! Ah, good Catholics. The most surprising moment of the afternoon was when the one mom-friend stepped outside for a cigarette. I will NEVER get over how many and how often French people smoke. Have I mentioned before Phil bought stock in Philip-Morris since we moved here?

Le retour des Papas= tomorrow all our husbands/daddies return from their four and half month deployment. And we are all thrilled.

La Fête = An occasion to celebrate together, let the kids run wild, drink coffee, and hope that the clock turns faster!

This was the first round of kids who sat to eat the "gouter". Zachary might have been at the table for both sittings! I wish I had a picture of my friends, but that would have still seemed weird to them I think...does that give you an idea as to where I am on the friendship-gauge?

Living for Monday afternoon!