Well, we aren't wandering through pumpkin patches or watching the leaves change colors, but we are thankful for October all the same!  The rains are subsiding and, although the humidity is temporarily rising, we hear cooler, drier weather is coming our way...

At the start of each day our calendar often seems deceivingly empty and by the end of the day we marvel at just how much needed to be done that we weren't aware of!  We're able to exercise our medical brain by providing counsel to fellow workers; we challenge our brains' language centers with arabic lessons; we practice hospitality and enjoy visits with old & new friends; we let creative juices flow as we improvise recipes and strive to put balanced meals on the table...

And often we think about sharing the highlights here on our blog or about writing some thoughtful summarization of a cultural moment or taking pictures...BUT somehow those things are left undone with good intentions of tomorrow.

Today, well, at least some musings have been shared.  And now some photos:

Big Boy
10 months and counting...

Lego building break
for 1st taste of FROZEN banana

NOT a fan!
Brrrr....that's COLD!

Lil' helper
thankfully they were clean diapers : )

Homemade fresh-squeezed LEMON ice cream = YUM!
No churn required : )

Hoping to share more glimpses soon...

DDG&S

Tchad

Nope, it's not a typo.  "Tchad" is the official French spelling of the country we are learning to call home.  We can hardly believe a month has passed since we landed in the African Sahel!

What have we been doing?

We gave ourselves a week to settle a bit -- unpacking, organizing, orienting -- the usual post-move stuff.  And then, well, we dove in head first...

Sunset
(Actually looking over at Cameroon)

Not literally...

G is finishing her 3rd week at her new (still in French) school and has enjoyed every minute!  We are thankful for the new friends she has made, and we are happy that she can spend her mornings in a French-speaking environment.  She's also really enjoyed getting to know other English-speaking kiddos who live nearby and to her delight many afternoons are spent playing with them.

1st day in 4K

Courtyard of G's school

School playground

S has really taken off...literally...he's improved his crawling speed although still mostly using "army-style," he's pulling up and trying to cruise along furniture/table/etc, he's discovered cabinet doors and to his delight the contents within...

G enjoys the more advanced "play" that S can join in now.  Get the two of them together with a couple empty Nido (powdered milk) tins and wooden spoons and you have quite the show!!

And the adults?  Well, we have become children again.  At least it feels that way for 3 hours a day while we learn Chadian Arabic -- our latest linguistic adventure!  We are VERY thankful for A, our talented and patient language tutor; she is truly an answer to prayer.

Enjoying a little "green" space
(NOT the normal sight here...this is taken on the river bank)

We appreciate your continued prayers for us.

DDG&S

Bon voyage!

We are off!!  Prayers appreciated.  Next update from Tchad...
DDG&S

Preparing to say "Au Revoir"...for now

Now that our official French coursework is complete, we have entered into a transition phase.  What does that mean?  A LOT of sorting, pruning, packing, repacking, ordering, gifting, and cleaning balanced around enjoying our last weeks in France.  

As you may have noticed, blogging has taken a bit of a backseat...but we thought we would share some recent happenings:

Last week G was able to participate in McDo's (yep that's French for McDonalds) "Kids Sport" Day.  Apparently McDo is sponsoring a touring "Kids Sport" festival that travels to cities across France.  Kids receive a free t-shirt (G was thrilled that her's was pink!), a sport journal and a "Pass'sport."  There were various stations set-up (hand-ball, judo, break-dancing, biking...) for the kids to visit, participate in a 15-20 minute hands-on lesson/practice and then get a stamp in their "pass'sport"!  Actually a great way to get kids excited to be ACTIVE!!

Judo

Learning moves with her good friend S

Break-dancing

Proud of her Pass'sport stamps

We've also done some celebrating...

Sims turned 8 months!

we had our 9th wedding anniversary, and...

Di turned 30-something : )

Decorating cupcakes to celebrate

And we've said "good-bye-for-now" to some friends...

S & A playing during our final lunch-date

We find exploring new parks to be a good way to cheer us up after parting ways with loved ones.  Everyone enjoyed this park in Thônes after we dropped Nana, Papa & Nanny off at the airport:

It is a bittersweet time but we know staying in France for this transition phase was a good decision.  It's given us time to rest, to play, to complete the tasks above, to explore new places while visiting some other places that have become favorites and to say good-bye (for now)...

Stay tuned for highlights from our 3-day road trip around Mont Blanc!

DDG&S

Nanny in France!!

Yep, we were blessed during July to have Nanny, Dianna's 87-year-old grandmother, in France with us!!  We are very thankful that God gave us this special time with her, and we are grateful that Dianna's parents (a.k.a. Nana & Papa) could help make this dream a reality.  "They" kept "us" hopping the 3 weeks they were here : )

While Dean & Dianna were completing their summer French conversation course, Gracie and Sims kept Nanny, Nana & Papa busy, busy, busy.  And we all made the most of all the free moments in between.

Here's a photo journal of some of our July highlights...

Sims & Nanny getting acquainted

G playing with a very special gift:
original Barbie furniture that belonged to Nana's 1st cousin
(Thanks Aunt Sarah Grace!!)

Ice Cream Cone SMOREs...YUM!!

Saying "au revoir" to our dear friends the B family

THANKs to ALL who showered us with clothes!!
G & S are well prepared for the upcoming 2-3 years : )

G showing Nanny & Nana the "fish"
at our local grocery store

Picnic at Lake Roseland

Lots of snuggles with Papa

Visiting Conflans

Our favorite local artist's shop in Conflans

Conflans' gardens with panoramic view of Albertville

Picnic -- despite the rainy, cool weather -- at Fort Tamie

Lyon, France

Biking in Lyon
(one of Dianna's highlights)

Special moments together

D&D enjoyed a date lunch at the local creperie

Turino, ITALY

Hop-On-Hop-Off bus tour for our day-trip to Italy

Exploring a medieval city in Valentino Park
Turin, Italy

Castle de Miolans

Enjoying our self-guided castle tour

G wasn't so sure about the costume...

Our mentors from Wichita, KS came for a visit, too!

Four generations

Birthday Tea Party
Thanks again to Aunt Sarah Grace for the lovely tea set!!

Dianna & Nanny's joint birthday party

A double rainbow on our last night together!

We are truly grateful for God's many blessings to us throughout this year in France.  Being away from our family and friends in the U.S. is definitely the hardest part of our journey.  We are thankful for the moments we share with them (in person, via skype, on the phone, emails, "snail" mail, etc.) and look forward to more...

Resting on HIS promises,
DDG&S