They all had a ball!!

The party turned out great, the weather was gorgeous (so only outside playing!!) & the birthday boy was completely exhausted by the end of the day (and so were his parents!!). But they definitely all had a ball!

Nerf fights (that was not what I had in mind, as you can imagine!) & bowling! Competition among the 10 boys was pretty strong. But they all had a good time together!

And now on to the next chapter, just a couple of days and spring break will start, 2 weeks without school, without early bed times and even earlier wake up calls, no school bus, no homework, just relaxing, playing & travelling.

Yes, next weekend we'll drive to the Netherlands for a short stay (family party) and next week we've booked a holiday in the Provence/Cote d'Azur. Looking forward to some relaxing time, some tennis, some golf, some walks in the mountains, good food, good wine, just enjoying time with our little family!

image credit

Have a good week!

Bisous, Chantal

Two weeks ago was Thom's 11th birthday, we celebrated this with his grandparents (my parents) and my aunt & uncle. A small party, too many presents, tasteful patisserie...


But tomorrow is the party for his friends, so preparations are in full swing.



Thanks to Frederica of the blog Sweet as a candy (it sure is!) for the lovely idea (http://sweet-as-a-candy.blogspot.com/2010/02/party-planning.html). As you can see, there's a big difference between hers and mine. But hey... it's a boys party after all!


So I better get into the baking and cooking mode now, to make sure everything will be ready for ten boys (and their parents) tomorrow. It promises to be a lovely sunny day here in Versailles!


Have a wonderful weekend!!
Bisous, Chantal

Some busy weekend days and sun outside... not so much time to sit behind the computer & update this blog...


But here are some images to show our week(s):




We visited the stables of the Chateau de Versailles and watched a training performance of the Lusitano horses.

Unfortunately we were not allowed to take pictures inside... If you're interested, have a look at http://www.acadequestre.fr/.
And of course, still real Dutchies, we went by bike!

Furthermore, we had some unexpected guests in our garden:



The black and white cats were pretty friendly, the reddish one quite unfriendly and Senna (in her own garden) got scared and took off!

At home, we had some guests as well and because of the springy weather, it needed to feel like spring at the table too:

Outside it was still too pale, so I added some colour (but there's still a lot to be done!!):




Apart from all this, the guest room has been painted, curtains are up there, so are the lamps on the wall (now just need to clean & decorate the room), big lamps are hanging above the dining table, as are the lamps in the hall way and the living room, etc. Quite productive, don't you think?

Have a lovely week!!


P.S. Wanna see some nice jewelry and have a chance to win some too? Have a look at http://sweet-as-a-candy.blogspot.com/. Good luck!!

This & that

Finally I got back to exercising; jazzercise that is. Feeling sore already... Nice combination of dancing, aerobics & toning. I feel muscles that I didn't even remember having them.
Hope it'll be better soon as I have planned to start painting the guest room because our first guests are expected end of this month already, my parents. Looking forward to that!

When that is done I have to finish some curtain projects, buy some lamps (for the dining area is getting crucial now, too dark there!), cleaning out the basement and hopefully the weather will then be nice enough to start working in the garden. Really need to as it looks like a wilderness now (apparently the previous tenants were not so keen on maintaining the garden).
We, on the contrary, love to be outside, surrounded by beautiful plants & flowers. So don't worry that I'm getting bored here in Versailles! No time for that!!

And do you see the flowers? Aren't they just gorgeous? Got them this morning from a friend, for our new home. I feel so spoilt (thanks so much Manuela!).

I made a to-do list last night, so let's see where to start...
Have a lovely Wednesday!

Spring is definitely in the air!

After a stormy & rainy Sunday, the week started with a beautiful sunny Monday! It's still pretty chilly during the night, but the days are already getting longer, sunnier & warmer! Love that!

Let's hope it will continue... let it be spring soon!

As you can see, the garden is ready for it too!!

Enjoy this sunny Tuesday!

Chantal

Abacaxi & Hortelã goes French...

(picture from www.linternaute.com)

Yep! Going French!

Not bad at all, don't you think?

After a lovely 6 years in Brazil, we are now making our new home in France for a couple of years (that's the life of an expat...).
Closer to our home country of the Netherlands, so expecting quite a lot of visitors year round... although we couldn't complain 'bout that in Brazil either. Living in historical Versailles, with Paris just around the corner. Now that will definitely attract a lot of family & friends!

Still busy with the house these days, still need to do some painting and other bits & pieces need to be taken care of! It always takes more time than you anticipate, doesn't it?

So off I am! Running errands!
Have a great Thursday!
XX Chantal

Game & puzzle time...
After a game of Monopoly & Risk (I lost both!!), we started this 1,000 pieces puzzle.
Cold outside, warm & cosy inside, cup of tea, glass of wine (depending on the time of the day of course) and trying to put the pieces together.
Good for an unpatient person like me!

Although there are still quite some things to do in & around the house, making this puzzle is quite relaxing! Still not finished, so guess what I'll be doing tonight?

Enjoy this beautiful Thursday!

XX Chantal

Des fleurs...

What's a house without a bouquet of flowers? Right, it's just a house. Add a nice bouquet and it becomes a home!

And that's what I finally did last weekend: buying a bunch of tulips, anemones and ranunculus in spicy colours. It really made our house our home!

Have a nice Monday!

Slowly gettin´ there!

After 2 months of hotel living, we finally moved into our new house. Don´t get me wrong, I just loooooooove hotels, but trying to live your regular life (work, school, etc.) is just not that comfortable out of a hotelroom. Add the dog to the story and you´ll get the picture!

But last Friday it happened: the first night in our new house! And we slept pretty well!

The weekend we used to paint the downstairs area (white, so far) & to empty as many boxes as possible. Now trying to find space for everything (I already know that this will be an utopia!).

Anyway, meet our new home:

I´ll be back soon(er) & wish you all a great day!!

In case you're wondering what I'm doing? What do you think about this?

Hopefully we'll get the keys to our new house soon. In the meanwhile I started thinking about the work that needs to be done. So I'm off to the DIY shop for all the paint & the materials...

I'll be back soon!