One week down...

Today marks our first whole week of living in France. It is hard to believe that this is our home for the next 3 years. This week has been full of information and sensory overload, as well as embarrassing moments in French culture.

Our first day here was met with overwhelming jet lag. The couple we are staying with, Mark and Kelsey, took us around Lille on a walking tour. Needless to say, we were completely disorientated but in awe of this beautiful city. We experienced our first outdoor market with tons of fresh flowers, fruit and veggies and bread. In LOVE with outdoor markets already! The outdoor cafe scene is hopping and we were able to get our first taste of French coffee and beer. Shane and I are both in agreement that we will be completely happy with the beverage choices in our new home!

We have been able to overcome the jet lag mostly to explore Lille a bit more. There are beautiful parks, old gothic churches and buildings that are older than the US everywhere. Last night, we ventured out for the first time for a dinner date by ourselves. Our theory was that if we ate in the touristy area, English speaking waiters may be more prevalent. Putting our theory to the test, we ordered come crepes in extremely broken French. With pointing, gestures and Franglish, we managed to have our first taste of French cuisine- delicious!

The Americans that Shane works with have been extremely welcoming and hospitable. They are letting us stay in their homes, share their meals and have been excellent tour guides . On Tuesday we went to an "UnThanksgiving" dinner where we had a turkey dinner. It was pretty much an excuse to get together and socialize. Embarrassing moments tend to follow me, this was no exception. When it came to saying good bye, the colonel's wife does the kiss cheek French thing. Well, I tried to be all culturally suave and kiss back but instead ended up kissing her on the lips. Ops! She laughed, I turned red. It will be a moment never to be forgotten. I think I will stick to hugs and handshakes.

Today we went on a tour of the hospital where Kayden will be born and also met the doctor. "Dr Phil" gave us a personal tour of the birthing facility. Having worked in and seen many hospitals in the States, in my opinion, this one was extremely minimalist but clean none the less. I know we will be in good hands there, but the posh ness of birthing in the States is clearly lacking. We have to rent a bed each night for Shane and there is no TV in the labor room. It could be a LONG process! All that said, we feel confident in our doctor and French health care... if only we could understand what they are saying!!!

The baby update is that I am now officially in my third trimester, month seven. Kayden has officially started kicking so much that by just watching my stomach, you can see her movement. It is fascinating, rather odd but super exciting!

New adventures definitely await us this next week. Tomorrow we are venturing into the huge market in the North- African/ French/ Arabic area and trying out the ONLY English speaking church in town. The big item on our agenda is to find an apartment. We are torn between practicality or living in something that radiates an old European feel.... It’s quite the debacle! Stay tuned!