Cendrillon

No one else has come up with any ideas so what about a little basket of goodies to put on his table ? Fill it with jam / marmalade, shortbread, oat cakes, cake, cheese. Or for a joke a nice hot water bottle for his bed!

http://www.frenchairportguide.com/lig/limoges-airport-buses.htm This was posted on Ryanair's web page. You have probably already seen it. Bla bla car might be an option to get a lift from the airport to your home. I gather though that some drivers don't want to do airport lifts in case there are flight delays

Flybe flights from Manchester to la Rochelle begin 21 May and continue until beginning of September. It's a pity for us that Jet2 stopped their Leeds to La Rochelle route.

Gardian after all the above discussion[;-)] I am sure Mrs G was as pleased I was to receive cards from her children yesterday.[:)]

Hoddy I  shall always remember with great fondness, a Mothering Sunday "breakfast in bed" menu offering me beverages such as Tea / Coffee / Gin and Wine!!! I think they just looked in the cupboard to see what was in stock! As for the home crafted cards I have kept a few of those[:)] Incidentally I have a small leather writing case that belonged to my late mother and use it to store some of these very meaningful treasures.

Definitely take a mother / stepmother out for a meal from time to time, any time, why not? What I do not like is to be cooped up in a restaurant with a 1001 other families for a celebration lunch en masse. rather like going out for a Christmas lunch. Inflated prices and lots of false bonhomie [+o(] non merci! I no longer have a mother to take out either. My daughters have their own little families and live a long way from us but tomorrow I shall appreciate the little gifts they've sent. I know they have thought of me, they will probably phone me and they have taken the time to put a little something in the post.

6th March is Mothering Sunday in U.K. this year. http://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/uk/mothering-sunday The background information given here sheds more light on the origin. ( Apologies I can't make the link work.) Sadly commercialism had taken over from the old tradition of visiting your mother with a small posy of flowers or giving a home made card. It's now developed into Mothers Day and spend, spend, spend! A family meal in a restaurant - lunch / tea out (can think of nothing worse on this Sunday[:(]), massive bunches of  expensive flowers delivered all over the country, chocolates, cake, I could go on but YUK [+o(]to all the commercialism.

A record indeed! Mrs G will be delighted a) to have been remembered ?? x 2 b) to receive the cards on time.?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-35652095 more about this in the link above

I think it means that the person whose name is marked with a cross has already died

Fingers crossed for her.

I heard that the straight croissants are supposed to be pur buerre and the crescent shaped ones are not ? I agree with you Idun I like mine without butter or jam. If you have croissants at Cafe Rouge in U.K. they serve them with butter and a tiny jar of Bonne Maman jam. I always take the jam home to give to my grandchildren.?

Did any of you who were around in the 1950s watch the programme on TV on Tuesday evening? A modern family living a 1950s lifestyle. My mother used a pressure cooker for many years. friends in France seem to use them quite regularly and they are mostly younger than me. Sorry off topic.

Great memories of eating this dish in Alsace. Big container, long slow cooking. Chips definitely NO. Put an empty dish on the table so that you have somewhere for people to dump the bones.

The French Institute in London is showing French films on Sunday afternoons during February.

I have been told that migrants settling in Sweden have to wait six years before their family members are allowed to join them. AFAIK these waiting times are much shorter in UK.

They have just announced on the news that this new rule has been approved.

You could try asking your local TROC to take them

In the first place it takes a French person to sell their property to a foreigner. Let's not forget that. Are they going to turn away good money and offer their property to a less wealthy French person? No!

He's a top student, no doubt parties as well but don't underestimate the,lad, he'll go far.

Did you stay in Biarritz? We spent a night in Bidart last September en route to Spain. Pleasant little town, very busy that particular day/night as there was a big festival taking place.

Bordeaux 2nd on the New York Times list of places to visit! A good choice but I can't help with suggestions for a good hotel. I have stayed in the Campanile near the station which is fine for an overnight stopover but maybe not where you'd choose for an anniversary break. Air bandb list rooms and apartments in Bordeaux, some look exotic but you never can tell.

I have a nephew at Reading Uni. He loves it there. He did his first degree at Imperial college London and says he much prefers Reading.

Nevertheless, with all the recent troubles it was good to see the children and staff accepting and including multi faiths.