odile

Had to check on French google as I had never seen Trompe à l'oeil. It is definitely Trompe l'oeil! Relooking meubles. As a verb to 'relook' means to alter so it has a different style. Elle a relooké sa coiffure. Or even reflexive : il s'est totalement relooké depuis son divorce.

Snap 2! We worked so hard to achieve our dream- now on UK pension in my native Switzerland. We were not naive and did our calculations very carefully. Smug or what!

A French friend of mine, married to an English guy and living in the UK for many years, decided to go and live in France when their boys were little. They rented their house in the UK and rented one in France. he found it impossible to find a job he enjoyed and t he 3 boys HATED French school with a vengeance, despite the fact they were bilingual. Dry, boring, learning by rote, sitting all day at a desk. They were back within a year. One of the now grown up boys lives in France with his French wife and kids - the other 2 are in the UK. And parents now gone back to France as now retired. I keep talking to people in France who feel desperate about the lack of stimulation provided by their kids education. Make sure the children learn as much French as poss before you go - go forth and enjoy- but make sure you keep doors open just in case it doesn't work out.

NO  EGGS!

I so agree Panda that rehoming them is the best possible outcome. But I do feel that it may be better to drown them immediately (I couldn't do it of course!) - what was so dreadful was keeping them just to amuse the kids and drown them when young adults when it is much harder and disgusting. The very best thing though is to make sure that Toms are neutered and female spayed asap.

Good luck jon - and thanks for looking after the kittens and mum. BUT GET THAT TOM TO THE VET QUICK - or it will keep happening. When mi girls were little and we used to come and visit my parents here in the Jura, the local farmer always made sure there was a litter of kittens for them to tame and play with, with his children too. They loved it. Little did they know that the ba.....d would drown them as soon as we left when they were maybe 6 weeks old. I tried to talk to him re. castrating the toms around the farm- but he said he was a man so couldn't get his toms done! he is a multimillionaire, but says vet too expensive anyway!

Salut Frenchie -Contente de savoir que tu vas bien et que tu as passé un bon week-end. Ici on se les gèle puisque le thermomètre a chuté de 15C, de 30 à 15! Un vrai choc thermique. Demain la météo n;est pas géniale - dommage car nous serons chauffeurs volontaires pour la sortie des ainés du village au Lac de Joux. Bisous et bonne nuit à tous/toutes.

I was so surprised when I met my first Dominique who was a boy! Great hilarity always during French exchanges as Nicolas (s not pronounced)  in France is a boy. Reminds me too of the day we visited Warwick Castle with my dad - couldn't see him, so I called 'papa, papa!' and some voices replied 'Nicole, Nicole'.

I looked every day on the thread you posted and was so sad to see you didn't have any answers. I so hope you find them good homes., Can anybody out there help? Have you been in touch with some of your local refuges? Bonne chance to you all.

Mooky, what is happening with the cats? I so hope you find a good solution for them.

ahahah, pour une fois je peux te corriger Chessfou - pour que nous puissions bien dormir! je rigole, ton français est vraiment excellent. Ici il faisait 31 hier et 30 aujourd'hui - trop chaud pour moi. Mais comme tu dis, les nuits sont agréables et fraiches dans les montagnes - nous sommes ici à 950m. La météo nous annonce des orages pour cette nuit. J'adore les orages dans le Jura- malheureusement Gatsby, notre chienne, est terrorisée. Frenchie, où es-tu... ça va?

Magnifique temps ici - 29 hier, 31 aujourd'hui - pour moi presque trop chaud pour faire une balade - j'ai fait la flemmarde! Et chez vous? Au moins les nuits sont fraiches ici dans le Jura - et on peut bien dormir la nuit.

Thanks - I remembered the word from our travels to Tanzania - but couldn't remember what it meant! A great picture.

the most tragic thing in France is that young people of Beur/Arab/North African descent - most of them born and bred in FRANCE- have a huge unemployment rate- compared to the rest of the population. I am definitely no friend of Sarko, but at least he has acknowledged the problem and is working on finding solutions and finding way to allow access to better -then higher education. It is a dreadful fact of French life - with so many factors involved. The UK does have private and so called public (!!!!) schools - but at least no private Universities like in France.

It reminds me of the little 'maisonnettes' larvae which make little houses out of bits of limestone in our local rivers in the Jura. PS   could you post a picture of a   hakunamatata   please.

you might have problems with tuyauterie - but you are VERY good at French Chess. Bravo. Une magnifique journée dans le Jura à 29C - ma limite. Et chez vous, quel temps fait-il?

So agree, RH and Scooby - NOWHERE is perfect... so chasing around for perfection is pointless. There are many problems both in UK and France (and in 'my' Switzerland) - so best get used to it! A move to France IMHO must be a positive, going forward to pastures new decision, not a negative 'let's escape from hell into heaven' - or disappointment is on the cards. Like having another baby to mend a broken relationship - it is unlikely to succeed. A move to France will not automatically rekindle romance, repair a broken marriage, solve family problems, turn your children into angels, etc, etc, or other such miracles. if you don't expect a move to do this- you may really enjoy the experience (but then again...).         Bonne chance, whatever you decide.

OH has done this by using a flat bed scanner and the software that came with it. He has a Cannon, and is very happy with it. Costs around £130. Nikon or Minolta do specialised scanners for 35mm where the resolution will be better. do you know somebody who has a scanner so you can try. Many photographic shops will do it for a charge. Shame you live so far from the Jura.

very sadly the French system rewards teachers for being good at theory/exams - and not for being good teachers - with the results you know. I so hope you find a way to stimulate the children - the problem is the school day is so long and homework plenty (and boring) - so not much time or energy to stimulate them with outside activities. I do wish you bonne chance.

Heureusement que tu n'as pas perdu ton sens de l'humour! Je suis sure que ça aide à réparer tous les 'bobos' de la vie. Du ménage Frenchie - allez la vie est trop courte pour faire du ménage! (je sais, plus facile à dire qu'à faire - j'essaie de ne pas en faire trop). Un magnifique après-midi, 23C, parfait. J'adore cette température - en dessus de 26/27 je ne suis plus bien. Et j'adore les nuits fraiches du Jura - où on peut dormir avec les fenetres grandes ouvertes et bien respirer. Voilà, je suis une fille des montagnes - et le serai toujours! Pourtant l'eau la plus froide dans laquelle j'ai nagé, c'était dans les Calanques près de Cassis. Il faisait très très chaud, en juillet - mais l'eau était absolument glaciale! Si vous n'ètes jamais allés dans les Calanques à l'Est de Marseille - il faut absolument y alller. En juin avant les touristes - l'eau est turquoise comme à Corfou (grace aux plaques de calcaire dessous) et les paysages sont de toute beauté- thyms, romarins, etc. Fabuleux.

Magnifique journée aujourd'hui. pendant notre balade nous avons admiré des tas d'orchidées, des boutons d'or (trollius), du muguet, des Lys Martagons (pas encore en fleurs), des narcisses des poètes, toutes sortes d'euphorbes à fleurs (feuilles en fait) fluo et du bois gentil (ou bois joli - daphné mezureum) et toutes sortes de fleurs de toutes les couleurs. Les Milans royaux (red kites) tournoyaient au dessus de nous. Merveilleux. Et H. a obtenu son Permis B, qui veut dire qu'il est enfin officiellement autorisé à rester en Suisse! Bisous à tous - et à Cheesfou- qui semble le seul ami Britannique qui continue à papoter avec nous. J'espère que tout va mieux pour ta tuyauterie! xx odile

Fully agree Cerise- bravo for having the guts and understanding to put your childrens' education and welfare first. By the way some 6th form in the UK, state as well as private - do offer the International Bac - so it might be an option for you to consider at a later stage - if you think you might wish to return at some stage. In Leicester for instance Wyggeston Q.E (which the Attenborough brothers attended) is an excellent state 6th Form that offers this option. Bonne chance to you all - hope you manage to keep up their French language skills too. Keep in touch to tell us how you get on.

Yes - was there last week! But antique shops are pretty expensive!

Un p'tit beurre, des touyoux  to you Clair.

On my recent walks in the wet Jura, I have come across the most ginormous snails. It would be very quick to collect a couple of dozen for our dinner. I now remember with horror how my brother and I collected 1000s in our buckets several times a week - to deliver to a local restaurant. Just to buy 'des sucettes' (lollies). I apologised to a few as we walked passed - but they didn't seem too impressed by my guilt! I just couldn't eat them now.