Month: October 2025 (Page 2 of 2)

Today was a cozy Sunday mostly at home with the family. I slept in very late and that helped my jet lag a great deal. We had an assortment of pastries from the bakery, along with German bread and muesli cereal. I made the mistake of calling a pastry “pain au chocolat” and was taught the three mistakes one can make in Toulouse: 1) call it pain au chocolat instead of the Southern term “chocolatine” 2) say that you like football better than rugby 3) say the word “Boeing.”

We drove to the Canal du Midi for a leisurely walk. Their labrador Valentine got too excited with another dog and slipped into the canal, but he can’t swim! So Florian slid down to retrieve him. Stefanie gave a hand to help bring them ashore and I almost thought she would need me to help pull them out too! I didn’t want to take pics to not appear mean or unhelpful, but Florian was laughing and said “did not one capture my heroics?” The rest of the walk was uneventful, but full of beautiful trees and large boats with names such as “La Boheme” and Le Present.”

Back to the house for the father and the dog to shower! Carl-Phillip and Vincent are in the table tennis club and were keen to play with me. They were very kind and let me fumble through volleys, eventually teaching me the proper serve and even some tricks with adding a spin. I didn’t completely humiliate myself! Vincent was just happy to have someone play with him longer, he is always the last to want to stop playing. Meanwhile Stef prepared a feast of Sunday lunch! Goulash with bread, potatoes, buttered leeks, zucchini, and green salad. We all went from hungry to stuffed!

Stef and I pulled out our itinerary and ticket printouts to discuss our travel plans, and she started packing for the trip. To walk off lunch they showed me the “little forest” in their neighborhood.

Stefanie had made a special German cheesecake for the weekend. It was delicious! Light and lemony, made with quark! They often discuss my lactose intolerance and what it is and how I deal with it, and then smack their forehead and apologize when they serve me dairy again and again 😅. She was over the moon to learn that I DO drink herbal tea and roobis. Apparently it was distressing that I said I didn’t drink any warm drinks like coffee or tea. By the time for dinner we were still full, so she made “a very easy simple dinner” of apples and cheese toast (another forehead snack). It was so flavorful, with creme fraiche, emmenthal, and ham. While she prepared I had a fun discussion with her kids about movies and shows they like. Sophie is a big fan of Gossip Girl and the Vampire Diaries. She said the popular shows at school right now are Culpa Nuestra and The Summer I Turned Pretty. Stef also recommended Machos Alfa. After dinner the kids were excited to watch an American movie (no subtitles so they can practice listening). They chose the Thursday Murder Club on Netflix (ok, so British 😉). Florian and I have read the book and Stefanie has started the book. We were surprised it had a different ending! Everyone liked it, it was better than I expected based on the trailer!

I planned to go to be an hour my ago but we got sidetracked by more memory sharing (the Christmas videos in 2019) and the boys wanted to know more about 3D printing. Now I really need to get to sleep for tomorrow Stefanie and I are going to Spain! 🇪🇸 Gute Nacht! Bonne nuit! Buenas noches!

What a day it has been! As you can see in the video below (thank you to the family for documenting!) we were giddy and emotionally overwhelmed to finally meet. We piled into their vans and sped through the winding streets to their nearby village. Here we exchanged gifts and I freshened up.

Back in the car, this time squeezing in a mini cooper, with some jokes about Florian living up to the German driver stereotype, we headed for the heart of Toulouse. We walked along the canal, window shopped, and talked and talked.

Then we all met up again at Le Bibet, a “very much typically French” restaurant where “all the Americans want to go.” It was, indeed, very French and very delicious. I managed to keep up with conversation and cream.

Afterward a night walk back to the car, with the city lit up for night. They told me there are a couple universities here and the later crowds skewed young. There was music playing and casual dance parties by the canal and the bars were packed. But none of that could compare with the thought of a hot shower and soft bed, where I find myself now. I hope I sleep deeply tonight.

and then we hugged and cried longer, and several more times throughout the day. 💜

Stefanie and I have been pen pals since 1991. We wrote letters as kids, continuing as teens and young adults (but not as often). With email, and then remote friendships during the pandemic, we’ve gotten a lot closer over the last decade. We’ve often wished to meet in person. Today I’m making that dream come true! Stefanie is German and currently living in Pibrac, near Toulouse. We’re meeting today, and then embarking on a tour to Barcelona and Paris over the next ten days. I’m so nervous! Walking through the airports I keep catching myself think “what am I doing here? This is crazy!” So far the journey has been smooth. I’m writing this while waiting to board my connecting flight from Frankfurt to Toulouse. Pics of the journey:

Germany looks just like I remember from the window. The Frankfort airport is crowded. Wow, I have such poor German language comprehension! I assumed I could read a little but I’m totally relying on the English signs. I knit in the Lufthansa lounge with small snacks, then went out for a pretzel. Proud that I cobbled together my order “eine brezel mit butter, bitte” without using a translation app. Although now that I checked the app for spelling, I see my pronunciation was terrible! I wonder if I’ll pick up any more while visiting this German family?

They are boarding my last flight now, byee!

PS: TSA won’t let you take a can of pumpkin puree through. Darn it! Worth a shot.

Our first concert of the school year was for Jack’s high school orchestra. He’s become such a strong player – he auditioned into the highest level class! I’m afraid I don’t remember the names of these pieces, and I lost the program QR code. So just enjoy the vibes 🙂

It’s been a busy fall! I need to share some stories and pictures before my next big adventure (spoilers: I’m flying to France tomorrow! Eeeep!)

Lots of garden and baking this season – I love to see it! Some date nights too, and some small celebrations and some big hurdles! I’ll add captions below.

Sam has turned 12 years old!!! He had a super fun party with his closest friends. Ben GM’d a role-playing game. I 3D-printed dice towers for everyone. They ate mac and cheese bread bowls and chicken drumsticks. Sam was pleased I turned his chocolate cake into a Portal Cake as a surprise (served with raspberry coulis made from my garden). The sleepover portion included the boys watching “nostalgic shows from our youth” on Netflix, hah! They are so old 😉

Happy happy birthday, Sam! We’re so proud of your growth every year! You’re such a kind, cool guy.