The beginning

We're really doing this. No joke. A month from now we'll be in France. We've looked at the guide books, taken virtual tours and read several blogs trying to prepare for this adventure. But with each passing day the experience seems more real, more within our grasp. No amount of planning can truly prepare us for what lies ahead: it's the unknown. But that's part of the excitement, right?

Whenever I tell someone that Josh and I are moving ... to France ... I inevitably get asked a series of similar questions:

1. You're moving to Paris?!
2. Are you bringing the dogs?
3. Do you know French?
4. What are you going to do while Josh is in school?

Quick answers:

1. No, we're moving to Yssingeaux, a small town about an hour and a half southwest of Lyon.
2. Yes, we're bringing the pups but only two--the other two, the Bostons, are going to stay with my parents while we're gone. And no quarantine; we just have to follow a bunch of rules to make sure of that.
3. Sort of. Considering I took seven years of it in school, I know a good chunk of it is still swimming around in my brain--I just need to tap into it. Rosetta Stone has been helping. Josh, however, knows none. Luckily his school includes French classes.
4. I'm not entirely sure. I thought about teaching English, but getting a work visa is next to impossible. I could teach under the table but that would be kinda sneaky. I'll likely spend my time traipsing around the French countryside, reading, writing, helping around the house so Josh can concentrate on school, and generally soaking up the French culture. For as long as I possibly can. On the side I'll try my hand at some freelance writing and editing to pay the bills.

We still have a month before we leave but I had to start this blog. I hope someone out there reads it (hi Mom, hi Dad!). I'll leave you with a photo of the castle that houses ENSP, Ecole Nationale Superieure de la Patisserie, courtesy of the school website. More on that to come.