chocolate crackle cakes, words of wisdom and the perfect park

mmmmm only in France would you be able to find gourmet chocolate crackle cakes.... they live in the boulangerie section of the supermarket.... yes, they're just cornflakes coated in chocolate, but these ones are sooooooo delicious !!

a reply to a simple 'help, i'm struggling' message made me smile today... turns out it doesn't matter where your friends are in the world, they'll always be there for you when you need them :)

the park in Hossegor is a very happy place, I hardly spend any time in there, but you can just sense it every time you drive past. It's always full of kids playing , waiting eagerly for their turn on the old-fashioned merry go round, parents queuing up in the sunshine at the little cabin to buy ice-creams, gaufres and crepes..... old men playing boules, families having picnics on multi-coloured rugs...... it makes me smile each time I go past

running sets me free, catch up and sunbeam

running gives me a sense of self, of freedom and happiness

after my useless day yesterday (no internet), I played catch up today...it felt good

I had to shoot into town to do some chores this afternoon, and was kinda in auto-pilot mode until I was walking back to the car down a narrow tree lined street and a warm sunbeam hit me and made me stop and appreciate it. Amazing what a sunbeam can do

a beach break, smell of home and a big storm

I had a crappy day at work today so at about 4.30pm, I bailed to the beach and just sat in the sunshine for a while watching the surf. It was like a little holiday.

Before we went for dinner I took a magazine down to the pool and relaxed down there for a while - a few deep breaths after a long, exasperating day. Then I got a whiff of it..... that amazing home smell.....pine trees, fresh air, sunshine, the smell of the ocean

on the cycle to dinner tonight we were checking out all the crazy clouds... then, about halfway through our (amazingly delicious - gambas a la plancha) meal, the storm hit... from calm to chaos in about 3 minutes..... we had to sit it out in the restaurant (with another bottle of rose, and a slice of moelleux au chocolat each) until we could cycle home

family, a little sign, and a warm, fuzzy movie

my sister and her fiance are on holiday down here at the moment, we've been hanging out a fair bit....going for dinners and fun cycling missions... it's been really nice

today I was in the cookware aisle of the supermarket, by myself, when suddenly a little kitchen timer started going off...bbzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz not sure what it meant, but it felt like it was supposed to go off just as I walked past..... is the universe telling me its time to do something ? I love it when you get a little prod like that...

I watched 'Whip It' tonight, Drew Barrymores coming of age film about roller derby. It was a lot of fun, a great reminder to be yourself and follow your own dreams

pool on a hot day, perrier and lime and cycling adventures

wowzers it was sooooo hot today.... thank goodness we have a pool. Went to the beach for a while but was crazy hot so just came back home and chilled ...

Cycled into town for a Perrier and lime.... ahhh the simple pleasures

we cycled to Capbreton tonight to check out the Fete des Chipirons... fun little mission that ended up with an early night, yummy dinner (salad and croquetas) and a very content me

happy happy, chez monette and full circle

so happy I could sing a little song..... had a great day with a fair amount of fun chores, some greener festival news to celebrate, an amazing meeting, lots of sunshine and a very happy Linzi

took Nat & Dave to Chez Monette for dinner....cycle via the lake,mmmmmm mojitos and lots of yummy food...

moved across the hall to our old apartment, just for 2 wks whilst the Nat & Dave, and then Mum & Dad stay in the other one.... but felt kinda bizarre coming back here. Full circle really.... I bought this place when I was 22, and all I had in my head (and my heart) was 'I want to live here'.... then I carried on travelling, surfing, working for 8 years and now I'm back where I belong

home sweet home, salade de chevre & glass of rose and a sploosh

aahhh after a long drive and a hot day I arrived back home.... very happy to be here

I stopped off at Cap'Pizza (as is standard Jeff & Linz procedure after the drive down !) and got a salade de chevre to take home along with a chilled bottle of rose...yum

Before eating my dinner and falling into bed, I went for a quick, refreshing sploosh in the pool to wash the drive off... lush :)