Summer best 2017 photos!

Fabulous worship

Steve and I went to our bilingual house church this morning. It was at Steve and Sarah in Sauzé-Vaussais and we had a fabulous time there praising the Lord and it was followed by a bring and share. If you are an expat and you would like to attend, leave me a comment and I will send you the details. 

At 6:30 p.m. we went to worship in the Upper Room in Civray by the catholic church. I did not realise that there would be a music ensemble. Another great time of worship and praise!

A working holiday!

Though we are on holidays, at the end of the day we are pretty tired. We knew that we had lots of things to sort out here and as the days go by, there is a time to relax and a time to work physically. We enjoyed the company of our friends who came to visit us all the way from Limoges and Bordeaux! Also, we managed to have a break most days sitting down at the terrace of a cafe in the center of Civray, meeting up with our expat friends and basking in the autumnal sun. We love walking by the Charente river and biking to the house and back to the campsite. Time to work physically, I must confess that Steven did all the hard work, mowing the lawn seemed to be a Herculean task, then trimming the palm tree seemed dangerous, finally treating the wood was messy. I battled with ivy and wasps that we find in the kitchen. We can't figure out where they come from! We had an appointment with the Edf engineer to sort out our outdated French electricity meter and he gave us another appointment as there was so much to do. As we can't be there, our neighbour kindly agreed to be around. Choosing a cooker was easier once we found But in Ruffec, the equivalent of |Comet. Finally, we spend another hour with 'our' chosen electrician double checking the details of the 'earth wiring' renovation..

Tuesdays and Fridays are market days and we bought some pink garlic, pink pears and goat cheese. 

Here are more photos. Have a blessed evening. 

Walking by the Charente at dusk

Goats by the edge of the campsite of Civray

Un grand creme s'il vous plait!

St Nicholas Church in Civray

Tidying our house to be!

Dear friends, we have been very busy those last days looking after our house in Civray, south of France. First Steven had to mow the lawn or should I say the 'field'. It was a big job because the grass and weeds became thick and long, in fact it took him ages to do one part of the garden and now we are waiting for some good weather to do the rest.
Then woodworms; we knew that there were some in the shelves in the basement so Steven bought the gear and the spray in England, getting ready for the onslaught!
...later
the lawn s been cut, and the woodworms hopefully exterminated
I battled with the ivy only to realise that this poor bush was really struggling under the sap sucking ivy so we were wondering if it was worth 'saving' one of the main branches was covered with thick layer of ivy all around it..
Hope you are having a blessed day..
A few photos

We went to Ruffec, a lovely town not far from us and on the way back we stopped in a wood full of sweet chestnuts trees and we had great pleasure to pick them up, they were pretty easy to open up and we were grateful to the Lord for this unexpected bonanza.
Much love. N.

Swallows in Civray

In between the town main car park and the square, there is a street. We found those nests full of baby swallows built under the roof of an empty house! Steven took a few photos and a few days later I felt compelled too.
Have a blessed evening.

The photo gallery!

Gardening, Steven mowing...

Dear friends, 
I have updated the photo gallery page and I'm therefore inviting you to have a look ! 
Tomorrow, we are off to Limoges for a wedding, my school friend Brigitte's son Gaetan is getting married! It is sooo exciting and I am so pleased to be able to make it, partly because we could fit our hols round it. 
Have a blessed week-end and keep us in your prayers.

A day out to the Grottes du Chaffaud, Savigne

Good evening my friends, we have been in France in the Poitou-Charente region since Wednesday the 29th of July and we've been blessed by a lovely weather and friendly people. 

Today the temperature reached 33 degrees C. so we were not surprised to see the sheep finding shelter.

 We decided to bike to the next village called Savigne where there are pre-historical caves to visit. The site was remarquable , the Charente river is wide and high, narrow iron bridges and of course the caves. It was pretty steep so I had to be careful and hold on to the rope and on the way back making sure not to slip!

Just before going to the caves, we had a drink on the terrasse of a quaint restaurant. Its interesting menus that are also reasonably priced attract lots of tourists and French people so you should really book. 

 The following photo is of interest for any historian, this plaque on the bridge out of Savigne bears the name of Napoleon III, I was shocked when I read the inscription

You may wonder why I took this picture of Steven coming back from the campsite on his own. After visiting the church of Savigne and finding out that the caves were another 4 kms away on the route of Limoges, I suddenly realised that I left my watch. However I could not remember if I'd left it in the shower cubicle or put it back in my bag so my darling hubby suggested he'd go back to the campsite to find out. I could wait for him at the top of the hill. That was kind of him, I find this hill pretty steep, well |I think that I am not the only one!

As we left the church of Savigne, the bells started to chime. Outside, the archeologists stacked ancient sarcophages that were discovered 

Ancient sarcophages

After a very emotional day yesterday when I got to meet up with relatives of mine, two dear cousins whom I haven't met for years, today has been very tranquil. We were told that a heavy storm was on its way and we should put stuff away safely but so far nothing.
Have a blessed evening. What are you doing during your hols, let me know.

Picturesque Poitou!

Dear all, we are back home and I must say that tonight the temperature is cooler than in Poitou. Steven even got sunburnt in a few hours. Here are a few photos I took during our holidays in Poitou! 

A medieval tower in Civray

A medieval door in Civray

Eglise St-Nicholas, Civray

Eglise St-Nicholas, Civray

Fontenay le Comte

Leaving Calais

Another lighthouse at  Calais