Sunshine Livin

A few days ago, after 2 days of traveling we made it to the Sunshine Coast, Australia! Eric and I had different flights but met up in Sydney and took the last flight to Brisbane together. Luckily it was nothing like getting to France and the trip was uneventful in the best way. 

As soon as we got here I realized I 100% underestimated what the temperature was going to be. Holy crap, it's hot here. It's also super beautiful and cool and different and perfect. I had no idea what to expect, I didn't know the living situation up until two days before we left. I didn't set any expectations and was completely blown away.

We are living in a house with a guy from Eric's team and two girls on the women's team. None of them moved in yet and we aren't completely unpacked yet (the worst part in my opinion). The house is super cute and has a lot of room for everyone which is a huge plus! I never really wrote about our kitchen in France, or lack there of.. It was basically one counter, a 2 burner hot plate and an oversized toaster oven... Lol. A huge challenge but we made it work and I got creative. This kitchen now is huge and such a nice change, I'm excited about it. Once there is wifi in here, we are set (I'm phone-less without it).

We are about a 5 minute walk from both the beach and the store, depending on which way you walk. Super ideal since we haven't gotten the car yet. The beach completely blew us away, pictures will never do it justice. We have been there twice a day since we have gotten here, it's so perfect. 

Things I've learned & realized (so far):

- the sun is SO strong, don't underestimate it when you're at your palest (you'll regret it). 

- remembering to keep left is something you have to make a conscious effort to think about.

- I needed a technology detox but wifi is still a miracle. 

- I need an Australian accent. 

- when I die, I'd be totally fine with coming back as a dog living here. 

I think I can speak for both of us by saying, we wish everyone we know and love could be here experiencing this amazing place with us. So grateful, life is good. 

Cheers! 

Signs & Direction

I've taken a break from blog posts, it's not that I haven't written any (the notes section of my phone is enormous).. It's just that I took a huge step back from social media as a whole. A lot of the notes have been different from my regular posts and I'm not really comfortable sharing them, yet. No one besides me has even read them, but I felt like it was time; time to at least post this one, just to be more open. 

Ive been contemplating, (attempting to) meditate on and put all of my thought into a few things that have been weighing heavily on my heart and mind- it's consuming. I am a huge & firm believer in the universe and the power of positivity (even when I slip into some negativity & frustration). This morning, after over thinking and feeling like I'm driving myself crazy (Joycie can attest, I've reached that "crazy" a few times..) but anyway- this morning, I decided to ask the universe let me know if I'm doing good and I'm where I'm supposed to be. 

While getting ready for the day I asked for reassurance, if I'm doing the right thing to show me: blue- weird I know. I finished getting ready and headed out.. Today is apparently a recycling day, I had no idea. I also had no idea that the recycle cans are bright blue (ours is green) and almost every single house on my drive this morning had a bright blue can out front. Amazing. On top of that I saw countless other bright blue things, have you ever noticed how many tarps people have laying around? 

Apparently I wasn't completley understanding the signs (I have my moments of doubt, daily) and while mindlessly scrolling through Instagram the universe led me to an account. A completely random account of someone on another continent. This person's posts were honest & vulnerable (something I struggle with on social media; and if I'm being honest here- in life too) and super inspiring.. it showed me that I'm not alone. A lot of people don't understand and can't relate but this person can, and just knowing that made me feel so good.  I'm not sure what led me to click on the picture but it was something I needed to look through and see, another sign of "everything is okay". 

So I get it, I'm listening & noticing; I'm okay, doing good and heading in the right direction. At times it's hard and I do struggle within myself to sort out my feelings and thoughts, but it's all good. Everything is a season~ 

  

That view & this guy made for a pretty perfect Wednesday morning ;) 

** It's been almost a week since I first asked for a sign (of blue), which I've continued to ask for and in the past week I have seen more blue then I could have ever imagined.  I counted 36 bright blue cars on one 2 hour car ride, noticed so many things and picked up tons of blue beach glass; and my favorite piece today! What I thought was a round piece of beach glass turned out to be  an old glass bead! I made a bracelet as soon as I got home, a reminder I can keep with me. So grateful. 

Xoxo~

À bientôt France

As I procrastinate packing I have been reflecting a lot on the past few months. It's been such a fun adventure so far. Time has flown by, I can't believe it's December and I'm heading home for Christmas soon! Because airlines are a complete rip off and charge insane amounts around the holidays, I decided to book before the prices were too outrageous and head back to NY in the beginning of December. 

Life in France is great and I'll definitely miss it while I'm gone. I'm so grateful for the opportunities life has given me so far, for the adventure, happiness and amazing people around me. Moving to a foreign country and not speaking the language is hard; harder than I thought but not as scary as I anticipated. I'm so lucky that I get to be here and experience it all with Eric. We have been able to explore, sightsee and really enjoy where we have been. Life when basketball runs your world is so unknown. It's so competitive, schedules, players and coaches change; nothing is guaranteed. However, I'd like to think we make the most of the unknown and the demanding schedule. Eric works so so hard and still finds energy to do and see what I want, I'm really really lucky. 

A few things I learned: 

1. French is SO hard

I had such high hopes that I would be fluent in French at this point (LOL), or at least really good at it. It's 10x harder than I anticipated, I'm not good with languages to begin with. I took six years of Spanish in school and even at the end it was a struggle. So, it's a work in progress..

2. Baguettes and pastries 

Too good & it's dangerous living across the street from a bakery (with the nicest bakers)

3. France is beautiful. 

I feel like when most people think France, they think Paris. Paris is easily one of the best and most charming cities in the world. Being a few hours outside of Paris showed us the country side and a lot of other history that I hadn't known before. It's all beautiful and breath taking. Pictures never truly do any of it justice. If you get the opportunity to come here, don't hesitate. 

4. I can do it

At first being here I was nervous to go out by myself, to the store, wandering, driving. I can't use my phone unless I'm connected to wifi (which has actually been so great). Not knowing the language and where I was or even the thought of someone talking to me freaked me out. BUT after I got used to the area and learned a few basic French things I was able to function like a real adult! I even know back roads, quicker ways to get around and when to avoid certain areas. Super proud of myself! 

5. I'm actually an adult

Growing up I never realized how fast time went and now looking back, I'm shocked. I'm out of college and have been living in a foreign country? What? I feel like I shouldn't be old enough to be allowed to make real life decisions sometimes. But for the past three months I think I've been adult-ing pretty well! Although, I am super excited to go home and have my mom cook dinner for me! 

(Tito is excited about all the traveling & festive things!) 

Vitré must have known I was leaving and turned on the Christmas lights (just for me)! (I've been waiting for them since Halloween) pictures don't do it justice, per usual. As much as I love France, I'm looking forward to getting back to the familiarity of home. I cannot wait to go somewhere and be able to understand what people are saying around me! 

See ya soon France! 

Joycie in France!

Over the past week we were so beyond lucky to have Joycie visiting us! She's really the best and having her here made everything extra happy and fun. I luckily haven't been homesick since I've been here, I love it so much BUT I have been Joycie-sick and I've missed her tons. Even with texting constantly and her "coming over" aka hanging out on FaceTime while I cook dinner most nights, there's nothing like having your mom hug you; or in my case cook dinner with you! 

She got here on a Friday which is one of Eric's less busy days, so we were able to stroll around, show her town and hang out. Saturday he had a home game so after spending the day at the farmers market and in town we went to the game. Sunday was followed by a trip to Mont Saint Michel (see my previous post) and the week was pretty up in the air with no set plans, aka the best kind of plans (in my opinion). There were a few rainy days where we headed to the mall and hung out around the apartment. I unfortunately caught a cold, and ended up giving it to Joycie & Eric (sorry guys!!). Joycie made me chicken soup, loved me extra and it was great!

I think Joycie got a pretty good taste of life in Vitré! It was really cool to show her everything, it helped me realize I know/understand more French than I think which is a huge plus! She got to meet everyone, explore, shop, road trip, adventure to cool towns (Mont Saint Michel, Rennes, Angers, Saint Malo), see the sights and eat all of the amazing things France has to offer! 

Her trip reaffirmed that once we find a permanent place, we need to be neighbors. Hated seeing her go, but 

can't wait for her to visit in the spring!! 

XO~ 

Mont Saint Michel

Yesterday Joycie, Eric, Tito & I hopped in the car and went to check out Mont Saint Michel. We have heard from so many people that it's worth the trip and amazing. I've been wanting to go for weeks but put it off until Joycie came so we could all see it for the first time together. Driving there I kept catching glimpses of it in the distance, which made the build up even better and more exciting. 

We got there, parked in one of the designated grass lots and from there we had to figure it out. Parking is SO far with not too many signs of where to go next, we were in parking lot 11! There are options of horse drawn carriage, a trolley or walking. We had Tito so the carriage and trolley were out (they didn't allow dogs) so we took the 45 minute walk. Thankfully it was a beautiful sunny day! It also worked out that it was dead low, since you can't get to the island when it's high tide. The walk itself was great, so many people were coming and going and the view of the Mont was beautiful. 

The history behind it is really interesting & amazing for how old it is. We didn't know much about it before going which would have added to the "wow" factor, coming home we looked it up and were even more amazed. "The island has held strategic fortifications since ancient times and since the 8th century AD has been the seat of the monastary  from which it draws its name" (Wikipedia never lies) so that's pretty cool. 

The island itself was packed with tourists from all over the world, we didn't climb the 900+ stairs to the top of the abbey because.. 900 stairs... (Maybe next time!). Everything  was so narrow and crowded that we didn't attempt to go too far up the street. Instead we found the closest gelato shop, got some and climbed up a section of the walls to enjoy the views. 

Overall, it was such a great day! A lot more walking than anticipated (5.5 miles!) but worth every step to see such a pretty and historic place. I had two of my most favorite people and my Tito, it couldn't have been any better of a day! 

Another amazing place to check out of you're ever in northern France! 

Tito + New Tricks

I want to start this off with how much I love Tito. I'm totally that crazy & obsessed dog mom who thinks every single thing (for the most part) he does is adorable, no shame here.  I have an unhealthy amount of pictures of him on my phone & he has his own Instagram.. So yeah. In all fairness, my mom started the Instagram and he has so many followers from all over the world so I had to keep it going. Lol? He's cute and has about 1,000 more followers than me. Whatever. (@ adventures_of_tito) follow him~ 

So, Tito in France.. He did amazing on the plane, the train and the craziness of actually getting to Vitré. He has adjusted to apartment & city living pretty well (just hates when the downstairs neighbors come and go) and for the most part has been his cute self. He was allergic to the food I switched him to here, so that was a bit of a bummer. The allergy didn't show up for almost a month and even then, we had no idea it was the food because he seemed to really love it. Luckily the pharmacy down the road hooked us up with homeopathic medicine, Joycie sent over some of his old food from home and he's back to normal. 

One thing about Tito, he has a bit of a Napoleon complex. After a bad experience as a tiny puppy with a big dog he feels the need to act bigger than he is. Being 8 pounds he seems to feel like he has a lot to make up for. But, since coming to France he has gotten out of control. He tried to beat up a 3 pound chihuahua a few weeks ago.. Talk about embarrassing. He always seems excited to meet other dogs but ALWAYS ends up being the bully. I've mastered apologizing in French and avoiding other dogs at all cost. 

Over the past few days he has been getting super possessive over his treats & things he knows he shouldn't have. SO after some research, it seems as though he feels like he is the leader of our pack. LOL. After more research and reading, we have revamped our rules; we are going to teach him to follow directions better (not just when he wants to) and are going to kick him out of his leader position. This all needs to be done, like yesterday. 

He's SO cute, but he's becoming a little stubborn monster who thinks he runs the show. Consistency is key which will be the hardest part but I'm so ready to take him down, in the most loving way. Sorry for the extra long & crazy dog mom post! If anyone has any tips, tricks, advice, ANYTHING that could be helpful please let me know! 

Hope no one else is living with a tiny terror like we are! He's lucky he's so cute~