At last…

April arrived and so did Spring - it had seemed a long time coming, just like the start of the next chapter in the history of our lives. We, like the Winter, just seemed to mark time.  But eventually of course things began to change.

Family problems apart, we have enjoyed living in the Meuse area of Lorraine in north-eastern France.  It felt right for us to be here for ourselves and to support our daughter and her husband in their new business venture, which they made a success of but our daughter’s worsening health caused problems and, after ten years, they decided to sell the business, which they did and quite quickly. Her health continued to exacerbate and eight months later she was admitted to hospital and, a few days later, died from septicaemia.

After her death in August 2016 life was somewhat a blur but after about six months we could more clearly consider our options and decided it was time to be on our way again. 

The house was put on the market, on line, in Spring 2017 and here we are, a year later, and not one enquiry.  Now it will also be put in the hands of local estate agents but it really is time for us to leave.  Lovely as it is, the house is too big for just the two of us, downstairs is empty and echoes with memories and I am getting nervous on the stairs, so we are renting a bungalow and returning to Norfolk and will await developments there... -  if any! The property market in this area is slow indeed.

We have been unable to enjoy the beautiful sunny weather of the past week or so as we have been too busy sorting out our belongings and packing boxes.  But, this afternoon, an appointment was postponed, we needed a break and so we took a short ride to one of our nearby favourite spots - by the pond at Azannes-et-Soumazannes…perhaps for the last time.

Sitting partly shaded under a willow tree, how lovely it was to hear the birds sing, chirp and chatter.  We heard sparrows, chaffinch, chiff-chaff, a jackdaw and saw a swallow swoop through a dusty, broken window into a small barn.  The countryside is looking so green and beautiful and tugging our heartstrings at leaving it behind but we look forward to being in the English countryside again.  Here we do not have a garden - the bungalow does and I can hardly wait to enjoy it. I am also reminded of Browning’s poem, Home Thoughts From Abroad…“O to be in England now that April’s there“.  Of course it will be early May before we actually move into our new home so we’ll even miss the verse of the song Mountain Greenery…“On the first of May, it is moving day” - but both the poem and song are near enough!   

 

Overseen by the church...

...Ron catches up on a little blessed sleep after much insomnia of late - so much buzzing 'round our minds!

Lovely countryside shining in the Spring sunshine on the short drive home.

But, for now, back to box city and our preparations for leaving…but first a quick glance at the tulips in our little strip of garden.  

Spring - and almost ready for a new chapter...at last.

Wedding Anniversary

Thursday, 29th March 2018 - our 60th Wedding Anniversary!

We celebrated with a lovely lunch at La Taverne du Cygne, Stenay accompanied by family and friends.

Roger, Arlette, Jacky, Emilie, Ron and Linda

Peter, Ida, Roger, Jacky, Ron and Linda

Emilie and Roger

Ida, Ron and Arlette

Thanks to Peter and Linda for spending a few days with us.

A beautiful cake made by Linda

Back home after lunch for coffee and cake. Pretty flowers from Arlette

It was a lovely celebration of our special date - a day filled with love and friendship.

On cue!

March 21st - the official start of Spring - and the weather man appears to have consulted his diary!  Spring is definitely in the air today with the countryside looking green under sunshine from a blue sky;  birds are singing and although the wind is still around it is far less blustery and cold  There are just a few faint traces of snow left on the tops of shaded hills, it feels much warmer and there is hope of better times to come.

The welcome to Meuse sign on our way back from the Duchy of Luxembourg.

The "hills of home" beckon...

...and how green is my valley...

Wavrille - just 2kms from Damvillers - and the front line in World War One, when Damvillers was occupied.

"The green, green, grass" as Damvillers beckons.

In our "garden room" the first blossoms on our little apricot tree...

...which my husband grew from a fresh apricot stone, planted three years ago.

Definitely signs of an oh-so-welcome Spring!

Quick burst!

A bright and sunny afternoon and we decide to go to Plan d’eau at Marville but as we approach and arrive there is little sun and the grey and black clouds are building with just a crack or two of blue.  We had driven away from the sun and that dratted wind was again blowing!

I loosen my scarf for the pic but soon wrap it around my neck again!

The swan soon arrived at the bank - but was quickly chased off by the second one!  And there were we thinking they were a united pair...









A brief stop, then we headed back towards the sun and home.

Not quite in the blue...

...but the fields are looking greener after all the watering the've had.

In parts, the ground is still water-logged.

Some strange cloud marking, but it's blue!

Just another little outing but we enjoyed the quick burst of sunshine and activity.

Sunny lull

After several yet more grey, cold, wet days it was lovely to see the sunshine today accompanied by warmer temperatures.  The surrounding hills glowed and birdsong was in the air.  All a real lift to the spirits. We set off to Verdun to a supermarket for a light lunch and for supplies and afterwards to the canal-side at Vacherauville.  

Unfortunately, by the time we parked by the canal, the forecasted east wind had decided to make an early entrance so it was a briefer stop there than we had hoped.

The canal and river run closely at this point.

Basically, if your dog doesn't clear up after himself it's down to you!

Nevertheless although this seems to be just a lull in the wintry weather it was very welcome and a promise of better days to come - even if there is a return to wintry conditions in the meantime.

Good to see sunshine rather than snow in the forests on the ridge!

Spring?

Rain - again

The previous sunshine didn't last long and soon returned to grey skies, blustery, cold winds and rain. Water-logged ground overflows into puddles with no time for them to dry out.  However, over the past couple of days, the bitterly-cold east wind has disappeared and now a lesser south-east wind brings belts of rain.  To say the ground here is squelchy is an understatement!

Sunday morning and with a seeming lull in the rain we decide to pick up our ordered bread and Sunday-treat croissants from the baker's, visit a nearby lake to eat our breakfast and do some re-cycling on the way home. As we go outside we discover a drizzle of rain but head off in the car anyway. 

By the time we arrive at Les Ballestieres, the raindrops become fatter and fall more quickly. We view the lake through the rain-spotted windscreen, eat our croissants and then head for home. The re-cycling can wait until another, hopefully-drier, day.

Oh well, at least it was a change of scene for a short while!

Glorious sunshine…

Tuesday - a dry, bright day, cold but no wind.  This morning we took a drive to Plan d'eau at Marville.

The ground is still water-logged in parts but some water has drained away. The countryside is looking green but with some stubborn snow lingering on some hillsides…

Birds are enjoying the lake and a swan spots us and comes directly to the bank…

Ice still clings to the top of a large stone at the lakeside.

Two storks have taken up residence in a nest on top of a pole in Vitaraville…

There seems to be a breath of Spring in the air and we return home feeling refreshed.