We cleaned and rearranged the house this weekend trying to make it more inviting for the arrival of cold weather.  It is so pleasant now.  There were things that were driving us nuts around every corner.  All the lightbulbs in the house had gradually burned out and since each bulb has a different thread, it has been too overwhelming a job to conquer.  I think we were so tired of living in the dark once the sun set that we finally did it, but it had been weeks.  That started an avalanche of home improvements and we succumbed to buying a vacuum cleaner too.  I don’t know how I thought we’d go on living here for a year without vacuuming the rugs, but it made me so mad to think about spending another few hundred euros on yet another vacuum cleaner.  Moving around countries makes you spend way too much on large appliances and electronics (because of the electrical incompatibilities) and I am so tired of throwing money into those things again and again.  Anyway, the rugs are finally clean and I’d buy the vacuum all over again just to feel the peace it has brought with it.

I took the babies’ table and put it in the livingroom in front of the window and bought them some new art supplies for their birthday.  They have been really happy with it and have been making lots of colorful scribbles.  Eliot especially loves the markers and he has been decorating himself daily.  I thought that it would be a nice bright space for them to sit in the winter.

This morning I went to the Bastille farmers market and bought flowers to christen the winter cleaning job.  It is now finally livable here again.  This afternoon I think we’re going to take the car and drive right outside of the city, a little past Versailles to a farm where you can pick apples, play in the gardens, and see animals.  Maybe it will feel like going back to Iowa, I hope so because I’ve been nostalgic for the midwest lately.  It must be the time of year.