Monday Mishmash 12/28/15

Hello there! For all of you out there who celebrate Christmas, I hope it was a wonderful one! Was Santa good to you? Highlights here: Tom’s parents came over to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with us. Tom got some much needed new slippers from my brother and I got some clothes, a very nice bracelet and a gift card to Sephora that I’ll put to good use. It was unusually warm here — like it was back home in the NYC area too — about 57 F, and we took Dagny for a long walk around town. Then had some Christmas lamb. And some homemade fudge and cookies. And just like that, Christmas is over until next year…

What else is going on?

Monday Mishmash 12/28/15

Here’s a bunch of random stuff to kick off your week:

• Curious about how the French do holidays? She gets it right.

• My birthday is coming up on Thursday — yup New Year’s Eve — and I’m getting crazy and making a turkey for me and Tom. Turkeys aren’t readily available around Thanksgiving but I make up for it after Christmas when they’re in the grocery store and pretty cheap! While we’re on the topic of NYE, be sure to read all about how the French celebrate. You can catch Tom’s Ask Tom Tuesday on New Year’s Eve in France here.
• I used to love going to Starbucks back home and really miss it. Much to my surprise, they’re opening a Starbucks in Nantes! Not sure when it opens exactly in 2016 and Nantes isn’t right around the corner, but when I visit, I’ll look forward to going to Starbucks for a chai latte. Do they have the best coffee and tea in the world? No. And it’s not cheap. But it reminds me of home and for that, it’s worth the price.

• American expat Neal guest posted for me back when I was on vacation over the summer (read his excellent piece on air conditioning here) and his recent post on his blog Breath of French Air “What American Does Better” had me laughing out loud. He’s a fantastic writer — who’s not afraid to rile people up — so go check him out!
• Want to move abroad? 9 Ways to make it a reality from The Overseas Escape.
• For my French readers out there looking to better their business English, head over to Christina Rebuffet’s YouTube channel for fun videos that’ll give your English a boost.

See ya back here later this week!