"ANGELINA JOLIE and BRAD PITT will have their next child in France to honour the actress’s late French-Canadian mother. And I can also reveal that, despite rumours the pair are expecting twins, it will be just one girl to add to their growing family. My well-placed source revealed: “Angelina has been told she is expecting a girl. She’s thrilled.” Angelina’s mum, actress MARCHELINE BERTRAND, died last year and the star wants to embrace her French heritage by bringing up her new tot over there. After months of house-hunting Brad and Angelina — who revealed her bump in a tight black dress at the weekend — have bought a chateau in the south of France and plan to make it their family home."

Dear Angelina and Brad,
We can't wait until you get to the south of France! Please give us a call when you get here so we can take our combined nine children out to the park or the beach. I won't even be jealous that you, Angelina, will be super duper skinny after having just given birth. And Brad, my husband won't bug you about how to dress or get his hair to look like yours.

All you have to do to be friends with us is admit that you don't really do anything around your house. I know that you don't have any "nannies" because you love to take care of your own children, but we need you to own up to all the other types of helpers you employ.

Simply admit in writing or on camera that you have someone to cook your meals, buy your groceries, wash the sheets when your kids wet the bed, pay your bills and wash your cars, etc. etc. and I will introduce you to all my friends here in France and we can come swimming at your Chateau on Wednesday's when the kids don't have school.

Maddox will fit right in speaking French with our kids, so he won't even feel weird that his parents are like the most famous couple on earth. I can already tell that he and Sam will be best friends!

Waiting for your call!
Dave and Stasha

My Dreams of a House in France are Fading Fast

Euro hits record high against dollar

BERLIN, Germany (AP) -- The euro climbed to a record high of $1.5070 in midmorning European trading on Wednesday as sentiment increased that the U.S. Federal Reserve would continue its rate cut campaign.

The 15-nation currency hit a series of highs, culminating in $1.5071 before 10 a.m. (0900 GMT) before falling back slightly to $1.5063, nearly a full cent more than the $1.4967 it bought in late trading in New York on Tuesday, which was equal to the last record high it had reached, back in November.

In other trading, the British pound soared to $1.9941 from $1.9862 late Tuesday, while the dollar fell to 106.40 Japanese yen from 107.26 yen.

Along with the rise in the British pound, which is nearing $2 again, the surging euro will not be kind to Americans visiting Europe -- they'll have to pay more for hotel rooms in Rome, entrance fees at the Louvre and chocolates in Belgium.

On the other hand, the stronger euro makes shopping trips to the U.S. more appealing to Europeans.

Boo Hoo!

Euro Hits Record High Against Dollar

It seems very warm today, and the sun is trying to break through the hazy clouds. Oh, I hope the warm weather sticks around for a few days! Everything seems right when the weather is nice!

We All Make Mistakes

Today our swap family called and said we needed to call back RIGHT AWAY. Those two words are almost never a good thing.

It turns out that Southwest Gas was at the house to turn off the gas because I hadn't paid the bill.

The guy was really nice, and Dave didn't lose his cool while I got the problem solved (oh, how he hates it when I "forget" stuff like paying bills." I had to use something called SpeedPay by Western Union (didn't Western Union go out of business like when the Internet was invented by Al Gore?) to get it taken care of right away.

So I've learned a few things from this important life lesson.

1) Don't forget to OPEN the emails sent by the third party billing company your gas provider uses.
2) International calling plans make it simple and inexpensive to solve the problems you cause by not opening your emails.
and . . .
3) Be grateful that you let your husband get lucky this afternoon so he was in a good mood when this problem cropped up. ;) (Did I just write that out loud? Shame on me.)

Last weekend we went to La Napoule to play at the beach and see the Chateau. We have visited the beach before and taken pictures of the chateau, but this time my sisters and I decided we would take the tour so we could see inside and also walk through the gardens.

It turns out this kooky couple from the States bought the property in the early 1900's so they could build their "Once Upon a Time" dream together in the South of France. The site held some ancient ruins and with the help of an architect and some pretty good engineers, they spent their life realizing this dream.

Henry Clews died before his wife Marie, but before he died, he designed their tombs at the bottom of the tower that faces the sea. He left a panel on each of their sarcophogi open so that every hundred years their spirits can meet at the top of the tower and whisper "Are you there?" and then reply, "Yes, I am close."

Hmmm. That's kinda kooky.

This is NOT Normal

When Dave made his big trip to the U.S. a few weeks ago, his company gave him a "new" laptop. On his way back to France, he decided to charge the battery while waiting at the airport. While plugged in, another soul in search of electricity also plugged in his electronic device, but his foreign adapter was resting on the stability of Dave's cord that was plugged in below his.

Being such a nice guy, Dave said he was going to get something to eat, but was happy to leave his cord so the other guy could charge up his iPod or computer or whatever it was.

Now that cord lives somewhere in the JFK airport in New York, permanently.

So Dave called his new office and they sent him another cord via UPS. When the UPS man arrived, he told Dave that he had to pay 48 euros. Now, keep in mind that the company had already paid 30 dollars to have this box sent from New York.

We went back and forth with the UPS man as to why this fee was necessary, and whether or not this was normal. He said it was a customs charge and "C'est La France! Il faut toujours payer!" (that's France, you always have to pay!).

So, Dave paid up and got the package. The problem now is, the new cord doesn't work! Ha ha. That's not very funny.

THIS JUST IN!!

"Anthropologie has adopted the international shipping solution FiftyOne to allow you to easily shop from and ship to any of the 34 countries listed below. You can now shop our site in your selected currency and see your complete order total, including shipping fees, customs tariffs and taxes when you check out. Once you submit your order, the total is guaranteed at the exchange rate indexed when you placed your order. You will not be charged any additional fees at delivery."

Yes, France is on the list!

I need color!

I'm sick of winter. IF I was 1) super skinny 2) had access to a j.crew and 3) had a tan, I would wear this outfit!! I love it.

Chicken Pot Pie

You may think that looks gross, but I think it looks like a little slice of heaven.

Flowers in St. Paul de Vence

Someday, somewhere, I will create a sidewalk for myself with a flower pot made of stones.

Jean Luc Pele

Of course I could not resist the opportunity to take my family to Jean Luc Pele, the chocolatier in Cannes. If you are ever in Cannes OR Paris, you can visit and have the yummiest macarons of all time.

This time I branched out from my usual caramel beurre sel and tried praline, chocolate blackberry, coconut and my new favorite, cinnamon banana.

When my siblings left this morning I was secretly thrilled to find that my brother had left his macarons in the fridge, so I got to eat them for breakfast!

Food funnies

After we stayed in Paris for four days, my sisters and brother came down to Mougins to see another side of France. This included the grocery store, which can be a very interesting place. Like in the "International Foods" section you can find strange items from far off lands, like "Uncle Ben's Rice" and "Lea & Perrins Worcester Sauce."

My older sister loves to bake and I stink at it, so I was thrilled when she decided to make a few things like cinnamon rolls, dream bars, chicken pot pie and lemon squares.

Just a few minor glitches in the plans, like the fact that we couldn't find shortening or brown sugar, or fresh shredded coconut to make the dream bars.

However, despite the fact that there is no mixer in my kitchen, the cinnamons rolls were delicious. It was quite humorous to see her making frosting with a stick mixer . . .

Meet the Visitors

From left to right: Becky (my brother's wife), Sushelle, Shanel, Bon, & Shauntel

Right after we took the train from CDG into Paris, we exited onto the street right in front of the Notre Dame. Our hotel was just across from the ND, a three star hotel that we loved, called l'Hotel de Notre Dame (what else?)

The weary travelers had come from Ohio, Idaho, Utah and Arizona. They put on their smiles, but inside were exhausted! Especially the two who came expecting their fourth babies!

Later in the week we climbed to the top of the Notre Dame, where I took this picture.

It was Super Cold in Paris

Before we decided to take a trip to Paris, I warned my sisters that it would be really cold, so remember to bring a hat, gloves, scarf and wear warm shoes. They all followed my suggestions! I, unfortunately, did not remember to follow my own suggestions.

So I was "forced" to buy this really cool hat that did not make me look like a tourist at all. This was my sixth trip to Paris, and I saw some things I had never seen before, like the Pompidou Centre. My youngest sister likes modern art, so this was at the top of her list.

Pascaline and Nicolas happened to be in Paris all week, so we met for lunch and they showed me the library in the Pompidou where they used to study during medical school. They were really jealous of my hat.

I'm Baaaaack

Sisters (and brother) trip to Paris has come to and end. Took the TGV from Paris Gare de Lyon to Cannes tonight. Arrived at 12:15.

More tomorrow!!

Bonne Anniversaire, Sophie!

7 years ago today my little sweetheart was born. We called her our "10 pound Valentine," because she weighed exactly 10 pounds, zero ounces.

We didn't know what sex our baby was, but we could only come up with girl names. Dave seemed to be stuck on "Emma" right away, but I was not convinced. It seemed like everyone was naming their baby Emma and so I kept suggesting other names, but to no avail.

Thankfully, the Saturday before the Wednesday she was born, something great happened. We had painted the baby's room yellow and were taking a break in the kitchen when Dave said, "What do you think of the name "Sophie"?

"I LOVE IT!" I practically shouted and could not express enough excitement over the fact he had realized that Emma would not be the name of one of our children. Good thing she was a girl!

The night before she was born, I went to "Girls Night Out" at the Cheesecake Factory with the ladies in my neighborhood. At one point toward the end of the evening I waddled to the bathroom and I overheard my friend who was a labor and delivery nurse say to another friend "she is DEFINITELY having that baby tomorrow." I was only 38 weeks, but I was definitely ready!

At 3 o'clock in the morning I thought I had a contraction. I wasn't sure, because with Abby, my water broke and then nothing happened for two hours. When it did, it was full flown, 2 minutes apart heavy contractions that ended in a c-section. This was definitely not that . . . but I hadn't slept well all night, so this was very exciting! I laid in bed for 20 minutes, feeling my skin stretch and back cramp before I jumped in the shower. I took my trusty Timex digital watch with me, and soon enough those contractions were 2 minutes apart.

When Dave came in because he heard the water, he said, "what's going on?". "I'm in labor!" I said, with total excitement that quickly turned to panic. This was starting to hurt! Luckily the hospital was literally two minutes away. I timed it on my Timex from the moment we left to driveway to the moment we hit the parking lot at Paradise Valley Hospital. It was 4 a.m.

Unfortunately the hospital was not ready for me. I thought for sure I had registered online, but they had no record of me. Is it really a good idea to ask a woman in labor to fill out some forms at the emergency room window? Luckily a nice intern came along and offered me a wheelchair and told me I could fill out the forms upstairs.

What was waiting upstairs was worse! A nurse just about to finish her shift was cranky and cross, threw one of those crazy gowns at me, "put this on" she barked. Too bad none of the snaps were done up, so I had no idea how to do that!! Sleeves? Not unless you create them by snapping all the snaps. Things looked up after the shift change, and at first check I was already 6 cm dilated. Hooray!

I had no idea what was in store for me after that. Abby's labor resulted in a c-section and I really didn't want to do that again. It seemed headed that way after an hour or so and she was in the same position as Abby. I had already said NO WAY to the forceps, but the doctor said there was no way she was coming out without some help. So she got out the "plunger." She told me she could only use it three times, and so I decided that on the third time I would not stop pushing until I had a baby.

After a push that seemed to last 2 minutes, literally everyone in the room was yelling at me to stop pushing because she was out. In her marked New York accent, my doctor said, "She's MASSIVE! I bet she weighs ten pounds." She was right! Ten pounds of angel that has gotten cuter and cuter every year since she was born!

We love you, Sophie!

Trouble Sleeping?

Just fold yourself in half!

Countdown to Paris

Two more days until I leave for Paris. I will be meeting three of my sisters, my youngest brother and his wife around noon on Saturday. That is, if I can get there . . .

I received this email from my friend today:

salut stasha j'espère que tu vas bien il y a donc une grève des controleurs aeriens à orly mais pas à roissy qu'as-tu reserve?

Hi Stasha, I hope you are well. There is a controller's strike at the Orly airport, but not at Charles de Gualle. What did you reserve?

Lucky for me I am flying into Charles de Gaulle, not Orly! It's no surprise that there is a strike in France. There is always a strike somewhere in France--Let's just hope the controllers at CDG don't get any funny ideas into their heads between now and Saturday morning!

BIG Adventure

As you may know, on Saturday Dave came home from his 12 day trip to the U.S. Unfortunately he came home with a massive cold/flu and has been completely useless since the day he stepped foot in France. While I feel very bad for him, I have four other whiny children to amuse during this two week vaction, so today he had to fend for himself (not too hard when you sleep all day, but then again, no one to bring your medicine to you in bed) while I took the children out for an adventure.

Of course I had no idea what to do with them because I wanted them to be entertained for a loooong time, and I didn't want to be cold. I hate being cold.

So what better thing to do than to drive over an hour to our nearest IKEA! I loaded the kids into the Trafic (just in case we needed to haul anything home) and hit the A8 to Toulon. We passed the signs for some towns along the way, including St. Tropez and Draguignan, but mostly it was just kind of empty. The kids were being remarkably well behaved, so I had high hopes for the day.

One thing I love about France is that the roads are very well marked, so if you know where you want to go and you know what direction to go, you will probably find it. I knew the IKEA was in Toulon, and that was all I needed to know!

We stayed at IKEA for 5 hours. FIVE.

Waited in line a really long time, then ate lunch at the cafeteria, including meatballs and donuts.
Played in the kids department where they have all the toys on display.
Picked out some new plastic cups, plates and bowls. Oh, and markers. 1 euro for a pack.
Wandered around.
Played some more in the kids department.
Picked out some rolls of paper, a step stool for the bathroom and a rolling pin.
Loaded an extra kitchen chair for my friend into the cart.
Bought all of our stuff, put it in the trafic and went back in.
Checked Sophie and Sam into the play area (ages 4-7 only).
Watched some Japanimation show in the room for 7-14 year olds with Abby and Carter.
Bought some Da'im, which is like Heath Bar candy.

After that we drove home and Sam and Carter slept in the car. Dave was actually awake when we got home and made us pancakes for dinner.

I would like to personally thank IKEA for saving my children from my bad mood today as it was significantly decreased upon entering their giant retail therapy outlet. I would also like to shake my finger at the residents of Mougins who turned down the request for an IKEA in Mougins. Shame on you. You must not need any cheap retail therapy or children who need to be entertained!

This is News?

Cat dies in Fountain Hills fire

Barbi Walker
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 11, 2008 06:29 PM

FOUNTAIN HILLS - A cat trapped in a fire died before firefighters could put out a fire that blazed through a business in a commercial building in Fountain Hills, officials said.

The fire broke out about 6:30 a.m. Monday in the 157000 block of East Enterprise Drive, causing an estimated $100,000 in damages, said Katie Decker, a Fountain Hills spokeswoman.

Firefighters from the three neighboring Fire Departments, Rural/Metro, Rio Verde and Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, responded to the fire and extinguished the flames. No one was injured, Decker said.

The building is part of a commercial complex that includes other businesses. Buildings on either side of the burned building had some smoke and heat damage, Decker said.

Although foul play is not suspected, fire inspectors are still investigating the cause of the fire, she said.

The Haircut

Chocolat Noir

I never really liked dark chocolate. When I was a kid and my Mom would buy that bag of Hershey's mini candy bars with Mr. Goodbar, Milk Chocolate, Krackel and the evil "Special Dark".

We greedily gobbled up the Goodbar, Krackel and Milk chocolate, always leaving the Special Dark to those who dared eat something so disgusting. But the last couple of months I have been buying Poulain's Noir Extra chocolate bars to eat with a baguette. The kids love it as an after-school snack, and I love it anytime! Could be my tastebuds changing with age, but I never would have tried it if not for France. Viva la France!

Costco Has Gone Too Far

Every couple of weeks I get an e-mail from Costco, telling me about all the exciting new products that I won't be buying while I live in France.

As you may know, Valentine's Day is coming up, and so I'm sure Costco has brought in some very special items like diamond earrings, flowers and perfume. ("Lovely" by Sarah Jessica Parker is my favorite).

My latest e-mail from Costco included this "beauty":

Armani Infinity

Porcelain Figurine

$1,199.99

Item # 221386

Shipping & Handling included

I'm Sorry, Costco, you've gone too far. Please, never, never sell anything like this again.

Funny word

After the usual Friday night viewing of one of the Olsen Twins movies on Gulli (tonight it was some kind of Wild West story), another program started.

I was busy posting on the blog, so not really paying attention to the show, which was a National Geographic Junior show about Seals. But they started saying the word seal a lot, so it caught my attention.

The word for seal in French is "Phoque." Just say that out loud in your best French accent.

It kind of ruins my image of a cute seal lying on the beach or swimming around in a pool at Sea World.

Growing Up

Tuesday night I took Abby to the orthodontist to see how much it would cost for her to have braces. He told me it is 630 euros every six months. For two years, that would be about $3700. Does that seem expensive? I had braces when I waws 27 and it cost $5,000. And that didn't include my retainer!

I would like to know how much braces for children cost around the world. So wherever you live, will you tell me how much you paid for your child to have braces?

Vomiting in School is Embarrassing in Any Country

I went to pick up the kids for lunch today (every Monday and Friday), when Abby's teacher met me at the gate. Along with several of her classmates who were excitedly saying: "Abby a vomit PARTOUT!"

Indeed she had vomited everywhere. There were scrambled eggs from this morning's breakfast all over the floor of her classroom as well as all over herself.

Poor thing. She probably felt fine after she threw up, but she was crying because she vomited in front of her class as well as in front of Mr. Gyss, who is the director of the school and instills fear in children from any country.

When is my husband coming home? Oh, right, not until tomorrow afternoon. I'm sure by then Sam will have thrown up and Dave will have missed all the fun.

Crepes!

Today Sam was invited to a crepe party for next Tuesday. He is very excited to eat crepes (which I had to explain to him because we call them "Danish Pancakes" in our house), but he is even more excited to go to his friend Tom's house!

I thought it was very interesting that on the invitation it was requested that everyone come with a costume on. Does having a dumb haircut count as a costume?

Genius

I love bottled milk. We had it in Hong Kong as well, but I never appreciated the convenience back then.

I NEVER run out of milk, because I always have some in the cupboard. The only problem is that you can only buy it whole or half creme.

For sure full creme is like a million calories per serving, so demi-creme is, well, 500,000 calories per serving.

I'm not asking for fat-free here, but could we at least get 1%?

Our Laptop=France

Well loved, works just fine, but needs a little help.

Carter woke up screaming again. He was a total grump until he upchucked all over the floor next to the computer. He's been in a much better mood since then!

Sam decided to cut his hair. You know the drill . . . right in front, big chunk where everyone can see it. After his dumb haircut that I gave him a few months back had finally grown out!

In non-child related news, France's children's channel, Gulli, has an unhealthy relationship with the 90's sitcom "Step-by-Step," starring Suzanne Somers and Patrick Duffy. Also starring some annoying kids and pre-teens that have presumably left the entertainment business with an unrealistic perspective on life and/or a drug problem.

It seems like every time the TV is on, that show is playing. Seeing Suzanne Somers in "mom" jeans talking about very important issues with her teenage daughter(s) that are wearing billowy, flowery, baby-doll dresses with giant fluffy hair tied back with scrunchies is like watching a bad homemade movie of my high school in Ohio circa 1992.
I find it hard to believe that this show was really so great that they needed to dub it into French and play it over and over again in another country. Or maybe it was just really cheap to buy the re-runs because it was so terrible.

Up next on "Gulli": Inspector Gadget. Plays almost as much as Step by Step!

DAY 9

That means three more days until Dave returns from the U.S.

What's the saying . . . .I'm hanging on by my fingertips?

Example: Carter screaming his head off. Like SHRIEKING, for the hundreth time in the last nine days. Won't go into car seat to drive home.

Please don't tell the authorities, because I just left him wherever he was in the back of the car, got in the front seat and drove home.

I'm quite certain the French Police or Gendarmerie or whoever it is that stands by the side of the road occasion to check your seat belts would have "me enguler" (cussed me out basically), charged me 190 euros, and had me deported.

But we all made it home just fine and no stops by the boys in blue.

I am OVERJOYED that 1) Carter is in bed 2) I won't have to hear him screaming again for another 11 hours.

Bonne Nuit.

Tuesday

It's a big day around the world being Super Tuesday, Mardi Gras, and, oh yes, la Cantine.

What is la Cantine? The school cafeteria, of course. Which Abby despises. So that means EVERY Tuesday morning she is crying. No, not crying, SOBBING. Sobbing about how horrible the cantine is, how horrible her life is, and how she hates school.

Granted, I've never eaten at the cantine, but clearly I haven't taught my daughter some important things. Like how to make it look like you've eaten your food.

I had lots of practice when I was younger as I detested sweet potatoes and all things green, unless it was mint chocolate chip ice cream.

Here are some tips:

First, drink all of your water.* That frees up your cup to spit food into it.
Then cut up the food or mash it up so it looks like you've taken bites out of it.
Occasionally put some of it in your mouth, then pretend to take a drink of water.
Spit the food into the cup.

*You might have to actually swallow a couple of bites, and if this is the case, be sure to do it while you still have water in your cup to wash it all down quickly so you don't have to taste the food.

I'm pretty sure there is no radiator running along the floorboards in the cafeteria at the Primaire St. Martin. But if there were, that would also be a good place to hide food you didn't want to eat. Just ask my Mom. I'm sure she can tell you about all kinds of things she had to clean out of ours when we were growing up.

Travaux

They are doing road work all over Mougins. My friend says it is because there are elections coming up, and the mayor wants everyone to see how great he is.

On our street it is the water company doing some work. They have dug an enormous trench from the top of the street all the way down. This started last week and they have almost reached the bottom of the impasse.

What this means is that every time I want to leave the house in the car, I have to ask that giant blue truck to move. Sometimes it's a yellow digger, or both, which makes it even more complicated to get in and out of the driveway.

This is what I see straight out the gate:

Real Estate in Mougins

Just as I am in Phoenix, I am obsessed with real estate in France. I troll the websites for run-down farmhouses or castles (trop cher in Mougins) hoping to find my very own ruin to renovate.

Here are the details on this "beauty" (translate:needs renovation) above:

Surface : 95 m² • Pièces : 3 • Chambres : 2

• Toilettes : 1 • Terrasse : 1 • Box : 1

• Calme

So that is 1,022 square feet, with two bedrooms and one bath. One garage (if you own a very small car!) and a decent view of the old village of Mougins.

This house sold for 650,000 euros in one week. At today's exchange rate, that is $962,456.78.

I'm not sure what is going on in areas like San Diego or LA, but Mougins is minimum 15 minutes from a beach, and you can definitely not walk there. Doesn't seem like a huge bargain, considering they probably had to pay another 7% on top of the 650k in agency/notary fees.

I don't have a point, really, but I will let you know if I find my 18th century farmhouse to renovate.

February 2nd is a Big Day!

Saturday was February 2nd, in case you didn't know. We did nothing all morning, then around 3 o'clock took the kids to the indoor pool to swim. That involved going to the pool, returning home to fetch a swimsuit for myself and my friend, because we are required to wear a bathing suit as we sit on the benches watching our children swim. And of course, entering the pool means you have to pay. So I got to pay to wear my swimsuit and watch my children swim. Very practical!

But after swimming, we ate dinner and made crepes, because a month cannot go by in France without their being a holiday involving eating something delicious.

Read and learn:
In France, crêpes were traditionally served on Candlemas (La Chandeleur), February 2. This day was originally Virgin Mary's Blessing Day but became known as avec Crêpe Day, referring to the tradition of offering avec crêpes. It is believed that if you could catch the crêpe with a frying pan after tossing it in the air with your left hand and holding a piece of gold on your right, you would become rich that year.

But let us not forget that another important holiday was being celebrated in a distant land:
Groundhog's Day is a holiday celebrated in United States and Canada on February 2. In weather lore, if a groundhog, also known as a woodchuck, marmot, or ground squirrel, emerges from its burrow on this day and fails to see its shadow because the weather is cloudy, winter will soon end. If the groundhog sees its shadow, it will return into its burrow, and the winter will continue for 6 more weeks.

And now, a third celebration can be added right along with Punxsutawney Phil and eating crepes:

PARIS, France (AP) -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy married former model Carla Bruni on Saturday at the Elysee Palace, according to the official who performed the ceremony.

Carla Bruni and Nicholas Sarkozy were wed on Saturday. They are pictured here in Egypt last December.

"The bride wore white; she was ravishing, as usual," Francois Lebel, mayor of Paris' eighth arrondissement, or neighborhood, told Europe-1 radio. "The groom wasn't bad either."

It was a historic occasion, "the first time in the history of the Republic that a president has got married in office," as Lebel said.

Sarkozy, 53, and Bruni, 40, were married in the presence of about 20 close family and friends, Lebel said. He called the ceremony "a moment of family intimacy for the young newlyweds, of great simplicity and apparently a lot of affection between the spouses.

.........................................................................................................................................................................

Sarkozy and his new wife can celebrate every year eating crepes in Pennsylvania!

Sophie's first "Spectacle"

Sophie started a dance class a few weeks ago and last night they performed in a show, or "spectacle." The little girls dressed in all white and wore their hair in "macarons" (as you can see in the picture).

Here she is with Julia, whose mother is French and father is from New Zealand. She speaks English with the most adorable French accent.

If I get any video of the show from Julia's mother, I will post it.

When the Kids get the camera