We're Moving to France!

At some point I'd love to share the whole (long, drawn-out) story of how this came to be, but for now just pretend you're up to speed. The time is near, and preparations are being made. Big preparations. In fact, just this weekend we secured temporary housing in Grenoble. Ben and I are ridiculously excited about our little apartment in the heart of the city. Neither of us has ever lived in a city before, so it's bound to be an adjustment; however, we are going into it open-minded and ready for adventure.


We're thrilled with having found a place, but we're a bit concerned that it won't be big enough for us long-term. That's why we decided to reserve it for two months with the option of continuing if it does end up being appropriate for our family of five. We're optimistic, especially since we've both agreed that we'd like to keep living costs down in order to "see" Europe in the two years we'll be living there.

Our apartment building. Thanks to Google's street view, I'm becoming familiar with the neighborhood already.
 



While having a place to stay at least initially in Grenoble is a huge relief to check off our to-do list, there are still many, many things that need to happen in the very short time we have left in the United States. Next week, Ben and I are heading to Chicago to obtain our long-stay visas at the French Consulate. This requires a lot of paper work that hasn't even been started yet. Adults have to appear in person, but mercifully we're able to leave the girls with a sitter. Schlepping my three little ones through the streets of Chicago is not how I'd like to acclimate myself to city life.

So that's where we are right now. This adventure began nearly three years ago, and now we're within double-digit days of departure. I can't even begin to convey my excitement!


I'll leave you with a timeline of our adventures-to-be...

November 12: Visa appointments at the French Consulate of Chicago
December 7: T (Ben's mom) comes to help watch the girls during our final days in C-U
December 11: Depart Champaign
December 12: Arrive in MS to stay with Ben's parents until we leave for France
December 14-20: Ben, Avery, Carsyn, and I will go to Disney World.
January 12: Bye-Bye America!
January 13: Bonjour France!