France

The south of France was breathtakingly beautiful. The first town we went to was called Avignon, where the second Pope lived :).

Then we drove to Arles where we saw some of the best preserved Roman ruins

And the place Van Gogh painted

We woke up in the morning to charming little French roads

We then had our art lesson which was my favorite lesson. 

Love the flowers just coming out

and fruit

This is the place where Van Gogh painted some of his greatest works - like Starry Night and many others. Our art lesson was here in the gardens. So amazing to try to paint where Van Gogh painted. I have an entirely new appreciation for his genius.

Love the Gyro I had

Nate's last European pizza for a while

That evening we drove to Nice. We woke up the next morning right on the coast to the most beautiful day. We jogged to get some breakfast (since those pastries deserve a good jog or two, or three). Later we took the most beautiful bike ride I can ever remember...made even more beautiful by the fact that they were electronic bikes :). Fun that we got a personal tour too. All of our lessons except the cooking class were private - so we got some extra attention, which was nice. Nice is nice - the joys of traveling when others aren't. 

We had lunch here, and our tour guide took some pics for us. She was from England and very sweet.

Just can't get over this beautiful coastline. Water is cold though, so be warned :).

The next day we flew home to the two sweetest little boys you can imagine. Our gracious babysitters said they were as good as gold, and I was so grateful. We prayed for them so much while we were gone. I kissed them and held them the night I came home - so grateful and happy to see them again. They are such deep sleepers that they didn't even wake up, but the next morning Stan jumped up and down in his crib when we saw him, and Mason snuggled with me for a while in my bed. This is the good life. I love my Country more, too! So grateful for this land where we live lives of opportunity and freedom. I came away from this trip with a deeper appreciation for Nate first of all :), this beautiful world we live in, for my family, and for my Country. I know it sounds cliche - but really...no getting around it - I feel so deeply grateful and blessed. I came home with a greater resolve to be better than I am to deserve these gifts I've been given.