Market Mondays!

Our village has a very tiny market every Monday morning, there is always a butcher, a cheese man and some veggie sellers, a lady with her sewing machine to do repairs, a plant lady and usually one or more extra sellers (for example yesterday was a mattress seller). A couple of weeks ago there was a lady selling fantastic organic produce – turns out she’s Australian – small world! My trip yesterday reminded me that I’d taken some photos of my purchases a few weeks ago. During the summer there was more of a turn out of sellers, I had one particularly lovely trip with a big basket full of yumminess!

There was a local guy doing gorgeous artisinal made patés, fois gras and other little jars of delight! He usually has a shop in another town but trys to get to our market during the summer. I got a little pot of paté with fine herbs in it, I still haven’t eaten it, I think I’ll wait for my mother in law to enjoy it with me!

I thought I’d finished my purchases until I spotted a lady with a tiny table covered with some jars of jam and scrummy looking blueberries. They were the last pick of the season so I had to get them and they were just gorgeous! The jam has been opened this week and is amazing too.

Of course there was then the veggies which I try to buy from the market each week instead of the supermarket. I don’t make it every single week but I’m finding the need to go to the supermarket less and less, I get my bread (the bread in this area is incredible!) and often cheese at the local shop and veggies from the market and now that we are trying not to eat much meat it is often all we need!

Aren’t the colours just amazing! The Perigord (the Dordogne’s other name) is very famous for it’s strawberries, and rightly so, they are small and intensely flavoured, really incredible.

 

We are in our new French home!

Best of intentions on the blogging front haven’t gone so well but I’m determined to change all that! Four months ago today we left Australia and today we moved into our new home! Rural Dordogne on the edge if a lovely village – I’ll fill you in properly next post! Hot , exhausted and exhilarated but we are in!

Graduated as a Midwife!

It has been the longest toughest 5 years of my life in so many ways getting though my Registered Nursing and backing straight up into my midwifery but so so so worth it! I am so thrilled to be a midwife and love sharing the most amazing part of so many womens lives. I feel so blessed to get paid to be a part of it all that already the pain of getting to where I am is starting to fade! A couple of weeks ago we finally had our graduation ceremony which was a great thrill! Here are a couple of pics of the day, first me receiving my Masters of Science in Midwifery – with distinction!

And here is one of mum and I after:

Growing a baby!

We are so excited to have a new baby boy on the way! I’ve been reveling in being pregnant and even with some issues I’m just loving it and trying to enjoy every step of the way as this will be my last one! I never recorded my bumps the last times so this time I am taking photos at (fairly) regular intervals!

11+3

18+3

23+3

I don’t think I’ve grown much in the last 5 weeks, although looking at the pic I’ve probably got a bit smaller on my hips (still pre-pregnancy weight due to strict gestational diabetic diet and plenty of fat to play with  :giggle: )

Apologies I am still here!

This year is just crazy, everyone said how hard it is juggling study plus uni one day a week plus 4 days a week working in the maternity unit (shift work not even normal hours!) but I hadn’t really comprehended how difficult it would really be! I’m permanently exhausted and some week the kids forget what I look like! On the upside I love love love doing my midwifery and am so glad I’m making the effort to reach my dream :love: Only 5 months to go and maybe just maybe I’ll have some more time to blog next year however I’ll try to get at least an odd one up between now and then!