The Adventures of Flat Griffin: The Daily Grind in Vence

With most of our family and friends (including our hosts) gone, we’re starting to settle into a daily routine at our “home away from home” in Vence.

Needless to say, it’s much more relaxing than what we’re used to in Maryland. Every morning, after a breakfast featuring yummy breads, croissants, cereals, yogurt and lattes, mommy and I walk down the hill into downtown Vence where she shops for that day’s meals. There is a small “one-stop shopping” grocery store in town, but it’s more fun and adventurous to visit the little specialty shops to pick up fruits, vegetables, bread and meat. Daddy loves the fresh olives at the market. On certain days of the week, produce, flower and even clothing stands are erected in the market square. Here’s a photo from one of the market days:

Of course, my favorite part of this daily excursion is visiting the playground! While I don’t have a clue what the other kids are saying to me, it’s still nice to be around other little people.

What in the world are those other kids saying??

After shopping and playing, mommy and I head back home. Pushing a stroller filled with groceries and a toddler up the steep hill towards the house is quite a workout, and mommy is hopeful it’s just enough exercise to negate what she’s dubbed “bread belly”. The French clearly don’t believe in a low-carb lifestyle, so all sorts of tasty baguettes have become a part of the Barrett family’s breakfast, lunch and dinner. It seems that mom and dad are also taking part in the local custom of drinking wine (e.g., Rosé at lunch) at every meal except breakfast. Maybe this is why they are always taking cat naps in the afternoon while I try to wreak havoc on the property.

Along the walkway, mommy always stops at what locals call “the source”. It’s a fountain from which mountain stream water continuously flows. This water is considered to be the cleanest and most natural around, so mommy refills bottles to take home. These types of fountains can be found in just about any town in the mountains.

The Source

Some other typical daily “grind” activities include fitness (tennis, biking, makeshift P90X), investigating all the interesting plants and bugs around the beautiful property, doing chores (lots of laundry!), playing by the pool with daddy and, if all else fails, goofing around with mommy.

Hair cut needed, sil vous plait!

And, just as you might expect from my Type A parents, we are even starting to fall back into a routine in the evenings with dinner and bedtime. Why can’t mommy and daddy just go with the flow like the rest of the good French people and let me run wild!?

We are excited about the coming week. But for a day trip to beautiful Saint-Tropez, we plan to chill out in and around Vence the next few days. We are then headed to Paris on Monday and will stay for 5 days. I can’t wait to take the fast train to the City of Light!

Well, looks like it’s time for bed, so I will sign off now. I look forward to my next post in a couple of days! For now, enjoy a couple more photos below.

Love

Griffin