Settling into the Routine

Geez, time flies. I have been here for a month now and it seems so much shorter...in fact, I feel like I'll be back in the states preparing my next trip before I know it. There were days before I was working and was home alone all day when I was missing home, but now that I have a routine consisting of working all day and hanging out with Olivier for a few hours when we get home, I am feeling much more comfortable and at-home here. I talk to my parents so often on skype that it makes being far away so much easier. I even get to see my dogs via skype.

I'll be honest, I am not missing the cold at all. I do like Michigan winters for about a month because they can be beautiful, like after a fresh snowfall. After a few weeks, I'm ready for spring, so I guess it's good that I am here now and will be returning in April for a while. Sometimes I like being outside in the winter, but really, I prefer the weather here. I just hate being cold all the time. The weather here isn't warm right now, but it's comfortable...low 50's and sunny pretty much every day. I just wear a light jacket and I am good to go. Plus mountains are accessible for skiing purposes. In fact, we are going skiing this weekend, providing that our plans work out. Olivier was sick the last time we planned to go skiing.

Some good news for me is that I have my babysitting job for two extra weeks in March. That is two weeks where I would possible be job hunting without much luck. The babysitting job is really better than anything I had hoped for. It is temporary (necessary, since I'm leaving in April and July), 40 hours a week, and good pay. Plus the baby is so sweet. I get to catch up on my American tv shows (or blog) during nap time :)

I finally have all of the paperwork Olivier and I need in order to be pacsed. A PACS is basically a French civil union. This will help me get a visa, get on the national health care system, and eventually obtain residency, which will allow me to get a real job. There are several other rights that this will give us. I have to go to the local court house, show them the paperwork, and make an appointment to be pacsed. It only takes about a week to get an appointment, so hopefully we'll be pasced in just a few weeks. That will be a huge weight lifted. Gathering all of the paperwork and translations needed has been a job in itself.

That is about all that is new here. Really, I have just been settling into a normal routine. Olivier has been practicing his English a lot with me and at work. Actually, we have been watching "Friends" almost every night to help with his English...plus I love it! It makes us both laugh all the time. Olivier says it is funnier in English (sometimes a lot is lost in translation). That is all for now. Hopefully I'll be blogging again soon.