End of the year To-Dos. This old photo reminds me–I need to fish out our santons and make a good-for-any-season French Yogurt Cake, (recipe here). I also want to update you on our move and the sale of our vineyard. Read on!
French Christmas Music: "Mon Beau Sapin", "Sainte Nuit", "La Marche des Rois"… Order CD here.
TODAY'S WORD: la promesse de vente
: promise to sell
EXAMPLE SENTENCE:
Le 2 décembre, nous avons signé la promesse de vente, et le 21 décembre nous devrions signé la promesse d'achat.
December 2nd we signed the commitment to sell, and December 21st we should sign the commitment to buy.
ECOUTEZ – Listen to Jean-Marc pronounce the example sentence:
Download Promesse-de-vente
A DAY IN A FRENCH LIFE
Hoops, Dots, and Holey Socks
When I spoke about Jean-Marc pruning his vines, last week, and when I write about our upcoming wine bottling, next month, maybe you were (or will be) a little confused. After all, weren't we supposed to sell our vineyard here in St. Cyr?
Yes, and we have! Or have promised to! Earlier this month we signed a promesse de vente!
That moment was surreal in the notaire's office, when before a lawyer we signed over our vineyard and our home. I could feel the jolt my husband took when the notary read a certain "non-compete" clause — effectively taking away the possibility for Jean-Marc to make wine in the near vicinity of his soon-to-be former vineyard–in his dream appellation of Bandol! I looked over at my husband, whose thoughts must have been as displaced as his chaussettes (for warmth he wore 4 old–and holed–socks, having come straight from working in the fields to this pivotal rendez-vous).
Though Jean-Marc did not flinch, a sense of loss, of no-turning-back-now, permeated the conference room, with its tangled cords and pile of presentation equipment which had been shoved to the end of a long table, making room for yet another transaction. It could have been any other day in the world of property sales. Business as usual. Just another dot on the face of the planet up for sale.
But what a wondrous dot is was!
This Wednesday, December 21st–a day before my 49th birthday–we will buy another dot (or promise to), and so continue to connect the dots of this French life. (This next move is to La Cadière d'Azur…make that LA CIOTAT) Wish us luck. In order for either sale to take place a list of contingencies must be met. So you see, there are still many hoops to jump through before either sale goes through. Hoops and dots and holey socks. Le cercle de vie continue.
Related story: Jean-Marc's Vineyard Dream and How We Came to Live in Jean-Marc's favorite southern French city
FRENCH VOCABULARY
la promesse de vente = promise to sell
le notaire = notary, attorney, solicitor, lawyer for real estate transactions
une appellation = designation of origin
la chaussette = sock
le rendez-vous (rdv) = meeting, appointment
le cercle de vie = circle of life
Shop for gifts using any of the following links to enter the store.
TABLECLOTH, Provence-themed linens for the house.
LAGUIOLE STEAK KNIVES are for sale in many of the local French market stands.
PARIS PEACE T-SHIRT – "so many people have stopped to ask me where I got it" -Betty.
Don't forget to try the French Yogurt Cake, (recipe here).
Discover more from French Word-A-Day
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Happy birthday to you!! The town you are moving to looks very nice. I wish you all the best with your new adventures.
So love your photos and musings. Looking forward to your impressions of and feelings about the changes ahead. Thank you for this blog. Kathleen in Paris
Fingers crossed for you! I hope your hoopes and dots will resolve themselves quickly.Up Up and away to your next adventure!
Happy Birthday to you! I am still so worried for you and your family, although I know it will work out just fine. I am so glad you are staying France. It is pretty nice that you have promised to sell your house so quickly and that you have found another in also good time. I hope the sales will go through quickly, without incident, and the move will go as smoothly it can. Merry Christmas to you and your family.
Wonderful news! I’m really happy for you both and the fact that you are staying in France. I just knew that it would tear your heart out to leave it! Hope that everything goes off without a hitch and that you are soon settled snugly into your new home. Think of how much fun it will be to decorate it and make it your own!
Trilby, thanks for the wonderful memories you shared. I will not forget that day either.
Decembre is certainly a busy month in your lives. I pray that you will have much happiness and adapt to your new home with all your creativity. Joyeux Noel.
Chere Kristi:
When one door closes, another opens both literally and figuratively.
It will be difficult to say good-bye to your beautiful garden but you will plant a new one. La Cadiere d’Azur looks so beautiful and I am sure you and J-M will leave your mark there as well. Happy Birthday and may this new year bring you many new and wonderful adventures. Joyeux Noel et Bonne anneee. Janine
Oooh, la, la! Vous avez décidé votre avenir! Maintenant, tous ce qui reste c’est le déménagement. J’espère que ça passera très vite
comme le mistral! Bonne fête d’anniversaire! Joanne
Is a Promesse de Vente the same as a Purchase Contract in the States? Done with a specific buyer, and if all the conditions are met, a binding sales agreement between the two parties.
I’m sorry I never got to visit your vineyard before the move. Enjoy your new adventure!
Wishing you comfort and joy … on your happiest of birthdays yet, the merriest Christmas so far, and your new adventure ahead! I sense a lightness in your writing, Kristi … I’ve even noticed a return to educating us with a more extended vocabulary.❤️
Jim, Thank you for the correction. It should indeed be signer.
What a beautiful and poignant photo of the land and trees you have included. I can only imagine the emotions this venture is creating in you and your family. Best wished for the coming year.
Kristi:
Bon anniversaire , bon chance et bon Noel!
La Cadiered-d’Azur looks like a charming village.
I’m sure you will find new adventures and new things to write about.
Edie from Savannah
Ditto to what Trilby said and the Happiest of Birthdays!
Happy birthday and happy move. It looks like another beautiful charming town…. the States will miss you, as now Montana and Oregon are off of your short list. I hope your daughter listens to you , rests and regains her health, helping you pack!
May you have many new adventures while enjoying the memories you already have. Happy Birthday and a Joyeux Noel!
Our dear Kristi,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
Many more filled with blessings,health and joy!
You are a gift in our lives,and your beautiful words never fail to fill our days with smiles and hugs.
THANK YOU!!
Wonderful news about both your promised sale and purchase!
Remember “Let go and let God”?
Easier said than done sometimes(!),but you did and the doors opened to welcome you all on this new path in life.
Joyeux Noel,dear Kristi,to you and your
beautiful family.Blessings in abundance now and the New Year.
You all are in our prayers.
Love
Natalia. Xo
We will be here through April–and possibly as long as June–and will try to organize another couple of meetups, if possible. Hope to see you here, or in La Cadiere!
Bon anniversaire Kristi. joyeux Noêl de tous et bonne chance avec la nouvelle maison.
Kathleen
Dear Kristi,
Bon Anniversaire! Such a joyous posting today – it felt like a ten ton weight had been lifted off of your shoulders. Progress, steps taken, on to new horizons. How very, very exciting! I wish you a wonderful birthday and celebration for all the lovely changes on your horizon! I’m sure Jean-Marc is also floating on air. I am going to go check out the town as soon as I post this. From all the replies above, it sounds absolutely wonderful. Maybe we will meet again, if not at your new home, then maybe for tea in Paris again, on rue Saint-Andre des Arts!! I would love that!
So happy for you that the uncertainty is over and you know the direction you are headed. This can be a very exciting move.
Kristi, this is exciting news! I wish you and J-M smooth sailing through the sale/purchase/move.
Your recipe for yogurt cake still asks for baking SODA, even though in the comments you said it should actually be baking POWDER. Is it possible to update that post to make the correction? I have got to try it! Thanks and H A P P Y Birthday to you! And Merry Christmas to you and yours.
Pat
Je suis très heureuse pour vous ! Je suis contente que vous resterez encore dans le Var. Joyeux anniversaire pour demain, Kristin, et Joyeuse Fete pour toute la famille. Quelle nouvelle année !
So happy for you and your family that you have made your decisions and will continue to be in the same area you know and love. All your readers will be so excited (vicariously) at the thought of a new home, garden and adventure! It is all working out so well. Wishing you a happy birthday and a wonderful Christmas!
Kristi & JM – congratulations on the sale of your home & vineyard and the purchase of a new hone in La Cadière d’Azur. It looks like a lovely town and as one person commented, not too far from Bandol and the friends you have made there. I’m sure the sale papers were signed with a bit of a sigh, but you both gave it a good go. As you have said before, the daily upkeep of the house & vineyard was all-consuming and physically demanding. Now that your children are making their way in the world, I hope that the new home will give you & JM the time to de-stress and appreciate small, precious things everyday. I am happy that you decided to stay in France and that you will have a lovely garden at your new home. Happy Birthday.
Bon anniversaire et Joyeux Noelle!
I wish you much happiness in your new home and may the move go smoothly for you all!
I read this post while I am staying with my daughter and her family in New Zealand. As always your writing makes France feel so close. For that reason, I am truly glad that you will not be leaving France.
Finally, as I approach 77 next week, mes meilleurs voeux pour votre anniversaire. I hope the next 49 are equally enjoyable.
Wonderful, hope it all works out for you’ll! What a nice Christmas present!
Joyeux Noel et Bonne Annee!
Hi Kristi – perhaps you need to really get away for a break… consider Australia!! Especially Western Australia, for a holiday … and who knows …
There are so many vineyards here in each state. But also so many new ones developing in W.A…. I’m sure you’d love the warmth and open spaces. Provence is the only place I have found that comes near to our laid-back enjoyment of life!! 😉😉 Lesley-Ann
Happy Birthday and all the best wishes on your move! We go to Grimaud every summer and would really love it if you would like to come visit us in our house there at the top of the old village by the chateau!
Thank you.
Happy Birthday Kristin! Love and blessings for your new home and future there.
Charlotte
The point of no-turning-back-now is a good place to find yourself just before the 10th anniversary of your 39th birthday! Think of the other times there has been no turning back…..When your children breathed their first is the first that comes to my mind…..You are now a mom forever! We recently sold my dear father, Jack’s beloved apartment with its breath-taking view of Peekskill Bay on the Hudson River. It was not easy to walk into that meeting. But while we were there an amazing thing happened….My whole being was drawn to the elderly man whose nephew was purchasing the apartment for his use. He too had experienced loss. He was clearly struggling with some big changes of his own. When we were finished I happily stood and handed him the keys with a kiss and warm wishes for enjoying the view that brought my father so much joy. HAVE A GREAT BIRTHDAY DEAR! I look forward to hearing about you both moving forward. LOVE Eileen
Congratulations on the new shift in your lives! Everything is falling into place and a fresh start has begun…just think of all the love your readers send to you and your family, and know that it must somehow reach you and help in some mysterious way. Have a wonderful birthday and many happy years to follow!
Congratulations on the new shift in your lives! Everything is falling into place and a fresh start has begun…just think of all the love your readers send to you and your family, and know that it must somehow reach you and help in some mysterious way. Have a wonderful birthday and many happy years to follow!
Bon chance and Joyeux Noel. It’s quite a change you are going to have, but my best wishes are for you and your husband. Enjoy the holidays!
Rod and I wish you the very best. We had so hoped to meet you last year when we were in Cassis but that was such a difficult time for you. We have read your blog for so long we feel like you are family. We have worried about you and prayed for you and now we wish you both all the happiness your heart can hold as you set out on this new journey
I am so very happy for you and your family . . . and that you have chosen to stay in France. I hope you were convinced that moving to the US would be a big mistake. You have such a wonderful life there and I know you will appreciate your decision. I look forward to receiving more from you in my email box. All love and all the best. Have a wonderful Christmas and a beautiful New York.
New Year — I must have had my address in my mind and didn’t do my usual proofreading !! Pardon !!!
I am so glad for you and I feel certain that your decision is the right one for you both! As always, my best wishes as you move forward toward these goals. (How is Jackie feeling? Please give her my best wishes, too, along with JULES!) Max, also. … and Smokey … cannot forget him!
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Dear Kristi,
The universe is unfolding as it should… Sometimes we can influence change and sometimes change happens and influences our lives. I have always had faith, that in a situation in which you and Jean-Marc can make a decision to influence the change in your lives, that your decision would be grounded and work out for you. This is a wonderful beginning…we look forward to the rest of the story!
Happiest of birthdays! 🌹🎂🎈❤️
And wishing your family a beautiful Christmas filled with love and peace ~
Best of luck in your new adventure. Smokey will see you through it… Happy Christmas and Best New year. And thanks so much for your blog, Kristi.
For your Mama: Feliz Compleanos. I myself am very happy you are staying in France. Your kids need you and you need them more than ever now.
Happy Birthday , Felicidades. Lot of blessings to you and your dear familly,. I’m glad you are staying in France. Hope to meet you one of these days.
I guess it is time to come back to visit…..last time we were there you had just moved to St. Cyr!!! Wishing you all the best in your new home and can’t wait for the photos!!! Joyeux Nöel et Bonne Année!!!!
La Cadière d’Azur looks wonderful! If I were younger, I’d move there myself. (Am I reading the description in French correctly that there is something like a residence for seniors there?)
Fingers crossed that all the bureaucratic French ‘I’s are dotted and ‘T’s are crossed for a smooth move. I’m glad you’ll be staying in France. I’m planning a couple of trips over in 2017, should I live long enough. Not sure how far South I’ll make it.
Amitiés, Lee
I am just catching up to all your changes. I applaud you and Jean Marc.
“Change is difficult, but it can be managed when you stay aware of the power of your choices, even if it’s simply your attitude.”
I know your attitude will support you throughout. Can’t wait to make the yogurt cake.
Happy Birthday.
-I need to fish out our santons — what are santons?