It’s funny but no matter how old I get, I sometimes wish my mom and dad were around to make important decisions for me. The responsibility of making a choice and dealing with the consequences still feels a bit uncomfortably “grown up”. I do it but I find that I still am in awe of the fact that I am considered adult enough to handle life’s responsibilities. I can’t help but look over my shoulder to see if anyone is observing me and frowning.

I woke today to rain. I slept a bit better last night so I wasn’t soaked in sweat or exhausted when my eyes opened. It felt good to know I would not be working (doing tele-therapy) today even though it doesn’t have a huge impact on my daily schedule. Today I wanted to go to Ernée and do a bit of shopping. I wanted bird food, fresh flowers, a few groceries and house plants. The bird food was because my little feeder was empty. When I went into the kitchen and looked through the window, I noticed the most adorable wren pecking at the ground near the feeder in vain. The houseplants are because I am determined to make this my home and I never live anywhere that doesn’t have plants both indoors and outdoors. The flowers were something that I have never purchased in France. Before this visit, my little yard and the surrounding lanes all provided me with all the flora I desired to decorate my house. This summer was unusually dry and aside from a few rose buds and cyclamen, there is almost nothing in bloom in my garden. I had to make an arrangement for the table so that meant throwing down some cash which I was more than happy to do.

After my shopping outing, I came home and readied the house for a visit from a realtor. Matthew and I are interested in having our house assessed as we continue to plan for a possible gite/b&b/event center business in France. As hard as it will be to let this property go, it will be necessary to fund our next grand adventure. The timelines of all of these moves is very much unknown but we thought that having a better understanding of our home’s value was a good place to start.

The realtor was recommended to me by my very good friend (and prior realtor, Stella). This lovely woman speaks both English and French fluently and has lived in the area for the last 10 years so she is very knowledgeable about the market. She was lovely and provided me with more information than I could metabolize. It is clear that Matthew and I have a lot of decisions to make. After she left, I was a bit overwhelmed and wondered where the grown ups were that were more suitable to take on this responsibility? Turns out, it’s just us. It is daunting to realize there is no one really behind you able to rescue you if your decision turns out to suck. Oh well!

Sophie was due for a walk so we hit the trails. The paths were damp from passing rain clouds that dotted an otherwise sunny sky. It was hard to stay in my worried head watching Sophie race down the track to smell each and every chestnut that had fallen. The angle of the autumn, afternoon sun made everything golden and sparkly. I knew there was bound to be rainbow and was pleased when we turned a corner and saw a perfect one arching over St. Denis de Gastines. That was just the positive sign I needed to feel a little more brave. I was reminded I am lucky already, and felt a bit more confident when we turned towards home.