chanson de jour,

Parce que je suis vivant en France, j'ai pensé que je pourrais partager quelques trésors. J'ai trouvé cette chanson et est tombé amoureux. Profitez!

<3

the city of lights/love/amazing food/& just about everything else...

To say that I have been spoiled recently is an understatement. With my recent birthday & Valentine's day...the man of my fancy really went above & beyond to make it special. This isn't going to be one of those posts about Valentine's where I post my flowers...cross my heart. But this last weekend, I went to Paris again...When I first arrived in France, I flew into the amazing city but was only able to spend a day and a half there..which wasn't enough. There is so much to see, so much to do, etc..I have been dying to go back...so this weekend we went on another little adventure to celebrate Valentine's.. I don't have lots of time here to blog, etc...but I thought I would share a little something to do all the talking for me. Let me first say that Paris has the most amazing food you will ever have in your life. Literally. Stew & I have been researching the best spots to eat in France & found this video on some obscure foodie website. The video is a teaser for the Parisian restaurant, Guy Savoy. Needless to say the video peeked our interest (Stew wanted to make sure I got the real "Paris experience" because he knew how much I loved Rome the week before ((more on that later)) and didn't want Paris to be outdone) but when we found out it was also 3 Star Michelin rated (there isn't a 4th star and "the dude who hands out those stars is like Anton Ego from Ratatouille" -Stew-) we were all about it. Our first night in Paris we ate there, & it is safe to say I will never be the same.

RESTAURANT GUY SAVOY from Jesse Salto on Vimeo.

in the city of lights,

To be honest with you, I am not sure how much I will actually be able to blog while here. Today, I got a taste of how busy I am going to be these next few months. Since I have a minute while dinner is prepared, I figured I could share a few sneak peak photos(also because my family has been begging for some). Two days ago, I took my first steps into the most romantic city..Paris, France. I now know why some mistake it for the city of love opposed to the city of lights. It was an instant love affair. Someone might have to drag me back to the states in a few months.

the adventure begins,

I arrived in Paris yesterday morning and already have enough stories to last a few days. I am officially living in the beautiful city, Nice, France. The sweet grandmother and 13-year old granddaughter I am living with do not speak a lick of English. Finding their home was the real challenge, however. Everyone here assumes I know French, which makes me want feel even worse that I basically know how to say three things.

My name is Hayley.

I do not understand.

Do you speak English?



Hopefully my vocabulary will expand tomorrow at school, or my communication skills are as valuable as my host family's cat.

a day in the city

These past few weeks I was city hopping for holiday break. From Phoenix, to Palm Springs, to Sacramento, and back to Utah again. It was the first time my immediate family all got together aside from the weddings this summer. Our little clan has grown this year. Two seats are added when we go out to dinner! Anna & Tyler have been the best additions to the family. They fit in to our puzzle perfectly. A few days ago, we got to all spend the day in San Francisco. It made me realize how much I will miss all their cute faces these next few months.