Return to the frozen north

We made it home safely Saturday evening. It was about a 9-hour drive, but we stopped in Lyon and had lunch with friends on the way so we didn't get home until about 9 pm.

Frederic's coworker who had been checking on the house for us let us know that our favorite tree had been uprooted by the wind - here is the result of that:

So we are going to have to remove it and decide whether to plant another in its place.

He also informed us that when he turned the water back on there was a leak in the laundry room - when he went to check, the floor was covered in about half an inch of water. He turned the water back off, and we weren't quite sure what to expect when we got home. It turned out to be just a question of wrapping the plastic pipe in teflon and tightening the joints, and voilà, no more leak. Thank goodness!

Noah was not overjoyed to be home - he didn't remember his crib so the first couple of nights were hard but he's doing better now, and sleeping MUCH better, as we hoped.

Benjamin thinks he ended up in a toy store! He is finding all the toys he had forgotten about, including some that he got for Christmas that we didn't take with us so it's like Christmas all over again.