Merry Christmas

 We had a small, festive family Christmas.

Noah asked for, of all things, math books

Benjamin's favorite present: two plates!

Oh no... Taboo came back again.

19 Years Old

Finally celebrated Benjamin's birthday today! (Late, but it's his own fault because he's been ditching us for his friends all week... so it goes.)

Alisa, Frédéric, Elyse, Benjamin, Noah

 

Class 1 Certificate

Noah got his Class 1 medical certificate from the DGAC, one more rung on the ladder towards becoming a pilot.

Home!

Benjamin arrived home early for Christmas (really not sure how this finals thing works at S&T; he never seems to have any....) and put our tree up for us. 

 

French Thanksgiving

 French Thanksgiving can't live up to Camp Pettijohn Thanksgiving, but we gave it our best shot. We invited some friends over and enjoyed a delicious meal and a game. 

Disneyland Paris

Not our best Disneyland visit ever, between the cold, Noah getting over being sick, our late arrival at the park, and Frédéric throwing his knee out after we'd been there about an hour, but hey, at least it was free.

PPL theory test: Check!

Noah passed the theory portion of his PPL (private pilot's license) today! 15ish more flight hours to go before he can take the practical portion.

 

Sporty Child

Not super sure how I got sporty kids. Noah did a "bike and run" last weekend. 

Swim Club Regionals

Benjamin and two of his teammates swam at club regionals in Ohio last weekend.

Mesnilbus House Update: November 2024

Frédéric spent the past three weeks working hard on the house. The second bedroom lacks some finishing touches but it's insulated and livable, which was the goal for his trip this time. After two long years, here we are!

living room

bedroom 1

new exterior door from hallway

kitchen

bedroom 2

 

Cannes

Noah and I went to Cannes this weekend to visit an aviation school. We took advantage of the weekend to see friends in Marseille, too. 

Weather was really not what one might hope in southern France, but he enjoyed visiting the school. 

The open house had been cancelled due to the weather, which meant we got a private tour with one other potential student - probably all for the best!

No rain up here!

300 days of sun per year, they say...

Aviation school brochure

More rain on our way to Marseille

 

Swim Club Antics

More proof of life from Rolla - always related to the swim club. Pizza party to start the year off right.

Sunny Fall DayGala

 

Gala enjoying the sun

To fly or not to fly?

It wasn't looking good at first, with all the fog. 

While they were waiting, they made themselves useful - filled up all the planes in the hangar and washed them. 

Finally, the fog lifted and Noah and his instructor flew to Reims and back. Two "kiss landings," he says.  

 

 

Aerobatics

 Noah did a local flight today and some "lazy 8s," the only aerobatic maneuver they're allowed to do in the PPL training.

Normandy

Frédéric went to Normandy for a few days, and our cousins and I joined him for the weekend. Kind of camping, but they got the oven and rangetop installed.

 

the most French photo ever

We went to Agon-Coutainville for the afternoon

And warmed ourselves up with some churros

News from Missouri

 Every now and then we get news from Benjamin. This weekend he had a swim meet at Mizzou.