Shopping for a wedding dress!

This week I did something I haven't done in over 10 years, and that is to go wedding dress shopping! My friend, Amanda (that I wrote about May 24th) and I went shopping for her wedding dress.  It was so much fun!  Amanda described what she was looking for in a bridal dress, so I kept my eyes open for one that she might like, and I found one on the way to my French class.  Wow!  She tried on the model and it was beautiful, fit her perfectly, and cost 1850 euros, which is close to $2000!  It was silk and every dress is custom made to fit the particular bride, hence why it was so expensive.

Needless to say, we passed on it and looked some more.  At the next shop, she tried on one of their two short dresses, and it was gorgeous!  So, after only trying on two dresses, she found the perfect one, and at a much more reasonable price!  She is beautiful in it and though I am invited to the wedding, I will be in the U.S. when she gets married!  I am soooo disappointed but they couldn't change the date so I'll just have to see all the pictures!  I'll also miss getting to spend time with her mom, who is also a friend of mine, when she comes for the wedding!  

(Excuse the poofy hair.  Must have been a windy day and I did't notice my hair was messy. Nor did Amanda mention it.)

The other big thing that happened this week was receiving a gift from Amanda's mom!  When Linda sent Amanda a care package, she included Fritos for me!  Yea!  My absolute favorite snack food!  We had company over for dinner on Saturday night and shared our treasured gift with them, and then I had Fritos with my chicken salad wrap on Sunday evening!  I hope Amanda tells her mom how much I enjoyed her gift!

3 days a week Glenn and I pass through the Luxembourg Garden on our way to and from language class but it has usually been overcast each time.  This past week the sun was finally shining as we walked through so I took advantage of the bright sunshine to take a picture of the beautiful gardens!  It is a huge place, loved by joggers, strollers, lovers and senior adults alike.  There are also some really interesting playgrounds for my grandkids!  Glenn and I are making mental notes about where all the cool playgrounds are!  (I heard that groan, Kiwi! I'll start writing them down too!)

One day as Glenn and I were walking through downtown, we came across this gas station!!!  It is truly a drive-thru!  There are no air pumps, no repairs done on site, no car wash, just gas.  :-)

Love the sushi delivery moto with the sign on it that asks what we think of his driving!

And Glenn's favorite is the Speed Rabbit Pizza place.  Is the rabbit on speed, or is the rabbit on pizza?

Or did they mean Speedy Rabbit pizza???

Today is Father's Day. While officially celebrated in both the U.S. and France on the third Sunday in June, Father's Day here in France is basically ignored for the most part, and another holiday is celebrated in it's place.  Fete de la Musique is BIG here!  It is celebrated on June 21, the summer solstice, and goes until midnight.  It is a celebration of music, performed all day and night by professional musicians and amateurs alike, in the streets, on the sidewalks, in parks, in concert halls, EVERYWHERE!

I was invited by our pastor's wife to go to a concert in a park today on the other side of Paris to hear one of the young men from our church.  (He's in black, on the far right end on the row above the director.  He's playing a violin.)

As it turned out, it was MORE than a concert!  There was a play using human marionettes, with 4 opera singers singing as the characters acted out the story, and the orchestra played the music written by Mozart.

The character on the left is a person with a huge mask, but the bird on the right is a puppet attached to the front of a person's body.  I didn't recognize it, though Lydi said EVERYONE has heard the story of ....  (everyone except me, evidently.)

Anyway, it was 2 hours long (and I mean LONG; come on, it was orchestra music, with opera singers, in French, and strange characters.  Oh, and we were in a concrete amphitheater.  Believe me, it was long.)  It was interesting though and I'm glad I went, even though it took a 4 hour chunk out of Glenn's Father's Day celebration!

Did you call your Dad to wish him a happy Father's Day?  I hope so!