A Beautiful Day in the French Countryside (and a surprise bday party)

For my mom's last weekend in France, we headed back to Lyon.  We arrived by train Friday night:  Mom was picked up at the train station by Bob, and Matthew and I headed to our hotel downtown.  Saturday morning we met Bob, Colette, and Mom and headed out of the city. Our first destination was the home of Ilse, a good friend of Bob's.  Her beautiful farm house is located just outside of the Medieval village of Crémieu.  The house dates from the 16th century, and is just as gorgeous as the gardens, ponds, and pool!  Mom, Amy, and I visited Ilse during our trip to France in '97, and it was great to see her again.

We arrived just in time for a quick walk around the property and then helped Ilse finish preparing lunch.  Matthew was given the task of grilling the meat in the outdoor "dining room".  The fireplace where the grill is located used to be the entrance to a bread baking oven (talk about authentic pain de campagne).  Ilse's kitchen is in the middle of being renovated, but in no time the outdoor table was covered with a feast! 

After lunch, Matthew played with Ilse's horse, I mean dog.  His name is VB (it stands for Very Big).
(and by the way, for those of you who don't know Matthew- he is 6'4"...yet there is one picture where VB is jumping up and is level with Matthew's chest!)

Our next stop was the home of Colette's best friend, Madeline.  Mom had spent quite a bit of time with Madeline during her past visits to France.  Madeline's gorgeous home has breathtaking views over the valleys below and the mountains in the distance.  The property also includes a pool and tennis courts.  After our walk Madeline served us a yummy sorbet cake and everyone enjoyed a glass of champagne, while I had a refreshing glass of water. :)

Here are some more photos from our day. 

LyonCountryside - Slideshow

Matthew and I finished the day at an Irish pub in downtown Lyon for a surprise 30th birthday party for my cousin, Chris.  His girlfriend, Elodie, has been planning this party for months and we were so glad that it just happened to fall on a weekend where we planned to be in Lyon anyway!  Elodie reserved the top floor of the pub, and about 30 of Chris' closest friends turned out to celebrate with him.  The party was a huge surprise for Chris, and the menu included chicken wings, nachos, onion rings, and cookies!  Matthew and I felt like we were at a party in the US.  AND I had told Elodie in an email that I was craving a good burger (not so easy to find in France), so she ordered one for me at the party!  (this is when I wished I at least looked a little more pregnant so that I don't feel like I need to explain to everyone that I am pregnant and need to eat a full meal or suffer the wrath of pregnancy nausea!)