enchanted evening...

Tonight we are spending the evening with our friends on the grounds of a small but beautiful chateau in our village.  It is le nuit en blanche... an annual event to celebrate summer.  Everything is in white... clothes, table settings, etc.  Magical!

changes...

Here are some photos from our backyard.  It's lovely to see how the seasons change things...

April

June

April

June

in review...

Between the hectic pace of our INSEAD life and the new camera, it has taken me ages to sift through the mountain of photos that accumulated during April and May.  But since I appreciate thorough documentation, I can't just let it go.  I am now including links to our "general" photos - the everyday nonsense.  I admit that these albums might be a little tedious, but maybe some of you (Devon?) have some time on your hands given the 4th of July holiday (slow work week?).  Otherwise, feel free to wait for our next update!

Click here to see our photos from April.

Click here to see our photos from May.

summer farewell...

Last week many of the INSEAD moms put together a lovely summer party for the kids.  There was face painting, a pinata, musical "chairs," a present hunt and in general - lots of fun.  It was a chance to say goodbye to the July promotion families who are moving on, others who will spend the fall semester in Singapore, and the rest of us who are going our separate ways for the summer.  Despite gloomy forecasts, the weather was perfect and the children had a blast.

Click here for more photos of the Summer Party.  

happy father's day!

Wishing all the dads a very happy Father's Day!

friday morning, 8am...

This is our life.

On Friday morning at 8am, Max and I dropped Brook - in lederhosen - off in the center of Fontainebleau so he could participate in the INSEAD Dash, a short race from the Chateau to a specific classroom on campus.  It's an INSEAD tradition that has come to include costumes - the sillier the better.  It originated on the Singapore campus and has infiltrated the Wharton campus (although with a different twist), too (check out the youtube links below).  

Click here to see more photos of the 2008 Fontainebleau INSEAD Dash.

Click below for youtube links.

Singapore 

Wharton

somewhere over the rainbow...

This appeared last night at about 7:30.  Beautiful.

sweet little maniac...

Every evening after his bath, Max gets a giant burst of energy.  It always cracks us up and we thought you might enjoy it, too!

joyeux anniversaire, marie!

We celebrated our lovely friend Marie's birthday last Sunday with French countryside barbeque hosted by the Senermans.  It was a perfect day, equally festive and relaxing with delicious food, great friends and spontaneously funny activities like the kids all dressing up in costumes.  Happy Birthday, Marie!

Click here to see more photos of Marie's birthday BBQ.

marseille...

Over the last weekend in May, we traveled to Marseille with McKinsey and several other people from INSEAD.  Brook went sailing with the group while my mom, Max and I rested and relaxed by the ocean.  It was a great adventure.

  

Click here to see more photos of our Marseille trip.

wedded bliss...

In typical fashion, Brook and I celebrated our anniversary with a chaotic and friend-filled evening.  Our anniversary fell on the same night as the "Latin Week" dinner (every other week at INSEAD is dedicated to a different nationality or region), and we could not forego the celebration of so many of our friends here.  It was hardly the kind of evening one might imagine for a 2nd anniversary, but it was exactly right for us.  Here's to hoping the next two years (and many more) are just as exciting!

a fairy tale evening...

On May 24th, INSEAD hosted its annual Summer Ball at the Chateau Fontainebleau (the beautiful palace pictured at the top of this blog).  It was an absolutely incredible event.  The evening began at 10pm and ended with a sunrise breakfast at 6am, and included a giant fireworks display at midnight.  The pictures do not do the experience any justice.  It was quite a thrill to be dancing and drinking champagne in the very rooms where Napoleon planned battles and Marie-Antoinette did whatever she did for fun.

Click here to see more photos from the Ball and our pre-Ball dinner.

new favorite pastime...

We recently invested in a new camera - the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi - and I am obsessed.  I share this information as a disclaimer for the many upcoming posts which will link to unnecessarily big albums.  I can't help myself.  The camera is so fast and so sharp, I can now actually catch Max (& company) in action, instead of capturing him just as he turns away (I can't tell you how many photos we have of the top or back of his head!).  I hope everyone enjoys the output, even if it means sifting through more photos you can imagine (I'll try to edit ruthlessly). 

a boy and his dog...

Or rather, a boy and his friend's dog...

 

Max with Daisy of the lovely Webb family

We haven't posted anything in awhile and I'm sorry for that... Be sure to check back for a good recap of May and other updates soon as we will be departing for our stateside summer on June 30th.  

And Happy Birthday, Terri Schroeder!