It’s Christmas Eve and the first day of Hanukkah
Wishing you all a very merry and peaceful Christmas and a very happy holidays
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the encouragement, comments and wonderful interaction. I might write the blog but without all of you there would be no blog, you are the ones who make it what it is. I feel like we have done so much together this year, I’m not quite sure how it went by so quickly, but let’s make 2017 even better.
I hope you have the most wonderful Christmas and a very happy holiday with big kisses from all of us here in the French Oasis household!
x x x
p.s. originally the photo had two cats, but getting seven people to all smile at the same time and four animals to cooperate proved something of a difficult task. One cat fled when Evie said hello with a little too much force. Number two cat decided after take twelve that it was way too boring and clawed the poor little one holding him and quickly escaped. We were left with just two dogs and quite miraculously all the children!!
Our French Oasis 
Merry Christmas to you all too! Thank you for a year of lovely stories.
Thanks so much Lily and I hope you had a very happy Christmas xx
Thank you too and a very happy Christmas to you all too
Thanks so much, hope you too had a lovely and happy Christmas. xx
Thank you we did!
Fabulous and wishing you a very happy and healthy 2017 x
You too 😊
Merry Christmas from Denver, Colorado and a Happy New Year too!
Thanks so much Gabrielle, hope you had a lovely Christmas, I am assuming it was white and snowy which always seems perfect to me! I’m only a little envious! xx
Merry Christmas, We have love your blog this past year. Happy Hanukkah to our friends of Israel, our prayers go out to you!! Love, The Rains in Alabama
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Thanks so much, hope you have had a lovely Christmas and yes our prayers are certainly with so many suffering around the world. xx
What a lovely photo of your gorgeous family. Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas and a peaceful new year. I really look forward to catching up with your blog and thank you for sharing with us all. xxxx
Thanks so much Loraine, hope you had a lovely, happy and peaceful Christmas. xx
And Merry Christmas to you and your lovely family, too! 🙂
Thanks so much Timi, hope you too had a lovely Christmas xx
Thank you my friend for your wonderful Blog. I throughly enjoy reading your posts.
Thanks so much, very much appreciated. Hope you are having a lovely holidays xx
Merry Christmas, my new friend!!! Enjoy the holidays and thank you for sharing your life with me. You have such a lovely family.
Thank you so much Mary. We had a lovely Christmas and I really hope you had a happy and peaceful one too. xx
Merry Christmas
Thanks so much Jovina, hope you too had a lovely Christmas xx
Warm greetings to you all from California. And, cheers to your 2017 blog!
Thanks so much, hope you had a lovely, happy and peaceful Christmas xx
Happy Christmas to you and your family. F xx
Thanks so much, hope you had a lovely christmas too xx
Merry Christmas and many more stories and pictures of your French adventures… I love them all..,
From Suzanne/Mckewan lake, Ontario
Thanks so much Suzanne, hope yo had a lovely Christmas, I am sure you had a fairytale white setting, I am only just a little envious!! xx
What a lovely family portrait . I enjoy your post so much. I have always felt Francewas the one country
Abroad I would like to visit, now I enjoy it through your blog .Merry Christmas to you and yours.
Thank you so much Pat, if ever you get over here let me know, if not enjoy the armchair travel, it’s sometimes a great deal easier! Hope you have had a lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy, blessed New Year, from Boulder, Colorado. I look forward every day to reading your blog. It is truly a treasure.
Thanks so much Alice. Hope you too had a lovely Christmas, I saw several people had a lot of snow and blizzards in Colorado, hope you had a magical white Christmas! xx
The happiest is Christmas’s to you too my dear
Thank you so much, hope you too had a very happy Christmas xx
Joyeux Noel from Madame Suzette in snowy upstate New York.
You have inspired me to start blogging too.
Looking forward to your gorgeous posts in 2017
Thanks so much Susanna, only just a little envious of your white Christmas! Enjoy blogging, let me know when you start and I shall follow along, it’s a lot of fun. xx
Your blog has been a true gift to us all. Very Merry Christmas to you all x
Thanks so much Jane, hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas to you and your family from New Jersey, USA.
Thanks so much Judy, hope you had a truly lovely Christmas xx
I so look forward to you blog in my in box!! The year has gone fast, hasn’t it! Thank you for sharing your life in France with all of us! We all love it!! Wishing you a Wonderful 2017, health and happiness!
Thanks so much Karen, yes this year has flown by, I cannot believe we are a week away from 2017. Wishing you a wonderful New Year too with health and happiness. xx
What a beautiful family you have! Merry Christmas 🙂
Thanks so much, hoping you had a lovely Christmas xx
Merci Susan. Votre blog est un véritable cadeau de Noël pour tous vos followers. C’ est le meilleur blog, le plus varié, trés bien écrit avec une sincérité rare. C’ est toujours un immense plaisir de vous lire ! Joyeux Noël à vous ainsi qu’ à votre famille. // Thank you Susan. Your blog is a real Christmas present for all your followers. It is the best family blog, the most varied, very well written with a rare sincerity. it’ s always a huge pleasure to read you! Merry Christmas to you and all your family.
Merci beaucoup Philippe, j’espère que vous avez passé un très joyeux Noël. Bisous
Thank you so much for being here for us. Wishing you & your beautiful family a safe & Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Love your doggies!
Thanks so much Deborah, I hope you had a truly lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas to you from Auckland!
Thanks Alison, I hope you had a lovely Christmas and looking forward to meeting you in 2017 xx
Happy Holidays to you and to your family!
Thanks so much, I hope you had a peaceful and lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas ….you are so beautiful with a beautiful family…wishing all of you the best in the New Year….
Thank you so much Faye, I hope you too had a peaceful and lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas from Californians visiting in New Jersey, where it’s COLD, but cheerful!
Thanks Judy, Cold but cheerful sounds pretty good to me, although in a perfect world I would love a white Christmas, it always looks so magical! Hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Love the family picture and all your wonderful family stories that you share. Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year.
Thanks so much Marilyn, hope you had a peaceful and lovely Christmas. xx
A very Merry Christmas to you.
Thanks Lisa and I hope you too had a lovely Christmas xx
What a beautiful photo of you all, a very happy Christmas 🎄
Thanks Amanda, it took a bit of achieving! Hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Go go go and enjoy the holidays with your lovely family, you make such a beautiful picture of pure contentment, we are all lucky to have you include us xxx
Thanks so much Shari, I did just as you suggested and we had a fabulous three days. Hope you too have had a lovely Christmas xx
A very blessed Christmas to you, I hope you have a very special day
Thank you so much Susan and I hope you have had a lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas to you & your family. Looking forward to seeing you all in the the new year.
Enjoy this special time together.
Thanks Barbara, hope you have had a lovely Christmas too despite the colds, hopefully you are all better and looking forward to seeing you too in a week xx
Great photo of you all. Hope you have a great Christmas and New Year and see you in the Autumn x
Thanks so much Neil, hope you had a wonderful Christmas in Spain, it looks as if it was wonderfully sunny and warm. Thoroughly looking forward to seeing you again next September but I don’t want to rush the spring and summer! xx
Lovely photo of you all!
Merry Christmas to you all
Love From
Yvonne & Neil
Xx
Thanks so much Yvonne, hope you had a fabulous Christmas in the warm Spanish sunshine, your fb photos look fantastic. xx
Fantastic family photo and with Bentley and Evie too. Wishing you the happiest and merriest if Christmas’s
Thanks so much Peggy, it would be hard to have a family photo without them! Hope you too had a lovely Christmas xx
Happy Holidays!
Thanks, hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!!
Thanks David and I hope you too had a lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas to you and your lovely family! Thank you for sharing your beautiful life with us. I always enjoy reading your gorgeous posts so much! Wishing you all the best, Petra from Northern Germany
Thanks so much Petra, I hope you had a wonderful Christmas. Let’s all prey for a peaceful and happy 2017. xx
Merry Christmas to you Susan, and your sweet family. May the day be filled with laughter and joy! from my girl and myself!
Thanks so much, I hope you both had a truly lovely Christmas, hopefully will get to meet in 2017 xx
yup, we will meet, just cannot wait. Actually the New Year preparation on its way. Well well Well, we will see what brings 2017. We wish you and your family a wondrous year full of fun, blogging, and many more happy moments. You take care of yourself and the sweet family! cheers from me and my girl!
And I hope you too have a very healthy and happy New Year with your daughter. Xx
Thank you Susane.
xxx
Merry Christmas to you too Susan.
Thanks so much and I hope you had a lovely quiet Christmas and enjoyed everyone else’s cooking! xx
Lovely photo! Hope you are having a wonderful Christmas! May 2017 be magical and joyous in all ways!
Thanks so much, hope you too had a lovely Christmas and have a very happy and healthy 2017 xx
Susan . . . almost noon Christmas Day in Eastern Australia. Thank you for the most ‘normal’ [whatever that word means these days!] greeting in my book! I know there will be magic and joy all thru’ the day in your home and during the days to come. Blessings!! Thank you so much for grounding so many of us along the way also . . .
Thanks so much Eha, I hope you had a truly lovely and peaceful Christmas in the warm Australian sun. It was a grey damp day here, but it didn’t matter in the slightest, it was a fabulous day with all the family. xx
Merry Christmas! I made your chicken dish for the family two days ago. It was delicious. Will be trying the chocolate dessert soon as well! The family picture is beautiful.
Thanks so much. So glad you made the chicken and enjoyed it, hopefully you will love the chocolate pots too, they are quite decadent and quite delicious! Hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas to you and your lovely family even if the kitties are missing. I am looking forward to 2017 and your blog will make it that much more enjoyable.
Thanks so much, I should have known it would be quite impossible to have them in a photo. Initially I wanted one of the chicken’s too, but it was raining and they were all wet and so we decided that was a bad idea, probably just as well!! Hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas to you & your beautiful family! You are simply amazing! I so enjoy your blog! Donna Greenville, NC, USA
Sent from my iPad
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Thanks so much Donna, I hope you had a truly happy, peaceful and lovely Christmas xx
Of all the blogs I read, I so love your stories the most…you are the epitome of what a real family is to me. I wish you the best of holidays and a year full of joy, health and prosperity. All the best from the west coast (probably should say wet coast) of Canada. Liane
Thanks so much Liane, I truly appreciate your very kind words. I have family on the west coast of Canada, and friends who said they had snow recently, whereas normally it just rains! Hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
I can lend you a border collie.. he’ll have you all together in moments 😉
I have a small family & my dogs work for treats. Family photos are easy-peasy for us 😉
Merry Christmas!
Yes I am quite sure he would, he would have rounded us all up and given us that look, never once taking his eyes off us! Hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Aww sweet picture. Merry Christmas!
Thanks so much, hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas to you all. Love the picture!
Thanks so much Darina, hope you had a lovely Christmas too xx
A very Merry Christmas to you from one of your biggest fans in Beverly Hills, CA. You are a remarkable family, and you all cooperate (except the cats) to show us how simply beautiful life can be.
Thanks so much Ellen, I shall have to have a word with the cats! Hope you had a lovely Christmas in Beverly Hills. xx
Merry Christmas back to you, Susan and family – dogs, cats and chickens and all. We hope you have a very successful 2017 and we can’t wait to read the end of the story!
Thanks so much Phil, hope you had a lovely Christmas too with your family xx
Merry Christmas! Thank you for the gifts of your words, charm and sense of fun…and for letting us be part of your family adventure.
Thanks so much Mary and thank you for following along and joining in. Hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Merry Christmas we have had a hot sunny Christmas Day down under in Sydney Australia. Enjoy your day with your lovely family
Thanks so much Kerrie, your Christmas sounds as if it was perfect. Ours was too, although it was grey and damp and around 13C! Not quite the same as yours!! xx
Joyeux Noël à vous et votre famille aussi. J’ai alors profitez de votre blog. Vous apportez l’esprit du sud de la France à la vie pour moi….merci beaucoup.
Merci Beaucoup Susan, j’espère que vous avez passé un très joyeux Noël. Bisous
Merry Christmas from Kansas! I have so enjoyed your posts this year and looking forward to another year of family life in France. Happy New Year, too!
Thanks so much Pat, I am really looking forward to another year of blogging too. Hope you have had a lovely Christmas xx
Adorable (and cats should always be conspicuously absent being so fleeting by nature, I feel) …. Merry Christmas to you all from us all in darkest Oxfordshire xx
Thanks so much, hope you had a fabulous family Christmas with all going according to plan! Ours was of course noisy and lively and bye evening the house looked as if a bomb had hit it, just as it should be! xxx
Chaotic of course …. just lovely! Xx
Or course, wouldn’t have it any other way! xx
I am so looking forward to spending a few hours reading through all of your posts during the holidays, being a new follower I have a lot of catching up to do and I am captivated already. Merry Christmas. Amelia
Thanks so much Amelia, I really hope you enjoy all the old posts and look forward to your following along with the new ones. Hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
And also to you, Susan.
janet
Thanks so much Janet, hope you had a peaceful and lovely Christmas xx
It was good one, Susan.
So glad, it was excellent here too, quiet and low key but lots of laughter, just as it should be. Xx
What a beautiful family, and apparently very patient too, everyone but the cats. Thanks for your insights on France and Merry Christmas.
If you get a chance, come play along with Dreaming of France. Here’s my Dreaming of France meme
Thanks so much Paulita, they are all patient, as you say, except for the cats! Hope you had a lovely Christmas xx
Love your “best laid plans” on the howliday photo. You are definitely ambitious with your plan. Hoping your Christmas was ‘pawsome!’ Warmest wishes for a ‘wagnificent’ 2017. So grateful to have had the good fortune to find you on the ‘Net. Talk about being blessed!
Digital hugs from ღ, Sam & Elsa. ❤︎
Thanks so much Monika, my plans were initially even more adventurous, I wanted to include a chicken too, but I gave up on that idea as it was raining and they were soaking wet which is probably a good thing! Hope you have had a wonderful, peaceful and happy Christmas and that that Sam and Elsa got lots of special treats too! xx
What a lovely family, inside and out!! Merry Christmas, Happy Boxing Day and Happy New Year to each and all of you from my family and I in Oregon, Leslie
Thanks so much Leslie, hope you had a lovely Christmas and wishing you a very healthy and happy 2017 xx
Happy Christmas to you, Susan, and your beautiful family!! Thank you so much for sharing the family photo!! LOVE IT and know from experience how hard those are to take. 😉
Thanks, too, for this year of wonderful posts from you and others in your family! I do feel like friends..across the miles…as this comes to you from Washington, DC.
Blessings and best wishes for good health and much happiness in 2017.
Anne xo
Thanks so much Anne, friends indeed across the big pond. The photo was initially even more ambitious, I wanted to include a chicken too but gave up on that idea as it was raining and they were wet, probably just as well!!! I hope you have had a lovely Christmas and a very happy and healthy 2017 to you xx
Your family photo is so lovely. I’m jealous.
You should see MY family photos. Try getting several grown men to behave themselves during an attempted photo shoot. It appears they thought they were in a face-making contest. I would have had better luck with the cat
Ah, but you should see the photos that I didn’t print, it took about 50 shots to get one good one, someone always pulled a face too! Last year’s photo we gave up in the end and G has her tongue sticking out!!
That sounds exactly like my group!! 🙂
But we wouldn’t change them would we!
Heavens, no!! 🙂
Besides, they keep us young and on our toes!!
What a great photo, Susan. You have a wonderful family, and Amy and I hope you had a great Christmas. Wishing you all the best for 2017, and looking forward to perhaps meeting you finally if we can get our act together…..
Thanks so much Simon, we had a lovely Christmas and I very much hope you did too. Looking forward to hopefully meeting in 2017! xx
Love your wonderful family Christmas photo even if it was minus the two cats. I hope you had a wonderful day of celebration.
Thanks so much Karen, we had a lovely Christmas thank you and I really hope you did too xx
I love the family picture! Thank you so much for stopping by on my blog x
Jessica — NinetyCo
Thanks so much, I loved your blog, fun and interesting. Wishing you a very happy and healthy 2017 xx
Haha! I would never think 12 takes – it definitely looks like one more flawlessly simple picture perfect moment of our beloved OFO family 💟
Ha ha, you are too kind, but you should know two dogs and two cats and five children is an almost impossible combination!!! I was going to include a chicken too, just as well it was raining and so I squashed that idea before it even had a chance to develop!! Xx
I was wondering where the chickens were! I am so glad that you and your beautiful family had lovely Christmas and New Year’s celebrations. Best wishes for a peaceful, happy 2017!
The chickens are just doing their chicken stuff! Actually considering the cold and the season they are laying well and keeping us with a good supply of eggs! xx
Beautiful family photo. The cats don’t know what they missed. 🙂 Happy and healthy 2017 to you all.
Thanks so much, the cats could have been the stars of the show!! Xx