In France, May is seemingly full of public holidays and  the last one is Pentecost; as we chatted during supper on Monday evening we all agreed we cannot remember the last time we had such a fun weekend. It all went by in rather a social blur; friends to lunch and dinner, fabulous long sunny days staying light until nearly 10pm, and the kids decided to camp in the garden for two nights so our lawn became ‘Tent City’ as friends joined them.

I cannot believe the month is nearly over; where did it go? It seems only last week I was incredibly happy we were into the month of April and that spring was well and truly in command. Yet here we are now, only a few days from June. I hope it slows down or before we know it we will be hauling logs, lighting fires and getting out our hats and scarves again.

To try and prolong it a little longer I thought I would share with you a photo-tour of our month of May.  It didn’t get off to the best start as it arrived with pouring rain and chilly winds which quite typically coincided with the children being on Spring Break.

after several days the skies cleared and once again the sun came out to play

having been dormant all winter, vineyards were once again bursting with life

villages that had seemed almost deserted became centers of chattering activity as the Brocante season got well and truly underway

and I found a fab heavy brass chandelier for the summer kitchen

 some of us were brave enough to have our first swim of the year

and we dusted off our bikes and set about exploring nearby villages

 

the garden demanded, but failed to get, constant attention as I waged a war I realized I was never going to win on the weeds

we walked the well-trodden sand and stone causeway over to the Île Madame

 and one morning when the children were all at school found ourselves quite by chance at the most incredible stone-mason’s yard

 cherry season is now in full swing, picking, eating, picking and eating more – it’s the simple things in life that I enjoy so much!

the locals are saying it is the best year for roses in decades

a little renovation required, but how about this for a cute weekend retreat

yesterday some farmers were turning their hay, making the most of the sunny dry weather

and when we walked Bentley after supper the sun was still beating strong at 9pm

I hope May has been a good month for you too and as always thanks for reading, thanks for following me and for your comments, I have said it before and I’ll say it again, I really enjoy taking photos whilst we are out and about and sharing them with you and telling our story from this tiny little corner of France.  Merci mille fois