Nothing nicer than Normandy

Here's a few pictures from a recent trip we took to Normandy (I'm a little behind on the posts, but I'm working on getting caught up). Paul and I had both wanted to visit the D-day beaches and thought no better time than right after the most recent anniversary (June 6th). We got there late enough to miss the crowds, but early enough to get wonderful weather.

On the way to Normandy we took the scenic route (rural Normandy) instead of going through Paris, and boy was I glad. Not only did we avoid crazy traffic, but we were able to drive through quaint French towns with beautiful chateaus and wild flowers growing alongside grazing horses.

After the most beautiful drive through the northern countryside we stopped for an afternoon in the coastal town of Etretat. This town is located on the Alabaster Coast and known for its beautiful beach with rock formations that resemble wading elephants. I have to say that this little town was my favorite part of Normandy.

This town had a breathtaking coast and a little town that reminded me somewhat of Cape Cod. Etretat is definitely worth the trip (it's about 1.5 hours from Bayoux and the D-day beaches).

The following Pictures are of Omaha Beach and the American Military Cemetery there.

Here Paul and Tristan take a walk on the beach (this day there was a very low tide).

As this beautiful cemetery overlooks the historic beach a sense of reverence is almost tangible there.

Saint Mere Eglise, the rally point for numerous allied paratroopers celebrates the arrival of their liberators (65 years ago) with an annual parade and numerous shops filled with British, U.S. and Canadian flags and memorabilia. If you look closely, they still have a parachute hanging on the town cathedral where an American airborne soldier landed so many years ago.

Bayeux is a sleepy city filled with quiet streets and picturesque livestock.

Throughout Normandy we were surprised to see American flags flying alongside the French. In a Bayeux grocery store a large banner hung and said "Welcome to our liberators!". I was so surprised that after 65 years their expression of gratitude seamed just as strong as ever.

As I said previously, Bayeux seamed quiet and almost sleepy. As we walked some of the streets they reminded me of the oh so charming movie "Chocolate".

Here's a few pictures to show you what life's been like here at home in Germany. Tristan has a sweet tooth as you can see here. Any chance he can get, Tristan will try to get the syrup from the fridge and sneak a sip.

This is how I found him (below) after returning from the kitchen. He obviously was done with lunch, and wanted no more of his high chair.

This is his "This bib is strangling me!" look.

Here you can see the happy guy in one of his favorite places-the office.

Tristan giggles with delight as he practically runs up the stairs to get to the computer.

Summer means strawberry picking for us, and here's a few pictures of our latest experience here in Germany.

Tristan enjoyed being able to eat as many strawberries as he could get his little patties on, and I enjoyed how happy he was. What a fun day for all of us!

Tristan made a friend with a sweet local girl (take notice of her particularly nice clothing-we of course wore our grubbiest clothes for picking this juicy fruit but the Germans wore nice clothing and picked somewhat cautiously).

Here's Tristan playing dress up with Pauls clothes.