New Teeth and No Teeth

I need to take a quick break from my France posts to mark a momentous occasion. Well, two actually. Chase got one of his two front teeth while we were in France. Then the tooth next to it came in, I mean the one on the side, not the other front one. He has been lopsided ever since and the other front one just wouldn't come up although it was right beneath the surface. Joslyn, on the other hand, lost her front tooth and then the one one the side, so she had a gap, a tooth, and then another gap. She looked like a red neck. Anyway, yesterday Joslyn finally lost her other front tooth, and Chase finally gained his. All is right with the world.


Chase's new teeth


Joslyn's big gap

Oradour sur Glane

I was going to make this post include other activities that we did on Wednesday, but as I was writing I really felt that Oradour sur Glane should stand alone and have its own post, so here goes.

We left Angouleme and headed for Paris. One of our stops was the town of Oradour Sur Glane. Here is a little history lesson to explain the importance of this place. On the 10th of June 1944, a group of soldiers from the Der Führer regiment of the 2nd SS-Panzer Division Das Reich entered and then surrounded the small town of Oradour-sur-Glane, near to the city of Limoges.

At first, they told the Mayor, Jean Desourteaux, that there was to be an identity check and that everyone must go to the Champ de Foire (fairground) while this took place. After rounding up all the inhabitants that they could find, the SS then changed their story from that of an identity check, to one of searching for hidden arms and explosives. The soldiers then said that while they searched for the arms, the women and children must wait in the church and the men in nearby barns.

The women and children were marched off to the church, the children being encouraged by the soldiers to sing as they went. After they had left, the men were divided into six groups and led off to different barns in the town under armed guard. When the townspeople were all safely shut away the SS began to kill them all.

A large gas bomb, seemingly made out of smoke-screen grenades and intended to asphyxiate the occupants, was placed in the church, but it did not work properly when it went off and so the SS had to use machine guns and hand grenades to disable and kill the women and children. After they had subdued all the occupants of the church, the soldiers piled wood on the bodies, many of whom were still alive and set it on fire.

Only one person managed to escape alive from the church and that was Madame Rouffanche. She saw her younger daughter who was sitting next to her killed by a bullet as they attempted to find shelter in the vestry. Madame Rouffanche then ran to the altar end of the church where she found a stepladder used to light the candles. Placing the ladder behind the altar she climbed up and threw herself through a window and out onto the ground some 10 feet below. As she picked herself up, a woman holding her baby tried to follow, but they were seen by the soldiers and both woman and child were killed. In spite of being shot and wounded five times, Madame Rouffanche escaped round the back of the church and dug herself into the earth between some rows of peas, where she remained hidden until late the next day.

At the same time that the gas bomb exploded in the church, the SS fired their machine guns into the men crowded in the barns. They deliberately fired low, so that many of the men were badly wounded but not killed. The soldiers then piled wood and straw on the bodies and set it alight, many of the men thus burned to death, unable to move because of their injuries. Six men did manage to escape from Madame Laudy's barn, but one of them was seen and shot dead, the other 5 all wounded, got away under cover of darkness.

While these killings were taking place, the soldiers searched the town for any people who had evaded the initial roundup and killed them where they found them. One old invalid man was burned to death in his bed and a baby was baked to death in the local bakery ovens, other people were killed and their bodies thrown down a well. People who attempted to enter the town to see what was going on were shot dead. A local tram which arrived during the killings was emptied of passengers, who after several terrifying minutes were let go in peace.

After killing all the townspeople that they could find, the soldiers set the whole town on fire and early the next day, laden with booty stolen from the houses, they left.

The town was rebuilt nearby, but they left the ruins as a memorial to all those who had died there. Before the soldiers left, they buried most of the bodies in mass graves so it was very difficult in the aftermath to identify the victims. Many of the families were never able to have the closure they needed because they were not able to identify and bury the remains of their loved ones.


One of the streets in the ruins.


The church


This plaque on the side of the church asks for silence and prayers from believers for the souls of those who died within the church walls.


I held my baby close and fought back tears as I looked at these wheels from a baby stroller and tried not to imagine the horror those mothers must have felt as they sat there with their children, unable to protect them.


The only survivor from the church escaped from one of these windows.


Looking at the town from the steps of the church.


The fairgrounds where the villagers were assembled.

These were the most sobering moments of the trip, but I think that it was well worth the stop because it is an important bit of history and we need to remember the past so that we can do better in the future. It was sad to see such stark evidence of the wrongs that men can perpetrate against one another, but we were all comforted by the fact that our Heavenly Father is good and just and has a plan for us all.

Rocamadour

November 3rd

On Tuesday we got up early and went out into the French countryside. Our ultimate destination was Rocamadour, which is a Chateau and a church built on top of and into a cliff. On our way, we had a few stops at different Chateaus. The first one was not actually a planned stop. Dad had planned to drive past and point it out to us, but Chase had other plans. He got hungry so we pulled over so I could feed him. It ended up being such a cool place so it was great that we were able to have a chance to see it. It was one of the Chateaus that was sacked during the French Revolution, so it is still in ruins right now, although it is being rebuilt by a French couple. The chateau was actually closed that day, but when they heard that we were visiting from the States, they let us in and showed us two rooms that were still intact. One room was the chapel. It was a room where Charlemagne and Louis III (I think) had attended services. The other room was a dining hall. The stone of the floor was actually worn down in many places. The woman told us that the room dated back to the fifteenth century. Very cool.




Me and Chase in front of the Chateau










The entrance to the chapel








Joanna and Sandra posing on the side of the Chateau

After we left, we drove through a town (unfortunately, I don't remember the name of it) and there was another large Castle there. It was very cool, although we didn't go in. Dad was freaked out that we were taking too long to get to Rocamadour and we would loose our light, so we were hurrying. On a side note, we were driving on country roads that were wet and curvy. Sometimes driving was a little scary, especially when the roads were narrow and there were cars coming the other way.



We got to Rocamadour in the early afternoon. The first glimpse was incredible! We stopped at a vantage point and took these pictures.


















Dad let us off at the top of the mountain not far from the Chateau. It was one of the privately owned castles so we couldn't tour the inside. There was a huge elevator there and we took a ride through the mountain to the level where the church was built. There are several churches there, but the biggest church is the pilgrimage church of Notre Dame (rebuilt in 1479). Some of the famous pilgrims to the church include Roland, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry II of England, Blanche of Castille, Louis IV, Charles IV, Louis VI, and Jacques Cartier.

















































We walked down through the village on the way back to the car, and it was very cut and quaint. The only traffic allowed into the village was local traffic because of the small streets. On our way home we stopped at another small city and got out and wandered around. I stopped at a perfume shop and bought some delicious smelling French perfume. Ooo la la!

France (Part 2)

November 2nd

On Monday, we slept in. Chase and I woke up at 10:30 and felt well rested. We came down stairs and Mom was making crepes for breakfast. YUMMY! They were tasty and I tried mine with apricot jam and marzipan. I need Mom to give me that recipe! After breakfast we drove to the bank to
get some money. While we were waiting for Dad to come back to the car we saw this old man standing at a bus stop with a baguette in his hand. It fit so well with our idea of a Frenchman, that we just had to take his picture. He probably thought we were crazy, because we were snapping pictures of him and laughing like loons.



Next, we drove to a vantage point where we could see the old city of Angouleme. It is actually a very old city which dates back to at least 507 A.D. There are old walls and old churches and lots of history. It was beautiful.



We drove up into the city and Mom and Dad took us to take pictures of these wall paintings that are all around town. They are all cartoons painted on different buildings. Some are small, just one or two cartoon characters, while others cover one entire side of the building. Here are just a few examples.







We also went to a cathedral dedicated to the virgin Mary. It had fantastic stained glass windows and beautiful sculptures and friezes.





We walked around a little and looked at the buildings around town. There were so many houses with character. Not like the tract housing that you see here all too often.



It was a little cold and rained off and on, but it was a great day. We went to an outdoor mall and went shopping. We ate a chocolate pastry and went to a hat store and got hats. I love, love, love mine! It is brown and so cute!



Then we went shopping for clothes and it was so much fun to be with Mom and the sisters and try on all those cute clothes. I got a few cute shirts and a very cute vest which I had to don immediately. I felt very stylish walking around in my hat and vest! Dad took us out for kabobs, which were so very tasty. Then it was home and bed to be ready for the next adventure.

France (Part 1 of many)

I can't believe that the trip to France has come and gone. I had been looking forward to it for so long and it seemed that it would never get here. Then all of a sudden, it was here and I was leaving, and now it is gone and I am back home and mostly recovered from some serious jet lag! I have so many things to blog about, that it will take several posts, so here it goes.

October 29-October 31

Phil and the kids drove Chase and me to the airport. Our flight was supposed to leave at 10:00 p.m to Portland. Then from Portland, we were flying to Amsterdam, and then to Bordeaux, where my parents were going to meet us. When I got to the airport, they told me that the Portland flight had been cancelled. They rerouted me to Denver instead. When I arrived in Denver I was supposed to fly to Minneapolis, then to Amsterdam and then to Bordeaux, but the Minneapolis flight had been delayed to the point that I would miss my connector, so they told me I might have to wait until tomorrow. I said forget it, find me something! It took the nice lady at the counter some time, but eventually we ended up going to Cincinnati and then to Paris and finally to Bordeaux. SIGH! It seemed to take forever for us to get there, but we made it. Chase was the best little traveler. I felt so blessed and really learned from his example how to be good natured even in the face of obstacles. The French were, for the most part, very solicitous towards me because of the baby and helped me with my bag and let me go to the front of every line and that was very helpful.
I had told Phil to try to contact my parents with my change of flight plans, but wasn't sure if he had been able to get a hold of them, so it was with some trepidation that I stepped off the plane in Bordeaux and found no one there to greet me. A very helpful young man who was moving his family to France so he could teach, helped me locate the area where international flights were met, luckily it was just on the other side of the building as the Bordeaux Airport is rather small, and there were my parents sitting on a bench waiting for my original flight which was due in about a half an hour. Needless to say, they were very surprised to see me since my plane was not there yet, but we had a wonderful reunion and I was so happy to introduce them to Chase.

Grandma had a great time getting to know Chase, who was in his pumpkin jacket in honor of Halloween.
We stayed at the airport until we collected everyone (Jo, Sandra and Heather flew in together from Salt Lake and Aunt Laraine flew in From Denver via London) and then we hopped into the mini bus that Dad had rented and drove back to Angouleme. We arrived at the house where Mom and Dad had been living and had some dinner. We got dressed and then were able to go to the baptism of a young lady that Mom and Dad had taught and worked with a lot. She had asked Dad to do the baptism and we had a wonderful time meeting all of the members of the Branch. Then it was home and to bed!

November 1

Our first full day in France was a Sunday and we were able to go to church with Mom and Dad. It was fast Sunday and although we didn't understand much of what was being said, the Spirit was very strong and we felt the love of our Father in Heaven through those wonderful Saints in Angouleme. After church, everybody lined up outside for pictures and hugs. Many tears were shed and we felt almost guilty for taking our parents away from them.

We went back to the house and had dinner with the Elders, then went to visit one of the members, a 99 year old lady, who is confined to her house. Dad came to give her the sacrament and we visited for awhile. It was a chance for us to see some of the countryside because she lives outside of the city and there were several interesting Chateaus on the way there. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera, so I will have to get those pictures from someone else. It was fun, but by the end of the night, I was exhausted and happy to get back to the house and get some sleep.

Vicarious Halloween

Jaime is away in France during her most anticipated holiday of the year and I am posting this for her benefit.

Joslyn left her wig and hat to her costume at school, which is an improvement over last year wherein she left her entire costume at school, and we had to improvise on game day. That stunt earned for her the hot displeasure of her mother and the curse that she would "just have to wear the same costume next year". That is a punishment, I learned, which is akin to wearing the same dress to consecutive school dances (This is also a punishment rather than the apparent blessing of not having to shop for another dress, incur additional expense or experience the dissatisfaction of changing dress sizes. Its a rather impractical mindset I know, but ask your wife she'll confirm it). Perhaps Mom's ire will be tempered by Dad's indifference through whom she will be made aware of the grievous infraction. She compensated for her forgetfulness by coloring her hair haphazardly, or least deliberately non-uniformly, at her friend Madilyn's home. Her recently lost front teeth were a wonderful addition to her appearance.



Caleb fought to not have to dress as "Buzz Light" but, having apprehended that candy was to be had only in character, became readily compliant. No sooner had he completed his transformation than the forces of good and evil gave forum to settle the age old question: who really would win in a battle between Buzz Lightyear and Megatron. In the end a truce was called as both parties realized that their energies were better spent accumulating energy units. They joined forces and embarked on a daring journey through the neighborhood seeking their plunder, which promised to be so rich that the mere anticipation of it brought peels of laughter to their throats and a glint to their eyes.




The kids were well behaved and enjoyed the experience as well as the bounty, and at the end of the night after all of them returned I took them up the street to the Winsteads home. I was happy to both be able to distribute candy to trick-or-treaters and follow the kids to a couple of doors. They were so well behaved that perhaps a reward would be appropriate, but how does one compete with Halloween? Beside my reward may be the same as Jaime's punishment and lead to all sorts of Halloween confusion.

Spooky Stories at the Beach

While Phil was away, we were invited to a beach party out in Haleiwa by some members of our ward. We went and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. We made smores and told spooky stories around the campfire (although we had to tone them down due to all the kids who were there). It was a lot of fun. The kids played in the water, hunted for crabs, and generally had a blast with their friends. I was happy to get out of the house, have an easy dinner, and visit with adults. Thanks Devon and Shirlyn for the invite.



Roasting the perfect marshmallow in honor of Phil.



Eating said marshmallow



Joslyn and Brooklyn



Looking for crabs



Listening to the scary stories. BOO!