Camp Doll Diaries 2014!

Salut mes amis, 

This summer, I went to camp! I received a letter in the mail about Camp Doll Diaries, an away camp featuring everything from crafting to acting to sports. My sister Juliette busy with summer ballet intensives, Maman agreed to let me do something fun, too. Since I'd never gone to an away camp before, I was awfully nervous! I quickly submitted my camper registration forms and waited on pins and needles for my camper identification badge to arrive . . . 

                                     

. . . after what seemed like forever, it was time to pack for camp! I made sure to pack all of the essentials: shirts, shorts, socks, hiking shoes, and lots of clean underwear! Maman even surprised me with a special camp tee to wear on the first day. By the time I'd gotten back to the States (the camp bus was picking me up from school!), my nerves had subsided. I was more excited than anything!

Although my best friends Nathalie and Chiara had other plans, I soon discovered that some of my other Fair Hollow classmates had signed up for Camp Doll Diaries, too. I recognized Chiara's good friend Jessa right away, and we spent a lot of time together during the camp's duration. It turned out that Jessa and I were assigned to the same cabin, The Purple Butterflies, and that we shared an affinity for hiking . . .

. . . which is what we spent most of our time doing. Although we certainly dabbled in other activities, the camp's location was so picturesque that Jessa and I agreed to spend most of our time exploring the wilderness. When the weather was cooperative, Jessa snapped photos of me on our hiking excursions. I wanted to be able to share the beauty with my family back home, but of course!

We'd spend much of our time hiking by the river on those hot and sticky days. There were always little footbridges to cross, waterfalls to admire, and plenty of plant life to study. Wading in the river became one of our favorite summer pastimes. We'd perch on the rocks and submerge our tired, aching feet into the cool water for hours on end!

I should mention that we never went anywhere far without our trusty camp counselor, Lisa, nor without our hiking gear safely stowed away in our backpacks. We were obedient campers, I promise!

All in all, I was really pleased with my away camp experience. It was really enjoyable just getting to "disconnect" from the internet world for awhile. Sometimes you just need the break, you know?

Did you go to camp this summer? What was it like?

Ton amie,
Sophie 

Video: Weekend at the Farmhouse

Salut mes amis,

I made a video slideshow with more pictures of my visit to the historic farmhouse that I wrote about in my last post. To see it, play the video below:



 Happy viewing!

~Sophie

Day 1: Keene, NH with Susie & Claudia!

Salut mes amis,

Wondering where I've been? I've been on a New England road trip for the past couple of weeks, and boy, do I have a lot of photos to share with you!

The first stop I made was to revisit some friends I met a couple of years ago, in 2010. Remember when I visited Ashuelot Park with Annie, Sarah, and Elphaba? Well, I got to go again!

On August 6th, I met up with my friends Susie and Claudia in Keene, New Hampshire. After having lunch at Olive Garden and walking through Michaels together, we three decided to hang out in Ashuelot Park for a bit. We talked, posed for pictures, observed nature, and shared a bowl of Walpole Creamery ice cream.

Susie is on the left, I'm in the middle, and Claudia is on the right:

Here we are with Ashuelot River behind us; isn't it pretty? 

In addition to having photos taken of me, I brought out my own camera. I took pictures of the river, plant life, and numerous wildflowers that fell across our path.

Here is one picture that I took of the Ashuelot River dam. Can you see the man sitting on the opposite bank? I think he was giving us weird looks; I wonder why?

Keene is such a pretty city! If I was going to live in New Hampshire, I think I'd live here! It's not too big, yet not too small, and there are a lot of fun boutiques to shop in:

I think that is Queen Anne's Lace on the left, but there are a couple of different flowers that resemble it. It does look like lace, that's for sure. Do you see the bug nestled on it? I was quite proud of myself for being able to capture the bug while he was actually on the flower.

Aren't these flowers pretty? They look like some kind of wild daisy to me.

After we said goodbye to Claudia, Susie and I continued walking around downtown Keene for a little bit. She took me into an old mill that has been refurbished into a neat shopping center. One of the stores in the shopping center was a bookstore, which is where I was in the photo on the left.



I am posing next to a sign announcing Julia Child's birthday. Some of you may know that I'm a huge fan of the American chef best known for her cookbooks Mastering the Art of French Cooking: Volume I and Volume II. Mrs. Child, had she lived, would've turned 100 years old this year, and this bookstore had a nice birthday tribute display set up to recognize this fact.

There were several picture books discussing Mrs. Child's life and even one told from the point-of-view of Minette, her cat! I had to get a picture by the books (in case I decide to buy them someday).

In the lobby of the shopping center was this old-fashioned buggy. Immediately Susie and I hopped aboard so that we could pretend we were two elegant Victorian ladies going to a ball. There was a sign on the seat of the buggy that prohibited people from climbing on it, but we pretended to ignore that. You can probably see the bit of white paper sticking out from around us as we tried to cover up the fact that we shouldn't be in the buggy. We were quite the daredevils, haha!

When we'd had our fill of the buggy, Susie took me to the infamous Parrish Shoes sign, as seen in the movie Jumanji (the movie was filmed in Keene). I'd seen the sign before, but my guardian hadn't. She's a huge fan of the movie and had to see the sign for herself! 

Susie and I continued walking around the shops in downtown Keene for a bit, before having dinner at the local Friendly's. After dinner, we said goodbye, and I went on my way back to Bellows Falls, Vermont, where I was staying for this leg of the journey.

It was so good to see Claudia and Susie again (as well as some of their other friends whom we didn't get pictures with due to inclement weather)! I already miss them! Perhaps I shall have to make a third trip up to Keene someday?

Have you ever taken a road trip to see friends who live faraway?

~Sophie

Fun with the Sisterhood of the Water St. girls!

Salut, mes amis! Wondering where I've been? These past few weeks I've been hanging out and just having a blast with the Sisterhood of the Water St. Girls in New Hampshire. I've also got to meet a few of the Star Valley girls, too, although I'll be officially visiting Star Valley soon enough.

Anyhow, I was quite tired when I arrived on July 23rd, so Jenn just let me sleep the day away. When I awoke, I was greeted by Elphie, and having already talked to her a bit online, I was ecstatic to finally meet her in person.

Soon enough, I met Mia, and we headed off on a road trip to the Natick AG Boutique & Bistro - quel amusement! Jenn and Missy were even kind enough to get me my own souvenir shirt. (Thank You!)

Mia and I (with Mischa and Emily of Star Valley) even had fun in the bathroom. Here we are meeting our "mirror friends" - kind of like Anne Shirley's dear window friend in Anne of Green Gables.
Bien sûr, looking at my mirror reflection made me miss my own dear twin, Juliette. I decided to go look for her in the store, but since she's still back in Paris and isn't looking to apply to school over here at this time, I knew any girls who looked like me in the store were just unrelated clones. But don't I wish that Juliette had been among them!

After leaving the mall, we stopped on the French King Bridge to admire the pretty view. Here I am with Water St.'s newest resident, Solana. Isn't she gorgeous?

On August 1st, Elphie and I decided to join Sarah and Annie of Star Valley on a visit to Ashuelot Park in Keene, NH. Here I am at the park's entrance:

We did a bit of hiking, posed with some pretty wildflowers, climbed a few trees, and found these really cool rocks to climb on. Park outings are the BEST because there are so many things you can do and so many things that stimulate the imagination. Like we found this grove of trees that looked almost magical in appearance! Elphie wanted to try some spells underneath them. Of course, I'd be all for that - except I'm not a witch. ;)

So, what's your favorite thing to do at the park on a summer day?

Ton amie,

Sophie

Adventures in Colorado!

Hi all,

As I'm heading off to my next host, I thought I'd update you on some of the fun I've been having with Kiki, Luci, and the girls in Colorado. After all, I do have a WiFi connection in my travel box!

Luci and I visited her town's little Miner's Museum, and I saw this pretty little doll! Isn't she neat? I'm not much of a doll person myself, but I like seeing antique dolls and imagining what lives they might've led with their own little girls.

Luci, Kiki, Mia, Eva, and I had our own little coal mining adventure. Kiki and Luci were the "breaker boys" and had to separate the coal from the rocks, Mia (with her funny mustache!) was their boss, I was the mule driver (with Starburst and Sombrita as the mules!), and Eva (not pictured) was the wealthy mine owner. It was a fun adventure, although I cannot imagine that real coal mining would be nearly as fun (much too dangerous).

Mia, Eva, and I also had another little adventure in the treehouse - a pirate adventure! We tied on our bandannas and pretended to load up our ship (the treehouse) for a grand ocean adventure. Did we see Captain Jack Sparrow? Don't I wish! ;)

As the days grew warmer, Luci led me outside to sit on the fence and just watch life run its natural course. That might sound a little boring to you, but I wasn't bored in the slightest! The view from Luci's backyard is breathtakingly beautiful with the mountains on the horizon line and the big, blue sky looming ahead. I can see why Nicki-Vicki love Colorado so much!

Before I had to leave, Kiki wanted to take me on a hiking adventure. As a city girl at heart, hiking was such an unusual experience for me. I felt as if I was on another planet (albeit a really gorgeous planet)! Silly me even tried to touch the cacti, but Kiki pulled my hand away just in time.

I've have such a great time in Colorado that I do hate to leave! I shall really miss Mia, Eva, Kiki, Luci, and Holly! Thank you, girls, for letting me come and visit. :)

Ton amie,

Sophie