While L-Daddy and Middle L were away on Saturday, Juju loaded Big L, Baby L and me into the van for an afternoon at a hidden gem - the Chateau de Sauvage (Castle of Wild) in Emance, just 20 
minutes from where we live. Hidden behind a gate with tall hedges, we discovered an excellent zoological reserve filled with free-roaming exotic wildlife such as pink flamingos, peacocks and friendly wallabies (many with joeys poking little legs, tails and heads out of their pouches). As if six squawking, hopping kilometers of walking trail weren't picturesque enough, the scene was overlooked by a beautiful "chateau;" not the original Louis XIV one, unfortunately, but majestic all the same. Even with a tired Baby-L on our hands, we were easily able to spend two hours strolling the grounds and feeding the animals with crumbs of left-over baguette ends. With many more-famous chateaus (such as Versailles, Rambouillet, Chambord and even Maintenon) to visit in the area, it was a treat to find one so unique.
Sunday brought two of Juju's colleagues to the house for lunch and we left the 4-Ls behind to indulge in a little girl-time. After feasting on oven-roasted Turkey osso bucco (you can do anything with Turkey, apparently!) we drove like maniacs to our 2:30 riding appointment at the
Galopard stables. Once we'd brushed off all the caked-on mud from our horses and shakily adjusted ourselves in the saddles, we took off through the streets of St. Prest Village and into the forest for an hour-long balancing act. Though we smelled overwhelmingly like hay after dismounting and couldn't sit for the rest of the evening, I was thrilled to be able to cross it off my "to-do-while-living-in-the-countryside" list.Thanks Juju!
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