A New Season and New Campus for Le Petit Jardin - An Open House inspired by LOVE
Bonjour! Today I write with greetings of love and friendship as we celebrate La fête de La Saint Valentin. As I take in all that ‘amour’ means in our daily lives, I see love and appreciation for our spouses, family, long-time friends, neighbors, supportive coworkers, and at this moment in particular, a pulling at our hearts to love OUTSIDE of our immediate circles as we all collectively pray, hope and will for LOVE to prevail in our country and globally as we witness many injustices. It sure is a whole lot of LOVE to hold in our hearts on the daily — and yet — we DO! We are infinitely able to LOVE more and more, it does seem. And for that miracle I am so very grateful!
In mentioning love, gratitude and miracles, it is on my heart to take a moment and reflect on the special blessing of our most recent LPJ event that took place last weekend. It was a Portes-Ouvertes and Marché St Valentin hosted at our wonderful new campus location in Marinwood. We welcomed over a hundred guests from all over the North Bay and served up that signature warm and welcoming LPJ hospitality in the form of music, art, food, and genuine community. It was a true cultural feast for all in attendance. Our guests enjoyed live French music, freshly made-to-order crêpes, a curated shopping experience as a pre-Valentine’s Day opportunity to purchase artisan gifts, jewelry, fresh flowers and more! Children were treated to some wonderful crafting activities lead by members of our lovely LPJ staff, and I had the honor or touring local families through our bright new building and playground spaces, sharing about our unique language immersion preschool program and getting to know them all as our new neighbors!
After a very busy and bustling morning, when all was swept and cleaned-up, my heart was unmistakably bursting with LOVE and thankfulness. I was was so thankful for our perfect new campus, for all the people who helped to renovate this dreamy property and get it ready to welcome our first students this past fall. Thankful for the families who made the leap to join us in our inaugural school year here and how enthusiastic they have been in sharing their love for us with other friends and families in their communities, helping us to GROW so quickly! Thankful for the LPJ families of Mill Valley and Sonoma who have supported the launch of our newest campus and come to see us and partake in our events and festivities. Thankful for my own sweet family who make lots of sacrifices and are willing to pitch in at any time and make my crazy dreams and plans come to life, often one delicious crêpe at a time. Some say dreams are built brick by brick — LPJ is definitely built crêpe by crêpe!
If you’re anything like me and the world seems large and inaccessible to you today, just remember that your efforts to pour love into your family and immediate community, your child’s school, your book club, your church, your neighborhood block party…. it all counts. One pebble tossed out creates a ripple that can radiate far and wide. Keep smiling at strangers, keep giving long hugs, keep extending grace to your neighbors, keep throwing parties and feeding people at your table. I will keep cherishing our LPJ families, their precious children we are blessed and honored to be caring for, and keep the crêpe parties going!!
LOVE LOVE LOVE — today and always,
Ambi