the third stop on our epic euro roadtrip was provence. there are a few places on earth that just speak to my soul – that thrill me to the bones and spark joy deep in my spirit distinctly unlike any other spots – and provence is one of those places. we went to provence a couple years ago when we were en route to the french riviera, and we saw miles and miles and miles of flower-less lavender and sunflower fields. we vowed to return at the peak of bloom in july some day. our return was both earlier and even more spectacular than i could have imagined. my heart was so, so, so happy during these days spent among the flowers and vineyards in the south of france. the boys had a good time, too 🙂

we drove from loire valley to a little provençal village where we had booked an airbnb. this stone cottage that we called home for a few days turned out to be maybe our very favourite traveling accommodation we’ve ever had. it was just so perfect! just the right amount of space for our family (with a bunk bed for the boys!), set in a stunning location surrounded by vineyards, and with access to a lovely pool included!

we were so excited when we first arrived, and we were greeted that evening by a lovely sunset.

we spent the next morning playing at the pool. moses jumped off the diving board hundreds of times and had the time of his life. gabriel mostly watched his big brother and paddled on the top step at the other side of the pool, haha. the weather was positively delicious and it was so nice to relax after the busy few days that had proceeded traveling from london to giverny and loire valley and on to provence.

in the afternoon we set out to find some lavender. prepare your eyes now for lots of purple in this post! we snapped some photos at this lovely roadside field after noticing brilliant patches of flowers down in the valley while driving along the ridge of the hills. it was just a little taste of alllll the lavender to come.

more pool time…!

the next day we set out on a drive through the valensole peninsula. and we certainly hit the lavender at peak bloom. it was absolutely incredible. sorry for sooo many photos, but this is like 1/10 of the ones that i took. it was just so so so so gorgeous!

we found a spot with a lavender field right next to a sunflower field. it was spectacular. (i’m probably going to use every superlative in the book in these posts about provence!)

then we carried on to find even more expansive fields of purple and yellow. but i’ll give readers’ eyes a break and put those photos in the next post 🙂

i love you, i love you, i love you provence.