The roof is repaired and I talk about my father's funeral for the first time..

[@MicheleLRid]

Stephanie - I love that you have such long term relationships with Michael and Nick. Friendship is a precious thing and the evolution of relationships can be tricky. What a wonderful thing to own a chateau with your best friends and continue making memories with them and their loved ones! ❤

[@kathyevans2968]

Beautifully said.. so true

[@charmainejfritz]

dont forget about ollie - i do miss seeing him!!

[@mariamargaritagarcia8049]

What an enviable relationship !!! 🎉🎉

[@CatherineCarr-c1i]

I totally agree.. this is just beautiful

[@maryannspicher]

I’ve been watching the old vlogs back in the evenings after work during the heatwave here in Pennsylvania. So many things stand out to me now and how much has changed. The mass in your little chapel held by one of the former owners-asking God to help you with restorations. You sitting in the grand salon hoping to one day get paneling for it. You’ve really come a long way in the years I have followed you. It appears you are a lot like your father. Strong and chasing your dreams. No doubt he is showering you with blessings from above, and is beaming with pride. 😊

[@lindaprefontaine3948]

Thank you for sharing your treasured memories with us Stephanie! You would make your father proud. So great you, Nick and Michael have been friends for so long. Loved how dapper Phillip looked in his black and white finery! Love from Vancouver Island, Canada. ❤

[@mommashawna707]

Now she does daily Vlogs but there was a group of us, ones that watched from the beginning after she would get done with her daily Christmas vlogs, around this time you would start to notice in the comments we would be talking about re-watching all of her videos because we were missing those daily Vlogs. Now the last couple years they’ve changed up so much and I do believe it’s mainly because of her popularity and it has led her to have some of the old volunteers back, now paid staff, which I personally have enjoyed so much especially Marie. One of my favorites is when Stephanie and Marie went and stayed at the treehouse, that was fun but I also just really enjoyed re-watching the Christmas ones they were just so enjoyable and for those of us with small families, what we dreamed our Christmases would look like.

[@mariamargaritagarcia8049]

Exact and beautiful comment !!

[@MaryEllen_of_OBX]

I too have been rewatching the older videos! I have watched some at least 3x probably much more! I too think that mass is one of the main reasons that everything works out so well in the end for LaLande. The priest's blessing is working! There's power in our words. I get so excited seeing all the changes that have happened in five years! 🤯. The chateau and grounds will probably be nearly finished by 2030 at this rate!

[@Rosebudd1957]

@@MaryEllen_of_OBX

[@nancywhite4057]

Ruby and Lancelot adorable

[@lorrainel2314]

Concur, Stephanie, time wears off the acute grief to leave a a gentle sadness and fond memories 🥰

[@vladeckk21]

Of all the many marvels we've seen in this vlog, the chapel restorers continue to absolutely blow my mind. Despite the enormous cost, I think the chateau's getting a bargain for this level of quality.

[@hollykeller1545]

OMG!!! I kind of never thought the wine colored walls in the chapel were that pretty but I was in shock today and had to pause the picture to look at how beautiful they are now‼️👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🩷🇺🇸

[@alc7020]

Oh my for those steady hands of the painters❣️The gilding is wonderful.

[@wandacasper5612]

The chapel is awesome. Beautiful. They have done a great job

[@carissajohns4102]

Your father was an amazing human. He has never left your side love. He loves watching you build your dreams 💙

[@squirrellytales3604]

He would be so proud of her. 💜🦝

[@DonnieJ2024]

Stephanie- THANK YOU for sharing about your father … my daddy passed away last week on July 7th of lung cancer that metastasized into his brain at age of 76 and would have turned 77 July 9th and it happened very fast. I feel like you’re going through the attics at the same time and reminiscing on your past lines up with my experience right now and encourages me in my grief. My father was a painter too and a drummer. Btw I watch every episode and I’ve been watching since you began posting on YT.

[@trishwinstead28]

@DonnieJ2024, condolences fir the loss of your father. My father passed away 50 years ago and I still miss him. I feel sure you will always love ❤️ him. I wish you peace.

[@trishwinstead28]

Can't edit so fir* is for

[@msellenandrea]

I'm so sorry for your loss

[@lindseyreadyhough8225]

Sending love and huge hugs ❤

[@mhtammi]

Condolences. Lost my father 27 years ago and still miss him. I’m lucky though, to have had a wonderful father for 32 years and there are so many happy stories I can share with my sons who were born after dad passed away.

[@JLR1957]

I prepared and read the eulogy for my father, Stephanie. It was the most difficult thing I have ever done 😢❤🇦🇺

[@mhtammi]

I did the same. It was hard but neither my mom nor my sister were up to it. They say I did him proud. I hope so. It’s been 27 years and everyday there’s something that reminds me of him. Happy memories but I still tear up as I miss him.

[@theresechenoweth2321]

I would never be able to do that. I would sob at even the WEDDING of a complete stranger, let alone a funeral.

[@lindag8557]

Isn’t it a wonderful testament to the beauty of your mother’s soul to find instantaneous love not once but twice in her life. A blessed woman indeed ❤

[@dianewetherill185]

Very moving eulogy of your father. Nice to know his history. Amazing self taught painter!❤

[@MaryEllen_of_OBX]

I loved hearing about your parents first meeting! So funny and adorable!

[@patriciarinaldi9390]

Not hornets a paper wasp nest . Not as ominous. It is wonderful that the restores put the stone back. Amazing you lived in a closet and then shared it with Michael 😮. The garden looks beautiful!!!! Enjoy

[@suzyq555]

Yes they were a couple.

[@jf1a8x1]

Thank you for sharing your speach! Your father is such a mystery figure whose presence is yet still continual and we only barely get to know him through you Stephanie!

[@randyrice1429]

Only four of you, but thousands of us watching and wishing we, too, could have some nibbly dinner. LaLande looks beautiful in summer! So lush.

[@elizabethclark8374]

Hi Stephanie, I am happy for you that you had such a wonderful father! I do not take this personally, but I was not so fortunate with a caring father. My real father had a mental illness- bipolar. So… my parents divorced when I was 7. Thankfully, I had a very good mother and when I was 15 she remarried and I had a WONDERFUL step-father from then on. Elizabeth in Texas

[@gigih.9254]

I've become totally addicted to your channel. Your joie de vie and cheerful spirit make me happy. I think you and Philip are adorable together and I love seeing Marie's food. Num! Thank you for sharing your life with us!!

[@susanamann1806]

Put them in a special memorial book. It clears the heart and mind and puts it all in place.

[@mariac4602]

Agreed! It's a creative outlet that results in a beautiful memorial of someone you love.

[@jenwhitelife2464]

Cleaning can be so good for our soul. Yours is so beautiful of course you find joy in so much in life. We love this channel and those who populate it. God bless you and yours. Love, jenwhite 😊❤😊

[@arabellacameron7620]

The work done in the chapel is exquisite. Such a treat to have the best restorer.

[@deirdrecerasa3932]

The eulogy for your father is heartwarming. Thank you for sharing it with us. Happy the chapel is getting closer to finished. ❤

[@rosemariedeschenes7013]

The eulogy was beautiful. So nice to have friends that have stood by through thick and thin. So much as changed from the first days at the chateau and for the better. Lancelot and Ruby are adorable together. The chapel is really coming along beautifully 😍😘

[@fierywomanpacnw7004]

It's a glorious, beautifully written eulogy.

[@chericornish4800]

Stephanie I love your beautiful tribute to your darling Father. I am so sorry for your loss of your darling Father. My Father wasn’t any good. I have no happy memories of him. Thank you for sharing such a lovely eulogy for your darling Father. You were blessed to have him indeed

[@JM-wg7ow]

I do agree with you I had an awful awful father and it must have been such a blessing having such a wonderful father he will be looking down on you all with such joy ❤❤

[@Jayrose59]

I sang a song at my dads funeral and made a memorial album. I wrote a poem for my mums funeral and read it at her funeral. It was very special.

[@lindataylor5779]

Thank you for sharing your beautiful eulogy for your father. He was clearly a remarkable and caring man, who helped prepare you for a life of adventure, happiness and following your dreams. You were fortunate in both your parents--your Mom is also a great person and how special that Gerry joined your family, too! My parents also met and married after only a 10 or 12 weeks. My grandfather was a Baptist missionary, who like your grandfather was held in a Japanese prisoner camp during WW2 in Shanghai. I hope your grandfather survived. My grandfather was the last person on the last boat in which prisoners were exchanged between Japan and the US, so he came home. My mother was the main caregiver for my Dad who had Alzheimer's and she died before him. I was the only one of my siblings who spoke at her funeral. My brother brought my Dad to the funeral and that was his tribute to our Mom. When Dad died three weeks later, both my brother and I spoke at his funeral. I still have notes of what I said but didn't write out my eulogy. It's wonderful that you did write it out and give such a great tribute so that we can really appreciate what a great person and human being he was.

[@moonchild1518]

I have so much love and admiration for you Stephanie.😀

[@annettewalter2273]

You must have been the inspiration for Harry Potter living in a cupboard. Wonderful memories. Quite a transition from a cupboard to a chateau. 😊😊😊😊😊. I know when my Father died none of us were able to speak I wrote the eulogy and it was read by a friend.

[@MoNaBookworm]

Thank you for sharing your fathers eulogy. That’s so special. And thank you so much for showing the pictures and talking about the cover that you and then you and Michael stayed in. It’s so cool to get a glimpse into the long history that the three of you shared together. It’s hilarious to see that you were staple gunning the fabric to the walls, even then. All the best to you and all the Lalanders. ❤

[@anastassiaastapova1047]

That is some amazing wine. It’s made by one of the top winemakers in the world. Glad it made it to France.

[@lindamitman4538]

I can’t wait to read your speech about your father. You speak so eloquently about him.

[@cliffhorman6846]

I do love the garden and forest... and the memories...

[@janetg1691]

You get your optimism and brilliant creativity (to see what the rest of us fail to see) from your dad. Thank you for posting your funeral speech. Love to you from the west coast of Canada.

[@armymom8378]

The arches in the garden are stunning ! Garden goals for me ! Lots of love to each one of y'all !❤❤❤❤❤

[@veronicarunge2241]

Thank you for sharing your speech about your Father - an insight into his amazing life and how he touched everyone. From Australia.

[@kathyevans2968]

I cannot tell you how much hearing your father’s eulogy moved me and hearing how time heals. It was the hardest but proudest experience reading my own father’s eulogy just over a year ago. I wanted everyone to know what an incredible man and loving father he was. You have done this on an international scale though; what a tribute to his life & love! The way you treasure Friends, family & life, as well as your special chateau & chapel is why I enjoy your vlogs!

[@cjpowers9330]

I never tire of your well chosen and edited videos. They are as a result a delight to watch, but alas, despite the transformations I’m yet to feel at all able to understand the spoken word in French.

[@valerialamberti9037]

I have never had the pleasure of meeting someone with as much emotional intelligence as Stephanie, I think I find her little flaws adorable, this must be true love! 😂😂 All my admiration and gratitude for sharing your moments with us! ❤

[@monikastuckey8737]

Thank you for your beautiful words about mourning. Exactly what I needed to hear.

[@mhtammi]

I showed my husband a clip of Philip and suggested he wear a similar outfit and he said he would have to lose a lot of weight. I suggested he start that diet and exercise regime right away😂

[@phyllishill114]

What A Beautiful story about your Father ❤ and your Mother ❣️

[@jeannesullivan6154]

Your father was an amazing painter.❤

[@marletadaza855]

This vlog is my happy pill❤

[@friendlhi]

from living in a cupboard under the stairs to owning a chateau - sounds like a fairy tale Harry Potter like - or thriller-like maybe - wow - no wonder Nick is elusive having had you living down there - even two of you 🙂✌- and its so brave to share and honor your father's life in a sad time also to bring a climpse of comfort and light to your mum and all - even to us now - its soooo generous ❤ - you are tough and beaming like a diamond 💎 also when sharing chateau and other catastrophes 🙂 ) - wonderful ❤🌦🌞heartfelt thanks ⚜ I do not like to patronize but need to become a patron anyway .....

[@lakelili]

So good to have Hannie back!

[@loriwhinery3210]

My husband was born in Exeter California. I love your love for your father so touching ,I’m glad you had a wonderful dad, my dad wasn’t a good man at all! You were blessed !❤️💖💙💜

[@lidanaude8022]

What an extraordinary life you have! Still you have kept your appreciation of it. Thank you for sharing your heart about your daddy as well! I am sure he looks down from heaven and smiles on you! ❤❤❤

[@ljw1414]

What’s been done at the Chateau especially in the chapel is absolutely incredible , so beautiful thank you so much for sharing your lives & work there as it’s such a great escape for us all & well done to the restorers 🥂

[@nancystevens7447]

The berries looked to tempting,one would not suffice for me! I could do some damage if left alone. Lovely summer evenings are my fave…….

[@daphneerler8496]

Dear beautiful compassionate and loving Stephanie - sharing your beloved family memories with us is so humbling and poignant. The friendship you have with Nick and Michael is so special and unique - long may your friendship continue to blossom and thrive. From left field -The raising of that massive stone is mesmerising to watch 🤩🤩🤩

[@Marykguise]

Such beautiful memories of your father. Incredible hand detailing in the chapel. Always sorry to see Michael Potts go. Love from Mary in Southern California 💗

[@RestorationDream]

It was nice to hear about your father. He seemed a very nice man. My dad died of melanoma in 2014 and I still can’t look at his photo. My mom is mentally ill and she abused me my whole life and turned my dad and the entire family against me. As a result, I did not ever get to see my dad or even know him. I was an artist, which made it worse as he wanted me to be a doctor and I was more like your dad. He was a fancy international business man so he was never home. As a result, I have no family, I always wanted a mother amd a father. Maybe Isabel can adopt a much too old for her daughter at 51? Lol. Just kidding, it would be so nice.

[@carolynresendiz5291]

Me too this blog is my therapy

[@susannahwhitaker994]

Stephanie , the view from your window is like looking at a beautiful painting and the words you wrote for your father were wonderful. You have obviously been articulate from an early age .🤗

[@Sally237-s4w]

I’m glad you’ve filled us in on your father n mother meeting and some person history..u started in a cupboard into a chateau ,that’s progress. It’s good we have our memories ..that’s why it’s important to stay close to our parents ..every miniute is precious .

[@deeoh3708]

My goodness Stephanie! from a small small cupboard the size of a trimmed up mattress... to a Chateau... What a journey!! Well done you! Thanks for sharing such an interesting bit of your history.

[@pamelahaskell809]

Never a dull moment at the Chateau. Loving the history of you and the family.

[@peterwhite9261]

Wow, that stone installation was fast. They cleaned the gutter, too! Well done. The chapel painting is incredible! Safe travels, Micheal. Stephanie, I once lived in a very small space like that as well, many moons ago. That was quite the nibbly dinner! The garden is divine.❤

[@phyllishill114]

You have Great workers

[@jf1a8x1]

I wonder if Hansel was admiring his reflection in the window?! 🤔🤣

[@hughcrawford1978]

Great to see the restorers in action.

[@lindagage7315]

That was lovely!

[@cheryldolence9559]

I think you need to look into gutter guards! 🤣

[@AnneSmith-mu2ph]

Morning all ,the chapel is incredible stunning beautiful,you must be so pleases Stephanie lv Ann uk 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧❤️❤️❤️

[@sonnykat462]

My wonderful dad also had a heart condition all his life from rheumatic fever as a child. He too was a magnificent painter and a superb human being.

[@billymeyer99]

Thank you for sharing about your life.

[@cheryldingley4546]

Thank you for sharing your father’s eulogy Stephanie. It created a vision and picture of a truly remarkable man. I love that he made you believe in and pursue your dreams with courage and that he lived fully in the moment (which all the great souls do) - Even though this could result in precarious and humorous situations. 😂His intelligence, creativity, warm spirit, being a great artist, husband, Dad, family man, colleague and friend shine through. A very beautiful soul.❤️

[@bluemoon1033]

A lovely, interesting Vlog! ✨🏆🇦🇺

[@sandicarpenter2658]

Wonderful video Stephanie....I will certainly read the transcript 😍I can't believe the painstaking work in painting the fabulous detail in the chapel! Such patience and love for the job...it looks incredibly beautiful. The stone I was so curious to see how it would be replaced...amazing guys. Sandi x

[@SharonRidings]

Fascinating how they are able to replace the stone with such ease. Pure craftsmanship

[@carladejonge4951]

I loved hearing your Dad’s eulogy & your history with your friends! The garden is quite beautiful, as are your peacocks! Those babies are darling! Nibble dinner sounds great!❤

[@carolynstewart8465]

Great delivery of your wonderful sense of humor!❤❤❤❤

[@3_3645]

Your dad would have been a few years younger than my neighbor who also went through the blitz as a child one afternoon she told me her stories living through it. History we must never forget. Coral family mementos in a trunk. My mom would pin notes to linens or anything special as to which relative made such and such etc. It really helps complete the memories 💙

[@traceydonnelly2449]

It is coming up to my mum s first anvisery of her death from terminal cancer on the 19th August and it is little I think that she liked and it makes sad xx

[@TheChateauDiaries]

I'm so sorry for your loss ❤️

[@marihart-qbc]

Merci beaucoup pour la jolie balade de fin de journée. Le Château vous ressemble : c'est l'écrin qui vous correspond le mieux ❤ merci pour le partage

[@charmainejfritz]

all girls deserve wonderful fathers! a lovely eulogy to yours. the arches with the clematis are just gorgeous - gardens are doing so well!

[@MaryEllen_of_OBX]

Thank you for sharing your speach.

[@elizabethmiddleton5613]

I love you have such a wonderful relationship with the chapel restorers. They seem like highly skilled, terrific people. This bodes very well for your ongoing restoration work throughout the chateau. Cheers to you all!

[@clairecooper9931]

My son and his friends just went to Budapest yesterday for the Grand Prix.

[@Jackystevens-gu1ku]

Thank you for sharing these personal memories ❤

[@lindawentink2725]

I got gooseflesh listening to your eulogy for your dad. How beautiful Stephanie. ❤

[@francoisebekaert8137]

Years and years of "stuff"!!! What an amazing amount of clearing still needs to be done. It's much less tyring if one doesn't let it get to that level.....bon courage!!

[@mattneillninasmom]

Enjoy the comparative quiet now everyone's gone off. Time for oneself and for the permanent residents to spend together.

[@marychrishannon7048]

Thanks for sharing details of your life and your comments about your father. It explains a lot about you (all good)

[@SuzylondonUK]

Thank you Stephanie! I went a a little crazy since last Friday in London so I have a few episodes to catch up on. Sending lots of hugs. I hope France weather is much better than here ! Its only decided to be 27c and now Im sick with the summer cold hahaha

[@corinnapetry65]

Thank you for sharing a snapshot of your father's life. He sounds wonderful.

[@carriehare6796]

Stephanie, thank you so much for sharing the speech from your father’s funeral. I’ve just lost my own father this morning, and I can’t imagine how I will balance the joy he was in my life, and the absolute agony of going on without him. I hope I will also find only happy remembering. I’ve been watching every vlog since the beginning, and look forward to every notification of a new video. Today I felt connected to you all in a new way. Thank you so much for sharing so selflessly with us all around the world. ❤️

[@allymayful]

Sending you love and hugs.

[@isabellejarvis7805]

I am so sorry for you and send my deepest condolences.

[@FluffyFace-mj3ro]

Love that the ornamental cabbage 'doesn't do anything, just makes us happy'

[@danielintheantipodes6741]

Memories can be painful, but sometimes it is good to look back. Looking back can remind us of where we are going, as well as where we have been. I would love to collect china, but I am so obsessed with collecting books and they take up so much space! I need to work on China Storage before I actually go and start buying the china itself! Thank you for the video!

[@johnnyjones444]

I'd love to see a meal with the restorers of the chapel, other craftsmen and builders.

[@donnadodman8865]

So heartwarming hearing the story about how your parents met. Thx for sharing Steph! ❤

[@CatMindy2187-o4v]

I love your cupboard bedroom!! A demain...

[@jennifercampbell7698]

I loved reading your tribute to your father. I am sure he is watching over you all and is thrilled with what is happening in your lives and at LaLande. His continual presence at the Chateau is felt through his art and your stories of your father. ❤️❤️

[@jannevils1526]

Stephanie the chapel is magnificent. I want your wedding dress to be just as magnificent as that chapel. I will love whatever dress you pick because I love your style!! Au Revoir!!

[@teresaproano7984]

What a wonderful video… I enjoyed it from start to finish. Well done Stephanie and thank you fore sharing your Father’s funeral eulogy❤

[@Twistnsine]

What a wonderful episode, Stephanie, and what a wonderful like you have had so far. And so precious it is to spend it with long time friends too 😍🙏❤️ I admire you for (many things) speaking at your father’s funeral. I recorded and sang a song after my mother’s death in 2009, and played it at my dad’s funeral in 2021. I could not have done it LIVE 🙏 Thank you Stephanie for taking us with you on your journey through life ❤️

[@yvesgonin1958]

wonderful

[@janetclarke6135]

You always give me a lift to watch your videos because you're always so happy. Today was beautiful about your father's eulogy and how your parents met. I love all the animals with the dogs and peacocks and sheep but always hoped one day I'd see a cat and today I was so happy to see the beautiful ginger cat. Now it's truly perfect and I loved how she was loving up Lancelot. I'm so happy that you and Phillip are together because I think you make the perfect couple and I look forward to seeing your wedding in the Chapel. I love when two beautiful and kind souls find each other. Thank you for your beautiful videos. Wishing you both the very best of everything now and forever.