Happy Homemaker Monday on a Tuesday

 

Happy new week to you Friends!

It's nice to be back, although it was hard to leave. We were gone on a trip all last week to FL to visit our Annie. We got back late last night and I'm just trying to catch up in my world here. But I thought to still do an HHM post would be a good way to check back in with you all. 💗

We were in gorgeous 70 and 80* temps and came back to single digits and below zero with windchill temps. Ugh! Lol But Matt & I had the best time with Annie and her boyfriend Kris, and we are so grateful we got to soak up some warm sunshine. The time flew by and we were so busy in such fun ways. We went to Epic Universe and that was such a fun day. We had 70's pleasant weather and walked almost 8 miles that day according to Matt's tracker. I was able to go on almost all the rides (not the scariest roller coaster - Matt had to go without me) but it was such a fun day and it's a really great theme park. Matt loves vintage nintendo (collects lots of things) and loves the character Yoshi. I had gotten him a yoshi Hawaiian shirt for Christmas and he of course wore it all day and got lots of people talking to him about it. Lol 

We also went mini golfing, went to a cool escape room, went shopping, great dining and went to St. Pete which was so pretty and I had always wanted to check out that area. And best of all got to watch Annie play hockey in person instead of a on our tv. The Bulls won both games and Annie had a goal in each!! Yay! It was so hard to leave our beautiful Girl but incredibly grateful for the time with her and her sweet bf Kristopher.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS:

ON THE BREAKFAST PLATE THIS MORNING:

keto toast with a honey spread, coffee

ON MY TO DO LIST THIS WEEK:

groceries, errands, appts, projects, need to take a friend to lunch as belated birthday time for her, hospice work

THINKING ABOUT: 

The pain in my heart about everything that happened in MN the past few weeks. I don't like to get political here. I don't consider myself a political person as I find it hard to have faith in any of them in this day and age. In my opinion those offices are supposed to be public servants and it feels like it's all about their personal agendas or who has the most money. But that's not what I'm trying to share here. 

I love my country. My Bro is a retired combat medic green beret shot in Afghanistan and has a purple heart for that. He's retired now and I have always been proud of him and all he gave for our country we both love. 

Matt & I live in northern WI and spend about half of our time in MN. We go to the Twin Cities often (it's less than 3 hrs from us) and I have several relatives and a best friend that lives there. We live a bridge drive over the lake to a city in MN where we do a lot of shopping, dining etc. Our lake property is also in MN. I live a truly kind of bipartisan life. WI is known for being more conservative and MN liberal. I have people in my life I'm very close to and love very much who are pretty conservative and some who are very liberal. I don't judge any of them - I listen and love and respect them for their right to their opinions and beliefs. I live my life by Jesus above all and try to be as giving, kind, caring and moral as I can be. 

And I have direct accounts from my family and friends there that have witnessed what has gone on MN these past weeks. My best friend has a masters in psychology and works in a school in the cities and the horrible things she witnessed from intimidation by ICE towards kids and staff sickened me. Annie has several friends going to the U of M and one of them lives in an apt building right where Alex Pretti was shot. She was so horrified she was texting Annie while we were sitting in a restaurant in FL in real time with what was going on. He was shielding a woman that was getting brutally treated and pushed around by ice. He was only holding his phone and his weapon (that was holstered and he had a permit to carry) was taken from his back holster by ICE, so he had no gun. They witnessed him hold up a phone and his other hand which was free of any weapon as they shot him in the head. He was an American citizen and an ICU nurse for veterans and I witnessed for myself how lies were spread and the administration spun about him, when people I know and believe 100% saw first hand what happened. He gave up his life to protect another from our own countrymen. How is this our country? And that is the 3rd death since ICE had been there. One person died while in custody (health things) and there was the death of Renee Good  and then Alex. I know witnesses of Renee's shooting that also say that narrative was spun out of proportion and that ICE person was never in danger. This feels like terrorism by our own government. How does this happen here???

I know that over 15,000 people in MN protested peacefully against ICE in frigid below zero temps the day before Alex was shot - as that is the people I believe we are up here. Kind, caring, peaceful, nature loving folks. There is a common term called "MN nice" and that is the kind of people I have known of Minnesotans my whole life. No, I don't believe in illegal immigrants who are criminals, drug dealers being here. I can respect what is trying to be done - but this is not the way to protect people. Or to get real change in my opinion. The head of the police of Mnpls was interviewed on national news and said that his officers were spread so thin because of ICE. He shared that in all of last year 800 guns were taken off the street by the local authorities, tons of drug dealers dealt with etc and they didn't shoot one person. ICE came and 3 people dead in less than 3 weeks. He said it was unsustainable for them to keep things up and more innocent people would be killed. 

What I want to know is how did we get here as a nation? I always thought of America in such a prideful way.  The ways we were strong, caring, worked to help others in the world, UNITED. I have never felt more divided in this country than now. And the over generalizations I hear baffle me. Again, I have very conservative folks like my Mom in my life, and very liberal folks like my son in my life. We all love and listen to one another. And both of them believe, like I do, in Christ as our Lord and Savior. And yet, my Bro who is conservative and served in the military is agnostic and doesn't think there is a God and needs proof. So it's not about God like I hear some conservatives say. And it's now about how all liberals are trying to promote everyone be one sex and get sex changes. Because I am in both conservative and liberal worlds and neither is true. What I see is how we are alike in what we want. We want a safe country for our kids, with good schooling, affordable health care and our right to live our lives according to our own beliefs and be respected within it. 

I'm not sure how we got here but I don't like how our Leader likes to call people names, blame Democrats constantly and "sleepy Joe" etc. He does so much name calling and finger pointing that just causes so much more division in my opinion - and gives the okay to be cruel. He makes me feel like his mentality  is " you are either with me and if not than you are against me" . How will that get us anywhere if you won't accept that it's okay others may not think exactly as you do?? I personally feel this administration does a lot of fear mongering and intimidation to try to make others only see their way. It does help explain how we keep getting more divided.  I don't think life is so easily black and white. It's gray area and compassion and discussion and trying to understand one another. That is the kind of leadership I would prefer. One of promoting us to talk to and understand one another and search for the common ground to bring everyone united together. We would be so much stronger and our country so much safer it were that way. 

Thanks for letting me share. I prayed a lot before I did and it was put on my heart to do it. I don't plan to ever make this a political space. I am about faith, family, nature, recipes, crafts etc. But I felt like it would have hurt my heart today more if I didn't share what I knew because I'm so close to it currently. I treasure this beautiful space and my friendships here where I can share my heart and I always feel respect and understanding - even if we don't always agree. I hope you feel the same from me. 

And I just remain fervent in prayer for safety and peace for our country always. 🙏🏻

THINGS THAT MAKE ME HAPPY:

watching my children become amazingly smart, caring, kind young adults

CURRENTLY READING

Summer at the Comfort Food Cafe by Debbie Johnson

*Read a lot of it on the trip and almost done - such a sweet, funny and heartfelt novel and reminds me so much of my time with my kids early after separation and divorce... when I was grieving but trying to be supermom. And then trying to go into the world of dating. It is making me laugh and cry and it's just been so good so far. 

ON THE TV TODAY:

  Jeopardy, old seasons of big brother & the office, Junk or Jackpot on HGTV, Best Medicine, the Pitt, Shark Tank, Miss Scarlet & All Creatures Great and Small on PBS, cooking shows and movies

ON THE MENU THIS WEEK:

    MONDAY - 

TUESDAY -  

WEDNESDAY -  

THURSDAY - 

FRIDAY - 

*We need groceries and I'm not sure about the menu - I know I have chicken noodle soup I had made in the freezer I will thaw, and we have eggs to use up, also some veggies to maybe do a sheet pan something with meat from the freezer? When we go to the grocery store I'd like to make a big pot of some other soup or chili to be comforting from this cold weather too. 

TO RELAX THIS WEEK I WILL:

maybe try to wake up my sourdough starter and bake some bread, finish my current book, paint

TIPS OR SOMETHING TO SHARE:

FROM THE CAMERA:

I took a bunch of photos (of course) but I narrowed it down to a hodgepodge of highlights from the trip. We did a Tiger Woods mini golf course that was so cool and different than typical ones. I'm an old lady so I need to toot my horn that I tied for first place with Kristopher on the first 18 and we shot under par. And that I took 2nd place on the next 18 holes only 1 stroke behind Matt (who won that round). Pretty good for an old arthritic dame. Lol 

Annie's hockey was so fun to watch and it was fun chatting with her roommates and teammates and getting to know her world better. 

We had such yummy food moments - highlight for me was the strawberry matcha french toast I had - and Matt loved the BBQ mac and cheese garlic bread cone at the Isle of Berk in Epic Universe. 

The Epic Universe park didn't disappoint and the attention to detail was amazing. It was so fun to see Matt in his element in Nintendo World. I was blown away by the details in the Isle of Berk (How to Train Your Dragon world)

We both loved St. Petersburg (St. Pete) - such a pretty coastal town with wonderful local artists. It was such a great trip! :) 

We love #16💚 Go Bulls!

PRAYER LIST:

 For an end to the conflicts all over the world and anyone living in war & fear. For peace and unity in this country, especially from hate and shootings or violence.  For anyone sick, suffering, in pain, fear, loneliness etc ... that God bring them comfort and peace. 

For the Lord's love and peace to fill 2026. ❤️ 

For Christ's Light and Love to cast out the darkness everywhere and help the world find its way to loving our neighbors as ourselves. 🙏🏻

PRAYER, INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE OR DEVOTIONAL:

A church friend of mine that knows Jessica shared this that Jessica posted:

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends.

John 15:13

I'm sharing this with Sandra of Diary of a SAHM for Happy Homemaker Monday.

Epic Paris and Queen Mary 2 Trip

 

Hello and happy weekend to you Friends!

I'm finally getting some time to focus on this post and share more of the amazing trip we were blessed to take with Matt's family. I had already shared some photos and an explanation about taking this trip in the post here. So go back to that for a moment if you want more back story on taking the trip. 

Of course it's another one of those life moments where I have a ton of photos, and I can't share all - but I'm going to share a lot. This is kind of a time capsule of memories for me on this blog- so I do it a lot for my own sake too. But I'll also share some info and fun moments, as well as all the photos so I can keep this all in one post.  So go grab a mug of hot tea and get cozy and let me take you away on a fun little journey across the Atlantic. 

It started when we hopped over the ocean to get to Paris. Matt's Aunt has been many times and got us a gorgeous apartment along the Champs Elysees that had multiple balcony points where you could step out and see the Arc de Triomphe. The whole area there was so lovely. Our adventure began early when we were supposed to meet up with his Aunt and the rest of our party at the Charles de Gaulle airport. But they were rerouted to Iceland for several hours due to a medical emergency on their plane. So Matt and I had to navigate the airport and Paris on our own and find the apartment where his Aunt had the air b&b host meet us. The rest of our group arrived several hours later. We were jet lagged but we all went to the cutest grocery called Le Bon Marche and got some goodies to wake us up a bit. We went out for dinner later and I did my best to stay awake but on the ride home I fell asleep as you'll see. Lol 

By the way our group consisted of: Matt's Mom and her best friend, his Aunt and his Aunt's best friend and Matthew and I. They were such a fun and a well traveled bunch!!

We ate at some amazing restaurants. And one night we were eating out at a lovely cafe when it started to rain. The wait staff quickly got umbrellas to cover us - but some of our party still got wet and the umbrella was pouring onto some of their food. We all laughed til we cried as it was actually really funny. And the restaurant was so kind and gave us most of our meal for free. Other folks sitting outside got angry but we just found it all part of the adventure. On that rainy night we also went to a gorgeous lounge his Aunt knew and listened to some amazing jazz. It was so cozy! I'll try to share a video of some of the artists "scatting" together. 

wearing her napkin from the rain 😂

sleepy jet lagged girls

jazz artists doing some scat on a cozy rainy Paris night

Also, you can find info about the Arc de Triomphe and Champs Elysees if you click here and here.

Some other highlights we did for the 3 days we were in Paris included touring the Paris Opera House which was absolutely stunning! It's true name is the Palais Garnier.

if you've ever seen The Phantom of the Opera the main staircase kept making me think of the number where they sing "masquerade" :) 

Matt took this because he said he thought I was so pretty - I just see someone hot and sweaty and cooling off. Lol We had just walked about 2 miles to get to the Opera House to meet the rest of the Crew. We didn't realize it was so far. 

they had many costumes displayed from various productions

I can't even imagine how amazing it would be to go to a production here. 

If you'd like more info about the Paris Opera House you can click here.

We also toured the Dior Museum or La Galerie Dior. 

There were SO MANY beautiful exhibits - this is just a taste. But if you want further info on this museum and about Christian Dior you can click here and here.

My absolute favorite Paris moments were when we did a pastry class and made croissant dough and made croissants and other treats. We learned the whole key to the best pastry is the butter. In the U.S. our butter is allowed to have far lower percentages of the fats and things so it brings down the quality. The chef said one of the easiest butters we can get in the states that resembles French butter is Kerry gold Irish butter. 

And then we went on the prettiest yacht cruise down the Seine and had some of the most amazing food and service I've ever experienced! They even had little tables by our seats for our purses!! Crazy. And to dine as you watch the Eiffel Tower and gorgeous bridges and scenery go by was amazing! Just pinch me moments truly. 

Here is more info about the place where we took the pastry class. They were so awesome there and our chef was really cool and very fun! Click here.

Did you know there is a replica of the Statue of Liberty next to the Eiffel Tower? It was given to France by the U.S. in commemoration of the centennial of the French Revolution. You can learn more about that if you click here.

If you liked to know about the Eiffel Tower click here.

Then it was time for the next stage of our trip - a week on the Queen Mary 2 ocean liner! It was Matt' Mom's dream to do this. It was amazing! It's such a beautiful art deco kind of ship. And we went to a lecture by the man that designed the ship and it was so interesting and inspiring. He explained the ways the ship was designed to handle cruising through such a huge ocean safely. It's hull especially is more narrow than giant cruise ships to cut through rough waters if needed. We had a couple of choppy days but the ship sure did handle it great. People often don't refer to it as a "cruise" but as a "crossing". We ran into people that live in Europe part of the year and the states part of the year. They take it back and forth because there's a nice kennel on the top deck and they could get home with their pets more easily than on a plane. Plus, you gain an hour each day you're at sea, so by the time we were in N.Y. we didn't have any jet lag, and just flew right back home to WI. 

If you'd like more info about the Queen Mary 2 click here.

The ship had a very classy atmosphere and each night we ate in the main dining room called the Britannia. It was gorgeous! They had other restaurants if you wanted to make reservations and eat somewhere not included with the trip. But the Britannia had the most amazing food and atmosphere. We had wait staff that got to be like family as we ate at the same table each night. We got to know them and their stories. About their families and their work on the ship. Meals were amazing as they had a new menu each night with so many gourmet options for appetizers, soups, salads, main courses, and dessert. Each night all different and outstanding! It felt kind of like opening a Christmas gift each night opening the menu. Lol And we could order as much of and whatever we wanted. Did I mention I gained weight on this trip? 😋 Worth it!

They also had a wondeful buffet we often went to for lunch during the day. Or we ate fish and chips in the pub. The ship had shops, gorgeous lounges, and many activities and entertainment. Each day we would get up and have wonderful coffee and treats. We would then go out and explore or go to the planetarium, or the pub for a darts tourney, or played bingo or trivia, or we went in the library to read, and sometimes went for a walk on the deck. They had sports top deck too but it was often windy or cold. Then in the evenings we would get together to dine. They had some theme nights we dressed up for too. We usually went to one lounge to listen to a harpist or to the pub to listen to Celtic folk music before dinner. Then after dinner we would go to another lounge and have after dinner drinks and listen to jazz. One night Matt and I did the casino too. Oh, and one night we watched a big band play and another a broadway show in the theater. 

And then there was tea! Each day at 3:15 if you wanted to have high tea you would go to the Queens room (beautiful ballroom with giant chandeliers) and wait as 15-20 people per side of the ballroom would come out with teapots of tea. And everyone would clap for the tea. It cracked me up! Then they would serve it with delicious finger sandwich offerings, scones and clotted cream and jam, and assorted treats. 

This was such a trip of a lifetime! And amazing honeymoon and celebration of life for Matt's Mom beating cancer. We feel SO blessed💗

I'm not going to get too fussy about the photos from the QM2 - I'm just going to share a big random assortment. Thank you if you made it this far in the post! Lol I hope you enjoy the photos and maybe it will inspire you to take an epic trip! Thanks for letting me share and if you have any specific questions just ask in the comments or send me an email. 

Blessings and happy travels! xoxo

sometimes I may have really enjoyed my wine 🙈😂

insert James Bond music here - Lol

i loved the library - one of my favorite places on the ship - the pub too! 

the britannia dining room where we ate every night

😂😂😂

winnings!

And just like that it was over and time to head home...