He is Risen!

30/03/2013

Bonjour mes amis!

This is just going to be a real quick Post, as I have a friend here visiting me for a week.

I know you all are preparing for Easter...Dinners are being planned, Flowers are being purchased, and tomorrow, we will Worship the Risen King!

In my preparations, I wanted to add a little something to a blank wall in our apartment.  I originally had intended to crochet a Cross to add to the decoration on our front door, but somehow, I kept finding pretty patterns, and I ended up making a wall of Crosses...

Our King is no longer on the Cross, but Risen Indeed!  I hope you will get to celebrate the Lord's goodness to us tomorrow, on Easter Sunday!

Blessings!
Jan
P.S.  I'll hope to check in during this next week, but if you don't find me popping in, I'll return next weekend, okay?

Chaumont-sur-Loire & Sneaky American Tourists 3!

28/03/2013

Bonjour mes amis!

I hope you are well.  Seems the week has just flown again, and another weekend is upon us...a very special weekend...Happy Easter to all!

A while back, I started this Post, and then the busyness of Christmas came around, and I never finished, so I'm going to be sharing some fun things we did in the Fall...just because...I really don't want to forget about these great times, and the great places we visited.  I hope you will enjoy!

One Saturday, we decided to head off to a Château for the day with our friends, Eva and Johannes!  Our destination was about an hour away, along the Loire River...

First, we stopped for a bite to eat for Lunch, and there was a "non-paying" Customer taking a nap down the way from us...

 ...and then we pulled off one of those "Sneaky American Tourist" things again...

While we were enjoying our coffee after our meal, we all decided we kind of wanted something small for dessert, but we wanted to get going, and we didn't really want to spend more money on dessert, so...

Eva (not an American, but she played the game well with us!) whipped out a small bag of mini-muffins, and boy, did these sound good with coffee...so...we each "sneakily" ate one for our dessert while our Server wasn't looking!

I know...nothing big...but it makes for a fun story, doesn't it?  We always talk about the silly things, don't we?

Then, it was on to Château Chaumont-sur-Loire...

I showed you this Château when we went with our children at Christmastime, but our initial visit was with Eva and Johannes in November...and the Fall was so beautiful, so let me share some things about this Château with the absolutely stunning Setting...

As I said, our initial trip here was in the Fall, so take a look at this stunning tree in all its beauty...

The views were so pretty...

The Art Structures on the property sure showed up well against the Fall leaves...

Let's go into the Château now...

Love the Stonework!

Let's head into the Chapel...

The woodwork on these Pews was amazing!

We even checked out the Attic space...

Eva and I were dreaming about taking home some of these old things...

There was an interesting Art Exhibit done with Silhouettes on the Wall of the Life of a Tree, from bare, to buds, to leaves, to Fall time losing the leaves, to bare again...

I can't help myself, these kind of Door Latches just catch my attention!

On to our favorite room...

It's time to go home...

The Draw Bridge is closing...

But, we decided to hang around the property a bit longer...

The Fog starts rolling in...

Even the Moon is appearing...

We are the last to leave the Parking Lot...of course!

Thanks for stopping by today to visit the Château with me again!

Have a "Jewel" of a day!
Jan

What I was doing this time last year?

27/03/2013

Bonjour mes amis!

How are you on this 27th day of the month?  Well, it's a special day in our household today, as it's Dr. J's Birthday!

Joyeux Anniversaire, Dr. J!!!

We're celebrating with just the three of us this year, but I'm sure we'll have fun!  Afterall, we are in France!

With Dr. J's birthday, I started to think about what I was doing this time last year, and I looked back through some pictures to refresh my memory.

(***Just a warning...these pictures were taken before we purchased our good camera!***)

I made these Egg Nest Cupcakes for Easter with two of my Nieces who were visiting from Chicago...

We had lots of fun together!

Then, I did what any good Aunt would do in the Spring in Texas...

I took my Nieces to play in a field of Bluebonnets, of course...and took some pictures!

(Incidentally, in case you didn't realize, Bluebonnets are the State Flower of Texas!)

See how much fun she's having...this is Niece #3!

Then, I took them to Dinosaur Valley State Park...

And then, I brought them home to play with their cousin, Ms. Emerald!

That same week, my Nieces and Nephews from Wisconsin came to visit as well...

So, we did their favorite thing...we went to Fort Worth and ate at Riscky's BBQ, followed by a night at the Rodeo!

Another day, I took them to the Dallas Arboreturm...

Still another day, I took them to the Zoo...

I cannot believe I let my nephew mess with that Snake!

The other thing I did last year during the week around Easter (thanks to my Sister-in-Law and Daughters)...

I searched for a Dress to wear to my Son's Wedding...and this one was the Winner!

Do you remember what you did this time last year?  Think back.  You might enjoy re-living the Memory...

Have a "Jewel" of a Day!
Jan