Five on Friday - April 12, 2024

What a week!  We kicked off the week on Monday with an eclipse party!  It was such a fun day and I'm already looking forward to the next eclipse coming through here in 2045.  

Now we're suddenly at Friday already and it's time for Five on Friday!

1.  Recycle Your Eclipse Glasses

Are you hanging on to a pair or two of those sexy eclipse glasses?  Want to put them to good use?  Recycle them!  Astronomers Without Borders is collecting them to redistribute to other parts of the world that will be experiencing an eclipse.  Click HERE for a list of collection partners that will vet and store your used glasses.  

2.  Dairy Queen New Dipped Cone Flavors

Dairy Queen is making summer even sweeter this year with their new and returning cone flavors!  You can pick from the confetti dipped cone, cherry dipped cone or the not-so-secret peanut brittle crunch cone.  All of them sound pretty delicious to me!  Which one do you want to try?

3.  Stanley Mother's Day Quencher

Stanley just released three new cups that, for the first time, are flanking a beautiful floral design.  They are here just in time for Mother's Day!  The quencher comes in frost, sherbet (shown below) and blue spruce.  You can pick from the 30-ounce or 40-ounce sizes too.  As of this moment, they are all available at the Stanley website but act fast if you want one because you know how quickly these things sell out!

4.  LaRoy, Texas

Laroy, Texas looks like one of those movies that is the perfect blend of silliness and suspense.  And one that both Eric and I will enjoy!  It opens today and is definitely going on my to-be-watched list.  Here's the summary ~

Broke and depressed, Ray (John Magaro) is mistaken for a dangerous hitman and given an envelope of cash. Along with his P.I. friend Skip (Steve Zahn), he must escape the actual hitman to make it out of LaRoy alive.

5.  Thought...

Have a fantastic weekend!  The weather is supposed to warm up here and I'm looking forward to spending a bit of time outside.  I also have a new project I'm working on.  My friend Debbie and I are launching a card-making endeavor.  She's a great watercolor painter!  I'm using her original painting to make cards.  Hopefully we'll have some together in time for Mother's Day.  See you back next week!

Sedona Girls' Trip - Day 4

Welcome to Thinking Out Loud Thursday where I talk about something I'm thinking about and invite you to link up and do the same.  Today I'm wrapping up a recent trip to Sedona.

We woke on our last day in Sedona to another cold, cloudy day.  On the agenda for the day was going to a vortex, visiting the Chapel of the Holy Cross, and stopping at the Montezuma Well on our way back to Phoenix.  

On the way to those places, I had to snap a picture of the McDonald's in Sedona.  Notice something different?  It's one of the seven McDonald's that does not have golden arches! 

If you look up things to do in Sedona, you will see a lot about energy vortexes.  These are referred to as energy centers or power spots.  Now, I'll be honest - I didn't feel any superpowers when we were standing by the vortex, but the scenery was absolutely gorgeous!

From the vortex, we headed to the Chapel of the Holy Cross.  The chapel was completed in 1956 after 18 months of construction.  This place was so beautiful!  Nestled at the top of a hill, the church is listed as one of the ten most beautiful churches around the world according to Architectural Digest.  

Inside is as stunning as the outside.  When you stand on the brass plate of feet and look up, you see Jesus looking right down into your eyes.  So, so moving!

The day was winding down and we were spending the night in Phoenix before flying out the next day.  On our way from Sedona to Phoenix, we stopped at Montezuma Well.  This place was a bit disappointing to me.  Not as beautiful in real life as the picture lead us to believe it would be.  

Our final dinner of the trip was at Roaring Fork.  Great way to end a girls' trip!  If you missed the other summaries from the trip, click the day to see what we did ~

Day 1          Day 2          Day 3

Now it's your turn - what are you thinking out loud about today?  Link up and share!

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Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop - April 10, 2024

 

Welcome to the Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop!  We are so glad that you stopped by.

Here you will find inspiration from dozens of bloggers including recipes, home DIY, gardening, decor, family fun, traveling, fitness, and so much more.

A friendly reminder to our guests that as a courtesy to the hosts, we ask that you follow every host on at least one social media channel.

If you are a blogger, then be sure to link up below. You may be our next feature! 

Before we get this party started, let’s meet the hosts and check out this week’s featured favorites.

MEET THE HOSTS

1. Bev – ECLECTIC RED BARN | FB | IG | PINTEREST
2. Penny – PENNY’S PASSION | FB | IG | PINTEREST
3. Sinea – DUCKS ‘N A ROW | FB | IG | PINTEREST | TWITTER
4. Tammy – MY LIFE ABUNDANT | FB | IG | PINTEREST | TWITTER
5. Tara – STILETTOS AND SHIPLAP | IG | PINTEREST
6. Denise –THISISMYEVERYBODY | FB | IG | PINTEREST | TWITTER

TOP VIEWED

It's Time to Prepare Your Garden

Vintage French Seed Packet Garland

VERY POPULAR

Dreamy Pineapple Orange Cake

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Italian Cream Soda

LET’S GET THIS PARTY STARTED!

Please follow all hosts on AT LEAST 1 of their social channels.

Add as many family-friendly posts as you would like to. NO Etsy shops, adult sites, or blog parties please.  Visit others. Caring is sharing. Like, comment, and pin posts.

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Let’s Party! 

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Five on Friday - April 5, 2024

Here we are on the first Friday in April.  Thanks for stopping by Five on Friday today.  Let's jump right in ~

1.  Krispy Kreme Eclipse Doughnuts

Monday is a big day around here.  The solar eclipse is going to be passing right through our area!  Krispy Kreme and Oreo has teamed up to celebrate by bringing us a special total solar eclipse doughnut.  Yes, please!  They are only here for a short time so grab them while you can.

2.  National Caramel Day

Today is National Caramel Day!  I have been wanting to make some homemade caramel for a while and today just might be the day I do it.  The method I'm going to try is to take a 14-ounce can of sweetened condensed milk, remove the wrapper, place it in a large pot, fill the pot with water so that the can is submerged entirely, place the pot on the stove over high heat, and let it boil for an hour or so.  The longer it cooks, the thicker and richer it will become.  The key is to make sure the can stays completely covered with water.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

3. Pop-Tart Crunchy Poppers

Okay fellow Pop-Tart lovers, we have a new snack to try!  Pop-Tart Crunchy Poppers are making their way into stores and I can't wait to give them a try.  Crunchy Poppers come in two flavors:  Strawbery Crunch and Frosted Brownie Crunch.  They are individually packaged making them a no-prep, no-mess snack.  The price tag is $3.99 for a 5-count box and $6.59 for a 10-count box.  

4.  Table for Two by Amor Towles

Did you read The Lincoln Highway, A Gentleman in Moscow, or Rules of Civility?  The author of those books, Amor Towles, just released his newest book Table for Two.  This one is a bit different.  Table for Two contains several short stories.  I really liked The Lincoln Highway so I'm curious to read this one.  Here's the summary ~

Millions of Amor Towles fans are in for a treat as he shares some of his shorter fiction: six stories based in New York City and a novella set in Golden Age Hollywood.

The New York stories, most of which take place around the year 2000, consider the fateful consequences that can spring from brief encounters and the delicate mechanics of compromise that operate at the heart of modern marriages.

In Towles’s novel Rules of Civility, the indomitable Evelyn Ross leaves New York City in September 1938 with the intention of returning home to Indiana. But as her train pulls into Chicago, where her parents are waiting, she instead extends her ticket to Los Angeles. Told from seven points of view, “Eve in Hollywood” describes how Eve crafts a new future for herself—and others—in a noirish tale that takes us through the movie sets, bungalows, and dive bars of Los Angeles.

Written with his signature wit, humor, and sophistication, Table for Two is another glittering addition to Towles’s canon of stylish and transporting fiction.

Available HERE

5.  So true...

Hope you have a great weekend!  We have a landscaping project going on and a few other outdoor things that I hope we can wrap up this weekend.  Oh, and there are all the Easter decorations we still need to take down.  See you back next week!

What I Read in March 2024

Welcome to Thinking Out Loud Thursday where I talk about something on my mind and invite you to link up and do the same. Today is the first Thursday of the month and that’s when I share the books I read the previous month.

Apparently, March was a slow reading month for me and I didn’t even realize it until I went to write this post! I finished only two books last month. Here’s what they were ~

The Life of Charlie by David Von Drehle

The Life of Charlie is a true story written about a gentleman from Kansas City who lived to be 109. You read that right – 109! This was our March book club selection. The Life of Charlie is one of those books that I probably would never have picked up had it not been for the book club selecting it. And I’m so glad they did! I found Charlie’s story so interesting. As a bonus, Charlie lived in Kansas City and the book has many interesting facts about that location. Having many friends currently living in the Kansas City area, it was fun to learn a little more history of that part of Missouri.

Here’s the summary from Amazon ~ 

When a veteran Washington journalist moved to Kansas, he met a new neighbor who was more than a century old. Little did he know that he was beginning a long friendship—and a profound lesson in the meaning of life. Charlie White was no ordinary neighbor. Born before radio, Charlie lived long enough to use a smartphone. When a shocking tragedy interrupted his idyllic boyhood, Charlie mastered survival strategies that reflect thousands of years of human wisdom. Thus armored, Charlie’s sense of adventure carried him on an epic journey of the Jazz Age, racing aboard ambulances through Depression-era gangster wars, improvising techniques for early open-heart surgery, and cruising the Amazon as a guest of Peru’s president.

David Von Drehle came to understand that Charlie’s resilience and willingness to grow made this remarkable neighbor a master in the art of thriving through times of dramatic change. As a gift to his children, he set out to tell Charlie’s secrets. The Book of Charlie is a “genuinely original, formula-shattering” (Bob Woodward) gospel of grit—the inspiring story of one man’s journey through a century of upheaval. The history that unfolds through Charlie’s story reminds you that the United States has always been a divided nation, a questing nation—a nation of Charlies in the rollercoaster pursuit of a good and meaningful life.

Available HERE

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

This is one of those books I’d seen on various book clubs and reading sites I belong to and decided to add it to my audio library. I loved it! Frozen Rivier is the first book I've read by Ariel Lawhon and I’m excited to read more. The audio version was 15 hours long and I can honestly say I loved every minute of it. Jane Oppenheimer was the narrator and she did an amazing job. If you read or listen to it, make sure to read the author’s notes at the end. Here’s the summary from Amazon ~

Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town’s most respected gentlemen—one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own.

Over the course of one winter, as the trial nears, and whispers and prejudices mount, Martha doggedly pursues the truth. Her diary soon lands at the center of the scandal, implicating those she loves, and compelling Martha to decide where her own loyalties lie.

Clever, layered, and subversive, Ariel Lawhon’s newest offering introduces an unsung heroine who refused to accept anything less than justice at a time when women were considered best seen and not heard. The Frozen River is a thrilling, tense, and tender story about a remarkable woman who left an unparalleled legacy yet remains nearly forgotten to this day.

Available HERE

Now it’s your turn – what are you thinking out loud about today? Link up and share~

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Click here to enter

Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop - April 3, 2024

 
Welcome to the Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop!  We are so glad that you stopped by.

Here you will find inspiration from dozens of bloggers including recipes, home DIY, gardening, decor, family fun, traveling, fitness, and so much more.

A friendly reminder to our guests that as a courtesy to the hosts, we ask that you follow every host on at least one social media channel.

If you are a blogger, then be sure to link up below. You may be our next feature! 

Before we get this party started, let’s meet the hosts and check out this week’s featured favorites.

MEET THE HOSTS

1. Bev – ECLECTIC RED BARN | FB | IG | PINTEREST
2. Penny – PENNY’S PASSION | FB | IG | PINTEREST
3. Sinea – DUCKS ‘N A ROW | FB | IG | PINTEREST | TWITTER
4. Tammy – MY LIFE ABUNDANT | FB | IG | PINTEREST | TWITTER
5. Tara – STILETTOS AND SHIPLAP | IG | PINTEREST
6. Denise –THISISMYEVERYBODY | FB | IG | PINTEREST | TWITTER

TOP VIEWED

How to Make a Chocolate Easter Bunny Espresso Martini

Book Review | Take Me Home

VERY POPULAR

Carrot Crescent Rolls

Crock Pot Baked Ziti

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Classic Pineapple Casserole

LET’S GET THIS PARTY STARTED!

Please follow all hosts on AT LEAST 1 of their social channels.

Add as many family-friendly posts as you would like to. NO Etsy shops, adult sites, or blog parties please.  Visit others. Caring is sharing. Like, comment, and pin posts.

Party entries appear in REVERSE. This way your entries 

will be seen no matter when you arrive. Please TWEET our party and invite others to join.

Let’s Party! 

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Click here to enter

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Five on Friday - March 29, 2024

Happy Easter Weekend!  I'm off work today and am excited to have an extra day this weekend.  Kicking off things by sharing my Five on Friday ~

1.  Summer Blizzard Menu

Dairy Queen announced its summer blizzard menu recently and on April 1 we can start ordering the new flavors!  Two of the flavors, the Frosted Animal Cookie and the Brownie Batter, are returning flavors.  New this year are the Peanut Butter Cookie Dough, Picnic Peach Cobbler, Ultimate Cookie, and Cotton Candy round out the summer menu.  The one that I can't wait to try is the Picnic Peach Cobbler.  Which one will you be ordering first?

2.  In the Land of Saints and Sinners

Liam Neeson's new movie, In the Land of Saints and Sinners, is released today.  I'm always up for a good Liam Neeson action film.  Hopefully, we can carve out some time to check it out this weekend.  Here's the summary ~

Ireland, 1970s. Eager to leave his dark past behind, Finbar Murphy (Liam Neeson) leads a quiet life in the remote coastal town of Glencolmcille, far from the political violence that grips the rest of the country. But when a menacing crew of terrorists arrive, led by a ruthless woman named Doirean (Kerry Condon), Finbar is drawn into an increasingly vicious game of cat and mouse, forcing him to choose between exposing his secret identity or defending his friends and neighbors.

3.  The Truth About The Devlins

Lisa Scottoline's new book hit the shelves on Tuesday.  It's titled The Truth About The Devlins.  You might recognize the author's name from her bestselling book What Happened to the Bennetts.  This book promises to be another pulse-pounding domestic thriller about family, justice, and the lies that tear us apart.  Here's the summary ~

TJ Devlin is the charming disappointment in the prominent Devlin family, all of whom are lawyers at their highly successful firm—except him. After a stint in prison and rehab for alcoholism, TJ can’t get hired anywhere except at the firm, in a make-work job with the title of investigator.

But one night, TJ’s world turns upside down after his older brother John confesses that he murdered one of their clients, an accountant he’d confronted with proof of embezzlement. It seems impossible coming from John, the firstborn son and Most Valuable Devlin.

TJ plunges into the investigation, seizing the chance to prove his worth and save his brother. But in no time, TJ and John find themselves entangled in a lethal web of deception and murder. TJ will fight to save his family, but what he learns might break them first.

Available HERE

4.  Women's Joggers

I had been seeing these women's joggers all over Instagram and decided to order a pair before our recent trip to Washington DC.  Holy cow - they were fantastic!  So comfortable!  There's a lot of love about these pants.  Let's start with the price - it can't be beat!  The pockets lay flat and are big enough to hold your cell phone.  The waist is wide and doesn't have a drawstring.  If black isn't what you need, they come in a boatload of other colors.  I might just have to add a few more pairs to my wardrobe!

Available HERE

5.  Think about it...

Hope you have a wonderful Easter weekend!  See you back next week.