On the Road Friday ~ A 12/12 Birthday in Green Bay, Wisconsin

For my birthday this year my sister and mom treated me to a trip to Green Bay, Wisconsin.

 It was quick trip because the weather turned ugly and we needed to venture home before things got worse. We traveled to Green Bay on my birthday 12/12. We visited the Atrium at Lambeau Field. We had a lovely dinner at 1919 and ended the evening with a concert.

 Even if you are not a football fan, you will find the Lambeau Field Atrium unique and a fun experience. There are three different tour options.

Your destination for everything Packers!

Experience the Hall of Fame

Take a Stadium Tour

Dine at 1919 Kitchen and Tap

Shop at the Packers Pro Shop

 Everything is decorated in Green and Gold even the Christmas trees.

 My mom and sister.. I am looking down from the big football.

 I loved this truck in the gift shop.

 Hey.. It is me on the field.

You are able to take fun photos in front of the mural.

 Off to dinner we go to 1919. Many of you know blogger Nana Diana.. she happens to have a 12/12 birthday too and she lives in Green Bay. Before heading on my trip I asked her advice for fun places to eat in Green Bay. One of the many she suggested was 1919.

Nana Diana Take a Break

 

1919 is decorated with rustic wooden tables and shares notable moments from Packers history, including retired jersey numbers, unforgettable plays and historic firsts.

Gleaming copper pipes lead to 80 taps, serving nearly 40 varieties of beer. An open - concept kitchen invites glimpses of sizzling sears and saute's.

 My birthday dessert. Yum!

It is off to the concert. We attended Swing for the Holidays .. Featuring Duke Ellington's Nutcracker Suite at the Weidner Center.

It was the Nutcracker Jazz style.

Featured Vocalist Courtney Sherman was amazing. It was a special 12/12 birthday event for me.

Thank you for coming along with me to Green Bay, Wisconsin!

 

Happy Mother's Day

Little me and my mom.

Happy Mother's Day

A very special Mother's Day for me. Sam is back to Wisconsin.

♥

Mother Says

Famous Last Words

If you don't stop, your face will freeze like that.

I only have two hands.

Let me kiss it and make it better.

Because I said so.

Because I am your mother.

Go ask your father.

Eat it, it is good for you.

Don't put that in your mouth, you don't know where it has been.

I don't care who started it.

Get your hair out of your face.

You call that music?

Clear your plate, there are starving children.

Money doesn't grow on trees.

If all your friends jumped off a cliff would you do it too?

Don't ever forget that I love you.

You'll always be my Baby.

 

 

   

Code Mama

I titled this post Code Mama, code mama is what I had to make up between me and my boys during holiday break, more for me, because I did not want to smother them.

First, take a peek at what I received for Christmas from Sam. This is a charm necklace. You put the birthstone colors and charms that you want inside.

I love it!

December 21st was the day Sam arrived back home. I was so excited for my little boy to be home. I also knew that I might be over powering as "mom". 

I had this tight feeling in my throat, I did not want to smother my son. Yet, I wanted to be mom. I was in such a strange position. I really am not able to write exactly how I felt. All I can say, is my son is an American Soldier, he is very grown up, he is very strong, full of muscles and has experienced many things and encountered many different types of people.  It was one of those mama moments, all of a sudden I needed help.

I have two friends who have grown boys that I reached out and messaged.

Mary and Bonita, both of my friends who have recently watched boys become men. 

Both gave me great advice. I did talk to Sam and Atticus about how I was feeling and that I did not want to smother. And when we are out and about, they can give me the Code Mama.. when I just might be too much mama.

Below are the messages I had with Mary and Bonita. 

I have been blessed with fantastic friends, blog buddies and family to help me along this journey. As Bonita shared  motherhood does not end, it changes. I pray for our relationship to continue to grow as my boys grow into grown men.

 Sam received several gifts for Christmas to set up house when he returns home and heads to college in the Autumn of 2019. I helped him pack his items in a tote. He hugged me and asked me if I will help decorate. 

♥ 

 Carla

What is Up Doc

What is Up Doc?

Last week was a whirl wind. I was preparing for the Cameron Street Sale and for my parents to come stay with us for the weekend.

On Friday morning I was feeling very good about my To Do List.

 √

 √

Making my check marks √.

Then all of a sudden Friday morning a freak thunderstorm came rolling in. A lighting strike hit straight down in our back yard!

 The lighting hit our bird feeder, followed the internet cable, blew the internet cable, continued into the house, blowing the T.V. cable, router, our boys alarm clock and the Christmas lights they have in their room.

Talk about crazy, freaky and just plain spooky!!

Thankfully we are all fine. Our home is fine. We have to have a new cable put in this week. Our internet company will take care of that. Of course a new T.V. , router , and so on.

On to Saturday and The Cameron Street Sale.

 My mom and dad made it to our house fine on Friday. They also had a storm to wait out before leaving. They arrived on Friday night and we had a fun dinner and got ready for Saturday morning.

My mom and dad setting up my mom's craft booth.

 My booth has fresh cut flower's in bunches and jars. 

Gourds, broom corn and decorative corn stalks.

 It was a great day for us. My mom and I both did very well at the Street Sale.

Thank You to all of you for the support during the week. 

And Thank You to my friends who came out on Saturday and supported my mom and I.

 ♥

Carla

 

Love Matters

 A friend of mine shared this story.

I loved the the following paragraph....

 When I really think about it, I don’t want my son to tell the friend he’s bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, ‘My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.’ That would mean I’d built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his
friend, to add, ‘You’re gonna love it there.’

I will be honest, yes, at times during this adventure of motherhood, I have felt invisible.

I have wanted to be selfish at times. 

Then something tugs at me, reminding me, we only have them for so long, then they grow up.

And yes, I do want them to come home for holiday. 

And yes, I want my boys to say to friends, "You're gonna love it there."

 Remember the baby years? 

Remember potty training?

Remember sleepless nights?

Remember having to say "NO" ...you would get those eyes and the smile, you had to stick to your guns. 

Teen Years

Choosing what battles to fight.

Teaching them to drive.

The first job, in the big world.

Letting them go .... watching them grow up.

Motherhood is no easy job. 
I will be honest, I am blessed to be one.
With all the ups and downs motherhood can bring.
Having my boys hug me in public.
Having my boys come and ask me for advice.
Having my boys say "I love you, Mom."
It is all worth it.

Happy Mother's Day to all of you.
 

 

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we’re doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

  

Invisible Mother…
It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I’m on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I’m thinking, ‘Can’t you see I’m on the phone?’ Obviously not; no one can see if I’m on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I’m invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this ? Can you tie this? Can you open this?
Some days I’m not a pair of hands; I’m not even a human being. I’m a clock to ask, ‘What time is it?’ I’m a satellite guide to answer, What number is the Disney Channel?’ I’m a car to order, ‘Right around 5:30, please.’
I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude – but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She’s going, she’s going, she’s gone!?
One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself. I was
feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, ‘I brought you this.’ It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn’t exactly sure why she’d given it to me until I read her inscription:
‘To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are
building when no one sees.’
In the days ahead I would read – no, devour – the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals – we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building
was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.
A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, ‘Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof, No one will ever see it. And
the workman replied, ‘Because God sees.’

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, ‘I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you’ve done, no sequin you’ve sewn on, no cupcake you’ve baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can’t see right now what it will become.
At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.
I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder. As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our lifetime because there are so few people willing to
sacrifice to that degree.
When I really think about it, I don’t want my son to tell the friend he’s bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, ‘My Mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table.’ That would mean I’d built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his
friend, to add, ‘You’re gonna love it there.’
As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we’re doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women. 

Nicole Johnson’s The Invisible Woman

Think Snow .... It is a Snowman Giveaway

Think Snow

We need a warm up in Wisconsin so it will snow. We have cold temperatures. So cold that it will not snow. We can not cross country ski with out snow. It is time we all think snow.

It is a Snowman Giveaway! 

My mom made up this fun giveaway for my blog readers.

I am drawing two winners.

Each winner will receive a towel and three snowmen.

To enter all you need to do is leave a comment. I have heard from a few of my readers that they are not able to comment. If you send an e mail to me saying you would like to be entered, your name will be tossed in the hat.  My son Atticus will pull two names from the hat Thursday evening. The winners will be announced Friday.

Think Snow!

♥ 

Carla

 

 

Happy Mother's Day Hodgepodge

Happy Mother's Day

Welcome to the Hodgepodge

Joyce asks us the questions.

We answer the questions.

Click here to join in the fun! 

 

1. What's a phrase your mother often said to you? If you're a parent, is this something you now say to your own children?

" Did you turn off the lights?"

Yes, I do yell ask, "Did you turn off the lights?" to my kids.

Both my mom and dad would say, "Sleep tight, Do not let the bed bugs bite." before bed.

I always say that to my boys. 

2. What is a scent you associate with your mother or your childhood home?

 My mom loves the fragrance Wind Song. She always wears it and dabs a little extra on when going out with my dad.

 3. What's an activity you remember always doing with your mother (or someone who was a mother figure in your life)?

My mom was my Girl Scout leader and the Head Leader of our area Girl Scout Troop. I remember taking many fun adventures with her during my Girl Scout years. I also remember her helping many other young girls. Several of the young girls  came to our house for meetings and mentoring.

 4. Flared jeans, maxi dresses, and jumpsuits are 70's fashion trends back this spring. Are you on board? Which trend would you be most inclined to try? For the men...flared corduroys, wide-collared shirts, and floral prints...what say you? 

A fun maxi dress

 5. May 6th is Teacher Appreciation Day and also Nurse Appreciation Day. Is there a nurse or teacher  you have especially appreciated along the way? Tell us why?

 

Mr. Heath was my High School Biology teacher. He was a fabulous teacher. He made learning fun. He loved the outdoors and he enjoyed taking his students out and about. He was very hands on. He was easy to ask questions and made time for students.

 6. If I came by your house, what would I find on your frig door?

Eggs, Milk, Butter, Lemon Juice, Ketchup, Mustard, Barbecue Sauce....

I just noticed I read the question - What would I find IN your frig door! LOL
Okay, no I am not this messy. LOL
You would find
Milwaukee Brewers 2015  Schedule
Rice Lake Warrbirds Trap Shooting Team Schedule
Family Photos
Quotes 
Fun magnates of places we have visited

 7. Princess Charlotte Elizabeth Diana made her royal entrance on Saturday, May 2nd. On a scale of 1-10, how much attention did you give to all the news coverage? 1=Who's Charlotte? 10=sat glued to the telly, cuppa in hand.

 4

  My husband told me right away Saturday morning "It is a Girl!" I was excited to see the first photos and I could not wait to find out what they decided to name her.

 8.  Insert your own random thought here.

 My cup is full. I would not trade 

My job with any other,

Be it rich man, ruler, prince, or king,

I am my children's mother.

I found this poem in a 1963 Mother-Daughter Banquet Idea Book

 

A Gift from the Heart ♥

A Gift from the Heart

 ♥

 My birthday was back in December. I would like to share a very creative gift I received, from a very creative friend. 40 teas, with 40 quotes in a fun canister.

I love tea. I love quotes.

My friend attached a special quote to each tea.

♥

I thought this would make a fun Mother's Day gift idea. You could attach quotes, prayers or sweet thoughts on to candy bars, K-cups, seed packets, tea, so many fun ideas.

What are some of your favorite Mother's Day's gifts?

 

Lemon Meringue Pie

My mom treated me with making me my favorite pie.

Lemon Meringue Pie

My photo does not show just how amazing she was able to do with her meringue. She did her very best! Can you guess how many egg whites she  used?

What is your favorite kind of pie?

Animal crackers, and cocoa to drink, that is the finest of supper, I think.

When I am grown up and can have what I please, I think I shall always insist upon these.

Christopher Morley

 

Good Mom's

 Good moms 

let their kids

Lick

the beaters.

Great moms

turn off the mixer first!

Have a great weekend.

 

Happy Mother's Day

Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible.

Marion C. Garretty

Blackberries

I am back.

We had a very nice time with family. I had a great time going blackberry picking with my mom. My mom is recovering from a very bad injury...so she did the driving and talking (to keep the bear away). I did the picking.

Blackberries

Stains on the fingers from picking.

Blackberry Jam...I made yesterday. Yum!

Spinach Salad with Bacon and Roasted Mushrooms

Spinach Salad with Bacon and Roasted Mushrooms

I made this delicious salad to go with our grilled turkey for Mother's Day. We loved it! I let our guests put on what they wanted , the recipe suggests putting it all together.

Enjoy!

Spinach Salad with Bacon and Roasted Mushrooms

8 thick slices of bacon cut crosswise into 1/4 inch wide pieces

4 cups sliced mushrooms

1 large red onion

3 tablespoons olive oil

Juice of a lime (about 2 tablespoons)

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon salt

8 cups of spinach

Preheat oven to 425 degrees - place bacon, onions and mushrooms on to pan and roast until bacon is crisp. About 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile in a small microwaveable bowl, combine olive oil, lime juice, oregano, salt and 2 tablespoons of water. Microwave on high for 30 seconds.

Place spinach in a large bowl, sprinkle bacon mixture over spinach. Drizzle warm dressing over salad and toss to combine.

   

Crayon Art

A friend of mine sent me an e mail/you tube explaining crayon art to me. I loved it. I pondered a few ideas to make something special for my Mom for Mother's Day. I decided to create a flower garden. This is my first crayon art creation. I plan to do another for my sister. My boys are interested in creating one too. Atticus has a great idea up his sleeve, so I am excited to see how it turns out. I will be sure to share it with all of you too. 

Using a hot gun or you can use a blow dryer I melted the crayons.

  

I was a bit disappointed in my flowers. But, my Mom loved it! She knew right where she was going to hang it.

 

 

Have you tried crayon art? What fun creations have you come up with? Happy Creating!

Mother Says

Mother Says

Famous Last Words

If you do not stop, your face will freeze like that.

I only have 2 hands.

Let me kiss it to make it better.

Because I said so.

Because I am your Mother.

Go ask your Father.

Eat it, it is good for you.

Don't put that in your mouth, you do not know where it has been.

I don't care who started it.

Get your hair out of your face.

You call that music?

Clean your plate, there are starving children.

Money does not grow on trees.

If all your friends jumped off a cliff would you do it too?

Don't ever forget that I love you.

You'll always be my Baby.

Happy Mother's Day

My Mom and Me. 

 

My Mom

My Mom

My mom is a gifted seamstress. She created and sewed my wedding dress. She mends several items for the boys. They both are shocked at how fast grandma is at the sewing machine. 

My mom created the following pattern for some pillows. They turned out so lovely! Everyone who has seen them as said how much they like them. They also hinted they would not mind receiving a set.

A fun pillow created by my Mom!

Comfy and Cozy!

Time to get comfy with a book.

As we gear up for Mother's Day on Sunday, does/did your mom have a special gift? Something no other mom could seem to do as good as your mom could?

Celebrating Mom with you all!