Rhode Island Part Deux

Look at the SIZE of these gates....they seemed about 20-30ft tall! We did not go on the tour of the Newport, Rhode Island Mansions as we were on a mission (no not 007 mission) to get down to Ocean Drive and breath in the fresh sea air! The houses from the exterior were *AMAZING*
and I easily could have spent the day marveling at the architecture!

Okay....for those of us who are part Danish and have cheese, butter and half and half pulsing through our veins to begin with....this was a major trouble stop for me. This was at Costentino's market in North Providence. My favorite "Drunken Goat"....don't you love it?

STILL...at Costentino's the case line of FRESH pasta....to die for....and of course the chunks of fresh parmesan nearby calling my name!

Yeah, this was my "bruschetta".....we are not talking about any mamby pamby miniature piece of toast with a light sprinkling of basil and tomato....no sireeee....this is the real deal with fresh cut prosciutto....

I didn't take this picture when I should have...early in the morning with the sun lighting up the flowers in a wave of magenta glory. Cute little nursery right down the street from my families place....Oh yeah, and they also sell fresh baked pies. Trouble with a capital "T".

I still have MORE pictures to share if you can take it! It was such a wonderful trip. If you ever get a chance to see New England, I highly recommend it!

Rhode Island Vacation

Ah yes, the fresh seaside air....a warm summer day, and being with people you love...doesn't really get much better. Rhode Island was filled with discoveries around every corner!

Federal Hill is an area in Providence, Rhode Island that is the Italian district. Lovely restaurants, cafes, and shops galore. Nothing like being a place and hearing people speaking Italian to each other to enhance the moment even more. The delis were to die for....oh my fresh made pastas and baked goods, beautiful ceramic painted dishes and bowls ....I wasn't prepared for this much goodness!

I had to travel 1,500 miles across the United States to FINALLY get some pictures of wild turkeys. (They are very camera shy in Kansas, let me tell you!) Not only did we see these beauties, there was another encounter with a mom, dad and all their chicks...too many to count...precious!

Weight Watchers Smatewatchers....You try resisting the case line of the wonderful bakeries on the East Coast....with a latte. There was no will power once these targets were in site, including my mother-in-law making a last minute hit before heading to the airport!

Beautiful Newport, Rhode Island. Picture perfect day driving along Ocean Drive, gawking at the mansions, soaking in the fresh air and sunshine. Lovely, lovely, lovely!

This is my wonderful brother-in-law John on the left, my mother-in-law Estelle in the center, and Dan-the-Man on the right. Guess who was happy with a capital "H" to be with her boys (2 of 4) on one of her favorite beaches! Did I mention getting to see here grandchildren as the icing on the cake? Her smile says it all!

I am a historical home lover...all over the state you would find homes proudly showing off how long they have been around. I had a walking history book with me, who also goes by the name of Dan randomly stating facts like "Benjamin Franklin was in office then" or "that was built before the constitution was written" "that's when Thomas Jefferson was President".

Notice a theme with all my coastal vacation pictures? Yeah, it was scrumpdillyicious! Did I mention we were enjoying this meal on a bay with the corner window view. Heavy sigh.......

Another picture at Federal Hill....the flowers were in full force and there was a beautiful fountain built on the cobblestone. Lovely!

See my seagull? They don't miss many meals around these parts. Very healthy birds in these parts!

There is more to report...more pictures to share, but there is this thing called W_O_R_K and unfortunately, I have to go to it this morning! Just wanted to share a little bit of where I've been.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful summer so far, that you are staying cool and enjoying the season. It won't be long (or so the stores tell us) that fall will be upon us. So it's nice to be able to savour those glasses of lemonade while sitting on the porch watching the bees drink their nectar from the flowers!

Girls Week Getaway

I'm warning you know....this is probably the LONGEST blog entry since the beginning of my blog. I recently went on a trip to California to celebrate Mother's Day with my loving Mama, my two sisters and my niece. We try to get together once a year, usually in May, so we can laugh, tell stories, eat and shop. This year we went to Solvang, California. Solvang is a small Danish community that has lovely stores and a lot of bakeries. We couldn't have picked a better week to go because the weather was perfect with a capital "P"....so was the time with family. I'll stop blabbering and let you enjoy the pictures....

Fresh Lavender
Hollyhocks

The Danes loves their storks!

Wisteria

Good Eats

One Happy Mum!

Yeah, that's what I'm talking about!

My beautiful niece Julie~

Yeah, this was my breakfast...heavenly!

These roses....in person the color was even more magnificent!

This little number was for sale and was calling to me....

How cute is that!

Of course we had to stop. They had flower shaped brownies on Popsicle sticks!

Jacks Mum was the sweetest lady and was working on a felting project!

Trouble store in Los Olivos

Just happened to see this number while walking....I was ready to crash the garden party!

Can't mention Solvang without a windmill!

okay...there were only about 10 bakeries in town to choose from...see what I was up against?

Patronized not once, but twice by the fam!

The roses....and they were growing along the mile long fence line to these horse stables...beautiful~

Probably one of the best pictures I've ever taken...and now my screen saver at home.

More storks :)

Foxgloves

Oh happy days.....a charming place called Enchante'

Beautiful store fronts with brick, and leaded glass...just a fairytale village~

Wish there was a thing called smell-a-vision to share with you all!

If you haven't had enough and need to see more pictures, just hoot and holler! I only took 164 and according to my daughter, about 160 of them were of flowers!

Treasures!

When Dan the Man and I were in Abeline, Kansas we went to the Dwight D. Eisenhower Museum which was pretty spectacular. Dan loves history, and I loved looking at the gifts received during President Eisenhower's term. You HAVE TO click on these pictures and enlarge them to fully appreciate the detail in the craftsmanship. Extraordinary!!!!!

No flash camera's were allowed, so I lightened things up on my computer. You have no idea how intricate the detail on this tea set it, hours, days...weeks...months it must have taken to make!

This desk is mosaic work like you've never seen before. So small, so detailed, I was just in awe! Of course this is just a small fraction of the gifts that are on display at the museum.

Beautiful medals and ribbons that were given as gifts. An interesting fact is that he was the last President that was able to keep the gifts that were given to him. Now the government declares any gifts as it's own. I sure am glad these beautiful objects were on display for all to enjoy!

Beautiful jeweled swords that were simply breathtaking! Abeline is a small town about 2 1/2 hours west of Kansas City. We really enjoyed our day visiting the LeBold Mansion (see previous post) and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Museum.

Fairytale Germany

This is the beautiful village Dan-the-Man stayed in on his recent business trip in Germany.
The towns name is Windischeschenbach (Say that fast three times!) It's in the south east region of Germany(Bavaria) and looks pristine clean and breathtaking! Addendum 10/18: Dan the Man pointed out that the picture of the above town is Flossenburg, not Windischeschenbach where he was staying....heaven forbid you make a trip to Europe and I pointed you to the wrong town! Mercy!

This is in Munich at Marion Platz...just some incredible architecture. Dan said you can't even begin to appreciate the detail carved in the stone at some of the buildings.

Out of all the photographs, I fell I LOVE with this and am ready to build this in my backyard right now. Elves, fairies, chipmunks...whoever wants to reside there, this is just the cutest thing ever. The steps? C'mon! Absolutely magical!

Do yourself a favor and click on this picture so you can enjoy the beautiful details inside this church, just breathtaking!

Dan said there were trails and parks everywhere in the area where you just enjoy nature. Germans are big hikers and love to be outside, weather permitting of course!

Beautiful buildings everywhere dressed up with bountiful flower boxes. I am all for it and love how charming it makes everything look. Lovely!

There is more to share, I'll have to do a part two. We just got back from celebrating our anniversary early since Dan will be on yet another business trip on the real date, but at least this trip is much closer to home. We've just been enjoying each others company and had a lovely dinner. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Smiles, Nancy