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There are a lot of patriotic holidays this time of year. We already had Armed Forces Day. This weekend is Memorial Day. June 6 is D-day. June 14 is Flag Day. Then it won't be long after that when July 4th will get here and we celebrate Independence Day! We are a music loving and country loving family, so that is what inspired today's Friday Fave question:
What is your favorite Patriotic Song?
Madalynn's first choice, and my first thought was Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA". After 9-11 this song had a big resurgence in popularity, but I remember it from years ago when it first came out and my husband was in the military. It is the type of song that everyone can sing and feel the pride it inspires for our country. My first copy of this song was on a cassette tape. You can order a CD on Amazon for a dollar at this link!
Alicia almost chose the National Anthem, but then changed to The Battle Hymn of the Republic. This is an all time favorite because as Alicia says, it is fun to sing but there is also a religious tie in as it talks about how we need to further God's work in our country and his truth will prevail.
"His truth is marching on!"
Here is a beautiful version by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. It is available on CD or MP3.
The song that came to my mind after I thought about this question a bit is "This is My Country." I can remember my heart swelling with pride as I sang along to these words:
"What diff'rence if I hail from North or South
I found this song on this CD that contains many other great Patriotic songs and hymns, such as "The Battle Hymn of the Republic", "Yankee Doodle", "America the Beautiful" and, "The Star Spangled Banner." They are performed by various artists.
Lindsey chose "America the Beautiful" as her fave. She said, "I just think the lyrics are so beautiful. It talks about how beautiful the land of America is, and the spirit of the American people (or at least what it used to be.)'
"Oh, beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife, Who more than self their country loved, And mercy more than life!"
"That is so beautiful. Heroes who love mercy more than life. I wish everyone knew how lucky the are to be born in this country where they have rights and freedoms others only dream of. Then maybe they'd stop fighting so hard to take them all away."
I found another collection of patriotic songs sung by Tennessee Ernie Ford! Wow! That takes me back! Who remembers his beautiful bass voice? I can just imagine how gorgeous these songs must sound in his deep, booming voice!
Finally, we won't leave out our National Anthem, The Star Spangled Banner. A song more important than just the thing you sing before kick off at a football game. It is a song about a symbol of our country. "The land of the free and the home of the brave!"
When I was in college at BYU, I used to walk onto campus early every morning to go to class. Every morning, at 8:00 AM, The Star Spangled Banner was played. As it played, everyone would stop and wait respectfully with their hands over their hearts. I always felt proud and united at that moment with my fellow students that we would take those few moments to consider the blessing that we had of attending a school of our choice in a free country. Unfortunately, there are always a few who do not remember to stop and listen or who are painfully (to me) unaware of the etiquette that should be observed during the playing of the National Anthem. So, today I checked the USA.gov website to be able to share proper etiquette tips for listening to The Star Spangled Banner.
Do people even teach these things to their kids anymore? I know that when I was growing up, on Saturday mornings my brother and I would wake up early to watch cartoons. The station would show the flag waving and play the National Anthem as the station started the day's programming. My brother and I would stand up, just the two of us and face the TV with our hands on our hearts. I am so glad that my parents taught us that respect for our country. (You might understand why better if you read this post.) I hope that the points I have just shared will help to remind others to teach these things to the up coming generation.
Let's teach love of God and Country and use some of these beautiful songs to help us do it. We need to build up and not tear down in today's troubled world. What patriotic songs do you love?
Have a wonderful and meaningful Memorial Day! Talk to you next week.
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My husband and I just got home from our two and one half week road trip through CA, UT, back to AZ through NM, TX, OK and into KS. We went to see kids graduate with upper level degrees and to see a kindergarten graduation. We saw our too far away grandchildren and had a great time traveling together! It was a lot of fun and exhausting!
When we travel by car, in order to avoid travel stomach problems, it is important to watch our diets and to realize that we aren't burning a bunch of calories just sitting in the car driving or sleeping! When we used to travel with kids, we also had to remember to keep them fed and happy with things they would enjoy. We also didn't want to spend a ton of money. It all definitely takes some pre-planning and preparation! Over the years, we have come up with some favorite foods that we like to bring along on road trips!
What are your favorite road trip snacks?
Years ago, my friend Kelly, who lives in Massachusetts, gave me a soft-side cooler that is perfect for traveling in the car with us. I love it and we use it all of the time now when we travel. (Until this trip when we couldn't find it and I think someone has borrowed it and failed to return it. I really missed it.) The soft side cooler is the perfect size to hold cold drinks like water, juices, soda and the one we have has enough space for a few snacks that need to stay cool. It keeps everything organized and easily accessible. Between that cooler and the deep center console in our car, we were able to keep all of the snacks close to me and easy to hand out. Here are a couple of similar options.
And, now for the food choices!
#1: Lindsey never drinks soda, but on road trips she will break that rule because when she drives a little caffeinated soda keeps her awake. I am the same way. On the other hand, if you are driving with kids, you probably like them to sleep! So juice, water, and Gatorade are important to bring along. Everyone needs to stay hydrated to help avoid stomach problems. Alicia says Gatorade is something she likes to travel with. The idea of avoiding stopping for bathroom breaks by not drinking much is not really a good one. Kids suffering with constipation is worse than stopping to let them go to the bathroom. Plus, a good stretch of the legs is good for everyone as well.
#2: Alicia says she loves beef jerky for road trips because it is delicious and savory. I think jerky is a good travel food as well because it isn't very messy and doesn't need to be kept cold. It can be eaten slowly instead of quickly gobbled down. Here is an exotic jerky assortment that would be fun to try as a treat on a road trip or to give as a gift to your jerky loving family member or friend!
#3: Fresh fruits and veggies are always a hit with my husband and I. This last trip I brought quartered strawberries and sectioned oranges and we gobbled them down. Then I picked up a package of apple slices, baby carrots and peas for the way home and they were consumed while I slept! :( These healthy snacks are easy to prepare at home and package into either Ziploc bags or into small containers. They are inexpensive and really refreshing to eat during the trip.
#4: I rarely splurge on cheese sticks because they seem so expensive. But, for our road trips, they are a special treat. Kids love them, they are healthy and satisfying and they fit nicely in the cooler. Along with cheese sticks, I always get crackers or Pringles or Lays Stacks. I like those types of chips in the tubes for traveling because they don't get crushed so easily, the tubes stand nicely in the center console of our car and when they are empty, I can shove trash in them without it taking up a lot of space. When my husband is driving, I can set a stack of them on his lap as he drives for him to snack on. It all works out great. He likes the original chip flavors, but I love the varied flavors. Sometimes something a little salty and crunchy is what you need when you are driving along.
#5: Of course, one or two sweet things are in order when you take a road trip! Maddy says that she loved it when we would get those Honey Buns that Little Debbie makes. Homemade cookies packed along are always good to have, or if you must, the packaged variety. We ate some packaged ones this time that I am thinking of making a homemade version of that will be so much better! (Stay tuned for that!) And finally, there has to be some kind of chocolate to keep me (and possibly everyone) happy! We like to buy Hershey Miniatures because then there is a variety for every taste. Who knew you could get them on Amazon Prime?
Those are our faves! And just a couple of other travel tips:
*We try to get hotels that serve breakfast! We make note of the ones with the best breakfasts. It is good to start the day with a good breakfast that will carry you through the day as you live on snacks. Even less expensive hotels will offer breakfasts now-a-days, so this is very budget friendly. *When you stop for the evening, go and get a healthy meal. It doesn't have to be heavy. I ate a lot of salad bar offerings and soups. Everyone will sleep better if you eat something satisfying after the long drive, plus it is fun to go to a local diner or restaurant and just relax and enjoy the town you are in and one another's company. Some of our favorites this trip were Settebello in Salt Lake City, a local diner we ate in while in Panguitch, UT, and Braums in Winfield, KS.
*When you travel with kids, it is great to give them little surprises along the way to bust the boredom of driving. My grandchildren are going to be traveling a long way this summer, so I decided to give them each some little packages to open along the way to help keep them occupied and happy.
Are you planning any road trips this summer? If so, what are your favorite snacks and tips? Let us know and we hope you can use some of our ideas. Happy traveling!
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It seems like travel is in the air for our family this time of year! My husband and I are taking a jaunt in the next few weeks to visit family and to see some of our kids graduate by way of California, Utah and Kansas! Maddy just got back from Toronto. Lindsey and her husband are going to Paris soon. My DIL and my grandchildren are coming here soon while my son studies for the Bar. My SIL and grandson are going to visit family in Ecuador for a couple of weeks! All of this has inspired today's Friday Fave:
Where is your favorite travel destination?
Since I am writing today's Friday Fave, I made the executive decision to be able to give you two destinations that I love.
When Glen and I were first married, he was in the army and we lived in Germany for 2 years. What a beautiful country with such friendly people. I wanted to be able to put some of our pictures from that time on here for you to see, but I am having technical difficulties with that. Also, some of our photos have been in those old types of albums for so long that I can't even peel them out without damaging them. Be sure to use acid free albums and pages for your memories. These by We R Memory Keepers are simple and affordable. I still need to change some of mine in order to keep them safe. When we lived in Germany some of our favorite places to go were to the old castle ruins that are scattered all over the country. We also love the old city of Rothenburg with it's Meistertrank Clock. One vacation, we drove along the Neckar River to Heidelberg. We even hiked up a mountain in the Alps, Glen had our first born son on his back in a pack. There are just too many wonderful memories to enumerate! After we were married a few years, my Sister and her husband took us on a trip to Tahiti! It was so beautiful! My husband had served as a missionary there 20 years before and it was so great for him to be able to show me the place he loved. We stayed on the Island of Moorea and ended on the big island of Tahiti. The people were wonderful and everything was gorgeous. We snorkeled and ate tons of seafood. It was amazing!
Madalynn just returned from a trip to Toronto to visit her boyfriend. She really enjoys that city and the politeness of the Canadians. She got to visit the Royal Ontario Museum this time which she said was really big and awesome. On another trip, she visited a shoe museum! (If you knew how much my girls love shoes, you would understand.) It looks like a beautiful city in pictures! Look at this one with the skinny building:
We have mentioned before that Alicia's husband Adrian is from Ecuador. A couple of years ago they took a trip back there and were able to go visit the Galapagos Island. She told me she chose Galapagos as her Friday Fave because there's so many things to do. You can go to the beach, jungle and even the desert, all on one small island. There's not only so much biological diversity but there's interesting geological stuff too. "We were able to see the giant tortoises, iguanas, countless birds, and cool sea life. like rays, sharks, crabs, fish, and sea lions. The blue footed boobies were really cool because their feet are really bright blue!The food is good. And there's also a lot of history." That is my Son-in-law up there inside a giant turtle shell!
Lindsey had a difficult time choosing between Hawaii and France, because she has lived in both places, But, since we were already touching on 2 tropical places and because she served a mission in France and loves the people there so much and is about to go back for a visit, she chose France.
Lindsey lived there twice. During Law School, she lived in Cergy, near Paris for a semester. Then, she served a mission after Law School for 18 months in the southern part of France, including Lyon and Bordeaux and other beautiful cities. In Lindsey's words, "France has everything, big cities, small villages nestled in green countryside, forests, beaches, Europe's largest sand dune. Everywhere you go there is history and culture and delicious food. I am in love with France." That is Lindsey and her missionary companion in the pictures above, snow shoeing!
Well, those are our choices. Pretty diverse, and we haven't even touched on the places we absolutely love in the USA! That may have to be another Friday Fave! Tell us about some of your favorite destinations! We would love to hear about them.
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Okay, I know, Football is not a Spring sport, but I still miss watching my son play football so I just wanted to include that picture. It is Spring, there have been Spring Training baseball games. We live in Phoenix where we have The Diamondbacks. The weather makes us want to do things! So, today's Friday Fave question is...
What is your favorite Springtime Sport or activity?
Let's start with Maddy, who doesn't really love sports. And it is weird because she has always been the fastest runner of all of my children. But, she does love to swing! She gets that from me because I also love to swing! As you can tell from the collage above, my beautiful grandchildren love it as well. In last week's Friday Fave, I gave you the poem by Robert Lewis Stevenson that I used to recite to my children when we would go to swing at the park. I haven't ever really thought of swinging as a sport, although it does take some effort to get really high. It is such an exhilarating feeling. Just when you thought it couldn't get any better, I saw this Swurfer Tree Swing and it looks so amazing! You stand on it and it is like surfing in the air! Even better is that they sell it on Amazon! This would be so much fun to have up at a cabin or something!
I have to put just one more adorable picture of my grandson swinging!
The other thing that I have always loved to play when the weather is nice is tennis! I am terrible at it, and that is after taking classes and lessons, but I still really like to play. I started playing tennis with friends back when I was in high school and we had wooden racquets that looked like this:
Chris Everett was my idol! I even had a cute tennis skirt like she wore. I have a newer racquet now. The head of the racquets today are so much bigger than they used to be, it almost doesn't seem fair! Ha Ha!
Wilson still makes some quality tennis racquets. If you are an amateur like me, here is a nice low priced one to get started with. As you get better, you may want to check out something a little more serious, like this one.
I feel like I need to get out and play now, even though it has been a really long time. When you actually hit the ball and get a rally going, it is a blast!
Alicia chose a sport with a shorter racquet, racquetball! I enjoy that sport as well. It is so much fun to play and a real workout. The nice thing about racquetball is that you don't have to chase the ball so far when you miss! I love to play these games, I am just not very good at them!
Wilson has some nice versions of these racquets, too! Here are a couple of affordable ones!
As you know from reading Renny's Recipes, Lindsey has moved into a new house. It is a really nice house and it has a pool! The weather is into the 90s now in Phoenix, and we are all getting ready to go over and enjoy that pool! Lindsey chose swimming as her sport!
Lindsey was in swim team as a kid and she enjoys swimming! I love it, too! Are you noticing a trend here? I enjoy all of these activities that my girls enjoy! If you can tear your kids away from their electronic activities that they enjoy so much in today's world and get them out doing some of these things with you, maybe you can find some shared interests, as well! It is fun, you can create memories and get in some healthy exercise! What could be better?
I sure do miss the swimming lesson days and the Little League days now that my kids are all grown. I hope I can be close enough to some of my grandchildren to enjoy them again. What activities do you enjoy doing with your family in the Spring? Let us know down in the comments section. And don't forget to subscribe so you can get access to our special subscriber free printables page!Thanks for checking out this week's Friday Faves!
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Creators of Hot Cocoa Bombs! (copyrighted)
Author
Helen Reynolds: Mother of six children , grandmother to eleven! I love to cook, craft and create things and I especially love doing that with my family, So, when my lawyer daughter, Lindsey, my artist daughter, Madalynn, and I came up with the idea of Hot Cocoa Bombs, this blog was born. Then, one more daughter, with her technical and science skills, plus creativity has joined in to round us out! Read more about us here! Archives
May 2024
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