Camping Life-Trip #3-Frankenmuth, Michigan

Day 1: The morning began with the disappointing news that my Little Miss M had been up all night with a fever and vomiting, so she was unable to join us on this trip.  

The Angel Face decided to direct and produce a video documenting our trip. She’s very talented and much more computer savvy at 10 than I am at this ripe old age!  I'm excited to share it with you.

This means, however, that she had control of my phone, so I have very few photos to share.

Camping Life-Prepping the RV for Trip #3

Tomorrow we are packing up the Angel Face and Little Miss M and heading to Frankenmuth, a fun, little, German town about 2 hours north of us.

Camping Life-Trip 2-Tobermory, Canada

An ongoing Journal of our Adventures with our Travel Trailer. This trip was July 18-21, 2025.  Destination: Tobermory, Canada.

Day 1-Headed out around 9 and caught the Ferry to Canada from Algonac. It was a little tight for Frank to maneuver the trailer through immigration on the Canadian side of the river. We enjoyed a pleasant drive, stopping about halfway to meet with Jim and Sharon for lunch on the water.

Beach Street Station in Goderich, was the halfway point to our final destination.  It sits right across from a beautiful park on Lake Huron. The service was excellent and the food was good.  We sat outside enjoying the lovely weather.  The inside of the restaurant is also gorgeous.  The building was once a Train Station that is now converted into a restaurant.

We set up camp at Tobermory Village Campground.  This is a very kid-friendly campground, and it was packed.  Tons of kids enjoying the pool, splash pad, playground, paddle boats, kayaks, and pedal go-karts.  

We then headed into town to meet up with the gang from Anchor Bay Scuba, who were staying at the Blue Bay Motel right on the harbor of Bruce Peninsula.  We enjoyed dinner with some of the gang at the Princess Hotel before heading back to the campground. I had a roasted vegetable lentil bowl that was very good, and Frank had fish and chips (Haddock) that he enjoyed.

Day 2-started with the Luths and Wronas joining us at our campsite for breakfast sandwiches, and we made plans on how to spend the day while the others were diving the shipwrecks for which Fathom Five National Park is renowned.

We, along with the Luths, decided to take a glass-bottom boat tour to Flower Pot Island.  It was a 90-minute tour, passing over The Sweepstakes, a very shallow wreck right in the harbor.

It was a gray day, threatening rain, but it stayed dry during our cruise, and the sun even peeked out for a bit.

After the tour, we enjoyed some ice cream.  Then Frank and I went back to the campground, where I finished up a Brownie Pizza and made some Peach Salsa and Ham and Cheese Roll-ups for the annual potluck held in the parking lot of the Blue Bay Motel.  Stay tuned for the salsa and roll-ups recipes.

The rain that threatened arrived right before dinner but we didn't let that stop us from having a great time.

Day 3-arrived with beautiful sunshine and temps in the 70's.  A perfect day.  We started with breakfast at the Princess Hotel with some of the gang who decided to stay back from the morning dives.

When we awoke, I went to make coffee in our brand new Keurig that we bought for the camper, and it would not brew.  I was pretty desperate for some coffee when this photo was taken.  I felt much better after a couple of cups of coffee and Shakshuka.  

Jim and I climbed to the top of the Fire Tower, and then we went for a hike in Bruce Peninsula National Park to the Niagara Escarpment overlooking the Georgian Bay.

We stopped at the Visitor Center to enjoy a short film about the Park and the Fathom Five National Marine Park.  

We walked through the Museum and then headed back to town to do some shopping.  About halfway through our shopping, we came across the Crows Nest Pub and heard some drinks calling our names.

We enjoyed some drinks and appetizers sitting on the rooftop patio watching all the tourists wandering around the town.

We visited the remaining tourist traps and then walked along the harbor back to the Tobermory Brewing Company, where we enjoyed lunch.  Frank and I split the BBQ Rib dinner.

We headed back to the campground and I grabbed a catnap before Jim and Sharon came to join us for a Campfire Dinner.  It was a perfect day.

Day 4- We packed up in the morning and headed out, meeting the Luths for lunch again at the Beach Street Station.  This time I had the Chicken Shwarma Sandwich. It was okay but nothing to write home about. 

It was another beautiful day.  We are now home, the camper is cleaned and buttoned up, the laundry is in the washer, and I'm sipping a glass of wine as I write this post.  It was a great weekend.

Grilled Chicken Chimichurri Bowl and our First Road Trip with the Travel Trailer

This colorful, delicious, healthy bowl makes a perfect meal when camping.  Of course, you don't have to be camping; I'm just lucky enough to be heading home from our first road trip in our new travel trailer.

Getting ready for Island Life and the Weekly Menu

The Easter Leftovers are gone.  Time to decide what we will be eating around here this week.  I am still held captive in case I am needed for jury duty, so we couldn't take the trip out to see Chuck, whose birthday was yesterday.  

However, we do get to have our Angel Face for this weekend.  It was her Mama's Birthday on Thursday, and Daddy took her for a well-deserved, long weekend getaway.

Today is our German son, Max's, birthday.  We last saw him over a year ago when we visited Europe and we hope to see him again this Fall when we visit Italy.

Today is also the day that I lost my dear friend and soul sister, Kirsten.  Not a day goes by that I don't think of her.  I miss her terribly, but celebrate that she is safe and happy with her granddaughter and all the other angels in Heaven.

We have been having fun with our girl since she was dropped off yesterday.  Grampy and Uncle Doug are taking her to her soccer game today.  Aunt Amy and I are going to a vendor show and out to lunch with Cathy.  Grampy is making her spaghetti for dinner tonight.  It is her favorite meal to have when she visits.

We are attending a wine dinner with the Luths and Bonacorsis on Monday evening.  Tuesday, I have a hair appointment and am donating blood after receiving an SOS from the Red Cross advising that they are in great need of O+.  If you haven't donated in a while and are able, it is an easy and safe way to show love for others.

Then we will start packing and getting our dive gear ready for our trip to Anthony's Key Resort in Roatan.  

Banner page from Anthony's Key Resort website.

We are meeting with the others at a hotel near the airport on Friday evening, as our flight leaves at 6:30 am on Saturday.

So here is our Weekly Menu.  There will be no menu next week, but I will be sharing some recipes for events that are scheduled. What's going on in your life this week?

Saturday

Spaghetti

Sunday

Grilled Chicken

Jalapeno Popper Potato Salad

Monday

Wine Dinner at Testa Bara

Taco Tuesday

Baleados

Wednesday

Bratwurst and Red Cabbage

Thursday

Hamburgers

Friday

Dinner with Gang by Airport

 

Maui Part II

 When I last left you with my Vacation Recap, Frank and I were headed to Haleakala National Park.

First Week of Vacation Recap

Last Sunday we left the frigid temperatures of Michigan behind and flew to LA.  I wasn't sure that we would be able to land in LA because of the fires that have devastated California this month but when I called to change my flight they advised that all restrictions had been lifted.

Highlights of our Fall Color Cruise and the Weekly Menu

We had an amazing cruise along the Eastern Coast of the United States and up into Nova Scotia, Canada.  I'm excited to share some of the highlights with you today.

Home Sweet Home and the Weekly Menu

Amy and I returned home early afternoon on Thursday from our Hiking Adventure in Shenandoah National Park.  It was challenging, fun, and satisfying.  The REI guides were amazing.  The trip was planned perfectly.  The food was scrumptious at each place we ate.  The accommodations at our hotel and lodge were perfect.

Happy to be Home and The Weekly Menu

We returned from an amazing whirlwind WWII tour of Germany and France on Wednesday.  We enjoyed seeing the sites of the cities.  This was interspersed with visiting the historical towns of Berlin, Nuremberg, Dacchau, and the Beaches of Normandy.

Sharing a Delicious Cake Recipe and our Upcoming Road Trip North

You don't have to choose between Carrot Cake and Pineapple Upside Down Cake.  You can combine them into one scrumptious dessert that will have your family fighting for the last piece.

Diving the Red Sea

Exodus 14:28  The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.

We just returned from diving in the Red Sea.  We did not see any chariots or charioteers under the sea. However, we did see all the glory and awesomeness of our God!!

Cruising the Nile and visiting Temples

 

Our Egyptian Holiday continued on Day 4 with a flight from Cairo to Aswan.  Our tour group met us at the airport and took us to Philae Temple before we got to the Cruise Ship to enjoy lunch.

The temples are amazing and we "read" the hieroglyphics that tell the story of the temple and its purpose and history.  Each temple has its own story.  

The cruise ship was lovely and we were all starving and more than ready to enoy the scrumptious lunch they had prepared for us.

Our group had the entire Nile Cruise Ship to ourselves.  The staff was extraordinarily welcoming and accommodating.  It was another blisteringly hot day, so while the some went on a shopping tour to Nubian Village, we stayed back and I enjoyed a massage while Frank visited with others at the pool.

Day 5 was spent visiting more temples and the Crocodile Museum.  It was another blisteringly hot day and while I enjoyed the Museum (it was air-conditioned) the temples all started to blend together for me.  They are interesting, however, I could have done with seeing yesterday's temple and just reading about the Kom Ombo and Edju Temples.  They all tell a different story but are basically rocks, carvings, sculptures, and hieroglyphics.

Crocodiles were deities of the Egyptians and, as such, were buried and mummified in a sarcophagus.  It was a very interesting tour.

It was 117* out this day and the Temple of Edfu nearly did us in.  Can you tell??  This is also the day the first of the group started getting ill.  I think we all succumbed to the lack of sleep, extraordinary temperatures, and trying to fit 2 weeks of tours into 1 week. 

It was very nice to be back on the cruise ship to relax and recoup as we traveled from Aswan to Luxor.

I enjoyed all the tours and learned a lot but my favorite times were those spent with friends, relaxing, and visiting by the pool.

Day 5 we swapped out the big boat for a smaller one as we headed to Valley of the Kings, the Temple of  Queen Hatshepsut, and Colossi of Memnon. 

There were shopping stalls to walk through as we headed to Valley of the Kings.  Let the bartering begin.

Here is Grampy modeling a hat that I bought for the Angel Face.  I bartered down the price to half of what was being asked and still think I paid too much LOL.

It was a jam-packed week as you can see.  The following day we had a 4-hour bus ride to the Red Sea to hop upon the yacht that was to become our home for the remainder of the trip.  Stay tuned for that week of our adventure.

Visiting Kings, Riding Camels and Seeking Chariots

We are home from our Egypt trip.  It ended with some concern because of the war declared in the neighboring country of Israel.  All flights went through without a hitch, thankfully.  

I am going to share a bit of our vacation with you.  We left Detroit at 7 pm on September 24 and arrived at our hotel in Cairo around 4 am on September 26.  We ate breakfast and then hit our room for several hours.  When we awoke and went outside, we were amazed that we could see the Pyramids from our hotel.

This is how we spent our first day in Cairo.

Weekly Menu for lots of Celebrations

What a tremendous week we had and what an amazing week we have coming up.  Let me share with you our last day in CA and the excitement we had upon coming home.

On our final day in California, we left my brother's house after breakfast and drove into Monterey where we met my friend Cam and her son for lunch.  Sushi again at the Angel Face's request, after which she and I headed to the Monterey Aquarium.  The Angel Face loved the otters and the hermit crabs most of all.

Homeward Bound and the Weekly Menu

 As you are reading this post my Angel Face and I are on a plane returning home from California where we were celebrating my great niece's graduation from High School.  We had a great time!!

A Busy but Fun September here on the Farm

September was crazy around the Farm this year.  We demolished and remodeled the kitchen.  I have been sharing that journey as we went along on my facebook page but wanted to show you the finished project here on the blog.

It is completely finished, except we had a little oops with the corner cabinet door and we are waiting for a replacement.

More Cayman Brac Memories and a Taco Salad

Good Monday Morning.  I got all my laundry caught up and my groceries bought yesterday after my week long vacation while Frank mowed down the jungle that was our yard before the rains come back today.

We did find time to relax in the evening and celebrate Cinco de Mayo with a Taco Salad and Margaritas for dinner.

All your favorite taco flavors combined into a Salad.  Seasoned ground beef, romaine lettuce, black beans, tomatoes, avocados, and cheese all topped with a sour cream dressing.  Delicious!

This salad is easy to make and is perfect for a main course meal or you can double the recipe and bring it along to your summer pot lucks to feed a crowd.

A couple of days in Cayman Brac and The Weekly Menu

We had an absolutely awesome time at Cayman Brac Beach Resort.  Six luxurious days of diving, relaxation, and pampering.  The staff was excellent, the food amazing and the diving superb.

We missed many members of our usual group who could not be with us this trip.  Rob and Linda, Sherry and Brad, Rodney and Dee.....all of whom were with us in spirit, especially Rodney as he fights his health battle and Dee as she struggles along with him as his caregiver.

Double JJ Ranch and the Weekly Menu

It has been a fun filled, crazy week here on the farm.  

Let me do a quick recap...…..