Portugal, Perhaps!

I drove a good friend of mine to the airport yesterday morning so that she can go meet up with her sweetie while he takes his break from deployment {R&R}! I'm still so excited for them, getting to be back together again for a while! Before I know it, it will be our turn! And when our time does come, I think we're going to spend a few days relaxing together in beautiful Portugal!  I have found a fabulous hotel nestled in the countryside of southern Portugal, & I keep dreaming of doing absolutely nothing there but enjoying each other's company!  Delicious food, gorgeous scenery, a few good books, & oh the happiness of being together!

The Algarve is famous for it's beautiful warm weather year round, it's white sandy beaches, its golf courses, & its handmade pottery -- all things which sound lovely to me!  With the golf courses, though, you would find me driving the kart & reading a book while Don plays :)

Isn't it all beautiful?!  The last photo is of the hotel I have found.  It's designed with the strong Moorish influence on the area kept in mind!  So enchanting, I think!  If you had a trip to take with your hunny, purely to be together & relax, where would you go?!  ♥

Cheerio! To London, Munich & Salzburg We Go!

Our bags are packed, our boarding passes printed, & the doggies are ready to be dropped off at "camp"! It's time for some traveling!  And we've modified our trip a bit: we added Munich & Salzburg!  So after our return from London, we'll be stay a night in each of those wonderful cities!  It's going to be a great trip with my brother!

To London First...

Then A Night In Munich...

Then, our last night will be in Salzburg, Austria!

I promise to take lots of photos ♥

I hope that you all have a fabulous end to your week & a lovely weekend full of surprises & smiles!  I will be back around the 21st!  ♥

Travel Tuesdays % London Calling!

Welcome welcome to all of my wonderful new readers! It's lovely to have you here!

Next up in my European travels is London, & I'll be going there soon with my dear little brother {who just happens to be about 6'4"!}.  He's flying into Germany in a few days to keep me company for an entire month, & I couldn't be more excited!  We're going to have so much fun--I just know it!  He is two years younger than me, & we've always been very close.  Having him here to keep me busy & to liven up the house while Don is gone will be such a blessing!  And seeing London together will be fabulous!!  Here I come, fish & chips, double-decker busses, cherry red phone booths, afternoon tea & oh so much more!

We're going to be staying for 3.5 days, 4 nights--plenty of time to soak in London's sights & sounds!  I'm hoping {fingers crossed!} that we can also make our way down to Jane Austen's house in Chawton.  It'll take a train ride, a bus ride, & about a 15 minute walk to get there, but by golly, we can do that!  One of the hardest things for me about traveling is that you get so close to so many things you want to see, & yet...it's impossible to see it all.

 Have you been to London?  What must I make sure not to miss, dears?!

My Parents Are Here! ...Off We Go!

My parents are here! Oh, how happy my heart was to see them come through the Arrivals gate at the airport!  And isn't it wonderful that no matter how long you are away from your family, as soon as you are back together it feels as though no time has passed?!  It's so easy & comfortable right from the get-go.  Ah, family.  I missed you!

Layla & Lucius have two new best friends.  They played all night & snuggled lots too!  Layla usually barks at "strangers" so much that they probably don't even want to come into the house!  But she didn't do that with my parents!  It wasn't until they'd been here about 45 minutes that she barked {a teenie bit!} at my Dad.  Silly girl, she knew by that point that he was nice!  Then, of course, she put her head under his hand & gratefully accepted all the petting & sweet talking that followed.  Lucius was Dad's constant play buddy, bringing him his favorite heavy-duty ribbon {which used to be part of a braided toy that my Mother-In-Law sent!} & beginning a game of tug-of-war.  My Dad was so sweet; he re-braided the ribbon.  I think this just made Lucius like him even more!  My parents are fans.

Well, I won't be writing for the next few days because this morning we head on our wine trip!  It's going to be so relaxing & yummy!  The drive will be gorgeous!  And we're planning a few little trips around there, too:

Bastogne, Brussels.  The Battle of the Bulge took place here, & my Dad's father fought in it during WWII.  What an experience it will be to visit this incredible place.

Trier, Germany.  The oldest city in the country, founded on or before 16BC.  As you can see, there are many Roman ruins here.  We are definitely going to make a stop & check it out!

Worms, Germany.  Most famous for Martin Luther's stand against the Catholic Church in 1521.

So tell me...what are your plans for the weekend, dear readers?!  I'll be back to posting on Tuesday...unless, that is, we have another busy day planned!  Enjoy your weekend, everyone!

Good Morning, April! Let's Travel.

7am in Germany: Here I sit in my nightshirt, an empty cereal bowl beside me along with a hot cup of Cafe Du Monde coffee, the birds chirping outside as the sun comes up, my dogs fast asleep on the sofa.

Where has the time gone?  April already?  What happened to March?  Or February, for that matter!  Is it true that time seems to go by faster as you get older?  It must be, because it sure is flying by to me!  But I'm looking forward to this month & all that it has in store for me.  My parents are arriving next week for a 2 week stay with us, & I can't wait!  I'm planning a trip for us up to Luxembourg, Belgium, & the Netherlands & I'm especially excited to visit the Keukenhof tulip garden outside of Amsterdam, the largest of its kind in the world!  Fields upon fields of beautiful bright color!

Photo from wikipedia.org

While my parents are here, I think we'll also do some daytrips to Prague, maybe Poland for some Pottery or the Mosel River Valley region for some of my Dad's favorite white wine!  How do you choose?!

If you had two weeks to spend in Europe, where would you go?  What would be at the tip top of your list?!

On another note, it looks like my new comment form is working great!  And CommentLuv too!  It's pretty neat, don't ya think?!  Thank you all for your comments!  I've had quite a few new readers lately & that has put quite the grin on my face!

Now, get out there & enjoy the first day of April!  ♥