An Overnight Stay at Camping la Route Bleue, Balbigny, France

It was just a chance encounter, I should say. But it was a nice one, because Camping la Route Bleue in Balbigny, France was a great surprise for us.

How did we end up here? Because we used a popular German camping guide book that I bought for a much, much lower rate from a neighborhood travel agency. You know, just in case the navigator suddenly acts up while we are travelling with a caravan in France.

What attracted us to Camping la Route Bleue? Since we are supposed to drive more than 900 kilometers away to our next destination from Port Grimaud, France; we chose a place where we could comfortably rest for the day and still have fun camping. And the most important requirement? They should accept dogs. The second? It should be near the Autobahn (Autoroute).

Yup, we found it at Camping la Route Bleue.

Here are some photos to show you why we got lucky.

They have a swimming pool!

As I said, we wanted to rest after a long drive, but we also wanted to have fun. Thus, the swimming pool is a great way to stretch out and yes, get out of the heat! Remember, there's a heatwave in Europe at this time.

The reception area.

The reception desk is friendly and yup, English is spoken. Everything's processed after a few minutes, and we are allowed to choose our camping pitch. No numbered pitches here.

The entrance to Camping la Route Bleue

You would get a code so you could drive your vehicle through, but after 10 a.m., you need to leave your vehicle outside because the code won't function anymore. They value silence here, which is good.

Danke, Nivea! (Thanks, Nivea)

We've been a fan of Nivea for a long, long time. And nope, this is not a paid advertisement :-)

Got our free Nivea bath towels

And I guess, it is times like this that solifies the reason why. Aside from their skin products that are really to be recommended, they have these special offers that makes us all smile.

Dog Treats: Bacon Bits with Parsley and Carrots

Rikki and her freshly-baked dog treat!

I started working for a small hotel, doing breakfast thingy. Instead of throwing the rest of the bacon (I try to avoid throwing food as much as possible), I've decided to bring them home and create something delicious for Rikki. Thus, the Bacon Bits with Parsley and Carrots Dog Treats.

Bacon Bits with Parsley and Carrots Dog Treats

Simply Amazing: Justin Timberlake's Concert in Mannheim

Justin Timberlake in SAP Arena, Mannheim

This is a last minute concert ticket checking and buying that MC and I would never regret.

It was an impulse to simpy check the scheduled concerts around us two weeks ago and then we saw that Justin Timberlake's Man of the Woods World Tour added another venue, the SAP Arena in Mannheim. Why not? I told MC, who paid for both of our tickets (she started working part-time early this year), to just go for the cheapest seats. After all, we have been to the the concert venue a few times for various events and we know how it would look like.

TSG Hoffenheim 3:1 Hannover 96

And so our dream came true this Friday!

After checking the website to check all the important things (what not to bring 'no water, no food, no pets, no backpacks/big bags'), where our seats are located (there's a very helpful button on the website where you could see the virtual view from your seat number), and the best way to travel there (shuttle bus almost every 15 minutes)... IC and I, decided to leave early and it was the best decision ever!

There were no chaos at the shuttle bus station, only the excitement of the fans. Reaching the stadium, IC and I decided to just follow the masses. The stadium opened two hours before the game and it all happened in a very orderly manner (unlike the chaos during the three Justin Bieber concerts I've attended with MC!).

IC and I, finally, at a live soccer game!

We've Got Tickets for TSG Hoffenheim vs Hannover 96 Game!

Dream come true!

IC and I are going to be watching a soccer game live tomorrow! I know, I know... but you see, I have been waiting for a long, long time for the chance to watch a Bundesliga game live. What I didn't know is that IC is also enthusiastic about a live game!

So this afternoon, my husband asked me if I wanted to watch a game because somebody's giving him tickets. Of course I said yes! IC and I are now very excited. What should we wear, eherm!!!

Actually, our first thought was: where would be end up seating? And how would be find our seats? And finally, how would be get there? It's more practical to just take the shuttle bus from the main bus terminal to the stadium, and that's what wer're going to do.

As for what we're allowed to bring, I am not really sure. I've been with MC to three major Justin Bieber concerts in Germany and Switzerland, and everytime, there are different rules on what to bring and what not to bring. Especially after what happened with the Ariana Grande concert in Manchester. I guess after this post, I need to check the stadium rules.

Anyway, TSG Hoffenheim vs Hannover 96 game, here we come!

Saturday is Barbecue Day with a Fresh Fruit Joghurt Dessert

Chillin' while grillin'

A fine Saturday! My husband needed two days to get the front yard and the backyard ready, but he did it (with a little help from us, of course! If answering his yells of  'I need something to drink' or 'Can you please get the thingymajig' etc...) Now, we celebrate with a barbecue party!

Our menu for today? Pretzel, Lamb's Lettuce Salad, Chopped Tomatoes and Mangoes Salad, Rice, Steak, and Spare Ribs! Yummy.

Mashed Potatoes with Broccoli

I can't believe it took me three years to start blogging again! Story later, but promise, no need to wait three years :-)

I'm not even sure if my links are still working, not even sure if I'd have problems with my links. I got a notice from GoogleDeutschland...bla...bla... I will check those bla..bla.. later. But I promise (second promise), because of GoogleD's is strictness, I am gonna be sticking only to my Homeworked from now on.

So, while waiting for the family to come back home from MC's cheerleading training tonight, I decided to visit my blog and share my dinner experiment: Mashed Potatoes with Broccoli.

Mashed Potatoes with Broccoli combined with Lamb's Lettuce Salad, Fried Porkloin and Falafel.

Traditional Christmas Baking 2015

Always a tradition, remains a tradition.

Our Christmas baking day with the girls would remain a big part of the season.

 As always, it's a three-man deal. The girls and their Papa. Great teamwork there.

 Always a bit stressful, yet a complete success (well, almost always).

 Always a creative time.

Always a fun time.

The Third Sunday of Advent

Peace, unity and love to all!

IC's St. Nicholas Thoughts

So...

St. Nicholas Day was also the second Sunday of Advent.

The girls are now 11 and 13 years old.

I was teasing them the night before that they still need to prepare their boots for St. Nicholas, otherwise, he might miss our doorstep. They simply smirked.

Who would have thought? Before the night ended, I saw their boots lined up near the door :-)

They got their gifts, of course, but this year, I forgot about chocolates, ooops!

I thought they would not say anything. That's what I thought!

IC came to me a few hours ago and asked me why they didn't get any chocolates this year? She protested the lack of sweets!

I cannot tell her that I forgot. Instead I told her that I thought they would appreciate more gifts replacing the chocolates. But no, apparently, chocolates and St. Nicholas day belong together.

Okay, now I know.

The Second Sunday of Advent

More peace, unity and love to everyone!

The First Sunday of Advent

Praying for peace, unity and love!

My Girls First Pumpkin Muffins

Okay, I am proud to present to all of you...

My girls first attempt at baking muffins. What's incredible is that they also made icing! Colored icing, gulp! So proud because I didn't even think about making or even trying colored muffins myself :-) I guess they are more adventurous, am glad.

Here are the muffins:

Pumpkin Muffins

These are Pumpkin Muffins with colored icing. They even experimented with sprinkles.

Another wow factor is that their first attempt at baking these muffins was done when they were alone at home. Success! And very delicious, too.

First Garden Party in our New Home

Hey, we've moved!

And we even had our first garden party with our new landlords.

Will just show you the pictures for now as I am still busy with the boxes and yes, the cafe, too...

Our 14th Wedding Anniversary at Ratsstube in Sinsheim

So, as usual, it's only my husband who remembered that our wedding anniversary is fast approaching, Meaning, he told us over dinner the night before :-D To the great disappointment of the girls, who always planned a surprise and wanted to shower us with gifts during this special day.

But because of too much happening around us, aside from moving into a new home and the still new experience of owning a coffeeshop and bakeshop, the girls forgave us for not giving them enough time to prepare something. They were happy to know that their Papa already know where to go for the special day.

And after a long walk in which they complained a lot (and I was grateful that I decided to change my high-heels into flats); we discovered the Ratsstube. We hesitated to enter the premises first because there was a sign that says no dogs allowed inside (arrgh!).

But because Rikki is a good girl (and maybe there's no other dogs around); they gave us a place in the spacious garden area.

And here's our dinner in photos:

Ratsstube Hotel, Restaurant and Butchery

Ratsstube

Our Aperitif: Hugo and Non-alcoholic Hugo for the girls

My Starter: Scallops with Mango

New House, New Garden View

Moving is not easy! Yet slowly but surely...

Let me show you our new garden view...

Yep, Rikki's pool is an important part of the garden view :-)

There you go, green all over!

Will tell you more once all the boxes have been unpacked :-)

Rikki and her dogs

Too cute not to share :-)

Posing for the photographer with her baby doggie

Here comes Rikki's big doggie

A white baby doggie joins this time

There they are, all Rikki's doggies :-)

FOR SALE: Kitchen Set / KÜCHE KOMPLETT ZU VERKAUFEN

KÜCHE KOMPLETT ZU VERKAUFEN

Kitchen Set for Sale

800 Euro VB 

(Price is negotiatiable)

Wegen Umzug verkaufen wir unsere Küche.

We are moving and our kitchen set is for sale.

Sie beinhaltet: 

(The set includes)

-       - Alle Schränke die man auf dem Foto sieht (All the cabinets seen in the photos)

    - Ein Ceranfeld (A ceramic glass cooktop)

-       - Eine Spülmaschine (A dishwasher)

-       - Ein Kühlschrank (A refrigerator)

-       - Eine Dunstabzugshaube (An exhaust hood)

-       - Ein Backofen (An oven)

Maße der Küche: 
Länge der Küchenzeile: 213 cm 
Backofen- Kühlschrank 120 c m 

Kitchen Set Dimensions:

Length of the kitchenette: 213 cm

Oven/Ref Set: 129 cm

Living Room Choices

It's time for a new living room set.

We ended up with two choices, after looking seriously between five and six for hours. Yep, we need to decide as soon as possible because delivery dates vary from one week to six weeks, gasp!

Not to mention, one shop is offering free delivery so why not take advantage, right?

Okay, here's what's we are looking into now:

This in dark gray.

Yes, this in black.

Our consideration in these choices would be:

- Easy to clean (and maybe wash when necessary)
- Not easy to see dirt (something to hide, huh?)
- Stable and comfortable (why not?)
- Dog-friendly, of course :-D

I'll let you know our decision later this week.

P.S. I also received a handmade living room set from the 1950s as a gift, I will combine those with what we ended up with. Soon, photos will come up!