Memorial Day 2020

Happy Memorial Day!

It's been quite a year so far, hasn't it? This virus and our response to it have dominated our lives for more than three months now. I don't know about you, but I'm ready to get off this merry-go-round.

But the world goes on in spite of our preoccupation. Babies are born, couples get married, people buy houses, they move across country, they retire from their jobs, they graduate from school... Life is still going.

Are you living? Or are you just waiting for the virus to end and get everything back to normal?

Today, this Memorial Day, I challenge you to choose to live in the midst of our current situation. This poem should remind all of us that life is short. Don't let some virus steal your precious time!

Memorial Day

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields. 

WWI British Cemetery at Abbeville in France, 1918
public domain 

That poem was written May 3, 1915 by John McCrae. He was a Canadian, and a soldier first, and physician second. He had volunteered for service in the Second Boer War, and at the age of 41 volunteered again for duty in World War One. On May 2, 1915, during the second Battle of Ypres, his friend, Alexis Helmer, was killed in battle. Lieutenant Colonel McCrae wrote this poem for his funeral.

Why do we celebrate Memorial Day? So we never forget to remember.

So as we enjoy our picnics, rest, and family time, let us not forget to remember why we hold this day separate from all the rest...

Have a great holiday, a wonderful week, and I'll see you all next Monday when we'll continue part 2 of "Recharging Our Immune Systems."

Jan Drexler is an author by day who is addicted to counted cross stitch and sauntering through the Hills with her dear husband and their puppies - goofy corgi Jack and growing-fast border collie Sam. You can find Jan's books and other fun things on her website: www.JanDrexler.com.

Lacey's Patriotic Cake Revisited for Memorial Day!

 

In honor of the upcoming beautiful and poignant holiday, we're re-using this fun post from four years ago.... and Lacey Blodgett's amazing patriotic cake! Here you go!

 

I knew it!

I knew I would think today is Tuesday and of course it is not Tuesday.

It is Wednesday, and I need to have some Yankee Belle Fun here for Thursday!!!!

EEEEEK!

But, wait.... we had a Memorial Day weekend, so there is fun to be had! We were farming and planting and watching all kinds of little kids and sweet babies and we had a wonderful time going to the annual Hilton Memorial Day parade and paying our respects to veterans... and our flag. And our high school marching band, and our first responders....

It was a lovely parade, and then some quiet time at the cemetery, planting flowers in the Blodgett garden.

We embraced service, life and loss, and it was all good!

Lacey made the creation of the day.... Patriotic cake!

Now, that's an eclectic picture, you're saying.... Why are the cakes on Barilla Fettucine boxes? Is this a new thing?

Well, this is what happens when you need to reassemble your 140 year old oak table and haven't done it yet.... and there was no place to set the cakes to cool where little kids couldn't/wouldn't get them!

These are 6" cakes, white cake dyed to the appropriate colors....

Top shot! Lacey frosted the cake, then decorated the top with strawberries and blueberries...

Isn't that perfect?????

PHOTOBOMBED BY JON!!!!!!

And this is triple berry sauce on French vanilla pound cake from Sam's Club... I made the berry topping by thawing triple blend berries and slicing two pounds of fresh strawberries into the berry mix, and adding about 1/2 cup sugar and letting it sit for about 20 minutes....

So we had red/white/blue desserts covered!

Happy Baby Alert!!!!

Morgan! She's getting so big, she's 18 months old now, and her dark straight hair has turned to blonde curls! How funny!!!!! She looks like her mama but she got my square (read: big) head!!!! She's adorable!
Happy Baby Alert #2!!!!!

Lena!!! Big brother Finn is running around her exer-saucer, and she thinks he's soooo funny!

And then here....

Finn, Morgan and MacKenzie, with a little berry snack and fun going on....

A beautiful day.... A happy day, with a few bittersweet moments, and that's okay.

We're into planting season here, and there's always a project or two going on, so as the fresh veggies go in and start to produce, we'll have some fun on the farm! And we're going to try old fashioned rhubarb custard pie, a Ruthy favorite!

Wishing you a great week from all of us at Yankee Belle Cafe, excited about summer! 

Multi-published, bestselling author Ruth Logan Herne is living her dream of writing sweet books that touch heart and soul. With over 3/4 million books in print, she's loving this chance to work with multiple publishers.... and do what she dreamed of for years: write the kind of books she loves to read! You can find her on facebook at Ruth Logan Herne, ruthloganherne.com and on Twitter as @RuthLoganHerne. 

Posted by Ruth Logan Herne at 12:

Memorial Day 2019

It's Memorial Day!

I hope you're having a wonderful day of family time, picnics, and fun to kick off summer!

Things are low key today at our house. It's a cool and rainy day, but we're still going to go up into the Hills. We want to scout out a new campground for an overnight trip next week.

So it's business as usual...except for this:

Memorial Day

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields. 

WWI British Cemetery at Abbeville in France, 1918
public domain 

That poem was written May 3, 1915 by John McCrae. He was a Canadian, and a soldier first, and physician second. He had volunteered for service in the Second Boer War, and at the age of 41 volunteered again for duty in World War One. On May 2, 1915, during the second Battle of Ypres, his friend, Alexis Helmer, was killed in battle. Lieutenant Colonel McCrae wrote this poem for his funeral.

Why do we celebrate Memorial Day? So we never forget to remember.

So enjoy your picnics, rest, and family time. But don't forget to remember why we hold this day separate from all the rest...

Have a great holiday, a wonderful week, and I'll see you all next Monday!

Memorial Day 2018

Happy Memorial Day from your friends at the Cafe!

Memorial Day

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields. 

WWI British Cemetery at Abbeville in France, 1918
public domain 

That poem was written May 3, 1915 by John McCrae. He was a Canadian: a soldier first, and physician second. He had volunteered for service in the Second Boer War, and at the age of 41 volunteered again for duty in World War One. On May 2, 1915, during the second Battle of Ypres, his friend, Alexis Helmer, was killed in battle. Lieutenant Colonel McCrae wrote this poem for his funeral.

Why do we celebrate Memorial Day? So we never forget to remember.

So enjoy your picnics, rest, and family time. But don't forget to remember why we hold this day separate from all the rest...

Have a great holiday, a wonderful week!

Memorial Day 2017

Happy Memorial Day!

I hope you're having a wonderful day of family time, picnics, and fun to kick off summer!

Things are low key today at our house. Hubby is working, and so am I (how better to spend a day alone?). And the dogs will get their morning walk. Tonight we'll have brats (using this recipe, Midwestern Style)


So it's business as usual...except for this:

Memorial Day

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields. 

WWI British Cemetery at Abbeville in France, 1918
public domain 

That poem was written May 3, 1915 by John McCrae. He was a Canadian, and a soldier first, and physician second. He had volunteered for service in the Second Boer War, and at the age of 41 volunteered again for duty in World War One. On May 2, 1915, during the second Battle of Ypres, his friend, Alexis Helmer, was killed in battle. Lieutenant Colonel McCrae wrote this poem for his funeral.

Why do we celebrate Memorial Day? So we never forget to remember.

So enjoy your picnics, rest, and family time. But don't forget to remember why we hold this day separate from all the rest...

Have a great holiday, a wonderful week, and I'll see you all next Monday!

Memorial Day 2016 and Lacey's Patriotic Cake!

I knew it!

I knew I would think today is Tuesday and of course it is not Tuesday.

It is Wednesday, and I need to have some Yankee Belle Fun here for Thursday!!!!

EEEEEK!

But, wait.... we had a Memorial Day weekend, so there is fun to be had! We were farming and planting and watching all kinds of little kids and sweet babies and we had a wonderful time going to the annual Hilton Memorial Day parade and paying our respects to veterans... and our flag. And our high school marching band, and our first responders....

It was a lovely parade, and then some quiet time at the cemetery, planting flowers in the Blodgett garden.

We embraced service, life and loss, and it was all good!

Lacey made the creation of the day.... Patriotic cake!

Now, that's an eclectic picture, you're saying.... Why are the cakes on Barilla Fettucine boxes? Is this a new thing?

Well, this is what happens when you need to reassemble your 140 year old oak table and haven't done it yet.... and there was no place to set the cakes to cool where little kids couldn't/wouldn't get them!

These are 6" cakes, white cake dyed to the appropriate colors....

Top shot! Lacey frosted the cake, then decorated the top with strawberries and blueberries...

Isn't that perfect?????

PHOTOBOMBED BY JON!!!!!!

And this is triple berry sauce on French vanilla pound cake from Sam's Club... I made the berry topping by thawing triple blend berries and slicing two pounds of fresh strawberries into the berry mix, and adding about 1/2 cup sugar and letting it sit for about 20 minutes....

So we had red/white/blue desserts covered!

Happy Baby Alert!!!!

Morgan! She's getting so big, she's 18 months old now, and her dark straight hair has turned to blonde curls! How funny!!!!! She looks like her mama but she got my square (read: big) head!!!! She's adorable!
Happy Baby Alert #2!!!!!

Lena!!! Big brother Finn is running around her exer-saucer, and she thinks he's soooo funny!

And then here....

Finn, Morgan and MacKenzie, with a little berry snack and fun going on....

A beautiful day.... A happy day, with a few bittersweet moments, and that's okay.

We're into planting season here, and there's always a project or two going on, so as the fresh veggies go in and start to produce, we'll have some fun on the farm! And we're going to try old fashioned rhubarb custard pie, a Ruthy favorite!

Wishing you a great week from all of us at Yankee Belle Cafe, excited about summer! 

Multi-published, bestselling author Ruth Logan Herne is living her dream of writing sweet books that touch heart and soul. With over 3/4 million books in print, she's loving this chance to work with multiple publishers.... and do what she dreamed of for years: write the kind of books she loves to read! You can find her on facebook at Ruth Logan Herne, ruthloganherne.com and on Twitter as @RuthLoganHerne. 

Midwestern Beer Brats For Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day!

I hope you're having a wonderful day of picnics, time with friends and family, and splendid summer weather.

But, just in case your Memorial Day picnic has been rained out, here's a way to cook those brats on the stove - saving your meal in a delicious way! Enjoy this recipe that I shared back in 2012:

Midwestern Beer Brats

“Hot enough for ya?”

“It’s not the heat, it’s the humidity.”

                        And its partner, “It’s a dry heat, just like your oven.”

And my favorite?

“Satan called. He wants his weather back.”

Face it, this summer has been brutal, rivaling the 1930’s dust bowl era.

In our part of the country, drought has been the killer.

Our area (the Black Hills of South Dakota) is classified as “extreme drought”. That means fire bans. All fires.

The problem? I have a charcoal grill.

Yeah, I know, gas is more convenient. But a gas grill just doesn’t give you that smoky flavor…

 Anyway, I haven’t been able to use my grill since June.

     No 4^th of July barbeque!

                No Saturday night burgers!

                                And {gasp!} no brats!

What’s a mid-western gal going to do to feed her family?

Believe it or not, a southern belle came to my rescue.

(No, not Missy. The other one. Paula.)

This recipe was one her show one day back in June (before my daughter was employed and still had time to watch daytime TV), and when I thought I couldn’t stand going without brats one more week, I remembered it.

I’m rating this one “pretty easy”. You do have to open the beer cans…

Oh, and for those who don’t drink? There’s no alcohol in the finished product. It all gets simmered away - or you can use water or non-alcoholic beer.

Midwestern-Style Beer Brats

With thanks to the Deen brothers for the original recipe.

(Which I changed, of course. I can never leave those recipes alone!)

Ingredients:

•  10 fresh (not smoked or pre-cooked) bratwurst sausages (I used Johnsonville)
• (This is to serve seven people, three with large appetites. Make as many brats as you need.)
•   6  16 ounce, or 8 12 ounce cans of beer (not the good stuff - after all, you will be cooking it) - or water - or another fizzy drink, like ginger ale
•  1 large onion, sliced and divided into two piles
•  A variety of peppers – I used those little bell peppers you can get in yellow, orange and red, and threw in a few slices of green pepper to go with them.
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• Black pepper, to taste
• 10 brat buns or hoagie rolls
• Mustard – don’t skimp on this. Get the best German-style, stone-ground mustard you can find.

So, first we boil the brats in the beer. Empty the cans of beer into a large pot and add half the sliced onions. Prick the brats all over with a fork, and then drop them in. Bring the pot to a boil and simmer 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet or Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the remaining onions and the peppers. Cook about 15 minutes, or until they’re very soft, stirring and tossing occasionally.

When the brats are done simmering, add them to the skillet with about a quarter cup of the cooking liquid. Turn the heat up a smidge and stir the brats, peppers and onions together until the brats start browning (between 5 and 15 minutes). Add more liquid if necessary to keep the peppers from scorching. As they’re cooking, season with a few grinds from your pepper grinder (or shakes from your shaker).

Split the buns, if they aren’t already sliced. Slather one side of the bun with mustard and add your brat along with as many of the sautéed peppers and onions you desire.

And the corn? I used the microwave method Missy shared with us a few weeks ago, of course! Go here to find that recipe.

Back to 2016 - Memorial Day is a very special day in the US. While Veteran's Day honors soldiers who have served in our armed forces, and Armed Services Day honors those who are currently serving, Memorial Day honors those who have paid the ultimate price for our freedom.

So enjoy your day, but don't forget the reason why we celebrate. :)

Jan Drexler loves her family, her home, cooking and just about anything made by hand. But she loves her Lord most of all.

Stop by Jan's website to learn more about her books: www.JanDrexler.com.

Memorial Day 2014

Memorial Day.

What images pop into your head? The "unofficial start of summer?" Picnics? The year's first trip to the beach? Camping?

Getting together with family and friends?

Memorial Day is all this. But there's more. Much more.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields. 

WWI British Cemetery at Abbeville in France, 1918
public domain 

That poem was written May 3, 1915 by John McCrae. He was a Canadian, and a soldier first, and physician second. He had volunteered for service in the Second Boer War, and at the age of 41 volunteered again for duty in World War One. On May 2, 1915, during the second Battle of Ypres, his friend, Alexis Helmer, was killed in battle. Lieutenant Colonel McCrae wrote this poem for his funeral.

public domain

This year, we mark a couple important anniversaries.

public domain

One hundred years ago this August, World War One started. It was the "war to end all wars." They were wrong.

public domain

Fifty years ago, June 6, 1944, was D-Day. That horrific, awful push by the allied armies was the beginning of the end of World War Two.

Why do we celebrate Memorial Day? So we never forget to remember.