The new year still so young and already a couple of days old. Happy New Year! With the holidays behind us and a fresh year ahead of us…
Let’s celebrate January. It’s less about resolutions and lifestyle overhauls. It’s more about small, simple ways to survive the cold, and nourish your body and soul.
A delayed classic new year dish in Frankonia: Sauerkraut (so our money won’t run out this year. Sorted.).
Today is the very first work day for some of us. Hubby is back to work since his accident 8 months ago. Wohoooo!
9 years ago a different love story began… we adopted Charlie. Happy anniversary!
❤️Lucky girl today.
So why not enjoying the Christmas Magic a little longer. In a castle. Pure magic. Stunning!
Let’s celebrate next Christmas here!
It’s definitely the end of Christmas at home. The Christmas tree has been taken down. Pine needles are swept away. Ornaments wrapped up.
The new year hadn’t started yet and it made me happy filling my first calendar pages with dinner dates, appointments and other beautiful things to look forward to. It feels good!
January window sweep. Grey January days need a bit of color…Happy birthday, mum!
A new cooking book for Christmas. Same procedure as every year: diet has been kicked off. Chocolates & candy are hidden away.
Successfully escaped & spent the last days of the old year in the south of France. Taking it easy. Sleeping in. A cup of tea. A glass of red wine. Rose for lunch, sure! Reading books & favorite magazines. A cosy fire. Long dog walks. Enjoying sunshine and spring temperatures. Dining out. Dining in. Cooking together. Relaxing. Croissant for breakfast. Shopping in French supermarkets. Reflecting over the past year.
The colors of the Ariege.
Bonjour!
Breakfast in t-shirt. 20C degrees. Sunshine and blue sky. We couldn’t wish for more.
France is a dream for food lovers.
Creme Brûlée.
And then… 45minute drive to a gourmet restaurant & hubby forgot his Covid vaccine pass. 45min drive back and change of plans: pizza machine… Bon Appetit!
Wowed by the view of the Midi-Pyrénées.
There’s a lot you can do wrong in France when it comes to food: ordering croissant at the little local corner shop (madam, those are reserved…) or eating them…
Find the mistake. I give you a hint: “what is the Brie doing next to the croissant?“ (they just haven’t figured out the real deliciousness yet..)Just a little selection de fromages… I’m in heaven.
Soaking up every minute of this holiday. All we needed: a bit of sunshine, a (better several) good glass(es) of wine and delicious food.
In the mood to party. A house party for three. A very delicious countdown to midnight:
Pre-dinner libation or a continuation of celebration…The starter: foie gras & champagne
Champagne should be out and being quaffed. Oh, it’s so good!
Christmas and the day until the new year is a time to take stock of our life and internal landscape. It’s like the past, the present and the future all come together.
Covid continuous. Restaurants and shops were closed in most parts of Germany until June. Wow! In between we had curfew & very restricted contacts.
Well… it took until August!
It was all about vaccinations. When. Who. How bad. Now it’s all about 3G, 2G and 2G plus. What a mess. You need to be a genius to stay up to date with frequent changing Covid rules. But there was more than Covid.
Berlins Airport was opened! (only 9 years delay. Yea!)
Floods in Germany. Pretty bad. Still is.
Hair dressers opened their doors again March 1! Rough times ending… time to switch cameras back on in home office.
Abba & it’s comeback.
2021 – a record year for renewable energy.
Mallorca instead of Nordsee! A Covid test was enough to enter the airplane while the north of Germany remained in lockdown.
Amanda Gorman – the hero of poetry. A poetry in front of the capitol. The world was wowed! Hello new Mr. President!
We met many friends & family this year.
The China communist party celebrated their 100th anniversary.
Prince Philip, the Dukee of Edinburgh, died at the age of 99 7/8.
More than 2000 panda bears survive wild & enjoy living in the free.
And the Oscar goes to… Chloe Zhao for „Nomadland“.
Escalations in Afghanistan after NATO troops left.
We voted a new chancellor & government in Germany. We said goodbye to Angela Merkel after 16 years.
#FreeBritney after 13 years!
The series Squid Game was a big hit!
Mercedes Benz reached L3 in autonomous driving in Germany – the first OEM!
Hubby’s accident and a 7.5 month recovery period. Life became a total new sense again! Wishes became true: playing the guitar, brewing beer & cooking – he’s able to do all of it again.
My favorite photo of the year.
Germanys EM goal keeper wearing rainbow color bandage pro diversity.
A summer almost Covid free. Life felt kind of normal again. Restaurants were open again! Cinemas, too! Being surrounded by too many people feels odd. If they don’t keep distance, too. What a weird world.
2021 – a year of self-testing (Covid).
France became my travel destination this year. Paris in a VW Bus. All the way to beautiful Biarritz. Champagne in the champagne. And last but not least ending the year with a glass of champagne & foie gras in the Ariege, south of France.
Favorite word of the year: Spuckschutz (spitting support).
I sadly lost my granddad this year.
The year was full of love. Pure love. Emotions. Happy tears. Sad tears. Lots of laughter. I have to admit this was a very exhausting year for me.
We were fortunate to meet friends again we haven’t seen in years.
It’s soon 2 years ago that I entered an airplane the last time. Wow! My CO2 footprint is recovering.
A rally. Driving 5000km through Germany with daddy. No sat nav, no GPS. Just a map, 2 minds in a youngtimer (well, forget about that CO2 footprint recovery…).
And just like that… Sex and the city is back.
10 minutes to outer space. Billionaires in competition.
Change of dress code for the German gymnasts at the summer Olympic Games in Tokyo: whole body suits for everyone! You go, girls!
Out of routine: packing a bag for a weekend takes forever!
With ever changing restrictions and travel advice – we can dream, right?
Luckily still suffering from wanderlust.
Camper van dinners were a big hit in lockdown.
Personally I feel 2021 was worse than 2020. So, let’s try that again: Fuxx 2021. Hello 2022! (A pandemic lasts 6 years… starting the new year with a little less expectations for 2022. In best case that’s leading to nice little surprises).
Let’s try that again: fuxx 2021, Hello 2022!
Let’s end the year gracefully with champagne & foie gras in great company.
Wishing all of us to keep healthy and accident free (and loosing a couple of Covid pounds would be great, too).
Our guest has arrived. The fridge is filled up with goodies. No need to leave the house for the next days. Snuggling in. Enjoying the cozy fire. It’s time to slow down at home. Christmas mood is on!
Chill out 🐶 Dinner preparation started ⭐️ Gifting (verb: something that is given to show your affection).
People say Christmas is commercial, but I still find it a time of wonder. It reminds me of the pleasure of small things: buying beautiful ribbon, wrapping a present in beautiful paper. Buying a new ornament each year in December while visiting my sister.
Wishing you a lot of joy, awes, beautiful gifts and a wonderful time with each other.
Have a peaceful, magical & sparkly Christmas with your loved ones!
It’s done. Another year in home office survived. New trend: virtual Christmas parties! Drinking in front of the monitor is just not as much fun. I prefer the real get together with humans, mulled wine and hangovers the next day. lol.
An Advent lunch. And more important: the dessert.
Latest produce. A birthday gift.
Another (Mexican) dinner date with hubby.
A mulled wine street party with the favorite neighbors. A very fun & delicious night.
Mulled wine with a rum-soaked sugarloaf lit above it. Repeat already agreed.
Producing Pralinés.
And the amazing result: lots of delicious chocolate bombs.
Making Christmas dinner plans. It’s going to be delicious! Wrapping gifts. Listening to Christmas songs. Dancing in the kitchen with the chocolate bowl in my hand. Booking seats in the local church for Christmas Eve. Inviting for advent coffee. Receiving Christmas post. Happy times. Delicious times. 5 days until Christmas.
We dreamt of spending next weekend in New York. The city which never sleeps. The city most famous for Christmas shopping and Christmas spirit. The city famous for its street Hot Dog.
Honey, snow & cinnamon flavors in the air. It’s a sign that Christmas is close. I love these hours, only 2 weeks to go…
The kitchen is mine: Baking cookies for neighbors, dogs & us while listening to Christmas songs. Yeah! Hubby ran away… Charlie supporting while patiently waiting that I accidentally drop a bit of peanut butter… lol.
Doggie cookies.
Another favorite: writing & posting Christmas letters around the world and dropping little surprises. A little thank you for a big support to us this year. We are very thankful, especially for our family & friends and gorgeous neighbors.
A little bit China at home: Hot pot dinner party. Super delicious & immune booster characteristic.
Spiced up. Super delicious. May I introduce: the Tiroli XMas edition.
Surprising guest for Sunday dinner: an old friend from the US.
No, they don’t count! Christmas spirits in Stuttgart.
Our tree is up! Yay! It sparkles! It’s shiny! That smell! Wonderful! Forest scent in our living room. Hmmmmm!
24 doors, I mean 24 days, to go. Counting started… Happy hubby. Happy puppy. Happy everyone. Traditions are wonderful. Adults turn back into children. Our eyes turn as big.
December weekends are the best. Especially in the north of Germany surrounded by family.
It snowed and everything turned into the most beautiful winter wonderland. Stunning.
Couch, cookies & champagne (home made eggnog – the very best)! Many cuddles and Christmas films. And wonderful Christmas shopping. Oh, so many wonderful things for the eyes, the hearts and the soul. It is the most wonderful time of the year!
3 Cinderellas making wishes…
Christmas markets. They are open in Bremen, lucky us & very sorry for making everyone jealous. We cheered to all of us!
Magical. Cinnamon & sugar churros…! The best. Producing candy canes.
We even enjoyed a Christmas concert. Wow! I haven’t heard such a brilliant tossing applause in two (!) years! Goose bump feeling! Happy tears. Christmas spirits.
Just wowed from the music and the atmosphere… Covid truly sucks!
Getting spoilt by nieces delicious cooking.
Awesome girl!
Could you spend a Sunday afternoon any better than painting ceramics with the 2 most gorgeous and talented nieces? (No!)
It’s all about spending valuable time with each other these days…
St. Nicolaus found us here, too.
Leaving again. Our hearts are filled with love. We had a fabulous weekend. Tradition to be continued next year!
My favorite people. Thanks, ladies xxxCheers & happy St. Nicolaus!
PS: Another very best of last week: hubby’s wheelchairs were picked up. May they support someone else for a speedy recovery!
Stuttgart547 