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Gram Camp Days 1-3 1024 704 Mari Bickmore

Gram Camp Days 1-3

Before I delve back into the joys (and pitfalls) of renovation, I am going to recount my successes and failures of Gram Camp (grandmother/father camp…mostly mother) for my only two, fabulous granddaughters (ages 3 and 6).  They are the apples of my eye, my joie de vivre, my angels.  I have spent several months planning the agenda for this, my first foray into a planned agenda for these little tykes.  Even with my experience raising four children, I went into this thinking my spreadsheet would be followed  meticulously to perfection.  Elaborate breakfast at 8:30.  Activity from 10-12.  Lunch 12-1.  Activity 1:30-3:30.  Snack 3:30.  Downtime.  Dinner at 6:30 with cooking lessons at each meal and snack. Followed perfectly every. single. day.  Bwahahahaha!

Some things did go on schedule–I picked them up from the airport on time!   This was on a Tuesday, and they had just gotten back from 6 weeks in Japan that previous Sunday, so there was some jet lag going on, but that didn’t stop them too much, but did take a couple of days to get back on a sleeping schedule.  With all the planning that I did, I still didn’t have lunch ready for them coming in from the airport, so we stopped at Burgerocity in Folsom, CA, on the way home because it had such high ratings. Just a head’s up, for the price just go to In-and-Out.  Not much difference.  Okay, okay, for those of you burger afficianados, Burgerocity does use 100% Hereford and has more choices, but still…

Another head’s up, on the first day of Gram Camp take it easy.  Pool time.

Making homemade popsicles and homemade gummy bears to be ready later.

Easy cooking lesson for dinner…prefab flatbread and pizza toppings.  Easy stuff.

 

Day Two:  This is really day one, but who’s counting.  Still thinking of perfection, I get up before everyone else and make strawberry and banana cars for breakfast (and add cereal to the menu because one of them doesn’t like bananas and it just isn’t enough).

banana-car

Already going off schedule on the first full day,  we decide to go to the water park.  Wanting to leave early so that we can be there when it opens at 10 a.m., I get everything together.  Sunscreen–check, towels–check, swim shoes–check.  However, my older granddaughter just sleeps and sleeps, and who can wake her since she is still on Japan time…but when it is edging past 10:30 we drag her out of bed.  Arriving to the park at just before noon, there is not a single parking place to be had anywhere and it is crowded, so we ditch the water park.  Since my nephew’s wife just had a baby yesterday (several weeks early), we decide to buy flowers and a treat and drop by the hospital.  This buying process takes a few hours, as those kinds of things can do, because we have to go to several places to find the right thing.  Ends up the places we finally buy at were in a couple of blocks from the water park where we started out…so is the hospital.   Go figure.  Nothing gets done off my list, except for breakfast and dinner–Nothing.   Girls get to spend time with their grandpa in the pool in the evening…so all is well.   They are still the best granddaughters in the entire universe.

Day Three:  Still maintaining that we are going to get back on track, I get up early and make grape caterpillars and an orange slice bird for breakfast.  Go me!

We are now going to make a tic-tac-toe board with painted rocks for the X’s and O’s!  My plan now is to find rocks in the upper back yard where there is a drainage bed for when it rains (which is only in the winter.  Ever.  Not a drop from May-November…now how weird is that).  Anyway, I am envisioning finding these nice, smooth, oval river rocks (maybe I should have taken a look back there prior to this plan).  What we find is far from that, as you will see in the photos.  My plan is to have them paint cute little lady bugs and tadpoles on these rocks to use for tic-tac-toe.  You know really pretty, crafty things.  What I didn’t remember was that a 3-year-old and a 6-year-old would be doing the painting, and that they would have their own vision.

My vision vs reality:

 

But the fun they had painting them and the fun they had playing the game they had personally made far outweighed the vision.

We break for lunch and popsicles.

popsicle

For the rest of the afternoon I had planned on playing a beanbag game with hula hoops that just doesn’t happen (hula hoops are still in the box these many weeks later, as are the beanbags).  Might in interject here that I had a very long list of items to order that I wanted to use.  At about two weeks out from “camp” day 1, I made a plan to go shopping for these items.  That really didn’t sound very appealing to me, running around hither and yon to procure those things in the heat (not to mention not knowing where to go), so I spent an  evening ordering everything from Amazon, from soap-making items to the hula hoops to molds for the gummi bears.  Now I know why people get hooked on the shopping channel, getting all those boxes delivered to my doorstep was so exciting!

Back to Day Three, no beanbag game, just a little more downtime for me and their mom, and a little TV babysitting for the girls, and a great dinner of pureed cauliflower, zucchini fritters and corn on the cob.  Girls loved it.  I LOVE the pureed cauliflower and most always make it instead of potatoes now.  It is just YUMMY!  Make sure to think of healthy dinners and lunches, because you are going to have some not so healthy ones too.  If you want recipes for those things, just send a note.  The pureed caulifower looks just like mashed potatoes and so the kids never know the difference and the fritters were just yummy.   Then I got to watch Ever After High (oh boy!) before bed…every night.   These girls are full of life and energy…a  lot more energy than I have.  I don’t know what I would have done without their Mom here to help!  Hint:  Get help for your camp!

 

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So we are now September 12, the day after 9/11.  As all people do, I remember that day very well.  Funny how major catastrophes indelibly print those days in your memory.   I won’t go into the day’s minutiae for you, but I will say that I thought we, as a country, would prepare itself for the Islamic crap that was to follow.  We didn’t.  We elected a (p)resident whose middle name is Hussain and who spent his early years in an Islamic country and who is the biggest Islamapologist there is.  Political correctness is now rampant, which leads to loss of freedom of speech, which is part of what America’s greatness comes from.  Heck, we have a bill introduced into Congress, H.Res 569, that would protect Islam from hateful rhetoric, among other things.  What a load of Malarkey!  Everyone who reads this should call or write their reps to kill this NOW.  All over the world.  Every. Single. Day. an atrocity is committed in the name of Islam, and the Western governments continue to let them invade our countries and commit those atrocities in our countries.  Our governments should be tried for treason.  Okay, that’s what I’m thinking about 9/11.  Instead of protecting us more, they are importing the terror in the form of “refugees.”  Refugees my !@*)!@.   Merkel, especially, should be hanged, drawn, and quartered, after a trial, of course.

On another noted, if you think that Hillary’s medical issues are something like “walking pneumonia,” then you’re part of the problem.  It is obviously much more serious than that.  And if you think her doctor tells you the truth, then you probably think Hillary tells the truth also !  HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Dreaming of Mediterranean Weekends 1024 768 Mari Bickmore

Dreaming of Mediterranean Weekends

Here I am again. Didn’t expect me again so soon, did you? I have to move along quickly now, as I come home on Saturday. 7-1/2 weeks ago it seemed like a long time, and now our sojourn in France is quickly coming to a close.

We bade farewell to our hostess at La Cordiere and headed south to the Mediterranean and Le Ciotat, but not without a pit stop in Aix-en-Provence. Why, pray tell, do you think we would make a stop on a drive that would only take at most an hour-and-a-half? Have you so soon forgotten La Tropezienne? – the cream puff? Doesn’t that seem like the perfect breakfast? We pulled into town and dropped the B’s off in front of Bechard, made the block and came back ‘round to pick them up. Of course, they weren’t there, so I just pulled up and waited…and waited…. and….soon they appeared. It was apparently a hot spot that morning, but they bought me calissons and all was well in the world.

We arrived at Le Ciotat by 10 a.m., checked into the hotel, Hotel Plage Saint Jean, and headed for la plage. Well, Amanda and I headed for the beach. The Bs now had A/C and were going to make the most of it. They said they stayed at the hotel beach for an hour before heading in for a late morning siesta, but I’m not buying that story. In any event, Amanda and I bought a big beach umbrella and a burger and fries, and proceeded to enjoy the water, read, rest, repeat scenario. There is a great sandy beach here and it is fairly shallow for a long distance out, with that wonderful deep blue color you just don’t see anywhere else. It just makes you sigh and know that when you are at home you will be dreaming of returning.

Amanda at La Ciotat beach

When we knew we had enough sun and surf and people watching, we emulated our amis and returned to our room to crank up the A/C. Took a little afternoon nap to refresh ourselves for dinner. Hotel Plage Saint Jean is not on the strip, but is in a nice area. It has an indoor pool and spa and is a very short walk to the rock beach. What it lacks in character it makes up in having modern amenities and cleanliness. It is definintely moderately priced and has parking!

In Le Ciotat, there is a very, very long beach-front drag taking you from where the sandy beach transitions to a rock beach down to the original port town where the fishing boats dock. This, we assumed, was where all the tourists ate. Hence, we set off to find a local’s hangout. Try as we did, even using our handy GPS, we struck out. Every entry led us back to the drag. Finally, we parked our car, which was a feat unto itself as there was a paucity of parking. However, the area we were headed to was a bit farther down than we thought, kind of like thinking the Rockies are close when you are in Hope, Colorado.

View of La Ciotat from near our restaurant

After a little hike, working up our appetite, we got to the port area. We had no idea which restaurant we wanted, and they are lined up one after another around the U-shaped port, all with tables spilling out onto the sidewalls and colorful umbrellas inviting you in. The menus are posted on large placards out in front and just make the decision harder. We pick one, I think because Beverly didn’t want to sit at the plastic chairs of the one next door. I mean, when you cannot pick a café that’s as good a reason as any. However, we peruse the menu, the waitress brings a carafe d’eau, but we can’t find anything we want. We leave. This is a recurring theme in our travels. We move along a couple of places down and choose another.

This one is a good choice. La Grotte. They are serving food and it makes our mouths water. Amanda and I choose the scallops and ravioli in, what else, a truffle cream sauce along with a toasted chevre salad. The B’s ordered some kind of sea bass and a seafood appetizer. We saw people getting pizza and it looked fantastic. Thin, crispy crust – just like I like it. Sitting outside under the umbrellas as the sun was getting lower, with the sea breeze gently blowing in from the Mediterranean, and enjoying a delectable meal. How divine. I thought we were full – at least I was. However, they had set up a small market of sorts lining the street outside the restaurants for the evening, and we were lazily strolling looking at the wares, when, lo and behold, there was an ice cream shop. I guess by now we were beyond resistance. Story over.

We took a circuitous walking route back though the alleys of the town, but finally hit the drag again and headed toward the car. On the way, we happened upon a little festival of sorts in a courtyard off the street with belly dancers for entertainment. Well, they were students of the art and a couple were fairly good. I am sure one was the teacher. But it was festive and fun. At the end they invited people up on stage and a couple of OLD men got up to dance with the young girls. Now that was entertainment.

La Cadiere d’Azur

Cassis Beach

Day two we headed out to take a drive along the coast south of us. There was no real coastal road to view the ocean, although we did see some exquisite countryside and a particularly lovely town called La Cadiere d’Azur. But lacking a good road to view the sea, we headed back north to Cassis. This is originally where I wanted to stay, but finding no rooms in our allotted price category, we ended up in La Ciotat. While La Ciotat has a great beach and the port area is nice, it is not as fetching as Cassis, so if you plan to come to this area book in advance. The town is built on a fairly sharp rise which, obviously, lends itself to a more picturesque setting, and it also has a nice sandy beach with a lot of activity. We didn’t stay here too long, but long enough for gelato! Maybe one day I’ll return for a beach holiday. It is really quite lovely and not as hectic as the beach towns around Nice.

Cassis in Town

It is time for the B’s afternoon siesta and Amanda and I for some more beach time. This time we use the hotel’s beach area which is solid rock. Not rocks like Nice, but solid rock. We find a little alcove, like a topless cave, and settle in. Speaking of topless, there are some sights to behold here. Some things you just don’t want to see. I mean I am of the opinion that just because they make it in your size doesn’t mean you should wear it and just because they make a bikini doesn’t mean you should either and just because it is a beach you don’t have to take it off…. But for some of you out there, there are definitely some sights you wouldn’t mind seeing. Amanda and I wonder that if there is so much skin to be seen all the time, doesn’t that take the mystery out of it. I mean, if you can see it anytime on the beach it is just not special anymore. Just an observation.

Beach at Hotel Plage St Jean

Looking up from our open-air grotto

Beach Hotel Plage St Jean

Mediterranean view from Hotel Plage St Jean

Sitting in our private alcove, we can see from the point south of La Ciotat across to the point of Port d’Alon and the expanse of crystal blue sea in between. We dream of boating from town to town along the coast and planning places we would like to see. We watch the clouds and the seagulls and the yachts, which is where we got the idea of boating. The afternoon passes quickly and we realize we are supposed to catch a boat at 5:30 and we have to find a parking place – and it is later than we thought.

BUT, we did it, parked and made the boat. This is for a ride through the calanques. I have been wanting to see them for years now. They are, for lack of a longer and more geological explanation, looking like mini fjords, but in warmer water. They are magnificent. We meet a Moroccan guy and his wife onboard. and Hakeem attaches himself to us and gives us tidbits of information, since we cannot understand the guide on the loudspeaker (French). He really likes us…. The water color in some of the calanques defies explanation, it actually glows. It makes you want to jump off the boat and relish in the sheer brilliance of it all. If I return, I will find a boat ride that allows you to do just that. Gary will love it! A thoroughly outstanding afternoon.  It was very hard to choose just a few pix from this calanques trip; it was so amazing.

The Amazing Water of the Calanques

Calanques 1Calanques 3

Calanques 2

After returning to the room to refresh for dinner, we find that the B’s have consumed a bottle of wine betwixt themselves before leaving, so they are a bit giddy. We are just walking from our hotel and have three choices of restaurants, but the decision still eludes us. Is it just us, or do other people have such a hard time choosing? We make our choice based on….was there a reason? Pizza. They have an outdoor brick pizza oven. That was it. It was good pizza – and Dizzy ordered herself and BS more wine. Ooops. They had already had enough and this was enough to tip the cart. Suffice it to say, you might be glad you weren’t at our table. We were loud Texans. I am glad I drink water, else who would record the evening for posterity. Did BS proposition the waiter? She did break her glass, but she breaks at least one every trip. It is a good story. We like good stories. I don’t write about the good stories here.

We make it through the evening unscathed, relatively. When we were back in our respective rooms I get calls from both B’s. They are amusing. If you ask, I just might tell.

Another segment of the trip over, except for a stop at the corner boulangerie for breakfast before heading to the Dordogne. The brioche was just okay, but the B’s got a sort of cream puff they say was heavenly, maybe better than Aix, but much smaller. As far as I am concerned, that is just hearsay.

Recent Memories of Provence 1024 768 Mari Bickmore

Recent Memories of Provence

Checking in again. I fear I am not good at making time for writing while traveling, not to mention working whilst traveling. I need to wrap up the week in Provence, having only reported on the first two days of the trip. Trying to “wrap up” writing about Provence is going to be difficult as I am going to write about four days in this short venue, so here goes….

Tuesday was a gorgeous day, big blue skies and quite warm weather, really a day to lay by the pool;

Now it’s sunflower fields forever

however, alas and alack, we had no pool. One of my traveling companions was eager to call home, so we drove over to Cavaillon to find an international phone shop. We had been here in the past and hoped it was still in business. As luck would have it, we found it rather easily, and headed back to Lourmarin, as it was too hot for a couple of my friends to weather (snigger, chortle, guffaw). I doubt they will be traveling in the summer anymore, anywhere. Even to see the sunflower fields, which cut wide swaths in the countryside. Too much a reminder of bright, sunny, hot days.

So my daughter and I headed out for Roussillon. This is unlike most of the other towns in the

Roussillon The Red

Luberon, which are basically cream-colored structures. It is located in the heart of one of the biggest ochre deposits in the world and is famous for its magnificent red cliffs and ochre quarries. The vivid blue of the Provençal sky and the exceptional quality of light make this a magical site. The ochre façades of the buildings are intense with shades varying from light yellow to dark red, set off by brightly-painted shutters and doors. It is a don’t miss village if you happen to be in the area. However, this particular day it was quite crowded, most probably lending to the pending holiday on the morrow, so we didn’t stick around long.

Back to Lourmarin and the sleeping beauties. Relaxed the rest of the afternoon away on the terrace overlooking our lovely courtyard. Please forgive me, but I failed to get the name of the establishment where we dined on one of the best pizzas ever. Maybe I’ll come across a picture and return to correct this text at a later date; however, it is in the center of Lourmarin and has a large terrasse for dining in the back, so shouldn’t be diffucult to find. I believe it is right next door to a gelato shop, which, I might add, is some of the best gelato you will find anywhere. The fraise yaourt is fantastic and the noix de coco et chocolat……….what can I say.

Ooolala – La Tropezienne – the King of Cream Puffs!

On to Wednesday and Aix-en-Provence. It was 14 Juillet, Bastille Day. Most things were closed and they

Bechard – Fabrique de Calissons – Aix en Provence

were gearing up for the night’s festivities; however, Bechard was not closed (12 cours Mirabeau). It is a fabulous, elegant patisserie, truly, with an amazing collection of mouth-watering choices. Everytime I am in Aix, this is the first place I go. It is like a Christmas dream: “visions of sugarplums danced in their heads.” I do have a favorite, which is the tropezienne (originated in St. Tropez). It is kind of like a cream puff on steroids made of brioche and, of course, cream. They make this in varying sizes. YUMMMMM. They also make my favorite calissons which are a, well not a cookie, but are an addicting almond…confection? And Aix is famous for them. Aix is great for shopping, but not today.

A little slice of Aix market

There was a street market in Aix and it was rich with the colors of summer gardens, pictures for your enjoyment below. So here is our weird French guy story. We were snapping pictures right and left, thoroughly enjoying the abundance and variety of this market when one of the vendors told us we couldn’t take pictures! HA! Of vegetables and fruit?! What? Some sort of trade secret? Designer green beans? He said we weren’t buying, so no pix. Whatever. So I meandered over to the fish market, looking for dinner that night. He actually came over to the the fish market and told them not to let me take pictures, imagine him waving his arms ranting about touristes… They looked at him like he was crazy and we smiled. They were then so nice, and after helping me pick out fish for dinner threw in a lot of shrimp for free. We asked about him and they said he was crazy, but they loved America! It was fun. Then we bought our veggies and walked by his stall with all our bags and smiled. I think he flipped us off afterwards. Armed with food for dinner and having eaten our cream puffs, we headed back for Lourmarin with visions of returning for more cream puffs still in our heads.

Didn’t quite get to make dinner, because we were missing items. However, we found the cutest restaurant

Sweet Restaurant under the stars

in town, down a tunnel falling into an open courtyard. Twinkling lights and discreet lamps, along with good Provencal fare and the occasional screaming from the street due to it being the last game of World Cup Soccer. In fact, our wait staff and some customers would run out when the screaming started to see what was happening. But back to the decor, there were candelabras, perfect green chairs with funky accents and color, even a mini laser light show with crystal chandeliers hanging off trellises of colorful flowers. A cacophony of styles and patterns playing well off one another. Simply perfect evening.

Thursday, it was hot and our friends were suffering so without good old American A/C and ice, so we headed for the beach for a little refreshment. Just picked a spot on the map and headed south to Sausset-les-Pins, only an hour or so drive. Got in fairly early and they had a market on the boardwalk, not the stimulating eye candy of Sorgue, but an enjoyable stroll along the boat docks. Picked up towels at the market for the beach and then realized there wasn’t really a beach there. So after a morning repast, we headed for Carry-le-Rouet, just a few minutes down the coast and a sweet drive, we landed at a sandy beach on the Mediterranean and rented some chairs and umbrellas. As you know, I love a beach day: Sparking Mediterranean water, read, water, read, etc. Headed back about 4:30 and cooked a fabulous meal of fish with white wine reduction cream sauce, fresh green beans a la Mari and my version of a Viennese potato au gratin, along with fresh tomatoes, olives and bread – all sitting on our courtyard terrace. Again, yummm. Wish I knew what kind of fish those guys sold me.

La Plage Carry le Rouet

He had fabulous stuff – would have bought more if only I had room…

Last full day here and it is Friday, and it is market day here in our little village. And what a market it is; I certainly didn’t expect the size of it. Markets are just quite heady for me. I continue to write about them, but I love them. Well, I like shopping in general, so it’s not a wonder that I like markets. I like the crowds, the colors, the smells, the entertainment and sensation of it all. There are many things to tempt one, but it is the food that pulls me in. If I don’t buy anything else, if the soaps don’t grab me, if I can’t find the right outfit, I will inevitably buy food – jelly, tapenade, patisserie – something yummy, and this time was no different. Let me just say, whatever kind of artisanal cheese that was (and I made of the mistake of not writing it down), I will go back just to buy it again.

There are so many things left out, but I will add links to pictures later to fill in some of the gaps.  Oh, but let me throw in a plug for La Cordiere, our studio apartment in Lourmarin. It is located in the village and is an excellent location in the Luberon. Francoise is quite fluent in English, and in French, Spanish and Italian at the least. She is quite nice and helpful. It is modest and our room was without A/C, but is priced well and clean. Ours was with a kitchen, but there are just rooms with breakfast, I believe, also.

Fav shop in Lourmarin village