May's Monthly Musings

 It's the final Thursday of the month and that means it's time to link up with Holly and Patty for monthly musings.  This month we're discussing memorial day!


1. This memorial day my husband and I are heading to Acadia National Park (should be interesting because I just read on the National Parks page that memorial day weekend is their busiest of the season!).  

2. Oh gosh I'm not sure I can pick just one favorite; I have so many! I love anything with chocolate and raspberry or chocolate and peanut butter in it. 

the "Judy" from Bucks-- vanilla soft serve with cheesecake cubes, raspberry sauce & hot fudge

Chocolate/ raspberry truffle 

Maine lobster tracks-- vanilla ice cream, fudge swirls, and orange cups of caramel sprinkled throughout

homemade dark chocolate ice cream 


3. It's a toss up; some years we stay at home and others (like this year) we travel.  Our anniversary almost always falls on/around memorial day weekend so if we don't travel memorial day weekend we travel either the weekend before or after it. 

4. I almost always eat a burger now-- though growing up as a kid I HATED ground beef (the texture grossed me out) and always had hot dogs.  

5. My favorite cookout sides tend to be pasta salads with corn on the cob.  

I like both fruit and veggies in my pasta salad-- recipe here

6. I wear white all year round whenever I feel like it- but I do think I have more white in my summer wardrobe. 

7. We don't have any memorial day traditions; changing it up each year.

8.  Since we're talking ice cream I'll share a few links to some homemade ice cream recipes. We make our ice cream using an ice cream attachment for our Kitchen aid stand mixer. Our favorites:

Homemade raspberry swirl ice cream


Vanilla ice cream with white chocolate and M&M's


Coffee ice cream with dark chocolate chips


9. I enjoy all three parades, fireworks, and cookouts but rarely see/do any of them for memorial day. 

10.  I so rarely wear all 3 colors together; usually I'm in all blue or white and blue.  




Linking up with:






Comments

  1. HollyMay 25, 2023 at 5:50 AM

    I need those shorts- I am obsessed- where did you get them? My mouth is watering at all of your wonderful ice cream recipes too- yum!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne May 25, 2023 at 7:14 AM

      JC Penney last year! They're the St. John's Bay brand.

      Delete
  2. Good Better Best FoodMay 25, 2023 at 5:55 AM

    I love that outfit with the white jeans and tunic. I never use my ice cream maker and now I want to bust it out and try some of your ice cream recipes.

    Thanks for joining us this month.

    Patty
    GoodBetterBestFood.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne May 25, 2023 at 7:15 AM

      Thank you! We don't use our ice cream maker often (well, we got a lot of use out of it the first summer or two and then seem to have forgotten about it!), I'm planning to add "make homemade ice cream" to my summer bucket list.

      Delete
  3. NatashaMay 25, 2023 at 6:26 AM

    Okay, all your ice cream sounds SO GOOD!!! I must be hungry! And I love those shorts you're wearing. They're really fun!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Maria RineerMay 25, 2023 at 6:49 AM

    Have the best time in Acadia! Looking forward to reading about it. I love that you make your own ice cream. I'm intrigued by the attachment to the KitchenAide of which you speak- I will have to check it out...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne May 25, 2023 at 7:19 AM


      Thanks! I'm trying to get packing but I am so undecided on what to bring. LOL

      Delete
  5. Julie's Creative LifestyleMay 25, 2023 at 7:53 AM

    Joanne, this was so fun to read. I love the ice cream and those shorts are cute.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Dara @ Not In JerseyMay 25, 2023 at 8:18 AM

    Memorial Day is much more laid back here than July 4!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne May 25, 2023 at 12:22 PM

      Us too; we started going away since we never really did much when we stayed home. 4th of July is much bigger here for celebrations.

      Delete
  7. AnonymousMay 25, 2023 at 8:36 AM

    I think my husband should have the day off but I am not sure yet. Even if he works, he should be able to get off early to grill some hot dogs and wings! Not sure what I will wear yet, probably a pair of denim shorts with a top I haven't worn lately that has some red and blue embroidery.
    www.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne May 25, 2023 at 12:22 PM

      It's supposed to be a bit chilly here this year so I'm planning on jeans and hoping for a t-shirt to go with them.

      Delete
  8. Cindy's On-Line Recipe BoxMay 25, 2023 at 9:16 AM

    For everyone who's lactose intolerant, try OH MY (pints) "ice cream". It's incredible! I think it's oatmilk. I found it on sale @ Walmart (think they were discontinuing it), so only about $3 pint! Tastes like real ice cream (not weird, like Halo or the others)

    ReplyDelete
  9. TorontoSAMMay 25, 2023 at 10:04 AM

    Mmm, coffee ice cream with chocolate chips! That sounds so good. Enjoy your weekend away!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne May 25, 2023 at 12:24 PM

      We love coffee chip or even coffee oreo ice cream. As you can tell I'm not usually one for just plain, creamy ice cream; I like lots of chunks and things in my ice cream.

      Delete
  10. Sally in St PaulMay 25, 2023 at 11:06 AM

    Your colorful palm print shorts are so cute - what an easy piece to build an outfit around!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Kari May 25, 2023 at 11:25 AM

    I really like your summer posts. You do so many fun things... and the food! That cheesecake, raspberry, hot fudge concoction sounds amazing. ❤️

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne May 25, 2023 at 12:25 PM

      Thanks!! We just "found" that ice cream place last summer and they make the most amazing soft serve concoctions. Their menu takes up a whole gigantic wall.

      Delete
  12. Kim CarberryMay 25, 2023 at 2:32 PM

    Have a lovely memorial day weekend. We have a 3 day weekend here too but we don't have anything planned.
    All of that ice cream looks so good. I am basic when it comes to ice cream and my favourite is strawberry!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Memphis BridgesMay 25, 2023 at 2:49 PM

    The ice cream recipes look so good! Makes me wish for my favorite, huckleberry ice cream, but I have only ever seen it out west.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne May 25, 2023 at 5:24 PM

      Aw, thanks! I have never heard of huckleberry ice cream (in fact I've never heard of huckleberries).

      Delete
  14. Pat @ Mille Fiori FavoritiMay 25, 2023 at 3:47 PM

    On Memorial Day we will most likely have a barbecue--trying to clean up our patio and gardens this week. All that ice cream made me want to go to Dairy Queen. Coffee ice cream is my favorite. I love your summery outfits. Have a wonderful time in Arcadia NP. We visited many years ago and loved its rustic views. Happy Early Anniversary!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Recep Hilmi TUFAN | rehitu.comMay 25, 2023 at 4:59 PM

    They are all looking so delicious. :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. Kym May 25, 2023 at 5:07 PM

    Chocolate and raspberry together makes for such good ice cream! Cute outfits! Have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Tamar SBMay 26, 2023 at 7:12 AM

    Those ice creams look amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Lindsay's Sweet WorldMay 26, 2023 at 8:48 AM

    I love all of your red, white, and blue outfits!

    ReplyDelete
  19. MarshaMay 27, 2023 at 11:51 PM

    I loved reading your answers. I try not to ever wear red, white and blue together because it just looks like I'm celebrating too early or too late.

    https://marshainthemiddle.com/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Joanne May 30, 2023 at 12:03 PM

      Ha! I do find I pretty much only wear those 3 colors together on actual 4th of July weekend and that's about it.

      Delete
  20. Jennifer WhiteMay 28, 2023 at 12:00 PM

    Love all your red, white and blue. Ice cream is a fave around here too.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Kellyann RohrMay 28, 2023 at 1:48 PM

    I am now craving ice cream like nobody's business! Also? I love anything with chocolate and raspberries, yum!!!
    xo,
    Kellyann

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Favorite TV Shows Growing Up in the 80's and early 90's

Image
Do you remember the TGIF lineups on Friday nights? I can remember planning sleepovers and time with friends around TV Show lineups of our favorite shows... or else trying to set the VCR to record our favorite shows if we weren't going to be home. And through the years I had SO MANY favorites! Growing pains aired in 1985 which put me around age 8 and it stayed on the air until I was 15 or so; I'm pretty sure most people in my age group watched mostly for Kirk Cameron and all his antics.  I still have a soft spot for family sit-coms!  The Facts of Life aired when I was just 2  and stayed on the air until I was 11 so I'm sure the episodes I remember so fondly were either some of the later ones and then reruns shown later on when I was old enough to watch from the beginning. I think everyone would have loved an Edna Garret in their lives.   Benson another sitcom that began airing when I was just 2 and was done by the time I was 9 (another one I must have watched mai...
Read more

Things That Make Me Laugh

Image
I loved the challenge of this week's list for our 26 lists link up.  I don't know about you but I really need to laugh more lately.  It's such a great stress reliever. 1.  Books-- I love a good funny book that makes me laugh out loud.  I haven't read one in a while but if you have any recommendations I'm all ears.  The last book I can remember making me laugh was the Un-Honeymooners. 2  The boys being silly. 3.  Watching shows like America's Funniest Videos or Family Feud. 4. My husband.  Most people don't realize it but he's actually pretty funny and often makes me laugh. 5.  Whenever my sisters/ family get together and we get to reminiscing (particularly if my Aunt Elaine is around) we end up laughing so hard at all the old family stories that we are all in tears by the end of the night.  It's fabulous. 6. Movies like Mom's Night Out, Christmas Vacation, and Grown Ups make me laugh out loud. 7.  When my ...
Read more

Making Gift Card and Money Holders Using Scrapbooking and Cardmaking Supples

Image
I don't tend to keep a lot of crafting supplies on hand so when I saw this month's de-stash challenge I wasn't sure what I was going to make.  I finally realized that with so many of my Christmas gifts being cash and gift cards this year that I needed to make up some fun paper crafting/ creative ways to gift them.   I still want my nieces and nephews to have something to open so I pulled out my papers and stamps and made up some cute little money/gift card holders. They were much easier to make than I thought.  The first one I worked on was to hold some oversized Nintendo gift cards.  I made a standard sized card and folded down one corner of the card front.  Then I ran my double sided tape along the bottom an 1/2 way up the side creating a cute little pocket.  Finally I added some cute embellishments and ribbons.   Voila! A simple and easy gift card holder for those larger sized gift cards.  The bulk of the tweens and teens on my list j...
Read more

Making a Sugar Cookie "Gingerbread" House

Image
 Alec really wanted to try making his own gingerbread house this year without using a premade kit.  We talked about how we never really eat the house since they don't taste very good.  Years ago we gave up on the frosting that comes in the kit and began making our own so we thought perhaps we should try making our our house too. Only problem is that no one in the house likes gingerbread.  We talked about trying to make the house using a sugar cookie recipe.  Alec was so excited at that idea since he just LOVES sugar cookies.   He found a recipe online for a simple sugar cookie recipe and mixed up the dough.  He rolled it out an cut it to the size of our cookie sheets-- we had read that it's easiest to cut the house pieces out after the dough has been baked and is still warm and soft because then you don't have to worry about any of the pieces losing their shape while baking. I had picked out a simple cookie cutter set on Amazon and as soon as the ...
Read more

52 Book Challenge of 2024; How I Did and What I Read

Image
 I finished up the 52 Book challenge by mid-July this year despite reading lots of other books along the way.  1. Locked Room Mystery--  Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney-  2. Bibliosmia: A Smelly Book-- Heidi by Johanna Spyri  3. More than 40 chapters -- Betting on You by Lynn Painter 4. Lowercase Letters on the Spine-- The Book Proposal by KJ Micciche (read in Jan) 5. Magical Realism--   The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer 6. Women in STEM-- The Women by Kristin Hannah 7. At Least 4 Different POV-- A Fatal Affair by A. R Torre 8. Features the Ocean-- Blue Hawaiian by Carla Luna 9. A Character-Driven Novel--  Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close 10. Told in Non-Chronological Order-- The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins  11. Title Starts with the Letter "K" -- Key Lime Garden Inn by Annie Cabot-  12. Title Starts with the Letter "L" -- The Last Love Note by Emma Gray 13. An Academic Thriller -- One of Us Is Next by Karen McManus (read in Jan) 14. ...
Read more