My Mom, Germany, And History

I'm a history buff with half German and half English ancestry. But, Ancestry.com informs me that my DNA is not exactly 50/50. With a bit of Scandinavian (Denmark), I'm slightly more English than German, which surprises me because my Mom who was born in Germany, says she is 100% German. Her family lived in Germany without moving for 500 years or longer. So why am I not 50% German? Let's go back in time, shall we?

During the Middle Ages, the monarchs of Europe answered the Popes' calls to fight in the Crusades, and King Richard I of England, from the Plantagenet line, answered the call. At the time England also ruled across the Channel in parts of present-day France.

The following is history along with pure speculation  ...

After fighting in the Third Crusade while sailing home, Richard the Lionheart and 4 attendants were shipwrecked. They tried to cross (Central Europe) the Germanies incognito to return to England only to be recognized and captured by Duke Leopold V of Austria, handed over to Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI and held for ransom. 

It took 15 months for Richard's mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, who ruled as his regent in England, to raise the money to pay for his freedom. My mother's Bavarian town was one of the places of Richard's captivity. Back in the day, when kings were held for ransom, they weren't locked up in a small jail cell but in a Castle befitting their station and allowed to roam within the perimeters of a given territory while being carefully watched by their captors. Under guard they could move around but couldn't leave the boundary. So those merry men might have fraternized with the local maidens of the town, because my mother's town has a mix of German and English ancestry. My mother's nieces and nephews with 2 German parents raised in the town also have some English DNA, as does other residents of her town. There is no record of significant English migration to Southern Germany during the centuries which would also explain the town's ancestry. Is my mother a descendent of either Richard the Lionheart or one of his 4 attendants? We shall never know.

My Mom and I back in the day.

Just for fun (as we can't take this too seriously), do you think Richard I and my Mom have the same nose? She had a cousin named Richard, a popular generational name in Southern Germany. Hmm, how did that name get into the family? A coincidence or not?:) 

📚📕📖📗

Source: David Attenborough Fans

17 Interesting Facts You Might Not Know About Germany

1. Germany is the most populous country in the European Union, with over 83 million people.

2. Berlin, the capital, is nine times larger than Paris and has more bridges than Venice.

3. Germany is home to the world's largest beer festival, Oktoberfest, held annually in Munich, the capital of Bavaria.

4. The country is famous for its contributions to classical music, being the birthplace of composers like Beethoven, Bach, and Brahms.

5. Germany is known for its extensive autobahn network, with some stretches having no speed limit.

6. The Berlin Wall, which once separated East and West Germany, stood for 28 years and was torn down in 1989.

7. Germany has over 1,500 types of sausages, with bratwurst and currywurst being particularly popular. Also wesswurst.

8. Neuschwanstein Castle in Bavaria inspired Disney’s Sleeping Beauty Castle.

Neuschwanstein Castle

9. German is the most widely spoken native language in Europe and is known for its long compound words, such as Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz.

10. Germany has a rich history of innovation and is the birthplace of the printing press, invented by Johannes Gutenberg in the 15th century.

11. The country is one of the world's leading automobile
manufacturers, home to brands like BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and Volkswagen.

12. Germany is home to more than 20,000 castles, reflecting its medieval history.

13. The Black Forest in southwestern Germany inspired the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm.

14. Germans are known for their recycling efforts, boasting one of the highest recycling rates in the world.

15. The country is a federal republic, consisting of 16 states known as Bundesländer.

16. Germany has a strong Christmas market tradition, with Nuremberg and Dresden hosting some of the oldest and most famous markets.

17. It is a member of the Schengen Area, allowing for border free travel between many European countries.

📚📕📖📗

British people roll their eyes when Americans claim they are related to royalty. Personally I don't care one way or another. In the 21st century, I'm a proud commoner.

What makes history great fun (no pun intended:) is how we are all descendants of Charlemagne. It's ultra cool and simultaneously, nothing special, as it applies to every human with European ancestry. We also have a zillion other 16 times great-grandparents, too many to count! 

Richard I of England lies next to his mother Eleanor. He requested to lie at the feet of his father Henry II at the Abbey of Fontevraud (not captured in the photo) as an act of contrition for rebelling against him. All the bodies buried in the Abbey were destroyed during the French Revolution.

Richard I of England's ancestry traces back to William the Conqueror (his great-great grandfather), who was of Norman French and Viking (Norwegian) ancestry. William's Norman dynasty that ruled England integrated into a broader European landscape, including the Germanies.

Richard I was said to be his mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine's favorite son. He had at least one known illegitimate son, Philip of Cognac, who lived into his 30s before disappearing (without legitimate issue) into history.📜 

I love when new artifacts or documents are found or decoded like the Dead Sea Scrolls, the body of Richard III, or the letters of Mary Queen of Scots. A history buff loves when facts emerge to unravel mysteries, as well as, to debunk them!

Alles Liebe zum Muttertag, Mama!

You may also enjoy:

Plantagenets, Tudors and Stuarts

The Wittelsbach-Graff Blue Diamond

German Empress Victoria: A Book Review And More

Aboard The Underground Railroad: A Picture Book In Verse

15 Cheatsheets For Smoothies, Juices, Sauces & Snacks

What is happening on my Facebook page? A proliferation of charts! Of what, you may ask? Cheatsheets on how to grow vegetables, make smoothies, sauces, green drinks and more!

They are nifty charts you can put in a Google image search to see if you can link them back to their original sources. They seem to be passed around on social media. For our blog purposes, they are just a collection of practical information, all neatly on a single post that we do not claim ownership of and are free for all to read. Enlarge the ones of interest to you ...

🍋🍅🍠🥕🍊

🍋🍅🍠🥕🍊

🍋🍅🍠🥕🍊

🍋🍅🍠🥕🍊

1. Romaine Lettuce  Similar to celery. Keep the base of your romaine lettuce in a bowl with 1/2 inch of warm water. Let it sit in direct sunlight, and in a week or two, your lettuce stem will produce fresh, new lettuce leaves for all your great salads. Transplant your lettuce to soil to continue growing. They should be fully grown in 3 to 4 weeks. This process works for Bok Choy as well. 2. Garlic Sprouts Are those tentacles?! Nope, those long green things growing out of your garlic are green shoots. You can put them in a little water, under a lot of sunlight, and grow a bunch of garlic sprouts. They are milder in taste than garlic cloves and are great in salads, pasta, and as a garnish. 3. Carrots Plant the end of the carrot, and when it begins to sprout, take those seeds and plant them. Pretty soon, they will begin to sprout delicious greens from the top that are a nice addition to meals. Using a deeper container and more water, use toothpicks to keep carrots halfway in the water and wait for them to root. Once they root, you can plant them in your garden for a continuous supply! 4. Turnip Like carrots, cut off turnip tops and leave them in a shallow container with water until they begin growing roots. This can take a couple of weeks. Once they’ve sprouted, plant them outside the same way you would your carrots! 5. Sweet potato Unlike most vegetables, sweet potatoes aren’t started by seed but by slips (or shoots). Clean and cut a sweet potato in half, then place it half in/half out of a jar full of water using toothpicks. Over a few days, your sweet potato will begin to sprout slips at which point you remove them and place them in water to grow roots. You should have rooted slips with the week. Next, plant them in loose, well-drained soil and water every day in the first week, and then every other day (or as needed) the following weeks.

🍋🍅🍠🥕🍊

1. Asian Honey Marinade  Ingredients:  1/4 cup soy sauce  1/4 cup honey   2 tablespoons rice vinegar  2 cloves garlic, minced  1 teaspoon grated ginger  1 tablespoon sesame oil Instructions: Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Marinate chicken for 1-4        hours for a sweet, savory, and umami flavor. 2. Jalapeno Garlic Marinade  Ingredients:  1/4 cup olive oil  2 jalapenos, seeded and finely chopped  4 cloves garlic, minced  Juice of 1 lime 1 tablespoon honey Salt and pepper, to taste Instructions:  Mix ingredients well. Marinate chicken for 2-4 hours for a spicy and garlicky kick. 3. Italian Marinade  Ingredients:  1/4 cup olive oil  1/4 cup red wine vinegar   1 tablespoon Italian seasoning   2 cloves garlic, minced   1 teaspoon dried oregano   Salt and pepper, to taste   Instructions:   Combine and marinate chicken for 30 minutes to 2 hours. Expect a classic, zesty Italian flavor. 4. Fajita Marinade   Ingredients:   1/4 cup olive oil   Juice of 2 limes   1 tablespoon chili powder   1 teaspoon cumin   1/2 teaspoon paprika   1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)   2 cloves garlic, minced   Instructions:   Whisk ingredients together. Marinate chicken for 1-3 hours to get the vibrant, tangy, and spiced fajita flavor. 5. Honey Mustard Marinade   Ingredients:   1/4 cup Dijon mustard   1/4 cup honey   2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar   1/4 cup olive oil   Salt and pepper, to taste   Instructions:   Mix all ingredients. Marinate chicken for 1-2 hours. The result is sweet, tangy, and creamy. 6. Nashville Hot Marinade   Ingredients:   1/2 cup buttermilk   1/4 cup hot sauce   1 tablespoon paprika   1 tablespoon brown sugar   1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (adjust to taste)   1 teaspoon garlic powder   Instructions:   Combine ingredients, and marinate chicken for at least 1 hour. Expect spicy, smoky, and slightly sweet notes. 7. Teriyaki Marinade   Ingredients:   1/3 cup soy sauce   1/4 cup brown sugar   2 tablespoons mirin (optional)   1 teaspoon grated ginger   2 cloves garlic, minced   1/4 cup water   Instructions:   Mix until sugar dissolves. Marinate chicken for 1-4 hours for a traditional, sweet-savory glaze. 8. Cilantro Lime Marinade   Ingredients:   1/4 cup olive oil   Juice of 2 limes   1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped   2 cloves garlic, minced   1 teaspoon cumin   Salt and pepper, to taste   Instructions:   Blend all ingredients. Marinate chicken for 30 minutes to 2 hours for a bright, zesty, and herbaceous flavor.

🍋🍅🍠🥕🍊

🍋🍅🍠🥕🍊 

The next 4 charts are healthy snack choices. Ideally a snack should be 100 - 200 calories. Protein snacks, including a handful of nuts, stop hunger in-between meals. At work I always got hungry at 4 PM, so began eating turkey sticks or almonds because pretzels, a carb, made me hungrier!  Protein is the better choice.

Fruit makes an excellent snack as well because fiber fills you up and takes time to digest. I consider fruit "free" food since it's packed with vitamins and doesn't add up to many calories. If I have a day I'm always hungry, I eat an apple, move onto a orange and if still hungry, follow up with a banana, or a pear, a handful of blueberries until my appetite stops bothering me!


Hope you learn a tip or two from these cheatsheets.

You may also enjoy:

DIY Cork Bulletin Board

DIY: Drop Cloth Curtains

DIY Taco Seasoning Plus 8 Others

DIY Bookcase Using Narrow Wooden Crates