Posted in authors, Baer House Inn, dogs, drinks, Family, food, friends, humor, Jansen Schmidt, vacation, Vicksburg, writing, tagged Baer House, Baer House Inn, Baer-Williams House, chairs, common, eating, historic inns, innkeepers, innkeeping, inns, Mississippi, observations, questions, relocating, Vicksburg on June 26, 2017| 16 Comments »
Photo courtesy P. Rickrode
So, we’re coming up on two years now since we made the big cross-country move and relocated to Mississippi. Innkeeping has been rewarding and challenging and . . . a real learning experience that will forever change the way I stay at hotels, motels, and/or B & B’s in the future. (more…)
Posted in Baer House Inn, diamond ring, drinks, engagement ring, Family, food, friends, hill billy, humor, Jansen Schmidt, love, redneck, romance, wedding ring, writing, tagged backyard weddings, bride, garden, garden wedding, gazebo, groom, music, Vicksburg, wedding gazebo, weddings on May 15, 2017| 10 Comments »
The Baer-Williams House was the scene of a very lovely afternoon garden wedding a couple of weeks ago. Bride and groom wanted to keep things low-key and stress-free. We were expecting about 30 guests for a 4:00 ceremony on a gorgeous Saturday afternoon. (more…)
Posted in April, Baer House Inn, Family, food, friends, humor, Jansen Schmidt, success, Vicksburg, writing, tagged Baer House, basement, breakfast, candlelight, electricity, flashlight, flexibility, funnel clouds, hallway, historic inns, innkeeper, innkeepping, inns, laundry, lightning, storms, stressed, thunder, thunder storm, tornadoes, Vicksburg, water on May 8, 2017| 13 Comments »
Last Sunday was one of the most challenging days we’ve had here at Casa Baer. We’ve been very, very busy, which is a good thing. Saturday night we had a full house; someone in every room. That means fourteen for breakfast Sunday morning. The table was set, the casserole was ready to pop in the oven, the coffee was ready to perk. Everything set for the perfect morning at the inn. (more…)
Posted in authors, awards, blogging, crock pot, Family, food, friends, humor, Jansen Schmidt, soup, writing, tagged antacid, charity, charity events, chili cook-off, Chili For Children, chli, food, food tasting, fundraisers, Lady Luck Casino, Mississippi, tasting, Vicksburg, Vicksburg Children's Home on February 6, 2017| 10 Comments »
Last Saturday I attended the Chili For Children chili cook-off at the Lady Luck Casino here in Vicksburg. It was a charity event to raise money for Vicksburg’s children’s home. (more…)
Posted in authors, Baer House Inn, blogging, Family, friends, Jansen Schmidt, short story, writing, tagged ancestry, Baer family, cemeteries, cemetery, graves, graveyard, heatstones, Jewish, Jewish cemetery, Leona Baer, markers, monuments, muddy shoes, shoe, shoes, statues, Temple Anshe, Temple Anshe Chesed Cemetery, tombstones, Vicksburg on January 30, 2017| 14 Comments »
A few days ago my husband and I decided to take a little stroll in the Temple Anshe Chesed Cemetery. I know, not your typical mid-week, daytime, activity, but we’ve driven by this landmark many, many times and never taken the time to stop in and look around. (more…)
Posted in anthology, authors, Baer House Inn, camera, costumes, Family, Fiction, friends, goals, humor, Jansen Schmidt, resolutions, success, words, writing, tagged Baer-Williams House Inn, cannons, cave life, caves, Civil War, civil war re-enactments, General Grant, General Ulysses S. Grant, history, John C. Pemberton, living history, national cemetery, siege of Vicksburg, surrender, Ulysses S. Grant, Vicksburg, Vicksburg national cemetery, Vicksburg National Military Park, War Between the States, white flag on July 11, 2016| 8 Comments »
As you all know by now, about a year ago my husband and I moved to beautiful Vicksburg, Mississippi. This little hamlet is steeped in history. One of the most defining battles near the end of the War Between the States, occurred on the very ground I walk every single day.
Posted in Baer House Inn, blogging, Family, food, friends, humor, Jansen Schmidt, resolutions, short story, words, writing, tagged agenda, communicate, conversation, decaf coffee, English, foreigners, innkeeper, innkeeping, introverted, orange juice, plans, ringleader, shy, spokesperson, talking, traveling, vacation, Vicksburg on May 23, 2016| 10 Comments »
Being an innkeeper has opened my eyes to a lot of things that I never really noticed before. For instance, quite a few people travel in groups, be they family situations or just long-time friends who like to vacation together. I think that’s neat. I don’t remember my family ever traveling with any other family or friends, other than mom, dad, me and my older brother. I guess on occasion we’d include an aunt or uncle and cousins, but usually it was just the four of us.
But, it’s fairly often that we get couples traveling together through Vicksburg.
Posted in blogging, Family, Fiction, Holidays, humor, Jansen Schmidt, Vicksburg, words, writers, writing, tagged ballroom, California, church, Cracker Barrel, DMV, family, holidays, license plate, Mardi Gras, Mississippi, Natchez Trace, outhouse, parlor, polish silver, silver, Sundays, Vicksburg on January 11, 2016| 16 Comments »
It’s a new year and here in Vicksburg, it still has the new year smell. I’ve been settling in here in Mississippi and loving every minute of it. Well, maybe not every single minute, we did have the hot snap in December (80 degrees at Christmas?), but for the most part, LOVING it! (The irony of that is that where I used to live in California, they had snow on Christmas day for the first time in like 12 years. Go figure.)
Photo courtesy Google Images.
Anyway, they definitely do things different here in the south. For instance, when I went to get my new driver’s license, they handed it to me right then and there. No waiting weeks for it to arrive in the mail, hoping it didn’t get lost or stolen. No written or driving test. Nothing. Just, “here you go.” I didn’t even have to wait in line at the DMV. (And – bonus – it’s right across the street so I could walk over.)
Same thing with the car registration; I walked in, handed them some basic paperwork and BAM, they handed me a bright shiny new license plate. On the spot. No waiting. No mailing. Again, I walked right up to the window. No taking a number, no standing in line, no internet appointment necessary.
I know – weird. All my California folks will know exactly what I’m talking about.
And here’s a strange thing – daily operations here cease on holidays and Sundays. No signs posted in the windows, no ads announcing holiday hours, just lights out and locked doors. That took some getting used to. If you want to go out to eat on Sunday, you have about one choice – Cracker Barrel. (Or the casinos – need I say more.) I think that’s kind of cool though. A lot of guests here at the inn don’t get it, but I’m getting used to it. Sundays are church and family days.
Photo courtesy Google Images.
I also find myself saying things here that I never imagined I’d ever say in California. Here’s a short list:
1 – There’s an alligator in the backyard. (No, this hasn’t happened but it’s entirely possible and even very probable with the river already above flood stage. Stay tuned.)
2 – We have to get ready for Mardi Gras. (That’s right, even though we’re 2 1/2 hours away from New Orleans, Mardi Gras’s a big deal here.)
3 – Are you taking the Trace? (Referring to the Natchez Trace highway. It’s basically “the back road.” Not sure why it’s called a Trace, but it is and I like saying it. For more information visit here: http://www.nps.gov/natr/index.htm)
4 – It’s time to polish the silver again. (Really? Polish silver? Yup. About every 3 months that stuff has to be shined up.)
5- I’m in the parlor. (The parlor? How cool does that sound? Who even has a parlor these days?)
6 – This ballroom is hard to heat. (I have a freaking ballroom!!)
7 – You want to see my outhouse? (See this post https://jansenschmidt.wordpress.com/2015/11/30/a-peek-at-my-rare-2-story-4-hole-outhouse/ for more details in case you missed it earlier.)
Photo courtesy Google Images.
How about you readers, ever find yourself saying things that sounded foreign at one time, but now seem natural? Ever been on the Natchez Trace? Ever polished silver? Inquiring minds want to know.
Word of the Day: Uraeus
Fun fact about me: I want to host a ball. Seriously, I want to have a ball in my ballroom.
Original post by Jansen Schmidt, January 2016. Photos courtesy Google Imgaes.
Posted in authors, blogging, bull riding, Family, friends, goals, humor, Jansen Schmidt, moving, words, writing, tagged B & B, bulls, careers, entertaining, innkeepers, life change, Mississippi, new jobs, North Carolina, paralegal, PBR, ranches, ranching, stock contractor, Vicksburg on January 4, 2016| 20 Comments »
Photo courtesy Google Images
A lot of people have been asking, especially the locals and our guests: “Why Mississippi?”
Photo courtesy Google Images
Well, here’s how it happened. My husband and I have always wanted to expand our stock contracting business. We raised bucking bulls for the PBR and the rodeo circuit. In California we didn’t have enough land to raise even one bull and even if we could afford more land, which we couldn’t, we couldn’t afford the feed or the water. That meant that in order to broaden our business, we had to look elsewhere.
For several years, we’ve wanted to move to North Carolina, where one of our partners in the bull business lives. After we decided it was time to “try again,” we went to North Carolina and looked for ranches. But, nothing met our fancy and on the way there my husband told me that I needed to think about what I wanted to do for work so we could check out the job market at the same time.
You see, I’d already decided that 30 years in the legal profession, slaving as a paralegal, most of the time for a family law attorney, was enough. Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, was ever happy, including the boss. And in family law, nobody ever wins. It’s a lose, lose, especially for the kids. I had had it.
Photo courtesy Google Images
So, as I sat there on the plane wracking my brain for possible new careers, I decided that I wanted to do something where people were happy and not expecting miracles from me. I did not want to be chained to a desk. I had worked one summer at a B & B in California and I rather enjoyed it. I’ve always loved entertaining and setting a pretty table with sparkling dishes; crystal, silver, china. I mentioned that to my husband and that’s when we decided that maybe we could do both in North Carolina; buy a ranch, raise cattle, and take in overnight guests.
Well, one thing led to another and we came to the conclusion that running a bed and breakfast was probably going to be the best solution for us since we both needed a place to live and we both needed a job. We’d kill two birds with one stone so to speak.
However, North Carolina didn’t have any inventory that was affordable, so we ditched the idea of North Carolina and explored other venues. Mississippi had the most inventory in our price range and because my husband is a history major and a huge fanatic about the Civil War, we decided that Vicksburg might be a good place for us.
Photo courtesy Google Images.
Turns out, it was. We’ve not had any regrets about our decision and while we miss our horses and bulls and ranching lifestyle, we’ve adapted very well to being innkeepers. We’ve met some amazing people, made some incredible new friends and opened up a whole new world of possibilities.
So folks, there you have it. That’s why Mississippi. We wanted to expand our ranch and be stock contractors so we bought a bed and breakfast in Vicksburg. Go figure.
Never limit yourself people. Think outside the box. Be open to possibilities and possibilities will fall into your lap. I promise.
The change is exactly what I needed. Watch this short funny video and you’ll know exactly why I had to get out of the legal profession. Enjoy.
Can you relate to this video? Have you ever turned your life completely upside down and loved it? Ever started out down one road, ended up on an unexpected road and found a pot of gold? Does change scare you? I’m dying to know so let me have it.
Word of the Day: Tramontane
Fun fact about me: I’ve never been a big fan of being politically correct.
Original post by Jansen Schmidt, December 2015. Video courtesy YouTube. Images courtesy Google Images.
