Veteran's Day with Ritter Sport Chocolate!

This weekend I had a pretty cool opportunity to host a chocolate party! If you know me, you know there couldn't possibly be anything I'd love more than to have a night dedicated to trying out a bunch of chocolate. As it was also Veteran's Day, we got to use this as an opportunity to also think about all the men and women over the years who have served so selflessly, and to appreciate what their sacrifices have done to give us the lies we lead each day. When we think about it, literally every day of our lives is impacted by what our veterans have worked for, and continue working for still. The fact that we have so many freedoms, and the choice to do what we want with our lives, would not be possible otherwise. I, like most people, have many people in my family line who have served in various capacities, and I love the chance to specifically honor them and set aside a day to fully appreciate them each year. This year I actually managed to both find AND remember to wear my poppy! Most American's don't understand the significance of the poppy, so I love the chance to explain when others see me wearing it and ask about it. The poppy is a common symbol of reverence to commemorate veterans, usually in Britain/Canada, in reference to the poem "In Flanders Fields". The poem was written by a Canadian doctor after seeing tons of the beautiful red flowers growing out of the wreckage in the battle fields of WWI. They are very popular in Canada and we always wore them for Veteran's Day (or as we call it, Remembrance Day). It is a beautiful reminder of the delicacy of human life, and those who lost theirs so that we might enjoy ours.

So, thanks to a generous opportunity from #Tryazon and #RitterSportChocolate, I was given (a LOT) of free samples in order to host a fantastic gathering. The most fun bit was putting on our "fancy people" personas to conduct a blind taste test of their different varieties! Honestly, most of us didn't do so hot when left completely to our own devices, we got a little closer when we allowed ourselves to sift through the flavors on the table and use those to pick out some options. I don't think any of us had ever even tasted Marzipan before! But it was super fun, even for those who were way off with our guesses! Overwhelming consensus: strawberry creme was our favorite to try, and they were ALL delicious.

Unfortunately, the 2 servicemen I'd had in mind when applying to host this party, were unable to attend (I mean, one of them is 80-something years old and always going off on his little projects to the deer lease without telling anyone, so I shouldn't have been surprised!), but we still enjoyed the chance to reflect on how much all their service has impacted our daily lives. It was fun to take a bunch of the mini squares samples and create little signs as a "shout-out" to their hard work, and the kids got involved by coloring their own signs - pictures thanking all the veterans.

It was a fun afternoon for us to get together with some family, and to try some really yummy chocolate. I've seen Ritter Sport chocolate many times in the grocery store, but I never realized how quality the product actually is and how delicious the (many) varieties are! I mean cornflakes in chocolate sounds odd, but it was actually sooo good! Everybody got to take lots of chocolate home, and I'll definitely be buying more for myself in the future.

The spread!

This "rally sign" was our attempt to honor the many veterans who go on to serve in the police force afterwards. Thought we unfortunately didn't have any white "minis", we wanted to represent both the American Flag, and the Blue Line that indicates support for our Police forces!

These displays are our re-creation of the Medal of Honor. The left has some dark-wrappered "minis" to try and bring out the colors of the medal, but I don't know which is better...hmm.

The Famous poppy, along with the phrase "Lest We Forget" (again, used more in Britain/Canada), reminding us to be ever-conscious of what others gave for us.

Kind of hard to tell, but this one was supposed to be dog tags!

Tank, Airplane (Fighter? Bomber? Scout? Who knows..), & Submarine

My Poppy ♡