5 state in 5 days!

This has been a busy week. I have been in 5 state in 5 days!! Feels like that movie .... if it's Monday, it must be Paris - or something like that!! Sunday we went to Harper's Ferry in West Virginia and then to Virginia to a few wineries. Monday, we were in Maryland for the football game; Tuesday, we had dinner in downtown DC; Wednesday we went to Pennsylvania!

Yesterday we drove to Gettysburg. I don't know what I was expecting but it was really neat. I thought it would be just a bunch of graves and markers but it was nothing like that. The neatest thing was that at the visitor center, you had your choice of getting a map and driving all around the battlefield (which as really huge); boarding a bus for a tour; OR what we did .... get a tour guide to drive our car and give us a personalized tour. Our tour guide was probably about 80 years old and quite knowledgeable. He has been doing this for 16 years - since he retired, so you can imagine! Before we left the Visitors Center, he asked us where we were from and if we had any kin that fought in the Civil War. I wish I had been prepared because I don't know. But Sonny knew he had a relative who was a Butcher and his last name was Gibson. So, John (our tour guide) looked up Gibson in the Pennsylvania book & we narrowed it down to 2-3 men. Then we were on our way to find the monument from the Regiment our relatives were in. All along the tour, John made the battle come alive for us. If you ever get a chance to go to Gettysburg, this is the best way to see it. It was $55 for the 3 of us, but if we'd done the bus tour, it was about $25-30 per person!

After we finished our tour (about 2+ hours), we drove over to York, Pa. That is the home of York Air Conditioning & Heating (now Johnson Controls) which was Sonny's employer until he retired. York was also the first capitol of the US and very historic also. We didn't get there until dark so we just drove by the plant and found a nice restaurant for dinner. We wanted to go to Lancaster and the Amish area, but Ashley had to get back. We'll save that for another time.

Tomorrow, we'll leave here & head to Virginia Beach. I'm looking forward to meeting some of my NC stampin' sisters and learning some new tricks at SU's convention. Ashley will join us later in the day after having to work.

Election Spoiler - We were ready for some ..... football!

One of our signs we were waving proudly!

A sea of BLACK & GOLD & the final SCORE!

I just realized I haven't let you know about our wonderful Monday night WIN in the Redskins home. We started out with a little tailgating. Our cousins from Pittsburgh brought the Pittsburgh beer - IC Light & some kind of Churchyard Brew made locally in Pittsburgh. We provided the kielbasa and kraut plus chips and dips - the artichoke dip in a bread bowl was a big hit!! Of course, we all forgot about me - I'm not a big fan of beer and usually drink Hard Cider, but since there was none, one of Ashley's friends had hot chocloate and Caramel Bailey's. Of course, I had to try a cup!! Yum!

Our seats at the game were fantastic! We were 10 seats up from the field and at the corner of the end zone. We were real close to the Redskins Hog-ettes as you can see from this picture. If you're not familiar with the Redskins, these are men (old men at that!) who dress up each game like women and wear pig noses!! If you are interested, here is the history of the Hoggettes. The game started out a little slow - Washington scored 2 field goals in about the first 10 minutes. I was definately getting a little worried. It seems whenever we go to watch the Steelers play, they usually lose. The local fans were going wild and I thought I was going to have to knock the lady next to me out. But then things turned around during the second half and we never let them get a touchdown. Big Ben injured his shoulder in the first half and when our back-up quarterback came on the field at the second half, Redskins fans thought they had the game in the bag!! We showed them! The stadium was a sea of Terrible Towels waving. It's just amazing that wherever we go to watch a Steeler game, the Steeler fans almost out number the other team's fans. This was definately the case Monday night and especially at the end of the game - we Steeler fans were the only ones left!!

Enjoy my pictures!

This first one is of Ashley (#36) with her Pennsylvania cousins (about 2nd removed, I think!).

This is Ashley & me after the game - smiling big!!

This is Sonny & I - in our seats!

Swap Cards

I will be attending Virginia Beach Regionals on Saturday. Luckily, they did not fill up and Ashley is able to go with me. We went together a couple of years ago but weren't able to go last year. I'm hoping Shelly will be there this time. She wasn't in 2006. I'm hoping to meet up with some of my NC buddies (some who I've never met) and do some swapping with them. These are a couple of the swap cards I will have with me.

This one uses Pocket Silhouettes. I stamped on white cardstock in Chocolate Chip ink and then sponged chalks (using a powder puff!) on the top and bottom. I layered it onto Kiwi and Baja Breeze cardstock. I stamped the saying "friend to friend" in chocolate on Kiwi and punched it out. I used the white gel pen on the top and bottom of the Not Quite Navy card.

I have two versions of this card - one in bashful blue (seen below) and the other in Sage Shadow. The bird is from the stamp set, Always and everthing else on the card is from Bojo Backgrounds - a very versatile stamp set.

If you are going to Virginia Beach, I hope to see you there!

History in the Making

I'm here in DC as history is being made. America's first black president! In 1960, the question that loomed over the campaign was whether a Catholic could get elected president. Voters answered yes. Nearly five decades later, that milestone is a mere footnote to the Kennedy presidency. The question this time was whether a black man could win the presidency. Forty percent of all white Americans hold a negative view of blacks, according to polling by The Associated Press, and two-thirds of white Democrats express racial misgivings. Yet on Election Day, Obama won more than four of every 10 white votes. Americans said yes, we can overcome our original sin. Fifty years from now, President Obama will be remembered for more than the color of his skin. And this moment will never be forgotten.

About one in 10 voters said this was the first year they had cast ballots, and 70 percent of them backed Obama. To cap it off, Obama won the female vote. We who lived in the South and remember segregration all have, I am sure, different feelings on this issue. I'm sometimes ashamed to admit that I grew up in the South with a black maid (who was just like a family member to me) and grandparents (and parents too) who were very prejudiced, but that is all they knew. Because I saw first hand the way they were, I have strived hard not to be like them. And, I believe I have succeeded. I can remember when Kennedy and Nixon ran for president. We had an election in school and I voted for Kennedy. That night, we had dinner at my grandparents home and when I told them I voted for Kennedy in a mock election at school, you would have thought I had done something really horrible. They were just apalled!! I don't know if it was his partya ffiliation or the fact that he was a Catholic! My .... how things have changed.

But, to me, race was not the issue in the this election. Although, it's hard to believe that right now after watching all the television interviews tonight - the only people being interviewed on the DC NBC channel are blacks. To me, the reporters are making it about race. I did like the comment of one of the people interviewed - that she could celebrate this victory with all her sisters .... white, black, and gay.

I hate controversy. I generally go to great lengths to avoid awkwardness of any kind. I just want everyone to get along and live together in love and harmony forever and ever. This is why I do not wear my political affiliation on my sleeve and I do not discuss politics on my blog. But, tonight I followed another blog link to THIS and it scared me! Whether or not it is true, it sure makes you think!

I am worried with Obama in office about our health care, our social security, our welfare program, and mostly about our retirement money that my husband worked hard to get and we are quickly seeing it go away. I'm not saying that our system is without fault, but I believe there are better ways to care for the underprivileged and uninsured than to centralize our heath care and increase other government programs. I resent the implications and outright accusations that conservatives are selfish and tight-fisted. We just believe the private sector is far better equipped to handle the needs of the underprivileged in our society.

The war is another major issue. While I don't like war, I believe we need to finish the job before we come home. I trusted McCain on this issue given his experience in the military and in Congress for so many years. I have a vested interest in this issue since I have a daughter in the Army who could be looking at deployment next year and a son who has served this country and done a stint in Korea and in Iraq.

I truly believe we all want the same thing in the end - a safe, healthy, productive society where we can live and work and play with freedom and security. So, I sincerely hope that America comes together and supports our next leader no matter how you feel about him. I do not think there are any easy answers or perfect candidates but I do believe in our country. Just hold on .... in 4 years, we will be able to make another decision.

Obama received the huge wave of support he sought. But will he be able to do all that he promised? Will his ecstatic supporters be satisfied with anything less? And did Obama really receive a mandate, or was he the beneficiary of the nation's disgust with President Bush, and its unease with America's course? These are the questions that will be answered over the next four years.

Just remember ..... at the end of the day, God is still commander in chief of the universe!

Country Living Special

Invite the warmth and coziness of the holidays into your home with Stampin’ Up!’s® Country Living Holiday Collection Stampin’ Kit. This kit has everything you need to create beautiful handcrafted ornaments.

• Holiday Collection six-piece stamp set
• Die-cut chipboard/Designer Series paper
• Whisper White card stock
• Ribbon and cord
• Pretties Kit brads
• Dazzling Diamonds Stampin’ Glitter®
• Classic and Craft Stampin’ Spots®
• Adhesives

Available November 1-December 31st or while supplies last! More details available HERE

Don't forget about the Holiday Mini Catalog! It's jammed packed with stamps, paper, and ideas for all of your holiday needs!

A lot of birthdays!!

Seems like all I've done lately is make birthday cards!! Last Thursday my husband's birthday. He turned 62 and is now waiting for his Social Security check!!! Guess he'll be stalking the mailman for the next month or so - it's not supposed to be issued until December. With the state of the economy, that'll be a raise for us!! Anyway, here's the card he got from me. It was one that I had done at a previous class at Stamper's Alley, but he doesn't know the difference & usually only scans a card. We tease him that if we put a bunch of stuff on the inside - mushy feeling, etc. - he doesn't really read it!! So this one is short & sweet!

Our good friend and former realtor had a birthday this past weekend also. Here is the card I made for him. I really like this "Older & Wiser SU set. I used some paper from a paper pack that I picked up somewhere a while ago. It's great for a man's card.

One more birthday card!

Can you handle one more birthday card????  I received this one this week from my upline in Tacoma, Washington.  Carol called me on my birthday - but she actually thought she was calling a day early.  As it turned out, she got the day right.  She is a procrastinator like a lot of us are & hadn't gotten my card in the mail earlier.  But, as it turned out, after talking with her, I had missed her birthday!  So, I sent her a card last week (sorry - didn't take a picture!!).

Here's the card she sent me.

Useless Information

Did you know?

Pomology is the study of fruit and of the cultivation of fruit.

Tomatoes and cucumbers are fruits.

Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient for waking you up in the morning.

Fresh apples float because 25% of their volume is air.

The most widely eaten fruit in America is the banana.

~The Book of Useless Information by Noel Botham & The Useless Information Society

Happy Halloween!

Hope you have a safe and scary Halloween.  We will be driving to DC.  We have tickets to the Monday night football game (on ESPN!).  The Redskins are playing our Steelers!!!  Hoping the weather warms up just a little or we'll be freezing our "you-know-what" off.  We are especially excited because Sonny's cousins (who are actually Ashley and Jeff's age) will be there.  Davey and his wife are driving down from Pittsburgh for the game.  Ashley was able to get them tickets as well as for his sisters who live in DC.  We haven't seen them in several years, so it will be good to reunite.  We'll be tailgating before the game and are trying to decide what Pittsburgh delight we'll bring.  I'm thinking kielbasa will be the easiest!!  Also, we want to make a sign & hopefully be picked up waving it on National TV.  Our seats are in the end zone and pretty close to the field, so there is a chance.  Got any suggestions as to what it should say?  I was playing around with the letters ESPN and came up with Extra Special Pittsburgh ..... but hit a snag with the "N".  We also had the idea to get a Halloween wig - black curly - and attach it to a sign to represent Troy Polamalu's hair.

 

Here's a Halloween card I received this week from Brenda.  Isn't it so cute???

Start Walking!!

Check out below how far you must walk in steps, miles and kilometers to walk off the candy listed below.

25 small jellybeans/140 calories
20 pieces of candy corn/100 calories
2 Brach's caramels/80 calories
2 Hershey's Kisses/50 calories
1 mini Tootsie Roll/25 calories
1 Fun Size candy bar (Snickers, Milky Way, Butterfingers, etc.)/80 calories
1 mini bite-size candy bar (Snickers, Milky Way, Butterfingers, etc.)/55 calories
1 Fun Size M&M packet—Plain or Peanut 90 1 mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cup/33 calories
1 full size chocolate candy bar (Snickers, Hershey, etc.)/275 calories
1 King Size chocolate candy bar (Snickers, Hershey, etc.)/500 calories
1 piece pumpkin pie (1/8 of 9-in pie)/180 calories

…that comes to 1608 calories. In order to burn that off, you will need to walk 16.08 miles, 25.93 kilometers, or 32,160 steps, assuming you cover one mile in 2,000 steps.

~About.com—Walking…Calculator