Friday, November 30, 2007

There's no place like HOME for the Holidays....


I was reading my friend Roseann's blog, Rosebud's Cottage , and she was talking about some childhood memories of the holidays. We have been so busy trying to get ready for this move that I don't even think the holidays have registered for us yet. But reading Roseann's blog and seeing the great pictures got me thinking about where we will be this year, AFTER the move from h#ll (it's not the place we are going to , it's the timing of it all). Once the boxes are packed and we've made a pit stop at fort Drum, we will be making a cross country trip HOME.....

Where's home?
Here's a clue, just in case that picture above of downtown's world famous Riverwalk all decked out didn't give it away, this one below should....

San Antonio, Texas....where our roots are deep (and yes, we remember the Alamo- lol!). Mr. Sunshine (as the dh shall be know as from now on- if you know him, this should amuse you!) and I grew up here (but he doesn't let me live down the fact that I am not a NATIVE, just got there as soon as I could!), courted here, got married here. Most of our family is still within a 250 mile radius of San Antonio, so when we go home, we get to see them all....It's a soft place to land and I am so looking forward to it this year. Homemade cookies and tamales (not toether! ), balmy weather (at least compared to upstate NY), nieces and nephews, cousins and parents and fur babies too (cant't wait to see Zack and Brandy, my most favorite Labs in the world), laughter and stories...everything I want for Christmas!

Where will you be this year?

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

What a Beautiful City I live in....for Just a bit Longer!


Well that visit from my in-laws I mentioned also coincided with my purchase of a new toy- a Canon Power Shot camera (S5 IS, if that means anything to anyone-lol!). It's got all sorts of bells and whistles and took a bit to get used to, but I have been having quite allot of fun learning how to use it. By no means am I an expert yet, but things are improving....

I took quite a few pictures of this beautiful city during my in-laws' visit. Thought I would share a few.....

I am sad that we were only here for two years (and there were some rough family times that ate up a good portion of that time)...didn't see near the stuff thatwe could have....But I WILL NOT miss the traffic and commotion that this town produces!! If you have ever even driven through DC, you may have an idea of what I'm talking about...the hectic pace of life and daily congestion (on the roads, in the stores, everywhere) that comes with a big city are just not for me....too much visual stimulation, if that makes sense....


Anyway, on to the pictures....

Can you guess the hand? Shouldn't be too hard, if you think about where I am...my feeble attempt at being "artsy" with my pictures...there will be a few more of these....

Yep- Ol' Honest Abe Himself....these are our pictures from the Mall. It was a very dreary day, but when you're on vacation, sometimes you can't wait for the sunshine.... The view from Abe's seat....

The Viet Nam Vet's Memorial..."The Wall"....this is probably the most moving place on the Mall. People really stop and study the names...

I had to wait quite a bit to get this picture with no one studying the writing, even on a blustery day....

This was not the only flag left that day....

I have many more but this will have to be continued...Like the Dwarves....Hi- Ho, Hi- Ho, it's off to work I go.....

Monday, November 26, 2007

My, MY....How time flies....


Well now that was quite a "Blog-iday" I took, wasn't it? I have been busy, and unfortuantely when you're extremely busy, something's gotta give. My poor blog was the victim this time.....
Allot has happened since my last post...

My wonderful in-laws visited us here in DC. We had a very nice two weeks- did all the sights in the area and took a day trip to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, home of the famous Civil War Battle. I love that place. To this day, you just feel the importance of what happened there during the Civil War. And the scenery is just to die for- a visual picnic for a primitive artist.....



A few of the great old houses....

One of many MANY beautiful monuments...this one was dedicated to General Robert E. Lee...


And this is my son in the "Devil's Den", quite appropriately named for more reason than one...because this is where my soldier husband got the call that we would be MOVING in less than two months! So now you know exactly WHY I have been so busy....

In seventeen years with the military, we have moved...allot....but usually we have some inkling that a move is impending. This was completely unexpected, out of the blue, shocking....whatever you want to call it, it was the first time we have felt like we've been hit by a Mack truck on a beautiful Saturday afternooon....an experience I don't care to repeat if I'm completely honest....

Soooooo......

It seems come mid-December, we'll be loading up the truck.....and moving to.....

NEW YORK.....