Once again I took a trip to Washington, DC to see my daughter (that part was a blast!) and someone died. Can't seem to be in that city for more than a day without someone (usually a co-worker, but I've worked up to family members now) dying. This past week was no exception, my great uncle passed, and he was my favorite great uncle too!

Note to self, must break this habit quickly before the wrong person associated with me gets struck down in their prime!

Otherwise, it was a very nice trip: Rhett and I got to the city last Monday, and he thought he was in a foreign country.. he also thought that Maryland was an island and we somehow managed to cross the ocean without him knowing it! After we checked into the hotel, he of course had to use the restroom, and the first thing he says is, "My first pee in a foreign country!" then I spent the rest of the week explaining that although it is different and full of many people who speak different languages, it was indeed part of and in fact, in charge of the rest of the country (our country!).. I don't know that it sunk in because the Wii Vote channel has a question about if you have visited your nation's capital and he wanted to say no.. I explained that that was exactly where we had just come back from, and he MAY finally get it... kids are great! All week long Rhett had many "firsts" in a foreign country..and seemed to really enjoy the city, except for the traffic and the walking that is! I must be getting used to it because even though we were in downtown DC, the only trouble I had was circling Dupont Circle and picking the right exit. Oh, and the bus that wanted to be in the same spot as me on that circle.. bad bus.. but he was bigger, so I conceded the spot to him! My paint job is still intact.

One more trip this Spring to pick up Britt.. around May 5-7 .. and I will be done with DC until August. It's beginning to grow on me, but I still don't go anywhere without TomTom, he is my friend!

Now if I could only get over this bronchitis or whatever.. 3 weeks is more than enough, time for more drugs and another doctor visit tomorrow. Breathing is so overrated.

Uhm, depends on the day. I try to bring lunch, but if I don't I usually buy, but not just for myself but also for my cell mate (oh! I mean office mate..) and for my friend Trish when she is in Lunch Purgatory as well. We sometimes take turns doing this, mostly though it is a bought lunch costing in the neighborhood of $10-15 a day for 2 lunches. They hate it when I bring lunch!

My family and friends went to the Ren Fest.. OMG how much fun was that?!!! Rhett wasn't sure about it, his imagination was not firing on all cylinders. But mine was! I had lots of fun, Guinness, Woodchuck Cider and another beer.. Magic Hats? or something like that.. yum! The food was great, the shows hilarious and very entertaining. The Highland games were super as was the Falconry show, except for the deluge of rain in the middle of the day,it was an exceptional day. I must say that I have never seen so many unbound bosoms in my life.. some should have been! Let me tell you!! This is a definite go to place for me next year, sans little children! I really didn't run into a rude person there, even the pirates were nice.. in character, but nice. LOVED IT!!!!

Not long and Brit will be off to college.. yeah!! Sure, I'll miss her, but it's so amazing to watch her blossom and become the secure young woman I knew she could be. She is taking flight and not looking back.. wonderful! My work is done, now I just have to sit back and watch offering support and guidance as needed. Go Brit, be the Eagle you are meant to be, kick butt and take names.

Now to get Rhett used to being an only child.. yikes... what a thought. Once he gets used to the quiet, maybe he will settle down too. Whew what a ride!

Happy summer.. it's almost over.

Life is hectic, graduation went very well, and college is looming.. I think that about sums it up!

Well, another year has come and gone, not much has changed. That's not all bad! My brother and sister-in-law just had a baby, Avalon Alexandra..Ava Alex for short.. she is a cutie!! Congrats to them, she is a blessed welcome to the family. We are in need of more girls.. I think!

Brit will be graduating this year, Steven will become a Senior and Rhett will be Rhett.. who knows right now if he will be in 2nd again or move on to 3rd. The teachers worry about him, and yet he brings home 100's in most subjects.. just takes him longer to get it sometimes. His seizures are still not totally under control, and we are in the long process of weaning off one med and increasing the other, in hopes of controlling the dastardly things!

I am still doing the same job that I've been at for the last 8 3/4 years (but who's counting), and every day is a challenge. I still like my job, love the people I work directly with for the most part and enjoy the challenge of the clients. We are doing good work for a population that is easy to overlook. Gotta love it!

I am trying very hard to find the positives in my life and to improve the negatives. I have no problems, just opportunities to excel. For New Year's I had thought about lowering my standards and just giving in to the baser emotions that exist in all of us, but couldn't bring myself to even dream of it. I have standards, and I will just have to be happy being alone for now. I am looking for Mr. Right, not Mr. Rightnow, so I have to be patient and open myself up to more opportunities to find that connection. I'm working on it. As for right now, I am ok. I will be ok, and will strive to be even better.

Here's wishing all my friends and loved ones a very Happy New Year!! and all the love and joy they can stand. May you all find yourselves where you want to be with whom you want to be for the coming year(s).

You are all ok in my book!

Love and light

Vicki

The presents are opened and being played with as I type. I am in cooking heaven with the new stuff to make cheesecakes even better, who knew they made a glass bottom springform pan?! Lots of decorating tools and gadgets, love the gadgets.. gadgets rule! Ecko cookware to replace the pots and pans that others have ruined for me. Now no more sticking and burning food.. by the way, kids.... NO Steel wool on these pans, please!!! Elbow grease works wonders!!!! I have my own navigation system now, no more Magellan.. it's Tomtom now! SWEET! Just have to figure out how to get the addresses out of Gelli and into Tom... I was especially pleased with the gifts from ShopIrish.com.. love the Celtic! The letter opener is beautiful (and heavy!), the bracelets are phenomenal! Wearing the Mystic one right now! I am deeply touched and honored by all the gifts this year. I am blessed with loving friends and family, each of you are the true gift to me. Thank you.

The table is set and the food cooking, almost time to enjoy the feast... Merry Christmas, Happy Yule and blessings to all.. I love you.


V~

The hour is drawing near when the world will be filled with good cheer. The presents opened, the gifts exchanged, the turkey and stuffing inhaled til we're pained. All this for one festive day, the house in chaos what more is there to say? It was worth the effort, it was worth the stress, just to see their Christmas bliss. Thank you for loving me enough to care, thank you for friendship, for love, for being there. That is the lesson I take today, on this the night before Christmas day. I love you each and everyone, you are the moon, the stars the sun. You are the world to me I say! I give you blessing and hope for this, Christmas Day! Be merry, be bright, be happy, be light. I give you love, good tidings and cheer. I wish you well for the new coming year. My rhyming is done now, as Santa draws near. Merry Christmas to all and to all a Happy New Year.




Blessings, love and peace

Vicki

Welcome to the Christmas edition of getting to know
your friends.

Okay, here's what you're supposed to do, and try not
to be a SCROOGE!!!

Change all the answers so that they apply to you.

Then send this to a whole bunch of people you know,
INCLUDING the person that sent it to you... 'Tis the
Season to be NICE!

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags ? Wrapping paper with ribbons and bows
2. REAL OR FAKE TREE? Used to love a real Blue Spruce, now I have to settle for fake, allergies bite!
3. When do you put up the tree? Thanksgiving night
4. When do you take the tree down? Last part of January
5. Do you like eggnog? Nope, not even close!!!
6. Favorite gift received as a child? stuffed animals rank pretty high with me
7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes
8. Hardest person to buy for? Papa
9. Easiest person to buy for? Rhett, he loves everything. Being young is such a joy!
10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Don't recall, I tried to find the good in everything given because it was given out of love. I appreciate(d) every gift.
11. Mail or email Christmas cards? umm, not very good at correspondence, just ask my friends!
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? How the Grinch Stole Christmas
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas ? August
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? See above, so NO!! I think of gifts all by myself with the person in mind.
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas ? cookies
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Multi colored, kinda depends on the application though, sometimes the clear are more elegant.
17. Favorite Christmas song? O Holy Night
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay home
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Of course:
Dasher,Dancer, Prancer,Vixon, Comet, Cupid, Donder ,Blitzen and Rudolph
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Angel.
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Morning.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? It must end and the decorations have to come down. The commercialism associated with the holiday also sucks.

My Christmas decorations are finally up and I am in bliss. The house always looks more inviting and warm with the greens and lights, don't know why my family won't let me keep them up year round. It always feels so empty after the holidays and the stockings are put away, the garland undraped and the lights dimmed. It's very sad. But right now, after 4 hours or so of manipulation and adjusting, the tree is trimmed, the lights blink and the Nativity is set. All is well with the world again.

This time of year brings out the good in most people, sometimes we do run into the Grinch's and Scrooge's of the world, but you just have to feel sorry for them and move on. Hope is alive and well that this year will be wonderful to the end and a new beginning us upon us. New hopes, new dreams and new beginnings..for all.

Cherish the time we have together for we no not when it will end, each day is a gift and each friendship a blessing to the soul. Rejoice and sing from the heart, remembering the true meaning of the season, not just the commercialism that started in September in the retail world. Every gift is given with love and every thought is a blessing to be shared with loved ones. Enjoy life, live it fully for tomorrow may never come. Share yourself freely with those of importance to you and know you have loved well, lived well and been loved in return.

By whatever name you call this time of year, feel the energy flow around you and embrace you in the magic of the season and know you are the greatest gift to me. Money can't buy the best gifts, those are given freely. Namaste, peace, and love to you and yours. Merry Christmas, Happy Yule, and all the rest.. Blessings to you all.

V~

I make the whole family give me their Christmas lists in August and start looking then. The actual hardcore shopping starts at the end of November, but some stuff is already hidden by then.

Just love this song....

Just got back from Saratoga Springs today. What an amazing city! Aside from the horse racing history, there is an arts culture there that takes over the town. The dance museum has the NY Dance Ballet in for shows at $15 a seat on the lawn, they have gardens and pathways to explore and an art district, (Beekman St) statues everywhere and grottoes all over the place. It was very clean and very friendly, I was impressed. Also very expensive and exclusive.

The Saratoga Bead store was heaven for bead workers and there were quilt shops, needle working shops and all sorts of other crafty type places. There were restaurants galore and we hit a lot of the best ones (it pays to have an inside person in situations like this)and enjoyed good wine and spirits too! The people were friendly, and one guy even wanted to marry me after just meeting me... strange, usually I am invisible to people, but he was right there while we waited for a seat and didn't leave me alone until I gave him my email and phone number. He hung around me and Vanessa (my insider) for hours talking as he was working (he is the cook at a local diner). I found out he used to be a boxer and he was from Morocco originally, has 2 children and seems relatively normal. He told me he would buy me a house and find me a job if I were to move there. Unfortunately for me, I didn't feel that spark he did. I think he is a nice enough guy, but not what I am looking for right now. I have his email and phone number if I want too, so nothing wrong with being friends..right?!

I was supposed to be resting but decided to go to some of the parties that Aireal was reading at, met lots of really nice people, some neurotic people and some just plain psycho people... sometimes it was hard to tell who was whom.. but I gave it a shot! Saturday I had such a headache and was so tired (still trying to get over acute bronchitis) that I begged off the night meeting and stayed at the B&B instead. I was in bed by 5:51pm and didn't get up until 7:30am Sunday. Guess I was more tired than I realized. It was nice catching up on some sleep without guilt or worry about other people for a change.

I am going back in the Spring to help with teaching the energy classes Aireal was there to lay groundwork for, so who knows who I'll meet and what will happen from here. It was just very nice to be able to relax and be myself for a while, no expectations, no goals for the day except to have a good time, and no stress. Loved it. Needed it. Now back to the grind...

The holidays are just around the corner, so the schedule should be hectic until the end of the year.. this break was just what the doctor ordered!

Well, 5 college searches in one day is a bit extreme, but we managed it! My first trip to DC went well, loved the area, architecture and the food. The traffic wasn't as bad as I thought it would be; in fact, I wasn't really intimidated by it. I surprised myself with that. I did have sweating palms and a sore jaw from chomping my gum driving in, but I did it. I know it was a holiday weekend and traffic was less than on any other given day, but I survived and had no close calls; the people slowing down or braking for green lights was a bit annoying, but for the most part people were polite and travel was easy.

I was also shown the Metro system by my daughter, she was very proud to show me "her city" and all the things she's been doing for years when she visits her grandmother. I really enjoyed it. The museums were nice and the Mall was lovely (if a bit brown from lack of grass due to too many people walking it) and the only down side I can think of besides the crowds at Pentagon City mall where the empty faces of the people on the trains. It was like the life was sucked right out of them. So sad to see in such a lively place offering so much. I could almost smell the history in the making.

If Brit decides to go to school there, I would consider moving closer to DC. There was life and movement; hope still finding a fragile handhold and hanging on for dear life that spoke to me. I met some very nice people with lots to offer, places worth seeing again and a glimpse of a world yet to be explored. Fantastic city to visit, don't know that I would want to be downtown, but close by isn't so bad.

Yeah, I'd definitely do DC again..

Women's retreat was fantastic.. here are some pics from it, filled with orbs. Honoring Our Ancestors was the theme, and it seems like they came to visit! Enjoy!