Artistic Creations...

Thought I'd show you what I've been working on (and some of the reason I stay up late)!  My creativity seems to "come out" later at night and just doesn't work well in the morning!  I know that some people are just made that way and I'm one of them!  :-)

I just finished and mailed out an altered clipboard.  Now some (I can hear Rick & Bob now) might want to know why on earth you'd "alter" a clipboard!  Actually, it's really only because you can!  It's like a canvas or another surface to work on!  Kind of like some of those abstracts you see and wonder "why"!  It's not really meant to be functional, more like a piece of artwork that you'd enjoy looking at! :-)  The theme is supposed to be "all about you" but why would anyone want a surface all about me?  I created it instead to be something that I would like to look at and on the back I made a small "all about me"!  My swap partner can remove it from the back if she wants to use it!  Pretty smart, huh?

Tonight I've been working on a couple of ATCs.  ATCs are Artist Trading Cards.  These are quite the rage right now!  They are like mini pieces of art that we trade amongst each other.  There are ACEOs (Art Cards, Editions and Originals) that can be sold, but ATCs are only traded!  The group that I belong to "Art For The Creative Mind" has lots of swaps and most have a theme.  The ATCs I'm working on are children using buttons and bows!  There's a LOT of artistic license here so that can really mean most anything!  :-) 

It's been really neat making these ATCs because on my computer (that had been stored for all the years we were traveling) I had some images I had scanned years ago from pictures that my dad had from his family and I'm using a couple of those!  The only down side is that ATCs are 2-1/4" x 3-1/2" so there's not much room and the pictures had to be printed pretty small!  I don't know "who" these family members are...just that they are really old!

It's kind of fun though seeing "how" these come together!  Some times I get inspiration from looking online at others that have created ATCs, cards, tags, pages, etc.  Other times I get an idea in my head or think of something to use and just start pulling "things" out that I have!  Sometimes I also just browse through the aisles at the store and things kind of come together!  A lot of times, tonight included things don't even end up like I had originally thought!  One thing I really need to start doing is keep track of the items I use to make some of these things!

I hope you enjoy looking at what I've created!  I'll be interested in seeing your comments!  :-)

A new year and a new format!

I hope to be better at blogging in 2010! Man, I have a hard time typing that! I guess after typing 00, 01, 02 and so on it's hard to break that habit! :-)

This morning I was thinking about our blog! It's not quite the same anymore since we aren't traveling as much! There's not that much to share on a day-to-day basis since I can't regal you with our travels! :-) That's not to say you won't hear about the things we see and do when we do travel...and we are planning some trips this year! There's a lot I'd like to share that don't have to do with traveling so that's why I thought our blog needed a new look!

Not sure of specifics for many trips but I do know that we have plans to once again go to Baker, CA for the annual Baker-Vegas Challenge Cup Relay Race. There are several posts in the archives that tell about our trips there! I think this will be our 17th year! That's in April and in June Don and I are the co-rally masters for a Monaco Wannagos rally right here in Arkansas! I hope that all of our motorhome friends are going to come and attend the rally! It's our FIRST and hopefully LAST rally that we are hosting, but I do think it will be fun! It's June 8-12 in North Little Rock! Not far from home and really, NLR and LR have a lot of things to see and do! We are planning some fun things and hope to have some great entertainment (No, Don or I won't be part of them)! Another trip we have planned is Effingham, IL for the Corvette Rally that is held there. We went last year with our friends, Jerri & Lloyd and hope that they go again this year! :-)

One of the other things I'm thinking of doing on our blog is sharing some of the artwork that I do...I haven't done a lot of painting since we moved into the house, but I have been doing a lot of paper crafting - scrapbooking, making cards, ATCs (Artist Trading Cards), tags and all kinds of things! I've made two paper bag books and I'm working on an altered clipboard right now! I belong to a Yahoo Group (I actually belong to several) and we do a lot of different swaps! It's been fun to stretch my creative side and I'm having fun doing it!

That's about all I can think of for the moment! It's late and I need to head to bed! <-- Nothing different about that!

Happy Anniversary!

Wow! Can't believe we are celebrating our 18th anniversary! Don and I chose this date to be married because it was his parent's wedding date as well! I figured it lasted a long, long time for them so it had to be a good day! We had a very small wedding with just our family and a few very special friends. I don't think the church would have held more than 20-25! After the wedding though we had a great party with lots of friends and family! :-) It was a lot of fun! Left the next day for our honeymoon and was it ever romantic! Yeah right! We took our fifth-wheel (that's what we had at the time) and went camping! It was appropriate since we met while camping 6 years before we got married! I do remember Don spent a lot of time on a pay phone outside the campground calling work! I even think we drove in one day so he could go to a meeting! Now that's what I call dedication! Grrr...

It sure doesn't seem like 18 years (or 24 years) has passed! It DOES make me feel old to think about it though! :-) I'm sure there were those that thought it would never last! We fooled them, didn't we!

Happy New Year!

Want to wish all of our friends and family a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year! Can't believe it's 2010 already! Seems like it was just going to be 2000 and we were all worried that our computers would freeze up and stop working! Looks like they are still working, and nothing has gone missing - has it? Well, maybe a lot of our money but I don't think we can blame THAT on 2000!

Happy New Year! Hope to see all of you in the coming year!

The History of Veterans Day

****Taken from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Website****

World War I – known at the time as “The Great War” - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles outside the town of Versailles, France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of “the war to end all wars.”

In November 1919, President Wilson proclaimed November 11 as the first commemoration of Armistice Day with the following words: "To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in the heroism of those who died in the country’s service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations…"

The original concept for the celebration was for a day observed with parades and public meetings and a brief suspension of business beginning at 11:00 a.m.

The United States Congress officially recognized the end of World War I when it passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926, with these words:

Whereas the 11th of November 1918, marked the cessation of the most destructive, sanguinary, and far reaching war in human annals and the resumption by the people of the United States of peaceful relations with other nations, which we hope may never again be severed, and

Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations; and

Whereas the legislatures of twenty-seven of our States have already declared November 11 to be a legal holiday: Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), that the President of the United States is requested to issue a proclamation calling upon the officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on November 11 and inviting the people of the United States to observe the day in schools and churches, or other suitable places, with appropriate ceremonies of friendly relations with all other peoples.

An Act (52 Stat. 351; 5 U. S. Code, Sec. 87a) approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday—a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be thereafter celebrated and known as "Armistice Day." Armistice Day was primarily a day set aside to honor veterans of World War I, but in 1954, after World War II had required the greatest mobilization of soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen in the Nation’s history; after American forces had fought aggression in Korea, the 83rd Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, amended the Act of 1938 by striking out the word "Armistice" and inserting in its place the word "Veterans." With the approval of this legislation (Public Law 380) on June 1, 1954, November 11th became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

Later that same year, on October 8th, President Dwight D. Eisenhower issued the first "Veterans Day Proclamation" which stated: "In order to insure proper and widespread observance of this anniversary, all veterans, all veterans' organizations, and the entire citizenry will wish to join hands in the common purpose. Toward this end, I am designating the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs as Chairman of a Veterans Day National Committee, which shall include such other persons as the Chairman may select, and which will coordinate at the national level necessary planning for the observance. I am also requesting the heads of all departments and agencies of the Executive branch of the Government to assist the National Committee in every way possible."

On that same day, President Eisenhower sent a letter to the Honorable Harvey V. Higley, Administrator of Veterans' Affairs (VA), designating him as Chairman of the Veterans Day National Committee.

In 1958, the White House advised VA's General Counsel that the 1954 designation of the VA Administrator as Chairman of the Veterans Day National Committee applied to all subsequent VA Administrators. Since March 1989 when VA was elevated to a cabinet level department, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs has served as the committee's chairman.

The Uniform Holiday Bill (Public Law 90-363 (82 Stat. 250)) was signed on June 28, 1968, and was intended to ensure three-day weekends for Federal employees by celebrating four national holidays on Mondays: Washington's Birthday, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Columbus Day. It was thought that these extended weekends would encourage travel, recreational and cultural activities and stimulate greater industrial and commercial production. Many states did not agree with this decision and continued to celebrate the holidays on their original dates.

The first Veterans Day under the new law was observed with much confusion on October 25, 1971. It was quite apparent that the commemoration of this day was a matter of historic and patriotic significance to a great number of our citizens, and so on September 20th, 1975, President Gerald R. Ford signed Public Law 94-97 (89 Stat. 479), which returned the annual observance of Veterans Day to its original date of November 11, beginning in 1978. This action supported the desires of the overwhelming majority of state legislatures, all major veterans service organizations and the American people.

Veterans Day continues to be observed on November 11, regardless of what day of the week on which it falls. The restoration of the observance of Veterans Day to November 11 not only preserves the historical significance of the date, but helps focus attention on the important purpose of Veterans Day: A celebration to honor America's veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good.


~~ With that, I'd like to send my sincere thanks to all our Veterans and military personnel..for defending our freedom and this great country that we live in. ~~

Shoplifting At Target! Go Ahead!

Just kidding on the title, but it has to do with my experience yesterday! My Mom and I headed to Conway to do a little shopping with one of our last stops being the local Target store. My Mom finished before I did and checked out. While she was waiting for me to check out she enjoyed a latte at Starbucks (inside Target). I got in line behind this woman whom I soon realize is having some kind of a problem...

Not trying to stereotype, but this woman had the look of someone "hard" and acted like she might have been on drugs (after the whole scenario...I would venture to say that she was!) She had tatoos on her hand, arm, neck and they looked like they might have been done while high, not by a true professional (you know the look?) She was also very antsy and couldn't stand still.

I feel that I'm a very observant person, not only visually but also by hearing things around me. I soon grasp that this woman has a gift card. She had a credit on it of almost $70.00. Her purchases totaled, at first, over $100.00. She also had a shopping cart next to her that held several Target bags. The bags in the cart didn't look "new". Anyhow, she had the cashier deduct one thing after another and then put these items into her bags in the shopping cart. See anything wrong here?? So the woman now has the problem that she has a credit left of $10.00 and she tells the cashier that she won't be at a Target for some time, yada yada. The cashier tells her that the credit won't expire and then for some reason (maybe because she's putting things in the bag/in the cart that aren't paid for) the cashier calls over a supervisor and they discuss the fact that the woman still has a credit of $10. The supervisor tells her that she will still have a credit of about $10.00 but with taxes etc. she should/could use it for about $8.00. The woman comments "my daughter is having her first baby, so I can use it for that". Even seeing that I'm in line behind her, she leaves her purchase/cart with bags and goes to find something for $8.00. I said to the cashier "she put things in her bag" and the supervisor at that point asks me if I will be a witness. She said, I hate to ask you that. I told her "no problem" and she told the cashier to get my name/number and give it to her later. A few minutes later the woman comes back and asks about bottled soda. She grabs a Mt. Dew/Slice or Seven Up (hey, it was green!) from the cooler and comes back to the front of the line. In the meantime, the cashier had suspended her transaction and started mine. She then goes back to the woman's transaction. Are you confused yet? So now, the cashier adds the soda and there is still a small balance on the gift card. At this point the woman says "my friend is waiting out in the car for me, I'm going to go see if she has a Target card". She leaves both her "purchase" and her shopping cart with the bags in it and goes outside. The cashier and I talk for a moment about the woman and another employee came up and asked if that was her cart/purchase/etc. The cashier showed her which was hers and then what was now mine. She (the employee) put the purchase into the cart and pushed it over to the next register. Then the woman returns and I told the cashier "here she comes" so she will stop talking about her (she started to tell me that she first thought the woman was high.) The woman takes her cart and then proceeds to go into the Starbucks and waves (really, really waves with much more gusto than a normal person would!) to the person waiting for her in the car. I'm done with my shopping and I PAY for it! (Amazing concept, really!) The cashier apologizes to me for having to wait and then thanks me and I head to Starbucks to get my Mom! At that point, the woman turns and heads out the store. So now, I'm waiting. Waiting for something to happen. Someone at Target to detain her, someone to tell her that those purchases weren't paid for...the cops to show up? What the heck? I see her put her bags in the car, she gets into the car and lo and behold...they drive off! WTH? I'm stunned! I said (to no one in particular) isn't someone going to do anything? I tell my Mom what happened and we walk out of the store. I am in disbelief. So you can blatantly shoplift in front of employees and at least one witness and get away with it?

I couldn't believe what I actually witnessed that went far beyond the woman putting unpaid for items into her bag RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE TARGET EMPLOYEES! I thought about it and thought about it and this morning I decided to call Target and ask them "what happened, why wasn't she stopped". I wish I could remember the name of the store manager (what's up with that? I can remember all that happened in the store, but not his name!!). After I talked to him and told him about what had transpired I really felt that he only tried to patronize me. He told me that Target has a policy of who can detain a shoplifter. Maybe someone in that capacity wasn't in the store at that time. Target actually has a pretty low loss rate, etc., etc., etc. Excuse me? There was plenty of time between when "I" first saw the woman put stuff into her bags and when she finally walked out the store with the stuff. And did you know that actually you don't even have to walk out the door with it to be considered shoplifting? He told me that concealing it was all you needed to do, to be considered guilty of shoplifting. I was also told about all the cameras tehy had around the store, that they could still identify this person and charge them, and yada, yada, yada!!!

I made the comment to the store manager during my conversation that ultimately I and other customers of Target ended up paying for this. I also made the comment that maybe I should consider doing the same thing and was told that the consequences actually outweight the benefit. Didn't look like that to me! Oh well, actually it WOULD be my luck that nope, they wouldn't let me, a NORMAL everyday person walk out the store with all this stuff!!

To say that I'm angry about this incident is an understatement and why I felt the need to blog about it! How would you feel? Anything that you would do different? One thing I would have done, IF, I knew that nothing was going to be done was I would have personally called her on it! I would have had no problem commenting OUT LOUD that excuse me...you didn't pay for that stuff you just put into your bags!! Maybe then they would have done something, but after my conversation today I'm doubting it! Hey, if you happen to shoplift in Target (and get away with it) why don't you let me know that as well!

Remembering Haleigh and Happy Mother's Day

It's hard to believe that it was 9 years ago today that we said "good-bye" to Haleigh. It was the last time that we held her in our arms. I can still remember that day so vividly...even though it's been 9 years.

A few days later we held her memorial service and then it was Mother's Day. I can remember Kim saying that she didn't feel like she was a mother and I remember telling her that even though Haleigh was no longer with us she was still a mom and no one could take that away from her. I can still see the grief that was on her face that day and how sad she was. Even though we were in mourning we still remembered Mother's Day.

Nine years later I would like to say "Haleigh, I love you and miss you always".

"Happy Mother's Day" to my mom, for being a great Mom; to my daughter, Kimberleigh, for sharing Haleigh's short life with me and of course for giving me two beautiful granddaughters; to my step-daughter, Stacy and step-daughter-in-law, Monica thank you for sharing your children with me as their Grandma Vicki; and Christine, thank you for my beautiful granddaughter, Danya. I hope you all have a great Mother's Day.

Heading to Goshen!

We left Greers Ferry after spending the weekend with the Stone's and Tim, Kim and Ashleigh. We were going to stop in Sullivan, MO but both Don and Rick decided that it was early and they felt they could drive further. Certainly didn't bother me. There's something about riding in a vehicle that lulls me to sleep...I have a hard time staying awake so sleep a lot of the way! (In case you're wondering, I don't have that problem when I'm driving!) Good thing there's music on the radio to keep Don company 'cause it certainly isn't me!!

Got as far as Vandalia, IL and found the local Wal Mart. They have an area set aside especially for trucks and motorhomes and it was already full! There were about 8 other motorhomes in the area we parked in and we were just across from all the trucks! It was a VERY busy area during the night. Once Don shut the window neither of us had a problem sleeping!

Got an early start (well, not really considering that we were going to change time zones before getting to our final destination). We had a little rain on our drive but other than getting behind a really large over-sized load...no problems getting to Goshen! We arrived at the fairgrounds and got set up in our temporary sites. On Friday we should move over to our full hook-up sites, but for now we only have water/electric! It works pretty well and I don't mind because we at least have electric! Spent a little time sitting outside before we headed to Ponderosa for their buffet! If it has buffet in the name, we're sure to get Don to agree to go! We all ate too much, although Joanne seems to pace hersalf a lot better than the rest of us! Now we're stuffed and settled in for the night! Tomorrow we are going to the Shipshewana flea market which is supposed to be one of the biggest in the mid-west! Today was their first one for the season! Until the rally starts we'll basically be doing the tourist-y thing along with relaxing and socializing!

Del Rio, TX

Made it to Del Rio and found the RV park with no problems. It was fun to drive through the little towns instead of on the interstate for a change! We didn't have any other option anyhow, to get to our destination! :-)

Once we got there...and barely set up, I called Stacy to let her know that we had made it! She picked up Justisse from pre-school and brought her to the motorhome. She still had about another hour to work, so we got to play with Justisse while she worked! :-) Justisse had no problem staying with us even though we hadn't seen her in over two years! Of course, it didn't hurt that Grandma had stocked up on some toys and an outfit or two for her! :-) Justisse has always been a great talker and filled the motorhome with lots of chatter!

After work, Stacy drove by and we followed her to their house, which is just down the street from the RV park! The RV park is brand new and very convenient! Justisse gave me the consolidated tour of their new house and then it was back outside where Grandma and Justisse played My Little Pony! See, Justisse wanted a horse/pony for Christmas and got My Little Ponys instead! :-) With the acreage that Korey and Stacy now have...a pony may have to be in her future - some day! :-)

After dinner we enjoyed some time in the hot tub where Justisse ended up falling asleep as I held her! It was too funny, but she was so relaxed and so tired! It was an enjoyable evening and pretty late by the time we made it back to the motorhome!

Saturday morning we got up and around and later in the afternoon we all piled into our Avalanche and headed to the border to head into Mexico. The kids had heard about a Mexican steakhouse that was supposed to be pretty good so that's where we were going. It happened to be some kind of fiesta or something so there was a lot of traffic and people, but we really didn't have any problems. We walked down a few streets, checked out some of the shops and bought Justisse a few trinkets! Our late lunch/early dinner did turn out to be very good, but Don about had heart failure when the bill arrived and it was over 1,000 - until he realized it was pesos and not dollars! Took some time getting back into the border and we (Don and I) were a little nervous because we didn't have passports with us! We really didn't have any trouble, but it was a long wait to get back across the border! We had some entertainment though when a group of bikers tried to cut into the line. Actually, what happened was one biker cut in and then motioned for all his friends to come up to where he was (there were about 20 of them). They kept revving up thier engines and honking thier horns. Since they go through ONE AT A TIME, they had really slowed down the line. It didn't affect us because we were in another lane. Once we got to the head of the line, the border patrol agent said "Stop, wait right there" and en masse, all the agents in the station lined up and headed out to make the bikers turn around! We didn't even know that there had been so many agents there but they showed their force! One of the bikers (a girl as a matter of fact) ended up getting pushed back and then she ran right through the check point! The rest ended up turning around although they weren't happy about it! I know that the people in line behind them...and even those of us to the sides...were happy to see justice served!

After visiting for awhile, it was time to head back to the motorhome. Justisse decided she wanted to go with us, so we packed up her things and off we went! You would have thought with everything she wanted to bring that she was going to be longer than one night! On the way back she said "I hope I don't miss Mommy too much". I told her I thought she would be alright and she said "it was going to be a long night"! She wanted to take a shower in the motorhome so we did that. Since it was late, Grandma turned on a movie, popped some popcorn and we laid in bed (on the couch) until she ended up going to sleep! Little stinker...watched the whole movie! Next morning, she wanted to take a shower again! It's quite fun to be able to have the shower head at your level and the shower is "just the right size" for kids! :-)

Justisse LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to pick flowers! If there's a flower within her sight, shes going to pick it! I had a nice bouqet before I left. Only problem was she doesn't get too long of a stem! We had a great time with the kids, but it ended way too quickly! On Monday we had to head towards Louisiana and work and pre-school called!

Hoover Dam

After the race was over the Stones and us headed into Las Vegas. The Terras had to head back to So. California. It is so nice to have full hook-ups after almost a week of dry camping! Not having to be sooo frugal with water, lights and everything else is sooo nice! Being able to do laundry and run the vacuum (with two shedding pets) is almost heavenly! We enjoyed ourselves at the buffet that is part of our "reward" for volunteering at the race and one evening Rick & I went downtown to enjoy the lights and action at the older downtown casinos! We didn't "play" too much, but I learned a lot about older Las Vegas from Rick! We drove back to the RVs on the strip and although I've driven down it many times, it is ever changing and ever growing!!

Don and I left Las Vegas a day later than we had planned. Before we left home we had to have our satellite dish shipped to Utah for repair. I had talked to them during our trip west and was told that it would be shipped out in time to meet us when we arrived in Las Vegas. I had the installer all lined up and everything. Only problem was there was no satellite dish to get put back on! Since it weighs quite a bit having it shipped overnight wasn't an option so we decided to take our chances on having it shipped to us normally. The good thing is that Salt Lake City is a straight shot to Las Vegas! Luckily it did make it here although it was very late in the afternoon by the time it was put back on! The next day it was a long travel day to meet up with Jerri and Lloyd Wood in Willcox, AZ! Since we had to stay in Las Vegas the extra day and we had a commitment in Del Rio, TX we had to push on and didn't get a chance to stop in Casa Grande to see our friends Marlene & Bob Rea, there's always next year though!

I have to say that this was truly one of those "oh sh*t" moments when we came around the corner and saw the new bridge that they are working on at Hoover Dam. To see those two ends sticking out there was amazing! I sure wouldn't want to be working on them, that's for darn sure! Traffic wasn't too bad going around the dam and we did have to stop before going over the dam to be inspected. It wasn't bad...just a few minutes, mostly spent talking to the guy and we had to open our bay where the propane tank is! Where security is concerned, I'm not against having to take a few minutes if in the long run it saves my life or someone elses.

We drove like the wind and ended up getting into Willcox later than we normally like to drive. I had dinner cooking in the crock pot as we traveled so it was easy once we got set up and had a chance to visit! We were all heading east with a final destination of Henderson, LA so the next morning we headed out together with Lloyd leading the way! It was another long day of driving but we made it to Van Horn, TX for the night. Jerri fixed dinner for us so that made it a really nice day! :-) We went our separate ways the next morning after only a few miles, but we'll see them again in just a few days when we get to Louisiana! We were heading to Del Rio, TX to see Stacy, Korey and Justisse! We had last seen them in Rapid City, SD so we were anxious to get there!