<slaps her forehead with her hand> Why didn't I think of this???

peace....

So I have been fighting a cold and a crazy schedule....  only X number of shopping days, last day to send packages to Guam, last day to send packages here, there, everywhere, last day to order from this site, last day to order from that site--get up and sing, watch this, watch that, have dinner with me, read this, do that, please help with this, the starving kids need that, don't forget to tip your mailman, did you remember your lawn guy?  The zoo animals in Zimbabwe, please remember them, this Christmas....  If you don't come and support our ministry, it will die, please deliver this to me between 1 and 1:05 on December 21st but only if it is not raining or snowing, if it is precipitating, then it needs to be at 1:07.....oh, did you remember about so and so's birthday?  Please don't forget the orphan cougars in Bahrain, and there are some newly homeless people in DC who need some orange juice and you are the only people who can provide it, and also the church needs a new lightbulb in the third chandelier on the right hand side, and the music needs to be re-recorded, because the tape was lost, and the services need to be converted to the new software and also the sound is causing some problems....  In the meantime, our house is a mess and our christmas tree is only partially lit...     (See--no top on the tree)  And we usually have a real tree too...  and we don't have the garland on the stairs....  Sigh.  I need the spirit of Christmas and the real meaning of Christmas to rain down on me

Alright, enough of the whining, here are some pics of some fun we did have....  we went to Old Town Annapolis for lunch a week or so ago and I took some pics of the charming shops that I thought you might enjoy just to give you the flavor of the town....

Now I think that I mentioned that we were invited to a 6 year old's birthday Party.  We actually had a blast.  The kids were all from her school which is a french immersion school, so the children were all very intelligent.   They all speak french and english, but their classes are conducted mostly in french, although most of the kids in her class are still learning their french, Yonna (her name) comes from a family that is already bilingual, so she is ahead of the game.  Here are some of the pics from the party.....

<===The birthday girl who has adopted us as her second parents (because we look so much alike, she says!)..... 

Yonna's beautiful Sister, Elizabeth (on the right) and her friend Erica, who is half Norwegian, and half African on the left.  Both, so articulate, and so intelligent and funny.  They are in the sixth grade, and were in charge of this party (poor girls!)  ===>

<=== Don't let the princess crown fool you, this was the only boy at the party, and he proved that he was all boy many times.  His name was Alex, and he asked if I wanted to hear how loud he could scream, and before I could say "Maybe another time", he proved that he was quite capable of breaking the sound barrier.  I found him to be as engaging and charming as his smile is adorable.

=================================================>>>>  Just a group shot

At some point during the evening, I heard a crash from the other room, and grabbed my camera, and the worst had happened....they had gotten him!  Ron had been tackled!  At one point I counted 15 of them on top of him!  It was great!  Someone asked if I was going to help him....  Nope.....  He was having way too much fun!  I am thinking of renting him out for parties! 

We really did have fun, although we were a bit embarrassed when we were the only ones who couldnt sing Happy Birthday in French!  We will work on that for next year!    Oh...I forgot a pic....I will leave you with this one...LOVE these faces!

peace......

Yup, they made me laugh...but it IS good to have a hobby.

peace....

I think that every single person that I encountered yesterday was sniffing and sneezing and barely able to talk.  I was feeling fine until...

dum dum dum

I woke up today.

Now my throat is scratchy and my body is starting to ache.

grrrrr

and I am cranky.....

in other news....

Ron and I were invited to a birthday party on Saturday....by a soon-to-be 6 year old.  My understanding is that it is going to be us and 22 5 and 6 year old girls.  She is the Ambassador's daughter.  She selected her friends that she wanted to invite, and insisted that Ron and I be invited because we were here friends.  I guess we should feel honored....  The invitation featured Sponge Bob.

22 kids..... 

I feel a headache coming on....

peace....

Oh, I keep forgetting, if you are looking for a cool toy, we just got one of these:  Flip Video Cameras.  I plan to be putting up some fun videos soon.  I just have to take the time to learn it!

My Redskins won last night (oh, but my quarterback got hurt, that is bad), and my hubby and I took the day off and spent it shopping and putzing in Annapolis, and even though it was cold with snow on the ground and spritzing rain, we had a great day.....

I love my Redskins and I love my Ronnie and I love my crabcake sandwich and my Starbucks latte and my Annapolis....

yes indeed....a great day.....

peace...

I have been trying all day to think of something clever to write.  I have started things and erased them.....  All I can come up with is this....

There are 16 Starbucks within a 5 mile radius of my house.  That's crazy.

Isn't that deep?  oh....and this....

peace.....

So yesterday was the first game without Sean Taylor.....at least being...somewhere.  during the first defensive play of the game they played with his position empty.  That was a poignant moment.  The missing man formation.  Only 10 men on the field.  And the whole game was played with a mixture of passion and crazy distraction.  We ended up losing in a  heartbreaker as a result of those distractions.  It was a tough loss because I think everyone wanted it especially this week.  The people in the stands were emotional, the players on the field were emotional, and the people watching...well...we were emotional too.  It is weird.

And today was the funeral.  I was just scanning through some of the pictures and was struck by another fact.  All of this time I had been thinking about the waste of the talent, and so much of his life gone, and the fact that he had been turning his life around and it was snuffed out when he was just getting on the straight and narrow after being on a rough road for a while, and in looking at the pictures I was struck....I saw a picture of him holding his beautiful daughter.....and I saw the adoration in his eyes.....and I realized that that little girl will not know the man who adored her....and therein lies the really sad part of this whole saga....That little girl had a Dad who adored her....and she will never really remember him.  It hurts my heart.  My Dad is still alive, but chose to leave us when we were young so it hurts my heart when a child who's Dad so obviously adores her has to lose him....nobody deserves that....  I know that God has a plan....sometimes it just doesnt make a lot of sense....

So now we have 4 boys in custody and a 5th that they are looking for.  They are being charged with burglary and "unpremeditated" murder.  They said they did not know that anyone would be home.  But my question is:  Why take a gun to a burglary unless there is some plan to use it?  Doesn't the mere act of taking a gun to the house make it premeditated?  That would be my vote.  Their lawyer says that they are scared....  I guess that is supposed to make us feel sorry for them.  They should be going to school and getting an education so that they could earn the money to buy the things that they need/want instead of stealing them....  That's what Sean did.  Earn it.  Don't steal it.

Anyway....  That is my rant for the day....Sorry, I promise will get off of this topic soon....

peace....

<edit> I watched the news coverage of the funeral service last night, and time and time again, people attested to their knowledge and assurance that Sean was a child of God - that he had accepted Christ as his personal Savior.  Hopefully that service and his testimony will make an impact on is teammates, friends and family....and maybe even the kids who took his life....

peace again.....

So I was standing there wondering why the frisbee kept getting bigger and bigger, and then suddenly.... it hit me!

peace....

So last night I went to get my hair done, and my hair guy bought me Starbucks coffee!  That is my dream!  Hair pampering and a delicious latte!  Then I got home, and my sweet Barney jumped up in my lap and sniffed my hair-he figured out that it was different-and licked my face in approval, and fell asleep in my arms.  A wonderful evening.....  Oh yeah, and Ron liked it too.....

This weekend my Redskins are playing in memory of Sean Taylor....I hope we crush the other team.  No offense...errr...lots of offense...and defense too! 

peace....

Useful Military Warnings

"Aim towards the Enemy."
- Instruction printed on US Rocket Launcher

"When the pin is pulled, Mr. Grenade is not our friend."
- U.S. Army

"Cluster bombing from B-52s is very, very accurate. The bombs are guaranteed to always hit the ground."
- U.S.A.F. Ammo Troop

"If the enemy is in range, so are you."
- Infantry Journal

"A slipping gear could let your M203 grenade launcher fire when you least expect it. That would make you quite unpopular in what's left of your unit."
- Army's magazine of preventive maintenance.

"It is generally inadvisable to eject directly over the area you just bombed."
- U.S. Air Force Manual

"Try to look unimportant; they may be low on ammo."
- Infantry Journal

"Tracers work both ways."
- U.S. Army Ordnance

"Five-second fuses only last three seconds."
- Infantry Journal

"Bravery is being the only one who knows you're afraid."
- Col. David Hackworth

"If your attack is going too well, you're probably walking into an ambush."
- Infantry Journal

"No combat-ready unit has ever passed inspection."
- Joe Gay

peace...