Walt Disney World - Here We Come!

I am so pumped (and not just because I'm eating a caramel Drumstick)! We are planning our first vacation for when Stonewall gets home. The conversation pretty much when like this:

"Stonewall, you are going to be just getting home from Iraq. What do you want to do next?"

"I want to go to Disney World." (corny celebration music and clapping in the background.)

No, I'm serious. That's pretty much how it happened.

So we're going to Disney World around the end of October! I am psyched!

Stonewall and I are going to be spending a week in Sarasota before we head down to WDW where we'll be meeting up with Danielle and Erick (SIL & BIL). We've decided to stay at Port Orleans - French Quarter.

Have I mentioned how completely stoked I am about this trip?!

Here are some photos from Spring Break 2004 when Carsley and I went to WDW:

What's with those glasses?

And here are some photos when I went to WDW with the fam in 2005:

Arrrgh! Lanky Nibs Hampton and Scurvy Legs McGee!

This is one of my favorite pics...EVER! One of us would lay on the ground while the other three posed above the cameraman, so we could get the Epcot sign. With it being night and not having a good camera (or photography skills, for that matter) we couldn't get a good shot of the sign from far away. By the time we were finished there were about a dozen other families sprawled out on the ground. Classic!

The Weekend!

It's finally the weekend! I hope everyone has a good one. See you on Monday.

Things That Make You Go Hmmm...What Can A Nickel Do?

I received a mailer from the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I love getting charity mailers in the mail. Especially when they contain return address labels. If you want me to donate to your non-profit organization send me some return address labels and you will receive my check in the mail within a week.

Anyway...I did get return address labels from the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. I also got a nickel. They mailed me a nickel. And the envelope and enclosed letter reads, "How can 5 cents save a child's life?"

First, thanks for the return address labels. But second, if a nickel can save a child's life, why didn't you just keep the nickel?

I mean, you need a ploy, hence the return address labels. I get that. But why send me money to entice me to send you money?

So...just be on the look-out for my donation. It'll be the envelope containing a check and a nickel.

Doing My Happy Dance...

...because of my three most recent and totally awesome purchases!

First, is my new camera. I've been wanting a new camera for at least a year now. Well, after much research and hemming and hawing, I finally got one! I played with 5 different cameras in the store before finally settling on the Canon PowerShot SD960 IS. Isn't she purr-ty?





They offer the camera in pink and so when I finally made my choice I was like, "I'll take it in pink." To which the saleman replied, "We don't have it in pink." I was like, "Dude! You don't show the chick dressed in all pink and heels a pink camera and then tell her you don't sell it in pink!" Alas, I had to settle for silver, but she's so sleek and shiny that it more than makes up for the fact that she isn't pink.

Plus, she takes awesome photos, so I don't have to. There are also so many different features that two weeks later I'm still trying to figure out how they all work.

The first photo taken with my new camera!

Our house looking all springy and colorful.

One of the cool features. The entire photo will be black and white except for any shades of the color I choose.

My second awesome purchase - if you could see me now you would notice that I am not breaking a sweat as I do my happy dance and that is because we got central air! Our little ol' 1926 house has finally joined the 21st century with central air. Buh-bye window units. Our entire house is now a constant cool 72 degrees. No more sweating my make-up off as I'm trying to put it on or sweating through our sheets at night. We got it just in time too because this past weekend saw temps in the 90s...but it didn't bother us any :)

And finally, I splurged and bought a custom layout for my little bloggy. I'm always on the look-out trying to find a freebie blog design site that only a handful of people have discovered, so the chances of my ever seeing another blog that looks like mine is pretty slim. I've also looked into custom designs in the past, but I've never come across a designer that wows me, so I didn't want to spend the money. Well, I happened to wander over to April Showers Blog Design the other week and fell in love with her designs. I decided having a custom design from April was well worth the cost and come the end of July my blog is getting a total makeover. I'm so excited!

April also has some freebies on her site, such as buttons and blinkies. Pre-made layouts are coming in June. And if you want a few tips on how to jazz up your own blog she has a tutorial section.

Memorial Day: Honoring The Sacrifices

There's something that's been bothering me for a little while now and I thought it would be appropriate to address it on Memorial Day.

Another Army Wife made the following comment some time ago on her blog, "The sacrifices made by a full-time employee and a part-time employee are just different by nature; they give less of their time and lead a separate life... honestly a better life." With regard to the same topic she also wrote, "But, I cannot concede that those who are not activated and do their two weeks a year (and a weekend a month) are not entitled to the same title..."

She had been talking about National Guard v. Active-Duty and who can and can not be called a Soldier. I'm not going to argue whether or not a Guardsmen is also a Soldier. That's not what's bothering me. What is bothering me is her insinuation that Soldiers of the National Guard sacrifice less and therefore, are less deserving. (In her case, she believes they are less deserving of the title "Soldier." However, I know that others feel National Guardsmen are less deserving of the same respect that is given to Active-Duty Soldiers. Some of these people have posted as much in comments on my blog.)

I could give a bit of a history lesson here about what exactly the National Guard does, how they are utilized, the amount of time they train, how often they are used overseas etc, etc. I'm not going to though because what I really want to talk about are the sacrifices National Guardsmen and their families make and the respect they deserve because of their sacrifices.

Apparently, according to this Army wife, National Guardsmen only sacrifice part-time and are, therefore, able to lead separate and better lives completely removed from the military. Well, I beg to differ. Tremendously.

While serving in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, 572 men and women of the National Guard have given the ultimate sacrifice for our great country.

These 572 men and women, who only sacrifice "part-time", will never again walk through their front doors. Their "part-time" sacrifices mean their loved ones will never again hear their voices. Their children will never again hug Mommy or Daddy because of the "part-time" sacrifices these Soldiers have made. And their wives and husbands, who know all to well about these "part-time" sacrifices, will never again fall asleep in their arms.

The "part-time" sacrifices made by the 572 men and women of the National Guard earned them a flag-draped casket and it SHOULD earn your respect. Their "part-time" sacrifices entitled them to an American flag on their right shoulders and the words "US Army" over their hearts and it most definitely entitles them to be counted as and among the world's greatest Soldiers that serve in our Army.

The 572 men and women of the National Guard who have died while serving our country did not sacrifice part-time. They sacrificed a lifetime. And every single man and woman who is serving in our National Guard today is willing to do the same.

It is not my place to judge or claim that some servicemembers sacrifice less or more because every day (no matter if they are working on base, making up for lost time at a civilian job because of AT, or serving overseas) they all sacrifice in ways I could never imagine. Merely by serving they have all earned my respect and gratitude.

On this Memorial Day, I want thank and honor ALL military servicemembers who have died while serving our country. Whether they are active-duty, Reserve, or National Guard, Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, or Coast Guard, all of them have sacrificed. All of them gave the American citizens the most important part of themselves: their lives.

Chili Cook-Off Grand Champions

We had an awesome day at the chili cook-off! Here are some pics of our day.

Our movie theatre snack bar was covered in quotes like:

"Are you crying? There's not crying in a chili cook-off?" ~A League of Their Own
"A spoonful of chili helps the medicine go down." ~ Mary Poppins
"Nobody puts Meg's chili in a corner." ~Dirty Dancing
"A censor taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with Meg's chili and a nice chianti." ~Silence of the Lambs
"May the salsa be with you." ~Star Wars





















Throughout the day we got many many many compliments on our chili, salsa, and stand. And all our hardwork payed off during award time. Meg's chili won 3rd place in the individual category (you could enter as an individual or as a restaurant/business). Meg's Chili and Sammy's Salsa won 1st place for Individual Stand/Showmanship. And for the big finale, Meg's Chili and Sammy's Salsa was the Grand Champion of the entire cook-off!! We were the highest scoring team (chili, stand, showmanship, and salsa combined) of ALL the competitors.



We also earned over $1200 to donate to a charity of our choice, the SPCA.

Chili Cookoff!!

My sister is entering a Chili Cook-off on Saturday and Lil' Mootz and I are heading over to help her out! Lil' Mootz and I are entering our salsa into the competition as well.



It's going to be at the Sovereign Bank Stadium in York, PA from 12-5. If you're going to be in that area or you someone who is, stop on by and vote for "Meg's Chili...Goes To The Movies with a Special Preview of Sammy's Salsa!"

Strawberries and Wedding Rings

Pippy, my Pomeranian, has an abscessed anal gland. (Based on the title of this post, I bet you weren't expecting to read that.) Yeah, it's pretty nasty. Wiping down my pup's tookus twice a day isn't my idea of a good time, but it's better than what it was because over the weekend it was oozy and bloody and she had to wear a diaper. She's on meds now, so she doesn't have to wear a diaper anymore, but it still doesn't look pretty.

If you have a dog you know how difficult (which is quite an understatement) it can be to get a dog to swallow little pills. At first, I was using yogurt and that worked the first day. Then Pippy caught on that she was also eating pills and would lick around the pills, so I had to resort to shoving them down her throat which I HATE doing.

So last night I had this brilliant idea of stuffing the pills into a strawberry. I figured she would just gulp everything down whole like she does every other treat I give her. Little did I know I was dealing with the Stephen Hawking of dogs. That little brat takes the strawberry, trots into the living room and lays the strawberry down on my new rug. She then precedes to eat the strawberry, but she tears off little pieces and eats AROUND the pills!

I finally got her this morning though when I wrapped bread around the pills. Just like her Momma, she inhales her carbs.

*******

I'm going later this morning to get my engagement and wedding rings cut off my finger. I am so not happy about this, but it has become medically necessary.

I wore my wedding ring all through my pregnancy and I could get it on and off. My engagement ring was a bit snugger, so I only wore it on special occasions. I'm pretty sure that while I was pregnant, the last time I wore my engagement ring was the beginning of December and I was able to get it off with some cold water and lotion.

In January, I put my engagement on for Lil' Mootz's newborn photos, but then I couldn't get it off. It has been on my finger every since. I don't understand because I have lost over 40 pounds since I was pregnant, so I don't know why I could get it off when I was at least 40 pounds heavier, but now it's stuck.

Regardless, I am allergic to my rings. I always have been, but as long as I took both of them off at the end of the day, it didn't really bother me. However, with four months of continuous wear my finger is extremely dry and itchy and under my rings it looks like I have a severe burn and it HURTS!

I have been putting off having my rings cut off because, quite simply, I don't want to cut my rings. However, I realized it was time to bite the bullet when last night I was smearing Boudreaux's Butt Paste on my ring finger to try and easy some of the pain and itchiness. I called the jeweler and she said she can cut them off and then repair them, so they won't be ruined.

Has anyone else ever had to have their rings cut off? Were they fixable? I'm so nervous about this.