18 posts tagged “holidays”

Busch Gardens - pounced!

We went to Busch Gardens for the morning and left around 2pm. We came all the way back towards home to have lunch/dinner at Golden Corral in Punta Gorda, then spent some time at Garden of the Five Senses in North Port. After that we came on home to rest up for fireworks since Tom required his nap and my shoes had killed my feet.

We made it just in time for fireworks at Laishley Park but it was slim pickings on free spots to sit. We ended up behind a line of palm trees that blocked the center view. I have palm trees or the bald head of the guy sitting in front of us in every shot. After a while, I gave up and just started playing with my camera and the light to see what I could create. With the rotten view combined with the non-stop chatterboxes behind us, I think it might be worth paying the admission fee next year to get further down towards the shoreline. The important thing was Tommy's experience, not my photography, so I don't mind a bunch of crappy photos as long as he had a good time.

Independence Day 2008 - Fireworks

Tomorrow is planned, but since it involves my in-laws, we'll see how it goes.

Hope y'all had a happy fourth of July and hope your holiday weekend continues to be just as fun!

Bailey on the couch

Bailey's father picked her up several hours later than what he had told her, but I'm not complaining. When she went, Tommy decided to take out his anger about the situation on me. The poor thing is out of siblings for two weeks until Bailey returns and then August when his big brothers come home.

Being down to one kid is a very odd feeling. It will make going places easier, for the most part, but with the weather rolling in predictably when Tom is finished with his workday - which is earlier than the standard workday so with cooperative weather I'd have good light and dramatic shadows to play with - there's still not a whole lot I can do... unless I muster up the courage to start photographing lightning. I've come to view Florida lightning as especially dangerous and unpredictable, but I also have to photograph lightning to bring all these ideas in my head into reality. This one-child timeframe is complicated further with Tom going to Jacksonville from the 7th to the 10th. But it's only three days plus some travel. He'll work with me, I'm sure. He has been so far. It's a real downer that he'll be out of town on his birthday.

I haven't concreted any plans for the fourth. Tom keeps asking me what we're going to do. I don't even know what we'll do just the three of us. With the way Indy hates thunderstorms, I think the fireworks in the neighbourhood are going to freak him out. Wherever we go, maybe we should bring him with us.

We had hotdogs for lunch but are still planning to have bratwurst for dinner. We need to do some shopping first, for propane and also for milk. Tommy was very creative in arranging his lunch, using one of Bailey's paint palettes. Thank goodness it was thoroughly cleaned out and disinfected!

Tommy's creative lunch display

Mother's Day 2008 - bouquet

This was a very wonderful Mother's Day! I was served breakfast in bed, complete with bloody mary, and then presented with presents! My favourite perfume, a dozen roses, a camera bag (it got returned but it was still wonderful that they thought of that), plus homemade presents from Bailey and Eddie. All the children signed their own names on the card.

Bailey had the idea of baking me a cake so Tom had to purchase all the necessary items and then help her make a chocolate cake and decorate it for me. She really got into giving me a wonderful day (breakfast in bed was her idea) and I owe a lot to both Tom and Bailey.

Mother's Day 2008 - Chocolate cake with roses

Eddie taking a picture

We coloured eggs tonight, and then took pictures of them. Tommy even got into the fun, turning all his eggs blue.

On Wednesday while Bailey was in CCD, I waymarked the North Port Library and took some pictures of the Most Holy Mother of God Ukrainian Catholic Church off of Price and Biscayne that I've been eyeing for the better part of four years. It's an elaborate structure and incredibly stunning. Waiting out the final moments of Bailey's class, I took even more photos of San Pedro Catholic Church. I just can't help myself.

Earlier today I took a few shots of Ollies Pond Park in Port Charlotte. I was actually investigating the claim on the County website that Ollies Pond Park had a fitness trail. I never remembered such a thing in this small park that only had a single path that circled the center pond. My memory was right and there is no actual fitness trail. One would get fit walking the trail, mind you, but an actual fitness trail is something a bit more than that.

I adopted Myakkahatchee Cache (GCGYJF) and I'm very happy about that. I couldn't allow it to be archived when so many new caches have filled that park. It was an active and solid cache to start with, even in the park all by its lonesome. Once our pending waymarks are approved, we'll be one or two shy of 100 waymarks. I've done about 75 waymarks in one week. Not too shabby.

I've been trying to prepare for this Spring Vacation trip I have to take for Michael's and Eddie's visitation in the midwest. It's bothersome but it has to get done. Can you believe tomorrow is Good Friday already?! I'm ready for a nice, long sleep tonight.

Here's a few more shots from yesterday and today:

Courtyard fountain

Tom's had some kind of food poisoning over the past couple days so I haven't been out much. Today after school, Bailey and I went out waymarking in Punta Gorda. Here are some pictures from that:

But I have two particular places that I'm not quite sure what to do with. Actually, it's three, but the third can fit into an existing Waymarking category. It just cannot stand as a Historical Artifact, which is bothersome. The original jail is at History Park. It's nothing more than a metal cage. Now, if it was a replica of the original, it would have a category. Unfortunately, there is no existing category that I can find to place this location. That's a shame because it's killer. The other is the original paver bricks from the streets of downtown Punta Gorda that have a home in front of the Bank of America building.

St. Patrick's Day was a meal of corned beef, mashed potatoes, and asparagus. I forgot the cabbage! Eddie and Bailey did great peeling the potatoes:

Bailey and Eddie peeling potatoes

St. Maximilian Kolbe Catholic Church - Memorial Garden angel statue

The baby and I stopped by St. Maxmilian Kolbe Catholic Church off Spears St. in Port Charlotte to take a few pictures this morning. Here's a few more pictures:

The children having cameras is one of the best things to have happened to this family. They love to capture and be creative, and they have something tangible for their efforts. There are times when Michael and I can just walk around the neighbourhood and shoot whatever we see.

In personal news, I've spoken with my attorney today and feel more comfortable. Wednesday should go as planned, although I'm still not entirely clear on the details but I'll work with it all when I get there. St. Valentine's Day is Thursday and planning for Eddie's birthday party next Saturday begins tomorrow. He's given a final answer on a theme, Transformers, so I start shopping and making commitments. I snagged a wide-angle lens and a telephoto lens for my camera off eBay and am looking forward to their arrival.

Blini

• 1 pkg yeast
• 2 c lukewarm milk
• 3 c flour, divided into halves
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 3 egg yolks
• 6 tbsp soft butter
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 3 egg whites

Dissolve the yeast in milk. Stir 1-1/2 cups of flour and the sugar into the yeast mix. Cover and let rise in awarm place for an hour. Beat three egg yolks with the soft butter and add the rest of the flour and the salt. Beat this mix into the yeast mis. Cover and let rise again for another our. Whip three egg whites until stiff and fold them into the bater. Let the batter rest for fifteen minutes. Lightly oil a small skillet and bake small pancakes. The blini should be thin. Serve with caviar or a fruit topping.

Cascarones

• 1 small box cellulose wallpaper paste
• confetti
• clean, blown eggshells
• colour tissue paper
• egg dye or food colours (optional)
• glitter (optional)
• storage container for eggs to perch while drying

Using a large darning needle or an ice pick, make a small hole in one end of each eg and a larger hole at the other end. Blow the contents of the egg into a clean bowl. The eggs can be scrambled or used for baking. Rinse the shells carefully and allow to dry. If you like, colour the eggs with egg dye or food colours and again allow them to dry.

Cover your work surface with waxed paper to protect your table or counter and prevent eggs from sticking. Tear colour tissue into small pieces. Mix up a small bowl of the wallpaper paste according to package directions. Spoon confetti into the shells until they are about 1/3 to 1/2 full. Dip a piece of the tissue into the paste and carefully cover the hole to prevent the confetti from spilling out. Add several more pieces of color tissue to add colour to the cascarone. Springle on a little glitter or confetti to make them more festive. Perch the completed egg on a proper place until completely dry, then pack in egg cartons until time for use.

Catholic Traditions In The Home And Classrooms: 365 Days To Celebrate A Catholic Year

Ann Ball

Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, Wednesday, February 6, 2008. The Lenten season will last until Easter Sunday, Sunday, March 23, 2008, which is the greatest feast day of all the Christian-Catholic calendar.

Lent is a season of fasting and abstaining. Fast days are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, where rules have become very lax and Catholics are expected to meet at least the bare minimum of limiting themselves to only one meal (or two smaller ones). Every Friday, we are to abstain from eating meat in a way that doesn't indulge in classism. For example, abstaining from meat is pointless if you eat expensive lobster or sushi as the fish requirement. It's a time to be humble. To this end, Catholics are also instructed to pick something to sacrifice during Lent. Many Catholics choose sweets, chocolate, smoking, livejournal, alcohol or other behaviors they consider non-essential indulges. Unfortunately, sometimes these commitments last about as long as New Years Resolutions about the same items.

We abstain from things that we will notice when they are gone.

Next Wednesday, I will begin the lenten season with my commitment to abstain from fast food and all other restaurants. I enjoy cooking but I tend to get busy and too often will rely on a quick pizza order or fried chicken from the grocery store to get us through that meal. For my family, I offer up that laziness to God and dedicate to making sure my family has healthy, homemade meals every evening. No short cuts!

The Ben Stein monologue is going around like madfire. As most readers who aren't blinded by the furious angst of hating the good wish, "Happy Holidays" as if it's an "attack on Christmas", I didn't watch the original CBS program where Stein's words were broadcast but I noticed an abrupt change in writing during this heavily shared monologue.

According to the Confessions for the Holidays page on Snopes.com, Ben Stein's original statements were only a portion of the popular mass-email that's being distributed with his name signed at the very bottom. Someone had attached a large portion of sentiment that was neither written nor approved by Ben Stein.

Here is Ben Stein's original Confessions for the Holidays, as broadcasted on CBS in 2005:

Herewith at this happy time of year, a few confessions from my beating heart:

I have no freaking clue who Nick and Jessica are. I see them on the cover of People and Us constantly when I am buying my dog biscuits and kitty litter. I often ask the checkers at the grocery stores. They never know who Nick and Jessica are either. Who are they? Will it change my life to know who they are and why they have broken up? Why are they so important? I don't know who Lindsey Lohan is, either, and I do not care at all about Tom Cruise's wife.

Am I going to be called before a Senate committee and asked if I am a subversive? Maybe, but I just have no clue who Nick and Jessica are. Is this what it means to no longer [be] young? It's not so bad.

Next confession: I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are: Christmas trees. It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, "Merry Christmas" to me I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu. If people want a crèche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away

I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship Nick and Jessica and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him?

I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where Nick and Jessica came from and where the America we knew went to.

Now, here is the added text that should be deleted from any email forwards that people wish to send on during this season:

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this happen?" (regarding Katrina) Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are,but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?"

In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found recently) complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK.
Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said OK.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says . Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just discard it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in. My Best Regards.
Honestly and respectfully,

Ben Stein

Happy Holidays!

Christmas 2007 - mistletoe

The batteries in my camera are toast so I have very little photos to share of this year's Christmas decorating and the ones that I have taken suck. Better pictures will come soon. The above picture is of the ball of mistletoe that's dangerously suspended from the entry light.

Tomorrow is a busy day with picking my daughter up in south Punta Gorda at 8, then beating traffic back up to North Port for Mass at 9, then baking and wrapping before lunch at 1 (which is back in Punta Gorda), then Stepdaughter2's birthday party afterwards back here in North Port. As far as I'm concerned, we can put the cake in the carrier, pack up the van, put on our swimsuits and head back out to North Jetty Beach for her party.

Nothing says Christmas Season like chilling on the beach.

I've been enjoying Netflix's Watch Instantly feature, which is included in the monthly membership fee. There aren't a lot of selections that appeal to me, but there's enough good stuff. I've finally been able to watch The Comedians of Comedy and a few other shows I've been wanting to see but haven't [since I have no cable].

The children watched Elf this evening. This is our only Christmas movie on DVD, I think. We might have The Santa Clause and A Christmas Story on VHS out in the garage.

Elf (Infinifilm Edition)

EDIT: A few more pictures