Review of a Great History Book

I was given a complimentary copy of the book The American Patriot's Almanac by William J Bennett and John T.E. Cribb, by booksneeze.com.  This book is layed out in a fabulous form.  It's chapters go by month and the days in each month.  Each day has a few paragraphs on a certain event in history that happened on that day as well as a few other facts in year order at the bottom.  Also included in the book are the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights, the Gettysburg Address and the Emancipation Proclamation.  It contains facts on all of the states and songs and poems of American Patriotism. 

I was able to learn so many new facts that I never would have unless I read quite a few books.  The way this is written makes it either a great book to read cover to cover or as a book to use as a reference tool at any time.  I can't wait to share all of the facts with my children at different times during the year while we are learning different things about our country.

While I was given this book to review, the opinions expressed here are my own and were not influenced by anyone.

Have Been Thinking........

The last couple of days have had me thinking about how very lucky I am.  I have a very loving, kind family and many friends who care about me (us).  My oldest son is saying that he doesn't really need anything for Christmas and I'm wondering if it's because he's realizing how much things cost and how much he really has already.  He is saving for his own laptop, along with his sister.  They put half of their allowance each week into savings and the other half they keep adding to their stash for their laptop.  What dedication at he ages of 10 and 8!  I wish I had been taught a little more about money when I was younger.  I'm definitely going to be paying attention to my kids cues and teaching them as necessary about money and how important saving and working with what you have is.  Many things that we own can be repurposed for many things or used in place of other things.  In this day and age of being mindful to the environment and our wallets, this is a very good thing to keep in mind. 

During this holiday season, I'm going to try my best to keep it about family and friends and not all of the commercialism.  Yes, I will still decorate my house and go all out, but if some of it doesn't get done because something more important comes up, I'll be okay with it.....................

A Day of Remembrance

Today is a day to remember our veterans and those who are currently serving in our military.  They do so much on a daily basis to keep our country safe and make sure that we can continue living the life we live.  They can be away from their families for months at a time and they never complain.  They see this as a duty of theirs and make so many sacrifices.  Many of us couldn't imagine being away from our families for a day or a week, let alone months or a year. 

I have had family members killed in a war, family members survive a war and many friends serve in the military.  I hear stories of survivors and non survivors on a daily basis and it makes me happy/sad/proud, depending on the circumstance.

We should be remembering these people on a daily basis, instead of just a couple of days a year.  They should be in our hearts and our prayers, right along with everything else we are thinking of, at all times. 

To all of our military members and your families -----  THANK YOU FOR ALL THAT YOU DO!  Your service is appreciated!!

Monday After A Time Change

What a weekend we had!  It was the weekend of the time change and of course, being fall, that meant we were supposed to gain an hour of sleep.  Of course, no one told my kids about this, as they have done what they have since they were little, and got up at the usual time, even though it was an hour earlier!  Hopefully the next couple of weeks will straighten them out.........

I guess I shouldn't complain, because there are so many things that I am thankful for.  My family, friends, my scout troops, the kids at school, who light up whenever I am in the building!  I am even thankful for the person who was at the springs last Friday morning, when I went to fill my water jugs.  She was there with her husband and they were waiting for their BIG jug to fill and she decided since she wasn't doing anything, she would help me carry my jugs to the car.  It was nice to be reminded that there are very nice people out there, who will go out of their way to help other people.  Sometimes people can be so caught up in their everyday lives, that they forget about everything else. 

I know that I want to continue to make a conscious effort to continue to treat people the way that I would like to be treated.  A lot of people are surprised when I see them behind me when I'm leaving a building and I wait at the door after I open it, so I can keep it open for them!  To me, it is just a sense of using your manners and treating people with respect.  It is something that I am hopefully passing along to my kids and hoping that they will learn how to treat people properly.

This is a very busy time of the year and I know that I will be trying to help other people out as much as I can.  I will offer to help out friends with dinner or watching their kids, if they need to go out to do some shopping or just need some "ME" time.  Within the last couple of years, it hasn't seemed to matter to me if everything is perfect for the holidays.  I get what I can done and I just enjoy the time with my family and friends. It seems like the perfect solution to me and I hope that you all will follow along with it. 

I will be trying to pace myself as I make muffins, breads, cookies and other baked goods.  I will also be trying to make some meals ahead and work on some of my foods for the holiday itself.  I will be making lists of what I will be serving on these important days, so I'm not trying to remember at the last minute what I need to do.  I will do my wrapping of gifts in a semi-orderly fashion and get them stacked in piles, so I know which pile I need to grab as we're running out the door to someone's house.  I will work on the decorating slowly and get everything up when I can.  That can be a feat in itself, because I decorate quite a bit for Christmas.  I will have to try to get pictures up for you all to see.

Now, I'm off to start on those lists and finish off some Christmas gifts I'm working on.  I have quite a few gifts to make and I'm hoping I'll be organized enough to get it all done.

Back From Las Vegas

I just got back from a fun filled vacation in Las Vegas!  I didn't have a lot of internet access out there, so I was unable to update the blog.  I can't wait to write about all of the things that I did while I was there.

Kyle was in training for 4 of the days, so I had them all to myself and either walked around sightseeing or sat by the pool reading.  The weather wasn't that great for the most part, so a lot of the time I was in jeans and the one sweatshirt I had taken with me.  I think I went in to almost all of the casinos on the strip and I can tell you that my favorites didn't change from the last time I was there.  My list of the top casinos are Bellagio, Mandalay Bay, Palazzo and the Venetian.  Sahara is also another favorite of mine, but for different reasons. 

At the Bellagio, they have the fountains up front and they have a beautiful garden on the inside that they change with the seasons.  This time they had a covered bridge, orchid house and a huge scarecrow.  The fountains outside go every half hour during the day and every 15 minutes at night.  What a sight they are to see when you're at the top of the Eiffel Tower!

Mandalay Bay has wonderful shops, a wonderful place that makes crepes and a beautiful pool.  Their spa is also wonderful!  I had a 50 minute facial and a 50 minute massage.  Pure heaven!  Talk about relaxation........................

The Venetian and the Palazzo are just beautiful to be in and walk around.  You feel like you're in Italy and yes, you're supposed to be walking on the wrong side of the hallways, because that's how they do it over there.  It's just a very relaxing place to be.

I love the Sahara mainly because of the Nascar Cafe inside.  I love the atmosphere of the cafe and the whole sports feel.

I loved a lot of the food we ate while we were there and I liked the fact that Kyle and I could get something different, especially since I am a little bit more adventurous than he is.  He still says that Emeril's Stadium has the best burger he has ever eaten! 

We went to Hash House A Go Go for breakfast twice while we were there this time and they have the best orange juice.  It is fresh squeezed and I am thinking that I'm going to have to start doing that at home.  We went to La Salsa Cantina another day for breakfast and that was really good as well.

One of the lunches we had was at KGB (Kerry's Gourmet Burgers) and I don't recommend it.  I wasn't too impressed with the food at all.

Margaritaville was awesome (of course) but very loud inside.  The food was delicious though.

We did three buffets.  The one at Harrah's was the best in my opinion.  The one at Imperial Palace came in second and the one at Flamingo Bay I would never go back to. 

We went to Coyote Ugly one night and I definitely recommend that everyone go there!  I had the best time!!  The girls there make everyone feel great and welcome and they genuinely want you to have fun.  It was definintely an experience I would love to repeat in the future................

We saw two shows while we were there.  The first was Cirque du Soleil's Mystere and it was fabulous!  Definitely worth the money we spent on the tickets. 

The other show we saw was Nathan Burton's comedy magic show.  It was a free show for us, so I wasn't sure what to expect, but boy did he deliver!  He was so funny and the magic that he did was great.  He told us things about when he was younger and when he started to do magic.  After the show, he took time out to meet everyone and talk to all of us.  He didn't seem rushed about it either.  It was so nice to have someone who is in show business actually care about the people who come to see him.  It is definitely a go to show that should be on everyones list.

As I remember more of what I did and saw in Vegas, I'll update you all.  If you have any comments you would like to add, please feel free to do so.  I would love to be able to get into discussions with all of you about travel and other things.......................

I hope you all have a great day!

Rough Week

It's been a rough week around here. I had a bad cold, a headache and did a lot of sleeping. While I was sleeping one day, my husband finished up with painting the kitchen. He sure knew I wasn't feeling well, because I slept through all of the banging and vacuuming, etc....

We had a great weekend last week!  We went to Liberty Ridge Farms for the all scouts weekend and the kids had a blast!  :)  Bonus for mom and dad.......  They went through the huge corn maze, saw pigs race, sat in a hen house filled with corn,walked in giant gerbil wheels, drove pumpkin vine 500 cars and had their faces painted.  There was a lot more there, but that's all that time would allow.  This weekend, my youngest has his "homecoming" football game and then we're thinking of heading up to Great Escape for their frightfest. Also, I see some apple picking in our future. Kyle is taking Jared to the super dirt races on Sunday in Syracuse and he is taking both boys hiking with the cubscouts on Monday. Prospect Mountain get ready, 'cuz some cubs are coming to climb!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I accomplished a lot this week, despite everything. I went through all of the gifts I ordered and put them on my Christmas list and put them in bins. I organized the office a little and cleaned out some things. Today I went to the springs to get water, went to Price Chopper for the deals and went to the library to return some books and get one they were holding for me. I've also done laundry, dishes and cleaned out my daughter's closet (not pretty!).  Now I've been relaxing and catching up on some computer stuff, before I go swap out laundry and I'm thinking about making FishMama's Apple Slab Pie.  You can find the recipe on her website at http://www.lifeasmom.com/.  She's got a lot of make ahead freezer recipes and I can't wait to try this one.  It is definitely the day for it. 

Then my evening will start as will the rest of my countdown to my vacation without children next weekend.  I'll spend a wonderful week in Las Vegas with my husband and no children.  I see many hours relaxing by the pool and seeing the sights and hopefully reading lots of books.  Also, I am hoping that my foot will hurry up and continue with the recovery process.  Still hanging in there with it, but boy is it getting tough!  (as you could probably tell, since you all know I can't go into stores myself without my crutches. So you all know I was cheating when I was shopping earlier today)  I can't wait until I can walk again without the crutches and without the cast.

I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend with your families and I know some of you will have a longer weekend because of Columbus Day.  Let me know if you find any great deals out there this holiday weekend!

By the way, Old Navy has coats on sale for the whole family tomorrow. $16 each with a limit of 5 per customer. Get there early for the best selection!

Finally Friday!!

It's finally Friday and I'm sitting here relaxing with not much planned for the evening! What a rare event......and with all of the rain we have had the last 2 days, there will not be a soccer game tomorrow. That means that tomorrow afternoon will be free as well. Wonder what I should do with all of my time? Don't worry, I have a list.

I have to go through all of the gifts I have purchased for the holidays the past few weeks. Then I have to make sure that I have them all written down and know who they are going to. Then I have to put them away. I have to figure out who I still have to shop for and get the whole amount of money for each person figured out. Then I hope that I can find things on super deals to save even more money.

I have to also clean up the house and reorganize the office/craft area. I have really been putting this one off, since I broke my foot, because I don't think it is going to be an easy job. I also have all of the usual cleaning that needs to be done every week. I try to split it up so that I'm doing the same jobs on the same days each week, but guess what? Life happens and the best plans always get messed up! I am getting better at being okay with this. I have found that it doesn't go anywhere if you don't get to it right away.

I would also love to have some extra quality time with my kids and with my husband. That is always the best part of my weeks! Nothing could ever be better than that. Not a million dollars or all of the possessions in the world.

Speaking of family, I think I'll go and see what they are all up to. I love updating the blog, but sometimes there are better things in life to do!