I hope you enjoy my blog...please honor copyrights!

I hope you enjoy my blog...please honor copyrights!

Monday, February 28, 2011

SO MUCH HAS HAPPENED...

I AM SO TIRED, SO HAPPY AND SO CONTENT.

THE INTERNET AS A FRIEND OR FOE HAS MY LIFE BEEN FILLED WITH ILL FORTUNE WITH THE EXCEPTION OF ONE THING... MY JOEY IS HOME FROM AFGHANISTAN.

Since I last posted here is my newsflash update...

February 9th my son emailed me  (actually FB chat thank you very much!) that he was on his way from the base of the Himalayas, his stopover from exiting Afghanistan through Akrakistan (SP?)  and would I be able to come to Camp Legune NC for his homecoming. Joey has always called me momma when he was excited, ever so loving or touched with issues he didn't quite know how to handle. Momma term for endearment.
I did what any momma would, I drove through the night to be there, making a 4 hour pit stop to sleep in DC, then on down to Camp Legune, NC. Got to the base about 1PM signed in and spent the day milling about 2 bases, got lost on a tar mac  at the artillery/infantry base and then ended up on a golf course at another.

Finally about 6:30 PM we were allowed inot the receiving gym for the homecoming where F&F gathered, made posters, sang, danced, and shared stories of our sons coming home.  A nice little hot dog indoor BBQ, plenty of snacks and hot cocoa or coffee were there to warm us up (it was 17 degrees without the chill factor and wind). About 7:30 PM it was reported that the first wave of flights had landed and FOX company was in the first wave! Yes! Another 3 hours passed and they cleared weapons checks and marched in. Looking for Joey in a crowd of over 1100 MARINES and with my new friends from Lancaster PA we found our sons, a Corporal and my son a Lance CPL. The next 1 1/2 hours were spent retrieveing their gear, dumped one atop the other all looking exactly the same with no more than the little miners headlight you wear on a band around your head to light the way.

A few beers, hugs and crys later we ended up at his home in Holly Ridge, now 1:30AM we talked a bit and shared memories more hugs and tears. Home safe for the time being with all of March off as leave I hope and pray Joey gets the well deserved R&R he is hoping for...

Back in the car and driving home late Sunday in time for Valentine's dinner with my own sweetheart. Very sweet Valentine's Day for BOB and I.

The next day I twisted my ankle as it just went out from under me and then on Thurssday it did it again, this time landing me in the hospital ER. Crutches and to the orthopedic on President Day Monday. Xrays, crutches, pain killers, and back to get a camo boot that goes up to the knee, removable but very restrictive and heavy! 6-8 weeks of this and I might yet end up in a hard cast to boot!

Finishing up 2 doctoral courses one on Saturday one yesterday, and today brain dead but have 5 more papers to finish by Wednesday and that will complete 2 more courses (the IP's I had from the holiday fiasco...) Earned a 99.55 % in one course, 99.81%, 98.02%, and 93.40%.  Today I gave a staff presentation on CCSS (common core state standards) aligning NYS with the district I am a regular sub in for my doctoral internship. I put in over 120 hours of free labor and wowed them with the Powerpoint and handouts. The principal was deeply appreciative of all the work, thought, and details I put into the handouts. Now they have their work cut out for them.... It is nice to see the governemnt trying to do something poisitive with aligning the standards, now if they would just quit taking the funding away....

So sorry of late that I have been MIA, literally.

Will post pictures soon and more poetry. That is another story too, I cancelled the publishing contract due to their fraudulent tactics, ineptness, and constant insistence of calling me MR. in phone conversations or emails. If they could not proper English and grammar in their emails, get my gender right, and the priiicing correct I was nopt going to endear my life's treasures with them for destruction. Happy to say that after 3 months of arguing and I threatening a major lawsuit, class action one too, I finally received all but a $35 cancellation fee back. You just never know who to trust!

I will be back to  regularly PS posting next week and hope to rejoin my tea society friends soon too.

Love you all!

Valrie

Thought it about time to post a different picture of me old bones! Can't wait to get my hair cut like this again. It grows so fast and short hair is high maintenance but I love it and it's time to cut the locks again!
And since I am wearing HOT PINK... that's one PINK for today!


This is Lilly, my newest great niece! She was born late February to my nephew Ken (Sgt. Army, in Germany) and Ursula (German born) and her big brother Jonathan. She is the perfect picture of pink.

This is the lovely family soon to be coming stateside we hope this summer.


Okay botanists.. is this pink  lotus bud just perfect?


These lovelies are to die for and can be found on Macy's online!

Or how 'bout stepping out in these hotties?!

                                                                   Funky huh?
I have a pale pink oversized ruffle trimmed purse that matches the.Too bad I broke my ankle it will be awhile before wearing these lovelies again.!

Get Pinked!
Pink shoes, pink dress, Pink saturday night...
Pink surrounds me and brings me delight!
Pink in the sky on every new dawn
Glistening pink sunbeams while I simply yawn.
Pink hues of rainbows and prisms of glass
Pink pearls and lace, and pretty pink glass.
Pink in the hair, pink on my toes
Pink in Paris for Pink fashion shows.
Pink in the gardens where pink tulips grow!
Pink fruit on trees waiting to be plucked
Pink on the highways, cars, buses and trucks!
Pink in my jewelry, pink fine dining wine
Pink pearled candles with pink flames that shine.
Pink grapes cling to the vines all around
Pink baubles and beads on artworks are found.
Pink feathered birds flying high in the sky
Pink here, there, PINK PINK PINK oh my!

Poems My Way - Valrie 03/18/2011



Is this just too cute? That's my Joey, a Marine, LC CPL in Afghanistan with a hedgehog he found and made a pet of for a few hours...

He has been just nearly a month now, went on leave March 1st and has to report back April 1st, no joke. He told me it is Hell over there and 24/7 times 7 months they fought to stay alive. His unit is up for the Presidential Medal of Honor...

Well, back in the grind with my research and papers to write. Projects and interviews, doing a case study today on how adults learn. Please answer these questions.???????????????????????????????????????

How do you learn best?
Are you a self-directed learner, informal learner, incidental learner, accidental learner, lifelong learner?
Do you prefer formal instruction, online, or just wingibng it? Do you enjoy group work or prefer to be a loner?
Please leave a comment they brighten up my day!





Got my refill, keyboard at my fingertips stopping by you to read what was on your lips!



Please link up to Bev, our faithful sponsor and see what's enstore for PINK today!

Saturday, February 5, 2011

All about PINKS! AND PINK DRUM ROLL PLEASE. winners announced!

                                                                      All about pinks!


The month of February is filled with pink thoughts of love. Have you gone shopping for your Valentine's presents yet? My, each year they come out with more and more ideas. So many choices, how does one choose?

I am a little Dutch American "girl" and if I could choose a boquet of flowers... TULIPS they would be!!! I would create a Valentine's boquet filled with pink, yellow and bright red tulips for BOB!

Tulip meanings when given in colors!

pink caring

purple royalty

red declaration of love

white forgiveness

yellow hopelessly in love

                                                            Here are your  PINK tulips sweetie!

I am ordering my Teleflora from Mohicans Flowers here! But, I think I will add the yellow and red to mine!


Another interesting fact is the Christian meaning of the acronym T.U.L.I.P. Did you know?

                                                http://www.apuritansmind.com/tulip/tulip.htm
Full credit given to A Puritan's Mind, more on tulips and the Calvinism doctrine here.
                                                                    DID you know?

"There are two views concerning the Gospel of Jesus Christ. First, there is what we call Calvinism. Then, there are varying degrees of unbelief.


The essential doctrines concerning salvation, which the Puritans and all good Christians cling to, are summed up in the acronym T.U.L.I.P.

Total Depravity

Unconditional Election

Limited Atonement

Irresistible Grace

Perseverance of the Saints

A tulip is a flower with intertwining petals, and without which, it would not make up a complete flower. If one petal is removed from the flower, it ceases, for all intents and purposes, to be complete. It is the same with the essential doctrines of salvation. Each doctrine is essentially linked to the others. If one of them is removed, then the whole system falls into absurdity and contradiction. (Thus, there would be no such thing as a 3 point Calvinist or a 4 point Calvinist (like Amyraldianism)--it would be better to say they are confused Arminians.)

T.U.L.I.P. concerns the essential doctrines which pertain to the salvation of God's chosen people through the atoning work of Jesus Christ. The Puritans were keenly aware that if the essentials of the Christian faith were overthrown or changed, the faith disappeared. It would no longer be the faith of the Bible. It would not longer be the doctrines of the Bible. It would no longer be Christianity. Rather, it would be the vanity of someone's unbiblical and unexegetical mind, heresy which would infiltrate and hurt the people of God. "


For me a poem on tulips expresses more....

                 TULIPS

True love  said with tulips never ending,
Unbelieveable, faithful ever near and dear
Loving life regardless, in times of joy or sadness...
Imperfect at times, and unrelenting, consuming
People until the end of time arrives;
So complex a feeling, yet one cannot live without.

Poems My Way - Valrie 02/05/2011

              So this started me on the hunt for more knowledge on the meaning of PINK...

eHOW has a great article on it... FULL credit to Tammi Moore's expert knowledge here for this article:


What Does the Color Pink Represent?

By Tammy Moore, eHow Contributor .

William Carlos Williams proclaimed "a profusion of pink roses bending ragged in the rain speaks to me of all gentleness and its enduring." Pink shades range from baby pink to bright fuchsia and represent sweetness and beauty in daily life.

Pink in Feng Shui

Pink represents the combination of white (intimate and pure) with red (passionate and exciting). Pink is the color of romance and should not be worn if others take advantage of your generosity.

Pink in Fashion

Pink is often used in clothing for baby girls and children. Women's fashions often include rose, fuchsia or magenta to represent femininity. Pink in menswear is a reoccurring trend and often seen in ties and suit accessories.

Pink in Marketing

Soft pinks represent youthful purity and are used in children's marketing. Pink shades with white, black or chocolate brown accents are used for sophisticated websites and print ads marketed to women.

Pink in Decorating

Pink shades are often seen in bathrooms and bedrooms because they represent gentleness and tranquility. Feng Shui practitioners believe pink should be used as accents in decorating, often grounded with black.

Pink in Flowers

Regardless of shade or bloom, pink flowers represent romance, joy and affection

                                                     Do your own google search on PINKS!

Hugs again to Bev over at How Sweet The Sound for hosting Pink Saturdays! My life has been filled with happiness and loving friends since I joined!



Thank you everyone for your kind words and understanding through this saddened time for us. Monday is "dad's" funeral and it will be a difficult day. Bob is holding up well, but truly hasn't had the hard cry yet.

I am announcing today my winners of the PINKS giveaways from January!

The winner of the PINK SURPRISE giveaway basket is: Marilou of Luhttp://luluslovlies.blogspot.com/lus Lovelies! Stop by and congratualte her! I found her through PS too!

http://luluslovlies.blogspot.com/


The winner of the PINK Glamour gveaway is: ARE.... The Mermaids of the Lake. Swim over and wish them congratulations.

http://mermaidsofthelake.com/


 I am off to send you each an email now! Congrats and I can hardly wait to post the pictures after you let me know you received notice!
 Please stop and write a bit of news, tell me about pink shoes, pink things and dreams, they brighten my days!
                                                        Sending out my PS hug to all of you!
 Not even a minute to spare today, a tight schedule and on the go. I will be by to see your PINK SHOWS!
                                                                     With heartfelt love!

Have you been to my PINK BUBBLE! It is really no trouble and filled with pinks galore, all in store for you! Shop 24/7 here!


Tuesday, February 1, 2011

A Time for Tea

Dear friends,

I had so much planned for Tuesday Tea Time today but have had a death in our "family." My sweetheart's father passed away after a long battle with Alzheimer's. lungs, heart and severe pneumonia. It is a time for me at least that I seek solace in a soothing ginger peppermint tea. Did you know ginger is an ancient remedy for upset stomaches and migraine sufferers (ME) get great relief from sipping this Heavenly herbal brew?  Also if you suffer from arthritis or fibromylagia ginger helps with the inflammation and eases the pain. The ginger and peppermint when combined are the dynamic duo and further soothe the tummy upset, relieves that acid stress taste from the tummy and settles me down for sleeping.

Here is the recipe I use.

Ginger Peppermint Herbal Tea Recipe


             Herbal Tea Recipe


Ingredients for each 8fl oz of Peppermint Ginger Tea:






•1 1/2 inches of fresh ginger root, sliced


•2 tbsp fresh peppermint leaves

Directions:


Boil cold, fresh water. Place Ginger Root and Peppermint leaves in the water once it has reached a boil. Remove from heat. Let the tea steep for 3 - 4 minutes and strain.

Now if I could buy a canister to put this tea in I would find a replica of one I found Saturday over at Random Creativity. while surfing friends in the PINK SATURDAYS posts. I asked Linda's permission and she graciously granted it for today! I see she also joined OWOH!



              It is a William and  Major tea canister and absolutely exquisite. Thank you Linda!

I am participating in OWOH I just have had some technical difficulties with my new camera and loading my prizes. So please check back and stayed tuned to see what MAGIC lights the way this final year of (CLICK >>>)OWOH.
Sending out a pink bear hug to you today!
          I have my ginger peppermint tea all brewed and am so excited to meet many new friends today!

Won't you tke a minute to write a feathered comment and leave a smile?


Be sure to follow this link ovder to Sandi and more participants in Tea Time Tuedsays!