The Duke & Duchess of Cambridge!

I managed to stay up all night so I could watch as much as I could on the big event.  I did take a few short catnaps however, and I did DVR the wedding on one of the many channels that were covering it, some 7+ hours of coverage.

It was a beautiful ceremony and Catherine looked amazing, William was so handsome in the red uniform he was wearing.  Prince Harry looked pretty dashing too, I almost think he was more handsome than William.  Their mother, Princess Diana would without a doubt be tremendously proud of her boys if she were alive today and so thrilled to have Catherine as a daughter-in-law.  She did extremely well raising her boys in the time she was here.  They both have turned into beautiful men and great ambassadors to humanity.

The Queen bestowed the titles Duke & Duchess of Cambridge upon Prince William and Catherine, but I think for all of us the two will always be Prince William and Princess Catherine.  Because she is not of a royal bloodline she could never officially hold the title of Princess.  She has already begun to follow in Diana's footsteps though, in becoming the Queen of our hearts!  It was so neat to see how William and Harry came out the night before to greet members of the crowd.  What a testament to what their mother instilled in them!

Here are a few favorite pictures from their incredible day.  It was a great day for the entire world!

I cannot even fathom the number of people here, a testament to how important the couple, as well as the monarchy is to their people and people all around the world!

Now husband and wife!  They are such a beautiful couple!

On their way to Buckingham Palace, again, so beautiful!

Unimaginable and beyond words.

The Southern part of our country has been hit unbelievably hard the past couple of days, from flooding to tornado's.  Yesterday alone Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina, West Virginia saw approximately 150+ tornado's, while in Missouri they are dealing with flooding.  As of right now there have been 249 fatalities and hundreds of pictures of the massive devastation these storms left behind.  One picture was so striking to me, so emotional for me the minute I looked at it I immediately began crying.  The photo was so incredibly sad.  It's a first responder in the back of a pick-up holding the body of a child they pulled from the rubble.  The photo immediately took me back to 1995 in Oklahoma City and the Federal Murrah Building, after it had been bombed.  The photo there was the firefighter carrying the body of an infant from the site.  You can't help but cry when you look at this current photo.

4-27-11 Tornado Photos

Click on the link above to take you to the Huffington Post article, scroll down to the picture and click it.  There you'll see a number of photos of the aftermath of these storms.  There are 25 pictures and picture 15 is the most heartbreaking one of all of them.  This is the photo of the responder holding the body of a child.  It just breaks your heart.

I was a few months from turning three when the Super Outbreak of 1974 occurred, so I do not remember anything about it.  That outbreak spawned 148 tornado's and killed 312 people.  Yesterday alone spawned some 150+ tornadoes with reports still coming in and killed 250, with more reports of fatalities coming in.  It is so unbelievable and the damage unimaginable, it really is beyond words.

I have only seen one tornado in my life, in July of 2000, in SW MN.  It was a very brief tornado and was fairly tiny.  I have never been in a tornado, so I couldn't even imagine what it's like.  I did go into labor with my firstborn on the night that spawned the great Spencer, SD tornado on May 30, 1998.  The system was heading to Sioux Falls, but weakened by the time it reached us.  I have also seen the aftermath of a tornado, that same year, just two months earlier, March 30th, 1998, the St. Peter, MN tornado.  We went through St. Peter a week after it hit and having been to St. Peter quite a bit in my earlier years, I was pretty familiar with the highway going through and parts of the city.  Driving through there a week after the tornado hit was very emotional.  There was so much devastation I couldn't even recognize where I was at in the town, other than the highway.  You could completely see the college, Gustavus College, whereas before, because of all the trees, you could only see the point of the steeple.  Very shocking to see how many trees were lost in that beautiful city.

The South will absolutely need the support of everyone in our country in some form or another.  If you would like to help contact the American Red Cross to see what you can do.  Please keep everyone in the affected areas in your prayers, now and in the future, as they will need them to heal.

The Queen of Hearts - Princess Diana.

Princess Diana was certainly the Queen of Hearts to everyone around the world.  Her tragic death was most certainly a shock to all of us.  As her eldest son, Prince William, will get married on Friday, his Royal Wedding brings back all sorts of emotions about his late mother, her life, her death, and her legacy.  I just wanted to share with you a few of my favorite photos of Diana, along with, what I believe to be, the saddest photo of her.

I absolutely adore this photo with her two boys.  Her smile is so pure and enlightening.  Just looking at this picture puts a smile on your face.  A great picture with her and her boys!  They all look blissfully happy.  You can sure see and feel the love in this photo.

Princess Diana and Mother Teresa; both are iconic in their own right, and both were great humanitarians!

What a photo, Princess Diana sitting on the floor with her arms crossed wearing her crown.  Again, a magical smile that lite up the room.  Doesn't she look happy here too?

I love this profile picture of her.  She is so beautiful and enchanting, doesn't she have a natural glow about her?

This would be the saddest photo.  Anyone with a heart could not look at this photo and not tear up or even cry.  Those of us who remember this, will always have this memory etched in our minds, her coffin and the flowers on top, those beautiful white flowers from her children and her brother.  Diana's death was such a blow and a tremendous loss for the world.  I often wonder what it would be like today if Diana had not died?

You are greatly missed!

Royal Wedding

I'm not sure if you'll be watching the royal wedding on Friday, but I will be.  I find it so fascinating and exciting to keep up with the Royals!  This one, with Prince William and Katherine Middleton, is of more interest than others before, with the exception of Prince Charles and Lady Diana in 1981.  Prince Charles and Lady Diana, as everyone knows, are the parents of Prince William and Prince Harry.  Princess Diana was truly the People's Princess, so beautiful and so present in the world.  She did indeed change the make-up of the royal family.  Her death in 1997 was overwhelmingly shocking to everyone around the world.  For most of us, we remember where we were when he heard the news about her death.  I know I had just arrived to work at 5:45am in Preston, MN when a co-worker told me.  She also had the news on, after she told me, as I walked in, I turned to the tube to watch and hear the incredibly shocking news.  A rush of emotions came over me as I couldn't believe she had died.  Diana was an iconic fashionista as well as a Humanitarian.  Fortunately for all of us, she passed these great qualities onto her sons.  Prince William has turned into a brilliant man and humanitarian himself, as Prince Harry has too.

This Royal Wedding/Marriage however, should last, for what I believe, until they pass away.  When you look at photos of the two, they look amazingly happy, but more importantly, comfortable in, not only their own skin, but in each others skin.  Katherine herself is somewhat of a fashionista.  Every picture of her looks outstanding, from her hair, her hats, her fascinators, and other accessories such as coats, handbags, and footwear.  She is dressed to perfection from head to toe!  I cannot wait to see what her wedding dress looks like!!!

I love the fact Katherine comes from a Middle Class family, she is a commoner. not of Royal Descent.  Having lived a normal life in an extraordinarily loving family is so wonderful for William, giving him a sense of being human and experiencing life as a commoner.  It's like the best of both worlds for the two!

I know there are some people out there who are not really excited about the wedding and, quite frankly, annoyed with all the coverage, but it is an historic event.  For those of us keeping up with the Royals, there isn't enough coverage.  People are even more interested in this because of their mother, how influential she was, and because of her tragic passing so young.  Could you imagine what the world would be like today if Diana had not died so tragically that last day in August, 1997?  This only multiplies the interest in this wedding.

Only two days left, I for one will be watching as much as I can, and I will be recording what I can't!

Do you remember when?

Do you remember when:

• there were no cell phones?
• you used a rotary phone?
• you didn't have any credit cards?
• there was no internet?
• the country wasn't in a war?
• You had 45 records and a regular record player?
• VCR's were the hottest thing?
• Life seemed so simple and innocent?
• You read the newspaper to get the latest news?
• MTV was born?
• There were only four channels: PBS, ABC, NBC, and CBS; and no cable?
• To do research you actually had to go to a library and look in an encyclopedia?
• libraries used the card catalogue system?
• you had the original Atari gaming system? 
• You remember and watched Schoolhouse Rock?
• you watched Star Search and American Bandstand?

I love the following song by Mark Wills.  I find myself sometimes wishing we could go back to when life seemed so easy and we didn't have a lot of responsibility or bills to pay.  Where family dinners at the table happened everyday and holidays were a big deal with family.  Wasn't it so much simpler back then???


Mark Wills  - 1970 something:


I saw Star Wars at least 8 times
Had the pac-man pattern memorized
And I've seen the stuff they put inside
Stretch Armstrong

I was Roger Stauback back in my back yard
Had a shoebox full of baseball cards
And a couple of Evil Kinevil scars
On my right arm
Well, I was a kid when Elvis died
And my mama cried

Chorus:
It was 1970- something
In the world that I grew up in
Farrah Faucett hair-do days
Bell bottoms and 8-track tapes
Lookin' back now I can see me
And oh, man did I look cheesy
But I wouldn't trade those days for nothin'
It was 1970-something

It was the dawning of a new decade
When we got our first microwave
And Dad broke down and finally shaved 
Those sideburns off
I took the stickers off of my Rubix cube
Watched MTV all afternoon
My first love was Daisy Duke 
In them cut off jeans
A Space Shuttle fell out of the sky
And the whole world cried

Chorus:
It was 1980-something
In the world that I grew up in
Skating rinks and Black Trans Ams
Big hair and parachute pants
Lookin' back now I can see me
And oh, man did I look cheesy
But I wouldn't trade those days for nothin'
It was 1980-something

Now I got a mortgage and an SUV
But all this responsibility
Makes me wish sometimes
Sometimes....

chorus:
It was 1980-something
In the world that I grew up in
Skating rinks and Black Trans Ams
Big hair and parachute pants
Lookin' back now I can see me
And oh, man did I look cheesy
But I wouldn't trade those days for nothin'
It was 1980-something

1970-something
Aw, it was 19-Something 

Glasses

This Friday will mark a transition in my life from reading glasses to bifocals, from wearing glasses only when I needed to, to wearing them during every waking moment.  I've had reading glasses for almost two years, but a few months ago I began noticing that some of my distant sight was hazy.  I held off for those months on seeing the eye doctor.  I made an appointment, but cancelled it.  After a suggestion from my hubby I made an appointment with his eye doctor.  She was really nice.  I was a little stunned when she told me I needed bifocals.  The first thing that came to mind were my parents.  I remember their bifocals quite clearly growing up, with the separate lens on the bottom and then the rest of the lenses.  I was starting to feel old.  I'm not even 40 yet.  I've gone from reading glasses to now needing bifocals.  Not to mention I just started using reading glasses in the fall of 2009 at the age of 38.  For 38 years I didn't wear glasses, which is strange because both my parents have them.  For some reason though, my brother and I seemed to have good eyesight, not requiring glasses, until now.  My brother still is glass-free.

Here is the place where I went for my eye exam and glasses: Howlin Vision on South Western Ave in Sioux Falls,  SD.

So now came the task of finding a pair of frames.  I tried on a lot of them, but it was this one that both of us, the frame lady and I really liked:

They were a bit expensive, so before deciding this was the frame I indeed wanted, my hubby and I traveled to some other eye places like Lens Crafters, EyeMart, Wal-Mart, and Vision World.  I couldn't quite find a frame I liked, that looked as good as we felt that one did.  So we went back to Howlin Vision and purchased these frames.  We added the anti-glare as well as transition lenses to the prescription.  Because we were getting progressive lenses, the kind where you don't see the line, it all just kind of blends in together, the cost was more for the lenses, just like the frames.  In all, we spent a shiny penny on these babies.  I added the transitions because it made sense to have them act like sunglasses too, since I would be wearing them all day long.

They should be on Friday and I can't wait.  I'm excited to get them, even though I feel a little older with the bifocals, but excited for the fact that I will be able to see better all around!

Clarifying

I feel the need to do some clarifying in regards to my "I've had enough" post.  Although I critiqued my supervisor in the post I need to say that is isn't necessarily a reflection of her character, but about her leadership skills.  I found her to be fairly pleasant most of the time and easy to talk to.  It wasn't hard to strike up a conversation with her.  There was a point in time when she was very helpful to me, giving me tidbits of information to help me in my job performance.  So, just to clarify I was speaking more about her skills vs. her character.

Skin Care & Clinique

About 13 years ago I was using a brand called Clinique for my skin care needs.  I was pleased with what it was doing for me and how my skin looked.  One day, while browsing in the mall, pregnant with my oldest, a gal walks ups to me and begins commenting on how beautiful my skin is, what I do etc.  I told her I used Clinique.   She then went on to talk to me about Mary Kay and how the products and the business could change my life.  I, of course, bought into it and signed up.  A week or two later I met with her sales director to discuss the products etc.  This gal somehow convinced me to order the most expensive package of product inventory stating when you have it on hand people are more likely to purchase it.  So I bought the package which was more than a thousand buckaroo's.  And once I bought all this product I was on my own, never to hear from the gals again.  We'll just say business was not booming, so there I was with an unlimited amount of products to get rid of.

I did manage to get rid of it all, but I think I did it in the non-preferred way, upsetting a few people, which I didn't necessarily know it wasn't the right way.  I cut what losses I had and was thankful that I never had to worry about it again.

The past 11 years I have used a mixture of skin care products from Mary Kay to Bjore and Nuetrogena.  My make-up became a mixture of brands as well.  All the while wanting to get back into using Clinique.  So, finally, after years of wanting to get back into using their products, I bought their system, in pieces, through the past month.  I am so thankful I did.  My skin feels so much better and I'm really loving the way it looks.  I have their skin care and their make-up, along with some other products in their line.  I have washed my face nearly everyday, twice a day for the past month, missing maybe two or three days of cleansing and make-up.

You can visit Clinique at clinique.com to learn more.  I try to purchase my Clinique at Macy's and you can go to macys.com for more information.  Below are some of the products I use from them.

Here are the products I use for my skin care.  I know it seems like a lot, but the whole process doesn't take that long at all.  I start from the left with acne cleanser, then to the pink toner, to the yellow moisturizer, to the repair serum.  Next to the blue tube of turnaround concentrate, followed by the medium circle tub of zero gravity cream, to the small circular tub of eye cream.  The last two purple containers are make-up and eye make-up removers.

 This next package is all about make-up.  From powder, concealer, eyes, cheeks, and lips, it's all here to get me glammed up and ready to go out for the day or just to simply hang out here in the house.

All of this works great for me and I'm very happy to be back using their products!

Till next time!

I've had enough!

It's been nearly six months since I left Girl Scouts.  I generally try to stay away from posting heavy personal feelings and emotions, but I've had enough.  This wonderful organization that I grew up in, respected, and loved has turned into nothing more than a business.  The slogan years ago was "It's all about the Girl"...today's slogan might as well be "It's just about the money"!  I had wonderful experiences as a girl, traveling to many different places, visiting many sites around Minnesota as well as going to a World's Fair in 1982 in Knoxville, TN.  On that trip we stopped at the Sear's Tower in Chicago, going to the top, then touring the Little Brownie Baker GS cookie factory, then the Smokey Mountains, Cumberland Gap etc.  A very wonderful and timeless memory I have, among others.  I absolutely loved meeting other girls as well, at camp, area activities, trips etc.   I became a lifetime member courtesy of my mom as a birthday present in '98.  As an adult volunteer from 2002-2006 in St. James, MN I met some extremely awesome ladies, with whom I still keep in touch with!  It was such a great time there.  One highlight when I was there was earning the Outstanding Volunteer Award in which you are nominated by your peers.  Truly an honor!  The other thing while I was there was being selected as a National Delegate, as it turns out, my application essay blew away the nominating committee by storm and put myself at the top of their list to go.  Attending the convention as a delegate vs. a non-delegate, which I was in LA in 2002, was incredible because it was an historic convention, altering the mission statement and so on.  I absolutely loved being an adult volunteer in St. James, MN those years.

It was during those years however, that National began their quest to change/update the organization.  In 2005 it was made official that councils will be realigning.  All but one did.  The one council that kept their same boundaries as before is in WI.  I had an early scoop on what was going down and I was not happy about it in any way.  My opinion was when this happened the rural would be lost in the urban.....and guess what....IT HAS!  No one I talked to was in favor of this merging of councils...and I do mean no one!

So now fast forward to 2009.  I read about an opening for a Membership Outreach Specialist for the council I was in here in South Dakota.  I applied and I was fortunate enough to get the job.  I was on cloud nine because finally, the organization that I loved so dearly I was now working for.  Keep in mind I had a break from volunteering for nearly three years, so I wasn't quite aware of how the changes were made with the realignment.  Some things, few things, were still the same as pre-merger, but many things had changed.  The position of Membership Outreach Specialist was half membership and half outreach, but in reality they were both full-time positions.  I was in an 80 hr/wk position with only 40 hrs/wk to get the job done.  I will admit I did struggle on some things and I didn't do my job 100%, I did try, but seriously, who could do a job 100% when you have to get the job done in half the time?  Something is going to lag behind no matter who is in the position.  The gal before me even struggled!  I know I did succeed at things too.  I increased by double the outreach membership from the year before as well as increase membership in my membership area's.  One thing I noticed though, when I traveled to my area's there were more volunteers, a lot more, that were so disgusted with the merger and refused to participate in council events etc.  One volunteer was so pissed off she quit after she heard our CEO in a conversation with other staff tell them that we cannot be concerned about those smaller towns because they don't give us the numbers we're looking for...we need to focus on those larger communities where we can get higher numbers.  Well that put me in a situation.  How do you try to explain that when the volunteer calls bitching at you about it.  Our own CEO!  And I heard this quit often...numbers numbers numbers because that means more MONEY!!!!!  No mention about the girl, just the numbers and money!!!  Hmmm, I began rethinking what this organization was all about and what it was all about...the girl...was no longer it.  It was all about numbers and money now.

There was so much inconsistency working there as well.  We need to be doing recruitments in the larger communities 'where we can get the numbers' and leave those 'smaller communities alone', 'those communities can 'travel' to the larger ones is what we heard from out boss.  So I didn't do a recruitment in a town of 2000 bc we were told not too and it's so close to Sioux Falls.  We were told this weekly throughout the summer and through August.  So my boss comes up to me in late August and questions me about why I wasn't doing a recruitment in this small town?  Ok, so really, how the heck are we supposed to be doing our job when you keep changing everything?  Another thing, we have what we called a 'shop in a box' where we would have basically novelty items from our shop to sell at recruitments etc.  We were always told not to take this to locations within 20 miles of the office bc they could just come to the office and get their stuff.  Again, this was told to us many different times.  So on the day of my recruitment in Harrisburg my boss asks me if I'm taking the 'shop in a box' there.  I said no bc of what we were told time and again by her and she then says 'well you need to take one' and later grips bc I got it together so last minute.  GRRR!  And yet again...how are we supposed to do our flipping jobs?  And living by the Girl Scout Law was non-existent.  There was no role-modeling of the Girl Scout Law there.  I mean it was such horse crap and quite frankly my supervisor was the worst boss I have ever had, so inconsistent and very little direction, very little leadership, and she lies!  She lied right in front of me to the Chief Membership Officer...her supervisor.  I know this bc it was a situation that involved me and driving.  She wasn't a supervisor at all!

Once I left there I asked to be removed from the mailing lists, land and email.  For the  most part I have not received anything from them, but today in the mail, in an 8.5" by 11" manila envelope I get one, yes ONE sheet of paper expressing their "appreciation" of being a volunteer.  It cost them $.88 to mail the dam thing and for constantly hearing about how tight they are with their money I didn't get why it was even mailed?  And I'm just one of thousands of ppl registered as a volunteer.  Crips, it took them a whole year just to get my membership transfered from the bordering council I was in prior to moving to this one.

I honestly have no ambition to do anything ever again with the organization and neither does my daughter, who never liked it over here ever.  What a completely different and horrible experience than what I had in MN!  Very disappointing!

Ok, that's my ranting/venting.  I have had enough about the organization and no longer wanted to remain quiet about it.  Their whole purpose has totally changed and I didn't agree with it.  To me it was still about the girl, not the numbers or the money as it clearly is now!

Weekends!

Why is it weekends seem to always go by too quickly?  I realize there is still over half the day left today (Sunday), but this day will quickly come to an end, just as it started.  Weekends should start at 12pm each and every Friday, giving everyone the opportunity to experience more of the weekend.

I still have no job, but during the week I get up early to get the kids ready and off to school.  My alarm is set for 6:30am Monday - Friday, so when the weekend arrives I can sleep in, well, that's how it's supposed to happen anyway.  The reality of course is completely different.  My husband doesn't work weekends and since he works overnights, he is up late of course on his days off.  This results in me also being up with him on these two days to spend some time with him.  I then go to bed late, anywhere from 2 to 4am.  Well, this doesn't jive too well with children, who go to bed by 10pm or 10:30pm, and then wake up around 8 or 9am.  Therefore my days of sleeping in are in fact, not happening.  I keep going with the days though, with some giving me the chance to catch a nap.

Yesterday we didn't do much around here.  I did some cleaning though, with the kitchen, dishes, and the refrigerator, then it was onto vacuuming and sorting laundry.  Today will be all about doing those sorted piles of clothes, and hoping that I will get them all done and put away before bedtime tonight.  We did watch "The Switch" last night with Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman.  It was a fairly good movie.  I enjoyed it, the storyline etc., and would recommend it to anyone.  It's worth watching.

At some point today we'll need to go to town and stop at a few places like the grocery store, menards, and possibly the mall.  It's almost 4pm though so not sure if we'll get there or not.  Jason is still sleeping, so everything will depend on when he wakes up.  Only time will tell.  I know I need to get some things going for my mother too.  Well Jason just woke up, so maybe we'll have time to go afterall!

Till next time!

Here comes the weekend.

Today began with more napping, with a quick trip to Sioux Falls before picking up the kids from school.  In my quick trip to town I dropped off an application for a job and some other quick errands.  Once the kids were picked up I again took another little catnap.  There was a Middle School dance tonight so we took Alex to that, then the boys and I went back into SF to spend some time together.  We hit the mall first, checking out some things at Macy's, then it was off for some chow.  We ate fresh made pretzels from Auntie Annie's, the ones with salt and cheese.  They were yummy yummy in the tummy!  Our drink was a blue raspberry lemonade, frozen and on ice.  Both were really good, but I think I prefer the lemonade on ice.  After the mall we hit my brother's place, after all, it is right across the street from the mall.  Jacob has been asking to go visit him for a while now.  Then it was off to Target where the boys were able to swindle me out of a small toy, costing less the $7.  I don't even want to think about how much money we spend on toys for them!

After Target it was on the road back to Lennox.  Now I am hoping to go to bed and to actually sleep.  It's the weekend now, which means no school, which means the kids don't have to be up early and can sleep in.  I hope I will be able to sleep in too!

Goodnight everyone!

April 7th

Another year has passed, this one marking twenty-one years Rachel has been gone.  Time does heal, however her memory never fades.  Tears are shed from time to time but they eventually stop and you go on with your day, your life.  Strange to think though, it has been so long since her passing.  I knew her all but a handful of years, but yet her impact has been so profound.  I have never had a friend like her.  We shared more than we shared with anyone else.  It is her and one other person who know everything about me.  When she died, so did a part of me.  I have been more reluctant, more cautious in what I share with others, keeping the most treasured secrets secret.

When I think about her I am thinking of the past, but I am not dwelling on it.  I think about the fun times we had together and the memories we made, with each other and with others.  There are many of them that make me laugh, and some that make me cry.  In general though, thinking of her brings a smile to my face and warmth in my heart.  She was a blessing and remains a treasure.  I look forward to the day we meet again to share more memories and laugh until we cry!

R.I.P. Rachel!