Celebrate

2010 was another good year and I'm looking forward to seeing what exciting things 2011 has to offer! Happy New Year's Eve to my blog friends!

Merry Christmas

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas.

The Money Factory

My nephew and I had a special day yesterday. He only had a half day of school so I took him downtown for a tour of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. We had such a fun time. It was a very cold sunny day but there were few tourists on the Mall (highly unusual!) We saw millions of dollars being printed during our tour. The tour featured the various steps of currency production, beginning with large, blank sheets of paper, and ending with wallet-ready bills! They would not let us take pictures during the tour (for obvious reasons) but I did get a few at the beginning and at the end in display rooms!

a $5,000 bill! They don't make these anymore. The largest bill they make is $100. They stopped making bigger bills in 1969.

The glass tube on the left is filled with shredded $100 bills and based on his height he is worth over $1 Million! I could have told you that!!!!

Sheets of money before being cut and wallet ready!

A gorgeous view of the Washington Monument on our walk back to the car!

Poinsettia

Look at what arrived at my house! One of my wonderful friends sent me this gorgeous holiday poinsettia. I love the color, especially the splash of white throughout! Thanks so much Barb!

The Scottish Walk

Alexandria Virginia is a city rich in Scottish heritage and once again served as the gathering site for more than 100 clans and pipe and drum bands from far and near with their faithful companions, the terriers and hounds. The city of Alexandria partners with The Scottish Government to celebrate and sponsor the annual parade. It was a mighty cold day but it did not seem to stop 30,000 from lining the streets of Old Town Alexandria to watch the parade and partake in the weekend long festivities around town. Mary Deane, Dee and I met at a coffee shop and Jeeves, dressed in his Scottish coat and leash, led us to the parade route!

Happy Birthday Rudy's

When I started this blog at the beginning of this year I was spending the winter with my friends Julie and Sally on Anna Maria Island and helping them out at Rudy's. Today they are enjoying their 2nd birthday and have been blessed with great customers. I'll be heading back down this winter to help them out again this winter. Here is a link to Rudy's website so you can really check it out!

http://www.rudyssubsandmore.com/

A Peter White Christmas

To officially kick off the holiday season, I went with some friends to a dinner show featuring a jazz ensemble of Peter White, a smooth jazz guitarist; Mindi Abair, a saxophonist; and Rick Braun, a trumpeter.

Here we are before the show started
Dee and Jackie

Me and Mary Deane

Rick Braun killing it on the trumpet

Rick Braun, Mindi Abair and Peter White

Mindi Abair stealing the show. Not only is she a great saxophone player but she has an incredible voice

The musicians

I love this picture of my nephew on the trumpet accompanying my dad on the piano. What a moment!

Thanksgiving

Seems incredible that after days of preparation and cooking, the feast is over so quickly! I spent the day with friends, there were 4 of us for diner but 10 of us for pumpkin martinis before dinner!

Our festive table

Jeeves wanted in on the action

Mary Deane whipping up a batch of her famous pumpkin martinis

Dinner is finally ready

Pumpkin flan - to die for!

Spa day

What would you suppose a little girl want on her 8th birthday. That's right - being pampered! They sure start early these days! Here's my niece having her hair and nails done. Black nail polish was the color of the day!

Thanksgiving lunch at Hollin Meadows

Today was the Thanksgiving lunch at my niece and nephew's school and I think they had the largest contingent of family! Both sets of grandparents, my sister and I all enjoyed lunch with the kids. Half of us ate with my niece and the other half ate with my nephew since they were at different seatings. The kids grow lettuce in the school garden and they had picked it for the salad which we had with turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and gravy. Pumpkin ice cream for desert was a big hit! We got to meet the kids teachers and ended with a visit to the library where there was a big book sale underway!

Another Principal's Pride recipient!

My niece was recognized this morning at her school with the Principal's Pride award for her 2nd grade class. She was very proud (although not as proud as her aunt!) She received her certificate and book bag and was then featured on the school's morning news! The cool part is that her brother was the newscaster this morning so we got to see both of them shine! Here are a few pics of the big moment.
Receiving her certificate from the Asst Principal:

My nephew on the TV delivering the news:

Telling the school why she received the award - "for doing all her work and following directions"

Principal's Pride

My nephew was recognized this morning at his school with the Principal's Pride award for his 5th grade class. He was very excited and enjoyed glazed donuts and orange juice (can we say major sugar rush) while waiting for the ceremony. After receiving his certificate and book bag, he was featured on the school's morning news! Here are a few pics of the big moment.
With the principal:

The proud aunt!

Little sis enjoying the fruits of brother's hard work!

Fall at the Emily Post House

Emily Post's house is known for it's gorgeous gardens in the summer. “The dahlias grow as large as pie plates and for size and intensity of hue, I have never seen anywhere such roses and delphiniums,” Emily is quoted as saying in 1929. The gardens still look gorgeous this late in the year!


The house was built in 1778.


Born: 27 October 1872
Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland
Died: 25 September 1960
Best Known As: Mid-20th century American expert on etiquette

Happy Halloween

Haunted Ship

My brother in law and I took our niece and nephew to see a haunted ship! The USS Barry which is now a museum was totally set up like a haunted house for Halloween. Going through the inside of the ship there was scary stuff around every corner. Lots of gore, blood, bats, and creepy characters. The kids screamed and had a blast!







The most interesting part was that my Dad served as the Executive Officer on this ship when it was stationed in Newport in the 70s. It was fun for the kids to hear stories and see the ship for themselves!

USS Barry (DD-933) was one of eighteen Forrest Sherman-class destroyers of the United States Navy, and was the third US destroyer to be named for Commodore John Barry. Commissioned in 1954, she spent most of her career in the Caribbean, Atlantic, and Mediterranean, but also served in the Viet Nam War, for which she earned two battle stars. Another notable aspect of her service was the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. Decommissioned in 1982, she is now a museum ship at the Washington Navy Yard. Here she is in her glory days.