Vacation -Part 2

I meant to get back sooner to share the rest of our vacation
but Casey was little under the weather and to be honest, I was
a bit to addicted the Casey Anothy trial coverage. Sad, I know.

Let me just tell you that day two was a long day of walking. We
started out at 9 AM and did not get back to the hotel till 10 PM.

We started our day walking in circles trying to find the Beaurer of Engraving.
You see, hubby and I have a bad habit of not having a game plan and therefore,
we left the hotel without our map. (funny story about that in a bit).

We then headed to the Aquarium. This was one of Casey's choices. It was small
but it was a welcome relief from the sun and heat.

It was then over to museum of American History. This place was so big, it
would take half a day to see it all. Donnie and I browse at a different pace. Me - lookand move on... Donnie - slow and slower, reading every detail. So we split up.
After a bit, my feet were hurting so bad, I just sat and people watched. It was at this time, that I was looking in my purse and what did I find " The MAP", you
know the one we thought we left the hotel without. The one we could have used
earlier in the day... yep. I thought it was funny.. hubby not so much.

Julia Childs kitchen



After meeting back up, we ate a quick hot dog and headed over to the Holocaust Museum.

Casey not sharing.....

We saved the monuments for the evening and I am so glad we did. They are just
so gorgeous with the lights.

Day two over... and I was glad to see it end as my head hit the pillow.

More to come and I promise to try and get back sooner.

Nathalie

Summer Vacation

This vacation was all about giving Casey a history lesson.

It was his choice... D.C. or Philly.

As you can see D.C. won.

Let me tell you, there is just so much to see, it is almost impossible to
see it all. It was hot... and all you do is walk and walk and walk. I have so
much to share, so I am just going to start out with day one.

The day we arrived, we headed over to Arlington Cemetery to see the
"Tomb of the Unknown Soldier" tribute.

John F Kennedy final resting place

and as you can see... Casey was already melting and tired.

We also had the HONOR of paying tribute to a fallen soldier as his procession
was taken place during our time at Arlington. Arlington is one of those places
though it is filled with loss and grief, you feel such peace and honor to be
among those who gave their lives so we can be FREE.

We then took another long walk to see the Iwajima Memorial.

Then it was over to the Pentagon to pay tribute to those that lost their lives on 9- 11. This memorial was very simple butvery much left an impact. The rows were the years born of those who died. The ones facing the Pentagon were on the plane
and the ones facing away were in the Pentagon. There was a small pool of water
under each memorial and other family members who died names were under the water.

On our walk back to the Metro, we ran into a Fighter pilot " Rabbit". This
I believe was the highlight of Casey trip. Rabbit was so gracious and was so
great with Casey, asking him questions and shaking his hand. So, thank you " Rabbit" for not only serving us but making a 10 year old feel so special.

I have so much more to share so come back soon

Nathalie

Soul Restoration

I have spent the last 8 weeks working on
" My Soul Restoration"




There are a few reason why I decided to take this class.

One was to find myself again.

What I mean by finding myself, is to find what makes me happy.
I had gotten to the point where, I just felt stuck. Like I had no purpose.





Second, I joined to find others like me with the hopes of building friendships.

That I learned is a lot harder than I thought. But I did meet a few local girls,
Brenda and Jillian. Brenda is a mixed media artist, so I was thrilled to have
a chance this past weekend to watch her at work and learn how to just let
myself be free with my work. She graciusly open up her home and all her many art toys.

Jillian was a true Southern Girl. Full of life. I look forward to spending more time with

both of them getting creative.

Art, is a great way to heal... a great way to let go and be Free.

The pictures are just a few from my journal book and my first attempts at mixed media. They are not perfect, that I know. But they have taught me that I don't have to be perfect to be beautiful.

I look forward to sharing more of my "Soul Restoration" journey in the near future...

Till then

Nathalie

Closed for Restoration

<

Taking some time for myself....

Prayers for Sal....

Today my childhood friend must do the unthinkable

Today she takes her baby home to say "goodbye"

Today she give him back to the lord

Today her heart breaks in million peaces

Today I pray for her

Today I pray that Sal is in peace as he is surrounded by his loved ones.

Today I hold my child harder and longer

Today I ask for you to pray for Sal

as he makes his way back to the Lord.

" Unexpected Love"

This weeks All about Love theme is " Unexpected Love"
for me this was easy.

After living in the land of beaches, buildings and traffic
for 40 plus years...

I unexpectedly fell in love with NATURE.... when I moved to Georgia.

" Loved Deeply"

I am doing my very first linking up

Jeanne's "All Four Love" for the month of February.
It's about taking photos with a PURPOSE.


This week's theme is...
{Loved Deeply}

Cause I came upon this a little late, my pictures this

week are not current but are of the people and things I love deeply.

This one because I feel loved every morning I bare witness to God's beauty.

Head over to Jeanne's new blog and join the " All For Love" linky party. http://jeanneoliverdesigns.com/blog/

Till next time .. Nathalie

Loyalty

If you are a dog lover, you are most likely loyal to a
particular size or maybe even a particular breed.

My sisters are Daschund( weiner dog) lovers. Always..
My girlfriend is tea cup poodle lover. Always...
Hubby and I are partial to Shar Pei or Pit Bull. Oh, I
hear that sigh... Pit Bulls they are dangerous. Not
always the case, they are very lovable and loyal dogs.

Okay, back to my point...

I have always loved Shar Pei cause not only are they
cute, but they are very calm and low maintenance dogs.
That is what I looked for in a dog.. low maintenance.
Point and case... look at this poor pathetic lazy dog.





However, lately, I have come to fall in love with a different
type of dog. The Lab. These dogs, must be the most loyal of dogs
that I have ever seen. And if you have young kids, and you want
them to have a loyal companion and a protecter.. then run out and
get you a Lab.

My son's friend has two and when he comes over to play, so does his
dogs. They walk over with him and then they sit and wait patiently
by my door until he is ready to go home. Even if he spends the night.

Last week, we had a snow storm and Nate came over to spend the night
and as always, so did his dogs. I tried to send them home, but even
when they were picked up and brought home, they came back. So I gave
Dakota the older one a blanket so he could stay warm... I tried to
bring him in the house cause I just felt so bad but he would not
leave his puppy Lucy out in the cold.



I tell you, I have never seen such love and loyalty between a dog and his
owner but I can tell you this... If I ever get another dog, I will get a
lab.

He calls it " The Women Cave"

Every man dreams of his "Man Cave"

Not sure us women ever dream of a "Women's Cave"

But that is exactly what my man called my new space... a cave.

I like to think of it more as a retreat.

A place to sit quietly, look out the window and contemplate my day.



A place where I can read a good book, watch HGTV and not the history channel



On a side note.. See that sweet comfy chair...
I had been searching for just that chair when my dear friend who was
moving away, offered me her favorite chair...thanks Jo.. I love it.

My room is filled with things I have collected at Antique Marts
yard sales and even some of my fellow bloggers Etsy shops.






It's not a cave.... it is just plain and simple " My Room"

Sorry men.... go find your own cave.

Winter Wonderland

We had all weekend to prepare for what they were
calling " The Blizzard of 2011".

I am not a big planner.. never was even when I lived
in South Florida and the threat of hurricanes were
a yearly thing. Most the time the weather folks either
over exagerate or just dead get it wrong. But this time,
I figured I better head to the store and gas up the car.

Thank God I did cause we are totally iced in for days,
if not the whole week.

Sunday the snow started as we were heading to bed.



And this is the Winter Wonderland we woke up too.







Of course the kids just loved the "No school day" .....





But after the play, comes the work.

Shoveling 400 ft of driveway is no day at the beach....



Two hours of shoveling before we got to the bottom.

Now that is what I call a workout....

So, this girl is heading to the tub and then to bed.

Good Night...