Wireless Internet

I just got a new laptop before I went away for training. I also called the telephone company and they were going to send a router so I could set up my wireless internet. The problem was the router didn't show up until after I had left for training. So, today while they are busy working on my kitchen, I am downstairs in the office trying to find something contructive to do instead of telling them to hurry up on my kitchen. I am working on the laundry and I have sorted the bills but then I remember my router. I have been worried I would not be able to set it up on my own, but I decided I had to give it a try. Guess what?! It is up and running beautifully. I did it. All by myself....and a little help from Ben with AT&T Support. But I did all the actual work. Now I can sit on my bed and blog!

Home at Last!

I finally made it home about 10:30 p.m. last night. It was wonderful to see Steve and Zach. I just didn't want to let go of them. I think Zach has grown another inch and has gotten some sun on his face. He is so handsome and Steve has grown a goattee while I was gone. I will just say that is interesting, but I was happy to see him no matter what. They picked Marcia and I up at the airport. I will have to say I was soooo happy not to have to pack that luggage any more. They took us to Steak and Shake for dinner since we hadn't had time to get anything at the airport. It tasted so good. I love Kentucky and I am very happy that I live here. Who am I kidding, I am just happy to be where my family is.

I Made It!!!

I made it. I am soon to be on my way home. Right now I am sitting in class listening to one of my classmate tell a story about how he was at dinner and witnessed a pick pocket steal someones wallet last night and how he chased him down to try and get it back. I was thinking he was a real hero and then he explained that the boys were 8 and 10 years old. It was still a good thing to do. The lady got her wallet back but it was unclear if they actually caught the boys. It is a good thing I wasn't the one to catch them. First of all if I had been running after them, I probably would have been huffing and puffing so hard I couldn't have even give them a good scolding, but if I had been able, I would have probably have given them a beating.

Any way, we are also passing around a box of chocolate just waiting for the time to pass. We can't leave until 11:30 a.m. My flight isn't until 5:20. We tried to get on the 2:20 flight but it was booked. They informed us that the 11:20 flight still had seats available. So here I am, thinking to myself, WHY CAN'T WE MAKE THE 11:20 FLIGHT. It isn't like I am learning something that is really going to make a big difference in my job and it would probably save the federal government a few dollars in the process. But who am I to tell the Federal Government anything. So I will sit here and listen to these stories and munch on my chocolate. Hopefully, I will make it home sometime today. So close but yet so far away!

3 Kentucky Girls in DC

Becoming a decision writer just further proves I have a severe mental impairment. I lack concentration and I have difficulty with pace and persistence. Today's class was grueling. I cannot concentrate when the instructor and at least 5 classmates are talking. I read one sentence 5 times. Today was the worst day yet. Only 4 more days to go. I hope I make it.

It was so hot (98) on Saturday. We went to Chinatown. There wasn't much of China there, however, we did see a movie there. If you get a chance, see Mama Mia. It is an excellent movie. People were clapping and cheering during the movie it was so good. This movie made you want to jump up, dance and sing. Very uplifting movie. Well worth the $8.50 matinee price I paid to see it.

Then we went to the Vietnam Memorial. I am not a big history person and was not prepared to be impressed my what I saw. However, when we got there, a volunteer was telling what each part of the memorial stood for and how he had fought in that war. He told us how he watched men die. Men that were his friends and how he asked himself each day why he had been spared. This memorial truly came to life with his testimony. Then I was truly impressed by the awesomeness of the memorial. I was happy to get to shake his hand and thank him for his service.

Here we are: 3 Kentucky girls in DC at the World War II Memorial. This too was an awesome work of art. The fountains at this display were great. However, I would have love to take a swim right about then. We were so hot and tired by then and we still had to find the metro station. Finally, we got there and got back to our stop near our hotel. Fortunately, our favorite restaurant (Chevy's) is right as you get off. We all went in and got something to drink. We were so thirsty. Margaritas for Marcia and I and Sprite with pineapple juice for Shawna. We had a light meal and then went back to the hotel for a much needed shower and then fell into bed exhausted.

Sunday, we got up to do it again. We went to the Natural History Museum. I wasn't prepared to like that either. I tell you I am not much into old dead stuff but the HOPE DIAMOND was beautiful. Well worth the trip. Then Shawna took it easy on us old girls and let us go back to the hotel for a brief afternoon nap before we went to old town (Alexandria, VA).

Shawna had never been to Old Town so I was happy she was getting to see something new. I was happy to see Shawna come to visit (I think she saved me from packing up and going home early) but I knew she had seen much of what we went to on Saturday before. So I was really glad she enjoyed Old Town. It is such a pretty little town. The water front is beautiful with all the sailboat and everything. Lots of restaurants and shops. Wish we had got there early enough to go into some of the shops, but unfortunately they were closed. Shawna wanted to go to the Christmas shop and get an ornament for her Christmas tree. We had dinner at the Chart House. A real fancy smancy place. Shawna and I even tried caviar. Neither one of us liked it. It tastes like sardines. Now I know you are going to ask how do I know what sardines taste like. Well, that is probably another story entirely but Granny Iva loved sardines in mustard sauce and she was good at talking her granddaughter into trying new things. Not a favorite but Granny tried.

Things I Miss from Home (cont.)

I can't believe I forgot this one. But I just had to add it.

My Soap Opera! (All My Children)

I thought they would have SoapNet and I would be okay. In three weeks alot of things could happen on a soap opera. I need to know if Erica is still in jail. Is Ritchie still alive? What has Annie done lately? Please help me here. I need an update.

Things I Miss From Home

Things I Miss From Home:

1. Steve and Zach


2. The rest of my family


3. Callie and Max


4. My hand held showerhead (I just don't feel clean without it)


5. My bed


6. My car


7. Homecooking (I am tired of eating out)


8. My friends (sorry, this should have been higher on the list)


9. My garden (I hope there are ripe tomatos when I get home)


10. My things (You just can't pack it all)

Things I Like About DC:

1. Maid Service (I don't even have to yell at them to take out the trash)


2. Chevy's Happy Hour (Love those Margaritas!)
3. Breakfast Buffet
4. Street Vendors
5. My Expense Account
   

DC Night Tour

This was taken on the south side of the White House. I was shooed away by police. I wasn't suppose to be taking pictures here. However, I was quick enough to get this one.

Me at the FDR Memorial

Lincoln Memorial

I am getting a little better about moving the pictures on this laptop but I still have a ways to go. Hopefully, they will get better as I go. Shawna and Lisa are a big help to me. They are great with the computer.

We had a great time on this tour, however, we didn't get back until 11:00 p.m. We were very tired, hot and thirsty when we arrived back at our hotel. Marcia's foot was really hurting and very swollen. We had a tough time staying awake the next day in class, but it was worth it too see all these amazing sights. It is difficult to explain the sheer magnificants of some of these monuments. So much marble!

Shawna comes tomorrow. No telling what we will get into then. I think she wants to go to China town. That will be an experience and I hope in a good way but since I don't like chinese food, maybe not so much. But I will be sure and let you know in my next post. Stay tuned!

Where in the World are Marcia and Vickie?

Can you guess where we are?

Arlington Cemetery

Marcia and I rode the metro by ourselves for the first time tonight. We went to Arlington Cemetery. It was a truly moving experience. I was awesome to watch. I hope you enjoy the pictures above. On the way back we stopped and picked up some T-shirts from the street vendors and then we ate at Chevys again. More margaritas!!!

I am very excited. This weekend should be much better. My sister-in-law, Shawna, is coming to visit and she is bringing little Tater Tot too. However, Lainie and Scott can't come. I hope Scott is staying home to work on my kitchen. I am afraid of what I might find when I get back.

Tomorrow night, Marcia and I are going on a night tour of DC. It should be interesting. More pictures then.

Homesick

Today is Sunday. I usually spend Sunday's with Steve reading the paper and drinking coffee in the morning. This is something we both enjoy. Also, today is the day that I have dinner with my whole family. You know, my mother, my brothers and their families. I enjoy sharing my week with them and hearing about them and what they did all week. Mom always has a feast for everyone to fill up on. I really miss this today. I know, I should be making the most of this $200 a night hotel and expense account but it is really true. Money can't buy happiness. I miss Steve and Zach terribly. It is not so bad during the week when I am in class but the weekends are hell!

Alexandria VA - Old Towne

I have made it a whole week here in Arlington. I have rode the metro, shuttles and now a trolley. Marcia, Chad, Rainbow, and I (yes, her name is really Rainbow) went to Old Towne tonight. We took the metro to Alexandria and then rode a trolley to the waterfront where we had dinner at Busby's Pizza. It was fabulous. We really enjoyed the pizza and the conversation. Chad and Rainbow are attorneys that are in our Decision Writer class. Rainbow is from Wilmore KY but is working in the Dayton OH ODAR office. She usually acts as our tour guide. She has been to DC before and she understands how the metro works. She is great with directions, unlike me. She has been very helpful to Marcia, Chad and I. Chad is originally from Arkansas but is now working in the St. Louis ODAR as a new decision writer. Chad and Rainbow are both in there early 30's but have been great about letting Marcia and I hang out with them. Marcia and I think they should get together. They are both young and single.

We had originally set out to go to Alexandria VA to watch the fireworks as it is there independence day. However, the fireworks were suppose to begin at 9:30 and we didn't finish dinner until 9:40. By then, the fireworks were over. We were all a little disappointed but we had a good time any way. I was disappointed that I didn't get any pictures of the waterfront but I think Marcia and I can make our way back there without help from Rainbow. It is a straight shot on the Metro to there. Also, Christy has told us the Charter House is a good place to eat and it is directly on the water front. Alexandria was beautiful. Just like and old town. There were musician playing on the sidewalk and all sorts of other festivities going on. I can't wait to go back. Hopefully I will have pictures to share then.

2 Kentucky Girls go to Washington Nationals Game

Marcia and I went to the Washington National Game tonight. It was fun. We had a great time. However, to get there we had to take the metro. Very interesting. I will never again complain about Lexington traffic. Give me my own air conditioned car any day over the metro. Marcia or I either one had ever been on the metro. We were packed in like sardines, but we finally made it there and back without any problems. We had help from some of our fellow classmates. They are alot more travel than us girls from KY.

We did get to see Austin Kearns play. I have some pretty good pictures considering we sat in the second to last row from the top. The Nationals were loosing when we left but I understand they tied up in the last inning and had to go into extra innings, but ended up loosing 5-2. We had fun and had a new adventure. I think we are going to the Mall tomorrow night. I think we can handle that. We are very experienced shoppers.

Marcia and Vickie's Big Adventure

Well, it's an adventure, but it didn't start off the way we had hoped. My mother and Zach took us to the Lexington Airport where we thought we would take off for Cincinnati at 11:40 on Monday. It turned out there was bad weather in South Dakota, delaying our flight to Cincy. Sounds strange I know but we didn't fly out until 12:30. So when we got to Cincy, we had missed our connecting flight. We were then put on the 3:20 flight to DC, giving us a layover in Cincy. But we decided to make the most of it and went to Outback for lunch. We had a great lunch of cheesefries and that delicious brown bread they serve. We felt much better after we had loaded up on Carbs. We finally made it to DC about 5:30. Ronald Regan airport is not air conditioned and it is very humid here and it was terribly crowded. We finally collected our luggage and believe me if I had had to pack that luggage around too long before we got to the airport, I think I would have found I could do without a few pair of those shoes I packed. (9 pair) We arrived at our hotel after a very frightening ride on the hotel shuttle. I hope Zach never drives that bad. We had to just throw our bags in our room and take off for the "Meet and Greet" session. I am glad we got our fill of carbs at lunch because they served salad for our meal. Thankfully, they had wine to go with it. We were late so we just picked a table and sat down. The ladies we were sitting with were very nice but when they found out we were Decision Writers they kind of gave us the cold shoulder. We did not realize the "Meet and Greet" was for Legal Assistant training too. They went on to explain that in there office the attorneys were blocking the hiring of paralegals as decision writers, so therefore they thought we were attorneys, but we quickly explained that things were not like that in our office and that we got along well with our attorneys and that we had just recently been legal assistants ourselves.

All in all, we are doing well. Marcia's ankle is still swelling some and my ears are still hurting from the plane ride but we are safe and have nice clean hotel rooms. We plan to make the most of our time in DC. I will have more adventures later.

What a Great Day!

This morning when I got up it was raining. I was really bummed. Today is that day for the Mitchell/Lile/Cohorn family reunion. I really enjoy this reunion. I love seeing my 2 aunts (my dad's sisters). They are wonderful, strong women who are great cooks and love to tell stories of days gone by. I enjoy hearing about their families and telling them about mine. I love seeing my cousins and their families. Each year the reunion is a little different. We have some that have left us for one reason or another (death, divorce, prior engagements, etc) and each year we have new faces (new babies, boyfriend/girlfriend, or just plain friends). All are welcome. It is a great day full of fun, food, swimming and sharing of stories. It is one of my favorite times of the year. I believe I like it better than Christmas and I say this because I am an outdoor person and all this takes place beside my aunt's beautiful pool. I love her home and her lovely yard. This year the new face was "Austin". Truett and Tonya's new addition. He is certainly a little water dog. I had the pleasure of playing with him in the pool. He is so sweet. His brother, Alex, has really grown up this year. He was like talking to a little man. Even though the day started with a little rain, it sure turned into a blue sky day!

I took a Honey Bun cake to the reunion and I had several requests for the recipe, so here it is.

Honey Bun Cake

1 yellow cake mix with pudding 1 eight ounce carton sour cream

4 eggs 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

2/3 cup vegetable oil 1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/3 cup water 2/3 cup chopped pecans

Combine first 5 ingredients in a mixing bowl. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Set aside.

Combine brown sugar, cinnamon, and pecans and set aside.

Grease and flour a 13 x 9 x 2 inch cake pan. Pour half of the batter into pan. Sprinkle half of the sugar mixture over the batter. Repeat the layers. Gently swirl batter with a knife. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Remove from overn. Drizzle glaze over cake and cool.

Glaze

1 cup sifted powered sugar (I don't sift, so what if there are a few lumps)

2 tbsp milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. (I just use a spoon and beat real fast) Drizzle over cake.

Eat and Enjoy! Especially good with coffee.

Happy 4th of July!

Busy day. First, I did laundry to try to get ready for this trip. I am going to Arlington VA for Decision Writer training on Monday. I will be gone for 3 weeks. I have not packed the first piece yet. But laundry is close to done. Then Steve and I went to look for boarder for the kitchen. He thought it would be a good idea to remodel my kitchen while I'm gone. My biggest fear is that I will get back and my kitchen will be a disaster. I hope I am wrong. Couldn't find any boarder today but I plan to go to Perspectives tomorrow to look for some before going to Frankfort to my Family Reunion. The we went to Jazzman's for lunch. BIG MISTAKE. They said it would be a 10 minute wait. It turned into 20. We finally go a table and then we waited an hour for our food. Steve ordered a club sandwich and I got a pork barbecue sandwich. I don't think it takes an hour to make either. However, the manager came and apologized and gave us our meal for free. I told us he hopes we come back when they get faster at preparing the food. The food was good but not good enough to wait that long. Came home and did more laundry and then went back out to grocery. My chauffeur, Zach, took me. When I got back home, I made strawberry daiquiris and cheese dip. Mmm, good. Then I fixed tacos for dinner. I still haven't packed anything. Madison called and ask us to come to her grandmother's house where they were lighting fire works and then we went to watch the fireworks at Lykins. We had a good time but now it is 11:30 and I still haven't packed anything. Maybe tomorrow.

Check out my Slide Show! Pictures from Vacation!

We just got back from a short vacation to Cherokee NC/Pigeon Forge TN. The trip was much too short but all we could fit in before I leave for my trip to Arlington VA. I leave Monday for Decision Writer training which is a requirement for my new job as paralegal analyst. You will see pictures of Me, Steve and Zach. Mom went too but there are no pictures of her because she was the big time gambler this weekend. I am very sorry to report she did not hit the jackpot. Maybe next time, Mom! Zach and I walked along a creek that ran through Cherokee. It was very pretty. Then you will see the Jet Boat that we rode on. It was very exciting. It went really fast and the driver would spin the boat around and splash water into the boat. I have not had that much fun in a boat since my Dad got ride of our boat. It really brought back wonderful memories of times gone by. You will also see pictures from a petting zoo that we went too. We got to feed the bears and Zach liked the monkeys. Hope you enjoy the pics.

Trying to Buy a Car

Just wanted to let you know the reason I have not had a new post in such a long time is because my Internet has been down. I have tried everything I know about computers to get it fixed and have been unsuccessful, so yesterday I had Zach try to get it fixed and he did. Come to find out our modem was shot. I really missed surfing the net and blogging.

I have been trying to purchase a new vehicle (well, new to me). I have looked around and finally found the type of vehicle I wanted to purchase. Now the job is to find the one I want. I have been working with two different dealerships. At one dealership, I really like the salesman and he has really made every effort to find the right car for me. So far, he has been unsuccessful. However, the other dealership has the car I want but they have been rude and deceitful. I have refused to do business with those people. I have decided not to make a purchase until I find the perfect car for me. This could take a very long time.