Yup! It's Summer!!!

Hugssss to all my friends! I sure do miss everyone, but we all know that summer brings much time spent outside, at the beach, in the mountains camping, BBQing, and me with camera in hand at all times, (tee hee hee). Wolfie is doing remarkable! Just about back to "normal" and I have been for my second visit to the my Doctor, (as a patient) I am doing great! (huge sigh of relief!!!) I have lost all the swelling in my legs and feet (and I found out it was in my abdomen as well) but it is gone and I continue the water pill on an "as needed" basis! Yippieeeeee!!! I also have been breathing much better, with the fluid gone, I have lost 14 pounds as of Friday! omg I am sooooo happy! Wolfie and I have been walking, hiking, using weights and exercise ball, and treadmill along with the usual outdoor chores. I am sorry I haven't been here as often as I would like, but our health is much more important right now, I will try my best to get to everyone's blog as I can. I am here picking up messages every evening and continue to create custom themes, as ordered, but other than that I leave a quick message here and there on friends blogs......if anyone wants a theme, juss hollar! I have so many more new photographs to share along with a few pieces I turned into art, I will upload them as I can.

I have a set of thumbnails here that I took of flowers and such...(most are my own). And most are this years. Just click on any thumbnail and it will enlarge the photo for you. I hope you enjoy!

Until next time, I wish you all much love and blessings!

Dee

I hope everyone is enjoying the Memorial Day Holiday !

This weekend marks the beginning of summer fun, with BBQ's, camping, and many outdoor activities, and I wish everyone a safe & happy holiday weekend, but please remember what Memorial Day Holiday truly means....

It is a day to mourn, a day to remember our fallen soldiers, our veterans of war, those who fought for our freedom, so that we are able to have that picnic, so we can go camping, so that we may have our freedom to do whatever we want to do! Here is a bit of History on how we come to know and celebrate Memorial Day:

Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day because it was a time set aside to honor the nation's Civil War dead by decorating their graves. It was first widely observed on May 30, 1868, to commemorate the sacrifices of Civil War soldiers, by proclamation of General John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of former sailors and soldiers. On May 5, 1868, Logan declared in General Order No. 11 that:

The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land. In this observance no form of ceremony is prescribed, but posts and comrades will in their own way arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit.

During the first celebration of Decoration Day, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, after which 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried in the cemetery.

This 1868 celebration was inspired by local observances of the day in several towns throughout America that had taken place in the three years since the Civil War. In fact, several Northern and Southern cities claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day, including Columbus, Miss.; Macon, Ga.; Richmond, Va.; Boalsburg, Pa.; and Carbondale, Ill.

In 1966, the federal government, under the direction of President Lyndon Johnson, declared Waterloo, N.Y., the official birthplace of Memorial Day. They chose Waterloo—which had first celebrated the day on May 5, 1866—because the town had made Memorial Day an annual, community-wide event during which businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of soldiers with flowers and flags.

By the late 1800s, many communities across the country had begun to celebrate Memorial Day and, after World War I, observances also began to honor those who had died in all of America's wars. In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated the last Monday in May. (Veterans Day, a day set aside to honor all veterans, living and dead, is celebrated each year on November 11.)

Today, Memorial Day is celebrated at Arlington National Cemetery with a ceremony in which a small American flag is placed on each grave. Also, it is customary for the president or vice-president to give a speech honoring the contributions of the dead and lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. About 5,000 people attend the ceremony annually.

Here is a video I hope you watch, it was created by a disabled veteran in Honor of his fallen commrades:

So, Please take a moment to remember them all, and give thanks to God above for allowing us to live here in the U.S.A...... for we are truly blessed!....God Bless the U.S.A. !!!

This video will touch your very soul.... A must see...

Please take a moment to please watch it, then take a moment to pray for ALL soldiers who fight for their country, all over the world, for this is their Memorial too!

I wish everyone one an awsome Memorial Day!!

much love & blessings!!!

Dee

Hello Everyone!

Well I am trying very hard to get caught up on the blogs and my pics and yard work, house chores etc. LOL! I am having a hard time getting back into the swing of things. Not sure why, it just seems like by the time I get home from work, get all the chores done that need getting done, I log on here about 7-7:30 pm and poof! it's 8-9 pm! I read my mail, my online newspaper, and then before I know it, it's time for bed! ( I watch a few shows Tuesday through Thursday at 8 and 9 pm) Geesh I just don't know where the time goes...Anyway.....I am adding a group of thumbnails that I took at the Ripley's Aquarium, all you have to do is click on them to enlarge them...one by one.... hugssssss to you all!....I will be back again soon!....Oh yeah..... Happy Mothers Day to all you Mom's! much love and blessings!

Dee

**The above photo is Joe's tattoo he got done down here, he was so inspired by the Seahorses and what they stand for! ( the male seahorse carries the fertilized eggs to maturity and thus the babies are "birthed" by DAD!)....The tatt represents him and his twins....I thought that was a very cool thing to do!...what a great dad he is!...He is both Mother and Father to his girls.....He is a very special guy....I love him with all my heart!

Joe goofing off!

Hey there y'all!

I hope this Saturday finds you all safe & happy!

Not much going on this weekend besides the usual. I have been creating more backgrounds and put them in my group files, trying to absorb the CSS coding for backgrounds over in Y!Mash....I made a three bean soup today, it was cool enough for it here, thats for sure. Today I would like to share my pets pics with you along with a few others...

The first one here is Miss Misty Blue...she is a Ragdoll cat...the 2nd largest domestic feline in the world, (the Maine Coon is the largest) which my next kitty, Miss Isadora, affectionately known as "Dizzy" is a Maine Coon... Dizz' & Misty are sibling rivals for sure! LOL! always jealous of the other....next is my sweet little domestic short hair tabby, Miss Spirit, she is actually the most photogenic of the three and won me 1st prize with the photo below, this photo was also featured in Cat Fancy Magazine a few years back....Next is my Golden Retriever, Miss Bailey...she is 9 years old and a little slower these days...but so obedient and sooooo sweet! I added another of Misty Blue (wolfie calls her "Middy Boo'" lol!...that is his "baby"....although he adores each and everyone of our "kids". LOL! I have a million more pics of our kids, but I can post those another day....Until next time....

I wish each and everyone of you much love & blessings!

Dee

Happy Autumn to everyone!

This is my favorite season! The warm sunny days and the cool (crisp up North) nights. Apple pickin' time! Frost on the ol' pumkins! Harvest moon! Ahhhhhh!!!! I love it!

I have been a little slow to get around these days, it is canning season for me, time to make my spaghetti sauce, salsa, apple sauce and apple butter, pack pumpkin pie filling, etc. I love to do home canning, it is a hobby for me, but when I was growing up, it was a neccessity. I know just about everything there is to know about canning just about anything! LOL!! My kids always have me ship up my canned goods, they are spoiled by it, they say nothing is as good as mom's home made goods... (tee hee hee)...

Well on to other stuff, I have been playing with creating animations for MASH, and creating a few from my photography, I need to get my butt in gear to get Christmas backgrounds going for both here and over there in MASH... I surehope Yahoo merges the two, why not have the best of both worlds? I love my 360 and want to keep it, and I have always enjoyed creating animations. I have a few in my groups files, but usually will create upon request. I am getting ready to create more snow globes this year, now with MASH, we can use them over there. Sooooooo, if anyone wants one, just gimme a hollar, and it doesn't have to be Holiday oriented....it can be anything you want.....Well I just want to drop a quick note to let you all know that I miss you all and am glad to hear from you all too!

Until the next time....I wish you all much love & blessings!

Love....Dee

Hi everyone!

First off, I am a tad annoyed with yahoo 360!...Darn it all.... I cannot upoload ANY custom background themes, not even ones my friends have created....It seems it is "My Turn" for yahoo to mess with.....I will just sit tight and hope it blows over LOL!....Wolfie is doing better everyday...I weeded, n whacked in four of my flower gardens today and I weedwhacked the dang hills and cleaned up around our stone borders. I am whooped! my arms hurt again, but I feel okay, much better than last time.

I dont think I will be here much this week or next....This week during the week I have no time, and as of Friday, the 27th, I am on vacation from work, my youngest son is flying down for 10 days......yippieeeeeee!!!!!

I can't wait!!!! In the mean time.....Much love &blessings to all!.....Love....Dee

Here are this week's photography/or digital art!.....the scenic & cabins got it!.... Next time I will post insects (buterflies, lady bugs, bees....& ugly critters!)

This is my most popular photo......It is the photograph that sells the most on my site, it is my "Signature photo" for my business....my business cards and advertising, and represents "ME"I took this photograph on a Spring Morning in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park on the Tennessee/North Carolina border.....This, my friends, is why they call it the Smoky Mtns!

Hi everyone!

Well here I am trying my best to catch up on things...Why is it that the older we get, the harder it is to catch up on things? (It's a trick, I tell ya') LOL! Wolfie & I are doing great, actually....I am still in a slight state of depression though, I go through this every time I go back home and then have to leave, but I am okay, really.....I just miss my family alot, and they miss me.....I know they will come to visit soon (in intervals) so that means alot to me. I wanted to thank you all who commented on my hair, I don't like it, but it will grow back, it makes me LOOK TOO DAMN OLD!!! LOL! (who said 50 was old anyway?) tee hee hee....As you probably have noticed, I took the dang thing off my profile. Nuff said......

I created a slide show of my "Beebs" and my son, and my oldest granddaughter, Shawna .....hope you enjoy...also thumbs of the cabin we stayed in (which was, by the way, 8 minutes from where I lived) that was weird, but we had so much fun!. I hope all is well with everyone. Please keep in touch....I will try to get to your blogs by the end of this holiday weekend....I hope you have a wonderful Labor Day! Much love & blessings

Dee

We're back!

And way too soon I might add! How I wish

we had more time to stay. sigh!!! The Adirondacks are truly God's country! And My family is so very precious to me!

I have so many pics to work on, but I managed to get some up for you all to see....just click on the thumbnails and each pic will enlarge. We had a wonderful time in the cabin. It was very cool and refreshing for us...we actually had to light the fireplace at night to keep the chill off. I will get the pics of the cabin together and post those along with animals from the Adirondack Animal Land and my mom's and the family picnic, etc. We are pooped right out and have to get things in order for work (big huge YUK!!!) I promise I will try my best to catch up on all your blogs and thank you all for the lovely comments on my last blog ...well here are the pics....my precious beautiful wonderful family! (part of them )

I wish you all much love & blessings! Dee

Hi Folks!

Well this is no April Fool's Joke, dang it !

My file host dropped out off the face of the Earth, so now neither my work, or my music are available to view.... Oh well.... I am getting a few things uploaded elsewhere, and I am using a free file hosting this time....I am NOT paying for it again. It will take a little time, but I will get it all back up and visible again...Sorry about that.....Life here is still a little hectic, but we are managing better with every day. My arms are so damn sore. LOL! I have been on our hills with wolfie, weed whacking the darn things, and let me tell you, I can hardly lift my arms up an inch!... LOL!!! the rest of me is not too bad, but omg, I have no upper body strength at all, but by the time I am done with this summer I should be!... It's all good..really!

Wolfie and I are getting on better with each day, we continue to be smoke free, Yea!!!!

I am a tad short these days though..lol....and that is not me, but I guess it is part of it. Alot going on with family too....It's Spring...typical "new beginnings" etc. I will be back again to try and touch base with as many blogs as I can...until next time..... I wish you all much love and many blessings and I miss you all! Here's a little slide show I had for awhile, I have it posted on MySpace and on my personal website....enjoy....I also added a pic of a few daffodils I took this photo last week....