V-E Day

Yesterday was Victory in Europe Day.  (V-E Day).  70 years ago, Germany surrendered to the allies, and the war in Europe came to an end.

In honor and memory of this day, there was a celebration in downtown Washington yesterday.  Many of the remaining survivors of WW2 were there (all in their 90's), at a special invitation only event at the World War 2 Memorial.

There was also a flyover.  The Arsenal of Freedom flyover.  70 airplanes that had flown in WW2 flew over Washington DC.  They came down the Potomac River, and banked into Washington just past the Lincoln Memorial, flew down the mall, swung past Nationals Stadium, and then flew out.  Some airplanes went back to Dulles Airport, where they are to be on display at the Udvar Hazy Museum.  (the Smithsonian Museum that is not on the mall).  The rest flew back to their various home airports.

Unless if you are from this area, I don't know if you can appreciate the enormity of the planning that went into this event.  Since 9/11 there has been a strict no-fly order in place over Washington DC and the National Mall.  Reagan National Airport and Bolling Air Force Base are both located on the Potomac River.  The pilots landing at National regularly come down the Potomac River to land, using the landmarks on the river as their guideposts to banking, turning, and landing.

Dulles airport is not that far down the river, and was not only the rendezvous air space for the planes, it is the airport that the planes going on display at Udvar Hazy were to use.

So, shutting down the air space for the hour that the planes would be flying over DC involved shutting down all arrivals and departures at National, and awareness of the airplanes at Dulles.  Both airports had to be ready to allow planes with mechanical issues to land during this time.

Organizing this was no small feat.

I had a harebrained scheme to head down there yesterday.  Actually, I've kind of been planning this for months now, since I first heard news of the flyover, but yesterday morning, it seemed like not so good of an idea, but I had already passed the point of no return.

Middle son has no classes on Fridays.  His semester ends on Tuesday, and finals begin the next day.
So, we laid our plans and headed into town.  We had decided to drive in and find a parking space.  With my gimpy knee, I know I can walk some, but I was concerned about the amount of walking and standing that would be involved with a ride on Metro.

Shockingly enough, we found free parking.  And it wasn't that far off from where I had thought we'd park!

We hiked the mile and a half down the river to what we thought was a good spot.  We knew the planes were flying in at 1,000 feet, and we had researched the route pretty thoroughly.  We found a spot within site of the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington Memorial Bridge that afforded us a really good view of Roslyn and points upriver. We watched as the boats and yachts came upriver and dropped anchor around where we were, as well as just North of the bridge, adjacent to the Lincoln Memorial.  We watched people fill the bridge, and people walk past us, and people line the bank of the river across from us, but surprisingly, only 12 people were within site of us.  I was more than a little concerned that the planes might bank just a little too far to the north of us, and we would lose them in the tree line.

Anxiously, we awaited the arrival of the airplanes.  Everyone strained their eyes, looking for the first dots to appear over the horizon.

As the majestic forms appeared above the highrise buildings upriver, a roar from across the river reached us.  We looked up to see the most magnificent site.  4 airplanes flew slowly downriver, emitting a low pitch rumble that reached down into your soul.  I can't imagine how terrifying the rumble of thousands of those engines were as they approached cities under cover of darkness for midnight bombing runs.

And then, the planes flew towards us.  They banked inland and flew directly over our heads and into Washington.  For an hour, we watched, awestruck, as these birds that had won the war flew over us and into the city.

By God, they were beautiful.

When it was all over, we stood there, awestruck.  People slowly stood up, and walked away.  The silence in the air around us was palpable.  Middle child and I stood there for quite some time, watching the planes circle back out of the city, and breaking away to fly off in different directions.

"The romance of the old planes," he said.  "No airplanes now are as sexy as those airplanes were."


I did take some pictures yesterday while we were out.  I don't have a lot.  I was using my phone, so the quality isn't great, but I did want to share what I do have:

The Jefferson Memorial.  We parked not too far from here.  What a gorgeous day!

Along the Potomac River.  Those highrises are in Virginia.  The Pentagon is directly across from us.  The Lincoln Memorial is just to the right of that bridge.  The Washington Monument is to our right.  There were only 12 people along the river bank with us.

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I've included a link to live coverage from our local DC/Baltimore radio station below. They have some fantastic footage, photos, and video.  BTW, if you look at the pictures of the National Mall, keep in mind that we were on the river bank with 12 other people.  We found the right spot!

Dozens of Vintage WWII Planes to Fly Over D.C. « CBS DC

This is the link to the coverage of the DC Fly Over.  Lots of information, pictures (better than mine) and videos.



Check it out!





Dozens of Vintage WWII Planes to Fly Over D.C. « CBS DC

Tales from the Classroom

I was a substitute teacher.  My Four Year Mission? To teach in strange new classrooms, in different schools throughout the county.  These are the tales of a substitute teacher.

Assignments of two or more days are unusual for substitutes.  Typically, these assignments go to people well known by the teacher or staff of the school.  Only rarely are they put out on the  SubFinder system for anyone to grab.

I felt particularly blessed this particular spring day.  I had found a 2 day job at a school in the Northern part of the county, just before the beginning of Spring Break.  Even better, the job was for a kindergarten aide!  More than likely, the regular aide would be the teacher, and I would be relieved of the responsibilities of classroom management.

I arrived on the first day to find both the teacher and aide waiting for me in the classroom, in order to explain our very unique situation.

The school was being renovated, one pod at a time.  As each new pod opened, the grade would move into the new classrooms, and then renovations would begin on the old classrooms.  At this point in time, the new kindergarten pod and expansion was completed.  The aide was going to be teaching, I would be helping, and the teacher would be moving things down to her new classroom just as soon as the County Building Inspector gave the go ahead.

We started our morning with a classroom full of children and equipment, and the teacher sitting at her desk, working on the kids' records.

Late that afternoon, the teacher got approval to move into her classroom, and things began to get strange.

The teacher had a large cart.  She would load the cart up with stuff, and then take off down the hall.
When we left school on Thursday afternoon, she had emptied her closets, and had the custodian help her move the tadpoles in their tank down to her new classroom.

Friday was surreal.  We started with a classroom full of students and a fully decorated classroom.
As the day wore on, the items in the classroom slowly started to disappear.  Entire bulletin boards, learning centers, play areas, books, just *pouf* gone.  The kids were mostly game, as they thought this was a grand adventure.

When we came back from lunch, all of the tables and chairs were gone.  It was me, the aide, 18 children, a rocking chair with some books, and a CD player.

We improvised for a while.  Took the kids out for an extra recess.  Went to specials.  Went over to another kindergarten classroom to watch a movie, and then... we ended up back in our classroom.  Everything was gone at this point.  We sat in a circle on the floor in an empty classroom and the aide said "I know!  Let's play Duck, Duck, Goose!"

I know, you're sitting there thinking "an empty classroom, a nice, simple little group game.  Great idea!  What a great way to wait for the buses to be called!"

I sat in the circle on the floor as first one little guy, and then another took turns going around the circle "ducking" the other kids.  I kept a close eye on the clock.  We had 10 minutes left until dismissal began when disaster struck. 

The little man who goosed his friend took off at a pretty quick clip around the circle with his friend in hot pursuit. Little man tangled his feet up in each other and crashed to the floor.  As we watched in horror, little man then rolled across the empty floor and smacked *slam* into the closet door.  When he sat up, we noticed in horror that the pattern of the lattice work from the bottom of the door was imprinted upon his head.

I grabbed little man and ran him down to the nurse, before he even had a chance to realize what was going on.

The nurse pulled out an ice pack and called his parents while I ran back for his backpack, because, guess what?  Bus Dismissal was getting ready to begin.

As I turned the corner into the nurses' office, instead of the expected tears, I saw the great big grin on Little Man's face.

"What are you smiling about?" I asked?

"That was awesome!  Did you SEE that barrel roll?  And how hard did I hit that door?  Is the metal still in?  I was trying to knock it out!  Did you see my head?  Look at these cool lines!  And now?  I AM GOING TO BE THE FIRST PERSON TO GET ON MY BUS!!!"

*sigh*

Book Review: Star Trek Crafts

image: amazon.com

Pederson, Angie.  The Star Trek Craft Book.  2013. Gallery Books, a Division of Simon and Schuster, New York, NY.

Book Review:
This amazing little book features Star Trek themed crafts for the very crafty trekkies.  There are enough crafts in her to warm your heart, whether you are a fan of TOS or one of the later shows.

The crafts range from very easy to challenging, and include such fun as crocheting amigarumi characters, to making dog sweaters in command colors from fleece.

Since I had Mod Podge left after we made our glitter mugs, daughter and I made custom sneakers - covered in the characters cut from a comic book.  (But we didn't use Star Trek comic books, we chose the Flash.  Oh, the irony of it all!  I hate running, and so does my daughter, so let's make shoes loaded down with the Flash!  Maybe I'll like running even more?

The directions for all of the crafts are very well written, and easy to follow.  The materials required for the crafts are inexpensive and easy to find.

Do you see that tri-coder the sock monkey is carrying on the cover?  That's my next project.  I see my Halloween costume beginning to take shape!


Author's Web Site: http://angiepedersen.typepad.com/

I read her blog, and I am in total awe of the author!  She is a pretty amazing person!  Her blog is a lot of fun to read through!


Update:
I was just writing up the review of this book for my YA blog when it hit me- that monkey on the cover, made out of a sock?  IT'S A SPOCK MONKEY!!!

Sometimes, I crack myself up!  (My kids are rolling their eyes right now.)

Disclaimer: This post contains links to my Amazon Affiliates Account.  Your purchase through this link helps to support this blog.  Thank you!

A Reluctant Girl Scout Leader

6 years ago, I became a reluctant Girl Scout Leader.  It's been quite a ride.  I've been the unconventional Girl Scout leader.  I've also managed to keep 5 of the 7 girls I began with.  That's actually pretty phenomenal, considering that the girls are teenagers and it's not "cool' to be a Girl Scout.

All of the girls earned their Gold Award.  (Girl Scouting's highest honor).  Each girl did an individual project that tied in with their own individual passions.  Each project required over 80 leadership hours.

Girl Scout Gold Award

Over the weekend, we had our very last meeting.  It was a bittersweet meeting.

We sat and reminisced about all the crazy stuff they'd done over the years.  From the adults getting lost in the corn maze to the day we accidentally called the White House Public Relations Office, to the tour of the State House, laughs rolled on for hours.


They are graduating this year, and they are all headed on to college. All of them have received scholarships of some kind or another.  Each one of them has learned through the years we've been together that once you decide where you want to go, you sit down, make a plan, telling you how you're going to get there, and then follow that plan with stubborn determination, making changes as you find out more about your goal.

I gave them two things to take with them.

Scrapbooks, ready to go!

I made a scrapbook for each one of them.  I struggled through most of last year, trying to get those albums done.  I took the pictures from all the way back when the troop was first formed and they were such little girls.

Our Silver Award Project was making blankets for Project Linus.  So, for each of them, I made a blanket to take with them to college.  They're not big blankets.  They're just enough  to put on your lap, or wrap around you on a cold day and help keep you warm.

Box 'O Blankets

I'm very glad our journey is finished.  It was a wild ride, and I enjoyed almost every single minute of it!

I sincerely hope that if you ever have the opportunity to become a Girl Scout leader, you jump on that opportunity and make the most of it!  It can be frustrating, but the rewards are oh, so amazing.

The opportunity to help young girls define who they are and achieve their goals?

Priceless.

You can read an older post about my musing over Girl Scouts here:
http://mini-van-mom.blogspot.com/2013/09/girl-scouts.html

Book Review: By Any Greens Necessary

image: amazon.com

McQuirter, Tracye Lynn.  By Any Green Necessary.  2010.  Lawrence Hill Books.

Softcover,$14.95.  ISBN: 978-1-55652-998-6

By Any Greens Necessary tackles the Hows and Whys of becoming a Vegan.  The author, Tracye McQuirter, has been a Vegan for 20 years.
With breathtaking honesty, she looks not only at her own journey in becoming a Vegan, but the meat and dairy industry that dominates our culture.  (Hint - don't read this book while eating.  Trust me on this.)

Tracye also addresses the common concerns about the existing Vegan myths in chapters entitled "Milk is for Heifers", (calcium), "The Truth About Carbs", and "Where Do You Get Your Protein Myths?".

This refreshingly honest look at Vegetarian and Vegan foods will have you thinking twice about your everyday eating habits.

Included at the end of the book are step by step directions for fantastic Vegan dishes, including Spicy Black Beans, Oven Grilled Veggie Skewers, and Beet Salad.

Author Web Site: http://byanygreensnecessary.com/

Note:
With my allergies to soy and wheat gluten, eating Vegetarian can be tricky.  Reading this book takes some of the guess work out of working around my allergies.  While I have no intention of becoming Vegetarian, we do eat Vegetarian meals several days a week.  Our daughter is a Vegetarian, and I am always looking for more information for me and her to make certain that she gets a wide variety of healthy vegetarian options.  (NOT peanut butter and jelly for every meal!!)

Disclosure Notice: This post contains a link to my Amazon Affiliates Account.  Your purchase through the link supports the Mini-Van Mom Blog.

2015 Resolutions

Wow, April has literally flown by.  I injured my knee when I fell earlier this month, and I tore a couple of ligaments.  The recovery has slowed me down - a lot.  There's been no walking, unless if it's with crutches, so yeah, no power walks during this beautiful weather.  :(  Graduations are fast approaching, too.  One on the 21st, and one on June 4.  I've scheduled a Graduation Festivus over Memorial Day Weekend, that should be something.  Me with a bad knee, and a party full of kids.  I know the kids don't tend to be picky, they just like to have a place to hang out.  But I want everything to be fantastic!

Progress on my 2015 resolutions:

1) Exercise More.  FAIL.

2) Lose 10 pounds.
I have not stepped on the scale this month.  With my mobility limited, I'm afraid to see what my weight looks like.  I  have been watching what I eat like a hawk, though.  Nothing that isn't green and healthy.  *blech* 

3) Remodel the Hall Bathroom
You know, every time I get to the point where we've got a decent amount of money saved, something breaks and needs to be repaired.  We're able to pay cash for it, but this leaves the bathroom fund decimated.  With this in mind, I set up a completely separate account, from our main checking and savings accounts.  We have accounts at two banks, so I set this account up at the local bank where we keep our spending money, and the kids have their accounts.  There's not a lot in there, but I'm hoping that we won't have to tap this one for emergencies.  Maybe, just maybe I'll get this done by Christmas!

4) Finish Oldest Child's Quilt
I'm taking a break on this until after graduation.  Out of 30 squares, 18 are quilted.  I am confident I will have this finished before he goes to graduate school this fall.  (The real reason I've taken a break?  I'm out of thread and don't want to walk all the way into the fabric store to pick up more thread, and my husband refuses to do it for me.  *sigh*)

5) Clean and Organize the Family Room in the Basement
Finally, something crossed off my list!

6) Cut back on the time I spend on Social Media.
I've fallen down on this over the last month, especially since the events of last weekend in Baltimore.  I was following social media pretty closely.

7) Read 75 books this year.
Progress?  I've read and reviewed 19 books.  You can see the links to all of the reviews here: http://mini-van-mom.blogspot.com/p/2015-book-challenge.html.  Unfortunately, I had estimated that I needed to have read 25 books by the end of April in order to be on track for 75 by the end of the year.  I'm 6 books short of that goal.

8) Get out of debt.
We're within a couple of months of retiring another credit card - balance paid completely off.  I currently have 4 cards.  1 is paid completely off, and 1 that we should have paid off before the end of the year.  Both of those cards are currently frozen inside of a plastic baggie in a large block of ice in the deep freeze.  Available if we need them, but not easily accessible.

9) Spend More Time With My Family
I've taken what I've been able to get over the past month.  Middle child was home for the weekend last week.  We're taking oldest child up to look for an apartment near the school he'll be attending in the fall this weekend.

10) 365 Grateful
Sadly, I've fallen down on posting pictures to Flickr this month.  I need to get on that!
You can find me on Flickr:  https://www.flickr.com/photos/librarynut/

11) Replace the Car that was Totaled.
This ties in with #3, above.  The separate account, at the bank that we don't do most of our banking through.

12) I will maintain my friendships.
Does running into an old friend in the ER count?  I was there for my knee, she was there with her husband, who was having symptoms of a heart attack.  I sat and talked with her when she was chased out of the room by the doctor.  (He's fine!)

Seriously, I've been working hard at getting together with friends old and new.  I've enjoyed catching up with everyone!  (6 hour lunch yesterday....)

13) I will have more adventures.
I'm going to milk this knee injury for all it's worth!  This has been an adventure!!

14) Craft More
I have almost finished daughter's graduation scrapbook.  It's adorable, if I do say so myself.  I've got about 20 more pictures I need to chase down, as well as a graduation announcement.  Once I get this all pulled together, I'll write a post about it.  I've had tons of fun working on this project, and found gems to add to another collage frame in my hallway!

So, have you made any progress on your resolutions this year?