Washington DC - World War II Memorial

Finally, after a couple of years of trying to convince my father-in-law to go, we made the six hour trip to DC to see the WWII memorial.  My father-in-law, Bill, served from 1942 - 1947.  He was in the Army Air and was a fire fighter.  His unit would put out the fires from the planes after they crashed.  He has mentioned before that he saw things he doesn't want to talk about but he hadn't told me what he did before.

I think the whole trip was a little over-whelming for him.

The memorial was done beautifully.  They had columns for all the states, all the campaigns engraved in the stone and a beautiful reflection pool in the center.

There was a memorial wall with bronze stars, each one representing one hundred soldiers who gave their lives in the war.

While we were making our way through the memorial, Bill was approached by a Park Ranger who was giving a tour.  She asked him - "Are we in the presence of a World War II Veteran?"  Bill replied yes.  She then announced him to her group and the crowd of people there at the memorial, thanked him for his service and saluted him.  The crowds of people stood up and applauded him.  One woman even asked if she could take his picture.  Bill said he never felt more proud than that moment.

Bill told us later that day that when he returned home from the war, his plane arrived at 2am so there was no welcome home celebration.  He said that this trip and the warm welcome he received from the visitors gave him closure.  

I think back on the stories that he has told us over the years and it amazes me what these men had to live through.  There are very few WWII vets still living today.  They are all in their nineties and older.  Like WWI, it won't be long before the generation who fought was bravely for us are all deceased.  Remember to honor all our vets and always take a moment to thank them for their service.

Carousel Ride

Whew, what a week so far.  My husband and I took some well deserved time to ourselves for the past few days (thank you Mom), only to return home in time to send the kids to school for their first day of school!  We went to one of our favorite places, Charleston.  I hope I will have time to post some of my pictures tomorrow.

I also returned in time for the release of svgcuts newest kit Carousel Ride.  I have been trying to create a carousel myself for some time now.  Thank you Mary for finishing the job for me!  I have to admit, yours worked out much better than mine.  The file is actually made as a cupcake holder.  I changed mine to be just a carousel, I didn't have time to bake today.

This file really tested me.  The top was a little tricky.  I love the way it turned out, here are some pictures:

For the placement of the poles I added a small circle (.108) in center of each circle meant for the cupcakes.  This then allowed me to keep the horses space equally.  I also added the holes to the top liner so the poles would be straight.  To do this I centered the bottom piece (grouped) on the mat, ungrouped the bottom pieces, grouped all the small holes together, copied and pasted in place, with the small circles still selected hold down the shift key and select the bottom liner and group together, move this piece off the mat.  You should still have the small circles centered on the mat.  Next, center the top piece, select all the small circles and top piece and group together.  Now the top should line up with the bottom and you will have guidance for placing the poles.

To hold the poles in place I filled the little holes with glue then stuck the poles on.  You have to make sure to let them dry completely or they will move.

Bedtime Stories SVG Kit

Bedtime Stories SVG Kit is still a favorite of mine.  I love the nursery rhyme projects in this kit.  So, when my sister asked me if I could make some favor boxed for her nurses baby shower, I knew I wanted to used the castle somehow.  I remember my mom saying "That does look very babyish" when I showed her the picture.  Then Brigit posted her project,  Humpty Dumpty Treat Holder, and my project was born.

I used the following kits to create my center piece and treat boxes:

Bedtime Stories
Moonlight Garden Party
Camp S'mores
Cuddly Storybook Friends SVG Collection

Haunted Forest SVG Kit

Wow, I just love this new kit from SVGcuts, Haunted Forest SVG Kit (follow the link to their page to find the file)!  Mary makes the most awesome houses.  This one is now my favorite.  It went together perfectly.  I rarely have problems putting svgcuts files together.  They take so much time to make sure everything is just right.  That's what you get with quality.  I made the haunted house out of this kit.  I love how it turned out.  The detail is over-the-top!  If you've been on the fence about purchasing some of their files, I assure you you won't regret it.  Not only do you get the best designs, you get the best customer service in the business!  Anyway enough gushing, here are the pictures of my witch's house...

How cool do those webworms look in the background.  Don't worry, they actually don't harm the tree, they will be gone in a few weeks.  But they sure do make for a spooky background.

Oh, yeah I used paper from Midnight Magic by Mambi (I think, I pulled all the paper out of the pad).  I picked it up on clearance last year after Halloween.