Miscellany Monday - Dallas & Mary Kay

Monday at our house is pretty much synonymous with Carissa and Miscellany Monday.  It is always fun to join this group of lovely women who share their thoughts and lives with us.  Thank you Carissa for getting us together.

Miscellaneous Thoughts

This past weekend I went to Dallas, Texas for a Mary Kay Career Conference.  May I just say that Mary Kay women can be some of the loudest and most enthusiastic women I've ever been around?  I'm trying to decide if it is a natural trait that helps make them successful, or if it is the being together with other beautiful, successful women that brings it out, or if I'm just getting old and everything seems louder and more raucous these days.

Regardless, it was a great weekend of motivation, inspiration and education.

We stayed at the Omni Hotel in downtown Dallas which adjoins the Convention Center.  The location and accommodations could not have been better.  Our room was on the 19th floor and I just have to share with you the view of the city from that height.

View looking north at 6:00 P.M.

 View at 11:00 P.M.

 View at daybreak

The whole end wall of our room was glass which gave us an unlimited panoramic view of this huge Texas City.

Mary Kay
has just introduced some wonderful new products.  If you are interested, I would love for you to visit my website:
www.marykay.com/libbyday

Back Porch Update

We are making a wee bit of progress on our porch enclosure project.  Hubby took the mosquito curtain down this weekend, and power washed the walls and windows.  The cabinet maker has our plans and the windows should be in this week.  The painter is ready and waiting for the call that it is his turn.

So, stay tuned.

  

Don't forget to join me on Friday for "Elegance - Part 2 - Beauty!"

Have a great Monday, my friends and remember,

 

Indiana Trip Continued

Indiana Trip Continued!

I want to share a bit more of our trip to visit our family in Indiana.

A night at Amish Acres in Nappanee, IN.

The Round Barn Theater is the most awesome attraction at Amish Acres.  Built of wood in 1911, it’s probably one of the most unusual theaters you will ever be in.  It is actually ROUND! And it has such an interesting history.

After the barn was purchased from an Amish farm a few short decades ago, 100 Amish carpenters in Nappanee and beyond were hired to take apart the old round barn.  Each piece was numbered, moved to its new home at Amish Acres, and reassembled in order to house a permanent memorial to Joseph Stein and a theatrical hub in the small Indiana town of Nappanee.

A view upward of the completely wooden ceiling.  An awesome sight!

The Amish Acres Historic Farm and Heritage Resort has celebrated 40 years of historic interpretation.  It opened to the public in 1970 to preserve and interpret the Amish lifestyle to the outside world while respecting the integrity and privacy of these plain people.

The center point of Amish Acres is the historic 80-acre farm that was homesteaded by the first Amish family to settle in Indiana and is the only Amish farm in America listed in the The National Register of Historic Places.  Pretty amazing, isn't it?

This century old barn restaurant where the famous Thresher's Dinner, a family style feast of Amish country favorites, is served daily, sits slightly to the left and behind the theater.

 We have had the pleasure of attending other productions at the Round Barn Theater, but none any better than the "Sisters of Swing - The Story of the Andrew Sisters." Sisters of Swing

I just have to tell you that had I not known these precious girls were not actually the Andrew Sisters (of course an impossibility) and were not lip-syncing, I would not have believed it.  They were fabulous!  Even my two granddaughters enjoyed the story and the music.

 Before we went out to dinner prior to the play, we had a Mary Kay make-up session.  How fun for me and the girls.

 The after!  Aren't they just beautiful?

 Another highlight of our trip was making a trip to Kalamazoo, Michigan where our grandson has made a verbal commitment to play football at Western Michigan University in 2013.

Yes, and now I can honestly say, "I've been to Kalamazoo and back!" 

I see one of these in my future!

 You know these Midwestern girls are tough when they play soccer in freezing cold temps with winds over 30 mph and in a driving rain.  But the grandparents from the South are not quite so tough, but we loved every minute of it.

Thank you Day Family for another great visit.

Wednesday Hodgepodge - Labor Day & Isaac

Thank you Joyce for these stimulating questions this week for

Wednesday Hodgepodge.

1. Americans will celebrate Labor Day this coming weekend. Do you know what we're actually celebrating? (without consulting your friends Google or wikipedia, ahem) What's a project you're currently 'laboring' over?
 Labor Day is always on the first Monday of September and was established as a special day to recognize and show appreciation for the American labor force.  Those special people who have contributed to the economic survival and exceptionalism of this great country.  Unlike our esteemed President who seems to believe that the government has provided all that has made America great, these wonderful entrepreneurs and laborers are the true spirit of America's greatness.  Thank you!

 I am not laboring over any project right now.  I'm retired, remember?  However, I have recently started my own Mary Kay business and although I don't actually labor, I do hope to make a contribution.

2. Labor Day also signals the unofficial end of summer for most of us...what summer food will you miss the most? If you're in the southern hemisphere feel free to substitute winter for summer. 

I will most miss the red, juicy, delicious watermelon. 

3. A well known proverb states, 'It's easier to seek forgiveness than ask permission.' Your thoughts?

 I see this as a copy-out for poor behavior.  I'm sure there may be the occasional exception, but any action that would require forgiveness without permission, just probably should not be done.

4. Food critic, film critic, book critic, art critic....which hat would you most like to wear?

I would love to be an art critic.  Okay, maybe I am already a self appointed one.

5. When you were a kid, who (besides your parents) was your favorite adult

It was my Aunt Thyra. She was the most elegant lady I had ever known.  She dressed to the nines and wore the most beautiful shoes.  Her home was well decorated in a traditional style which I still love.  I just loved everything about her.  The fact that I was her favorite didn't hurt either.  Don't tell my sisters, because they thought they were her favorite.

6. The astronaut, Neil Armstrong, passed away last week. He was regarded as a hero by many generations of people all around the world. Do we still have modern day heroes? What makes someone a hero?

I am not a hero worshiper.  But yes, there are persons today who are examples of purity, integrity, strong ethics, and who are willing to take a stand for right.  A hero could be a parent who loves and provides for his/her family and sets the example for principled living.  A hero could be a coach, a teacher, a friend or a neighbor of character or a humble and shy astronaut.
  

 It has been said of Neil Armstrong:  "Neil Armstrong was far more than a symbol but he came to symbolize American innovation for decades."

 On this Labor Day weekend, I think it appropriate to recognize and remember all persons who have helped symbolize American industry and innovation.

 7. I never get tired of __________________.

I never get tired of being with my family.  This weekend, my two sisters and I are getting together just because.  We are meeting just to be together and watch LSU play its first game on TV while playing make-up and getting a spa treatment.

 

Early September, we will be going north to the midwest to be with our son and his family for a couple weeks.  We always look so forward to our time with them.  Shortly after we get back, we will go west to Dallas to celebrate our baby granddaughter's 6th birthday.  After that we plan a trip south to see hubby's brother and sis-in-law.

Yes, family is something in which I never tire .

8. Insert your own random thought here. 

 Thoughts on this Wednesday are with family and friends who are in the path of Isaac this week.  It brings back so many memories of Katrina and the stress of not knowing about the welfare of our son who was administrator of a rehab hospital in New Orleans East.  He was responsible for patients, employees and their family members who chose to ride out the storm at the facility, for three days before being rescued.  But, mostly it reminds me of God's faithfulness as He heard my pleas for peace, protection and wisdom for our son.  God heard and answered.  God is good!