~ Keep the True Meaning of Christmas Alive & In Your Hearts ...~

~~ MERRY CHRISTMAS ~~

View/follow us @ http://blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com

We are no longer on this blog. For those of you I missed, I apologize.

~ Feedsack Fantasy Cordially Invites You ... ~

Join us at our new blog ~ http://blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com (We have MOVED)

May your holidays be merry & blessed

Merry Christmas & HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

TTFN ~ Marydon

Our new blog ~ PSSSSST!

You are cordially invited ~

NEW BLOG may be followed & viewed @ http://blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com

(Joshua & Santa 1993)

Have a beautiful day ~ TTFN ~ Marydon

~ Dear Santa, I have a request ... (& GIVEAWAY WINNERS)!!

Please tell all my 'Mini' Marydon's friends to come follow/join her on her NEW blog ... http://blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com/

Mini does not know how long this blog is going to be here. She misses hearing from you. Thank you.

(This photo was of Joshua in Dec. '93, he was 2 3/4 yrs old. Isn't he precious? He was sooo serious, as you can see. And he is using my PINK pen ... good boy!)

*****

***GIVEAWAY WINNERS ***~ Congratulations, ladies please send me your addresses to ~

blushing_rose_boutique@yahoo.com

1st place ~ Quilt Hollow

2nd place ~ Deb

3rd place ~ Carrie of Farming in Faith

4th place ~ Restyled World

5th place ~ Fancystitching

6th place ~ Happy Cottage Quilter

~ Remember When ... Charlie Brown ... '

Remember sitting around glued with anticipation to that television to view this first program ... how that music echoes on ...

December 9, 1965
A Charlie Brown Christmas is the first of many prime-time animated TV specialsbased upon the comic stripPeanuts, by Charles M. Schulz aired for the first time.

~ WWll History Events & Memoir ~

Thank God for these brave men who were caught off guard thru a sequence of events, rose to the attack without question to protect our great country!

We can never give enough honor to our troops who continue to fight our freedoms for this great nation.

The Arizona Memorial (above pictured) I have visited. It is solemn & heartbreaking to stand on her. (You may also enjoy my post of Dec.5)

~~~~~

Memoirs ~ John Joniec can never forget. He recalls 'Roosevelt called it a day that will live in infamy' ... I have never forgotten it. He & his buddies in Schofield Barracks had little money left in their paychecks after deductions so they hung out together. The next day before 8AM he & his buddies were sitting on the barracks porch when they heard a loud boom. Joniec thought it was the Navy on maneuvers.

Within seconds of that loud boom a squadron swooped down through a mountain pass & over palm trees. Painted on the underside of the wings were red circles. 'Japs'! someone shouted.

Acting instinctively with rifles & ammo in hand they shot at the bombarding planes. As a Japanese fighter plane dived low & strafed the barracks, Joniec cocked his head close to the barrel of the machine gun to avoid whizzing bullets ..... while the sergeant blasted thru a full belt of ammo. This permanently damaged his eardrum nerves.

A scene from his boyhood in the early '30s flahsed to mind. He & his father are on the docks in Pt/ Richmond, watching scrap iron & steel being loaded onto ships bound for Japan. His father warns: "Someday they're going to use that stuff against you guys.'

More than 84,000 service personnel were within three miles of the island of Oahu that terror-filled day that propelled the US into WWll. The attack destroyed or grounded nearly 350 aircraft, 21 ships were sunk or badly damaged. More than 2,400 Americans were killed, including 68 civilians.

His son in 2006 saluted him in a poem titled 'The Pineapple Solder'. One verse reads ~

The day of infamy would sear

And forever ring in his ear

War is not a game or story

Men find death. There is no glory.

(Excerpt from the Frederick News Post)

~~~~~~~~~~

Sequence of Events

Saturday, December 6 - Washington D.C. - U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt makes a final appeal to the Emperor of Japan for peace. There is no reply. Late this same day, the U.S. code-breaking service begins intercepting a 14-part Japanese message and deciphers the first 13 parts, passing them on to the President and Secretary of State. The Americans believe a Japanese attack is imminent, most likely somewhere in Southeast Asia.

Sunday, December 7 - Washington D.C. - The last part of the Japanese message, stating that diplomatic relations with the U.S. are to be broken off, reaches Washington in the morning and is decoded at approximately 9 a.m. About an hour later, another Japanese message is intercepted. It instructs the Japanese embassy to deliver the main message to the Americans at 1 p.m. The Americans realize this time corresponds with early morning time in Pearl Harbor, which is several hours behind. The U.S. War Department then sends out an alert but uses a commercial telegraph because radio contact with Hawaii is temporarily broken. Delays prevent the alert from arriving at headquarters in Oahu until noontime (Hawaii time) four hours after the attack has already begun.

Sunday, December 7 - Islands of Hawaii, near Oahu - The Japanese attack force under the command of Admiral Nagumo, consisting of six carriers with 423 planes, is about to attack. At 6 a.m., the first attack wave of 183 Japanese planes takes off from the carriers located 230 miles north of Oahu and heads for the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor.

Pearl Harbor - At 7:02 a.m., two Army operators at Oahu's northern shore radar station detect the Japanese air attack approaching and contact a junior officer who disregards their reports, thinking they are American B-17 planes which are expected in from the U.S. west coast.

Near Oahu - At 7:15 a.m., a second attack wave of 167 planes takes off from the Japanese carriers and heads for Pearl Harbor.

Pearl Harbor is not on a state on high alert. Senior commanders have concluded, based on available intelligence, there is no reason to believe an attack is imminent. Aircraft are therefore left parked wingtip to wingtip on airfields, anti-aircraft guns are unmanned with many ammunition boxes kept locked in accordance with peacetime regulations. There are also no torpedo nets protecting the fleet anchorage. And since it is Sunday morning, many officers and crewmen are leisurely ashore.

At 7:53 a.m., the first Japanese assault wave, with 51 'Val' dive bombers, 40 'Kate' torpedo bombers, 50 high level bombers and 43 'Zero' fighters, commences the attack with flight commander, Mitsuo Fuchida, sounding the battle cry: "Tora! Tora! Tora!" (Tiger! Tiger! Tiger!).

The Americans are taken completely by surprise. The first attack wave targets airfields and battleships. The second wave targets other ships and shipyard facilities. The air raid lasts until 9:45 a.m. Eight battleships are damaged, with five sunk. Three light cruisers, three destroyers and three smaller vessels are lost along with 188 aircraft. The Japanese lose 27 planes and five midget submarines which attempted to penetrate the inner harbor and launch torpedoes.

Escaping damage from the attack are the prime targets, the three U.S. Pacific Fleet aircraft carriers, Lexington, Enterprise and Saratoga, which were not in the port. Also escaping damage are the base fuel tanks.

The casualty list includes 2,335 servicemen and 68 civilians killed, with 1,178 wounded. Included are 1,104 men aboard the Battleship USS Arizona killed after a 1,760-pound air bomb penetrated into the forward magazine causing catastrophic explosions.

In Washington, various delays prevent the Japanese diplomats from presenting their war message to Secretary of State, Cordell Hull, until 2:30 p.m. (Washington time) just as the first reports of the air raid at Pearl Harbor are being read by Hull.

News of the "sneak attack" is broadcast to the American public via radio bulletins, with many popular Sunday afternoon entertainment programs being interrupted. The news sends a shockwave across the nation and results in a tremendous influx of young volunteers into the U.S. armed forces. The attack also unites the nation behind the President and effectively ends isolationist sentiment in the country.

Monday, December 8 - The United States and Britain declare war on Japan with President Roosevelt calling December 7, "a date which will live in infamy..."

~~~~~~

In memoriam for our WWII military men who fought courageously for our freedoms ... & our military men that continue this valiant effort for us ... be it not in vain.

May she continue to fly freely ...... (Our flag pole in the front yard in our snow storm today). I thought you might like to read about this gorgeous eagle, our national bird, that represents our country.

Trained Free-Flying Eagle

About "Challenger"
Challenger is a non-releasable Bald Eagle cared for by the non-profit American Eagle Foundation. Since 1991, this majestic bird has been a free-flying educational ambassador for his recovering species in the wild. He was blown from his Louisiana nest in a storm at five weeks of age — was rescued and hand-raised by well-meaning people. As a result, he became human-imprinted for life.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOZF4vTAF2M&feature=channel

Members of the Texas Rangers line up on the first base line during introductions as Challenger, a bald eagle, flies down to his keeper on the mound prior to the Rangers home-opener.

Named in honor of the lost space shuttle crew, Challenger has performed free-flights during the USA's National Anthem at hundreds of events coast to coast — raising substantial public awareness for the Bald Eagle protection cause. He is the first Bald Eagle in American history trained to free-fly into stadiums and arenas during the singing of the Star Spangled Banner. He has helped educate millions of people about the need to protect the USA's National Bird.



AEF President Al Louis Cecere and Challenger, traveling educational
ambassadors for 19 years

Once on the brink of extinction, the Bald Eagle has made a successful come-back to the USA's lands, waterways and skies. In June 2007, our nation's living symbol of freedom was removed from Endangered Species Act protection. Its dramatic recovery is an American success story attained by caring people working together. It will now be up to every United States citizen to keep this precious national treasure flying strong and free for future generations.

The words and music of the "When Challenger Flies" song (the video sound track) were composed and performed by James Rogers, entertainer and songwriter (www.jamesrogersmusic.com).

~ God Bless Our Troops, In Memoriam ... WWII ~

Looking just above the tallest tree in center of picture you can see a Japanese plane approaching Hawaii, the day that we were attacked.

This is in memoriam for all those brave men that fought for our freedoms ... may their souls rest in peace. We are so grateful for all they have done & given to us. AND, for the men who continue to valiantly fight for our freedoms ..........

Land of the free ... let's keep her that way.

~~~~~~~~~~

Reports by Survivors of Pearl Harbor Attack

DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY - NAVAL HISTORY & HERITAGE COMMAND

(These are copied in entirety so you will not miss any important info they recounted)

USS West Virginia

**Lieutenant Commander T. T. Beattie wrote as follows:

About five minutes to eight I was in the wardroom just finishing breakfast, when word came over the loud speaker from the officer-of-the-deck, "away fire and rescue party." This was followed immediately by a second announcement over the loud speaker, "Japanese are attacking, all hands General Quarters," and the general alarm was rung.

I heard several dull explosions coming from other battleships. Immediately I left the wardroom and ran up the starboard passageway to the bridge. The Captain was just ahead of me and proceeding in the same direction.

At this time the ship listed at least five or six degrees and was steadily listing more to port. The Captain and I went to the conning tower, our battle stations, and at this time dive bombing attacks started to take place and numerous explosions were felt throughout the ship. Upon testing our communications with central station and to the guns we found they were disrupted. I suggested to the Captain as long as no communications were in the battle conning tower that we leave there and attempt to establish messenger communication and try to save the ship. We went out on the starboard side of the bridge discussing what to do. During all this time extremely heavy bombing and strafing attacks occurred. The ship was constantly shaken by bomb hits.

The Captain doubled up with a groan and stated that he had been wounded. I saw that be had been hit in the stomach probably by a large piece of shrapnel and was very seriously wounded. He then sank to the deck and I loosened his collar. I then sent a messenger for a pharmacists mate to assist the Captain.

Just then the USS Arizona's forward magazines blew up with a tremendous explosion and large sheets of flame shot skyward, and I began to wonder about our own magazines and whether they were being flooded. I posted a man with the Captain and went down to the forecastle where a number of the crew and officers had gathered. I got hold of a chief turret captain to check immediately on the magazines and to flood them if they were not flooded at this time. Large sheets of flame and several fires started aft. Burning fuel oil from the USS Arizona floated down on the stern of the ship. Just then the gunnery officer, Lieutenant Commander Berthold, came aboard and I asked him to try to flood the forward magazines. Shortly thereafter I was informed that the after magazines were completely flooded but that they were unable to flood the forward magazines as the water was now almost to the main deck.

At about this time a large oil fire swept from the USS Arizona down the port side of the USS West Virginia. We had no water on board as the fire mains and machinery were out of commission and we were unable to do any fire fighting at all. I got into a motor launch to go to the stern of the ship to investigate the fire. The smoke was so heavy that I could not see aft of the bridge. As I got into the boat a sheet of flame swept on top of us and we barely managed to get free of the fire. I then had the boat take me aft. The burning oil on the water swept by the ship and I managed to return to the quarterdeck. I realized then that the ship was lost.

The attack lasted approximately thirty minutes. We were able to fire all our ready ammunition on the anti-aircraft batteries, but were unable to replenish it as the ship was flooded. I then told the men on the quarterdeck, with the exception of a small working party, to leave the ship. I believe at this time that all the wounded had been taken off the ship and it was extremely dangerous for anyone to remain aboard; that nothing could be done to save the ship and shells from the secondary batteries were constantly exploding due to the intensive heat of the fire midships.

The conduct of the crew and officers was outstanding. There was no confusion and every man and officer did his duty as well as he was able under the conditions.

**The story of D. Weissman, Seaman, First Class is as follows:

I was in the lower handling room of Turret IV. After the first hit, I went to the shell deck. The lights went out and the ship started to turn over. I went to the lower handling room and followed a man with a flash light. I entered the trunk just outside of handling room on the starboard side. The lower handling room flooded completely. Water entered the trunk. I dove and swam to the bottom of the trunk and left the ship through the hatch at the main deck and swam to the surface.

Eleven men in the lower handling room of turret IV escaped through the lucky bag. When the rescue party cut a hole in the lucky bag, the water rose rapidly but all men were removed before the water flooded the lucky bag completely.

Five men were in the five inch twenty-five caliber handling room preparatory to sending up anti-aircraft ammunition. They escaped to the five inch handling room and reduced flooding through ventilation ducts by stuffing rags in the lines. They were eventually saved by the rescue party by way of the shaft alley.

Eight men with water up to their necks were rescued from the steering compartment after these men, who had set condition "Z," were enabled to enter the steering room through the hole made for them. Three holes were made in all; pumps were in use constantly to keep the level of the water and oil below the danger point.

~ 1905 Vintage Film of Cable Car in San Francisco ~

ABSOLUTELY A MUST TO VIEW THIS PIECE OF HISTORY~ Enjoy! This film is one of the most fantastic pieces of REAL documentation of a day in a cable car, going from Market St to the Embarcadero ... notice how few women (& their bustles & hats) are on the streets, the horse &carriage,covered wagons,..

http://www.wimp.com/sanfrancisco/

Early Cable Car History: The driving force behind the San Francisco cable car system came from a man who witnessed a horrible accident on a typically damp summer day in 1869. Andrew Smith Hallidie saw the toll slippery grades could extract when a horse- drawn streetcar slid backwards under its heavy load. The steep slope with wet cobblestones and a heavily weighted vehicle combined to drag five horses to their deaths. Although such a sight would stun anyone, Hallidie and his partners had the know-how to do something about the problem. Hallidie had been born in England and moved to the U.S. in 1852. His father filed the first patent in Great Britain for the manufacture of wire- rope. As a young man, Hallidie found uses for this technology in California's Gold Country. He used the wire-rope when designing and building a suspension bridge across Sacramento's American River. He also found another use for the wire-rope when pulling heavy ore cars out of the underground mines on tracks. The technology was in place for pulling cable cars. The next step bringing Hallidie closer to his fate was moving his wire- rope manufacturing to San Francisco. All that was now needed was seeing the accident for the idea to become full blown-a cable car railway system to deal with San Francisco's fearsome hills. ~~~~~~~~~ 6 GIVEAWAYS ~ Enter on our Dec. 2 post @ blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com

~ I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas ~ & GIVEAWAYS

Bing Crosby (Harry Lillis Crosby) was nicknamed "Bing" after a character named "Bingo" in a comic strip titled "Bingville Bugle." Other nicknames were ~ Der Bingle & the old groaner. Bing was only 5' 7" tall.

His large ears were pinned back during his early films, until partway through She Loves Me Not (1934).

From the 1940s to the 1960s he owned 15% of the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team. His cameo in Angels in the Outfield (1951) was as part-owner of the team.

"White Christmas" became the bestselling single for more than 50 years

During the Vietnam War, a secret code was to have been broadcast informing all US personnel that an immediate evacuation had been ordered. The code was the playing of Crosby's "White Christmas" twice on the Armed Forces Vietnam Network (AFVN), followed by the announcement "The temperature in Hanoi is 105 and rising.".

Bing Crosby was the fourth of seven children of Tacoma, Washington, brewery bookkeeper Harry Lowe Crosby and Kate Harrigan Crosby. He studied law at Gonzaga University in Spokane but was more interested in playing the drums and singing with a local band. Bing and the band's piano player, Al Rinker, left Spokane for Los Angeles in 1925. In the early 1930s Bing's brother Everett sent a record of Bing singing "I Surrender, Dear" to the president of CBS. His live performances from New York were carried over the national radio network for 20 consecutive weeks in 1932. His radio success led Paramount Pictures to include him in The Big Broadcast (1932), a film featuring radio favorites. His songs about not needing a bundle of money to make life happy was the right message for the decade of the Great Depression. His relaxed, low-key style carried over into the series of "Road" comedies he made with pal Bob Hope. He won the best actor Oscar for playing an easygoing priest in Going My Way (1944). He showed that he was indeed an actor as well as a performer when he played an alcoholic actor down on his luck opposite Grace Kelly in The Country Girl (1954). Playing golf was what he liked to do best. He died at age 74 playing golf at a course outside Madrid, Spain, after completing a tour of England that had included a sold-out engagement at the London Palladium.

He fathered 3 children by his first wife, 4 by his second.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

GIVEAWAYS ~ 6 Christmas giveaways gifts will be given away on Dec. 8th. Pop over to Dec. 2 blog post ~ blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com

~ Historical Tidbits ... 6 GIVEAWAYS ~

1804 ~ Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of the French

1859 ~ militant abolitionist John Brown was hanged for his raid on Harpers Ferry the previous October

1927 ~Ford Motor Co. formally unveiled its second Model A automobile, the successor to its Model T

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* Giveaways below are featured on our new blog ~ blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com

** IF I have missed contacting you to follow us over there, please accept my apology & c'mon over!

~ GIVEAWAY WINNERS ~

blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com

If I have missed contacting you, I hope you will pop on over & follow us there.

Hope you all had a lovely Tsgiving holiday.

~~~~~

NEW GIVEAWAY ~ will be posted tomorrow. This is the final HUGEgiveaway that will be drawn on Dec. 8th (rather than the 7th) ... again there will be several selections to choose from.

*****WINNERS*****

Julie Marie ~ Idyllhours ~ won #1 giveaway gift

Terry ~ TerryTreasures ~ won #2 giveaway gift

Patti Page ~ The Enchanted Realm ~ won #3 giveaway gift (Pop over &VISIT our new blogger friend)

Congratulations ladies.

Send me your address to ~ blushing _rose_boutique@yahoo.com

~ Oy! Bloomin' Roses ~ & GIVEAWAYS

Please join us at our NEW blog (blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com) ... this old blog had too many issues to deal with & was collapsing. We hope to see you & that you each had a blessed & loving Thanksgiving holiday. Hugs to all ~ Marydon

GIVEAWAYS ~ I have posted our new delayed giveaway that will end Dec. lst. Please also visit our friends lovely giveaways ~

****Rebecca @ A Gathering Place has a giveaway ending Dec. 6th

**** Gail @ Shabby Cottage Shopped has a giveaway ending Nov. 30th

TA-DA!!! ... Memories & Exciting News To Share ...

Memories of yore ~
I was probably a mere 9 or 10 years old. I went to St. Joseph's with Patsy Ann (a cousin) for Thanksgiving Bingo. Mother was so worried about not having money for food that year & as we played Bingo for my first time officially I got a BINGO but didn't know what to do so, I tapped Patsy Ann & said 'I have a Bingo, I think' ... she went bonkers yelling BINGO & embarrassed me to death ... I WON A HAM & we had meat for dinner ... Mother was so surprised, I got a hug. Patsy Ann won something, too, but I don't remember what.

Do pop over for a visit. Due to glitches on Feedsack Fantasy & Blushing Rose Boutique (this blog) we are now visible at this new blog. We invite you to 'follow us' once again ~ ~ we are now @ www.blushingrosetoo.blogspot.com ~ ~

~ HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL ... GIVEAWAY ~

We had hoped to post the next giveaway today, but blog issues prevail so it won't be until we are able to correct this issues. Stay tuned, I apologize.

May your Thanksgiving be blessed, full of warm memories to be made ... watch out for the pecan pie!

Hugs to all ~
Marydon & Harold

~ GIVEAWAY WINNERS ... & Memories & More~

*** Send the ACLU a nice CHRISTmas card to remind them CHRIST is the reason for ALL season's & that our country was founded with God included in all our principles & documents ... flood them with nice cards ... here is mine. Let them know we do NOT support the actions they are taking to remove HIM!

*** Xerox is helping say MERRY CHRISTMAS & THANK YOU to our TROOPS, for FREE, follow this link & let's have an overwhelming response for our 'protectors of our freedoms'.

http://www.letssaythanks.com/

*** Christmas Memories ~ as a child we went thru some really rough moments after Dad took off with his girl friend, leaving us in the dust. Julie Marie (idyllhours) & I have been sharing some moments & memories of the joy we each had as children. We were thrilled to have nuts & candy & our stockings filled with crayons or pencils. It didn't take much to make us happy. Mother would stay up into the wee hours of the morn sewing special dresses or pinafores or ribbons, sometime even coats ... but the memory that will stick with me forever was the year all we got were barettes for our hair ... I don't recall what my brother got. Mother took us to Berryhill's 5 & 10 store ... Mother had exactly $1 to spend on gifts. We oooooh'd & awwwww'd over the barettes & magically Santa delivered them to us on that crisp, cold exciting Christmas morn. We were tickled with these pretties for our hair. A neighbor girl across the street got everything money could buy ... when we shared our beautiful gifts with Helen Jean, she asked 'is that all you got?' I shall never forget that wonderful moment of pride & joy became instant pain that knifed thru forever ... it hurt to the quick.

Since that time it was one of the factors in changing my life forever in 'giving' to others. I love the warm radiant smiles when I give ... the appreciation that is extended ... a moment of happiness given to another, without strings ... just sheer love & fulfillment in my heart & soul.

***GIVEAWAY WINNERS*** (Thank you all for your entries)

1) winner ~ Garage Sale Gal selected gift #3

2) winner ~Gary & Elizabeth selected gift #1

3) winner ~ Jean Tuthill selected gift #2

4) winner ~ Kim selected #1 but will receive #4

(Send me your addresses ladies, to the ~ blushing_rose_boutique@yahoo.com

Tomorrow we will post the next giveaway, drawing will be Nov. 30

~ Milkweed Silk & WWII ... & Trivia ... GIVEAWAY ~

GIVEAWAY ~Drawing tomorrow, enter on Nov. 16th post.
~~~~~~~~~~
Yesterday Lilly commented on my Antietam Illumination post about milkweed silk for parachutes. This hit a bell in memory so I decided to look up some data ….

Country school children were given gunny sacks to gather milkweed pods so they could dry. They were harvested for the kapok inner silk & used for filling life vests for bouyancy for our troops. They were also used in gloves & jackets to keep the troops warm.

This plant is highly toxic, but one child's mom said it was ok to eat before the sun rose & shone on it ... hmmmmm! I am not so sure.

While I was reading this data I ran across a couple of interesting notes & my personal memories ~

**People were asked to save old tin cans & old cooking fats ... the reason was make explosives. Fat contains something like 10% to 20% glycerine, which is vey useful in making things go 'BOOM'!

**Tin foil was saved by school children from gum wrappers & cigarettes.

**V mail ~ the sender would write the message on a special form which was then microfilmed to reduce space/weight & flown across the Atlantic ... at the other end the microfilm was photogrphcally enlarged, printed & mailed to the recipient.

**Stars were hung in home windows to indicate they had a family member in the military & a gold one for a soldier lost while serving.

**Margarine was white like lard with a packet of yellow (like food coloring) 'stuff'. We would squeeze it into the margarine & have a ball squeezing it until it was a bright buttery yellow. To this day I dislike margarine.

**Nylon was rationed for the war, so rayon stocking (nylons) were in vogue. Many women literally painted their legs with some coloring & took their eyebrow pencils & drew a line up the back of their legs. Or, they would paint their 'bobby socks/anklets' onto their legs ... that would 'wash' off in the rain.

**How children would play war killing their 'enemies'.
**I actually remember the black outs in the eves when lights went out, but we had heavy draperies on our windows that blocked out the light ... brown outs when power was dimmed by

the utility companies.

**War Bonds cost 10 cents a stamp, & when the book was filled ($17.50 value) we were issued by the bank a $25 savings bond that matured in 10 years.

~~~Awwww ... memories hopefully NEVER to return to this country.

Raise her high, protect her wide, she is our land, we hold in pride. (written by me)

Antietam Battlefield Illumination ... the Bloodiest Single Day Battle ~

The first illumination was held in 1988, held every year on the first Saturday of December yearly.

It is the most emotional, moving, solemn event as you drive thru ... each candle will bring to mind a soldier lying in this field. It brings tears to eyes .....

We have volunteered working on this project from day one. Hence yearly tradition, we take out our bbq grill & I cook 100 hot dogs, a gigantic pot of homemade soup, all kinds of cakes & cookies, hot tea & chocolate ... Harold & I donate it to the other volunteers in appreciation of our joint efforts to make this event a success.

Our volunteers come from all over this great USA, & from overseas.

Around 2PM we start lighting the candles in the bags that we set out all morning, as dusk slowly ebbs. The fields are dimly becoming vibrant with 23,000 lights representing each soldier that was killed, wounded or missing after twelve hours of savage combat on September 17,1862. Sharpsburg was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern soil. It was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history.

Marydon serving Don Beck a bite to eat.

Our 'troops' with their company flags.

A volunteer preparing a bag for lighting.

As dusk approaches, the night comes alive as we view the beauty of ...

the memoriam ...

for the souls of the brave soldiers that fought courageously ...

brother to brother to father to son to cousin ...

to defend what they believed in ...

taps can be heard in the distance, the carollers fill the air with blessed song.

Then the gates are opened to miles & miles of cars for the public to drive thru.

(If you should visit us this year we hope you will come say 'hi'. We are on Mansfield Ave. @ Clara Barton monument.)

~ Tidbits & Trivia *** FOUR GIVEAWAYS ~

I cannot leave a post for any of you today, I cannot edit, I cannot post pictures, I have no functions on the posting page such as color, fonts, adding pictures, etc. If I want to leave a comment it asks for word verification, with no word no verify with ... OY! it is a mess ... Sorry all, as I am trying to write you ... have a wonderful day. It also dumped part of my post just now ...
~~~~~~~~~~

Enjoy these tidbits of trivia...

Dick Smothers is 71 today ... remember that dry humor of 'Mother liked you best'

******************************

1947 Princess Elizabeth (now queen) married Philip Mountbatten ... & the world was enthralled with the movie that came out of their wedding. Gosh! the lines at our theatre were sooooo long to get in to view


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY ~~~~~
RULES ARE SIMPLE & THE SAME ~ Drawing Nov. 23rd
1 ~ All who ENTERED GIVEAWAY #1 & #2 will be re-entered automatically into NEW GIVEAWAY #3 drawing

2 ~ ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY #3, by leaving a comment on THIS POST ONLY & you will be entered AGAIN

3 ~ State which giveaway you would prefer ... #1, #2, #3, #4 (#s in front of each giveaway)

Spread the word ... ~~~ GRAND PRIZE ~~~ in December we will be having one huge GIVEAWAY celebrating all you wonderful new friends & in celebration of Christmas

~ Lincoln Today In History ~ & ***FOUR GIVEAWAYS ***

TODAY IN HISTORY ~ 1863 President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address as he dedicated a national cemetery at the site of the Civil War battlefield in Pennsylvania.
~~~~~~~~~~
Here we go with the next round of GIVEAWAYS, ladies. Go to Nov. 16th post to enter.

RULES ARE SIMPLE & THE SAME ~ Drawing Nov. 23rd
1 ~ All who ENTERED GIVEAWAY #1 & #2 will be re-entered automatically into NEW GIVEAWAY #3 drawing

2 ~ ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY #3, by leaving a comment on THIS POST ONLY & you will be entered AGAIN

3 ~ State which giveaway you would prefer ... #1, #2, #3, #4 (#s in front of each giveaway)

Spread the word ... ~~~ GRAND PRIZE ~~~ in December we will be having one huge GIVEAWAY celebrating all you wonderful new friends & in celebration of Christmas

Lovely Vintage Verse, Art & *** FOUR GIVEAWAYS ***

Heart O'Gold
This is one of my very favorite verses that I found while collecting memory verses & silhouettes.
The graphics are what caught my eye ... I enjoy the beauty of the old art.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY ~ ends Nov. 23rd
Go to Nov. 16th post to enter

~ FOUR GIVEAWAY GIFTS ~

#1 Giveaway ~ Mary Engelbreit fabric tea cozy (made by designer Vera in Canada), rose cup & saucer & vintage tea spoon, silver sugar, victorian silverware posey vase, 2 napkin/candle holders, bath salts, Vineyard Harvest soap (yum!), friendship spoon.
#2 Giveaway ~ Vintage bird saucer picture frame (created by us), bird stationary, bird vintage calling card note card, desk organizer, victorian lady tags, Greenleaf Flowering Orchids Savon Perlier soap, bath salts, heart sachet, gourmet coffee, Token of Affection book by Alda, keepsake bookmark
#3 Giveaway ~ Sweet white keepsake box with dividers inside, pillow sachets, tea wallet, teaspoon ornament, bath salts, designer soap, teaspoon magnet
#4 Giveaway ~ Blueberry Woodsong decorator candlestick, Wedgwood (old piece) dish/ashtray (great spoon rest), vintage tea infuser sachet, ice tea spoon magnet, lady slipper ornament/accessory, lovely sweet potholder, gourmet box of A Spot of Tea

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Are we having fun yet?
Here we go with the next round of GIVEAWAYS, ladies.

RULES ARE SIMPLE & THE SAME ~ Drawing Nov. 23rd
1 ~ All who ENTERED GIVEAWAY #1 & #2 will be re-entered automatically into NEW GIVEAWAY #3 drawing

2 ~ ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY #3, by leaving a comment on THIS POST ONLY & you will be entered AGAIN

3 ~ State which giveaway you would prefer ... #1, #2, #3, #4 (#s in front of each giveaway)

Spread the word ... ~~~ GRAND PRIZE ~~~ in December we will be having one huge GIVEAWAY celebrating all you wonderful new friends & in celebration of Christmas

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Thank you ALL for your best wishes, notes & love ... today was a really good day, I almost sound like myself finally. I got a ton of cleaning & wash done ... it was driving me UP the wall but at the time who cared, not me! for sure. Hugs, Marydon