Monday, June 15, 2009

Finito


The last part of our trip to England was spent at my Ginger Nannie's home. While we were there, I remarked on a cross-stitch she had above her chair of a dragon. It was beautifully done and I couldn't help but to keep admiring it. The last evening there, she handed me this cross-stitch. It was another pattern by the same company and she told me to stitch it up and then give it to my mother. On the way home over the big blue Atlantic Ocean, I started working on it. It was late September of 2005. I finally completed the last stitch in March of 2009. It took 3 and a half years to complete. A couple years ago, I brought it with me to Memorial Day, and my mom made the comment "Oh, Jen! That's going to take forever; it's a 22-count cross-stitch." Which means it is the tiniest cross-stitch I've ever done. To finish it off, I found 3 fabrics and made a border. Then found a open back frame. I am so pleased with how it turned out. This past weekend was my mom's birthday and I finished it in time to give it to her. And needless to say, she loved it. In addition, the frame perfectly matches her sideboard. A project finished and a promise kept to Ginger Nannie. It was well worth the time.

Sunday, June 7, 2009

2009 Air Show

Finally the day had come for the much anticipated Thunderbirds. They were originally scheduled for last year, but then were cancelled and recharted for this year. We wanted to be to the show early, but ended up at the base about the same time we always do. On the walk in, we bumped into Suzy, Caleb & Caden. With more than 300,000 people expected to show up for Sat's show, it was surprising to see them on the west side of the hangar. My parents had arrived earlier than us, and got great seats in front of the C-5. We were about 50 yds from the fence, which made it possible to see the jets taxi instead of just flying. The air show was a little disappointing. This year's show didn't seem quite as well planned, and many of the demonstrations did not show up. There was meant to be a B-2 flyover, an FJ Fury simulated dogfight with two MiGs, a second MiG demonstration, and an F-22 Raptor flyover; none of this happened. We did get to see some of my favorites, the P-51 Mustang and the FA-18 Hornet. And we also had a flyby with an A-10 (refer to Transformers for an awesome display of what it can do), and got to see an F-4 Phantom (the Smoker). However, the finale show done by the Thunderbirds was amazing. They cut out a bunch of the boring flybys, delta and diamond formations, and added in some new aerial stunts. One new stunt was of the four main jets; they each rolled separate and came back together in formation. They also coordinated well for the buzz, and then buzzed a second time with two jets. It was fun being with the family. And it was a privilege to enjoy the show that our military took time to put on. It also brings back many happy memories of growing up on military bases around the country, listening to the sounds of freedom screaming through the air. I love any opportunity to enjoy the sights and sounds of my patriotic upbringing.