Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Merry Christmas. What a beautiful time of the year in Florida. I am looking forward to Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with Kelly and Hunter, Tim and Allison. Tom will be in Indianapolis with Brenna and Nora. They are having weather that is much worse than ours. I've been making fleece hats to keep us warm at night here in Florida. Yes, it does get cold in the evenings this time of year. We had to wear hats and jackets to St. Augustine last night to view the lights and visit Winter Wonderland. After a great dinner at the Columbia restaurant we wandered through Elf Village and Candy Cane Lane.

Great fun at Mousefest 2008. We had an opportunity to go on a tour with Steve Barrett who wrote the Hidden Mickey guides for both Disney World and Disneyland. I had no idea how many hidden characters, mostly Mickey's, are in the parks. Steve suggested there are close to 1000 so finding them could be a really fun challenge when visiting the parks. If you plan to visit the parks don't forget to go to Destinationsinflorida.com to find tickets, hotels, food venues, and other information. The owner of the site lived in Orlando, did her residency at Disney and is now one of the top agencies for Disney.

Make a Smilebox postcard

I spent three wonderful nights on a Disney Cruise recently with my oldest son and two grandchildren, Kelly and Hunter. It was the most relaxing and enjoyable vacation and one that I could recommend to anyone. It would be especially great for consultants who work Sunday through Thursday as you can leave Thursday from Port Canaveral at noon and return by Sunday at 7 am in time to fly out to your next engagement. The cruise went to Nassau in the Bahamas and then on to Castaway Cay. Castaway Cay is the Island that Disney owns. It had a pirate ship, beautiful beaches and a great bar-b-que.


Disney has fantastic attention to detail and the customer service is incredible. Everyone stopped to make sure our cruise was going as planned. They also stopped to talk with the grandchildren and every character on the ship stopped to say Hello to them. They also stayed in the children's area one night while we went to an adult dinner. The caretakers provided regular messages so we knew how the grandchildren were doing in the play areas.




My cabin was on the outside of the ship with a very large port hole window which gave me the opportunity to lay in bed at night and watch the waves and other ships go in the opposite direction. Beautiful sunrises and sunsets added to the enjoyment. To see all the pictures from the cruise, go to my flickr site.

Working in New Orleans at the National Finance Center. We stay downtown at one of the Renaissance Hotels so we are within walking distance of many wonderful restaurants. It is hard to diet in New Orleans.

I have been learning a new skill and am now a pretty good UPK developer. We have a very small team so it is easy to get to know one another.

The flights are not bad and certainly better than the coast to coast flights on the last few projects.

The pictures are some of the destruction that has not been addressed. Bourbon and Royal are pretty much as usual with the smells on Bourbon and the Antiques on Royal. Still lots of music and street people.

Working In New Orleans again and noting some of the changes. There are many buildings still in a state of disrepair scattered among those that have been totally rebuilt. We went down to Jackson Square last week and Royal and Bourbon have changed very little. Still dirty, smelly but lots of activity.


Kelly and Hunter are preparing for the upcoming Halloween Party. They are such a joy and truly give life meaning. They had sleep overs at Grammys and we went to St. Augustine, rode the "Red" train and played miniture golf. What a great day.

I went back to New Orleans this week. It was an interesting week and Metairie really hasn't changed much. The drive to the NASA building brought visions of empty homes, broken windows, damaged buildings and in many areas just general disrepair and destruction. It is hard to believe that areas still have not been cleaned out and many homes look as though they may never be rebuilt.

I read a book on the plane Which I can recommend. It is called "Shut up, Stop Whining & Get Life" By Larry Wingate. I thought it might be edgy but really had some good information. Like all books, you don't agree with everything but fundamentally it is a good book with information that can make you better. Many of the things he states, cannot be argued with and he has an approach to business, relationships, religion, money and stress that is a "get er done", results based approach. Worth the read

We didn't make it downtown so I am hoping next week our travels will take us at least to Jackson Square for a cup of Louisiana Coffee. We are working at the NASA facility which is out past the old six flags amusement park. The park is closed but the large rollercoasters and other rides stand abandoned like large dinosaurs or a forest of with large streams of metal trees and streams.

I have a grandson who loves pirates. I thought others might be interested in the pirate cake and party as well. It is such fun to be able to do the little extra things for grandchildren, things you may not have been able to do with your own children. When my children were growing up I tried to spend as much time with them as possible, but being the primary support, this wasn't always possible. It is difficult for a working parent to do the little extra things that are such fun. I did manage to have parties for them and it was always such fun and brought them such joy. They are older now with their own children and are doing a better job than I did at parties for the wee ones. I am grateful they both have loving partners to help them provide for and give love to my grandchildren. Take some time out today to do some little thing for your children, your grandchildren, or just have a party for yourself:-).

How to Make a Pirate Cake

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Having a pirate party? Celebrating International Talk Like a Pirate Day on September 19? Ahoy there matey, this pirate cake will be an instant hit with any budding swashbuckler. This article assumes that you already have the cake (madeira sponge); you can either make one or purchase one.

Ingredients

• madeira sponge cake
  
• buttercream
  
• chocolate sticks
  
• chocolate coins
  
• mint imperials (round mints)
  
• sugared miniature gems
  
• yellow cocktail sugar or yellow sherbet
  

Steps

1. Add the buttercream. Cover the whole of the madeira cake in buttercream using a palette knife. This will help the chocolate sticks stick to the cake.
   
2. Add the chocolate sticks.
   
   • Stick chocolate sticks to the long side of the cake.
     
   • Alternate them from side to side, as shown in this image.
     
   • Fill the gaps by cutting more chocolate sticks to length. Repeat on the other side.
     
   • Fill the ends with more sticks cut down to size.
     
   
   
3. Make "sand". Spread a rough layer of buttercream on the cake board around the chest.
   
   • Use a spoon to sprinkle the yellow sugar over the buttercream.
     
   
   
4. Place the treasure on top.
   
   • Cover the top of the cake with chocolate coins, and place a few around the sides of the chest to make it look like the treasure's overflowing.
     
   • Use mint imperials and mini gems to make necklaces and jewels.
     
   
   
5. Place the characters amidst the treasure. Complete the scene by positioning a few pirate characters and toys around the chest.
   
   • If wished, put a few bits of toy treasure in the cake. Just be sure to take anything inedible off the cake before you serve it, especially if this is for very young children.
     
   
   

Tips

• If you cannot find some of the candies/sweets/lollies mentioned above, substitute with ones that you have in your region, using your imagination to find suitable shapes.
  

Things You'll Need

• Clean workspace
  
• Palette knife
  
• Clean pirate figures
  
• Serving platter/cake stand
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Make a Fire Breathing Dragon Cake
  
• How to Make a 3D Dinosaur Birthday Cake
  
• How to Have a Pirate Party for Kids or Adults
  
• How to Have a Pirate Costume Party
  
• How to Act Like a Pirate
  
• How to Talk Like a Pirate
  

Sources and Citations

• VideoJug. A video of making a pirate cake; original source of article. Shared with permission and appreciation.
  
• Original creator of cake: expert Sugarcrafter Jan Clement-May and sugarcraft school, Squires Kitchen.
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Make a Pirate Cake. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

Going to Kansas City....what a great week. The weather in Kansas City was great and the training went well. It was a time to get to know our team better and we all enjoyed the evenings out.

You can tell by the smiling faces that is wasn't all work. Colin and Bob enjoyed sitting on the Fish Bench in front of Red Lobster on Metcalf Road. Sharon provided the navigation system to get us there and we all enjoyed a great dinner.

Those of you who have worked with Bob Patti remember he was called 212 because he was from New York. New Yorkers have a certain approach to the world and work that sets them apart.

If you want to set yourself apart from the crowd, read the book 212 and see that a single degree can make all the difference. Sometimes it is not the big things that make a difference but the small steps that make the difference big. Buy it and read it on the airplane between stops. Very easy read.

I just finished reading The Fred Factor by Mark Sanborn. It is a great book and a quick read. After reading it I think I want to be a Fred and follow the idea that everyone can choose to be exceptional. This is a book about Fred the Postman and I would recommend it to anyone who is building a team, managing a project, or wanting to make a difference in their lives. Some great concepts.."Measure what you Treasure", "no unimportant jobs, just people who feel unimportant doing their jobs." Go read it tonight and look at the world through glasses of awareness with a change in attitude, moving forward with action and making sure you accomplish something.

HowManyOfMe.com

There are 69 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

And so did Sharon

And Yes, I went down the slide too.

Another day in Dallas. Last night we went to dinner at a restaurant that had a slide. Yes, I did give it a try as the attached video will demonstrate. The food was excellent, and the company was fun. Too bad I didn't have my cowboy boots with me to do the boot scootin boogie as they had a great dance floor and even a band.

Flew into Dallas yesterday with only a one hour delay in Atlanta. It is Delta after all!! The location in Dallas is great and we are walking distance from the hotel to the office.
Tom is going in for surgery on his arm this morning. Brenna will be with him. They are doing twilight sleep so I am afraid he will hear some of it, but they did ensure his arm would not feel anything for about 12 hours. They will be putting an internal pin and an external pin and adjusting the external pin over the next few months to put the wrist back into position. I hope this is the end of the mountain bike urban assault adventures.

I f you haven't been to the Epcot International Food and Wine Festival and are thinking of a Florida week-end of Fun. Don't miss this one. Need to purchase tickets, reserve at hotel...go to http://www.destinationsinFlorida.com This is a travel site that is outstanding and the customer service provided by their agents is incredible. They make any vacation relaxing, refreshing and ensure attention to every detail. Just take a look at what is going on at the Festival and be sure to visit each country for a taste of food and beverages typical of that country. The Destinations Agents can talk to you about all the other venues in the Parks or surrounding Orlando area since they are there almost every week, did residencies at Disney, and grew up in the Orlando area. Not only that they maintain a very current website where you will find things for you, the children or anyone looking for a great vacation. Embark on an epicurean adventure as the 13th Annual Epcot® International Food & Wine Festival showcases the flavors of the world. Explore marketplaces featuring regional foods and wines, learn from renowned chefs and winemakers at special programs and demonstrations, and sample the finest cuisine from around the globe. Plus, be sure to savor the sizzling sounds of the "Eat to the Beat" concert series that stars a stellar line-up of popular musical acts! EVENT DATES: September 26 - November 9, 2008 EVENT TICKETS: This event is included with regular Theme Park admission. However, some exclusive Wine & Culinary Programs and Festival Dining Experiences require an additional admission fee. Eat to the Beat Concert Series Set the mood for food with the savory sounds of dazzling, diverse musical acts, live on stage at World Showcase, America Gardens Theatre. International Marketplaces Take a culinary tour around the world. Tempt yourself at each marketplace with appetizer-sized portions averaging $2-$4 USD. Savor the flavor with recommended beverage pairings at each stop on your journey. Special Exhibits Stroll along the promenade and visit a wide array of countries and regions of the world. Learn from amazing cultural exhibits that showcase native cuisines and offer terrific demonstrations that give insights into the people, as well as the tastes of these remarkable places. Fun for Families Tantalize younger taste buds with fantastic events and exhibits that bring fun to the table. Kids of all ages will enjoy these interactive showcases that give food fans an appetite to learn. Special Wine & Culinary Programs Indulge in culinary experiences that suit the interest of beginners and seasoned connoisseurs. Enjoy fare from the finest chefs as they prepare regional favorites paired with exquisite wines selected by winemakers. Take part in flavorful adventures that you will always remember. Festival Dining Experiences Experience truly memorable fine dining. The essential ingredients of fabulous cuisine, incredible wines and great company provide the base for an enchanting evening!

We are now under a tornado warning in our area. Rain just keeps pouring down and there seems to be no let up. The beaches are eroding and homes near Vilano Beach are threatened. I've put a few videos up to give you an idea of what it is like here but I am in a pretty protected area, although it is close to the intra-coastal so flooding is more likely here. The kids are losing trees and trying to keep the pool drained as it is continuing to overflow. This was supposed to end at noon but it is well past that and Fay seems to like our area as she is not moving away.