Day 5

Beth, Doug, and Gloria near the Roanoke Marshes Light House on Roanoke Island at Manteo.
Watching the winning game of the World Series
Siblings on the Roanoke waterfront.
Roanoke water front.
Roanoke Marshes Light House.
Elizabeth II.

Today we went to Roanoke Island to visit the Lost Colony, Fort Raleigh, the Elizabethan Gardens, the Elizabeth II at Festival Park, and another light house. Rick stayed back at the house and did some exploring on his own, using one of the bicycles here at the house.

Festival Park is across from the Manteo waterfront. History comes alive, with actors playing the part of the “natives.”. We toured a 16th-century ship called the Elizabeth II.

Twenty-three years before Jamestown (1584), the dream of an English-speaking nation began on the shores of Roanoke Island. This small island was home to the first temporary English settlements in the New World, sponsored by Sir Walter Raleigh during the years 1584 to 1587. Roanoke Island Festival Park celebrates this period of Roanoke Island History through history-made-fun and a passion for the arts.

On Elizabeth II, a representative 16th-century sailing ship, we met sailors like those who sailed across the Atlantic in 1585. They were dressed in period garments and spoke Elizabethan dialect. They brought the history of the voyages to life at the Settlement Site, where we were introduced to the game of Skittles and worked with their k-nives carving tools.

Day 3 and 4 Lighthouses

Monday we went north a few miles to the light house at Currituck.



After we were unable to make the ferry to a couple wineries we went south and visited the Bodie Island lighthouse.



Tuesday we again headed south and stopped and visited the Cape Hatteras Light house.


Next we had to catch a ferry for a 40 minute ride to Ocracoke to visit the Ocracoke lighthouse.

Day 4 Whales

Sunday and Monday were cloudy, windy, and rainy. That didn't stop us from having fun. Yesterday we visited the Currituck Beach Light House in Corolla. Doug and Beth climed to the top while the rest of us looked around down below. We tried to visit some wineries only to realize we had to take a ferry and got there too late and had to wait till the next one so we gave up that idea. We also visited Bodie Island light house. I'll post some of these pictures later.

Roger and I caught the sunrise this morning. After breakfast we drove further south to Cape Hatteras light house and Oracroke Island lighthouse. The ocea was violent near Rodanthe and water and sand were over the road. County crews closed the road right behind us to other travelers while they tried to make the road safer.

After visiting the light house on Oracroke, we pulled off and walked over a sand dune to the ocean. As we got to the top of the dune we caught something off in front of us coming up out of the water. A WHALE!!!! It just kept going back and forth in front of us. I talked to someone who said he had been coming to the Outer Banks for years and had never seen one. It was a great day.

Lighthouse pictures to be posted tomorrow.

Day 2 Outer Banks

Slept with windows and slider open last night and woke to rain coming down. Can't wait to go see everything in the daylight. Weather forecasts is rain today but that won't dampen our fun any.

Chris and Topher are grandparents. Calvin Tyler was born just before 6 this morning. He weighed 9 pounds 3 ounces and over 21 inches long. Congratulations to the Bart and Erin and the grandparents.




After a late breakfast and spending time with the Loessers, we visited Kitty Hawk Museum today.


After spending several hours at Kitty Hawk the wind was really picking up and it looked like it would start raining. We went to a nearby restaurant, Outer Banks Brewing Company and had a late lunch/early dinner, chocolate molten cakes and a brew.

After dinner it was almost dark and rainy, but we drove south looking for the Bodie Light House. We found it (plus many deer along the way), but it it is no longer lit and was pretty dark. After hitting the grocery store for breakfast items and snacks, we came back to the Yellow Brick Road to watch the World Series and scrap.

Day 1 of Outer Banks

Saturday, October 31. We had set the alarm for 3:30. After loading the car, letting dogs out and feeding them, we left our house at 4:15 a.m. for Doug and Beths'. Everyone was on time and we were on the road to Kansas City by 5 a.m. Upon arrival at KCI we learned our flight had been delayed and we could still possibly make our scheduled fllight as it was only two gates over but they also booked us on a 6 p.m. flight out of Newark.

Flying into Newark I saw the New York skyline and the Statue of Liberty. Our flight attendant said our out-going flight was also probably delayed. Unfortunately I think it was the only flight on time that day out of Newark. After three gate changes, pizza, beers, and margaritas, our outgoing flight left at 7:15 p.m. We landed in Norfolk around 8:30 p.m. After getting the luggage and rental car, we didn't make it to the Outer Banks until almost 11 p.m.




Our hosts, Chris and Topher had wine waiting for us when we got here and were awaiting news on the birth of their new grandson.

Another year older

Birthday Self Portrait

Yesterday was my 55th birthday. I took the day off to recuperate from a weekend spent digi scrapping. One of my sisters took me to lunch and I'm going to lunch with my other sister on Friday. This was the first birthday that I found depressing for some unknown reason. I kept myself busy by draining the hot tub, cleaning it out and refilling it. When my hubby woke up he took me to dinner at Romano's Macaroni Grill. This is what I had to eat (and drink):
Create your own pasta: Penne with arriabetta sauce, the same thing I order almost every time to eat there.

A glass of the house chianti.
Their bread!!!!!!!!

Message to my good friend Sherry, thank you so much for the phone call this morning wishing me a happy birthday. You have no idea how much it meant to me. Thank you. When should we do lunch?

Free Textured Cardstock Styles for PS and PSE

The Scrappin Cop has some great stuff on her blog. She has a style that is okay for commercial use for PS/PSE to make your elements look like textured cardstock. Check it out here.

Sweet Baby

What I have been up to

Besides talking and drinking wine, I have been busy scrapping. Got four more vacation pages done:

Two more Colorado Vacation pages done

Scrapping weekend update

Finished two very simple pages from our Colorado vacation...



I've revised Cool Luke a bit this morning...

The Chick Nest Update #1

I'm at The Chick's Nest for a scrapping weekend. I've finally (after 6 hours of work) finished my first layout. Here it is....

A Note to My Young Self

41 years of advice to my younger self, for the Type+Writer class I'm taking at JessicaSprague.com. Pictures from 1968.

DMRegister (DMRegister) on Twitter

Dic Youngs, far right, pictured with Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.



DMRegister (DMRegister) on Twitter: "Iowa radio personality Dic Youngs has died, according to friends of the family. Details ASAP at DesMoinesRegister.com"

You've had to have lived under a rock if you grew up or spent any time in Central Iowa and not know who the old Youngster was. I grew up listening to him on KIOA. We lost a great one today.

Ray Dennis http://www.desmoinesbroadcasting.com/dicyoungs/dicyoungsprofile.html has said this about Dic: "He was inducted into the Iowa Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 and he is well enough known and respected by his peers that he may someday be inducted into the National Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame."

Dic Joined KSO Radio when he was only 16 years old, after winning a KSO amateur DJ contest. Dic was an instant star at 1460 KSO and he and Hal Moore rocked the teens of Des Moines from the "KSO Fish bowl" Studio in a window at 19th and Ingersoll. KSO Music Survey Sheet. Dic left KSO and worked briefly in at a Florida radio station, returning to Des Moines radio at 940 KIOA in February 1966. Dic didn't totally give up sports as he played for the KIOA High Hoopers Basketball team for 13 years and helped them raise nearly One Million Dollars.

There are some great audio clips, including an aircheck from 1966.

Photos from Des Moines Register and Ray Dennis.