Has it really been since June since I've written???? Wow. Every time I want to write something, there is always something else to do, something else that needs to come first, something else to take care of before I give myself the luxury of writing. Why do I do that to myself? I love to write. It's very calming to me, and helps me to sort out my crazy, sometimes stressed world.

Well, let's get caught up on what's been happening. Everyone came home safe and sound from Honduras. When I picked Katie up from the church, she desperately needed some "American" food, so we went to Denny's and she had a "junkie breakfast", topped off with a bowl of fruit with whipped cream. Then we went home and she was able to get some sleep while I washed all of her clothes so she could spend the next day packing to get ready to go to my cousin Sandy's house in North Carolina for 2 weeks. She took the Concord Trailways bus down to Boston, where Sandy's cousin lives, celebrated the 4th of July by watching fireworks from Dolly's porch overlooking the Boston Harbor, then they both flew out from Logan the next day to start their two weeks with Sandy. When Katie came home, she was only home for a few days before Alex and I left for our annual Civil Air Patrol Encampment at Otis Air Force Base,on Cape Cod.

However, a few days before she came home, therefore a few days before we left (everything really overlapped this summer), Sandy's son Nick and his wife Rebecca came up for a 2 1/2 day visit since they were visiting Becky's family in Vermont and wanted to show us the newest addition to their family....twin boys!! So, now they have five children under the age of 6, two of them twin boys a few months old!! It was quite "lively" around here for a few days.We also couldn't mention that Katie was in North Carolina visiting their grandmother while they were up here because they would have wanted to go right home so they could see her! In the middle of all this, though, I'm dealing with tons and tons of last minute packing for both Alex and me, phone calls like crazy trying to arrange transportation for my Maine Wing cadets, emails and list serves to attend to, plus trying to have a nice visit. It was quite a busy time, for lack of a better word. I loved seeing them, and seeing the kids, but it was a really bad time for me and I feel like I wasn't able to give them the time they needed. Because I am the Encampment Public Affairs Officer, and this year Alex was my assistant, we had to practically bring a whole office with us. Paper, computers (my laptop and his desktop), two printers, about 10 boxes (no kidding) of miscellaneous PAO/office stuff, and more boxes of random things like straws, coffee cups, the sugar and coffee, bandannas, sewing kit and sewing machine, and iron, Wrinkle Release (trademark logo here?)......you name it, I probably had it with me. Not forgetting, of course, our uniforms, and suitcases with clothes and extra uniforms for the 10 days.

Since I am the Director of Cadet Programs for Maine Wing, in addition to 'just' making sure I had everything I needed, I also had to make sure all of my Wing cadets had transportation down there, secure drivers for the Wing vans, figure out which vans were going to be able to stay with us for the duration, and which one had to come back to Maine. I also had to make sure everyone had paid, if they were going to pay once they got down there, or if a squadron was paying for them. In addition, I had to get all names to my drivers since I would already have been down there for 2 days with the adult and cadet staff before my other drivers arrived with the basics. Along with all this, I was trying to put together a surprise video to commemorate Col Treadwell's 20 year of sacrificing so the cadets could have an Encampment, plus all the millions of other things he's done for the cadets of this Wing (and now the Region). That would have been done back in the Spring, as I had planned it, but my computer kept crashing, Movie Maker took forever because it didn't have enough.....whatever it needed, and even trying to scan in old pictures of him that I confiscated right from under his nose (I'm sneaky!! And I had help from his wife and daughter) took forever. By the time I got my new, wonderful, beautiful, FAST computer in June, I barely had time to get used to it when it was time to go to Encampment. This meant that the entire video would have to be made at Encampment, with Col T's office right across the hall, and a newsletter to get out everyday, plus being present to take all the pictures needed for the slideshow we present each year at the end of Encampment for the cadets.

But, both slideshows got finished, I was able to buy a beautiful Eagle trophy and have it delivered there without him knowing, and a perfect newsletter was printed every day. One of the other Senior Members on staff, Lt Abby Renzullo, was invaluable in putting together the slideshow for the cadets....she's amazing. And, Col Prouty was my "spy" in getting the Eagle trophy for me, giving me the name of the trophy place he uses down there, and smuggling the trophy onto the base without Col T knowing about till the presentation at graduation.

Even with all the pressures, Encampment is so much fun. In a very strange way, it's relaxing. Other people might not understand why, but anyone who has been involved with one knows exactly what I'm talking about. To me, it's a very organized vacation away from my life at home. I still wait on people, in a way, but it's making sure the cadets are where they are supposed to be at a certain time, the newsletter gets printed, pictures get taken (by me!!!!!), breakfast lunch and dinner are always at the same time, and I am not constantly asked, "What do you want for dinner?" My sole focus while I'm there is helping to ensure the activity runs smoothly, things are produced on time, and to help where ever I'm needed. I don't get to bed til 1 or 2 in the morning, I'm up again between 5 and 6 AM, and I'm happy. It's great.

With Alex as my PAO, this year we had a blog so the parents/friends/cadets-who-didn't-attend could read it. He wrote it everyday, in addition to writing all the newsletter articles, so it was wonderful to have that extra time being able to devote to getting just the right picture in the newsletter AND so I could have that extra, valuable time to work on Col T's slideshow.

Oh, what an incredibly organized chaotic two weeks of my life. And, I love it more every year.

However, I was so glad to get home to spend some time with Katie!!!! Since she left for her "surprise trip to Honduras" on June 20, I had only seen her a grand total of maybe five days. Not nearly enough. Even though there was nothing "official" planned for August, the three of us never seemed to be in one spot at the same time to do something fun. Alex had been gone most of June and July helping his friend Bobby & Family move into and remodel their "new-to-them" house. It needed some major renovating, and Alex's strength and work ethic are very much appreciated. Once we got back from Encampment, he went back to helping over there (a few blocks over from us), plus he and Bobby started on a project for me---putting a railing up on the deck. It used to go right out to a huge above ground pool, but as Katie and Alex got older, they were busy doing other things besides swimming so after a year of non-use, by mutual decision we got rid of it. We only had it a few years, but it was well used in that time. So, the one end of the deck hasn't had a railing for like 5 years, but the house insurance company saw that on one of their random checks, and they "dinged" us for it. The fall from the deck to the ground is only about 5 or so feet, we don't have any little kids running around, and my dogs are smart enough to know not to step out into thin air, yet we have to put a railing up for non-existent dumb visitors who wouldn't know enough to think, "oh, wait, I shouldn't get too close to the edge since there's no railing there!!!" We've had tons of people in all shapes and ages on that deck, and we haven't lost one yet!!

It rained so much this summer!! Katie had planted a small garden, but some of it just didn't want to grow because it was sooooooo wet. Alex and Bobby did the best they could on the railing, but even so it didn't really get finished til this past weekend when my kids came home from college and they were able to get it done. It looks very nice. Great work for two young men who had never built anything like this before. I had told them in general what I wanted, and they took that information and built something very nice.

Between the rain, being busy, and Katie's and Alex's individual plans, August was still not our month to be together. Finally, the last Sunday in August we went to Acadia National Park to see the waves caused by Hurricane Bill. They were gorgeous and I got some great pictures. We took Katie's friend, Elizabeth, with us. She and Katie have been friends since grade school, and now from a strange set of circumstances, they are college roommates!! It's nice. They get along so well together.

So, Acadia was great. The following week it was time for them to pack and get ready to move back to their dorms. Another school year is upon us. With them back in school, I have been taking all my extra time getting stuff in order around here. I have cleaned my room (still a work in progress, but it's better than it was), attacked the back yard--chopping down errant trees that have sprouted, bushes that are no longer blooming because they are too "leggy", grape vines that are growing into the neighbor's trees, etc....... That was a 4 day project in itself, and I'm still not done!!! I need to mulch around more flower beds, and Alex has to till Katie's garden under so it's ready for next year. I think they are coming home again in a few weeks, so that's good.

Oh, I almost forgot another huge project that happened this year (Spring into summer as the time permitted). Bobby and Alex chopped down the icky, ugly overgrown "evergreen" bushes that were in front of the house, and I got plants--real plants, not those icky, ugly bushes again--to put there. We'll have a real flower garden in the front again!!! I can't wait til next year! It's going to be beautiful. That project too up more time than it seems on paper. In addition to clearing out those hideous bushes, I bought three yards of good "planter's" dirt from Sprague's nursery. The rocks from around the original "rock garden"/"rock edging" had to all be moved so they could put the dirt that I had bought and had Sprague's dump it in the driveway, all that dirt had to now be transported to its new home in front of the house. After that, the new plants were bought and planted.....and next year we add more plants!!!

I am getting very, very tired now. Earlier, I couldn't sleep because I have so much on my mind, which I hope to be able to take the time write again, so I got up, took two aspirins, and started writing. It's starting to catch up to me now.
Good night.