Along The Mighty Missisip!

Yes - I did make it back from St Louis! Here are a sampling of some of the scenes and sights from my trip. Enjoy!

We are made to feel very welcome...

What shall we see while we're here?

They painted the town cardinal and straw just for us!

Every detail well planned and perfectly brought together.

The archives have our original pin on display...

As well as the loving cup.

My University of Toledo, Xi Delta sisters all in our ceremonial white.

East Side, West Side: Cleveland Rocks Baby!

Chi Omega has contributed over 3.8 million dollars and donated over 238,000 hours to Make a Wish since 2001

Our walking tour begins. Our guide a Missouri student orginally hails from Ohio! Small world... Follow the pennant!

Checking out the sights...

We stop to pose for a quick snapshot... thanks random stranger!

Molly is a good sport!

The city is a mix of new and old ...

Detailed frescos,

Lovely architecture,

Sculptures,

Remember Dred Scott? Got his own street now!

Local wildlife

Our trip to the arch is spoiled by a "dramatic pause"... a door won't open and we're unable to take our ride to the top.

So we shop! Sandy finds an owl - they're all about you know!

Then it's the return of the revelry parade...

...and I share the stage with sisters from California, Georgia, and Pennsylvania - what a blast!

Donations to the Owl Tree raised over $48,000 for the Chi Omega Foundation which supports our sisterhood in the areas of scholarship, leadership, communication, life choices, aid to sisters in crisis, and sustains our national headquarters and executive staff.

Checking out the nightlife, we had to meet for a quick Happy Owler with old friends.

We clean up pretty good!

Serenading the Governing Council...

So many lovely voices!

Next time I'm hitting the City Museum and the International Bowling Museum... But for today we're back to the Arch and up we go!

...and hit the top.

Some silly baseball stadium that's not the Indian's...There was a football field too, but it wasn't the Brown's or Packer's! How strange!

And the big city!

next to the mighty river,

um... we might be kinda high up!

Do you recognize these famous faces at the Museum of Western Expansion?

I'm a genuine Junior Ranger! Sworn in and everything!

Dipping my toe in the water... a bit high due to recent rains and flooding.

Everything I've learned and experienced this week has me walking tall as the Arch!

Meet me in St. Louis, Louis

I'm excited to say that I'm in St. Louis until Tuesday at my Chi Omega Women's Fraternity convention. We flew out of Cleveland Airport so you are treated to a snap of the fabulous paper airplane sculptures on the way to Terminal D. Always love to see them!

This event is SO AWESOME! My first very first one and I am learning so much about how to be a great advisor for my collegiate chapter back in Cleveland. Hoot! Hoot! I speak owl sisters!

Bad news - no more posts until I get back...

Good News - my camera is HOT and I will have fun shots of the city!

Blog with you soon!

Most Evil

Sure... He looks sweet and innocent, but we who know him, know better. One moment peaceful, thoughtful, even sleepy.

The next: Bloodthirsty. Imagining the sweet, faintly metallic taste of the blood from my jugular on his lips. But not today. Today is not the day he will enact his most evil plan. Perhaps tomorrow?

A profile of the subject: appears cool, detached, patient, calculating, capable of frenzy or bursts of rage and violence, abusive to his caregiver verbally as well as physically (likes to scream at as well as hit people), can turn on the charm for the unsuspecting, capable of assuming many persona - possible multiple personality, deviously plotted the removal of his step-sister from the home, is now slowly jealously plotting the removal of his step-mother (having recently attempted a failed coup of my side of the bed), enjoys luring folks to do his bidding then laughs at them (okay he can't laugh - that part I'm exaggerating).

The Husband wondered why I had not yet featured Geezer the Cat here at FTFH... I was afraid these guys might want to come and do a piece on him.

Or perhaps he is just a wonderful, simple kitten with no agenda and I'm the evil one. There is a strong precedent for evil step-mothers you know. Maybe we'll know the truth someday. I just hope there are no CSI necessary in the determination.

Don't get me wrong - he's still my favorite boy cat!

Today's Astrophysics Lesson

So I saw this recently in one of the fine periodicals the Husband reads.

It helps to explain so much about my community.

So, how do you suppose I can harness this new found power for good? The teleporter I ordered still hasn't come in... maybe I can reverse engineer something?

Suggestions?

Walk For Wishes

Last Saturday, June 28th, between the down pours, I went with my Chi Omega Sisters to the Cleveland Zoo for the annual Walk for Wishes. This is an event which raises money to help the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Ohio, Kentucky & Indiana. The organization grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions between the ages of 2 ½ to 18 to enrich the human experience with hope, strength, and joy. Chi Omega has chosen this as our national philanthropy, and we endeavor to support them in many ways throughout the year.

Please consider making a donation to Team Chi-O and Make-A-Wish at my event page here: PLEASE DONATE

We are so lucky in Cleveland to have a world class zoo within our metropark system. Thanks to them for allowing Make-A-Wish to hold the event here for another year! After the walk, we were treated to a wonderful lunch provided by Applebee's and Lay's. Kintico Water was another of the sponsors and we took full advantage of the hydration! Visit the sponsor page and see if there is anyone you might like to thank with your consumer dollars! I also took a stroll throught the Rain Forest with some of my actives from the Upsilon Mu chapter at John Carroll where I am an advisor.

Linda and I did complete the grueling three mile walk (just kidding... but that one hill was kinda tough!) I was able to take quite a few snaps along the way. All the creatures were very cooperative and posed nicely for me. My effect on the sloth has been officially documented: he was running throught the exhibit - you can see the blur! Oddly not the first time that has happened while visiting a sloth!

If you are in the area, do stop by and visit. They are sponsoring 2008 as the Year of the Frog, and they encourage you to leap into action! Many organizations have donated artist created frog sculptures through out the park for your viewing pleasure. You can commune with the Frogs, Dogs and Hogs! (Okay. Full disclosure: some of these are from last year. The giraffees for example are out courting and were not present in full force!) Enjoy!

1. wfw_umgals, 2. wfw_piranha, 3. wfw_lilac, 4. wfw_monkeyisland, 5. wfw_alienflower, 6. wfw_polarbear, 7. wfw_frog, 8. wfw_yellowflower, 9. wfw_iris, 10. wfw_vinesnake, 11. wfw_birds, 12. wfw_orangatan, 13. wfw_tomatofrog, 14. wfw_water, 15. wfw_um, 16. wfw_balloons, 17. wfw_reindeer, 18. wfw_lion, 19. wfw_aquarium, 20. wfw_gator, 21. wfw_elephant, 22. wfw_koala, 23. wfw_sculpture, 24. wfw_sloth, 25. wfw_giraffes

Summer Favorites

Visit the Online Firework Art Museum!

In honor of our Nation's Birthday, I propose a celebration of Summer! We are so blessed in the United States of America to have our freedoms and the ability to enjoy so many simple pleasures without fear. I'd go into detail as to why we should stop giving so many of those freedoms away - but I digress and that is a post for another day!

Here are my top ten Summer Favorites:

10. Indian's Baseball (um...still plenty of time to pull it out this season boys!?)

9. Memories of Summer vacations with Mom, Dad, Diana and Deb in the back of the Chevy Impala seeing the "world". Good times. Even if I did have to sit in the middle and never next to the window because I was the littlest. And the Drive In Movies in 'Old Blue' too when dad would put the plywood in the backseat to make a bigger bench.

8. The sound of the ice cream truck. Don't even necessarily need the ice cream - just the tinkling of the music!

7. Cooking out on the charcoal grill. Roasting marshmallows as the climax. And camping out all night under the stars.

6. Myriad festivals and fairs to be explored.

5. Running through the sprinkler. Repeatedly. Laughing.

4. Cool cotton dresses... like wearing nothing at all.

3. Chasing lightening bugs. (I implore forgiveness from all those poor bugs I desecrated - pulling off their glow to make rings when I was 7. I'm truly sorry.)

2. That feeling you get when it is sooooo warm, and you're in the shade with a glass of sweet ice tea, and the breeze hits you - not cool, just the feeling of summer on your skin. This one is tied with the feeling you get after you've been playing outside all day long, and mom makes you take your bath, and your hair is up but kind of damp from the bath, and you put your summer jammies on, and you're on the back porch, and the evening breeze comes in at twilight...sigh....

and the number one pleasure of summer?

1. You get to go barefoot and no one accuses you of being a hillbilly.

Happy Fourth of July!

Farmer Green Jeans

The husband is very proud of his small garden. And I am proud of him! We've expanded to two enclosures this year. With our varied visitors and weather events, I'm sure you understand the need for the 24/7 protection!

We do love our peppers on the grill... When this one grows up it's gonna be tasty!

...and Mom goes for the tomatoes. We'll call ya if we've got extra later in the season! (If you look closely, you can see the nifty watering system the Husband built to drip irrigate them...)

Next year we should add strawberries, and zucchini, and pumpkins, and....