Republican Convention Recap

Has your heart stopped? I'm actually posting the Republican Convention recap that I promised to you a month ago!

Day 1
Very tastefully done, considering the impact of Hurricane Gustav. Cindy McCain and Laura Bush make a great pair.


Day 2

Laura Bush

• This woman is just the picture of class and she has an exquisite awareness of the camera at all times.
• Great job differentiating opinions from facts about these successful endeavors
  
• Education test scores
• New Supreme Court Justices
• Faith-based initiatives
• AIDS relief
• I love that she used the Obama quote in her own way - "Change you can really believe in."
• Very eloquent "thank you" to veterans.
• Very nice tribute to Cindy McCain.
• Very nice thank you to the American people - gracious!
  

President Bush

• Great idea to start by referring to Gulf state governors and volunteers in light of Hurricane Gustav.
• I love that he thanked his mom and dad!
• Great segue to pumping up McCain for president.
• Quotes that I loved:
• "Service above self."
  GREAT reminder!
• "Arms had been broken but not honor."
  If the Hanoi Hilton couldn't break McCain, the angry left never will.
• "Make tax relief permanent!"
  AMEN!!
• Good point in reminder that McCain is not afraid to disagree - "Believe me, I know."
  Very cute way of putting this!
• "Rather lose an election than lose a war."
  This is what the irrational left doesn't understand - it's much more important to work towards a lasting solution in the Middle East than to play politics during an election.
• "Americans have always lived on the sunrise side of the mountain."
  This is a lot more meaningful phrase than the Obama rhetoric on a future of hope.
• Very nice to end with a tribute to his wife.

Fred Thompson

• Good enthusiasm.
• Made a great point about the Democrats thinking we're in a Great Depression, we're down and we're disrespected - what a load of bunk! We will always have challenges, but as Thompson said, we are the free-est, strongest and most generous nation in the world.
• Great comments about the media and great use of humor.
• Cute joke about McCain's Mom and the North Vietnamese.
• "John McCain knows about hope...that's all he had."
  GREAT point!
• Character you can believe in - FABULOUS!
• "A man who never quits is never defeated."
  AMEN!
• 
  
• We don't need a president who feels the need to apologize for the US.
  He's right - we don't. But with Obama, that's exactly what we'd get.

Joe Lieberman

• "It shouldn't take a hurricane to bring us together like this."
  No foolin'!
• Why are we "fighting each other than fighting for the American people."
  GREAT question.
• Liberman said he "supports McCain because country matters more than party."
  Too bad more people haven't figured this out.
• The "oops" comment about natural/unnatural disaster...he recovered ok, though.
• "God only made one John McCain and he is his own man."
  And thank GOD for that!
• Love the funny Michael Moore comment.
• Great observation on Obama: "Eloquence is not a substitute for a record."
• We "don't need more party unity but more national unity."
  Again, too bad more people haven't realized this!!

Day 3

Mitt Romney

• Ok, this man's opening remarks were way too smooth...maybe that's why I couldn't have seen myself voting for him.
• Interesting comments on "Eastern elites" and now AZ and AK leaders. (Um, isn't Romney the former Governor of an EASTERN state?)
• Great points on Washington already being too liberal.
• "Time for the party of big ideas not Big Brother."
  GREAT!
• "This is no time for timid empty liberal gestures."
  Are there any other type of liberal gestures?
• "Let's keep Al Gore's private jet on the ground."
  Hell, let's keep Al Gore in a closet. That man is a menace.
• "There's never been a day when I was not proud to be an American."
  Take that, Mrs. Obama!

Mike Huckabee

• Very nice humble start to his speech.
• "Tackier than a costume change at a Madonna concert."
  This comment had me rolling!
• "Excellent adventure to Europe" with bad ideas brought back.
  Great slam on Obama's boondoggle. We don't need or want to be like Europe, TYVM!
• Best quote: "I'm not a Republican because I grew up rich. I'm a Republican because I didn't want to spend the rest of my life poor waiting for the government to rescue me."
  AMEN!
• The school teacher story was touching - nice tie to the Oval office desk.

Rudy Giuliani

• This was strong: we select the President. Not the media; not Hollywood; but the people!
• Great description of the election being a job application. Obama's resume would definitely make my trash file!
• Isn't it great that no matter what he's discussing, Giuliani just sounds tough? I love this man!
  
• Giggling at the community organizer designation was funny!
• His facial expression when discussing the 130 times Obama couldn't vote yes or no was priceless - it's not good enough to be present - you have to make decisions!
  Yes, but if you're a Democrat, you just wait for other people to do that for you!
• Great point: Obama has never had to lead people in crisis.
• Substance over style; this is no time for on the job training!
• "Change is not a destination just as hope is not a strategy."
  WELL STATED!
• I'm still so disappointed that Giuliani's campaign went no where, but I thought his presence at the Convention was AWESOME!

Sarah Palin

• Made a great distinction between there being a time for politics and a time for leadership.
• I like the message to families of special needs kids.
• Her intro of her family was nice!
• What's the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? Lipstick!
• I loved, loved, loved the comparison between a community organizer and a mayor. Wasilia might be a small town, but she still did a helluva lot more there than Obama's ineffectual "organizing" in Chicago. Pfft.
• "The fact that drilling won't solve everything isn't an excuse to do nothing."
  WELL STATED!
• John McCain isn't a leader who is looking for a fight, but sure isn't afraid of one either. YES!
• "The American presidency is not supposed to be a journey of personal discovery."
  Oh, so true!
• "There is only one man in election who fought for you. For a season, a speaker can inspire with words. For a lifetime, a leader can inspire with deeds."
  AWESOME!
• I love Cindy McCain's excitement for Palin!!

Day 4

Tom Ridge

• Did a good job in focusing his speech on McCain instead of on himself.
• Ridge is a very stoic, firm speaker.
• Favorite quotes:
• "We need a leader who fits the times, not a candidate who thinks it's his time to lead."
• "It's not about building a record. It's having one. That's John McCain."

Cindy McCain

• Focusing first on the Hurricane was so appropriate.
• I loved her philosophy - if only the federal government would get under control and out of the way.
• Should we consider what other countries think of us or what would our forefathers would make of us...or what our children will say of us.
  GREAT!
• I loved her conviction in describing McCain as a good father and her enthusiasm in talking about Palin.
• Cindy is a bit bland - she seems to lack depth at times. She is definitely gracious, however.

John McCain

• "No success has come without a good fight."
  AMEN! Too bad our country is filled with wusses who don't realize this.
• I loved his thank you to President and First Lady Bush, as well as the former President and First Lady Bush!
• You can just tell that he adores Cindy!
• His mother is just the dang cutest - and I can only hope I'm that brisk when I'm 96! (Hell...when I'm 66!)
• Very nice messages to Obama and his supporters - "despite our differences, more unites us than divides us."
  It's funny...but no one every seems to get that.
• What was with the insano woman rushing the stage???
• Great description of Palin: "She stands up for what's right and she doesn't let anyone tell her to sit down."
  Nobody puts Baby in the corner...
  
• Great quotes that I loved:
• "In the end, it matters less that you can fight. What you fight for is the real test."
• "Government that doesn't make your choices for you but works to make sure you make more choices for yourself."
• "Education is the Civil Rights issue of this century."
• "What is the value of access to a failing school?"
• It's time to..."set a new standard for transparency and accountability."
• "I've been a servant first, last and always. I've never lived a day in good times and bad that I didn't thank God for the privilege."
• "I was blessed because I served in the country of heroes."
• "If you find faults with out country, make it a better one!"
• "Nothing brings us greater happiness in life than to join in a cause greater than yourself."
  
• You can just see this man's sincerity!
• It's interesting that even leftist CNN noted that John McCain had more specifics in his speech than Barack Obama.

There you go folks...those're my thoughts! The VP debate wrap-up is coming next!

Thursday Thirteen #21

Thirteen Favorites About October

1. It's time for the playoffs in baseball...and the PHILLIES have made it to post-season again this year, so you KNOW who I'll be rooting for!
2. The NASCAR Sprint Cup Chase is on in full force - GO DALE!
3. How 'bout some football? (Go 49ers!) I don't get into all that college and high school madness for which Texans are famous, but professional football rocks! (I'm in a fantasy league that my husband talked me into joining...all the other members are police officers from around the state...but guess who has the most points and the ONLY 4-0 record?? Yeah, I rock.)
4. Hallowe'en is coming! I love handing out candy to Trick-or-Treaters! (Although I'm always disappointed that no one wants to do tricks for me!)
5. Hallowe'en candy - this really deserves it's own separate blog post...it's one of the only times of year that I indulge my sweet tooth!
6. Haunted Houses - yes, yes, I love being scared! I especially love Fort Worth's haunted warehouse!
7. Texas October weather - although summer is still my favorite time of year, we're lucky enough here in Texas that the warm weather holds over nicely through the end of October!
8. Delaware Water Gap and changing colors. This is a little area on the New Jersey/Pennsylvania border that always has the most gorgeous color changes.
9. The elections are fast approaching - don't forget to register and vote!
   
10. It's breast cancer awareness month, and my company/office is participating, as usual, in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure over in Dallas on October 18th, 2008. Hmm...that date also sounds familiar...could it be that...
11. The due date for our little Catherine is fast approaching! We thought there was a chance she'd be a September baby, but she's still snugly tucked inside.
    
12. Many family birthdays - both in my family, as well as in my husband's. In fact, today is my brother-in-law's! Birthdays are fun! Go visit my cousin Nicki - her birthday is October 7th, which is the day before...
13. My birthday! Don't forget to come back on October 8th and wish me a happy 28th this year!

Happy Thursday Thirteen, ya'll!

September Sadness

As we head into October (only 7 shopping days left until my birthday...), I am reflecting on two events from September that have left me saddened.

The selfish and self-serving movie stars of today would do well to take a page from the book of Paul Newman, who not only dedicated part of his life to military service but also a huge chunk of his later life to philanthropy. The world loses a great man with the passing of Paul Newman, not just for his contributions as an actor but for his goodness as a human being.


It's like deja vu all over again...Yogi Berra says good bye to Yankee Stadium as the historic landmark hosts its last game. *Sob* I'm almost as sad as I was a couple years ago when the Phillies said good bye to the Vet. I hate that in our disposable society, we always prefer the new and shiny to the old and trusted.

Instant Weight Loss

My friends and coworkers continue to comment that I'm "all belly" and that I'm going to be back to my pre-pregnancy size as soon as I leave the hospital. I protest! At +45 pounds versus my pre-pregnancy weight, that'd have to be one dang big baby!!

But that leads me to this thought. We're anticipating a baby that is within a few ounces of 7 pounds. So between delivering the baby and all of the other fun stuff that comes out at the same time, it would be sensible to anticipate leaving the hospital 10 to 15 pounds lighter than going in, right?

What have you experienced, Mamas? Is that a reasonable amount to figure on losing while in the hospital?

What about in the first few weeks afterwards, especially if you breastfed your babies? I've also heard that breastfeeding can stimulate weight loss...even though I've also heard that I'll need to consume an extra 500 or so calories a day to feed Spoiled Baby adequately.

So what do you think? Tell me all about your experiences!

How Well Do You Know Your Car?

How well do you know your car? Do you just strap yourself into it every day and drive off to work or school and not know anything about it's value or about what different types of repairs may cost you when it breaks down? Instead of guessing and being caught off guard when something happens, there's a web site that can log all of the important information about your car and offer you the data you need to make wise decisions about your vehicle. Visit DriverSide and start a free profile to enter all of your car's information and begin taking advantage of the valuable advice. I paid off my XTerra about two years ago and ever since, I've just been crossing my fingers that nothing major happens to this car, since I have no intention of buying a new one for another few years. I think this web is a great resource that you can use to get to know your car better.

What is your car really worth? It's helpful to know this information so that you can manage your car's financing sensibly. It's also great information to have when you're looking to sell your car in the future. Values can change rapidly and hinge on a number of different factors, and the DriverSide web site can help you to get up to date value information when you need it.

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If you're anything like me, you probably drive your car for thousands of miles a year. For the past 10 years, I've averaged 25k! I can't take chances with my vehicles, and you shouldn't either. Go check out DriverSide today to start getting to know your car better!