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Memorable Memorial Day Layouts

For most people, the long Memorial Day weekend means picnics, road trips and beach time with friends and family. While cookouts and camaraderie are memorable components of the holiday, the real reason for the three-day weekend has to do with hard work and heroes. Thanks to the men and women, who comprise this country’s military, we are able to enjoy a litany of freedoms. Their selflessness and bravery should be honored, and there’s no better way to do so than with a scrapbook layout or an entire memory album. Fortunately, you don’t have to be an advanced scrapper to design … Continue reading →

Remember Your Ancestors On Memorial Day

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Memorial Day was once called Decoration Day. One of the ways to celebrate Memorial Day is to visit a graveyard, and decorate the graves of your ancestors who were in the military. This gives a genealogist the opportunity to record the information that is found on their gravestones. If you are unable to travel to a cemetery on Memorial Day weekend, you might still be able to obtain the information on a grave from an online resource. If you are visiting a cemetery this Memorial Day weekend, it is traditional to decorate the graves of your ancestors who served in … Continue reading →

A Memorial Day Thank-You to Those Who Served

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I just watched the National Memorial Day tribute concert on TV. As usual, I cried—for an old classmate, for a friend’s father, for all the mothers who’ve lost sons and children who’ve lost fathers, for women my age who shouldn’t have become widows for another forty-plus years. But this time, I cried for a reason I’d never even thought of before. You may be wondering what this has to do with adoption. Here’s the connection, which I never made before today. Watching the concert reminded me of a dear family friend, almost a grandfather to me, who fought in Korea. … Continue reading →

Veterans Day: A Little History

It seems that a lot of people get confused when it comes to Veterans Day. Part of the reason may be because it has changed over the years. The date has been changed as well as the name. The original holiday was celebrated as a day of peace, and was known as Armistice Day, which marked the end of World War I. The date the war officially ended was November 11, which became the annual date of recognition. In 1954, it was changed to Veterans Day to honor all war Veterans. American troops had bravely fought in two more wars, … Continue reading →

Salute to American Veterans Crafts

This week begins National Veterans Awareness Week, beginning November 5th and ending November 11th with Veterans Day, which is celebrated on this date each year. It has been recognized on this date since the 1950’s. President Bush asked all of us to honor our Veterans, the heroes that have fought to protect our country. We can help remember our Veterans by making crafts from patriotic symbols, to salute them. You can find other patriotic craft ideas in the Holidays section that were posted for Fourth of July or you can check back later this week for more ideas. One simple … Continue reading →

Obama’s Proposed Budget Will Affect TRICARE

President Obama has created a budget that involves cuts to military health care spending. It appears that the plan includes an annual increase to the cost of premiums for TRICARE which could get as high as 345% of the current cost. It has been said that this increase dishonors veterans. TRICARE is a government run health insurance plan that is available for members of the United States Department of Defense Military Health Care System. This insurance provides health insurance benefits for current military personnel, for their dependents, and for military retirees, (who are also called Veterans). TRICARE is the civilian … Continue reading →

Lest We Forget: U.S. Troops and Families were Pioneers of International Adoption

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As we remember our servicemen and women, past and present, on this Memorial Day, it is worth noting how much the landscape of adoption in America was changed by servicemen and women. U.S. soldiers fighting in Europe, participating in the post-war occupations of Germany and Japan, and later serving in Korea, Vietnam and other Asian countries helped to familiarize their families back home with the needs of the many orphans they encountered. Although some of the armed services discouraged their personnel from adopting during their service, there are several stories about units informally taking on the cause of one or … Continue reading →

Doing D.C.

Happy Veteran’s Day! To all the men and women who have sacrificed (and continue to sacrifice) their lives to help protect our freedoms–a heartfelt thank you. In honor of the holiday I am devoting an entire day’s worth of blogs to Washington, D.C., our nation’s capital. It is one of the most visited places on the planet and a trip to the area’s monuments and attractions goes a long way to aid in the understanding of the history and development of the United States. The White House No trip to D.C. is complete without visiting 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. However, to … Continue reading →

Military: Review of Week ending November 11

This week ends on the official day we celebrate our Veterans. Many people will also celebrate Monday the 13th, because that’s the day they will have off. Here is a rundown of other topics covered here this week. Since there aren’t a lot of articles this week, one from the last week is also included: John Kerry’s “Joke” No Laughing Matter? The first article was on November 2, following a controversial speech given by John Kerry. Everyone has an opinion on the “botched joke” issued by Kerry. At the end of the article, and in the comments section, you’ll find … Continue reading →

Kids’ Crafts: Week in Review November 5 – 11

Here’s your weekly rundown of what we covered in Kids’ Crafts starting with November 11th (officially Veterans Day), and working our way back to the beginning of the week. How to Get Involved for Veteran’s Day Here we talked a little about what Veterans Day means and some ways people can actively get involved in honoring our heroes, from going to parades, to visiting Veterans, sending cards and making pictures, or donating time or money to a Veterans organization. For those that want to do something at home, I suggested displaying your flag and working on some patriotic projects (listed). … Continue reading →