DC Vacation Revisited

Welcome to the last Tatting Tea Tuesday of July. Can you believe that it's almost August? In many ways this year has seemed to have gone very fast. Is this a sign that I'm getting old? (Don't answer that.)

Today I'll start with the little bit of tatting that I've gotten done. I've decorated another candle holder. I thought this variegated Lizbeth thread would look so good for this, and it does look okay, but I'm thinking solid colors would stand out against the glass better. I also plan on adding beads the next time. I had a bad time this morning trying to take a picture that showed the tatting to advantage. My husband finally helped me get this shot, one of many pictures but one of the few that came out well.

Okay, now I have pictures from our Washington, DC vacation. If you're only here for the tatting that was it.

While we were in DC we took a Hop On, Hop Off tour. This is where you buy tickets for a day or two to ride buses that tour the city. They have a lot of stops and a lot of buses, so you can get on where you want and get off where you want and spend time at the stops you want. The tours start at Union Station. This had been let to rundown but has been redone beautifully. It's a tourist stop in itself. It has a round-about in front of it that you do end up going round and round before you can get out.
We rode one of the double-decker buses from Union Station until the White House Visitor's Center. This place has items in it from the White House and a lot of history about it. It is also very lovely inside. And like most of the sites here and elsewhere you have to go through a metal detector to get inside. If you visit here make sure you leave your pocket knife, no matter how small, at home. (Experience speaking.)

From there we walked to the front of the White House. We could have been a little closer - just across the street from where we were. There weren't quite as many people on this side, though, which made picture taking a little easier. This is as close as I'll probably ever get to tatting at the White House.

From there we headed, on foot, to the Washington Monument. That's around the Ellipse, which is open ground, like a park, where there was a soccer game going on - they were using shoes to mark the goals. I don't know how far it actually was, but it felt like a long way around. We were very hot by the time we crossed Constitution Ave. There are these fountains there that we took the time to let the grandsons play in. They had a lot of fun there and didn't want to leave!

You can see the Monument in the background and how far we still had to go!



Then we walked from the monument to the National WWII Memorial. It is very beautiful with lovely fountains at the center. There is a lot of relief images on the walls going down to them. You can see past my husband to the fountains and then the Lincoln Memorial way in the distance.


That was our next destination. When walking in the heat it seems a very long way.

This is one of my daughters and her little boy looking toward the Lincoln Memorial with the Reflecting Pool behind her. And we had a lot of steps up to go before we reached Lincoln. TV and movies had not really given me the true impression of just how many steps you have to go up to get to Lincoln's chair. It was very impressive and awe-inspiring. It was also very busy! Even in the heat there were a lot of people. One gentleman had the job of spraying a water hose into the air to let the water rain gently down on passers-by if they were interested. Most people were interested.




After we visited Lincoln we were all ready for a break. We bought frozen lemonades and took a rest in the shade. The grandsons weren't quite sure they liked the lemonade at first, but as everyone else was having some they tried it and liked it. Here's most of us cooling off. I took the chance to take out my shuttles so I can say I've tatted there. (Yes, I know it's silly, but I did it anyway!)




To Lincoln's left is the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial. Walking along that wall can be emotional. It was one place that the visitors were very quiet. Before getting to the Wall there is a new statue that isn't quite done yet, but you can see it through the Plexiglas. These figures are larger than life and very detailed.






South of the Wall is the Vietnam Women's Memorial. Again, these figures are larger than life and very detailed. It is a very moving memorial to the women who served in Vietnam, mostly as nurses. The standing figure is named Hope, the praying figure is Faith and the one holding the solder is Charity.




To Lincoln's right is the Korean War Memorial. I hadn't realized there was such a memorial, though I should have. These figures look to be moving through wet weather as they are wearing capes/ponchos over their uniforms, and carrying their equipment. All are very distinct individuals. There is a quiet pool ahead of them. The granite wall to their right has images of a lot of people, watching them silently.


I was able to capture the reflection of the walking solders in the polished surface of the wall.


I was very moved by these memorials. There were a lot of others we didn't have time to visit this time around. I guess we'll have to go back again sometime.

Tatting Tea Tuesday July 20, 2010

Welcome to Tatting Tea Tuesday. I started off the day with a cup of George's Cherry Tree Tea, described as "China Tea Scented With Luscious Burgundy Cherries." I picked it up on our vacation when we visited Mount Vernon, the home of our first president, George Washington. The cup belonged to my maternal grandmother; my mother gave to me a couple of years ago. This is the first time I've used it but it looked appropriate to use for this particular TTT. This tea has a definite scent and taste of cherries. I'm pretty hesitant to try new tastes sometimes, but today I took up my courage and tried it. It has a very nice taste. I am pleasantly surprised.

(Warning! I kept adding pictures!)

We visited Mount Vernon on July 5th. Talk about hot! This is a very busy time of year there - people were everywhere. There were long lines that snaked into other buildings before getting into the main house. They had people dressed in period costumes talking to the visitors in line, probably to keep them interested and entertained while they waited. The gentleman to the left was supposed to be George's physician. The gentleman below was an upper-class servant. They were very interesting to talk to because they stayed very much in character. My daughter wasn't quite sure how to be greeted in such a manner.

There are several rules you have to follow when you visit Mount Vernon: No chewing gum on the estate, no strollers in the main house, no pictures in the main house. The property is owned and run by The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association so they can have any rules they want and they do make sense when you think about them. They have done a wonderful job of furnishing the house with period pieces and returning the rooms to their original colors and uses (you wouldn't believe some of the colors!). The property had deteriorated greatly after Washington's death and before being sold to the Ladies' Association. They've returned this to a working farm with animals and gardens and everything.

The building on the right of the main house is the kitchen. I took this picture standing in line waiting to tour the house. We had to go through a building that housed servants most of the time but sometimes guests (if they stayed for awhile) on our way to the main house. There was a line of people from us, through this small building, through the house and then exiting, with no gaps. We talked to people around us as well as the costumed characters. There was actually quite a few things to see before we reached this point. Then, before we entered the first building, we had to park the strollers to be picked up later. Un-costumed members of the Mount Vernon Ladies Association were along the route, explaining what each building and room were used for and which room belonged to which one of the family members.

Behind the buildings seen here (kitchen on the left, storehouse/clerks quarters on the right) there are a lot of other buildings - smokehouse, wash house, coach house, stables. Past those are the fruit garden and the nursery and then Washington's tomb and the slave memorial.

After walking around looking at as many things as we could before the heat got to us we had lunch in the food court at the visitor's center, then checked out the shops. They had some lovely things in the shops. It was hard to keep my money in my purse.

After we were fed, cooled off and wallets a little lighter, we were off to the distillery and gristmill, which are a couple of miles away. What amazed me about both the main grounds and this place is where they are located. They are located not very far out of Washington DC in the midst of residential areas. We drove the few miles over to where the gristmill and the distillery have been rebuilt in the locations they were originally. Neither are more than a few years old but built as close as possible to what they would have been in Washington's time.

We started with the gristmill. Like the main house they have costumed characters here, but unlike at the house these people are the ones that describe what was done in here and how it was done. And unlike the house there are no restrictions about taking pictures. They actually started the water wheel and ground a little corn while we're there.

In Washington's time they made the corn meal for local use and very fine wheat flour that was shipped all over the world. There are lot of things I didn't know about Washington that I learned here. Okay, there's still a lot I don't know.

My grandsons were fascinated with all the things going on. It was great to be able to let them touch things and let them down to walk once in awhile. Here are my daughters and their sons checking out where the corn hulls drop into a barrel after the corn has been ground. (A SIL is under the hat behind the kids.)

Then it was a short walk over to the distillery. The gristmill and the distillery share the mill race (a small stream) that once came from a mill pond. There is no longer a mill pond, houses being built up since Washington's time, so it is a very small stream. Then this woman explained how whiskey used to be made here. It was a hot, hot job! They didn't have anything brewing while we where there. They said they only made whiskey when it was cool as things just didn't come out well when it was hot.

And there's me, sitting on a grinding wheel outside the gristmill. We were so busy doing things I completely forgot to do this at the main house. I think I can still say that I have tatted at Mount Vernon.

There is actually tatting in this post as well, more than me doing a few stitches at Mount Vernon. I want to mention that the doily that I posted about last week did get a blue at the county fair(yea!). I don't know what competition it had as it was not in a tatting category and mine was the only tatting entry, but it is still exciting. I'll have to try to get something there next year as well.

This is what I've been working on since we got home from vacation. They aren't showing up very well. These are glass tea candle holders that I have put tatting around. I've actually put beads on them! They look much better in person. I did have quite a time gluing the tatting down. It just looks like it's on lopsided! I'll have to work on that.

The shuttle in the picture is one I bought 10? 15? years ago. It is made of tulip wood by Dennis Hand. I'm not even sure if I picked this up in person or sent off for it. Strange how memory is. But it is a beautiful shuttle and it fit in with the theme of this post. The doily everything is sitting on was made by one of my neighbors as a gift. It makes a lovely backdrop.

I took a lot of pictures while we were on vacation. This is a warning that there will probably be more in the next few posts.

Until then, may all of you enjoy a little tea and a few minutes of tatting.

Tatting Tea Tuesday at home again

We are back home again after a wonderful vacation. I wouldn't have minded if it had lasted a little longer! We had a great time with our family and look forward to doing something like this again.

As the picture from last week showed, I've been working on a new doily. It started with a doodle and just kept growing. It's made in DMC Cebelia size 30 ecru with two shuttles. This is it so far; it's six inches across from point to point. I'm not sure about the last round. Does it look like it's finished? Does it need another round? Is this round how I want it to be?

The local county fair is at the end of the week. I was thinking about entering something but with our vacation I haven't gotten anything ready. The fair book actually came in the mail the day we left! Not a lot of time to decide on what I could enter. There is only one tatting category - pillowcases - but there are a few other categories that I could enter tatting in. "Tea towels (set of 4 or more) - Miscellaneous"; "Doilies - Miscellaneous"; and "Household - Miscellaneous". Well, obviously I don't have time to make four tea towels or a pillowcase (sewing the tatting to the case would take me forever!). I have this doily that might (!) be done. And I might be able to come up with something for the household category (napkin rings? decorated candle holder?). Whatever I decide I have to make up my mind by Thursday afternoon. I'll let you know what I decided next week.

And now for the vacation! Okay, one picture - or maybe two. Our first destination was Nashville, TN. Our SIL really wanted to stop here and all of us thought it would be fun. We spent the morning in the Country Music Hall of Fame. So this is me, with shuttles in hand, in the entry hall. This is after we went through the museum and, obviously, after we had gone to the souvenir shop ; )

Mostly my husband and I bought gifts for family but I did find a little something for myself. I did leave home with the glass case for carrying a working project in but I had couple of shuttles to use for my 'documentary' pictures. I didn't want to mess up on a nice project just for pictures! So I thought this little change purse would work great with this in mind.

This worked great! There was nothing to fall out unexpectedly and I knew exactly what I'd get when I reached inside. And I have a little something to keep small take-along projects in that will always remind me of our 2010 family vacation.

There will be more vacation pictures next week. And the results of my decision of what, if anything, I take to the fair.

Tatting Tea Tuesday while on Vacation

I'm on vacation! Woo hoo!

But it's hot! We were out sight-seeing in the sun and the heat - oh, man! We were so glad to be able to sit down in the cool when we got home!

As I don't want to carry my regular tatting bag with me, but I do want to have a little something with me, I have had to come up with something else.

I just got a new pair of glasses and the case that came with them presented itself for a new job. I think it's working well. It's not exactly light, but carries just what I need, especially since the thread here is size 30. And the size 14 crochet hook won't poke through ; )

This piece that I'm working on started as a doodle on another road trip about a week ago and has been growing ever since. When I have the chance - and when I think I'm done with it - I'll share a picture with it laid out all nice and flat.

My tea today tasted suspiciously like coffee, but it was what was available. I did pick up an interesting tea that I'll be trying next week and sharing with you.

Until then, everyone have a safe and fun summer. Try to stay cool.

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Birthday America! It's great to be an American!

Thank you to all those that are serving, or have served, in our military,
for all of your sacrifices.
May God bless you and your families today and always.