Happy New Year!

Please ring in 2013 safely! If you choose to go out and enjoy a drink, make arrangements for a designated driver!

In 17 states, AAA's Tipsy Tow service is available. This is available statewide in Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, New Mexico, Nevada, California, Texas, and Utah. Also available in select locations in Tennessee (West and Middle), Hawaii (Islands of Kaui, Maui, and Oahu), Montana (Missoula, Bozeman, Helena, and Billings), Oklahoma (Metro Tulsa, Metro Oklahoma City, Shawnee, Bartlesville, Enid, Muskogee, and Lawton), South Dakota (Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Aberdeen, Mitchell, and Yankton), Virginia (Tidewater area only- Greater Hampton Roads including Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Suffolk, Newport News, Hampton, Poquoson, Yorktown, and Williamsburg), New Jersey (Morris, Essex, and Union counties), and Merrimack Valley (wherever that is??). Call 1-800-222-4357 for a ride in these areas. Some of the tow services will take you AND your vehicle to your destination within the specified area, others will only take passengers. Some places will charge you for the ride, others make New Year's Eve fares free. Call ahead to find out!

If you don't fall into one of these areas, check AAA's Sober Ride list for information on safe ways home tonight. This list is from the National High Way Traffic Safety Administration and it includes phone numbers, fares, and stipulations for their Sober Rides.

Don't be stupid. It isn't just your life that is in jeopardy when you choose to drink and then drive. Other people can be hurt by your poor choices. My father is severely disabled due to being hit by a drunk driver when he was just 19 years old and has suffered through years of debilitating pain and degenerating nerves because of one man's stupid choice. Even worse, the driver of my dad's car (who was sober) died in that wreck, leaving behind a lot of grieving family.

Even tipsy driving is drunk driving. Don't do it. Don't get into a vehicle with someone that has been drinking. Be safe and we'll see you in 2013!

Love is love, no matter the back story. <3 DS

Happy 4th of July!

We have 5 kids here at the house running through the sprinklers and screaming like banshees. Dad has the grill going. We did a small bonfire (apparently illegal now- burn warning) and s'mores last night. I had the brilliant idea to replace the Hershey's bars with peanut butter cups. They were amazing. Mom is hanging out in the air conditioning with Gran, mixing up salad, making deviled eggs, and getting all the cutlery and such together.

I have managed to get the yard cleaned up with the help of the kids. I mowed while they drug tree limbs into a pile for the fire, watered the plants, and pulled some weeds. A teenage neighbor cleared out the gutters (yay no more trees growing in them!) for $20. I got up early and went to the cemetery to lay some flowers on my aunt's and my cousin's gravestones. No cats were bathed... its just been too crazy with all the kids running around and the random bouts of no electricity. So it is Wednesday and all I have left- minus bathing cats- is to write. I have been working on that but I've yet to be really productive. I'm so distracted!

Have a safe and enjoyable 4th of July folks. Make sure you drink plenty of fluids if you are going to be out in the heat!

Love is love, no matter the back story. <3

Be Safe Tonight

If you are out and about tonight, be safe. Don't drink and drive. Don't ride with someone else if they have been drinking. AAA is offering free tows for members and non-members. Call 1-800-222-4357 and ask for a Tipsy Tow. They will take you and your car up to 10 miles for free tonight only. Passengers can ride as well provided there is room in the tow truck. They are taking calls from 6pm tonight to 6am tomorrow morning. Play it safe and have a blast! See you next year!

Love is love, no matter the back story. <3 DS