We Voted! How about you?

After I posted our blog yesterday at about 5:30am, we got dressed, gathered lots of snacks and went to our polling place...  

Thank you (not) Daylight Savings Time... Vera is now waking up a 4:45am.  But at least it is light out.

We got to our polling place around 6:45am.  There was a small line.  It opened at 7am.  It took us about 45 minutes to go through the three lines; (1) to sign and get our card; (2) to hand in card and get ballot; and (3) fill out ballot and then put it into ballot machine.  And at the end, we all go our "I VOTED" stickers!!!

It was awesome.  Seriously awesome!  I took my two fantabulous kids to vote for the first time in their lives - and to vote for President. It just doesn't get better than that?!?!

I will tell them about it forever.

I remember voting with my parents since I was very very young.  I even remember going a few times with my grandparents.  These are good memories.  What I really remember is going "into" the booth, pulling the curtain and pulling down the levers... that doesn't happen here in DC - or in many places outside of NY (at least that is what I have heard).  But my kids knew we were voting - even if it was just filling in a circle with a pencil on paper (they were very into the the little pencils). 

They also knew they were given as many treats as they wanted for behaving while we were in the process of voting.  Treats included: unlimited goldfish crackers, Starbucks Black & White cookies, juice boxes, smoothies, and yes, at least 20 minutes of Spiderman on my smartphone.  You can not bribe people to vote on election day, but you can certainly bribe children to behave while their parents are voting - especially if you are the parent!

Thank you to our Founding Fathers and Mothers and the United States of America for giving me and my children the opportunity to vote for the Office of the President in a peaceful and enjoyable way.  We are so lucky.

Thank you to everyone who came before us, men, women, native americans, immigrants, Jews, Christians, Muslims, blacks, whites, Hispanics, Asians, gays and EVERYONE ELSE, who fought hard fights over and over again to get and protect our equal rights and help secure the right to vote for all without conditions (yes, we are are still fighting this fight in many ways today - eg. voter ID laws, same-sex marriage).

Thank you United States of America for re-electing the President of the United States, Barack Obama,

Thank you President Barack Obama for being our President these past four years - we don't agree with everything you do (or did) but we are looking FORWARD to seeing what you will do next in the next four years.

Thank you to the people of Maine, Maryland and Minnesota (and hopefully Washington) - You are all on the right side of history on this same-sex couple issue!  I am forever grateful to you all for choosing to accept, respect and embrace my family.  In the end, love may conquer all!

Today is the day after Election Day, time to get on with the business of governing and life...

Can we do it?  I sure hope so!  Should I even say it, Yes we can?!?!

We were up again at 4:45am... how about you?!?!  Too bad we couldn't go vote again...