Happy Halloween!

This is Ava's first year for dressing up and I didn't think I was going to get a costume but.... my friend Kim Kalman and I were shopping at Target after our lunch at Uptown Kitchen and I couldn't resist this lobster costume!! She is SO CUTE!!

Saving Time & Money

With the recent decline in the economy, we have taken another look at our outgoing cashflow and found some savings. Thought I'd pass the information on to others.
Martin's Grocery Store: They have a pet club, baby club, and prescription club. Just go to the service desk and fill out a short form and they start tracking your purchases and then you get $10 coupons to be used on grocery items. I've already received twenty dollars off. The prescription club is a little different because you have to keep a punch card. However, if you have a prescription for antibotics, have them sent to Martin's because their FREE.
Trash Pickup: We didn't realize that when we signed up for trash service almost five year's ago, that we were on the highest bag level. We recycle most of our items and only have two to three bags per week. So...we called and we got a reduction of $88 per year.
Verizon Cellular: Went back and reviewed my last six months of use and realized I was always below my minutes. I called and reduced my minutes and monthly charges by $20 per month.
Capital One Visa: We switched from Chase to Captial One to gain travel points to use for airfare and hotels. There are no restrictions or blackout dates and your points never expire. We now put all our outgoing expenses on the credit card and then pay it off at the end of the month.
Hulu.com: This is a time saver. George and I get irritated with all the commercials during prime-time TV. Now we just log on to Hulu and watch our favorite TV shows like "The Office" with only one or two 15 second commercials.

Riverwalk-Mishawaka

Yesterday afternoon we went to the "new" Mishawaka Riverwalk to get out in the sunshine and walk with Ava in her stroller. My sister had told me how nice it was, so we decided to check it out. It was so beautiful!! The sidewalks were nice and wide and the views along the river were very scenic. There is lots of beautiful landscaping, water sculpture features, benches, picnic areas, large grassy areas, playgrounds, tennis courts, baseball diamond, public pavillions, rock gardens, bike racks, fishing areas, fish cleaning stations, fish ladder for the salmon, and everything was well maintained. The Riverwalk route is well marked with signs and lots of lighting if you are planning a evening walk. If we lived closer, this would be my daily walking routine. There is still a lot of construction going on and I'm excited to see what else they are going to be adding. We walked the entire route that has been finished so far, and it was approximately five miles. It was a great way to enjoy the outdoors with my family!

Look what the cat dragged in!

Most of you know that we have a LARGE pedelstal dining room table in our house and the table cannot be moved without the help of 4-5 strong men. So...if I want to clean underneath it, we just take a broom and hold it parallel to the ground and sweep out what's underneath. This is also the place where most items end up, that have come up missing due to our cat Opal's mischievous nature. This last week when we cleaned underneath the pedelstal, this is what we found: (Yes, it's hard to believe, but true)
1 drink coaster
8 trash bag ties
1 small wasp nest
3 rocks
1 lid to my honey bottle
2 outlet safety covers
1 headband
1 hairclip
2 catnip mice
2 water bottle caps
1 rubber ball
1 milk bottle tab
2 artificial flowers
1 acorn
1 Dr's receipt
1 kleenex
1 rubberband
5 hairbands
1 Cracker Barrel receipt
3 felt discs
1 wad of carpet fuzz
1 8 x 10 drawing-folded

Carving Pumpkin's- A study of patience

Thursday evening after Ava went to bed, George and I decided to carve pumpkins together. I pulled out a book of stencils that I had bought several years ago and have yet to use. After I read the instructions for how to use the stencils on your pumpkins, I opted to go for the quick and easy route and George, being the patient man that he is, picked a stencil marked "difficult".
Two hours later, George ended up with a GREAT looking pumpkin and I ended up with a basic design that took me 20 minutes. I have posted pictures of the pumpkins next to each other. It goes to show you that patience is a virtue that can take you further than the fast and easy route. Unfortunately, our cat Opal decided to bite off one of the tower's of George's pumpkin right after these photo's were taken. Ironically, then George lost his patience!!!

Indian Summer at the Pumpkin Patch

What a Gorgeous Weekend!!! Today we decide to take Ava to the pumpkin place on Douglas Rd. and take some pictures and pick up our pumpkins. Ava fell asleep on the way over there and so she is pretty somber in the pictures, but we were thankful that she wasn't crying. She is so happy during the day that we thought we picked a good time to go. We left there and ran a few other errands and ended up at Granite City Brew Pub and ate lunch on the outdoor patio. The food was good and Ava then showed everyone her smiles and laughter. Wish we could have captured that on film. I say that a lot. She gives us these precious little moments of fun and glimpes of her sweet personalty and we rarely get to capture that moment on film or video. It's like those moments are just for George and I to cherish!! The colors of the trees and the reflecting sunshine made today the perfect day of fall!!!

Breast Cancer Walk-October 11th

What a beautiful day for our walk!! Ashley and I participated in this years Breast Cancer Walk in South Bend. George and Ava came to cheer us, and to take pictures along the way. We walked with Ashley's boss and her daughter Chloe and had a great time and good conversation. I was pleased that Ashley and I was able to spend some time together, and to also be a part of such a great cause. It was emotional to see the breast cancer survivors line up at the starting line. We really can make a difference and these survivors were living proof! Afterwards, George, Ashley, Ava, and I went to LePeeps for Brunch and enjoyed the warmth of the sun at an outdoor table. It was a great morning for many reasons and I'm grateful to all of those that donated and supported us on this cancer walk.