Fun Things To Do This Weekend

This weekend is chock full of fun things to do. Since it's fall, it's a great time to do some apple and/or pumpkin picking. I'm not sure about the weather, but let's hope for some sun.

Here are some other fun things going on:

Saturday

Weymouth-The Great Pumpkin Give-a-wey. This is a great event for the family. It's 12-4 next to the Town Hall.

Weymouth-The Weymouth Food pantry is hosting its annual S.O.S (Stock Our Shelves) walk on Saturday to coincide with the pumpkin event mentioned above. It's a short walk for a great cause.

Hanover-There They Grow Again is hosting a huge children's consignment sale at Riley Hall (515 Hanover Street). The sale actually starts Friday, September 30, 9:00 am to 8:00 pm. They have over 60 consigners selling everything from clothes to toys to books to baby equipment and gear. I have about 60 items in the sale this year, 50 of them are brand new with the tags still attached. You're sure to find some good deals. Shop early to get the best selection.

Wrentham-My friend Diane is hosting a yard sale at her house (44 Federico Drive). All proceeds from the sale are going to TEAM HARDCORE. Team Hardcore is in honor of Diane's cousin Kristen, who is currently undergoing treatment for breast cancer. She's 34 years old. Yes, 34. The team is doing the Susan G. Komen race on October 30 in Boston. Go Diane!

Sunday

Take the day to rest. You deserve it.

Your turn...anything fun going on this weekend that you'd like to share?

You'll be hearing from my lawyer

Dear Fossils,

At approximately 2:00 PM today I was leaving your home. I came over to visit and check on you, my elderly parents. As I was walking down the walkway, I slipped and fell. I landed in a split-type position and I looked ridiculous. I also have several boo-boos. I believe the fall was related to the two leaves that were left in said walkway. Combine that with the wet weather and it was just an accident waiting to happen. It was in no way a result of my new, slippery shoes.

I've contacted the law firm Dewey, Screwum and Howe and you will be receiving a letter from them shortly.

Since the fall occurred on your property I think that it's only fair that you pay all medical expenses pertaining to the fall. This means Band-aids, Neosporin and a box of tissues for my tears.

Thank you for your understanding in this matter. Hopefully we can settle out of court.

Yours very truly,

Loopy

Your youngest daughter and favorite child.

Idiosyncrasies

Like everyone, I have some little idiosyncrasies that some people might find strange. I've been doing them for so long that they seem perfectly normal to me.

1. Every night before bed I slip on a clean pair of socks. After about 15 minutes in bed, I kick the socks off. I do this every night. At the end of the week I have 7 pairs of socks stuffed at the end of my bed.
2. I have about 10 half full water bottles in my refrigerator. I tell myself that I'm going to refill them with spring water from a gallon jug, and I never do.
3. I can never be more than 10 feet away from a box of tissues and a tube of chapstick.
4. I upload pictures within 24 hours of taking them.
5. I have to sleep with a fan on every night. Even if it's 5 degrees outside.

See, those aren't too bad. Right?

The Bank

My 7-year-old nephew, Harry, is a bit of a money hoarder. If you give him a dollar he runs right to his room to put it in his wallet. His 6 -year-old brother, however, spends every dime that he gets.

Recently Kelly opened a bank account for Harry. Whenever we drive by the bank (which is near my parents house) he says, "there's the bank where my money is." He also wanted to let my dad know. Here's how that exchange went:

Harry: "Grampy, there's the bank where my money is."

Gramps: "Oh, that's great buddy."

Harry: "Gramps, since you live so close to the bank, can you keep an eye on my money?"

Gramps: "Sure. Good idea."

Well, yesterday the bank got robbed. No one was hurt, thank God. When Kelly found out, she immediately said, "don't tell Harry! He'll be devastated." That's all my dad needed to hear. He keeps saying that he's going to call Harry and tell him that the robbers left everyone else's money but got his. We're doing our best to keep Harry and Gramps apart.

TMI Tuesday

It's TMI Tuesday. I'm warning you now, it's not for the faint of heart. Don't blame me if you can't handle it. You've been warned.

I don't own a plunger. I found this out the hard way.

TMI Tuesday. Love it or hate it, it's here to stay.

Heartbreaking

I can't seem to bring myself to watch any of the 9/11 coverage. I've always found it fascinating and heartbreaking. Now I just find it heartbreaking.

Over 2,000 people lost their lives that day for something they did. What was it? They went to work. These were not people who ran with gangs and happened to get shot and killed. These were people who got up that beautiful Tuesday morning, got dressed, kissed their spouses, kids, cats, dogs, moms or dads goodbye and then headed to work. They took their last breath that day.

Every life lost (except the terrorists) was painful and uncalled for.

I weep for those people. I weep for their families and their children. I can't even begin to imagine the nightmare that they went through on and after that day.

We lost many lives after the attacks as well. Many of our military personnel died defending our freedom. A simple thank you doesn't seem like enough.

How do you explain this tragedy to children? We don't want kids to live in fear but this is an important piece of history. It is something that has shaped our nation and made it what it is today.

Whatever your politics, we have to agree on one thing: this can never happen again.

The $20 Challenge

After reading an article recently in the Patriot Ledger, I was inspired to try a little experiment. I set aside $20 and headed out to do some shopping.

After checking the Cradles to Crayons website, I noticed that they are in desperate need of clothes for boys size 11/12. That's what I decided to shop for.

My first stop was Old Navy. I found a pair of athletic pants on clearance for $5.99. I checked a few other stores and didn't get anything. Then I went to Wal-Mart and found a short sleeve collar shirt on clearance for $3.00 and Hanes sweatpants for $5.

I was looking for some inexpensive socks to add to my haul. I went to the Dollar Store where they had 3-packs of socks for $1. I picked up 2 packs.

My next stop was Target. I usually do well with their clearance items. Unfortunately, the only thing that I found was a package of 7 t-shirts for $3.81. Since I had about 20 cents left in my budget, I got a notebook.

I wasn't very impressed with what I was able to get. I think that September is a tough time of year to shop. With everyone back to school shopping, there isn't much on clearance.

Here's how it broke down:

Old Navy pants: $5.99

Dollar Store socks $2.00

Wal-Mart shirt $3.00

Wal-Mart pants $5.00

Target t-shirts $3.81

Target notebook $0.20

All of the items that I bought will be donated to Cradles to Crayons.

I'd like to do this challenge at a different time of year, when there's more on clearance, and compare how much more I can buy with the same amount of money.