News of my yard sale this weekend was published in a 2nd local paper today, and I’ve received several phone calls from people asking for more info on it today. One lady that called was new to our town, and needed directions. After giving those to her, she asked me why I was walking, and told me that her daughter (who lives in Detroit) does the walk up there. Small world!
I completed 11 pages in my 2006 3-Day scrapbook, so I’ll have it out on the table at the sale this weekend for people to look through, right next to my donation bucket!
My husband just hasn’t been able to get back into the workout and exercise routine since the holidays. I’m not sure where he’ll go from here…it’s just tough to find time to cram in exercise and a whole diet routine when you’re busy with life. A name I’ve seen a few times in reference to weight loss is Herbalife. I knew several people that worked as independent distributors for the company back when I owned my website, because they bought advertising from me on more than one occasion! The company is still around, and has been helping folks lose weight for over 20 years. You can even visit the website and request a free sample of the products, and try before you buy. (Not a bad deal!)
I mentioned in the past that we’re working on getting my son to gain a few pounds. He’s been doing a lot better eating, and he’s remembering on his own to drink a Boost every day. (Boost is one of those supplement drinks high in protein and calories) He got on the scale the other day and was so disappointed when he realized he hasn’t gained a pound. I tried to explain to him that it will take time, but try explaining growth spurts and weight gain to a 7 year old! I am proud of him for working hard to eat better, but I don’t like to see him worry about it.
When I walked in last year’s 3-Day, we experienced a lot of rain and grey skies. I packed my sunglasses, but I didn’t really need them. (I could have used small windshield wipers on my eyeglasses though!)
I’m hoping for sunny skies in Florida this year, which means I will plan on using my sunglasses, and plenty of sunscreen. My eyes are pretty light sensitive anyway, so I never go outside in the sun without sunglasses on. I’m planning on getting prescription sunglasses to wear, because my clip on magnetic ones that go over my eye glasses don’t always stay on securely. I didn’t realize that OpticsPlanet.net had such a large selection of prescription sunglasses. Yep - in addition to binoculars and telescopes, they carry all kinds of eyeware. You just pick out your sunglasses, submit your prescription, and voila - sunglasses made for your eyes. All prescription sunglasses ship for free via UPS!
Phew. I drove to Tampa today and picked up more donations for the sale, including a kids wagon, golf clubs, and some furniture. My garage is starting to get full! I’m also still clearing things out from my house - we’ve got dishes to get rid of, and I put our Fry Daddy outside, and I’ve got a lot of books in my son’s room to go through in the next few days. We’ve got bikes and toys and clothes and books - tons of stuff to price and sell. I’m hoping this is a big success 
My kids will be going to “Spring Break Camp” next week…something to keep them busy while they’re off school for a week. My oldest is taking a week long dance course, my middle child is taking a cooking class, and my son will be going each morning for a 3 hour basketball camp. We have a portable hoop at home and he loves to play out there. He’s hoping that the hoop at camp isn’t as high (we have ours set to regulation height) so that he can make more baskets.
Our basketball hoop actually got us in trouble a while back - turns out the HOA didn’t like it being on the sidewalk, and they sent us a letter to move it. Apparently the HOA frowns on kids having fun in front of their own homes. I was talking so some of the other parents in the neighborhood about it, and once our neighborhood is all sold out, and the residents take control of the HOA, we’d like to put in a play area for the kids in an area that is currently green space. Nothing fancy - a small play area, picnic tables, benches, and a cement area for playing basketball. For that, we’d need something a little nicer than a portable hoop - something like in-ground basketball equipment. It’s adjustable, so the bigger kids and the smaller kids in the neighborhood could all use and enjoy it. I’d much rather have the kids playing in a central area than roaming the streets bored out of their minds, ya know? A lot of the kids in the neighborhood enjoyed playing at our house before we had to start putting our hoop away each time we finished playing with it, and I miss seeing that.
Jim and I did a lot of organizing in the garage tonight for the yard sale. I’m glad he’s going to be home Friday to help me with it though - I know there will be a lot of last minute things to wrap up. We’ve received donations of items to sell from a few people, so we’ve got a lot of great things right now. I priced a lot of it tonight, and we’ll also be making up signs for things we have a lot of, e.g. all videos $1, all books $.50, etc. Two local papers printed a blurb up about the sale as well, since it’s for charity Between that and the ads I placed, we should get quite a bit of traffic! And I had another neighbor call me this afternoon to say she’ll be joining in as well.
Rising drug costs are a big concern for most Americans - especially those on a fixed income. Can you imagine having to make a choice between your medication and eating? Or keeping your electric on? Or putting gas in your card? No wonder so many Americans are turning to Canadian drug stores to lower their prescription medication costs. If you don’t have insurance, you’re paying a lot more than you need to. Some stores have lowered their costs on generic drugs, but you can’t always choose generic. A prescription drug card may be a big help for some - it’s free, and can be used at over 50,000 US pharmacies to get discounts up of to 75% on any FDA approved drug. Unlike a prescription drug plan through your insurance company, you won’t have to pay any deductible, and your savings are instant - no waiting periods.
I’m curious to see if we can get a better rate using that card for our medication, as compared to our insurance plan. Right now we pay a big upfront deductible and if you don’t get medications monthly, you really don’t see any savings.
Yippee - I finally got my info on starting official training walks with the other 3-Day walkers in my area. I just have to attend a short conference call to go over the responsibilities of being a training walk leader, and then they’ll put me in touch with all of the walkers in the area. I live right by a big trail, so it’ll be great to not only get started on training with other walkers, but to meet some people I’ll see during the big walk in October. Maybe I’ll even get some new people on our team!
Going off to college probably means freedom for most young adults. Getting away from mom and dad, their rules, their restrictions. Being able to stay up all night, or out all night if you choose. Making new friends, meeting new people. For some, it probably also means partying a bit more, now that you’re away from the watchful eyes of your parents. Some schools are even known as “party schools”. And because treating young adults with addiction is different than treating adults, there’s now an addiction treatment program specifically for people ages 17 1/2 through 26. At a time when peer pressure, school pressure, and life is intense, SoberCollege attempting to help young adults get over their addiction, and finish school.
