A Fitting Finale

One of my all-time, all-time favorite movies, hands down, is "Practical Magic"!  I will watch it any time of the year!  But, of course, Halloween season is the best time!

I can recite almost the whole thing! 

We own the handmade coffee cup and silver spoon from the movie that Sandra Bullock's character, Sally, stirs with her magic!

Yes, we love it THAT much!!!!

So, it is perfectly fitting that the last book I check out from the Crown Point Community Library is Alice Hoffman's "Practical Magic".

I started to read it right away and without any surprise there are already differences btwn the movie and the book.  It will be fun to compare.  Usually, I prefer the books to the movies, but nothing can diminish my admiration for the movie!

Baby, Beer & Beach

That's a weird combo in the blog title, right?!?  Well, it sort of sums up our weekend!!!  And is alliterative...always a smart writing technique! 

On Saturday, we met our newest great nephew, Christian.  He is the son of our oldest niece, Amber, who lives just outside of Milwaukee.  He was born July 23rd, I think.  Amber has shared photos on Facebook, of course, but he is soooo much smaller in person!  Just this teeny little guy!  With the most beautiful lips!  He slept most of the time we were there, but I was able to wake him right before we left so that I could see his big brown eyes! 

Saturday nite, I went to a local bar/restaurant with some friends from the gym.  We were celebrating the 21st birthday of one of the instructors (YES...a wee 21) and watching the UFC fights.  I was able to drink a couple of my favorite beers, from a local microbrew, 3 Floyds' Gumballhead!!!  It was a fun time with some people I have only recently gotten to know!  It's too bad I won't be able to do it again, but that's why it is important to grab opportunities when they present themselves!

Sunday, late afternoon, after going to the laundrymat to dry our clothes (the dryer at the rental has no heating element any longer and the landlord refuses to fix it) and a quick run to Kohls to use some coupons, we spent a few lazy hours on the beach.  It wasn't a hot, hot day and there was a wonderful breeze ~ the ideal beach weather for our tastes.   

This is my last full week for my beloved gym and I plan to go everyday!  I am going to take Paul's killer kickboxing class on Sunday morning, too!  One, because it will be my last chance to take it again and, two, because there are a couple gym-mates that I won't see unless I catch up with them that particular morning! 

Make it an amazing week!!!

The Error of My Ways

This damn site won't let me edit anything! 

I know there are spelling errors in some posts (words, last names), but I am unable to go back into the post to change or update! 

I will be paying for a website after we move to Colorado and will be leaving this site (and Facebook).

Details to come....

Chicken Pot Pie

On Sunday, with the gorgeous weather, we simply had to get outdoors!  It was a cross btwn a late summer and early fall day!  Simply the best!!!

We headed out to Michigan City.  The drive along US 12 is (mostly) scenic.  We had the sunroof open and the windows cracked ~~ letting in all the fresh air and sunshine.

We were destined for the outlet mall.  We could be outside, walking around, doing a little browsing, as well as some food & drink sampling at the 2 staple stores we would always hit first! 

We were sidetracked by a Lindt store when we first arrived.  We sampled some delish chocolate and hazelnut truffle!  And then I saw it, a sign for Illy coffee.  Our absolute favorite, which we discovered in The Venetian in Las Vegas!  While it wasn't the coolest of days, we couldn't resist getting a cup of this smooth, almost silky, java!

We then headed straight for our first stop, Le Gourmet.  Yet, as we were approaching the store front, we were slightly confused.  Were we in the right part of the mall?  Where was the sign?  What was this empty looking store ahead?  Did our Le Gourmet ~~ the place we did our most food sampling ~~ close!  GASP!  Yep, it wasn't there.  How sad!!!!  And it's a really good thing neither of us were starving!  HA!

On to our next favorite store, Harry & David.  Always some good (albeit minimal) sampling here, too!  We got a small bite of a Chicken Pot Pie this visit.  Mmmmm!!!  It was divine!  So similar to the one I make from scratch!  And, guess what?!  It was on clearance for $6.97 (from $39.95)!!!  That's definitely less than (maybe equal to) what it costs for me to make it myself.  So, I snagged 2!!!  Might be a little less healthy than homemade, but it saves me a boatload of time!

So, we are, once again, experiencing unseasonably cool temps, high of 72 degrees today.  That is FALL to me and dinner tonite is a Harry & David Chicken Pot Pie!!  Along with a side salad and some wine!  We can bundle up a bit and even enjoy this on the deck! 

Ahhhh....the only thing missing: jack o-lanterns!  But let's not rush summer away!  We still need to hit the beach 2 or 3 more times before we move to Colorado!

One Last Walk Around the Midway

This past Saturday evening, we made, what will most likely be, our final trip to THE Lake County Fair. 

I wanted to go back at nite to see the rides all aglow!!

I also wanted to get the Red Velvet funnel cake that had eluded me the Saturday prior.  HA!  (Which, I must add, wasn't great!  I would have regretted NOT getting it more than the actual disappointment it brought me...and the slight stomach ache I had into the wee hours from it!!) 

We enjoyed our evening (made all the better with another round of free entry and parking!!) with another day of perfect weather!  We couldn't have ordered this stuff if we tried! 

Chris brought his camera this time, so we will have some pretty cool pics as reminders of this important tradition and place that holds a very special place in our lives, both as kids and as a couple.

I'll admit, here and now, that, yes, I did tear up as we were walking back to our car!  It's the closing of a chapter, so it was hard for me to think that we won't be back next year, as usual! 

We took advantage of the knowledge that we might not be back and we savored all of our "normal" rituals while throwing in a few new things for good measure!  We ate 2 for 1 sandwiches, rather than another corndog.  We petted the goats outside the petting zoo.  We got coffee ~~ which is SOOOO weird for August in Northwest Indiana!  We watched more horse shows.  We even spent another 50¢ on our mouse game b/c we simply can't be there and not play, even if we don't really want another stuffed animal!!  (Even after winning the first day, I think on Chris's 50¢, I still played my whole dollar!  It's a small vice!)

My heart will be slightly tugged this time next year, especially of some friends on Facebook make posts.  But I know there is so much in Colorado for us to experience and we will be busy making new discoveries and new traditions. 

And we have pictures....and Big Dolores!!!

Wanderlust

It's one of my favorite words ~ Wanderlust.

Wikipedia defines wanderlust as "a strong desire for or impulse to wander or travel and explore the world."

I have it tattooed on my left foot (along with a lotus flower).

It is what we will name any boat or RV or trailer/camper we ever buy.

There are some movies that, off the top of my head, inspire travel, change, adventure, growth for me:

Wanderlust

The Darjeeling Limited

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Big Fish

Hope Floats

Under the Tuscan Sun (the book is even better!!)

Watch them for yourself and see if they do the same for you.  I also find when I read books I am transported and the impulse to explore these "other worlds" are ignited within.

For many of us, there is just this need, this desire, this feeling that where we are isn't all there is....

and we go out to seek ~ ~ something more, something new, something different.

Safe travels, friends!

Checklists & Packing & Goodbyes, Oh My!

It's only about one month until we hit the road and head west for our next adventure!  The next chapter in our life...the newest chapters to continue the story that we have been weaving for over two decades.

I have checklists galore, but I am still anxious.  I think because there are things we simply cannot do until right up to the day of loading the moving truck (oh, yeah...we are, once again, moving ourselves!), so I feel a bit like a hamster on a wheel. 

I go to work, even tho it's almost torture to sit around there while the beautiful days are happening around me!  I work on the logistics of the move that I can (setting up utilities, emailing the new landlord, checking cellphone pricing...) while my mind is spinning about the things that must wait a little bit longer.

Chris is amazing thru these sorts of things.  He is our packer!  I have all the confidence in him that we will strategically get everything we plan to take with us to Colorado fit into the 16' Penske truck on Sunday, September 8th.

I am still waiting on those who said they were buying our furniture to come forward, pick it up and pay us.  (This is part of my anxiety!)

My work is throwing me a going-away party on August 28th.  Should be fun!  I might be a bit sad...but not so much!  I might miss a bit of the routine of getting up and going to work (and getting a paycheck!!), but I don't think it will be a bother for awhile, seeing that we will have lots to keep us busy both pre-& post-move for several weeks, at least!

We went to the Lake County Fair on Saturday.  The weather was perfect!  As close to fall as I would want for a summer-time fair.  We ate our corndogs, shared an elephant ear and split "butterfly fries" with nacho cheese and bacon bits!  We strolled the animal areas, pet the newborn piglets, admired the vegetables, played our mouse game, strolled the midway and enjoyed some horse shows.  It was wonderful!!  We will head back there this Saturday at nite to experience it one last time and with everything a-glow!  Plus, we didn't get a funnel cake and there is a place selling one made with red velvet mix!  Whoa!  Gotta give that a try!!!

My days at my wonderful gym are coming to their last and I know it will be very sad my final class (which just happens to be a Hammer circuit).  I am going to miss so much of that place!!!

I want to find a place to meet up with people who would like to see us before we leave, but I can't really think of anywhere other than a bar (which doesn't entice me but might have to do).  But I don't want to just "sneak" away!  I want to see & talk & dance & enjoy our NWI peeps!

It's almost surreal that the time to move is just about here!  I pray for the 4 days of the "big stuff" (loading, 2 days of driving and unloading) to be simply beautiful weather ~ sunny, cool & dry would be ideal! 

Well, back to my checklists to see what I can work on today!!!  Otherwise, I am back to Pinterest searching out Fall and Halloween ideas!