On Thursday, the 3rd we had 70 degree weather so I was taking outdoor photos. This morning we woke up to low 30’s for temps and a winter wonderland. We got at least 4 inches overnight and some areas got even more. The bottom left photo is the view out our bedroom winter taken early this morning. The photo to the right is of our Christmas lights on our front bushes.
A good time was had by all. We have a camera shy bunch so I don’t have many people pictures. There was plenty of food and we were all sufficiently stuffed. I think we’ll be eating turkey for quite some time to come. Friday was my traditional turkey soup meal.
Sheila and Rich will be heading home this morning. I had hoped to join them for breakfast before they took off but I got a call from the other unit that I occasionally work at that there was a sick call and would I come in so… Greg will be going to breakfast without me. Duty calls.
The preparations are underway, above left is the turkey. This year we decided to go a little smaller than we have in the past. It’s slightly over 14lbs. There are the five of us plus Sheila and Rich. Emily is a vegetarian and Derek… well those of you who know him, need I say more, he’s not an eater, so a smaller bird made sense. Sheila made a pumpkin pie yesterday.
We traditionally start our morning with Sheila’s coffee cake recipe that we have been making for years. The turkey is now stuffed and ready to go into the oven.
Once a year the dining room table is used for its true function instead of a catchall for books, projects etc. I didn’t break out the good china but there our a few pieces here and there.
Greg and Rich went to the local high school football game that started at 10. Dinner is planned for around 2 pm. More to follow later.
I wish everyone a very special day, a time to enjoy friends and family and be thankful for all the good in our lives.
We have been plagued with these little moth critters. I’ve never seen them this bad. I think the incredibly wet spring helped them to thrive. It’s been very mild lately as well. This is what our front porch has looked like the last few nights. Typically we have the porch light off because of them. The real trick is getting in and out the door without letting too many in.
Wednesday was Derek’s first formal Wind Ensemble concert. This is the group he was working so hard to be a part of. They are very professional and their conductor is extremely accomplished. David Martins is Professor of Music at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and Adjunct Professor of Music at Boston University. He has degrees from the Eastman School of Music and UML, College of Music and was a recipient of a Berkshire Music Festival Tangelwood Fellowship. He is the Music Director of the UML Wind Ensemble, Boston University Wind Ensemble and The Rhode Island Philharmonic Youth Wind Ensembles. He is Music Director Emeritus of the Metropolitan Wind Symphony and on and on. Derek is very inspired by him.
Click on Torch Dance is see the last number they played. Many of the pieces they performed were a ‘little out there’ but all done very well.
MCLA is a fairly small school. About 2000 students attend. It’s older and has a more classic look. The kids that did the tours were very enthusiastic and really seemed to love their school, that always says a lot. Another nice perk of the school is how reasonably priced it is. It’s more than half the price of Champlain per year. Champlain is still Em’s #1 pick (it is a really nice school so we understand her motivation) but she moved Hofstra into #3 and MCLA into #2. The area is really beautiful with mountains all around. One thing that really impressed me was how clean the air smelled, it was the freshest air I’ve ever smelled.
MCLA tends to be geared towards the arts, performing in particular. To the left is an interesting sculpture. The gate to the right is symbolic. Our guide told us that on the first day of school as a freshmen everyone files through the gate. At graduation everyone files out through the gate. The rest of the time it’s kept closed and its suppose to be bad luck to go through it at any other time.
After we finished our college visit we went into the downtown area to see two museums. The one above was an exhibit on birds and nests done by college students.
The other was a more typical museum with some interesting pieces. Art certainly can be in the eye of the beholder.
We traveled through the Berkshire Mountains. Some of the roads were very winding. Just outside of North Adams is a very classic hairpin turn and I do mean hairpin. I can only imagine how many accidents have been in that spot.
The statue below is a commemoration to veterans which seemed appropriate as it was Veteran’s Day. The mountain backdrop was spectacular.
About a month ago I saw a local story on the news about a woman who lives in our home town and feeds her family of six on less than $5 a week because of coupons. Hmmm, I thought, now there’s a challenge and thus began my quest. Here is a link to the story that first captivated me. Coupon Queen They recently featured her on Good Morning America.
I do have to preface this all by saying it has become a new part time job and I spend a lot of time scouring the internet for coupons. I have been keeping a spreadsheet of spending. I don’t see how I could ever get it down to less than $10 but I have been managing to get some items for free when they’re on sale and have cut our food bill close to $50 per week. I’m still honing my craft. Here are some links to my favorite sites:
Use your zip code to find the deals in your area. Most sites will let you print at least 2 of each. If you have multiple computers in your home take advantage of them. Typically the first of the month they reset. I have also visited manufacturers sites that I like and found coupons. Our favorite peanut butter is Jif. I couldn’t find any coupons but I went to their site and sent them an email praising their product and they sent me one in the mail. There are many more sites out there, blogs about saving money etc. The Sunday paper typically has coupons but not on a holiday. I know next year with two in college every little bit will help.
