So long Springfield!

No, I'm not moving out of the capitol city but I am letting go of something that has been a part of my life for almost 25 years. Guiding Light. The fictional Springfield and those living in it have been a part of my life for so long that it became such a routine to watch the show. I started watching when I was a little girl. Mom was hooked on CBS soap operas and I too quickly became interested. Ever since I have been taping the show, everyday. I'm not sure why. The lives of the Spauldings, Coopers, Bauers and Lewis's became so real. It was almost as if I knew each of the characters personally.

The story lines are so unbelievable sometimes. I remember way back when Reva was cloned. The new Reva was born and was aging at a rapid pace. I remember when Edmund wanted Cassie to have a baby so bad that he stalked a very pregnant Michelle Bauer only to kidnap her, make her go into labor, deliver her baby and play it off as his adopted daughter. I remember watching every episode of Philip going crazy.

The last few years the show has gone a bit downhill on the story lines. Sure, it's a soap opera so most of the story lines are a bit unrealistic. But they started to get worse. This past year or so there hasn't been a real good nail biting story line. Also, the producers have been shooting the soap with a handheld camera -everyday. So it looks like you are watching a home movie all the time, I never got used to the new camera work.

I am sad to let go of something I have loved for so long. I finally erased the continuous recording on my DVR, it's gone. It's been a bit over a week now since I've watched and as of yet I don't miss it. Probably because it became a chore to watch it everyday, and even then I would fast forward through most of the show.

So to the Cooper's, Bauer's, Spaulding's & Lewis's, I'm going to miss you. I'm going to miss my favorite character, Buzz. I'm going to miss the cheesy lines and jokes. I'm going to miss Dina and her wonderful hair and clothes. I'm going to miss Billy and his everyday struggle as a recovering alchoholic. I'm going to miss Reva and Josh and the way she calls him "Bud." So...until we meet again (or until Jonathan Randall returns) Bye-Bye Springfield!

Covered Bridge Festival

For the past three years my mom and I have attended the Covered Bridge Festival in Indiana. Jared refers to it as the "trinket festival." The festival takes place in seven different towns. Vendors line the streets selling food, antiques and just about anything that you can imagine. Mom, Cooper and I took off early Sunday morning. I have to mention that the usual weather for Covered Bridge is cold and rainy. This year it was 85 and extremely humid.

Our first stop was Brazil. Brazil is one of our favorite stops because it is mostly antiques and garage sale type things. I love to hunt for treasures! Because the weather was so hot we didn't spend as much time as we have in the past. But I was able to find a couple of little glass bottles with cork stoppers for my new project. I got three bottles for a total of $2.50. Score! After Brazil we trucked it onto Bridgeton. It was so hot we didn't even get out of the car. The beauty of Bridgeton is that the vendors line the street on both sides. So we were able to drive right though. Nothing caught our eye so we trucked it onto our favorite place - Mansfield.

At Mansfield you can find anything and I do mean ANYTHING. Food vendors are selling ice cream, fried twinkies, fudge, sandwiches, kettle corn, apple dumplings, lemon shake ups, you name it they've got it. It's sort of like the State Fair only no rides. Alongside the food vendors are merchandise vendors. Miles and miles of stuff. You can find just about anything you ever wanted. There are dollar tents, people selling handmade items, As Seen on TV items (such as the Sham Wow! which we must have seen in 20 different spots), clothing, candles, make-up, socks, purses, toys, dog treats and the list goes on and on.

One of the things that really burns me about the Covered Bridge is that people bring their dogs. Big huge dogs and tiny teacup sized pups. People are pushing dog strollers and wearing doggie back packs. It truly amazes me that A) people would spend money on a dog stroller and B) they actually want to push and or wear the dog around all day in 85 degree heat.

We spent a total of two days at the festival. Even though it seemed like a long time we didn't come close to seeing everything in Mansfield. However we did get some great things. Mom got herself a brand new Elvis purse and lots of other things. I got some trinkets to help decorate my house a bit and some really neat jewelry. We ate great food. For lunch on the first day mom had a polish sausage sandwich and I had myself a philly cheesteak -my favorite. They both were good, but I'm not sure it was worth $14. The next day we had a pumpkin roll. Delish! For lunch we had homemade chicken and noodles with mashed potatoes. For dessert mom and I split a hot fudge brownie Sunday and an apple dumpling. It is impossible to eat healthy at the festival!

So mom and I have another year at the Covered Bridge our belts. And even though this trip just ended, I'm already ready for Covered Bridge 2009!

So there ARE still nice folks out there

Cooper loves to walk in the stroller. And what better way to get myself some exercise, because we all know I hate exercise. When I take Cooper for walks in the stroller we trot down the street in front of our house. The problem is our street is very busy. We live 2 miles south of town so it's basically out in the country. The speed limit sign says 30, but very few people actually drive 30. I started walking during the day time when there isn't as much traffic to minimize the risk of getting hit.

Cooper and I walk 2 miles round trip which usually takes us about 35-40 mins. Cars whiz by us so fast and sometimes so close that drivers realize that us pedestrians are there and have to quickly move out of the way. I know that when Coop and I start out on our walk that it is practically a brush with death. But this week the nicest thing happened. As we were on our way back home on what seems to be the longest 2 miles ever I hear this car coming. As I usually do, I turned around to make sure it was on the other side of the road so that it wouldn't hit us. It was a truck that got right beside me and stopped. The truck was either a construction workers truck or a utility workers truck. You know, one of those with the yellow light on top. So this man says, "Hey do me a favor and wear this so people can see you"and he tosses me this neon yellow package. I said, "Thank you" and he replied with "no problem" and drove away. I opened the package and it was one of those neon yellow vests that you see construction folks wearing while they're working on the side of the road. I opened it up and put that sucker on. For the rest of my walk which lasted about 20 mins I got the strangest looks. And I must admit it probably was a sight to see. Me, in my pajama pants pushing a baby stroller wearing a construction worker vest. Sure, I felt a little stupid wearing the thing but with every strange glance I got, I thought to myself, "hey this thing is working! People can see me!"

So to the nice construction/utility man, thank you for tossing me that vest. I no longer feel as if I am risking my life while walking my baby. So from now on I will proudly wear that vest every time Cooper and I go on our walk. See there are still nice people out there!

"I'm walking on sunshine.." - Katrina & the Waves