LL Bean

Cathy sent me down to LL Bean in Freeport to spend some of our wedding gift certificates. I probably spent nearly 4 hours there. It is quite an adventure! I ended up getting a pair of shoes from the Outlet store!

LCD and stand

We got two more wedding cards from Ohio today. Thanks.
We got up and moving early this morning.
We headed to Augusta's Walmart to get our LCD.
Our local store did not have the one we wanted.

We purchased the Vizio 26 inch LCD HDTV with tuner.
We also purchased a highboy television stand.
We used the money we had gotten for wedding and Christmas.
In the end we only paid $19.00 for the tv itself.

It is our first HDTV and we did much research.
We decided on the smaller screen ...
to aid in watching our VHS collection.
Christening video will be Alien Nation series!

Cookware Set

We packed up all my old kitchen stuff to give away.
That included bakeware, cookware and silverware.
We were hoping this weekend maybe to see a deal.
We knew in the past Bed, Bath, and Beyond did coupons.

We took another road trip today to my cousin's town.
This is also where I lived about six months last year.
Randy is glad I no longer live in the "boonies".
We ate some peanut butter cream pie at Moody's Diner.

My cousin has 4 children from teens to early twenties.
Three of these are woman soon to be out on their own.
I left my old but still good kitchenware with them.
We really were counting on faith to replace cookware.

When we got home Randy went to get the mail.
In it was a Bed, Bath, and Beyond 20% off coupon.
Coupled with $70 dollars worth of gift certificates ...
allowed us to purchase 15 piece set for just $10.00.

It's durable Farberware - the classic series.
While it is stainless steel also has aluminum base.
The matching frying pans have non-stick surfaces.
A couple of the saucepans come with spout and strainer.

Getting Serious Part 1

Over the weekend we signed up online for a joint bank account.
I already account with the bank - but under old name and old address.
We had 11 checks that needed depositing as far back as November.
The farthest back was for sale of Randy's vehicle before moving.
Checks also included moving, wedding and Christmas gift monies.
Still have to return to bank with me to finalize changes.

UPS visited us again today with final Kohl purchases from parents.
Included a 6 quart Farberware stock pot, griddle and rectangular pan.
That pretty much does it for new kitchen stuff we are expecting.
We filled up our new cabinets with canned products and other staples.
Because of the stocking up we are set for awhile on non-perishables.
Randy is a great shopper and especially for deals and using coupons.

Wedding Packages

We continue to get wedding packages. Thanks so much. With the $25 Amazon gift certificate we purchased and received 2 medium and 4 mini loaf pans. Thanks again Rue Home Group. Also (from them) received Oneida 24 piece flatware set, service for 4 in the Emma design. My parents also purchased for us a service for 8 which included some serving pieces. Thanks everyone. From Ann and Dawn (from Xenos office) we received a card and scrapbook album. They are both very lovely. Thanks ladies.

Tired Now

I did the last of my Christmas baking today.
That included Macaroonies and Banana Bread.

Mom and dad stopped by for a little bit.
They had been at Kohl's for our wedding gift registry.
What they purchased thus far was 2 muffin pans,
9 inch square baking dish and 13x9 casserole.
Some items were temporary out of stock.

For supper I made Chicken Casserole.
And for dessert Chocolate Pudding.

My throat has been sore since yesterday.
Think I will take it easy tomorrow.

More wedding gifts received!!!

The mail brought us a $25 gift certificate from Barnes & Noble (Thank you to Mac & Jayne Ann) and a $25 gift certificate to Amazon (from the Rue Home Group - Thank you)!

Slow Cooker

We just received Rival 3 1/2 quart Slow Cooker.
Thank you Rue Home Group from Xenos.
This was on our Amazon Bridal Wish List.

Also wanted to send out "thanks" to the Benners.
When we were reviewing cards we realized ...
we forgot to thank you guys for monetary gift.

Wedding Day Facts

The wedding was at my parent's home where I grew up.
Due to weather we could not exchange vows in gazebo.

Wedding participants:
Randy the groom and Cathy the bride
The bride's parents, Ron and Connie
The bride's brother John and wife Sarah
Mike the best man - Randy's former boss from Ohio
Sherry the matron of honor - Cathy's cousin's wife
Florence, family friend and amateur photographer
Pastor Frank, wife Laura and adult daughter Pam
Randy and Cathy's friend JD also from Ohio

Gifts received at wedding:
Wedding photo scrapbook from Florence
Bed, Bath and Beyond gift certificate from Pam

Company times 2 by 2

Mid afternoon we heard that JD and Mike had arrived.
JD is the guy that helped Randy move here.
Mike is the best man and Randy's former boss.
After they had lunch they stopped by our apartment.

Randy went with them to my parents to see wedding site.
They then returned for dinner and visiting with us.
Dinner was pork loin roast, green beans and mashed potatoes.
Dessert was vitamin pie (coffee cake with fruit cocktail).

Later in the evening John and Sarah stopped in too.
They had made up a card with Nicholas, my old cat.
They used a program to put him in a tuxedo top.
They also gave us a generous monetary gift. THANKS!!!

More Gifts

As an older couple we were not really expecting gifts.
We wish to thank everyone that has sent cards and gifts.
Yesterday we found out Pastor Frank was not charging us.
And the lady making the cake is doing it as a gift as well.

Today we received two gifts in the mail.
A LL Bean gift certificate from Pastor Frank.
And a monetary gift from my Aunt Barbara.
WOW - thanks again to everyone.

Today was a very busy day working around the apartment.
Randy moved some of my things over to the storage unit.
Randy sorted and unpacked his boxes in the bedroom.
We also caught up on each of our individual laundry.

Picture Frame and Ornament

A very sweet teenager we know gave us these.
The picture frame is gold with a heart in lower right corner.
The ornament is very precious as well.
On the back of the bride it says "Just".
On the back of the groom it says "Married".
On the bottom of the bride's dress it says "The Newlyweds".
Both are very special to us. Thank you, Jo.
And thanks to the rest of the family ...
which gave us a $25 gift certificate to LL Bean.

Dinner And A Movie cookbooks

Before I left Columbus, I was given 2 cookbooks by Stephanie E. who came over to buy some of my videos. I finally got to look through them today and they're pretty nice! So here's my thanks to Stephanie, who noticed that I was a movie lover!

Bed, Bath & Beyond Gift Certificate

I need to shout out a big thank you to Dave E., formally the Saturday night soundman for XCF!

Thanks Dave for the $50 gift certificate to Bed, Bath & Beyond! We have our eye on some rugs. (We may spend it the day after Thanksgiving as the Black Friday special is 20% off everything. That way we could make it worth an extra $10!!!)

Fix-It and Forget-It

I got our first wedding gift here at the apartment.
I know Randy got a blanket at his farewell party.
I called Randy to see if it was okay that I open it.
He thanked me for calling and giving him an energy boost.

The gift was the Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook.
It's subtitle is Feasting with your Slow Cooker.
It was purchased from our Amazon gift registry.
Thank you Cousin Marilyn from Florida.

Farewell Party

Randy's work gave him a Farewell Party at lunch.
He received a blanket and large card, 19 X 13.
About 56 folks signed the card with well wishes.

Also a bunch of people spoke tributes to Randy.
He was very touched by the whole event.
He didn't cry but he almost did. Very sentimental.

In the evening people stopped by his apartment.
He sold his microwave, tv, and DVD/VCR.
A couple of folks are interested in the minivan.

Total VHS boxes now packed is 40.