Category: Events Around Indy

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October is My Favorite

Ah…that’s better. Are you seeing any malware warnings? I hope not. My friend Spencer seems to have cured what’s been ailing this blog for awhile now- so welcome back, and have a read. This is a post I wrote as an Indiana Family of Famers Table Talk Ambassador. It originally appeared at bgkahuna.com during my quarantine.

After much consideration, I think October may be my favorite Indiana month. There is so much to do, and so many ways to celebrate fall in central Indiana, I actually schedule it all in so we don’t miss anything (Calendars. It’s what I do). October is a big month for agrotourism in Indiana and all across the midwest- it’s finally time to enjoy the fruits of the farmers’ endless labor.

There’s pumpkins and corn mazes and apple picking and so many hayrides it’s hard to keep track. I love bringing the kids outside in this long pants-short sleeve weather, where they can soak up the sun and  marvel at the change of seasons

Taking a break on an actual pumpkin.

This year, we took the kids to a real pumpkin patch- a field where pumpkins were actually growing on the vine. They wandered happily for nearly an hour, exploring the field, moving the pumpkins around and generally soaking it all in. There is something about being in the moment, being in the place where food is grown, that is centering in a way nothing else is. To find a pumpkin patch near you, check out My Indiana Home’s Pumpkin directory.

We also made it to a corn maze, where they trekked for another hour. Not only was it an adventure, it was a good lesson in the way our food depends on the weather. Last year, the maze was lush and green, with stalks so thick there was no cutting through. This year, the stalks were short, thin, and dry. The corn that did grow was unusable, and there were bald spots in the maze where nothing grew at all. While they may be a little thinner than in years past, it’s still fun to get lost in a field. Find a corn maze near you using My Indiana Home’s Corn Maze directory.

My son had the thrill of apple picking for the first time with my parents. We typically shop at the store rather than a farm market, and by doing so, I think we’ve forgotten what fresh produce tastes like. When I bit into that Rome apple grown in northwest Indiana, my mouth was shocked at the flavor. So delicious. Because they are detail oriented, the kids have had a great time taste-testing apples this season- in a blind taste test, they know the difference between a Golden Delicious, a Gala, and everyone’ most favorite, the Honeycrisp. For everything apple, check out My Indiana Home’s Apple Page.
For a list of seasonal crops and where to pick them, see this handy pdf: http://www.in.gov/isda/files/Harvest_Calander.pdf.

Thanks to Indiana’s Family of Farmers Table Talk program for providing me with some fall-themed goodies, passes to Kelsay’s Fall Fun on the Farm  and handy information about Indiana’s agrotourism. October is also National Pork Month- can you say BACON? Learn more on Indiana’s Family of Farmers website, and connect with them socially @FamilyofFarmers and www.facebook.com/familyoffarmers.

 

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Trying New Things : Indy WordLab

Last week Two weeks ago, Heather, Julie and I tried something new. We trekked downtown (which isn’t seeming so far away for Heather these days, she’s there a lot) and we attended September’s Indy WordLab. It’s true. I spend my day looking at words, and for fun, in the evening, I went to an event about words.

It was so much more than that.

For starters, I finally got to see Indy Reads Books for myself. It’s a real used bookstore, located right on Mass Ave. It operates as part of Indy Reads, Indianapolis’ Adult Literacy education initiative.

So. WordLab.

There’s a speaker (usually a writer) who leads the group in some kind of writing exercise.

Our group was lead by Indy WordLab organizer and author of Nothing New: An Irreverant History of Storytelling and Social Media, Ryan Brock. He led us in an exercise that started with 30 minutes of writing, then a shorter amount of time (6 minutes?) and then finally, 90 seconds. The only requirement was that we include the phrase “autumn leaves”.

So what did I write?

I wrote about my kid, of course. Here is my 30 minute product. It kind of sums up what’s been going on around here the last few weeks. It was inspired by the fact that she learned to ride a two-wheeler on my birthday. It’s not a gift I’ll soon forget.

The end of summer is a new beginning. New shoes because her feet have grown. New backpack and lunchbox because her tastes have changed.

She’s asking for phone numbers and posting on My Big Campus. She guards passwords and tracks her allowance. The training wheels have come off as the neighborhood pool closed, and she’s taken off down the street.

Her birthstone earrings have been returend to her jewelery box, and she’s raided mine for a pair of hook earrings.

Autumn leaves turn as she leaves one place and surges head first into the next.

___________________________________________________________________________

After we wrote, we shared in small groups. It was like a college writing class, except it was free, it was for fun, and there was no grade.

And we’ll be going back in October. Are you interested in joining us?

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Five Reasons Consigning is Better Than a Garage Sale {and a Giveaway}

EDITED: This giveaway is now closed. Thanks for playing! (In this case, if you played, you won!)

I’m going to let you in on a secret- I kind of like organizing kids clothing. It’s probably because I’ve never had to do it for a living. Each season, I like to sort through the clothing for both my children, packing up what doesn’t fit and finding of a spot for things that do fit.

Do you know what I like even better than organizing their closet? I like selling their outgrown clothing at Indy Kids Consignment Sale.

It’s easy. It’s profitable.

It keeps baby/kids stuff out in the universe where it can do some good, instead of loaded in my garage, where it just gets more outdated every season that it sits.

It’s an invasion of Little People!
Toys sell fast at every sale.

I was a little hesitant when I signed up for my first sale, but it couldn’t have been easier. The IKC Sale website has answers to just about every question, and previous consignors are happy to give advice as well. Is it better than having your own garage sale? You bet.

Here’s why:

1) You make more money. Once you’ve set your prices, they’re set and you make at least a 60% commission. You have the option to sell everything at half-price on Saturday, but it’s not required. At the last garage sale I had, people wanted to give me $1 for 2 dresses I had marked at $3 each.

2) You don’t sit in your driveway all day. As a matter of fact, you don’t even need to attend the sale. All you need to do is drop off your inventory at your appointed time. The IKC staff does the rest.

3) It takes less time. See the above. Then add in the amount of time you spend getting your items ready- even if you don’t tag all the items and enter them into a database (you don’t do that for garage sales, do you?), you are still spending the time to sort through things and get them set up on tables. After that, you sit in your driveway all day. I spend a few hours getting my inventory ready, but that’s it.

4) You have the choice to donate unsold items. IKC is happy to have you pick up unsold items, or they will pack up your items and donates them to a worthy cause. Again, this is less work than tearing down your garage sale and then driving to Good Will with everything that doesn’t sell.

5) Access to the Pre-Sale. Consignors make the IKC Sale go-round. All consignors are eligible to shop the very first moments of the sale, and consignors who volunteer during the sale get to shop the earliest (their commission is higher)

Last fall, the boy was wearing a 3/4T, the girl a size 6.

 

First Day of School, 2012.
The boy is wearing size 6 shorts, the girl a size 8.

Are you convinced yet?

This year’s fall sales will be September 13-15 at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds, AND there’s a brand new sale in at the Hancock County Fairgrounds set for September 27-29. In addition to the fall sales, there is a new Holiday Sale happening at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds November 16-17. Talk about opportunities to be out with the old and in with clothes that fit your growing kids!

The consigner registration deadline for the Hamilton County Sale is September 4th, and for Hancock County it’s September 22nd. Consignors who register for both sales will save 50% on their second registration fee (so it’s $10 for one sale, $15 to do both).

{The Giveaway}

Indy Kids Sale has graciously offered two pairs of tickets to their popular Pre-Sale. Instead of waiting until Thursday, Pre-Sale ticket holders get to shop on Wednesday afternoon, and therefore get first dibs on the great deals!

TO ENTER: First, leave a comment telling me what you are on the hunt for this fall. I’m looking for winter jackets for my two- their arms have grown inches and inches this year.

Second, link to post about this giveaway on your Facebook page and leave a comment here telling me you did for an additional entry. FYI, you can find IKC Sale on Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/IndyKidsConsignment

Thirdly, feel free to also post about this giveaway on Twitter- here’s a Tweet to make it easy: “Enter to win pre-sale passes to the Fall @IKCSale from @gotchababy. Clothes don’t buy themselves, & your kids have grown!”

This giveaway will be open until Monday, September 3 at 9pm. The winner will have 24hours to respond, if there’s no response, I will choose a new winner. Good luck! (And mark the sales on your calendar!)

Traffic Jam! Big toys are accepted too!