jorr: aren't ladybugs good luck? Well maybe not a houseful!

P_M: We want a trip report!

ronkala: I'm glad you had such a good time. I love bagpipes.

tiff: I'll throw may allegiance over to the Twins for you...for now :)

marigross: Won't your friends be surprised! Congratulations!

cmfong: Oh, my goodness. What a trooper. I hope you heal quickly.

BuffaloGirl: I'm glad things are looking up for your Dad and your family.

StephCar: a hot date w/DH. Woo Woo!

angelthereader: I'm so sorry about your BIL. I'm sending prayers for better things for him.

Ani: Wow...it will fly by.

Rave: Sister weekend last weekend. It was great. There are many years between us and we have never done this. I have really nice sisters :)

Rave: Going to a Fall Festival in a tiny town. Tractors in the parade. Very different from the tourist area I live in. I love the open fields and patchwork of the land.

Rave: Friends and family. And family that are friends. And friends that are family.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

Kopp,
The museum was recently expanded to include the war in the Pacific also. We were on a tour from Baton Rouge and could only spend 3 1/2 hours in the museum. Not nearly enough time to see it properly.

rave: new job is going great! so different, and i'm learning!

rave: sisters wedding went off without a hitch last w'end. it was a *really* close call though. she had a white wedding on the beach at fire island. if anyone on here is a local, they would know the weather was disaster last saturday! rain, winds, and crazy surf.
but, come 3pm that day the weather sort of calmed, and the sun even made an appearance! the sky, water, and sunset were so dramatic the pictures must be great! it was fantastic.

and speaking of...marigross...love it! that's a great story. congratulations!

rave: dinner tonight out w/bf!

rave: birthday party this sunday for dear children (2 have birthdays the same week) of dear friend, who i don't see enough of!

rave: lovely lunch with friend, and former collegue yesterday.

how's those for raves?!

:-D

Absolutely bennnie, tell me, what do you Red Sox fans think of that Johnny Damon hitting for the Yankees? I couldn't believe it. And it's not that I have anything against the Yankees, it's just that they win so much of the time, I usually am pulling for the underdog.

Believe me, nothing would please memore than to see us beat them. Literally our guys remind me so much of your team when they won, such underdogs. (Still can't believe Damon is a Yank now, MAN!)

Feel the heat!

That World Series when the Red Sox beat the Yankees from being down 3 games was so fantastic. How long ago was that? I can see myself jumping up and down when they kept winning, DH and I were so pulling for them, but I can't remember which year it was, LOL.

CAPH >:D<

cmcfong ~ I worked in the medical industry for YEARS. It is amazing how much velcro straps will set you back, sad really.

gomiki ~ My MN Twins thank you, hee.

Rave: All of the wonderful Fodorites on here who are thinking of me!!!

Rave: Yes, tomorrow is THE big day! This week has been a roller coaster of emotions, stress, excitement and nerves but it will soon all be over. It's amazing how quickly a week can go by. Just a few last minute things to do at the reception site today and then I think I'll be able to relax.

Rave: Then it's off to Puerto Vallarta dark and early Monday morning!!!

Rant: I managed to gain 3 lbs. this week even though I've eaten only one meal a day. But, I have had a few cocktails almost every night. Plus, I've been way to busy to work out :( I'll try to get something in today just to up my confidence level.

Rave: Tomorrow is supposed to be the nicest day of the weekend. 61 degrees and sunny. With the fall foliage I think it's just going to be beautiful!

Rave: Congratulations Marigross!!! I'm so happy for you. May you have a happy, long life together. I think how you are going to do it sounds beautiful.

I think that's all for me. I didn't really get a chance to read everyone's post but I'm glad to hear about BuffaloGirl's dad, PM's trip and all the other good news on here.

Best wishes,Ethel. May you and your husband enjoy a wonderful life together! And Puerto Vallarta is a great place to get started......

Congratulations Ethel! Wishing you many years of happy travels! Just relax and enjoy. BTW - eating just one meal a day slows your metabolism so snack, snack, snak.

Fodorites - thanks to all! I got to spill the news here because no one from my family is going to know until the judge shows up! I will give DD at least day's notice because I know that at 13 its hard to keep news like that to herself, but I still want her to feel part of the surprise.

Ethel: Best wishes. @};-

Cmcfong: Healing thoughts for your poor ankle.

Buffalogirl: I hope you're able to get your dad settled.

Marigross: Congratulations! You'll have such a fun Thanksgiving. ((L))

Tiff: You deserve several raves. You're so sweet and kind. ((F))

Rave: Well, I turned 30 years old yesterday. I had a great day, and a fabulous dinner prepared by my fabulous husband.

Rant: Way too much Spanish Cava with dinner last night and now I have a headache and really don't feel like working. :&

Rave: We have tickets to a Prairie Home Companion tomorrow. PHC is broadcasting out of Missoula, MT so we're headed to Missoula this evening.

Missoula is so fabulous, kureiff. Have a great time. Thank you for the good wishes!

TIff - It was 2004 that the Red Sox won it all. It was tremendous. We were so happy. I was at Game 4 of the ALCS - the first game the Sox won against the Yankees. Sheer joy!

Johnny Damon going to the Yankees has been viewed by many as the ultimate act of treason. But the Sox weren't going to sign him, he needs the big theater that only Boston or NYC can offer and responds well to it. We should only wish him well and thank him for his efforts here. Of course the petty mean side of me secretly calls him Johnny Demon.

Good luck with the playoffs - we'll be rooting for you.

A big rave for Click Wine Group (Fat Bastard wines) for donating to breast cancer research---this is their fourth year of doing this. This year's goal is $75,000.

http://tinyurl.com/qkzjs

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. OK girls---next shower, it's time to check. And schedule that mammogram.

And the wine isn't bad, either.

I love Fat Bastard! However, as a hostess gift, some don't take to the suggestion kindly.
RAVE: Just got a BOSE L1 Personal Amp System and it sounded awesome on stage last night and solves my equipment woes. No speaker poles, no monitors, fits in Honda trunk.Amazing!

congrats marigross
Rave: SW has those $39 one way tickets to Chicago...

Belated Happy Birthday, kureiff! ((^))
Enjoy Missoula and PHC!

A rave for Fodors friends.

cmcfong---I hope that's good news about your ankle. I'm no doctor, but I have heard that you are better off with a broken ankle than a sprained one. It sounds like the prognosis is good for your hiking in Patagonia---that's great! I'll put DD to work on ideas for a costume for Catie. We have an assortment of them for Nora (our dog, not Nora_S!), but unfortunattely nothing that would fit little Catie.

And Nora_S, thanks for the reminder about October. Early detection works, believe me. We actually like Fat Bastard wines---although as LLindaC suggests, never take it as a hostess gift!

jorr---been there, done that with the ladybugs. If they are in clusters (mine were), you can gently brush them into the dustpan and take them outside. You can't get them all, but it helps. In any case, they'll be gone by spring, if that's any consolation.

Marigross---congratulations! Must have been that trip to Switzerland---or the Swiss wine?

Rant: My 20 mile run tomorrow.

Rave: That I am healthy enough that I can run 20 miles.

Rave: Today is a glorious day!

Rave: Playing golf with two of my favorite professional golfers this afternoon!

Rave: Going to work full time for one of them as a PA January 1st!

Rave: All the professional golf tourneys I'll get to go to!

Rave: The world travel!

Rave: The Spanish Open! The British Open! The French Open! OMG!!!

WooHoo Marigross!

Have a great trip PM!

GoTravel, good luck on your run! Tell us how it went, will you?

BuffaloGirl, I can't believe how much you have on your plate. Enjoy your get-away - you deserve it.

Enzian, LOL! But...in a weird way it always seems to work that way for us! We have always taken big decisions after going on vacation:

In the distant past, after dating seriously for over a year we took a trip to Italy...I guess it went so well that when we came back (me to my house and DH to his) we decided it was time to move in together!

Rave: ethel's wedding weekend!!!((f))((f))((f))

Rave: I'm a new great aunt. My bouncing baby grand niece was born Wed. night!

jorr: Those Asian lady bugs were brought to the US to eat aphids.

Problem is, the people that brought them didn't do their research, as the peak of the ALB is during cool weather and the peak of the aphids is warm/hot weather.
...Kind of like the cudzu fiasco.:(

Longtime Fodorite---first time ranter/raver:

Rave: Just home from a wonderful 10-day trip to Savannah and St. Petersburg. A couple requests for a trip report. I may take a crack at it.

Rant: I thought we'd never escape from DFW Airport! I've vowed we'll never do another plane change there. Must agree with the poster who commented on airline travel. It was fun, but now it's just the only way to get from Point A to Point B. I won't stop flying, but I don't have to like it!!!

Rave: P_M's luggage short story. I wonder if my DH has a twin somewhere named Mr. D_H? I was LOL in my office!

Rave: Bills tickets Sunday, Sabres tickets for season home openner Friday. WooHoo! And the kids can't go to either so it will have to be just me and DH!!

Rant: Two kids applying to colleges at one time; one to be a freshman, one to transfer. The application fees are killing me, I can only wait for the tuition times 2. At least the stock market (and our college savings) are doing well.

Good wishes to all with good news. Looks like it was a pretty good week around here.

Prayers for those in need of healing and support.

Have a great weekend and a Happy and Healthy New Year to those celebrating this time of year.