Home in Collin County

The clock is a-tickin'.... you'd best be making reservations now before the big night is here!

If you need some ideas, here are a few:

New Year's Eve Bash at Firewheel Golf of Garland

December 31st  7pm until 1am
$100 single, $150 couple
Branding Iron at Firewheel

Dinner, Dancing, Drinks, Casino Games and Fireworks

To make Reservations please call the
Branding Iron at 972-205-3958

For the chic and stylish, try the GhostBar at the W in Dallas.  General admission is $100 per person, and they have a celebrity guest host:  Jesse Metcalf, aka the famed "Desperate Housewives" lawn boy.  Ooo la la...

Additional celeb hosts DJ DRE and "prankster" DJ WISHFM

If you are a vodka-lover, this is your night:  for every bottle of CIROC Vodka purchased at your table you get a raffle ticket (for one of two Sony flatscreen TV's). Also, one complimentary bottle of champagne on every table.

Event NEW YEARS EVE 2010 @ GHOSTBAR DALLAS
Type Dallas New Years Eve
When Thursday, December 31, 2009
9:00 PM - 2:00 AM
Location GhostBar Dallas Dallas TX , 2440 Victory Park Lane Suite 330, Dallas TX

A favorite classic treat for my husband and I was to go to AdLibs.  Now that we're "old" (you know: 40-something parents), we haven't been in years.  When we last drove passed their old location downtown, we thought it was gone.  Good news:  the troupe is hosting a New Year's Eve party!  I've never been so happy to be wrong!

Hosted at MOUTH (Ad-Libs sister venue), 2626 Main Street.  Dallas, TX 75226.  This may be where our crew hangs their hats that night!

10:00 PM PACKAGE ($75 per person includes)

• The Show
• Open Bar (beer, wine & soft drinks)
• Split-Bottle of Champagne
• Party Favors
• Admission For Two (2) Pass To An Ad-Libs Show In 2010
• Dinner (Pasta Buffet: Succulent chicken fettuccini, zesty chicken horenzo farfalle, veggie primavera. Served with a garden salad, dinner rolls and cheese cake for dessert)
• Show Will End Just In Time To Ring In The New Year!

Reservations can be made by calling (214) 754-7050. Cash and credit cards accepted.

"Ad-Libs has been performing in Dallas since 1986.  The show is all improv.  The comedy's subject matter comes directly from the audience, creating interactive entertainment that allows the crowd to become part of the show and feed on the frenzied Mardi Gras atmosphere.  The comedy is quick, clean and unforgettable."

www.Ad-Libs.com

For the young grunge group (or the 40-somethings who once were), check out Trees for NYE.  They have the Toadies this year, along with The Boom Boom Box and Dove Hunter.  Show starts at 8:00 pm.  Tickets are $45 per person.

What looks like a HUGE party this year is the Palladium Ballroom's annual bash.

This is an expanded version of its previous sold-out NYE venues, with three levels of entertainment.  Reading from their ad:

"ESCAPE THE NIGHTCLUB, ESCAPE THE HOTEL For four years now, New Years Eve has been the most exciting party for Dallas NYE revelers, and this year just got a lot bigger! Due to sellout crowds with a line around the block for people waiting to buy a ticket, we've doubled our previous capacity for the Palladium Ballroom.

We are able to feature entertainment on 3 separate floors, each with their own unique design and decor. It's like 3 different parties for 1 ticket price."

No lie:  they are advertising 3 rooms/20 DJs/5000 people.  Definitely not for the claustrophobic.  $30 per person.  They have a whole entourage of entertainers.  It would take up the whole blog, so go to their website for more details:  http://www.clubzone.com/events/Dallas/139330/Glow-2010-Beyond-at-Palladium-Ballroom

A lush-looking celebration is in the plans with "Bonamour International Presents
RIO CARNIVAL New Year's Eve "

Location
603 Munger Ave at Market Street
Dallas, TX 75201
(Located in the West End Historic District)
This party will feature a casino, live entertainment, Brazilian cuisine, and a complimentary buffet.  This event is described as "all-inclusive" (I'm wish they were including the beach with that offer) for $125 per person. 

This blog runneth over.  I may post more events that catch my eye in the next week.  Meanwhile, celebrate safe and happy!

We are fortunate to have a lot of fun parks for our children to explore. They can work out a lot of mischief-creating energy dangling from monkey bars and digging in the sand!

My favorite happens to be Founder's Park in Wylie: it's a big pirate ship with lots of sprawling sections. There are age-appropriate areas for all of our kids, and even a little stage (which my young diva has graced more than a few times with her own princess-themed productions).  There are so many sets of monkey bars that my oldest child used to make an obstacle course out of them (tough enough to make every dad out there drop their chins in the wood chips!).  He rounded out his finale with the last set, too high and too far to reach, which required a propelled leap forward and a firm grip.  Darn if he didn't "stick it" after about ten tries (my own palms were blistering in sympathy).

I love Celebration Park is special in its own right, since it has both a super-cool spray area AND the sprawling playset in age-appropriate levels (even color-coordinated).  I highly recommend that parents wear clothes they don't mind getting wet, because you will want to join in the spray-fun in these hot TX summers!  There is not a lot of shade to relieve you here, so your best option is lots of sunscreen and running through the spray with the kids! 

Not to be missed is Plano's Arbor Hills Nature Preserve. This park has lose-yourself winding nature trails and creeks, a biofilter (my children love climbing the huge rocks and pretending they're in some prehistoric crater), plenty of pavilions, nice restrooms, and an amazing playstructure. One of my favorite kids' birthday parties (I didn't host it, but was thoroughly entertained by the kind family who did) was held there on a rainy day, actually. There was plenty of cover for the adults (and food), and the kids didn't mind the sprinkles. Parting party favors were little flower pots which the kids were able to decorate and fill with soil and rooted trimmings of a vine which the birthday child's parents had in over-supply in their yard. How exciting!

What is your favorite?  There are so many to choose from.  I have to put Founder's Park first on my list because I personally would rather have sand in the car (vacuum-able) than water (mold-able) at the end of the day. Also, it's a bit harder for the ice cream man to circle close to Founder's Park!  Arbor Hills doesn't leave my kids drenched or sandy, but (since we live in Wylie) the drive can be long for us.  Proximity wins for us!

Check out what our Parks and Recreation departments have to offer in Allen, Anna, Fairview, Frisco, Lucas, McKinney, Murphy, Plano, Sachse, and Wylie.

If there is anything I love about my computer, it's being able to research and price compare before making any big purchases. 

This article may provide some guidance before buying this holiday season:

Consumer Electronics and Engineering Product Standouts
December 11, 2009  by Rachel Rothman

While we don't like to play favorites, there were definitely a few standout products and services that passed through our lab in the past year. All of these cool products make excellent gifts for your friends and family.

Need a gift for a parent, relative, or friend who isn't the most tech-savvy person on the planet? Look no further than one of our 2009 Very Innovative Products Award Winners -- Eye-Fi cards ($50-150).  These Wi-Fi enabled SD cards automatically wirelessly upload photos and videos to a computer or photo-sharing site. 

Both lab and kid-tested, the active game Cosmic Keep Away by Hasbro takes Monkey-in- the-Middle or Keep Away to the next level. The ball, which has a built-in speaker, introduces the game and recognizes each player by sensing the colored tags they're wearing (included with the game). The activity then begins with the ball recognizing who's holding it and when it's intercepted. During the Keep Away game the ball counts down how many successful passes each team has completed until one team wins with 20.  The toy really got the kids on our test panel moving and parents loved the way it promoted teamwork.

The comfy Audio Technica ATH-CKI ($60) in-ear headphones were a favorite with everyone who tried them. Designed especially for women, they come in six pretty colors (green, orange, pink, purple, white and yellow) and three earpiece sizes.

One of our more recent projects was scoping out the best toys for 2009. While many wowed our children, there was definitely one stand-out winner, Saucer Scramble by Mattel for kids 5+.  The base unit spins and shoots small, flying, plastic discs into the air. Players scramble around catching the discs in flexible plastic catchers. With its fun sound effects, this game is addictive and kids quickly learned how to keep it going by reloading the base when the discs ran out.

When the holidays are over make a keepsake for your family - a personalized photobook.  The one we created and ordered from Shutterfly was our top pick for its great image quality and because it made customization quick and simple. It offered a plethora of design options and over 100 page layouts for anywhere from one to 16 pics per page.

Photo Credit: Good Housekeeping

From the moment guests enter our native plant garden, they will enjoy thousands of holiday lights and displays, including a short walk along a specially lit trail that will commence with a hayride and caroling.

OTHER ACTIVITIES

Christmas tree lighting

Artisan's Market for those perfect holiday gifts (open during      
             Trail of Lights and Saturday 9-5)

Live entertainment on our Outdoor Amphitheater Stage

 Kids of all ages are in for a special surprise as they "happen upon" Father Christmas and
           Mother Nature, waiting in a festively decorated log cabin along the trail. Guests can pose for a
           professional photo taken by 4DPhotos and then visit www.4DPortraits.com after the event to
           order their choice of photos.

Complimentary hot beverages courtesy of Preservation Tree Service

Concessions available

See thousands of lights along the nature trail

Hay rides will be available, weather permitting

ARTISAN'S MARKET

The Heard Artisan's Market will be open not only during the Holiday Trail of Lights two-night event, but also during museum hours on Saturday, December 19.  Merchants to-date will be selling handmade books, Christmas ornaments and cards, ceramics, photographs, wildfowl carvings, honey, Indian art, and gourds.  Many will also feature unique jewelry, including hand-carved, bone, inspirational, beaded, semi-precious and precious stones.

LIVE ENTERTAINMENT

Friday:

6:45 to 7:30 p.m. - Limelight and Center Stage Vocal Jazz Groups from Lovejoy's Sloan Creek Middle School

7:30 to 8 p.m. - A Cappella and Spotlight Vocal Performance Groups from Lovejoy High School

8:15 to 8:45 p.m. - Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church Music Ministry

9 to 9:30 p.m. - St. Peters Episcopal Church of McKinney Adult Hand Bell Choir

Saturday:

6:45 to 8 p.m. - Black Prairie Band

8:15 to 9:15 p.m. - McKinney Community Band

TIPS FOR ATTENDING EVENT

Please dress appropriately as most activities are outside and require lots of walking.

While parking is always free at The Heard, there is a strong possibility that many guests will have to park some distance from our main entrance. There is a drop-off circle available in our native plant garden for your convenience.

Besides our complimentary hot beverage, food items such as corn dogs, chips, candy, water and sodas will be available for purchase at our Heard concession stand. Guests are also welcome to bring in picnic dinners and non-alcoholic beverages.

This event will proceed, regardless of weather. No refunds will be available.

Tickets will be available for purchase at the door.

General admission tickets cannot be used for this special fundraising event.

The Trail of Lights is jogger-stroller friendly.

In the event of extremely wet weather, there is the possibility that our hay ride will not be available.

There is no charge for having your photo made with Father Christmas and Mother Nature. All photos will be available for purchase via the photographer's website after the event.

Wow - that headline from Business Week sure grabbed my attention. 

Interest rates are at historic lows but cyclical trends suggest they will soon rise. Home buyers may never see such a chance again, writes Marc Roth of Business Week.

He goes on to write, "Well, you may not be stupid or broke.  Maybe you already have a house and you don't want to move.  Or maybe you're a Trappist monk and have forsworn all earthly possessions.  Or whatever.  But if you want to buy a house, now is the time, and if you don't act soon, you will regret it.  Here's why:  historically low interest rates."

The average 30-year fixed-rate loan with no points or fees has been around 5%.  Rates are so well below historic averages that it should make all current and prospective homeowners take notice of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Roth puts this into historical perspective:

"First, rates have far further to move upward than downward; for more than 30 years, 7% was the low and 18% the high. The norm was 9% in the 1970s, 10% in the mid-1980s through the early 1990s, 7% to 8% for much of the 1990s, and 6% only over the last handful of years.

Second, the last time the long-term trends reversed from low to high, it took more than 20 years (1970 to 1992) for the rate to get back to where it was, and 30 years to actually start trending below the 1970 low."

Roth continues to illustrate how a 2% interest rate increase will cost a homebuyer an additional $48,000 for every $100,000 borrowed over the course of a 30-year fixed-rate loan. 

For the full article, click here.

For more detailed information about local rates in the DFW market, call Eileen Austin at Home Team Mortgage Company. 

Interest rates are indeed at record-breaking lows.  If your credit is not clean, it's time to get the soap out!

The Christmas parade in downtown Wylie was cold, festive, and well-attended.  I am posting a video clip of the Polar Express float which took second prize.  This clip is on You Tube and the link was posted through the Wylie News.

Here are some helpful links.

City Websites
Allen
Mckinney
Murphy
Plano
Richardson
Sachse
Wylie

School District 2009 Accountability Ratings for Some of the Collin County Districts
Allen
Lovejoy
McKinney
Plano
Richardson
Wylie