If you elect to receive a cash voucher, the machine keeps almost nine cents of every dollar, but it just doesn't seem right to clip coupons and then turn around and leave what amounts to a tithe in the Coinstar till. The Coinstar machine at Bruno's in Hoover (across from the Galleria) gives you the full value of your coins as long as you accept the amount in a gift certificate to Overstock.com or Lowe's.
Just dump your change into the collection chamber and it spins and clinks like it's manufacturing something wonderful. (This is great fun, by the way, for a kid who is old enough to scoop the coins into the tray and watch as the Chuck E. Cheese tokens are rejected into another pile - a real jackpot as far as he's concerned.) Once the counting is done, you have a choice of whether to accept a cash voucher less the processing fee, donate to charity (which just souned too vague for me), or accept the full amount as a gift certificate.
I choose the last option, a Lowe's gift card, and received a printout that explained to the Lowe's cashier exactly how to process the certificate, which we all know is the key to properly executing a program like this.
As enjoyable as it was to reclaim the spending power of $160, it was even more thrilling to imagine all the things I could buy from Lowe's when the time was right. A pull-out ironing board? A closet storage system? Maybe a few new planters for the back patio?
Sadly, during the time I spent savoring the possibilities, something broke. I wound up having to spend the gift card replacing a door handle that suddenly quit working (a door handle! how does that happen?) and this put an end to my found-money joy. On the bright side, I was able to upgrade without any impact to the household budget. Even brighter was the fact that the Lowe's associate was able to walk right through the instructions so I had an uneventful checkout.
As you start your spring cleaning, collect all your coins and turn them into a useful gift card via a Coinstar or similar machine. Then immediately spend your booty - that's in the pirate sense of the word - on something to spruce up your house before you are cursed with a repair or replacement.
Unlike some of you BirminghamMoms from long lines of Greek and Italian families, I don't really have a singular distinctive heritage to celebrate with food and festivals. Maybe that's why I'm grateful to the Irish for inviting all of us to join in like an O'Neil or a McDonald for one day every year.
This year, Birmingham gets to double dip in a sense. St. Patrick's Day is on Wednesday (wear your green or risk a pinch) but on Saturday, March 20th, festivities will be going full bore downtown.
A St. Patrick's Day Parade , sponsored by the Alabama Celtic Association, will run along 20th street from Powell to Five Points South starting at 11:30. Then at 2 p.m. a celebration (designed to be family friendly) will ensue at Matthew's Bar & Grill on Morris Avenue, complete with a Pipe Band, Irish dancers, and traditional Irish music. Tickets are $10 for adults and kids under 13 are free; proceeds will benefit The Ark, a pediatric cancer research foundation.
This is the second year for the event, and word is kids and parents had a great time last year. The Birmingham International Center has chosen to spotlight Ireland this year, so it's fitting that the city has a mini cultural fair that you and the kids can enjoy.
Note: Yeah, it does seem funny to think of a family-friendly event at a bar & grill, but even that seems authentically pub-like and Irish. Obviously, the early afternoon/evening is the best time for families.
I'm so darn excited that we are finally taking dominion of this house and wrestling it into submission. At last I will take a visitor upstairs without my usual tour guide routine, "We want to make this into a such-and-so one day." For years I've felt like I needed one of those built-to-scale models under a glass case to prove that we really do have plans. I won't have to explain anymore that what you're seeing doesn't reflect my real tastes (you never thought so, did you?) and that, yes, I realize there is a lot of wasted space up here. All that potential will be manifest!
The project is not that grand, just reconfiguring a series of small choppy rooms into an office, a media room (essential for the husband's buy-in) and a little wet bar that can be Baptist or Episcopalian, depending on whether the wine bottles are in view. We've waited so long to do this - starting back when contractors were too busy to call back, let alone schedule the project - to now, when their best subs are available for work.
So I don't even care that I've blown my sofa budget on a tile backsplash and a fabulous wall-mount faucet (a steal at Mazer's).
Please overlook the sling lawn chairs you are sitting in, as they don't reflect my real tastes. One day I want to furnish this room with a linen-covered sofa and a big leather ottoman...
You know how it is when you try to get with your girlfriends to catch up. Evenings during the school year are out because of various activities all over town, and breakfast would be a punishment given the morning schedule already. Lunch is hardly leisurely when there are errands, carpool, or the office awaiting. No working woman wants to split a precious day off with a lunch break that will make the morning and afternoon too short to accomplish anything substantial, whether it's catching up or just relaxing.
I've found the best solution is weekday brunch. This allows for the usual morning rush, perhaps even a workout, and a relaxing meal with plenty of daytime left to finish a to-do list. Childcare isn't a problem because brunch coincides with Mother's Day Out, daycare and school. Unlike an evening out, there's no need to leave directives about dinner and you'll miss no feedings, tuck-ins or homework reviews. If you're enjoying a day off work, you'll be able to have a low-key morning and still have the better part of the day to yourself.
Of course, there are wonderful weekend brunches all around town, but weekends are even harder to give up/coordinate for a girls' get-together.
We have lots of choices other than the classic IHOP and Denny's. In fact, you can have a brunch with food that is almost as memorable as an evening out at a nicer restaurant.
Another Broken Egg, Mountain Brook Village - This is breakfast refined, with items like crab cakes (behold the Southern Crab Stack above), fluffy omelettes, and potato sides that would suffice as a meal. The menu is New Orleans inspired, and the provincial-style interior feels almost as warm as dining in someone's home. There is a patio for al fresco dining. What could feel more decadent than sitting outside on a spring day eating a beautifully presented meal? Pity the people driving by, too busy to stop for brunch or hear the funny stories you're swapping...
The Egg and I, Hoover - All the breakfast classics as well as some south-of-the-border specialties. Lunchtime parking can get a little crowded but well worth the effort (if parking's crowded, it's a short stroll from a neighboring lot, so look there for a space). They also have lunch foods like sandwiches, soups and salads incase one in your party isn't a "breakfast person."
The Original Pancake House, Southside - Smack in the middle of Five Points South, the people watching doesn't get any better than this. This restaurant is actually a franchise, but it's been a consistent presence here long enough to feel like a hometown spot. Have you seen the Dutch Baby or Apple Pancake? Better plan to split one of these and agree to not discuss dieting or related subjects.
One more advantage to brunch is that you're ready to roll by the time everyone else is headed out for lunch. A small snack in the afternoon is all you'll need to tide you over until dinner and your usual family routine.
Roly Poly at Patton Creek in Hoover has kids eat free night on Tuesdays, and while I was there recently I noticed an unusual addition to the menu: Roly Poly Dessert Sandwiches. The concept of "dessert" + "sandwiches" caught me by surprise, so I asked the manager about them. She said the staff had been experimenting with different ingredients back in the kitchen and they decided these concoctions were so good that they would add them to the menu.
Looking at the descriptions, these seem like great ideas for snacks to make at home with the few leftover tortillas you have after making an enchilada casserole (I can never seem to make them all come out even). You sprinkle the ingredients on a tortilla and grill until golden brown:
These unconventional Roly Poly-ists also offer Scrambled Egg Rolys for breakfast, which has me thinking these would be easy on the run (a self-contained sandwich with as much substance as an omelette, only easier to eat).
Like other Roly Poly locations they cater and you can order online. My hat's off to the staff at the Patton Creek location for thinking up new things to put on a tortilla.