2nd Annual Scavenger Hunt for PAWS for Life, Pueblo

It's that time again...Halloween.  This time of year is fun for all ages.  What's really fun?  Scavenger Hunts...what's even funner....doing a Scavenger Hunt to help animals.  The first annual scavenger hunt was 2011 and was a big success!  This year we want to make it even better!!

How it works:  FIRST THING YOU NEED TO KNOW...........IT IS FREE TO PARTICIPATE!!!

Saturday, October 27, 2012
We start at PAWS for Life, Pueblo at 3:00 PM.  800 N. Pueblo Blvd. Pueblo, CO
Costumes are not required but recommended!  You can work alone or in a group!
You will be given places to go on the scavenger hunt; the list is must be taken to all businesses to be signed off on.

HINT:
Pet Paradise:  1115 Pueblo Boulevard Way Pueblo, CO
PetSmart:  4230 North Freeway Road Pueblo, CO
Petco:   5843 North Elizabeth Street, Pueblo, CO
are three of the stops (imagine that)

There are three hidden clues for the other business participating this year. 
HINT:  They are all in Pueblo West

You will be given a list of items that PAWS for Life, Pueblo needs that you may purchase if you want (not required to participate).  The list is below BUT you cannot purchase any of these items to be counted towards your donations until October 20th!  The items AND the receipt must be turned in at the end of the Scavenger Hunt.

When you go to the participating business you have to EARN the donations.  They can have you do anything to earn them.  The better you do the more you earn for PAWS for Life, Pueblo.  

SIX by SIX:  This means you have six places to go by 6:00 PM.  You have to be at 
Jimmy's Tavern 324 S. Mc Culloch Blvd., Pueblo West, CO  by 6:00 PM with your donations and signed sheets.  At this time the amount donated will be tallied up (this will include any purchases you made out of the kindness of your heart from the week of October 20-27th.)  

The winning person or team will win a $50.00 bar tab at Jimmy's Tavern.  Jimmy's Tavern will also be providing food for us.  

EVERYONE is encouraged to participate, all ages.  Prizes for children will also be provided.  

At Jimmy's Tavern there will be baskets that have been generously donated for everyone to try and win!  

EVERYTHING to put this scavenger hunt on has been DONATED!  Monies have been paid by the sponsors; 100% of everything, money, donated items, etc. goes to PAWS for Life, Pueblo. 

A GREAT BIG THANK YOU TO OUR 2012 SCAVENGER HUNT SPONSORS!!!

American Bank of Commerce

Pueblo, CO  719-595-7300

Local Motors

Pueblo, CO  719-546-1250

Rental Services

Nick Katzer 719-240-4639

Presidential Brokerage

Robert Stanlick  719-278-9712

Legal Edge

Rhonda Sposato  719-543-7455

VS Accounting

Pueblo, CO  719-543-8680

The Hassler Law Firm

Pueblo, CO  719-544-2929

Mobile Record Shredders

Pueblo, CO  719-544-5460

Manweiler Trucking

Now Hiring Drivers  719-543-0585

Jimmy's Tavern

Pueblo West, CO  719-647-1442

American Family Insurance

The John Zanotelli Agency  719-543-8744

Farm Bureau Insurance

The Teena Dodson Agency  719-924-9049

The Cheryl Cordova Agency  719-696-8697

Southwest Motors

Hwy 50  719-545-5700

Santa Fe:  719-542-2677

The UPS Store

Pueblo, CO  719-543-5800

Bark Hill Properties, LLC

Pueblo, CO  719-696-9973

Zeisler & Associates, Attorneys at Law, PC

Colorado Springs/Pueblo  719-358-2571

American Pool Players Association

John and Barb Anderson 719-404-3277

Coats & Tails Pet Grooming

Pueblo West, CO  719-547-8599

Arly's Hang-Up

Pueblo West, CO  719-547-3009

Premier Back Rehabilitation Center 719-924-5977

Colorado Car Wreck 719-778-9340

Pueblo, CO  

Freedom Consignment & Antiques

Pueblo West, CO  719-406-8196

Hymark Motorsports, Inc.

Pueblo West, CO  719-547-3478

Ed & Irene Russell

If you are in the area of any of these business or if you know any of them please give them a great big thank you!  

If you would like to donate a basket please contact Rhonda at 719-369-3921.

We would love to have some businesses challenge other business to see who can get the most donations!  

Let's rock this scavenger hunt this year!!!

Cats. Let's Give them something to talk about

So you love cats. But do you understand them?

This information is taken from the Human Society of the United States

Meow:  No other sound can mean so many different things:  It could mean:

• Hello
• How are you doing
• I want up
• I want down
• I want fed
• Don't touch me
• Touch me
• and in some cases: insanity because they are just talking to themselves

Okay, so these aren't the only things a meow means...as understanding your cat means "understanding" your cat.

"Chirps and trills"  what the heck is that.  I have a cat that will walk up to me and her meow is different...it sounds like a chirp mixed with a meow.  With her this means, "Hey, have you checked my food dish lately?"  

Purr:  If you are a cat lover, and sometimes if you just tolerate them, you love it when they purr.  Usually this means they are happy with whatever they are doing or with whatever you are doing. One caution though, it could also mean they are anxious or sick and they are just trying to comfort themselves.  It is important to understand the difference.

The famous growling, hissing and spitting.  Okay if you don't know what this means....you are probably a dog lover...and even with that you know what this means....."leave me alone!!"

Long drawn out meow, yowl or howl:  "Let me out" is what this means by my cats.  One of them is usually stuck in a closet, laundry room or trapped by my puppy.  If your cat is older it could be they are suffering from dementia (cognitive disorder) and they are disoriented.  If your cat "screams" they are in pain....yes, I have stepped on all of my cats, on accident, one time or another and you will know this sound.

I have to say one of my favorite cat sounds is the chattering:  My cats do this when they are getting ready to pounce on a moving object.  This happens a lot when they are looking out the window and watching the birds.

No cat language is the same...as no cat is the same.  I have three cats and without seeing them I can tell you which one is "talking" and what they want.  

Having cats are a wonderful experience.....if you let them be them and enjoy the moments they want attention and understand the moments when they don't.

Go hug your cat and if you don't have one...think about rescuing one today.  They will rescue you back.  Stay tuned for more cat language to come.

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Yard Sales aren't for everyone. How does Consignment work?

Okay, summer is coming to an end and you have to make room for new stuff.  What do you do with your old stuff?  You can have a yard sale but remember having a yard sale is hard work! 




What you need to do for a yard sale:

1. Plan the date ahead of time and hope the weather cooperates.
2. Decide the times of your yard sale...and plan on some showing up about a half hour earlier than the scheduled time.
3. Advertise your yard sale (cost about $10.00).
4. Get your friends involved because the more stuff that is out there the more people will stop.
5. Make directional signs to drive traffic to your yard sale.
6. Decide how you are going to show prices for items: i.e. stickers on each item, have under $1.00 tables, under $5.00 tables, etc., make an offer.  I have found pricing each item works the best but you have to have each person who brings stuff to your yard sale have a different colored sticker.
7. Get change.  You will need a lot of change.  Most yard sales are held over the weekend so you will not have the ability to run to the bank and break high bills.  Depending on how much stuff you have you have will determine what type and how much change you will need.  You will need a minimum of two rolls of quarters, roll of dimes, roll of nickels, $50.00 in one's, $25.00 in fives, $30.00 in tens and if you are smart you will have a few twenties just in case someone is a serious shopper and has a $100 bill.
8. Since people show up early you need to be ready.  Start setting up your yard sale a minimum of one hour before the advertised time.  You need to judge by how much stuff you have....and whatever time you think it will take to set up....add a half hour to that because there will always be more than you are prepared for.
9. If you have advertised 7:00 am - 2:00 pm plan on someone showing up at 2:15 pm so be prepared for this.
10. Most important:  The objective of a yard sale is to GET RID OF STUFF not to get rich.  Be willing to negotiate as most will negotiate the price.  Avoid setting prices higher so you can negotiate down.  Price the items for what they are worth...and this means price them for what they are worth to a stranger as no one cares that your best friends' dog's grandmother gave it to you.

Wow, I'm exhausted just thinking about this.  If you are thinking the same thing there are other options to cleaning out your "stuff."

1. You can donate them
2. You can give them away
3. You can put the item on consignment

Here's how I see it...as long as it is out of my house I don't care where it is...BUT if I can get it out of my house AND make some money without having a yard sale.....that's what I want to do.  Take the items to a consignment shop.  Tell them how much you would like to get from each item...remember they will take a percentage of the sales price and this will depend on the contract.  Tell them what you are willing to negotiate down to so if they get an offer that is lower than what you want they don't have to call and get permission if it's within your acceptable range.

Don't be offended if the Consignment Store doesn't accept an item.  They know their store and what sells.  What they cannot accept you can donate or give away.  What doesn't sell within your contract period you can lower the price or donate or give away.

Remember it is out of your house!!  That was the goal to begin with.  Yes, you MAY make more money in a shorter amount of time having a yard sale....but is the difference in what you would make and the time frame worth what you have to go through to have a yard sale?

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You never know what precious jewel you have that someone else will want

The Treasures Inside
A man was exploring caves by the seashore. In one of the caves he found a canvas bag with a bunch of hardened clay balls. It was like someone had rolled clay balls and left them out in the sun to bake.

They didn't look like much, but they intrigued the man, so he took the bag out of the cave with him. As he strolled along the beach, he would throw the clay balls one at a time out into the ocean as far as he could.

He thought little about it, until he dropped one of the clay balls and it cracked open on a rock. Inside was a beautiful, precious stone!

Excited, the man started breaking open the remaining clay balls. Each contained a similar treasure. He found thousands of dollars worth of jewels in the 20 or so clay balls he had left. Then it struck him.

He had been on the beach a long time. He had thrown maybe 50 or 60 of the clay balls with their hidden treasure into the ocean waves. Instead of thousands of dollars in treasure, he could have taken home tens of thousands, but he had just thrown it away!


That's what happens when you shop at Freedom Consignment & Antiques.....one person's clay may be your jewel!!

How to find a good deal!

Advertisements, Newspaper Ads, Friends recommendation, we all have our "own" way of shopping and finding our next "great deal."




We all love walking out of a store thinking, "WOW!  What a great buy that was."  Sometimes it is luck that we happened upon that great deal.  Sometimes it's research that brought us to it.  Department Stores can be visited at the beginning of each season to see what they have as not much changes "during" the season.  Well, maybe I should change that.....Christmas stuff out before Halloween, Halloween stuff out before Labor Day....it's a nightmare.  It's so difficult to enjoy an upcoming holiday when the next holiday, three months later, is being thrown in your face.

These are a few reasons why consignment shops are great.  You can find whatever you need anytime of year without it being thrown down your throat. 

I went to Freedom Consignment & Antiques looking for a "particular" item.  No such luck (which is usually my luck).  I told them what I was looking for and left.  Two days later my phone rings and exactly what I was looking for...you guessed it...was just brought in.

That's the nice thing about Consignment shops...just because it isn't there on Monday doesn't mean it isn't there on Thursday....TO BE SUCCESSFUL shopping Consignment shops YOU HAVE TO KEEP GOING BACK!

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How to have a great celebration this July 4th

Have you ever gone to a great barbecue and wish you could host one yourself?

Now you can!!

It's not difficult to have a great party.  There are a few things that will help you do this:

Everything needs a theme!  If you are having people over to celebrate the Fourth of July...you have a theme!  You don't need to have a flag theme but you do need to have a theme to take through the party. 

Entertainment is a MUST.  Do not expect your guests to "entertain" themselves.  Have games; horseshoes, ladder golf (personally one of my favorites), volleyball, etc.  Every party, as with every family, has the "crazy" guest...if you don't have entertainment they will be happy to provide it for you!

Know your guests.  If you invite vegans...have something for them to eat.  (I have only one friend who is vegan so when I invite her I ask her to bring what she would like to grill.  She has never been offended by this request as I am sure she would rather bring something than leave it up to me, someone who has no idea, to supply her food).

Variety is essential.  Don't just have burgers and dogs.  Chicken, seafood, shish kabobs with your burgers and dogs are a nice variety.  I like to give guests the theme and ask them to bring a dish; side or dessert.  (Okay if you are inviting a single man....chips are a good choice for them). 

Are children allowed.  It is VERY important that you let your guests know if they can bring their children.  There is nothing worse for a guest to bring their children only to find out, after they are there, that children were not invited.  It makes everyone uncomfortable.

Will there be alcohol?  If so are you providing the alcohol or is it BYOB?  Always have other non-alcohol refreshing drinks available.  Ice tea, water, fruit drinks are always a hit.

Start preparations 24 hours in advance.  Marinate all meat the day before, prepare any sides and/or desserts the day before and plan your theme decoration.  If you can decorate the day before great! but if you can't at least have your plan of attack ready.

Small take home gifts.  Keeping with your theme have something everyone can take home with them.  For example if you are throwing a Fourth of July theme barbeque maybe have small flags for everyone.  It is always great when I look at something I took home from a great party and remember it months later.

If you need items for your theme party contact Cari at Freedom Consignment & Antiques.  They have a large variety of items.  They also do gift baskets that you can use as decorations during the celebration and give as a gift at the end.

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Do you love to read BOOKS?

I know, I know it's the age of the Nook.  I own one, I have downloaded books on it, I've even read books off it....BUT there is nothing better than reading a BOOK.  Call me old-fashioned, call me out of touch but I still love the feel of a book.  Besides you can't take my Nook into a bathtub with you. :)

www.clipartOf.com

Buying NEW books does get expensive.  I can read a book in 24 hours but if I check it out of the Library it will take me months to read.

I am a HUGE James Patterson fan....love his series and I want to read the newest one the minute it hits the shelves.  I am not going to be able to do this at a consignment store, I know this.

What I have learned at shopping at Freedom Consignment & Antiques....I have expanded my Authors.  I have discovered other Authors that I would not have discovered paying $25.00 for the book.  WOW a whole world I was missing.

I went into Freedom Consignment & Antiques and "browsed" the books that are there.  As tunnel vision as I am about books I recognized very few Authors but found a series by an Author that I thought "what have I got to loose?"  Each book was $1.00-$2.00 so I walked up to check out with a total of $8.00.  WOW was I shocked.....the books were 50% off! 

I took these four books with me on vacation.  They were finished withing five days!  Loved these books.  I called Freedom Consignment & Antiques and asked if there were any more by this Author.  They pulled the books by this Author and I went in to "check em out."  I bought them and a few other Authors...what have I got to loose right?  Another new Author!!  I called again and had them pull more books from this newest Author...picked them up today....two books cost me $2.00!!

If you love to read I want to encourage you to go to Freedom Consignment & Antiques and try new Authors!!  What a new experience this was for me.  Yes, I will still go to Barnes & Noble for the newest James Patterson THE MINUTE THEY HIT THE SHELVES but for everything else it's Freedom Consignment & Antiques. 

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