Donating at Its Best

Aside from adopting every animal that needs a home (it is tempting, especially when their little eyes are imploring your through their cages), there are other ways you can help out your local animal shelter and their brood of little furry orphans.  Here are three simple and easy ways you can help out:

1)  Donate your old towels, blankets and bedding.  Animal shelters can use your old stained towels and threadbare sheets.  So rather than throw them away, donate them.  They can use them for baths and bedding for the animals while they wait for their forever homes.

2)  Donations in lieu of gifts.  Got a birthday coming up?  Rather than accepting gifts, ask that people write checks made out the local ASPCA or shelter in your area.  Their donations are usually tax-deductible and the karma points you receive are way better than any candle, CD or bottle of wine.

3)  Start a donation drive. Ask around the office, your church or the here at the property for donations.  Often times people have food that their pets can’t or won’t eat, toys they don’t play with, crates they’ve outgrown and collars that no longer fit.  All of these things can be donated to the local animal shelter.

Photo By net_efekt

Day at the Museum

Pack the kids up and get them ready for a day of fun at the museum!  I know that most kids don’t think that the museum is fun normally, but there is an upside to everything.  Today is the third annual “Day at the Museum” celebration at the Carnegie Center for Art & History.  This event will feature art activities all throughout the museum, both inside and out.  There will be food and drinks provided during the event, but the best part is that the event is appropriate for the entire family to participate in.  The museum is opening this event up to the entire community and is free of charge for the whole family.  Tell your kids that they will even be able to participate in tie-dyeing as long as they bring their own shirt!  This event will be sure to change their minds about the museum and learning!  New Albany, IN is not too far from Louisville, so tell all of your Park at Hurstbourne neighbors the festivities begin at 11am.

Carnegie Center for Art & History
201 East Spring St.
New Albany, IN

Photo By Paul J Everette

Galleries Galore

Love going to look at art?  Rather spend your time at an art gallery than a movie theater?  Have you been to visit the galleries in your neighborhood?  Well you are in luck because every first Friday of the month you and your art loving friends can participate in First Friday Trolley Hop.  First Friday Trolley Hop is a tour of all of the art galleries in downtown Louisville’s art district.  The tour last from 5pm until 11pm and is completely FREE!  There is no charge to get on the trolley or go into the different galleries.  The driver spends all of his time dropping off and picking up passengers from all of the galleries down there.  The galleries that you can visit reside on the strips of Main, Market and Fourth Street.  If you are interested and want to find out more about where the trolley stops and where you can park, please visit the TrolleyHop website to answer all of your questions.

This is a great way to explore all of the local art that has graced Louisville with its presents.  So if you are an artsy person then you should gather up your friends and family and take a little ride around the art district!

Photo By Marshall Astor-Food Pornographer

Hitting the Road

Road trips are the perfect way for the family to reconnect during the summer.  Everyone is always on their own agenda when it comes to summer vacation, but I think it is an American tradition to force everyone in a car for a long period of time and travel to see the sights.  When I was younger it used to be a real treat to go on a road trip with the family because that was the one time we were allowed to indulge in fast food.  But now a days fast food can be expensive to feed the whole family and just not the healthiest choice.  So a couple of veteran travelers helped this paper in Minnesota, the  Minn Local, put together a list of tips for packing a delicious and healthy meal for the car ride that everyone could enjoy.

The first step is to keep it very simple when packing the food.  Make sure that the snacks that you pack can be eaten as is, dipping and spreading is not the easiest thing to do in the car.  Next you want to make sure that the food you pack is not temperature-sensitive.  You don’t want to bring foods that might spoil in the car and can’t hold up to the long ride.  Don’t pack food that would create a mountain of crumbs left behind in the seats, make sure the food is big enough so that it won’t cause crumbs.  Leave the junk at home.  You need to pack foods that will help keep the family energized for the duration of the trip.  And last but certainly not least, make sure to remember the trash bag.  You need somewhere to dispose of remnants of all the great food.

So the next time you decide to load up the car and take a trip to the unknown, follow these easy steps and you will not have to worry about stopping at the nearest fast food chain.  There are plenty of great sights to see in the state of Kentucky, so I encourage you to check some of them out before the summer is over.

Photo By Alloyous

Daycation

During these hard economic times a lot of people are finding it hard to take time or spend the money to go on vacation.  The newest craze is to do something called a staycation, which is a vacation that you go on but instead of traveling somewhere else you stay at home.  Staycations normally are sufficient enough for people but can become very routine after a while.  So for those of you who want to take this trip a little further than your doorstep, you can use these very simple steps to create the perfect “daycation.”

The OrlandoSentinel has come up with six easy steps that you can use in order to create a vacation without going too far.  First you need to map out places to go that are not too far from your own home.  The point is that if you feel trapped in your own town or city, find somewhere nice that you can drive to but don’t have to spend the night.  Secondly, you need to think like a tourist.  Act like you haven’t lived in your town before and go out and explore what there is to do around you.  Next you can think about visiting a local park.  Normally there is a big fuss over the big name national parks, but a nice trip to the local park can be just as fun.  You can make food for a picnic, play a little Frisbee or just walk around and relax.  You could also make sure to visit your local CVB (Convention and Visitors Bureau). Normally they have a wealth of information on what is going on in town and what attractions and events you could go to.

These are not all of the steps mentioned in the article but I think I listed enough to get you started.  Just remember that vacations are not always about where you go, but who you chose to spend those vacations with.  So just because you can’t go to the south of France or to New York City this summer doesn’t mean you can’t have just as much fun in Louisville, KY.  So I encourage all of the residents at The Park at Hurstbourne to get out there and take some time to experience the town that you live in!

Photo By ladyofthewings

The Rally

It is that time of year again…The Rally!!!!  It is time for all you Louisville RV enthusiast to get your stuff together and head on down to the Rally.  The Rally is in its 11th year and it is a four-day event for RV fanatics to come out and celebrate the RV industry’s centennial.  The rally will take place in the Kentucky Exposition Center on July 22nd through July 25th beginning at 9am.  The rally will consist of family-friendly activities such as talent shows, musical performances, RV Seminars and much much more.  Admission for adults is $10 and for children 12 years of age and under get in for FREE.  RV owners will be in the presence of the newest RV Models to date and can take the opportunity to test-drive or even purchase them from the top of the line manufacturers.  The turnout is preduicted to be in the thousands, so you might want to act fast if you want to check it out.

If you need further details on the event feel free to visit the Louisville website.  The exposition center is not too far from The Park at Hurstbourne apartments, so if you aren’t doing anything this weekend you should gather the family up and head on down.

Photo By thomas_sly

Music on the Terrace

Music on the Terrace is back for another successful summer at the Summit Lifestyle Center.  The concerts take place every Thursday night during the months of June and July.  It is free admission and open to the public and the movies are shown between Mitchell’s Fish Market and Qdoba.  The event is fun for the whole family it offers free live music, prizes and other FUNtastic festivities.  The concerts are from 6:30pm to 8:30pm and range in genres played.  This week the concert will consist of Old School 70s and 80s Rock.  While you are enjoying the music you can also enjoy some great food from the surrounding restaurants.  This would be a great activity for anyone who is interested in great music for a great price.  The Summit Lifestyle Center is not too far from the Park at Hurstbourne Apartments so gather up some friends and family and enjoy a night of free fun!

The Summit Lifestyle Center
4300 Summit Plaza Dr.
Louisville, KY

Photo By StephenGilmer

Outdoor Movie Fetsival

Have plans this Friday?  Are you a movie fanatic ?  Do you enjoy free events around town?  If you answered yes to all three questions then you are in luck.  For the entire month of march the Hope Lutheran Church is hosting an outdoor summer movie festival. Every Friday at 7pm a movie will be played and the cost to you is nothing!  The movies shown are all family friendly, so whether you have kids or you are venturing out on your own there will be no conflict.  There are refreshments served and activities to enjoy.  The festivities begin every Friday at 7pm and then the movie will begin shortly after at 8pm.  This Friday the movie that will be playing is entitled “Facing the Giants,” a movie about a high school football coach who uses faith and determination to come out on the winning side of all of his opponents.  Next week the movie that will be showing is called Fireproof, and then the movie that will round out this monthly movie festival is Amazing Grace.

If you want more information regarding this movie extravaganza then visit the Hope Lutheran Church website.  The church is only miles from The Park at Hurstbourne so gather up whoever is free and go down and enjoy a free movie!

Hope Lutheran Church
4200 Shenandoah Dr
Louisville, KY  40241

Photo By AndyRob

Summer Concert Series

Looking for something to do over the weekend?  Interested in hearing some good music?  Louisville, KY is becoming a hot spot for great live music.  Cherokee Triangle puts on a summer concert series every summer from April to September in the Highlands’.  The concert series has a new performance every Sunday evening from 7:00pm-9:00pm and this Sunday King Sonic will be playing.  The band music falls under the genre of Jumpbilly Boogie Blues.  The admission to this concert is completely FREE the only two stipulations is that you can not bring alcohol to the concert or any types of pets.  They also ask that you bring any canned foods that you have to help out the Highlands Community Ministries Dare to Care  food pantry.  The concerts are for a great cause so come out and enjoy some great music.  The concert venue is only 30 minutes from The Park at Hurstbourne complex!  If you can’t make it this Sunday the schedule can be found at the Cherokee Triangle website.

Photo By Andrew Deacon

Brewfest

For all you beer lovers out there, boy is there an event out there for you. The Louisville Brewfest is coming into town on July 2. There will be more beer, more food, and more fun than last years event. The event will be held indoors, which means air conditioning…YAY! Below are the details:

By acnatta

The event is FREE admission, for everyone 21 and older. The tickets for food and beer are $1. You can buy a sample for just 1 ticket or a full-sized drink for 3 tickets. The brewers include BBC Tap Room, Bluegrass Brewing Company, Browing’s, Cumberland Brews, Falls City Brewing Co., Kentucky Ale, New Albanian, and River Bend Winery.

The tasting will commence at 4pm until 10pm at the Mellwood Arts Center. Come out and support this towns small breweries. The venue is only 20 minutes from The Park at Hurstbourne complex.

Next Page »