I was there. Again.

Living in D.C. I find that I have a lot of opportunities to say, "I was there."

The beautiful thing is that it doesn't take a lot of effort because things come here, I don't have to go far to be there.

Yesterday Matt and I went for a bike ride. On the way to our intended destination (to watch the airplanes take off and land at DCA) we were side-tracked by the crowds of people along Constitution Avenue. Matt recalled a news article he had read earlier about Senator Kennedy's motorcade making its way from Boston to DC. We decided to stick around to see this historical event and yet another opportunity to say, "I was there."



As we stood along the roadside, we saw the motorcade approaching. There were dozens of police cars and motorcycles, a few black towncars and then the hearse. With flags over the Capitol flying at half-staff, his hearse and the motorcade, including two large busses, stopped outside the Senate where he served for 47 years. We watched as they got out and posed for this photo.



I was there.

My father's daughter?

I have heard this a lot recently, "Marni, you are your father's daughter."

Hmmmm, how so? Well, most people who have said this to me lately are referring to my new husband and his traits that are quite similar to NAW (Niles A Williams). Similar looks, sense of humor, demeanor....you know, all that stuff). Okay, so I essentially just married my dad??? Uh, no, not exactly.

But, I think you are right in another way - my dad taught me to be FRUGAL. If you looked in my purse you would probably be surprised at what you find. I bought this giant purse (for $16 at a second hand store) and in it I must have at least 25+ coupons. I actually intent to use all of them to buy fabulous things.

1. Case study #1: Bed Bath & Beyond. In my "married woman"need to complete my new set of fine china I insisted on using a 20% coupon to buy each remaining piece. I started asking my friends and family to give them theirs. Christina had like 20 on hand (who knows why?)...my sister and mom mailed me some. Do other people really go out of their way like this for coups? [by the way, shout out to Gina and Tina for coining the term "coups" back in p-school...but I digress]

2. Case Study#2: Matt and I have made a decision to cut back on eating out since after analyzing our monthly expenses he found we spend enough on food each month to feed a family of five. Let's just say that didn't go so well. What can I say, maybe I am a "foodie" - I love eating out. Here comes the coup. Well, lots of coups. Instead of eating out less, we only eat at restaurants with great coups. www.Restaurant.com and www.Groupon.com have become our go-to's for dining. That, is of course, after making a quick trip to www.retailmenot.com for the promo code.

I think if I keep this up one day I will mortify my kids with my coup usage. But, if history repeats itself, my son will be a coupon king, too.

I don't wanna be Obama's Elf

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_B5UrI7nAI

Who is Madilun anyway?

It's me! MArni DIanne LUN. Everyone needs a catchy alias, right? Well, this is mine.

Welcome to my very first blog entry! Since it has proven to be difficult to keep everyone up to date on the happenings of my oh-so-exciting life (other than my super-dorkey annual Christmas letter) I thought I would give this a shot. You should follow me! Lurkers are welcome, but I hope to hear your thoughts and reactions, too.

I won't post daily, but often enough to keep you entertained...

MDL

By the way, if you have a blog let me know so I can follow you, too.