pieces.

Kansas in two weeks! I'm pretty excited. We're going to KC --> Lawrence --> Burlington --> Lawrence --> KC in four days. It'll be intense! Here are some other things that have been happening:

Cereal. Cheap. Last week Kroger had this sale where you could buy 4 boxes of General Mills cereal and get $6 off. I bought 8 boxes and used three $1/2 boxes coupons. I generally have this rule where I don't buy cereal for more than $2 a box, but I got 8 large, name-brand boxes of cereal for just $1.13 a box. What a deal. I can't help it; saving money is a rush. I've recently discovered Aldi (great for basics) and Dollar General Market (I think these are few and far between). Hurray for sticking to a budget.

Cooking. This weekend I made chicken salad for Nate. I don't like mayonaisse, but I tried the salad and it wasn't awful. Last night I made salsa chicken. It was super easy and tasty. Served it with Spanish rice. Tonight, Sam and Anne are coming over for dinner and I'm making caramel apple pork chops, strawberry salad, peas, and biscuits.

Voting. Today is Election Day. I voted at the high school near my house. I think there are some restaurants and coffee shops and places giving away freebies for people who have voted. Go vote!

Affordable. Nashville made it into the Top 5 of Forbes' America's Most Affordable Cities. Woo hoo! There is always stuff to do here for free or almost free. Speaking of which, you can catch the Chihuly exhibit today from 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. for FREE. ($15 value)

Free sample. I signed up for a free sample of Extra Dessert Delights gum. I got a pack of Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream flavor. Mint Chocolate Chip is my favorite flavor of ice cream, so I had big expectations for this gum. It was good. The flavor was right on. If you've ever had the Baskin Robbins hard candy, it tastes like that. The only downside is that it feels like you had chocolate in your teeth. So basically it's the gum that leaves you wanting gum afterward to get that chocolate taste out. But I suppose if you're going on a diet and you're looking for something to substitute a heaping bowl of smooth and creamy mint chocolate chip, this will do the trick.

Tomorrow, Mary Beth Chapman (wife to award-winning recording artist Steven Curtis Chapman) is speaking at LW's chapel service. She co-authored Choosing to SEE: A Journey of Struggle and Hope, with Ellen Vaughn.

That's all folks,