WOW! Did you know that this was happening in our Parish? The first ever Ascension Idol is about to get underway! Ascension Parish students ages 13-18 will be able to compete to be the area's newest superstar! What a fun even to go and watch. Cheer on your favorite youngster to local superstar status!

Check out Ascension Idol 2011 Facebook Page

Check out the Ascension Idol 2011 Website for applications and much more information.

All proceeds from this event will benefit The Ascension Fund. I hope to see you there!

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of spending a Friday evening at Corks and Canvas on Jefferson Highway in Baton Rouge with friends. I chose a Mardi Gras themed Fleur-de-lis class. Of course I chose a three hour class for my first painting experience instead of one of the simpler two hour classes! I was really more excited about hanging out with my friends and drinking lots of wine!

The evening started off pretty anxiously for me. You see, I am a perfectionist. 5 minutes into the class I was super stressed! I am not artistic and was terribly overwhelmed. ::sip wine:: ::deep breath:: I relaxed a little and decided that I was giving this way to much thought! The instructors were beyond amazing! They walked us through each step giving us ample time to complete that section before moving forward. I did fall behind a couple of times but had plenty of time at the end to catch up and finish my painting. After each section was shown to us, the instructors turned on some music and walked around helping out with painting and more importantly, moral support!

Fast forward three fantastic, fun three hours.... I had a wonderful time! That glass of wine I poured at the beginning; It still had wine in it. I was so involved in my painting, I forgot to enjoy my wine! I truly have NO artistic abilities and had a blast. I highly recommend taking a night with daughters, friends or co-workers to have some fun at Corks N Canvas in Baton Rouge.

Here is my painting hanging over my mantle... What do you think?

Check out their website: Corks N Canvas

Check them out on FaceBook: Corks N Canvas FaceBook

**UPDATE** The dog has been rescued!

This story aired on the news last night.

I am saddened by what seems to be the lack of support from authorities in our Parish.

Seems that there is a dog stuck in the drainage system in Norwood Lakes. He was there last week while we had those days of below freezing temperatures. The neighbors have been feeding him and have asked for assistance in rescuing him. They were given a pole with a loop at the end... Doesn't make much sense to me.   If any of you know anyone that can help, please, please go out and see what you can do.  This poor animal needs our help. I understand that he has now become very quiet and is not eating. The clock is ticking for this helpless creature.

To see more of the story from WAFB click here

Monthly Sales were 71 units. Comparison to last month:  Decreased 12% from 81 units.  Comparison to this month last year: Increased 1% from 70 Units.

Average Sold Price was $221,146.  Comparison to last month:  Increased 4% from $212,806.  Comparison to this month last year: Increased 6% from $207,896.

Current Inventory is 9.07 months.  Comparison to last month:  Increased from 8.04 months.  Comparison to this month last year: Decreased from 9.15 months.

Average Days on Market were 96.  Comparison to last month:  Held steady at 96 days.  Comparison to this month last year: Increased from 91 days.

So what do all these numbers mean? 

January has started off 2011 with a lot of hope! Average prices are up and average days on the market are holding steady.

I did a little more research to see exactly what was moving and the $250,000 - $299,999 price range had the biggest increase in growth over last year. That group had a 33% increase in activity!

In January, sellers got 97.14% of their asking price. This tells me that the buyers are still in the driver's seat. With so much to choose from, sellers must price aggressively and have their homes beauty pageant ready. If ever you thought of buying a home or buying investment property, NOW is the time. Interest rates are expected to rise and it looks like sales prices will continue to rise as well.

These stats are for areas 90, 91 & 92 in Ascension Parish. Information used from Greater Baton Rouge MLS.  They include only single family dwellings.  Mobile home and land sales are not part of these numbers.  If you would like information on either of these, feel free to let me know.

My answer to the question every time is, "YES"!

Many years ago, before I was an agent myself, my husband and I purchased a new home. We were very excited about our next move up in the housing market. The home was vacant when we started the negotiations. We closed within 30 days and everything we well. At the closing the previous owners handed over the keys to our new home. They asked if we were going to move in right away. We told them that we were leaving the next morning for two weeks to visit my husband's family up north. That afternoon, we picked up our kids and moved a couple of things in the house just so it would feel like it was really ours.

Returning from our vacation we went straight to our new home. As we walked in the door, I noticed a key on the kitchen counter. I didn't remember leaving that there...  As we walked around, I discovered that the curtains in the two front bedrooms were missing. I was not broken hearted about this but it looked like the just pulled the hardware out of the wall! There were big holes in the sheetrock! As I went to adjust the fan, I realized the fan pulls were missing as well!
You guessed it! The owners had come into MY new home while we were away and took the curtains and the fan pulls along with some other minor things. Boy did I feel violated! Someone was in MY home without my permission while I was on vacation!

My next action was to call the locksmith. He came out and changed the locks all around the house. I later found out that two of the neighbors still had keys to my house. Hindsight being what it is...I gave them (the previous owners) permission to enter my home by telling them we were leaving the next day for a vacation. Learned my lesson there!

So yes, I always tell my buyers to schedule a locksmith to come out and change the locks. You never know who may have a key and who may not be afraid to use it!

It's Girl Scout Cookie time! I know this because lots of the little girls I know have been updating on their Mother's Facebook Status letting me know that they were accepting pre-orders for their heavenly little treasures. Tonight we had our first door knocker peddling her yummy goodness. All this talk about cookies made me think about searching for a Girl Scout Cookie page on Facebook. I found it! http://www.facebook.com/GirlScoutCookies Immediately I see a box that says "Go To App"... Well, I had to see what that was all about! You know those apps that let you send hugs and such? You can now send virtual Girl Scout Cookies to your friends Facebook wall! What??? How cool is that...or not. Talk about testing my will-power! If my friends send me Thin Mint and Samoas online all day, I will never be able to resist these little heavenly treats! ps. I have already sent cookies to a few of my friends via Facebook :) 

Being curious after I saw that, I immediately picked up my iPhone. Guess what?! There's an app for that! Seriously! There is a Girl Scout Cookie app! It's a free app and you can locate cookies, learn about the cookies and even learn your cookie personality! Apparently, I am popular, strong and confident!

The Girl Scouts are doing a good job with their online presence. Here are some other places to find the Girl Scouts online:

Twitter: http://twitter.com/girlscouts 

Flickr:http://www.flickr.com/groups/officialgirlscoutcookies/

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/girlscoutcookiesale

On their webpage http://girlscoutcookies.org/ you can enter your zip code and they will help you place an order online!

When a Girl Scout approaches you to buy cookies, I ask you to help support her troop. They work really hard at this. If you don't want cookies for yourself, they are also taking orders to send to the troops. Donate $3.50 to send a box of cookies to a military person fighting for our freedom.

Monthly Sales were 81 units. Comparison to last month:  Increased 14% from 71 units.  Comparison to this month last year: Decreased 12% from 92 Units.

Average Sold Price was $212,806.  Comparison to last month:  Decreased 2% from $216,851.  Comparison to this month last year: Increased 14% from $186,342.

Current Inventory is 7.92 months.  Comparison to last month:  Decreased from 9.64 months.  Comparison to this month last year: Increased from 6.81 months.

Average Days on Market were 96.  Comparison to last month:  Decreased from 105 days.  Comparison to this month last year: Increased from 67 days.

So what do all these numbers mean?  
Typically, December is a slow month with not a lot of activity. This year, December was a healthy month to end the year with. We were much better in December 2010 than we were in 2009. With the number of units up and the average sales price up from 2009, I would call December 2010 a success. 

These stats are for areas 90, 91 & 92 in Ascension Parish. Information used from Greater Baton Rouge MLS.  They include only single family dwellings.  Mobile home and land sales are not part of these numbers.  If you would like information on either of these, feel free to let me know.

Now that Christmas has passed. Many people are beginning to take down their Christmas trees. If you had a live tree and would like to recycle it, here's how...

Curbside Recycling:

East Baton Rouge Parish excluding Baker & Zachary
Place Christmas trees on the curb for recycling between
January 6 - January 18, 2011.

Drop-Off Recycling:

Baton Rouge: Sites will be open Monday, December 27, 2010
through Thursday, January 27, 2011.
(please put all trees in collection containers)
BREC Parks:
Independence Park, 7500 Independence Blvd.
Highland Road Park, 14024 Highland Road,
Kathy Drive Park, enter off Oneal Lane by Team Toyota
North Sherwood Forest Park, 3140 N. Sherwood Forest
Pecue Wood Recycling Facility, 9455 Pecue Lane
Scenic Highway Wood Recycling Facility, 12601 Scenic Hwy.
LSU, Skip Bertman Drive (lot across from Vet School)

Ascension Parish:  Drop off your Christmas Tree at Lamar Dixon on January 22, 2011. Times to follow as soon as they are verified.

Livingston Parish:  Farmer's Market on Highway 190 in Denham Springs the morning of Saturday, January 8th. Those trees will be used to improve Livingston Parish waterways.

Please remove stand, decorations and lights. Do not put tree in a disposal bag.

Two days before New Years Day I decided I wanted bangs. They are coming back in style... right?  Of course, I decided that I wanted them and I wanted them NOW! No time to wait for a hair appointment and I didn't want to spend the extra money anyway. Any of this sounding familiar to you? Well, that evening I decided that I was going to do it myself. I hopped on YouTube and searched "How To Cut Your Own Bangs". Watching the videos, I thought well, this is simple. I can do this! Discounting all the posts that warned me I was treading in unknown waters I decided that I wanted bangs NOW! The next morning I enlisted the help of my oldest daughter. She laughed at me when I told her that "I watched it on YouTube. I can do this."  Actually, I think she even said, "You, of all people, should know better. Just because you read/watch it on the internet doesn't mean you can do it successfully. Please just wait until you can go see Krystle." (smart kid)

There's a point to all of this... I promise!

As soon as I finished chopping away at my hair, all I could think of was a blog post written by my friend over at West Bank Living, Lisa Heindel, entitled "I'm not Miss Clairol, You are not a Realtor"  In a nutshell, she compared coloring her own hair to trying to sell your home For Sale By Owner when you have no real estate experience.

DIY has exploded with the popularity of YouTube. You can watch videos of just about anything you want to try to do yourself. Hey, I did!  Here enlies, the problem. Since I did not have experience as a hairdresser, my goal of beautiful bangs will have to wait.

1. I will now have to wait even longer for a hair appointment.

2. It may cost more than my regular hair appointment if I have to see someone other than my regular stylist.

3. I have to walk around with these crazy bangs until they grow out some more!

If I had only waited for professional help...

I completely understand the urge to DIY when selling your home. Just think about these things before you do.

1. Missing the goal date of your sale because you may not have all the avenues to advertise that a Realtor® does. We really do more than put a sign in your yard and put your home in the MLS.

2. Selling your home for less because you don't have all the necessary information to price your home correctly or to negotiate properly.

3. Missed time off of work or family outings to accommodate the showings for buyers who can't work around your schedule.

Those are just a few things to think about. To quote my friend, "I learned my lesson the hard way. You don't have to." 

P.S. I will be calling my hairdresser first thing in the morning!

If you live in East Baton Rouge Parish all forms of fireworks are illegal for you.

Cross the line over to Ascension Parish and you will find numerous fireworks stands filled with the delightfully fun explosives. Fireworks in Ascension Parish are legal except for the areas of Gonzales and Donaldsonville.

Drive a little ways down Interstate 12 into Livingston Parish and you will again find numerous fireworks stands just waiting for you to stop by. It is my understanding that fireworks in Livingston Parish are legal in all areas except for the cities of Denham Springs and Walker.

If you are planning a fireworks show to celebrate the New Year of 2011, please do so safely.

Have a safe and Happy New Year!