Wow! Twelve Inches of Snow!

It's snowing in Oberlin! Our first big storm of the winter! The weather forecasters began 2 days ago telling us that we would be getting about 12 inches of snow beginning Saturday at noon and lasting until Sunday afternoon. You know what? They were right on the mark! The snow began here at 12:15 and it is now 3:30 and we have about 1 1/2 inches already! So we have buttoned down the hatches, hauled in the wood for the fireplaces, stocked up the cupboards, pulled out the extra blankets, turned on all of the Christmas lights, put on the soft music, grabbed a good book, and thanked our lucky stars that we had no travel plans for the weekend.

With the snow finally arriving, I'm sure there are some of you out there who just love the snow so much because of all those outdoor activities that go along with it! So let me tell you a little secret! Lorain County Metro Parks have great cross country skiing and two fabulouse sledding hills! But don't tell anyone! It's a secret! Since I know you can keep that secret, I can tell you that the sledding hills are located at Carlisle Reservation Equestrian Center and the other at Vermilion River Reservation Bacon Woods. I'm afraid that I can't give a first hand account of the downhill excitement but our grandkids all say that the sledding is great!

If crosscountry skiing is your forte, you will find that every trail in the 16 park Metro Park system ( http://www.loraincountymetroparks.com/) will be left ungroomed with a special invitation for you to put on the skiis and go out and have some fun! Oops! That was a secret! These parks and trails are so great that we really don't want people to know about them! But I can trust you. You won't tell anyone, will you? And besides, since you're reading our Blog that means that you're our friends! And friends are always welcome! So come on over to Lorain County, have some fun in the snow and then come on over to Hallauer House for some hot chocolate before you retire to your warm and cozy room! Come on! You know you want to!

A Gift of Memories

Twenty years ago, we were in a quandry as to what to get my parents for a Christmas gift. What do you get for a couple who has been married for 40 years and has everything they need or want? Then browsing through a bookstore, I came across a book called the Complete Guide to Bed & Breakfasts, Inns, and Guesthouses by Pamela Lanier. And a light bulb went off in my head!
That's it! A gift certificate to a bed and breakfast! My parents love to travel and see new places and experience new things so this gift would be ideal. We didn't know much about bed and breakfasts at the time but read that they were the up and coming way to experience great accommodations.

Well, back in 1990 we were without the internet and Google, so we relied on the information in the book and selected a bed and breakfast in Pittsburgh, PA that we thought they would enjoy. Christmas Day came and we presented them with the gift certificate and the book.
They were thrilled, made reservations for a spring trip, journeyed to Pittsburgh, had a great time, and brought back many memories to share with us about their trip.

So if you need a unique gift for someone special may we suggest that you consider a gift certificate to a bed and breakfast! The internet will make your selection so much easier than it was 20 years ago! And then instead of just handing the recipients an envelope with the certificate inside, why not get creative in your presentation. It will just add to the memories! Here are some of our-off the top of our heads-suggestions!

• Place the card in a piece of luggage
• Attach it to a bottle of wine
• Put it in a gift basket full of brochures about the destination city or place
• Hide it in a book about travel, B & B's, or the destination city
• Enlist the grandkids or children in the family to put on a little play and present the Gift Certificate
• Get in a group and prent it as a singing telegram that you write special for them
• If you buy a Gift Certificate package like our Antique Treausre Hunt package, present the gift certificate with an antique and a canvas bag to use to collect the treasures
• Hide the gift certificate somewhere, perhaps the car, and then leave clues that will take the recipient from one clue to the next until they reach the hiding place
• Put it on the tray as you serve them 'breakfast in bed'

And now, add your own ideas! Email us and let us know of other creative ways to present a Bed & Breakfast Gift Certificate. We'll add them to this post.

As a special for the holidays, we are offering a 10% discount on any of our
Packages when you buy one as a gift certificate. Offer is good until Dec. 24, 2007. Package details can be viewed on our website http://www.hallauerhousebnb.com/. You must mention this Blog in order to receive the discount. And remember, gift certificates for any amount can be purchased for 1 or more nights stay here at Hallauer House. So give it some thought. Shopping will be quick and easy and you'll create memories that will last a lifetime.

Your Weekend Choice is a World Famous Quartet or William Shakespeare!

My gosh! I don't know about you, but I can't believe that Thanksgiving was over a week ago! Yikes! Where did the time go!? Here we have been busy with Christmas decorating and point and click Christmas shopping. That way early worms get packages delivered in timely manner! Oh I love the internet and shopping from a chair! But with all of that, I neglected posting about Oberlin and Lorain County happenings. And a lot is going on!





When you visit Oberlin this Friday, Dec. 7, you will have to choose between two superb engagements. One is the world renowned Takacs Quartet, (see an earlier post) which will perform in Finney Chapel as part of the Oberlin College Artist Recital Series. The quartet, in it's 31st season, is known for it's intense, engaging music that can leave the audience emotionally spent. They are critically acclaimed and have produced many multi-award winning recordings. Friday's program will feature two striing quartets - Haydn's "C Major, Op. 74" and Bartok's "Quartet No. 5" - plus Mozart's "Clarinet Quintet in A Major. The guest artist will be Franklin Cohen of the Cleveland Orchestra. For complete details check out the following link: http://www.oberlin.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/events/calendar.pl?display=college&which=&s=&_e=18415.


Your other choice is the theater and dance performance at Hall Auditorium. This production - "Measure for Measure" by William Shakespeare, is his darkest comedy, examining contemporary issues of society. The public's ticket price is $8.00 for early purchase or $11.00 at the door. More details can be found at http://www.oberlin.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/events/calendar.pl?display=college&which=&s=0&_e=17548.

There will also be many student and faculty recitals for you to enjoy as well as a quaint down town where you can shop for one of a kind Christmas gifts. We may be a small town in Ohio but we are a class act town! Come out and visit! You know you want to! You'll be glad you did!