Eating local doesn't only apply to restaurants.  Today I got to meet a fellow Girl Scout at Amack's Well in the Batesville Shopping Village and they proved that having a great place to drink (coffee!) local is also a valuable part of our community. In the 1830s Teunis and Nancy Amack, two of the first settlers of Batesville, dug a well that served the early settlers of the town, as well as providing water to the railroad, putting the community on the map.  Like the name suggest, Amack's Well is still a place for friends and neighbors to gather for a drink.  And the water is still free. The coffee shop brews Deeper Roots coffee beans, which I like for two reasons.  First, Deeper Roots is not only ethically sourced, they call themselves relationally sourced.  Check out their website for more information, but the bottom line is they focus on people and communities and not just the bottom line.  Second, Deeper Roots is actually roasted very cl...

It's Girl Scout Cookie Season!  Perhaps more importantly, this weekend is Girl Scout Cookie Weekend.  If you're like me and live near the border of a Girl Scout Council, you may have notice that Cookie season starts at different times in different areas.  This is because there are two different bakers used, in addition to each Council setting their own calendar.  But this weekend all the Councils are selling, so the girls are out in full force and the booths are set up everywhere.  And while it may seem like a lot of money for a cookies, there's so much more in the box than flour and sugar!  What?  I'm glad you asked. The Five Skills (first line of each skill taken from a Cookie box, so you know it's true!) Goal Setting - girls learn how to set goals and create a plan to reach them. Girl Scouts learn at an early age that they have to work for what they have.  The Cookie program gives them an opportunity to learn to work toward not only the in...

I know what you're thinking.  Really, Karen?  Girl Scouts?  What does this have to do with Real Estate? But something you are probably considering in your home search is what the area has to offer to you, your family and your guests.  You may be looking for a school with high ratings (Batesville has great schools, by the way), restaurants (we've got those too!) or a good gym (I've never been but I hear good things), but are you thinking about community involvement?  About ways for your kids to meet new friends outside of school?  About ways for YOU to meet new friends outside of work? Wow, I just threw a lot of questions at you!  So here's the thing - in my humble opinion, there are two important things to make an out of town move, even just to the next town over, go smoothly.  One is a good Realtor and the other is having an activity or organization that provides some consistency in the transition. In some moves, you stay at the same job ...