Haley, Spalding, Helen and I have spent recent late summer afternoons practicing our gallops. Galloping is okay if you’re a horse, but it’s a bit difficult for a heron. And we have to make sure we’re ready because the firth annual Goblin Gallop is October 25th – only a couple of months away!

The Goblin Gallop is Heron Bay’s fundraiser for the Hands of Hope Clinic, which provides medical and dental services to uninsured residents of Henry County. Last year, more than 230 of us participated and raised more than $20,000 for the clinic.

To prepare for this year’s Goblin Gallop, our family is doing a few critical things. Helen and I are preparing for the 6K run, and Haley and Spalding are gearing up for the one mile run. Haley’s planning on helping with the tot trot for some of her preschool friends, too.

Just as important as our training, we’re planning our costumes.  Spalding and Haley are both eager to win the prize for the most creative costume, so they’re working on something both unexpected and easy to run in.

The third thing we’re doing is recruiting our friends to run. After all, the Hope Clinic will get more money, and more of our favorite people will have the chance to fall in love with Heron Bay. When I mentioned it at work, I immediately ran into a snag with my friends who attended the University of Georgia – it would appear the Dawgs are playing LSU that day. A quick call to the folks at Heron Bay let me know they really do think of everything. They’re broadcasting the game on a plasma television during the race. And guess what – they’re going to raffle the tv off after the race! That’s more money for the Hands of Hope Clinic, and more hope for me finally getting the tv I’ve always wanted! Helen and I each got a raffle ticket just for registering for the 6K.

Anyone who wants to participate can pre-register at www.HeronBayInfo.com or for a slightly higher fee, register onsite the day of the event. The 6K is $15 ($20 at the door), and the one mile run/walk is $10 ($15 at the door). The 60-yard Tot Trot for ages five and under is free.

If you see our family training around the neighborhood, please stop and say hello. We’ll be the only herons who are attempting to gallop!

Have you noticed Haley’s been quiet about saving our environment recently? Well, it’s not that she’s been quiet; it’s just that I haven’t shared it with you. Every now and then, though, she comes up with something I truly can’t afford to ignore – she hits me in the wallet. And with this long, hot summer, our energy bills are making my wallet significantly thinner.

That’s where Haley stepped in with all sorts of facts she discovered on the Energy Star website. Did you know that energy use in the average home is responsible for twice as much pollution as the average car? And the average home has 30 light fixtures, so lighting accounts for nearly 20 percent of energy costs.

Haley learned we can use Energy Star qualified compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) to help out. They use two-thirds less energy than standard bulbs, and they last six times longer. Each bulb can save us about $25 in energy costs over its lifetime.

Of course, Haley came up with some facts that don’t directly impact our family budget, too. I have to admit they’re pretty impressive. If each U.S. household replaced just one incandescent light bulb with one that earned the Energy Star label, our country could save $600 million in energy bills. That’s enough energy to light 7 million homes and prevent greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 1 million cars.

Turning a CFL on and off frequently can shorten its life, so we chose to replace lights in the fixtures that we use the most. That means I need to sign off and get to work. I seem to be the only one in our home who can change a light bulb. At least herons don’t need to get a ladder, even for the two-story foyer!

All summer long, the children have been begging my wife to make her famous blueberry pie. So last weekend, we decided that we would get the whole family involved in the preparation by going to the “Greenleaf Blueberry Farm” in Hampton.

This family farm is ran by Mrs. Olmstead who takes care of it for her in-laws, who also live on the property. Mrs. Olmstead is a special needs teacher who is passionate about blueberries and opens the farm each summer to allow families to come and pick their own fresh berries.

We had so much fun! When we got there, Mrs. Olmstead gave us each a bucket and pointed us in the right direction. We were followed by some friendly dogs who seemed excited to see some new faces. We spent a while picking the berries and just enjoying the early morning weather. Once we had picked close to three gallons of berries, Mrs. Olmstead was friendly enough to package them for us for the quick trip home. She also shared a few secret family recipes with us, just in case we had some berries left over after we baked our pie.

Once we were home, we all worked together to wash the berries and bake the pie. My kids were so excited to be involved and it was great watching them work together.

We enjoyed the homemade pie after dinner with some vanilla ice cream. It was so delicious, and I could really taste the fresh, juicy blueberries. There’s nothing like fresh berries in a homemade pie! And the kids enjoyed it so much that we decided to take Mrs. Olmstead’s recipe and use the leftover berries the next morning.

Spending the day with my family at the blueberry farm was great fun. My kids really enjoyed it, and are already asking to go back! I would highly recommend that all of my friends and neighbors here at Heron Bay make a trip to the farm a summer tradition. Not  only do you get to spend a wonderful fun day with your family, but you get a yummy pie at the end of that day!

One thing I love about Heron Bay is the fact that there are so many places to fit in here (even for a family of herons!). Take Brayson Homes. I checked out their model home in the Pinehurst community while I was walking with Haley last week. They offer all sorts of choices for homebuyers, depending on the homesite you choose, of course. They have basements for those who like extra space and lots of steps. Then they have ranch homes for those who don’t like steps at all. You can choose as many as five bedrooms or as few as three. (After the walk, I took Haley to an ice cream store. As she took 31 minutes to choose one flavor, I realized that I would never want her to have as many choices as Brayson Homes offers. I pity the sales agent who helps her with her first home purchase!)

Back to Brayson homes – this is the best part: These homes start at $189,900, and some are ready to move into right away. That means you could come live in Heron Bay with all the wonderful amenities at a very affordable price, and you could get here while it’s still warm enough to enjoy the outdoor pool and mushroom fountains. The model home, which is loaded with tons of extras, is for sale, too. It’s $229,990. Even with the excellent pricing, Brayson Homes never skimps on quality or service. After all, they’ve built more than 10,000 homes over the last 30 years, so they must be doing something right.

That is it for now - Haley has finally chosen an outfit to wear on this afternoon’s walk. Give me a wave if you see us about. You’ll recognize me as the dad with the most carefully dressed little girl – oh, and we’re the only walking, talking Herons around these parts, too.