Spring is Here!

Good Monday Morning. What a FANTASTIC weekend! I was trying not to get my hopes up since it is only March, but it was hard not to dream about summer while I was hosting an open house which was right across the street from the community pool in Clarksburg Town Center... AND I just found out that I have been invited to throw the Opening Pitch for Clarksburg Baseball's Opening Day Ceremony on April 10 at Ovid Hazen fields in Clarksburg. I will have to start practicing so I don't throw anything too lame or too wild!

The SPRING market is definitely upon us. There were over 100 open houses in the North Montgomery County area yesterday. Many sellers are pushing to get their houses on the market before the first time home-buyer credit expires at the end of April. Do you know about the $8,000 1st time home buyer credit or the $6,500 move-up credit? Many people don't even know that these benefits are available! If you or someone you know would benefit from these tax credits, please give me a call so that I can give you the details and help you achieve your real estate goals.

Spring Break starts this weekend. Yes - another 10+ days of no-school for the kids. :) Enjoy the coffee and have a great week. ~Lisa

Community Information
Companion Rabbit Care & Training - An Education and Adoption EventWhether you already have a rabbit, or are just considering adopting one, this original Washington Humane Society seminar will give you the tools you need to successfully care for and understand your pet rabbit. Meet adorable bunnies that need homes and learn how a rabbit can be the right companion for your family.We will discuss: Proper Housing, Litterbox Training, Health & Wellness, Trick Training, Bonding Instructions for multiple rabbits...Seminar fee: $20 (Adoption fees waived for rabbits adopted from this event. This offer available only to seminar participants.)Pre-registration is required. Seats are limited. Sunday, March 28, 2010 1:00 pm - 3:00 pmWashington Humane Society Behavior & Learning Center7319 Georgia Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20012For registration details please contact askthetrainer@washhumane.org
4th Annual RE/MAX Town Center Golf Tournament - Monday, June 7 at Little Bennett Golf CourseSave the Date! More Information to Come...

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:
"We don't receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us or spare us."- Marcel Proust
ON MY HONOR . . . !

The Boy Scouts have long espoused the same set of principles. It goes like this: "A scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent." How simple life could be if we all practiced just that short list. Each in itself denotes a wonderful trait. When put into action, all can make the world a better place.

So, what happens between the age of scouting and age 30, 50, or 75? How is it that we turn from being a friendly 12-year-old to a suspicious, stand-offish adult? How do we turn the corner from being obedient to our elders to challenging the authority of our employers or government? Why won't we open the door for someone who can't? Did simple courtesy die with our youth?

Perhaps experience has taught us that others are not always friendly, courteous and kind. "Turn-about is fair play," we may respond. Why should we be thrifty, taking care to save for our future, when everyone around us has "maxed out" their credit cards? Reverence for all we know to be of value seems to have become the victim of political correctness. Why should we be any different?

The greatness of our country was built on the solid rock of "principles." The soft, easy life of an affluent society may be our undoing. Our forefathers had it tough. Most of us living today had a cake-walk, comparatively speaking. Our forbearers had to live their principles - or face the defeat of poverty, ill-health, and despair.

Our children can bring us back if only we will take the time to teach them those simple principles. More than teaching, we might help them practice those principles in their daily lives until habit makes them permanent. Begin while they are still playing in the sandbox. They will grow soon enough into men and women who live principle-centered lives!

New Addtion to the Team and SAVE THE DATE

Good Monday Morning to you! Now that the Olympics are over, I am definitely ready for Spring. We have had the holidays, the snow, the games and now it is time for some warmth and lots of sunshine. I am so excited to have Angela Faustine, my fantastic niece, join the Sabelhaus Team! She arrived in Maryland this week, moved in and is tasked with making the Team a lean, mean, fighting machine. :)

SAVE THE DATE!
Saturday April 17, 2010 from 6-10pm.
CASINO NIGHT - BlackRock Center for the Arts - Germantown, MD
Food, Drink, Music, Gaming, Entertainment is all included in your $50 ticket.
All proceeds to benefit Children's National Hospital.
I have attached the brochure, but you can also click here to link directly to the website.

Can you help me? I need FANS for the Sabelhaus Team facebook page. When you become a fan, you can see all of the photos from our fun client events AND submit Reviews on your real estate experience with us. We will also post events and have contests. Just search on "Sabelhaus Team" and add the page to your favorites. THANK YOU!

Thank you again for your referrals and business. Watch for your newsletter in the mail this week and don't forget to call/email with the answer to the Trivia Challenge!! Enjoy the coffee and have a great week. ~Lisa

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:
"It does not take much strength to do things, but it requires great strength to decide on what to do."
~ Elbert Hubbard

THROW AWAY THE BAND-AIDS!

What do Scotch Tape, Post-It Notes, and paper clips have in common? Each apparently has a different function, is made of a different material, and serves its own purpose. Oh sure, you can say they're all office supplies - and you'd be right - but look a little deeper for their common purpose.

Scotch Tape pieces are placed along the edges and on the ends of holiday gifts - for a short period of time. Post-It Notes are stuck to documents suggesting that a signature is needed, or some action be taken. Once the action is complete, the note is discarded. Paper clips hold two or more things together for a few hours or days, and are then returned to the desk drawer.

Figured it out yet? They are all just a temporary "fix" - a momentary solution to a temporary need. They are used in "reaction" to a short-term need. They are also similar to our daily personal lives. When feelings are hurt and the tears come, we automatically reach for a Kleenex. We might, on the other hand, have taken time to determine the source of those feelings and concentrated on resolving a difference before tears were necessary.

When our children misbehave, we react with a 15-minute (or 3-day) "time-out." We might have avoided that temporary fix by listening to their concerns and teaching appropriate behavior before the fact. Then, there are all the excuses we make, used like Band-Aids, to temporarily cover the flaws in our own behavior. Wouldn't a more permanent solution like performing to expectations, learning from past experience, or practicing excellence be more appropriate?

Yes, we live in a very fast-paced world. Quick solutions are the order of the day, yet we must eventually realize that we continually seem to need a fresh supply of Scotch Tape, Kleenex, or paper clips. By taking more time to look ahead, it is possible to eliminate many of the situations that require those one-minute Band-Aids. Avoid future "boo-boos." Search for, learn, and practice a more permanent and proactive life. That's right - "No more tears!"