Newsletter & Calendar - April 2008

Our Community is Growing!
Spring is in the air! And after the winter and last few months we have had, it is certainly welcome. The trees we have left are budding and hopefully things will start looking green again very soon. It has been a busy and difficult year so far, but hopefully we will see things get back to “normal” very soon. The last couple of months has also been a busy time as far as people moving into our community. We have seen quite a few homes change hands and some new homes move into the community. Welcome to all of our new neighbors! Please be sure and take the time to introduce yourself to the new folks who may be living next door to you or just down the street. If you don't have new neighbors yet, keep watching, they are turning up in different places all around the community. One of the best ways of securing our individual homes and our neighborhood is to know our neighbors and look out for each other. This is the easiest and most inexpensive way to maintain the safety of our community. And we can all do it! It just takes a little time and effort. Please take the time to be friendly. Cookies are optional...

High Winds and Inspections Ahead
Oklahoma is a windy place a lot of the time, but especially in the Spring. With higher than normal winds and Spring inspections at hand, it's a good time to make sure your home is ready for both. Here are a few things you might want to check:

1) Are your shutters securely fastened to your home?

2) Are your trash cans stored in such a way that they will not wind up in your neighbor's yard during a high wind?

3) Are there loose items around the outside of your home that could blow away? You need to secure them, store them or simply get rid of them if so.

Finally, be sure that all trash that is set out is placed in bags that are securely tied. Taking a look around and tidying up the outside of your home will give you a head-start on preparing for inspections, too!

Free Security Alarm!
In this high tech age, many of us have car alarms. Here is a practical way for that alarm to serve you in more ways than one. If the panic button on your key chain will activate your car's alarm system from inside your home, how about keeping your keys next to your bed at night? If you hear a strange noise or if someone is breaking into your house, press the panic button and activate your car alarm! If someone is up to no good, it is likely that the alarm will deter them. You should also keep your keys in your hand while walking to your car in a parking lot. You never know when a little commotion could be a big help. It's a great idea! Thanks to our neighbors James and Juanita Wiles for passing on this very practical safety tip.

Debris Cleanup
We are getting close to finishing the ice storm recovery, but we still have trees to trim, and some to remove. At the very end of this process will be the grinding of stumps that have been left in yards. This will be the very last thing that is done. We appreciate your patience as this work is completed. It has been a very expensive and time consuming process. Continue to be careful in areas where trees have not been trimmed.

Cook's Corner
Caramel Popcorn
Here's a quick and fairly simple recipe for some delicious home-made caramel corn. Instead of buying your next batch, give this recipe a try.

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup un-popped popcorn-freshly popped
1/2 C Butter
1 C Brown Sugar, firmly packed
1/4 C light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
Place popped corn on lightly greased baking sheet. In a medium sauce pan, over low heat, melt butter and add brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Bring this to a boil and boil for 5 minutes WITHOUT stirring. Remove from heat and stir in the baking soda and vanilla. Pour this mixture over the popcorn and stir until evenly coated. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring after 15 minutes. Cool completely, put on an old movie, relax and enjoy! Makes 9 cups. Store the extra in an airtight container.

Does Your Home Need a Bath?
This item turns up fairly often on inspection reports. But, don't get the bucket and ladder out there is an easier way! One of our neighbors will power wash your home for you. Call Richard Beeler at 355-5709 for a quote. He also does lawns if you need some help with that summertime chore!

For Johanna Woods Residents Only…...Here's a Scavenger Hunt for you!
If you've never visited our website, now is the time! If you don't have computer access, take your newsletter and go to the library. Whatever you have to do, don't miss entering this contest! This contest is only open to Johanna Woods residents. Correct entries will be placed in a hat and 3 winners will be drawn. Answers to all questions, except one, are available at our website or via links on our website. Answers must be received by e-mail to be qualified. Here are the questions….HAPPY HUNTING!!
1-What city and state is home to Atlantic Homes?
2- What is the street address of the home that appears on our front page?
3-How many acres does Johanna Woods occupy?
4-What minimum charge is specified in our rules when lawn work is required?
5- How many outdoor swimming pools does the city of BA manage?
6-Who designed our website?
7-One of the past issues of our Newsletter featured a recipe for Cheese Fondue. What month was that?
8- Another Newsletter mentioned an Oreo Cookie Day. What was the date of that event?
9-Information on local movies is provided by?
10-At the bottom of our home page in black boxes is the Web Page visit counter. What is the number shown during your visit?

Okay, get those answers in and don't forget to identify yourself. Each of the three winners will receive a $75.00 gift certificate to Wal-Mart. So get busy and get those entries in. Entries must be submitted by the 15th of January.
Questions about the contest? Call the office….355-1681

www.johannawoods.com

Got Back Door Steps?
Our community rules require that each home have front and back door steps. This is an important safety issue for you as a homeowner. Most of our homes have a door at each end. In case of fire, there has to be access out of the home, at each end of the home. Now I have heard the argument that in the event of a fire, or some other emergency, not having steps isn't necessarily going to keep someone from getting out of their home. But it might make the difference between getting out in one piece or being injured. So why risk it? But back to the rules, you must have back door steps. I have noticed several of the homes in our community that don't have them and we will be following up to make sure that this important safety feature is in place at everyone's home by the 1st of April, 2001. We can build you a set or you can find them elsewhere. But you must have them by the date listed above. You can call the office for more information on the cost at 355-1681.

One of the things that we must do in Johanna Woods is insure that our community stays in excellent condition. Our rules and guidelines are written to provide minimum standards so we all have a guide as to what is required of us as individual homeowners in Johanna Woods. In order to monitor each home's compliance with our rules, we will be implementing an annual 4-sided inspection of each home and home-site in the Spring of 2001. I will be conducting the inspections and will provide written feedback to each homeowner. These inspections will become part of each resident file. Areas that are identified as needing attention will be clearly defined and a timeframe for correction will be specified.

Our community is 15 years old now and some of our homes are showing their age. It is vital that we all make the repairs needed to keep our community from looking like a “trailer park”!

On the Lighter Side…
Though my hair has turned to gray and my skin no longer fits, on the inside, I'm the same old me...It's the outside that's changed a bit!