It’s here!  Well, tomorrow it’s here. The best month in Indy, without a doubt. Here at RTV6, we’re gearing up for our race coverage– and for the all-important May sweeps period, which actually began last week.

Sweeps are always a big deal for local TV stations, and for the networks. It’s when all your favorite programs have “dramatic can’t miss” episodes, and thrilling season finales. On Grey’s Anatomy, they’re getting ready for the big Derek-Meredith wedding,  which we actually talked about this morning on GMI.

You see, one of the other characters (Izzy) has been helping Meredith get ready for her wedding while she remains bed-ridden with cancer. On last week’s episode, she made Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) try on wedding dresses and the like, and now we’ve learned she has also set up a web site for the couple on theknot.com — a real web site, that now has a real page for Derek and Meredith’s wedding. Yes, we are talking about fictional characters here– who have a real wedding web site.

As promised- here’s the link.

Now while this may sound cheesy to some of you, fans of the show can actually make a difference by visiting the page. In lieu of gifts (to fictional characters?) — the web site asks for real contributions to groups that really do need the help.

You can make a donation to the American Academy of Neurology (Derek is a neurologist), the American Skin Association (since Izzy’s cancer started as skin cancer), or the Alzheimer’s Association (Meredith’s mom had Alzheimer’s).

So okay- I won’t fun make of the page- too much. Hopefully fans of the show can help a very worthwhile cause.

And speaking of contributions, we appreciate all the comments from viewers, both here on the GMI blog, and on our Facebook and Twitter pages- it’s always great to hear from you!

Here’s to a great month of May!

Happy Wednesday!  I have to start by saying thanks to Dan for his thoughtful comments yesterday.  It’s funny because just last week I was telling my husband how easy Dan is to work with every morning.  Dan and I share similar views on many subjects, so that has definitely helped us form a good working relationship.  Dan is always so accomodating when I say, “Oh Dan… I need another favor.”  Dan is  truly an intelligent, thoughtful guy and I’m lucky to have him as a co-anchor.  (Believe me… I’ve heard some anchor team horror stories from other television markets, so I’m one lucky lady.)

Dan and I had fun this morning with our new ventures on Facebook and Twitter.  We spent a little more time on Facebook.  During the commercial breaks, we’d monitor the comments and respond to as many people as we could.  Well, I say we.  Dan and I read the comments and Dan did all the typing.  It’s really fun to read instant messages and respond to viewers during the newscast!  I must admit that I’m now thinking of setting up a Facebook page.  I don’t think I have the time to manage the page once I leave the station, but I think it might be a fun way to connect with viewers while I’m at work.

Reading viewer comments during the commercials actually made the show go by a little faster this morning.  The Facebook idea reminds me of a nickname I had in middle school… Grace Face.  Well, get ready.  Soon you could see Grace’s face on Facebook.  As you get ready to face another day, I hope you have a great one and we’ll look forward to reading your comments tomorrow on Good Morning Indiana.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard those words!

“Saw you had an interesting weekend…”

“I read all about your girlfriend on the blog!”

“So you got stuck in the driveway huh?”

Little to nothing it seems is off limits. (OK, there are a few stories she hasn’t told!)  But– without a doubt that’s why I think this blog has been so popular. Grace has done such a wonderful job connecting with viewers like you who only get to hear us talk about swine flu or property taxes on TV every morning. We do get to chat for a few minutes on the news, but the blog then gives more insight into our daily lives.

Which is why I’m delighted to turn the tables on my good friend Grace!

Starting this week, Grace and I will share the daily blogging duties. She’ll still have the skinny on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays- and I’ll post my report on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So watch out my friend!

Our faithful reader Jim joked last week that Grace and I might have a hard time remembering whose turn it was to blog, so hopefully this system will work out well. All kidding aside, it’s this kind of teamwork and cooperation that’s made it such a pleasure to work with Grace these past two years.  There’s so much to do in a short amount of time every morning– and not just the news on TV. On the days I do the radio updates on WJJK, Grace does the cable news updates on 6 News 24/7  , and vice versa.

But now- in addition to the morning news (and the blog), we’re making waves on Facebook and Twitter, too!  You can check it out by going to twitter.com/6newsgmi or visiting our GMI Facebook page…

We’d love to hear from you!!

Happy Monday!  I hope all of you had a wonderful weekend.

Dan had a really fun time.  He and his girlfriend drove to Cleveland to attend a friend’s wedding.  While there, Dan went to an Indian’s game.  Dan was disappointed that they lost, but he was still happy to go to the game.  (And as he quickly reminded me, at least the Cavaliers won.)  Dan says the wedding reception was fun.  Apparently the bride and groom had one of those little photo booths set up, so people could pop in and take some fun pictures.  I’ve attended a reception with one of those photo booths and it’s a super way to give your family and friends a souvenir from the big day.

My husband and I also had a fun weekend.  My father-in-law and sister-in-law came down for a visit.  It always feels like a vacation when they come to town.  They both have such a helpful and fun spirit.  Friday night they stayed with the kids while my husband and I went out.  It was such a nice evening.  My husband and I sat outside to enjoy some wine and pleasant conversation.  We were lucky to find a place that wasn’t too crowded, so it turned out to be a very nice night.  Saturday we spent the majority of the day outside.  My husband did another fantastic job grilling and nobody walked away from the table hungry.  We also spent part of our weekend at the soccer field.  While it was a bit breezy, we were more blown away by the talent of all the little athletes.

Paul and Tom also had nice weekends and enjoyed the summer-like temperatures.  The weather will cool down a bit this week, but it still won’t be too bad.   And I think it’s pretty cool that Dan is going to start blogging this week.  His first blog will be tomorrow, so be sure and check it out.  Have a marvelous Monday and a wonderful week!

Happy Friday!  I hope all of you have had a good week.  I think I can speak for most people when I say… I’m ready for the weekend!

Thanks for the comments to yesterday’s blog and thanks for the spelling correction, Sally.  I appreciate any help I can get.   Also, thanks go out to Sandy for the medal.  I’ll make sure Ray gets it soon.

I hope all of you got a chance to see our prom photos this morning.  In case you missed them, they are here on our website.  Just go the homepage of the indychannel.com.  You can’t miss them.

We all had funny prom stories to share.  Dan and his date broke up right before the prom.  After spending all of that money on the dress and the tux, they weren’t sure what to do.  They finally decided to go to the prom together as friends.  Dan says he actually had a good time.  Tom looks like he’s about 12-years-old in his picture.  That’s o-k, though.  When he’s 60, he’ll look like he’s 40.  That will serve him well in this business.  Paul had a great date for his prom.  He proposed to her about 7 months after the prom and they’ve been happily married for more than 25 years.  We can’t get over how mature Paul looked when he was a senior in high school.  What Paul didn’t tell the audience this morning is that on the way home from the prom, he hit a deer.  I told him that was one of the more creative excuses for not having his date home on time.  Seriously, though, it could have been a really bad situation.  Thankfully, they were not hurt and a state trooper finally spotted them and helped them out.  Paul is happy to report that the rest of his relationship with his lovely wife has been a pretty smooth road.  Julie also went to the prom with her future husband.  They looked wonderful in white.  She said when they went to dinner, people kept asking them if they were getting married.  Well, ten years after the prom, they did walk down the aisle together.  And as you might expect, Julie once again looked gorgeous in her beautiful white gown.

Where are my pictures, you ask?  Well, my dad says they were ruined during Hurricane Ike.  I teased him, though.  I think when he found out the hurricane was coming, he put my prom pictures on the front porch.  As I’ve shared with you in past blogs, I didn’t have fun at my prom.  My date was late, he was half dressed when he got to my house, he forgot my flowers and he didn’t have enough money to cover the dinner bill.  My best friend and her date had to help us out. (In case you’re wondering, I didn’t eat a big meal.  My dress was a size 4 and I didn’t want it to pop.)  Since I didnt’ have a prom photo this morning, I shared a picture from my first play date.  If you’ve ever wondered what my daughter Rachel looks like,  just check out my picture.  She’s definitely my little girl.

Well, perhaps you’re not riding around in a limo this weekend or planning a fancy dinner, but I hope you have a great time.  The important thing is to spend time with the people you love and take lots of pictures if you can.