Sheilacakes

A Five-Course Dinner for a Five-Star Date

2012-02-10T15:52:00.002-05:00

It’s Date Night, and you’re bored with the usual restaurant-and-a-movie routine. If your relationship is in a rut, don’t ignore it; oftentimes, monotony can cause partners to lose that lovin’ feeling. Tonight, change things up with a candlelight dinner at home. Surprise your sweetie with tunes softly playing, conversation (and wine) flowing, and a five-course meal prepared to enjoy together. Even better, plan your romantic evening ‘just because,’ with no other reason than to express your love. The following recipes make up a delightful five-course dinner—it’s up to you, however, to make it special. Bon appétit!

Course 1: The Appetizer

Shrimp Cocktail with Lemon Seafood Sauce

Servings: 4

Ingredients

16 frozen cooked cleaned shrimp (6 oz.), thawed, drained

Lemon Seafood Sauce:

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup sour cream

2 tsp. dijon mustard

1 green onion, finely chopped

1/2 tsp. zest and 1 Tbsp. juice from 1 lemon

Directions

Mix first 5 ingredients.

Serve with shrimp.

Course 2: The Salad

Fruity Spinach Salad

Servings: 6

Ingredients

8 cups baby spinach leaves

1 cup halved seedless green grapes

1 can (11 oz.) mandarin oranges, drained

1/4 cup sliced red onions

1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted

1/3 cup Asian Toasted Sesame dressing

Directions

Combine all ingredients except dressing.

Add dressing just before serving; toss to coat.

Course 3: The Soup

Creamy Asparagus Soup

Servings: 4

Ingredients

3 Tbsp. butter

1 leek, sliced

1 large clove garlic, minced

1 lb. fresh asparagus spears, each cut into thirds

1 cup chicken broth

1 cup water

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 cup (1/2 of 8-oz. tub) Philadelphia Chive & Onion Cream Cheese Spread

1/4 cup milk

Directions

Melt butter in medium saucepan on medium heat. Add leeks; cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in garlic; cook and stir 2 minutes. Add asparagus, broth and water; stir. Simmer on medium-low heat 5 minutes or until asparagus is crisp-tender. Stir in salt and pepper.

Mix cream cheese spread and milk until well blended.

Process asparagus mixture in food processor until smooth. Pour into 4 soup bowls. Add cream cheese mixture; swirl gently with spoon.

Course 4: The Main Entrée & Side Dish

Bacon-Covered Pork Tenderloin

Servings: 6

Ingredients

5 slices smoked uncured bacon

1 pork tenderloin (1 lb.)

1/4 tsp. cracked black pepper

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 Tbsp. apple juice

1 tsp. dijon mustard

Dash ground nutmeg

Directions

Heat oven to 400ºF.

Wrap bacon around meat. Place in foil-lined pan sprayed with cooking spray; sprinkle with pepper.

Bake 20 minutes or until cooked to 135ºF. Meanwhile, bring remaining ingredients to boil in saucepan on medium heat, stirring occasionally.

Brush meat with glaze. Bake 10 minutes or until done (145ºF); cover loosely with foil. Let stand 5 minutes before slicing.

Balsamic Green Beans with Cranberries

Servings: 6

Ingredients

1 lb. fresh green beans, trimmed

1/3 cup dried cranberries

2 tsp. butter

1/2 cup finely chopped sweet onions

1 Tbsp. brown sugar

2 Tbsp. Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing

1/4 cup slivered almonds

Directions

Cook beans and cranberries in simmering water in skillet 4 to 5 minutes or until beans are crisp-tender. Drain; rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.

Melt butter in large nonstick skillet on medium heat. Add onions and sugar; cook and stir 5 minutes. Add bean mixture; cook and stir 3 minutes or until heated through.

Stir in dressing; cook and stir 1 minute. Top with nuts.

Course 5: The Dessert

Easy Dark Chocolate Mousse

Servings: 6

Ingredients

4 squares Baker’s Select Bittersweet Chocolate

1 tub (8 oz.) whipped topping, thawed

1/2 cup fresh raspberries

Directions

Microwave chocolate in microwave-safe bowl on high 1-1/2 minutes, stirring with whisk every 45 seconds until melted.

Add 1 cup whipped topping; stir until blended. Stir in remaining whipped topping.

Spoon into dessert dishes; top with raspberries.

Want More?

If you need additional ideas to turn up the heat in your relationship, check out these romantic activities. Remember, you don’t have to spend a fortune to make Date Night unique and memorable—show your loved one he or she is totally worth it with these simple ideas.

Give a Massage – Buying a gift card at the local spa is considered cheating—give your sweetheart a 30–60-minute massage, complete with fragrant oils, lotions and soft music. Then, finish it with a hot bubble bath prepared for him or her (champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries will win you extra points!).
Watch the Sun Set – There is something incredibly calming about watching the sun set, and you and your lover can enjoy this lovely moment together. Keep the chatter at a minimum—just relish each other’s company and the beauty before your eyes.
Make S’mores – Sometimes a romantic gesture can involve embracing the little child within. Build a cozy fire for your darling and make s’mores together. Get even more creative by pouring a glass of milk in a wine glass—it shows him or her that you’re playful and fun!

Bunk Beds for Teenagers

2012-02-09T17:07:00.010-05:00

Bunk beds might seem like a great choice for younger children who love to climb and commonly share bedrooms with their siblings, but you might not think of bunk beds as an ideal option for furnishing a young adult’s bedroom. When you consider that they save space, are available in a number of styles and configurations, and tend to be highly affordable, a bunk bed set might be just the ticket for your teen. Considering several factors, such as who sleeps in the room and other ways your teen uses her bedroom or dorm room, will help you choose the best furnishings.

Futon bunk beds are practical for teens that live in a dorm or enjoy entertaining friends in their bedrooms. The lofty top bunk serves as the primary sleeping spot while the futon mattress and frame on the bottom act as both comfortable seating during the day and folds down into a second bed when friends spend the night. This option is also useful if your teen spends hours in his room playing video games or simply enjoys having his own private space.

Loft beds are another type of bunk bed that teens enjoy. Although some simply offer a single bed on a lifted frame with a ladder or steps up to it, others also provide supplementary features that are beneficial to young adults. For example, beds with a mattress on the top and a desk below make dorm living easier to handle or give a high school student a quiet place to study, do homework or journal. Similarly, loft bunk beds that include closet space and shelving on the bottom present extra space for clothing and shoes or video games and DVDs --and what teen wouldn’t love more reasons to shop?

Some futonbunk beds allow you to set them up in a number of different configurations, so that your teen can decide what works best for now and then rearrange the furniture later on. For example, you might be able to put the set together as a standard set of stacked twin beds, switch to two side-by-side twin beds down the road, change to an L-shaped arrangement at another point and even connect the two frames and mattresses to make a king sized bed in the future.

Determining what types of bunk beds might best suit your teen is a personal choice. Be sure to involve your teenager in the process so that you pick a set that works for his or her lifestyle.

Actors in Different Roles on the Same Show

2012-02-09T13:02:00.001-05:00

I love watching TV. It is no big secret as I have talked about TV quite a bit on my blog. I sometimes notice when I am watching I get to see actors that I know from shows now, which is really cool. I have noticed some of the guest stars who are now well known actors have played different roles on the same show. I find it funny because you would think they would notice. I know it is just TV and not real but if someone who looked like my mom and was my mom showed up at the grocery store saying Winner Winner Chicken Dinner to a stranger I would notice. OK so my mom really did that. In her defense she thought I was behind her but had wandered off somewhere else. I would definitely notice if someone was trying to claim to be someone else, so why don’t the TV characters?

Dann Florek most known as Capitan Craggen from Law and Order guest stared on Roseanne as a couple different characters. First he was the principal at one of the kids schools and then he was Darlene’s Doctor when she was pregnant and went in to labor.

Speaking of Law and Order SVU Diane Neal who is best known for playing ADA Casey Novak was also a guest star as a stripper that was accused of raping a man.

Jeffery Tambor has had like ten different roles on Three’s Company. No one has ever noticed that he has been two different doctors, and a stuck up real estate agent, to name a few. IMDB doesn’t have all the roles he played on Three’s Company listed.

Then you have the actors that replace another actor’s characters, like Dick Sargent replaced Dick York as Darren on Bewitched. It also happened on Roseanne twice. Lecy Gorgson was the original Becky, then Sarah Chalke took over her role. Later Lecy came back as Becky and the show ended as Sarah Chalke as Becky. Of course they made fun of it on the show, by asking the original Becky where she has been, and spoofing The Patty Duke Show in the end credits. This would happen all the time on soaps. You miss a couple weeks of a soap and you have no idea who the new person is supposed to be. I remember on Passions sometimes they would say the character would be played by someone else. Why can’t they just send them out if they are on maternity leave or kill off the character when they leave the show? The weirdest thing was when I watched Passions there was a character named Timmy and he gave his heart for Charity and died on the show, the day the show aired the actor died. It was very sad.

What are some actors that play different roles in a show or an instance where they replace a character with another actor?

Enter to Win a Teeth Whitening and Trip from Top Dentists

2012-02-08T14:40:00.003-05:00

Who Makes You Smile?!

TopDentists.com wants to know!

Enter a photo of the person who makes you smile for your chance to win!

The grand prize is a teeth whitening session in NYC with one of our Top Dentists plus all expense paid trip, $1,000 in spending money and photo session for you and your guest. There are also daily teeth whitening kits from Love That White Smile and chances to win teeth whitenings in Aventura FL, Austin TX, Beverly Hills CA, Philadelphia PA, and Troy MI from our Top Dentists in those ares!

All the details can be found here on Top Dentists

Contest ends Feb 24th..Enter Now!

Family is Family...No Matter What

2012-02-08T12:35:00.001-05:00

To me, family is family. I don’t care if you are my cousin or my fifth cousin. You are still my family. I am kind of confused about something. Let’s say you have an aunt that gets remarried to a man but who has a child with her first husband. Who is your uncle, would the first person become your ex uncle? It is really confusing to me. I think that they are both your uncle, because one is my cousin’s father and the other is my aunt’s husband. I would consider my cousin’s dad more of my uncle because they are my cousin’s dad. Yeah I just confused myself too. Of course most of the time the ex-husband or ex-wife are the ones that are usually the ones that don’t come to family functions because that could be kind of awkward. I know I will never go to a family function for my ex’s family and that is fine with me. But, then I am thinking about who are these people. I mean are you really supposed to forget that you spent a huge chunk of your life with those people. I understand when you divorce someone you divorce their family in a sense. Those bonds are forced to be broken. It is a fact of life. It is just something that is understood. I personally think that it sucks. I was really close to my ex-husband’s aunt. I often think about her, if she is doing well. She has a horrible disease and I loved her, I still do. I know that I will never have a hug from her, and that makes me want to cry.

I still consider those exes who are the parents of my cousins as my aunts and uncles. I am just odd I guess. I still love them. One of them I used to see all the time at family things. My family is different though. We are the type of family that would accept you if you were legally a member or not. I love that about us. I try to include them if I can. I think that life is too short, to exclude others. I love whole heartedly. I can’t just forget about someone like they never existed. When my Grandma Rose passed away, my cousin’s ex-wife came to the funeral. I could tell she felt kind of out of place when she went around hugging everyone in my family. She said I’m sorry for your loss, and I replied I am sorry about yours too. I knew that she spent a lot of time with my grandma, my grandma loved her. I think that I took her by surprise when I said that. I truly feel that it was her loss as well. My aunt Mary came to the funeral as well. She was married to my uncle before he passed away; I hadn’t seen her probably since my uncle’s funeral. That wasn’t really weird for me either. I knew my grandma loved her too. Family is so weird sometimes.

Then I think about those who you call aunt and uncle who aren’t even related to at all. Those are usually your parents’ friends that you have known for almost or all your life. It is more an honorary title. Then you have your godparents if you are catholic. Even though, it seems like everyone has godparents these days, catholic or not. You have sisters and brothers that are not even related to you but you just love them that much and you become so close that the barrier of friends and family gets broken down and you are just family. Those are the best kind of friends to have. I love my friends unconditionally as I do my family. I love what Gibbs on NCIS said a few weeks ago about family. He said Family is more than just DNA it’s about people who care and take care of each other. I agree whole heartedly. It truly is not about DNA or marriage or anything but just that, people who care and take care of each other. I just can’t turn my back on people who I have cared about in the past. I just can’t. It is not who I am, it is not how I was raised. I am here for those, even if they were not there for me. Someday you never know who might be there for you.

I used to Jazzercise.

2012-02-07T12:25:00.000-05:00

I used to Jazzercise. The funniest thing about that, is I am totally uncoordinated, I didn’t do too hot, I only went for 8 weeks and then I was done. I couldn’t keep up, I must have been the comic relief, besides the awkwardness from the ladies in the thong leotards. I always hid in the back. I didn’t want anyone following my lead. Cue the sweatbands, cheesy 80’s music and all the women jazzercising in unison. Then there was me, the 24 year old with her 24 year old best friend and my boss. Who was a nightmare in her own hellish Montessori way. Never Jazzercise with your boss, I didn’t do it on purpose. How was I supposed to know that she would be there? I was afraid of making a mistake, of course I couldn’t hide from her. She saw me and started talking me up. Shooting my old best friend judgmental looks of why she didn’t enroll her kids in her Montessori school. That was added stress of the monstrous Mrs. V breathing down my neck. Judging my Jazzercise form, which I had none. I think the instructor was tempted to tell me about a preschool class that I could join to catch up. I have never been a dancer. Maybe when I was little, and I was dancing in my basement to music. I never danced at school dances unless they were slow dances.

I don’t even dance at bars or clubs. I did on my 20^th birthday though at some club somewhere in North Carolina. I figured I would never see these people again so whatever. That was more like rub up on random people and hope you didn’t get lice or worse. It was at a club with drinking but you had to have a special wristband to get alcohol, and since I didn’t have my first sip of booze until the day I turned 21, I wasn’t interested in that. If you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you. I was responsible though. I know it isn’t really a self esteem thing it is just not what I am in to. So, any chances of me going and winning a dance off ala Grease or Saved by the Bell, are gone. I am one heck of a slow dancer though. I won’t even step on your toes. I remember dancing with my Grandma Rose in her kitchen we would do the box step.

I always dance with Noah, we dance in the pool while I sing to him holding him in my arms. We also dance like crazy people around the house. I am really silly. It is so cute because Noah will say, May I have this dance to me. Of course I have to say yes. He is so adorable.

Bertolli Frozen Meal Review

2012-02-06T20:05:00.000-05:00

Most parents are really busy with their families and they don’t always have the time to make a home cooked meal from scratch. That doesn’t mean that you have to sacrifice quality and taste in your dinner choice. You can still have a quick and easy and delicious meal. Bertolli is a brand that I was already familiar with, from their other frozen meals and of courses their spaghetti sauces. I had the opportunity to try out Bertolli’s new frozen meal soup. It is for two; of course you could eat it for two meals, if you wanted. I was really excited to try this new product. It comes in 4 varieties: Chicken Minestrone, Tuscan Style Beef & Vegetables, Roasted Chicken & Rotini Pasta, and finally Tomato Florentine & Tortellini with Chicken. My son is a really picky eater so sometimes I don’t want to eat the same thing he is having for dinner or lunch. My tastes are more refined so occasionally we have different foods for dinner. Bertolli Frozen Meal Soup is different than any soup you can find in the soup aisle of the grocery store. I think that is because all the flavor and ingredients wouldn’t fit in a can. If Bertolli put this soup in a can, it would have to a really big can. So, because not everyone wants to carry around a huge can, they decided to make it frozen. I personally think that can soups lose something in the canning process. They wanted to keep it as fresh as possible, just like your mom would spend hours in the kitchen making.

I tried the Tomato Florentine & Tortellini with Chicken. The Tomato Florentine & Tortellini with chicken is Cheese-filled tortellini, white meat chicken, spinach and tomatoes in a rich tomato bisque with a hint of basil. This soup is full of gorgeous vegetables, big chunks of chicken and delicious flavor. You can tell how fresh the ingredients are. It was really easy to make right on the stove top. It smelled so good when it was cooking that my mouth couldn’t wait to try it. The bisque is amazing and very creamy. The vegetables retained their color and texture that really makes it special. It would be great on a bed of rice, but I decided just to eat it with a couple pieces of good Italian bread with special garlic spread. I was really looking forward to dinner that night, where I finished up the rest of my soup. I really enjoyed Bertolli Tomato Florentine & Tortellini with Chicken and I can’t wait to try the other flavors.

You can find all of the Bertolli Frozen Meal Soups in the freezer section at your local grocery store. For more information please visit the Bertolli Website.

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I was compensated by Bertolli to participate in the Weeknight Meal Special Challenge. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

L'Occitane Gifts for Valentine's Day

2012-02-02T12:35:00.000-05:00

“Roses are red, violets are blue, Valentines day is fast approaching and I don’t know what to get for you.” This is a little poem that captures how I feel every Valentine’s day. Without getting into a debate about how Valentine’s day is a silly holiday that might only be around so that corporations can get one last squeeze out of our wallets after the holidays, I LOVE to get people gifts. I don’t think that Valentine’s day is only for couples to shower each other with gifts (although that is a nice perk). I believe that the main point of Valentine’s day is to acknowledge the people that you love, and to receive acknowledgement from them that YOU are special in their lives. It is so easy to get lost in the commercialism of the holiday, but if you boil it down and keep it basic it can really be an enjoyable day that does not leave you broke or cynical towards love. A company that I often use to find all of my great gifts is L’Occitane. They provide amazing french beauty products that are eco and animal friendly. There are so many quality products to choose from that it can be a one stop shop for your shopping. Now, you might think it is only for women, but L’Occitane has a great men’s line of various face care products. I know my male friends do not like to buy there own grooming products, so it actually makes a fabulous gift for men. Not only will they enjoy the exceptional quality, but you will also love the smell and effect of L’Occitane’s products.

My Grandparents Love

2012-02-01T10:46:00.000-05:00

My grandparents had a very special love. They were married a really long time. The definitely upheld their vows of till death do us part. They were married for 54 years, before my grandpa passed away. They were married in 1938. I still remember attending their 50^th wedding anniversary party. I was in the first grade. It was such a fun party with all my family and their friends. There were so many people that I remember there wasn’t room for everyone in the kitchen and family room. My cousins and I hung out in the den. I am so glad that I was able to help them celebrate their undying love for each other. I remember that I gave them a special gift. It wasn’t an expensive gift, but it was a handmade book I made in school about the letter A. My grandma held on to it for as long as I can remember. It is probably in one of our boxes still. I proudly signed their guestbook Sheila followed by 1 and the class number I was in, which meant I was in the first grade. My sister was in third grade and signed her name the same way.

I still love looking through their 50^th anniversary guest book now. It reminds me of their love, the good times we had. I don’t know if my grandparents had a wedding guest book. I never saw one, and my grandma saved everything. I even found my great grandparents birth and death certificates one day. I think it is important to have a guest book because someday your children or even your grandchildren will be curious about who attended. In some cases, your children were not born yet, and it is a great way to remember who celebrated your marriage with you.

Did you have a guest book at your wedding?

My Accent

2012-02-01T10:43:00.000-05:00

I wrote a post about Noah’s accent, but I have recently discovered that I too have an accent. It is not a certain regional accent; it’s my own weird accent. There is no dispute that I am a little weird, and definitely unique. I do occasionally do say fer instead of for or yer for your, which is a typical Indiana accent. I don’t say warsh, like my Grandma Rose did, who would jokingly correct herself in my presence. My accent is something I only have. Noah doesn’t do it, and I am not sure where it came from but it is pretty funny. When I say certain words like anything with a short o sound it comes out like eu. So, movie is phonetically spelled meuvie, move is phonetically spelled meuve for example. I also do the same thing with the double oo sound. Not everyone notices it, because I asked them if I talk funny. They said they never noticed it. Now I am being lovingly teased about it. Now I am constantly listening to the way I talk, before I didn’t even notice I did it.

Do you have a weird unique accent? I look forward to hearing about it.

I Have Never Had a Real Credit Card

2012-01-30T20:40:00.001-05:00

I have a rule where I don’t really like talking about finances with friends because it seems to cause problems sometimes. I have on occasion talked about it with a few close friends; they talk about their money problems and their debts. I am going to tell you something that will shock you; I am thirty years old and never have had an actual credit card. I wasn’t someone who when they turned 18 they mailed in every credit card offer they were mailed. I am not going to say I am debt free because I am not. I have some unpaid medical bills from the time I had to take Noah to the ER because he stuck pieces of the inside of a diaper up his nose and didn’t have insurance. It was one of those situations where the hospital and poison control were telling me to rush him to the emergency room, and I didn’t want to chance something happening to my little boy, so we went. I have other things that put me in debt, but it could be a lot worse. I know that a lot of people are in debt, especially with the horrible economy. Sometimes people have to rely on their credit cards to make ends meet. Sometimes others use their credit cards on big ticket items like TV’s and tablets and they have to look in to contacting a debt management company, to help them get back on track.

I can’t say that I am the best when it comes to money though. I did a long time ago have some trouble with bounced checks… I was young and stupid. I thought the money would hit the bank before the check cleared and my calculations were wrong a couple times. I promptly paid the checks and the fees, but it was a hard lesson to learn. It’s really easy when you are 18 to end up having money problems because you are young. It’s not surprise why people use debt relief programs to help get out of debt. I know that they do help people reduce the money they owe considerably. I think that besides the checks and the little debt I am in, that I am in good shape, especially compared to other people my own age.

Let's Talk about Peer Pressure

2012-01-30T10:37:00.000-05:00

I have been thinking a lot about peer pressure lately. It something we deal with from when we are little all through school. We feel peer pressure when we are younger, to try drinking, smoke cigarettes, do drugs and even have sex. We also even felt pressure about the friends we had, and who we wanted to be in a relationship with. People have missed out on great friends because of peer pressure. I am sure we all have been under that type of peer pressure and cracked and gave in. I know I have. It is normal to experience peer pressure and have the urge to fit in. I think that it is important to remember that the peer pressure you feel cannot be a good thing. You don’t gain anything valuable from it. It can ruin your life or hurt someone very deeply. You should make your own choices and go with what you believe is right.

I believe that there are still peer pressures as an adult. I used to think that when I was no longer in school that it would go away. I haven’t personally really felt too much peer pressure from my friends. Maybe on occasion when it comes to who I am friends with, I strongly believe that everyone has a choice who to be friends with, unless they are just a horrible person. Even then you make the choice to not be around your friend’s friend. You should still be friends with your friend because of your own reasons. I wouldn’t suggest if the person is a criminal or does other questionable things that you should engage in that behavior. I will be writing a post about a girl I once considered a friend and possible warning signs of what is not OK in my opinion. I am no longer friends with the so-called friends that pressured me about who I was friends with. I no longer feel peer pressure to do drugs or drink, I am not a drug addict so it is not a desire of mine at all. When I go out with friends, I don’t feel like I have to keep up with them buy drinking an insane amount of alcohol, because it is not my style.

I think that it is important to talk to your children about peer pressure and the dangers of those things. I was watching Boy Meets World and they were talking about peer pressure in an episode. I am sure your kids will say that they will never drink or do drugs, but when you are faced with it, and wanting to fit in, saying no might not be that easy. Honesty is important when you are talking to your children about those serious topics. I am not saying they need to know about everything but if you open up to them, they will open up to you. Spend some time explaining why you think that it is a bad idea. Open communication is extremely important. I know I have said this before and I am sure I will say it again at least five more times, but I highly recommend you watch the movie Requiem for a Dream with your teenage child. It shows the real life consequences of drugs, sex, and addiction. It is not a movie that makes drugs look like fun or look cool. I know that everyone parents differently, but that is just what I think would work best in my family.

Do you still feel peer pressure as an adult?

I Used to Work in Child Care.

2012-01-23T13:10:00.007-05:00

Before I was a mom, I worked in day cares and preschools. I remember when there was a holiday or it was Teacher Appreciation week, I would get gifts. Now call me old fashioned but the smile of a young child was enough of a gift to me. I received all kinds of gifts from homemade cookie jars full of cookies to flowers and an occasional gift card or two. Sometimes, the gift card is for a place I don’t shop at. I remember receiving a Starbucks gift card at one point and call me crazy but I am not a Starbucks fan. I just have never been big on Starbucks so really it isn’t my thing. Another time I received a Talbot’s gift card, I have never found anything I was interested in there, their clothes are not my style, I am more of a t-shirt and jeans girl. I really am grateful for the gifts I receive but sometimes I don’t know what to do with the gift cards. My mom loves Starbucks so I usually hook her up with those we will sometimes do a gift card exchange where she will give me one of her unwanted gift cards, or if a friend has one I can use we trade.

When you can’t find a friend or family member to trade with there are sites online that are happy to help you sell your gift cards. I have seen them on eBay before but I am very leery when it comes to buying things of value on eBay because they could go and spend the balance between your purchase and send you an empty card. Those sites come in handy if you don’t have a bank account and you can’t use PayPal. I remember a time that I wanted to order some clothes from Victoria’s Secret and I had to go to the store and buy a gift card, it was a pain to make an extra trip. I know with a gift card exchange site they work hard to verify the amounts, so you can not only sell your gift card but you can also buy them.

What is the craziest gift card you have ever received?

ATTN: Parents with Tablets...

2012-01-22T23:39:00.002-05:00

If you are a parent that owns a tablet, an iPad, or even a smart phone, you will want to take special note of this post. Remember it read it often, this is important. I like most parents, let my five year old use my tablet, to play games, take care of his fish, and draw. I always am monitoring what he is doing, with him right next to me, but I am usually on my laptop doing work related things. I am not 100% watching what he is doing every single second, but make sure that he isn’t doing something he shouldn’t. Not that he would purposely do something he shouldn’t that would endanger him, come on he is five. It is part of our daily ritual for him to ask to use my tablet to check on his fish and play the plane game. I of course can’t resist his smile especially when his cheek dimple is present. I am putty in my five year old's hands. He has an allotted amount of tablet time each day, if he misbehaves that is the first thing to go.

You can of course purchase games, apps, coins and credits for certain things. I had some extra money left over so I thought, hey I will let Noah upgrade his plane game and get him some coins and bucks for his fish game. I wasn’t going to attach it to my bank account because I had this fear, I don’t know if it was because I remember when my old best friend’s son got a hold of my phone and downloaded a few ring tones, that I had to pay for. It was only like 5 or 6 bucks no big deal. I was not under any circumstances have that linked to my bank account. So, I had a prepaid credit card that I used. I am a smart cookie, because I signed on gmail, which is what my Android account is linked to, so I could talk to one of my greatest friends Lee. I never really sign on it ever, unless it is to use gchat. I noticed in my email there were a few extra purchases made. One being one million coins on Tap Fish for the price of $99.99, which was a purchase made by my five year old trying to magically get coins. Either that or he thinks I am made of money. There wasn't that much left on the card, I think there was like 90 cents. So, it was cancelled, thank God. I used to “magically” get him coins by selling fish at night when he was asleep. He would freak out if he knew I was selling them. I was mom during the day and fish pimp at night.

Here is my important advice, if you have a tablet; it takes literally three taps for your child to put you in financial ruin. You should use a prepaid credit card for this. Seriously, you will thank me later. Never have it linked to your bank account, a normal credit card, or Paypal, if they take Paypal. Now I know it is annoying to go to the store and there is a fee of like $5, but it is so much easier than finding out that adorable child you brought in this world took your hard earned money and fighting the bank and the app people. It is worth your sanity. TRUST ME.

Shopping With Printable Coupons

2012-01-19T21:04:00.000-05:00

I am sure you guys know how much I love to save money and use coupons. I do a lot of online shopping especially when I am shopping for my brother in law who loves camping. Camping stuff is so expensive so I like to use a REI coupon when I shop for gifts for him. We all know about coupon codes but what about when you are going to an actual store? Sometimes it is cheaper for me to go to a store and avoid the shipping charges depending on what I am buying. Sometimes it is something that I can’t wait for it to be shipped and it is easier just to go there and pick it up. Well, I like to save money at the store too. That is where printable coupons come in. They are coupons you can print from your printer at home. When I started really getting in to online shopping and store coupons, I signed up for everything under the sun, to get coupons. It would make for a hefty inbox full of stuff that I might have used once at a particular store. For example I bought a gift and it was from a store that I would personally never shop for myself, last year. I signed up for the newsletter to save some money and I still get the emails every week. That’s why I prefer sites that do all the work for me and most importantly, no hundreds of weekly emails.

Do you use printable coupons when you shop? I look forward to your thoughts.

Here's to Mom MasterCard Post Holiday Shopping

2011-12-27T20:25:00.001-05:00

Now that you have finished your holiday shopping, and spent all your money you will have to figure out a way to buy the necessitates that you need to survive. I know sometimes you can find better deals for some grocery items online. Really, you can buy pretty much anything online. Remember that you can use your MasterCard to earn a reward for buying those purchases online. to sign up all you have to do is enroll your MasterCard card, do some of your holiday shopping online and after spending just $200 you receive a $20 MasterCard gift card! Remember that this deal expires on 12/31/2011, so if you haven't already sign up HERE. I look forward to seeing you all in 2012. Have a wonderful and save New Year.

I am participating in this MasterCard Promotion and I received a complimentary special Here’s to Mom kit for my participation. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Marzetti Otria Greek Yogurt Veggie Dip Review

2011-12-16T15:51:00.001-05:00

I am lucky because Noah likes to eat healthy. I know many other parents that struggle with their children are eating habits. Noah loves fruits; we are still working on some vegetables. He seems to like carrot sticks and celery sticks. We are still working on peas and corn, but he loves raw green beans. I like to get some of the precut carrot sticks and slice my own celery, because it is cheaper. We had the opportunity to try out some Marzetti Otria Greek Yogurt Veggie Dip. I really like the Marzetti product line. They make delicious salad dressings and my personal favorite caramel cups. I thought that Noah would like it, because he loves yogurt and dips anything he can think of in it. He creates his own wraps and recipes all the time so I knew it would be a hit. I am sure he has dipped his carrot sticks and celery in yogurt before we tried the Marzetti Otria Greek Yogurt Veggie Dip.

We went to get our test sample of the yogurt dip and were excited to try it. Me being a picky eater I wasn’t really interested in trying it. I am very persnickety about what foods I will eat so I had my review team try this out. My review team consists of my five year old, and since we are in Florida my mom. I had my mom pick out the flavor to appease her taste buds, as I thought she would be the one eating the most of it. We went with Spinach and Artichoke. It is also gluten free, which is great for those who can’t or choose not the eat foods with gluten. Noah was a little hesitant to try it, as he is with most foods. I was able to have him try it and he really liked it. Just as I suspected, he likes it with carrots and celery and I think I saw a grape or two dipped in.

My mom really liked it too; she thought the texture was really good, and very flavorful. She said it is hard to find a good spinach and artichoke dip that is ready made when you want a snack and don’t have time to make it yourself. She is really pleased and will buy it again and wants to try different flavors like the Chipotle Cheese and the Garden Herb and Ranch. I think this would be great for a holiday get together with a veggie platter, or as a snack for game night, or even just as an afternoon snack. They have some good recipes on their website too, I know my mom’s mouth will water when I share them with her. I can’t wait to tell her about the Spinach and Artichoke pizza and the other recipes. I am sure you could even make up your own recipes to try or substitute any recipe that calls for veggie dip for Marzetti Otria Greek Yogurt Veggie Dip.

Have you ever tried Marzetti Otria Greek Yogurt Veggie Dip? What is your favorite flavor? Do you have any recipes that you have used with it? I look forward to your thoughts.

I was one of the bloggers selected by T. Marzetti Company and Clever Girls Collective to host a Marzetti Otria Greek Yogurt Veggie Dip review. They provided me with product to test myself and compensation for my time. However, my opinions are entirely my own.

MasterCard Here's to Mom Holiday Promotion

2011-11-23T18:28:00.006-05:00

It is definitely time to start your holiday shopping. There are so many different presents you are going to buy for your children, loved ones and friends. When I was young, I used to always give my teachers and bus driver holiday gifts. They were sometimes homemade, but other times we would buy them a little something. I know that teachers really appreciate those little thoughtful gifts, as a daughter of a teacher. Unfortunately, the economy isn’t at its best, so we rely on sales and promotions to help us stretch out our holiday bucks. You all know how much I like to shop online. I won’t be fighting the crowds this holiday season. I will be shopping online for gifts, that way Santa’s special gifts will remain a secret, until Christmas morning.

I am so excited to share with you a promotion from MasterCard. The promotion is called Here’s to Mom. Being a mom is hard work, so MasterCard thought they would celebrate us. Signing up is really easy. All you have to do to receive your $20 MasterCard gift card is go HERE and enroll with your MasterCard card (credit or debit) and e-mail address, shop online with that card between November 15 and December 31, 2011. After spending $200 online you’ll receive and e-mail where you can redeem your gift card reward.

This sounds like such a great deal and I hope you all will sign up and earn the rewards. I mean you are going to use those cards anyways, right? May as well, be rewarded for it. I love that it includes debit cards so, it shows that MasterCard really wants to reward us. Let me know if you sign up. It takes only a few minutes and then you can kick back with a cup of hot chocolate and shop in your jammies.

Happy Holidays!

I am participating in this MasterCard Promotion and I received a complimentary special Here’s to Mom kit for my participation. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Les Gold Stars in Hardcore Pawn

2011-11-13T13:56:00.000-05:00

Image from Wikipedia

In April or May I was introduced to a show called Hardcore Pawn by a friend of mine. It’s about Les Gold and his family who own a pawn shop in Detroit. The first time I watched it, I was hooked. I know there are shows like Pawn Stars but I like Hardcore Pawn because they focus on the family dynamics versus what is actually being pawned and what it is worth. Of course people go and pawn things and they show that, but most of the show is about Seth and Ashley who are Les Gold’s children and how they are kind of in a turf war over American Jewelry and Loan. They also show a lot of the people that come in to pawn stuff, most of them are eccentric and outrageous. I sometimes wonder if they are for real. I have never been to Detroit, I have heard some scary stuff about it, but I am convinced that not everyone from there is crazy. With all shows they always show the craziest stuff because it is good for ratings, and frankly it would be boring. It wouldn’t be Hardcore Pawn, it would be BORING. They just finished up the third season, and I hope there is a season 4. There was only a month break between season 2 and 3, hopefully they won’t make me wait too long. You can see it on TruTv at 9pm, you can see older episodes before and after.

Do you watch Hardcore Pawn? What do you think of it?

What a Friend is to Me

2011-11-11T13:53:00.000-05:00

What is a friend? This is a question parents are asked by their children at some point. I want to share with you what I think a friend is. If you would have asked me this before I would have said someone you care about that you hang out with and do things with. In theory that is somewhat true but there is so much more to it. A friend is someone you care about who cares about you back just as much. A friend is someone you share a bond with. A friend is someone who lifts you up when you are down. A friend is someone who even though they might not completely understand what you are going through or why you feel a certain way about something or someone but they try and understand. They are the ones that you can run to be it in person, on the phone or even through text and they always know what to say or do to try and make you smile. Sometimes it just goofy pictures of them sticking out their tongue or a funny joke only you two understand, but it helps. A friend is someone who does not tear you down. A friend is someone who you can get in to an argument with and know at the end of the day, you will still be friends. A friend, a true one, is a lifetime commitment. People mess up, I do it all the time, but I know that my friends will love me for me and understand that I mess up. Just as I understand that they mess up.

I have shared with you guys before that I have had some toxic friends. These people were not good friends. I thought that they were. I always look for the good in people. That is how I was raised. I can’t stop doing it, but I need to be cautious. I am so lucky to have such wonderful true friends now. It really makes me look back and think wow, those so called friends were not friends at all. Thank you to all my true friends. Without you, I am not sure where I would be. I would name you all but, I would probably forget someone so you know who you are.

Tune in 11/11/11 for a Special Extreme Home Maker Over for Veterans Day

2011-11-10T11:20:00.000-05:00

Veteran’s Day is very important to not only our country, but to me personally. One of my friends was killed in action in Iraq in March 2004. It is very important to remember and thank our Veterans, every day for the sacrifices they make and their families make, everyday. I wanted to share something that is really cool with you.

ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition is teaming up with the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) to present a one-hour special: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition “Rise and Honor” A Veterans Day Special. Airing on Veterans Day (11/11/11), host Ty Pennington will take us back to some of the most heartwarming military stories featured over the years. The Veterans’ Day program will include appearances by Whoopi Goldberg, Jewel, George Lopez, J.R. Martinez, Rachael Ray, Sherri Shepherd, Robin Williams as well as Major League Baseball (MLB) players Daniel Murphy of the Mets, Shane Victorino of the Phillies and Clay Buchholz of the Red Sox – all encouraging the public to donate via phone and web at www.riseandhonor.org.

The funds raised during #RiseandHonor will benefit the following veteran-serving organizations:

· Fisher House Foundation

·         Hire Heroes USA
·         Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund
·         USO (United Service Organizations)
·         Volunteers of America
·         and Welcome Back Veterans.

These organizations provide vital services and support to our nations veterans and their families including housing, job placement, career readiness, health care, rehabilitation and mental health treatment.

I will be tuning in and I hope you all will too. It is really important to celebrate and remember our Veterans. There are so many Veterans that end up with nothing, and on the streets. I can’t even imagine what it would be like to be in a war. We should give back, what they gave for us. I am sure I will end up crying my eyes out, because stories about the Military always make me cry. They make me think about Chris and how he and so many others gave all for the land of the free.

Noah's Accent

2011-11-09T13:49:00.000-05:00

I am first generation American on my Dad’s side. I am both Irish and English. I find it hilarious that sometimes when Noah talks he either talks with a slight British accent or in British slang. Now, he watches Kipper, Peppa Pig, and Thomas and they are all British shows. There is a character on Kipper named Arnold. If I ask Noah if the little pig’s name is Arnold (Ar-nold) he will say no its ahh-nold. Peppa Pig is a weird show where the pigs look like they have pink hairdryers for heads and they walk around snorting all the time, which seeing as they are pigs that would make sense. All the other characters along with Peppa Pig’s family will talk in their British accents and then randomly make their animal noises. Most other shows with talking animals do not do this. Noah loves popsicles so now he calls them “ice lollies”. He will say can I have an ice lolly mommy? I am always thinking popsicle Noah popsicle.

He has become very fond of legos and when he wants help taking them apart, he asks me to break it in to bits. I am not sure where he learned that from but I think it’s funny and cute. One last British thing Noah says is when he wants to do something he will say “Can I have a go?” I bet my dad would think it is funny that Noah sometimes talks with a British accent. When we go to England someday, Noah will fit in as long as there are lots of ice lollies and everyone is named Ahh-nold.

Should We Drug Test People on Government Assistance?

2011-11-08T12:24:00.000-05:00

I briefly touched on the topic of food stamps, and welfare on my bully post, but I have been meaning to write this post for a long time. I figured while I have my soap box out I would go ahead and write it. There has been a lot of talk about people on assistance and how they should be drug tested to receive assistance. Which is stereotyping people that need the help, and it is wrong. I am sorry but if someone needs the help I would rather them get it, then have them go hungry or have medical problems. Just because they need help doesn’t make them a crackhead. I would be naïve to say that no one does drugs that are on assistance, because I am sure some do. You really don’t know why the person needs it.

They could have a sick child who has medical bills that use up the money they do have, they might have a reason they can’t work. Maybe they are a single parent and they can’t afford to work and pay for daycare and food. Maybe they are supposed to get child support and the other parent doesn’t pay it. There are many reasons that people need help. I am sure there are people who abuse the system, its not perfect but it is not a reason to look down upon or make fun of someone who is trying to provide for their family. As someone who is against drugs, if someone acts like they are all strung out, by all means make them take a drug test. It should be a case by case instance. Not everyone on assistance does drugs, not everyone on drugs gets assistance.

Another thing that really makes me angry is when people say things like, oh my gosh, look at the junk food those people are getting with their assistance! They shouldn’t be allowed to get chips and candy and cupcakes and cookies. They shouldn’t be able to get the “extras” if they are on assistance. Really? Did you really just say that? It really makes me want to knock someone off their high horse. Why does anyone think they can determine what someone else puts in their shopping cart? I think children deserve a treat. I think that a child deserves a bedtime snack, if the parent wants them to have it. Why take that away from a child? They should have the chance to have cookies or candy every so often. I don’t see anything wrong with that.

I hate it when people say; things like I pay for your kids or you sit at home and do nothing while I “support” your kids. I am pretty sure at some point they did have a job. Taxes are taxes; you will pay them if there are 10 people on assistance or 10,000. The government would find a way to come up with something to use it for. That is one thing that I don’t like about Judge Judy when she says things like that. Really we don’t know the full situation; we shouldn’t judge people for seeking the help that they really do need.

I think before we are quick to make comments like those or even judge or look down on someone, we should stop and think about it. We don’t know their reasons, we are not the ones that should decide who does or doesn’t deserve the right to have help. If there is someone you know that is abusing the system or doing things they shouldn’t be, you should anonymously report them and at least let your concerns be known if there is a legitimate concern. Someday you might find yourself if their shoes and I am sure you wouldn’t like to be labeled because you are trying to help your family. I think if you need the help you shouldn’t be too proud to ask for help. It doesn’t make you a bad person. What is wrong is needing the help and not getting it and letting your children go hungry.

This is an extremely controversial topic so I have chosen to do something I have never done and close the comments on this post. I just wanted to share how I feel on this topic and I do respect everyone’s opinions, I don’t want to start an argument. I am sure you can understand my reasoning behind this decision.

I Took One Look at Her and I had to Pull Her Toonie

2011-11-06T12:21:00.000-05:00

I wanted to share with you some misheard song lyrics. I actually had a desk calendar one year full of misheard song lyrics. Of course there are tons of them out there. I thought it would be fun to tell you ones that I thought were something else.

From One of These Days by Tim McGraw I thought he was singing I took one look at her and I had to pull her toonie. I wasn’t sure what a toonie was. I looked it up on the internet and didn’t figure it out. I was just looking up what is a toonie. I thought it was some country slang for something sexual or something. I tried to use context clues like all the English teachers in the past told me to do. The next lyric was and at 17 you only want one thing. So, I thought that it had to be that. The correct line is I took one look at her and had to pull her to me. Sorry Tim McGraw.

Damnit Janet from Rocky Horror Picture Show I thought the lyric was it’s better than bedding on a rohand. I remember asking my mom what a rohand was. I figured she would know. She hadn’t any idea. I remember watching The Rocky Horror Picture Show with the captions on one night and after singing it like that for a long time, I learned the lyrics are its better than Betty Monroe had, which was the bride at the wedding they were at in the beginning of the movie.

Nights in White Satin by the Moody Blues, it was one of mine and my ex’s songs. He would always play it on guitar. I really thought it was called Whites in Knight Satin. So, yeah I was wrong on that one. I wasn’t too sure what that song was about with a name like that.

What are some misheard lyrics you have been completely wrong about?

I Will Never Have My Own Cooking Show

2011-11-05T13:46:00.000-04:00

I used to want to have my own cooking show. Imagine me an eight or nine year old little girl in my kitchen talking to the imaginary camera, while I was cooking. It was really cute and I wish it was really videotaped because I am sure it was hilarious. It was long before Food Network and most cooking shows. Those were mostly shown on Sunday mornings on channels like PBS. I knew a woman who had her own cooking show on a local station in North Carolina. I wanted to have my own show someday. When Food Network started I was in love and dreamed someday I would be on there too. Eventually, I realized it wasn’t going to happen. It wasn’t because I was not going to be discovered. It is not I am not an awesome cook, because anyone who has tasted my cooking knows otherwise. The real reason is because I am not an exotic chef. I don’t want to make half the food those chefs make. I would never touch lamb anything. I don’t like baby arugula or curry or anything like that. I would be a very simple chef that makes food that real people like. There isn’t really a market for that.

I would love to be on a cupcake show or a challenge show but, really I wouldn’t use any of those weird fancy ingredients that make me gag at the thought of not only putting them in a cupcake let alone in my mouth period. I wouldn’t win because they judge on eccentric ingredients. I can hear Kerry Vincent saying in her British accent, your cupcakes are a bit plain and unordinary, I expected a bit more of you. My philosophy is that food doesn’t have to be full of weird and expensive ingredients to taste good. Have you ever tried to make some of those recipes? Most of the ones I would eat have really expensive ingredients. Especially spices, who wants to spend sixteen dollars to buy a jar of organic Bolivian green sweet pepper flakes for one teaspoon? I don’t really.

One thing I fell in love with when I was visiting my aunt and uncle was that the grocery store they shop at sells spices in bulk so, in that instance you could get just as much as you need, but not many places do that. That is how I ended up flying home with 2 pounds of Cumin. I made sure I labeled it a bunch because my uncle told me that it looked like gun powder. This is the same uncle who told me they were going to think I was the Unabomber because I had his old Montana license plates in my suitcase from another trip out there. He likes to pick on me as I am the baby of the family. Anyways, I would have things like fried potatoes, meatloaf, taco bake things that are easy to make and not something you have to spend a week in Morocco to eat. It would be all classic things that wouldn’t make you poor by making them. When I watch cooking shows I think well you didn’t have to actually pay for your ingredients and you got them from a giant warehouse where you can have access to the finest everything. I just once want to see one of the products not be perfect, like a bruised fruit or something a little moldy. Not that they would have to cook with it, they could get a new one, but make it like real life. I am sure we have all had a bruised fruit or something that went a little bad at least once.

I have also noticed those thirty minute meals never take thirty minutes. Most people are not really fast choppers or have little distractions otherwise known as our children who constantly need something or throw paper airplanes in the kitchen doing something to distract us. Normal people do not have Rachael Ray’s super power of being able to carry twelve things at once. She must practice because she never drops anything. I think she is part octopus, really I do. If they really took thirty minutes, you spend at least twice as long cleaning up and doing the dishes. I don’t really get the idea of a garbage bowl, its just one more thing that has to be washed. Pull up the trashcan next to you. Everyone owns a trash can right? It’s cheaper and it eliminates the two extra steps. So, don’t expect to see my bright and shiny face on a cooking show anytime soon. I don’t have a broad enough palate for it.

No Bake Cookies Recipe

2011-11-04T13:38:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite types of cookies is called No Bake Cookies. I have been eating them for as long as I can remember and probably even before I can I remember. They are so delicious. There are two ways of making them, one with peanut butter and one without, I have always had the kind with peanut butter, because I personally love peanut butter. If you have never had a no bake cookie, you are seriously missing out on something amazing. I used to say they should sell them in the store. It took them many years but sometimes you can find them in the bakery section. I refuse to eat a prepackaged no bake cookie because they are really easy to make and I am sure mine tastes better. I have probably made thousands of no bake cookies so far in my life, so I have it perfected and could probably do it in my sleep. I don’t think I should use the stove in my sleep though. One of my ex boyfriend’s favorite cookie was no bake cookies so I would make them for him every other week or so. My no bake cookies are always really liked.

There have been a few mishaps in my no bake cookie career. I remember when I was babysitting, we made no bake cookies and they looked pretty gross and kind of slimy. I am not sure if was the milk being non skim milk, but they still tasted pretty good. A few times I get a little oatmeal happy or I get distracted, so the cookies are really crumbly.

no bake cookies
Ingredients:

2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup cocoa
1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup peanut butter
3 cups oats

Melt Butter in a big sauce pan. Put in Sugar, Milk and Cocoa. Then Bring to a Boil, continue to boil for one minute, stirring constantly. Remove from head and add the peanut butter. Stir and then add in oatmeal, blending well. Quickly drop mixture by the spoonful on wax paper. Place in the refrigerator to cool.

I hope you enjoy these as much as I do.

Do you enjoy No Bake cookies? I can’t wait to see what you think of my recipe.

I was a Stuckup Snot in Jr. High

2011-11-03T12:17:00.002-04:00

I don’t know if you can believe it or not, but I was once stuck up. OK I am still quasi-stuck up, I will admit but in Jr. High it was bad. See I grew up in a really nice town that had a reputation of being full of snobby and stuck up people. It was and probably still is very well known. I didn’t like telling people I was from Carmel because you were called a Carmelite, and were immediately labeled, rich and stuck up. I remember I went on a cruise when I was in 7^th grade and there happened to be some kids that were from Indianapolis and when we found out we were all from Indiana you automatically say well I am from such and such as anyone from a common area would do. I remember them calling me a Carmelite. I wasn’t too thrilled with that, because I wasn’t too sure what it meant.

When I was in 7^th grade, my math teacher was named Mrs. Cooke and her room was completely pink, I was surprised her hair wasn’t pink as much as she loved it. She would always wear pink. There was this kid named Mike, who was in my class who said that he shopped at Goodwill. Being the punk I was I said, that’s were poor people shop. I referred to him as poor. How rude was I? I mean I was a stuck up girl that shopped at Limited Too and Express and I was calling this kid poor. Now I love Goodwill. I don’t shop there often anymore but I have in the past. I have nothing against Goodwill, I think they do wonderful things and I even shop there. It’s just funny how you remember certain things from your past and regret what a huge snot you were.

I Call Him Red

2011-11-02T12:14:00.002-04:00

For as long as I can remember, I have always been attracted to guys with red hair. Not orange hair but dark red. Not famous men with red hair. I like my famous men with gray hair (Mark Harmon and George Clooney). It has to be natural red hair too. I don’t really think that fake red hair is attractive. I guess it must be the Irish in me. I have dated a few guys with red hair. I am not sure what it is so alluring about it. My ex doesn’t have red hair. I guess I am a hair girl. I am mostly an eye girl. I like those eyes that you can get lost in and see the depths of the person’s soul.

Of course appearance is not everything and personality wins over every time. A good personality is the most important thing because that is what truly makes up a person. As the brilliant Judge Judy says…. Beauty fades…Stupid is forever. You never know what the future will bring. I know that a lot of people focus what is on the outside but your outer beauty could be taken from you in an instant. Your inner beauty is forever. Nothing can take that from you as long as your heart is good and you remain true to yourself. I am sure my dream guy is out there somewhere with red hair and a heart of gold.

So, as a lame attempt to meet a guy… If you have red hair or know of a guy who is single and nice let me know!

Sorry, Your Email has been Compromised

2011-11-01T12:11:00.001-04:00

Have you guys been getting a lot of e-mails about your e-mail address being compromised? I have. It seems like a lot of the big-name companies that I have signed up for their e-mail newsletters lately have been compromised. I assume that's because they all used the same service called epsilon. I have probably have received at least five e-mails from different companies saying that they are sorry but your e-mail has been compromised. But it's only your e-mail not your information or credit card numbers and it also reminds you not to open e-mails and click on links from people you don't know. Which of course is a great reminder but at the same time it kind of bothers me because if my e-mail address is compromise what else could be compromised. It makes me leery to participate and their websites anymore. I personally already get enough spam e-mail as is I don't need more.

Some of the companies that I received e-mails from so far our target Walgreen's Hilton Marriott and HSN. I know it's just our e-mail and all that's going to happen is that we might get more spam but NL hadn't felt like they should have done a better job about it. I really think that they should've been up-to-date where the best software where something like this would not happen. Sure it could be worse it could be all of our credit card numbers and our addresses and then we would have people pretending to be us from Nigeria scamming other people and end up on shows like Judge Judy or the people's court. I know the chances of that happening are pretty small but you never know. I know I've talked about e-mail scams before and I'm not saying that the breaches in the is a scam but it opens us up to being scammed even more and you better know what the scammed are like obviously you're not going to a win 10 million trillion dollars from some bank and Japan or something. You know that is not going to happen like my mom always says that if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. And even though it's been going on for 10 years, people still fall for that kind of scam.

AAHHH! Real Monsters and Casper DVD Review

2011-10-27T17:29:00.008-04:00

I know I have mentioned this before but I hate scary movies. I used to get really bad nightmares. I really liked watching Casper when I was little because it wasn’t scary; he after all was the friendliest ghost. I like the fact that he is not scary because it shows that not all ghosts are mean or scary. I think it teaches kids not to stereotype which right now is really big in my house, when Noah is scared of someone just because they have green hair. I try to explain to him that everyone is different and it’s not nice to think something bad about someone because they are different. So, to celebrate Halloween this year, I received the Casper animated series. Shout Factory released Casper this year for Halloween. I think it is awesome. This is the old version of Casper. I personally think that the older cartoons are better. I think that they have a special magic about them, they are not trying to look like they are real and you really know that it is just a cartoon and make believe.

CASPER THE FRIENDLY GHOST COLLECTION 3-DVD Set
Casper The Friendly Ghost is undoubtedly, the most famous ghost on earth. Sweet, caring, funny and amiable, Casper doesn't like to haunt or scare people but instead spends his time looking to make friends. Joining him on his escapades are The Ghostly Trio, who endlessly tease Casper but love him and Casper ’s good friend Wendy the Good Little Witch. All of their adventures and more will come to life on October 11, 2011, when Shout! Factory releases the Casper The Friendly Ghost Collection just in time for Halloween. The 3-disc DVD set will include all 81 cartoons created between 1945-1963 as well as extensive bonus features giving fans and collectors the opportunity to own the most complete Casper DVD set for the first time. ($29.93 SRP)

Three monsters I will never forget are Ickis, Krumbb and Oblina, they are from the show AAAHH, Real Monsters. The show used to be on Nickelodeon in the 90’s. I loved that show. I was so excited when I found out it was released by Shout Factory on DVD. Now I can share AAAHH Real Monsters with Noah. I can relive all of those goofy situations that Ickis, Krumbb and Oblina got themselves in to. Each of the characters have a distinct feature. Ikus has really big ears, Oblina has a huge mouth. Krumm is my favorite character because he is stinky and he carries his eyes in his hands. I just really like him.

AAAHH!!! REAL MONSTERS! 2-DVD Set

Scary doesn't get any sillier than Season 1 of the classic ‘90’s nostalgia, Nickelodeon show Aaahh!!! Real Monsters! Ickis, Oblina, and Krumm are monsters-in-training who make fright a hoot as they try to learn the tricks of the scary monster trade. Determined to be terrifying, they try with a great herculean effort, to master The Gromble's class on proper scare techniques at the Monster Academy . Die laughing as the monsters focus on perfecting fright lessons so bizarre, they're both ahhh-some and hilarious! The DVD will be in stores October 4, 2011. ($19.93 SRP)

So, this Halloween celebrate with me by watching some good wholesome cartoons like Casper and AAAHH Real Monsters.

Thank you to Shout Factory for providing me with Casper and AAAHH Real Monsters on DVD for my family to check out. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Importance of having a Good Bed

2011-10-27T09:52:00.000-04:00

I think it is important to have a good bed. I have a wooden bed that I love. It has a really nice head board too. I think that wooden beds last a long time. I have had a wooden bed for as long as I can remember. I had a wooden sleigh bed in high school. It was a twin bed though. I have had my current bed for five years, and it was my mom’s before that. My mom still has her old wooden bedroom furniture including her wooden bed. This bed is at least twenty five years old, because I remember it from when I was five. It has been passed around to my sister and now my mom has it again. The great things about wooden beds are that you can pass them down and last forever. I think it would be cool to have one of those bedstar leather beds. I have never slept on a leather bed, but we have had a couple leather couches that are the most comfortable couches. I remember when I would have friends sleep over in high school we would take turns sleeping in my wooden bed and on the leather couch in my room, so I can imagine a leather bed would be extremely comfortable.

I was lucky enough that my sister and I never had to share a room. I think that was a good thing as we both really liked our space. We would share a room sometimes at my dad’s house, though. I wish we would have had bunk beds. That inevitably would have meant arguing who slept on which bunk. I am not sure which one I would have wanted to sleep on. The top bunk is where all little kids want to sleep. I remember sleeping on the top bunk when I was little when I was at friend’s houses. It was fun to be up high and having to climb up a ladder. Now that I am an adult, I would be afraid that I would fall off the full over full bunk. I tend to sometimes wake up suddenly. I also would constantly feel like I am falling. So, if I was visiting someone who had bunk beds I would definitely choose the bottom bunk if I could.

Noah had a loft bunk bed experience and he wanted to sleep on the bottom bunk. He went up to the top bunk with some help but then he got stuck and didn’t know how to come back down. I am sure it was because he was unfamiliar with bunk beds and my mom had to climb up there and encourage him to get down while I had to reassure that I would “catch” him. I am sure he would get the hang of it. I think it would be a must if you share a room with a sibling especially if you don’t have a lot of space.

If I would have had bunk beds, I wouldn’t have the fond memories of doing fun bed with my sister, which is where we took the mattress off my bed, jumped on it, used it as a slide and sometimes jumped off a chair or the dresser. Noah has started taking his mattress off his bed but, he is using it as a ramp and a slide for his stuffed animals. I hope he never finds out the crazy things his mommy and his aunt Julie did that were dangerous.

Do your kids share a room? Do they have bunk beds? Now, for the most important question: Top bunk or Bottom bunk?

Halloween with Pottery Barn Kids Review

2011-10-26T09:41:00.014-04:00

I am a self proclaimed Pottery Barn junkie. I remember when the one close to me opened. I would spend an hour looking around thinking about all the things I wanted to own from there. My family has two really cool photo boxes from there with little albums in them. They are really neat. When I found out I was pregnant with Noah, I was excited because I could shop at Pottery Barn Kids. My favorite thing I purchased from PBK is Noah’s Octopus Sprinkler. I bought it when he was 1. It is the most adorable thing. I have pictures of him playing with it at different ages and it doesn’t matter how old he is in the different pictures he has the same look of joy and excitement on his face. It is his favorite summer toy. My philosophy is if it is from Pottery Barn Kids, it’s going to be adorable. I think when I get married again someday I am registering at Pottery Barn. I would love to have my whole home decorated in Pottery Barn stuff.

I had the opportunity to review some Halloween products from Pottery Barn. They have so many cute things for Halloween. I was able to review two items. I reviewed the Halloween Treat Basket & Liner. It is this huge basket with a Halloween themed liner. I love Halloween and passing out candy to the trick-or-treaters. Growing up we had this particular wooden bowl for Halloween candy. I am not sure if it is lost or packed away somewhere, but I haven’t seen it in a while. The trick to the perfect candy is to have a good variety of candy and mix it up so you give the goblins choices. I remember the wooden bowl had to be refilled all the time and it was kind of hard to mix the bowl up. The Trick or Treat Basket with Liner is big enough to mix and hold a huge quantity of candy. It’s easy to manage though. You can even get it personalized with your last name, if you want.

The other item I reviewed is a Pumpkin treat tote for Noah. If you are going trick-or-treating it is important to have a good sturdy Halloween Treat Bag to haul your goodies home with. When I was little we used pillow cases. I think that Noah is too young for a pillow case, so I would buy him a plastic pumpkin. It worked for the night half the time. I took him in his wagon and sometimes the handle would fall off and candy would be in the wagon. I never took the pumpkin and put it up after the candy was gone so it became Noah’s new toy, it would be without a handle and smooshed in. So, every year I had to buy him a new one. I am so excited to have an adorable one from Pottery Barn where I know it is well made and I know that it will last for a long time. I can’t wait to show it off when we go trick-or-treating. Pottery Barn Kids also has adorable Halloween costumes. I wish I would have waited to buy Noah’s costume but I found his at the end of August and since he is obsessed with space, he is going to be an astronaut. I really like that some of the Pottery Barn Kids costumes can fit preteens and they are also really well made. That is something I have noticed about costumes is they can be really flimsy and kind of weird looking. This is the first year Noah is not being an animal for Halloween.

For more information please visit Pottery Barn Kids

Thank you to Pottery Barn for providing me with samples of the products I mentioned in my post for me to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.