Ultimate Blog Party 2011

I am still new to some aspects of blogging and must have missed this last year but in case you haven't heard..it's time for the 2011 Ultimate Blog Party! Janice and Susan, from 5 Minutes for Mom,are the hosts of the fabulous event where you can find new blogs,get new followers and win some great prizes too!!

What a great way to get to know your fellow bloggers and followers better.As most of you know,I am a mom to 3 of the craziest kids in the world.Gage is 9,Aiden is 7 and Princess Reagan is 4.I enjoy reading,scrap booking,target shooting,baking and of course..blogging.There is always something going on in our world and here are some of my recent photos of daily life.

My oldest sons Gages' favorite book                      

   My princess trying to play on the G2

I actually started blogging because I ran into a blog giveaway.I had never heard of blog giveaways or "mommy" blogs before and I started reading some of the ones I came across.I followed the buttons from blog to blog including 5 Minutes for Mom.After a few months of reading posts, entering giveaways and following these ladies lives,I decided to give it a try myself. I love to win like everyone else,but I also love the feeling of connection with other people I don't "know" in my daily world.Over the past 2 years,since I started being involved with blogs,I have laughed and cried with the blog owners.I have watched their children grow along with my own.I have read of their success and failure,happiness and misery and continue to do so.I may not have ever spoken to these women,they may not know I exist in the masses of followers and commenter's on their sites,but what matters to me is the hope that some of you,like myself,care what the others have to say.

I will admit I don't get to blog as often as I would like.I work full time outside the house,I have 3 kids full time and 2 step kids part time as well as my niece and nephew whenever I get a chance,but I try to keep up and am working on my schedule to make more time to participate in certain events..like this one!!

Go join in the fun..meet some new people,find some new followers,read a new blog ..or a hundred and just enjoy a little positive in a world full of negatives.

Twitter Hop Thursday

I don't usually enter twitter hops because by the time I get the email,the day is already over.This time, though,I happened to catch it early ..so here goes.

Special thanks to the wonderful hosts..ladies I already follow you all!

"Welcome to Twitter Hop Thursday, hosted by Simply Stacie, The King’s Court IV, Little Yaya’s, Kelly’s Lucky You and Dear Crissy."

Pillow Pets Giveaway @ The-Not-So-Blog

There is a new giveaway going on at one of my favorite blogs that I wanted to share with you. The Not So Blog is hosting a giveaway for your choice of one of 8 different Pillow Pets.The winner will get to select their favorite from these fabulous pets-

Ms.Ladybug
Magical Unicorn
Comfy Panda
Playful Penguin
Buzzing Bumble Bee
Squeaky Dolphin
Silly Monkey
Snuggly Puppy

Now in our house,we love Pillow Pets.We have Magical Unicorn,Silly Monkey,Patriotic Pup,Luv Pup,Huggable Hippo and Friendly Frog.I love to give them as gifts too and have given my nieces and nephews a Patriotic Pup,Snuggly Puppy,Cuddly Bunny,and Ms.Ladybug .

Today,I  saw the fabulous Orange Butterfly and I have to get one for myself as well as a Blue Dinosaur for my son Gage.Thanks Not So Blog,if I hadn't entered the giveaway,I might not have seen them for awhile!
The giveaway will run until April 12th and entry is easy.All you have to do is stop by the site and look around,then come back and tell her something you like..simple and fun to do!

I have to say this is one of my favorite blogs.I am always entering the Experimental Mommys' giveaways and have won some great prizes from the site too!I don't know if you have been to her site recently,but if not,you should check it out and enter the great giveaways while you are there.Good Luck to everyone,even though I hope I win!

Ponderosa Flop

So my husband and I went to Ponderosa for dinner Friday night.We had dropped the kids off to my sister and the husband was hungry, so he asked where I wanted to go.I don't eat steak,ribs or things like that,while he loves them, so finding a place we both want to eat isn't easy.I like buffets so I don't have to settle on something I 'm not sure of..if I don't like it,I won't eat it and then I wasted my money.I chose to go to Ponderosa because I grew up in Wellston Ohio and the Ponderosa in Jackson has good food.I have eaten there tons of times in my years and never been unable to walk away stuffed.Even though this was a different city,I assumed it would be just as good.
My husband ordered a steak which came with a potato and buffet while I just got the buffet since their only entree options were steak,ribs,shrimp and chicken..no fish,burger or meatloaf,nothing I would eat.While we were getting seated the lady in the booth in front of us stopped and said,"I hope your steaks are better than ours were." Knowing I hadn't ordered a steak,I didn't care much but the husband raised his eyebrows but didn't say anything.While we waited for his steak to come,we went to fill our plates at the buffet.Now I am a little picky but I can almost always eat some things like pizza,nachos and chocolate.I approached the "buffet" which was really a section of small buffet tables with different types of items.I saw some extremely greasy spinach,fish that had dried up to the curling point,nachos and cheese sauce and wings.I don't like wings so I went for some nachos covered in cheese.The next table had what I guess was deep fried chicken..most of you know I work in a grocery deli/bakery and I hand batter and fry chicken as part of my job,I know what it should look like.This was dark and crumbly,the skin was showing in places and was brown and hard..so a no on that one.There was pepperoni pizza,which I grabbed a slice of,a fabulous looking buttery roll was added to the plate.They had browned mashed potatoes,lumpy gravy and some average looking mac-n-cheese. Skip those..on to the salad bar which was OK but not fantastic and the dessert bar.I did find a brownie with chocolate icing and a piece of chocolate pie.

Returning to my seat I prepared to eat.I went for the nachos first and discovered cold cheese sauce and very stale chips.I did manage to eat the roll,which was great,dipped in the cheese, since the roll was hot.The pizza ,I discovered was undercooked and had been sitting awhile.So far I had paid $18.00 for a roll dipped in cold cheese sauce.I did eat a few bites of the brownie,which was good,but it was too cold and the icing on top was thick and sticky.The chocolate pie was the pudding type with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.I ate a bite and the husband ate about half the slice so I guess it was at least OK.Finally  35 minutes after we started eating,his steak arrived and guess what..it was still pretty pink inside.Because he is gross,the husband will eat steak that way sometimes, so even though he ordered it done,he ate it anyway.

As I was getting ready to leave,the lady behind us was getting a refund for whatever she had ordered..hmm..3 tables in a row and all 3 were unhappy with their food.I promise I will never eat at Ponderosa in Chillicothe Ohio again..and neither should you!

Discover Philly Cooking Cream

I was chosen to host a Philadelphia Cooking Cream House Party! I love to try new recipes and was trilled to find this House party kit came with a recipe booklet to give me some starter ideas.I was also sent fabulous wooden spoons,notepads,magnets and coupons to share with my guests.I decided to have this party with the girls at work.Since we work in a kitchen there were plenty of materials available,lots of people willing to try it with us and all the add in and extras we could handle.

I have used Philadelphia cream cheese in many different recipes so I was excited to try these special Cooking Cream blends.Available in Original,Santa Fe,Savory Garlic and Italian Cheese and Herb, there is a variety to suit almost everyone.

We wanted to try all the flavors,so we made a variety of different recipes including Ultimate Creamy Beef Stroganoff,Creamy Bacon Fettuccine,Baked Penne,Creamy Tomato Basil Pizza and Southwest Pasta Skillet.Most of the recipes are pretty simple and can be made for around $10 or less.The cooking creams here are a little over $2 each at Walmart and most contain a cheese of some sort,meat,onions or peppers and a main ingredient like pasta,rice,crust etc.there are some recipes that are a little more detailed but nothing that requires a gourmet chef to make.

I think these are a great addition to any kitchen.They are easy to use and don't take up much space in your fridge,plus it is easy to use them in your own creations too.I plan to experiment a little with them.Maybe a nice casserole or pasta dish of my own or even a great dip for chips or veggies..the possibilities are endless with the flavors available.

* I was not compensated in any way for this post.I was sent them mentioned items to assist in my preparation as a member of House Party.I just wanted to share this fabulous new item with you so you can try them with your family too.The opinions are my own and that of my co-workers and family .

Farberware and Measuring Cups from CSN Stores

I will be the first to admit I buy too many things.I am always seeing something and deciding I just have to take it home,order it etc.I can say that I am usually getting something for either the house or the kids,so it has a purpose,at least.

I was recently given a gift code to CSN Stores to assist in a review of something from their site.I am in the process of cleaning out the old stuff and making over parts of the house,so there were plenty of items I could use.While cleaning out the kitchen drawers recently,I was missing a certain measuring cup and couldn't find it anywhere in the mess of drawers.While browsing I came across the neatest set of cups to solve this problem.

The OXO Angled Measuring Cup 3 Piece Set is fantastic."The patented angled surface lets you read measurement markings by looking straight down into the Cup. This eliminates the need to fill, check and adjust the amount of liquid you are measuring." The soft, non-slip handle allows for a firm grip,so no dropping those little handles from my old cups.These even measure in  and cups, ounces and milliliters  for all your  measuring needs. The set includes 1,2 and 4-cup versions too so you don't have to stop and wash out your cup in the middle of every recipe or use.They are even dishwasher safe although I clean mine by hand.

I also found these Farberware Nonstick Carbon Steel Baking Sheets.The set of three includes one 9" x 13" baking sheet, one 10" x 15" baking sheet, and one 11" x 17" baking sheet.These are oven safe to 500 degrees F.I like that they are different sizes allowing me to use the one I need without taking up extra oven space.The non stick surface is great.I made chocolate chip cookies on these the day I got them.Here are the cookies on the sheet and the sheet after I removed them.As you can see nothing stuck to them at all, and all it took was a simple wash to make them good as new.These need to be hand washed in warm water to preserve the non-stick surface.

 As always with CSN, my order arrived nicely packaged and in perfect condition.The checkout took about 3 minutes and my order was delivered 2 days later.Go to CSN the next time you have kitchen needs,or any other need for that matter.
 
 
*I was not compensated in any way for this post.I received the gift code as a CSN preferred blogger.The opinions are my own with product information taken from the site.

I love my new Zoo York shoes!!

I just wanted to show off my new casual shoes.I am a fan of the skater type shoe.My husband says it is because I am a big kid,I say it is for the comfort and style.I like the way they fit..not tight and not too loose.I like the even cut of them with no heel or arch because I work in them all day.I also like that they have a much more comfortable fit on the top of my foot. I like Zoo York,World Industries,Vans and Converse when it comes to these shoes.What do you think of them? I love the little skull details.

Where do you find your news?

I am not a big fan of watching the news.I like to be able to select the things I want to know about from those that I don't.I hate having to sit through 40 minutes of a news broadcast just for the 5 minute clip I wanted to see.For this reason I use Yahoo for my news.

I am sure plenty of you have other ways of obtaining your news fix whether from newspaper,radio,podcast or another website. I use Yahoo for my home page so  whenever I open my browser, I see the top headlines.If it is something I want to know more about, a simple click takes me there.I can read what I want and sign in to my email all in one spot.

Where do you get your news fix? Are you like me and read the headlines first? Do you watch at least 1 if not all the news programs on television? Are you like the husband and listen to it on the way to work and the way  home, and then watch it too?

All About Me- Favorite Music

I love to listen to music.The first thing I do when I get in the car is turn it to my playlist.I like a variety of music from a crazy mix of artists but my all-time favorite will forever be-The Beatles.I started my babies on them in utero and now they all love music too.Every one of them have an MP3 player full of their favorite artists and songs which rotate when they get bored with them...and when they can talk mom into deleting them and adding more.

In random order and keeping in mind that I do not like every song from every artist.
NIN,JOJ,The Cure,The Misfis,Cold,
Staind,Biohazard,Nirvana,Marilyn Manson,
Coal Chamber,Tool,A Perfect Circle,
Garth Brooks,Martina Mcbride,Mozart,
Beethoven,Green Day,The Vibrators,
The Dwarfs,The Doors,Ozzy,Hinder,Hole,
I can't forget Sid and Johnny,3 Days Grace,
Daughtry,David Bowie,Disturbed,Dope,
Evans Blue,Flaw,Flyleaf and many more.

Are you like me and have a mix of music or do you stick to mostly one type or another? Do you have a favorite song? I don't have 1 favorite song,maybe like a top 50.