11 Random things I am loving right now.

This randomness has increased my interest in the areas of politics & the economy, cooking, friendships, philanthropy, home design, exercise, family, food, and fun.  I am drawn to the humorous, creative, inspiring, and insightful things that make me laugh, think, and act.

Here is the list so you can enjoy them too.

1) Arizona's Arnold Palmer Iced Tea with Lemonade

The perfect blend of 1/2 Tea & 1/2 lemonade.

I could drink a gallon!

2) Facebook

Reconnecting with some old friends has been fun and easy.  It is great seeing how people have matured and grown in their walk with the Lord over the past decade.

3) Etsy.com

A wonderful place for inexpensive, handmade and creative gifts.  

Just like these adorable pendants from the seller CaughtRedHanded.

The first one was hope's present last year, she just might be getting the dandelion this year. :)

4) Freerice.com

I am addicted to this website, if only i could remember the big words after i play the game.

For each word you get right, 20 grains of rice is donated through the UN World Food Program to help end hunger.  It goes to level 60, I have only reached level 40 once, but mostly i stay around level 35.  

5) Designpublic

By far my favorite design site right now, too bad i can't afford much from here, but i love getting ideas.

6) Whatisblik?

This site is so creative and the best one out there for all the influx of sites selling wall stickers.  We bought the race track for the boys play room.  their products are durable and easy to peel and they re-stick so you don't mess up the paint.  This is the picture of how we used it on our wall.

7) Urbanoutfitters

Another favorite site to check for ideas with our master bedroom project.  This store is much more affordable.  .

8) Glenn beck

I listen to his radio show on 1240 AM radio.  He is really funny, straight to the point, and does a great job at clearly explaining what is happening in the economy right now.  

9) The Colbert Report

Funny Funny Funny

i have been watching his re-runs during the kids nap time on Comedy Channel at 2:30 pm.

10) Runners World Magazine

Getting me in shape for my participation in The Human Race 10k 

on 8-31-08.

If only i had a Nike+ ipod and shoe computer thingy, i would be all set to enter.

11) Everyday with Rachael Ray

This magazine is better than I expected it to be.  It is filled with recipes that are simple and really tasty.  

Library Books

Today we got a whole new set of library books again, So here is the list of our favorites from last week.  

Rhinos Who Rescue

This is the one that Caeden decided to keep for an extra week.

The author uses "fireman jargon" to tell the adventures of the fire rhinos.

Racer Dogs

This was a very creative book of several dogs, all of which had names, and told a story of their experiences in Race Day.  I like how the tortoise and the hare were a part of the race too.

Just the Way You Are

This is a great message for kids, to understand that you are beautiful just the way you are, and to be happy with how you are made, and to celebrate your friends differences.


Trucks Roll

My boy's love Big Trucks and knowing what they carry and trying to understand all the different shapes and sizes and uses for the trucks.

Conspiracy of Kindness

This is the book i am reading,  our girls group has gone through 2 chapters so far.  It is a simple and fundamental view of the way Jesus practiced evangelism, through Kindness and Servanthood.  We all need to practice these virtues daily.  Christians would have a much better witness to the  lost if we put down our pride. see the need in a persons life, and acted to meet that need without expecting anything in return.   Instead we keep to ourselves, don't want to be interrupted, pass judgement, and fear sharing our faith.  How will anyone see the love or the power of Christ revealed if we act like that? 

Lord, help me!!

Old Friends

  Today i went to lunch with two high school friends, one in which i haven't seen in 15 years.  It was so great to hear all about their lives and what has happened in the last decade and a half and reminisce about high school days, the teachers we loved and hated, the crazy things we did, the friends that we barely keep in touch with.  I have not been good at all at keeping in touch with people,  when i move on in life, i guess it is easier for me to leave everything behind.  My husband is the one who still talks to people he went to elementary school with.

Signing up with Facebook has been fun lately because i have found a lot of people that i haven't talked to in 10-15 years.  Where has the time gone?  I am still somewhat the same, hopefully wiser and kinder.  I need to and want to do a better job and being a friend to people that live here and those that live far away.  I want my kids to appreciate the friendships that they create and not treat life as shallow as i have in the past.

I meant to take a picture today, but my camera stayed in my purse and i forgot.

i don't think it is necessary to post a high school picture of myself:) just picture big bangs!!

a Fun Post

This is my beautiful sister Hope.  She is the manager at the new MAC counter in Dillards.  Located at Coconut Point Shops in Estero, Fl.

She gave me a makeup application at her counter on Sat. just in time for date night with my husband.  I am always extremely pleased with how my makeup turns out.  She knows how to highlight the face really well and enhance the natural colors in your eyes and skin.  She is a fantastic makeup artist.
Not too long ago, she used to come to me for pointers.  Those days are long gone.  In the above pictures she is dressed as an indian because every Saturday is event day at the counter.  Those girls are so much fun and they work really hard.
The counter has only been open for a month and she has a lot of goals to reach, so anyone who needs or wants a makeup application, stop by.  The next event in Aug. 21-24 and you need to sign up fast. I believe they will be showcasing the fall colors.

Tzatziki Sauce

Tzatziki Sauce

1 cup plain yogurt

2 cloves garlic

1 cucumber peeled, seeded, and chopped

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp lemon juice

mix all ingredients together in a bowl

I got this recipe here.  There are alot of variations on this recipe, but i was very pleased with the outcome of this recipe.  I made the grilled flatbread sandwiches again and so i wanted the "gyro affect."   This time around, i had to do the grilling and not Mike, so the flatbread and the chicken were a little overdone.  He is the grill master, not me.  Also, the picture above, was borrowed from the web at this blog. 

another fun recipe site i found is here. 

Babies who need our Prayer

There have been several friends lately who have been dealing with the struggles of preemies and/ or infantile diseases. 

 I wanted to call your attention to a couple of blogs that our friends have created asking for daily prayer for their families.

1) JTSetsma.blogspot.com

2) BabyMustaine.blogspot.com

Please pray that these families would feel God's daily presence, comfort, strength, and peace in their lives and healing for their newborns!

Thank You

Melanie

Library Books

Today was the last Tuesday for story time at the library until the fall.  I am so glad that we participated.  We will continue to make Tuesday our library day.  Here are the books that the boys enjoyed this week.  The favorite was ROAR.!!

Where to find My Freight Train
Where to find Emergency
Where to find ROAR

Dinner, Popcorn, & a Movie

Hot Peach Salsa (served with Quesadillas):

In a large bowl, combine 4 peeled and chopped peaches, 1/2 cup chopped red onion,  1 seeded and chopped jalapeno, 1/4 cup cilantro, 1/2 cup lime juice and 1/4 cup olive oil. cover and refrigerate.

Homemade Carmel Sauce for Popcorn:

simply melt these ingredients together in a sauce pan:

2 cups light brown sugar

1/2 cup cayro syrup

1/2 cup butter

1/4 tsp cream of tartar

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

Cute movie, the kids enjoyed seeing the animals.  beautiful scenery!

OMGsh!!

Extra-virgin olive oil

1 pound store-bought pizza dough, cut into 4 equal pieces

1 cup plain Greek-style yogurt

2 scallions, finely chopped

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1 ear of corn, kernels scraped (about 1 cup) 1 jalapeño chile, finely chopped 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (2 ounces) One 6-ounce package portobello mushroom caps 1 pound sweet Italian-style turkey sausages 2 tomatoes, sliced

1. Preheat a grill to medium-high. Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil on a large baking sheet. Place the 4 dough pieces on the baking sheet and press each out into a 4-by-8-inch rectangle. In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt, scallions and lemon juice. 2. Pile the corn, jalapeño and cheddar in the center of each piece of dough and press the toppings in. Fold over the dough and press all over to seal, enclosing the filling. Let rest in a warm spot until slightly risen, about 10 minutes. 3. Meanwhile, arrange the the mushrooms upside down and drizzle with olive oil. Place the mushrooms and the sausages on the grill; cover and grill, turning once, until cooked through, about 4 minutes for the mushrooms and 6 minutes for the sausages. Transfer to a board. Thickly slice the mushrooms and slice the sausage on an angle; keep warm. 4. Press each flatbread again into an 4-by-8-inch rectangle. Grill, covered, until crisp and golden, about 4 minutes on each side. 5. Spread yogurt sauce on each flatbread and layer with the sausage, mushrooms and tomatoes. Fold the flatbreads over the filling and serve warm. This recipe is sooooooooo Good. I changed it a little and used flank steak instead of sausage.  Who knew that the pizza dough would grill so well.  We would take and bite and say mmmmm, then take another bite and say mmmm.  For the kids, we cut the cooked flat bread and opened it like a pita and stuffed the meat inside (mikes idea). Everyone go out and make this tonight. courtesy of Rachael Ray magazine

Library books

Library day again today.  It is difficult to search for interesting. educational, and age appropriate children's books in the library when the boys don't stay put and the books are organized by author's last name.  So i wasn't sure what we brought home last week.  Thankfully, my boys love any books and these are the three favorite out of the seven that we brought home.

  This Truck was the one that we kept home for an extra week.  It has few words, but is filled with a ton of pictures of trucks and tractors.

This Truck

If I Ran the Circus 

Dr. Seuss never fails to fatigue my tongue, this book is long and crazy, but really creative.

The Perfect Nest

This was a really cute book about a cat that wanted to build a perfect nest so a chicken could lay an egg and he could steal the egg to make an omelet.  He ran into a few surprises.

Free Rice

Free Rice is a cool website.  I played this word association game and was able to donate 500 grains of rice.  One correct word equals 20 grains of rice. the website claims that 5,027,880 grains of rice donated yesterday.
Over 39 billion grains donated to date

Who pays for the donated rice?

"The rice is paid for by the sponsors whose names you see on the bottom of your vocabulary screen when you enter a correct answer. These sponsors support both learning (free vocabulary for everyone) and reducing hunger (free rice for the hungry). We thank these sponsors for their participation at FreeRice."

so click on the link and see how word smart you are, as well, you can feel like a philanthropist.

the Kite Runner

This movie, blew me away.  It was so compelling, gripping, and inspiring.  I know i say "best ever" quite a bit on this blog, but it just might be one of the best movies i have ever seen.

It was an emotional story of two young friends that grew up in Afghanistan in the 1970's when the country was on the brink of war with Russia.  It told a story of the consequences of betrayal and the soul's longing for reconciliation.  It is a must see, but to forewarn you, Mike and I cried through it all.  

Fun Website

Urban Baby Runway is such a  fun website

They have retro, funky clothing for kids, adults, and maternity.

Take a peek at some of the fun items that i found.........