Did That Just Move?

Looking at the things we collect, I often wonder...

Is this four foot tall Frankenstein going to eat me in my sleep or will the evil Krusty doll get me? Or the two foot tall Rat Finks? Hey did that just move.....

 Am I surly like a caveman or crazy like a luchador.

Naw, it's all good - I think I just need another Cocktail.

Tie One On Tuesday

It's been a few years since I have made Sangria, so I pulled out my old recipes and found some that I haven't had a chance to share with you. Shame on me!


Traditionally Sangria would be made with red wine but I'm gonna lighten it up a little bit with white wine. I know, I know...white wine isn't exactly loved by everyone but c'mon-give it a chance. It's not like I'm pouring it out of a box.

White Wine Sangria

1/2 cup peach schnapps

1/2 cup cognac

1/4 cup white sugar

4 oranges, sliced into rounds

2 mangos, peeled and sliced

1 pint of strawberries

4 (750 milliliter) bottles dry white wine,chilled

1 liter ginger ale, chilled

In a pitcher, combine peach schnapps, cognac, sugar, sliced oranges, strawberries (can be whole or sliced) and sliced mangos. Chill for at least an hour.
Pour fruit mixture into a large punch bowl. Stir in white wine and ginger ale.

If you aren't into super sweet how about tart and spicy? Oh my! I think I just described half of my friends (you know who you are!) This recipe is from Allrecipes.com and looks pretty labor intensive but believe me, it's worth the work.

Cranberry Sangria
1 cup white sugar
4 cranberry-flavored tea bags
4 slices fresh lemon
6 whole cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/2 cups water
2 bottles white wine
4 apples, cored and cut into chunks
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
2 ounces apple brandy
Place the sugar, tea bags, lemon slices, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and water into a saucepan, and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let mixture cool. Strain out and discard the spices, lemon, and tea bags
Pour the white wine into a large jar or covered container, and mix with the tea mixture. Stir in apples and cranberries; mix in the apple brandy. Chill in refrigerator 24 to 48 hours. Serve cold.

Let's say that you want something non-alcoholic for your younger and sober friends. Well, I have you covered there too. 

Non-alcoholic Sangria
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup orange juice
1/2 fresh lemon, sliced
1/2 fresh orange, sliced
1 sm. apple or peach, cut into wedges
4 cups club soda or seltzer water
4 cups grape juice
In large pitcher, combine orange juice, sugar, and grape juice. Add cut fruit and stir until sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate until cool and add seltzer water or club soda just before serving.

Okay my little cocktail kiddies-go mix up a pitcher of sangria and bring it  to mama-I'm laying by the pool and my glass is empty. Thanks, darlings!

It's A Small World

I have a confession to make (yes another one) , I like Disney movies. There, I said it. Don't judge! You know there are one or two that you like. Yes, I know, I've heard all the talk about Disney movies-they are unrealistic, their portrayal of women is less than stellar...blah, blah, blah. The way I think about it,  there are a lot worse things your kid could be watching, trust me on that one. So, Disney wants to take over the world, they can go right ahead as long as they fork over those yummy Mickey ice creams and overgrown turkey legs.

I first fell in love with Disney when I saw Snow White. I remember how beautiful the animation was and how I really wanted her hair and dress. This movie is Disney animation at it's pinnacle. The colors, the movement-everything about it is breathtaking. When Snow White sings about her prince coming, I don't read in that she needs a man to complete her, she just wants some loving and doesn't everyone want that?

Another one of my favorite animated films from Disney is Fantasia. Once again, the animation is breathtaking and each piece of music shows off a different style of art work. From the playful (alligators and hippos in Tutu's) to the down right scary (Night on Bald Mountain). You are swept away with incredible music with animated interpretations that only Disney and his creative force could come up with.

I remember going to the theater and seeing Jungle Book. It sparked my love for the Latin feel of Louie Prima. Why, just a few days ago, I was singing I Wanna Be Like You from this wonderful movie. Delightful characters, silly songs and Louie Prima as King Louie, you can not go wrong. I loved that the snake could hypnotize everyone. I have tried his technique on numerous occasions but it hasn't worked - YET. 

There really is a Disney movie for everyone, young and old. From Bambi to Toy Story-there is something that will tickle your funny bone and leave a smile on your face.

Scrappy Dog Sunday!

I'm pretty sure my dogs follow this mantra. As a matter of fact, Pete may have written this.

Not only do we have pups running around the backyard, but we also have quite a few birds.

 Feeding frenzy with the finches.

Our resident crows, or at least one of them. I really wish they would stop trying to put their raft in the pond and demand refills on their cocktails and peanuts.

Lola has tried to fly with our Heron. Thankfully, Mark

stopped her before she grabbed on to the tail feathers and flew away.

This beautiful Coopers Hawk comes every year and helps get rid of the riff raff.

And last but not least, our humming birds. They are with us all year long.

I love that we have so birds come and visit, even when the dogs are in the backyard. It's our own little wild kingdom.

Feel Good Friday!

 via pinterest, via makesmestfu, via......

Whew! I just got back from the county fair. I LOVE fairs! I love the smell, the animals and don't even get me started on the food. We saw deep friend Capt. Crunch today. Who knew you could deep fry cereal-it's crazy!

There is nothing better than friendship, except maybe a side pony and if you have a friend who sports a side pony-you've died and gone to heaven. I adore dahmerdawn's stitching. Check her out on Flickr. The rick roll is worth it!

I will fully admit that I am a product junkie. I love beauty and bath supplies. I can't help myself. That's why I know I have a kindred spirit over at Red Lip Gloss. Great hints, reviews and how to's help save me a ton of money and keep me looking great. I'm still sore I didn't win that awesome prize package but I suppose I'll live.

I'm a huge Hello Kitty fan. Every since I was a little girl, I just love that cute little kitty with the bow in her hair. So, when I saw this house. I knew I wanted to move there. Who cares if I have a perfectly good house here, I want to live in the Hello Kitty house.

Fine! Since I can't have the Hello Kitty house can I at least get the toaster?

 Why is it when I see this picture, I want to break into an Elvis song? I'm not sure who this handsome beast belongs to, but if it's you, I'm pretty sure your dog rules.

Well, there ya have it! A little bit of this, a little bit of that and a whole lot of feeling good on this Friday. I hope that your weekend is filled with friends, side ponies and puppies doing their best Elvis face. Now, if you will excuse me, I'm off to find the perfect shade of pink for the house. I'm sure OMP won't mind.

Too much of a good thing can be wonderful.
-Mae West

Three Wise Men

See this man, otherwise known as OMP, I love him more than words can express. He's cranky. He likes to think that he's tough but he's a big marshmallow....mmmmm.....marshmallows.

And this old man, he's my dad and he's even crankier than OMP, he's a huge marshmallow too.

And this guy, well...he is the crankiest. He's not a marshmallow, he's a sausage.

Tie One On Tuesday

Earlier this week I was talking to my friend Lori about making a Key Lime pie. She immediately put me in a happy place when she asked, "have you made a margarita pie before?" WHHHHHHHAAAAAA? There is a margarita pie? Are you kidding me? A pie, that is like Key Lime but it has booze in it? Did I just die and go to heaven? Well, I scoured the interweb for this so called Margarita pie, and there are a ton of them out there. This one is from cooks.com.

Crust
1/2 c. butter
1 1/4 c. crushed pretzels
1/4 c. sugar

Melt butter. Add crushed pretzels and sugar. Press into 9 inch pie pan. Chill.

filling
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 c. lime juice
1 tbsp. Tequila
1 tbsp. Triple Sec

1 c. whipping cream
Wedges of lime

Combine sweetened condensed milk, lime juice, Tequila, Triple Sec.
 Whip cream and fold into mixture. Pour into chilled pie crust.
Freeze or chill for 3-4 hours until firm. Garnish each piece with a lime wedge.

Easy Peasy! At first I was a little put off by the crust but that gives it the salt around the edge taste to the pie. It also called for green food coloring but,ummmm,,,no.

So, to celebrate my wonderful pie, I decided to make up a batch of raspberry margaritas with the last of my raspberries from the garden.

Raspberry margarita
1 cup raspberries
1 cup brandy-based orange liqueur
3/4 cup gold tequila
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons confectioners sugar
ice cubes
Mix up in a big pitcher and serve!

No matter how you end up serving your margarita, it will be a huge hit and you will win the love and admiration of friends and strangers alike, they might even build a monument.