Pay It Forward Extravaganza

I’ve only won one contest online before and oddly enough (and it was not rigged!) it was hosted by my friend Cherrye at My Bella Vita. But I’m feeling happy these days so I’m following Swistle’s lead and hosting my own Pay It Forward contest in conjunction with her Group Pay it Forward effort. I am offering up a mystery prize to the winner. All you have to do is….

1. Comment on this post before midnight, central standard time on July 4th. It can be any comment at all. But to take the pressure off, I’ll give you a topic. Last weekend I went to see Carrie Underwood in concert. It was really fun. So tell me, what is the most memorable concert you’ve attended?

2. I will randomly select a winner (via some random number generator thingy). If you win, you commit to Pay it Forward, hosting a future contest on your blog where you send someone a mystery prize to a random commenter. If you do not have a blog, you can still enter. If I choose a blogless commenter as the winner, I will send you your mystery prize, then I will choose another commenter randomly so you have someone to send your gift to, and keep the Pay it Forward love going.

I hope you understand the rules, since this is my first contest. More or less, just post a comment and you are entered. I’ll tell you what to do next if you win. Click HERE to visit Swistle’s blog to see who else is hosting contests this week!

Advertisement

Read Full Post »

Top Five Friday

In an attempt to spare you from serious top five friday lameness, I present to you top five yummy recipes. (click on the name to get the recipe.) 

1.  Rosé Sangria It’s made with sparkling rosé wine,  and you can pretty much throw whatever you have on hand in there.  It’s a delicious and dangerous concoction!

2.  Sugar Coated Pecans These are a quick, easy and tasty holiday or any time treat.  And you can make them a lot cheaper than you could buy!  The recipe works well with walnuts too.

3.   Chicken Vesuvio This is a delicious chicken and potatoes dish.  My mom and I had it at Harry Carrey’s in Chicago a few years ago and when we got home, we searched for the recipe and it’s a great fall back recipe.  Play with it and you’ll see there are a few things you can leave out (peas) and a few things you can substitute (chicken breast instead of a jointed chicken).

4.  Garlic Mashed Potatoes Yum!  These are one of my favorite side dishes to prepare.  I love the flavor the Romano cheese gives these potatoes.

5.  Mushroom, Bacon, Swiss Strata  This is an Everyday Bailey staple.  She made it for me last weekend when I came over to wait for the Sleep Number bed guys to bring her new bed.  I haven’t made it yet, but it seems so easy. And you can add additional things you like (tomatoes!)

A tip, just in case you don’t notice.  Several of the recipes are from www.allrecipes.com and at their website you can convert recipes to nearly any serving amount.  (The standard Garlic Mashed Potato recipe is 100 servings!)

Have a great weekend!

Read Full Post »

Gasoline Alternatives

Driving home from work this afternoon, I saw a guy riding a horse and smoking a cigarette.   He had to stop to light up and then cut through the Jack-in-the-Box parking lot.  The episode reminded me of the pictures I took a few weeks ago of two guys riding horses across from the mall.  Here you can see them in front of TMobile (the second guy is almost hidden by the hedges on the left, click on the picture if you need it bigger).

And here you can see them crossing under the freeway.

So, take a money saving tip from these guys…riding your horse will definitely save you money on gas!

Read Full Post »

Busy week

This week on my schedule: (not a comprehensive list)

• Complete online training assignments for last week’s module
• Have a staff meeting
• Reconcile the budget!
• Meet with HR regarding staffing issues
• Pick up Cherrye at the airport
• Start and finish new online training module
• Meet with my grant writing committee
• Lunch with friends on Saturday
• Bridal shower on Sunday

Have a great week everyone!  Can you believe June is almost over??

Read Full Post »

Top Five Friday

Last weekend I went home for father’s day. I forgot my swimsuit so I thought I’d try to find one that was acceptable at Target. No such luck. Thus, in honor of my trip to Target and to summertime, today I bring you the top five terrible swimsuits, summer 2008 edition.

1. The monokini….seriously lets make up our minds. Do you want a one piece or a two piece? You can’t have a one piece that wants to be a two piece…it’s still one piece. GAH! And not to mention this horrid pattern. And the halter top. target.com

2. Monokini #2. Swimwear identity crisis #2. Slightly more attractive. Still makes me say GAH! target.com

3. Bikinis where the bottom is so small, meticulous nether-region maintenance is required. I won’t go on. swimsuits.com

4. Embellishments. This one looks like one of those macrame plant hangers. Forget about actually wearing this one twice, because after you take it off the first time, the strings will be so tangled you won’t know up from down. instyleswimwear.com

5. White. Come on. We all know that the care tags on this white suit say “Not for use at the beach, in swimming pools, hot tubs, or other chlorinated water. Avoid Bond girl antics, tanning, sweating, laying out, lotions, sprays and other chemicals. ” instyleswimwear.com

Read Full Post »

Random Photo of the Week

Just a random photo to tide you over.

I really love my car.  It’s a Honda Accord and on the highway gets AWESOME mileage.  I know I’m a big nerd, but I took a picture of the best average mileage…41.3MPG.

Read Full Post »