Hey folks, they're just meatballs! But they are soooo good for your next potluck.

There we were. The day was a sunny Sunday and the boys were getting out of the pool from their swim time.  They were hurrying to the bathrooms to get changed into their uniforms for the Boy Scout troop's Court of Honor.

Inside the main dining hall were cakes, cookies, salads of many kinds, probably about 4 different and wonderful homemade mac and cheese dishes and the dish I brought, barbecue meatballs.

As the boys lined up table by table, people were starting to fill their plates. Each plate had meatballs. They were the first to go. They always are! And because of that, I don't have a picture of this dish.

What's so great about this dish is how easy and cost effective it is. It's literally my potluck goto dish.

2 ingredients, 1 slow cooker

1 bag of frozen Italian meatballs. (I buy mine at Costco)

3 bottles of a GOOD QUALITY barbeque sauce (I love Bone Suckin Sauce but this time I used Lucielle's which I bought from Costco for $8 for 2 giant bottles. I only needed to use 1 bottle)

Put both in your slow cooker EARLY. 4 hours before the event. Set to high then turn to low or warm at the event.

This is such a great dish. I hope I just made your next potluck a little easier.

The holiday season needs to get here. I want these NOW!

Revisiting my seasonal favorite indulgence...Rum Balls

Recently a friend of mine asked if she can link to this recipe that I posted, I think about 2 or 3 years ago. Rum Balls are a treat I decided to make back in my 20's when I was super poor and single and needed a cheap but impressive dessert to bring to a friend's holiday potluck. I think I found the recipe in a Hershey's cookbook. It was great because I didn't have to cook them and back then I worked 3 jobs so I really didn't have time to cook a big hoopla of a dessert. Also, it involved alcohol. Well, I WAS going to a party so....yeah. Anyway, I tried it, it was a hit and I have made them every year every since. Below is my original post with the recipe. Enjoy!

I was born in 1969 so I have something in common with one of my favorite holiday indulges, Rum Balls. We were both born in the 60's. 

With the recipe below you can make some changes to suit your taste. I have experimented a lot and found that this is a pretty good recipe for experimenting.

• Instead of the Nilla Wafers you can use shortbread cookies.
• Instead of pecans or walnuts you can use hazelnuts. 
• Instead of rum you can use bourbon whiskey (we use Maker's Mark).
• Also try adding extracts. I have used coconut extract and cherry extracts in the past.   

They should sit in the fridge in an air tight container for at least 48 hours. Yield 4 dozen 

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups finely crushed vanilla wafers (easiest to use a food processor for this) 
1 1/2 cups finely chopped toasted pecans or walnuts 
1/2 cup confectioners sugar (powdered sugar - J calls it snow)
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (I like to use Hershey's European Cocoa) 
2 tablespoons dark or light corn syrup 
1/4 cup of rum (do not use 151 because it is too dry and will not work well) 
Confectioners sugar, chocolate sprinkles, nuts and/or coconut for garnish 

Directions:
Simply mix all ingredients up to the rum together in the order given above. Make little balls and roll in powdered sugar. Place in a bowl or container and cover. Place in refrigerator for 48 hours. Take out of fridge and roll in confectioners sugar or any of the garnishes listed and serve. 

They are so darned good. And of course, not for kids. I suggest making some with just flavoring for the extracts for them

Food trucks, food trucks everywhere!

Oh yes, once again I turn to my blog after much time away. I've had this blog for many years, since 2006 and I really should use it more but really, is life that interesting? Is my life so interesting that I need to write all about it? Usually the answer is a solid NO! However, I have something to get out today and I think as long as time permits, I will write about this more as time goes on.

Ahhhh, the Great Gourmet Food Truck trend. In the Inland Empire where I currently reside near we cannot have these wonderful meals on wheels frequent the area. This lame county of San Bernardino has something against them and won't let them do business here. So twice a year they have about 50 trucks now meet in an arena in Ontario and charge a fee to get in on top of the fee for the food you buy. Not worth it. Not at all.

Two weeks ago my sweetie I dropped off my son at his dad's in Orange County. Since the OC is the mecca of so many amazing food trucks, including The Lime Truck which was the recent winner of The Great Food Truck Race on the Food Network, we decided to hit Twitter and find some good eats.

We bounced back and forth between a meet-up in Fullerton and another in Santa Fe Springs. We chose SFS simply because both The Lime Truck was there as well as the Grill 'Em All truck which was the winner of season 1 of The Great Food Truck Race. I have to admit, it was a good choice.

When we arrived at the location there were about 12 trucks. The Cuban truck from the most recent Food Truck Race was there as well but we didn't try it. To be honest, I forgot about them and realized what truck that was way later in the night after I was home already.

The lines of course were quite long. I went in the line for the Lime truck and Duane waited for Grill 'em all. I ordered an amazing lamb sandwich and also ceviche. The ceviche won them one of the challenges on the show so that was a must to try. Duane and I shared them while still in line for the Grill Em truck which opened quite a bit later then the other trucks. The lamb was amazing. It was made with ground lamb so it was more like a flattened burger placed in a very soft and fresh pita. It has taziki with fresh crisp toppings and sriracha as well. The ceviche was so good it converted Duane into liking crab, shrimp and scallops! It was perfectly marinated with lime and seasonings and served with fresh tortilla chips. We washed that down with a White Peach Limeaide that was good but if the name of the drink has white peach in it, then it would have been nice to actually taste some peach. All I tasted was lime. But it was still good and very refreshing.

So finally we made it to the Grill Em window to order and we decided on the Waste ‘Em all burger which included a 7 oz. burger with green chilies, pepper jack and beer soaked onion. We also had a side of fries with chipolte ketchup. The burger was good and very fresh. The onions were the best part. The fries were...fries. And the chipolte ketchup was ok, mine is better. So while finishing off the burger we got in line for dessert. You didn't think we would skip dessert did you? We chose the Chunk 'n' Chip truck which had a variety of homemade ice creams and fresh and hot baked cookies. I chose german chocolate ice cream in between 2 chocolate chocolate chip cookies. Duane chose vanilla bean ice cream on top of crushed cookies which were also the chocolate chocolate chip. NOW THAT WAS GOOD!

I wanted so bad to check out the seafood trucks but no way, not in this trip. I was full and frankly, out of money. The trucks we went to averaged from $3 to $10 per item. The food was indeed gourmet and very fresh. This is a great trend for those looking for a good meal at a reasonable price. It's fun too. Makes for a great sneak a date night.

Maybe next time we will check out the meet-up in Fullerton. I really want to track down the Lobsta truck and Barcelona on the Go. Yum!

The Wiggles Los Angeles 2010 - They never fail to please!

For some people taking their child to see a children's entertainment group is something they do because they want to give their child a glimpse of fun and happiness but they themselves will say to their friends about how much they cannot wait until the show is over. After all, it's not like going to rock concert or a show they themselves would rather be at, right? Well perhaps but I can tell you that is absolutely not the case with going to a Wiggles show.

OK, maybe for parents of a new wiggler but I guarantee once the show begins and by the time it ends, parents will be talking about the show as if they just left their favorite rock performer. I know this because once upon a time, say 6 years ago I was that same parent.

The 1st Wiggles show I took my son to was in Long Beach, CA and I got the cheapest seats I could buy. Not only that, it was a last minute thought. I saw a commercial on TV and thought about how much fun for my son it would be to see them live. After all, we loved the shows back then on Playhouse Disney. Once the show ended I remember trying to see if I could afford tickets to the San Diego show which was to be the next day and then also Los Angeles which was that weekend.

Nothing has changed except my son is 8, almost 9 now and doesn't watch the shows that are now on Sprout but he never wants to miss a live show. Why is that? Because simply put, The Wiggles rock!

This year was amazing as always but different. My tickets were located in the Orchestra section which at the venue I was at is the section right above the floor seats. Long ago these and the floor seats were called "Hot Potato" seats and would have some kind of a Wiggly treat waiting for you. This year was no different. There was a cardboard activity sheet on every seat in my section. On the floor seats they had the same thing as well as a Wiggly Guitar cutout that was quite large in size. Large enough that a child could certainly make believe they're playing their guitar with Murray.

They added acrobatics into the show as of last year and that continued as a main theme this year. The theme and name of the show was Wiggly Circus although it wasn't very circus-like. They had "Ringo the Ring Master" as they did in the movie that was in the theatres not too long ago. (if you missed it I'm not surprised. The movie wasn't advertised very well. It was from a live show they did in Australia) They certainly don't have as many dancers on tour with them anymore. The large extravagant sets are gone and a simple stage is what you see. The jumbo video screens are gone too. It's very much back to basics like when I first saw them in Long Beach. But seriously it doesn't matter! Sets, schmets. They give the audience a full show leaving you totally entertained and smiling.

They visited many older songs like rock-a-bye your bear, fruit salad, the monkey dance, Here Comes a Bear, Captain Feathersword Fell Asleep On His Pirate Ship (Quack, Quack), Hot Potato and more. They also went into the audience quite a bit. For those that have never been to a Wiggles show you must know that they collect roses the children bring for Dorothy during the show. There is always at least 2 of the Wiggles along with a few Wiggly Dancers depending on the size of the venue that go into the audience to do this. It's always exciting seeing your favorite dancer or a Wiggle come to you and get your roses and of course if you brought one, a bone for Wags the Dog. Well this year, ALL FOUR WIGGLES collected roses and we were fortunate enough to have Anthony collect ours. He very graciously took a picture with my son and his friend. My son is the older one. It made their day!

After the show we stopped to talk to one of the main sound guys. I believe his name was Arnie. He was very nice and answered my question about Miki Field, Anthony's wife. Miki is listed as an entertainer in the program but I didn't see her on stage. For those of you with enquiring minds, it turns out Miki was not there after all. She was indeed on the UK leg of the tour and she will probably come back to "visit" during the latter part of the tour but she is taking care of the children back in Australia at this time. Also some info we received was about Alex. Alex used to be the main sound guy and we would always say hello to him as well. I know what you're thinking and we are not crazy, we actually have a reason for talking to these people and I will get to that in a minute. Anyway Alex is now working at Hot Potato Studios in Oz. He works with various bands that record there as well as the productions of The Wiggles. Last year Alex left the tour early as his second child was arriving. Now for the explanation of why we go to the sound booth after the show. A while back an amazing woman from Texas who will remain nameless for this blog post started collecting the bones that people would bring for Wags and then donate them to the local animal shelters. She soon organized people from all over the world to do this and I'll tell you, it's an amazing effort. So at the end of the show we go to the sound booth and collect the bones. For more information about collecting bones in your area please leave me a comment and I will put you in touch with someone who can help you organize that.

Well another year down and does my son want to go again next year when he's 9 going on 10? Crazy enough, YES! He really has a great time and until he says no, well this Wiggly mom is going to happily say yes and get ready to Wiggle!

Thank you US Family Guide for giving me the tickets to the show and allowing me to post my link to your site. If you are interested in reviewing a show and/or submitting your family friendly blog, go to http://www.usfamilyguide.com/.

Easiest and BEST pot roast recipe EVER!

It's been such a long time since I posted to this blog but I am back! I'm going to start updating it more and hopefully I have at least one of my readers still. (right dad?)

So I work from home now so I have time to actually slow roast. This is good because I can purchase lower priced meats and braise them long enough that they taste amazing.

Well, I have a pot roast recipe for you that I have recently fell in love with. Jonathan, who is now 8 doesn't like the traditional way I made this roast but he'll eat it this way!

What you'll need:

2 pounds of boneless chuck roast
2 Tablespoons Oil
1 Tablespoon unsalted Butter
1 onion, sliced
2 cloves of garlic, smashed
1 bottle of red wine
2 cups of Vegetable Stock
2 cups of Beef Stock

What you'll do:

I use a Dutch Oven but you can use any heavy bottom pot as long as it can go from stove top to oven.

Pre-heat oven to 350
Heat oil and butter
Sear Roast on all sides
Set Roast aside
Add Onion and garlic and let cook for about a minute
Add the ENTIRE bottle of wine
Reduce until you have about a cup of wine in the pot
Add your roast back in pot
Add the stock
Cover
Place in oven and cook for about 3 hours
Take out and enjoy!

I serve this with mashed potatoes. The texture of the mashed potatoes and the richness of the meat go so well together.

Easiest Meatballs Ever!

There are only so many hours in a day so of course whenever I can take a shortcut and still make a great and inexpensive meal I am a happy person! So here is my recipe for the easiest and a great tasting spaghetti and meatballs using one of my favorite kitchen appliances, the slow cooker.

For this I use the meatloaf meat from the butcher department in my grocery store. The reason is shortcut, shortcut, shortcut! It's already well seasoned and makes for great meatballs.

Ingredients:

2 lbs. Meatloaf (raw of course)

1 egg

Italian breadcrumbs

1 can or jar of pasta sauce

1/4 cup water

Directions:

Mix meatloaf and egg. Add enough breadcrumbs to bind. Lightly spray crockpot oil. Make meatballs about the size of a medium sized meatball. Not too small and not too large. Place meatballs in crockpot and cover with sauce and water. Set to low and in about 6 hours you will have perfect meatballs.

A New Job for Dilly is HERE!

I was so excited to check my mailbox and find a children's book I pre-purchased a while back. It's called A New Job for Dilly and is written by Rena Jones, Illustrated by Lisa Oakman.

This Dilly book is great. It is one of those books you want to read over and over and over. It's about a mouse named Dilly that LOVES pickles, especially the sour ones! (I can relate!) Dilly needed to be able to get more pickles so he set out to get a job. This book goes from A-Z and is perfect for any young child from around 4-8 years old.

When I got the book I showed it to Jonathan and he read it to me. He also brought it to school and read it to his class. We love this book and I think have already read it about 100 times! Our favorite page is when Dilly tried to be an electrician and he shocks himself. The picture cracked us up! The illustrations are so cute. (click here to visit the illustrator's website)

Rena Jones, Author Extraordinaire

I not only bought the book to support my friend but to support a new author. This is Rena's 1st published book. Rena always loved writing. She spent most of the 1990s writing letters to pen pals. Around the same time, she self-published three newsletters for pen pals. I wish I knew her back then because one of her newsletters was all about coffee! YUM! She began writing for children in 2003, after visiting Glacier National Park in Montana. A little mountain goat inspired her to write a story about him and her love for writing children’s stories began.

Rena is a home educator to her children and has been doing so for 11 years. Yup, 11 years! She also enjoys photography (Rena is an AMAZING photographer!), wildlife watching, camping, national parks, kayaking, music and even sour pickles. When not writing or taking pictures, she is usually being entertained by the crazy wildlife that frequents her mountain home. Seriously, she has crazy bears, squirrels...you name it! So different from Southern California!

Read to your child!

I have been a huge advocate of Reading is Fundamental for a very long time. I believe reading to your child every day for at least 15 minutes a day. When your child gets to the age where they are reading their own then have them pick out 2 books. One for them to read to you and another for you to read to them. It not only helps the child love books but they will become really great readers and gain a wonderful vocabulary. Spelling will come easier as well as more and more words become familiar.

Win an autographed copy of A New Job for Dilly!
All you need to do is leave a comment on at least FOUR of the seven blog stops. (blogs listed below) Rena will put your name in a pot and a winner will be chosen at the end of the tour. Please make sure she has a way to contact you. Please give your email address and at least your first name.

But remember, you have to reply to at least FOUR different stops to qualify. Rena will contact the winner at the end of the tour to find out how they'd like the book to be signed. Thanks and good luck!

June 21st – Sherrie Petersen
http://solvangsherrie.blogspot.com/

June 22nd – Beth Reinke

http://bethbencereinke.com/blog/

June 23rd – Elysabeth Eldering
http://jgdsseries.blogspot.com/

June 24th – Sharon Spray (THAT'S ME!)

http://mamasharonsays.blogspot.com/

June 25th – Adrienne Saldivar
http://a-saldivar.blogspot.com/

June 26th – Nikki Shoemaker

http://www.pinkpencil.blogspot.com/

June 27th – Vivian Zabel

http://vivianzabel.blogspot.com/

CLICK HERE to visit Rena's website.

CLICK HERE to visit Rena's Blog.

CLICK HERE to purchase the book.

Itailan Skillet Chicken

Tonight I realized I that the taco seasoned ground turkey I bought the other day went bad. I had just purchased a can of petite diced tomatoes and some sliced black olives for the taco casserole I was going to make for dinner tonight.

So with the bad turkey out of the picture, I had to think fast. Here was my healthy low fat solution.

I had already diced up some onion so I added it to my electric skillet and briefly sauteed it in a tablespoon of olive oil then discarded the onion so that the pan was seasoned.

Added 4 Chicken Breasts

Cooked until golden on both sides.

Added canned diced tomatoes, small can of sliced black olives, dried oregano, dried basil and a dash of sea salt.

Covered and let simmer for about 12-15 minutes turning the chicken once.

I served over jasmine rice.

It turned out fabulous and it was quick and very easy.

I really should have taken a picture but we were a hungry family! Next time I'll get a shot of it. There will definitely be a next time for this one!

Screaming girls and white Ray-Bans can only mean one thing...The Jonas Brothers movie is out!

Yesterday we trekked up to Hollywood to see the very popular movie, The Jonas Brothers a 3D Concert Experience. Were we a little crazy to go on opening weekend? Maybe. But I'm glad we did.

We took Jonathan months ago to see the boys from NJ perform at the Honda Center in Anaheim. That particular show was special because they were filming the concert footage for this movie that night. Demi Lovato then opened the show after becoming instantly huge from Camp Rock which was of course aired just weeks before. Also performing and a special guest in the movie was the very talented and also a teen, Taylor Swift. It was a really good and very long show. I think I blogged about it.

So the movie pleased Jonathan and all of the tweens and teens in the theatre. It showed some behind the scenes footage. Mostly shot in NYC. But all of the concert footage was Anaheim even though that was not mentioned.

Throughout the movie it was hard to tell if it was the girls in the movie screaming or the girls in the theatre! It was funny and I could totally relate since I would have been the same way if this were a movie about Duran Duran and the year was 1984.

When asking Jonathan what he liked best about the movie he said when they performed Burnin Up. He loved it in concert and I can see why. The movie was so well done that it didn't take away from the live feeling of being there at all.

As far as Disney Digital 3D goes this movie was way better than the Hannah Montana/Myley Cyrus movie but the Hannah movie seemed more "real" and not scripted. This was obviously scripted and "set-up" in many places for what was to be behind the scenes or footage.

The newest D-3D movie coming out is UP. We got to see an extensive preview and it looks great. Disney has really perfected the 3D movie experience since Meet the Robinsons came out. I don't know if Monsters and Aliens is Disney but it will be 3D and looks pretty good as well.

So after the movie we left with some posters and white JB 3D glasses only given out at the El Capitan and only this weekend. It was a nice reminder for Jonathan about the movie he just enjoyed so much. He is such a huge JB fan and has been since they had small appearances on the Disney Channel with Year 3000 and Kids of the Future (a remake of Kids of America made for the Meet the Robinsons movie). I have to admit that Dave and I do not mind the music either and as far as role models, so far so good.

One more note before I wrap this post up. Disney Channel will be premiering the new show JONAS in April. From the preview I am a little frightened of this one but of course Jonathan is counting down the days. The boys, Kevin, Joe and Nick are apparently Junior Operatives Networking as Spies (J.O.N.A.S.), who battle evil while working undercover as a teen rock band. Um..OK. Anyway, it looked quirky along the lines of The Monkees. We'll see how this one goes. It'll most likely be an instant hit simply because it is after all, The Jonas Brothers. Another sweet addition for the show is they are including their little brother Frankie known to fans as the "bonus Jonas." And for one last mention for fans of Camp Rock...filming for Camp Rock 2 has been mentioned to start at the end of this year. Apparently the entire cast is going to be back.

OK, Now after this post I think I need to go read a newspaper or do something a grown-up does. :)

Paul Harvey dies at age 90 and will be missed

Below is the story from the AP. (posted here with proper permission of course) My husband and I love "The rest of the story." We discovered it when we lived in TN and seriously, there was nothing on the radio to listen to. We truly admired and enjoyed Mr. Harvey.


Broadcasting pioneer Paul Harvey dies at age of 90 from Associated Press

You are what you eat...see!

To make yourself into an M&M click here!

Holidays for a working mom is like getting to play SAHM

I love and cherish holidays. I get to spend a whole day with Jonathan and just make the most of it.

Today it was raining so going to the park was not in the plans. Instead we started our day by catching up on Disney episodes that we haven't seen yet but had recorded. Then Jonathan worked on some crafty projects such as the "button" of himself he drew for me to wear today. I love it! It reminds me of Flat Stanley.

Once we picked up Dave from work at 2:30 we headed over to Metro Pointe in Costa Mesa and went to Colour Me Mine. It was so crowded when we walked in. There was a birthday party taking up most of the table space. By the way, what a great idea for a party! So we were told to come back in 30 minutes.

We headed over to Cozi. A fairly new restaurant in Metro Pointe. It's surprisingly affordable. I say that because it really doesn't have the atmosphere of a place that is so affordable. When you walk in the menu is on the wall and the concept is the same as a Pei Wei. The whole upscale fast food thing going on. So you figure out what you want then go to the register and order. They bring the food to you and they clear the tables. Dave had a meat pizza that is cooked in a wood fire stove. Jonathan and I split a smores for two. We already ate lunch at home. There was a couple sitting close to use that had some great looking sandwiches. One of which I think was the Chicken Tandori sandwich. It looked great! The smores were really a great idea for killing time with J. I knew what to expect too because a while ago I went to visit my sister in D.C. There was this place I think called X's and O's. They had the same smores treat on the menu. When it came to the table Jonathan's eyes lit up as big as the fire! He placed his marshmallow on the skewer and carefully toasted it. It was a little dangerous actually. The fire got pretty high and Jonathan kept lighting his mallow up! But it was fun. Dave's pizza looked good too. It had sausage, pepperoni and real bacon on it.

Once we finished at Cozi we headed back over to Colour Me Mine. We picked out what we wanted to paint and selected our colors.

Jonathan chose a megaphone. He's a HSM fanatic and even painted the letters HSM on it. (By the way...HSM 3 comes out tomorrow on DVD. Perhaps the added scenes will include the actual prom scene so we can figure out why the character Ryan is wearing a kilt in his "doll" form) I painted a mug.

I needed a pink mug and I was in a retro 50's mood for some reason. So I painted it pink with black dots and then wrote Mama Sharon Says... on it. Cool! Now I have an official mug to drink my coffee or tea out of while blogging. Dave didn't paint. He just played bubble breaker on his phone.

I had a great time and now we're home. Jonathan is still busy though. He's designing the gift bag for his friend Dylan's gift. We prefer this as opposed to buying a bag. It's more personal and less expensive too! Dylan's 7th birthday is tomorrow at Bears, Buddies and Toys in Huntington Beach. We are so happy to be going there because it looks so fun in the commercials. The kids get to dress up and play. They get to use their imagination and I love that!

Well time to figure out what to make for dinner. I don't know why I wait to the last minute to figure these things out. It's not like having to make dinner is ever a surprise! So off I go.

One last mention...the new ice cream cupcakes at Cold Stone Creamery are SO GOOD! We bought them this past week for my mom's birthday. YUM! Starting from the top...

Whipped Cream

Ice Cream

Cake

Fudge

Chocolate Cup

The chocolate cup it was all in was the only disappointing part. It was very chalky.

For more about amazing cupcakes check out one of my favorite blogs Cupcakes Take The Cake if you love cupcakes as much as I do!

Kodak makes it so easy...even for this busy mom!

Last night I had an amazing opportunity to attend a very special and exclusive gathering hosted by Kodak and ScanMyPhotos in Irvine, CA. I want to say that when I was first invited I had no idea what I was in for. The invitation sent by Jacqueline Mangione the WW PR Manager at Kodak, simply said to bring LOTS of photos and there will be light sandwiches and Mimosas. OK while I don’t really drink, I never turn down a free meal. LOL! I’m kidding of course; I once turned down a meal when I was little and in camp. Gross! Have you seen camp food?

OK so let me get back to last night. I walked in about 5 or 10 minutes early and was greeted by Mitch Goldstone, the President of ScanMyPhotos, International (pictured with the kiosk) and his wonderful staff. I was brought to a Kodak Kiosk and shown some of the features. Did you know you can download photos from your phone into one of these? Kodak really thought of EVERYTHING! I have to tell you that I was slightly intimidated at first as I think anyone would be when they have no idea what to do. But then I put my USB stick in the port and pressed the “START HERE” button on the screen. Everything is guided by the touch screen which is great. The first thing I created was a DVD with a ton of pictures. And yes, I said the first thing! Mitch and Kodak were quite generous and I was quite grateful. I still am! Anyway, the DVD I made took me all of about 3-5 minutes to make. I selected my photos for the disk. I chose photos from the Big Bear trip last year, The Wiggle years, Jonathans past birthdays and Christmas photos. Once the pics were selected I got to go through a bunch of music selections. I chose What I Like About You. Then selected the DONE button and that was that. They processed the DVD for me as I went on to another project. All and all I came home with a poster, a calendar, a DVD, a package of reprints, a couple of 8 ½ x 11 photo collages of my chocolates and browniepops and a photobook!

The Photobook took me about 5-10 minutes to make. I don’t know exactly how long because I was having so much fun I totally lost track of time but it really was pretty quick. I should have been looking at the receipts that printed out to let you know how much this stuff would cost on a normal day but I suspect it’s less than you may think. I did look at the receipt for the photobook I created in which I added the max amount of photos allowed. If you’re not sitting down you may want to. It was only about $30. I am so not kidding! I even asked if that was correct. Again, thank you Kodak!

I was also given a tour of the back room. It was like going behind the scenes and was so cool. You wouldn’t believe what goes on back there. They have several people that work all day long to be sure your photos, no matter where you are in the country, are taken care of in any way you order. They have scanned over 9 million photos and will service you even if you are out of the country! They can restore those old photos and you will be blown away by the results that it will cause tears. The happy kind of course.

Then it was back to the Kiosk. I scanned a photo of mine that was of my brother Mike and me when we were very little. The original photo as you can see is faded and well, old. The kiosk has a feature where you can press edit photo and then restore the color. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was like magic!

But if you don’t live near ScanMyPhotos then just go online to ScanMyPhotos.com and look for the information on sending your old photos to them and they will send them back with the new and improved versions. I’m not kidding! Hey dad...they will even be able to repair old damaged photos! You can trust them with your treasures. They really know what they’re doing. You can also search for a Kodak Kiosk near you by CLICKING HERE.

OK, so here is another crazy cool part of the evening. The Kodak staff was there filming footage so you may see me somewhere talking about this stuff. Who knows!

Remember the DVD I made? When it was finished they put it on the big screen in the store and as I watched it I got very emotional and for some reason the only word I could get out of my mouth was “WOW.” It really was so special.

I learned that I need to go back with Jonathan because he got a camera for Christmas. The kiosks are so easy to use that even my 7 year old can do it. Hey, do you have older kids? Make it a play date. Let them make a photobook. It’s less expensive than the place with the Rat and the games, right? And they won't come home with a junky toy that will break. Instead they will come back with a wonderful memory book.

I will be going back to ScanMyPhotos in the very near future. After all, I have 2 or 3 wedding VHS tapes I need to be put to DVD. But if you don’t live by then you can do everything online. Whether you pick it up or it gets mailed, they are a site to see. They have a blog too you should check out. Blog.Scanmyphotos.com.

Thank you Mitch and Jacqueline and all that put this on for us mom bloggers. I had a night of creating memories and learning new things that I will be putting to good use in the future. Also thank you for your very generous gifts. Thank you to Mom Bloggers Club too for putting out the word on requesting to be a part of this. I love being a mom blogger!

My dad sent me an email this morning, he lives in NY. He said he was going to look for a Kodak Kiosk place in his area. Again, If you want to look for a Kiosk in your area too CLICK HERE.

RENA...RENA...GUESS WHAT!!!!!

I want to bring everyone back to a post I made in November or December of last year. I had just discovered Starbucks energy double shot drinks. Since then I have had many and even started drinking the Monster coffee energy drink. I LOVE THEM!! Just once a day though. It really mainly because they sell the Monster brand in Sam's Club so it's affordable. Anyway, to my point and this is why I originally directed the title of this towards my very good friend Rena.

I just read that hitting the shelves is a Cinnamon Dolce Double Shot. AWESOME!

Yes folks, it's the little things. :)

Score a touchdown with this AMAZING Jalapeno Appetizer!

Bacon Wrapped Cream Cheese Jalapenos

10-12 Fresh jalapenos, cleaned out and split

1 package of cream cheese

1 package of bacon (not thick bacon)

Toothpicks

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Once Jalapenos are cleaned out (leave some seeds if you want more heat) stuff them with cream cheese, wrap each with a slice of bacon and bind with 2 toothpicks. Place on a baking sheet and into the oven for about an hour or until the bacon is crispy. When you take out of the oven let them rest about 5 minutes.

So this was my big contribution to my Super Bowl day.

Enjoy!

The old is new again

Remember the frozen yogurt craze of the late 80's, early 90's when Penguin frozen yogurt and many others all opened around the same time? Even Seinfeld did an episode about a frozen yogurt place where the yogurt was so good and low fat but they found out it wasn't.

Well I don't know if self-serve frozen yogurt places are popping up where you live like there are here in Orange County. First it was the trend of the actually tastes like yogurt frozen yogurt places like Pinkberry that were opening. Now it's the self serve trend with a million and a half toppings.

Oh don't get me wrong, I am lovin' this! We just got a Cherry on Top store here in Huntington Beach and they have really good yogurt and many flavors to choose from. I love the peanut butter and the chocolate. The flavors change from time to time but there are seriously like 10 or 12 flavors. You serve yourself then go to the toppings bar which has many fresh fruits, candies, cereals, sprinkles, etc. Just tons of choices. But you have to watch it because you are charged by weight. They always have coupons so it makes it easy to go every now and then.

In the last 2 weeks I have noticed 3 other self serve frozen yogurt places close to opening in surrounding areas. I wonder how long this trend will last and how well so many competing businesses will do?

Sweet goodness I've been busy!

I've said it before and I'll say it again, time just passes by way to fast. I've been very busy and with that, too tired to blog. Not to mention that by the time it's 10 or 11 pm and I've been at work all day on a computer and then at home either on the PC or laptop working on my own business, the last thing I want to do is type some more! :) But today I have found a moment so let me catch you up.

Dave is still working part-time hours at AAA so things are still pretty tight. We are making the best of it and eat a whole lot less pizza. Although we have discovered Haus of Pizza in Costa Mesa which makes a really good pie and is not hard on the wallet.

We also went to San Francisco for the day...yes the day for a food trade show. The Fancy Food Show to be exact. We woke up at 4 am, dropped J at nana's house by 5:30, drove to LAX and we were on a plane by 7am. We didn't get to see SF, we literally got to the convention center and then at 5 went back to the airport to get on an 8pm flight back to LAX.

Anyway we did get some great things from the show that will be up on the Hey, That's Gourmet! website. Such as handmade gourmet caramels from Montana. We are selling 4 oz bags with adorable satin ribbon on them. These caramels are so freakin good! One pack we have we chose to put Chipolte (the heat and sweet are so amazing), Celtic Sea Salt, Soft Butter Caramel and Pomegranate. The other pack has Maple, Chewy, Chocolate Celtic Sea Salt and Espresso. I'm telling you, these are the most delicious caramels I have ever had. They are all natural with no artificial anything and no preservatives.

We also added some chocolate covered caramel pops that have cute packaging and yes, they taste really great too. They are from a company called Route 29. We are now carrying some novelty items from them such as a tin just for Valentines Day with Milk and Dark Chocolate X's and O's, you know like hugs and kisses. So sweet and yummy! Also some chocolate covered marshmallows for Easter.

New Browniepops too! We added Toffee and Walnut. YUM-O. Browniepops were featured on Rachael Ray 2 weeks ago and we found out at the show the Hey, That's Gourmet! is the only retailer to sell all flavors. How cool is that! The pops have awesome packaging now as they come in their own little boxes.

So we've been working hard to get them up on Amazon.com as well as our site. There are a lot of photos to take and edit as well as the work it takes to actually put in the descriptions and such. We did receive our 1st amazon order last week. WHOO HOO! It was for 5 of the canisters of the Green Tea Dark Chocolate which is still our best seller. We hope to see many more come in soon.

So on to another subject. Did you know that February is national Pancake month? I just learned this. FiberOne has a new pancake mix that is so good! Just a random thought.

Well have a great and SUPER weekend! We don't watch football in our home so it's not such a big deal to us but I know it is to others. So have a great one and stay safe and sane.

Peace, Love and Ice Cream

Jonathan just ate a Weight Watcher Cookies & Cream Ice Cream Pop and is at Peace! :)

Meatballs and Cottage Cheese

I swear, sometimes it's like Dave and I have to be food artists or food make-up artists to get Jonathan to eat something other then hamburgers or chicken strips. I know that we aren't the only ones out there that have to be meal magicians.

For instance, last week...or maybe the week before, anyway one of these weeks I had some of that once in a while chance to place myself in a grocery store completely family free and while roaming in a daze enjoying the silence there was a mom arguing with her daughter of probably around 7. She sighed and said...you have to eat something, anything besides meatballs and cottage cheese. I giggled as I walked by grabbing a box of toaster strudels. Yes, the frozen soft version of a pop tart that my son eats for breakfast almost every day.

When I was a kid my step mom would put a plate in front of me of whatever we were eating for dinner and if I whined and cried that I didn't like it then I didn't get dessert and I pretty much starved and went to bed. Remembering how miserable this made me I made a decision I would never do that to my child. Now, I change my mind. As a mom and an adult I have the right to do that. Right? Well ok, I'm not going to starve him and make such threats but I don't make separate meals anymore.

How is this working for me? Pretty good actually. What I decided to do is make dinner more interactive. By this I mean either let Jonathan help make some part of the meal or ask him how he may want something prepared or maybe he would like a particular condiment on the side. Be positive, not negative. Why raise everyone's blood pressure with threats? Really all they do is ruin your great day, give you a headache, waste precious time together (especially if your a full time working mom) and most of all give your kid a bad memory to store in that head that remembers everything. Sure, this doesn't work all the time. Afterall, Jonathan has good days and bad days just like anyone else. But it's always worth the effort. I mean really, a year ago J wouldn't go anywhere near most of the foods he eats now and by the time we finally sit down and eat, we enjoy our time together.

So next time you you are thinking of making steak or salmon and your kid says all they want is meatballs and cottage cheese, find a way to add to the meal a little bit of my favorite seasonings...Love, Patients and Ketchup!

iCarly Spagehetti Tacos

On the Nickelodeon hit show iCarly they always eat their favorite dinner, spaghetti tacos. Jonathan has been asking if I could make them for him. Tonight was the night. Here's what we did.

Ingredients:

1 box of crunchy taco shells

1 box of spaghetti (we used linguine)

1 jar of marinara

Tabasco optional

Cook the pasta. Heat up the shells according to the directions on the box. Heat the sauce. Mix the pasta with the sauce and fill the shells. I put some Tabasco on mine.

Don't knock it til' you try it. They are actually pretty good and Jonathan loved it. Any meal that is good and fun works for me.