tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81483524193089761032024-03-14T11:21:30.646-04:00Shin-Dig-ItTanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-51382653006226880582011-05-03T19:22:00.025-04:002011-05-03T21:55:24.002-04:00Shindiglet: Battle of the Batter<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(41, 48, 59); font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', sans-serif;font-size:13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-size:small;">Shindiglet - Like a grand shindig, only a much smaller to-do. There are times, when even a small group of people getting together creates an occasion for celebrating with a theme. And if it is within my power, I always try to make that happen.</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-size:small;">An across-the-miles triple throwdown baking challenge, for me, is such an occasion.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div></span></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsoKfZTyLWk06s2SgvLDqiHDJ79_3jcusVIPpP4GkHjix9WQxo3Hm3kfPqKNjquu999NhACdltiec9qt47XGJUgMmbbYaPZylZO-oD6-rUfS6eZME92ovDqbJxou3uGf9yYNdq8WTnXBbT/s1600/TuesdayThrowdown.png" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsoKfZTyLWk06s2SgvLDqiHDJ79_3jcusVIPpP4GkHjix9WQxo3Hm3kfPqKNjquu999NhACdltiec9qt47XGJUgMmbbYaPZylZO-oD6-rUfS6eZME92ovDqbJxou3uGf9yYNdq8WTnXBbT/s320/TuesdayThrowdown.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602669031434490514" style="cursor: pointer; width: 237px; height: 136px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div>Over the past few years, my bestie, <a href="http://www.foodjustsayin.com/">Toni</a>, and I have exchanged recipes. A couple of times we've even tried new recipes at the same time and compared notes. That was fun. But recently, Toni kicked it up a notch, posting a challenge on facebook... challenging me, and another gal, <a href="http://www.afewfriesshort.com/">Toni-Lynn</a>, to a baking THROWDOWN! What was the objective? Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes. None of us had made them before, but we all exuded confidence. Check out our game faces:<div><br /></div><div><a href="http://www.foodjustsayin.com/">Toni</a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWycL2EHWbaJ8iODbtbWJfumIraNf77Y0Qvd-iX4pbA2l12nxoDZsOgo_twdI_iZ9uSbwgpii2nHPAqkhZfWt9z832zD-nNP-DiuE-jtoUKcBdu_33qnyg5CKBqkB1hrnNBmRhilR1MNVC/s1600/Toni+throwdown.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWycL2EHWbaJ8iODbtbWJfumIraNf77Y0Qvd-iX4pbA2l12nxoDZsOgo_twdI_iZ9uSbwgpii2nHPAqkhZfWt9z832zD-nNP-DiuE-jtoUKcBdu_33qnyg5CKBqkB1hrnNBmRhilR1MNVC/s320/Toni+throwdown.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602645650878957154" /></a><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWycL2EHWbaJ8iODbtbWJfumIraNf77Y0Qvd-iX4pbA2l12nxoDZsOgo_twdI_iZ9uSbwgpii2nHPAqkhZfWt9z832zD-nNP-DiuE-jtoUKcBdu_33qnyg5CKBqkB1hrnNBmRhilR1MNVC/s1600/Toni+throwdown.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"></a>Tanya<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWF7Rio2lLSLaCdegQ7BSm3I03acJg2jsGb_eXMSFBVTdHnvWPZIEKqhv8Lv0LBSkOnH5vxn0WFyn5laLQIdKvibKxcAW0WWPlW6Nx9dfR768U5SqpXp_aGUuF_Sk9nS0Socuo-3NsWocz/s1600/throwdown.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWF7Rio2lLSLaCdegQ7BSm3I03acJg2jsGb_eXMSFBVTdHnvWPZIEKqhv8Lv0LBSkOnH5vxn0WFyn5laLQIdKvibKxcAW0WWPlW6Nx9dfR768U5SqpXp_aGUuF_Sk9nS0Socuo-3NsWocz/s320/throwdown.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602643015972791554" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://www.afewfriesshort.com/">Toni-Lynn</a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKqZW5wLduYpayzZvARW5Gm_GjkPHuiIf8CFQu8ZnhvhYYflK06-x_agBTp5honNiMQI5gkbXyfe50cREe1gznUkBxTlJyWNwqM4RNsaziW7DVI-i5YiraABo-BV3_KCBDcDnmDc7XuGv/s1600/Toni-Lynn+throwdown.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 258px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsKqZW5wLduYpayzZvARW5Gm_GjkPHuiIf8CFQu8ZnhvhYYflK06-x_agBTp5honNiMQI5gkbXyfe50cREe1gznUkBxTlJyWNwqM4RNsaziW7DVI-i5YiraABo-BV3_KCBDcDnmDc7XuGv/s320/Toni-Lynn+throwdown.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602643478822425026" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>What followed was some bakers' smack talk. After a few days of that, we separately conducted our baking experiment, using different recipes, of our own choosing. As the three of us live in three different states, we couldn't actually judge the recipes side by side. We would have to be the judge of our own creations, with input from friends and family all-too-ready-and-willing to sample the end product. :)</div><div><br /></div><div>Here's how it went down for me.</div><div><br /></div><div>I started with just a few ingredients: 3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, 3 oz. milk chocolate, butter, cocoa, egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar.</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6SWfwvye7qTWC_ybwpo2GcrkRdtbdxxpZhibGXzX7YXfStGndC0vT9g_ZWilWeyHHdcS7mCwWsbVmIM1oHncJixQVGVHqwn5k46dJ6r1rQN39JR7yDoF4lsJe1_S22hqoeN9HXZQJ3cLY/s1600/1.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6SWfwvye7qTWC_ybwpo2GcrkRdtbdxxpZhibGXzX7YXfStGndC0vT9g_ZWilWeyHHdcS7mCwWsbVmIM1oHncJixQVGVHqwn5k46dJ6r1rQN39JR7yDoF4lsJe1_S22hqoeN9HXZQJ3cLY/s320/1.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602651403337809602" /></a></div><div><br /></div>I melted the chocolate and the butter together in a double boiler.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZaOzI5YRUK4GtWWQ19nuEN9mCvTyOXwg5adV6mHCanzeUVEpExFX6LMMGJ68PvGni7glDMeqTubcPmXPj0VSe10qNLN4wKkbIJejGz0PeVS6heZ9kv23waas9LP-6A0FnV6iHU-GeQFV5/s1600/2.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 297px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZaOzI5YRUK4GtWWQ19nuEN9mCvTyOXwg5adV6mHCanzeUVEpExFX6LMMGJ68PvGni7glDMeqTubcPmXPj0VSe10qNLN4wKkbIJejGz0PeVS6heZ9kv23waas9LP-6A0FnV6iHU-GeQFV5/s320/2.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602651800847048770" /></a><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZaOzI5YRUK4GtWWQ19nuEN9mCvTyOXwg5adV6mHCanzeUVEpExFX6LMMGJ68PvGni7glDMeqTubcPmXPj0VSe10qNLN4wKkbIJejGz0PeVS6heZ9kv23waas9LP-6A0FnV6iHU-GeQFV5/s1600/2.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"></a><br />The egg whites were beaten together with the cream of tartar and sugar.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9KvemfJlsJOcsu6UzBy70UW36np3KQGvFQQyOUX0yDvPKhDUvi0GCLRl62q67O2-nE96QYvuz-wf-pr73eLs3N1IIqJCo_46oqjrZTkDPIFguBOyiuFtpcEits2eOdRK7Ht40DXXt0WuN/s1600/3.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9KvemfJlsJOcsu6UzBy70UW36np3KQGvFQQyOUX0yDvPKhDUvi0GCLRl62q67O2-nE96QYvuz-wf-pr73eLs3N1IIqJCo_46oqjrZTkDPIFguBOyiuFtpcEits2eOdRK7Ht40DXXt0WuN/s320/3.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602652134631185106" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I folded the egg whites into the chocolate.</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQH_4iGN-4RzCf57sAxM1I5NGL4a-lEzbHGJt8DayTl-KLMtK8UuXstyuEUQUoH86HWNAokyJj6KSLtA9dKSkKNiYJqboB7wFGPMG_buEDezievoxfIAc1W23UQsI3-zqdVbIPvEGacrvz/s1600/4.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQH_4iGN-4RzCf57sAxM1I5NGL4a-lEzbHGJt8DayTl-KLMtK8UuXstyuEUQUoH86HWNAokyJj6KSLtA9dKSkKNiYJqboB7wFGPMG_buEDezievoxfIAc1W23UQsI3-zqdVbIPvEGacrvz/s320/4.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602652855167460562" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>And then scooped the batter into the buttered and sugared muffin tins.</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg53NfRl1ILClkjUJDNEVnZGGsmYc6e6cjxhlEC7pqd4hBJxOwzySp_NXED0Fqpn8H-DmK9RlziAnZHBtNjlVj6G7-1O5LfFyRdYbVhD8YDpuPMsJd2AC6vfuCJkB1kNXyG0dw6eVnPz9zE/s1600/5.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg53NfRl1ILClkjUJDNEVnZGGsmYc6e6cjxhlEC7pqd4hBJxOwzySp_NXED0Fqpn8H-DmK9RlziAnZHBtNjlVj6G7-1O5LfFyRdYbVhD8YDpuPMsJd2AC6vfuCJkB1kNXyG0dw6eVnPz9zE/s320/5.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602653297555290898" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>After about seven minutes, they came out of the oven like this:</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlOT1V9qlIFl2XaNY8bmBMQk4grDQjv5vyGWcy9YnDiPwkb6TdZwZX9k6vbUJmLC7AZlzHSaCtUkSim66Rlk5rM5yBxo5epxol5mI5y9fscqm0f0IVC3DtQ7JE2HeXPG2j158ejLJMOLrK/s1600/6.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlOT1V9qlIFl2XaNY8bmBMQk4grDQjv5vyGWcy9YnDiPwkb6TdZwZX9k6vbUJmLC7AZlzHSaCtUkSim66Rlk5rM5yBxo5epxol5mI5y9fscqm0f0IVC3DtQ7JE2HeXPG2j158ejLJMOLrK/s320/6.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602653751793071122" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>They look good, don't they?!</div><div>Turned out onto a plate, aside a scoop of coconut ice cream, and dusted with cocoa powder, it looks like this:</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9faE0_stO0vZznMJ0aHJ_bUgPRu2uevrFZYQrKglO6OJl9BmQcOESPtT_DSNmXfppma-Fakj2Dhl0ChwWevN_qp2eclZEj940F36s_9CE93APlS9SZ0gbnZqZ9uJPLaNnGyckuq_HNF-V/s1600/7.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9faE0_stO0vZznMJ0aHJ_bUgPRu2uevrFZYQrKglO6OJl9BmQcOESPtT_DSNmXfppma-Fakj2Dhl0ChwWevN_qp2eclZEj940F36s_9CE93APlS9SZ0gbnZqZ9uJPLaNnGyckuq_HNF-V/s320/7.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602654367439363298" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Anticipating the molten chocolate that makes this dish "lava cake", I cut it open and mmmmmmm.........</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOMdBfgUG9V27UKQJMQfL9OCwBxq7COlvk183tQ1DW4GwGlAUkFW9ToLT5tAa4DzukEyG_myhKBugvGc45h22xOJE_ETaSa774Zoy8OD3tqVb-FwhTGZAdvQB4fLS530PTlfSTZ7zlcMBz/s1600/8.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOMdBfgUG9V27UKQJMQfL9OCwBxq7COlvk183tQ1DW4GwGlAUkFW9ToLT5tAa4DzukEyG_myhKBugvGc45h22xOJE_ETaSa774Zoy8OD3tqVb-FwhTGZAdvQB4fLS530PTlfSTZ7zlcMBz/s320/8.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602655530952447874" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Look how my youngest is eating it up!</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO39x9IocB3DxdswsQ5FnfGLwIWgl9cMB9nb9kYT-VtP6DuUdDthcak5jnUsgWX6h-aeRTLzO7fChyphenhyphen4qr80os9l8VxLA_MTHfMgxi0itNyKi6CPi1NHaaG-yDW_MfOVkmpvC5UKgJOwuSF/s1600/9.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO39x9IocB3DxdswsQ5FnfGLwIWgl9cMB9nb9kYT-VtP6DuUdDthcak5jnUsgWX6h-aeRTLzO7fChyphenhyphen4qr80os9l8VxLA_MTHfMgxi0itNyKi6CPi1NHaaG-yDW_MfOVkmpvC5UKgJOwuSF/s320/9.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602656490486872034" style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>OK, so I would love to just leave it at that and feel all proud of myself, but....</div><div><br /></div><div>I kinda cheated.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'll come clean.</div><div><br /></div><div>My lava cakes ended up being not-so-molten. I'd describe them more like chocolate mousse cakes. Still completely delicious. And rich. And dangerous... because I couldn't stop eating after just one. Here's what it really looked like inside:</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRN6uyXnixcnPYBYgdINoDY4H4py0s3J6CGLnd1-N2v6nWjxh9yixGRcr_o53bwgxxUqJ2mUe5ECTFFWT6zwgmiTpVr2mflDsbBkCCT7fjJZisWjkiGTMIQtgs5T5OhS4Kb6V-cdMfmvyo/s1600/10.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRN6uyXnixcnPYBYgdINoDY4H4py0s3J6CGLnd1-N2v6nWjxh9yixGRcr_o53bwgxxUqJ2mUe5ECTFFWT6zwgmiTpVr2mflDsbBkCCT7fjJZisWjkiGTMIQtgs5T5OhS4Kb6V-cdMfmvyo/s320/10.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602666992275589842" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>And my secret molten-ator?</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIlhyphenhyphenrOImSwJmMUdqGDQBXKsiqF0Jk-lxn_-x1MNRS10olBBIZLC3mpiYjoW8MSqWWfgmh5Z0Y74AzmAeadLBjkDivq8WrIzpc-WyeW2ZiI0n408UKnyGGA_mUiMou1TwlfCWX_IaGQMrs/s1600/11.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIlhyphenhyphenrOImSwJmMUdqGDQBXKsiqF0Jk-lxn_-x1MNRS10olBBIZLC3mpiYjoW8MSqWWfgmh5Z0Y74AzmAeadLBjkDivq8WrIzpc-WyeW2ZiI0n408UKnyGGA_mUiMou1TwlfCWX_IaGQMrs/s320/11.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5602667226391424802" style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Hey, living a stone's throw from Hershey, PA makes it all okay. :)</div><div><br /></div><div>Be sure to check out <a href="http://www.foodjustsayin.com/2011/05/03/battle-of-batter-three-way-throwdown/">Toni's</a> and <a href="http://www.afewfriesshort.com/recipe-molten-lava-cake-throwdown/">Toni's</a> re-cap of this chocolate lava cake triple throwdown!</div><div><br /></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-65621815505786555062010-11-14T19:12:00.023-05:002010-11-14T21:17:14.868-05:00What will you Fuzzoodle?Wow, it has been a while since I've written a post! What better reason to dust off the Shin-dig-it blog than to write about the latest shindig: A Fuzzoodles Fiesta!<div><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 94px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWDES6kibRfTMJEDr_GzvhfosCJlcOKIBAf_IkmaizTsgKMId2KRnASsnZlbu-ATT2MUzvsYinqsVD9Hp3iEK_55QZ5RNNbZ2QobwFG2X7HB3GRWMvzbd-zheLNk746BTPvUv-BbIwOsbl/s320/1274798730.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539564083269446674" /> </div><div>Every guest to our Fuzzoodles Fiesta wanted to know: What is a Fuzzoodle? Before <a href="http://www.housepartypalooza.com/">House Partypalooza</a> sent me this product to experiment with, I didn't know what a Fuzzoodle was either. Fuzzy Noodles = <a href="http://fuzzoodles.com/">Fuzzoodles</a>. A simple, back-to-basics, creative product from <a href="http://www.giddyup.com/home">Giddy Up!</a> (think Blendy Pens, Surprise Ink, Water Wow...) that takes the classic pipe cleaner (or chenilles to you florists out there) to a whole new level. They are bendable like pipe cleaners, but these are so fluffy! And the kits come with accessories such as eyes, feet, noses, and mouths.</div><div><br /></div><div>Before going into further detail about this product, I would like to talk about the theme development of this party. The Fuzzoodles were obviously the start of the show, but this was no ordinary party - it was a FIESTA! Not the most obvious choice for a fall party, but who doesn't love a fiesta, I want to know!? I used <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a> for my party planning and invitations. I love planning my parties using Punchbowl. The designs are top-notch and the options are so easy to use. My guests electronically received a realistic sealed envelope:</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir-ft4fQL-O_MIlS9Mq2OrY2zOB6rAF6vVWVq4tWyHGT8Y1wKnENSiNx6a7740tD2Ldc_ivPP2AwUZrWDOmVkMKQzUZfRjN1MThg489mum06V_9aXiGHXGl4pyNZouHxIy5dvWT8GlR2m-/s1600/fuzzoodles+invitation+envelope.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir-ft4fQL-O_MIlS9Mq2OrY2zOB6rAF6vVWVq4tWyHGT8Y1wKnENSiNx6a7740tD2Ldc_ivPP2AwUZrWDOmVkMKQzUZfRjN1MThg489mum06V_9aXiGHXGl4pyNZouHxIy5dvWT8GlR2m-/s320/fuzzoodles+invitation+envelope.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539572798451869538" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 237px; " /></a></div><div>This envelope, once opened, revealed the invitation:</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCc8Mx5dIyRPnuibFjKNH4_9QTP9MrFRgJm12ac5xyLVb54ozxiOZyRtj5O5TwKW2OtoGixddcKmfaFxNwbmKE5nyCoqL9YnStnzmrA9_79Q_Eumti21GwKnvcLZWEfyvEKfJO__l-EWB4/s1600/fuzzoodles+invitation.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCc8Mx5dIyRPnuibFjKNH4_9QTP9MrFRgJm12ac5xyLVb54ozxiOZyRtj5O5TwKW2OtoGixddcKmfaFxNwbmKE5nyCoqL9YnStnzmrA9_79Q_Eumti21GwKnvcLZWEfyvEKfJO__l-EWB4/s320/fuzzoodles+invitation.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539573314804391202" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 248px; " /></a></div><div>To decorate the party area, I set up a table for the food and covered it with a southwestern blanket. Guests munched on tortilla chips with salsa and queso, cocoa roasted almonds, and pizza. For dessert, we had fiesta cookies. Water and juice pouches refreshed the kids, while the adults enjoyed a sparkling blood orange beverage. The fuzzoodles and accessories were loaded into the brims of two sombreros in the center of the work table.</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL8vfCaftd8KY-s19URrRk4KA2z18UiHAcikvuws6ZvNLDKuqAnJgvNNMwdC98DfIlQOi3N-i0IDU-Pb4fvPNj6RcuLlg7YMYfP3lJ8-NiAW6EaX-AibZdllUKNpe9s9RA7SoPNFvaRZQX/s1600/fuzzoodles+fiesta+3.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL8vfCaftd8KY-s19URrRk4KA2z18UiHAcikvuws6ZvNLDKuqAnJgvNNMwdC98DfIlQOi3N-i0IDU-Pb4fvPNj6RcuLlg7YMYfP3lJ8-NiAW6EaX-AibZdllUKNpe9s9RA7SoPNFvaRZQX/s320/fuzzoodles+fiesta+3.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539578087866292338" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRw32U3UFjyRt0maZHNBRoH6eHJ_Hw1D-enD0949ZHUCXXMcxkHYdNef7GuWInsDLq_kgrJj0uADO1DMgKt68_NFyE42HM-g2kriXGFLYlhz3rGhDPyQxtbieNZxZqzW2TTJZXcMZ5blkn/s1600/fiesta+cookies.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRw32U3UFjyRt0maZHNBRoH6eHJ_Hw1D-enD0949ZHUCXXMcxkHYdNef7GuWInsDLq_kgrJj0uADO1DMgKt68_NFyE42HM-g2kriXGFLYlhz3rGhDPyQxtbieNZxZqzW2TTJZXcMZ5blkn/s320/fiesta+cookies.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539578662400846834" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV6FuFdzowt6T_JFFvVKae8BQg_yu4fdvqLTXcHY-tLkVcVc0Lz6CCFoCKw-yXfXh2zjvnQf3bqM3WTpGTRC4KkW2wn6ZQVw1DHVwt51o1igZ9mcUERkyL52xpYBzVfHfd3-R1HsULAwCA/s1600/fuzzoodles+fiesta+2.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV6FuFdzowt6T_JFFvVKae8BQg_yu4fdvqLTXcHY-tLkVcVc0Lz6CCFoCKw-yXfXh2zjvnQf3bqM3WTpGTRC4KkW2wn6ZQVw1DHVwt51o1igZ9mcUERkyL52xpYBzVfHfd3-R1HsULAwCA/s320/fuzzoodles+fiesta+2.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539578312335396946" style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></a></div><div>As soon as the guests arrived, the kids enjoyed figuring out just how the fuzzoodles worked. Each creation triggered new ideas, as the creatures developed into even more elaborate inventions. </div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpKjtTieB_-4a_1DS8fu88szeRaCjfrSO463y-_IV7NAXuDdKPyQ2K8Khbe781f-mvS6-CpiSdN0iLoVR6V2Eb4CZR9vA35uGbQRJa8RAwhPs4bvWZu27AWQOdq5YT7-G7gyfpwt5PhinK/s320/fuzzoodles+fiesta+1.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539579017609472322" style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3naCcs6NDGNLF3Td5J6w-Cz-4dvCwrPyckHH6JQJP7o3s9T9zT_wBogGkes61yl2_YYqhDhbRUcG5UXQhNjiEbnZVyYtlr33ppBx7gQR0R5fOG8FPF7jfPINaNgaQYInU5-outZ87Fplx/s320/fuzzoodles+fiesta+5.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539579796658435634" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></div><div>I saw bracelets, glasses, headbands, door knob cozies, critters, and acrobats... yes, acrobats! The creative juices were flowing, and weren't just limited to the kids. The adults couldn't resist trying their hand at twisting life into the supplies. I seriously could not have predicted how much fun it would be to have a party around these fuzzoodles.</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2NWUeOzuTWwe8JXsytf9XsuC-4FTfus0euTz7ajN4UlMha1ZqXICK3E63848KFlKonPb5Q-ee2UC0UJsDVoDpCRSx57qLsAI3zvJJEpMuvAaDmpxk1iprPajBDx1FoB7GOz3TNYYKzf0k/s1600/creation+5.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2NWUeOzuTWwe8JXsytf9XsuC-4FTfus0euTz7ajN4UlMha1ZqXICK3E63848KFlKonPb5Q-ee2UC0UJsDVoDpCRSx57qLsAI3zvJJEpMuvAaDmpxk1iprPajBDx1FoB7GOz3TNYYKzf0k/s320/creation+5.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539583819594062498" style="cursor: pointer; width: 278px; height: 320px; " /></a></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2NWUeOzuTWwe8JXsytf9XsuC-4FTfus0euTz7ajN4UlMha1ZqXICK3E63848KFlKonPb5Q-ee2UC0UJsDVoDpCRSx57qLsAI3zvJJEpMuvAaDmpxk1iprPajBDx1FoB7GOz3TNYYKzf0k/s1600/creation+5.JPG"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh389N2gVZGi6pXymFGicCDZ4_rwclfmrnt5pxLT0O0NJ_89jMrw5s3RgQxWUrI_w8J9QJUSR8mHFsox0pzbGy8Ta2lyRp8pBW1Jbf73RcE9mO3OsSWmDgAD2fv8Q4toJwTyHJ3sZ8y64Zc/s1600/creation+4.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh389N2gVZGi6pXymFGicCDZ4_rwclfmrnt5pxLT0O0NJ_89jMrw5s3RgQxWUrI_w8J9QJUSR8mHFsox0pzbGy8Ta2lyRp8pBW1Jbf73RcE9mO3OsSWmDgAD2fv8Q4toJwTyHJ3sZ8y64Zc/s320/creation+4.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539583821959696594" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 283px; " /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj7oQswARsCo_sr5Eq1J4iyo2G4HUzCnLNvMRRcORT3XUx2L6ZkEDnHN_4kkPg-sCPZRE6ouRFMQ4p65aZDPinHFLBVjKXNuUrDJwWAGb1QqpbDgYL7-7XvgFte9EWhvZzk8mmLJzEC7sT/s1600/creation+2.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj7oQswARsCo_sr5Eq1J4iyo2G4HUzCnLNvMRRcORT3XUx2L6ZkEDnHN_4kkPg-sCPZRE6ouRFMQ4p65aZDPinHFLBVjKXNuUrDJwWAGb1QqpbDgYL7-7XvgFte9EWhvZzk8mmLJzEC7sT/s320/creation+2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539583804723521906" style="cursor: pointer; width: 188px; height: 320px; " /></a></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj7oQswARsCo_sr5Eq1J4iyo2G4HUzCnLNvMRRcORT3XUx2L6ZkEDnHN_4kkPg-sCPZRE6ouRFMQ4p65aZDPinHFLBVjKXNuUrDJwWAGb1QqpbDgYL7-7XvgFte9EWhvZzk8mmLJzEC7sT/s1600/creation+2.jpg"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYNipLLVK8TKHRur2YWbPFELWY93cXmkpkxZuqj76gfwIt0gNWo5y7AP7OxfjZSpmpHJntrLR1cfU4Pr_yu7sVXaEDLKowABjrL1BB_tsBP_NBYCI7OjdJRo6wCMIH-UKenYrbO2mqTTR_/s1600/creation+1.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYNipLLVK8TKHRur2YWbPFELWY93cXmkpkxZuqj76gfwIt0gNWo5y7AP7OxfjZSpmpHJntrLR1cfU4Pr_yu7sVXaEDLKowABjrL1BB_tsBP_NBYCI7OjdJRo6wCMIH-UKenYrbO2mqTTR_/s320/creation+1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539583794651745778" style="cursor: pointer; width: 202px; height: 320px; " /></a></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYNipLLVK8TKHRur2YWbPFELWY93cXmkpkxZuqj76gfwIt0gNWo5y7AP7OxfjZSpmpHJntrLR1cfU4Pr_yu7sVXaEDLKowABjrL1BB_tsBP_NBYCI7OjdJRo6wCMIH-UKenYrbO2mqTTR_/s1600/creation+1.jpg"></a><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj_F_bpEj6D8xgvAa3RMMgICz1mJrAtz8E_u0xljTsVmI75sCbBEk6tJNojtQf7wG2Bb55F-F15jQKEOhJGEg-EP2qNtUFaqOZJmbhDXEKTfrUa38W7feWEKGzVs3LMHo8p_SxXxR1Itat/s320/creation+3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539583809291963618" style="cursor: pointer; width: 294px; height: 320px; " /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj38mxXkyigVf1R6TPcr5EYP0H_G690znqwss2vrKOuwq9DS6BSkeXAQtvvjL6jUEv8UwTBUkEeJTbLo7HWDNSzJ-cmOYJstoAojOx3aC6yFnBZRbrdv9Ya_i6uleGAtsge_XLGAFrClRPC/s320/creation+6.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539584426966450594" style="cursor: pointer; width: 281px; height: 320px; " /></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKkyqien5-QzEfWf4akQ48BfR3TUsqs3NOq7Mpp-gm12_O7mp95_xz6NAF3XAx_wgSRdLro1Y9K0FsBu0PnrcYfDzPMwjbrQnPi5CwJ5xUscviAYORjtKrXNjwyEIrWbamKDohN6BW9Ypz/s1600/creation+7.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKkyqien5-QzEfWf4akQ48BfR3TUsqs3NOq7Mpp-gm12_O7mp95_xz6NAF3XAx_wgSRdLro1Y9K0FsBu0PnrcYfDzPMwjbrQnPi5CwJ5xUscviAYORjtKrXNjwyEIrWbamKDohN6BW9Ypz/s320/creation+7.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539584429611386082" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 250px; " /></a></div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKkyqien5-QzEfWf4akQ48BfR3TUsqs3NOq7Mpp-gm12_O7mp95_xz6NAF3XAx_wgSRdLro1Y9K0FsBu0PnrcYfDzPMwjbrQnPi5CwJ5xUscviAYORjtKrXNjwyEIrWbamKDohN6BW9Ypz/s1600/creation+7.JPG"></a><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAP1iKGxvpkM_jK2sEMrvD6TZM8Nx40PxVSX-Gdzwr7rCjYkRdqLwHdjlN0Au_Vx_tUnhgzFJ4ga49Tb-1psQegQClhk1NZGP3Qq5XuYyoTWJ9yn7cZY8j8qfzcnfxsMrpcn6LFcJqzrca/s320/fuzzoodles+fiesta+4.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539584797837248306" style="cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></div><div><br /></div><div>The festivities lasted about two hours, with the adults completing a survey at the end to evaluate the Fuzzoodles Fiesta experience. I was thrilled to be able to give away a $10 gift card to Toys R Us, which House Partypalooza provided, to a randomly selected guest!</div><div><br /></div><div>You can find Fuzzoodles at many stores as well as online. Amazon has this <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fuzzoodles-Fluffy-Friends-Plush-Construction/dp/B003DKJG5O">large kit</a> and Toys R Us also carries Fuzzoodles in store and <a href="http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4059467&CAWELAID=548165251">online</a>.</div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin1dVt0gw08l-OChFPnHGgv2cx57qqQoTq8pcVNi1zH4uk_gTpzYc3yVGSw2L5QHPyJ_5nLmzcAVRFtbH6I24W9A_QCTHy3XqMAR7_8UQFFtr85lkYeK4SZK0GAR_ZzqxpfZDwXC8AaGq9/s320/HPP_backgroundimage8.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539563268725598834" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 197px; " /></div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">In exchange for House Partypalooza sending me this product, I agreed to invite other parents and children to my house for a product demonstration. I was able to keep the items our guests didn't take with them. The words and opinions in this review are 100% my own.</span></i></div></div></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-82879825144673679192010-02-02T15:28:00.007-05:002010-02-02T17:10:22.538-05:00Valentine's Day Ladies' Tea - Invitation Reminder & Menu<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';">The tea party is just five days away, and I'm in crunch mode!</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';">I've got the rest of my week all mapped out with to-do's. So far today, I have managed to accomplish about 2/3 of today's list, and should still be able to finish it before the day is over.</span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';">I finally decided to reveal the theme to my guests in the hopes that they'll want to fully participate. Here is the reminder/reveal email that I sent today:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;">Check it out, man!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;">The time period that those righteous brothers hit the charts with "That Lovin' Feelin'" was the mid-60's. So, if you're bold enough, dig out your go-go boots and miniskirts, or your bell bottoms and tie-dye garb, and we'll see you at the commune to celebrate love as inspired by the cultural events of the American 1960's!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family:Georgia, serif;">Make love, not war.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family:Georgia, serif;">Make tea, not love.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#333333;">No, you don't *have* to come in costume. But at least be prepared with a hep catch phrase, or two. :)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family:Georgia, serif;"><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" border="0" width="661" size="14px" style="text-align: left;border-collapse: collapse; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><tbody><tr><td align="left" width="506" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: auto;"><br /></div></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';">I was at the grocery store today to get the ingredients for the food I'll start making over the next few days. I had to leave some items on my grocery list until later in the week so that they would be as fresh as possible. I am pretty pleased with the menu, which is as follows:</span></div><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Fair Trade Organic Tea</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Pita Chips (to munch on upon arrival)</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Cheese Fondue (with bread and apples for dipping)</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Iceberg Lettuce Wedge Salad and 3 dressings (homemade </span><a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/bibb-salad-with-basil-green-goddess-dressing-recipe/index.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Green Goddess</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, Ranch, and Creamy French)</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in;mso-pagination:none;tab-stops:1.0pt 16.15pt 28.0pt 56.0pt 84.0pt 112.0pt 140.0pt 168.0pt 196.0pt 224.0pt 3.5in 280.0pt 308.0pt 336.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Chicken Salad Sandwiches and </span><a href="http://www.retro-housewife.com/ham-and-cheese-dandy-sandwiches-recipe.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Ham & Cheese Dandy Sandwiches</span></a></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Devilled eggs</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><a href="http://www.retro-housewife.com/chocolate-intrigue-recipe.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Chocolate Intrigue Bundt Cake</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> with </span><a href="http://www.retro-housewife.com/chocolate-frosting-recipe.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Chocolate Frosting</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Tang based fruit salad</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Cookies - </span><a href="http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Heart-s-Delight-Cookies"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Heart’s Delight</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> & </span><a href="http://www.retro-housewife.com/two-tone-cookie-slices-recipe.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Two-Tone Cookie Slices</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'times new roman';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> for guests to bag and take home</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in"><br /></p> <!--EndFragment-->Yesterday, I received the two place setting of china that I needed since my party size seems to grow each year. I'm still waiting for a book that I bought on eBay that I planned to use as a prize. I just hope it gets here in time! Up next on my list is to finalize the two games we'll be playing at the party. Oh, and more cleaning (the never ending chore!)</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-75396337956968716142010-01-21T13:12:00.011-05:002010-09-21T14:27:50.583-04:00Valentine's Day Ladies' Tea - More Theme DiscussionI've learned that sometimes you just need to step away from your party planning and just see how things shake out when you sit back down to resume planning. Last week, I was about to panic over my theme plans not gelling for the tea party next month. Fortunately, I had other commitments that forced me to put the party planning on the back burner, and when I came back to things this week, I found that some new perspective and thoughts I'd filed away really came together in a way that made me very happy.<br /><br />I am now in possession of a Valentine's Day Tea Party theme inspired by cultural references of the American 1960s! Remember <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2010/01/sixth-annual-valentines-day-ladies-tea_13.html">my angst</a> over trying to develop the theme title <span style="font-style:italic;">That Lovin' Feelin'</span> after I so hastily chose it to get the invitations out on time? Well, that Righteous Brothers' song topped the charts in 1965. Party game inspiration? It was in 1962 that "The Match Game" premiered on network television. I poured over footage of those old episodes on youtube and that <span style="font-style:italic;">really</span> helped to frame the whole theme out in my mind. My menu will be inspired by the fare of the decade as transcribed by cookbooks of that period. Fondue, anyone? Now that these areas have been decided, I can design the rest of the party elements, such as party favors, with much more ease. And for the first time, I might be able to pull off an outfit that befits the theme, breaking from my tired, old habit of just wearing red or pink. Thrift shops, here I come!<br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Red_velvet_mini_dress_1435042510.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdwfgLTyCxrP1Mg10pc3onz1BwcTljPIJNqdkyREjdY0o-M1L6iTPzOuaYIQepdOPh0ri5TINwsyzlLBt5YGA9rQHtvKUXxkwH7jY9USZ4gU229xom1UsWkdqmUXYElRVWzpYetRc8wK5h/s320/Red_velvet_mini_dress_1435042510.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5429275710082298722" /></a><br /><br />There is one more thing that has fallen into place regarding the invitations. I had designed the invitation using <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a> before the date was set, and once I settled on the date, I hastily went in and sent the invitation without much revision. It wasn't until later that I remembered the functionality that allows you to edit the verbiage of the RSVP section. When designing, I had arbitrarily selected the "British" preset, where Abso-bloody-lutely = Yes, Pardon? = Not Responded, and Not My Cup of Tea = No. Well, it didn't take me long, once I had the sixties in mind for the theme development, to make a connection to the British Invasion phenomenon. Whew! That works. Granted, I could have created my own RSVP verbiage and been a little more Beatles or rock and roll oriented, but remember, this connection was realized after-the-fact, so I'm relieved at least. And I can almost pretend that I did it on purpose. *wink*<br /><br />I do still have a lot of little details to work out, but the task is so much less daunting. I'm excited, though, as I've entered that phase of the party planning where I get to research and learn some new things. I've come to realize that really getting into the theme development is just my excuse to go exploring on the information superhighway (does anybody even call it that anymore??). I'm no longer a student in a formal house of education, but I do still enjoy learning a thing or two. Much of the information I glean in the party theme preparation will not be used at the party, but some of it will appear in the form of subtle references, or tidbits interspersed in party conversation. And besides, it makes me happy.<br /><br />See how it is coming together?Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-12464998198511263102010-01-13T11:11:00.009-05:002010-01-21T14:24:57.442-05:00Valentine's Day Ladies' Tea - Theme DiscussionOK. Confession time. When I designed and sent my <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2010/01/sixth-annual-valentines-day-ladies-tea.html">invitations</a>, I was going with a musical theme. I envisioned miniature musical instruments and scrolls made from sheets of music for the decor. And when trying to <i>compose</i> (see what I did there? :) ) the menu, I... well... I got stuck. Opting to skip that for the moment and move on to planning the games, I... well... I got stuck again. I wrestled with the idea of adapting a classroom music lesson to suit grown-ups, and could only find games using songs of the sort of Baa Baa Black Sheep. That just would not do. The clouds rumbled about my mind for some time before the realization began to dawn that I would probably need to change my party's theme.<div><br /></div><div>But how could I do that since the invitations were already sent? "That Lovin' Feeling" clearly indicated the musical theme, did it not? Hmm... perhaps not really, after all. Perhaps I could focus on the year the Righteous Brothers song topped the charts. I immediately began thinking about a malt shop and golden oldies, and while looking it up on wikipedia, I was educated that this song is from the 1960s, not the 1950s. What do I know?</div><div><br /></div><div>Alright then. So the song is associated with 1965. What else was going on in the world in 1965 that I could work with? Some good stuff and some not-so-pleasant stuff. Dang. What about the entire decade? Counter-culture, social revolution. Hmm... brownies (of the non-magical variety) would be a must on the menu! But I'm a little bit afraid of the games that might be derived from that theme.</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flower-Power_Bus.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG5a_A2z_M66ElKvuAKRabDwyST9GMTdGeWqLnPTOlksFF0QjoBatcgIkhHYGEJJM_zsvQb5dMojGIFhXrraEkSzMOlPXL57KnMNYZS4p7nzSIplK9dF03BiwCittjgHoGyccnLZRnmc_F/s320/180px-Flower-Power_Bus.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5426279977389304786" style="cursor: pointer; width: 180px; height: 202px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>But, really, why not just focus on the song itself? It's a great and memorable song after all. I, for one, have it forever ingrained in my memory from the movie Top Gun. Wow! OK, so now I want to center this party around Top Gun! Can I do that?</div><br /><div>See how I torture myself over theme development? I should have just planned it out well before sending the invitations, but it really snuck up on me this year, and I had little time to spare to get the invitations out on time. And I'm still stuck on theme development. Maybe I should go back to the whole musical theme I had originally envisioned. *sigh*</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-34801724202200644722010-01-07T09:19:00.010-05:002010-09-21T14:00:02.365-04:00Sixth Annual Valentine's Day Ladies' Tea: That Lovin' FeelingIt's that special time of year again... time to plan out the annual Valentine's Day tea party for my gal pals. I'll be sharing the details here - as long as those individuals on my guest list promise to take a hiatus from reading the blog to keep the details a surprise!<div><br /></div><div>I'm using <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a> to help decide on a date, and the votes have already started coming in. So exciting! By the way, the Valentine's Day designs at Punchbowl are so beautiful. Although I blurred out some details concerning the date that haven't been finalized yet, here is a look at the invitation I was able to design.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTPk42HyE6G24cVG3ZzyhCC7uGH64hyphenhyphenfMdUnDkiv4DWFwTXzqAJgenkYv_V0IQ8Wx8Hrj7x97P9SVyYF3gLZl2KA5CdmLzDY0H6HW7yjom7f2hLrknwDw2f_-yRFuL8w041HGbG7nUGCQJ/s1600-h/invitation.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 229px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTPk42HyE6G24cVG3ZzyhCC7uGH64hyphenhyphenfMdUnDkiv4DWFwTXzqAJgenkYv_V0IQ8Wx8Hrj7x97P9SVyYF3gLZl2KA5CdmLzDY0H6HW7yjom7f2hLrknwDw2f_-yRFuL8w041HGbG7nUGCQJ/s320/invitation.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5424006990356454722" /></a></div><div>Pretty, huh?<br /><div><br /></div>I am also excited to be able to use a new <a href="http://www.entertainingathome.com/">"Entertaining at Home"</a> serving dish at the party. It was a prize I won thanks to two bloggers, <a href="http://www.iloveyoutopieces.blogspot.com/">Kristen</a> and <a href="http://cheapomcfrugalpants.blogspot.com/">Toni</a>. Details about that <i>and more</i> to come...<br /></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-91211146037319713752009-12-30T11:39:00.011-05:002010-09-21T14:07:18.285-04:00Punchbowl Party Planning Site<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw8iJm9OBzwOayUixRxlfHbPsmU5bs1QLeIdGXQiOU2AJYSuWxW6bFA7w6tgvlR782lBqzb3vzKnbSaR6615pRP_X0-zKGdkhqKZ-I2_JFkIdhODUxqKqyEbowC49Sz4sfPaKCuT-83yJo/s1600/logo_punchbowl_front_232x48.png"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 232px; height: 48px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw8iJm9OBzwOayUixRxlfHbPsmU5bs1QLeIdGXQiOU2AJYSuWxW6bFA7w6tgvlR782lBqzb3vzKnbSaR6615pRP_X0-zKGdkhqKZ-I2_JFkIdhODUxqKqyEbowC49Sz4sfPaKCuT-83yJo/s320/logo_punchbowl_front_232x48.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519428346310332418" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><i>[Expired]</i></div>Once upon a time I was given a one year free Premium account at Punchbowl.com due to the nature of my blog. Well, I'm still using it and would be remiss if I didn't let Shin-Dig-It readers know that clicking here will get you your own FREE Premium Account at Punchbowl. The catch is, you have to act quickly!!! Here are the details:<div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:Helvetica, serif;"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Punchbowl Software, Inc., developers of the start to finish party planning site </span></i><a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Punchbowl.com</span></i></a><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">, announced that anyone who creates a new user account before 11:59pm PST on December 31, 2009 will receive a FREE Punchbowl Premium account upgrade. Valued at $29.95 (1 year subscription), Punchbowl will give away up to 10,000 Premium accounts by the end of the year. Punchbowl Premium provides users unlimited access to invitation and eCard designs as well as the ability to send advertising-free eCards and invites for one year. "Our site traffic has doubled in the last three months," </span></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">said Matt Douglas, CEO of MyPunchbowl.</span></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> </span></i></span><span style="font-family:Arial;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">"This is our small way of saying thank you for a fantastic year."</span></i></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:Helvetica;font-size:medium;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Arial;"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">To claim your FREE Premium account, sign up for Punchbowl before the end of 2009.</span></i></span></p><span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:x-small;">** While I did previously receive a free Premium account from Punchbowl, this post is not being compensated. It is simply to pass along information that Shin-Dig-It readers might find beneficial. Any traffic Punchbowl.com receives following the provided link only goes to show how much interest my readers have in said company, and that my readers know how to plan a good party. OK, maybe I'm guessing on that last part, but I believe in you! **</span></i></span><i></i><span style="font-style:italic;"></span></span></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-75483560350573779882009-12-20T13:25:00.012-05:002010-01-21T14:29:20.846-05:00Safe and Bright Holiday Decorating House PartyThe House Party Company did it again!<br /><a href="http://www.houseparty.com/"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 123px; height: 58px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZR902Kz4MIsd-4WtLV9pRdgYhtYpXIBkwl_SUeiTTU2PUgls2U5hreAnt8s5SBUGWx01vIY85YZfY18FZBX5i5tImiX-sYXwhCkuhUODtHM4kqzscMCGqMD__pb8sOf_o0N7basoLvpSB/s320/hp_alpha_logo.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421103059435355666" /></a><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZR902Kz4MIsd-4WtLV9pRdgYhtYpXIBkwl_SUeiTTU2PUgls2U5hreAnt8s5SBUGWx01vIY85YZfY18FZBX5i5tImiX-sYXwhCkuhUODtHM4kqzscMCGqMD__pb8sOf_o0N7basoLvpSB/s1600-h/hp_alpha_logo.png"></a><br />I was selected to host another <a href="http://www.houseparty.com/">House Party</a> Event, this time sponsored by <a href="http://www.ul.com/global/eng/pages/">UL (Underwriters Laboratories)</a>. The whole idea this time was to have a wreath decorating extravaganza while sharing safety tips that are especially important to remember this time of year. So, I invited my neighbors over for some festive fun. And, boy was it ever that!<br /><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNhKJmhPBDEuHBF3p3UGgr-jXNNulKQH5o7fgzMgLkt0uq7DROLy_0N7eKeAVn2rtYDBY6grT9KkMQXAQgmLMTXnhgRpAlcaBrJT8AD97c3LTsrrOXt4PnyuIYVQ8775gSyuAePLOKyJYP/s1600-h/DSCF0545.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNhKJmhPBDEuHBF3p3UGgr-jXNNulKQH5o7fgzMgLkt0uq7DROLy_0N7eKeAVn2rtYDBY6grT9KkMQXAQgmLMTXnhgRpAlcaBrJT8AD97c3LTsrrOXt4PnyuIYVQ8775gSyuAePLOKyJYP/s320/DSCF0545.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421116552671861122" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNhKJmhPBDEuHBF3p3UGgr-jXNNulKQH5o7fgzMgLkt0uq7DROLy_0N7eKeAVn2rtYDBY6grT9KkMQXAQgmLMTXnhgRpAlcaBrJT8AD97c3LTsrrOXt4PnyuIYVQ8775gSyuAePLOKyJYP/s1600-h/DSCF0545.JPG"></a><br />I couldn't believe the size of the box containing the party pack when it was delivered! It was so exciting to open it up and inspect all of the contents. Included were: 15 individual 12" wreaths, 15 strings of UL certified lights, several packets of mini ornaments/decorations, a bunch of ribbon, and magnets with safety decorating tips. I purchased some additional decorative items at Dollar Tree including decorative birds, more mini ornaments, silk flowers, pine accents, pine cones, bows, and jingle bells. I also provided cinnamon sticks from my own supply. I set it all up on a table in the party room.<div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi934uU94CZnup3SuCR51YYD1t_v65ruQOWSJyZHckDbK8oXRretfltf7rFXm3XSs5sa0nOc_PHGMx6ojlZZ8hJSd-R4cCpU39MqwNgk-FTVbdBDaogA4L8RRKubocDg2viAKj0Ftv1y7HX/s1600-h/DSCF0541.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 229px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi934uU94CZnup3SuCR51YYD1t_v65ruQOWSJyZHckDbK8oXRretfltf7rFXm3XSs5sa0nOc_PHGMx6ojlZZ8hJSd-R4cCpU39MqwNgk-FTVbdBDaogA4L8RRKubocDg2viAKj0Ftv1y7HX/s320/DSCF0541.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421103939124677714" /></a><br /><br /><div>And although I hadn't begun decorating for Christmas yet in my house, I arranged a few painted wooden decorations around the room to get us all in the spirit. A little Christmas music, some munchies, and a few friends made for a completely enjoyable afternoon!</div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgE5jfQuEDIEbscmSDZVM3ql8jtf83HdJS20QAyL_HF5d9Y22wedfHmbN6mL5QYG79HWAdA4QWUX3p_5OE4JpxPhmgIBVWNdJA7rlheFXZ9nNUs6LVY1r_nO2houuJxRhSzMcSOqtTUato/s1600-h/DSCF0547.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgE5jfQuEDIEbscmSDZVM3ql8jtf83HdJS20QAyL_HF5d9Y22wedfHmbN6mL5QYG79HWAdA4QWUX3p_5OE4JpxPhmgIBVWNdJA7rlheFXZ9nNUs6LVY1r_nO2houuJxRhSzMcSOqtTUato/s320/DSCF0547.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421105630091943746" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>One of my guests is a seasonal florist, and has a great talent for turning ribbon into beautiful bows. She made and shared several bows for us. I may yet enlist her help in turning the rest of the leftover ribbon into bows for future use! </div><div><br /></div><div>The kids at the party (including my own) were eager to join in the fun. With a little help in winding the light string around the wreath, they got right to work making their own creative wreaths. This one was made and proudly displayed by my daughter.</div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy56HfNzgOgDAtjC23VV5ia-Yu0uWwh0MBEmUH0jwlkCxBpiuCl_Tr_kUR4AC2DBdoMYUz4HaiSGbbWjnKMQlx3bl4U1s8hIVy3ol8cPHZydLbynIs9tC1zigWSv7Wdtvrmia-15IwZbq9/s1600-h/DSCF0566.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 182px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy56HfNzgOgDAtjC23VV5ia-Yu0uWwh0MBEmUH0jwlkCxBpiuCl_Tr_kUR4AC2DBdoMYUz4HaiSGbbWjnKMQlx3bl4U1s8hIVy3ol8cPHZydLbynIs9tC1zigWSv7Wdtvrmia-15IwZbq9/s320/DSCF0566.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421108174801336114" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>While decorating, we shared different holiday traditions that we each found special. From Christmas Eve road trips, to weather-inspired fun, there was no end to the engaging conversation. We did also manage to discuss the safety tips that were listed on the magnets, such as reminders about having smoke alarms on each level of your home, and the importance of turning lights and decorations off before bed. (My husband took some left-over magnets to work and handed those out too.) To go along with that, I downloaded a "Safe or Unsafe" quiz from the House Party site. When posed with a question like "You took the family out to pick out your Christmas tree. After three hours of 'too big, too small, kinda lopsided' you found the perfect tree. And, 'hurray!' the cut end of the tree didn't even have any of that sticky stuff on it that always gets all over the rug." you would of course answer "Unsafe" The reason being, "You can tell that a tree has been freshly cut if the cut end of the tree is sticky with resin and when tapped on the ground, few needles fall off. The most important factor in tree safety and fire prevention is freshness, so choose carefully." <i>(</i><a href="http://aap.org/advocacy/releases/novtips.cfm"><i>source</i></a><i>)</i> It is such useful and practical information, you'll want to read more from UL when considering <a href="http://safetyathome.com/?fbid=JyuXUMZFqiu">safety at home</a> all year round.</div><div><br /></div><div>I managed to snap a picture of only a couple of the finished wreaths amidst all the fun.</div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ag31WDL6Ksn7RR9ryhCTDPshVV3B92GN3jRmm72blrCSCuMTQxw6vR9ZhLnc7g_nYJSwBhh8Gg-5kr2Sx2w_M2fiELDqM_aXwHKddwa_QUeis9GmGNsAqSJoIdu7xfVFbjZdn_dZ2ob-/s1600-h/DSCF0573.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ag31WDL6Ksn7RR9ryhCTDPshVV3B92GN3jRmm72blrCSCuMTQxw6vR9ZhLnc7g_nYJSwBhh8Gg-5kr2Sx2w_M2fiELDqM_aXwHKddwa_QUeis9GmGNsAqSJoIdu7xfVFbjZdn_dZ2ob-/s320/DSCF0573.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421115698739279090" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a> </div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLaXbNNnvStVQ1dOROshf1XAW2MZIUeknZ8vPz2PLvpzR8rusgrn7I3earOahfFpF4ykZqWysu2vK1ab3orbllj6fzj1atQb2YffEH-ujX42ehVh4aQGGCXTeU0wj4rcpil6y7urAyWu8Q/s1600-h/DSCF0596.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLaXbNNnvStVQ1dOROshf1XAW2MZIUeknZ8vPz2PLvpzR8rusgrn7I3earOahfFpF4ykZqWysu2vK1ab3orbllj6fzj1atQb2YffEH-ujX42ehVh4aQGGCXTeU0wj4rcpil6y7urAyWu8Q/s320/DSCF0596.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421116118941680722" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Here's wishing every Shin-Dig-It reader a safe, fun and memorable Christmas season!</div><div><br /></div><div>** As customary with hosting a House Party Event, I received the party pack for free. However, this summarization was written of my own volition because I love to share theme party information. **</div></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-3306167624799683112009-12-02T14:26:00.005-05:002009-12-02T14:31:20.925-05:00Wordless Wednesday: Christmas Wreath Design Fun<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjmqzCJgRQ53q1g3mD3Blp2_pitwE-pFl8-DVMZXHvQLDes9axAS4tglx3SVzmKf_ICyDLY8L_GYz___MeRN6mF_XgPkgZ77DBUy39QypSpn4nZPlXvZ2Vnt0Bq0SoJ6hzqoGVzvr8NBN/s1600-h/December+1.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 162px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjmqzCJgRQ53q1g3mD3Blp2_pitwE-pFl8-DVMZXHvQLDes9axAS4tglx3SVzmKf_ICyDLY8L_GYz___MeRN6mF_XgPkgZ77DBUy39QypSpn4nZPlXvZ2Vnt0Bq0SoJ6hzqoGVzvr8NBN/s320/December+1.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5410722819354931186" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>I recently had a Christmas Wreath Decorating Party. Here, my 3 year old shows off the wreath that I made. Come back later for a full write-up on the party. It was so much fun!</div><div><br /></div><div>And check out more of today's WW <a href="http://www.5minutesformom.com/13163/wordless-wednesday-my-little-hostess/">here</a> and <a href="http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/?p=891">here</a>!</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-16194604887804186682009-10-20T16:04:00.007-04:002010-09-21T14:09:13.632-04:00And the winner is...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTGIVQKA0B-CwTaWk7Ip45AeHQPw1KvBkWvNOmPQVlIB9Yv5hkdRZRQpunHu5oD_7XakrbUeheAWbg_lUXMNxtHNImFc3ByP_f8s_yK9-nputJIgCgDXGS2DohnPuwfPB5dmBrwUYqhhOP/s1600/logo_punchbowl_front_232x48.png"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 232px; height: 48px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTGIVQKA0B-CwTaWk7Ip45AeHQPw1KvBkWvNOmPQVlIB9Yv5hkdRZRQpunHu5oD_7XakrbUeheAWbg_lUXMNxtHNImFc3ByP_f8s_yK9-nputJIgCgDXGS2DohnPuwfPB5dmBrwUYqhhOP/s320/logo_punchbowl_front_232x48.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519430159306021826" /></a><br />It's all yours, <a href="http://cheapomcfrugalpants.blogspot.com/">Toni</a>! Congratulations!<br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://cheapomcfrugalpants.blogspot.com/"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha72zwviIRCQjpXSbbrekCsV53FT-ArxgP_qXA7gg0bQhxHJeuhtLi2pzmxgoBwEUbugFIaQexjJIKxiKixzrvqOSbvqxhpT0SG-fQ2Aa9qFJ3xQLsTQFj0m21SAWZ0MYGvJS8OiP9an3W/s320/CHEAPOBUTTON.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5394785710476687234" style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 150px; " /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><div>Toni's comment earned her a FREE PREMIUM account at<a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/"> Punchbowl</a>!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: left;">If you're in northwestern Indiana, you'll enjoy perusing Toni's blog where she is also known as <a href="http://cheapomcfrugalpants.blogspot.com/">Cheapo McFrugalpants</a>. Follow <a href="http://twitter.com/ItsToni">ItsToni</a> on Twitter so you don't miss out on those great local deals. Heck, even if you're not in northwestern Indiana (I'm not, and I still reap the benefits of her updates!), you'll be entertained and maybe learn a thing or two about being frugal, because her tips and advice know no boundaries.</div><div><br /></div><div>Right now, Toni has TWO giveaways going on for the Chicagoland area. Enter by 9:00 PM CST on Thursday, October 22, 2009 to win FOUR TICKETS to see <a href="http://cheapomcfrugalpants.blogspot.com/2009/10/disney-live-rockin-road-show-giveaway.html">Disney Live! Rockin' Road Show</a> and enter by 7:00 PM CST on Sunday, October 25, 2009 to win FOUR TICKETS to see <a href="http://cheapomcfrugalpants.blogspot.com/2009/10/ringling-bros-and-barnum-bailey-zing.html">Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus</a>! You can count on Toni to get you hooked up with some great promotions!</div><div><br /></div><div>If you <i>meant</i> to enter the <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a> account upgrade giveaway on my blog, but just never got around to it, I hope you learned your lesson! (just kidding)... don't despair! They are currently offering the upgrade to premium for $10 off the regular price. Now, go and get your party started!</div><div><br /></div></div></div></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-40026963795855146152009-10-01T09:56:00.005-04:002010-09-21T14:11:28.804-04:00Reminder: Punchbowl Party Planning Site - GIVEAWAY!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLCV84GqKcyWsmezjO3yGpM2K6m3z1TzmuJ6FF3j6Z9l5h3U4JfVXjcynKS6_QZ4Rz5Tn8NI_z7JHY-0xIiSQw8_yYONJwETYcq1kfvceKS6EzNWEEB3418DYoTVNZ-GJ1odUv0ZSEdJWZ/s1600/logo_punchbowl_front_232x48.png"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 232px; height: 48px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLCV84GqKcyWsmezjO3yGpM2K6m3z1TzmuJ6FF3j6Z9l5h3U4JfVXjcynKS6_QZ4Rz5Tn8NI_z7JHY-0xIiSQw8_yYONJwETYcq1kfvceKS6EzNWEEB3418DYoTVNZ-GJ1odUv0ZSEdJWZ/s320/logo_punchbowl_front_232x48.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519430795211479314" /></a><br /><br /><div><br /></div>Come on guys, don't delay... enter now to win a Premium Account at <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a>. Just in time for Halloween, too. Punchbowl has lots of <a href="http://www.mypunchbowl.com/party-planning/halloween">ideas</a> for your Halloween party. Did you know that Halloween falls on a Saturday this year? <div><br /></div><div>Be sure to enter on the <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/09/mypunchbowl-party-planning-site.html">GIVEAWAY post</a>, not this one. :)</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-19328261620711139392009-09-30T09:29:00.005-04:002009-09-30T09:46:33.434-04:00Wordless Wednesday: Me, 35 years ago today!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYa_PNtjrZ6ZRY9QqEAF0s6sSVjDBa_4isjRXVraQ-Ps5FXD7H5yHMtlA62gIznauO6xzsGebybc3AMHO190izOi0ApdFvpUYOgnWwNaX8gFnWwblnM6rnffSWOtZk7ieAyo9Ll25C-8qM/s1600-h/Newborn+Tanya.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYa_PNtjrZ6ZRY9QqEAF0s6sSVjDBa_4isjRXVraQ-Ps5FXD7H5yHMtlA62gIznauO6xzsGebybc3AMHO190izOi0ApdFvpUYOgnWwNaX8gFnWwblnM6rnffSWOtZk7ieAyo9Ll25C-8qM/s320/Newborn+Tanya.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5387252302753169090" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>Check out more Wordless Wednesdays <a href="http://www.5minutesformom.com/8470/wordless-wednesday-italian-town/">here</a> and <a href="http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/">here</a>!</div><div><br /></div><div>Also, enter my GIVEAWAY <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/09/mypunchbowl-party-planning-site.html">here</a>!</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-50506525285685810522009-09-28T10:37:00.015-04:002010-01-21T14:29:45.777-05:00I Can't Believe It's Not Butter House Party<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.houseparty.com/betterbakesale"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 231px; height: 91px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnzN-44k0HqqxiRdsu0r74SLKVW67aOLpd1d-0lVaBSkia2cIVmbhQ8LRsc6qO3KnCSfHO1UI8FZ3q4mqH9ABpiWFLNWUipbKIYlm2NUzCfUWofLmSeBz4zU0eE0DliWGhwCN7wS3GaNrO/s320/monopoly_logo.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386540050757643250" /></a><a href="http://www.houseparty.com/"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 123px; height: 58px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMYagR8wrjHxec0dOZ3-8MuLcBFNU6hVKodkN-5T_PsBgSSrRoL6ZpHnFWa7zspcodAq69JH2ZmEIlnUf28L1a2tRY1H3GAchbrSfCswvlZJ4VmHpWpfxIOsI2E2jV6dAMqZlFeq8C7WZU/s320/hp_alpha_logo.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386539807709329746" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div>After the much lauded <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/06/dominos-american-legends-pizza-house.html">Domino's American Legends Pizza House Party</a> I threw this summer, I was very excited to get a chance to host another party through the <a href="http://www.houseparty.com/">House Party</a> website. This time, it would be sponsored by <a href="http://www.icantbelieveitsnotbutter.com/home.aspx">I Can't Believe It's Not Butter</a>. No joke! How does one have a party based around butter (or "non-butter" as the case may be)? Well, it actually took the form of a <a href="http://www.houseparty.com/betterbakesale">bake sale planning party</a>. What a cool concept! As President of my daughter's school's PTO, this opportunity fell into my lap at just the right time. Our PTO is launching some new programming and events, and a bake sale was a good start to fund our efforts.</div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl937IhqZDWNZjG6TL4uIMaq2cuYuix4wpuAXvofD-0rzPslJX9QjikicZKnUcyVeAz1riYKwc2Pa_TpDJaYxq5ZNzbndwX5Zx95GNJ76t9BFftb62mGlNYg4ymK9NVbaT882eKXk7j-ZX/s1600-h/DSCF0371.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl937IhqZDWNZjG6TL4uIMaq2cuYuix4wpuAXvofD-0rzPslJX9QjikicZKnUcyVeAz1riYKwc2Pa_TpDJaYxq5ZNzbndwX5Zx95GNJ76t9BFftb62mGlNYg4ymK9NVbaT882eKXk7j-ZX/s320/DSCF0371.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386541972086837746" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The party pack that came in the mail contained enough material for 15 guests. My party ended up being much smaller, so there was plenty of stuff go around. Each guest got a tote bag with the ICBINB logo (and another one tucked inside the bag, too), a refrigerator magnet/notepad, a recipe booklet, 6 $1.50 coupons for ICBINB sticks, and entries for a sponsor-related contest to use and to share with friends. To this, I added $1.60 Nature Valley Nut Clusters coupons that I had received from <a href="http://pssst.generalmills.com/">Pssst...</a> that I was supposed to share with friends. I also added a pen (that I got free from CVS with all of their back to school shopping deals!) to go with that fridge magnet list, and a Zobmondo coupon and AMC theaters popcorn coupons that I still had leftover from the <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/06/dominos-american-legends-pizza-house.html">Domino's House Party</a>. Not a bad little reward for people coming together to plan a charitable bake sale!</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm4XcJgOjBp72td6UlPneG_2WRhKr9najmEIUYY0lCGFuUhCUfVpl1SrJTXbhR01PB82ubmjW51R4jJQquh3pVlR7hO5DXnrulj92J0l_LKlQoJzGnaMW4bkh7Lbz1E5Q30wsyGUP5OnzT/s1600-h/DSCF0380.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm4XcJgOjBp72td6UlPneG_2WRhKr9najmEIUYY0lCGFuUhCUfVpl1SrJTXbhR01PB82ubmjW51R4jJQquh3pVlR7hO5DXnrulj92J0l_LKlQoJzGnaMW4bkh7Lbz1E5Q30wsyGUP5OnzT/s320/DSCF0380.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386542310008529874" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I gave the guests a <a href="http://thinks.com/word-search/home/baking_print.htm">baking-related word search</a> to do as people arrived. I also had a jar of chocolate chips on display for the guests to study and make a guess as to how many chips there were in the jar. EVERYone who took a stab at it guessed in the mid-300's. Well, except for my three year old who guessed that there were FIVE chocolate chips (we need to work on those counting skills, sweetie...). In reality, there were 700 chips in that little jar. The guest with the closest guess won the prize, which contained two coupons for free ICBINB and an ICBINB butter dish from the sponsor's party pack, and a candle holder with season-appropriate scented candles for it and hand lotion... you know, to moisturize after all of that baking and washing up. The supplements were things that I pulled out of the stash of things I've gotten for free with deal/coupon shopping.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn7izKkdNBKQBwYt-jdadcQvGVj7i_sFw-8_CQo4ZnCek2mPypUeSgRmUaEc6mPInrkZORw5oB8KcNi5C03t7oU42X_BEjqfaSKTtsLpGHGHHQPYhc7DrbZDC6_7zF_VPtjjMWgA3SULVQ/s1600-h/DSCF0378.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn7izKkdNBKQBwYt-jdadcQvGVj7i_sFw-8_CQo4ZnCek2mPypUeSgRmUaEc6mPInrkZORw5oB8KcNi5C03t7oU42X_BEjqfaSKTtsLpGHGHHQPYhc7DrbZDC6_7zF_VPtjjMWgA3SULVQ/s320/DSCF0378.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386542618353402082" /></a> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1VkTpU2fn9m0Rt9gnNgaVVpz0UzxcAwoZwhoGKEsgkZmWHQAArnsve7zeW0XPTDK-3nwzmcHg9d6ejF_6Mo0No-xuRz6-M0x-hKh-zX6oFAN_W3oPyAv06elPbMvY_1JKTBCZVBKp0I20/s1600-h/DSCF0355.JPG"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1VkTpU2fn9m0Rt9gnNgaVVpz0UzxcAwoZwhoGKEsgkZmWHQAArnsve7zeW0XPTDK-3nwzmcHg9d6ejF_6Mo0No-xuRz6-M0x-hKh-zX6oFAN_W3oPyAv06elPbMvY_1JKTBCZVBKp0I20/s320/DSCF0355.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386542868827469826" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>In the midst of the bake sale planning, we enjoyed some light refreshments - cheese and crackers, chips, chocolate chip cookies the size of your head (!) and lemon squares. To make things interesting, I prepared one batch of lemon squares with real butter and one with ICBINB. I asked my guests to take part in the butter vs. ICBINB taste test, just for grins and giggles. My guests actually uttered the line "I can't believe it's not butter!" afterwards. And so, yeah... maybe I prompted them just a little to actually <i>say</i> the line... but the consensus was that the lemon squares I baked with ICBINB were better than the ones I baked with real butter!</div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCJWPJv4c5rykDpbVJu1g9QRCaVrnxWjuPI7zOU-YDpvHXczLrf8za8GvCKNqKZAy7Tn9Ny28hQVjSNfDDAOXZu51Dt7ls24dLQcWKTOY_4NPKPh5Nq_QlW6h-k0DiNigCo4LCz7qVl6R4/s1600-h/DSCF0374.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCJWPJv4c5rykDpbVJu1g9QRCaVrnxWjuPI7zOU-YDpvHXczLrf8za8GvCKNqKZAy7Tn9Ny28hQVjSNfDDAOXZu51Dt7ls24dLQcWKTOY_4NPKPh5Nq_QlW6h-k0DiNigCo4LCz7qVl6R4/s320/DSCF0374.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5386543112134761490" style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>In the picture, the ICBINB batch is in the foreground, real butter batch in the background. And now, a few notes about my baking experience. Working with ICBINB was just the same as using real butter. The real test was tasting the crust of the lemon squares. The ICBINB crust allowed easier removal from the baking pan, but the real butter crust actually crumbled less when biting into the squares. One guest thought the lemon flavor was more enhanced with the real butter squares, but she still preferred the ICBINB batch. I'm the type of gal who buys what is on sale for most things, which includes ICBINB from time to time. I was glad to have done a side-by-side comparison for this product.</div><div><br /></div><div>And while we didn't actually set a date for our bake sale yet, we did talk about a lot of school related projects and camaraderie was enhanced. We have some details to check on and some avenues to pursue, and we'll be well on our way to having our "better bake sale." What fun! </div><div><br /></div><div>While you're here, don't forget to enter my <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/09/mypunchbowl-party-planning-site.html">Giveaway</a> for a Premium Account at <a href="https://www.mypunchbowl.com/">MyPunchbowl</a>! I reviewed MyPunchbowl <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/09/40th-wedding-anniversary-party.html">here</a>. Check it out!</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-18368378487922717142009-09-26T17:18:00.008-04:002010-09-21T14:14:30.588-04:00Punchbowl Party Planning Site - GIVEAWAY!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOwWxMgjVlKcJiIJuJFg8jISmOZQChCR8zFgUjGcoeTMk0HpofcA3_A94kFUlp3T4OPR82f50vXFPI2cw8ChWW4AGhbk2KbgMRYk1VYc0Bx8o0y3ZPA97oupjbd8Qf6OTIEU9WFaPxDtsm/s1600/logo_punchbowl_front_232x48.png"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 232px; height: 48px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOwWxMgjVlKcJiIJuJFg8jISmOZQChCR8zFgUjGcoeTMk0HpofcA3_A94kFUlp3T4OPR82f50vXFPI2cw8ChWW4AGhbk2KbgMRYk1VYc0Bx8o0y3ZPA97oupjbd8Qf6OTIEU9WFaPxDtsm/s320/logo_punchbowl_front_232x48.png" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519431200409502562" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><i>[Expired]</i></div>Not too long ago, I posted about my in-laws' <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/09/40th-wedding-anniversary-party.html">40th anniversary</a>, and how I used <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a> to do all of the party planning. I have exciting news for you, dear blog reader... the very cool and upbeat folks over at <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a> have generously offered 2 lucky Shin-dig-it readers a year-long upgrade to a<a href="https://www.mypunchbowl.com/upgrade"> Premium account</a>! The regular price for a Premium account is $39.95, and offers you more design choices and other party planning amenities. If you use Twitter, you can also receive updates from <a href="http://twitter.com/Punchbowl">@Punchbowl</a>. They are always able to supply you with a reason to celebrate!<div><br /></div><div>To enter the contest, you need to leave a comment on this post with your email address (only so that I can contact you if you win) and your name. And while you're at it, let us know your favorite reason to celebrate! All entries must be received by 6:00 PM EST on Monday, October 6, 2009. Two winners will be picked by random number generator and will be notified by email. If no contact is made within a reasonable amount of time, I reserve the right to choose another winner.</div><div><br /></div><div>Good luck!</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-27744459588900309632009-09-21T20:36:00.000-04:002009-09-24T21:41:08.002-04:00Shindiglet: Family Movie Night & Bedtime Moments<span class="Apple-style-span" style=" color: rgb(41, 48, 59); font-family:Georgia, 'Times New Roman', sans-serif;font-size:13px;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(41, 48, 59); font-size:13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-size:small;">Shindiglet - Like a grand shindig, only a much smaller to-do. There are times, when even a small group of people getting together creates an occasion for celebrating with a theme. And if it is within my power, I always try to make that happen.</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-size:small;">A family movie night, for me, is such an occasion.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">On weekends, my little family unit (the four of us) likes to kick back and relax and enjoy some family entertainment on the ol' boob tube. Lately, we've been watching the Pink Panther cartoons that I remember watching as a kid. I'm loving the fact that my kids think they are hilarious! My memories take me back to when I was young and I went with my family to the drive in. Before the movie started, we would be treated with a cartoon, sort of like an appetizer. All of us kids (there were always so many of us in one car... never failed!) used to guess which cartoon would be shown. Would it be Tom & Jerry or The Pink Panther? And which exact one would it be? The beach episode of Tom & Jerry where Tom tries to impress that sleek white girl cat? The Pink Panther episode where PP wants everything painted pink when the man is obviously a fan of the color blue? The occasional Ant & the Aardvark? Ahhh, those summertime moments of anticipation! So fast-forward many... ahem!... a few years later, and I get to see my kids rehashing the simple plot lines that make the Pink Panther so timeless.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvxmo3UD4Hx4wcPbeOK7kpOUlZYvZ1k_AyU9eUKLViHdGficLYugO5GY2ISYQwiJmDnzOOZMEZs2dwgDDKiolCdUIlXwpGxfeIawt_lyRAfYXw9YmTFns0GAwJ0WynR5VOJgQVe44HdCc/s1600-h/images.jpeg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 142px; height: 107px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvxmo3UD4Hx4wcPbeOK7kpOUlZYvZ1k_AyU9eUKLViHdGficLYugO5GY2ISYQwiJmDnzOOZMEZs2dwgDDKiolCdUIlXwpGxfeIawt_lyRAfYXw9YmTFns0GAwJ0WynR5VOJgQVe44HdCc/s320/images.jpeg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385209423482913090" /></a><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">All of this reminiscing has gotten me all nostalgic. In my ritualistic, daily blog hopping earlier this summer I landed on a contest over at <a href="http://wantnot.net/">wantnot.net</a> that focused on special bedtime moments between parents and children. I guess that sentimental mood back then got me thinking about special bedtime moments, and how our children just grow up so darn fast (second grade already!!). It hit me that these are the days my children will remember when they're my age, and hopefully they'll look fondly upon them. I want to give my kids those Pink Panther memories! I want them to drift off to sleep in a home where they have fun and bond over family time! Goshdarnit, I want tons and tons of special bedtime moments!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Did I mention that I won that contest over at wantnot.net? No? Welllllllllllllllllllllll... let me tell you all about it! Mir, the very pretty blogger over yonder had partnered with GoodNites to sponsor this contest. All I had to do to enter was to write about a special bedtime moment I had experienced. I recalled the bedtime story "Love You Forever" and how it always makes me emotional when I read it. You can get <a href="http://wantnot.net/2009/07/06/goodnites-sleep-tight-and-give-swag/">the details at wantnot.net</a> and spare me the blubbering from rehashing it now. :) I cannot tell you how excited I was to learn that I had won! When the prize arrived in the mail, I was like a kid at Christmas, going through all of that loot! Included was a beautiful LL Bean tote bag, a nice, warm, fuzzy throw blanket, two Moleskine journals, a $50 gift card for Borders, and a $100 pajamagram.com gift certificate. Wowee!! Family movie night just got cozier! To top it all off, <a href="http://wantnot.net/">wantnot.net</a> won a sub-contest with GoodNites as the blogger who generated the most entries to the <a href="http://www.goodnites.com/na/Contest/Entry.aspx">GoodNites website's Special Bedtime Moments contest</a>. With that win, Mir earned $1,000 worth of bedtime books that she had donated to her local county library system's outreach program. Having even the tiniest part of getting books into the hands of people who can appreciate them is just plain delightful.</span></div><div><br /></div><div>To bring us back full circle, I'm currently planning a shindiglet for an upcoming family movie night. With a subtle nod to wantnot.net and GoodNites... I think we'll watch 'Bedtime Stories.'</div></span></div></span>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-8100192592243698142009-09-01T15:29:00.009-04:002010-09-21T14:16:47.881-04:0040th Wedding Anniversary PartyI had the great honor to organize and implement a 40th wedding anniversary party for my mother and father-in-law this summer. My sister-in-law is busy planning her own wedding, and so I donned my party planning hat and started thinking about themes!<div><br /></div><div>My research quickly uncovered the fact that the 40th anniversary is the Ruby Anniversary. My in-laws just weren't the types that desire to be lavished with rubies, so I figured out ways to play up '40' and used 'ruby' as a color accent instead.</div><div><br /></div><div>In order to get the event off the ground on relatively short notice, it was imperative to do the invitations electronically. Fortunately, I had just been given the opportunity to upgrade my account to Premium at <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a>. If you are not familiar with punchbowl.com, it is a great resource for party planning from invitations, to managing what dishes your guests are bringing, to posting pictures of your event when it is all over. </div><div><br /></div><div>The first order of business to give <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a> a whirl, was to design the invitation. I could choose from plenty of very pretty designs and styles, with good prompts for all the necessary information. Previewing the design was simple, and editing my information was just as intuitive. I had a lot of fun tweaking the details of the design, too. My in-laws' wedding colors were yellow and light blue. I added a splash of red to the design, too, remembering that this was the ruby anniversary after all! Having gathered in my research (thank you, Google!) that the Nasturtium is the 40th anniversary flower, I added a photo of a pretty yellow Nasturtium to the invitation. Wow! I was so pleased with the look. It was pleasant and classy, which is just the impression I wanted to convey.</div><div><br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAvh4q9hYW_UM4OoUfYKruAxsUgGlVPQNcCPPym-ART46wy3DATXHVWh4oCPlHk_u_QjCMWW5b05MEkqH87loOWrlwXWURejY4wWAjEUbT4_W_AZfoWYV9uNMsahixgK2xNFdvz1FCPmZ4/s1600-h/anniversary+invitation.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 248px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAvh4q9hYW_UM4OoUfYKruAxsUgGlVPQNcCPPym-ART46wy3DATXHVWh4oCPlHk_u_QjCMWW5b05MEkqH87loOWrlwXWURejY4wWAjEUbT4_W_AZfoWYV9uNMsahixgK2xNFdvz1FCPmZ4/s320/anniversary+invitation.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5385189436794517714" /></a><br /><div></div><br /><div>When I was satisfied with the design, I moved on to discover more of the features <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a> offers. I was thrilled with the option to add a potluck contribution manager. Since this party was just for family, and was to be held at my in-laws' backyard during the summer, we opted for a cookout celebration. The guests would be bringing dishes to share. I had already envisioned the menu. We would be grilling marinated chicken breast and steak for steak sandwiches, as well as having pulled pork. I also made spaghetti dill salad and deviled eggs. My sister-in-law made a fruit salad, brought the celebratory cake (decorated, once again, with yellow, blue and a splash of red) and supplied the beer and soda. Based on the number of guests, I selected the type and number of other dishes that the guests could choose to bring. I was really impressed with this feature! I did have to play around with it a little before I figured out that you need to remember to click "submit" or it won't save the numbers or prompt the guests to look at this section of the invitation online.</div><div><br /></div><div>At last, I was ready to send the invitation. <a href="http://www.punchbowl.com/">Punchbowl</a> allows you the opportunity to add a specific message to all of your guests, just one, or a different message to each guest - whichever way you want. This is helpful if you want to suggest to your aunt to bring her acclaimed baked lima beans dish, and your uncle to throw a couple of folding tables in the back of the truck, too. Very cool! As the RSVPs came in, I was able to edit the online invitation to update the number of guests expected on the potluck page. Again, I had to play around with this feature, but finally realized you have to click up in the "Note" section to update this information.</div><div><br /></div><div>An easy to manage to-do list is another great feature on this site! This was very handy for me, as I was planning this event the same time I was planning my <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/06/dominos-american-legends-pizza-house.html">Dominos American Legends Pizza House Party</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>The party itself went swimmingly! Everyone contributed such great food, and it wasn't your run-of-the-mill cookout. I wanted my in-laws to feel special, and I think they did. My in-laws have three children (my husband being one of them). To pay homage to their 40 years of marriage, their three children and I each made a list of 10 things we love about them, totaling 40 things. The list ran the gamut from touching to funny, the youngest citing such things as "You never gave me a curfew." And one that I contributed was that "Our kids love coming to visit them, and that it was only <i>partly</i> because there is a playground next door." My husband tugged the heart strings with things like, "By loving us and showing us that you care, you proved that love is truly the light of the world and we are all meant to carry it on to others." My sister-in-law remarked on all of the family vacations they had made over the years, and how the family time would be cherished forever.</div><div><br /></div><div>But that wasn't the only tribute that we paid to to their anniversary. In the week leading up to the party, my husband scanned the pictures from their wedding album and enhanced them with a photo editing software. Some of the photos had been damaged in a flood many moons ago, and some had yellowed over time. They looked great, and were viewed in a wonderful slide show presentation at the party set to the music of their song. My mother-in-law in particular was truly touched by this gesture. </div><div><br /></div><div>As a final tie-in to the 40 theme, the children each gave the couple of honor a $40 gift card for someplace meaningful to them. And although I didn't think of it at the time, I later thought a gift card to <i>Ruby</i> Tuesday would have been appropriate!</div><div><br /></div><div>Later, in a thank you note, my mother-in-law said, "Thank you ever so much for the special anniversary celebration. The food was so good, our wedding pictures put to music was wonderful, and your things that you admire in us were so touching. We truly felt special and so loved. As we grow older, we find that having family is our greatest blessing." </div><div><br /></div><div>When all was said and done, I was proud to be involved in the event, and glad to have shown such a wonderful couple that they have done well in their life together. And... I can't wait to throw a Golden Anniversary party for them!</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-61347026630442200892009-06-24T09:50:00.004-04:002010-01-21T14:30:28.528-05:00Wordless Wednesday: Pizza Party Aftermath A.K.A. Pass the Tums<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicD-9AJyEqwQrp3wG2PelU_coZaRBM-91arH2AweM1kXBvhtCaKhN9qDMMVlAbg4AdwTJWfPfnhzXMPs85rg33Fte0mwm2K66AG7pB7OLWXkjIT8R1brvN741nZjdv4NJJYSqpjrO_lFEB/s1600-h/DSCF9998.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 318px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicD-9AJyEqwQrp3wG2PelU_coZaRBM-91arH2AweM1kXBvhtCaKhN9qDMMVlAbg4AdwTJWfPfnhzXMPs85rg33Fte0mwm2K66AG7pB7OLWXkjIT8R1brvN741nZjdv4NJJYSqpjrO_lFEB/s320/DSCF9998.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350891538217229442" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Check out more WW </span><a href="http://www.5minutesformom.com/6530/wordless-wednesday-irresistably-messy/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">here</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> and </span><a href="http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">here</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">!</span></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-55512572732820573692009-06-23T15:21:00.014-04:002010-01-21T14:30:50.546-05:00Domino's American Legends Pizza House PartySo, say someone offers you a gift card worth $75 at <a href="http://www.dominos.com/home/index.jsp"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">Domino's</span></a> and asks you to sample their new line of pizza - American Legends ("the classic American flavors without the road trip"). Now, say that all you have to do is invite over your friends so that they can sample the new pizza, too. Wouldn't you go for it? I sure did - and what a fun time it was indeed!<div><br /></div><div>It all started several months ago when my sister-in-law forwarded me an email from <a href="http://www.houseparty.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">houseparty.com</span></a> announcing a French Cocktail Hour party. Prospective hosts need only apply online (easy and free) and the houseparty computers would select a set amount of hosts via a cross-comparison of applicants against the sponsor's (in that case, the French Government) marketing needs. Although I had applied for that house party, sadly, I was not selected to be a host. But did that stop me from applying for other house parties? No way! The very next party I applied to host was the <a href="http://www.houseparty.com/americanlegends"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">Domino's American Legends house party</span></a>. This time was I selected? You betcha!</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6vYtgDytkg-LiInHZTlcoJoyEoHqCXSaxcqDnJN5sRWGoDRNK1qKUGTQug7KPqBNvk5lIb_iy8Gc6J1JdHqVrMPuQmA3ECTYxHyWGlfv4mH7vbleBHZBld4xeG2wIu3o31gLHQImPj70c/s1600-h/favor_full_652.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 247px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6vYtgDytkg-LiInHZTlcoJoyEoHqCXSaxcqDnJN5sRWGoDRNK1qKUGTQug7KPqBNvk5lIb_iy8Gc6J1JdHqVrMPuQmA3ECTYxHyWGlfv4mH7vbleBHZBld4xeG2wIu3o31gLHQImPj70c/s320/favor_full_652.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350635929431802642" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>From start to finish, my experience with the house party was superb! They have an internal national party blog that allows you to hear from other party hosts as well as getting information directly from the site. I received timely emails with information on what was coming up next in the party planning process and tips to get the buzz going about my party.</div><div><br /></div><div>The house party site has the added functionality of inviting all of your guests online, making it a breeze to spread the word about your party. I did have one person who I needed to invite in person, and the site made that so easy, too. What fun it was to watch as my guests responded to the RSVP and left messages on the party message board (also built in to the site).</div><div><br /></div><div>Once my party was customized to my taste, and the invitations were issued, I began the theme development of which I am so fond. How to play up the theme with the food? American Legends combined with legendary food tastes brought me to the challenge that I issued to my guests: to bring a food or drink inspired by a legendary American person or place. Being an Elvis admirer myself, I had notions of fried banana and peanut butter sandwiches... or a spin-off of that in a banana & peanut butter dessert pizza. Yes, that is what I would make! Well, to make that long story short, the brownie "pizza crust" broke as I was turning it out, so I just cut them up into squares and forewent the Elvis connection. Brownies are an all-American dessert, so I cut my losses and just went with that. I did, however, stumble upon a fantastic recipe for a <a href="http://www.recipezaar.com/Disneylands-Mint-Julep-Non-Alcoholic-148006"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">non-alcoholic mint julep</span></a>. The recipe is based on the beverage served at Disneyland. See that? I combined the legendary drink of the Kentucky Derby with the legendary all-things-Disney and got myself a two-fer. It was delicious to boot! In honor of Hawaii (American legendary paradise), I also cut up a fresh pineapple.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY5D5RFVYGya1riavdGEdeGKBZ2MDr98dfifNxFtd2hgYWUi-mJMyDVv0Xb4EMoadm4SaT_QtcUfA0pxakVVp4VrCUCKqPKsDh5yihXBmd7LjK-KGKSC8H0hmLJkkkcqxJbFoUQr7M3Pw7/s1600-h/DSCF0017.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY5D5RFVYGya1riavdGEdeGKBZ2MDr98dfifNxFtd2hgYWUi-mJMyDVv0Xb4EMoadm4SaT_QtcUfA0pxakVVp4VrCUCKqPKsDh5yihXBmd7LjK-KGKSC8H0hmLJkkkcqxJbFoUQr7M3Pw7/s320/DSCF0017.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350636433484630050" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>And that brings me to the variety of the Domino's American Legends line of pizzas. Are you stuck in the typical pepperoni pizza rut? Domino's has the answer to your problem. Are you ready for this? They have the Honolulu Hawaiian, Philly Cheesesteak, Buffalo Chicken, Memphis BBQ Chicken, Cali Chicken Bacon Ranch, and Pacific Veggie. Whew! We enjoyed one of each on the hand-tossed crust. Let me tell you, folks... Domino's reputation has skyrocketed in my opinion! You do not want to miss the Memphis Chicken BBQ. It is sweet and smokey, and totally to die for! It was my personal favorite, and not only because it made me think of Elvis (OK, yes, Elvis was smokey and sweet, but it was the Memphis connection that made me think of him initially. Come on folks!)</div><div><br /></div><div>So, feeling that the food was covered, I wanted to add a few other details to bring the theme out even more. I turned to the public library for help. I took out several books on the subject of American Legends. This included: "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", biograpies on Judy Garland and James Dean, a tourism book on Hawaii, and a foodie book about New York. I added a couple from my own collection, including a book on Elvis (of course!), and one about the Kentucky Derby. From the house party site, I downloaded and printed out a top ten list of popular American travel destinations. I set copies of this list around the sitting area with the books. So for a casual shindig, I was feeling pretty satisfied that the theme would be developed.</div><div><br /></div><div>A couple of weeks prior to party day, house party sent me a party pack which arrived via UPS. I got quite a kick out of the fact that it was shipped in a Domino's pizza box. How fun and odd to see the UPS man delivering pizza! Inside the box were several goodies. There was a Domino's pen and notepad (good for making party planning to-do lists), <a href="http://www.dominos.com/home/index.jsp"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">Domino's pizza coupons</span></a>, free popcorn coupons for <a href="http://www.amctheatres.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">AMC theaters</span></a>, and coupons for <a href="http://www.zobmondo.com/index.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">Zobmondo</span></a> games. To my delight, there was also a free Zobmondo <a href="http://www.zobmondo.com/62_0.html">"<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">You Gotta Be Kidding"</span></a> card game for us to use at the party. Squee!</div><div><br /></div><div>Party day happened to be the same day as the scheduled community-wide yard sale, in which I had hoped to participate. The good Lord must have known I was trying to do too much, because that morning it was raining cats and dogs. The yard sale being rained out did provide me the luxury of having plenty of time to get the house tidied up and in order. This was good, because I had planned a backyard bash, but had to change it to an indoor party. It was just too wet outside.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let me share with you another cool facet of my Domino's experience. I love coupons. I ordered my pizza early via the phone instead of online just to make sure the large order could be handled adequately and would be ready on time. I explained about the house party promotion and asked about the online coupons. We hashed things out with no problems, and I managed to take my $75 gift card from the Domino's/house party promotion and get 12 pizzas instead of six thanks to the coupon deal. Lesson here is always, ALWAYS look for coupons and ask the salespeople if they can work with you to use them to the max. There was even enough left on the gift card to throw in a 2-liter of soda. Sweet! It was such a weird thing to see my husband and brother-in-law carrying in so many pizza boxes at one time. But we were a good sized crowd, and we were hungry! Late afternoon found us welcoming our guests, which numbered about 30, to our humble abode with smiles on our faces and feasting on our minds.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyg2Fsz8l_T6xfBVCN3qzXAy1hBIw068CBMcbEiEVz4QbK26Y4On42AfhFSAYeSFNx0vdYOoty3v3Ecxad6HAdhBntY6ixyKN5ztcsE19KEu_fhD8rT3l0PfdBKJweRqrdGEC2dMjZtKr3/s1600-h/DSCF0012.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyg2Fsz8l_T6xfBVCN3qzXAy1hBIw068CBMcbEiEVz4QbK26Y4On42AfhFSAYeSFNx0vdYOoty3v3Ecxad6HAdhBntY6ixyKN5ztcsE19KEu_fhD8rT3l0PfdBKJweRqrdGEC2dMjZtKr3/s320/DSCF0012.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350637861984745794" /></a> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgay2R4NeUf_rbMxl3voNemYrBqa-YZJvcUCeJXRyKPKvH7j5lU8mNjxuDK2Erf9JNNxuhJIDfIlCP16zSpzaFAAyIYHNqDUzKzWhOgvJLdFymJRofw7KNPfPvvlOm-WJx4N5xabRDtHwK7/s1600-h/DSCF0015.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgay2R4NeUf_rbMxl3voNemYrBqa-YZJvcUCeJXRyKPKvH7j5lU8mNjxuDK2Erf9JNNxuhJIDfIlCP16zSpzaFAAyIYHNqDUzKzWhOgvJLdFymJRofw7KNPfPvvlOm-WJx4N5xabRDtHwK7/s320/DSCF0015.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350638150398481970" /></a></div><div>I had printed out cards with the names of each American Legends pizza that I placed aside the appropriate pizza box so that everyone knew what each one was. It was surprising how much fun everyone had just talking about the variety of pizzas and what we all liked most about them. The most popular AL pizza was the Cali Chicken Bacon Ranch. On the house party site for the Domino's party, most people indicated that the Philly Cheesesteak was the most popular at their parties. Here in southcentral PA, we are cheesesteak connoisseurs, and while it was delicious, it didn't quite taste like what we thought of as cheesesteaks. Where was the cheez wiz? Heh! One of my guests remarked that all of the pizzas were delicious but only the pepperoni and the cheese variety were actually pizzas. Her Italian background wouldn't let her identify the AL line as pizzas.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnZfnx8PJgl8QHcFXGGas_GsE1nmuDw3I_NjF8W_s5DFz99jfwchlnZBaCSXrTdr_2MpzqFbPq6nEGlsTAR_1-rVdxbitBslsZCX0p0wvgMlwNcWYcq6rnZiX886jzeaZrbb1QL5zqYgkw/s1600-h/DSCF9996.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnZfnx8PJgl8QHcFXGGas_GsE1nmuDw3I_NjF8W_s5DFz99jfwchlnZBaCSXrTdr_2MpzqFbPq6nEGlsTAR_1-rVdxbitBslsZCX0p0wvgMlwNcWYcq6rnZiX886jzeaZrbb1QL5zqYgkw/s320/DSCF9996.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350637483269912946" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>The "You Gotta Be Kidding" game had several of us rolling on the floor it was so funny. With questions like "Would you rather dig in someone else's nose to get out a booger or have someone else dig in your nose to get out a booger?" you can imagine the amusing discomfort that took turns on everyone's face. Groans and laughter did abound, nonetheless.</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKQ10kfHh8jEm7XOr9vwNdoCPLVgjbimFlMXCUhOV2C0GH5bkvnQTw3rd3luC9NysMUs9ckGCzUlTS2hjxPegym_j1Fr4XQ6tOv_bexke_bP3JEnS2BFWaAfX4xSJzSwY-Ys_YefT5O_82/s1600-h/DSCF9997.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKQ10kfHh8jEm7XOr9vwNdoCPLVgjbimFlMXCUhOV2C0GH5bkvnQTw3rd3luC9NysMUs9ckGCzUlTS2hjxPegym_j1Fr4XQ6tOv_bexke_bP3JEnS2BFWaAfX4xSJzSwY-Ys_YefT5O_82/s320/DSCF9997.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5350636917189678610" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>After several hours of pizza-fueled fun and games, the party guests dissipated, managing to roll home after having so much to eat! There was even some pizza sent home with guests, we had such a bounty. When it was all said and done, I figured it cost me all of about $20 to throw this party. That was for the soda and munchies. What a bargain! Many thanks to <a href="http://www.dominos.com/home/index.jsp"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">Domino's</span></a> and <a href="http://www.houseparty.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">house party</span></a> for a wholesome and terrific event to be a part of! We couldn't have been happier! I am totally aching to host another house party. If you've never checked them out before, go at once to <a href="http://www.houseparty.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000099;">houseparty.com</span></a> and sign yourself up. And hey, if you get selected to host a party, don't forget to invite me! *wink*</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-71313144276403338202009-06-11T10:40:00.005-04:002009-06-11T11:23:45.386-04:00Big things in the works<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJpYIXeIxSV0B4-NmqixPJqiOBzSjJvfrM38PxuS6dluW71SsaVvLsRlI5LPyFIWdygGHGICa-j2B-cUl3jHxVrDdvXAOqYBTe1QxEGqI5RIQSDaXn8lptiqdbx2YMQkXSSkPwOkDtwKW-/s1600-h/favor_full_652.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 247px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJpYIXeIxSV0B4-NmqixPJqiOBzSjJvfrM38PxuS6dluW71SsaVvLsRlI5LPyFIWdygGHGICa-j2B-cUl3jHxVrDdvXAOqYBTe1QxEGqI5RIQSDaXn8lptiqdbx2YMQkXSSkPwOkDtwKW-/s320/favor_full_652.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5346081212718470290" /></a><br />I promise you I've not abandoned this blogging thing! I actually have several shindigs I'm currently working on right now, and it has severely cut into my blogging time. I will try to post some details soon on the "American Legends Domino's Pizza Party" I'm hosting, 4th of July Sillybration in our neighborhood, as well as the 40th Wedding Anniversary party my sister-in-law and I are planning for her parents. Summer is known for keeping people busy, and you'll get no argument from me on that statement! Until later...Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-40414009196536700872009-06-02T13:37:00.000-04:002009-06-03T09:35:21.244-04:00One Lovely Blog Award<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFT2OqDJZIIPj6oRLthzKawSNfzcjXhmF7ZyVSl_uzjV55qjQcoRp6SMeY92msw3BfwW-5xnQJSrKSh0srWT3NIzTIxw-DN9KNjpw0N5qVL72XhhD_Vz1hRbdPP8Kkx_wQvn5_IObhd8mj/s1600-h/one-lovely-blog-award-150x150.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFT2OqDJZIIPj6oRLthzKawSNfzcjXhmF7ZyVSl_uzjV55qjQcoRp6SMeY92msw3BfwW-5xnQJSrKSh0srWT3NIzTIxw-DN9KNjpw0N5qVL72XhhD_Vz1hRbdPP8Kkx_wQvn5_IObhd8mj/s320/one-lovely-blog-award-150x150.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342816671743132194" /></a><br />I'm honored to have been awarded the "One Lovely Blog" Award by <a href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/12001701584084843029">Cascia</a> over at <a href="http://www.thehealthymoms.net/">Healthy Moms</a>. Thank you very much for the nod!<div><br /></div><div>There are so many lovely blogs out there, and I'm passing this award along to some that I've discovered in my blogosphere travels...</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Here are the rules: 1) Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link. 2) Pass the award to other blogs that you’ve newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.</span></span><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px;font-family:Verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">1. </span><a href="http://cheapomcfrugalpants.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The Shopping Adventures of Cheapo McFrugalpants</span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">2. </span><a href="http://goodintentionsqueen.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Queen of Good Intentions</span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px;font-family:Verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">3. </span><a href="http://thesocialfrog.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">The Social Frog</span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px;font-family:Verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">4. </span><a href="http://bloomwhereyouareaplanted.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Bloom Where You're Planted!</span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">5. </span><a href="http://www.lookwhatmomfound.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Look What Mom Found</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px;font-family:Verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">6. </span><a href="http://susieshomemade.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Susie's Homemade</span></a></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px;font-family:Verdana;"><br /></span></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-45682172551974530502009-05-13T11:20:00.000-04:002009-05-13T11:20:50.996-04:00FairlyOdd Parents Party Thank You CardsInstead of using a lot of references to the FairlyOdd Parents on the thank you cards, I opted to personalize them with photos instead. I used publishing software to do the design in postcard format. For each note, I chose a picture taken at one of the two parties the guest had attended. There were a few thank you cards needed for people who weren't at either party, but had given gifts. For those, I chose one good picture of both of the birthday girls and arranged them on the front of the postcard. A simple 'thank you' was also printed on the front of the cards. They were four per page, and I printed them on card stock. After trimming them, I wrote the thank you messages on the backs, and had my oldest sign both of the girls' names. I used Fairy stickers to embellish the front with the pictures, so that the effect was fairies and butterflies flying amid the party pictures. Sometimes simple does just fine!<div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXFNnwqbzFbIUus088tcpY7xKBlNlJ_pkPYEcchKwq37WV2jczSsmIEEg_z6lO7Ijr7gPVZ31Z1zf3PqscbEIRR4bz1gUiNuteIT-6Qj13BYdSKODt6IQSKx7TbX0EFvWTwnLXNWfCyiGM/s1600-h/thank+you+cards.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 249px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXFNnwqbzFbIUus088tcpY7xKBlNlJ_pkPYEcchKwq37WV2jczSsmIEEg_z6lO7Ijr7gPVZ31Z1zf3PqscbEIRR4bz1gUiNuteIT-6Qj13BYdSKODt6IQSKx7TbX0EFvWTwnLXNWfCyiGM/s320/thank+you+cards.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335325122449118562" /></a><br /></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-69098856165554043512009-05-13T11:00:00.004-04:002009-05-13T11:21:05.259-04:00Wordless Wednesday: Teacher Appreciation Luncheon Dessert<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSQg_IafELIipQPLKYpy4brTQtA8XGW58MmPaHYPOJSjWZq1YCmA6M3D6KgWuTFeH49n5tzM2jyPy1uB7S1uJVKeIS50C34ZqGPxk_rbEr6SRMbCrcNRIQltxVK1Dpi-rFvxT4QnGXx90c/s1600-h/DSCF9790.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSQg_IafELIipQPLKYpy4brTQtA8XGW58MmPaHYPOJSjWZq1YCmA6M3D6KgWuTFeH49n5tzM2jyPy1uB7S1uJVKeIS50C34ZqGPxk_rbEr6SRMbCrcNRIQltxVK1Dpi-rFvxT4QnGXx90c/s320/DSCF9790.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335328313349052082" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">for other Wordless Wednesdays, click </span><a href="http://www.5minutesformom.com/6232/wordless-wednesday-birthday-wishes/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">here</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> and/or </span><a href="http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">here</span></a></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-89290134041144478132009-05-13T09:55:00.020-04:002010-01-21T14:31:33.860-05:00Shindiglet: The Before-the-Party Party<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(41, 48, 59); font-size:13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Shindiglet - Like a grand shindig, only a much smaller to-do. There are times, when even a small group of people getting together creates an occasion for celebrating with a theme. And if it is within my power, I always try to make that happen.</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">A before-the-party party, for me, is such an occasion.</span></span></div></span></div><div><br /></div>I planned to make a lunch for the family members coming to the <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/05/fairlyodd-parents-bowling-party-summary.html">FairlyOdd Parents Bowling Party</a>. During the lunch, we could open gifts from them instead of toting more stuff to the bowling alley. What started off as a light lunch, soon became a shindiglet!<div><br /></div><div>Inspired by the <a href="http://partyplanningmom.blogspot.com/2009/03/magical-tablescape.html">Magical Tablescape</a> post over at <a href="http://partyplanningmom.blogspot.com/">Party Planning Mom</a>, I envisioned a fairy theme spin-off of the FairlyOdd Parents theme we'd be ensconced in later. My girls were turning seven and three, and pink and green fairies (nod to Wanda and Cosmo's colors) seemed to be the perfect focal point.</div><div><br /></div><div>Since this was to be a smaller affair, with the main party following it, I wanted only to provide a few key decorative accents. We have a green woodland fairy that sits in our kitchen, so I snagged her to reign supreme as the table centerpiece. Some silk floral stems softened her up a bit. I found a few ceramic fairies at the Dollar Tree that surrounded the woodland fairy tucked in between the flowers and leaves. The green forest bed (a square of green felt) looked very pleasant atop a pink table covering. This picture was taken a few days before the party, as I was planning it all out.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUYr-lqgbrqen-2IJK-2OwS_pALRQZ8-gX0t1ujyRJY360lqfnIkUipm1o6AwA3AvKMw_XgVZjAdynr5y8z_8t-aUb0MrQ0dDTohM3_m7u4Q0lUlOb_GylUlL6Nl7kFE-dGJf73_10jdAV/s1600-h/DSCF9336.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUYr-lqgbrqen-2IJK-2OwS_pALRQZ8-gX0t1ujyRJY360lqfnIkUipm1o6AwA3AvKMw_XgVZjAdynr5y8z_8t-aUb0MrQ0dDTohM3_m7u4Q0lUlOb_GylUlL6Nl7kFE-dGJf73_10jdAV/s320/DSCF9336.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335314737689066370" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Two shades of green crepe paper were draped from the chandelier to the corners of the room to give the effect of a luncheon under the shade of a big tree.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDaF78mhHqIxQYXaLFJPpHtK7XG3gizhp2Pa6YoS362N0CJdo5V6l4fyaAPmoD1YXb_h_aYlhZT8L6WErWmJuyQcxSLn-PV_xNGv6X-oQ3uZMmQTo6avDs1QfFLwPFjmmyMWHs097teyDt/s1600-h/DSCF9375.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDaF78mhHqIxQYXaLFJPpHtK7XG3gizhp2Pa6YoS362N0CJdo5V6l4fyaAPmoD1YXb_h_aYlhZT8L6WErWmJuyQcxSLn-PV_xNGv6X-oQ3uZMmQTo6avDs1QfFLwPFjmmyMWHs097teyDt/s320/DSCF9375.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335316269103428130" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>The table setting was very simple. Every enchanted forest has flowers, so we had a floral napkin with pink utensils. We used a floral napkin spread open as the placemat, a pink plate with a white doily on it, and had a tiny pink cup filled with pop rocks which, when later added to the pink lemonade, became fairy punch (although my girls couldn't wait, and drank the pop rocks straight up!). This great drink idea came from the <a href="http://partyplanningmom.blogspot.com/2009/03/magical-tablescape.html">Magic Tablescape post</a> previously mentioned, as did the idea of putting cotton candy into the drink cups to munch on before the lunch was served. The girls loved it!<br /><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 211px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDc8fsqLzjPmW7FhincE7DqeI4y1Hh_jFGQGDBPUYni9J6IevgYGWl84dPqxHowumENvDlzf5J7oxqgVZDop_ukQ-_lq2l0EtZlBMnFGlbY0SHCGhMvQvmE0iFNdwVQ1t0jjsLtWETKS3V/s320/DSCF9379.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335317824346413570" /> <img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 278px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ7VnW9F9hAI-DUd7koY5Hu1pHQj2cdDreMqzx7jo1hvlZxwIr8oduNP6ft4X2c27t_jWYRbc37Sk7Iv3hP4pgUF4l6PeeWhqGCpZI8UK2YISg2Ij6UYFoo3BFmffzPb4TX6aSRvkgTlxE/s320/DSCF9378.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335317339493698338" /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ7VnW9F9hAI-DUd7koY5Hu1pHQj2cdDreMqzx7jo1hvlZxwIr8oduNP6ft4X2c27t_jWYRbc37Sk7Iv3hP4pgUF4l6PeeWhqGCpZI8UK2YISg2Ij6UYFoo3BFmffzPb4TX6aSRvkgTlxE/s1600-h/DSCF9378.JPG"> </a></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDc8fsqLzjPmW7FhincE7DqeI4y1Hh_jFGQGDBPUYni9J6IevgYGWl84dPqxHowumENvDlzf5J7oxqgVZDop_ukQ-_lq2l0EtZlBMnFGlbY0SHCGhMvQvmE0iFNdwVQ1t0jjsLtWETKS3V/s1600-h/DSCF9379.JPG"></a></div><div><br /></div><div>For lunch, I served cold cut sandwiches, cheese & crackers, fruit salad, deviled eggs, pretzels, and for dessert, birthday cake, of course!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY-xGFb-eR01yeNEiAPgFK7xcne-ksSAbje3zPUJYZ2pwr1_2XQNQJWbUob0nMsxmL91GnMcAOal9zs9AaVX12diHzP4UYk9jd8h3-7t1EDrDO45Sd_iZehB9nPcy7tuOjjH-MbdoL7ILm/s1600-h/DSCF9380.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY-xGFb-eR01yeNEiAPgFK7xcne-ksSAbje3zPUJYZ2pwr1_2XQNQJWbUob0nMsxmL91GnMcAOal9zs9AaVX12diHzP4UYk9jd8h3-7t1EDrDO45Sd_iZehB9nPcy7tuOjjH-MbdoL7ILm/s320/DSCF9380.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335320149845783522" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0thfuWKHzzGjNoi4-ORfEAFYzV1dv8kdQiueKhQFbrkFQ0-WVk2u-TaZKQSx0EGPPFsmpXGwZEYfKJlAoIVGKCgEwxShJ8QJgwH_N0paFkIIqRIConEvBRFhILqiOYDwvB2KigSOG91n/s1600-h/IMG_0966.JPG" style="text-decoration: none;"><img style="text-decoration: underline;cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 222px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0thfuWKHzzGjNoi4-ORfEAFYzV1dv8kdQiueKhQFbrkFQ0-WVk2u-TaZKQSx0EGPPFsmpXGwZEYfKJlAoIVGKCgEwxShJ8QJgwH_N0paFkIIqRIConEvBRFhILqiOYDwvB2KigSOG91n/s320/IMG_0966.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335320968815485010" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5RdIOIdfhmXZMOA1It486pcajhj8TO3SH4u1Hs76SeTWzew3clYpW8Y-qSwrwD-SQS-CxO6oHtZLf-efCKoZnJIMKpP9B4rp3OV8a2Z6EHB5BiDDAJZydSRx1YX8Erb-eOP9Ca5LHeEpU/s1600-h/IMG_0967.JPG"></a></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5RdIOIdfhmXZMOA1It486pcajhj8TO3SH4u1Hs76SeTWzew3clYpW8Y-qSwrwD-SQS-CxO6oHtZLf-efCKoZnJIMKpP9B4rp3OV8a2Z6EHB5BiDDAJZydSRx1YX8Erb-eOP9Ca5LHeEpU/s1600-h/IMG_0967.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 249px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5RdIOIdfhmXZMOA1It486pcajhj8TO3SH4u1Hs76SeTWzew3clYpW8Y-qSwrwD-SQS-CxO6oHtZLf-efCKoZnJIMKpP9B4rp3OV8a2Z6EHB5BiDDAJZydSRx1YX8Erb-eOP9Ca5LHeEpU/s320/IMG_0967.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335321144634250242" /></a><br /></div><div>We lit seven candles for the oldest child and sang Happy Birthday to her, then repeated the process with three candles for the youngest. We ended up not having enough time to open presents before the bowling party, so we waited until afterwards. What a great day spent with family & friends!</div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-85288671234210043462009-05-13T09:00:00.009-04:002010-01-21T14:31:52.974-05:00FairlyOdd Parents Bowling Party SummaryAfter a few weeks of the everyday chaos of life, I'm finally settling in to wrap up the details from my daughters' FairlyOdd Parents Bowling Birthday Party that took place in early April. It was a day of Fairly Odd fun!<div><br /></div><div>Let me begin with the cake... er, non-cake, as it ended up. Since we had to be portable, given that the party wasn't being held at our house, we opted for cupcakes. I had originally envisioned a fishbowl cake similar to this photo that I found <a href="http://rolaksonline.com/default.aspx">online</a>.</div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoWwR5JMPrhRintb-qWoWXiwBLqwTaD84FUkVzEw8JjT1SeHk3xHwQH-sVEgbQQVVw4feEQOfttO7LRQMQga2Zu82ExWWJdMWM_QjLZAD_Oc8BQAGYEOZciD0z__HLNSYHIw50skwBeuT-/s1600-h/Fish+Cake+side.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 253px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoWwR5JMPrhRintb-qWoWXiwBLqwTaD84FUkVzEw8JjT1SeHk3xHwQH-sVEgbQQVVw4feEQOfttO7LRQMQga2Zu82ExWWJdMWM_QjLZAD_Oc8BQAGYEOZciD0z__HLNSYHIw50skwBeuT-/s320/Fish+Cake+side.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335294541126490690" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>Tailored to the FairlyOdd Parents fishbowl, this would have been perfect. The car ride over to the bowling party worried me, though. So I scaled things waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay back and made these very simple cupcakes. They made it to the bowling alley without any issues, and were gobbled up with no muss or fuss.</div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGa-DixmQlap5DhvaIJGopwjq1oUT5iEFp6uoZqrX-YPmAKWAUbhkdUIgKSZK4AHQLNmfyw2k0QIDFErSsciz_bhBxmA4qCBM3SXbwTJQnzAPO0pN4jbTIW50E2aWkYeVLxtzLWHysBKb2/s1600-h/DSCF9432.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGa-DixmQlap5DhvaIJGopwjq1oUT5iEFp6uoZqrX-YPmAKWAUbhkdUIgKSZK4AHQLNmfyw2k0QIDFErSsciz_bhBxmA4qCBM3SXbwTJQnzAPO0pN4jbTIW50E2aWkYeVLxtzLWHysBKb2/s320/DSCF9432.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335295400291071602" /></a><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>As for the venue itself, we couldn't have asked for a better site. We had plenty of room to set up the <a href="http://shin-dig-it.blogspot.com/2009/04/fairly-oddparents-birthday-party-goody.html">goody bags</a> and the cupcakes, as well as room for the presents that the guests brought. The kids and adults could share the same lanes, with programmable "bumpers" to appear when it was a child's turn bowl. The bumpers block the gutters so there are no gutter balls. The cost included pizza, chips, a soda, and an ice cream cup for each guest. They also provided all of the plates, napkins, etc. It was a great deal!</div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ0ObMEzaVM80Ih2hiB80114GbHhGIElS20PauSknJ-_nR_2YOxw1JEQv6ttMoIfG3PAJpKTnhZKSbv3WJU_KBZSYg-o_7ZikWnamW5U8NQhq3_P-ZBy3bWbJQs0UMhD_ZKf0-VjXFcW2A/s1600-h/DSCF9426.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ0ObMEzaVM80Ih2hiB80114GbHhGIElS20PauSknJ-_nR_2YOxw1JEQv6ttMoIfG3PAJpKTnhZKSbv3WJU_KBZSYg-o_7ZikWnamW5U8NQhq3_P-ZBy3bWbJQs0UMhD_ZKf0-VjXFcW2A/s320/DSCF9426.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335300855618540610" /></a><div><br /><div>There was plenty of time allotted for bowling. In addition to the bumpers, there were also light-weight bowling balls to make it more appropriate for children. Most of the kids still had trouble maneuvering the ball. To aid this situation, there were these wheeled devices that allowed them to push the ball instead.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_KIomB_CAQY-CKskJ6-5et-o_N9m9i58fhUeDBDCIxrDWDVtHERI2pE4XMm-UnM6zYaw8AbgW95gd5WdovBw-A1QSSh9RgUb15Yw3AQMttMZ0b3D4k81uD1CbFl1zL0vw0apVrNBqgxae/s1600-h/DSCF9389.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 287px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_KIomB_CAQY-CKskJ6-5et-o_N9m9i58fhUeDBDCIxrDWDVtHERI2pE4XMm-UnM6zYaw8AbgW95gd5WdovBw-A1QSSh9RgUb15Yw3AQMttMZ0b3D4k81uD1CbFl1zL0vw0apVrNBqgxae/s320/DSCF9389.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5335300083781326594" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>My girls had a great time, I enjoyed myself, and the rest of the adults were still smiling when it was all over. If you're considering a bowling party for your child, I highly recommend it. We're not regular bowlers at all, so don't let that stop you, because the kids always love it!</div></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8148352419308976103.post-20863078911620411392009-04-22T09:03:00.003-04:002009-04-22T09:07:17.114-04:00Wordless Wednesday: school multicultural night centerpiece<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhznF43jSE8guY6vdbpbhhJWzcqkZ4sKSzXAP2IF_f7OP8R5FTnQmoujnynGHPgYvQY0fRQJTKWxKRvnoduiCbxmjKbJgcHdAbVrX8FeCaUgqH6H-lwkFmr_sOWXFarjYVMC6wPAS2LmriD/s1600-h/DSCF9700.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhznF43jSE8guY6vdbpbhhJWzcqkZ4sKSzXAP2IF_f7OP8R5FTnQmoujnynGHPgYvQY0fRQJTKWxKRvnoduiCbxmjKbJgcHdAbVrX8FeCaUgqH6H-lwkFmr_sOWXFarjYVMC6wPAS2LmriD/s320/DSCF9700.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327501036321940210" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">see more wordless wednesdays <a href="http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/">here</a> and <a href="http://www.5minutesformom.com/6038/wordless-wednesday-inou/">here</a></span></div>Tanyahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12544744398580311367noreply@blogger.com3