Lucky to be showered with another giveaway win!

Oh my...I must be doing something right with the Universe these days. I won yet another giveaway and from one of my closest blogging friends! Tracey from At Home on the Ridge has showered me with gifts adorned in pink! Well most of them anyway. :) I just have to share so here goes! Oh yes and I had a few helpers beside me when I was opening the box. Something that had to do with smell approval. Lol! Oh and if you haven't seen Tracey's blog...she has the most heart-warming and fun blog...she is so genuine and so sweet...it certainly shows through in her words. Thanks for being such a good friend, Tracey.

She packaged everything up in adorable tissue and sweet little stickers. :)

An adorable card....

Here's the whole shebang...she bangs, she bangs! Oh wait...sorry didn't mean to break into a Ricky Martin song..still a little excited. Lol! A Casual Entertaining cookbook..it's so small and cute! An adorable apron to add to my ever-growing collection, pink scrubbies, pink measuring cups, oven mitts that are oh so me, sweet cupcake bookmarks that I've already inserted in my current read. And last but not least, adorable magnets that Tracey made herself! They were so cute and so professional looking! They immediately were put up on my fridge.

Quincy approves...oh Quincy mom needs to clean those eyes of yours!

Emma approves...

Mocha is in love with everything...

And the apron has been introduced to the others....they said their hellos and had a slumber party that evening. :)

And I ended the evening with fresh tomatoes sprinkled with tons of salt and pepper!

Thank you SO, SO much Tracey. You are one of my closest blogging friends and if you remember her comment about me being strong and independent, well Tracey encouraged me along the way. She's a strong woman herself. Thank you for all your encouragement and kind words...words I will never forget. After a challenging day of emotions (I'll spare you the details), this made me feel so special. :)

Sunday Relaxation

Even though I went to the cat shelter....I did get to relax a bit today, look at some magazines, lay on the bed, spend time with my Mocha (she's having separation issues...I'll explain another time). So we relaxed together. :) I feel horrible she has been missing me so much. I have made it a point to cut back on my activities to spend more time with my babies. I definitely owe it to Mocha. She's been through so much with me...she's my divorce kitty you know. :)

Earlier I made these delicious chocolate chip cookies. The recipe is a bit different than I've tried before...it's a Bobby Flay recipe. I loved how they turned out. Very "doughy" flavor when done. I don't know if you know what I'm talking about...but maybe you do. Doughy and moist....and just downright comforting! This time I added some white chocolate chips too.

Bobby Flay's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

2 cups plus 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup dark brown muscavado sugar
1/3 cup light brown muscavado sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 (5-ounce) block semisweet chocolate, chopped into chunks (recommended: Callebaut)
1 (5-ounce) block milk chocolate, chopped into chunks (recommended: Callebaut)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicon pads.
Whisk together the flour, salt and baking soda in a large bowl.

Place the butter in the bowl on an electric stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment and beat until smooth, about 1 minute. Add the sugars and continue mixing, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes longer. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and the vanilla extract, beating until incorporated.

Add half of the flour and mix until just incorporated. Add the remaining flour, again mixing until just combined. Remove the bowl from the stand and fold in the chocolate chunks.

Using a small ice cream scoop, spoon the dough onto a baking sheet, leaving at least 2 inches between each cookie and bake on the middle rack until the cookies are lightly golden brown and still soft in the middle, about 11 minutes. Let cookies rest for 2 minutes on the baking sheet before removing them to a baking rack with a wide metal spatula. Let the cookies cool on the baking rack for a few minutes before eating. Repeat with remaining dough.

Note: I actually used half semi-sweet chocolate chips/half white chocolate chips as opposed to using the chopped chocolate in this recipe. Hey, chocolate is chocolate in my book! That's what I had on hand anyway. :)

Come Mr. Tally Man, Tally Me Banana!

"The true origin of Bananas, world's most popular fruit, is found in the region of Malaysia. By way of curious visitors, bananas traveled from there to India where they are mentioned in the Buddhist Pali writings dating back to the 6th century BCE. In his campaign in India in 327 BCE, Alexander the Great relished his first taste of the banana, an usual fruit he saw growing on tall trees. He is even credited with bringing the banana from India to the Western world. According to Chinese historian Yang Fu, China was tending plantations of bananas in 200 CE. These bananas grew only in the southern region of China and were considered exotic, rare fruits that never became popular with the Chinese masses until the 20th century."

Taken from http://www.banana.com/

And now for the fun part! You have to sing Day O while making the banana smoothie. Awwww, come on! Have some fun, will ya? ;)

Banana Smoothie

1 banana

1 cup cold milk

1 egg (optional)

1 tablespoon wheat germ

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

DIRECTIONS:

In a blender, combine banana, milk, egg, wheat germ, honey, vanilla and nutmeg. Blend until smooth. Pour into a chilled glass and serve.

No Horsing Around This Weekend....

And when I don't....this is what happens. It's really pathetic. Can you see me? I think that woman is going to hit me with a whip for kissing her horse. Wait, I think that's a donkey, no mule, no burrow! Lol!

But I think I may need to horse around with these. ;)

Happy weekend all!

I Won Another Giveaway!

I just LOVE seeing boxes sitting in front of my door when I come home and yesterday, one was sitting there...all alone...waiting for me, just me! Yep, I have been a lucky gal lately. I won a giveaway (and I have another coming!). :) I won this giveaway from The Domestic Witch. She is one fun witch, let me tell you. In fact, I'd call her the Martha Stewart of witches! She loves cooking, organizing, decorating, cleaning, anything vintage and she knows how to have fun with her Ya-Ya sisters! Her blog is so fun. In fact, she lists what housekeeping she is doing that day and tells you have to weave magic into everyday chores. Also, she has the most adorable family, especially her sweet little boy, Angelus.

She packaged everything up so sweetly all the way down to the dried flowers on her beautiful stationary. :)

How sweet is this!

Protection bag filled with a snowflake obsidian, moonstone & lapis lazuli and Anubis Rock made from coal. This mix of stones brings balance, protection, serenity and purity into one's life. I just love it!

Then she was sweet enough to throw in this bonus gift, a vintage Household magazine from 1951! I love vintage magazines. It's always so fun to see the ads they published back then. They even have some vintage recipes (that I must try) although there really is no such thing as a vintage recipe...recipes seem to span time or should I say they're timeless. :)

Here's the funny part. As I was writing this post and watching the Hallmark Channel at the same time (my favorite channel of all time) this movie was playing. One of my favorites! It's called The Good Witch. It's so enchanting! If you haven't watched it, it replays often on The Hallmark Channel. Anyway, I see a lot of similarities in The Good Witch and The Domestic Witch! :)

Thank you so much Domestic Witch! I know these stones will bring me positive energy! Here's the big question...will they make me as domestic as you? I hope so! ;) If you haven't stopped by, please swing over so she can sprinkle a little magic into your life!

xoxo

Oliver the Miracle Kitten

We got these photos this morning from Sharon, the owner of PAWS (the cat shelter where I volunteer at). This little guy was in bad shape when he came to us.

From Sharon updating us on little Oliver...

"This is little Oliver....isn't he just the cutest thing ever? Oliver was two weeks old when he came to the shelter. He and his siblings were in pretty rough shape and none of us expected little Oliver to survive. He was small, dehydrated, starving and constipated. . . .but that was not what we feared most for him. . . .he is missing the last vertebrae in his spine and had difficulty. . . .to go number 2. He has had three sessions with the acupuncturist. Each time the acupuncturist would insert the needle, Oliver would relax and his little eyes closed and he drifted into la la land for the rest of his session. After the 2nd session, I am happy to report, Oliver started using a litter box. Yea ! ! ! He will have one more treatment, and may not need to go back. Oliver has no tail at all. . . .which makes him all the cuter to anyone who has a place in their heart for the special kittens."

That's a Beanie Baby he's holding onto! This shows you how tiny he is!

I love stories like this and so thankful for natural medicine for animals. :)

My new book and a bit of a soapbox.

Like my aprons that hang in my kitchen...

And the dish towels that lay in the basket...

There is a common theme in these two pictures above. Can you guess what it is? Keep reading and you'll see.

I just started reading my new book. I absolutely love it so far. Back up, the last book I read, Here on Earth, was a good book but I was disappointed with the ending. It was very anticlimactic and it really was no surprise. I love a good twist in the end...or a good message and this just kinda laid there. Still, who am I to judge a well written book! Kudos to any author, I say! I will say this, it's inspiring me to write again. I miss it. I miss absorbing myself into another world. Oh well, soon perhaps. :)

Here's the book I just started reading. In a nutshell and very well put here is something I grabbed off of the author's website:

"The Last Time I Was Me is about a woman named Jeanne Stewart who has just hit crisis point in her life.

Unfortunately, she has reached that crisis point in front of 834 advertising execs, calling them, "pointless" and "schmucks." She has also assaulted her cheating boyfriend in a creative, and some might say humorous fashion, and is now facing both criminal and civil charges. She is grieving for her mother, still hiding from her past, and wondering if she should drive her new-old Bronco into the Pacific Ocean. When the moon is full and her truck packed with her high heel collection, her grandmother's teacups, a violin that brings her to tears, and her mother's china, she heads for Oregon. In Oregon she enters a court-ordered Anger Management program, runs naked along a river, falls in love, buries a body, learns more than she ever wanted to about germs, re-builds a house, eats piles of pancakes for the first time in years, covers herself in peanut butter, flies like a bird, runs a gubernatorial campaign, reaches out to those in desperate need of help, and endures a court trial.

She's busy.

Hope you enjoy The Last Time I Was Me.

It might make you cry. Might make you laugh. So get your chocolates and bubble bath ready before you begin. "

Courtesy of CathyLamb.net

I am loving this book so far and I have to say I can relate to what the character is going through. In a less extreme way, I am sort of at the point myself. You know, we've all lived life as we have been brought up to believe...what life is supposed to be like, what it's supposed to be about. Don't get me wrong, I am so thankful for how my parents raised me. If it weren't for them I wouldn't be who I am today instilled with good morals, values and a kind and loving heart. But....I still have questions. I seem to always have questions about life. Who defines what life is supposed to be like? How did the standards of society come about? If someone defined that standard at some point, who is that person....why did he set the standard and does that standard fit any other unique person like me..and you? If it doesn't, who are we? I'll tell you who we are. We are each individuals...we are each unique in ourselves, faults and all, and that's what makes life so exciting. It makes life exciting when we meet new friends who change our lives for better or worse because good or bad, I believe there is a reason to everything. All I know for sure is that I'm here to live life. Live my life to the fullest. But you know....I wanna live life as ME. I don't want to be the person that I'm supposed to be. I don't want to be the person that is supposed to like what everyone else likes or does what everyone else does. My unique qualities are here for me and to possibly touch someone else's life in a positive way and to harm none in my path. If I can do at least that, my life is priceless. See, that's what this book is about. It's about letting go of all we thought we should be so that we can finally be who we really are and to live the life that has been waiting for us all along. So if I wanna eat a whole bag of chocolates in one sitting....or if I wanna put my cat in a baby stroller and walk around the neighborhood, let me. If I want to enjoy laying in bed all day, don't tell me I should get up to exercise a little. Just enjoy my unique qualities and laugh with me. :) Seriously though, I probably wouldn't put my cat in a baby stroller. Lol!

So, about the pictures above. We may all be made of the same thing....we may all look the same....but we're still just a bit different and those differences are what makes life so fun! I mean really, look at all the beautiful designs in those dish towels and those aprons. Diversity! You gotta love it.

Okay, I'm off my soabox now. :) Thanks for indulging me. Now...go live life as YOU!

*sniffle, sniffle* Does anyone have a tissue?

Ahhhh...another relaxing evening. :)

I am so excited! I actually got to come straight home without doing a mad dash to change into my next outfit, next hat, or whatever! I was able to come home, get into my jammies, make myself one of my favorite sandwiches and watch a few episodes of Ma and Pa Kettle. Do you remember the series? I loved Marjorie Main's character as Ma! Lol! She was so funny. And poor Pa always did as he was told. There's something about the Ma and Pa Kettle series that makes me feel like I should be all bundled up at gramma's house (with those jammies that had that footsies on them) eating a grilled cheese sandwich and sipping on some comforting tomato soup. :)

Tonight I'll settle for one of my favorite sandwiches, fresh Genoa salami, a slice of Provolone cheese (it's on the bottom so you can't see it) and tons and tons of avocado!


See these? These are pure evil to Michelle. Never, ever offer Michelle these because she will take the whole bag and eat them in one sitting. I'm almost positive I've gained about five pounds since yesterday.

These are a few funny clips from Ma and Pa Kettle Go to Town. I love it! Don't forget to turn off my player down below.



See? All comfy with my robe covering me....the TV on and my computer up. I guess you could say I had a relaxing evening with technology tonight. Lol!

Happy relaxing!

Spirits Among Us?

So, as you all know our paranormal group had an investigation Friday night. First off, I think you all should know it's never as dramatic as you see on TV. :) Our investigations are usually uneventful until we review all the equipment and find something. However, we did have a few interesting things happen that gave us pause.

To start with, we decided to test all of our psychic abilities and each guessed what color the house would be. Yellow, green, white or grey. I picked grey. When we arrived, we found the house to be grey. :) I have been an understudy to our two active psychics in our group this past year. They each say I have the gift but that I need more confidence in my abilities. Well, everyone has the ability, really. It's just how much you are willing to do to expand those abilities. For me, I can't think long about what comes to me. As quick as it comes, I write it down or tell someone. This past week before the investigation, I had a few impressions come to me. I felt a strong male presence there that is very attached to the lady of the house. A kind spirit...and quite fond of her. I also felt the presence of a little girl, about eight years old, wearing yellow. I also knew there was a dog buried on their property and his spirit wanders as well. I should start off by saying our two psychics could not make it that evening but they gave us their impressions of what they sensed before we went. They informed our team lead and did not tell any of us until after the investigation. In any event, I asked the lady of the house who's dog it was that was buried underneath the Magnolia tree. She said "Oh! That's Maynard, our neighbor's dog". :) Everyone was shocked that I did not hesitate when I pointed towards the direction of the tree. I felt his presence sort of wandering the area. I think I tend to feel the presence of animal spirits before I feel the presence of humans. Go figure. ;) I then asked who the little girl was that was in the house. She said, "Oh the kids talk to her all the time. Her name is Emily." I asked her if she wears a yellow dress, or if the kids notice her wearing a yellow dress. She didn't know but said her daughter's favorite color is yellow. Not sure what the correlation is there. When we were doing our EVP session we asked Emily if she was there. As soon as the question was asked the KII meter blinked three times. Other than that it never went off again. We had several cold spots that the temperature gauge caught....from 50 degrees down to 22 degrees almost immediately. As far as the male spirit goes, the lady of the house stated she would feel her feet being tickled in the middle of the night...or a hand stroking her back in the laundry room. I feel as though this male presence reminds her of someone that he was very close to.

The picture above is just above the train tracks where the accident took place. You can see orbs but orbs are very hard to verify as they can be particles of dust or dust on the lens. However, in my review of my DVR recorder that was setup in the master bedroom (where both me and Jen, another gal in our group felt a lot of activity) I caught a moving orb....that appeared then disappeared as if purposefully. Not just a fading effect either. I also caught some very erratic light movement in the room as well. I'll get the opinion of the others that are in our group when we have our meeting next weekend. :) I haven't reviewed my voice recorder but I'm anxious to see if I caught anything!

As a side note, the psychics also let us know the land was once inhabited by Native Americans. The owner showed us at least ten arrowheads they had found on their property since they have lived there. These arrowheads were amazingly PERFECT in shape.

If anything, our group had tons of fun and it's always the anticipation of something happening that gets us excited.

I will be working on our official website this week and will let you all know when it's up and running. Our group actually has a new name. We are called Paranormal Researchers of Oregon Foundation (P.R.O.O.F.). We will work towards becoming a family member of TAPS. :) Wish us luck!

On another quick side note. I went to the shelter this morning, as usual. See this cute guy here? He came in as a very feral cat, very terrified and would not let anyone touch him. Every time I came in I would talk with him and work with him on a social level. Today, when he saw me he let out a meow and came right up to me to pet him. It made my heart fill with joy. I love it when hard work and love pays off like this...especially when it involves trust.

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I was able to relax today and get a few things done around the house. I did, however, break the belt on my vacuum. Dang, what was that huge thing I sucked up. Lol! So, off to Target I went....and spent over $100.00! Why does that always happen when I go to Target?!

Restful Sunday

I hope you're all having a relaxing weekend. Today, I'm finally going to relax a bit. After the shelter I am coming home and resting and getting things done around my neglected little place. I'm also going to sit down and visit you all! I have been terrible at my blog surfing and want to apologize! The investigation was interesting. I will post more on that later!

Bonding

The more I ride....the more I can't live without 'em.

"A horse is the projection of peoples' dreams about themselves - strong, powerful, beautiful - and it has the capability of giving us escape from our mundane existence." ~Pam Brown

I had my lesson last night and I learned how to canter on Gunner. It was so incredible! My trainer said I did great! I went home a happy student. :)

Happy Friday all! Tonight I have a date with a few spirits. I've already had a few impressions come to me. We'll see if I'm right. ;)

What am I reading now?

If you can believe it, I actually have time to read again! I am now taking the commuter bus into downtown Portland for work (I used to pay $200 a month for parking) and besides the obvious advantages...like saving $200 (for shopping..did I just say that?) and saving gas money I actually have time to read again! All those poor books that I collected from The Goodwill waited for years to be read and now they're wishes are coming true. Lol! I am almost done with this book and it only took me a week!

I love Alice Hoffman. She wrote the book Practical Magic (that later became that famous, magical movie that I so love). It's hard putting this one down.

Taken from her official website here's a short description of the book I'm reading now.

"In her most ambitious novel to date, Alice Hoffman delivers a spellbinding tale of love and obsession. After nearly twenty years of living in California, March Murray, along with her fifteen-year-old daughter, Gwen, returns to the small Massachusetts town where she grew up, to attend the funeral of the beloved housekeeper who raised her. Thrust into the world of her past, March slowly realizes the complexity of the choices made by those around her. Alan, the brother whose tragic history has left him grief-stricken; and Hollis, the boy she loved, the man she can’t seem to stay away from.

The riveting themes of Wuthering Heights resonate beneath the surface, and a dangerous question is raised: Can a love that consumes you survive? Or perhaps more important, can anyone survive a love that consumes?"

Mmm..mmm..mmm....don't you just love drama? Especially when it's not your own? ;)

And now I think I will have to buy a cute floral book bag to hold my books and magazines in. :) Cath Kidston here I come!


Real quick...I wanted to let you all know we have a paranormal investigation Friday night! I'm so excited...in a tiny town here called St. Helens. A residence..supposedly the kids see and talk to the spirits that inhabit this home. The home is situatuated not far from railroad tracks that once was the scene of a tragic accident in the early 1800's (I believe).

I'll let you all know how it goes!

A Special Gift from my Dear Friend at Sea Cottage!

My dear, dear friend, the Fairmaiden, over at Sea Cottage has bestowed yet another beautiful gift on me. Her little gestures just make me smile! I told her several weeks ago that we were like two pen pals back in the 1800's who write and send secret little gifts to one another. :)

See that adorable French Market hand towel on top? That was in the package...so adorable! I am definitely now a collector of cute hand towels. :)

And since I am now a collector of vintage aprons, she sent me this back issue of Romantic Homes magazine that features aprons! What a sweetheart to give up her back issue for me!

Don't you love how the aprons are used as curtains?

And look at the adorable card that came with it! This is SO Fairmaiden.

On the back of the card she wrote a beautiful poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The note was written in her own handwriting...it's so sad that handwritten notes are not the norm anymore. Reading this in her own handwriting really made it that much more special to me.

"Then followed that beautiful season... Summer....Filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light; and the landscape lay as if new created in all the freshness of childhood."

And just look at the envelope! She took the time to decorate them with these sweet, sweet butterflies!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Fairmaiden. Your friendship and special, thoughtful gifts I hold dear to my heart.

This gives me a GREAT idea! I'll have to get back to you on it (hence my bad habit of procrastinating). ;)

Remember This?

Remember that vintage issue of The Farmer's Wife I bought in an antique store awhile back? I finally framed it. Yea, it all took me but 5 minutes to put it in and hang it up. One project down.....fifty to go!

I'm an expert at procrastination! If you need help with it, just ask. :)

Be Back Tomorrow....

You know, I thought this weekend would be a little laid back but noooooooooo. Let's see, horseback riding, an artists party (I have pics to share later), nine holes of golf, the cat shelter. Monday evening riding Dixie (the horse you saw in my earlier post). I really never saw this summer being as busy as it is. Now I am dying for Fall and Winter so I can slow down. LOL!

Also, saw two beautiful deer on the trails this weekend. Very close to us. Spooked Ari a bit (wasn't quite sure if he was going to bolt). He did a little tap dance and calmed down when I told him he was bigger than them. Lol!

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend.

xoxo

World Cat Day - I forgot!!

My wonderful blogging cat friend Anya and Kareltje reminded me today was World Cat Day....so HUG A CAT! Lol! Here are my sweeties...and happy day guys! So sorry I spent the day with horses...but you guys live with me and are my babies so you get spoiled enough! :)

What? It's MY day? You can't go horseback riding. I'm not getting off your boots.

Fine. Well then, will you please scratch my butt before you leave, mom?

Mocha is treating me for her day. :)

And Emma chose the sun to lounge around in today!

Happy World Cat Day to all you sweet, beautiful cats out there!!