Thursday, November 14, 2013

Cavemen and Cookie Creation

Over at Hayesville Elementary School the 4th grade recently completed a unit on prehistoric life. I think Miss Anna's report is charming. She thinks her picture is not good enough to share.  Where do you stand?

Ah yes, so the picture is sideway.  I resaved and re-uploaded it, like 5 times and it will not change it's orientation. 

Anna would say that is karma for posting it in the first place.

"A Day in The Life of a Nomad"
by Anna Hamel, age 9

First I would wake up, then I ate some berries and nuts. Next I went into the woods and got some birch wood.

Then I saw a Mastodon and I called everybody and we raced to get it and then I shot it with my bow and it wasn't even close to being injured.

Then the Mastodons ran away and we had to move so we packed up and moved. Then when we move it was like heaven how much animals there was so then we settled in and we could not wait to eat dinner and so then my dad and my brothers killed a giant deer.

After they brought it back we skinned it we ate it and then my mom made our bed and then we went to bed.

I think a Mastodon would taste like chicken, really good!

**********************************

Yesterday I got a little creative with my cookie making.  I wanted to do something a little different with our Citrus Sugar Cookies.

I added some Clementine Zest, I don't have a zester, so I used a cheese grater.  I had some walnuts on hand, which I never do, and so I got out my Pampered Chef rotary grater and ground up walnuts.  I rolled the cookie dough in the walnuts instead of the sugar packet included in the box. 



Next up I think I am going to try to take our Classy Chocolate Pound Cake and make it into something with more chocolate and chopped up candy canes. *Sigh* holiday dessert making, it's a tough job but someone has to do it.

Saturday, November 9, 2013

Do you make cookies?

I do, but only for the holidays. And hey, guess what? 

Holidays are here. Yippee!  I have a short attention span for making cookies, so I need fast recipes.  Too bad I don't get bored with eating the cookies...That's a topic for another day.

Here at Tastefully Simple we have Citrus Sugar Cookies this year, just add and egg and butter.
Speaking of eggs, I have to share, if you like to eat cookie dough, use egg substitute and you don't have to worry about the salmonella!

Bonus on the cookies is that $1 goes toward Share Our Strength to help end childhood hunger  in America.  Recently there have been reductions in the SNAP benefits, so now more than ever ever $1 helps.

For my open house I dipped the Citrus Sugar Cookies in White Chocolate.  Here you can see them a bit.

 Mine pale in comparison to the awesomeness to be found on our Tastefully Simple blog! How yummy do these look?

http://tsrecipes.com
If you hope over to tsrecipes.com you can see the recipe, it doesn't look too hard, I think I'll give it a try. How about you?  Do you enjoy cookie making?  cookie sharing? or cookie eating?

Thursday, November 7, 2013

Well someone, probably a senior citizen, was disappointed.

Blogger shows me on a special admin screen the search phrases that have brought people to my blog. 

Recently someone somewhere searched 'sexy photo victoria hamel' and they got my blog.  Poor person. I imagine it was a gentleman in his 60s who was crushing on the actress Veronica Hamel of Hill Street Blues Fame and instead he got my blog of rambling and recipes. 

So in the interest of helping a fellow out, here a a tasteful, yet sexy pic of Veronica Hamel.







Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Set the DVR!

Looking for a family movie night idea?  On the Hallmark Channel this Friday night the movie Pete's Christmas .  Pete in the movie is the same actor who plays Greg Hefley in the Diary of a Wimpy Kids movies. 

So set the DVR and get out the popcorn for a family movie night, and bonus, it's one that no one in the house can say, "I already saw this."

 
Here is a yummy snack you can make to enjoy while watching the movie!
 
S'mores Snacks
Submitted by Kara Bohack (NY)

Ingredients
Twisty Grahams™
2/3 cup sugar
6 Tbsp. water
2 cups mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
6 Tbsp. marshmallow crème
6 Tbsp. water

Directions
Combine sugar and water in a small microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high for 45 to 60 seconds or until boiling; stir until sugar is dissolved. CAUTION: IT WILL BE VERY HOT. Immediately add chocolate chips; stir until melted. Blend in marshmallow crème. If a thinner glaze is desired, add hot water, a teaspoonful at a time. Lay Twisty Grahams™™™ out in a single layer on waxed paper lined tray. Drizzle glaze over Twisty Grahams™™™. Let cool completely. Store in sealed container. Makes 8 servings.


http://tastefullysimple.com/web/vhamel

Monday, November 4, 2013

It's the Time of Year for Lists!

Yesterday, out of nowhere, Anna started talking about what she would look for in a potential boyfriend.

So I asked her to write it down. 

"What a boy has to be lie to date me."  By Anna

1. Smart
2. Hamsome (I had to keep that typo!)
3. No colored hair, like purple.
4. Not a Smart Alec.
5. Not a Dumbo.

I mean it!
(Anna w/Megan a member of the Homecoming Court)

Monday, July 1, 2013

Norse Jewel Author Gina Conkle Guest Post , Inside the Writers Home Office.

What a great summer for new books! And affordable ones at that!  Today I am super excited to have Gina Conkle author of Norse Jewel  guest posting today!

I was drawn to reading her new novel Norse Jewel for one simple reason. I like reading about the Viking getting the girl.



 Norse Jewel did not disappoint me. I was quickly drawn into the tale of Helena,  a Frankish (French) thrall (slave) and her unshakable desire to return to her homeland after being abducted by Danes.  Gina does a wonderful job of balancing historical accuracy with the sensibilities of current day readers. Not often do we have a romance, especially a historical romance that includes a single father. Having Hakan the Viking as a single dad trying to get custody of his son in the first millennium isn't standard romance fare, but I loved it.

Once you read Norse Jewel, I am sure you will be as pleased as me to learn that a follow up book is coming! Click the Picture to enter the blog tour giveaway!



Please read on as we enter Gina's home office for a tour of her work space.


Thanks for this opportunity to be here today. 
The requested topic, “My workspace and how do I feed my creativity?” grabbed me. I took a picture of my desk on Norse Jewel’s release day.  A lot of emotions…maybe reflected in the miasma of post-it notes on my desk!
 

Because our house is small, everything’s contained within my desk and a narrow bookcase beside it.
But, inspiration?

That comes from your head, your heart, your soul.  Feed those parts and you can work anywhere, even a cramped desk.
I wish I had a Zen-ish work space…like super-blogger Leo Babauta.

But it’s not. I’m not.
So, how do you build your dreams?
 
1.      “…walk into a large white room.”

Those words open chapter one of choreographer, Twyla Tharp’s book The Creative Habit.  She went to that plain room at the same time for years, decades even, creating moves that played on stages worldwide.

 Does the white room feel familiar? Like a plain canvas? Or a blank computer screen?


The lesson learned? Find your groove.  Make that a habit, and you’ll feed your muse. Your routine becomes that time that two of you sit down and get to work. 

 
Call it the Law of Propinquity.  Your muse will be a great friend if you rub shoulders with her on a continuous basis. 

 And you will be alone with your muse --- a lot.


2.      “Quietness without loneliness.”

If ideas are fishes, then solitude is the bait that lures them to the surface.

Try this.  Sit somewhere quietly.  But, don’t empty your mind.  You want your thoughts to wander where they will.  Give them a little breathing room.

See if you can do this for a few minutes.  If you reach ten minutes, then the next time expand to fifteen or twenty minutes.

We don’t allow ourselves much time to simply be…to think or wonder.

Oh, and that phrase? It’s a Gaelic phrase for that state of mind that feeds creativity.

3.      Keep a “Lifesaver List.”

The first two items I learned from Twyla Tharp.  This last lesson came the hard way: by burnout.
If your creativity is a bank account, consistent deposits balance continuous withdrawals.  You can’t take, take, take without some give in return.

So, what do you do? Keep a list of things that “fill” you up.  Learn to recognize the signs when you’re close to empty.

Here’s a few things on my “happy” list:

*Alone time with a book

*Pedicure

*Go to a bookstore

*Bubble bath

Now, why not share a few things that fill you up?


Before I go, thank you, Victoria, for hosting me and thank you to your readers for sharing part of your day with me.  I welcome you to connect with me:

On my website: http://ginaconkle.com/



On Pinterest: http://bit.ly/180l9gu
 
 



Thursday, June 27, 2013

Nice start to a new Vampire Series!

I'm pleased to share a book recommendation  for a new paranormal romance series from Entangled Publishing. Read on as I share my review of  Undying Destiny by new author Jessica Lee.


I was excited to learn that one of her inspirations is Karen Marie Moning! This book draws from the tradition of Urban Fantasy of Karen Marie Moning as well as JR Ward and Ilona Andrews.


In Undying Destiny we met Emily, a third -shift working nurse who has a real loser of an ex-finance stalking her. One night she sees a mortally wounded man in the street. Her professional instincts kick in and she attends to this stranger. Within hours her life is changed forever by Kenric St James, a Vampire who spends his nights keeps humans safe from the scourge of DEAD (Death Euphoria ADdicted ) Vampires.


Jessica Lee does a solid job of world building. I really enjoyed the DEAD concept, and the role of Kenric and his Enclave. The focus was kept on our couple but we are given the seeds of stories to come featuring other members of the Enclave.


Undying Destiny introduces us to a very rich "big bad" that I know we will meet again.  Jessica also includes a stunning betrayal and an excellent suprise in the relationship of Emily and Kenric. 


Emily comes into her own in this story, but it's not a far journey. I like that  she is strong and gets stronger as the story progresses. I look forward to Jessica's next Enclave installment! 


Here is a short excerpt from the book as well links to orders and a Giveaway!!


Undying Destiny by Jessica Lee

 

Entangled Publishing - June 2013

 

 

Kenric St. James is out for revenge. Over 300 years ago, an ancient female vampire turned him against his will and killed the woman he loved. He’s spent more than a century building an Enclave of warrior vampires who have sworn to defend humanity against his evil sire and her minions. But when Kenric finds a woman he finally burns to claim as his own again, Kenric knows loving her means giving his sire another target.

 

Emily Ross just wanted a fresh start. She’s a survivor, coming off the tail end of an abusive relationship, and craves time alone to learn who she is and to save the home that holds her heart. The last thing she needed was a controlling, alpha male calling all the shots.

 

Meeting Kenric might just have changed her mind, though. He is wrong for her in all the right ways. But in order to keep her heart from breaking, he first has to keep the hoards of evil vamps from stealing her very breath.

 

Title: Undying Destiny

Author: Jessica Lee

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Release Date: June 2013

Imprint: Edge

 

Purchase from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Undying-Destiny-Enclave-Entangled-ebook/dp/B00CK55RJ2/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=36TOXN5A9DZUF&coliid=I1T3598Q45ETJ6

 

Purchase from Barnes & Noble:http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/undying-destiny-jessica-lee/1115290509?ean=9781622660988

 

Author Information

 

 

Almost every author's bio states they've been writing since they learned how to read. It's what they've always wanted to do. Well, my journey wasn't so straight and narrow. I was a nurse for over twenty years and hold a bachelor's degree in science with a major in biology. So as you can see, my career path had originally gone in the opposite direction. I didn't discover my passion for the craft until after I'd had my son and decided to work part-time.

I've always loved to read but had never read a paranormal romance. Then one night at work on break, I began reading Karen Marie Moning's Spell of the Highlander. I couldn't believe what I'd been missing, and I immediately fell in love with the genre.

I wanted to write like that. I wanted to create worlds where others could find the same escape and fascination I did when I read my first sensual paranormal romance.

And I hope that's what I've accomplished in my work. Please dive in, hold on tight, and enjoy the adventure. Just be careful in the dark—you might find more than you expected waiting for you there.

Jessica Lee lives in the southeastern United States with her husband and son. She loves writing and can't wait for that quiet time each day when her son is in school, and she can get lost in another place and world with the fantastical, sexy creatures in her head.

She's a member of Romance Writers of America Carolina Romance Writers.

Author Website:http://www.jessicaleenovels.com/index.html

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jessicaleenovels

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jessleenovels

Goodreads:http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3013591.Jessica_Lee


http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/MWNiNTU0OTUyMGNlZDFiOGJmOTc5ZmExZmRmZDJmOjg3/

Friday, June 21, 2013

Retro 80s Summer Bonding with Anna

Mmm Soapy goodness. Remember when everyone watched Soap Operas? As a youngster, I spent many a summer afternoon with Days of Our Lives, Another World and General Hospital. How could I not?  Look at handsome Uncle Jessie before he was Uncle Jessie.

Plus, though it is hard to believe, back then, there was no Teen Nick or a Disney Franchise built around cute teenage boys and girls. So what was a kid to do?  Oh don't worry I spent plenty of time running around outside playing with friends and riding my bike.  I still found time to watch the Soaps, and all without a DVR.

So here we are,  it's now the 50th Anniversary of General Hospital.  I haven't watch the show in perhaps two decades; but, Anna and I like to watch The Chew a few days a week, and one day we were sitting there after it was over and we got sucked in to General Hospital. Some of the characters have changed, but there are many actors and actresses still hanging in there from when I was a wee lass.

Pretty remarkable to have such a long running gig in the mercurial world of television.  50 years in, the show is still providing summer bonding for moms and daughters.

Anna  is still freaked out that Uncle Jessie was on a Soap Opera.

****************
Awesome Recipe from The Chew website just click the picture to be taken to the recipe which is actually a lightened up Chicken Saltimbocca!