Our DAMN Tweets!
@jodycakes @ruthiejsf I had the best French onion soup ever at Fruition last night. With shreddy short rib, whipped Gruyere/creme fraiche.36 seconds ago
@jodycakes thanks for the TAG tip. i'm in denver in a few weeks and can't wait to check out those dumplings!5 minutes ago
@alisoncook Try Colt & Gray, great brunch. Wynkoop Brewery is my old standby in LoDo - try Chili Beer, & defo TAG. All 3 w/in a few miles14 minutes ago
LOVE LOVE LOVE TAG. Had French Onion Soup Dumplings last time. Great cocktail program too. “@alisoncook: @ruthiejsf tell me about Tag.”17 minutes ago
my sweet ol Denver!!! Will be sunny and 65 tomorrow. “@alisoncook: It's snowing big fat flakes in Denver. Yesterday it was like spring.”19 minutes ago
Happy Holidays from My Yummy Therapist!!
Published December 23, 2009 | 
Happy Holidays!
Happy Holidays!
My therapist just had her first birthday and is cute and sweet as ever! This photo was used as our email holiday card this year. Hubby and I decided that in lieu of cards this year we would participate in sponsoring 3 families from a local organization called Single Mothers Outreach!
Wishing everyone a wonderful holiday!! ::woof woof::
Holiday Magic Cookie Bars
Published December 18, 2009 | 
These babies are worth every calorie!! These are my very favorite holiday treat and I say holiday because they are so rich and decedent that I will only allow my self to eat these once a year! I got the recipe from my college days when I was living in the Delta Gamma Sorority House and we had a the most amazing cook, Tommy! This was a favorite of all the girls and was definitely my favorite. After much begging and pleading he gave me the recipe. 20+ years later and I am still making this and the peoples are still loving this!!
Ingredients
1 Box yellow cake mix – I use Duncan Hines
1 stick unsalted butter
2 – 3 cups chopped walnuts (enough to layer the pan)
1 bag mini marshmallows
1 bag sweetened shredded coconut
1 bag choc chips – regular size or mini
1 can of eagle brand sweetened condensed milk
Preheat oven to 350′
Line the bottom of baking dish (larger the better)with releasable foil.. Trust me you will thank me in the end for this tip!
Pour cake mix from box into bottom of dish along with the stick of melted butter to make the crust. Mix together and pat down to form crust.
Layer away from here – Walnuts, Marshmallow, coconut, chips and milk. Put in oven for 30-45 min or until brown and bubbly on top. Let cool, cut into squares and enjoy.
Trading Prizes for Donations!
Published December 15, 2009 | 
This is something for the Santa Clarita locals to get involved in.
We all know that it makes us feel better when we donate to charities. The holidays are no exception.
Little items can make a big difference this holiday season.
While the holidays bring joy and cheer to the hearts of many, others find themselves in need of more support. The weather has become increasingly cold, and there are many without coats or the means in which to buy one.
Others are having challenges simply providing a meal for themselves or their family.
To combat this problem in the Santa Clarita Valley, Yoga Works has opened their doors to collect warm coats and food this holiday season.
To help, drop off non-perishable food items and/or gently used coats by December 24th to:
Yoga Works 23951 Newhall Ranch Road Santa Clarita, CA 91355 T: 661-799-2645
To sweeten the pot, KHTS and Yoga Works are giving out prizes for those who conribute. Each donation will earn participants a free week of yoga and a Restaurant Row certificate. Those who redeem their one-week yoga pass by January 4, 2010 will automatically be entered to win the grand prize consisting of a free year of yoga and a two day Legoland “staycation” for four people.
Winners of the grand prize will be announced on KHTS AM 1220 January 5th 2010!
Advice for Small Business owners – You got any???
Published December 15, 2009 | I was on Facebook the other day and was very intrigued by a question that was posted by a wonderful coach named Carrie Kish and while there were loads of comments I wanted to hear what you all thought.
I have been a business owner (in fact I have owned a couple of business’s) and have made plenty of mistakes. Fortunately, I have learned and grown with every crappy situation but DAMN I would have loved some insight when I first got started. I am sure many of the mistakes I made could have and would have been avoided or at least would not have stung so much!
What do you think are the most expensive mistakes small business owners make?
Keeping the Cheer in this Holiday Season
Published December 11, 2009 | For many people the Holidays = stress and anxiety. Truthfully up until about 10 years ago I felt the same way. What changed for me is planning planning and yes more planning! Actually for me the planning begins the day after Christmas and continues throughout the year.
I hit the after Christmas sales with list in hand and scoop up great bargains and stash them away in the gift cabinet. Of course I do not buy everything I need but I make a really great dent and I always have on hand great hostess gifts or gifts for those spur of the moment needs.
I also keep a running list of the gifts that I have given over the past few years so that I do not duplicate as sometimes when you buy in bulk there are a few left overs from year to year and well the last thing I want to do is give someone the same gift twice…
Once the whirlwind of the holidays are behind and it comes time to pack away all the “holiday decor” I pack very carefully and systematically. I group the items in the bins and label them for the area that they go in the house. That saves me hours of digging and also makes it very easy for Hubby as he unloads the attic and hauls them around to place them exactly where they need to go right out of the starting gate… Yes you guessed it there are lots of decorations and the house pretty much looks like “Santa threw up” To quote a dear friend of mine 
Now Christmas cards are wonderful but DAMN are they a lot of work so this year we started something new… NO CARDS sorry friends Not this year instead we took the money that we would have spent for 250+ cards and sponsored 3 families from an organization called “Single Mothers Outreach”. Doing that was amazing.
Another aspect of the Holidays that can be STRESSFUL is the whole $$ spending $$ part. Most of us have been affected by the crappy recession and because of the currect economy we have made some changes that really have turned out to be fun and have reminded us that the Holidays is not just about the “stuff that you buy or get”
Here are a few things we have changed:
Make a budget and stick to it…. I know this may be new to some of us it was to me but it is really amazing what and how many great things you can get if you just “search” for them and gather coupons and watch the sales.
Friend getting together for dinners instead of gift exchanges.
Using a lot more of the comparison shopping sites on line… As you know when things are good and the cash is flowing we often buy from the first place you look… Not anymore and believe it or not many retailers are willing to work with you as well.. Just ask
Family Gifts instead of individual gift: For example at home movie night basket are great!
Gifts from the Kitchen are wonderful and so easy.
I would say the #1 THING we have done is PAY CASH for everything…. No way I want a bill in January and let me tell you there is nothing better than opening your credit card statement in January and seeing well not much in the “balance owed” section!
Here is my DAMN QUESTION FOR YOU!!!
What tips to you have! I am always looking for ways to decrease the stress and increase the cheer this time of year… So if you have any “trade” secrets do share!!
Posted in Check This Out, The Damn Question | 
Budget, christmas, holiday, Santa, Single Mother's Outreach | 
2 CommentsThe history of Mr. G & I…
Published December 8, 2009 | Mr. G. will prolly kill me for posting these pics, but well…I live on the edge, what can I say?
Some people ask questions about how Mr. G. and I met…what our “story” is/was…it all started out in an English Pub in May of 1995. So the story goes…
When we first met...1995
We hit it off immediately and I found him to be sweet and easy to talk with and even though he is pretty reserved, the boy certainly had some strong opinions on things. I kinda like that about a person, so well…we became close friends.
Always dating others, yet running into one another here and there, we always had a great time together. Talking, laughing, getting away from it all…kinda sounds like an affair, yet it was always very platonic. The shot above was taken 6 months after we met in 1995…that seems like a lifetime ago.
Fast forward several years – the guy I had been dating, moved back to Ireland…I was working a lot, doing my thing and Tropical Storm Allison hit Houston in June of 2001. I lost my car in that storm, and for some strange reason, I called Gary to come help me out…I didn’t even have a phone number for the guy, just knew where he worked and called him. He showed up at my doorstep as soon as he could. And from that moment on, literally, we started dating…
One month before we began dating...look pretty cozy, eh?
Our first "official" date at the Rainbow Lodge 2001
We rented a house together that fall…We sat in horror in that first house on Barwood, watching as the World Trade Center crumbled to ground…we’ve been through our ups and downs, the rough patches, the good times. We’ve laughed and cried, and told secrets that no one will ever know.
In 2004, we decided to take a break from one another…but when my Dad died, he truly was one of two people who was really there for me. I was so thankful to have them in my life through such a tough time.
The one thing you can count on with Mr. G., being the engineer that he is, he never sugar coats it…so all the people that would tell me “Oh, it will get better…blah, blah, blah” kind of fell away. He didn’t feed me the lines, he was just simply there.
I decided to take off to Los Angeles…thinking the change of scenery would do me some good…and through the years I was out there, we flew back and forth and I realized that my home and heart was truly in Texas.
Was only home for about 5 months and we decided to get married…quietly, no fuss, no muss on a deserted beach in Galveston, TX just after Hurricane Ike had torn through…we stood on the beach, with a few of our friends and their children and sealed the deal, so to speak!
After the ceremony - Galveston, TX - November 2008
We celebrated our one year anniversary a month ago…I’ve been so busy that I haven’t had a chance to share with the World my true adoration for the man I love so much…I am thankful for him every day…He centers me, he believes in me, he supports me and he means the World to me!!! And he is and will always be my Michigan J. Frog!!!
Strangely enough, growing up…I remember laying on my bedroom floor with my Smiths albums…fondly singing one song in particular, never realizing that 23 years later it would kinda come to fruition. (He is from Birkenhead, however he is NOT tattooed)
What she read
All heady books
She’d sit and prophesize
(It took a tattooed boy from Birkenhead
To really really open her eyes)
Mama’s Bitch
Published December 7, 2009 | So I guess I should start this one by saying, “Zac – if you are reading this in computer lab with your friends again, you might want to go to another site.”
Zac’s been busy with basketball now that we are ramping up to the real deal. They’ve been playing tournaments the last week or so to get ready. Last week, the tourney was in Ventura. Tuesday night, Ron and I went out to watch and had an awesome time. Zac had a great game and we were very proud. He seemed to be the model child while fluttering around the court saying hi to everyone he knew after the game.
We decided to give him a ride home and stopped at a sports bar & grill for a quick bite to eat – tragic food … but still … had a fabulous time with said model child. Came home and Zac asked if I would mind doing a load of laundry for him so his uniform would be clean for the game the next day. Ok … model child … I can do that for you.
I toss the load of laundry in the washing machine and then go into the office to work on my to-do list which was still long since I left for the afternoon. 11:30 pm I tell Ron that we should be done and we head to bed. Then I remembered the laundry as I was crawling into bed. Ugh. I come downstairs and go to toss the wet clothes into the dryer only to learn that there was already a load in the dryer that the boy hadn’t folded. I thought about folding it … but come on … it’s midnight and it’s HIS fault that they’re not folded. So I do what any exhausted Mama would do … I toss the load into the dryer with the load that was in there and go to bed.
So Wednesday morning comes along and I woke up to make lunches for Ron and Zac. Zac woke up late and apparently on the grumpy/dramatic side of the bed. He goes downstairs and flings open the dryer door and says, “ugh it’s stuffed – mumble mumble mumble“. I come in from the kitchen and as I walk in, Zac pulls out the pair of jeans that he wanted to wear and the legs are all kinds of twisted up … not just a little bit but like when you wring out the towel you’re washing the car with kind of twisted up. He said, “they’re ruined“. It was at THIS precise moment that he was no longer a model child and I was certainly not a model parent. My head spun around and my fingertips reached out and popped him on the top of the head. Before I knew what was happening, I said, “Stop being a little bitch – get the f*c*ing iron out and stop whining about wrinkles you drama queen“.
The morning was immediately set on a path of no return. He tried to tell me he was being sarcastic … but I am not buying that. He’s not THAT quick. He goes to school and I go to the Think Tank meeting – we both put on a happy face and that was the end of it.
UNTIL last night when we were in the car and he said someone was whining and bitching at practice to which I said, “you mean like you the other morning?” He cracked a smile and said … “yeah that’s right … I’m my Mama’s Bitch“.
Thank you … now that we have THAT established … I’m good!
I’ll just file this under life lessons on how to deal with women in your life … just admit you’re the bitch and things will be alllllll right! *wink*
Posted in Who's Spawn ARE you? | kids, laundry, mama, mama's bitch, model child, sports, wrinkles | 1 CommentA different kind of Christmas letter . . . more like a written confession.
Published December 4, 2009 | Dear Yia Yia,
I realize that Monkey is your beloved grandson. I know that you live to shower him with kisses and quarters. I turn a blind eye when you feed him candy and sweets. I merely shake my head when you bring him odd little presents, like a package of tennis balls or a mini tape measurer keychain that slices his tiny fingers to ribbons when it shoots back into it’s holder at the speed of light. Heck, I don’t even raise an eyebrow when you drop off the neon blue matching jogging suit, even though there must be a naked 80 year old mall walker out there somewhere getting really cold.
But today you crossed the line. Today you brought him a stuffed Rudolph reindeer, with a lite-up nose. And he sings. At a volume of ELEVEN. And your grandson won’t stop playing with him.
Grandma, I love you, but seriously? Right now, there is murder in my heart. Next time I see you, the gazillionth playing of that song may make me snap and beat your head in with the cute little lite-up nose and those ridiculous antler nubs.
And dammit, this thing is too big to flush down the toilet. But I guess it will make a nice display as exhibit #1 on the prosecution table during the murder trial. If i can get even one daughter-in-law on that jury panel, I’m pretty sure I’ll walk.
Sincerely,
Your loving Lindaloohoo.
Holiday Mantra – Worthy of being reposted
Published December 3, 2009 | *** I originally posted this last year but it is worth a re-mention and it very relevant to me given the fact that I have been at xbmchallenge boot camp for the past few months getting my ass kicked and there is nothing more important to me than keeping off the weight / inches and body fat that I have lost
Original Post December 2008:
I struggle so much this time of year with “food” self control so in an effort to keep my “weight” in check this holiday season I decided to try something new. I will be adopting a saying stated below that I heard last night on the “Biggest Loser”… So when all those sweets and treats starts rolling in I will be repeating this one in my head over and over and over again…
Food will never taste as good as Thin feels……
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