Menu Plan Monday - Week of 4/30/12

Well you may or may not have noticed that I did not do a MPM last week... and we paid for it with the nightly "what's for dinner" and nibbling our way through the dinner hour. This week is a more regular week, no more Wednesday night class, though J has some home teachings so he will be getting home around dinner!

I am planning to go to Trader Joe's tomorrow so this menu is subject to change without notice! 

Monday: pasta and sauce
Tuesday: The rest of the Char Crust chicken from the freezer

Wednesday: Slow Cooker Chicken Pot Roast

Thursday: pasta salad (supposed to be nice out!)
Friday: dinner out


Saturday and Sunday will be leftovers.
OOOOKAY I totally spaced that Saturday is Cinco De Mayo! So I think I will make Crock Pot Burritos instead, minus the beans!

Also for dessert last week, I made Chocolate Sprinkle cookies to take up to Jeremy and Melissa's. I made them in bar form, and they were so good!! We have some leftover so that will be dessert this week!

For more menus visit Menu Plan Monday at orgjunkie.

From Pain to Fun!

What a week. I woke up on Wednesday with my eye hurting. It stung and was in pain, but it was bearable. Wednesday night I saw that I had a little bump on my eye, and Jeff said it was a sty. Thursday, I woke up in AGONY. It felt like someone had stabbed a pencil in my eye, and when my eye moved, it felt like someone was twisting that pencil. So there was no way I could form a coherent post. I could barely get through my day.

Ready to go on a road trip!!  He loves reading books in the car

Friday, my eye was better, and we went upstate for the weekend to visit my brother and sister-in-law. I was planning on catching up on my A to  Z blogging then, but after packing (since I didn't do that Thursday) and making cookies (had to have a hostess gift!) I had no time! We ended up leaving 15 minutes later than we wanted to anyway!

He woke up early on Saturday morning, so we brought him into bed with us. You can barely see it to the left of his forehead, but he fell asleep on my teddy bear, Taddy. :)

I did not touch the computer all weekend! We were so busy and just exhausted! After getting E. down, it was time for us to go to bed lol!! So tomorrow I pledge to try my best to catch up to the blogging A to Z... in between finishing unpacking and laundry!

National Princess Week - Free Printables

Target is celebrating National Princess Week with a FREE printable Princess Activity Kit! You can download a FREE Kit filled with 20 pages of fun activities like Disney Paper Dolls, a Royal Crown Cut-Out you decorate yourself, Coloring & Puzzle pages, and lots of Princess Games and Activity ideas. [Download]
http://www.target.com/c/brand-shop-National-Princess-Week/-/N-56g3t?
(thanks to the freebies lj!)

U is for...

U is for Up!

up up and away!

Up is such a wonderful, heartwrenching but funny movie. Grumpy old man Carl Fredricksen goes on the adventure he has been waiting his entire life for, not knowing he has a little stowaway, Russell. Together, they explore South America, meet an awesome bird named Kevin and a funny dog who can talk! This film really surprised me. Based on the trailers, I did not think that I would like it, but it is actually one of my favorites!

Carl, Russell, Kevin and Dug!

T is for...

T is for Tinker Bell

Finally got to meet Tinker Bell in 2009!

Bet some of you coulda guessed that ;) Tinker Bell is another character that I have loved forever! She is like all of my other favorite characters into one! She is love lorn like Ariel but stubborn as Miss Piggy (who is a bit lovelorn herself!). She is also sassy and stands up for herself... like me! And she has a cute sense of style ;) I love that she is so popular now!

Tinker Bell laughing!

S is for...

S is for Soarin' (Over California or Not)

Sorta kinda like riding Soarin'

 Soarin' Over California (renamed just Soarin' at WDW) is one of the coolest rides ever. The ride vehicle is like a huge hang glider, and once your eat belt is tightened and the roof comes down, the thrill begins!! You are lifted up into the sky and a HUGE screen in front of you comes to life! Suddenly you are among the clouds and the Golden Gate appears! And you are in for a wild ride. Not to be missed!

Soarin' sign in WDW

 

R is For...

R is for Rapunzel

from disneypicture.net - love this Rapunzel pic

Ariel might be my favorite old school princess, but Rapunzel might just win my favorite overall... I was not expecting much from the movie Tangled, based on the previews. But I was surprised at just how funny it was and just how great the characters were. And let's not forget it has one of my most favorite Disney songs ever. 

 Rapunzel herself is well rounded for someone locked in a tower - she has spent her time studying, cooking, painting, singing, cleaning... all that you and I do. She has a great sense of humor, and even though she is scared, her determination leads her out of the tower and on her way to live her dream. She has guts! Rapunzel is well rounded and not a damsel in distress (although she does have a male partner of course!)

Rapunzel, Flynn, Pascal and Maximus - loved them all, even the horse!

 

Q is for...

Q is for Quality

Yes, I did not post Q yesterday because I could not think of any character, song movie, ride, etc that I liked enough to write about. But rocking the baby to sleep in the middle of the night last night, I thought of my Q. I have mentioned this in passing, but I thought it deserved a whole post - Disney is quality. Not just in the movies - storylines, characters, music - or in the dedication and love of the company that so many of its employees have,  from the guys in charge down to the CM sweeping up the parks. It is also shown in the little details of the parks, the "plussing" that makes the Disney parks stand out form their competitors. What follows is a few pictures to demonstrate.

animals made out of washcloths and towels are a cute surprise

The Tree of Life in the Animal Kingdom is just amazing. Search for pics of the whole thing if you've never seen it!

Even the Disneyland parking garage levels get themed seasonally!

Baby Shower Event Sign Ups

Bright Starts, Mom to Bed by 8 and Iowa-Mom is excited to present the Baby Shower Event from May 7^th to May 28^th. This is a free blogger event and accepting signups now.

Join the Bright Starts Ultimate Baby Shower Giveaway event today, grow your readership and offer one amazing baby shower gifts giveaway!

If you do sign up, please put that LBandJ sent you :)

P is for...

P is for Piggy, Miss

Miss Piggy, aka Piggy, has been my favorite Muppet forever. I love how she is brash and bold. I can relate to her Kermit love. She is the star of the show, and a demanding one at that! But she is also hilarious. And really sweet! She also is not afraid to do anything - even hoer own stunts! That is a trait I admire in humans and, apparently, Muppets too!!

Piggy and Kermit, TL 4-Ever

O is for...

O is for Orange Bird

Look at this cute guy! Orange bird is back!

Well, I need an O, and lookie what happened... Walt Disney World brought back the Orange Bird YESTERDAY, the same day that the letter O was the letter of the day**! And the same day that I had no clue what to post for the letter O! What a co-ink-i-dink!


A quick Orange Bird history, thanks to the Orlando Sentinel:  Back in 1971 when the Magic Kingdom opened, it was called Tropical Serenade and featured animatronic birds and flowers doing their thing for more than 25 years before transforming into The Enchanted Tiki Room -- Under New Management in 1999.

The bird greeted families at Sunshine Tree Terrace, which also hocked citrus drinks and Orange Bird gifts. The Orange Bird was gone from Walt Disney World by 1981.

Now more than 30 years later, the Orange Bird has returned to the signage for the terrace and also on "quirky drink cups." One bit of history that isn't returning, at least not yet, is the Orange Bird character who walked around the park. But the actual, original bird figurine itself will retake its perch at the terrace.

Truth is, Jeff is a HUGE fan, and is crazy excited that they bought this totally cute little bird back, at least for the time being.

Orange Bird Sipper Cups... so cute!!

**I know I am still a day behind! Hopefully tomorrow I will catch up...

N is for...

N is for NEWSIES!!

Newsies promo shot

Of course, why would N be anything else?? I have been a huge fan of Newsies ever since it came out. What teenage girl wouldn't love a bunch of cute guys singing and dancing?? When I heard that it was finally turning into a musical, I was ecstatic, I mean, I already had an entire musical version in my head. And when I saw it in NJ, I hoped against hope that it would come to Broadway. and it DID and I SAW IT. Among all of the birthday sickness last week, Jeff, our great friend and theatergoing buddy Jonathan and ME! I! got to see Newsies the musical on Broadway!!!  And somehow it was ten million times better than  it was in NJ... just the way the cast acted, you could tell how thrilled they were to be on the Great White Way.

I HAVE to see it again before it closes. If you are looking to see a Broadway show, go see Newsies!!!

Did I mention that the set is crazy awesome? Newsies the Musical

Menu Plan Monday - Week of 4/16/12

What a week!!! 4 out of 5 of us ended up sick. Including me on my birthday!! :( I still have not had my birthday meal out or even birthday cake! (Wah wah). So this week was even crazier than usual and both Jeff and I didn't get all we needed to get done while he was off work and my parents were here. Thankfully we are all better, and now I need to find the motivation to get back onto a schedule and get things back to normal. I am also trying to avoid the grocery store this week and use up some items before a stock up trip next week.

Monday: Ham and Broccoli au gratin 
 Tuesday:  Quiche with ham and cheese
Wednesday:  cheesy chicken with rice in the slow cooker
Thursday: leftovers
Friday:  cheesy pork chops

(a lot of cheese this week! Might have to rethink things!)
I also have two giveaways open - one is for Char Crust dry rub seasonings - worth the minute it will take you to enter! Just click on Current Giveaways up above.

For more recipes, check out MPM at orgjunkie.com

Birthday Chronicle Winners!

Congratulations to 

LaTanya

and

Louis!

Please check your e-mail, your have 48 hours to reply or else another winner will be chosen! Thanks so much to all who entered, and please click on the Current giveaways link up above - I have 2 giveaways open right now!

M is for...

M is for MiceChat!

No pics of a Web site but here is a picture from the year Micechat was created!

There are so many things to use for the letter M ... not only the obvious "big cheese" ;) But I decided to go personal on this one... Micechat.com is a Disney message board. I stumbled into Disney message boards in 2004, when I was planning my first trip w/a few friends. (I went looking for pictures and found a LiveJournal entry instead! Then spent way too much time reading entries from almost 10 years ago?!?!?!) Back on topic, as I alluded to in A is for... MiceChat changed my life. Without this message board, I would have no friends and no husband! (Well I'd have a few friends but not as many!). The past 7 years would have been a lots less dramatic, and I would have a lot more money in the bank! But I would rather have the good and bad memories, I think.

Please excuse this late night, exhausted rambling. I don't think this post is making any sense or getting my point across lol

(BTW, my first meeting Goofy in Disneyland, I reported it like this: We did get our pics w/Aladdin. And Goofy! Eee, I DANCED with Goofy! Yup, been a fan for a long time.)

I think this is from 2006. Sadly pictures like this cannot be taken anymore!

L is For...

L is for Little Mermaid

Little Mermaid

Yes, Ariel herself. She is the first Disney Princess I really paid attention to. And as much as I love Belle and Rapunzel, Ariel will always be my long standing, loyal to the end, favorite. I can understand her desire for something new, better, different. The hopeless romantic longing for this guy she has been observing for so long. Not to mention her awesome singing voice!

As a bonus the movie is awesome, and now Disneyland (and soon to be Disney World) FINALLY has a Little Mermaid ride!! It is a good ride, a short journey through the film. Not as creepy as the pic below might seem!!

Scene from the Little Mermiad ride... straight out of the movie

A Clue for the Puzzle Lady (Cozy Mystery Challenge 2012: Book 3)

A Clue for the Puzzle Lady 

by Parnell Hall

About: Cruciverbalists, rejoice! Pick up a pencil and get ready to solve a puzzling murder-and an actual crossword puzzle-in this sparkling debut of a unique amateur detective: Miss Cora Felton, an eccentric old lady with a syndicated puzzle column, an irresistible urge to poke into unsettling events, and a niece who's determined to keep her out of trouble.

When the body of an unknown teenage girl turns up in the cemetery in the quiet town of Bakerhaven, Police Chief Dale Harper finds himself investigating his first homicide. A baffling clue leads him to consult Bakerhaven's resident puzzle expert-his first big mistake. Soon Cora's meddling, mischief-making behavior drives Chief Harper to distraction and inspires many cross words from her long-suffering niece, Sherry. But when another body turns up in a murder that hits much closer to home, Cora must find a killer-before she winds up in a wooden box three feet across...and six down. (from Amazon)

My review: Well, this was not one of my favorite books. It is tough to like a book when you dislike the main characters. Cora is an alcoholic, and almost utterly useless. Her drunk antics were not funny, interesting or relevant to the story. Her niece Sherry comes across as being too big for her britches, and almost standoffish against Aaron Grant, the local reporter, who of course turns into her love interest - kinda, maybe. Poor police chief Harper is a bumbling loveable type - I kept picturing him as the police chief from the Simpsons.

The mystery itself was interesting - trying to figure out the link between the two people who were killed and what all of the clues meant. But the writing was stiff and the characters unlikeable, so I don't think I will be reading any more of this series.

K is For...

K is for King of Hearts

Look behind the card - there is the king! Photo from Flickr

Specifically - the King of Hearts is the Alice in Wonderland ride at Disneyland -  another example of little details that make Disney stand out. The ride itself is fabulous, and as your caterpillar turns through the Queen of Hearts' garden, you hear a voice saying "three cheers for the queen!" and there are a lot of loud cheers. Then the voice continues, "And the king!" and one lonely voice replies "Hooray!" Every time it just cracks me up! You continue onto the next scene, and there in the background is this tiny little king behind this tall podium. Love it!!

photo by Loren Javier on Flickr