Creating Fun Photos with PicMonkey Halloween Themes

I know you all have discovered PicMonkey by now. This user-friendly app stormed the photo editing scene just before Picnik shut down, saving us all from boring, unedited pictures.

The site has improved rapidly, adding more fonts, collage options, textures, frames, and effects each month.  And now it seems they've gained some holiday spirit and added an entire Halloween collection full of fun editing treats.

They offer six brand new Halloween themes from kiddie-appropriate graphics to grotesque zombie gore. All are fun to play with.

And all are still free.

The Trick or Treat theme features sweet goodies like candies, not-so-scary ghosts and goblins, 

and scrapbook-like cutouts. It would be perfect for designing a Halloween party invite.

With the Witches theme you can channel your inner enchantress,
wicked or glam, naught or nice.. .

(And no, that's not a giant jello shot, but that would be a fab idea.)

 Let me clarify: my child is NOT a Demon. Not even close. He's an angel 98% of the time.

 This picture just cried out to be played with, and I couldn't stomach turning him into a gory zombie.

 They scare me. I can't decide if this editing makes him look like an adorable supe or The Exorcist.

The Day of the Dead theme lets you experiment with Día de los Muertos face painting
without without a drop of artistic talent or magical makeup skills.
(If I tried this in real life I would look like my face was painted by a toddler with finger paints.)

Come November 1st, the official Mexican holiday, this will be my profile pic.

 And you too can painlessly transform into a Vampire just in time
for the last Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn: Part 2 movie.
You can be monstrous or gorgeous, from the Bella Lugosi or Eric Northman clans.

No sparkle available though. If you want that you're going to have to get more creative.
 I'm ready to join the Cullen family now...

NOTE: This is NOT a sponsored post. I just spent far too much time playing with these Picmonkey effects and think you waste a day messing with them, too. Have fun. It's an easy way to play dress up without buying a costume!

The Politics of Facebook

Whoo-hoo!  It's election season and the countdown until Super Tuesday is on! Only now instead of just sucking up our political coverage from the nightly news or morning paper, we are bombarded by posturing, heated arguments, and links we may consider offensive to our intelligence and/or core beliefs every time we scroll through our Facebook feed. It doesn't matter if you hang to the left, to the right, or dangle somewhere in-between: the comments grow uglier as tolerance wears to snapping point.

What do you think about political wars being waged on Facebook?

Opinions are like assholes—we all have them. Social medial platforms are all about expressing your opinions and freedom of speech. Whether it's an "Look at my cute kid" or "Look at your stupid candidate," the reason we post anything—photos, memes, links, or status updates—is to share our opinions, our news, and our beliefs.

But some people believe others are crossing that tenuous line, that friends and relatives may be sharing opinions that are spawned from hate or anger opposed to a desire to educate others about political topics. Some can be misconstrued as racist, misogynistic, or homophobic—or worse, perhaps they are NOT misconstrued.

Others comment that it's not the fact that others are stating their opinions, it's the name calling, the vehemence, and the statements that anyone who does not share the same beliefs is an idiot.  And while many may think this, is Facebook an appropriate venue to state this?

Political posts/links/rants are not going to sway anyone who is set on Candidate A to vote for Candidate B. Period. If someone always votes for one party no matter what, nothing we say or post is going to do anything except annoy them or get them riled up to post about why their side is "right."

 But perhaps you also have friends who are swing voters, who {gasp} don't follow politics, don't vote, and have no real concept of why any of this "political stuff" matters to them. Their only source of news is . .  Facebook. Yes, it's true. Some of us feel obligated to educate them, to explain why it matters, and how Candidate X will improved their lives/destroy every value they believe in. But do they even pay attention? Should they?

What if you feel like you'll have to skip Thanksgiving if you have to listen to one more of Uncle Harry's political rants? Do you ignore him? Do you unfriend him? Block him?

What can you do to avoid the political noise:

Hide offenders. Hover over the Friends button at the top of a friend's timeline and select Show in News Feed to turn their updates on or off. You can also select Settings to control how many and what kinds of stories you see from them.

Hide a person or a type of story (ex: quizzes or games)
Hover over the top-right menu of a story, click the drop-down menu and choose what you'd like to hide:

• Hide story will remove the story you're looking at from your news feed
• Hide all by and Unsubscribe from will remove the story you're looking at from your news feed, as well as all future news feed stories from a person, Page, group, event or app
• Report story or spam will remove the story you're looking at from your news feed and help keep your news feed clear of stories like it in the future

If you accidentally hide something you want to see, click the Unhide link.


Install Social Fixer. This nifty plug in allows you to filter out any annoying status updates.  Lifehacker has an excellent quick tutorial on how to get rid of any status updates involving any range of keywords {ex: debate, Romney, Obama, election}. While it doesn't block photos, with a little maneuvering you can block those infinitely annoying Clint Eastwood links. {You can also use it to block sports/baby posts—the possibilities are endless!}

Unfriend. This is the measure of last resort. Before you hit that button take a moment to think if the relationship should just go on a temporary hiatus or if it should be severed like a rotting limb.



Do you tolerate political posts? Do you look at both sides and/or see them as a method of educating yourself about the issues? Have you taken any action to avoid them?

Blogging Tips from Central Florida Blog Con

I FINALLY attended my first blog con—The Central Florida Blogger and Social Media Conference (a.k.a. CFL Blog Con 2012).

Yes, I've been blogging for years, but (1.) I'm horribly shy and the idea of hanging with hundreds of social media mavens scares the bejeezus out of me, and (2.) there's no wiggle room for plane tickets or hotels in my budget. I stay local. Luckily, they kicked off the first Central Florida Blog Con last year (but I missed out because I didn't buy my ticket soon enough). I didn't make that mistake this year.

I came. I saw. I learned so much my brain nearly melted. So please bare with  me if I wander off on any tangents.

This year's conference was held at the amazing Orlando Science Center. (If you want to know how much I love this place, see this previous AWARD WINNING post—more on that later.)  It was a bit of an adventure getting there. I had to drive through the Orlando Heart Walk, weaving between walkers as I drove on the wrong side of the road. (The cop told me to, I swear.)  I parked next to Captain Jack Sparrow and his wench who were speaking pirate-eze. Was I in the right place?

I was exactly where I needed to be. There just happened to be a big pirate fest going on also.

As we settled into the dramatically steep CineDome, the laptops and smart phones glowed and a flash mob broke out. No, I did not dance. I would have needed a few mimosas to gather the courage for spontaneous, extremely public dancing.

I thought I'd just share a FEW nuggets of wisdom that rocked my blogging/social media world. You probably know all this. Remember: I'm new to these things.


First up: keynote speaker Lou Mongello (of  WDW fame)

• If you want to blog full time, treat it like a job. Don't expect overnight success.
• You never know who is watching. Build great content from day one.
• And the much debatable Don't accept freebies. Coca-Cola doesn't pay their employees in coke. Freebies won't feed your kids or pay your bills. Demand more.

Them: laptops, iPads, technology.  Me: pen & paper.

Marketing Yourself: How to Build a Media Kit by Callie  @The Wannabe Athlete

• Always have an elevator pitch ready.
• Add services offered (i.e. freelance articles, sponsored posts) to your media kit.
• Save it on an EDITABLE pdf so it can be sent out and updated regularly.
• Your social media stats are important, not just for high numbers, but to show engagement and influence.
• Include your location. You never know when people are looking for locals.

 Fitting Blogging into Your Life with Christine @Cook the Story, Jackie @Momjovi, and Michelle @Crazy Running Legs.

• ORGANIZATION is the key to success
• Organize your Google reader to make scanning blogs more efficient (and find the plug in to comment directly from reader).
• Make Pinterest work for you: use a Pinterest widget on your blog sidebar & WooBox app creates a tab on your FB page to show all of your  boards.

From I.P. to M-A-G by Kyle @Brink Magazine

• Feature others who already have a built-in audience.

Tweet Your Way to Success: Developing a Social Media Strategy for Twitter by Rachelle Lucas @The Travel Bite

• Use manageflitter.com to prune who you follow and keep your ratio balanced.
• Curate & share content from your niche AND other areas of interest.
• Must, must, must use Hootsuite, TweetDeck, or other tool to manage lists and schedule tweets.
• Old school "RTs" still rock. Don't be a me, Me, ME tweeter. Don't be a stalker.

Widgets and Gadgets for Bloggers by Professor Josh @Professor Josh

• Use Delicious to bookmark tweets, posts, photos, videos, articles. Tag and organize, share and have access to links anywhere.   
• IFTTT.com is some kind of magic I must figure out.
• Use Zite to create your own perfect source of news feed. 
• Evernote syncs projects between all your computers and devices.

More Ways to Monetize Your Blog with Amanda Tinney @Disney Everyday

• Did you know you can FLIP blogs? I had no idea. Check out flippa.com. Mind Blown.
• Use google trends to discover what terms people are searching.
• It's better to link a post to FB with an image.
• Brands want video: just 30 seconds of exciting and engaging content will make them swoon.

 Extreme Makeover Facebook Edition with Jeanette @J's Everyday Fashion

• You CAN monetize FB through affiliate links in captions.
• If you build a consistent, engaged following, you can sell it as a part of your package.

Whew. Are you tired yet?

Organizers made this Blog Con paper-free. All the presentations slides (including the 12 or so I couldn't attend due to conflicting schedules) are available to attendees via Doccaster. I've downloaded all of the sessions and I'm waiting for a chance to learn about the ones I missed.

Now, imagine squeezing in some social time, a yummy lunch catered by Bahama Breeze, a quick yoga session, and gadget recharging time. I'm tired and exhilarated just thinking about it. (Note to self: I MUST get more gadgets. Like an iPad. And an iPhone. Or at least a tablet. My laptop with a burned out battery just does not cut it.)

Mmmmm. . .Death by Chocolate and Dulce de Leche

After all these amazing sessions, there was the Yelp after party in the DinoDigs. Yes—food, friends, and adult beverages while surrounded by dinosaur fossils. Absolutely fabulous.

I need to track down this new cider.

And I was so honored to have my #CFLGood Blogging for Good post about the Orlando Science Center selected as the winner!  I am proud to support such a wonderful organization.

Hanging with some of the Central Florida Lady Bloggers (me, Paula, Michelle, Christine, J, and Jackie) at the Yelp party. They make me feel short even in 3-inch heels.  Photo borrowed from J via Paula.

Thanks to all of the organizers, speakers, and sponsors of this year's event. They did a fantastic job. I'm ready for next year!

*Thanks to Macbeth Photography for letting all the attendees use his photos!

BlogHer & RWAs ~ both, either, neither?

If somehow you missed bumping into a shy redhead at BlogHer this year in New York City — well, that's because I wasn't there.

Somehow, I also missed the Romance Writers of America Conference (RWAs) in Anaheim. 





With all the gorgeous pics of beautiful (inside and out) writers and  bloggers having a blast, I felt like I needed a pic up too. This photo isn't beautiful, and it's from 2010, but I was at the RWAs. Though I didn't attend the full conference, I did get to meet some of my favorite writers — Jane Porter, Mary Kay Andrews, Meg Cabot, Nora Roberts {though I can't read her books. . .shhh!} You can read about my experience here.   As I mingled and wandered amongst hundreds of published authors I vowed I would attend the full conference soon. Apparently, just not this year.



Instead, this is how I spent that weekend. Somehow someone (I shall not name names) left the water on while working on our master bedroom shower. Water permeated the drywall and flooded under half the bedroom suite's floor. Which I installed two years ago. By hand. After the plumbers and drying crew left, I spent the weekend ripping up my floor (while some kind volunteers ripped out the vanity) and redoing the whole damn thing. I lost my ability to write for two weeks as the only words I conjured were far too vulgar to put in print (and certainly not original).



And while I would have LOVED to have loaded my arms with goodie bags, hobnobbed with celebs, and met about 5,000 of my best blog friends IRL last weekend (not to mention learning so damn much about blogging my head would've probably exploded — that must be why they all hit the parties afterwards). . .

 

I chose not to steal any of the thousands of images of my 
wannabe friends living it up and bonding in the Big Apple 
(because that's just not how I roll).

. . . Instead I nursed my poor kiddo through his third oral surgery. {I refuse to post an actual picture of his mouth. I can't look at it for more than a few seconds, and if I released the image into the blogosphere he'd probably sue me when he turned of age. Look at this model. It's much prettier.}

I totally stole this image from an orthodontics website. 

If you want to see the myriad of medieval torture devices that may be in your kids' futures, click here.

Yes, those are exposed teeth way below the gum-line attached to braces by dangling gold chains. My kid will be sporting some REAL mouth bling at back-to-school time (unlike fake-out Ryan Lochte — dude, I totally do not get it).





When I calmed down and forced myself to think about which event I regretted missing the most, I realized it was the RWAs. Don't get me wrong, I'd nearly give my left breast to go to BlogHer, but I've realized I will never make my living as a professional blogger. Free wine, books, and toothbrushes — heck yeah — but I won't be funding kiddo's college fund with my blogging proceeds.

But it's not just about the money. (Although making some money someday from my writing would be the cat's pajamas.) It's about my passion for writing, my need to give life to my stories, and my goal of publishing my freaking novel. To reach these goals and live the life I dream about, I must hone my craft and mingle with other writers. I'm dying to hear about their struggles and  successes, to soak up every blurb of advice they may offer. I need to familiarize myself with the dirty details of the publishing industry if I ever want to find an agent or sell a book. I need pay my RWA membership so I can feel like a real writer who deserves to be there.

So while I'd still LOVE to see the bloggers, writers, humorists, and culinary divas I read each day and feel as if I already know at BlogHer 13  . . .






My goal is set: I will attend RWAs next year in Atlanta. Time to start saving, keep writing, finish editing, and kick my life into gear.

Romance Writers of America®
33rd Annual Conference
Atlanta Marriott® Marquis
Atlanta, Georgia
July 17-21, 2013

Join more than 2,100 published and aspiring romance writers, editors, agents, and other industry professionals in Atlanta, GA. Conference attendees will enhance their writing and knowledge of the ins and outs of publishing at more than 100 workshops; get the inside track at panels and round-tables featuring publishing professionals; schedule a one-on-one pitch meeting with an acquiring editor or literary agent; attend parties and network with the stars of romance fiction; and be a part of RWA's "Readers for Life" charity book signing. And let's not forget the 2013 RITA®  and Golden Heart® Awards.
Registration for RWA2013 will open in late January 2013.

Who's coming with me?


http://thingsicantsay.com
 a href="http://thingsicantsay.com/" target="_blank">  

Central Florida Bloggers, Food, & Fun

I finally made it to another monthly night out with a group of fun & fabulous Central Florida Lady Bloggers.  Mexican food, an icy Imperial (a Costa Rican beer), and blogging buddies — ingredients for a perfect evening!

 It felt so good trade out my writing wardrobe (a.k.a. yoga pants) for a bright  new dress, ditch the slippers for some espadrilles, and head downtown.  This suburban girl doesn't get out much. Though I'm only about ten miles from the hip downtown area, I felt like I was heading into a different world — one that involves the choice of valet parking or driving in circles for hours to snatch a tiny parallel parking spot. But I found a spot where I wouldn't get towed,  then enjoyed some delicious food, cold drinks, and amazing company.

Carolina, from Peas in a Blog, was smart enough to bring her camera along (because no blogger should EVER leave home without one) and had our young waiter snap this photo. Thanks for letting us all totally steal it!

These ladies are amazing. Not only do they write for a diverse range of blogs, but they run marathons, compete for national fashion blogging awards, host panel discussions at BlogHer Food, produce nationally syndicated television and radio shows, and so much more. I can't help but to feel out of my league. Take a minute to discover some of their unique blogs — you won't be disappointed.

Food
Christine – Cook the Story
Kristina – Love & Zest


Food & Fitness
Carolina — Peas in a Blog
Jessica – Sushi & Sit Ups


Fashion
J – J’s Everyday Fashion

Children's Health & Wellness
Carly & Courtney - Illuminate Blog

Sports
Colleen – Lady Ballers

A bit of everything
Heather – Housewife Glamour
Jackie – Mom Jovi


Social Media/Fitness
Katy – Katy Widrick


Running & Fun
Paula – Eat Watch Run
Victoria – Running Peanut

*Thanks again to Carolina for compiling this list.  And if I miss you, let me know, & I'll gladly add you.

Since I've been trying to eat healthier (swimsuit season is already in full swing around here), I ordered the Lettuce Wrap Fajitas.  Probably not the best choice when wearing a new dress. They proved so messy, I dumped  all the ingredients on one plate and improvised a taco salad.  Not bad. And it gave me inspiration for dinner the next night.

I'd bought some of the new Kraft Fresh Takes (coating, seasoning, & cheese mix) when they were free with coupons.  I baked some chicken breasts coated in the Chili Lime and Panko coating and tossed it on top of a salad of mixed baby greens, red and orange bell peppers, black beans, and green onions.

Pretty good, if I do say so myself. And another example of why I don't eat out much. It's hard to justify spending $10+ bucks on a dinner salad when I can make it at home.

Oh, and while I was making this dinner, Hubby suddenly remembered that he had a potluck at work...tomorrow.  I wasn't making him anything at such the last minute, so I tossed him a box of brownie mix and let him figure it out.

Better luck next time?  They still tasted great though (is it possible for brownies to taste bad?) and I'm sure all the ladies at his work will be tickled he made them himself.

It's My SITS Day & the Origin of Vinobaby

 It's my SITS Day! A special welcome to all of the SITS GIRLS dropping by today. If you somehow don't know about the SITS Girls, a quick rundown: they are a fabulous support group of 15,000+  women bloggers who are passionate about building a community and sharing their blogging and social media skills. They are smart, savvy, and want to help make YOU a success. Check them out.


In honor of all the newbies, I decided to finally answer a question that has been burning in my online friend's minds for years:  How did you come up with that weird Vinobaby name?

Eons ago (okay 2008), when I first broke down and started this blog, I was a reluctant SAHM stuck at home with only my darling yet daunting 4-year-old for company, and I often teetered on the brink of sanity.  Days blurred together as I shuttled the Kiddo to playgroups and kept house like a frugal 50s flashback housewife (minus the pearls and heels, of course).

I parented differently than many of the moms cluttering the park benches and kiddie gyms. I wasn't afraid of my child like so many of them, wasn't terrified he wouldn't like me, or worried I'd scar him for life by telling him "NO" if he tried to bite me while drawing on the couch with permanent marker.  And I seemed to be the only SAHM who did not find changing diapers fulfilling. I longed to be more...

I had things I wanted to say, but I simply didn't have the proper audience in real life. So I went online. Like so many of you. Fearing I would be stoned on the playgrounds or plastered with a scarlet letter for my scandalous beliefs, I chose to remain anonymous.

Lets drift back a little further...

While growing fat and busty eagerly awaiting Kiddo's arrival, I explored some of the pregnancy message boards. Most of my friends IRL were child-free career girls and I was desperate to find women who had a clue what I was going through. I wasn't going to use my REAL name — that just wasn't safe of smart. I started thinking...

An ACHTUNG BABY condom package hung from my bulletin board, a souvenir from an amazing U2 concert years ago. (I was in college, it seemed like cool souvenir at the time.)

The Hubby and I married in Italy and loved going to wine tastings together...wine in Italian is VINO...

Besides having a BABY on the brain (and on my bladder) at the time, babies are often made with the help of a little vino. (You can't tell me ours is the only one. The preponderance of children named "Tequila," "Bailey," and "Margarita" would fail to argue.)

A screen name was born.

It may be lame, but that's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

The original title for this blog was Musings From the Bottom of a Plastic Wine Glass.  I know. Too long. To lush. Not that Vinobaby's Voice is any better, but for now, I'm stuck with it.  If all goes as planned, I will complete my novel, my writing career will take off, and this will be the little blog attached to my big professional author website. Someday.

It's good to dream.

So, welcome to my world. If you are new here, you will find my blog is rather eclectic,  like me.  While I no longer consider this a just Mommy Blog, I do often write about kids and family. But as I've grown-up and my world has diversified, so has the blog.  I post about food, writing, books,  newsworthy issues, wine, and occasionally I whine. I try to keep some humor in most of my writing, because sometimes a laugh is what gets us through the day (at least until 5 o'clock). Check out the Popular Posts tab to see what other readers have liked.

So I invite you to pull up a chair, put your feet up, grab a mug of coffee or glass of wine and explore. Follow me on Facebook, join me on Twitter, and subscribe by RSS. Please? We can all use a bigger tribe. Feel free to look me up on Pinterest or GoodReads, too.  Thanks so much for dropping by!


 

What posts are you most proud of?

What posts are you the most proud of?

The most popular posts, which may have skyrocketed your numbers and added to your loyal following?

The prettiest posts, filled with gorgeous photos of your stunning kids or faraway travels?

Instructional  posts, clearly explaining some social media guides or a favorite craft or recipe you created?

Topical posts, where you rallied for a cause or pointed out newsworthy injustices?

The funniest posts, guaranteed to make each reader snort coffee out her nose and comment about your wit and wry humor?

Or the candid posts, where perhaps in a moment of crisis or heartbreak you bared your soul through your words, not to please the readers, but to heal a piece of yourself?

If you are a varied writer, your answer may be bits of all of the above.

They are the the posts where your voice rings honest, clear, and true.

Nicole from Moments That Define Life prompted us to list five blog posts we are most proud of.  A few I list below were obvious choices for me, as they received countless comments or appeared on BlogHer. Though I'm positive I could go back and edit these essays for clearer words and sentence structure, I'll let them stand as they are.

 When Grace is Gone: A tale of longing, heartbreak, and acceptance.

 Swimsuit Shopping {Part one: the Grey Hair}: A toddler, a fitting room, and some painfully funny discoveries.

 The "C" Word: A waiting room, a diagnosis, a life flashing before closed eyes.







  

Thrift Store Shopaholic: My favorite frugal fashionista tips to help you find the treasures amidst the trash.

 Killer Whales and Kindness: In the wake of a Sea World trainer's death, a look at our relationships with these captive creatures.







What posts are you most proud of?

where the *magic* happens

Not *that* magic.

While cruising through the social media universe (a.k.a. wasting time on twitter) I came across an interesting little proposal: an  I'll show you mine if you show me yours link up. Really? I didn't think Just Jennifer was that type of girl...

She's not. {get your mind out of the gutter} She's showing off where she gets her blog on.


Since I also decided to hook up with the SITS Girls Build a Better Blog Challenge starting this Monday (#SITS31DBBB), I thought it would be polite for me to introduce myself with a peek into my writing world. (And where I waste time playing online Mahjong, tweeting, facebook stalking, etc.)

To the outside world, I'm still considered just a SAHM to an elementary-aged child. It seems as if every single day I am bombarded by the "but what do you DO all day" question.

I write. 

Every single day.

I completed the first draft of my novel in November, after nearly two years of agony. On good writing days, the words flowed like properly chilled chardonnay. Pure bliss. Most days, words appeared on the screen only after laborious contractions. (Stabbing pains, like before the epidural, when I pleaded for the magic drugs. Perhaps that's why so many writers dull the voices with drink?)  Now I must start editing, rewriting, and proofing. Eventually I hope to con an agent into representing me and actually publish the book. It's nice to dream.

I blog.

You're here, so you know that.

MY own personal domain. Somehow we ended up with more bedrooms than kids (one of the perks of having an 'only' — another is that the Hubby has his OWN office across the hall). After the baby-making machine shut down, I adopted orphaned furniture from all corners the house. The ten-foot double-desk (old sewing tables) came with our home, the bookshelf came with the husband, the filing cabinet once filled my dorm room, the desk chair liberated from an old job. I painted the walls to match the sky on a perfect day, breathing life into the once drab room.

A cozy twin bed transformed into a couch for napping reading and working. Framed artwork filled the walls at first, but since much of my novel takes place in Costa Rica, I hung souvenirs and vacation photos to "keep me in the mood."


When I am lucky, and the weather hangs in perfect balance (a few measly weeks a year), I escape with my laptop to my satellite office. Also known as the porch.

Those are good days.

So, where do you do it?

Flippant Friend Friday: Things I Can't Say

Today I'm hanging over at the sweet and sassy Shell's Things I Can't Say.  You all have been by her blog, I know, whether it's for her heartfelt Pour Your Heart Out Wednesdays or some of her uber popular and fun memes such as Rockin the Bump.  And if you haven't been by, you need to go there right now.


Things I probably shouldn't say (or write): I hate children's birthday parties. Being trapped in a melee of screaming kids running around with pinata bats or priate swords while on a massive sugar-high is bad enough. But having to host my own beloved Kiddo's party nearly gives me a panic attack.

Make sure you head over to Things I Can't Say to read all about how I am Martha Stewart's worst nightmare. Maybe you can relate. Or maybe you really are the hostess with the mostess and thrive in a throng of kids. Chime in on the conversation.

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

Now, as a little sidebar, I have to share a MAJOR DISCOVERY that may change your world.

Aldi sells their own version of Girl Scout Cookies.

{GASP!}

You no longer have to wait for the cookie booths to appear in the spring or your coworker to hit you up at work to buy some of her daughter's cookies. You can get them anytime.  Well, at least a generic version of Thin Mints and Samoas (or Caramel Delights, depending on where you live).

This is NOT going to be good for my waistline. Or hips. Or self-control.

I'll admit...I haven't tested them out yet...I'm afraid once I take a bite I'll go back and buy a case. But I do feel it is my responsibility to let you know if they are any good, so I'll keep you updated.

Summer Smashed at the Shore

The prompt:

Your blogging Tribe is visiting you for ONE NIGHT out on the town. Write a post with a pre-game drink recipe (alcoholic or non) and tell us where you’d take your blogging friends for a good time!

The response:

My recipe for a perfect {blogger} friend night on the town is actually more of a night in...

Instead of trying to yell over music and chatter of local restaurants and clubs we are going to take it nice and easy. We are meeting up at the timeshare condo on the beach.

It will be a night to let our hair down, kick off our shoes, and dig our toes in the sand.  No dress code. Swimsuits encouraged. Lounge wear is perfectly acceptable.

We'll meet down by the pool where some cool mango bellinis will be waiting in chilled glasses.

 Mango Bellinis

1 tbsp fresh mango puree (or mango nectar in a pinch)
4 oz. chilled champagne or proscecco
chilled champagne flute
sliced mango to garnish

Add the mango puree/nectar to the bottom of the flute. Add champagne and stir to combine. Garnish with fruit. Chill out and enjoy.
 
The second refreshing glass of tropical paradise can be transferred to a plastic cup before we wander down the beach. The balmy ocean breeze blows away all our stresses and we forget about our hectic week, work, and family obligations. Computers are off and the kids are with dad/the sitter. We are officially off duty.

As the sun sets,  tiki torches glow and the pool bar and restaurant start gearing up. We dine poolside, our table overlooking the ocean so close we can nearly dangle our flip-flopped feet in the tide. The reggae band begins to play, a gentle, relaxing groove, and we laugh the night away.

After dinner and perhaps a few more drinks the band starts jamming and it's time for dancing. Or maybe you may just want to chill in the hot tub. Life is full of tough decisions.

And yes, the indoor/outdoor pool has a swim-up bar (with a rather hunky bartender). This is the good life.

What does every girl's night need next?  Why some dessert of course. Beside the beach-side fire pit is a buffet set up for grown-up gourmet 'smores.  Yeah, you read right...

Grown-Up Gourmet 'Smores go so far beyond just some dry, old graham cracker squares and a Hershey bar.  As we have matured, so have our tastes. Just some ideas to salivate over:

• Nutella, thinly sliced French bread & marshmallow
• Sugar cookies, raspberry-filled dark chocolate square, fresh raspberries & marshmallow
• White chocolate, coconut-covered marshmallow, thin slice of pineapple & shortbread wafers
• Gingersnaps, marshmallow & caramel-filled chocolate square
• Peanut butter cookies, dark chocolate & marshmallow
• Cinnamon graham crackers, Reece's peanut butter cup & marshmallow
• Pretzel chips, dark chocolate square with sea salt caramel filling & marshmallow
• Chocolate wafers, caramel & marshmallow
• Chocolate wafers, mint filled dark chocolate square & marshmallow
• Coconut-covered marshmallows, banana, dark-chocolate caramel square & shortbread wafer

Are you drooling yet? Yes, we will be keeping Ghiardelli in business that night. And we will be oh so thankful we are wearing comfy, expandable lounge wear and cover-ups.

We will sit around the fire pit with a marshmallow roasting stick in one hand and an umbrella drink in the other.  After we stuff ourselves with these gourmet delights we can sit back in our Adirondack chairs digesting, watching the moon rise over the ocean, and savoring our escape from our hectic everyday lives.

Since we are hanging by the condo we have a built in crash-pad -- no designated drivers and no bedtime. The party will go on until dawn and there is always time for some more dancing...

So when are you coming down to the Sunshine State?

Cheers, Ladies...

Link up at Adventures in Mommyhood or at My Time As Mom now until Sunday, August 28th

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