WIP Wednesday - AAUGH !

I was so happy - I was progressing right along on this and WHAM - I saw it - I almost wanted to just abandon the whole thing but since it is such a small project, I will just have to re-do half of it. 

Can you see the problem???

Se the two squares on the bottom?  Those are the ones I completed first and posted last week.  See the two squares on the top?  I completed those this week.  Do you see a difference in them.  It is subtle but it is there- the squares on the bottom are bigger than the ones on the top - in fact each tiny square in the two bigger squares on the bottom are exactly 1 space too wide and 1 space too tall.  The ones on the top are the correct size.

As you can see - they do not line up - what a silly, silly mistake on such and easy project.  I counted wrong on the first two squares.  I meant to use 12 spaces across, 12 spaces down.  But what I did is count the 2nd space (which is the first space with yarn in it) as space # 1, when actually space #1 is an empty space (as is its opposing/diagonal corner).  I counted properly on the top squares. 

So..... I have to completely re-do the bottom squares so the are the right size and I still have one more square to do so I have to do 3 more squares (which have 9 squares in each one) - I can't believe I was so careless.

Oh well...what's a girl to do?  Mistakes happen.  Rats !

Missing Dad

Two years ago, my dad left this earth and went to Heaven, where he is there watching over me and waiting for us to all join him one day.

I miss him so much - time does NOT heal all wounds.

Paula Deen's Chicken Divan (Slightly Modified)

 Photo: PaulaDeen.com

This is one of my favorite recipes but I don't make it very often because .... well... quit frankly it is not  a very healthy dish.  You can lighten it up a little by using low fat soup, mayo, sour cream and cheddar cheese but honestly it is better with the "regular"full-fat versions.  However, if you are interested in a lighter version, check out hellawella.com.

So...therefore it is just something I have once in a while - maybe once or twice a year.  It is really great for company.

I got this out of my Lady & Son's Cookbook.  I bought this at her original Lady & Son's restaurant about a year before the world knew who Paula Deen was.  My mom had heard about the place through some friends and I was in Savannah with my mom and dad for the weekend and we decided to give it a try.  Those were the days when she actually worked there.  She wasn't there the night we went but her youngest son Bobby was the host and her oldest son, Jamie was keeping the buffet full by bringing out the food from the kitchen.  Little did we know how famous she, her sons and her recipes would become!

Original Lady & Sons

I know there was a lot of controversy last year about her but I have met her (and her sons) a time or two.  They are nice and friendly (well the time I met Jamie (at a book signing) - he wasn't exactly overly friendly - he wasn't mean but he wasn't as friendly as Bobby - Jamie was ticked because he was having to miss the Georgia game.

I'll have to dig through my photos and fine the ones with me and my sis with Paula and the other one with Jamie & Bobby.  Anyway..  back to the recipe.

Chicken Divan

2   (10-ounce) packages frozen broccoli, chopped
6 cup shredded chicken, cooked
2 (10 3/4 -ounce) cans condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 cup dry white wine (or chicken broth, which is what I use)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup soft bread crumbs
2 tablespoon butter, melted
salt and pepper, to taste

Remove the outer wrappers from the boxes of broccoli. Open one end of each box. Microwave on full power for 2 minutes, until thawed.  Drain the broccoli and put into a 11 x 9 casserole dish that has been prepared with a non stick cooking spray. Top with shredded chicken.

In a medium bowl, combine the soup, mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon juice, curry powder, salt and pepper to taste, and wine (or broth).  Whisk together to make a sauce.  Pour the sauce over the broccoli and chicken.  Spread well with a spatula.

Pat down evenly and smooth with a spatula.  In a small mixing bowl, stir together the Parmesan & Cheddar cheeses, bread crumbs and butter and sprinkle over the top.

Bake for about 30-45 minutes and ta-da - have a Divine Chicken Divan Dinner !

Liebster Award

Thank you to Jen at It's My Life for her Liebster Award nomination. Wow! Totally an unexpected surprise.  How exiting!! This award is for bloggers who have less than 200 followers.

This is how it works:

You start by being nominated by a fellow blogger who likes what you have been posting (so sweet)

Then you tell 11 random facts about yourself and answer 11 questions.

You then get to nominate 11 fellow bloggers and give them 11 questions to answer.


Here are 11 Random Facts about me


1. I wanted to be a vet when I grew up, until my brother reminded me that sometimes animals get hit by cars.  I couldn't handle that.

2. I don't like shoes - I would go barefoot all the time if I could.

3. I was an extra in the movie "The Slugger's Wife" but good luck finding me.  I was part of the Stadium crowd.

4. The first man I ever kissed was Duke's of Hazzard star, John Schneider.  He was 19, I was 16.

5. My favorite town that I've visited is San Francisco.

6. My favorite classic Disney character is Goofy.

7. I cannot whistle due to a short lingual frenulum.

8. I've seen the Rocky Horror Picture Show over 200 times.

9. Both of my ears are pierce three times.

10.  I have taken and kept a photo every day of my life for the past 5 years (and am starting on the 6th year).

11.  My favorite dessert is Crème Brûlée.

Here are the answers to the 11 Questions Jen left for me:

1. Why do you blog? I started because when I joined the knitting community of Ravelry, everyone seemed to have a blog and it was a way for people to share, so I started one too but now it is just more for a creative outlet and a way to share some recipes and crafty projects and such.

2. What is your highlight(s) of 2013?  There were many good things in 2013 but I think my highlight was getting to finally meet my great niece in person. She was born in New Zealand in November 2012 and I finally got to see her and hold her in December 2013.

3. What hobbies do you have? How much time do you have?  Let's see....I like to crochet, knit, cross-stitch, scrapbook, take photos, travel....I'm sure there are more I didn't mention.

4. What is your favorite dessert? Haha - I put that under my random things before I saw this question - it is Crème Brûlée

5. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be? England

6. Did you have any pets growing up? Yes, cat named Fuzzy, cat named Sox, dog named Bandit, dog named Minnie (had others after that but those are the ones we had when I was growing up)

7. What is your favorite thing about yourself? That I'm loyal.

8. Do you like sports? If so, who do you cheer for? I like sports but not a fanatic about any.  I root for the home teams - Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta Braves but I also root for the Miami Dolphins and Alabama Crimson Tide.

9. What is your favorite season of the year? Why? Autumn, I love the cooler temperatures, all the colors of the trees, all the Fall Festivals and the smells of the season (pumpkin, cinnamon, etc)

10. Do you have a piece of jewelry you wear everyday? No, I don't wear much jewelry at all.

11. Name 3 things on your life bucket list. To go to England, To see the Statue of Liberty, To see the Alamo.

Those were some great questions!  Now here are my nominees:

Linda at Grandma's Vintage Recipes

Thomasina at Thomasina's Nine Lives & Times

Rollerscraper at Roller Scrapper

Chenelle at The Tall Girl Cooks

Stephanie at StefStyle

Staci at The Black Butterfly

Sukigirl at Sukigirl

Beadknitter at Beadknitter Gallery

Aimee Marie at The Maine Page Turner

Minna at Where I'm Me  

Bev at Bev's Country Cottage

My questions for you are:

1. Where is your favorite vacation spot?

2. If you could go back in time, what year or even would you pick?

3. Have you ever ridden on a motorcycle?

4. Do you have any tattoos? If so what are they?

5. What is your favorite pizza topping?

6. Where did you go on your very first date?

7. What is your favorite day of the week? Why?

8. What skill do you wish you had?

9. What is your most inspirational quote?

10. Do you wear perfume daily?

11. Do you prefer the beach or the mountains?  

Thanks again Jen for the Liebster Award ! 

 

Funny Friday - Baby It's Cold Outside

Since it had been so cold throughout most of the USA this week, I thought this would be a perfect Funny Friday - have a great weekend.

Product Review - Batiste Dry Shampoo

One blog I regularly follow is Kevin & Amanda.  I first discovered Amanda when she was an active member of Two Peas In A Bucket.  She had some cute scrapbook recipe cards and I really liked her style.

One day she offered (for free I might add) to make fonts for many of the "peas" (what we call ourselves there).  They are fonts of their own handwriting - pretty cool!!!  She made a lot and I've used many of them. (I sent her mine but there must have had some problems with the way it was submitted or perhaps she didn't have time because she never created one for me - boo hoo).  It was super nice of her to do this for us!

She started posting recipes on her blog and before you know it, she was more known for recipes and cooking than for scrap booking and her blog really took off and is very popular.  I haven't seen much scrap booking from her in a while - I am sure she just doesn't have the time anymore.  Her website is really her "business" now.  She also has the more adorable Boston Terriers, but I digress.

Annnyyyyyywaaaayyy......
One day she posted a review of Batiste Dry Shampoo and said it was sold at Walgreens, among other places so I decided to give it a try.  I have used Psssssst before and like it well enough but it is so hard to find and I usually can't find it at a retail outlet (once in a while I find it at CVS but not always), so I thought since I can find Batiste at Walgreens, I would check it out.

At first I thought I was out of luck, but I finally found it - all they carried was the 1.6 oz Travel Size and that was okay, especially since I was just trying it out.

Let me tell you I LOVE this stuff.  I don't have a need for Dry Shampoo often but on those mornings, when I am in a rush and don't have time to shampoo, this is great !

They only had Original and Blush scent in stock, I got both.  I used Blush the first time.  I was really impressed with it.  Basically it is rice starch and it removes the oil from your hair and gives it volume.  The only thing I was a little put of by was the scent - it was a little strong for me and smelled like flowers (reminded me a bit of Personal Feminine Spray).  But I loved how my hair looked and unlike Psssssst, I didn't need to use it again the next day - it still looked great. So it lasts longer than Pssssssst.

The next time I needed to use it, I tried the original scent.  I like it much more - not as strong and sort of smells like Fruit Loops to me. 

So my overall review - a big THUMBS UP

WIP Wednesday

To try and keep myself on track with my crafty projects - I plan on posting some "Work In Progress" projects.

I know I said my main (and really only) goal was to complete my Around the World Afghan and it is (even though yesterday I couldn't resist a Mary Maxim sale and ordered an afghan pattern that I have been wanting for a really long time)

But...I stared this project during the holidays and want to finish it first because it is a small project and won't take me long (hopefully will finish by this weekend.

So this is my first Work In Progress (WIP) Wednesday.

My friend Susan has a LOT of allergies and goes through tissues like no one's business.  She is also a huge fan of the show "The Big Bang Theory".

So...if you have seen this show on a regular basis....you will notice that next to "Sheldon's spot" on the couch is a Rubix Cube Tissue Box - you can see it in the photos below.

So - I almost have 2 sides completed (had some trouble with that blue yarn splitting) and I have 3 more sides to go.  I have considered making a coaster set but not sure yet.  Depends on how much yarn and canvas I have left over.