Saturday, June 25, 2011

Spotlight Saturday Blog Hop

It's Spotlight Saturday Hosted By



Between the Lines



Welcome to our fun blog hop with a twist!  Every week swing by to link up your blog and one you want to spotlight!  Did you find a new blog you liked this week?  Is there one you visit on a daily basis?  Well, simply link up your Spotlighted blog right under yours.  We will Spotlight our favorite blogs of the week in spots 4, 5, and 6.  

This week is I'm Spotlighting Debbi from Debbi Does Dinner Healthy!
How it Works

1) Link up your own blog.
2)Link up a blog you want to spotlight for the week.(ex. Spotlight: Roslyn's Closet)
3) Follow your three hosts.
4) Grab our button and post it on your sidebar or in a Spotlight Saturday Post.
5) Follow as many blogs from the list as you like and leave a comment so they know you stopped by.
6) Return the favor by following blogs that followed you.
(Be aware that URL's cannot be duplicated so please have a second spotlight choice in mind. If your blog's URL has already been spotlighted, just add one you'd like to spotlight. And don't forget to leave a comment with the blog you spotlighted so they can come and join the blog hopping fun! )





Friday, June 24, 2011

Don't Miss Spotlight Saturday!

Between the Lines

Don't forget tomorrow is Spotlight Saturday!  Hope you all come back in the morning to join us, along with Survey Junkie and Guest Host Beauty Brite for our fun little Blog Hop with a twist!!!  Link up your own blog and another that you would love to share with the rest of us!  Linky opens at midnight!

Fabulous Food Friday with Jasey's Crazy Daisy: Glazed Doughnut Muffins

 Welcome to Fabulous Food Friday! While exploring the blogosphere, I realized that there were many great recipes to share. So every Friday this summer, I am going to  feature an awesome blogger with their great recipe! Today’s feature blogger is Jasey from Jasey's Crazy Daisy.  Jasey is an awesome mother who enjoys cooking, crafts, and taking time for life's little moments. She has some wonderful recipes and crafty ideas that you definitely should check out.  While you are there, don't miss her yummy Snickerdodle Bar Recipe.  You will fall in love.  When you get a chance, swing by  her Facebook Page and join up so you don't miss any of her great ideas or ones that she finds and posts for us.

Crazy Daisy Button


Hello! Happy day to you all! I'm Jasey from Jasey's Crazy Daisy, where I write about just a little bit of everything and I am here to share a most delicious treat with you! Stop by, check out what's new a Crazy Daisy and make sure to say hello! Thanks, Kel {YOU ARE WONDERMOUS} for inviting me over! It's treat time!

I don't know about you, but brunch, is probably my most favorite meal. Ever. I think it's because you are  expected to eat the most delicious things, and call it a meal. You don't even have to wait for dessert! Now that's what I call perfection! Doughnuts and muffins seem like a pretty natural brunch food, don't you think? Combining the two only makes it better. Doughnuts + muffins = super delicious and easy and perfect. 

Glazed Doughnut Muffins
*Recipe by Crazy Daisy adapted slightly from The Bakery Spot

Muffin Batter
1/4 cup butter, softened (the other half of the stick will be used in the glaze)
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon soda
1 - 1 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 - 1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 2/3 cups flour
1 cup milk

Glaze
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup powdered sugar
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 Tablespoons hot water

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly grease muffin tin, or use paper muffin cups.

Cream together butter, oil, and sugars until smooth. Add eggs, beat to combine. Stir in baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, salt, and vanilla. stir in flour, alternating with milk. Begin and end with flour, and make sure everything is mixed well.

Fill muffins cups, until nearly full. (I used an ice cream scoop and then divided the extra batter between all the muffins.)

Bake for 14-17 minutes, our until pale golden brown and the toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the middle.

Prepare the glaze by mixing together the melted butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and water, whisking until smooth.

Dip tops of muffins into the glaze and allow to harden. You can even double dip if you'd like.

Serve warm, for best results, but muffins will keep at room temperature, covered, for a day.

Next time I think I'll try almond instead of vanilla in the glaze. Mmmmmm! Enjoy!
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Thursday, June 23, 2011

4th of July Giveaway from CoffeCakes.com


I am so excited to have another opportunity to share my new love with you!  "CoffeeCakes.com  is a privately held company that markets specialty food and gourmet gift items exclusively on the Internet."  They sell a wide variety of desserts, coffees, and teas, but it is their Coffee Cake that now has my heart.  I love that every time I visit their site, I discover so many new products that I just have to try.  While I can't get enough of their moist, delicious coffee cakes, my dad just can't get enough of the Tortuga Rum Cakes.  And now, just in time for our Nation's 4th of July celebration, CoffeeCakes.com has a great selection of Made in the USA gift ideas.



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The item I'm most excited about trying is "My Grandmother's Very Berry Patriot Coffee Cake".  This Cake features "Fresh New England blueberries and Cape Cod cranberries...layered on the traditional rich sour cream coffee cake batter. Walnuts are not added to patriotic colored coffee cake. A perfect crowd pleaser and perfect for Independence Day Celebrations. The one-pound twelve-ounce coffee cake by My Grandmas of New England serves approximately 10 - 12 and can be frozen up to four months."  

I have found that sometimes when you freeze baked goods, they don't always taste as good after you thaw them out.  So I had to freeze some of the cake i had for a few days to test it out.  It is hard to believe, but I actually think the cakes tasted better after being frozen.  So go ahead and order the sampler, save yourself some money, and freeze the cakes until your ready to eat them!  And with all orders over $50, you receive free shipping.

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Perhaps you have been looking for a new coffee/tea mug (to go with your delicious coffee cake, of course).  At CoffeeCake.com you can get a mug Made in the USA that has a matte finish and is microwaveable and dishwasher safe.

Now, just in time for the 4th of July Celebrations, the generous people at CoffeeCakes.com are offering one of you wonderful readers a chance to win a "My Grandmother's Very Berry Patriot Coffee Cake" and a Made in the USA Mug!

Mandatory Entry:  Visit CoffeeCakes.com and let me know something that you would like to try besides coffee cake.  Please remember to include your email so I can contact you if you win.

Extras: (Remember each entry must have a separate comment and an email address is needed to contact winner.)
~ Follow CoffeeCake.com on Twitter (2)
~ Like CoffeeCake.com on Facebook (2)
~ Follow Between the Lines on Facebook (5)
~Follow Between the Lines (3)
~ Subscribe to my email (5)
~ Grab any of my buttons and leave a link of where it’s displayed (5)
~Add me to your Blogroll and leave a link (5)
~Follow me on Twitter (2)
~Tweet this giveaway leaving me your link. (3x a day not back to back) (1 entry each)
~ Enter any of my other current giveaways (1 each)
~ Grab my Twitter Hop or Blog Hop button and leave a link (3 each)
~Blog about this giveaway and leave me a link (10)

This giveaway will end on July 4th @10p.m Eastern
*This giveaway is open to Continental US only. No PO Boxes or APO addresses.  Winner will be chosen randomly. An email notification will be sent to the email address provided by the winner. The winner must respond within 48 hours. Failure to do so will result in being disqualified and a new winner will be chosen.  
Disclaimer:  The opinions & thoughts expressed are my own. I received no  compensation for my review nor was I under any obligation to give a positive review. Prizes are mailed out by the distributor and Between the Lines cannot be held accountable for prizes not sent.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Relay For Life in Pictures

I just wanted to thank everyone again for their support of our Relay For Life team.  My friends and I believe that Cancer Research is such an important cause to support and we are so happy that we were able to make a difference.  With your help, I was able to raise $658!  Together, our team raised over $3300!  And as a community, we raised over  $303,500!!!  Amazing! 

We all have our own reasons for working so hard to raise money for Relay For Life.  Last year, as a team we walked in Honor of our friend Lisa who had seemingly won her battle against this horrendous disease.  Unfortunately, this year we walked in Memory of Lisa who lost her tough battle just last month. 

We all have been touched by Cancer in some way.  At the Relay, we were able to light Luminaria's in honor or in memory of those who had suffered at Cancer's hand.  I walked in memory of my dear Granddaddy and my husband's Uncle Bob.  Both were tough men who fought with all they had.  My Granddaddy was a Colonel in the Army and fought in two wars.  He was brave and strong and taken from his Wife, Daughters, and Grandchildren too soon.  I, unfortunately, never had the pleasure of meeting my husband's Uncle Bob, but I know that he is dearly missed by my Mother-in-law and the rest of his family.
Luminaria in the bleachers
Our Memorial for Lisa

Our Campsite (Everyone had a Beach theme)

My Sister, friend, and I waiting for the opening ceremony


More friends

and more friends

Lisa's Luminaria

My friend's Amazing Mother's Luminaria

My Sister and I with our Granddaddy's Luminaria

Going around the track lighting the Luminaria

Still on our feet at Midnight!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Summer Learning Series: Money

Every child loves summer. Summer is a time for playing outside, swimming in the pool, and hanging out with your friends. Unfortunately, summer is also a time when kids lose a lot of what they learned during the previous year of school. As an elementary school teacher, it was frustrating to watch my students struggle at the beginning of each year with objectives that they had mastered the previous year. As a parent, I want to make sure that this doesn’t happen to my children. This summer, I will be setting aside a little time each day for some fun learning activities for my kids.  Hopefully, they will have so much fun they won't be worried about practicing their reading, writing, and arithmetic! 


Last week, my girls and I played a new game using bathroom cups and pretend money. It was our own personal version of Memory, but we’d love to share it with you all. Just like any version of Memory, make sure to adjust it to match your child’s learning level. First I will give you an overview of the version we played and then I’ll give you some ideas for alternate ways to play.



First start with about 12 bathroom cups. In each pair of cups, put an equal amount of coins. For example, if one cup has 5 pennies, then the second cup should have a nickel. If one cup has a dime, the other cup could have 2 nickels, 1nickel and 5 pennies, or even 10 pennies. You can make any combinations you like, just make sure they are even.



Next, turn the cups over and mix up the pairs. The kids will then take turns picking up two cups to see if they have a match. I made my kids identify the coins and their values before they could pick up their second cup. If the values under the two cups are equal, they made a match and get to keep their pair. The person with the most matches wins!



To make it easier, have only one coin under each cup. Play like you would any other memory game, but work on either identifying the coin or its value (or both). To make it harder, add more cups or make the winner the person with the most money at the end. By adding this element, the kids will have to strategize on which cups they want to uncover and will have to practice adding up all their money in the end.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Kina Grannis' "Stairwells" CD Review and Giveaway (Autographed)

I can honestly say that before being contacted to review Kina Grannis' CD, I had never heard of her before.  I am a mother of young children and I have been completely out of the music loop.  But after listening to one of her songs on YouTube, I was really excited to get my hands on the entire album.  Kina Grannis is an extremely talented young artist.  "Her music is sweet and melancholy, but always filled with hope."  For those of you who haven't heard her sing before, I would describe her sound as a mixture between Jason Mraz and Colbie Calliat.   My girls and I listened to her entire album within a day and moved it to our car so we could listen to it whenever we are out and about.

Kina joined YouTube in 2007 to enter a music video into a contest.  "A few months later, her video for "Message From Your Heart" aired during the Superbowl and its 97 million viewers...".  Since then she has continued to post videos on YouTube, released and re-released her debut album Stairwells (the re-release was a remixed and remastered version with 4 new songs), and performed to sold out shows, including 2010's Lilith Fair, throughout North America.







With over 330,000 YouTube subscribers and 115,000 Facebook Followers, Kina Grannis is an internet sensation.  If you want to see what you've been missing, swing on over to Kina's YouTube Page and watch some of her wonderful videos.  You will be able to enjoy some original and cover songs.    

Want to own a copy of Stairwells?    I have two autograph copies of Stairwells to giveaway to you all.  To enter, simply visit Kina's YouTube Page and browse around.  Tell me something you love about her music or a favorite song.  Don't forget to leave an email address so that I can contact you if you are the winner.

Extras: (Remember each entry must have a separate comment and an email address is needed to contact winner.)
~ Like Kina on Facebook (3)
~ Subscribe to Kina's YouTube Page (2)
~ Follow Between the Lines on Facebook (2)
~Follow Between the Lines (2)
~ Subscribe to my email (2)
~Add me to your Blogroll and leave a link (5)
~Follow me on Twitter (2)
~Tweet this giveaway leaving me your link. (3x a day not back to back) (1 entry each)
~Blog about this giveaway and leave me a link (10)

This giveaway will end on July 5th @10p.m Eastern
*This giveaway is open Worldwide.  Winner will be chosen randomly. An email notification will be sent to the email address provided by the winner. The winner must respond within 48 hours. Failure to do so will result in being disqualified and a new winner will be chosen.  
Disclaimer:  The opinions & thoughts expressed are my own. I received a CD in exchange for my honest opinion. I was under any obligation to give a positive review. Prizes are mailed out by the distributor and Between the Lines cannot be held accountable for prizes not sent.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Pink Dandy Sunday Blog Hop


Welcome to the Pink Dandy Blog Hop!





This blog hop will be up for 3 days! From Sunday through Wednesday.

I will start a new blog hop every Sunday.


Between the Lines



Blog



*****

How does this blog hop work?


1. Make sure to follow Pink Dandy Chatter and Between The Lines so that we can follow you back!!

2. To ensure that Pink Dandy Chatter will follow you back, you need to make sure and leave a comment (below on this post) saying that you are a new follower and also leave a link to your blog.

3. Add your blog name and the URL to one of your favorite posts on the Linky below.

4. Please follow at-least 2 blogs on the list that appeal to you

5. Your blog must be family friendly ONLY. Explicit sites will be removed from the list.