Spotlight Saturday Blog Hop #3

It's Spotlight Saturday Hosted By

Between the Lines, Survey Junkie, and Kindred Spirit Mommy

<a href="http://www.betweenthelines-kel.com" target="_blank"><img border="0" alt="Between the Lines" src="http://i845.photobucket.com/albums/ab13/jacquiblogger/LINES%203/Spotlightanimated2.gif" /></a>
Welcome to our new 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 we are spotlighting our favorite food blogs!  Please share your favorites with us!

How it Works

1) Link up your own blog.
2)Link up a blog you want to spotlight for the week.(ex. Spotlight: I Spot You)
3) Follow your three hosts.
4) Grab our button and post it on your sidebar or a Spotlight Saturday Post.
5) Follow as many blogs from the list 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. )

 Don't forget to leave a comment for the blog you spotlighted so they can come join the blog hopping fun! And don't miss next week's Crafty Spotlight Saturday. Come join the blog hop fun and Spotlight your favorite Creative Blog! 

Another Fun Blog Hop you may be interested in!

Yummy Blogs!

Don't forget tomorrow is the Spotlight Saturday blog hop and we will be spotlighting our favorite food and cooking blogs.  So join us tomorrow to link up your blog as well your favorite food blog.  Don't forget to let them know you've spotlighted them so they can join in on the blog hopping fun!  Also, if anyone is interested in being featured on Fabulous Food Friday, please send me an email at betweenthelines-kam@hotmail.com.  Have a fabulous weekend!

Giveaway from Giddy Up & Grow

Do you ever feel like your child just wants to Giddy Up & Grow??? Well now they can. Giddy Up & Grow offers super sweet dresses and accessories for little girls and sometimes their mommies.

Giddy Up & Grow offers sweet pillowcase dresses in sizes newborn to 6 years. Each dress is handmade and sewn with great care and love. I try to use original fabrics that make each dress a statement piece in your child's wardrobe. All the pillowcase dresses can be adjusted and will grow with your child. Wear it as a dress one season, and the next wear with a long sleeve shirt, tights/jeans or leggings.

All hair accessories by Giddy Up & Grow are original handmade pieces. Giddy Up & Grow offers headbands, snap clips and alligator clips for newborns to mommies! Whether you just want to pin back those pesky bangs or really make a statement, Giddy Up & Grow has a style for you.

Come join Robyn's blog at www.mommyinawonderland.blogspot.com and be eligible to win a hair clip gift set from Giddy Up & Grow.

Check the online store often as new pieces are being posted all the time www.giddyupandgrow.etsy.com. Join our facebook page too at www.facebook.com/giddyupandgrow.

Don't have an etsy.com account??? No problem, just send Robyn your request via email to robynturnbull@ymail.com and she will send you a PayPal invoice. 

To Enter the Giveaway:  Visit Robyn's etsy store at www.giddyupandgrow.etsy.com, pick out your favorite item. Then visit her blog at www.mommyinawonderland.blogspot.com, write the name of your favorite item in the comments section, and become a follower of her blog (you must do both to enter).This Giveaway ends Friday, August 20th. On Saturday, August 21st, Robyn will use random.org to select the winning comment. That person will win the hair clip gift set.

Fabulous Food Friday with Tanja's Cupcakes

Welcome to Fabulous Food Friday! While exploring the blogosphere, I realized that there were many great recipes to share. So every Friday, I am going to try to feature an awesome blogger with their great recipe! Today’s feature blogger is Tanja from Tanja's Cupcakes. When you get a chance, swing by Tanja's yummy blog.  I’m sure you’ll find a recipe you and your family will love. Hvala Tanja!

Hi everyone! I'm Tanja, a 19 years old pharmacy student and food
blogger from Slovenia. I started baking when I bought my first cupcake
cookbook last May because I thought cupcakes were so cute. Well, at
first, I was just looking at the pictures, but then I tried baking
them because I needed something creative, since there isn't any
creativity involved in studying pharmacy! Six months later I started
this blog to keep track of all the recipes I already made (with
pictures!) and of course, to share the delicious recipes with
everyone.

I don't know if it has happened to you before, but every time I land
on Martha Stewart's website, I bump into one of her layer cake
slideshows. How am I supposed to NOT bake a cake after seeing all that
creamy glossiness and deliciousness (if that's not a word yet, it
should be!). The last time I was there, I chose a chocolate cake that
had a pretty glossy finish and looked really sophisticated. Plus, the
title was Easy Chocolate Cake. When I made it though, the ganache was
far from perfect. It was ruining the cake, so I decorated it with a
lot of sprinkles. The result? Everyone loved it! So now I know that
whenever my frosting fails horribly, I can always take sprinkles and
transform the cake into pure awesomeness. And you can too! You'll
thank me later. This cake, apart from the perfect ganache, is very
easy to make and you probably already have the ingredients at home. It
has a very strong chocolate flavor, so you might want to serve it with
whipped cream.

Easy Chocolate Cake

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for pan
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees (175° C).
   Butter an 8-inch round cake pan; line bottom with wax paper. Butter
   paper, dust with cocoa powder, tapping out excess; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together
   cocoa, flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In a mixing bowl,
   cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a
   time, then beat in vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture
   alternating with sour cream, starting and ending with the flour
   mixture.
3. Spread batter into prepared pan. Tap
   pan firmly on countertop several times to force out large air bubbles.
   Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 30 to 35
   minutes. Remove from oven. Cool 10 minutes in pan, then invert onto a
   wire rack to cool completely (bottom side up). Set rack over a rimmed
   baking sheet. Pour glaze over, spread gently to coat entirely. Let
   stand until set. Garnish with chocolate shavings. Serve with whipped
   cream.

Chocolate Glaze

4 ounces coarsely chopped semisweet chocolate

1/2 cup heavy cream

Place chocolate in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan, bring cream to
a boil. Pour over chocolate, whisk until smooth. Let cool until thick
yet pourable, 2 to 3 minutes.

Tricky Trivia

Daniel Boone hated _______________?

Take a guess in the comments below and add your own tricky trivia to Between the Lines' Facebook discussion page.

Blogmania Featured Shop: Wired Whimsy

Are you looking for some beautiful, yet unique jewelry?  My lovely blogging friend Christy, from the Etsy shop Wired Whimsy, offers a great variety of necklaces, earring, rings, and other great products. Her handmade jewelry has a vintage feel that you will love. Not only is her selection great, but she loves custom orders. If you see something you like, but would rather a different color or chain length, don’t hesitate to ask her.

Aren’t these pieces just perfect??    If you like these, make sure to join us for Blogmania.  These fun pieces will be included in the Between the Lines prize pack! Stop on over at Wired Whimsy and check out Christy’s selection. If you fall in love with her jewelry, like I did, don’t forget to join her on her blog, Twitter, and Facebook. You never know when a special discount may come up!

Bouncing off the Walls!

Do you all remember last month when I told you how sad we were that my hubby’s parents were moving to North Carolina?  Well they are coming back today for a visit and my kids are completely bouncing off the wall.  No matter how many times we told them that we would still get to see their Grams and Grandpa Joe, they just didn’t believe me.  My eldest daughter has repeatedly shown me on the map just how far North Carolina is.  We couldn’t possibly see them!  So now that they are coming to visit, the excitement level is at an all time high!  Joe and Kathy, if you are reading this, I hope you are ready to be tackled!

Tricky Trivia

Which has more caffeine: Dark Roasted Coffees or Medium Roasted Coffees?

Take a guess in the comment below and don't forget to add some of your own tricky trivia on Between the Lines' Facebook discussion page.

Webkinz Jr. Review and Giveaway (21 winners!)

I know most of you out there have heard of Webkinz, right?!?   Well, I am so excited to introduce you to the more recently created Webkinz Jr.  Webkinz Jr. is a fun and educational world created for the little ones in our lives.  Just like the original Webkinz, “Webkinz Jr. pets are lovable plush animals that each come with a unique Pet Code”.  This code allows you to explore and play with your pet in an online world.  One of my favorite features of Webkinz Jr. is that the parent is able to monitor and control the learning level of their child.  As your child learns and grows, the games and activities grow with them.   Each area of learning can be changes individually to match your child’s needs.

My girls are in love with their Webkinz Jr. pets.  My youngest carries her blue puppy, Cotton Candy, everywhere she goes.  She plays with it, sleeps with it, and even travels with it.  These pets are larger than the original Webkinz and are much softer.  My eldest daughter also loves her blue bunny, Blueberry!  She insist that Blueberry play Webkinz Jr. with her.  She sometimes even has the bunny help her click around the world.

Online Pets

Plush Pets

Webkinz Jr. is a big world.  Children can explore the inside and outside of their pet’s home, they can go to the park, museum, bakery, school, treehouse, store, movies, hair salon, and much more!  My youngest said she loves “going to the treehouse because you can save stuff.  I love finding buried treasure in the sandbox and baking cakes.  You get to decorate your own cake!”  She also loves discovery new places and games.  This is why I love that Webkinz Jr. periodically changes their themes.  Once the old games seem to be easy, new ones appear!  My oldest daughter said “I love the cute and cuddly animals at Webkinz Jr.  The games are so fun and you can win coins.  You can buy stuff for your Webkinz Jr. pet.  I like to watch the cute animals sleep in their beds.”

The generous people from Webkinz Jr. have offered one lucky reader of Between the Lines the chance to win a free plush pet that includes a code good for a one year membership.  They have also offered 20 of you a chance at a trial membership.  With the trial, you won’t receive a pet, but you can join in on all the fun with a little online frog.  Once you try it out, you will probably be hitting Toys R Us to buy your own pet!

Mandatory Entry: Visit Webkinz Jr and let me know which pet you would choose if you won.

Extras: (Remember each entry must have a separate comment and an email address is needed to contact winner.)

~Follow Between the Lines (3)         

~ Subscribe to my email (5)

~ Grab my button and leave a link of where it’s displayed (5)

~Add me to your Blogroll and leave a link (5)

~ Follow me on Facebook (5)

~Follow me on Twitter (2)

~ Follow Webkinz Jr. on Twitter (2)

~ Add my Twitter Hop Button  and leave a link (5)

~Like Webkinz Jr. on Facebook (2)

~Tweet this giveaway leaving me your link. (3x a day not back to back) (1 entry each)

~ Enter another one of my giveaways (1 each)

~Blog about this giveaway and leave me a link (10)

~Make a purchase from Webkinz Jr. (10)

This giveaway will end on August 26^th @10p.m Eastern

*Grand Prize Giveaway open to US and Canada only.  The trials are available to all. 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: I received a complimentary pet in exchange for my honest review. The opinions & thoughts expressed are my own. I received no other compensation for my review nor was I under any obligation to give a positive review.

Tricky Trivia

Ernest Vincent Wright wrote a novel, "Gadsby", which contained over 50,000 words.  None of these words contained the letter ____________.

Take a guess in the comments below.  Do you have a trivia question you'd like to share? Head over to my new Facebook page and leave it under the trivia discussion tab.

We Have 7 winners!

Our first winner is fdigsby!  She is the winner of the awesome Neostrata giveaway.  She won with comment #28, "entered sunglass warehouse".  Congrats!!

Our second winner is Frugal Vicki!  She is the lucky winner of a complete blog makeover, courtesy of Wacky Jacqui's Designs.  Frugal Vicki won with comment #118, "email subscriber 5".  I can't wait to see what Jacqui creates for you!

Our next 5 winners are ksmom3, Liz, Erin S., Cheryl W, and mimilovesall8!  They have all won their children a free month of the upgraded version of The Travel of Wiglington and Wenks.  Ladies, make sure to create a free account for your children.  Otherwise they can't upgrade it.

I will be emailing all our winners shortly.  They have 48 hours to claim their prize or I will randomly select a new winner.  Thanks to all that entered and thanks for reading Between the Lines!

Marathon Training

My father-in-law is a devoted runner.  He runs daily and at the age of 63 he has completed 73 marathons and 28 ultra Marathons.  I have always been in awe of his stamina and have always wanted to run with him.  A few weeks back my husband and I finally decided that it was time to get serious and make a decision. If we were going to successfully complete a marathon, we would need to make a training schedule and stick to it.  Last week was our first week of the twenty-six week training program.  Since we already run most days, this first week was pretty simple.  We were required to run 20 minutes, four times a week and weight train two days a week.  Sunday was a day of rest.    We both completed the week successfully.  I actually did more than was required.  Two of my running days, I ran for 45 minutes.  If you want to train with me, I would be ecstatic.  This week is actually the same as last.  So just make sure to run 20 minutes four times a week and complete a weight training circuit two days a week.  We haven’t told my father-in-law yet.  We want to get in a little bit more in shape before we commit to him.  I would hate to fail and let him down.  Maybe in the mean time, we can convince my dad to run with us too.  He has run marathons in the past, but I don’t really think he is in to running as much anymore.  Well wish me luck and say a prayer for my poor body!  :)

Recipe Corber: Low Fat Hummus

Pic borrowed from allrecipies.com

I don't know about you, but I love hummus.  I love spreading it on crackers and pita bread.  This is a very easy recipe that is low-fat and low calorie.  You can definitely tell the difference, but it is still delicious.  It is important to remember that we all like different consistency, so add more or less lemon juice according to your preference.  And don't forget to swing by Crazy Daisy's Tuesday Tastes Party for some more yummy recipes.

Ingredients

• 1 (15.5 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
• 1 clove garlic, peeled
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2/3 cup plain non-fat yogurt

Directions

1. In a blender or food processor, blend garbanzo beans until smooth. Mix in garlic, salt, lemon juice and yogurt. Blend to desired consistency.

Tricky Trivia

Who was the first woman in Congress?

Take a guess in the comments below.

Between the Lines is Now on Facebook!

Come join me for some Facebook fun!  Post your own trivia questions, join in discussion topics, or just stop in to say hi! 

Our House is No Longer Drowning!!!

For those of you who missed last week’s posts, let me fill you in real quick. Last Monday we got our water bill and we were absolutely floored at the amount we owed. We get our water bill every 2 months and we typically pay around $30 - $40. This bill, however, was $300! We were sure that they had made a mistake and read the meter incorrectly, but it turns out we has a busted pipe. The big problem was we didn’t know where it was busted. We, of course, feared the worse when we discovered our brilliant builders had laid the water pipe under the foundation. If a pipe broke under the house, it could have been disastrous for our house and for our bank account. Luckily, the pipe that broke was outside near the side of the house.

This enormous hole was dug by one of our good friends and his buddy. Our friend owns and runs a construction company and willingly offered his Saturday to us. We are so blessed to have such wonderful people in our life. It made this huge ordeal so much better. They found the leak on the first try and only had to dig this one hole in our yard rather than the entire yard as the plumbing company has quoted us on. Now about 40,000 gallons of water later, we can stop wasting water.

Silent Sunday

Her new favorite saying.  Thanks Richmond Science Museum!

Trying to pull Daddy up with a pulley lift.

Milking a cow at the Richmond Children's Museum.

My little dinosaurs have hatched!

Hiding in a cave.

Daddy getting crushed (this is a pretend cave..we are not destroying a natural wonder:).

Trying to pretend she is getting crushed too.

Exploring underwater.

Exploring with her sister.

Simple Sunday Twitter Hop

Welcome to the New & Improved

Simple Sunday Twitter Hop .

Hosted by Survey Junkie, Between the Lines ,

Its Me Melbie & Crazy Daisy.

With this weeks Guest Host Bipolar Diva.

<center><a href="http://www.betweenthelines-kel.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1020.photobucket.com/albums/af324/staycee413/Twitwith4blogs.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a><br /> </center> Grab a cup of coffee & join us every SundayYou can gain new Twitter followers, find some great blogs & bloggers in the process.
Have Fun !!!
Plus every week we will draw a random guest host to fill our #5 seat :)
How it Works
1. Follow blogs 1 -5 ( we will follow back )
2. Add your Twitter URL ( not your blog url or giveaways)
3. Snag our new button to use in a post about the Simple Sunday Twitter Hop
4. Follow as many ppl. as you would like & follow everyone back that follows you :)
( This is not a giveaway linkup & anything other than your Twitter url's will be deleted ) Link up every Sunday at 12:00 am est !!