Spotlight Saturday

It's Spotlight Saturday Hosted By

Between the Lines and Survey Junkie

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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 Jodi from Magical Mouse Schoolhouse!

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! )

Don't Miss Spotlight Saturday

Don't forget tomorrow is Spotlight Saturday!  Hope you all come back in the morning to join us, along with Survey Junkie, 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 A Turtle's Life For Me

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 Natalie from A Turtle's Life For Me.  Natalie is an awesome blogger and Mom who loves the joy of creating, cooking, and saving. She has some wonderful recipes and crafty ideas that you definitely should check out.  While you are there, don't miss her yummy Brownie Recipe that is a neighborhood hit!  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.

Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies!

I'm a complete and total push-over when it comes to anything chocolate or peanut butter, so bringing the two together just about sends my taste buds into party mode!

I made these cookies to take to the beach last month, and since the days leading up to it were filled with packing and last minute chores, I used a simple Betty Crocker bag mix for peanut butter cookies!  You can make yours from scratch, use a bag mix, use the pre-made dough from the refrigerator section or just buy some in the bakery if you want!

Once you have your peanut butter cookies, melt 1 cup of chocolate chips in the microwave.  I melt mine for 1 minute and then stir until smooth, but if you've got a fancy new microwave with lots of power, your time might be a little less (I'm working with a 16 year old microwave that's losing steam rapidly!).  While they're melting, lay a sheet of wax paper on your counter.

Once it's melted, take a cookie and dip just the one flat side into the chocolate and then lay on the wax paper to harden.  I only dipped half my cookies in the chocolate, but if you want them all dipped, then by all means keep on melting that chocolate and dip away! You can see in the picture that I did try a few with both cookies dipped, but in the end preferred just the hint of chocolate you got with only one dipped!

While the chocolate is hardening, you can make your peanut butter filling:

2 tbsp. softened butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup powdered sugar
milk as needed

Just mix together and add 1-2 tbsp. milk if needed to get the consistency you want. I just play around with it and add more peanut butter if it's too sweet or more milk if it's too stiff to spread!  Once you have it just like you want it, spread a good chunk on a cookie with chocolate and top with a cookie without!  Push together to flatten the peanut butter and then grab your Diet Coke milk and enjoy!

Are We There Yet????

Despite how much you love you kids, there is only a certain amount of whining a mother can take.  Under normal circumstances, you can leave the room or distract them with another task to keep the whining to a minimum.  However, when you are trapped inside a car for 8 hours, there is no escape!  We will be going on vacation in a few days and I have been desperately trying to think of new ways to keep the girls occupied.  I have the normal books, crayons and paper, DVD's, Music, and even a few car games.   But even that is not enough to keep their attention for an entire 8 hours (without traffic).   So ladies, I'm counting on you and all your creative brilliance to help me out.  What do you do to keep your kids busy on those extremely long car rides?  How do you avoid hearing, "Are we there yet?" repeatedly?    Grab a Latte, Put Up Your Feet, and Join the Discussion!

Build a Dream Playhouse Review and Giveaway

Have you ever noticed that when there is a cardboard box in the room, the imagination of our children grow?  I remember a few Christmases where the box was more exciting than the toy that was in it.  Build a Dream Playhouse.com has taken the idea  of the cardboard box to the next level.  They "believe that imaginative play is absolutely critical to the developing minds of children. That is why they created a line of products centered on creativity and imagination. They supply the blank canvas for children to paint their dreams. Cardboard allows our products to be colored, painted, decorated, and customized to please every child’s dreams. Corrugated cardboard is also extremely durable and safe for children."

My girls browsed through their website for about 30 minutes before they could agree on the perfect playhouse for them.  At first they both wanted the Castle shown above.  And then they wanted the Snack Shack shown below.

But eventually they agreed they wanted to sell ice cream and other sweet treats.  So they were so excited to receive the Imagine Wagon!

Like most kids, my girls go running to the door or window whenever the ice cream truck rolls through our neighborhood.  Unfortunately, their Mommy never buys them anything from the truck because it too expensive (I know...I'm so mean).   So they decided they were going to run their Sweet Shoppe much differently.   They were going to give it away for free!   If only...

My girls had so much fun decorating their Imagine Wagon.  And I was so thankful that it was so easy to put together.   The sturdy cardboard Imagine Wagon has already taken a lot of abuse love.  But it still stands tall for future adventures.  Do you think that your kiddos would love their own Build a Dream Playhouse?  Lucky for you, Build a Dream Playhouse is offering one of you lucky readers a chance to win their choice of playhouses.

Mandatory Entry:  Like Build A Dream Playhouse.com on Facebook. Please leave your 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.)
~ Follow Build A Dream Playhouse on Twitter (2)
~Leave a comment letting me know which playhouse you would choose (1)
~ Follow Between the Lines on Facebook (3)
~Follow Between the Lines (2)
~ Subscribe to my email (3)
~ Grab any of my buttons and leave a link of where it’s displayed (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 27th @10p.m Eastern

*This giveaway is open to the 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 a playhouse in exchange for my review, but 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.

Sea-Band “Happy Travels” Giveaway

Are we there yet? Don’t let motion sickness keep the family car parked this summer! Enter the Sea-Band “Happy Travels” Giveaway and let Sea-Band drug-free anti-nausea wristbands and Sea-Band Ginger Gum help relieve the travel sickness so the journey can begin!   I have always suffered from car sickness and I will be giving both the Sea-Band wristbands and the Sea-Band Ginger Gum on my upcoming vacation.   I can't wait to tell you all about it when I get back.   But until then, check out this great giveaway from Sea-Band!

Entries open up starting on July 18^th and from July 25 through July 29, 2011,  Sea-Band will randomly select one daily winner to receive a Sea-Band "Happy Travels" family prize pack, including Sea-Band Drug Free Nausea Relief Bands for adults (2 pairs), Sea-Band Drug Free Nausea Relief Bands for children (2 pairs), as well two packs of new Sea-Band Anti-Nausea Ginger Gum.

Additionally, on July 29, one random grand prize winner will receive the Sea-Band “Happy Travels” grand prize including a travel cooler, a children’s book on CD, two adult travel pillows and Sea-Band anti nausea products to keep the whole family happy during your summer travels.

Enter one time for a chance at all prizes!  Enter over at Sea-Band's Facebook Page. Learn more about Sea-Band drug free nausea relief products at http://www.sea-band.com.

New Winners!

Congratulations to Danelle and Annie!   You are the winners of the Kina Grannis CD giveaway!  Each of the winners will receive an autographed copy of her new CD Stairwells.  Danelle won with comment # 55.  And Annie  won with comment # 62.  You  both have 48 hours to claim your prize or a new winner will be randomly selected.  Thanks to everyone who entered and thanks to Kina Grannis for sponsoring such a great giveaway!

Recipe Corner: German Curry Wurst

I was so excited when I found this recipe and even more excited when I ate it. It brought back so many memories of the time we spent at our favorite pool in Germany. I  recently told my older brother about it and told him I would share it with him.  Hopefully, you all will enjoy it too.

From allrecipes.com


Ingredients
• 2 (15 ounce) cans tomato sauce
• 1 pound kielbasa or sausage
• 2 tablespoons chili sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon onion salt
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 pinch paprika
• Curry powder to taste (start with a tsp and work your way up)

Directions
1. Cut meat into 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch slices.
2. Pour tomato sauce into a large saucepan, then stir in the chili sauce, onion salt, sugar, curry  and pepper. Let simmer over medium heat, occasionally stirring; bring to a gentle boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer another 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, cook kielbasa sausage over medium-high heat until cooked through. 
4. Pour tomato sauce mixture over sausage, then sprinkle all with paprika and curry powder and serve over rice,

Pink Dandy Sunday Blog Hop

Welcome to the Pink Dandy Sunday Blog Hop!

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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.