Fancy Cocoa Mugs

Do you love a good cup of cocoa like I do?

I have to have it with marshmallows.
Lots of them.

And it turns out, hot chocolate's even better in a fancy mug.

I picked up these mugs at TJ Maxx this summer for only .99 cents each. I call them my world traveler mugs.

I had originally intended to use them as something cute to put pens in, but that never happened. So when the weather turned colder and I spied my mugs up on the counter? Fancy hot chocolate was calling my name.

Sipping steamy cocoa in Russia

Savoring sweet chocolate in Mexico

 Chugging chocolate in Morocco

It's all in the way you look at it, no? Who knew drinking hot chocolate could be such an adventure?

Sadly, one of my favorite fancy mugs with a big red lobster on it (I've always wanted to go to Maine) got broken. I guess I'll just have to go all the way to Maine to get another lobster mug. Honey? Did you hear that? You owe me a trip to Maine for breaking my .99 cent mug. That's only fair, isn't it? :)

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Edible Creativity: Key Lime Pie

I hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving! As always, it seemed to go by way too fast. And I'm not just talking about scarfing down dinner. You know what I mean, you work on it for 10 hours, you eat it in 10 minutes? Crazy phenomenon.

I'll admit, after all the holiday hoopla it's a little hard to return to reality. However, on the bright side, the countdown to Christmas has begun!

For our holiday feast, I tried my hand at making a Key Lime Pie I found on allrecipes.com, per the request of my 17-year-old niece.  It turned out pretty delicious, if I do say so myself. Creamy and light with just the right tang.

And no egg yolks, like so many other recipes.

• Condensed Milk
• Sour Cream
• And ok, I did cheat and use Key Lime Juice, unlike the die hard pie makers who juiced 40 limes with their bare hands.

But I did zest 2 fresh limes to make up for it

And made my own graham cracker crust (I get a few points for that too don't I?)

• 1/3c sugar, 6T. melted butter and about 10 sheets of crushed graham crackers

Pre-oven pie

Fingers crossed...

We had a little extra filling and crust, so we made a little sample. I mean come on, we had to make sure the pie was ok to eat, right?!

And voila! It only took us about 6 slices before we got a skinny enough slice of lime to put on top. haha

The price of perfection.

And in case you want to try it, here's the recipe, with *my changes:


Key Lime Pie VII 

Ingredients

1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
*2 cans sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup key lime juice
1 tablespoon grated lime zest

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a medium bowl, combine condensed milk, sour cream, lime juice, and lime rind. Mix well and pour into graham cracker crust.

[*Homemade graham crust: mix 1/3c sugar, 6T. melted butter and about 10 sheets of crushed graham crackers and press into pie plate. Bake for 5 minutes at 325, let cool a little, add filling and bake as the recipe states].

Bake in preheated oven for 5 to 8 minutes, until tiny pinhole bubbles burst on the surface of pie. DO NOT BROWN! Chill pie thoroughly before serving. Garnish with lime slices and whipped cream!

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De-wrinkle clothes in a pinch without an iron

I just wanted to share a quick tip with those of you traveling during the holidays or for those of you (like me) who are at home but just too lazy to use an iron. hahaha

{Science & Society Picture Library}

Did you know that you can easily de-wrinkle most clothing with a spray bottle and a little water?

It's true. 1950's housewives would be outraged, but I will show you how to de-wrinkle clothes without an iron. gasp!

All you need is a wrinkled shirt, a misting spray bottle and water.

Ok, here's how it's done.

This is a knit shirt (t-shirt material) but I also use this iron-free de-wrinkling method on cotton. I like to hang my shirts on a shower curtain rod with a hanger that swivels, for easy maneuvering.

Fill your spray bottle with water. Set it for misting (not streaming). I like to have a small size spray bottle so I can bring it with me in my suitcase.

 "Mist" the water all over your shirt.

Shake the shirt a little to help ease out the wrinkles, but not too much (you don't want it to stretch out). (How's that for an action shot?)

Leave hanging to dry. I usually hang my shirt out the night before so it has plenty of time to dry. No one likes wearing a damp shirt.

And see how nice and smooth it comes out? And not an iron in sight.

I didn't make this up, Photoshop it or swap the shirt out for its twin. It really works.

In addition to t-shirts, this easy de-wrinkling technique also works on sturdier cotton like button up shirts or khakis. Here's a little video to see my de-wrinkling skills in action!

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Random thanks

Many people are scurrying around getting ready for Thanksgiving. Kitchens are filled with the scent of freshly baked bread, chocolate-chip cookies and pumpkin pies.

Me? I'm stuck in my house. Smelling regular air. Wearing an old pair of glasses with a prescription from 1999. Wah, wah, wahhhhhh.

Turns out wearing a torn contact lens can scratch your eye. Well gee. And putting off getting a new pair of glasses to save money? Not the best idea.

Needless to say, I'm thankful for contact lenses. And sometimes life gives you a reason to realize you've been taking them for granted.



And while I'm having a pitty party, you know what else I was taking for granted? The lovely trees that surrounded our apartment complex. I'm thankful for trees.

It's hard for me to even remember what it looked like just a few short days ago. Lush, green, comforting, peaceful.

Previous view

And this is what it looks like today.

Barren. Empty. Sad. Exposed.

View today

Our new apartment owner came in and chopped 10 beautiful trees down. All over the property. With no explanation. Ripping away our beauty and comfort, protection and privacy. Leaving us all feeling exposed, violated and unsettled. The warmth of our surroundings has diminished dramatically.

Poor giant beautiful tree. What did she ever do to deserve that?

And they even chopped down the lovely little tree perched just outside our kitchen window. Where will the squirrels play?

{And the Grinch grabbed the tree, and he started to shove When he heard a small sound like the coo of a dove. He turned around fast, and he saw a small Who! Little Cindy-Lou Who, who was not more than two. 

 The Grinch had been caught by this little Who daughter Who'd got out of bed for a cup of cold water. She stared at the Grinch and said, "Santy Claus, why, "Why are you taking our Christmas tree? WHY?"} [How The Grinch Stole Christmas]

But enough with the grinchy stuff.

The most important things I try not to take for granted are, after all, the things that really matter.

7 years ago Sunday, my sweetheart proposed.

I'm so grateful for a wonderful, loving and supportive husband. He's such a good man. I'm so lucky.

And I'm so grateful for my amazing family. Each one of them brings so much to my life. 

So I guess a day stuck at home bumping into walls with my old worn out glasses isn't so bad. :) It's all about perspective right?

A very Happy Thanksgiving everyone! 

Hope you're surrounded by those you love.

{eyeglasses image credit}

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