Went to a taping of The View

I am so annoyed with myself for not bringing a camera!

I submitted a request months ago for tickets and then forgot all about it. Then about 2 weeks ago I received tickets in the mail for December 14. I went with my mother while Alberto stayed with the girls.

It was FREEZING yesterday and we had to stand in line outside of the studio. They started letting us into the building in groups of about 20 at about 9:15am. We were checked in and then had to pass though security. We were also given waivers that we "may" receive gifts in excess of $75 and if it exceeds (I think) $600 we had to report it to the IRS. I immediately get excited because I just know that we were going to get some free stuff!

After going through the metal detectors we stand in line. For a long time. It was already 10:15 am and were still standing there. (The shows airs live at 11am.) One of the interns explained that Diddy was still rehearsing. About 15 minutes later they began calling out numbers that were on out tickets to be brought upstairs to the studio. They started with 1 - 15. My ticket was 152. More standing for me.

We were finally brought upstairs and were given cookies and juice. The set is so much smaller than it looks on TV. We were seated on Whoopie's side about 3 rows up from the floor. I was disappointed that Whoopie, Elisabeth and Barbara did not interact with the audience at all. Sherri and Joy came out a couple of times to chat with people.

My loot from The View


We were fortunate enough to be at a taping where a few things were given away. Our first gift came just before the the first commercial break.



And a $100 Amazon gift card! I already have a Kindle so I am giving mine to my BFF that was supposed to go to the taping but got there late.

Then Diddy (Sean Combs) came out to be interviewed and were given his cologne for men.

This makes Alberto smell yummy!


After another commercial break Diddy performed "Coming Home" from his new cd which we were also given.

My daughter got this cd.


Before the hosts ended the show Joy gave away this DVD. .




My mother and I had a very good time at the taping and would love to do it again soon. If you click on the link below it should bring you this episode. You can see me in the audience when the Kindle is given away. I am wearing a blue/green shirt with a scarf.

Happy Blog Anniversary to Me!!!

I can't believe that I actually survived an entire year of writing this blog. Sure, I don't keep up with it as often as I'd like but the fact that it hasn't been completely abandoned yet is an accomplishment in and of itself.

Ok...I am done patting myself on the back. I have some more FanFiction recommendations for you.

If a banner has been made for a story I will use that as the link for the story. Just click on the pic and it will bring you directly to the story. I will also add a summary for the story. (Look at how fancy I'm getting with this whole blog thing!)

I really really loved this story!

Jasper Hale, 21, is the son of a popular televangelist in Phoenix, and he couldn't be any further from a church-going goody two shoes. His attitude toward work, attending class, or contributing positively to society is lackadaisical at best. He drinks, smokes, and has a penchant for deflowering teenage girls. Bella attends private school with Edward Cullen, a senior who she's been in love with since ninth grade, when he moved to Phoenix. Too bad Edward is dating the most beautiful girl at St. Mary's, and doesn't even know Bella exists. But when Jasper sets his sights on Bella, Edward can't help but take notice. Will he protect her from girlfriend Rosalie's impious older brother? AH/AU/OOC and all that good stuff.

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Another great story!

The perfect person appears at the worst possible moment, and one unforgettable encounter changes everything. AH

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I really had high hopes for this. It started out so cute and funny but then it just too weird for me and I didn't find it very funny at all. It's only 9 chapters long if you want to give it a shot.

Accidents happen. Sometimes you die and meet God. Sometimes you live and meet SexGod. B&E. AH. AU.

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I really enjoyed this!

Half of Hollywood’s most famous couples are faking it. That’s how Bella Swan’s publicist convinces her to pretend to date troubled Hollywood bad boy Edward Cullen. And she'll do anything for her band and her music.

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I liked this one a lot, too.

Um. Hi. I don’t really know how to say this, but I have your kids with me, and I was thinking maybe you would like them back. So yeah… call me.

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Love this story! This one is HOT! HOT!! HOT!!! It's still in progress and I squeal in delight when I get an email notification that there is a new chapter up.

Bella Swan has spent a lifetime putting everyone else's needs before her own. Could a chance encounter with a mysterious stranger begin to change all of that? AU/AH

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I can't find a banner for Boy in the Red Sweater. I really liked this story and love Sweaterward!

Laced in silence and bound by his black web of a backpack, the new boy dressed in the faded red pullover is driving Bella insane with curiosity. Don't judge a boy by his sweater. AH. M for future chaps, language, dark themes.

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Mr. Horrible was another cute story. A bit weird but I enjoyed it.

They meet at a gallery, from two different worlds. Watch as they learn... oh, who am I kidding here? They meet. They are opposites. They attract. Rated M for serious potty mouth and scenes of the citrus variety.

That's all for now. Happy reading!!

Pumpkin Pie

I forgot to take a picture of the pumpkin pie. It's a Paula Deen recipe and I followed it exactly. It was delicious and was quickly devoured by my family. It was a bit soft and after reading some of the reviews some people stated that instead of 2 cups of canned pumpkin it should be 2 cans. I may try it with 2 cans next time to see if it's firmer. But it was still amazing.

Pumpkin Pie

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups canned pumpkin, mashed
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg plus 2 egg yolks, slightly beaten
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) melted butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, optional
• 1 piece pre-made pie dough
• whipped cream, for topping

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place 1 piece of pre-made pie dough down into a (9-inch) pie pan and press down along the bottom and all sides. Pinch and crimp the edges together to make a pretty pattern. Put the pie shell back into the freezer for 1 hour to firm up. Fit a piece of aluminum foil to cover the inside of the shell completely. Fill the shell up to the edges with pie weights or dried beans (about 2 pounds) and place it in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, remove the foil and pie weights and bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is dried out and beginning to color.

For the filling, in a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer. Add the pumpkin and beat until combined. Add the sugar and salt, and beat until combined. Add the eggs mixed with the yolks, half-and-half, and melted butter, and beat until combined. Finally, add the vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger, if using, and beat until incorporated.

Pour the filling into the warm prepared pie crust and bake for 50 minutes, or until the center is set. Place the pie on a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Cut into slices and top each piece with a generous amount of whipped cream.

Green Bean Casserole

This is a super easy dish and a staple for most Thanksgiving dinners. I did not cook this but my 12 year old did. She was very proud to be able to contribute a dish.

French's Green Bean Casserole

1 (10 3/4 oz.) can CAMPBELL'S® Cream of Mushroom Soup

3/4 cup milk

1/8 tsp. black pepper

2 (9 oz. each) pkgs. frozen cut green beans, thawed*

1 1/3 cups FRENCH'S® Original or Cheddar French Fried Onions

1. MIX soup, milk and pepper in a 1 1/2 -qt. baking dish. Stir in beans and 2/3 cup French Fried Onions.
2. BAKE at 350°F for 30 min. or until hot.
3. STIR. Top with remaining 2/3 cup onions. Bake 5 min. until onions are golden.

Classic Stuffing

I like basic stuffing. I'm sure that there are a lot of yummy recipes out there but as far as stuffing goes I like it simple. It may be simple but it is delicious and it was a HIT!



Classic Stuffing

16 cups of seasoned bread cubes (I used Arnold Stuffing)
1 stick of butter
2 cups of onion, diced
2 cups of celery, diced
3 cups of chicken broth
1 tbsp poultry seasoning
salt and pepper

1. Melt butter in large skillet.
2. Add onions, celery, poultry seasoning, S&P and cook about 5 minutes.
3. Add chicken broth and bring to a simmer.
4. Add bread cubes and mix thoroughly.
5. Transfer to buttered baking dish and dot with butter.
6. Cover and bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Uncover and cook another 30 minutes until golden brown.
   

Haven't posted in a while

I can't believe that I haven't posted in such a long time. I really meant to post something...anything...but I kept being sidetracked. Between my crazy kids, Thanksgiving and my addiction to reading FanFiction this lame-o-blog has suffered.

I did manage to do some cooking for Thanksgiving and bring it over to my dad's house.

First up is the bird. Isn't it pretty?? My recipe is loosely base on a few recipes that I found on allrecipes.com.




Roasted Turkey

1 whole turkey (mine was 20 lb)
8 tbsp of butter, softened (1 stick)
2 cups of warm water
2 packets of chicken bouilloun
1 tbsp poultry seasoning
salt & pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Rinse and wash turkey. Discard the giblets, or add to pan if they are anyone's favorites.
2. Place turkey in a Dutch oven or roasting pan. Separate the skin over the breast to make little pockets. Mix the poultry seasoning and S&P with the softened butter. Spread the butter all over the the outside of the bird and under the skin between the skin and breast meat. This makes for very juicy breast meat.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the water with the bouillon. Pour over the top of the turkey. You can add more seasoning over the bird at this point if you wish.
4. Cover with foil, and bake in the preheated oven 3 1/2 to 4 hours, until the internal temperature of the turkey reaches 180 degrees F (80 degrees C). Remove the foil so the turkey will brown nicely and continue cooking for remaining 45 minutes or so.

*I choose to not stuff my bird with stuffing. Instead I stuff mine with quartered onions, halved garlic cloves, halved lemons and fresh herbs.

Fan Fiction Recs

I just realized that it has been almost a month since I last posted some Fan Fiction recommendations. I have been very busy reading some fan fiction and also managed to read a real book!

My first rec is The Best Man. Oh how I loved this story. It made me laugh and it made me cry. I cried so much and I still get sad thinking about it. But it is a must read.

I am currently reading Emancipation Proclamation. I don't know how to describe this story to do it justice. It is long compared to other fictions that I have read but so damn good. My only complaint is that I can only read it on my laptop. I can't read it on my Kindle or on my Blackberry. The author used Google Docs and neither of my devices support it. I would probably be further along in the story if I were able to read it wherever I was. There is even a fan page on Facebook for this story. Please take the time to read this one.

I am also reading Creature of Habit since I can bring this story up on my Kindle and BB. This is my first story where the characters are vampires. I am about half way through and loving this version of how Edward and Bella meet. When I was looking for this story I found out there is a sequel. I'm not sure if it's complete but I do plan on reading it as well.

After I am done reading EP and CoH I plan on reading For You, Anything.

I also wanted to touch on one of the stories that I recommended in the past. The Appointment had so much potential to be a really good fan faction but I was so disappointed in the ending. It felt like a cop out.

That's all for now. I'm going to go into the living room with my kids and read CoH for a bit while my kids watch Sprout.