Princesses of Poultry

Have you seen the new Muppets movie yet?

If not, you are missing out on two hours of cheesy music numbers, hilarious celebrity cameos and the entire Muppets gang!

Here are some of my favorite things from the movie:

1. Jason Segel. I love him in How I Met Your Mother. Laughed myself silly watching him in Forgetting Sarah Marshall...vampire puppet musical was genius. He wrote and starred in the movie and his awkward dance numbers were worth the matinee price of this movie! I had tears in my eyes (from laughing) during the Muppet or Man song...not sure why but it cracked me up.

2.  Celebrities Galore. I couldn't wait to see what celebrity was going to pop up next in this movie. Jason's HIMYF costar Neil Patrick Harris answered telethon phones with Whoopi, Selena and the kid from Modern Family. David Grohl was the drummer in the Moopets tribute band in Reno and Jack Black took his role as Animal's anger management sponsor seriously!

3.  Great Music Numbers. There are some incredibly cheesy songs...it's the Muppets, what did you expect? But even my 4-year-old nephew turned to me and said "I like this song" during the Princesses of Poultry - Camilla and the Chickens version of Forget You!

Listen for yourself and get some highlights of the movie.



4.  Cheesy Lines. I love how the movie didn't take itself seriously. From the suggestion that rounding up the gang was taking too long so they should "use a montage" to gather the rest of the characters up to Fozzie questioning if a big explosion was in the budget to Kermit's call to President Carter and Molly Ringwald when looking for a host, I probably laughed more than my nephews did during the movie.

5.  New storyline. Even though there were many nods to the past, there was actually a plot to the movie and it kept both the kids and adults in the theater engaged and entertained.

My only disappointment...No "Pigs in Space" skit!

The Snowmen are Coming

Started my Christmas decorating this weekend...can't wait to deck out the top of my new china cabinet.

I realized something as I unpacked the storage boxes. 

My love of snowmen may have gotten a bit out of hand.

I just put out all of my snowmen on top of the china cabinet to see what I had...

Not the greatest photo but as you can see I have A LOT of snowmen!

I'm still working on the display on top of my china cabinet and if I like how it turns out, I'll post an "after" photo.

In the meantime, I did get a bit crafty and put together this decoration.

Not as good as the ones in the magazines or on Pinterest, but I like it.

I also put up my Christmas tree this afternoon.

As I was stringing the lights, I remembered why it's been 3 years since I last put up a tree.

I HATE stringing lights! But once it was all lit up and the ornaments hung, I am glad I did it.

So, how's your holiday decorating going? Are you finished? No started?

Aunt is My Fav Title

My youngest niece is hanging out with me tomorrow. I thought this onesie would be appropriate for the visit.

Source: cafepress.com via Danielle on Pinterest

Count Your Blessings

I was reminded once again yesterday that we need to stop, take a deep breath and realize all of the blessings we have in this life.

It was a post on the Love for Leontien page that brought me tears and perspective.

This is from Leontien's husband who is gracious enough to find the time, strength and words to keep his wife's friends and supporters updated while she undergoes treatments to fight cancer (for a second time).

Next time I start to whine about "all" the work I have to get done...

Next time I start to complain about something a friend, sister, coworker said to upset me...

Next time another driver cuts me off, drives slow in the fast lane or waits forever to turn right...

I'm going to think about Leontien and her family sitting in the hospital praying for the treatment to work and I'm going to get over it...whatever "it" is and be grateful for what I have.

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Loving My Pinterest Waffles

Woo Hoo!

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That's right...I tried one of the recipes that I pinned. 

For full disclosure, it isn't so much a recipe as an alternative cooking method of a favorite breakfast food.

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That's right...cinnamon rolls in the waffle maker.

One word...GENIUS!

Just heat up your standard Belgian waffle maker and coat with some cooking spray.

Grab a roll of basic cinnamon rolls from the fridge.

Place a cinnamon roll on each of the sections and close the lid - pressing down lightly.

Let them cook for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes and that's it.

Use the frosting that is included with the rolls...

Or use maple syrup.

I liked them both and suggest you try them both ways!

Maybe I'll try one of my pinned recipes with more than one ingredient next time.

Showcasing My Favorite Author

My favorite author is Gene Stratton-Porter. I'm not sure when I first read her book A Girl of the Limberlost but I do remember falling in love with it. I've read and re-read it many times over the years and even have the movie adaptation on VHS.

Even though it is set in the early 1900s, the story centers around young Elnora and her bitter mother and even has a love story that probably fueled my enjoyment of a good romance novel to this day. 

When my mom realized how much I loved Gene Stratton-Porter and her books, she started giving me old copies of her books for my birthday and at Christmas. I even have a couple first editions in my collection.

I have always loved decorating with these books and they have traveled with me from Massachusetts to Indiana and from my apartment to my condo over the years.

Last weekend I tapped into my "crafty" side to showcase them in my new-to-me china cabinet. I think my "I'm going to get crafty" inspiration board on Pinterest inspired me!

Most of my books don't have the original paper covers but the books themselves are so pretty, I never missed them.

However, when I started moving the books around this weekend, I discovered the paper covers inside a couple of the books. They were colorful and interesting and I wanted to find a way to display them.

In my closet, I found a couple of 8x10 frames and placed the covers on top of the mats and I think my "book cover art" project turned out very cool.

What do you think?

I just love the copy on the book cover above.

I love that Stratton-Porter's books center around rural America (often rural Indiana) and her A Daughter of the Land is another favorite of mine.

Even though they are very different, I think the two covers look nice next to each other. Here's the final shelf complete with my bird from Poland, a wooden butterfly ornament (of course) and my "creativity" rocks...

I think I may just need to curl up with a Gene Stratton-Porter book tonight...

My Heart Stopped

I knew it was going to happen someday.

I'm just too clumsy NOT to drop my phone at some point.

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I've had my iPhone for about two months now and have avoided any mishaps until yesterday.

I pulled it out at the used bookstore the snap a photo of a book that a friend has been looking for and it happened...

My beautiful, fragile phone slipped through my fingers and fell (in what felt like slow motion) to the cement (or is it concrete?) floor. I heard the clatter and saw something fly off the phone.

I swear my heart stopped for just a second and then it started beating a mile a minute.

The phone landed face down so I slowly bent down and picked it up...not wanting to turn it over and see the damage.

Fortunately, the case lived up to its claim and absorbed the impact with NO damage to the phone itself. The piece I saw when the phone hit the floor came from the case itself and it's actually not too noticeable.

But to be on the safe side, I'm considering investing in a different type of phone protection...

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I'm serious...my heart is still racing and I look kind of silly holding my phone to my ear with both hands.