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More often than not, when you think about Halloween and celebrating Halloween, most people’s minds go directly to children, trick-or-treating and making sure the kids don’t eat all of the candy they scored during the night as soon as they get home, but Halloween doesn’t have to be extremely kid-friendly. I know some of the parents out there are going to get a little jarred when I let this news slip, but here it goes–Holiday celebrations can pack a little punch for the adults, too!
Really!? Oh yes, and this Halloween, I think you deserve a cocktail.
Whether you’re laying low this Halloween, throwing a fabulous party, or plan on watching classic scary movies after the kids are in bed, these Halloween-inspired cocktails are sure to be a hit!
Bloody Mary
(You knew it was going to be the first one on the list!)
- 2 highball glasses
- 2 1/2 ounces (1 3/4 jigger) vodka
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons Tabasco (optional)
- 1 teaspoon celery salt
- Juice 1/2 lemon
- 8 ounces (1 cup) tomato juice
- Hard ice cubes
- Garnish: celery sticks and cherry tomatoes.
Fill each glass with ice, then add the rest of the ingredients, stirring all the time. Garnish with a celery stick and a couple of cherry tomatoes.
Pumpkin Cocktail
- 1 1/2 ounces pumpkin liqueur
- 1 ounce orange vodka
- 1/2 ounce half & half
- Splash of vanilla syrup
- Gooseberry (for garnish)
Rim Ingredients:
- 4 bar spoons super fine sugar
- 1/4 bar spoon ground cinnamon
- Lime wedge
To Rim the Glass:
Measure sugar and cinnamon onto a small plate. Rim outside top of glass with lime wedge. Roll the outside rim of glass in sugar mixture. Set aside.
Add pumpkin liqueur, orange vodka, half and half, and vanilla syrup to mixing glass. Add ice to tin. Shake well. Strain into cocktail glass. Garnish with a gooseberry. Peel back the outer leaves of the berry. Slit the bottom of the berry. Rest on the rim of the glass.
The Apple Cocktail
- 1 whole apple (select one with a flatter bottom)
- Juice of 1 lemon wedge
- 1 apple wedge (cut in half)
- 1 ounce unsweetened apple juice
- 1 ounce limoncello
- 1/2 ounce vanilla vodka
- Splash cranberry juice
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- 1 cinnamon stick (for garnish)
Core the apple to about the halfway point. Be certain not to cut through the bottom. Use the lemon wedge to squeeze a small amount of lemon juice on inside of cored apple. Set aside. In mixing glass, muddle apple wedge and unsweetened apple juice. Add limoncello, vanilla vodka, and cranberry juice. Shake well. Strain into cored apple and serve with a small straw. Garnish with a cinnamon stick.
Black Star Liner Martini
- 2 martini glasses, preferably frozen
- 1 1/2 ounces (1 jigger) Mozart Chocolate liqueur
- 1 1/2 ounces (1 jigger) freshly made espresso
- 1 1/2 ounces (1 jigger) Patrón XO Café
- 2 teaspoons sugar syrup
- Hard ice cubes
- Garnish: espresso beans and chocolate shavings
Shake all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker and then strain into the glasses. Add a few whole espresso beans and float chocolate shavings on the top.
Zombie
- 1 1/4 ounce lemon juice
- 3 dashes grenadine
- 3/4 ounces blood orange juice
- 3/4 ounces cherry brandy
- 3/4 ounces light rum
- 2 ounces dark rum
- 1/2 ounce high-proof dark rum
Combine all ingredients well over ice cubes in a shaker, and strain into a large, frosted highball glass over crushed ice. The drink can be garnished with a stick of pineapple, a cherry, or a sprig of fresh mint dipped in powdered sugar.
Demon Martini
- 1 2/3 ounces gin
- 1/2 ounce white Kina Lillet
- Quarter fresh pomegranate
- 2 thin slices of sweet chili
- Garnish: Thin slice of chili
Crust half of the rim of a chilled cocktail glass with sugar. Muddle the pomegranate in the bottom of a shaker. Add ice and remaining ingredients. Shake. Strain into the glass. Add the garnish on the rim.
Voodoo Breeze
- 1 2/3 ounces gold tequila
- 2/3 ounces melon liqueur
- 3 ounces fresh apple juice
- 1/3 ounces fresh lime juice
- 1 fresh kiwi
- Garnish: thin slice of kiwi
Scoop out the pulp of a ripe kiwi. Muddle in the bottom of a shaker. Add ice and remaining ingredients. Shake. Strain over crushed ice into a highball. Add the garnish.
Ideally, everyone would be eating the freshest and safest foods possible–Everyone would be eating 100% organically, however, budgets are tight and a great deal of people simply cannot afford to purchase a great deal of organic foods. That’s completely understandable, I can’t afford to eat all organically, but it is important to make sure you’re purchasing some organic foods, mainly produce.
Produce, as many may know, contains a great deal of pesticides if not grown organically and more than 80% of the most common pesticides are potentially carcinogenic, meaning that they contain an agent directly involved in the promotion of cancer or in the increase of its propagation. Scary, right? I know! Luckily, the Environmental Working Group has put together a downloadable wallet guide containing the worst and best produce, in terms of pesticide levels.
For your immediate attention, here is a list of the top 10 produce you should most definitely be buying organic, every time.
1. Peaches – pesticide load: 100
2. Apples – pesticide load: 96
3. Bell Peppers – pesticide load: 86
4. Celery – pesticide load: 85
5. Nectarines – pesticide load: 84
6. Strawberries – pesticide load: 83
7. Cherries – pesticide load: 75
8. Lettuce – pesticide load: 69
9. Grapes (imported) – pesticide load: 68
10. Pears – pesticide load: 65
But can’t you just wash or peel your produce to get rid of pesticides?
While you may think that washing or peeling your produce can effectively remove pesticides from your food, the truth is that while these tactics may reduce levels of some pesticides, it does not eliminate them. The best option is to eat a varied diet, wash all produce, and choose organic when possible to reduce exposure to potentially harmful chemicals.
Do you have a teenage child you suspect is doing drugs? Are you too scared of confrontation to say something to them about it? Sniff Dogs has the perfect solution: For only $200 an hour, you can now rent a retired drug sniffing dog to scout out the drugs in your home!
According to Sniff Dogs, a company founded by a mother who was surprised to learn her oldest son smokes marijuana, “half of American school children have tried marijuana and and most drug taking takes place when they get home from school.”
The company is confident in the animals’ ability to smell marijuana from up to 15 feet away and residue on clothing from drugs smoked two days earlier. When the dogs detect the drugs, they sit down, leaving the actual inspection to the parents.
Sniff Dogs claims their service is discreet, due to the fact that the search can be completed without the knowledge of your children. Critics claim the service may break down family trust.
Pat Winterstein, a New Jersey mother of three, used the Sniff Dogs service to search her childrens’ bedrooms and stated, “I trust my kids, but you can only trust them so far. They’re kids, young adults, they’re going to make a mistake.”
Talk about invasion of privacy and lack of trust… If you have kids that you suspect are doing drugs, my suggestion would be to TALK TO THEM! If they find out you brought a sniffer dog into your home to search them, the fact that they’re toking up is going to be the least of your worries.
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Ally is a girl from New York who writes Sweet Leaf Tribune, an informational blog about marijuana law reform and cannabis culture, as well as medical marijuana, recipes for ‘baked’ goods, stoner how-to’s, and a lot more.
This past season of Army Wives was sure to keep us on our toes; the lives of the people we feel as if we’ve grown close to have been turned upside down and inside out and the biggest climactic cliff hanger is yet to come.
The season 2 finale of Army Wives will air on Sunday, November 2 at 10pm. Are you caught up? This past season has been chock-full of twists and turns and to fully appreciate the looming season finale, you can watch both seasons of Army Wives in their entirety on myLifetime.
You can watch the preview of the season 2 finale below; the lives of the families we’ve all grown so close to over the past months are sure to change come season 3.
I saw these cute Pillsbury crescent mummy dogs in an ad on a website and because they struck me as a new twist on something I have made several times for myself (come on, who doesn’t like a hot dog wrapped in a delicious Pillsbury crescent roll?), I immediately went looking to see if there was an actual recipe on Pillsbury’s site for them and I was so pleasantly surprised to find that there was so I can share it with all of you.
These adorable mummy hot dogs will most definitely be a big hit with the kids, especially helping you wrap the hot dogs like mummies. The first thing I thought of when I saw them was that they would go over very well served with a hearty and warm soup right before taking them trick or treating to fully get them in the Halloween spirit. Who knew something so simple could provoke so much fun? These crescent mummy dogs would also be a simple and fun touch to any Halloween party.
You will need:
- 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated crescent dinner rolls or 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury® Crescent Recipe Creations™ refrigerated flaky dough sheet
- 2 1/2 slices American cheese, quartered (2.5 oz)
- 10 large hot dogs
- Cooking spray
- Mustard or ketchup, if desired
1. Heat oven to 375°F.
2. If using crescent rolls: Unroll dough; separate at perforations, creating 4 rectangles. Press perforations to seal. If using dough sheet: Unroll dough; cut into 4 rectangles.
3. With knife or kitchen scissors, cut each rectangle lengthwise into 10 pieces, making a total of 40 pieces of dough. Slice cheese slices into quarters (1/2 slice cheese, cut in half).
4. Wrap 4 pieces of dough around each hot dog and 1/4 slice of cheese to look like “bandages,” stretching dough slightly to completely cover hot dog. About 1/2 inch from one end of each hot dog, separate “bandages” so hot dog shows through for “face.” On ungreased large cookie sheet, place wrapped hot dogs (cheese side down); spray dough lightly with cooking spray.
5. Bake 13 to 17 minutes or until dough is light golden brown and hot dogs are hot. With mustard, draw features on “face.”
What if you could find out when your favorite brands of clothing went on sale in exactly your size? Let’s face it, as women, a lot of us have a “thing” for labels, but when scouring the websites of the labels we love, we find apparel we cannot live without… until we see the price tag. When it comes to labels such as Marc Jacobs and Prada, we are likely to find a handful or more of “can’t live without” items, but as soon as we glance down at the price, it’s easy to feel like your finger just got pricked while reaching inside of a box, and you immediately close the website. What these fashion icons have yet to realize is that there are a lot of women who love their designs, but not all of us can stomach what our favorite pieces would do to our bank accounts and credit cards.
But now we have Shop It To Me, a website that lets you pick your favorite designers (listing over 500 in-demand designers and brands) and receive daily or weekly emails to let you know when your favorite designers put items on sale in exactly your size; best of all, the service is completely free.
Look at it like having a personal shopper, but with this, you don’t have to deal with conflicting attitudes and style; you just receive a daily or weekly summary that lets you know when your favorite items are on sale and it takes away the frustration I know I regularly deal with when trying to find my size in items I want.
But Shop It To Me goes a lot deeper than just that. Started by people with a keen sense of fashion who dealt with the same frustrations we all deal with like finding out about online sales too late to take advantage of them due to not having the time to scour the internet daily looking for sales on the items they wanted.
You can tell that the people behind Shop It To Me are a group who love fashion just by reading their blog. Paired with some wicked sense of humor and drool-worthy fashion items, their blog is a fast, fun and entertaining read. But there’s more! Yes, more! Shop It To Me also has an entire section featuring trendsetters from around the blogosphere.
The Trendsetters section shows an appreciation from Shop It To Me to many different bloggers running websites with a variety of themes, such as style, bags, shoes, celebrity fashion, deals and savings, men’s style, moms and kids, lifestyle, beauty and city fashions. Shop It To Me doesn’t simply show fashion love, they show blog love to others with the same interests and mission in mind.
Featured in publications like Daily Candy Deals and The Washington Post, Shop It To Me is gaining ground with fashionistas and enthusiasts everywhere; finally, there is a website that caters to the fashion forward and savvy savers in all of us. They bring frugal to fashion and with many, many women, that is an addictive and sometimes dangerous combination.
There are a lot of people who absolute love to entertain; when buying a house, they make sure that there is ample room in order to throw dinner and cocktail parties or intimate gatherings of friends and family. I have never been one of those people and I’ll tell you the main reason why–I hate planning something out meticulously. I really wouldn’t have a clue where to start when planning the execution of a dinner party or even a small get together; I can’t even have all parts of dinner done at the same time night after night and I have had a lot of practice with it and just can’t seem to get the timing right. I believe that there are a select few out there who can plan the perfect party and have it pan out the exact way that they had planned and if there are people out there who love throwing parties but can’t plan it out, they hire party planners. I have never had a small fortunate laying around to hire a party planner, either, so I figured I was simply out of luck.
That is, until I found out about PartyBluPrints.
PartyBluPrints gives you the luxury of not having to worry about planning a party and not knowing where to start or even coming up with the theme that is just right for your gathering. They outline your blue print to success starting with the key elements of a party; the menu, cocktails, music, favors, activities and invitations. Not only do that go in order with what you need to start and then to finish, they give you ideas and inspiration to take with you and best of all, their blue prints are all in PDF form, not prone to getting lost or ruined in the midst of your party, but conveniently on your computer at all times to consult.
Their website is often updated with holiday ideas and also a few free guides, this season’s being an Election Party and Girls Night In. Other parties they have planned are ready for you to dig in to are a holiday parties, wine tasting parties, sports parties and a few different exciting themes specifically for women and that coveted “girl time” that is so hard to make time for sometimes.
When choosing a party plan of my liking, I went for A Night in Venice, with a festival, cosmopolitan, radiant and harmonious vibe.
As I took my first glance through my PartyBluPrint, the first thing I thought was “Wow!” They did not miss a beat when it came to planning the perfect party to encompass the entire vibe and not only that, but they include a little background history on, in my case, Venice, and while taking some ideas from history and from the place itself, they tune your entire party to that theme and it is amazing, really.
My PartyBluPrint started with the invitation and how to make it appear its absolute best. It then went on to not only the cocktail and meal menus but also the recipes and the preparation for each item, which I was pleasantly surprised with, as I need a recipe for soup! If you are planning your party ahead of time, they also include websites where you can buy the exact ingredients for the menu right online, making it convenient and super easy.
We all know that any gathering is not complete without ambiance and PartyBluPrints even thought of that! Giving you an overall idea and also distinct instructions, they make it a cinch to turn your home into a luxurious, magical place where the theme of the party greets your guests as soon as they step through your door.
While the Eparty plans PartyBluPrints have set up are remarkable in their entirety, the very best aspect of their party plan is that they give you an entire shopping list for your party in a list format with little boxes next to the items to ensure sufficiency in your party planning, making sure you have everything you need for a remarkable evening with your guests. For people like me who, like I said, cannot plan dinner to be done at the same time, they give you a step by step guide right down to time measurements, making sure that everything is completed and you’re ready for your guests when they start to arrive.
PartyBluPrints offers an exceptional service to party planning newbies and offers ideas and inspiration to those comfortable with throwing a gathering of any size. I would definitely recommend them for any type of party you are thinking about planning in the future, you cannot get more efficient or aesthetically pleasing.
My boyfriend and I like to experiment with a lot of different types of sex toys; the way we see it, if you haven’t tried it there is no knowing if you’ll like it or not and so we shop frequently for toys that will bring something new and exciting to the bedroom. We recently added a small pinwheel to our collection of toys. Upon first glance, this Pinwheel is scary, not only that, but I was scared of it. What you initially see before purchasing the Pinwheel is not what you really expect, as sometimes pictures can look a little more intense than the actual toy itself, but the Pinwheel was everything it looks to be and more.
Taking the Pinwheel out of its packaging, I very hesitantly glided my finger over the wheel fully equipped with steel points–Twenty-two of them, to be exact and my first reaction was to quickly get my hand away from it; the feeling of it is intense and not what I expected in the least. Showing it to my boyfriend, I told him how our new toy may be a little too scary for me to be able to indulge in with him, but he just saw that as a challenge, as he does with pretty much everything and dropped the subject–Little did I know, he had some other plans with it.
Being the protector that he is and knowing that I was afraid to introduce our new toy to our bedroom, we played around with it for a bit before re-introducing it to me. He explained that he literally tried to break his skin open with it to see if it was possible. By touching the Pinwheel you would immediately believe that it could not only pierce, but go through your flesh and cause some major injury, but he assured me that while he was testing it out on his arm, he could not get it to break the skin and he then explained that it was the positioning of the points which made that possible; if the points were a little more spaced out, he said that it would definitely go through the skin but it is set up to be completely safe for all partners. Knowing this information settled me into the idea of the Pinwheel.
After getting over the initial shock of it’s intimidating, stainless steel appearance, the Pinwheel could very well become an asset in your bedroom. It gives you a full body sensation I am willing to bet you have never had the pleasure of feeling before. For most couples, I would say not to start off foreplay with it, as it is a bit intimidating even to the touch if you are not already worked up, but after a little foreplay, run it over the back and chest of your partner and they will be squealing in delight!
The Pinwheel also comes with a sheath, which you can either purchase with the wheel or purchase seperately. I would definitely recommend purchasing the set, especially if you are like me and keep your toys in one box or container so it isn’t so exposed and out in the open for everyone to see because if you reach your hand into your box without your Pinwheel being covered, you are most likely going to prick your finger on the wheel and think that you have some crazy creature hiding in your sex toy box.
Overall, I have to say the Pinwheel is an intimidating toy at first, but after a little warming up, it is a handy tool to have around either for BDSM couples or even for those who prefer a more sensitive touch, it works both ways because you or your partner controls the pressure. It is definitely fun and something not to be overlooked if you’re craving a brand new sensation.
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While the financial crisis in the US is causing people to lose or be laid off from their jobs, stay at home more frequently due to gas prices, cut back on splurging and shopping more frugally and also causing people to cut back a bit on the upcoming holiday expenses, some people have been feeling a slight cut back to their financial futures and others have been far less fortunate, slipping into poverty and the already poverty-stricken continuing to be worse off than before. For more than 35 million Americans, the possibility of being without food and not knowing where their next meal is coming from is an unfortunate and constant reality. It is for that reason that V8 has recently partnered with Feeding America to donate over 30 million servings of fresh vegetables to local food banks throughout the country over the next six months.
V8 is committed to making the possibility of a meal a reality to someone in desperate need; just because someone is not able to buy vegetables themselves does not mean that they deserve a well-balanced, nutritious meal any less than someone who can. Growing up, I was told that a full belly stimulates the mind, but many Americans are not fortunate enough to know what a full belly feels like.
You can help V8 with their goal to donate over 30 million servings of fresh vegetables to local food banks throughout the country a few ways. By making V8 a part of your daily routine, you are not only helping yourself get the recommend daily dosage of fruit and vegetables with a variety of V8 juices and soups to choose from, but your purchase goes to help V8 spread the fruit and vegetable love and give to the people who need them most. You can also make a donation, which go directly to go to Feeding America, which is a tax exempt 501(c)(3) charity. A donation of just $25 goes to goes to provide 850 servings of vegetables or 98 meals for a family of four or 19 weeks of food per person. You can purchase V8 juices and soups and then donate them and even volunteer at a local food bank.
Help V8 Make Every Serving Count for those who need it most.
The actress we’ve grown to love from Dreamgirls and also appearing with our beloved Carrie Bradshaw on Sex and the City is making headlines left and right recently; but it isn’t her acting that is getting her featured in newspapers across the country, it is a scandal involving the murder of both her mother and her brother.
Sustaining fatal gunshot wounds, Jennifer Hudson’s mother and brother were found killed in her Chicago home on Friday. Police spokeswoman Monique Bond said the deaths appeared to be the result of domestic abuse, the Associated Press reported, and an active Amber Alert has been issues for the 7 year old cousin of Hudson’s, Julian King.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, William Balfour, a suspect in the murders was taken into police custody on Friday. Balfour, said to be the estranged husband of Jennifer’s sister, Julia, remains in custody today and the missing child Julian King, his step-son and Jennifer’s nephew, was not found with him. Police issued an alert on Friday looking for a 1994 white Chevrolet Suburban, which is said to be registered to Jason Hudson, Jennifer’s brother; as of Saturday afternoon, police are reportedly continuing the search for it.
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