TGIF VII

We did it! We made it through the first week of school!!! Everyone is a little wiped-out, myself included but everyone had a great week. Let hope next week goes just as well!

{1} Football

Last night was the official start of the NFL football season and Hubby could not be happier. He is a die-hard Redskins fan and he is doing his best to make sure his children are too. I can't even count the number of times my kiddos shouted-out "No Pressure...No Diamonds!"

{2} Panera Salad Dressing

While I was Target shopping for all the needed back-to-school supplies I saw that they had started selling Panera's salad dressing. I have really been loving the Fuji Apple dressing. It might not be as good as having Panera make a salad for me but it is pretty close!

{3} Lunch Dates

L started allergy shots three weeks ago and he is doing great. He is such a brave boy - not a single tear! So this week I decided to treat him to lunch at Moe's. It was so nice to have a little one on one time with L. And I just loved listening to all of his reasons for why it was ok that he was double-dipping his chips. Too funny!

{4} Call Me Coach

Some how I have become the head coach of B's field hockey team. I am still not sure how that happened but I am rolling with it. And I am using this new "job" as a reason to do some shopping! I want to look cute yet stay warm at our late night practices. What do you think of this hoodie?

{5} Cheers!

I have to say that I am so looking forward to cuddling on the sofa with Hubby and an adult beverage tonight. Surviving the first week back is worthy of a cocktail if you as me!

I hope you all have a great weekend!!!!

Thanks to A. Liz Aventures, Carolina Charm, The Good Life Blog and Hello! Happiness for hosting this Friday's link-up.

Fun With Moonshine

Hubby has been waiting a long time for Catoctin Creek Distilling Company to open the doors on their new facility. CCDC is the first family-owned distillery in Loudoun County since before Prohibition. So this past weekend I lined up a sitter for the kiddos and told Hubby that I was more than happy to be his chauffeur for the evening. 

In CCDC's new facility you can see a working distillery in production, including a 400 liter custom-made Kothe still and condenser. CCDC also holds tours which highlight the process of making distilled spirits, including fermentation, distillation, aging and bottling. While Hubby was impressed with all the technical "stuff", I was impressed with how they renovated their historical building. CCDC was able to make this space look new while retaining the character of the old building.

Hubby here and now I get to take over since Eileen was kind enough to play DD....

When you visit CCDC you can either try three small straight shots of their Mosby's Spirit (unaged white whiskey, essentially moonshine), Roundstone Rye (their aged whiskey) and Watershed Gin or try the three in a small cocktail. I was mostly interested in trying the Mosby's Spirit because I had the Roundstone Rye and the Watershed Gin before so I went with the three small shots. I enjoyed the Mosby's Spirit and I definitely plan on trying a larger glass next time we are at a restaurant where I can get one. Those moonshiners were on to something!

Cheers To Blueberries

I am not sure about your local markets but the ones in NoVa are just filled with fresh fruit.  Watermelon, strawberries, cantaloupe and a ton of blueberries have all been on our plates.  While we have been enjoying the fresh fruit "in the raw", I decided to try a drink recipe that I had seen last year on the Cape.  It was so yummy there was no way that I could not share!

Blueberry Smash (adapted from Bon Appetit)

2 lemons, sliced into rounds

2 limes, sliced into rounds

1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries

1/ cup fresh mint leaves

1 1/2 cups vodka

1 cup St-Germain

Place the lemons, limes, blueberries and mint leaves in a pitcher.  Coarsely mash - I found a whisk worked well for this job.  Stir in vodka, St-Germain and 2 cups ice cubes.

Divide drink among glasses; add ice to each glass.  Finally top each glass with a healthy splash of club soda.

Enjoy friends!!!

You can also find me at Savvy Southern Style, My Uncommon Slice Of Suburbia, From My Front Porch and No Minimalist Here

Summer Cocktail

Our "fixed" AC is broken again.  We had bad thunder storms this morning followed by more this afternoon.  And to top it all off in the middle of the storm we learned that their was a tornado warning.  So I sure you would not be surprised to learn that I am fixing up a cocktail for Hubby and myself this evening.

I am going to go with a yummy classic in my book - the gimlet.  Cold gin and lime juice is simply perfect on a hot and muggy summer night in my book!

Classic Gimlet

4 oz gin
2 oz simple syrup
2 oz fresh squeezed lime juice

Pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker.  Add a bunch a ice and shake until cold.  Strain into two chilled martini glasses. Enjoy! (Hubby's note- These are outstanding, I HIGHLY recommend you try them. Plus you will be fighting scurvy at the same time so it's a win-win!)

Sunday Funday!

We had hoped to spend most of Sunday at the pool but unfortunately Mother Nature had other plans.  The weather forecast called for thunderstorms off and on all day.  So while the pool was not in the cards, a trip a local vineyard with friends was a great alternative!  

I was quite happy to sip on a wine-arita, chat with good friends and listen to live music while the kiddos happily played with their friends.  I know that it might not be Napa Valley but VA wine country is truly fun for the whole family.  Any place where adults and children can have a nice time is a big winner in my book!!!

Now I have to get myself in gear for the last week of school.  I might be the only one but I find the last week to be more stressful than the first!!!

P.S.- Stay tuned, my first give-a-way is coming up this week!

Worth The Wait

This past Christmas I gifted Hubby with a three month subscription to Julibox and one of the last drinks called for fresh strawberries.  While I know that I could get fresh strawberries all year long at the market, I personally am scared by strawberries in the winter.  That is just not right!  God knows what chemicals one needs to grow a bright red strawberry in the dead of winter!!!  So we waited...

But the wait was over today.  Hubby was kind enough to mix up our long awaited drinks today.  Fresh muddled strawberries, Grand Marnier and Prosecco together are a delightful combination!

Here's To The Weekend

I cannot tell you how happy I am that it is finally Friday night!  And before the madness of Saturday sports starts I plan to sit down and enjoy a cold "adult" drink tonight.  I got creative and mixed a little of this & that and was very happy with the outcome....

Fun Friday Drink

1 shot vodka

1 shot St. Germain

Sanpellegrino Aranciata Rossa (Sparkling Blood Orange Beverage)

lime wedge & ice

Pour both shots into your glass and stir.  Add ice and top with Sanpellegrino.  Squeeze lime wedge into drink and serve.  

Enjoy your weekend friends!!!

Slainte

Growing up there was only one beer that my father would pour on St. Patrick's Day for as long as I can remember - Guinness Stout.  Guinness is also the same beer that Hubby pours for us on St. Pat's year after year.  For the record, where I come from drinking light beer colored green is a sin! (Hubby's note- Outside of Sam Adams Light, light beer in general is a sin.)

The way I look at it you either love Guinness or you don't.  When asked what it taste like I always say that Guinness is like a beer milkshake.  It is so rich and creamy!  But I am sure that my beer snob Hubby and youngest brother might disagree with my description (Hubby's note- I wouldn't disagree and I am a beer snob. Tonight I just wish I had had some Harp to make a half-and-half.) 

No matter what you poured last night I hope you enjoyed your St. Patrick's day.  Slainte!!!

Archived

Over this past long weekend Hubby mixed us up some cocktails and served them in our Waterford Toasting Flutes.  We only have two of these flutes.  Mom and I got them when the Ross-Simons store was closing at the Short Hills Mall in Jersey.  It was such a deal that I could not pass them up even though I knew they were a limited edition and it might be hard to find another ten flutes.

So while I was sipping my cocktail I got on the computer and tried to find more on eBay and Craigslist  But much to my chagrin, I did not find any more flutes and I got crushing news.  Waterford has archived my crystal pattern!

When it was time for me and Hubby to pick all of our dishes, china, crystal and stemware his eyes kind of glazed over. (Hubby's note- That is an understatement).  I felt it was important that we both have a say since I didn't want him to announce on our 50th anniversary that he never liked a single one of our wedding gifts.  I would narrow down the patterns to my top three and would then ask for his option   

For our stemware I narrowed the choices down to Wynnewood, Colleen Tall and Kildare (which is my mother's pattern.)  To this day I am not sure if he was just trying to get brownie points from my mom or if he really did like it best. (Hubby's note- I love my wife dearly but what in the world makes her think I had any clue what kind of stemware her mother has?! I thought stemware was something related to flowers.)

We were very blessed to be gifted 10 water goblets as well as 10 clarets.  I just figured that I would have no problem completing my set as soon as I won the lottery or found a money tree, whichever came first.  

After hearing the pattern was archived I thought that maybe I should pick a new pattern and mix and match.  But no sooner than I mentioned that idea than my mom said no.  What can I say, she is a rule follower!  And in her rule book you don't mix and match your formal crystal.  So I will keep calling all the Irish shoppes I can find in NoVa, NJ and on the Cape.  Maybe I will get lucky!

I hope this will be more of a "when Irish eyes are shining" moment and not a "Murphy's Law" moment! 

All Over The Place

He did it! Hubby took notes when I pointed out the super cute J Crew "lobster" sweater on our last trip to the outlets. So happy that he thought I "needed" this sweater just as much as I did. And trust me, I look super cute and preppy in it, regardless of how the photo looks!

When we took the boys to MELT this past weekend there was a huge line so I let the boys download a new app on my phone to pass the time. Yes, I would love to tell you that my kiddos are perfect and waited without a peep. But let's get real and thank God for free iPhone apps that keep the peace!

The boys choose a free Battle Ship app that they just loved. Hubby might have enjoyed it too! But the whole time the boys were playing it I was thinking of the real board game and how much I loved it as a kid. So I went and got the real deal. No flashing lights, bells or whistles. Just a good old board game and my kiddos loved it!

I am hoping since they had such love for a classic game that they will turn out to be preppy young adults someday. A mom can dream right!?! (Hubby's note- Judging by their fashion sense so far that is about as likely as the board game having all its pieces a month from now.)

You can also find me at Because Shanna Said So. 

TGIF

If I am not totally wrong we live about 60 to 70 miles below the Mason Dixon Line. Growing up if you lived above the Line you lived in the North; if you lived below the Line you lived in the South. (Hubby's note- And to some of her family the South may as well be a foreign country. When I started coming to Thanksgiving dinner with her family I asked for sweet potato casserole to keep a bit of my family's traditions. You would have thought I asked for some exotic foreign dish.)  So by my calculation I am safely living in the South. And if that is true why has it been so cold here in NoVA this week!?!  Below 20 degrees for more than one day is not what I had in mind since it means that we are all getting cabin fever.

So I can not tell you how happy I was when Hubby started "shaking" a new drink from his January Julibox. Last night's recipe was for "Winter Side Car" with Xante Cognac and Disaronno Liqueur. I thought it was a great drink on a cold winter night but not Hubby. I think that it simply boils down to the fact I love Disaronno and Hubby does not like it at all. Since this was one of Hubby's Christmas presents I would have felt more guilty about liking his drink more than he did but each box comes with two drinks and I did not like the first. So by my count it's all good!

 Cheers to staying warm and the weekend my friends!

Crazy Like A Fox

Christmas break might be over but I have one more outing to share with you.  Two days after Christmas we loaded the kiddos in the car and headed over to Mad Fox Brewing for some quality time with our favorite brewer.  Some might feel blessed to have a doctor or a lawyer in the family.  I feel doubly blessed that my youngest brother is a brewer.  Good times or bad, he has the perfect beer for the occasion!

I am so happy that Brian really seems to have found his calling.  He lights up when he talks about brewing and all the hard work that goes into it.  Dry hops vs wet hops, draught vs cask, yeasts, malts, and a ton of other things that I have never heard of seem to make my brother so happy.  My baby brother really knows what he is talking about and how to make some awesome beer that even I, a wine drinker, enjoy.

Since my Hubby is a "beer man" I was happy to be the DD for this trip to Mad Fox.  Hubby ordered a flight of four beers in order to help make the all important decision of which to fill his growler with that day.  Brian suggested two cask beers and two beers on tap.  After much thought Hubby went with the "Orange Whip", which Bri describes as "a full bodied IPA with hints of citrus from the hops". (Hubby's note- Two thumbs up for the Orange Whip as well as the three other beers I tried. Brian and the guys at Mad Fox make some awesome beers.)  

Brian loves to chat about beer so much that he started a Twitter account just for that very purpose. You can reach out to him with any beer related questions you might have at "BrianBrewsBeer".  I know that he would just love to help you out with any brewing questions you might have.  Brian might be a Jersey boy but I promise you he is a Southern gentleman at heart!!!

Try Not To Be Jealous

My super sweet in-laws were kind enough to have the kiddos over for a sleepover last night.  So what did Hubby and I do on New Year's Eve you ask?  Something wild and crazy?  Not a chance!

Hubby went for a run and I worked out in the home gym.  (Read - Stairmaster in our toy pit of a basement.)  The dishwasher got emptied and re-loaded.  Wash that I have been putting off for most of Christmas break was washed and folded.  And we finally hung Hubby's Granny's mirror in our bedroom.  After all our hard work we rewarded ourselves with a dinner of take-out Chinese in front of the fireplace.

 I know that probably sounds like a horrible New Year's Eve to most but it worked for us!

I hope that you have happy and healthy 2013!!!

Share Share It's Only Fair

I have been dying to tell you about one of my gifts for Hubby but since he is my editor I had to hold off until now.  In November when everyone was pinning gift ideas I saw multiple pins for a cocktail of the month club which led me to Julibox.  I just knew that it was perfect for Hubby!

Once a month Julibox will mail Hubby a package with two recipe cards and the fixins for two of each cocktail for total of four cocktails a month.  Last night Hubby was kind enough to shake up two Magi Sours for us to enjoy while relaxing with some of our Christmas books. (Hubby's note- The drinks were really good. Fingers crossed the next month or two includes whiskey and/or bourbon. For the record if you or your significant other like rye whiskey try Catoctin Creek, it is another NoVA product worth a try.) 

 

After a cold and icy day a yummy cocktail and a good book was the perfect way to end the day.  I hope you were able to relax and enjoy Boxing Day too! (Hubby's note- Neither of the two books above are mine. I'm not really a "Ten Girls to Watch" kind of guy.)

Not Store Bought Nog

I have been blessed to have many wonderful friends in NoVa.  These are dear friends that I know I could call at any hour of the day if we needed help.  In fact they feel more like family than just friends! 

So in the Christmas spirit we invited our near and dear friends over on Saturday night.  I started preparing for Saturday's dinner on Friday night.  I cleaned and made sauce for the lasagna but most importantly I made the egg nog!

Nine years ago a co-worker from Harold's (a now defunct clothing store) shared with me her family recipe for egg nog after much begging on my part.  The recipe calls for a LOT of eggs (separated), 2 pounds of powdered sugar, heavy cream, whole milk and too many cups of bourbon (Hubby's note- there is no such thing as too many cups of bourbon). Once mixed the egg nog in poured into 12 mason jars in true "Moonshiners" fashion.  

After dinner and crafts each family leaves with a jar of egg nog.  I have been told that it is a great "adult" goodie bag.  I hope it is since my friends deserve the best!

When Life Gives You Lemons

Things did not go as planned last night.  Hubby got caught up at work and by the time he got home it was too late to make the long drive up to the Homeland, aka New Jersey.  So after the kids were fed and put to bed I did what any woman would do... I started to put together my new bar cart!

I have wanted a bar cart for a while now but I had no desire to pay unreal amounts for one!  So I looked on Ebay and Craigslist like it was my job.  But in the end, Ballard Designs was the winner.  A site-wide sale plus a coupon from Southern Living magazine made this one of my best buys of 2012!

We have two big parties coming up in December so I think this little cart will get a lot of good use!