What I love! | Peaches Prattlings

{November 28, 2013} I am thankful

Today is Thanksgiving and as is tradition, we tell what we are thankful for, I want to share.

I am thankful for the basics, I have a roof over my head, two in fact; one with the man I love in Colorado, and the other in the city I left behind to host the people I love on a day like today.

I am thankful for the two furry kids I have, giving me unconditional love whether I want it or not.

I am thankful I know some amazing people who want to share this holiday with me and I am so thankful they can all cook!

I am thankful for my friends who have become family and welcome me with open arms when I “come home” and want to see me every chance they get and rearrange their schedules to do that.

I am thankful for friends who think enough of me to send text to say hello, wish me well, send me a Thanksgiving text, a joke or a smile.

I am thankful for friends who feel strongly enough about our friendship to confide in me when they are in need and trust me enough to know that I would never betray that trust. I am also thankful that I have friends I can confide in and rely on that I know would never betray that trust.

I am thankful that I have touched some people in such a way that even though we don’t talk or text very often or at all, they will reach out at random times to say hello and how are you.

I am thankful that I have people in my life I can be myself around and as silly as I want to be.

I am thankful that I have made friends in Colorado that want to spend time with me and think I’m the bees knees!

I am thankful that there are so many of you out there reading my blog, that I know I am not writing this just for me and you like it, you really like it! I am thankful that so many of you will comment and give me virtual hugs and advice and opinions.

I am thankful I have the freedom to write whatever I choose and I am thankful that you have the freedom and right to like, dislike or ignore anything I have to say.

I am thankful for the men and women serving in the armed forces helping to give me the freedom to be able to write what I please.

I am thankful I find something to blog about every day!

I am thankful so many of my friends have given me the opportunity to be an aunt to their amazing children who I love so much.

I am thankful for two wonderful daughters to DCM who welcomed me to their lives and allowed me to be a grandmother to their spectacular children who I have fallen in love with.

I am thankful all those parents let me get/make their children’s Halloween costumes, they can’t even imagine what it means to me!

I am thankful for DCM, who gave me an amazing excuse to move to a new state and explore new things, make changes, laugh at the same jokes, love the same movies, cook together and be silly together.

I am thankful to my extended family in Boston and the northeast; my brother-in-law who is a fantastic father to my nieces, someone I can joke with and cut up and let’s me slam on him and is learning to return a slam or two, someone who will pretend to keep up with me during a 5k when he’s used to running 8-9 miles for fun. His brother and sister-in-law who are great and fun to be around and are excited when I am there. For the neighbors who call me Auntie J and all the friends that are excited to see me when I visit and have gotten their kids to call me Auntie J. For LaLa who has been a great grandmother to my nieces who loves them very much and makes them feel special.

I am thankful to have a father who is kind and generous and courteous and funny and giving and smart and wise and lets me be me and is there for me when I need him and even when I don’t think I do. I am thankful that at 42, I am still “Daddy’s Little Girl” and thankful that I know I always will be. I am even more thankful that as I’ve gotten older, I’ve gained more than a dad, I’ve gained a valued and treasured friend.

I am thankful for a sister who is everything to me, the ying to my yang, the macaroni to my cheese (and if I go on, I will make us nauseous!). For giving me two of the most beautiful, intelligent, sweet, silly, goofy, special nieces in the entire world, yes I am biased. I have become such a proud big sister, you can’t even imagine. And yes, I am the big sister and I will always be the big sister, and I am thankful there are times that as big and mature and successful she gets, she still needs her big sister to pave the way, knock something down, hold and hug her and tell her everything will be ok and it will.

Lastly, I am plain ole thankful that you allowed me to share what I am thankful for with you, so…Thank You.

I hope you had a very special and happy Thanksgiving.

{November 27, 2013} My dollar store Thanksgiving!

It sounds so trashy, don’t it, but it ain’t! (Ouch, that hurt my ears just typing it!)

Since I moved, I don’t have anything for hosting 14 people, so I decided it would be paper plates and plastic utensils for everyone! Fair enough, right?

So I went to Party City and got some plastic utensils, about $2.90 per pack, and you know I needed one pack of knives, one pack of forks and one pack of spoons. Then I needed plates, a pack of 40 dinner plates for $3.47 and a pack of 40 salad/dessert plates for $3.47, I didn’t get cups there because I didn’t want 100 cups!

Then I went to Costco to pick up a turkey, great deal! $1.09 per pound, 19 pound bird, $17.00 with an instant rebate, I am rockin! Then I found these really nice white plastic plates with a silver band, they look real and they were $8.90 for the pack (16 each) and I bought the fake silver utensils for $8.00, I spent $16 when I would have spend three times as much for the same thing at Party City. I had seen these plates at D&Ds the night before and I thought it would be fun to look a little fancy. Mission accomplished.

I headed to the dollar store to see if they had a few things I needed and lo and behold, I had the answer! I found some nice square paper dinner plates, salad plates, clear plastic utensils, cups, napkins, I bought two sets of each, spent $7! How cool am I? Guess what went back to Costco and Party City! You bet, that was about $25 back in my pocket! I feel like a Rockerfella!

I then bought the aluminum pans I needed, measuring cups, spoons, etc, a cutting board! all Betty Crocker! some serving spoons and even a stainless steel knife/fork set for carving the turkey! I spent a total of about $42 (that included some canned veggies and some spices I needed, I forgot to add to the picture) and I was set!

Don’t knock the Dollar Store until you try it!

Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!

{November 24, 2013} Undercover Boss

I think I’ve told you, I’m not a reality show junkie, but there are a even we that I like and I found one that I liked and now it’s on Netflix! Undercover Boss.

The premise of the show is an upper level executive, generally a C-level executive goes “undercover in their own company”, trading in their ‘uptown living’ for a uniform and getting their hands dirty. Companies have included Subway, NASCARZ, Hooters, MGM Grand, NCL Cruise Lines, Direct TV.

The guise is employees think that there is a reality show, following two people who are vying for the same job. The candidate has changed their appearance and gets assigned to four different jobs to find out how people do their jobs. Some of the jobs seem simple, but turn out not to be and they find out their not as able as they think they are; the jobs range from deliveries, demolition, cleaning toilets, window washing, hot dog sales to satellite dish installation on a roof, the list goes on.

It seems like a lot of the people the candidate gets set up with has some sort of hardship, how they have been down and had struggles and brought themselves up. The biggest thing that you notice and the candidate notices is the attitude of the employees, how hard they work and how they don’t let things get to them, when life gives them lemons, they definitely make lemonade.

All these experiences help the executive get a new appreciation for their employees and their companies. Turns out that some executives can’t do some of the jobs, imagine that! Hey, the CEO of Subway Sandwiches had never worked in a sandwich shop, never made a sandwich, the CEO from Johnny Rockets was training on the grill, couldn’t even cook for himself! The CEO for a corporate cleaning company had never cleaned a toilet! (His wife was hoping he’d pick up a few tricks, he didn’t even pick up after himself!)

That same CEO from Johnny Rockets who said that he wanted to put into place an initiative that every new executive has to go down to the front lines and do those jobs before during their first week on the job, so they have the knowledge to make decisions instead of just making decisions blindly.

When I worked for OK Cafe in Atlanta, http://www.okcafe.com, for the first two weeks on the job, I trained at every single job before I got on the floor to wait tables; hosting cashier, runner, prep, baker, everything and I think that anyone who gets a job, especially at an executive level, just like the CEO at Johnny Rockets, should train so they understand every aspect of the company.

Working with the employees, they see the good, the bad and the ugly. They get the low down from employees even when they have issues with the company, but stick it out because they love what they do.

One of the nice things about the show is that after the week undercover, they bring the employees they were working with in the field, to the office, they think they’re going to vote on who to select for the job. They do things for those employees to help them out, whether it’s a raise, new job, maybe a mentoring program with the executive, training programs to move within the company, donation to a charity in their name, eduction, help with their families, to date, they have given over one million dollars to their employees. Bring tissues!

The end of the episode has the entire company in for an all hands meeting where they talk about their experiences undercover and give the company a chuckle by showing clips of the boss trying to do those jobs! Some of them even got fired!

What you hope, after everything, is that the executive team takes what they learned and make changes with the company, all for the positive.

I think more companies need to do this, without the incentive of a TV show, but because it’s good for the company.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncover_boss

{November 23, 2013} Dr. Who

They say you never forget your first doctor…so true.

Did you see google today? It was a tribute to the Dr. Who series/franchise. There were all the doctors running back and forth and when you clicked on the doctors, you were taken to a game to play, serious fun for serious fans!

There have been countdowns and postings like crazy! And if you are a true fan, today was a huge day and no one should disturb you.

There are a few people I know who are ga-ga for the doctor and couldn’t wait! DCM’s youngest, DCM is one of those people, she la la la loves the good doctor, as does her mom, CG. How cool is this…she is such a big fan that for her birthday a few years ago, DCM, the younger, made her mom a clock with all of the doctors for the numbers…stellar, right?

As I mentioned, they say “You never forget your first doctor”. I am admittedly not a huge fan, but…I have to agree with that statement. (I have the socks to prove it!). I am a Dr. Who, Number Four fan, he was my first, sigh… Tom Baker, the fourth doctor, is, to date, the actor who has played the role the longest, seven seasons. I watched every episode I could from that time and one of my goals in life is to knit that scarf!

I don’t know why I never got into Dr. Who later in life, as I am a huge sci-fi nut and I loved the series as a kid, but I just haven’t. I listen to DCM (squared) talk about it, specifically David Tennant, who I loved in Harry Potter, among other things, he’s gotten her gifts with the doctor, I’ve posted things to her wall, but I just haven’t sat down to watch, maybe I need to.

Maybe it’s time I just “suck it up and deal”. It took me a while to get into a Star Trek TNG (The Next Generation, for those not in the know), OZ and NB sat with me while I got over my objections and then DR held my hand whenever Jean Luc Picard came on the screen sigh. After that, we spent every week together watching new episodes.

So…Who’s going to sit and hold my hand?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_Who

{November 16, 2013} Holiday Movies

Newsflash…Guilty pleasure…I love holiday movies.

Let’s face it, most of them are Christmas movies and I’m a sucker for them. Another admission, I have watched them during the year, even in the summer, you can find them online and a bunch are on Netflix. They start playing them beginning November, really? I know I love them, but what about starting them in December, or at least closer to Thanksgiving, wait, did I see them in October?

There seems to be a few different, but common themes…

Boy meets girl just by coincidence…Girl/boy hires boy/girl to pose as boyfriend/fiance to take home to to meet/fool the family into thinking they are in a relationship. As they spend time together, they realize they have feelings for each other. Is this the right person and were they with the wrong person? What should they do? Do they tell the family the truth?

Girl/boy is lost, doesn’t know what they want, they have been hurt, widow/ed, it’s another holiday alone and by chance they meet that someone and now they have a renewed faith in Christmas.

Boy/girl has lost faith in people, the holiday, etc and someone, a magical someone, is sent to set things right and through the miracle of the holidays and love from others, they find the love and renewed faith in people, the holidays and the world.

The two main characters find each other despicable and at odds with each other but by the end of the movies, they solve the worlds problems and…it’s love, sigh.

Some have big names and others, could be independent films. A lot of them are on the Lifetime network. Some of them are great, well written, well acted and fun and some are just plain awful, but what do we do? We watch them anyway. Guilty as charged!

I have a few favorites that I look for every year and sometimes in between.

The Christmas List, 1997, starring Mimi Rogers http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0136755/?ref_=nv_sr_1.
Borrowed Hearts, 1997 with Roma Downy and Eric McCormick http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0132893/?ref_=nm_knf_t2
Recently, A Christmas Kiss, 2011 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1790621/?ref_=nv_sr_1
Love Actually, 2003, with, well, everybody! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0314331/?ref_=nv_sr_
White Christmas, 1954, Danny Kaye, Bing Crosby, Rosemary Clooney, Vera-Ellen, need I say more? http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047673/?ref_=nv_sr_2

I know there are more, but I can’t think of them off the top of my head! It’s ok, I know I’m a goofball, I’m ok with it!

Yes, I am a sucker for this genre of movies and I will watch them any time of the year, when I can find them, but right now, I guess I’m spoiled having cable again and a DVR, so guess what I’m doing? The cue is filling up!

Warm fuzzies for everyone!

{November 16, 2013} Last Vegas

Go see this movie, that’s all go see it!

Alright, you win, I’ll give you more. GO SEE IT!

This was a laugh riot, feel good movies that leaves you with your face hurting from smiling and laughing so much and warm fuzzies, how can you beat that?

The exact description “Three sixty-something friends take a break from their day-to-day lives to throw a bachelor party in Las Vegas for their last remaining single pal.” And now for more details.

The four main guys have known each other since they were kids, about 12 years old and then takes us 58 years later to today, the kids are all grown up. You don’t mess with the Flatbush Four “You can’t call us names, only we can!” Their favorite names for each other? A$$hole! Pr%ck!

This movie has an all star A-List phenomenal leading cast. We start with the groom-to-be, Billy, played by Michael Douglas. He is the ‘youngest’ of the group, only because he chooses to be, dyes his hair, capped teeth, spray tan, that sort of thing. He is almost 70 and his wife is almost 33, and proposes to his girlfriend at a funeral, you can see where this is going, right?

Next is Morgan Freeman, who plays Archie, and you realize just how tall he is in this movie, 6’2″ towering over the rest of the cast. As soon as one of the guys calls with news “what is it? your prostate?” he lives with his son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter and feels like a prisoner, he is well taken care of, but feels lost, like he’s the child now. He sneaks out of the house to go to Las Vegas.

Kevin Kline plays Sam, who’s been with his wife for 40 years and is kind of lost. The movie opens the scene where we meet the guys today in a water aerobics class that Sam is participating in and just keeps looking around, checking the pulse of one guy, realizing that he’s around a bunch of old people and he doesn’t feel it.

Rounding out the merry band of misfits is Paddy, played perfectly by Robert De Niro, he was the one who married their childhood friend, Sophie, the only girl in the bunch. He is lonely and sad, widowed about a year and just doesn’t want to go out, see people, be social, he just wants to be left alone.

Paddy is very angry at Billy and the other two have to trick Paddy to get him to Las Vegas and it does take a while for the two to “kiss and make up”. Completing the group, when they are in Las Vegas, they meet Diana, a singer in one of Binions [remember, mecca for DCM] lounges, played by Mary Steenburgen. She is funny and charming and a fun addition, kind of like a Sophie for today.

The gang is back together and they’re going to raise some cain, it’s a bachelor’s weekend! They start to have fun and realize that they’re still alive; just because they’re older, ‘past their prime’, they still have a lot left in them and they need to get out there, live and enjoy life! And boy do they ever!

There you have it, go see it, you’ll laugh…a lot!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1204975/?ref_=nv_sr_1

{November 15, 2013} Leverage

I found one of my favorite shows on Netflix, Leverage.

The description on IMDB.com “A crew of high-tech crooks attempt to steal from wealthy criminals and corrupt businessmen.” Basically, they are a modern day Robin Hood and his band of merry men, they steal from the rich and give back to the poor.

The lead, Nate Ford, played by Timothy Hutton was an investigator for a big insurance company and quit when they denied a claim that would save his son. Now, he leads a group of former criminals, the people he used to chase. He is…’The Brains’.

The group consists of Sophie, ‘The Grifter’, someone who swindles ‘the mark’ through deception and fraud. She is amazing with accents, can come up with ideas on the fly, really quick on her feet.

Elliot Spencer is ‘The Hitter’, one guess what that means, let’s just say, I wouldn’t want to cross him or meet him in a dark alley, but I would want him with me in a dark alley. He doesn’t like guns and can disarm someone in the blink of an eye. As the show progresses, some of his hidden talents come out.

Parker, just Parker, is “The Thief’, she is a master at safes, locks and escaping, she can climb, dive, fly and is socially awkward.

Alec Hardison is ‘The Hacker’, he can crack, manipulate, fix anything you set before him.

People who have been wronged and can’t fight “big business” come to the group for help and as the opening says “We provide…Leverage”. They come up with the best cons to get back what was taken and take down the corporate bad dude.

As they say, “sometimes the best bad guys make the best good guys”

It’s a feel good show. I love it and when an episode is over…I feel good.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1103987/?ref_=nv_sr_1

{November 13, 2013} FaceTime with LB and her new sister!

Yesterday, DCM came in and said he had a surprise and then I heard one of my favorite sounds…FaceTime ringing!

The next thing we saw was LB and her mommy and she was so excited to show us her new baby sister, LS! What a doll baby! She was sleeping and jumped a bit when LB said her name and then smiled in her sleep and that was the end of that. We saw her and that’s all that matters. Soon enough she’ll be ready to play with her grandpa and JJ!

We talked to LB for a bit more, tried to follow whatever it was the two and a half year old was saying as she spun in circles, it was pretty funny. We got to talk to her mommy and daddy and found out that she doesn’t play video games because she’s a girl, it was so cute! She thinks that only daddy plays video games and since he’s a boy, only boys play video games. We were all laughing because she doesn’t equate the games she plays with her mommy as games and mommy can’t play video games, why? Because she’s a girl!

After a little while, it was time to go, but we are ready for our next FaceTime and maybe a face to face visit, who’s ready for Vegas, baby?

{November 11, 2013} Veterans Day…Thank you

Today was Veterans Day, did you thank a veteran?

Like yesterday, for the Marine Corps birthday, on Facebook, there were some amazing posts and photos, thanking all the men and women and animals who have served or are currently serving.

No matter what you think of war and politics, you should respect and and have respect for the men and women who have served and are currently serving in our armed forces today and those that gave their lives to protect our freedoms, that allow us to have opinions that may differ from someone else’s point of view, no matter who they are.

There was a quote on a show I like, Leverage, that I think sums it up. There was a militia group claiming to be fighting for our country “You’d kill to protect your rights, a real soldier would die protecting someone else’s”.

When you see someone who is serving or has served, take the time to thank them for what they do. They are wiling to lay down their lives for your freedom and inalienable rights, what are you wiling to do?

Thank you.

{November 11, 2013} Marine Corps birthday cheesecake?

Today, all day, was the 238th birthday of the United States Marine Corps, Ooh Rah!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Marine_Corps

Some of you may know and if you didn’t, DCM served our country as a US Marine, “Once a Marine, always a Marine”, can you tell I’m a very proud girlfriend? Every year, we celebrate the Marine Corps birthday; when he was still in Georgia, the kids would bake him a cake, why stop a great tradition?

Today, I asked him what type of cake he wanted and he proclaims quite decidedly, ” cheesecake!” After brunch we stopped off to get supplies, he thought we would be buying a cheesecake, ha ha, not a chance! I have an awesome recipe given to me by a dear family friend, one of my ‘moms’, KS. We bought the supplies and home we went. I left all the ingredients to be softened on the counter and a few hours later, it was baking time.

The recipe will be at the end of the post, (I am including the recipe for both a cheesecake and pie), enjoy! We did! (Just to give you a warning, this is not a dairy free deal and if you are lactose intolerant and don’t take a Lactaid pill, you will be sorry, just saying. I might have to try this dairy free sometime!

Can we say…YUM!

/a>
There have been some wonderful posts all day on Facebook, thankful and birthday wishes, fantastic photos of loved ones past and present in uniform. Happy birthday to all the great men and women who have and are serving in the United States Marine Corps.

Happy birthday and Thank You.

KS’ amazing cheesecake

CRUST
1.    Grease A 9” x 3” springform with butter
2.    Mix 3 Tbl. Sugar, ½ tsp. cinnamon, ½ stick milted butter, 1 cup cracker crumbs
3.    Press mixture onto bottom of pan
4.    For pie use a ready to use pie crust.

CAKE                                                                           PIE
3- 8 ounce packages of cream cheese                     1- 8 ounce package of cream cheese
1 ½ cups of sugar                                                        ½ cup of sugar
1/3 cup of flour                                                            1/6 cup of flour
16 ounces of sour cream                                            5 ½ ounces of sour cream
Juice from ½ lemon                                                     juice from 1/8 of lemon
Zest from one lemon                                                  Zest from ¼ of lemon
6 eggs separated (at room temp.)                            2 eggs separated (at room temp.)
2 tsp. vanilla                                                                2/3 tsp. of vanilla

DIRECTIONS
1.    Beat cheese until soft and creamy
2.    Add sugar and mix until light and fluffy
3.    Add yolks one at a time
4.    Add sour cream, vanilla, flour, lemon rind, and lemon juice
5.    Beat egg whites in another bowl until stiff
6.    Fold into cream cheese mixture
7.    Pour into pan
8.    Bake at 3590 1/14 hr. for cake(until golden) –for pie 25 minutes
9.    Shut of oven and leave cake in for 1 hr. more – pie fro 20 minutes
10.Remove from oven and let stand until cool

Remove from pan and refrigerate

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