Sometimes weird can be good

This is my go-to summer pasta salad that I always bring to BBQ's...

It's a little strange, but the flavors work well together, and it is actually quite tasty!

Here's all you'll need...

Box of pasta

2 avocados

Cherry tomatoes

Imitation crab meat

Olive oil and Apple Cider vinegar

Pineapple tidbits (yep, pineapple, just trust me folks!)

Cook the pasta according to directions and run cold water over it while it's being strained. (I like to make sure my pasta is al dente since it sits in the fridge or on the picnic table for a bit prior to consumption!)

Slice the cherry tomatoes in half and add to the mix as well as the diced avocados.

Slice up the imitation crabmeat into bite-sized pieces and add them as well!

Now, you can get creative here folks, I've added those little baby corns, edamame, garbanzo beans, whatever floats your boat! (So long as you don't add anything with a super-strong flavor, like pickles or capers!)

Add the pineapple tidbits-not chunks, not crushed, it has to be tidbits because they are the perfect size! Make sure you save the juice first!

In a pyrex measuring cup, add to the pineapple juice some olive oil and apple cider vinegar-about equal portions of each...Again, you could use whatever vinegar you like, I'm pretty particular with my vinegars-balsamic would make your pasta salad rather strange looking. Besides, I think the different vinegar flavors really complement certain dishes and the apple cider version just seems to work best for me!

Pour over your pasta creation and head to that BBQ! The pineapple is always a shocker, but even though it's weird, it is good.

Enjoy!:)

Hey Y'all

Sorry I have been neglecting the blog world and all my friends in it.
The Mr. and I finally went on our honeymoon. (To Alaska. Yes, it is as beautiful as everyone says it is. Yes, I will post some pics!)
And I just haven't gotten back into the swing of things yet.
However, my brain has been buzzing with lots of ideas and recipes and I look forward to sharing them soon!
XOXOX,
McBee

Mudd Volleyball

Yes, mud is spelled with two D's...

This is what I will be doing all day...knee deep in mud, my extremely un-athletic self will be playing volleyball. However, I have been assured by many, many, many people that athleticism is just not necessary when you are literally stuck in one place while playing volleyball.

I'm playing with the gals from Babes and Bullies, so it will be a great way to get our name out, and it really does seem like a lot of fun, albeit messy fun!

Best of all, it benefits The Carrie Tingley Hospital here in town! CTH is a part of the hospital I work for that works with all kinds of kids needing rehab services (speech, ortho, etc.). They do great things over at CTH, and this event brings in gobs and gobs of $$$ for them!

Wish me luck!

DIY Stationary

One of the Book Club girls is moving away...to Kansas City! We are going to miss her so very much, Book Club just won't be the same without her.

I wanted to get her something nice as a going-away present and remembered when I made these for Kelley over at The Lawrences for her bridal shower...They are easy to make and nice to give someone who loves stationary and might be needing to write some thank-you notes in the near future! I originally got this idea from my mom, but I don't know where she got the idea in the first place. I just thought they were so cute and such a clever idea!

All you need:

Stamps and an Ink Pad

Pretty Paper

Adhesive squares (I LOVE LOVE LOVE these things!)

Packaged sets of cards and envelopes (I bought these at Hobby Lobby and they had a plethora of colors to choose from!)

Seeds! (I purchased these at Sunflower Market, I really liked the vintage look they had to them and each packet was less than $2)

I didn't have my camera the day I made them, but they were really easy. Here are some photos of the finished product...

1. Cut the pretty paper to a size which will cover the majority of the front of the card. Do yourself a favor a use a paper cutter! It just looks so much better...

2. Affix the paper to the front of the card using the scrapbook squares. (You could also use a glue stick, but it just doesn't stick as well, in my opinion.)

3. Using the adhesive squares again, affix the seed packet to the left side of the card

4. On white or any corresponding color, stamp a message and cut it out accordingly! My stamps said:

"Wishing you sunshine and sunflowers all season long"

"Friends are flowers that never fade"

"If I planted a seed for every time I think of you, my garden would grow forever"

*Note: I totally poached these stamps and the aforementioned paper cutter from my mom!

5. Stick the stamped message on the right side of the card and you're all done!

Now your friend can send the cards to anyone they want, and the recipient will have a packet of seeds to plant! Cool, huh?

The Mixquiahuala Letters

The Mixquia-what? The Mix-key-a-wah-lah letters. This was our Book Club pick this month!
In all honesty, this wasn't one of my favorites, but the format was cool and a complete departure from previous picks we've had.

The Mixquiahuala Letters is about two women (an artist and a writer) who met in Mexico and the friendship they share over several decades. Actually, the letters were only written by one of the women (the writer, duh!) but it evidently contains the artist's point of view as well.

What made this book so different was the way the reader could choose to read it! It was kind-of like a choose-your-own-adventure book! The reader could choose to read the book as: The Conformist, The Cynic, or The Quixotic. (To be quixotic means to be not sensible about practical matters, to be idealistic and unrealistic.) Depending on which path you choose, you read the chapters (letters) in a different order. I guess it is meant to tell a different story each time.

I read The Conformist and The Cynic, I didn't have enough time to read The Quixotic. I didn't find the two paths I read to be too entirely different-most of the chapters were repeats, although the author doesn't direct you to read all the chapters in each path. It was kind-of confusing and I know I am not making this review any less so.

I wasn't blown away by this book, and I suspect that the Book Club girls aren't exactly going to be impressed, either. Lucky for us, we're having this month's Book Club at a Mexican restaurant, so we'll be entertained by the margaritas!:)

My Latest Obessesion

OK, I know I said I was back, but I wasn't really back...
However, I have several recipes, crafts and even a Real Wedding up my sleeve, if I could only find the time to post it all!!!

I have found a new love....Podcasts! Now, I still heart Justin Timberlake, but these podcasts from iTunes have been so cool for the gym! I have never been the talk radio type of gal, but since I have turned into a rabid political junkie, these have been such great sources of information...

The best part about these podcasts.....they are FREE!!!!! Yep, no cost whatsoever to download these babies and stay informed-and politics aren't the only genres out there...They have language learning, comedy, etc...Some of them are even in video from, so if you have a fancier iPod than I do (I just have the shuffle) you can even see your podcast instead of just listening!

Once you subscribe to the podcast, it is automatically updated each time! Here's what I've been listening to:

Cato Daily Podcast, Left, Right & Center, and The McLaughlin group: These are all panel formats that contain people, from both political persuasions, discussing current events. Each podcast is between 8 and 25 minutes.

Meet the Press: This is just the weekend television show in audio format. It's about 40 minutes.

Democracy Now!: This podcast is completely geared towards liberals. I think that hearing both takes on the same story is always a good idea, and I just couldn't bear to download NPR. My biggest beef with this one is that every episode is almost an hour and broadcasts 5 times a week, so it is difficult to keep up with.

Fox News Radio and President Obama's Weekly Radio Address: Oh yes, I put those two together! These are each 5 minutes and only are updated every week. There is some good info here!

Happy Listening!

I'm ba-ack!

Well, I guess that didn't take as long as I thought it would-now if I can only find the time to put all my thoughts on screen (haha, instead of paper, I said screen! Yeah, I'm a dork.)

OK, so the Mr. and I finally returned our (late) DVD's this weekend and exchanged them for a couple more. BTW, Blockbuster Online is such a fab service! It's just like Netflix as they mail DVD's to you, but instead of mailing them back (which you CAN do) you have the option to exchange them in the store! Once they are scanned in one of their stores, they automatically send the next one in your queue! However, the ones you get from the store are subject to late fees, which is unfortunate. Thus concludes my shameless product promotion of the week.

Anyhoo, the Mr. and I finally got around to seeing Seven Pounds. I had read a couple of spoilers, so it wasn't exactly a surprise for me, but I was thinking that if I hadn't read all that, the movie would've been super confusing! I thought it was pretty good, but the whole "revealing the plot at the very end" just doesn't work for people like me. AKA Impatient! Warning, spoiler alert after the picture.

*SPOILER ALERT!* Can I just say that killing yourself with a jellyfish (albeit a poisonous one) is weird. How were his organs even viable for transplant after that? Sorry, but that just doesn't jive with the health care professional in me.

All in all, it was a pretty good flick and I even shed a couple of tears at the end. However, the last movie I saw in theaters with the Mr. is quite possibly the WORST movie I have ever seen...

Thank goodness we had a gift card and didn't shell out any dinero for this one. Had I known it wasn't screened for critics prior to release, I never would have wasted our time with this one! It was so bad. It was painful. I thought the Mr. was going to walk out at one point (something my penny-pincher self just doesn't like to do, but I seriously could hardly have blamed him!)

I love Beyonce's music, but am racking my brain for an example of a movie I have enjoyed her in. Her acting was....not good. Ali Larter (from Heroes) wasn't bad, but she's always the femme fatale sort, so it wasn't exactly a stretch for her.

My main disappointment (aside from the movie as a whole) was Idris Elba...I fell hard for that guy while watching The Wire where he played Stringer Bell. The Wire was an incredible show on HBO about inner city Baltimore from both police and criminal points of view. It was awesome! I will have to do an entire post just about that show!

Anyways, to see my Stringer Bell in such a stinky movie, it just made me sad. Seriously, this movie isn't even worth posting spoilers on because I don't think anyone should be wasting their time. Trust me folks, this is 2+ hours of your life you will not get back!

Ah, that was a long winded one! hope you all have a wonderful Monday!