Monthly Archives: February 2015

Oscar!!! Oscar!!! Oscar!!!

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We love the Academy Awards! Here are a few things we’ve done this year to make Oscar night even more festive!!!

HOLLYWOOD BANNER 

We created the banner shown above using cardboard stars, ribbons and stickers. We embellished them with cutouts from a plastic Hollywood themed tablecloth.

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BOW TIE PASTA SALAD (for the well-dressed gathering)

Ingredients: 1 pkg. bow tie farfalle pasta (we chose a vegetable variety for extra color), the juice of 1 lemon, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, 1/2 cup olive oil, 3 tablespoons Italian salad dressing,         1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, 3 chopped plum tomatoes, 1/2 cup corn, 2 tablespoons chopped chives. Prepare the bow tie pasta according to package directions. Rinse with cold water and refrigerate until cool. Combine lemon juice and zest with oil and salad dressing.     Mix chopped tomato with corn, toss pasta with dressing combo and parm. Salt and pepper to taste. Top with chives. Chill and serve.

RED CARPET CAKE 

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To create this red carpet cake, we cut an angel-food bar cake into 2 pieces horizontally. We frosted it with 1/2 can of white frosting, colored yellow, using gel food coloring. We topped this with red-dyed coconut. (Our red carpet is shag, baby!!!)

OSCAR TRIVIA GAME

Grab your Trivial Pursuit game and use the Entertainment trivia questions, a fun game for all!

AND THE POPCORN GOES TO – YOU!!  

 An obvious snack choice for Oscar night is popcorn. Make yours more tasty by jazzing it up with your favorite seasonings. Some good choices are parmesan cheese, chili powder and lime juice, garlic powder, sea salt and pepper. Use your imagination to create your own award-winning combos.                                                                                                                       Choose your favorite for a tasty snack!

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For delicious treats for next year’s Oscars or anytime – why wait? – check out Dague Popcorn –      a great popcorn company! (Popcorn pictured is not from this company.)

http://www.daguepopcorn.com/

EASY TRIVIA QUESTION

From what movie (and play) did the title of this weeks post originate?

(Hint: Neil Simon was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay for this movie in 1968.)

OSCAR FUN FACTS – CHECK THIS OUT!

http://www.ibtimes.com/oscar-trivia-fun-facts-16-things-you-may-not-know-about-academy-awards-1819276

We appreciate your support! To paraphrase Oscar Winner Sally Field (who we adore) –                  You like us, you really like us!!!

Thanks!

Roy & Kevin

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Happy St. Valentine’s Day!!!

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We know not everyone celebrates St. Valentines Day, but we find it a great time to express our feelings to each other, our families and friends. Plus, there’s nothing wrong with a holiday that highlights eating chocolate in the middle of a long, cold winter!

 

kissing I & W

The treasured photograph above is of Kevin’s parents, Warren and Irene Wollschlager, taken in 1946. The red-lettered caption, photoshopped in by Kevin’s niece, Rachel, reads, “Have you ever wondered what true love looks like?”

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HEART-SHAPED TURKEY MEATLOAFS                                                                                                       We took our favorite turkey meatloaf recipe and shaped it into 2 hearts (shown above), perfect for St. Valentine’s Day. We used celery to create Cupid’s arrow! Heart healthy hearts!

STRAWBERRIES & BARK                                                                                                                               These were made by dipping fresh strawberries into melted semi-sweet and white chocolate. We made these treats more special by sprinkling crushed red-hot candies on the white chocolate confections and adding classic candy hearts with messages to the semi-sweet chocolate ones. We took the leftover melted chocolate and made bark by spreading it on parchment paper and topping with the leftover candies and dried cranberries.

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COLLAGE BANNER                                                                                                                                         We made copies of treasured old black and white family photos and created the keepsake collage banner leading off this blog. Kevin’s mom and dad are pictured on their wedding day and Roy’s mother and father are shown getting ready for one of their Sunday afternoon drives. We added a picture of ourselves at Narragansett Bay to the mix. These photos are grouped with heart shaped doilies adorned with stickers. To finish the banner off, we added a pair of heart shapes, color copied with Roy’s mom’s original watercolor flower painting. We skipped spelling out “Happy St. Valentine’s Day” – this banner’s message of love is clear without it!

OUR DECORATIONS                                                                                                                             We used our old standby tomato cage tree as the center of a St. Valentine’s Day vignette, which includes the banner, red lights and additional trees. In addition, our laundry room door is decorated with a variety of St. Valentine’s cards we have received from family members or made for each other throughout our nearly 17 years together. Kevin attached some of them to 3 cardboard hearts we got from Party City and connected them vertically with a length of chunky red ribbon.

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TRIVIA                                                                                                                                                               St. Valentine’s Day is believed to have it’s roots in the ancient Roman festival of Lupercalia, a fertility celebration commemorated annually on February 15th. Pope Gelasius I renamed this pagan festival St. Valentine’s Day and moved it to the 14th. Source: (Usefultrivia.com)

JOKE OF THE WEEK                                                                                                                                  What did the caveman give his love on St. Valentine’s Day? Ughs and Kisses!                                 Source: kidsplayandcreate

XXOO

Roy and Kevin

Love is in the air! St. Valentine’s Day!!!

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“Cupid, draw back your bow and let your arrow flow, straight to my lover’s heart, for me!”          -Smokey Robinson

We love St. Valentine’s Day and thought we would share with you one of our favorite pictures. The art above, which has been in Roy’s family for many years, shows Cupid asleep, perhaps after a busy St. Valentine’s Day. Let’s get creative!

HEART FRAME:                                                                                                                                           We took a picture frame and covered it with heart stickers. A flat surface frame works best. It’s a quick, easy and fun craft. Also, this craft project is very inexpensive – all the items in this photo came from a dollar store. Kids can do it and it makes a great gift! Put in a photo, drawing, or a favorite quote. (“Onward and upward together” is one of our personal mottos.)

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KUDOS TO KENDRA!                                                                                                                               Our crafty friend Kendra creates beautiful wreaths, including this lovely spring wreath. She got all the materials she needed at Michael’s. Kendra used silk flowers (Hydreangas, Morning Glories and Queen Ann’s Lace) on a grapevine wreath finished with a pretty cream-colored burlap ribbon trimmed in gold. It brings a touch of springtime to these cold, snowy winter   days. For more information on these wreaths, contact Kendra at: knnydbby75@gmail.com.      We admire your work Kendra! Great job!

“Kendra N wreath

ST. VALENTINE’S DAY TRIVIA:                                                                                                                     Approximately 1 billion St. Valentine’s Day Cards are sent each year, making it the second largest card-sending holiday after Christmas. (Source: usefultrivia.com)

JOKE OF THE WEEK:                                                                                                                                   What do you call 2 birds in love? Tweethearts!                                                                                         (Source: Kidsplayandcreate)

Next blog: Easy St. Valentine’s Day sweets and more holiday crafts. Look for next post Thursday.

Roy and Kevin

Super Sunday!!

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We are very excited about the Super Bowl! So much so, we kept out our Patriots Christmas ornaments as well as our Pats pom-poms and light up Patriots hat which doesn’t really show in this picture. To start out, we thought we would remind you of the snacks and decorations we suggested the last couple of weeks. Time to get busy!!

Here are a few pictures from the last couple of blog posts. These are snacks we sometimes make for Super Bowl. The No-Tell Queso Dip (in the post “A Superbowl dip…), the Creamy Pantry Dip and the Easy Pita Chips. (Both in the post titled “Gametime“.)

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Decorations!!! Here are a couple of our decorations – the Easy Napkin Banner (also in Gametime!) and the Tomato Cage Trees shown above (original directions featured in “Christmas Blog 2 …” switched to blue and red lights).

 

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OUR SUPER BOWL MENU

Red, White and Blue Dip: We buy blue tortilla chips and serve with salsa which we jazz up by adding a 1/2 can of drained black beans and a 1/2 cup of corn. In addition to the salsa, we make a delicious white bean dip. These represent the 3 Pats colors – red, white and blue.IMG_3176 (2)

To check out Mark Bittmans rosemary and lemon white bean dip, click the link. http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2013/01/rosemary-lemon-white-bean-dip-recipe.html

Gronk Sandwich:

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A grilled kielbasa sandwich topped with warm sauerkraut, mustard and mayo mixture, and melted swiss cheese, served on a whole wheat roll.

 

 

 

Buffalo Shrimp: Grilled shrimp with Buffalo Sauce (Use your favorite recipe – our’s includes hot sauce, margarine, white wine vinegar and chili powder) served with bleu cheese dressing and celery sticks.

Patriots Super Bowl Sundae : Vanilla ice cream topped with fresh blueberries, dried cranberries and whipped cream. Delicious!

 

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For Seahawks fans (if you must): pistachio ice cream topped with blueberries and chocolate covered coffee beans.

Have a fun and safe Super Bowl Sunday!!!

 

Roy and Kevin