Christmas Shopping? No Bah-Humbug in Mason City!

Dec 8, 2014

It is not a surprise that I love to shop.  I don't have to always make a purchase but I do love to see what local stores are offering and this past Friday the North Iowa Bloggers spent a bit of time together enjoying a few of my favorite shops in our town. First stop was Soyphisticated Candles.  I love all of the products that Camille Lee offers and have never been disappointed with anything that I have gotten from her.  I have blogged about her before several times (check out my first …

Let’s Talk Turkey

Nov 13, 2014

You know what I am talking about!  Thanksgiving is just around the corner and all thoughts turn to turkey.  Well---maybe not ALL thoughts but a great deal of my thoughts recently have been revolving around travel plans for Thanksgiving and what we will be cooking and eating during that fabulous holiday.   We will be in North Carolina for Thanksgiving this year---Aaron has graciously agreed to host us in Raleigh once again and since we are all coming from 4 different states it will be extra nice …

Slightly Savory Soup

Nov 8, 2014

It's fall and time to crank up the crock pots and start ladling out some delicious soup.  If you read my post yesterday you saw that I received some lovely beans from Harriman-Nielsen Farm when I was on the Franklin County Harvest Bloggers Tour. Just look at these beautiful beans! A soup recipe was attached to the jar and I tweaked it a bit and added a few extras and ended up with a delightful soup that I enjoyed all week long.  Any beans will do but these were fabulous.   You will need to …

Things You HAVE to Have –SkyMall Strikes Again

Nov 6, 2014

I love to look at the SkyMall magazine in the seat back pocket when I fly.  It never ceases to amaze me what crazy bizarre  unique things are offered on those pages.  If you haven't flown for awhile or don't have any trips lined up in the near future--no worries. They are online here. I have done various posts on some of the great things you can find in this magazine.  I even gained a new follower because I tagged a business who had their product featured and while it was not something that …

North Iowa Bloggers + Oreos = Sugar High

Sep 29, 2014

You might have heard the moans and groans on Thursday night coming from my humble abode.  My fabulous group of North Iowa Bloggers (at least some of our ever growing wonderful group) got together at my house to celebrate the fall birthdays.  What started out as a birthday celebration for 4 ladies morphed into much more. Someone spied some oddly flavored Oreos in a store and since we all had so much fun with the Lay's Chip Tasting not too long ago I offered the challenge to the group that we …

My Favorite Things Week–Two Hands

Sep 26, 2014

It's My Favorite Things Week and to make it even more fun for all of my great followers I am having a Giveaway every single day!  That's right.  Every day the "favorite thing" that I am featuring is going to be given away randomly to one lucky reader (and commenter).  How can you not love that? Today's favorite thing is a little gadget that I found advertised someplace and I fell in love with it and already have given one as a gift to my sister.  When she would FaceTime with me she was always …

It All Started With A Chip

Aug 7, 2014

Isn't the above picture just the picture of health?  Not really.  Tuesday night a group of North Iowa Bloggers (and yes---these ladies deserve a capital B) got together at my home for a bit of fun and taste testing.  The new flavored Lay's came out recently and after a quick Facebook conversation I decided to host a tasting party for all who could attend.  Of course while I was at it I picked up what other summer items I could find but they did not get top billing like the Lay's chips. Trust …

Books, Books, Books! I’ve Got Books!

Jul 10, 2014

You may remember that I joined up with the Chaotic Goddess bunch to do a Book Swap awhile back and it is time to fulfill the final part of my obligation and post about what my wonderful swap partner, Ellen from The Canon, gifted me. The concept was simple----each swap partner was to gift the other with a book that she/he loves, one that hasn't been read yet and one that the partner wanted.  Ellen did a smashing job of gifting me the perfect trio of books. First of all----book number one …

It’s A Thing

Jun 20, 2014

I pride myself on usually being on the cutting edge of things.  I love to be the one who has the handle on the latest trends and fashion.  NOT!   I like comfortable and that is not always the trend. On my last trip to North Carolina around the time of my birthday my best friend in the whole wide world, Ann, gave me some presents.  Socks were one of the presents because that is a thing with us.  Not sure why but it is.  A cute little can of flowers that if I add the right amount of sun and …

She Sells Jellyfish and Seashells and Starfish by the Coral Reef

Jun 4, 2014

Looks like the company that makes Little Debbie snacks has a marketing ploy. Appeal to the summer and beach lover in all of us. I was tempted but not tempted enough to actually purchase the sugary treats that I found in Target the other day.   I don' t know about you but I have enough processed sugar in my diet already and really don't need to add more fluff to this frame at all.  Do these tempt you at all? What tempts me as summer arrives is a huge bowl of fresh …