Thursday, October 30, 2014

Caramel Apple cake, oh my!

Its the wonderful season of caramel apples and fall flavors! I was wanting to try something new in cake form to bring to work. The last treats I made looked like Easter ones.
They were colorful with several different flavorings for the icing.
 
I went searching for recipes and found this one: Moist Caramel Apple Cake. That wasn't quite the recipe for me though. So I decided to experiment with that one and my Plain White Cake recipe. I wanted to create something a little more special. I came up with the following!
 
Caramel Apple Bundt Cake
 
What you will need: 
 
Cake batter
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup milk
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and coarsely chopped

1 pkg. (3.4 oz) Jell-O Vanilla Instant pudding
3/4 cup water
 
Drizzle
1 can (13.4 oz) Nestle Le Lechera caramel
3 tablespoons milk
 
Mix it up:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
 
In the same order as listed, mix your ingredients together for the cake batter. Spray your bundt pan with cooking spray and put some larger chopped pieces of apple in the bottom.
Then pour your batter on top.
I had enough extra batter to make some cupcakes as well, since I doubled the recipe. I put the batter in the paper cups and put a piece of apple slice on top of each one.
Bake 25-30 minutes or until the knife comes out clean.
It make take longer depending on your stove.
Loosen the cake from the pan and flip over onto your cake serving dish. Let it cool completely. Mix the caramel and milk together to make the drizzle.
Warm in the microwave until smooth. Let it slightly thicken and pour over the top of your cake just before serving.
 
Enjoy!

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Dracula Untold movie review and information

I had forgotten to share my review on the movie Dracula Untold.
It's actually pretty good. It's not another run-of-the-mill, you know what's going to happen, love story of a vampire movie. It follows a little more closely to the real history of Vlad the Impaler. He's the one the Dracula stories were originally based on. 
The movie gives you a sympathetic villain. While Vlad is supposed to be an evil monster, he's the one you want on your team fighting against the Turks.
His only desire is to save his family, especially his son from the tyrannical rule of the Turkish King. He doesn't want his son to face the same fate of being turned into a mindless killer who will obey any order without hesitation. To save his wife from the heartache of having her son taken from her. And to save his kingdom from having to give up their sons as well. His heart was in the right place. His method for achieving the power necessary to accomplish his goals, however, may be questionable. He strikes a deal with what should be the first Dracula. The original vampire. In return, he has 3 days to destroy the Turks. Battle after battle, you follow his dire and dark conquests. You root for him to win! 
Now I don't want to spoil the movie for those planning to see it. It had some good CGI effects, wonderfully done scenes, and if it wasn't so "scary", I'm sure even kids would enjoy the action. I don't reccomend it for children though.
There were some things that I wasn't impressed with. Especially with a scene at the end that was dragged out when it should have been cut short with fantastic action. But every movie has its flaws, right? They don't explain why silver is dangerous to the vampires. So unless you are familiar with the other versions of Dracula, you probably wouldn't know the connection that has been made to Judas Iscariot.

The story of the real Dracula or Vlad the Impaler, is quite an interesting one. He didn't use fangs to bite the necks of his victims to drain their blood. He instead impaled them, collected the blood and dipped his bread into it. Talk about psychopath of the olden times.... He avenged his fathers betrayal and death by slaughtering hundreds of the noblemen.
"Dracula" means "Son of the Dragon". Vlad III chose to be called that. His father had been a member of a secret society called the Order of the Dragon. His father, being proud of this, changed his name to Dracul which was Romanian for Dragon. Vlad III was involved with this Order as a child and changed his name to Dracula, or the Son of the Dragon. Now, however, the translation is closer to the Son of the Devil. This is where the belief that vampires were devils or minions of Satan came into play.

Vlad had a cruel and dark sense of humor. There are accounts of how he enjoyed impaling and boiling people alive. He liked watching them twitch "like frogs". These two punishments were his only forms of punishment throughout his rule.
He wanted to "clean" up his capitol, Tirgoviste. So he invited the sick, vagrants, and beggars for a feast. Then he had the court where they dined boarded up and set fire to the place. This was how he dealt with the unwanted people around his kingdom.
His rule was so undisputed and feared, that he left an elaborate golden cup in plain view in the town square. Anyone could drink from it, however, it could not leave the square. Though poverty plagued the people, no one dared to even touch it. Fear was truly deep within the hearts of his people.
He couldn't handle any form of defeat. So when the Turks pushed his armies back into retreat, he burned villages, killed the townspeople, and poisoned the wells. Better that he do it himself than let the Turkish army have the satisfaction, right? In total, historians believe that Dracula killed somewhere from 40,000 up to 100,000 people. By the time the Turks got to the capitol of Tirgoviste, there was a Forest of the Impaled. 20,000 bodies of Turks were on display. Men, women, children, old and young alike were not spared.

Bram Stoker invented quite a character when he chose to write Dracula. He used the stories of Vlad Tepes (aka Vlad III, Vlad the Impaler) as well as the other vampire stories that were written before he even set pen to paper. Carmilla was the more original vampire. A lesbian who preyed on lonely young women and bathed in their blood. Varney the Vampire was another penny dreadful series that Stoker could draw inspiration from.

Hope you enjoy the movie! And take the time to do your own research when you watch things based on historical events!

Some facts used in this informative posting: http://listverse.com/2013/01/26/10-fascinating-facts-about-the-real-dracula/

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

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

Saturday, October 25, 2014

My sons birthday...

Today my son turned 6. Seems like yesterday I was on a hospital bed screaming at the doctor who was yelling at me to shut up and push. Then I saw that 6 pound wonder and longed to hold him. Unfortunately I went into shock and shook too much to. But I was immensely happy. I was also scared, proud, angry (at the doctor), and overwhelmed. Now he's 6 years old. He talks constantly, can count and say his ABC's.... He's so much like me, it scares me sometimes. But it also makes me proud. 
So what do we have planned to celebrate today's special occasion? The children and I got dressed up for a Halloween event in San Antonio. Bootacular is a family event that I'm hoping will be fun for us all. We are also taking my husbands younger brothers. 
Then it will be back to the in laws house for grilling and cake! So much fun. 

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Neenah paper review via Shoplet.com

It's time for another Shoplet.com review! As you know, Shoplet has a plethora of office supplies to fit any type of office needs. This one was fun. It's for Neenah Colored Paper and Colored Card Stock. Vibrant, neon colored paper and card stock that made my yard sale signs fun and easy to see. They also withstood the wind and rain better than I did.
I tested them out by printing the signs as well as writing with various colored markers to show what works well with them.
The card stock is definitely a heavy quality. It's durable.
The colors didn't run too much in the rain, which impressed me. I don't use things like  this often, but every once in a while I need something to brighten the day and these sure did!

Don't forget to check out the other things that Shoplet has to offer such as; medical supplies, office stationary, and promotional items that are great for getting your business name out there.
What would you use these products for?

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Alexander and the horrible, terrible, no good, very bad day movie review

It happens. We all have days where it seems everything is going wrong as soon as you step out of bed. Even in my home where the OCD keeps everything tidy... Chaos strikes on occasion.

 For Alexander, those days seem to happen daily. He's the one that others might label as being walking bad luck. And for an eleven year old boy... It truly sucks. His family on the other hand seem to have everything going for them. Dad lost his job 7 months ago, but has been taking over the household errands and child care like a pro. Mom is moving up the corporate ladder every day at a publishing company. While she enjoys that fatter paycheck, she has begun to realize that she doesn't have much of a hand in the care of her family anymore. She spends so much time at work and if promoted, would spend even more time there. Still, she wants to keep the dough rolling and make it all work. The big brother is in high school. He's dating the prettiest and most popular girl, planning to get his drivers license, and prom is coming! For him, life is perfect. The older sister has just caught the lead of a school production and feels she has the wind beneath her wings. This up and coming diva plans to be on Broadway before too long. Then there's the baby, Trevor. He has no complaints. As long as he has his bumblebee pacifier, he's rocking and rolling.
This is their life. And Alexander can't seem to find his happiness while watching them in all their perfection. But that's all about to change...
This movie is set over a two-day period. Everything I just described is happening the day before Alexander's birthday. They are making plans and living the great life. The following day, a little after midnight, Alexander is in the kitchen alone with a class guinea pig. He's wishing himself a happy birthday with a late night treat. While doing so, he wishes that his family could have one day just like his typically are. He wants them to see how bad it is and appreciate the good just a little more when they understand what it's like for him. And sure enough... he gets his wish!
The whole day starts off terribly with everyone sleeping in. Mom's car battery is dead, she's late for work, brother gets a zit on prom day, dad has to take Trevor to his job interview, and the sister has a cold on her debut as a star. But the fun doesn't end there. I mean, let's face it... if that's the worse they had to deal with, that's cake. But no. The trouble just keeps avalanching. Its one disaster after another that seems to follow the "When it rains, it pours" concept. The question is, can they continue to roll with the punches or will they all fall down and give in the hopeless feeling that lingers on the edge.
Alexander may be in the middle and not have many years on him, but he brings the family together and shows them what its like to keep going when things look bleak.
Some of my favorite moments involve the crocodile, kangaroo, a tipsy Peter Pan, and the flaming pirate dad! I haven't always been a fan of Steve Carrell, however, this movie made me like him just a bit more. Jennifer Garner is beautiful and brought some humor to the mom roll. I felt a little disappointed by her characters reaction to the job offer news at the end. As a working mother, I often feel guilty for how much time I spend away from my own children. While I love making more money so my family can live a little more comfortably, I don't want to "live at work". I thought she would've taken a different route after the experiences her family went through. 

As far as family friendliness, this one is definitely A-Ok on that. No sex, drugs, drinking, crude humor, or language to keep you from sharing the laughter with your kids. I brought my 5 year old son with me and even he was laughing often. This is one movie I'll plan to own so that we can share a laugh later with the rest of the family who didn't go. I hope you enjoy it as well! 

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Label Daddy review via US Family Guide

I've once again been able to review products from Label Daddy via my connections to US Family Guide. Summer fun may be "over", but with everyone going back to school and the holidays coming up - having personalized labels is just as important now as it was before. Maybe even more so!
Having labels that identify your personal property can keep confusion of ownership at bay. My boys both have the same lunch box and would often fight over which one was theirs. I wrote their names inside with permanent marker to put an end to the nonsense. Imagine having a sticker there instead. Something that looks professional, has a logo or favorite character on it, with a clear-to-read name printed on it. Better, isn't it?
I got the Luggage Bag Label pack for my mother.
You get 11 stickers in various sizes, with your personalized design, for only $24.99. They work great with any kind of luggage, though its not recommended to be used on leather.
There are two styles; circles or rectangles. These USA-made labels come laminated, and with the option to add your contact information on them. Winter holidays are fast approaching. How many of you will be going on family vacations? These will make finding your bags so much easier when mixed with a myriad of others! Besides, they are fun and uniquely you.

So check them out and be sure to sign up for their newsletter. They are always having some sort of promotion going on. You never know what deal you will catch!