Vintage Recipe - Orange French Toast

This week as part of the Joy of Desserts Vintage Recipe Thursday I am sharing a delicious breakfast recipe. As of late we have been on a citrus kick at our house so I thought I would share an old fashioned recipe with a citrus twist with you today.

Orange French Toast

by Jennifer A. Wickes

4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tbsp. Grand Marnier
1/2 cup milk
2 tbsp. grated orange peel
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg
8 1-inch-thick slices of French bread

Garnish:
Unsalted butter
Maple syrup
Powdered sugar
Four cooked sausage links

In a shallow bowl beat together eggs, Grand Marnier, milk, orange peel, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg. Dip bread into egg mixture, coating both sides. (Soak for 30 seconds on each side). In a skillet melt 1 tablespoon butter and cook the bread on both sides over medium heat for 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden. Serve with butter, syrup, powdered sugar and sausage. Yields: 4 servings

recipe found on a super cool website called old fashioned living which is worth taking a look at in my opinion.

Free Candy signup

Get your free box of Tropical Chewy Lemonhead candy by going here I got mine and you should too Thanks STL Mommy

McDonalds Deal Alert

McDonalds in certain areas is now offerering 2 for 1 drinks Monday - Friday from 2 to 5 P.M.
This may not be at all restaunts so you may want to see if the McDonalds near you is participating.

thanks for the heads up St. Louis Mommies

Pamper Point Codes

Here are a few new pamper codes that I found on the blog STL Mommies
Click here to sign up or log into your Gifts to Grow account, then enter the code below for 30 points!!

GTGTEAMUSA2010

Plus here are a few other codes.
GTGPLAY2USA2010
WELCOME2GTG2010
GRATUIT89102009
WELCOME2GTG0809
GRATUIT89102009
WELCOME2VILLAGE
GROWWITHVILLAGE
XKCMYXFVD96VXVK
JUSTBECAUSE2009
JOINTHEFUNGTG09
STARTEARNINGNOW

Egg Carton Bird Feeder

The letter of the day for the meme ABC Wednesday is E and my choice is Egg Carton Bird Feeder.



Those two winged friends of ours in the back yard need a bit of help this time of year as well. Here is a great way to recycle your egg carton and help the birds

Egg Carton Bird Feeder.

Styrofoam egg carton
Wild Bird Seed
Sunflower Seeds
Raisins (optional)
Peanut Butter (optional)
Apples (optional)
Suet (optional)
Bread Crumbs (optional)
String
Nail or Hook to hang Bird Feeder

Clean and use a Styrofoam egg carton. Fill cups with any combination of wild bird seed, sunflower seeds, raisins, apples, suet, seeds mixed with peanut butter, peanuts, bread crumbs, water, corn or berries. Place outside on a window sill or hang from a tree

Crockpot Applesauce Recipe

you can find great crockpot recipes @ diningwth debbie

Crockpot Apple Sauce

4 large apples, skinned ,cored, and cut in quarters
juice from 1 lemon
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1 T brown sugar
1/4 cup H20

Skin, core, and cut your apples into quarters. Plop the pieces into your crockpot. Add the juice from the lemon, and the water. Pour in the vanilla and add the cinnamon and brown sugar.
Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours. When the apples are super tender, mash with a potato masher or large fork. My apples were very tender after 6 hours, and I used a fork.

recipe found on the a year of slow cooking websit

Princess

This is a picture of my the diva who will turn 2. It was taken when she was about a month old. Is she not just a doll

seven clown circus is where you can find more great pics

Heat dinner rolls in microwave

Now we all know that the microwave normally dries up bread. The other day i wanted to heat dinner rolls up for supper but did not want to use oven (well you know we cant). So my daughter told me to wrap up in toweling and cook about a minute. Low and behold to my suprise they stayed soft and were warm as well. Now theres a trick if you did not know it all ready. If you have any great microwave tips I would love to hear them

wordless wednesday hosted at WE Are That Family

Way Back When: my niece turns 2

This is my lil brother and his new born daughter. The little diva will be 2 this week. Happy Birthday from your Auntie!!!!

share your pics over at the blog Twinfatuation

KatHouse Designs Valentine Designs discounted

Anyone can use a heart. Showing love all year round would be great KatHouse Designs has discounted left over valentine designs like this great pair of earrings. To see more discounted items visit here

Tackle It Tuesday : Cleaning under the bed

Today I took the time to flip the matress and lift up the box springs to clean under my bed It was not bad there but the dust was a mess. I vacumed all that up and found several of my socks that I had lost and both of the slippers to the 2 pairs I could not find the mate too. Yeah!!!

what did you do today?

Dog Is Good review and giveaway

I received one of the sweetest long sleeved tees from Dog is Good. If you know who Dog is Good is then you know about all the great items they have for sale. If you have not previously heard of Dog is Good let me share with you. Dog is Good founded by Gila B. Kurtz and Nichole Smith in 2006 takes pride in the products they offer that are both clever and stylish. Gila and Nichole wanted to sell stylish apparel that would impress dog lovers like their selves. They decided together that the name of their business would be Dog is Good . Their love for selling cute apparel quickly grew and they added a line of gifts dog lovers as well. Dog is Good is inspired to create and sell goods to celebrate the love a dog and his master share. Gila and Nichole have been able to witness first hand the special bond between a dog and his master during their daily jobs and realized that there was a need to help express this fondness so together they created Dog is Good.

Dog is Good sent us the tee seen in the picture. This long sleeve tee is very soft and comfortable. The verse that appears on the tee is one that seems to sum up the feelings that one feels for their best pal, their dog. Dog is Good also sells hats, hoodies, mugs, cards, stickers, etc... If you are a dog lover or knows someone who is the perfect item to show this love can be found at Dog is Good. Prices are great as well, so showing ones love for his dog is now even easier.

One reader will be able to do a bit of shopping for their selves as the duo at the Dog is Good group would love to give one of Annie's Home readers a $50 gift certificate to purchase their choice from the Dog is Good website.

To enter this giveaway you must visit the Dog is Good website and let me know what you would purchase if you were the lucky winner

Extra entries:

• follow my blog
• grab my button and let me know where you place it
• place my text link on your blog (3 entries) let me know url
• join dog is good mailing list (3 entries)
• follow me on twitter
• follow Dog is good on twitter
• tweet about the giveaway (1 entry per tweet) link in comment
• follow Dog is Good on facebook
• blog about the giveaway (5 entries) link in comment

Contest starts now and will end March 9, 2010. Good Luck Email in comment or on blog is mandatory.

while I did recieve the mentioned tee from the Dog Is Good group. The thoughts and opinions shared on this website are mine and were not in anyway influenced.

Three or More: My Three Sons

I recently had a question in a comment regarding my sons so I thought I would introduce them to you. In line youngest to oldest. These are my three sons.

Gratituesday : the kids are back in school

I am thankful today that the kids headed back to school. After being home a whole week they finally headed back to school. Do you know what having 4 teenagers home for a week when you did not buy supplies to feed those children due to the cabinets, pantry, fridge and freezer? Well not as bad as what I thought it would be actually. Somehow we kept going and every day there was snacks, meals and extras. I thank all of those who have taught me to keep a well stocked pantry and to cook those frugal meals. Many of those that I learned so much from have blogs. Yes bloggers have lives and know how to live life.

This past Sunday was Youth Sunday. i thank God for all the wonderful youth who took over in the places of the adults who normally fill the positions. It may be these very youth that one day will actually lead the music, the preaching etc... Thank God that their hearts are prepared to accept whatever may come their way.

what are you thankful for?

Random Thought Tuesday: Life During the Olympics

Listening to the news this morning I found out quite a few different things. We are currently leading the medal count in the olympics. The Chinese came out strong on figure skating win both the silver and the gold. It was like a dream come true for the gold medal winners as they have been around for 18+ years but had never won the gold medal. Upon the husband (yes ladies I said the husband) deciding he was not ready to give up on the gold they came out of retirement to get ready and compete for the olympics where at the 2010 Olympics they reached their dreams. Yeah for them. I am proud of them not because of their nationality but because of their determination.

I also love the fact that Apollo Ohno is doing so well. I think this feisty young man is doing well. I can not believe that i like him and that my daughter like him for two different reasons. I like the fact that he has done so much and he has such a great relationship with his father while my daughter sees him through a different set of eyes and that he is great looking (hot as she says it).Oh my the differences we share.

The olympics is not the only competition going on this week. It seems the dogs are having a competition of their own. I have a son who loves to watch the Westminster dog show.

well those are my random thoughts what are yours? Share yours on the Un Mom blog

To Do Tuesday

The meme http://www.crazyadventuresinparenting.com/ celebrates its first birthday this week. Happy Birthday.

Well, valentines is over and there are not big festivities planned for a bit. Now it is time to get back to normal.
this week:

• would love to find a new cabinet for the bathroom
• dress up living room a bit for spring/upcoming easter
• staighten fridge/freezer

What do you have planned? Share your list over at Crazy Adventures in Parenting

In "other" Words Tuesdays : Feb 16

This week the host for In "other" Words is Heart Choices. The selected passage is the following:



As I often tell my children in my Sunday School class. The freedom to worship him is not always free. Those in foreign countries often must worship in groups not to let those in charge know they are Christians. Many others do not even know that there is a freedom as great as our Lord Jesus Christ. Our job as Christians is to share the message that we have heard with others.

As a mom of teens I have tried to raise my children to do as they should. I have learned that after our our prayers, our personal actions demonstrating what should be done and faith that they will follow through in their personal lives. They have the freedom to keep the Lord the spotlight of their personal life or to forsake their upbringing and go on with life. They face daily influences from teens, to attractions that they know are not meant for Christians. However, they will find true freedom if they only grasp onto their knowledge of him, the manners of which they have grown and keep their eye on the goal. Perhaps this is the true meaning of the scripture to me. However, this does not only affect teens as in life we all find the obstacles to go on a different path of life rather than the one that we are on that is led by the faith in our Lord. In my own life I have found many obstacles and fallen off the road only to find my way back to the freedom that is granted when we place our lives in our Lords hands.

What do you think?

Everything Princesses review and giveaway

I found the shop perfect for my Princess in fact it is perfect for any princess. The name of this new boutique on the Internet says it all. Everything Princesses sells everything a princess needs. From clothing to stationary, from jewelry and hair products to sleep needs, from furniture meant for a princess castle to book and craft needs and if you are looking for the perfect gift for a princess look no further than Everything Princesses.

Whether your little one wants to dress up like their favorite princess. Everything Princesses has a variety of princess dresses so I am sure you will find the perfect one for your little one. We received the one above for our little princess. So cute and I just love pink.

I just adore the hair accessories that they have on Everything Princess.

This frog princess swing dress and legging set is so cute.

This super cute toddler bed is perfect for Princess and may be just what you are looking for for yours.

Potty Chair meant for the smallest princess' among us. Where else will you find a potty chair that is actually a throne.

Buy: you can purchase any of these products for your princess from the Everything Princesses website. There are products ranging from the higher price level to the lower price level but all products are lovely

Win: Now are you ready to do a bit of shopping? Everything Princesses wants to give one of Annie's Home readers a gift certificate for $50 to do a bit of shopping for their own princess.

Enter this giveaway: head over to the Everything Princesses website and let me know 2 of your favorite items from there. Leave your picks in a comment.

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog
• grab my button and let me know where you put it
• follow Everything Princesses on twitter
• follow my blog on twitter
• tweet about the giveaway (1 entry per tweet)
• fan everything princesses on facebook
• blog about the giveaway, share on facebook (5 entries per thing you do leave 5 comments)

Giveaway starts now and will run through March 8, 2010. Good Luck. Email must be in comment or on your blog or you will not be selected to win.

London Bridge Children review

London Bridge Children

As you all know I have a little princess and when I saw the lovely designs of artwork available at London Bridge Children Decor I knew I had to share with all of you. Lori is the artist and owner of London Bridge Children and I must say she does lovely job. She creates unique works of art that are very fun. Lori a mother of four (4) finds inspiration for her art from them.

As the mother of a brown haired little princess this picture of course caught my eye. I loved it and thought wow this is something that she would do. My princess loves shoes, bags and often wears her hair up. What about yours? or perhaps you have a little boy.

This picture reminds me of my two nephews and the lil diva sitting between them. How sweet. The London Bridge Children create many wonderful works of art and may have the perfect one for you. However, that is not all that London Bridge Children have for sale on their website. From hand stamped jewelry and lovely gifts to room decor and baby bedding you will find it all on the London Bridge Children website.

we recieved a creation by London Bridge Children but was not influenced by it in writing this review. The review is based on my opinion

Ready to box

He is ready to rumble and wondering if there is any takers.

go here to see more mellow yellow pics and here to see more ruby red

Happy Presidents Day

Happy Presidents Day to you all.

Little Miss Matched 80% off

Don't forget the Little Miss Matched giveaway on my blog here

I love her smile

I heart Faces challenge this week : I want to Dance

This is my daughter at prom and yes I think she is ready to dance. Just look at her beautiful smile

Look What I found now Oreo Pops

located this great recipe for a sweet treat located on the blog News Around the Blogs and I thought how great. These were made for valentines but Easter is coming soon and they could so easily be adapted for that. Please visit the blog News Around the Blogs for an easy how to guide.

Not Me Monday

Before you all get startled as I have not posted a Not Me Monday post for quite a while but thought i would today. Not me Monday is where we share what we did or did not do in a manner that is the opposite of what we did.

• This week has not been a week of many meals. The kids have not been out of school since last monday and it is not getting a bit overwhelming on the grocery budget. I am not losing my surplus for having to cook extra meals and as much as I have not been having a great time I am not ready for them to go back to school.
• Yesterday was not youth sunday at church. My children did not take over my sundayschool class room and we did not make the cutest valentine cards of all time.
• We have not been having fun watching the olympics. We were not at all pleased when we saw the Americans win the medals. I have not been challenging my teens to answer questions related to the olympics. They are not at all having fun answering them.
• I do not at all love the new show where the boss goes undercover in his own company. This has not been a show that me, the teens and my hubby all agree on.

what did you do or not do? Share them here

Agoo Baby Leg Huggers giveaway

As many of you know there is currently an Agoo Leg Hugger giveaway on my blog where 2 readers will recieve a pair of leg huggers of their choice and if you don't know about this go here. While visiting facebook checking updates from yesterday I found out that there is another great giveaway for Agoo Baby Leg Huggers you simply have to follow Agoo Leg Huggers and leave comment on their post about the giveaway and you will be entered to win five (5) pairs of Agoo Leg Huggers. Good Luck

Annies Home : The Clowns Meme 1

1. How old will you be in five years?

Oh so it is starting out the harsh question first I will be 40+ years ago

2. Who did you spend at least two hours with today?

my hubby and children

3. How tall are you?

5 foot 4 inches

4. What do you look forward to most in the next six weeks?

seeing princess,

5. What’s the last movie you saw?

To Save A Life

6. Who was the last person you called?

daughter

7. Who was the last person to call you?

my daughter

8. What was the last text message you received?

dont text

9. Who was the last person to leave you a voicemail?

no idea

10. Do you prefer to call or text?

call

11. What were you doing at 12am last night?

sleeping

12. Are your parents married/separated/divorced?

well they would be married but my father passed on a few years ago

13. When is the last time you saw your mom?

thursday we went shopping together

14. What color are your eyes?

hazel

15. What time did you wake up today?

6:30 A.M.

16. What are you wearing right now?

church clothes I just took off the jacket but did not change

17. What is your favorite christmas song?

silver bells

18. Where is your favorite place to be?

home

19. Where is your least favorite place to be?

well cant really think of any where I go there are places I would not like to go but no where I dont want to be I normally go

20. Where would you go if you could go anywhere?

the smoky mountains

21. Where do you think you’ll be in 10 years?

not where I am today

22. Do you tan or burn?

nope

23. What did you fear was going to get you at night as a child?

we always talked about wolves etc...

24. What was the last thing that really made you laugh?

my kids and hubby goofing off or maybe it was princess on the phone

25. How many TVs do you have in your house?

5

26. How big is your bed?

queen size

27. Do you have a laptop or desktop computer?

both

29. What color are your sheets?

cream colored

30. How many pillows do you sleep with?

lots at least 8

31. What is your favorite season?

fall

32. What do you like about Autumn?

the Lords coloring book , the crisp weather

33. What do you like about winter?

not much staying inside looking at the beauty outside

play here

Quotable Sunday : Cupid

my qoutes this week are around the valentine man himself cupid

“Cupid may have wings, but we have to rely on more conventional methods.”
Delores Killette

“It's funny to hear the rage that a holiday symbolized by cute little Cupids and fluffy things brings out in people. That resentment definitely makes you want to not just ignore the holiday but do something as a protest ... a statement against dinner for two and cheesy professions of love.”
Dannielle Romano

Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind;
And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.”
Shakespeare

Charm Factory Giveaway

Happy Valentines day!!! The day for love and the day to show love. We often think of love being that between a sweet couple, a mother and child, and the kind of love a great family has. I have often heard the word don't wear your heart on your shoulder. But I believe that if it is a love tat you don't want to keep quite you will share that love with all and there is no better way to do it then through jewelry. The Charm Factory allows you to wear heart on your wrist if you want to.

We received the Garnet Bracelet with Crystal Hearts from the Charm Factory. The beautiful Garnet hearts seemed to make the silver shine. The bracelet has a sophistication of its own with an elegant classical look that all will admire. This classical bracelet from the Charm Factory is made up of five (5) Garnet Swarovski crystal hearts and sterling silver bracelet.

If you are as impressed with the Garnet Bracelet from the Charm Factory then you may want one of your own. You are in luck as Angie from the Charm Factory wants to give one of Annie's Home readers one of their own.

Buy: this beautiful bracelet is available at the Charm Factory for $24.99.

Win: in order to win this beautiful bracelet you must visit the Charm Factory and come back in comments let me know which two charms are your favorites.

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog


• subscribe to my blog


• grab my button


• follow me on twitter


• follow the charm factory on twitter


• tweet the giveaway (1 entry per tweet)


• follow charm factory on facebook


• blog about the giveaway (5 entries) link in comment

Giveaway starts now and runs through February 28, 2010. Good Luck Email must be on blog or in comment or you can not win

Creativity for Kids review and giveaway

Today is Valentines Day so Happy Valentines to all of you. To bring the wonderful giveaway week that I have shared with my daughter over at MonkeyMommy08 to an end is a wonderful giveaway from Creativity for Kids. Creativity for Kids is another sponsor that has been around my blog for quite some time. Lisa Brody from Creativity for Kids has offered me many opportunities to review many wonderful products for Creativity for Kids. You can read about some of those great products here and here and here.

This time around I received a wonderful art kit to help celebrate the day of love Valentines Day.

My daughter, the little jewelry maker, loves this kit. The Hearts Desire Jewelry Kit by Creativity for Kids is perfect for all kids seven (7) years and older. This kit allows the owner of the kit to become a jewelry designer supplying oodles of beads, beautiful ribbon and fashionable jewelry findings into originals they create. Products that can be create from the kit include a double strand bracelet, double strand necklace and a heart charm ring. WOW!!!! very cool.

Creativity for Kids sells many creative kits that will suit your child's interest. Simply take a look for yourself and see what creation is in your future.

Creativity for Kids wants to offer one of Annie's Home readers the kit of their choice. To enter this giveaway simply visit the Creativity for Kids website and let me know in a comment what kit you would choose.

Extra Entries:

• follow my blog and the blog of monkeymommy08
• subscribe to my blog
• grab my button and let me know where you put it
• place my text link on your blog (3 entries)
• follow me on twitter
• tweet about the giveaway (1 entry per tweet) place url in comment
• blog about the giveaway (5 entries) place url in comment
  
  contest ends 3/7. Good Luck to all. Email in comment or on blog

I did recieve the jewelry kit to review but it did not affect my opinion or how I wrote this post

Big Mac Wrap Giveaway

WOW!!!! Have you heard you can now get the taste of the big mac in a tasty little wrap. I have always loved the Big Mac since I was a little girl. Tasty, scrumptious often too big to finish save some for later type of sandwich. Now they come out with the better for you Big Mac Wrap. There are giveaways for free coupons to taste the Big Mac Wrap currently going on at An Island Life and MomStart. The giveaway at An Island Life ends 2/21/10. The giveaway at MomStart ends 2/22/10.