Book Review: Tempest in a Teapot by: Amanda Cooper

Tucked away in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York is the charming town of Gracious Grove, where time moves slowly, gossip spreads quickly, and the scones are to die for..

When her fashionable Manhattan restaurant goes under, Sophie Taylor retreats to her grandmother's cozy shop, Auntie Rose's Victorian Tea House, where serenity is steeped to perfection in one of her many antiqued teapots. The last thing Sophie expects is a bustling calendar of tearoom events, like her old friend Cissy Peterson's upcoming bridal shower. 

Not everyone is pleased with the bride-to-be's choice of venue, like Cissy's grandmother, who owns a competing establishment, La Belle Epoque, and has held a long simmering grudge against Rose for stealing her beau sixty years ago. Tensions reach a boiling point when Cissy's fiance's mother dies while sampling scones at La Belle Epoque. Now, to help her friend, Sophie will have to bag a killer before more of the guest list becomes a hit list. 

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. There were a lot of parts I liked about it and there were also a lot of parts I disliked about it. I am willing to chalk it up to the fact that it's a "new in a series" and I will not be dismissing this series so easily. I liked the characters and I loved the close tight knit community the story takes place in. I do feel though, that it was a lot to take in the just the first novel. There are a lot of characters and if you don't pay attention it can get confusing at times as to whom everyone is related to. The beginning was a little slow for my taste but the middle was very gripping and had me gunning for the ending to figure out who really did it. When I got to the end though I was kind of bored with still trying to figure out who really did it. The big reveal at the end was not as exciting as I though it was going to be, and there weren't a lot of "aha" moments at all. I feel like the ending was drawn out a little too much when a little more should have been revealed slowly though out the whole book. So all in all, it wasn't my favorite but I am willing to give the series another shot.

Book Review: Sugar and Iced by: Jenn McKinlay

 Normally Melanie Cooper and Angie DeLaura wouldn't be caught dead at a beauty pageant, but when Mel's mom asks them to provide cupcakes for the seventy-fifth annual Sweet Tiara contest as a favor for her best friend, they can't say no. Plus, between cooking up a daily display  for the three-day event and sponsoring a cupcake creation challenge for the participants, Fairy Tale Cupcakes will get great publicity.

But the world of pageants is even hotter than Mel's kitchen. A high-strung judge and a pushy stage mom target Lupe, a young friend of Mel and Angie's, at the competition and aim to take her out by any means necessary. When the same judge shows up dead underneath Mel and Angie's cupcake display, Lupe is crowned the lead suspect. Now Mel and Angie will have to find the real killer quickly or Lupe may be strutting the catwalk in prison pinstripes...

With every Cupcake Bakery Mystery that Jenn writes... this series just keeps getting better and better! Mel and Angie are stirring up the batter again, only this time its with a local beauty pageant which Oz's skateboarding beauty buddy gets entered in to win a scholarship. The pageant does not start off well at all... there are bossy judges, snotty contestants and someone who's about to sashay down the catwalk for good! Jenn also leaves you on the edge of your seat with the Mel's turbulent romance between "Dear Joe" the love of her life, and the handsome yet incorrigible Detective Manny Martinez... the sharp twist at the end will having you dieing to know what happens next!

Summer Time Fun Time: At Volcano Island Water Park

Yesterday was our first time going to the local water park. It was down right AWESOME! The kiddo had a BLAST hanging out, swimming, zipping down the water slides. It was perfect weather and altogether great time! We loved it so much that we bought season passes to all 5 connecting water parks (each one has a different theme) so we can hit them up each weekend this summer! This means I will be rocking a perfect tan while on the family cruise that hubs and our parents have planned in August. Here's some of the pics from our day...

So excited to go in and start zipping around the big slides!

Even the Mister is happy!

The little coming out of the slide on the left.

The kiddo and I with Mr. Easter Island Statue.

On the big pool slide.

Underwater fun with the hubs using our new Sony Action Cam.

Soaking up some vitamin D!

Taking a long enough rest just so that mommy could snap a pic LOL! 

Summer Time Fun Time: At The Family Drive-In!!!

 So with the official start of summer underway... We spent breaking it in by spending our Memorial Day weekend at the Family Drive-In in Stephen City Virginia. We have spent many nights at the Drive-In before while we were stationed in Georgia. We used to love going up to the Big Mo in Monetta South Carolina all the time! This Drive-In in Stephen City did not disappoint either! There is truly something awesome about watching movies at an old fashioned Drive-In theater. I often wonder if still feels the same way as when my grandparents and my parents used to go...

Since it was opening night and they were also kicking off the summer, they had a Triple Feature night going; first feature was X-Men: Day's of Future Past (which was AWESOME!), second was The Amazing Spiderman 2 (which was equally as AWESOME!) and third was Captain America: Winter Soldier (which was awesome but we have seen previously before). So we ended up staying for the first two but skipped out on Captain America since we saw it a few weeks before, and we also had about an hour drive home. We had such a great time and can't wait to go again, the Drive-In itself was classic and even showed the classic intermission mini feature just like they show in Grease!... you know the one where the hot dog dances, and the ice cream march around while Danny (John Travolta) sings... "Ohhh Sandy"... yep it was nostalgic and awesome! Here's some of the pics from our evening...

Waiting to get in...it was PACKED!

Xmen, Spiderman 2 and Captain America!

Our little slice of heaven for the night!

Yes, they really did still have the old fashion speaker boxes and they actually worked! Amazing right?!?

Our view of the shows!

Me and the little hanging out before the show starts.

Classic Intermission just like in Grease!

Book Review: Death of Mad Hatter By: Jenn McKinlay

Scarlett Parker and her British cousin, Vivian Tremont, are hard at work at Mim's Whims their ladies' hat shop on London's chic Portobello Road to create hats for an Alice in Wonderland themed afternoon tea, a fund-raiser for a local children's hospital. It seems like a wonderfully whimsical way to pass the hat, and Scarlett and Viv are delighted to outfit the Grisby family, the hosts who are hoping to raise enough money to name a new hospital wing after their patriarch. 

Unfortunately, the Grisby heir will not live to see it, he's been poisoned. When traces of the poison are found on the hat Scarlett and Viv made for him, the police become curiouser and curiouser about their involvement. Now the ladies need to don their thinking caps and find the tea party crasher who's mad enough to kill at the drop of a hat...

Scarlett Parker and Vivian Tremont are back at it again, "Mad" with suspense and excitement in this "hare" raising tale of mystery! Like most of Jenn McKinlays other mystery books, I am quickly falling in love with this series as well. I love all the characters and a certain slow boiling romance between Scarlett and Harrison! I also love being transported to the quaint village of Notting Hill, and I feel right at home at Scarlett and Viv's shop on old Portobello Road. Death of a Mad Hatter is Jenn's second edition in the series and I love it as much as the first! It was very witty, fun and suspenseful. It really had me guessing up until the end, and you'll never guess who's just "mad" enough to commit murder! 

Book Review: Cloche and Dagger by: Jenn McKinlay

Not only is Scarlett Parker's love life in the loo as her British cousin Vivian Tremont would say it's also gone viral with an embarrassing video. So when Viv suggests Scarlett leave Florida to lay low in London, she hops on the next plane across the pond. Viv is the proprietor of Mim's Whims, a ladies' hat shop on Portobello Road bequeathed to both cousins by their beloved grandmother, and she wants Scarlett to finally join her in the millinary buisness. 

But a few surprises await Scarlett in London. First, she is met at the airport not by Viv, but by her handsome business manager, Harrison Wentworth. Second, Viv who has some whims of her own seems to be missing. No one is too concerned about the unpredictable Viv until one of her posh clients is found dead wearing the cloche hat Viv made for her and nothing else. Is Scarlett's cousin in trouble? Or is she in hiding? 

Loved it! Classically witty and brilliantly suspenseful! Jenn McKinlay has out done herself in writing this amazing little British crime cozy! I loved the descriptive writing and it really had me longing for a stroll on Portobello Road and cozing up in a pub in the heart of Notting Hill. I loved the characters very much and am happy to say, it feels like reading about friends rather than characters in a book. Then again Jenn always manages to make her characters feel that way, it's one of the many reason why I enjoy her writing so much. This is a perfect written "first in a series" and if you love Jenn's other books than rest assured you will love Cloche and Dagger just as much!

Book Review: Scandal in Skibbereen by: Shelia Connolly

Bostonian Maura is beginning to feel settled in her new Irish home, just in time for summer tourist season to bring fresh business to her pub. But the first traveler to arrive is thirsty for more than just a pint of Guinness. Althea Melville is hot on the trail of a long-lost Van Dyck painting. 

Maura agrees to help Althea meet with the residents at the local manor house, the most likely location of the missing art. But when the manor's gardener is found murdered, Maura wonders what Althea's real motives are. Now, to solve the secret of the lost portrait and catch a killer, Maura will have to practice her Irish gift of gab and hunt down some local history before someone else is out of the picture... 

It was a nice little follow up to a great new series. It holds all the same Irish charm as the first book and has a great plot with all your favorite characters from the previous book, along with some new ones. The plot thickens when Irish and New York city set off on a wild goose chase in search of a famous painting that has a mystery all of its own.

Home Tour: My Home Library

When we moved into our home (almost) a year ago, I promised myself that I would have a little slice of heaven all of my own... a sanctuary that I could go to to relax and a place that would provoke and inspire me. This place is my library and aside from all the reading I do here... it sometimes becomes my art studio to paint in, have long phone conversations with my mom and best friends from Florida in and a quiet space for the kiddo to relax and hang out to read her books in. It's truly my favorite spot in the house, my favorite space to decorate and no matter who comes to visit, this room draws people in like a magnet! So come tour it with me and tell me what you think!

Come on in! I love these plates! The top one is from my dad, he picked it up while stationed in Greece in the 80's with the Army.

I knew eventually I would find the perfect rugs and table for this room! The rugs are from Marshall's on clearance! They are also made with 100% recycled materials and assembled in India. The table up-cycled from goodwill! 

My "Chalkboard" style maps of all the place we've live in. Florida, Oklahoma, Georgia, Mississippi & Virginia. Its actually made with white paint and painted make look like a chalk board without all the mess.

Can you believe that this little vine growing plant and the aloe plant has actually survived a whole year! OMG! Right?!? Scary LOL! I love my conch shell chimes and the painting in the frame they are both from hubby's and I's cruise of the Bahamas in 2012.

The framed painting above the bookshelf I think is pretty much my favorite object in the whole room. It's a special painting my hubby brought back while he was deployed to Peru in 2012. I love it because not only is it beautiful but he brought it back for me... but he saw it, thought of me and knew I would love it!

One of my bookshelves with lots of world travel nick-nacks.

The kiddo's bookshelf & a few places where I keep my photo albums.

My British Phone booth bank that actually holds all of the money I've collected from traveling. The kiddo's Russian dolls she has collected over the years, The awesome Mayan medallion that hubs brought back from Peru, My little Buddha that a friend brought back from the Philippines and my voodoo doll from New Orleans! 

 

My Mexican pitcher, my wooden shoes from Holland, More Russian nesting dolls of the kiddos, A little wooden doll from Korea (from my bro-in-law) a Boomerang from Australia and my ticket from the Vatican Museum.

My view from the couch I often sit and read on.

I made these little heart window decorations out of an old map. I cut out all my favorite places on the map and just glued them on some fishing line to hang up.

 

Even Ace loves my library LOL!

My little wall of paintings has grown since we moved in also!

My hand made painted curtains, made to look like an air mail letter. They look uneven but I promise it's because they just need a bit of ironing but honestly... who irons curtains LOL! 

 

 

 

 

So Thank you for joining me on my home tour of my home library! Hope you liked what you saw!!! I'll try to do more of these as I update the house! And please, as always let me know what you think!

Book Review: The King by J.R. Ward

Long live the King…

After turning his back on the throne for centuries, Wrath, son of Wrath, finally assumed his father’s mantle--with the help of his beloved mate. But the crown sets heavily on his head. As the war with the Lessening Society rages on, and the threat from the Band of Bastards truly hits home, he is forced to make choices that put everything--and everyone--at risk.

Beth Randall thought she knew what she was getting into when she mated the last pure blooded vampire on the planet: An easy ride was not it. But when she decides she wants a child, she’s unprepared for Wrath’s response--or the distance it creates between them.

The question is, will true love win out... or tortured legacy take over?

Ohhh how I have waited sooo long for this book to come out! I seriously breezed right through it because like all Black Dagger Brotherhood series books, it's so damn good you just can't put it down! I am now sad though because it's over and it was over much too soon! I think I read all 500+ pages in about 3 days. Seriously though, its amazing and I can't stress that enough. J.R. Ward has outdone herself yet again! I also now canno't wait for Lassiters book come out and the Moor brothers iAm and Trez! This book gives a lot of back story about Wrath and it also gives a lot more page time to both Lassiter and the Shaddows. It does sort of leave a bit longing for more and wanting to know how its all going to work out in the end but, it is still very satisfying!

Here's just a few of my favorite quotes... if you don't want to know any details do NOT read any further! But you know you want to... just saying! LOL

“After shoving his former clothes inside, Xcor found himself bowing at the waist. "Your assistance has been much appreciated." Antoine raised his palm like he was getting ready to do a clap on the shoulder again. But once more, he caught himself and smiled instead. "Knock her dead, my man." "Oh, no." Xcor shook his head. "That shan't be necessary. This one I like. ” — J.R. Ward 

 

 “The angel popped his already mile high collar. "She said she wanted the holiest thing in the house to do it." "She got holey, all right," somebody muttered. "Is that Butche's Bible?" V asked. The angel flashed the goods. "Yup, and his BoC, he called it? I also got a sermon I did myself." "Saints preserve us," came from the opposite side of the crowd. "Wait, Wait, Wait." V waved his hand rolled around. "I'm the son of a deity and she picked you? ” — J.R. Ward

 

 “You love it right?" Lassiter asked, holding his Bible high. "I mean, you told me to go on the internet. I did. I even printed out my diploma or whatever the hell it's called." Opening the cover of the King James version, he took out a piece of paper and waved it around. "See? Nice and legal-like" Beth leaned in "Wow". "I know right? Just like Harvard" "Impressive" "I'm totally framing that shit, wha-what. ” — J.R. Ward

DIY Coffee Bar/Station: A Pinterest Inspired Project!

Hi guys! Have you been on Pinterest lately! Wow... apparently I am behind... I blame school getting in the way of all my free time LOL! Recently though I have seen these awesome pins about making a DIY Coffee Bar/Station for your home. I don't particularly drink a lot of coffee, but my husband is a completely different story. I also had this huge empty space in my dining room that really needed a bit of *something* and when I saw a few of these pins, I thought how cool would this be for my space!

A few weeks ago, I went on Craigslist and procured an old TV cabinet for free! YAY! Because we all love free right?!? And at the time I wanted to turn it into an extra book shelf for my library but... turns out it makes a great cabinet for my coffee bar/station instead! Once I gutted out all the shelves, wires, re-do the backing and put the doors back on it was ready to transform into barista heaven!

Between Kirklands and would you believe... Big Lots! I furnished the whole project with all kinds of cute coffee nick-nacks and signage! Our Big Lots and Kirklands both recently had a green sale and all their coffee decor at 70% off, and well lets just say I took full advantage of it LOL!

So... TA-DA! What you do guys think?!?

All Finished and soooo happy with how it turned out!

 

I just LOVE these cute little signs from Big Lots!

The tray, the ceramic coffee container, the coffee bean pillar candle and the coffee sign are all from Big Lots and cost me less than 10 dollars! You just can't beat that for cuteness!

Heartland Home Foods and A Recipe!

What my freezer looks like after it's fully stocked from Heartland Home Foods

Wow! I can't believe it's been February since I've blogged about something! So sorry I've been MIA for a while... Seems about right though. February was when I started going back to school (again) and well, most of my free time is stuck on doing research and writing papers for class. Hard work is paying off though and I am about done with my history class and so far so good... I've scored an "A"! Yeah baby! In the mean time we've been crazy busy as ever...

What my shopping for the week now looks like!

 Recently we started taking our health into great consideration. A few months back we went to a home & garden show here in the DMV and came across a really wonderful company called: Heartland Home Foods. They are a company that has been selling all natural and organic products in our area for over 30 years! All of their meats are 100% natural and organic. Their poultry has no hormones or antibiotics injected in it. Everything is portion controlled and comes vacuum sealed right to your front door! I now can go "shopping" in my basement in my giant freezer anytime I want! Best of all... everything and I mean EVERYTHING tastes amazing! My favorites so far have been the steaks, lemon peppered (per-marinaded) chicken breasts, and the salmon! I also made this amazing recipe of Rootbeer (yes, Rootbeer!) glazed pork chops! My hubby and my kiddo love it so much, they want them done in Rootbeer every time now! LOL!

Beef Tips, Stir Fry Veggies & Rice!

 Not only do they offer the meats but they also have fruits, veggies and just about any kind of grocery item you need. They have already saved me a ton on laundry soap, peanut butter, paper towels, dishwasher soap, pasta, shampoo etc.

Lemon Peppered Chicken & Stir Fry Veggies!

 I can't tell you what a difference using heartland has made all around. Hubs and I both have lost at least 10 pounds so far, and it's all just from portion control, eating healthier foods, and taking walks in the evening after dinner. He has had to put two extra holes in his belt just to keep his pants up lately! It's amazing! Even my kiddo now will eat her plate clean veggies and all! The food just tastes that good!

Sirloin Beef Medallions & Roasted Rosemary Garlic Potatoes! 

 This is not a sponsored or prompted post at all, I just truly love Heartland Home Food and can't stress how eating healthy has changed our lives recently! I feel so much better both physically and mentally for providing my family with better health! If you are in the area though, do check them out they are really amazing and caring company and their food is awesome! If your not and you would still want to check out a company that is similar that might be in your area you can always go to the All Natural Food Council of North America and check out their affiliated members at the top of the page. From there you should be able to find a company in your area that also meets the same requirements as Heartland.

Spicy Baja Citrus Shrimp & Rice!

And of course I have posted my families favorite new recipe down below... Rootbeer Glazed Pork Chops, so simple to make and you will be blown away at the taste!

Rootbeer Glazed Pork Chops & Diced Baby Carrots!

Marinade pork chops for 2 hours in Rootbeer
Pat dry and sprinkle with salt.
Then add to grill or brown in frying pan.
Then in another frying pan, add 1 bottle of Rootbeer, 1 beef stock,
1/2 cup brown sugar, Chipolte seasoning, and Worchester sauce.
Then simmer and reduce by 75% to the consistency of maple syrup, add rosemary
and serve over pork chops.

Everything is Awesome!!!

Good Cop, Tako Man & Batman all had a great time at the movies too!

This weekend hubs and I took the kiddo to go see the Lego Movie... and if you haven't guessed... it was really awesome!!! The company the hubs works for had a few vendors sponsor a private screening for company employees and their families, he signed us up a few weeks ago for freebie tickets and well, this morning we had the whole cinema to ourselves! It was great! They had breakfast for us there, gave us cool Lego swag, and a $20 dollar gift card to the concession stand for free! Have I mentioned how much I LOOOOOVE the company my husband works for! Seriously... it's amazing! So if you get the chance, go see the movie... it will not disappoint! And FYI, Will Arnett as the voice for Batman is seriously the best idea EVER! LOL!

Getting ready to watch their debuts!

Shhhh!!! Tako man your crunching your popcorn too loud!! It's about to start!

Batman just sneaking a sip of some diet coke... LOL!

The kiddo keeping these three in line before the movie starts :)