Thursday, June 17, 2004

Cat Update

Miss Bobbi, the mother of the kittens, went to the vet yesterday to be spayed. Now she is holed up in the kitten room alone, hiding under the chest, where she has been since we brought her home yesterday evening. Not good. I hope she is feeling better by this evening so she can go back outside. Poor baby. She is so frightened and has no idea what is going on.

Full House

"YES kids, Paul McCartney was in a band before Wings - and the Olsen twins had a weekly TV series once upon a time called "Full House."

It seems a whole new generation is suddenly rediscovering the Olsens' roots -- because reruns of "Full House" are now the top-rated show (cable and broadcast) among the "tween" set.

"It's not a newfound success for us, but it's certainly growing," says a Nickelodeon spokesman.

For the week ending June 6, re runs of "Full House" -- which airs several times a week on Nick at Nite -- occupied three of the top five spots among kids 9-14 years old, the coveted "tweens" set of kids.

Since April, ratings have grown a whopping 78 percent among tweens, the network says.

That's remarkable for a series that hasn't aired an original epi sode in almost 10 years."

'FULL' CIRCLE

I find that interesting because my sister was just telling me the other night that my 8 year old niece watches Full House and The Cosby Show every night

Wednesday, June 16, 2004

Surreal Life

We don't have to wait as long this time! Yippee!

"You've got your reality TV and then you've got your sur-reality TV.

Which is why for every "Simple Life" or "Real World" there's something like VH1's "The Surreal Life," which yesterday announced its cast for the show's third season (beginning Sept. 5).

For those who missed seasons one and two - which aired on the WB - here's how "The Surreal Life" is lived.

A group of offbeat, off-kilter and frequently mismatched stars (and almost-stars) share a house and then do their best to endure one another, "Big Brother" style, cameras running.

The lucky bunch this time around begins with Charo - the queen of "Love Boat" walk-ons and wiggle-offs and a woman who still has less than total command of the English language.

Joining her is Dave Coulier, best known as Uncle Joey on "Full House" and a man of a thousand voices and noises, many of them simultaneous.

Flava Flav of Public Enemy fame is in the house, too, and for those wondering whatever happened to Jordan Knight after he grew up and out of "New Kids on the Block," VH1 has him under lock and key for season three.

Finally, Brigitte Nielsen's towering "Red Sonja" presence will make itself felt, to be offset, no doubt, by "American Idol" fave Ryan Starr, who's billed as "22 and still the hottest woman to ever sing for Simon."

Previous editions have included such stars as Jerri Manthey from "Survivor" and "CHiPs" star Erik Estrada."

Charo & Flava Flav? Gotta be 'Surreal'

Raising Helen

Last night I had dinner with Mom and Sis and then we went to see the movie Raising Helen.

Note to self: Do not go to see a movie where a sister dies and her children are left without any parents.

10 minutes into the movie I was going "What was I thinking?". I am very close to my own sister and adore her two children. Thinking of my sister dying was bad enough, but thinking of her children growing up without her was the worst. We cried all through the movie!

That being said, I thought it was a good movie, even though it apparently didn't get the greatest reviews. It was sweet and romantic, if heart breaking at times. Kate Hudson plays Helen, a young single career girl out having a good time and living a glamorous and exciting life. Near the beginning of the movie (this isn't a spoiler, because it's the whole premise of the movie) Lindsey, the sister she is closest to, dies along with her husband in a car accident. In their will, they left their three children - a teenage girl, a boy in the middle, and a little girl in kindergarten - to Helen to raise, instead of to their oldest sister Jenny (played by Joan Cusack). Jenny has 3 children of her own and one on the way and is the ultimate "mom". We watch Helen struggle with trying to raise the children and keep her sanity and her life together. John Corbett plays Reverend Dan, the handsome young paster of the kids' new school.

All in all a cute romantic comedy. Except for the really sad parts.

Monday, June 14, 2004

Sangria Punch

2 bottles of Arbor Mist Sangria flavored wine
1/2 bag frozen strawberries, thawed
1/2 bag frozen raspberries, thawed
1/2 jar maraschino cherries
1/2 orange, sliced
1/2 can 7-Up
1/2 cup sugar

Place fruit in pitcher. Pour wine over fruit. Add sugar. Let sit overnight. Yummy!

You can use any kind of fruit you want. I don't always use frozen, sometimes all fresh, depending on what the store has. Watermelon is great to add.

Baked Ziti

I need to get my recipe section of my website up. Here's yesterday's dinner.

'Baked Zizi'

8 oz. penne pasta
1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 onion, chopped
26 oz. jar spaghetti sauce
4 oz. sour cream
3 oz. mozzarella cheese slices
3 oz. provolone cheese slices
Parmesan cheese
Fresh basil (I used Pampered chef Italian Seasoning)

Brown ground beef with onion; drain.
Add spaghetti sauce to ground beef and let it simmer while you get everything else ready.
Boil pasta for 10 minutes; drain.
Lightly grease 2 qt. casserole dish.
Layer half of pasta; half of cheese; half of sauce; and half of sour cream
Repeat.
Top with Parmesan cheese and seasoning.
Bake at 350 for 30 minutes

Serves 4 (you can also double the recipe and bake it in a 9x13 pan)

Sunday, June 13, 2004

Stubby Update

It has been a pretty routine week. Stubby is now getting along great with Uncle Roscoe and Uncle Snoop. He was a very good choice to bring inside. Junior has been feeling poorly the past few days but seems to be feeling better. I need to do some gardening but it's so humid I hate to be outside for any length of time.

Monday, June 07, 2004

Stubby Joins the Family

Pictures from our first weekend with our new baby, Stubbs

Stubby Joins the Family - June 4-6, 2004

We had a pretty quiet weekend. Saturday I stayed home with the cats during the day, then Mom came up and we went to my niece Maddie's first piano recital. She played two songs and did a fantastic job, not missing a note! She looked so pretty and so grownup.

Sunday we went out for breakfast, took a drive and did our grocery shopping. We grilled steaks for dinner and watched the season finale of The Sopranos. All in all a relaxing weekend.

Saturday, June 05, 2004

We took Stubby to the vet yesterday. He tested negative and got all his shots. Now he's an indoor kitty. He is doing okay for the most part, except Roscoe just follows him around growling. Snoop watches him from a distance and growls or hisses if he gets too close.

He is happier when the big cats aren't around, but he needs to get used to them and they to him. He would gladly befriend them but they are wary. He spent the night in the "kitten room".

Friday, June 04, 2004

New kitten pictures:

Kittens - 10 weeks old

Stubby is going to the vet today and will come inside to live tonight! Let's hope he and The Boys get along.

Wednesday, June 02, 2004

Big storm yesterday! Our tallest (100 ft., approx.) dead oak tree was a victim. Pulled up by the roots because the ground was so wet. Winds were as fast as 67 mph. Yikes!