J-Town Blogger's Insomnia Pays Off for Readers

Ughhhhhh, it's a vicious circle, can't sleep at 3 am, exhausted by 10 am. So what does a good blogging Mema do when she can't sleep? Why blog a contest of course.

Today I'd like to tell you about the Pillsbury Bake Off Contest's new You Be the Judge! voting. For the first time in the contest’s 60-year history, you can help determine 10 recipes among the final 100 that will compete for the $1 million grand prize!

How does the You Be the Judge! voting work? Judges will select 20 recipes to be placed online at www.bakeoff.com in pairs for a period of two weeks for each pair. You can vote for your favorite recipe in each pair. The recipe from each pair that wins the most votes will earn a spot in the final competition, April 11-13, 2010, in Orlando, Florida. Voting is limited to one vote per person per each pair of recipes. Voters must be registered members of www.pillsbury.com and 18 years of age or older as of May 1, 2009, to participate.

The first pair of recipes was posted on May 14, 2009 and a new pair of recipes will be posted every two weeks (namely, May 28, June 11, June 25, July 9, July 23, August 6, August 20, September 3 and September 17, 2009). The voting period for the tenth and final pair of recipes will close at 11:59AM CDT on October 1, 2009. Visit www.bakeoff.com for the official rules.

In celebration of the 44th Pillsbury Bake Off, the wonderful people at MyBlogSpark have offered to send TWO lucky readers a superdedooper, sparky prize pack that includes a Bake-Off® Recipes magazine and a Pillsbury Doughboy giggle doll. Guaranteed to make you giggle and hopefully induce sleep.



Earn ONE entry by heading over to www.bakeoff.com to vote for your favorite recipe; then come back here and leave me a comment telling me which recipe you think should win $1 million. You must do this FIRST, before earning additional entries. Be sure to leave a valid email address if you're a no reply blogger. You can't win if I can't find you.

Earn ONE extra entry by following my blog and leaving a comment telling me you did. If you already follow, thank you, but please leave me a comment reminding me of this.

Earn ONE extra entry by Tweeting about this contest and leave me a comment with the link so I can check it out. Tweet daily, there is no limit here.

Earn ONE extra entry by following me on Twitter and leaving a comment here, again remind me if you already do.

Contest ends on June 30th and the winner will be notified by email.

Go vote, I'll be back to check comments at a more reasonable hour!

GoGirl Winner!!!!!

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4

Timestamp: 2009-06-23 19:14:14 UTC

Molly said...

MommyGirl needs it and that is me!! It would be so nice to go to the bathroom and not feel like I am contaminating everything when I go to push the stroller out of the stall.

June 15, 2009 7:44 PM

Yay Molly!!!

Short and Sweet.....well short at least

Back in the Stone Age, 6th grade for me, Lucy O signed up for piano lessons. Sometimes I would accompany Lucy O to her lesson after school and I was enchanted by the sound of the ebony and ivory keys. I begged my mother to let me take piano lessons, but in 1974 at $6 a lesson it was not in the cards for this daughter of two blue collar working class parents.

Luckily for you, I came across this website offering FREE SHEET MUSIC.

If you play piano, want to play piano, or if you can read music this is the place to take your piano playing to the next level. Your pocketbook will thank me for the free sheet music.

It May As Well Be Friday!

Ugghh it's only Thursday? How can that be? All day long I've been thinking it's Friday. I'm so over this week already, actually I was over this week at about noon on Monday. So it's not really Friday, correct? But it IS June? Not April? Because you sure fooled me Mother Nature. On one of those days this week that I was wishing was Friday, but was really Tuesday, it rained FOUR inches here in J-town! IN TWO HOURS! Half of my backyard was under water and I still haven't checked the crawl space. I'm afraid, very afraid of what lurks in THE CRAWL SPACE. The way I figure, if it's damaged, it's damaged, nothing I can do to salvage the crap in there anyway, and if it's not flooded, well than all is well. Just saved myself the aggravation of hauling everything out of the closet to take a peek. I should take a peek though, no? Maybe tomorrow, which would FINALLY be Friday and a day off for me, yippeeee. Just found out this morning, it was unexpected and I'm still doing the happy dance.

So I've been thinking of what I could do on a day off during the week. I could sleep in and/or sleep all day. I could clean my house, or not. I could catch up on soaps and Lifetime movies. I could go garage sale-ing, but it looks like more rain. I could go to the mall and get annoyed by all the teenyboppers that infest the place instead of being productive young people. Nah, I'll pass on the mall.

Perhaps I'll just sit around and ponder my latest dilemma....

As you know, my step-daughter, Augie Dawgs is pregnant again. Long story short, we found out about her 1st pregnancy about 2 months before TOF's arrival and it was winter, blah blah blah, so there was no time for me to plan a baby shower. She and her mom, Whynot's ex-wife, have a complex relationship and they weren't speaking at the time and long story longer, now they are civil with one another and Lord Helmet (the ex-wife) has announced that she would like to throw a baby shower for Augie Dawgs.

Since I've lost most of you in the above confusion, I'm just going to ramble a bit more here. Lord Helmet made life a living hell for all of us, and she has NEVER called me by my real name, I was always referred to as HER. My kids were always HER KIDS. As in, "look your dad is spending all his time with HER and HER KIDS!"

Now imagine Augie Dawgs' shock and surprise when Lord Helmet asked her if she would like to invite Megryansmom and Glittegurl to the baby shower. She looked at Lord Helmet and said, "my God you know my sister's name!!??"

So now I am faced with this predicament.....do I go and bury the hatchet, or stay far away in fear of the hatchet being buried in my back when I 'm not looking? If I go, should I bring all my own food and beverages? Or just say, "no thanks, I'm really not hungry and/or thirsty." I really want to go, because I'm a bitch like that, but of course I would never cause a scene. And it has been TWENTY friggin years! Glittergurl has already requested the day off at work, she's definitely going because she wants to meet the crazy lady that always made a scene at Jewel when we all happened to be there at the same time.

What do you guys think I should do?

p.s. If I do go I already told Augie Dawgs I'm bringing a cheap, cheesy, crappy gift, because I'm a bitch like that.

You Go Girl!

Have you ever wished you were a guy? Well maybe at least wished you could pee like a guy? My friends at GoGirl.com have heard your cries and came up with a girly pink urination device! No, I'm totally serious here. I am woman hear me roar and now I can pee standing up too.

Filthy toilets? No toilets? No problem. GoGirl allows you to pee anywhere. Camping? No more disgusting outhouses to deal with or late night treks to the decent toilets.

GoGirl is so easy to use, just adjust your clothes hold firmly against your body, ready, aim and pee. Just remember, GoGirl works like a funnel, so be sure to aim away from your feet. With GoGirl the World is your toilet. Their words, not mine.

GoGirl is compact and fits easily in your purse, pocket or glove compartment. It can be disposable and comes with a handy plastic bag just for that purpose and there's even a convenient tissue included for wiping. But it's reusable too! Made of silicone, just wash thoroughly and store in the original tube. Stop getting all skeeved out, urine is STERILE!

Currently GoGirl is only offered through the website, but one of my very lucky readers will receive their very own Go Girl device.

Earn ONE entry by heading over to the website then come back here and leave a comment telling me who needs a GoGirl. You must do this FIRST, before earning additional entries. Be sure to leave a valid email address if you're a no reply blogger. You can't win if I can't find you.

Earn ONE extra entry by following my blog and leaving a comment telling me you did. If you already follow, thank you, but please leave me a comment reminding me of this.

Earn ONE extra entry by Tweeting about this contest and leave me a comment with the link so I can check it out. Tweet daily, there is no limit here.

Earn ONE extra entry by following me on Twitter and leaving a comment here, again remind me if you already do.

Contest ends on June 22nd and the winner will be notified by email.

Now go spread the word, because life shouldn't be about finding a bathroom.

Hmmm.....Things That Make Me Wonder

Why is it when a sign says 'Wet Paint' you still have to check that it is?

How do painkillers know which pain to treat?

Why are they called stairs inside but steps outside?

I wonder about the person who first discovered you could milk a cow. What did they originally think they were doing to the cow?

Why is it when people gossip about you, no-one comes and asks you if it's true before telling 10 other people?

Why is it when somebody says you can't do something, you instantly want to do just that?

I wonder why I even bother telling my problems to anyone 20% don't care and the other 80% are glad I have them.

Would I be exempt from cleaning the house if I just hung a sign on the front door that said, "Pardon the mess - My my grandson and I are making memories!"

Does anyone wonder what I wonder about?

Which is better chocolate or sex?

Who invented words? How do we know that what we say is actually real?

What do you do when the only person who can stop your crying is the person who makes you cry in the first place?

Do lesbian squirrels still eat nuts?

Have any of the dollar bills in my wallet ever been in a stripper's butt crack?

What do Bert and Ernie do for a living?

Would anyone even notice if I just disappeared?

Exactly where the hell IS Easy Street?

Leave me a comment and tell me what it is you wonder about.

From My Mailbox

A while back I signed up for a Pay it Forward and the other day in my snail mailbox I received a beautiful, handcrafted bracelet from Denise at I'm Just Me. Thank you Denise, I love it and so does GlitterGurl. I need to hide it so she doesn't "borrow" it.




The awesome people at MyBlogSpark wanted my input on the upcoming Betty Crocker Cookies & Bars magazine which will be on sale August 11th and also the Pillsbury Pot Pies & Casseroles magazine (on sale August 25th) and the Betty Crocker Fall Baking recipe magazine (on sale September 15th).

The Betty Crocker Cookies & Bars magazine will include 116 recipe cards with perforations so you can tear them out and put them in your recipe box. These recipes include:

• Cookie jar favorites-perfect for lunch bags and after-school snacks

• Cookies and bars extraordinaire-for those special occasions in your life

• A decadent collection of must-have brownies

• Adorable, seasonally appropriate Cookie-of-the-Month choices

• Good-for-You cookies chock-full of wholesome ingredients

In the Pillsbury Pot Pies & Casseroles issue there will be 68 recipe cards including easy slow cooker meals, best-ever Halloween treats, appetizers, main dishes and desserts.

The Betty Crocker Fall Baking recipe magazine will include 75 recipe cards for tasty treats including:

• Fabulous cheesecakes like Caramel-Apple Butter Cheesecake with Caramel Sauce

• Cookies and bars perfect for back to school lunches

• Comfort desserts-crisps, cobblers, cakes, pies and more

• Fantastic new cakes for easy fall baking: Butternut Squash Cake with Maple-Nut Frosting, Ginger Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting, Chunky Apple Cake with Browned Butter Frosting, Football Cupcake Pull-Aparts

Look for these fabulous recipe magazines coming soon to your nearest checkout counter!

Finally a few freebies you might enjoy:

• At any TGIF, valid until June 22nd BOGO

• Just in time for Father’s Day a FREE One Year Subscription to

Road and Track Magazine

• Dad will feel EXTRA special if he also receives a FREE One Year Subscription to

Auto Week Magazine

• Something for the youngest family member, FREE Enfamil Infant Formula

• FREE Fish and fries or FREE Chicken and fries for joining Captain D’s Club
  

• Lest we not forget MOM, sign up for FREE Carefree Ultra Protection Liners and/or a FREE On the Go Carrying Case
  

• Finally for the book lovers Turn your iPhone or iPod touch into a Kindle for FREE

Look for FREE book downloads too!

Tuesday June 2, 2009

I'm slowly emerging from what could be best described as Self Inflicted Post Partum Depression by Proxy. ***

Yup, me and Dr. Robin Scorpio, and just like that, through the magic of TV, we're both going to be fine. I blame it all on the hormones! That's right, since people around me refuse to take responsibility for their actions, I'm taking the same road and passing blame elsewhere. Not ENTIRELY my fault, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Thank you to all of you who left encouraging comments or sent an email. This is not something that will just go away or get better. But I have to accept that which I cannot change and it's not because of lack of trying on my part. You just can't fix stupid, (or bitches). Their loss, my life goes on, cuz that's how I roll. Or at least the voices in my head tell me that's best for now.

So on to happier things!

Conan O'Brien's Tonight Show Debut. I had to watch and be a part of television history and so I would have something upbeat to blog about. Loved the intro where he runs from New York To LA. Loved it and I can say I was at the Friendly Confines the day he ran across Wrigley Field. WRIGLEY FIELD people, Wrigley Field, home of my beloved Cubbies, not the cell block. Nn Nn nope, no siree. Heh. Nuff said.

Never a big fan of Jay Leno, to me he was dry, and how on earth can a real live person look so much like a caricature drawing!!?? Conan was funny, almost gut busting funny, I laughed. I need to laugh more, it really is the best medicine and cheaper than Cymbalta. He made me hungry for Choco Tacos! Chocolate another good choice. Conan will never be Johnny Carson, but I suspect he will fit in nicely in his new time slot.

***DISCLAIMER!!! I don't mean any harm to anyone suffering from true PPD.
PPD is an illness caused by a chemical imbalance in your brain that requires medical care just like diabetes is an illness that requires care. You can take the steps to deal with PPD and its symptoms. Talk about it, treat it, DEFEAT IT!!