DECK THE HOLIDAY'S

Printable Halloween Place Cards I had a ton of fun today putting together these new printable Halloween decorations – despite the fact I’m coming down with a miserable cold. Although they are technically made as place cards, you could also use them as napkin holders, too. I just love the funky vintage look of the art I used – these were definitely inspired by the old-fashioned Halloween decorations that are super-hard to find! Printable Halloween Party Decorations Retro Place Cards - Cat and Demon Vintage Place Cards - Jack o' Lantern and Skeleton Halloween Monsters Place Cards - Dracula and Phantom of the Opera Retro Place Cards - Pumpkin and Witch Vintage Place Cards - Black Cat and Owl Halloween Monsters Place Cards - Werewolf and Mummy

   I thought I would throw a little bit of a curve ball your way and post a nice smoothie recipe (I love smoothies, of the non alcohol variety.  This recipe comes from  www.loveveggiesandyoga.com .  Enjoy this nice refreshing drink  for breakfast or lunch.  Enjoy yourself! When I was growing up, one of my favorite things to do was ride my bike with my friends to the local gas station’s mini-mart and reach into their freezer case and pull out an  Orange Push-Up . I loved Push-Ups and seeing those brightly colored dots meant that creamy orange goodness was soon going to be mine. I love it when Push-Ups begin to melt because they taste even sweeter, creamier, and better. The same was true with this smoothie. As it began to melt, it got even better. This smoothie is a dead ringer for  Orange Push-Ups. Don’t skimp on the sugar if you want it to taste  exactly  like an  Orange Push-...

    Home to the infamous  " Jackalope",  Douglas Wyoming is a popular stop when traveling in the Wild West! The town of Douglas ... is small town America at its best!     In fact, we were rated  "One of the Best small towns"  in America!     This area of east central Wyoming is the home of many historic trails rich in their history and rugged scenery. The mountain ranges and foothills offer refuge to elk, bear and deer with herds of antelope foraging on the the diverse landscape.    The town of Douglas sits on the banks of the North Platte River, on the path from/to Denver, Colorado, Yellowstone National Park, or the Black Hills of South Dakota. Other attractions of the area are: the Wyoming State Fairgrounds, the Wyoming Pioneer Memorial Museum, Douglas Railroad Interpretive Center, Oregon Trail and Historic Marker, Fort Fetterman, Ayres Natural Bridge, Sir Barton Memorial Statue - the First...

Shortbread has to be one of my favourite holiday cookies, I mean it is so easy to make and that melt in your mouth buttery goodness is almost impossible to resist! Although plain shortbread is amazing you can fill it with pretty much anything from simple to gourmet and from sweet to savoury even. Taking a queue from my  candied orange peel shortbread  I had been wanting to try a festive version with bright red maraschino cherries, though instead of coating them with chocolate this time I was going to add the chocolate to the cookies along with the cherries. I was however a little torn between whether to use white or dark chocolate as white chocolate seemed more festive but dark chocolate goes so well with cherries. In the end the easiest solution was to make a batch of both and besides you can't have too much shortbread. The chocolate and maraschino cherry shortbread cookies did not disappoint! I was quite pleased at how the red from the cherries swirled into the cook...

    Almost every culture in the world has its own vampire legend, and some date back thousands of years. Today, we are most familiar with Count Dracula and other folklore from Eastern Europe. Do you want to learn more? Here is a wealth of juicy trivia to sink your fangs into sink your fangs into this Halloween season. 1. Was the first vampire a woman? The oldest known vampire legends come from Babylonian and Sumerian mythology. Female demons called the Lilu were said to hunt women and children at night, and drink their blood. 2. Vlad III Tepes, also known as Vlad Dracul, was known for his incredible cruelty; he was alleged to have killed up to 30,000 people at one time! His bloodthirsty reputation inspired Bram Stoker's  Dracula . 3.  The National Retail Federation  listed "Vampire" as the second most popular adult Halloween costume in 2005.  Vampires  were the sixteenth most popular children's costume for the same year. 4....

    A little known fact is that fifty-four of the fifty-six signatories of the Declaration of Independence were believers. These men understood the powerful influence that the Savior God had on each and every individual who had signed this and pledged allegiance to it. Their signatures could have possibly sealed their deaths and they were all fully aware of it.     In their framework of the Declaration, they sought God's wisdom in creating a document that would become this great nation's most important testament. Little did the signers of the Declaration of Independence know that with the signing of this Declaration, the birth of a new nation had begun, and "the shot that was heard around the world", the first shot fired against a British soldier, would be the beginning of the end for Great Britain's rule over the American colonies. The Declaration of Independence     With the signing of the  Declaration of Independence...

     Gawai Day or Gawai Dayak  is a festival celebrated in Sarawak on June 1st every year. It is both a religious and social occasion. The word Gawai means a ritual or festival whereas Dayak is a collective name for the native ethnic groups of Sarawak (and neighboring Indonesian Kalimantan): the Iban, also known as Sea Dayak and the Bidayuh people, also known as Land Dayak. Thus, Gawai Dayak literally means  "Dayak Festival".  Dayak would visit their friends and relatives on this day. Such visit is more commonly known as  "ngabang"  in the Iban language. Those too far away to visit would receive greeting cards.     It started back in 1957 in a radio forum held by Mr Ian Kingsley, a radio programme organiser. This generated a lot of interest among the Dayak community.     The mode of celebration varies from place to place. Preparation starts early.  Tuak  (rice wine) is brewed (at least ...