Five Question Friday on a Saturday

1. What giveaway would you like to do on your blog?

If money were not an object, I would give a way an iPad 3.  I hear its great and I am sure any one would like to win it!

2. If you had to choose between natural artistic ability and natural athletic ability, which would it be?

I would choose natural artistic ability, since it is too easy to lose the athletic ability to an injury or due to age.  Natural artistic ability has more potential and can get better with age.  Not having too much natural athletic ability, I personally don't miss having it.

3. Do you ditch the coat the minute it becomes "spring" or are you a holdout for more cool temps?

I did fall to the trick of Mother Nature, somewhat.  I did pull some items out, but did not do a fully re submerge my family into the spring/summer wardrobe.

4. What would you do if you won the mega millions lotto of 1/2 billion dollars?

Buy a couple of vacation homes, buy a house to live in while construction was done on mine, buy a Mercedes S-class, put away money for all my kid's college educations, all my daughter's weddings, down payments for all their future homes, travel, run a charity in Ecuador, building homes, visit family in Ecuador and buy an estate there, buy new computers, cars for my family members, give to charity. :)  I have no problem filling in all that....I had my fill in one of my blogs, which was an experiment to help my think a LOT bigger than I currently was thinking.  It is a lot of fun and FULL of my "what if I had more money than I could dream of" ideas.

5. You are at a hotel by yourself...what do you do?

Take a very long bath, give myself a mani-pedi, read, play on my iPad, workout.  Love it. :)

One of my favorite childhood memories

Different scents evoke different feelings for me.  I was born with a very distinct sense of smell, to the dismay of most of my family members, because the nose usually always knows and rarely anything stinky gets past my nose.  Usually it is my darling hubby who thinks I am insane for smelling something that is not there, but my nose usually wins out.

One of my favorite smells growing up was that of the library.  I loved being with the books.  I loved being with the quiet....there was something just mystical about that place.  All those stories, adventures, sadness, joy.  To be in the midst of all of it was enthralling for me.
 
There was, though, one thing which held all the fascination of the library, but just one more exciting step up... the Book Mobile.  I. JUST. LOVED. THAT. vehicle!

What was more fun and exciting for a young girl, to be outside of school, in the sunshine, waiting your turn to go on the Book Mobile? 
It was so much fun for me to see what was on the bus each time it came. 
It had that library smell, but it was on wheels.  I loved it.

The only thing that stunk about it was having to make your selection and get off...but at least you had something new to dive into and become a part of....a new book.


http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jacketcopy/2008/03/a-history-of-re.html

Loudly yours,
Alicia

Wordless Wednesday 3/28/12

A fun gluten free recipe! (or two)

In my quest to be as gluten free as possible, I searched for a snack for me to munch on that was crunchy and I found a few.  Below is my version of what I found.

Gluten Free Chex  Mix

8 cups of rice Chex  cereal
2 lightly salted Shoprite Rice Cakes
6 tablespoons of Smart Balance Butter
Teaspoon of salt
Tablespoon of NuSalt Zesty Italian

Pre-heat the oven to 200
Put Rice Chex in bowl; crush rice cakes into small pieces
Mix with Rice Chex
Melt butter in small pan with salt and Nu Salt
Slowly drip the melted mixture over the chex and rice cakes.
Stir the mixture each time and place it in a shallow baking pan
Line the pan with aluminum foil and bake at 200 for one hour.
Stir the mixture every 15 minutes.

Makes 9-10 servings (1 cup each)

Nutrition Facts

Alicia's Chex Mix Zesty - Chex Mix home made

Calories	151	Sodium	312 mg
Total Fat	6 g	Potassium	0 mg
Saturated	0 g	Total Carbs	22 g
Polyunsaturated	0 g	Dietary Fiber	0 g
Monounsaturated	0 g	Sugars	2 g
Trans	0 g	Protein	2 g
Cholesterol	0 mg
Vitamin A	15%	Calcium	10%
Vitamin C	10%	Iron	50%

***************************************

I put each serving in a snack size Ziploc baggie. 




Here is the sweet variety....

One box Rice Chex
3 rice cakes
9 tablespoons smart balance
15 Truvia packets
Cinnamon, nutmeg, all spice 1 tbs
1 tbsp vanilla

Pre-heat the oven to 200
Put Rice Chex in bowl; crush rice cakes into small pieces
Mix with Rice Chex
Melt butter in small pan with salt, sugar and spices.

Slowly drip the melted mixture over the chex and rice cakes.
Stir the mixture each time and place it in a shallow baking pan
Line the pan with aluminum foil and bake at 200 for one hour.
Stir the mixture every 15 minutes.

 ***************************************

Nutrition Facts

Alicia's Sweet Chex Mix 

Calories	121	Sodium	323 mg
Total Fat	5 g	Potassium	0 mg
Saturated	0 g	Total Carbs	19 g
Polyunsaturated	0 g	Dietary Fiber	0 g
Monounsaturated	0 g	Sugars	2 g
Trans	0 g	Protein	2 g
Cholesterol	0 mg
Vitamin A	0%	Calcium	0%
Vitamin C	0%	Iron	0%

Young Love (Panis Angelicus)

This weekend, I had the pleasure of singing at a Wedding at my Church.  The couple's love for each other was inspirational. They just seemed to truly, truly love each other.  There was just something in the way that they stood, looked at each other and just the energy they radiated was amazing.  I sing many weddings every year and there are different energies at each wedding.  This couple's love could be seen as well as felt. (By me, anyway.)  At most weddings, I always fondly remember my own wedding day and it is such a sweet feeling.  It is one of reasons I love to sing at weddings. It rekindles my own special day when I married my sweetheart.
I also got the pleasure of singing one of my favorite songs, ever....Panis Angelicus.  I was able to capture it and here is it for you to hear!  I hope you enjoy it.

Special thanks to my talented accompanist, Jim Keefe.  You are the best!
Loudly yours,
Alicia

Ear Candy this Sunday, 3/25/12

One of my friends on Facebook just introduced me to a new singing sensation from Britain.  This 17 year old is amazing.  The clip from Britain's Got Talent just brings tears to my eyes.  You have just got to love the underdog, the kid who looks are so deceiving, that you would never believe the utter beauty that comes from this young man's vocal chords.  I just cannot get enough of him.  He is just amazing.

In this clip, I just love the way Simon is SO sarcastic and then he has such a change of heart....

I just love the way these two stand by each others side....even though he truly out sings her.

I just love the way these two stand by each others side....even though he truly out sings her.


If you just loved what you heard and want more...

Gounod Ave Maria:

I just love his voice and could listen to him all day long....as I play his Schubert Ave Maria, my parakeets are going nuts, chirping right along....they really like him. :)
Loudly yours,
Alicia

Five Question Friday 3/23/12

1. If you were free to just hop in the car and drive, where would you go? Or, if you could hop a plane and go anywhere, where?

Hop in the car and drive?  I would drive to the Outer Banks, or High Point, NJ or Bushkill Falls, PA or to Frenchtown, NJ  to see Two Buttons, the place owned by the Author of Eat, Pray, Love, Elizabeth Gilbert.

Hop a plane?  Ecuador, the Galapagos, Cancun, Costa Rica, Hawaii, Machu Pichu, Peru.  I miss Ecuador very much.

2. What's your most recently read favorite book?

The Medium Next Door...very cool read.  It's about the adventures of a Medium in the Boston, Mass area.

3. What's your favorite Spring Break memory?

I never remember going anywhere outlandish for Spring Break because I was usually working, but as a parent, I loved our family trip to Washington, DC, when we rented a van, headed down and had a great time seeing the sites, the Cherry Blossoms,

the armed guards (they were huge) and the company of our extended family in the DC area.

4. What do you put in your child's Easter basket? Or, for those w/o kids, what was put in your childhood basket?

Candy, colored eggs, peeps, jelly beans, chocolate....the standard.  Once we put jello eggs and this year, I might do the rice crispy eggs, since they look so cool.  I usually also include a movie they want to see and after church is over we all sit down to watch the movie they got.  Good fun.

5. Do you get a summer haircut?

Maybe a summer trim, but I do like playing around with the styles you can have fun with when you have long hair.  I like knotting it and trying out new looks.  Anything I can copy. :)

Loudly yours,

Alicia

That is a phrase I hear a lot at home, usually from my youngest Son.  "Ummmm.... Mrs. Go....I mean Mrs.....MOM!"

My Son's teacher says the same thing happens to her, except it's "Ummmm....Mom?  I mean Mrs....."

Very cute.

I find it interesting, this partnership that his Teacher and I share to teach him what he needs to know to get to the next level in his education.

Vincent was asking this morning as he was finishing up his spelling homework, left undone from last night; "Do you spell "I"  in capitals?  All my itself?"
"Yes", my husband and I told him and he wrote it down.

One more piece of knowledge added to what he is learning everyday.

I once read a great article about how a parent is like an architect, erecting a building, little by little.
It does not look pretty on its way up, but once it's done, you could stand back and admire the whole structure.

Sometimes it is hard to appreciate what it will look like when it is finished, it may look odd to some and may take a long time to finish, but if the foundation is set properly, it will stand.

On its own.

We, the parents, together with his teachers, past, present and future, all work together to put that foundation together and continue to help construct his "building".  Quite a big responsibility....for all of us.

So I was happy this morning, thinking that it was an honor to be a part of his foundation and that maybe I could help his building stand strong one day in the future, knowing that I helped to place a good many of his bricks in the right place.

Loudly yours,

Alicia

Wordless Wednesday 3/21/12

Accidental date at dawn

Date night, date day....it has been on my mind lately.
Why?  My hubby and I just don't get enough time alone.
So when I was drawn to the golf course down the street early on St. Patrick morn, I just knew I had to share some alone time with him.
It did not take long to see that I needed to call my hubby and share the beauty of the golf course with him.
I called home and had one of my kids wake him up and give him the phone.
"Get dressed and get down to the golf course!  Come as quickly as you can!"
I wanted him to get down there for fear that the amazing fog would lift before he got there.
It was beautiful.

The fog enveloped the whole place, making it look more like Ireland, than NJ.  It was amazing to be shooting in a mist that was visible to the eye.

It was eerie to listen to the pop of the drips of water as they fell to the pavement as they fell from the trees.

When hubby arrived, the fog was still there.

He got to bring his "real" camera to take some shots.  My pictures were taken with my camera phone on my Samsung Charge.
Here are some of his:








It was nice to spent time together and share a fun photo shoot out.
It reminds me of the old days when we would venture out into the woods.

Loudly yours,

Alicia

Green was calling to me today....

This morning, I awoke to a calling.  "Get up....come out for a walk to the golf course", it beckoned.

"No" I reasoned.  "I am too tired....too achy....I think I am not going to work out today....what if there are golfers out there...its too late..." 

To no avail, it kept calling to me to come, kept pulling me to go.  So I obliged.

I am so glad I did.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Loudly yours,

Alicia

5 question Friday 3/15/12

1. Where do you hide the reeeally good snacks?

I couldn't tell you that or else I would have to kill you.  Seriously.  The one child I hide it from has access to this blog and he might see it, so I cannot divulge.  Sorry.  It's a good place, trust me. :)

2. Do u keep your vehicle clean or am I the only one who has things falling out of their van?

Oh, the shame.  I have to say kind of falling out, sometimes.  Once in a while, clean.  I have to do that again, very soon.  It does feel really good to have  a clean car.  I do find it hard though, with all the kids I drive around to get it to STAY neat.  I guess I will have to wait for them to grow (and for me to be a little neater) to have that kind of car. :)

3. Have you ever been to Vegas?

No.  Would I like to? Of course.  Just not on the top of the list of high priorities in my life.  I much rather go back to Ecuador.....

4. Warm room light blankets or cold room warm snuggly blanket?

Warm room and snuggly blanket?  I just can't seem to get warm enough!!!  I am only warm if it is warm out or if I am working out.  If I am over heated, it's not fun, but I would rather be hot than cold.

5. What is the worst airplane/flying experience you've ever had?

Coming home from Ecuador, in the middle of a thunderstorm.  NOT FUN at all.  It was so scary.  I was with my whole family and my Dad tried to comfort all of us girls, ( I have 2 sisters) but it was very frightening.  I was very happy when we landed.