Concannon- Good Enough For All Occassions

So, you've seen my recent post about making Concannon infused Short Ribs which were absolutely delish.  If you didn't see it, here is a pic ...

This dinner was absolutely delicious and I recommend you give it a try.  You can check out the how-to's here.

Another thing that would pair well with this delicious wine that may seem like a match gone wrong but it worked out beautifully is Green Curry Chicken. 

I used the Campbell's Skillet sauces to make it easy and fast, and ate it with a glass of this wonderfulness.  I know, light sauce with a red wine should be a no no, but it paired beautifully and enhanced the flavors in the curry.  Give a go, you won't be sorry. 


Disclosure- I received one bottle for FREE by being a BzzAgent, but have bought several more since then.  Yes, I liked it that much :)

Concannon Wines- Good Enough to Sip and Stew

I must admit, I do love a good red wine.  For some occasions, I'll drink an beer or a rum and diet coke, but nothing comes close to a bottle of really good red wine.  I have been on a mission for BzzAgent.  I received some great coupons to try out Concannon Vineyards wine and it seemed like it was a mission made with me in mind.  I wanted to do more than just drink the wine (though I did my fair share of that) but I wanted to experience it through a dish that red wine plays a major role in. 

My husband and I have a love for short ribs so I found this recipe. for Concannon wine infused short ribs based on Ina Garten's recipe (she is a goddess in the kitchen).   I don't always follow recipes to the letter of the law so with this one you can give or take a few ingredients, depending on what you have on hand and what you like. 

I served the short ribs on top of polenta and with some roasted squash that a friend gave me.  I am still unsure as to what type of squash it was, but it roasted well and the kiddos loved it. 

Here are the short ribs, resting to come to room temperature before going in the oven. 

While my short ribs were roasted I chopped my veggies. Onion, celery, and leeks.

Off they go into the dutch oven.

And for the main attraction, Concannon Petite Sirah,

a beautiful wine that I will buy many times to come.

After the veggies cooked down in the wine and the short ribs browned a little in the oven,

I added them to my dutch oven.

While everything cooked away in the oven for several hours, I whipped up some creamy polenta.

When it came out of the oven.........

Deliciousness. 

Everyone else thought so also..........

So please if you happen to be looking for recipes, grab a bottle of Concannon and try this one,

it was magnificent!

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Real Housewives of New Jersey Premier Party!!

Thanks to Crowdtap and Bravo I had the privilege of hosting a party for the premier of one of my most guilty pleasures.... the Real Housewives of New Jersey. This particular version of "Real Housewives" is near and dear to my heart being from Philadelphia. The two states border each other and are very similar in culture. 

My favorite Housewife is Theresa Giudice (pronounced ju-dee-chay).  And though the whole idea around the party was to watch the premier episode, you can't make a real party around one TV show. On another note, most of my girlfriends are moms and it's difficult for them to break away to watch an adult show... so to be honest, my party was mostly men. My husband, brother-in-law, and some co-workers of my husbands. Why did they all come to watch The Real Housewives of New Jersey? Because of my respect and affinity for Theresa.... the guys all thank you Theresa!  She's written three cookbooks all centered around Italian cuisine so I made a dinner party out of the evening.  I made the best Italian dishes that I know of... and to be honest I think even Theresa would be proud.

I started the guys off with a beautiful antipasto platter, it was gone in about 3.7 minutes :)

 

 

 

 

 

We always have blue crabs in our freezer because we order bushels from Maryland.  Blue crabs are also a big hit at the Jersey shore.... we used to get them in Ocean City, New Jersey frequently.  My father-in-law passed down to me a long kept family secret recipe for Blue Crab Spaghetti. It's FABULICIOUS (aka Theresa's cookbook)!!! Here is a pic of the food preparation.....

 

 

And the yummy pot from the top.....

Also, to honor all things Theresa.... I made the best Peach Bellini's.... and of course, called them Fabellini's!!

Everything was a huge success and belive it or not the guys actually enjoyed the show. However, they swore they'd smash my phone if I took a pic of them at a Real Housewives of New Jersey party so I got one of them to take a pic of me with the fabulous Theresa!!!.....

 



AMDRO PowerFlex Pest & Weed System

I was able to try the AMDRO PowerFlex Pest and Weed System for FREE by being a BzzAgent.  BzzAgent lets you try products for free, review them, and give your feedback. 

I was excited about this trial because I have a pesky area along my walkway of rocks that weeds are constantly growing through.  Every few months I go out there on my hands and knees and pull them all out and within a week they are all back.  I was hoping the AMDRO PowerFlex System would help make this process a little easier. 

Here is a BEFORE photo of my gravel lined walkway.

 

It took me a while to get to use it because I have learned from past experience that you have to wait for the right time to use a spray weed killer. If you use it when it's sunny out then it will just evaporate before it starts to work. If you use it when it's about to rain then it will all wash away.  I waited for an overcast day that we didn't get rain. 

 

 

Here is a photo of the same patch of grass on Day 1 and then again on Day 3.  You can see that it is already dying and turning yellow. 

 

 

Mission accomplished!! After it all dies it will be so much easier to pull up.

 

 

If you're interested in reading more about how AMDRO is working out for other BzzAgents, just click here.

 

 

Old Navy Activewear Sample & Share via CROWDTAP!!

First, I must preface everything by saying that I was fortunate enough to be chosen to receive a FREE activewear top and a FREE activewear bottom from Old Navy as part of the Old Navy Style Council via Crowdtap! I've never been a part of anything like Crowdtap until last December.  It's so much fun and completely addictive.  I'm not into extreme couponing or any of the other money saving sites, but you do get some rewards with Crowdtap.  Not to mention the reward you get from finding out your input is actually listened to and is valued.  That's the best part to me.  If it sounds like something you might want to explore further, just click here. You'll love it, I know I do. 

Ok, back to the ACTIVEWEAR!!! This couldn't have come at a better time! Not many of you know, but I used to be in the US MARINE CORPS.... true story.  Here is a pic of me back then. 

Pretty skinny, huh? I know! After 13 yrs of marriage and three kids I look NOTHING like that any more.  But I'm working on it! Not just for myself, but for my family.  We are trying to be more active and recently purchased new bikes for EVERYONE in the family.  My 9 yr old daughter and I have been enjoying Zumba classes and my how they make me feel so old and so young at the same time :)


So when I received the coupon's for the ACTIVEWEAR, I called my handy dandy friend Jasmine to meet me there.  As always, we giggled most of the time during the selection process.  And then even more when we try on.  There wasn't an extensive line of items to choose from. You pretty much just chose from shorts, capris, pants, shirt, or jacket.  I have plenty of tees and tanks, so I went with the jacket.  I would NEVER wear shorts.  I think they are one of the most unflattering garments on ANY woman.  I went with pants, I figured they would be more versatile that way. 

The particular pants I got were compression pants. I personally like the way they nip and tuck and suck in, but the actual purpose is to prevent chafing, reduce sweat, and to keep muscles warm to avoid injury.  You can read more about it here.  The entire outfit is pretty cute.  I wore it to go grocery shopping of all places and I felt so well put together. 

Here are a few pictures of our trip.....

 

 

Here is some of the items we had to choose from... so far, so good.

 

 

 

Jasmine was the first to recommend the jacket/ pant set.  It's really cute.

 

 

 

So I thought, why not give it a try?

 

 

 



We went to try on, it looked great on Jasmine!

 

 

 

I like it a lot also, but I went with a larger size jacket.

I LOVE THE THUMB HOLES!!

 

 

 

Checking out is always the fun part... it always confuses some poor cashier,

but the manager knows the deal and gets us through in a jiffy!

 

 

 

But not before we could wrangle him into taking our pic with the

Old Navy Welcome Wagon!!

 

 



Old Navy Beach Party!!

Thanks again to the awesomeness of Crowdtap and Old Navy, I was selected to host an Old Navy Beach Party!!! Myself and three friends were able to receive FREE swimsuits, flip flops, towels, and beach bags!!! It was so much fun. Check it out!

There were plenty to choose from.... making a decision was the hardest part!

Okay so we got a little goofy... but it was fun!!

And then there was the moment of truth.... the horrid and ever dreaded fitting room.  Is there any amount of fabric that would be an acceptable cover for this amount of bulge??? Suprisingly, yes. 

 

 

And though this was a Beach Party, I am first and foremost a mom... so I had to shop for my little monsters.  These are a few of the items I picked up during our girls day. 

 

And as if those weren't cute enough.... these are the monsters with their new goodies :)

I don't have a single complaint. I was overjoyed to find a swimsuit that I fell in love with and actually felt comfortable wearing.  I picked out a Control Max Swimsuit and it nipped and tucked in all the right places.  Thank you Old Navy and Crowdtap for allowing us to have such a great time!!!!