BUTTERBEER from Whimsic Alley

So who likes wands, magic and spells...?

If you said, "Me" then Whimsic Alley is for you.

This is a store dedicated to all that is Harry Potter. So if you're in the L.A. area you might want to hit Wilshire Boulevard. It even has it's own Great Hall, which you can rent for parties and birthday celebrations.

But that is just the beginning.

You can buy a replica of Harry's wand, or Dumbledore's or even Hermione's, which I did.

I bought Vinespell

I also had to buy some earrings with little black spiders, reminiscent of the movie and a spell book (for my son to jot down sketches and notes) and a deck of cards. But one of the best finds was Butterbeer. Now, I don't know if you've ever had Butterbeer or not but, if you haven't, you definitely need to try it.

And you can even make your own...it might not be exactly perfect but it will be close.  Here's the recipe:

BUTTERBEER:

Ingredients 

1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk

1/4 cup butterscotch topping

2 tablespoons whipped butter, room temperature

1 1/2 cups vanilla cream soda

Directions 

Combine condensed milk, butterscotch topping, and butter in a glass heatproof measuring cup. Heat in microwave for 1 minute. Remove and stir until butter has melted and incorporated into mixture. Meanwhile heat cream soda in another heatproof measuring cup for 1 minute 30 seconds.

Divide butterscotch mixture between 2 (10 to 12-ounce) mugs. Fill mugs with heated cream soda and stir thoroughly. Serve garnished with an old-fashioned butterscotch candy stick.

(I used vanilla ice cream instead of condensed milk and whipped butter--it was delicious).



 

Remaking a Tee-Shirt

When I was at the wolf sanctuary, they gave me a teeshirt.

But I don't like collars up around my neck or the square shape so I was thinking I might make it into a grocery bag or remake it into a shirt I would want to wear.

This is how I did it:

I made a paper pattern to cut the neckline to a shape I wanted by taking an 8 and 1/2 X 11 inch piece of paper and cutting the pattern by simply drawing the shape on one side and folding the paper in half and cutting the shape to put on the neckline and cut the fabric.

Then I took in the sides a little and put elastic in the arms so they wouldn't hang like a square.

Now I might actually wear the shirt.

It was super simple.

Run Like a Mother

Run Like A Mother- Portland, OR

Celebrate with Run Like A Mother on Mother’s Day!  Sunday May 12, 2013

Hillsboro, OR US 97124 

 

Start Time: 8:30am

Price: $40.00 Race Fee + $3.00 Sign Up Fee

 

RLAM’s Mission

The mission of Run Like a Mother® is to fuel a woman’s journey toward health and wellness. Empower with education and training programs. Inspire with communities, events and races. Enable through programs and partnerships. Run Like a Mother® Isn’t Just a Race, It’s Our Way of Life. Contact us at info@runlikeamotherrace.com. 

 

Home Again . . . Naturally

We've been gone for days...nine, to be exact. Our trip started in Portland...we flew to Las Vegas. I know, that sounds like fun but I'm not a good flyer...I tend to get motion sick.

I hate that. Being such a wimp.

I love leaning over to look out the window on the plane and seeing all the little pretty patchworks of patterns down beneath us but watching those colors zoom past can leave me feeling queasy and ready to lose my lunch...literally. So flying from one place to another is not a great way to spend any time...at least not for me. But, once I'm at the destination, I'm enjoying myself.

How bout you...? Is there anything about traveling that you don't like? Anything that makes you feel a little queasy? Or is it all worthwhile no matter what?

Wordless Wednesday

A Moment of Silence

For Boston

Book Review: Dewey The Small Town Library Cat

This was fun to read and it was even better because it's a true story.

Dewey i's the story of one small cat who touched an entire world.

I'd never heard the story of Dewey before but I wasn't surprised to learn how many people were touched by him. He had an amazing life. It wasn't that he was an heroic animal (like Lassie) or that he could do awesome tricks (like Rin Tin Tin) but he loved people and, because of that one simple fact, people loved him back.

It's one of those heartwarming stories that leaves you feeling warm and good inside.

It's not a fast-paced action adventure story but I would definitely recommend Dewey.