All posts by NerdMom

headlines, humor, politics

Unknowningly Calling Them To Return Home

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This poster was put out to 7,000 churches by the National Association of Latino Elected Officials (NALEO) so that more Hispanics will participate in the census. I find it hilarious that the only problem that Washington Post seems to pick up on is the use of Christ for a secular purpose. It isn’t until you land at the Corner (or actually were I started) that anyone points out the real crux of the matter.

Mary and Joseph were returning to the ancestral home ie leaving where they immigrated from. So really this poster is saying that all immigrants should return home. I find it hilarious that the Reverend who is heading up the boycott (because of the using Christ and God for vain, non-worshiping purposes) doesn’t seem to remember the actual Christmas story and what Mary and Joseph are actually doing.
But at least they printed most of them in Spanish;).

headlines

Tweeting in the Face of Tragedy

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Imagine the unthinkable happened, your child was found at the bottom of the pool. Would it be unthinkable for you to tweet for prayer a half hour after calling the paramedics? That happened to 1 mother and she got slammed by many people for tweeting. Her tweet simply said “Please pray like never before, my 2 yr old fell in the pool.”


I for 1 would totally have done the same thing for a few reasons. First off I believe in the power of prayer. She had 5000 followers and in theory that could mean a lot of prayer. I also have my Twitter tied in with my Facebook account. So the best most efficient to alert my real life friends who would serve as my support in this situation (including my pastor) would be for me to Tweet.

I think this struck a cord with me because I have blogged through a miscarriage. I have also tweeted through numerous surgical procedures that I have had this year. It has made me feel more connected to my friends for instant needs of prayer and who knows whom my life will touch.

I feel bad for this mom not only losing her child but also have to endure the judgment of many who don’t know her. I also don’t know her but can assure that she and her family are in my prayers. So what do you think? Did she take tweeting to far? Or is this the perfect way to let the world support you?

Daybook

For Today (11/14) From NerdMom’s Daybook

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I am thankful for good friends.
From the learning rooms we are not really doing anything this week except reading!
From the kitchen I have no plans but I hope that we will have the basics of a gingerbread house before the week is up.
I am wearing comfy but cute jeans!
I am creating a mailing list for my Christmas Cards. It is always more work than one thinks. Especially since I haven’t sent out to my whole list in a few years.
I am going to Stanford for a few days for a procedure.
I am reading all my magazines while we travel
I am hoping that things will go smoothly this week.
I am hearing Christmas music.
Around the house I just hope to stay caught up on laundry.
One of my favorite things is spending time with NerdDad during the trip to Stanford.
A few plans for the rest of the week: Stanford for a few days and just recuperating.
Here is picture for thought I am sharing

Food

A Home Made Double Boiler

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You don’t need to buy a fancy double boiler for recipes like the Chocolate Pecan Pie. I find that they are never big enough, they are pricey and then you have another piece to store.

All you need to do is bring a pot of water to simmer. Place inside a glass or metal bowl that doesn’t touch the water. Then put your mixture in the bowl and melt or cook, what ever is needed!

Food

Easy Chocolate Pecan Pie

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I love this twist on the classic pecan pie. It is becoming a family tradition for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. I totally cheat and use a deep dish frozen pie crust.

Ingredients:

4 ounces of semisweet chocolate (which is about 2/3 cup)
2 tablespoon margarine, melted
3 eggs
1/3 cup of sugar
1 cup of corn syrup (light or dark)
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups pecan halves
1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell,
homemade or frozen

Process:
In a double boiler melt chocolate and margarine. Let cool. Beat eggs lightly and then add the sugar, corn syrup, chocolate mixture and vanilla. Stir until blended, I use a wire whisk to mix it thoroughly. Mix in pecans. Put the pie shell on a lined baking sheet. Then pour in the filling. The pecans make sink to the bottom, don’t worry it will all even out. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes or until the knife inserted midway between the center and rim comes out clean. Cool to room temperature before serving.

Food

Top Chef Vegas Final Finale!!!

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I can’t believe it is finally all over. I haven’t watched the finale yet but I am already seeing the commercials for the reunion show. On to the show and all the snark!

I love the fact that they all have to make 1 course with the exact same ingredients! I also love that 1 of the 3 courses has to be a dessert! Bryan got Jennifer as a sous chef. He hit the mother load. Kevin kind of rooked with the sous chef challenge with Preeti and Ash. They are fine but not as good as Jennifer (Bryan) and Eli(Michael).
As we get into the the 3 hours of prep for the first night poor Kevin. He just Preeti cutting veggies and those aren’t coming out all that well. When they wake up the next morning, Bryan has even drawn pictures of the plates. Did Top Chef take a note from Hell’s Kitchen with the arrival of the mothers? But then even moms bite them because they had to do a childhood memory course. I thought the 3 course was a little light to begin with. At least this season the finalists were smart enough to be looking for the twist.
I love that Kevin put bacon in his dessert. I agree with him that he should get an award from the bacon council! The brothers seemed to be making their kind of food.
The moms were sitting at the service table for the first course. The guys all got just a little more nervous. Bryan specifically got nervous because he didn’t think his mom hadn’t ever had a sardine. Kevin’s was the only course that didn’t have anything bad said about it. Kevin seems to season well where as Bryan doesn’t always. But on the box challenge I think Michael won. Everyone seemed to do well with their meat courses. But Donatelle Arpia called out Michael’s gimmick as just that, a gimmick. Then we get to dessert. Michael knew going into dessert that the cake was over cooked. Kevin’s dessert wasn’t a hit. Bryan seemed to be the winner out of the dessert round.
Is it wrong to say I just don’t want Michael to win? He just has a huge ego but he seems to earn it. Kevin is bounced first. Then it is just the brothers. And, not shockingly, Michael won. It wasn’t a surprise at all but I hope he keeps his ego in check.

FRN, giveaway, music

Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas Giveaway!!!

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Curious George is huge in our house. And I don’t just mean for the 2 year old, all of them 8-2 love watching Curious George on PBS (ok, me too). So was so excited that they are doing a Christmas special this year!!!

From the Press Release

A VERY MONKEY CHRISTMAS, the charming new movie from PBS Kids featuring Curious George is making its broadcast premiere on public television stations nationwide on Wednesday, November 25. A VERY MONKEY CHRISTMAS will air on PBS Kids throughout the holiday season. Additional airings are scheduled for November 29, December 6, 18, 19, 20 and Christmas Day, December 25 (check local listings for exact air dates and times). You can also catch Curious George Monday through Friday on PBS Kids (check local listings).

So you can only imagine how excited we are were when we received a copy of the soundtrack to review. The kids loved it. Of course they were excited to have their own special Christmas cd because Christmas music is huge here in the NerdFamily. We all loved the upbeat music that was so catchy for the kids to sing to. The favorite here is Our Christmas Monkey. To see all 4 kids dancing through the living room brings joy to the season!

Win it!
How would you like to win your own copy of Curious George’s Very Monkey Christmas soundtrack? Well, I have 1 to giveaway!

To enter:

* Just leave a comment telling me your favorite Christmas Song!
* A random winner will be selected and notified on December 16th.
* The winner will then have 3 days to claim their prize.

To earn extra entries, you may do one or all of the following. Each one counts as an extra ticket but you must leave a separate comment for each one.

* Subscribe to my feed (if you already do, that counts).
* Mention this giveaway on your blog with a link back here.
* Subscribe to my Twitter and then Tweet about this!
* You can tweet everyday for an additional entry, just make sure to leave a comment for each time!

If you want to see more giveaways pop over to Making Money Keeping Money to see more giveaways on Contesting Monday

This post was written as part of a program for Family Review Network and Denon Records, who provided the product for review and giveaway. I was not compensated in any way except for the complimentary product.