Squidoo Hopping--Let's Talk About the Facebook Groups

Today let's chat about all the different groups on facebook for squidoo.  There are a lot of them!  I belong to several and still see more on the side of my page that I could join.

Have I joined too many?  Probably so!  Do I post to them all?  No, I don't.  Do some people post the same things to every single group?  Yes!  LOL

Most days I feel that squidoo has taken over my life.  I would say that 75% of my time online is with squidoo.  I'm not saying that is a bad thing, especially if I can start making some real money.  However, what if I don't?  Sure, the socializing is good.  I'm seeing lots of lenses of interest.......but also viewing lots of lenses I wouldn't too, just for the sake of giving out some "love".    I also try to return comments, but I am behind on that.

Two groups that I am in have daily threads, one for new lenses and one for updated lenses.  Those groups are: Post a Squidoo Lens Here   and Squidoo Facebook Community .  I do try to list one of the lenses that I update each day, but no more.  Some list every lens they update.  When I do list one, I also go through the previous comments viewing others updated lenses.  That is the only fair way to do it.   The same goes if I happen to build a new lens, which, if I am lucky, is one a week.

One group that I am in is owned by Poutine.  I've known her online through squidoo and also through gather.com.  I joined her group because I consider her to be my friend.  She is a very helpful gal.  However, it seems about all I post to her group is the link to this blog post each week.  (Poutine---comment today on other things you would like to see posted to your group please).  Her group is Squidoo for all.

I've joined the Ask a Squidoo Expert group so that I can do that.  There's so many questions about squidoo.  I've already asked several.  I've gotten good answers and I've learned.

Then we have Squidoo Visits and Posts.   In this group you list 5 of your lenses each day....AFTER you have visited at least 5 others that have been posted by others.  They also ask that you give extra love to the lenses that you visit by pinning it, liking it on facebook, clicking on an outlink, or buying a product if you see something of interest.   I so love this concept!   I don't however, do it every single day.   I do try to though.  I also visit at least 10 others instead of 5 as well.  Mostly I click an outlink, but have pinned if it's a recipe or craft I want to try.  Fun fun!

How about Squids who Blogs.   Just as the name says, share your blogs here, whether you blog about squidoo or not.  So far I've only posted the link to this blog post, but will start also posting when I have a giveaway too.

Forgive me, but I don't remember who started Spotted Squids but it is the first facebook group that I joined for squidoo.  About says:  If you use Squidoo and want to gain more exposure for your work, network with other Squids, and you've got a friendly spirit, then you're a Spotted Squid. Feel free to invite friends, share links to your lenses, tell us about Squidoo related blogs, groups, or pages (including yours). You're also invited to share pictures of picnics, parties, and other fun events where you meet with Squids. This is a great place to tell everyone about Open Mike on BlogTalk Radio too. If you've got ideas for the group, share away!  I need to start spending more time in this group.

Last but not least is Squidoo Angels.  I have not participated in this group at all....well, until just now I put in a couple of comments.

So, with all of this said (typed), I have made myself a goal.  I am going to visit each group at least once a day to see what's happening.   I look forward to your comments on the groups too.   I also, as every week, look forward to you linking up here.   This week I am linking up my 2 newest lenses which are both book reviews.   Thanks!!

 




 

Let's Have a McCormick Grill Mates Party!

In the photo above you see the Grill Mates Ambassador kit that I rec'd through crowdtap.com.  I was excited to be accepted to host a Grill Mates party.  We already had a triple birthday party bbq in the park planned.


Let's learn a little more about McCormick Grill Mates before we head to the party:
**The marinades infuse grilled foods with flavor, which leaves them moist, tender, and delicious.
**McCormick has four new BBQ flavors this season, featuring all-natural spice rub-and-sauce-in one that will help you grill like an expert.
**Dry rubs add deep robust flavor and delicious crust while sealing in the natural flavors.  They are perfect for ribs, pork, and chicken.
**Bold seasoning blends transform regular foods into grilled masterpieces.


Visit the Grill Mates facebook community for exclusive recipes and rewards.


On to the party!!  We had about 40 guests total both young and old.  It was a combination party for 3 of my grandchildren---Zelda turning one year old, Skyler turning 9 years old, and Jacob turning 3 years old.


Here are pictures that I took when it was time for the yummy part of the afternoon----eating!

 Hubby said to get over for a picture while the hamburgers and hot dogs were cooking.  We alternated using the Molasses Bacon seasoning and the Montreal Steak seasoning on the burgers.  Both were supreme, although I liked the Molasses Bacon the best.

Dig In!

More of the guests.  They were all around me though and I didn't get a photo of them all.

There's hubby still cooking....always the last one to eat.

Inside my ambassador folder were 2 recipes.  I knew I had to try the Bacon Turkey Burgers as my mom and I both have a problem with red meat.  Above is the photo of mine.  They were exceptional!  I will be doing these again and again.  Below is the recipe:

Bacon Turkey Burgers with Pineapple Aioli

Make gourmet burgers on your backyard grill this summer. Season ground turkey with Grill Mates® Molasses Bacon Seasoning before grilling and serve burgers with a fruity aioli.

Makes 4 servings.
Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon well drained crushed pineapple, with 1 tablespoon pineapple juice reserved
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon McCormick® Grill Mates® Molasses Bacon Seasoning
1 pound ground turkey
4 hamburger rolls

1. For the Pineapple Aioli, mix 1 tablespoon crushed pineapple, reserved 1 tablespoon pineapple juice, mayonnaise and 1/2 teaspoon Seasoning. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

2. Mix ground turkey, 1/3 cup crushed pineapple and 1 tablespoon Seasoning in medium bowl until well blended. Shape into 4 patties.

3. Grill over medium heat 4 to 6 minutes per side or until burgers are cooked through (internal temperature of 165°F). Serve burgers on rolls with Pineapple Aioli.

 This recipe and more can be found HERE.

The party, and the food was a great success.  Many commented on the great McCormick flavors and most had to have a taste test of the Bacon Turkey Burger.

Now I want to talk about the other products in my kit.
Hubby brought home 2 big slabs of ribs.  He used the Memphis Pit BBQ Rub on them and then slathered on the Brown Sugar Bourbon BBQ sauce at the end.  They were divine!!
Here are 2 pictures to share to make your mouth water.  The first one is early with the rub and the second with him slathering on the bbq sauce.

We were already Grill Mates fans and I am pleased that we also got to try some different products than we've used before.


Disclosure:  As a member of crowdtap.com I was chosen to be a Grill Mates Ambassador and host a party.  I received a kit of information and products for the purpose of my party and this post.  I was not compensated in any other way and all opinions are my own.

WIP Wednesday---It's Been Go Go Go and No Sew Sew Sew

I didn't even do a post last week---I hadn't sewn anything.  I've still not sat behind my sewing machine or working on any sewing projects.  Over 2 weeks now and I am not happy about that.
We have just been on the go!  I always think that once school is out for summer things will slow down.  I don't know why I always think that when they never do!

I have been working on a washcloth order that is now shipped.  I'm also working on a soap savers order, which is almost done.

All is not lost as it's sit n' sew evening this Friday at the quilt shop.  It's still a shame though that most of my work on sewing gets done when I take my machine away from home.  I hope to finish my wall hanging and plastic bag holder for my kitchen while there.  I'm also hoping to work a bit on my quilt.

If I don't let Friday get by me again, I must share my finished projects in the TGIFF blog link up!

My biggest work in progress became finally cutting out and sorting all of my coupons.  I had let this go for weeks, more like months.  It's done though and I am back to my coupon shopping.  I still have this past Sunday's coupons to mostly get cut and in my binder.  I found that we can buy 5 Sunday papers from the news office once Sunday is past.  This is exciting for me.  I also started attending a local coupon meeting that I found out about.

I got way behind on my granny square a day challenge.  I stayed up until 2 am last night trying to catch up.  I don't have all the squares completely sewn on, but took a photo anyway.  It's been 3 weeks since my last report.  You should be able to see a difference in how it's moving along.  I counted....and re-counted....the squares when I took the photo and actually have 160, so it's done up to June 8th.   I'm reminding myself to not take another challenge like this  LOL  A year is a long time to do something daily.  It is going to look beautiful on our bed though once it's complete.

I am linking up with the following blogs:
 

Homeschool Journal--About Time I Checked In

I'm not sure I've posted here on my blog about our homeschool since shortly after Jasmine got home from England.

Things have been crazy schedule wise.  We tried really hard to get back in to the swing of a full school day.  It somehow never happened.  Sure, we did have a few good full schoolwork days here and there but not many.

Now here it is summer break time.  I had intended to just do a few of the things until we were done with those books.  That's also not working out so well.  It's hard when her friends are out of school and wanting to hang out.  I just can't tell her "sorry, we need to do math, science, etc etc before you can go".  Her social life is important to her, and to me too.

We have been reading books about Japan.  That was one thing I wanted to finish up throughout the summer.  Well.....the books are due back to the library today and we have already kept them an additional 3 weeks.   I've written down the titles of the books we didn't get to.  I also wrote down the books we started reading and what page we are on.  I will still try to check say 1 out at a time and read when we can.  You know, I am reading these out loud to her so that I am also learning.   You can see the books we are done with on our Learning About Japan lens that we are building as we finish each book.

I wanted to finish up the math book we are using for review on the dry erase board.  We may still get to that as there are 20 lessons left.  We will see.    We are still reading out of the devotions books, of course.   We need to finish the questions at the end of the chapter we are on in the Introduction to Business text.   We are also going to keep working out of the Everyday Fit book.

Church, Bible study, and youth group and all activities involved in those still goes on.  And, we all know that schooling never really ends anyway, especially when you are homeschooling  :)

 

SIS Shares in Squidoo---Quilting

I think you all know how much I love quilting.  I'm learning more and more, especially now that I have joined the local quilt guild and started going to the sampler and sit n sew nights at the lcal quilt shop.   There are a lot of nice lenses on quilting!

Here are just a few of them:

Quilting Blogs I Love To Visit Often

Hand Quilting Stitches | How to Hand Stitch a Quilt  

Crazy Quilts and Crazy Quilting 

Quilting Blogs My Top 20  

What is stipple quilting? 

Machine Quilting 

 

I know that is a lot of them....I'm going to be watching videos and reading the rest of the evening!  LOL    Here is one of my quilting lenses:

How to Make a Strip (String) Quilt

 

 

 

 

 

 

Enter to Win a Subscription to Ladies Home Journal from Purex and Enter to Win a Free Coupon Too!

Now through June 22, 2012 you can enter to win a free subscription to Ladies Home Journal magazine from Purex.

Click Here to enter or enter in the rafflecopter below.

Disclaimer:  I was sent free coupons in conjunction with the Let's Be Honest campaign to giveaway in my blog from Purex.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Squidoo Hopping--Getting Closer

I am getting closer on my notebook change over.  21 lenses left that need some updating before I make them a page in my new notebook where I am keeping the lenses in alphabetical order.   I am getting there.  I can't wait to be done with them all.  I then plan on going down that list I've made of different ways to update.....start at the front of the notebook and go through until every one has each update.  Makes sense to me, and will keep me plenty busy updating for 2 or 3 more years!  Of course I do have several lenses that get updated on a regular basis anyway.


On my Charity lens I am adding to it as I see lenses of my own with the donation module in it for a charity that I didn't get there before they took the module away from us.  I am also adding as I am seeing these modules on others lenses as well.  For me, I want to know what each charity is all about.  I mix and match what I am giving to all across the board.  I try to match the subject of my lens as best I can to a charity, but if not that is when I choose something else like March of Dimes or ASPCA etc.

I joined another squidoo facebook page last night.  This one will do a daily, post your lowest ranking lens.  Of course the ones at the bottom of my list are ones that I've not gotten any updating done to yet.

I've made myself a goal of building at least one new lens each week.  This past week I built 2, and I built 2 the week before too.  Maybe I should change that goal up to 2 per week?

I am listing those 2 newest lenses in the linky for this week.

It's Not Too Late To Get In On These Deals for Father's Day!

Amazon is the perfect place to shop for Father's Day and it's not too late to get in on these great deals!! These prices expire June 17, 2012.

Choose from the gifts below or click the picture at the top for many more choices.

Pork--Be Inspired With the New USDA Recommendations!

As a bzz agent with bzzagent.com, I am doing a campaign on pork and the new USDA recommendations for cooking pork chops, tenderloins, and roasts.  

The new recommendation is to cook these until a digital thermometer reaches a temp of 145.  Then let the pork rest for 3 minutes.  This will result in a flavorful, tender and juicy eating experience.  The pork will be pinker than you are used to.

I encourage you to check out the new pork cooking temperatures HERE.   Keep in mind that for ground pork, just like all ground meat should be cooked to 160 degrees.  140 degrees for pre-cooked ham.

Here is as picture of my bzz kit:

 I headed to our local Kroger-owned store and used the $5 coupon provided to me to buy pork chops.
Here they are cooking--hubby is checking the temp one last time.  Hurry please, I'm hungry! (These are made using a Fat Boy rub)

 aahhh  finally my portion is on my plate along with some macaroni salad, potato salad and cinnamon applesauce.  Time to dig in!

Here is a whole list of websites you will want to be sure to check out:
http://www.porkbeinspired.com   You can find a lot of recipes, cuts, nutrition, freebies and more!
Follow over on twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/allaboutpork
Hop over to pinterest and pin some photos of your personal pork creations as see those of others.  http://pinterest.com/PorkBeInspired/
You will also want to head to facebook and like their page as well! https://www.facebook.com/PorkBeInspired

Here is an inspired recipe that you might want to try:

BBQ Pork Salad with Summer Fruits and Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
4 cooked pork chops, sliced*
8 cups mixed greens
2 nectarines, cut into 12-wedges each
1 grapefruit, segmented
2 avocados, cut into wedges
16 cherry tomatoes
1 tablespoon salad oil
2 tablespoons toasted almonds, slivered
Salt and black pepper
Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette:
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
3/8 cup salad oil
Cooking Directions
For the Vinaigrette:
In a blender, combine all ingredients except oil. Blend at medium speed for one minute. Next, with blender at medium speed, pour oil very slowly into blender. Add salt and pepper.
For each serving, toss 2 cups greens with 2 tablespoons dressing, top with 4 cherry tomatoes, 1 sliced pork chop, 1/2 avocado, sliced in wedges, 1/2 nectarine sliced in wedges, 1/4 grapefruit segments. Drizzle with more dressing and sprinkle with toasted almonds. Serve immediately.
Makes 4 servings
  

Did you know that there are 5 chop cuts to choose from?  Loin chop, blade chop, rib chop, top loin chop, and sirloin chop.  We chose sirloin chops for the meal I show above.

Hubby went a step further and bought pork ribs to smoke for our supper last night.  They were oh so good, smoked with a rub and then cooked with bbq sauce.  I took a picture of them with the rub, and then a picture of him putting on the bbq sauce.

Kroger-owned stores are your go-to source for pork.  Head to the store where you already shop.  The friendly staff will happily answer your questions.  Be sure to check out Kroger.com for recipes, coupons, and offers exclusive to your area.  

Disclaimer:  As a bzzagent I was sent a campaign kit for Pork (as pictured above).  This post is part of my sharing by word of mouth.  I was not compensated in any other way.  Any opinions in this post are my own.

SIS--Shares in Squidoo--Tiny Houses

In keeping with my theme on homesteading, this week I want to talk about tiny houses.  While looking through homestead lenses way back when, I seen a link for a lens about tiny houses.    I have been hooked and intrigued with them ever since.  

I've even subscribed to blogs and tend to get lost watching videos and reading about different tiny houses on a regular bases.

Here are 4 lenses that talk about them.  Beware, you might get addicted to them too!

Eco-Friendly Tiny Houses 

Tiny Houses 

Cheap Houses: How to Live Mortgage Free 

How to Built a Tiny House 

Guilty.....I had to stop and watch a few of the videos again before finishing this post.  Hubby just said "I've heard that video before that you are watching now"  ROFL  Yes, when I've watched it a few times before!

For my own share this week, I ask that you help me with a click to this lens again.  Instead of continuing to move up in lens rank, it's taken a "nose dive".  Thanks!

Who is Helen Steiner Rice