American Idol: Top 5

The theme tonight is the Rat Pack, and we have a surprise Mentor! Jamie Fox stops by to offer advice to the Contestants. WOO HOO! We're getting down to the nitty gritty! No time for chit-chat, let's get to it! **SPOILER ALERT** Come back later if you don't want to know what happened tonight!

Kris Allen went first tonight with "The way you look tonight" WONDERFUL. Best yet IMO. Randy,Kara and Paula liked it, Simon did not. VOTE

Allison Iraheta turned 17 yesterday. She sang "Some one to Watch over me". She looked a LOT better tonight. Vocals were just okay for me. Randy, Kara and Paula liked it. Simon thinks she is in trouble. I think Simon may be right. No vote here.

Matt Giraud has been looking forward to this theme week. It's his thing. He chose "My Funny Valentine". Big song for the Dude that has spent so much time in the bottom three. I'm not sure he did enough with it to be safe. The Judges opinions were split - Randy and Kara were not fans and Paula and Simon were. No vote here.

Danny Gokey sang "Come Rain or Come Shine" SANG IT!! LOVED IT. Loved the vintage-look glasses too! Randy said Danny was the only one that could make and album and WIN. Kara told him he had been missing his swagger, and tonight he found his swag. Paula said he was STELLAR and he could see the finish line and Simon said he came out to prove a point. He felt like Danny was the best so far - Outstanding! VOTE!!!! VOTE!!!! VOTE!!!!

Adam Lambert sang "Feel Good,Feel Right" Randy thought it was a little theatrical, (ya think?) Kara said he was shocking, in a good way. I started voting about the time Paula started talking and didn't catch what she or Simon said. Didn't matter to me because my opinion has been formed. No vote here.

Danny and Kris were the Best tonight. Matt, or possibly Allison go home.

What did you think tonight?? Let's Discuss!!

Sopapilla Cheesecake

***EDITED TO ADD*** 9/25/2009
Welcome Visitors from Kelly's Korner! I'm linking to an older post - this is one of my FAVORITE recipes! This is SO EASY - and so good! Very rich, you will want to cut it in to smaller squares, they don't look like much, but it is just enough!



At Bunco a few months ago the Hostess served the most fabulous dessert. It was still warm when she served it and OH. MY. GOODNESS!! Some of the girls called it "Heart Attack in a pan" and I've decided that is partly due to how yummy it is, and partly because there isn't one thing in this that could be described as healthy!

It sure looks pretty in my Gail Pittman Hand Painted Casserole...

Sopapilla Cheesecake

2 Cans Crescent Rolls (I used Great Value, Flaky crust style)

2 (8 ounce) Cream Cheese, softened

2 cups Sugar, divided

2 Tablespoons Vanilla

2 Tablespoons Cinnamon

1 stick of BUTTER

In a 9 x 13 pan, lay out one can of the crescent roll dough, pinching seams together. In a separate bowl, combine cream cheese, one cup of sugar and vanilla. Spread mixture across crescent roll dough. Cover with the second can of crescent rolls. In a saucepan, melt the stick of butter, one cup of sugar and cinnamon. Stir until well blended and pour over the top of crescent dough, spreading evenly. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

New Additions and A GIVE-AWAY!

Meet Goldie and Sylvester... **EDIT** TWEETY and Sylvester...

While the Handsome Prince was out and about on Saturday (Staying away from the "Girl Party") he happened across a lady giving away these sweet kitties. After my traumatic experience in December, I wasn't sure I would have another pet. But we live in the country, and I can't stand mice, so cats are necessary! We talked, A LOT, after Baby was killed that when we did get another cat, we would get two. That way they would have a playmate, and hopefully not wander too far away from the house.

Sylvester is the livelier of the two. Very curious and spunky. He'll be mischievous!
Goldie is very laid back. Loves to have that spot right behind her ear scratched! Look out Goldie! He's gonna get you! I'm going to try very hard not to get so attached to these two. I'm not sure how that will work out for me, considering I spent the afternoon on the back porch taking pictures of them! And I've already named them. We'll see!

Now for the Giveaway news! I will soon be making my 100th post! What started out as a little experiment has turned in to a really fun hobby. Today's post is number 94, so I am estimating by next Monday, May 4th I will hit #100. I'll have details in that post about what you will have to do to win a basket of goodies! (I'll BET that it will be SL@H related!) Stay tuned for more details!

Party for the Cure 2009

The Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure was held in NW Arkansas on Saturday. For the third year in a row I held my own little Fundraiser, A Party for the Cure. I donate a portion of my commission in Memory of my Sister in Law Debbie. She lost her battle with breast cancer on January 8th, 1996.



I had a little product tour around my house, showing some ideas for how I use the products in our home. These are the Camille Vases. I've taken some of the glass beads that you can buy at Wal*Mart or Hobby Lobby and created a diffuser in the smaller vase, and just added a candle to the taller one. You could easily use these in any room with tons of uses and they are on sale this month for only $9.95 with a $29.95 purchase. Wouldn't they make a great gift for Mother's Day?
Of Course I had some good food! You have to have snacks when you shop! Something salty, something sweet and something to drink. I've got it all covered! I bought some pink tulle and a lighter pink fabric remnant at Wal*Mart to set my "THINK PINK" buffet. I made Brownies and Sopapilla Cheesecake for my sweet choices. For my salty selctions I had some mixed nuts and dried beef and pickle roll-ups. So salty, but so GOOD!

The Sopapilla Cheesecake. I'll share the recipe on Tuesday for my Tuesday Treats!

I made Kelly's Cherry Limeade punch. So yummy! And EASY.

A closer view of the roll ups. A jar of dried beef, a tub of spreadable cheese, and baby dill pickles. Careful, they're addictive!

Throughout the year I accumulate more product than I should. Some items retire, so I don't need them for my kit to show anymore. Sometimes they are on special and I'll grab an extra to meet a personal sales goal. I pass the savings on to my customers, and donate a percentage of the sales. Here's some of the loot I have for sale.

It was a good time! Wish you could have been here!

American Idol: Now there are 5

We had a Double Elimination tonight on Idol. The 45 Million Votes have been counted and the results are in. We got to watch Paula be Drill Sargent as she choreographed the Contestants for this week's Disco Group Number. I guess the producers wanted to remind us that Paula has Skilz, that's why they put up with her rambling each week.

Dim the lights, let's get started.

Lil Rounds. Ryan asked her to go take a seat on the far side of the stage, she is in the Bottom 3.
Something distracted me, and before I knew it Ryan was announcing that Lil was in fact, eliminated from the competition. Well at least they aren't dragging it out.

Next up was a medley of disco songs performed by some classic artists. (Respecting our Elders, I am). Freida Payne performed "Band of Gold", Thelma Houston did "Don't Leave me this Way" and KC, without his Sunshine Band "Did a Little Dance, Made a little Love". Let me just say, it appeared that it had been a while since KC last busted a move. He was relieved that it was commercial time.

Speaking of commercials, I'm loving the "Super Freak" Visa Debit card commercial! FUNNY!

Okay, Dim the lights, Let's get back to it.

Kris Allen, is safe.
Adam Lambert, is Safe.
Danny Gokey, is Safe. YAY! Happiness!!
Anoop Desai, is in the bottom three.
Allison Iraheta and Matt Giraud are asked to stand at the same time. Matt was saved last week by the Judges, but he didn't need their help this week. He is safe. Allison joins Anoop on the stools of doom. (Would you call them elimination stools?)

Little David Archuleta was back tonight! He performed "Touch my Hand" and then gave Anoop and Allison some words of encouragement. It was good to see little Archie!

Bring down the lights, here we go.

Anoop is going home. He knew he didn't do his best last night, so he was disappointed.

So what are your thoughts, do you think the right ones went home tonight? Who are your picks for the Top Three?

Let's Discuss!!

The 5 Finger Prayer

You know those e-mails.

I get them all the time. Lay a guilt trip on me to forward to everyone I know. Every once in a while I get one that is SO GOOD I feel like I MUST SHARE. This is one of them.

This is so neat! I had never heard this before - and it is surely worth making the 5 finger prayer a part of our lives.

1. Your thumb is nearest you. So begin your prayers by praying for those closest to you. They are the easiest to remember. To pray for our loved ones is, as C. S. Lewis once said, a 'sweet duty.'

2. The next finger is the pointing finger. Pray for those who teach, instruct and heal. This includes teachers, doctors, and ministers. They need support and wisdom in pointing others in the right direction. Keep them in your prayers.

3. The next finger is the tallest finger. It reminds us of our leaders. Pray for the president, leaders in business and industry, and administrators. These people shape our nation and guide public opinion. They need God's guidance.

4. The fourth finger is our ring finger. Surprising to many is the fact that this is our weakest finger, as any piano teacher will testify. It should remind us to pray for those who are weak, in trouble or in pain. They need your prayers day and night. You cannot pray too much for them.

5. And lastly comes our little finger - the smallest finger of all which is where we should place ourselves in relation to God and others. As the Bible says, 'The least shall be the greatest among you.' Your pinkie should remind you to pray for yourself. By the time you have prayed for the other four groups, your own needs will be put into proper perspective and you will be able to pray for yourself more effectively.

American Idol: Top 7, Revisited

It's Disco night on Idol! Since the Judges used "The Save" on Matt last week, Two Contestants will go home tomorrow night. No Mentor this week, No silly introduction for the Judges. I like this! I think they are trying to save time and they may have figured out how to edit some of the "Fluff" - Yay!

Up first tonight is Lil. She looks fantastic tonight! Lil chose "I'm Every Woman" and I had high hopes for her. Chaka Khan is exactly the type of artist Lil should be singing. I really liked this performance, and I would even go so far as to say it was her best to date. You could tell she was having fun. The Judges must have heard something different than I did, because they didn't care for it. Randy thought it was wild, Kara said that she had been waiting for Lil to do some Chaka and it wasn't worth the wait, Paula clued us all in that Lil had no voice yesterday, so she thought it was a great recovery, but Simon said it was her last performance. No Vote for us.

And please don't talk back to the Judges!

Kris is next. I was prepared to be disappointed when Kris revealed he was going to sing "She Works Hard for the Money" by Donna Summer. I just didn't see how he could pull this off. I've got to tell you though, Kris knocked my socks off! This performance was SO COOL! He completely changed the arrangement, slowed the tempo, played the guitar, and I loved it. I would buy this single. It reminded me of David Cook last season with his rendition of "Billie Jean". (How he made it his own) Kara told Kris he took a risk and it paid off - BIG TIME, Paula said it had a Santana feel to it (She was right! The only thing she said all night that made sense) Simon said it was Original, well thought out and a Fantastic job and Randy told Kris he was ready for the BIG TIME. VOTE

"September" by Earth, Wind and Fire was Danny's disco tune. I liked this performance. It was very high energy from start to finish and his vocals were fantastic. Was it my favorite Danny performance? No, but this isn't the type of music I see him making either. I don't think he hurt himself any with this song choice and performance. Randy said he was worried about the song choice, but felt that Danny worked it, Good job! Kara agreed with Randy and said Danny's pitch was SO RIGHT ON, Paula said he had a Sexy voice (Okay, two things Paula got right tonight! Must not have put the additive in her Coke glass yet) Simon said he couldn't fault the vocals at all, but he didn't get "Star Power" from the performance. WE VOTED!

Allison was next with "Hot Stuff" by Donna Summer. WHO is dressing this child? Her outfit was a Hot mess, and so was this song for me. I don't like what she did with the arrangement and I'm ready for this to be OVER. This girl can sing, but this performance didn't do it for me. Randy didn't like the arrangement either, but he said he loved Her, and thought she was one of the best singers in this thing, Kara agreed with Randy(She does that a LOT) Paula babbled and Simon said he thought it was a Brilliant Performance. No Vote for us.

Adam chose "If I Can't Have You" from the soundtrack for Saturday Night Fever. Randy said Adam is ready. RIGHT. NOW. Kara said he was Brilliant, Paula cried, She could FEEL him, (She's found the additives for her Coke) and Simon thought he made it something original and it was memorable. I think you know by now, No Vote for us

Matt is back with his hat! He went with the Bee Gee's "Stayin' Alive". One problem, Matt isn't the Bee Gee's and I don't think he is Stayin Alive. Randy didn't love the song choice or the arrangement, but thinks this is a talented group of kids this season, Kara thought he brought Disco back, Paula said Matt picks songs like she bowls - sometimes you get a gutterball, and sometimes you get a strike. Tonight was a Strike. Simon didn't like it. No Vote for us.

Anoop finished the show tonight with Donna Summer's "Dim all the Lights". I didn't like this either. Maybe I'm too tired tonight, these songs are just making me crabby. Randy, Kara and Paula liked it. Simon said it was Mediocre at best. No Vote for us.

So that's it for Disco week. The Best Performance for me tonight was Kris. Hands Down. I think we will see a repeat of last week's bottom three - Lil, Matt and Anoop. I predict Lil and Matt go home.

What did you think? Let's Discuss!