For February’s Shopping Around the World, we want a drink and snack food that you love. Recipes, pictures are awesome and prices to be posted on:
Doesn’t that picture look awesome just by itself? Mom has tried to eat better at home. Once she would have snacked on chips, pretzels or chocolate. Not these days. Don’t get me wrong though. She still keeps a chocolate drawer in the refrigerator – sshh don’t tell anyone. But these days, she tries to keep better snacks at and about. Usually on the weekends, she puts together a snack tray that can be easily attainable at night for her and dad. It includes wheat crackers, apple slices, cheeses of different kinds, sometimes she throws in green olives with pimentos and pickle spears. That way when the munchie monster hits, she can grab things that might be a little bit better for her and dad then the so called ‘junk’ food of the past. What does this cost? Let’s break it down.
⋅ One box of Wheat Ritz crackers (on sale $2.50 for the box)
⋅ Three apples of any kind (on sale 3 for a $1.00)
⋅ Assortment of cheese cut however you want (Colby, Cheddar and Provolone packs at $1.99 each pack)
⋅ One jar of pickles ($2.49)
⋅ One jar of green olives ($3.49)
That totals $15.45 for all of these goodies; however, they last between 2-3 weeks for everything. It depends on how much snacking you are doing – LOL. Now mom will fix everything in a special container she has that has lots of individual holes that is perfect to put cut up apples, pickles, olives and your cheeses. She keeps the crackers on the kitchen island to add to her snack whenever she needs it. And mom says sometimes when the midnight munchie monster hits, its perfect to fix a cheese cracker and go back to bed. Go figure huh?
But wait a minute. This month is snack and drink month. What does mom drink with her snack? If it’s an after dinner/pre-bed snack, you may find mom eating a little variety platter with a glass of Primo Amore Moscato. Mom found this wine at our local Olive Garden and fell in love with it! It has a little bit of bubbles in it with a sweet taste. It goes great with her snack tray. Mom found the she can buy this brand at our local market for around $16.00 a bottle. Again, this bottle can last an entire week since she is the only that drinks alcohol here at the Hotel Thompson and she only has one glass at a time, when she has it. Mom highly recommends this wine though so if you find it in your market, try it and tell us what you think.
Hello my friends. If you have been following my blog for any length of time, then you know that my mom/dad are crae-crae, crazy, over the top, not swimming with both oars or shall we say can not go out into public without getting into trouble. You understand where I’m coming from?
This weekend was no exception. I’m telling you, mom/dad left to their own devices not under anipal care, can be committed somewhere with matching white jackets that tie in the back. At this point, you are probably asking yourself well what the heck did they do this time?
Dad had been telling mom all week that Saturday night, he was taking her somewhere special, somewhere with pizzazz with great food and that the place was very popular. Come Saturday night, mom donned some special clothes and met dad in the front room. Dad told her, “Honey you are way overdressed.” So mom went and put on some jeans and a t-shirt. That’s when she started thinking what kind of “nice” place was this restaurant.
They get into the Jeep and dad gives mom instructions. That’s when… give me a moment to snort with piggy laughter… they arrived at the special restaurant with pizzazz – the local Sam’s Warehouse. OMP – mom busted out laughing so hard and was thankful she changed clothes for this special outing.
Mom/dad entered the warehouse and had the person at the door check their membership. That’s when dad told the greeter that he needed a table for two. Mom just shook her head and laughed.
So mom/dad find the best seat in the house and decide what they want for dinner. They chose pizza – astonishing huh? But not just any pizza. Dad referred to it as the best pizza this south of Atlanta. And the picture really does not do it justice. That one pizza slice is as big as a regular paper plate – or fine china as daddy called it that night. So, two slices of pizza and two drinks for an astonishing $4.00 date night. Can you beat that? Snorts with piggy laughter. So, the next time you are at your local Sam’s Club, check out the amazing pizza… not that I would know personally because mom/dad didn’t bring me home a piggy bag.
Today we finish up our tour of the World of Coca-Cola here in Atlanta, Georgia. Last week, I left you with us visiting the awesome polar bear in residence. He was such a hoot and so friendly! We all had a blast playing with him – and I think he took a great liking to Jean. I also think with enough soft whispers in his little polar bear ear, Jean might have been able to take him back home with her. Then again, that would be a hard one to explain to Customs… you think?
After we finished with the polar bear, we went to explore a 4-D Theater. The title of the film was The Search for the Secret Formula. You got these really neat glasses to wear while watching the film. Now remember we said 4-D. Thankfully, we went with Bill and Jean and got in the line of the non-moving section seats. That was a most excellent move because let me tell you something, once you watch something in 4-D you will be astonished. The seats moved and rocked like you wouldn’t believe to the
movie. At one time, water was lightly sprayed on the audience. And with the glasses on watching the movie, people were ducking and dodging the things coming from the film. You can’t miss this movie – you have to watch it and experience the 4-D effects. Way to go World of Coca-Cola for this awesome show.
After the film, we were thirsty. The bottles of free coke they gave us at the beginning of the tour were starting to wear off. And hey, this was the best of time. Now we were going to the Taste It part of the tour – something my mom couldn’t wait to try. They had freestyle drink machines set up all over this room with over 100 different Coca-Cola drinks from all over the world. You could taste as many as you wanted from anywhere – Africa, Asia, Latin America, North America. Some of the drinks were:
Beverly.Introduced in Italy in 1969, Beverly is a non-alcoholic aperitif that is typically consumed before meals. Because of its distinctive taste, it is one of our most popular, must-try drinks. This was a high consensus in our group of no thank you.
Bibo Candy Pine-Nut.This African favorite is part of a fruit-flavored line of drinks. Bibo Pine-Nut tastes of pineapple and coconut. This one wasn’t too bad. Daddy really liked it.
Fanta Pineapple.This sparkling beverage from Greece imparts a sweet and juicy pineapple taste. The pineapple (commonly known to Grecians as “ananás”) is quite a treat for Europeans, often imported from tropical regions. This one was mom’s favorite.
Guaraná Kuat.Introduced in Brazil in 1997, the beverage was named after an Amazonian Indian sun god. Guaraná Kuat (pronounced “Kwatch”) tastes of fruity guaraná berries, similar to ginger ale with a mild berry twist. Um… no.
So you see this was just a few of the different flavors from around the world that you could try. Some tasted fantastic while others were like how do they drink this? Afterwards, on the way out of the tour going into the store, you got a souvenir glass bottle of coke.
Now, the Coca-Cola store. Some peeps – cough cough – had way too much fun in the store. Bill was trying to find a good hat to wear for those cold snowy days and nights in Canada. What do you think about this one my friends?
Do you think it would keep him warm?
Of all the hats to choose, this one was his favorite. I kind of dig the polar look and the nose on this hat though. I think it brings character – a fun aspect if you will.
On the other paw, all of the kids in the neighborhood would be screaming for cover when they see daddy outside. Look at the get up he went with – shaking my head. These two. What will we do with them?
So my friends, that concludes the tour of the World of Coca-Cola. Did you have fun? Did you learn anything (other than Jim and Bill are crazy?) that you didn’t know?
Stay tuned for next week to find out where these crazy peeps went to eat… and the GPS hang out that had everyone laughing.
So mom/dad’s first destination was for dinner at a place called Pappasito’s Cantina located in Marietta, Georgia. They had been here once before a very long time ago and absolutely loved it. They talk about it all of the time so I thought it would bring back some wonderful memories for them to reminisce over.
This is a picture of mom/dad once they got sat at one of the tables. The wait staff is wonderful and so very friendly. They offered to take this picture for mom/dad for their anniversary album. It looks like they are happy with my dining decision, you think?
One of mom’s favorite drinks at the moment is anything with mango. She told the waiter that she wanted something mango, frozen and delicious. He brought back this delightfully frozen concoction. Mommy said it was one of the bestest drinks that she has *ever* had. It had an ultimate mango taste to it – which is something you usually don’t find flavor wise when you order a mango drink. Sometimes you just can’t taste what you order, you know? But this was a Mango Margarita and was right up mom’s alley saying it was awesome. And it was garnished with chunks of strawberries and mango. How lovely huh? Even daddy drunk some and he even loved it too.
During this time while they were enjoying the drinks, they also enjoyed this appetizer with nacho chips. Score one for the piggy because I had a coupon for mom/dad for this free appetizer – a $11.00 value – snorts. They choose a is yellow cheese dip garnished with jalapeno’s, tomatoes, onions and ground beef.
Now both mom/dad totally flipped over these cheese dip. It was spicy but yet not so much that you couldn’t enjoy it. It did have heat though and both mom/dad said that it opened up their sinuses – snorts.
And daddy totally LOVED the nacho chips. They were thin with just enough salt with the heat of the cheese dip and delicious! He couldn’t stay out of the bag and from what mom said, I don’t blame him. I love a crispy hot chip myself!
Then angels started to sing and mom/dad knew their main course have floated to their table from the kitchen. Oh my piggy heaven above! Talk about hog heaven indeed. Let me break it down for you because my mouth was so watering when mommy showed me the pictures. I just wanted to lick the screen so bad!
They ordered filet mignon and Jumbo Shrimp fajitas. It came with rice, frijoles a la charra, pico de gallo and guacamole. Just look at all of that food! Now the shrimp that you see to the left, that is Pappasitos famous shrimp brochette. The shrimp it mesquite-grilled and then stuffed with cheese & fresh jalapenos and if that wasn’t enough – they wrap it with bacon. What bacon?! I can give mom/dad a bone on this one since it was a special occasion. The sauce is a avocado lime butter. Mom said it was heavenly! The dinner also came with fresh flour tortillas. Mom and dad ate to their delight. Daddy told me that there was more groaning going on at the table than what he has heard in such a long time… I’m not sure what that meant.
Can you believe that there was room for an anniversary dessert? There was. And I admit it that I was shocked because mom/dad said they couldn’t finish it all. Amateurs!
They order Cajetas which is coconut pecan crusted vanilla ice cream that was drizzled with chocolate sauce and served with sopapillas – those big puffy things. And do you see the Honey Bear in the picture to the right. He also came served with the dessert so they could pour honey over whatever they wanted to. I asked daddy if Mr. Honey Bear traveled with them to the second destination but he refrained from answering me saying something about me being to young to ask that kind of question. This dessert was as wonderful as the appetizer and meal. Mom said she hasn’t eaten this well in some time and whatever weight she has lost lately probably found it’s way back to her butt and hips – snorts.
So now I leave you with video 2 – enjoy my friends. P.S. Come back Wednesday for more information on the anniversary kidnapping – there is more that you don’t want to miss!
Before we let Summer go away, we must find out some important things in life… You know like what would your Summer Cocktail Name be – snorts. We must set priorities, right? I’ll go first.
Bacon – Honolulu Mind Blower (seems about right to me – snorts)
Welcome to the Renovation Reveal Party for the Hotel Thompson or as my cousin called it the Casa Thompson! My buddy Fozzie is going to co-host this party. To get things started, please enjoy some wine, soda and some snacks. Then sit back for the reveal and let us know what you think. If you have questions, ask. Mingle and have fun my dear friends!!
The following food was brought by Kali and Shoko of Canadian Cats. Everyone be sure to try some of these Canadian delicacies. I’m licking my lips now and fixing to jump in – YUMMO!
Poutine – French fries with gravy and cheese – how could you go wrong with this? Beaver Tails – Now Beatrice and Billy were not harmed in the making of this sweet treat – 🙂 Beaver Tails are pastries shaped like beaver tails with chocolate and banana or chocolate and M&M’s. Personally this little porker NEEDS one with banana and chocolate. Nanaimo Bars – These are named after a city in Vancouver Island. They have three layers of deliciousness – coconut, graham cracker crumbs, chocolate and custard.
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Okay my friends – do you remember the ‘before’ pictures? Let me remind you what they looked like okay.
The front room was a cluttered mess as well as the kitchen area. It was definitely time to ‘grow up’ and get a new look. Below are now the ‘after’ pictures.
The entry way into the Casa Thompson. The new sofa. The new chaise – ❤
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The overall front room view from the hallway. The new kitchen island. The new cedar flooring in the bathroom.
**SPECIAL THANKS**
Thanks to my friend Jean with Canadian Cats (Shoko and Kali) for the beautiful virtual potted plant for the new Casa Thompson. It’s beautiful! And thank you my friends for bringing food to the party – I’m still licking my lips! And many thanks for the long phone calls, listening to me whine while drinking my wine 🙂
Thanks to my brother Easy and his mom for listening to my mom’s troubled woes during the ordeal – snorts – there were a LOT. Your emails kept her sane… well okay as sane as she could be.
Thanks for my great co-host and partner in crime Fozzie. You mean the world to us my sweet dear friend. The phone calls, the emails, the rants and raves.
Much love to all of YOU and to those that listened to the endless ramblings here in blogville about the renovation. We were so glad that we could share everything with all of you my dear friends!!
Please my friends – mark your calendars to attend our drop in House Warming Party for the Hotel Thompson on Friday, May 1st right here on my blog.
The celebration will begin at 9:00AM and last throughout the day. Food and drinks will be served during the great renovation reveal. Fozzie will be co-hosting this extravaganza with us – be sure to make plans to drop in for some fun 🙂
Please share with your friends – all are welcomed. We hope to see you here!
Oh my friends – I know you don’t want to miss this. I would like to invite you to the great Renovation Reveal Party on Friday, May 1, 2015.
Please mark your calendars to come by and visit this date for a great party complete with food, drinks and to see the great reveal of the Renovation that took place here at the Hotel Thompson in only three weeks. In fact, starting next Monday, mommy is going to journal each phase to get you in the mood and tell you all about the frustration lows and great highs of renovating in such a short time.
My friend Fozzie and I have scheduled a group posting today of Shopping Around the World. We thought it would be interesting to see the differences between different countries all over.Here are our prices for the following from our area – Georgia USA:
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Items to price this month:
Soup – Yummy! Soup is fantastic in the winter and for colder days. Dad’s favorite ‘can’ soup is Chunky’s Beef Barley. He LOVES that stuff! When mom can find is for a $1.00 a can – she stocks up the cabinets. It’s great, convenient for daddy to prepare and tastes awesome. Yep, I know it does. I’ve licked the bowl a couple of times – snorts!
Christmas Trees – Why are trees so expensive? Of course, the longer you wait until Christmas, the cheaper they are. That makes sense, right? We don’t have a tree here at the Hotel Thompson so I had to check with a friend on this one. Our friends have a five foot fir. It cost them – right after Thanksgiving – nearly $80! Of course, if you wait until the day before Christmas – the price will be so much lower… as well the branches. So it might look like a Charlie Brown tree then. Snorts.
Cold Medicine – Mom couldn’t believe the prices on this! Her and daddy will sometimes take DayQuil or Nyquil. As an alternative, they will buy the store brand of these items. Sometimes if mom is lucky, she can get a combo pack with one of each for around $8.00 – can you believe that? And mom says what is up with Mucinex? Have you seen the prices for that stuff? It’s between $20-25.00 a box. Mom has recently found a generic brand for this at Kroger for $4.00 a bottle! What a mark up for brand name huh?
Hot Drink – This time of the year, there is nothing like something hot and satisfying on your tummy for warmth and to head off a bad cold. Mom LOVES a hot toddy. This is a rather cheap drink because you have most of the items on hand – perhaps less than $2.00 when you calculate. Mommy said I could share her hot toddy recipe below – enjoy and let us know what you think 🙂 It *always* puts mommy in a good mood.
Random Item of your choice. Whiskey – Mommy tries to always keep some Jack Daniels on hand. Her and dad are NOT big drinkers here but there is an occasion when you need this stuff. Her random item will be Jack Daniels Tennessee honey, 750 ml. It costs around $30.00 but lasts for a while and goes GREAT with mom’s hot toddy recipe.
Mom’s Hot Toddy Recipe:
1 teaspoon of honey; 2 ounces of boiling water; 1 1/2 ounces of whiskey (your choice but JD Honey goes great with this recipe); 3 cloves; 1 cinnamon stick; 1 slice of lemon and 1 pinch of nutmeg
Combine all of the ingredients above except for the nutmeg. Let stand for at least five minutes to combine the flavors. Add the sprinkle of nutmeg and then let your worries go away!
Thank you my friends for Shopping Around the World – hope you had a lot of fun!
Shopping Around the World is so much fun to see the various prices around the world!
Me and my pal Fozzie started Shopping Around the World in April. This has become a huge hit and we all want to know if we are paying more or less than everyone else – snorts. We are going to do it again this month on Wednesday, December 31st.
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Do a posting on your blog linked back to mine. That way we can keep track of all of the different prices. It should be interesting to see the differences between. Mark your calendar so you can do a posting with us.
Items to price this month:
Soup – It is that time of the year here in the States for soup – shivers. What is your favorite can/container to buy and how much is it?
Christmas Trees – Since it’s Christmas time, how much are real trees going for in your area?
Cold Medicine – Tis the season to get sick 🙂 Mom has had to buy some for daddy lately and she couldn’t believe the price of it – OMP! List what kind you normally keep on hand/price.
Hot Drink – During the cold season, what do you keep on hand for something hot – whether it’s coffee, tea, hot chocolate, hot toddy, etc. Name what you have/price
Random Item of your choice.
Come join the fun of Shopping Around the World – mark your calendars
Wednesday, December 31st.
Thank you very much for your ideas for the monthly listing. If you have any more suggestions to be added to my on-going list, please email them to me.
Miniature pot bellied pig and friends - Bacon, Houdini, Hemi and all of the Rock Clan with Journalist Rocky the Squirrel all out looking for adventures from the Hotel Thompson.
Hello friends!!
Today we finish up our tour of the World of Coca-Cola here in Atlanta, Georgia. Last week, I left you with us visiting the awesome polar bear in residence. He was such a hoot and so friendly! We all had a blast playing with him – and I think he took a great liking to Jean. I also think with enough soft whispers in his little polar bear ear, Jean might have been able to take him back home with her. Then again, that would be a hard one to explain to Customs… you think?
something in 4-D you will be astonished. The seats moved and rocked like you wouldn’t believe to the
Now, the Coca-Cola store. Some peeps – cough cough – had way too much fun in the store. Bill was trying to find a good hat to wear for those cold snowy days and nights in Canada. What do you think about this one my friends?
One of mom’s favorite drinks at the moment is anything with mango. She told the waiter that she wanted something mango, frozen and delicious. He brought back this delightfully frozen concoction. Mommy said it was one of the bestest drinks that she has *ever* had. It had an ultimate mango taste to it – which is something you usually don’t find flavor wise when you order a mango drink. Sometimes you just can’t taste what you order, you know? But this was a Mango Margarita and was right up mom’s alley saying it was awesome. And it was garnished with chunks of strawberries and mango. How lovely huh? Even daddy drunk some and he even loved it too.
During this time while they were enjoying the drinks, they also enjoyed this appetizer with nacho chips. Score one for the piggy because I had a coupon for mom/dad for this free appetizer – a $11.00 value – snorts. They choose a is yellow cheese dip garnished with jalapeno’s, tomatoes, onions and ground beef.
Piglove 