What Would You Have Done?

I took my kids to play tennis today. We went to a park that we usually don't go to, as there are tennis courts much closer to our house. I'm not sure why we went to this different park today. Anyway, when we got to the tennis courts, we got out of the car, and there was NO ONE around. It was nice and quiet. All of a sudden this guy about a half block down the street yells "Hey Lady!!" and starts running towards us! He was running, not just jogging or trotting - he was in a full sprint!

Well heck, I had no clue what this guy was going to do! I was petrified. I was a woman with two kids with her and no one else in sight except for this very tall man running towards us. I don't know what you would have done, but I corralled the kids, got them in the car as fast as I could, started it, locked the doors, rolled the windows up, and then proceeded to high tail it out of there! When I backed up there he was standing there by my window staring at me. I didn't know if he needed help or had a gun, but I wasn't about to find out! I certainly didn't want to be the one that needed help.

So..... what would you have done? I'm sure I probably blew things out of proportion, but the guy didn't look like he was in distress, he was walking slowly down the street until we got out of the car. I'm a mom, certainly moms protect their young.

Main lesson to be taught here is: guys, never yell "Hey Lady!" and start sprinting towards a mom and her children. She just may think you mean harm.

Sterzings Chips - Winner of MY Potato Chip Taste Test

They came out with the winner of The Ultimate Potato Chip Taste Test. The winner was Kettle Krinkle . That's fine and dandy, but I'm sure someone forgot to put the OH-SO GREAT Sterzings Potato Chips into the taste contest. They'd have won hands down.

Sterzings Potato Chips were a HUGE treat in our household growing up. They were better known as the "Iowa Potato Chips". We only got them when Cousin Jim came to visit, or any other relatives from Iowa came to visit. They would usually load up their trunk with them and deliver to all our relatives on "this side of the river". River - meaning the Mighty Mississippi.

What makes these chips so great? They are light, and crunchy, and they have a completely different flavor to them. Also, some of them have these little pockets of grease that are to die for! Literally, we'd die for those! Fights would break out, kids would jump over the table even, all for a chip with a grease pocket in it. I even sold one for a buck to my sister. My oldest sister is the die-hardest Iowa Potato Chip grease pocket chip monger on the planet. Still to this day we fight over those! Too funny.

You can order these fantastic chips online here. I think I'm going to have to order a pack of 4 bags. Shipping is already included in the cost. They are so worth it!!

Bacon-Wrapped Hot Dogs

Clearly this is not a healthy eating blog with the type of food that I put on here every so often. We're having bacon-wrapped hot dogs for lunch this fine Labor Day Holiday, so I thought I'd share this post that was originally on Karene's Kitchen on 9/9/08 (I merged Karene's Kitchen into Lily's Licorice back in the spring.)

It was always a special treat when mom made the bacon wrapped hot dogs for dinner. That meant we were getting chips and pop with dinner. No salad, potatoes or milk! Yippee!

These are absolutely delicious. You slice an opening long ways in the hot dog. Then you fill it with small slices of American cheese. Take a slice of bacon (2 actually works best to make it fit fully around the hot dog) and wrap it around the hot dog. Then you broil the hot dog til the bacon is done. You can also toast the bun just a bit. Top the dog with what you usually top it with, and Whala! you have a most delectable hot dog.

Enjoy!

Awww... It's The End Of Summer

I don't know about you all, but we (my family) had probably the best summer we've had together (since the kids have arrived). Did we go on some fancy vacation? No. In fact I'm not so sure we even left town. I did go up to Saluda, SC two times. Who Hoo!! That's the happenin' place to be. Just kidding - it's in the middle of nowhere - and I mean nowhere - but it's very beautiful and peaceful.

So what made this summer so wonderful? Nothing! That's just it - we did nothing! We woke up when we wanted, we went to bed when we wanted (my good friends can attest to that), and we went to the pool whenever we wanted. Yes - we went to the pool whenever we wanted. Which is pretty much all we ever wanted to do. So everyday, when we got around to going, we'd pack up the pool bag (pool bag consists of 6 pair of goggles, sun screen, lots of snacks, water, small cooler, reading material for mom, mom's cell phone, mom's notebook, and pen). Then we'd head out to the pool. Most days we stayed ALL day or as long as we could.

My point here is this: I really think the reason we had such a wonderful summer is cause we weren't rushing around trying to do all sorts of stuff, we really enjoyed each other's company (my son and daughter really get along even better now - they actually hung out more together than in their little separate groups with their friends), and it was just laid-back and relaxing. Plus mom got to hang with her friends too. I plan to do the same thing next summer.

Oh! And the added bonus is this fabulous tan I have now, and I lost quite a few pounds with all that swimming too! (and yes that is our pool up above - during a swim meet)

So how was your summer?

My First Pottery Piece!

My son loves doing pottery. He's actually pretty good at it and has even won Best In Show awards at the local fair here. His pottery teacher told me I could join in his classes with him - she's so neat, she let's the moms take the class for free if they wish to stay. So this go around I decided to. I'm so glad I did. Not only did we have a blast together, I actually had a lot of fun! So I'm showing off my first pottery piece. It's just a plate, but with the Cataba Blue glaze I used on it, it goes fabulously in my kitchen!

Life Happens! And I Missed My Blogoversary!

Life Happens, and because of that I totally missed Lily's Licorice's very 1st Blogoversary!!! It was July 29th. I can't believe it. I wouldn't have noticed it if it weren't for Teena in Toronto! Thanks Teena for the warm wishes.

When I am really busy with my Usborne Books business, unfortunately Lily's Licorice suffers. But that's ok. She will always be here. I have a blast with it. And I have a blast with my Usborne Books business. By the way! You can join my team, and start your own Usborne business for only $15! That's THE BEST offer Usborne has ever had. They really are trying to help people get their own business started. You can check it out HERE.

Since, many of you weren't around when Lily's Licorice first started, I am reposting the first original post. That way you can see WHY it's called Lily's Licorice.

Why Lily's Licorice

So many silly things happen in our lives each day. All day long silly things come to us via our computers, our mailbox, our children, our dogs, our spouses, our telephone - you get the picture. Life is constantly SILLY!

If you are someone who can find the silliness in any given situation, then you have a leg up on most people in this world. That's me. I can find humor in anything and actually laugh about it! Although that usually gets me in a lot of trouble, but so what. I am the least stressed person I know, and I am the least stressed person all my friends know. I know that cause they always tell me that. And I have to tell you -- I probably have more to stress about than most people do! Find the humor in life. It's so much fun.

So, where does the name Lily's Licorice come from. We had an incident today with our brand new lab pub named Lily. She's a beautiful Lab pup that my husband brought home from work one day last month. I was so excited to be getting a brand new puppy. I did not know a horse was going to be walking through my front door! I like small dogs, and my husband brought home a gigantic lab that was only 7 months old yet I didn't have to bend over to pet the thing!

Needless to say, it took some time to bond with my new race horse. Thirty minutes is a long time. She's so mellow and so wonderful, how could you not LOVE her!!

So today, after being with us less than two months I had to take her to the vet. She was limping last night and this morning she wouldn't even get up. When she finally got up she wouldn't walk on one of her legs, so I had this giant horse hopping around my house on three legs! I wasn't quite sure how I was going to get this horse down the steps and into my van to take it to the dr. Somehow I did it--in the pouring rain no less. The doctor first thought she had some osteo something or other that lab pups get so he took an x-ray. He came back in the exam room shaking his head saying "This is not at all what I would have expected." The dog has buck shot all throughout her leg!!! And that's just the leg that was x-rayed! I can't imagine how much more she has in the rest of her body. Anyway, Lily will be fine. We got her from the lab rescue (had horrible owners before - obvisouly if the dog was used as target practice!)

So I decided that since I love this dog so much (wow! I'm actually admitting it to the World now) that maybe using her name would be fitting. Lily. Now what goes with Lily? Licorice was the first word that came to my mind. Black licorice at that! Now when I was a kid, my mom carried black licorice around all the time as a snack. I have no clue why!!! One time we were at a petting zoo and a crazy goat kept getting in my mom's purse to eat all her darn black licorice! Boy I bet that goat was sick that night. We certainly weren't cause we never got any!

Hence the name Lily's Licorice!

Presidential Wit

I have this book, Presidential Wit, that I just love. It gives you an idea of how our former presidents really were - a sense of their personality that we don't usually get to see. Here are some of my favorite quotes:

John Adams:

"During a tour of Princeton University, Adams was taken into the chapel, where, he said, "the scholars sing as badly as the Presbyterians in New York." " August 24, 1774 (pg. 12)

"From John Adams to his wife, Abigail Adams: "I must not write a word to you about politics, because you are a woman." " December 30, 1778 (pg. 12)


Thomas Jefferson:

"In a letter to John Jay, Jefferson described Louis XVI during a crisis in France: "He hunts one half of the day, is drunk the other, and signs whatever he is bid." October 8, 1787 (pg. 17)

"Politeness is artificial good humor, and a valuable preservative of peace and tranquility." Letter to a Friend Novermber 24, 1808 (pg. 19)


John Quincy Adams:

"The wife of Willis Anderson came again to petition for his pardon. She hinted that her husband did not wish to be discharged from prison himself, and that it would be no relaxation of his punishment to turn him over to her." Diary June 19, 1828 (pg. 30) Ha! I'm sure many a men would feel this way in this situation.


Andrew Jackson:

"Commenting on Sam Houston, Andrew Jackson remarked: "There goes a man made by the Lord Almighty and not by his tailor." " (pg. 34)



Millard Fillmore:

"When James K. Polk won the Presidential election, Fillmore said: "May God save the country; for it is evident that the people will not." " Letter to Henry Clay November 11, 1844 (pg. 42) Hm.... seems like we are in this same situation today!


James Buchanan:

"Inviting a friend to dinner at his house, James Buchanan wrote: "I am happy that our tastes on so many subjects are the same and that we both delight in the classical dish of sauerkraut. Many pretenders to refinement despise this honest German dish; but we know better. I shall therefore expect you." " (pg. 46)

With that I think I will stop, as Abraham Lincoln's Presidential wit will be a post in itself. Then I will take up the rest of the presidents to Johnson.

Cited from: Presidential Wit from Washington to Johnson, Compiled and Edited by Bill Adler, Trident Press: New York, 1966.