Three Topics in One Post

Hello, all my friends.  In this post, I will cover 3 short topics.

Beautiful Blogger Award

I want to thank Lynna Davidson for giving me the Beautiful Blogger Award.  I am supposed to tell 7 random facts about me.  So here goes:

1.  I am a Star Trek fan since the very first show in the 60's.  I am a Trekker, and proud of it.  I've attended many conventions and met many of the actors.  I used to belong to a local star trek club.

2.  I once saw Tom Cruise in the Monte Carlo in Las Vegas, Nevada on a very slow morning as we were walking through the place.  No, I did not stop to talk with him or ask for his autograph, because I don't believe in doing that.

3.  I did meet Frankie Valley in person once.   Several of us skipped our high school afternoon classes for that.  I'll never forget that moment.

4.  I used to live near San Francisco in a city called Petaluma, across the Bay.  San Francisco to this day remains the most romantic city in my heart and mind.

5.  I've traveled across our US, but the place that I stand in awe of are the great Redwoods in Northern California.  Stately, bold, and aged, they are a most spiritual experience.

6.  I was a small child, but to this day, I remember watching Nikita Kruschev on our old black and white TVs.  Terrified me.

7.  I remember hearing on the school's loudspeaker about the assisination of JFK.  We were all sent home, and everyone watched his burial from their homes.

8.  I studied dance too.  Ballet mostly.  I loved trying for perfection in the poses and movements.

9.  I also danced Hawaiian and Polynesian dances for a short time.  I still like to listen to traditional Hawaiian music.

10. My favorite holiday has always been Christmas, because people are so cheerful and giving.

Now, I'm supposed to pick 7 bloggers, but since I've done so many awards lately, I'm going to do something different.  I am going to copy from my friend Joleene Naylor (sort of).

And that brings us to our next topic.

My Favorite Sites to Visit

Here are just a few of my favorite sites:

e-patterns central  This site is for craft lovers.  Talk about some fun crafts!

Michaels  Michaels is a craft store.  Here, you can get coupons and see their weekly ads.  But more fun is to go into the projects tab, where you can find patterns on most crafts.  I really love the craft videos too, especially during the holidays.  For instance, this video on making bracelets from water bottles:  http://www.michaels.com/Floral-Felt-Water-Bottle-Bracelet-featuring-Aleenes-Original-Tacky-Glue/HbBB1Vm3070,default,pg.html?fdid=videos-generalcrafts-aleenes

Disney Family Fun  This site has crafts and recipes for young and old.  Look at these simple 'Beneficial Bugs.'

http://familyfun.go.com/crafts/home-garden-projects/gardening-nature-crafts/garden-crafts/beneficial-bugs-874540/  

Speaking of recipes, my absolute favorite recipe place is allrecipes.com

My next favorite is Kraft Food Recipes  

Finally, everyone needs some fun places.  My two top favorites are next.

pogo.com  Just a bunch of simple games, such as cards, slot machines, word puzzles, word games, puzzles, carnival games.  

Pinterest  I love this site.  Talk about addictive.  Here I am, if you wish to connect to me:

merridm  

Which leads us to the 3rd topic, food:

3 Baked Noodles Recipes

Around Easter, my FB Italian group were all talking about the Baked Macaroni, traditionally served at this holiday.  Growing up, I couldn't wait for it to come out of the oven, but over the years I forgot about it.  So a few weeks ago, I downloaded 3 different recipes, 2 from allrecipes and one from Kraft and we tried them all out:

Allrecipes.com

Noodles with tomato sauce and 3 cheeses

Allrecipes.com

Noodles with cheddar cheese and sausage

Kraft Recipes

Baked macaroni and cheese

What was the verdict?  We liked them all the same, and all 3 were gone quickly.

May your days ahead be filled with creativity and peaceful contemplations.

Thank you again, Lynna, for the award.

LHR my friends, and PAWS for Success.