It’s The Little Things: Small Buys

Last week, I had a return to do at Anthropologie.

I did the return.

But, I also could not resist two things. They were small home items:

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This adorable butter dish. Holy moly! How cute is this? Polka dots. A fox. You know I cannot resist a butter dish. It is a slippery slope. I love him.

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And this tea towel. Another obsession. But it is a bulldog. With a silly saying. How could I not bring him home? If you look closely in these pictures, you might see someone who is very jealous of my new items. How dare I bring another bulldog into my life. ; )

I love the red and white stripes. It is just crazy enough to make it into my house. Another happy purchase.

It’s The Little Things: Impulse buys. There’s nothin’ like ’em.

What have been your impulse buys lately?

Crockpot Shredded Barbecue Chicken Sandwiches

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Sometimes Pinterest can bring about miraculous things. It brought me my Moroccan Chest. It has provided hours of entertainment. And countless delicious recipes.

This is one of them.

It is called Zesty Slow Cooker Chicken Barbecue Sandwiches.

This is so easy. And just really good.

Ingredients:

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I use tenders)
12 ounces of barbecue sauce (a typical bottle is larger than this. I use the remainder to top the sandwiches with.)
1/2 cup Italian Salad Dressing
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
1 Tablespoon Knorr Chicken Seasoning (this is not in the original recipe. I just like to add it.)
Package of rolls (I use Hawaiian rolls. The chicken is also good heated up and served over rice with chopped cilantro and barbecue sauce the next day for leftovers.)

Optional sides:

Salad
Chips
Cole slaw

Spray crockpot with nonstick spray. Place chicken in crockpot.

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Combine ingredients in a Measuring glass. I use a fork.

Pour over chicken.

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Cook on high for four hours.

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Remove chicken from crockpot to a separate bowl. Shred chicken. Pour some of the cooking juices in until moist again.

Serve in rolls. I use Hawaiian Rolls. Top with barbecue sauce. And cole slaw (if you like that sort of thing).

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I always make this salad. It is so easy to make. One package of pre-washed romaine lettuce or baby spinach with 1/3 cup crumbled feta and 1/3 cup italian dressing. Done!

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I also serve mine with chips.

Now partake in your meal. No one needs to know how very easy it was to make.

Have you made anything from Pinterest? What has been your favorite?

* For an updated twist on this recipe, please click here..

Comic Con 2013 Part III

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This is Part III of my three part account of Comic Con. If you would like, you can view:

Part I

Part II

And what I wore

This is a recap of my favorite thing that happened at Comic Con:

My main goals at Comic Con are always to meet the following authors: George R. R. Martin, Patrick Rothfuss, and Brandon Sanderson.

Last year, I had a moment with Patrick Rothfuss (the author of my favorite book, “Name of the Wind”). I saw him walking down the street. Alone. I was with my children. It was either leave my children and chase him down. Or stay stationary and be a good mother.

This is what I did:

I stood up (we were sitting on a bench). I screamed, “YOU!”

He looked up startled. I would make a terrible hunter.

“YOU’RE AWESOME!” I screamed like a lunatic. My kids had no idea what the heck was happening. My daughter was mortified. Patrick Rothfuss quickened his pace. And he was gone.

I had scared away my prey. Darn!

But I know exactly what he looks like now. I will not be foiled again. Stares off into the distance creepily here.

Ahem.

This year, I got to accomplish another one of those goals. It was amazing.

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On Thursday, my husband and I were walking by a booth, when he leaned over to whisper to me, “Hey. It’s George R. R. Martin.”

My head fell off.

No, it didn’t. But it felt like it might float away. I was giddy.

He is my favorite author. I think he is the most brilliant man alive. His books are a series of fantasy novels,” A Song Of Ice And Fire.” The first book is “Game Of Thrones.” It has also been adapted into an HBO series. My husband and I have loved his books for more than a decade. I was shaking with excitement. I ran to the back of the line, where I was met by security. I was told I needed to have a ticket for the signing.

My heart sank. He was so close.

I walked away. Sad. But I was still excited we got to see him.

Thirty minutes later, we were leaving. I asked my husband if we could walk by that aisle one more time. I just really wanted to see him again.

We got there.

My husband left me to look at something. The “bouncer” was gone. George R.R. Martin was still there. There was a small line. I quickly got in it.

I am a rebel.

Apparently not a good one. My kids informed me that I stood there rubbing my hands together and saying, “He, He, He, He.”

Okay, a crazy rebel.

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And then he was in front of me. I started shaking.

I said, “I just love you.”

He politely said, “Really? Well, thank you.” He smiled. He was very kind.

I purchased a calendar that he had signed. My daughter took our picture. I might have touched him like a crazy person. I do not know. My daughter says I did. It was a quick blur. I thanked him.

And I left. My poor husband missed the whole thing. And he likes George R.R. Martin just as much as I do.

This was my highlight of Comic Con. Maybe my whole year.

My soul is full of happiness.

Have you met someone you idolize? How did it turn out? (In some future posts in the coming weeks or months, I will write about meeting Sean Astin and finally stalking, tracking, hunting down, meeting Patrick Rothfuss.)

Comic Con 2013 Part II

So, I just left you with the visions of what Comic Con looks, feels and smells like.

Now, let’s move along to its heart.

The merchandise.

Shopping. My favorite.

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First, my son bought himself some new Minecraft souvenirs. My daughter purchased t-shirts and art books. My husband purchased his comics and graphic novels.

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We got so many awesome books for free. This is always my favorite part. Is there a more beautiful word in the English language, other than, “free”?

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I also got to meet one of my favorite authors, Daniel Abraham.

Lines are long. Long. We wanted to make sure we got to the book signing by Daniel Abraham. We got there twenty minutes early. Just a bit later, he showed up. He is actually pretty good looking.

Since we were first in line and they were not starting yet, we were able to speak to him for a bit. He was so cool! They gave us the first book free. I have read his other series. I have not read this one. Yet. I just started it.

My husband, of course, has read them all.

He was saying to someone that his old assistant went to George R.R. Martin and if you needed to speak to her, she is the one who answers the phone.

So, I quipped, “and what would that number be?”

He chuckled and then told me that George R.R. Martin’s number used to be listed in the white pages. Can you believe it? I need to be a better stalker. It was a very cool experience.

After that, I went back to stalking:

Art.

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We stopped by one of my favorite artist’s booths. Rhode Montijo. It is always a pleasure to see him and his lovely wife. For the past two years, I have purchased his original drawings (future post to come). This year, he did not bring any. He was focusing on his book The Halloween Kid. I was sad, but very happy for him that his book is doing so very well.

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My husband found the neatest artist during one of my “time-outs.” His name is Martin Hsu. He purchased this really cool snake painting. My daughter purchased his art book. I later got to meet him. He was the sweetest. Lovely man. And I love the painting we purchased from him.

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We stopped by Becky and Frank’s booth. They are the creator’s of a Comic, called Tiny Kitten Teeth. We purchased a little llama painted to look like a tree creature. Oh my gosh! I love it so much! I will do a post about some of their art in my home in the future.

They are the sweetest couple that has ever walked this Earth. I am not kidding. To meet them, is to smile.

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I also stopped by Patara Vuduberi booth. She sell prints of her work on Etsy. I purchased two more originals from her. She was also so nice. I am so bummed I did not get a picture with her. Next time! I am very happy to have her art in our home. I love the fantasy pictures she creates.

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I also picked up this cute mushroom from Wool Buddy. I just adore his felt creations.

It was so much fun. I am glad all of our artwork we purchased was small. I am running out of wall space here!

Tomorrow I will post about my best experience at Comic Con. Until then, have a great day!

You may view Part I here.

And what I wore to Comic Con here.