Musings of an everyday woman . . .

Reflections on living and loving life . . .

MERRY CHRISTMAS . . . and the winner is . . . December 25, 2009

Filed under: Christmas,Give-Away!,Great Books — everydaywomanusa @ 12:16 pm
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MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY!!!

I HOPE YOU SPEND A WONDERFUL DAY CARRYING OUT THE TRADITIONS THAT ARE SPECIAL TO YOUR FAMILY AND MAKING NEW MEMORIES IN THE PROCESS!!!  ALL THE VERY BEST!

As promised, I’m also posting the lucky winner of the “Pioneer Woman Cooks” cookbook give-away.

Congratulations to Kristin, who left the following message on December 13:

“Kristin Says: December 13, 2009 at 10:28 am e

I would love the book because I am not only a fan of Pioneer Woman, I am also a fan yours and your daughters blogs.”

Kristin~please send me an e-mail at:  everydaywomanusa@aol.com to claim your prize!  I’ll need a mailing address so that I can get your prize off to you ASAP!  (I didn’t find any contact info. attached to your name, so please e-mail me and let me know.)

THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR LEAVING COMMENTS; I WISH I HAD ONE FOR EVERY ONE OF YOU, BUT PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR GIVE-AWAYS IN THE FUTURE!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

“Everydaywoman” (aka Ruth)

 

Meeting my Super-Hero Blogger—Pioneer Woman–in Person! December 13, 2009

Yesterday, I had the time of my life when I traveled to NYC and had a chance to meet my all-time favorite blogger, Ree Drummond, aka The Pioneer Woman, in person! 

She’s even nicer, more down-to-earth, sweeter—and even taller—than I expected!

My daughter, Abbie, aka The Farmer’s Daughter, and I went by train, and then taxi to Chelsea Market to meet up with Ree.  Anyone who knows Ree, knows how much she LOVES babies, and she was all over the fact that Abbie’s pregnant and was quite chatty.  She wanted to know when the baby is due, if it’s a first, etc., etc.  (March and yes!)

Abbie wore a top that left no doubt as to whether she was indeed expecting, or not.  Here’s a closeup:

P-dub was all over that!

She was quite gracious, too.  When someone asked for her expertise with a camera . . .

. . . of course, she obliged . . .

When we first arrived at Chelsea Market, we found it to be a magical place.  It’s a huge building, which was orginally a Nabisco Factory, but which is now filled with shops, stores, eateries, and tons of Christmas Decorations.  We saw. . .

Upside-down Christmas trees. . .

and lots of decorations from recycled products . . .

A CD-tree, for instance . . .

. . . and fabulous creations from old plastic cups . . .

As we joined the queue to meet Ree, we had no idea how long the wait would be, as the first people in line had arrived at 8 am for the 11:00 book signing!

We chatted it up with those around us.  There was a couple behind us who traveled from Massachusetts, a little bit further than us, coming in from Connecticut.  The woman, a food blogger known as This Week’s Menu, gave me a great idea, which you’ll see at the end of the post.

With all the visiting and comparing notes about blogs and other interests, the line moved quickly, but it continued to grow and grow and grow . . . behind us!

When it was our turn to meet Ree, I felt I had to ‘fess up to something . . . remember when my hubbie and son were in Oklahoma and they wanted to surprise me with Ree’s just-released cookbook?  Well, they arrived home with a bright, shiny, colorful Pioneer Woman Cooks book, all full of wonderful “cowboy food,” as Ree calls it, but with a suspicious signature . . .

Ree laughed and quickly added her own, authentic signature!

Like I said, Ree is incredibly gracious!

Thanks for an fabulously fun day, Ree!

So . . . in the spirit of this giving season, I’m giving away an AUTOGRAPHED copy of Ree’s famous cookbook, which is currently on the New York Times Bestseller List, as a gift to one of my readers.  (Andrea~thanks so much for the idea!)

This book is oh-so-much-more than a cookbook!  It is a storybook of Ree’s family and adventures on her Oklahoma ranch, bursting with wonderful pictures and stories of her family, both the human kind and the animal kind!  You will surely adore it! 

It also has wonderful recipes, too.  Our daughter, Abbie, recently made us Ree’s Sticky Buns and they are to die for!

So . . . if you’re interested in entering a random drawing for this fabulous book, just leave a comment telling why you’d like it, why you like Ree, or both!

DRAWING TO BE HELD CHRISTMAS EVE, DECEMBER 24th, AND THE WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED THEN, SO PLEASE ENTER AND CHECK BACK!!!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM EVERYDAY WOMAN!

Hugs,

Ruth

 

Aloha Friday #23: Weekend Plans? December 11, 2009

Filed under: Aloha Friday,Blogging,Entertainment — everydaywomanusa @ 7:04 am
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My “Aloha Friday” question this Friday  is . . .

Do you have any big plans this weekend?

As for me, I’m heading into NYC with my daughter to meet our all-time,  favorite  blogger, Ree Drummond, aka The Pioneer Woman, at her book signing.

I’ll also be addressing baby shower invitations, Christmas shopping, and doing schoolwork.  I’m sure there won’t be enough hours for everything!  What about you?

Whatever you’re doing  this weekend, ENJOY!

 If you’d like to participate in more Aloha Friday questions, click on over to  An Island Life for Kailani’s  “Aloha Friday

 

 

I just LOVE Pioneer Woman! October 3, 2009

Filed under: Blogging — everydaywomanusa @ 10:04 am
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OK, I just have to admit it, as much as I hate to.  I just love “Pioneer Woman,” aka “P-Dub,” aka “Ree Drummond.”  She is a successful, talented blogger, who as she says, “turned in her black heels for tractor wheels,” when she left the “big city” to raise a family on an Oklahoma ranch.

Anyone who can be so self-deprecatingly funny, how can you not love them?  Check out her nagging questions about her high-school photo . . .

“Six Plaguing Questions I Have About This Photo, Ca. 1986 (alternate title: “Hell“)

why

1. Why the hell are my bangs that short?
2. What the hell am I looking at?
3. How the hell many hours did I spend in the tanning booth to get my skin that color? (hint: ask my dermatologist.)
4. How the hell many layers of blush am I wearing?
5. Why…why…why the…why the hell did I feel compelled to match my eyeshadow to my clothes?
6. Why the hell didn’t anyone tell me?”

How many of US have high-school pix that we could ask these same questions about?

If you haven’t checked out P-Dub yet, visit www.thepioneerwoman.com

You might just love her, too!  Why should we keep good blogs to ourselves?  I actually just bought two of her cookbooks for Christmas presents!  (One for myself!)