Mermaids of the Lake Blog

Lampshade redo

By Mermaid Debbie

I have been redoing my art studio/mermaid's publishing office. I inherited this sweet lamp when my sweet grandma passed last year. I love it so much and it reminds me of her.

I bought this plain little shade and... ugh... it is plain and too short. So I dug into my hat box full of vintage lace and hankies and I love how it turned out. It only took about 10 minutes too! Oh, how I love projects that make this much of a difference and only take 10 minutes!

Before

 

Glue old bits of lace and hankies with a hot glue gun

A cute helper adds to the awesomeness

I love it! I even love the ripped, antique lace the best!

I am linking this post to Pink Saturday at How Sweet the Sound today! Please visit this link and see all of the other awesome pink posts!

Did you know that Mermaids of the Lake is an online women's magazine!? Hope on over and see why we love doing what we do! It's pretty awesome, if we do say so!!! www.mermaidsofthelake.com

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Pink your drink!

By Mermaid Debbie

In honor of October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, we have put together a whole selection of lucious pink drinks- some cocktails and some mocktails!

Why not plan a Party in Pink and celebrate life and the anticipation of a world without breast cancer. Serve these delicious, pink drinks and your friends will be thinking pink in no time!

Pink lady cocktail

This pretty pink cocktail was popular in the 1950's. The orginal version uses an egg white, but it can be omitted.

1 egg white (optional)
1 teaspoon grenadine syrup
1 teaspoon half-and-half cream
1 (1.5 fluid ounce) jigger gin
1 cup crushed ice

Pour the egg white, grenadine syrup, half-and-half, and gin into a cocktail shaker over ice. Cover, and shake, shake, shake until the outside of the shaker has frosted. Strain into a chilled glass to serve.

Pink Grapefruit Martini

2 1/2 ounces gin or vodka
1 to 2 ounces unsweetened grapefruit juice
1/2 to 1 package Stevia
3 to 4 ice cubes

Pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Shake, shake, shake... shake, shake, shake... Shake your booty... Repeat... Strain your icy concoction into a martini glass and enjoy!

Strawberry mango smoothie

1 cup(s) fresh or frozen unsweetened strawberries
1 cup(s) mango or apricot nectar, chilled
1/2 cup(s) plain or vanilla yogurt
4 ice cubes

In blender, combine strawberries, mango nectar, yogurt, and ice and blend until mixture is smooth and frothy. Pour into 2 tall glasses. Serve with straws, if you like.

Pink lipstick cocktail

This soft pink cocktail is a perfect feminine mix of sexy elegance and creamy indulgence.

3 ounces tequila
3 ounces white creme de cacao
3 ounces half and half
2 splashes grenadine
1 cup crushed ice

Chill two martini glasses. In a blender combine all the ingredients and and blend until frothy. Divide the mixture between the two chilled glasses.

Cranberry spritzer

A fun, festive beverage that's cool, elegant, and good for you!

1 ounce cranberry juice
1 ounce ginger ale
4 ounces club soda or seltzer
lime wedges and whole cranberries

Fill an old-fashioned glass with ice. In a container mix juice, ginger ale, and soda or seltzer. Stir. Pour mixture over ice and garnish with lime wedge and a couple of cranberries.

Mermaid shell dropper

This pretty, pink cocktail is a "Real Shell Dropper!" The slightly sweet, slightly tart combination goes down smooth and easy.

2 24 ounce cans of pink lemonade concentrate
3 cans of water
2 cans of Vodka
2 Beers

Mix all of the ingredients in a big pitcher, stir in some ice and serve in pretty cocktail glasses. Garnish with a lime wedge, and add a sugar rim if you like.

Pink poodle cocktail

Gather your girlfriends and get ready for some fun! This would be a perfect cocktail for the bride-to-be's shower, bachelorette party or to celebrate the life of a breast cancer survivor!

Pink coconut for rim
3 cups cracked ice or 12 ice cubes
1 1/4 cups dark rum
1 cup cream of coconut
2 cups half and half
3 ounces grenadine
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Rim 6 cocktail glasses with the pink coconut. Chill the glasses until ready to serve.

In a blender, combine half of the remaining ingredients. Blend until all the ice chunks are smooth. Divide the mixture evenly between 3 of the prepared glasses and serve.

Repeat the process with the remaining ingredients to create 3 additional drinks.

Pink coconut rim: Moisten the rim of the glass with a complementary liqueur. Mix 3 tablespoons dried unsweetened coconunt with 1 tablespoon powdered pink food coloring.

Today is Pink Saturday in Blogland! Every Saturday hundreds of bloggers join together and share images of PINK! Want to join in the fun?

Visit Beverly of How Sweet The Sound for details. She also has the links to all the participants. It's fun!

Please visit our Mermaids of the Lake E-zine and see what we are all about! www.mermaidsofthelake.com

Sign up for our free newsletter:

Kitty loves bling!

With rings on her fingers 

 

And bells on her toes 

She shall have music

 Wherever she goes

For inspiration, fun, tips and ideas, fashion, amazing recipes, and so much more, please visit our online women's magazine: www.mermaidsofthelake.com

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God you reign

 

You paint the night
You count the stars and call them by name
the skies proclaim
God You reign
Your glory shines
... You teach the sun when to bring a new day
creation sings God You reign

God You reign
God You reign
forever and ever
God You reign

You part the seas
You move the mountains with the words that you say
my song remains
God You reign
You hold my life
You know my heart and You call me by name
I live to say God You reign

hallelujah, hallelujah

~Lincoln Brewester

Watch the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3H_5mdOPoR8&feature=related

Dive into celebrating life

For 25 years the little pink ribbon has been the symbol of a courageous and powerful effort to wipe out breast cancer. Every year in the month of October we don the ribbon as a sign that we are part of an awareness movement that celebrates the lives that have been lost and those that will be saved.

Why pink? It is said that the color pink was chosen because it is a color that emotes health and wellness. Also, because it represents femininity, and this is a cancer most frequently diagnosed in women.

 

The Mermaids of the Lake send prayers and moral support to all who have been touched in one of the many ways by breast cancer.

~Shelley Hepler and Debbie Nania

 

Follow the link below to our e-zine and read Holly Boyce's courageous, inspiring story...

Proudly Wearing Pink

It was the most wonderful time of the year. A time when the world was blanketed in white and colored lights filled the streets. Christmas 2009 was upon us. It really was the most wonderful time of the year... well, at least that is what Hollie thought. What do you do when you get the not-so-good news that you have breast cancer?

Breast cancer survivor and founder of Friends of the Bald Woman, Holly Boyce shares her story of being "the best cancer patient the world had ever seen" by sharing hope and humor with others in The Most Wonderful Time of the Year.

It's Pink Saturday time again! Thank you, Beverly from How Sweet the Sound for hosting Pink Saturday, a fun linking party where everyone shares something pink!

Did you know we have a free newsletter? It will only take about a minute to sign up and join the thousands of smart, savvy women on our mailing list! Do it here - do it now: http://mermaidsofthelake.com/enewssignup.asp

THANK YOU!!!

En La Cocina's Seafood Paella

Mike Gonzales, Spokane's ABC KXLY 4 Evening News anchor cooks! He is also the host of “En La Cocina” the Latin cooking/cultural show that airs across the Northwestern United States and around the nation on Dish Network.

We recently partnered with Mike to bring our readers access to his amazing recipes. Oh, wow... this looks amazing. Thanks Mike!!

 

Seafood Paella, a fragrant mixture of seafood, meat and rice originated along the Mediterranean coast of Valencia, Spain. Essentially a shepherd's or fisherman's pot luck meal, the carefully tended paella set over an outdoor fire beckoned workers to a delicious meal graced with local ingredients seasonally available in the countryside.

1 pinch or ½ tsp. saffron threads
¼ cup olive oil
½ lb. or more chorizo sausage links, cut into rounds
1 chicken cut into 2" pieces with skin intact, leave legs whole
1 med. white onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup dry white wine
6 cups rich chicken broth
1 Tablespoon bittersweet Spanish paprika
½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
½ tsp dried rosemary
½ tsp dried thyme
3 cups short grained Spanish rice*
1 - 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 lb. mussels, scrubbed clean
20 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
¼ cup fresh or frozen peas
1 lemon, sliced into eighths for garnish
chopped chives or scallion for garnish

Add saffron to a half cup of warm water and allow to " bloom". Bring chicken stock to a simmer.

Heat olive oil in the paella pan or a wide bottom skillet over med. high heat. Dry the chicken pieces and season with salt and pepper.

Brown the chicken well in the hot oil and remove to a platter. Brown the chorizo in the same manner and remove from pan. Add the onion to the pan and sauté until wilted, add the garlic and continue to cook and stir until soft. Take care not to burn the garlic as it will taste bitter. Add the wine and simmer until most is reduced.

Stir in the simmering chicken stock, ½ cup of saffron water, paprika, parsley, rosemary, thyme and salt. Bring to a gentle boil. Add the rice, (traditionally in the shape of a cross) fresh rosemary sprig, and peas.

Reduce heat to low, cook uncovered for about 10 minutes without stirring.

Bury the chicken and sausage into the partially cooked rice and continue to cook uncovered for another ten minutes, next add the shrimp and mussels in the rice and continue to cook over low heat until the shrimp are pink and the rice is tender and the broth absorbed.

If extra liquid is needed to finish the cooking process, only add boiling water or broth as needed. When the cooking process is complete, remove pan from heat, cover, and let rest for a few minutes.

Serve paella right from the pan. Garnish with lemon slices placed in a ring around the pan and sprinkle with chopped chives or scallions.

Serves 8 - 10

Mike Gonzalez is the host of "En La Cocina" (In The Kitchen) the Latin cooking/cultural show that airs across the Northwestern United States and around the nation on Dish Network. Mike is the past president of The Hispanic Business Professional Association of Spokane and founder of The Hispanic Food Network www.hfntv.com

Mike is also the evening news anchor at ABC KXLY 4 in Spokane. Mike came to KXLY from Omaha, Nebraska, where he was an anchor and reporter. While in Omaha, Mike was recognized by the Associated Press for his breaking news coverage of a massive oil fire.

Previously, Mike worked as the weekend anchor and reporter at KOLN/KGIN Lincoln, Nebraska, where he won an AP award for his sports series on the Lincoln Saltdogs minor league baseball team.

Mike is a graduate of North Carolina State University and also attended the Missouri School of Journalism as a graduate student. He was a standout pitcher for the Wolfpack baseball team, and later played for the minor league Allentown Ambassadors. Mike was given The 2010 Asuris Insurance Latino Hero Award for his work in the Hispanic Community in Eastern Washington.

The Mermaids are on a mission: To Inspire!

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Happy Pink Saturday!

We love being a part of PINK SATURDAY! Every Saturday a couple hundred or more bloggers gather together at How Sweet the Sound for a virtual party to celebrate the color pink. You should join in the fun!