MelBee's first dinner party

One of my closest friends, we will call her MelBee, just had her first dinner party. She hasn't really cooked a lot, not her fault by the way, but she is making up for it. :) She found an easy Thai shrimp recipe. I taught her how to clean, de-vein, and butterfly the shrimp. Does anyone de-vein the bottom vein on the shrimp? Her boyfriend made the marinade for the shrimp with the recipe. My other friend cooked the shrimp while her boyfriend cooked mushrooms as a side dish. The mushrooms were so so good but with 4 mushroom lovers, two boxes of mushrooms seemed almost just enough. hehe The mushrooms were sauted with garlic, hot pepper, and hoisen sauce. We realized that the rice was forgotten so MelBee cooked Indonesian noodles. I added the sauce. :) I love Indonesian dry noodles, they Rock! :)

Shrimp marinating with the recipe

Good sweet white wine from Walgreens of all places

 So that we don't get too tipsy, we had sparkling apple cider as well. :)

 

 

 

Dutch meatball

 MelBee had made Dutch meatballs with her mom the night before. Lucky me because I was really hungry..hehe

Beautiful Table

Close up of the yummy food

 Not pictured, the dessert! I bought an assortment of yummy mochi and puddings from the Phoenix Food Boutique. They were a hit. :)

I am very proud of my friend even though the only thing she really cooked was the noodles. hehe But she did a great job with finding the recipe and cleaning the shrimp with me. It was another great night of really yummy food and good conversation with good friends. :) Yea MelBee! It was a really really yummy dinner! :)

P.S. I hope to soon learn how to make Thai sticky rice from my friend's housemates. hehe:)

Fall Floral Brooch in Progress

It is Fall. Since I miss the color from the dieing leaves, I am trying to make some beaded jewelry from the colors of Fall. This the first experiment with these colors. :)

My Fall color Inspiration

Finished Flower

I used the same pattern for the flower center as the one in my friend, Glee's red and green bracelet. I started with brown and yellow. Then I added the red. I wanted to add some orange bicones but it didn't allow the shape of the petals to come through. Sorry for the strings, I haven't attached all the parts together yet. As you can see, the center sticks up due to the Swarovski crystal cube in a crystal or clear color. I used a mixture of reds for the petals. I think it came out well but more Indian than Fall.

Finished Flower Top View

It looked kinda plain so I decided to add a leaf. I google searched for "Russian Leaf Instructions". I picked this easy version using the St. Petersburg stitch because the size was a better fit. Here is the link to the instructions if you guys would like to try it. I used bugle beads instead of seed beads in the middle.

Flower and Leaf Top View

I am currently questioning whether or not to add a second leaf to the other side. Any opinions on the matter?
 I do feel that if I do add a second leaf, I might have to change it from a brooch to a hair clip.

Angled View

Side View

Sadly, this brooch doesn't seem to fallish. Please let me know what you guys think of the colors and the second leaf matter. :) Your opinions matter. :)

On a more personal note. As I was trying to take a pic of this, I realized that the strings on the leaf had my needles still attached and that I was missing one needle. Ooops. That's what happens when it's hard to thread the needle so I just keep it on a project that I have not finished. :P After an exhaustive search I still have not found the missing needle. :( Hopefully my feet or someone else's feet do not find the missing needle. I will search again tomorrow.

Panda's Tip of the Day

If you are going to keep needles on the string on an unfinished project, stick the needle in place onto your beading mat or a pin cushion or needle holder so that as you pick up your piece, you realize that there is a needle still on there. hehe Or you could just take the needles off each time to be safe but I do not like stringing needles. :p hehe

Awesome Night!!

My very good friend, Melissa, took me out for a belated birthday get together. It turned out to be a night full of laughter, fun, good food, and good conversation with great people. :D Thank you Mel!!!

Ontario Improv 9-17-11

Greg, Mel, Me, and RC. Thanks for coming out and spending your hard earned money. :)

The Opening Act

This guy was funny. hehe But I didn't catch his name sadly.

Rob Schneider (Special Event)

This guy is HILARIOUS!!! Everything he says is funny because it is just so true! :) We all couldn't stop laughing at everything. hehe Yes he is very short and tiny but a very nice guy. He is half Filipino and half Jewish. He's married to a nice Hispanic lady....hehe He told me that he gets all his understanding of women from his wife. :) It's funny that he has a little rivalry with his friend Adam Sandler. hehe He actually took pictures and gave autographs for everyone who wanted one after the show, which is really cool. And he was very patient about it. :)

I got a "love" AND "Happy Bday" hehe

Thank you Mel for giving me your receipt from buying the tickets so I could get his autograph. It's perfect because it has your name on it too!!! hehe

Olive Garden

We went to Olive Garden to get some dessert and snacks and to talk after the show.

I got a Spa Set with a wrap, sponge, and hair wrap. :)

Thank you girl! You know how to spoil your friends! hehe

Zuppa Toscana soup, Tiramisu, Apple Cobbler, Sampler with stuffed mushrooms, zucchini, and calimari, and of course bread sticks.

It made me so so full!!! Especially since we also ate during the improv show. I got the spinach and artichoke dip and Mel got their fries with garlic mayo. The Garlic mayo was really really yummy! hehe

Thanks guys!! Had a very very fun time!!! Until next laugh fest. :)

Never Say No to Panda!

This is really funny....lol

In Mexico, there is this cheese brand called Panda Cheese. They make these funny commercials. A friend just sent me a link to their Top 5 Panda Cheese Commercials. I hope you laugh as much as I did. hehehe :D