Think Big Photos Review

Think Big Photos is based in Denver, Colorado and provides AZA accredited Zoos and Aquariums technology that allows them to have an online photo store.  Similar to a snapfish and shutterfly. (Below are the Zoos they work with)  

The Zoos use the sites to help raise funds and spread their message.  The Zoos receive 25% of the proceeds.  Most AZA Accredited Zoos are nonprofits.  AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums spend nearly $90 million per year on conservation initiatives. In the last five years AZA has funded nearly 4,000 conservation projects in more than 100 countries.   Pretty cool!

Here are some of the sites.
http://www.zooatlantaphotos.org/site/
http://www.oaklandzoophotos.com/site/
http://www.cameronparkzoophotos.com/site/
http://www.knoxvillezoophotos.com/site/
http://www.louisvillezoophotos.com/site/
http://www.hoglezoophotos.com/site/
http://www.senecaparkzoophotos.com/site/
http://sedgwickcountyzoophotos.com/site/

You might like to know that as a 100% digital production facility, Think Big Photos is an environmentally friendly and sustainable choice for print production.  Fundamentally, traditional off-set facilities require more paper and more water then digital production facilities.  More over, digital production nearly eliminates the unspoken enviro-killer of traditional print facilities…. The chemical waste.

Are you like me and have tons of photos that need to be organized?

Be Creative! A photobook is the perfect way to preserve the special moments you have shared with those you love? Photobooks are super easy too!

For this review I got to make a photo book. I choose Hogle Zoo, because it’s a zoo that’s near me. It was so easy to make my book and I would say I had it done in less than an hour!

Each zoo website has several books styles and sizes to choose from. Once you pick your book style and size it takes you through loading your pictures. You can change how many you want on a page and you can adjust the size, you can even add some text. It was so fun to make my book.

I chose to make a book about our house for my grandkids. I included pictures of Chauncey and Sloan and pictures of my sweet hubby and me. It was so fun to put together. I started with a picture of our house from the outside and then I had pictures of all of us doing different things from the past year. It would be so easy to do any of the scrapbook theme books and they would make great gifts.

Use Discount code: ZOOPB5
for $5 off your purchase of $20 or more. (Excludes Shipping)

Be sure and stop by here and read about the two new chimps at the Oakland Zoo!

~I received a product sample in order to write my review. I received no monetary compensation. All opinions expressed are mine.

Missing Blogger Found In Maine!

                 

In case you’re wondering why I haven’t been posting much, I’m visiting my daughter in Maine. She’s the one with the cute purple hat on. That’s me on top with my eyes shut, and Sloan is the cutie on the bottom left (I had to leave her home).

I’m staying here with her family at their cute cottage in Maine and there is still lots of snow.

 

                          

This is my grandson Reese. He’s wearing the dragon jacket I made him for Christmas. I just added the teeth and eyes to the hood.

                                    

This is Amelia, she’s a sweetheart.

This is Jillian, she was the baby, but Jennie let her have her 2nd birthday in January! Don’t you just want to kiss those cheeks?

Sock Monkey Adventures and The Giveaway!

We took our Sock Monkey on all kinds of adventures while I was in Maine! Here he is checking out the view from the world's tallest bridge tower!

Jillian became pretty attached to Sock Monkey, she calls him Wow Wow.

Here he is climbing rocks with Reese!

And here is is with Amelia going for a little ride.

Be sure and stop by my giveaway where you could win your very own Sock Monkey! You can find all the details HERE!

Metamorphosis Monday, Sock Monkey and Italian Meatball Pasta Bake

I'm hooking up with Tea Rose Home Link Party so be sure and check out everyone's projects!



Today I'm linking up with Between Naps On The Porch for Metamorphosis Monday.




The fabric on the left is the fabric I bought at our local second hand store, D.I. The other fabric I found at Walmart.

These little skirts are what Jennie and I made out of the fabric.




I love the girls in these skirts!

Now for some more Sock Monkey Adventures, and The Sock Monkey Giveaway!


Jennie and the kids and I took Sock Monkey shopping the other day. This is Camden and there are lots of really fun little shops!

Sock Monkey got an easy ride in my purse! Notice my little helpers pushing the stroller!

Time for a water break! Sock Monkey doesn't even mind that it says dog water!


Time for lunch at Cappy's Chowder House! Sock Monkey and I ordered crab cakes!


Jillian dined in her stroller and Sock Monkey was there for her when she needed a little love!

~THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED~

Ok, now for the giveaway! Sabrina from Riyah~la Designs is offering one of my readers a sock monkey designed just for them! Sabrina hand sews these little guys and they are so nice and soft!

I had so much fun with this little guy! And so did Jillian my granddaughter. I ended up leaving him in Maine because Jillian fell in love with him and she named him Wow Wow! That's what she says when she sees him.

So, I know you'll love one of Sabrina's sock monkeys if you win!

So here's the rules for the Sock Monkey Giveaway~

This rule is mandatory! Go to Riyah~li Designs and pick out something else that you really like,
then come back here and tell me what you like in a comment.

Extra entries~

Follow my blog, if you already do or are just now following, just tell me in a comment.

Make Riyah~li Designs Etsy Shop a favorite, let me know you did it in a comment

Like me on Facebook (top left column of my blog), let me know you did it in a comment.

Like Riyah~Li Designs on Facebook, let me know you did it in a comment.

Follow me via Networked blogs (top right hand column of my blog), let me know you did it in a comment.

This giveaway is open until Friday, May 28 at 6pm. Open to anyone in the U.S.





I wanted to make something with pasta for Jennie's birthday last week and she helped me come up with this yummy Italian style pasta. Jennie buys her herbs from World Spice, they are dried but fresher than what you get at the store so you might want to cut back the amounts of the spices and add more after the sauce is made. Herbs tend to lose their potency if they've sat on a shelf too long. You could also add browned hamburger instead of meatballs or just leave them out.

Italian Meatball Pasta Bake

3 cups dry penne pasta
1 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoons flour
3 cups milk
1/2 tsp dry basil
1/4 tsp dry oregano
1/4 tsp dry thyme
3 cloves garlic, minced
8oz tomato sauce
1 egg
1 cup mozzarella cheese
4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
4 tablespoons seasoned bread crumbs
2 lb bag frozen meatballs

Cook pasta in salted water until just barely done. Don't overcook. Set aside.

Cook meatballs in the oven following package directions.

Melt butter in a saucepan and saute the garlic. Whisk in the flour, cook for a minute then the milk. Whisk and boil for at least 1 minute. Add spices. Stir in the tomato sauce. Add the egg to the noodles and toss it around till it coats all the noodles. Stir in the sauce, meat balls and mozzarella cheese.

Pour into a greased 2 1/2 quart casserole dish. In a small bowl mix the bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese and sprinkle over the pasta. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes to crisp up the bread crumbs.

Perfect Party Cake for Jennie's Birthday

Today is my last day in Maine. This is a picture of Amelia and me at the park the other day. She was so cute, the other day she came over to me and said she had a secret. She whispered in my ear "don't call me Little Lia, call me Amelia!" I thought that was such a sweet way to tell me what she wanted to be called. Although I really liked Little Lia! This is the cool swing that the kids like at Belfast City Park.


This is the cake I made for Jennie's birthday the other day. It is a recipe that Jennie has made a lot, and she's said it's the best she's ever made. After making it, I totally agree! This cake is light and fluffy and so much better then a box mix, and it isn't really that much work! Jennie already had some lemon curd that she had canned, so that's what I used to fill each layer with, then I just sweetened some whipped cream with powdered sugar and added a little vanilla.

Perfect Party Cake

2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups whole milk or buttermilk
4 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 stick (8 tablespoons)butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure lemon extract

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray 2~9" cake pans with Pam.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt.

Whisk together the milk and egg whites in a medium bowl.

Put the sugar and lemon zest in a mixer bowl or another large bowl and rub them together with your fingers until the sugar is moist and fragrant. Add the butter and beat at medium speed for 3 minutes, until the butter and sugar are very light. Beat in the extract, then add one third of the flour mixture. Beat in half of the milk-egg mixture, then beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients until well mixed. Add the rest of the milk and eggs, beating until the batter is mixed, then add the last of the dry ingredients. Beat for another 2 minutes.. Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen and springy to the touch – a toothpick inserted into the centers should come out clean. Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, un~mold them. Invert and cool to room temperature right side up. (The cooled cake layers can be wrapped airtight and stored at room temperature overnight or frozen for up to 2 months.)

I sliced Jennie's cake into four layers, then I spread each layer with lemon curd and frosted the whole thing with whipped cream.

Amelia's Blondies With Sprinkles

I got to watch the girls this morning while Jennie took Reese to swimming lessons. While Jillian was napping Amelia and I decided to make cookies! She wanted to use some of the sprinkles her mommy has. She called these cow sprinkles Pony Sprinkles, because she loves horses and ponies! Don't tell her they're cow sprinkles, ok?


She made a "C" with the chocolate chips! She really likes making "C"s right now!

Of course I let her lick the beater!

Of course Amelia put on lots of Pony Sprinkles!

Jennie and Reese loved the smell of these when they got home! Amelia said they were wonderful, so you'll have to try them!

Amelia's Blondies With Sprinkles

2 cups brown sugar, we used dark brown
2/3 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon soda
1 cup chocolate chips
Pony Sprinkles

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray 9x13 pan with Pam. In a bowl whisk the dry ingredients.

Cream the butter and the brown sugar for 2 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well. Add the dry ingredients and mix, mix in the chocolate chips. Spread into prepared pan and sprinkle with sprinkles. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Cool slightly and cut into bars.

Maine Pictures and Beanie-dog Bundles

Ok, this is a great picture, huh? I know, I cut off my sweet hubby's head, oh well, I wanted a picture Jillian in this fun swing. This is at Belfast City Park, in Maine.

Here's Jennie pushing Amelia on the swing. She's such a good mom. This is Amelia's favorite park, and it has a beach!

Here's Reese swinging. He's wearing his new baseball cap. He's on a T~Ball team!





I've had this recipe for years and never made them. These are super easy and a great way to use up leftover hot dogs. The kids loved them. They would be good for a picnic or after school snack.


Beanie-dog Bundles

2 (8oz) tubes crescent rolls
2 cups chopped hot dogs (about 6)
1/2 re-fried beans
1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Heat oven to 375.

Unroll the crescent rolls and pinch two together to make a rectangle. Put in a muffin cup and do this with the remainder of the dough, you should have 8.

Heat the re-fried beans in the microwave (it makes it so much easier to mix up). In a bowl mix the chopped hot dogs, grated cheese and re-fried beans, add a dash of garlic powder. Divide this between the 8 crescent rolls. Wrap the dough over the tops and pinch to seal.

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden. Serve with ketchup, mustard or barbecue sauce. I served them with salsa.

I'm going on vacation to Maine!

Do you see these cute little munchkins? Well, today is going to be a wonderful day, because my sweet hubby and I are flying to Maine to go visit! Yup, I get an all day date with my hubby and I get to go to my daughters! I'm so excited to see her new home and visit Maine. I won't actually get to see these cuties until tomorrow, because our plane gets in really late tonight.

I've decided to take Thursday's off from blogging, so you don't get a recipe today, but I do have something to share with you. You've got to go over to Dittle Dattle and learn how to use the Snipping Tool! Carrie has a great tutorial for it and she used my recipe to show you how it's done. It's a great way to save recipes and other useful information.

Be sure and stop by Sew Fun! She has a great giveaway going for some super cute pillows!

Cherry Drop Cakes And My Daughter's Big Move and a Contest!

We went up to Washington a few days ago to pack up my daughter's family for their move to New Hampshire. This is my granddaughter Jillian playing with the tags on the air mattress.

This is Amelia trying on the sweater I had made for her a while back. Doesn't she look like a little pink lamb! She asked her mom when they get to go to "The Hampster" she meant New Hampshire!


This is Reese playing his dad's guitar.


This is my sweet hubby playing with the kids, they are in their pretend car driving to New Hampshire!

Here's my daughter's family next to their moving truck! We finally fit everything into their truck. My daughter is driving their car with the two girls while Jay has Reese in the big truck!


This is another cookie recipe from my Southern Living Cookie Cookbook. It's funny because this cookbook has no pictures, and I love pictures, and I'm trying the recipes with out them! But I do love to make cookies! These would be a good cookie to make for Christmas with maybe some frosting tinted with the cherry juice. I wanted to use up some cherries that were in the fridge. Those condiments have a way of taking over!

Cherry Drop Cakes

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 (3oz pkg) cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (8 1/2 oz) can crushed pineapple, well drained
1/2 cup maraschino cherries, drained and chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl whisk the dry ingredients. Cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar for 3-4 minutes. Add the eggs and the extracts. Blend in the four mixture then the pineapple and cherries.

Drop with a cookie scoop onto cookie sheets. Bake for 12-14 minutes. Remove to cookie cooling racks to cool.

Check out the giveaway at A Soft Place to Land!

Also check out Kristens Creations for another giveaway!