The Halfway Mark

It's official. I have made it to the midway point in my challenge to try 12 different drinks in 12 days. In the process I have spent time writing, which is always a pleasurable activity for me. I swear if I can get kids to love it as much as I do (the writing, not the drinking), I will have accomplished a huge goal!

Anyway, today's beverage called for limeade again. What a versatile little mixer that stuff is. There are quite a few drink recipes in my book that include the use of limeade, and tonight's was a good one. It definitely tastes better than it sounds, which to me screams WHITE TRASH... Beer Limeade. In honor of how the drink's name sounds, I was tempted to forgo the shower today and throw on a pair of sweats but I couldn't.

Beer Limeade

6 oz. can Limeade, thawed
6 oz. beer
6 oz. vodka

Fill blender 3/4 full with ice. Add ingredients. Blend until slushy. Serves 4.


Due to the fact that this is another frozen drink, I would have to say that Beer Limeade would be much more satisfying in the summer months. I was not at all disappointed in this drink. I was a little worried that I would taste the beer too much. Don't get me wrong, I love beer. I just don't really want to be able to taste it mixed with limeade. It's not a drink for those who don't like that tarty sweetness in a drink. It definitely packs a punch, as it has more alcohol than Swinging from the Trees. Mike and I rate it 7.9. I highly recommend serving this at a party due to the novelty of the name itself!

Day 5 of 12

Feeling the need to return to normalcy with regard to our beverages, I chose a bourbon drink for today. Mike and I have been fans of the Old Fashion for quite some time, so I was pretty excited when I found the recipe for a Raspberry Bourbon Smash.

Raspberry Bourbon Smash

1 2/3 oz. bourbon
Handful fresh raspberries
2 1/3 oz. cranberry juice
2/3 oz. fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp. sugar
Dash Angostura bitters

Place the lime juice and raspberries in the bottom of a highball glass. Add the sugar and bitters. Muddle until the sugar is dissolved. Add the bourbon and stir. Add the crushed ice. Top off with the cranberry juice. Serves 1.

Unfortunately my picture didn't take hold, so you won't get to see the dark pink color of this drink unless you make one of your own. My camera battery was on its last leg when I took the picture.

As with an Old Fashion, the drink definitely gets better as you drink it. It seemed a little sour at first with a kick of bourbon, but became sweeter and mellowed as we went. We recommend frequent "swirling" in an effort to mix in the sweetness that seems to linger in the bottom of the drink. We give the Raspberry Bourbon Smash a 7. Would I drink it again? Probably, but I rarely have raspberries in the house, and making an Old Fashion is a little easier.

Day 4 of 12

After yesterday's disappointing adventurous beverage, I was very much looking forward to a success story today. I realize that it is only 3:30 in the afternoon, but it's Christmas. Aren't you supposed to have a cocktail early on Christmas day? I mean really, what else is going on? Mike and I held out as long as we could, but once the shrimp cocktail was ready, we just had to give in. Today's beverage has quite the ominous name... Swinging from the Trees. Since it is Christmas, we decided to rename it Swinging from the Christmas Trees.

Swinging from the (Christmas) Trees

1-6 oz. can frozen limeade concentrate, thawed
2 oz. rum
2 oz. vodka
2 oz. tequila

Fill blender 3/4 full with crushed iced and add the ingredients. Blend. Serves 6 to 8 (or 2 in our case)

I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed this drink from the very first sip. Perhaps it was because I was so relieved after yesterday's fiasco. It tastes a bit like a margarita, but with quite a bit more kick, if you know what I'm saying. It's called Swinging from the Trees for a reason for sure. BAM! It would be really easy to drink way too much of these way too fast (which would lead to brain freeze, thus reducing the pure pleasure of this beverage). Due to its frozen nature, I would not recommend it as a winter drink. I can totally picture myself enjoying this on the porch with Mike on a piping hot August evening though, so we will definitely dog-ear that page of the book. Mike rated it a 7.9, but only because he liked the Kentucky Blizzard better (which got an 8) and he's not a huge fan of margaritas. I give it a very solid 8.5, because I love margaritas and the thought of swinging from the trees sounds like fun right now!

Day 3 of 12

Of all the drinks that I tentatively planned for this beverage challenge, today's was the one I was looking forward to the most. You see, my favorite store-bought cookie of ALL time is the Oreo. Mmmmmm. What's not to love about an Oreo? Delicious crunchy chocolate cookie filled with sweet, creamy vanilla filling. Are you with me?

Today's drink, and perfect for Christmas Eve, was the Oreo Cookie Margarita.

Oreo Cookie Margarita

6 oz. tequila
4 oz. Godiva liqueur
8 oz. orange juice
3 oz. half and half
4 T. Hershey's syrup
Crushed Oreos

Rim the margarita glasses with water and dip in the crushed Oreos. Fill shaker with all ingredients, except the crushed Oreos, and shake. Pour into glasses filled with ice. Add a small amount of the crushed Oreos on top. Serves 4.



Upon first taste, I was quite disappointed. It didn't really taste like an Oreo at all. It almost tasted like one of those oranges covered in chocolate. I'm not that into oranges covered in chocolate, especially when I'm expecting that wonderful Oreo cookie taste. Again I decided to withhold my final decision until I had finished the drink.

I never did finish that drink. I couldn't. It didn't do a thing for me. We rated it a very unenthusiastic 3. We brought some down for Sierra and Cory to try. It got a 5 and 4 respectively. I am now looking forward to tomorrow night's drink.

12 Days

Now this is a challenge that I am definitely looking forward to. You see, Mike and I celebrate a very special holiday after his lengthy absence which lasts 12 days. My friend and coworker Carol decided to set a goal for me during this 12 day celebration... 12 different drinks over 12 days and provide a review for each one. I am more than thrilled to oblige. I decided that my beloved bar book would be called into action.

Just so you know, BITCH means Babe In Total Control of Herself. After perusing the book for a bit, I made a few decisions. It was off to town for supplies that I needed to go! After spending a small fortune on liquor, mixers and garnishes, I knew I was ready.



I have to say that we are officially a day behind on this project. Mike and I started yesterday with eggnog and bourbon. Good Lord that is fantastic. We used light eggnog, because it really would be a bit much. I had never had eggnog with bourbon. I've had it with vodka or rum, but never bourbon. I have to say that having it with bourbon and some fresh nutmeg on top is outstanding.

Now to cover this evening's beverage...


... the Kentucky Blizzard

Kentucky Blizzard
1 1/2 oz. bourbon
1 1/2 oz. cranberry juice
1/2 oz. lime juice
1/2 oz. grenadine
1 tsp. sugar

Place all ingredients in an ice filled shaker and shake (definitely shake it for a little bit or the sugar comes plopping out at the end of your pour). Strain into an old-fashion glass filled with ice.

I followed the directions exactly. Upon first taste, it seemed a bit tart. I asked Mike for his rating and we decided that we should actually finish the drink before we rated it. On a scale of 1 to 10, we gave the Kentucky Blizzard an 8. It's somewhere between a Whiskey Sour and an Old Fashion. The drink was good enough to require a second one for each of us, and we agreed that we would definitely make these again.

Welcome Visitors

Once again I have endured a lengthy solo flight while my husband has done his thing out west. He left on December 7th. He comes home tomorrow. Holy shit! I am so happy about that. I truly do not know how the spouses of service people do it. This was two weeks. They do it for months on end. Yikes.

As was the case last year, it has been quite an experience. My biggest weakness? Loneliness. I wouldn't mind the ability to tag out every once in a while either. Anyway, tonight was a great way to celebrate Mike's impending return. JP and Sam came over for dinner.

It was an all-out feast. I spent the entire day in the kitchen today, and it was totally worth every second... spaghetti and meatballs, salad and garlic bread. The best part though, was dessert. Red velvet cake is one of the very best things in the whole world. Clearly the faces say it all.


An evening of eating and laughing was fabulous and just what I needed. In the end we were all members of the Clean Plate Club.

Tis the Season

So much hustle and bustle! What a weekend it was....

Before I talk about my weekend though, I feel that it's necessary to show off some other Ladies of the Adirondacks. Working in an elementary school allows me the priveledge of working with many fun and interesting people (mainly women in this case). Natalee and I decided to show our support of the Steelers' big game against the Ravens this weekend by having a black and gold Friday. But apparently the Christmas spirit overcame her and her fellow 2nd grade teachers. I looked twice when I saw this.
Now I should get back to reporting this weekend's activities. Saturday was the family's big Christmas limo dinner. It was a van this year though, not a limo. It's amazing how bad a limo ride can be when you're traveling those back roads between Elizabethtown, Essex and Jay. Oof. Not good for the stomach. Because of that, we decided a van would be better, and it was indeed.

This year we headed to the Deer's Head in Elizabethtown for appetizers. Yum! We enjoyed some delicious crab cakes, fried brie, and breaded mushrooms.
The food was great and we knew we were well on our way to a very fine evening indeed. When we finished up there, we hopped back in the van to head to Turtle Island Cafe where we would be enjoying dinner. The food, as always, was fantastic. I enjoyed some coconut shrimp with dumplings followed by filet mignon and, of course, several refreshing beverages.

After we finished stuffing ourselves there, it was time to get back in the van and travel the short distance to the McClay's house for an after-dinner drink and some dessert.
The McClays are a great pair, and they certainly know how to entertain!

















It wasn't long after we got there and had finished our dessert and Irish coffees that we had to hit the road again. This time we were all homeward bound. We were all sufficiently stuffed to appreciate the comforts of our own homes. That brings me to today. Today was the day for the kids. Once again we gathered at Mom and Dad's in order to have a meal fit for kids and let them open the copious amounts of gifts that were under the tree.





























































We even got to see Lilly do her Bon Bon dance with her dad. Look at the innocence on both of their faces!

Needless to say, I'm pleasantly exhausted and very grateful for the comfort of my couch this evening.