Guild Wars: Halloween 2009

Guild Wars is one of the games I play semi-regularly. I’ve played it off and on since a few weeks after it was released in 2005. I like that it is FREE to play each month (no pesky charges is a major plus for me). Plus, they have fun holiday content.

This year I also had some fun in the Costume Brawl which I never participated in before. I didn’t get enough party points and candy to get the maxed title on that yet, but I’ll get it one day.

Here are some fun pictures from Halloween on Guild Wars this year…



Here is one I took in-game today when the Mad King was giving us treats and killing his disobedient servants (and those who were AFK).



Here is one of my character after I got the Skeleton Mask given out this year.



Happy Halloween!

Flashback Friday – Halloween Pictures!

In the spirit of it being the Eve of Halloween, today’s Flashback Friday will be short and sweet featuring a few fun Halloween pictures of yours truly.

This was me on Halloween in 1990 before I went trick-or-treating around the neighborhood I lived in. I was a Fairy Godmother and pretty darn cute if I must say. I don't remember how much candy I took home or what my friends dressed up as that year, but I am positive I had a fun Halloween (I almost always do).

I loved this costume because I also wore the pink dress when I was a flower girl in a cousin’s wedding. I was an eco-friendly and fairy loving kid even then!

Even though I didn’t post this early today, I hope that those that do see this will join in the fun and post a picture or two of them from Halloween’s Past to share with all of us. If you do please comment so I will be sure to not miss it!

I hope everyone has a fun and safe Halloween tomorrow!

XOXO
Sheri - Your Fairy Godmother



P.S. – Don’t forget to enter my giveaway from PinkTogether!

Jack Daniel’s Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook

Thanks to Thomas Nelson Book Review Blogger program I was able to review the new Jack Daniel’s Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook by Lynne Tolley and Pat Mitchamore.

I chose to review this book because I’m a novice chef and learning to cook and read recipes I want to learn to cook is fun for me. Jack Daniel’s is also a Southern favorite, so it was only natural for me to want to read this cookbook.

Jack Daniel’s Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook reveals the rich tradition of country cooking, the distinctive taste of Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey, and the heritage of rural America are all elegantly captured in Jack Daniel's The Spirit of Tennessee Cookbook. Included are more than 350 recipes, stunning full-color photographs, and stories of the people, places, and traditions of Middle Tennessee. Illustrated and indexed.

I enjoyed reading through this cookbook and found quite a few recipes for food and drinks that I will be making in the future. The stories and photographs featured throughout the cookbook gave a warm feel of the people of Tennessee and bring the traditions to life. My favorite story was about men whittling pieces of wood because I’ve seen this tradition numerous times while visiting Southern states.

My favorite drinks featured in the cookbook are: Chocolate Jack, Champagne Punch and Jack Sour.

The food recipes all sounded delicious, but these are my favorites: Pecan Chicken Salad, Spinach Tarts, Hot Weather Herbed Tomato Soup, Spiked Cherry Salad, Broccoli and Rice Casserole, Georgia Peach Muffins, Hushpuppies, Banana Fritters, Banana Raisin Bread, Miss Mary’s Famous Chicken with Pastry, Intoxicated Chicken, Tennessee Curled Cookies and Jack Daniel’s Brownies and Glaze.

With the help of this cookbook, I’ll be able to make some favorite Southern home cooked meals!

Giveaway - Inspiring Hope Gift Basket

I have another amazing giveaway for you guys to enter thanks to MyBlogSpark and PinkTogether.com.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and PinkTogether.com is an online community on MySpace.com that has support, comfort and encourages those touched by breast cancer and allows them to connect to one another.

About PinkTogether.com
On PinkTogether.com everyone can share hope by posting and reading inspiring stories of breast cancer survivors and supporters within the community.

The site is part of Pink Together®, a national campaign to support those impacted by breast cancer and to help raise awareness of the disease. To support Pink Together, General Mills is donating $2 million to Susan G. Komen for the Cure® and is turning the packaging pink in October on an assortment of its most beloved brands. General Mills will also donate $1, up to $20,000, each time you post a comment of encouragement, send a virtual flower bouquet or share a story on PinkTogether.com in October.

Giveaway – Inspiring Hope Gift Basket
I am able to give one winner in the USA (sorry international readers!) the inspiring hope gift basket which includes: a sleeved travel mug, running ribbon charm bracelet, pink leather strap keychain, pink cinch bag, and a set of inspirational note cards. Gift basket is valued at almost $60.

All of the gift basket items are from ShopKomen.com where 25% of the merchandise purchase price benefits Susan G. Komen for the Cure® in the fight against breast cancer.



If you would like to enter to win, please leave a comment for each entry so the randomizer works as it is supposed to.


1 Entry – Visit PinkTogether.com and let me know you did so by commenting here.
1 Entry – Follow my Blog.
3 Entries – Blog about my giveaway on your Blog.


Entries accepted until Midnight EST on November 1, 2009. Good luck!

Jonathan Jackson Returns to General Hospital as Lucky Spencer

General Hospital has been the one and only real daytime soap opera I have watched since I was a kid. My mom watched it and then it was on after I got home from school, so I continued watching it and needless to say, I haven’t stopped.

One of my childhood crushes was on General Hospital – Lucky Spencer. The original Lucky was played by Jonathan Jackson and he was close to my age, so it was great. I even sent him fan mail and got a (probably reproduced) autographed picture even. Ahhh childhood crushes on celebrities that never go away.

When Jonathan Jackson stopped playing Lucky Spencer, I was crushed. Actors Jacob Young and Greg Vaughan resumed as Lucky but they were never really Lucky too me.

Today’s episode of General Hospital brought back Jonathan Jackson as Lucky Spencer and I was so excited! I usually TiVo GH, but today I watched it with commercials and all so I wouldn’t miss it (in case the power went out or TiVo screwed up ya know?)!

I really hope that they keep him as Lucky and that he will want to keep the role for awhile (forever). Nobody can play Lucky like Jonathan!

Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters Giveaway Winner Is…

Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters "Snack Pack" prize pack Giveaway from MyBlogSpark has ended and the winner has been chosen....

I used the randomizer.org to come up with a winner by random and the winner is... Yaya!

Congratulations, I hope you enjoy the prize package as much as I do! I’m e-mailing you right now to let you know you won and to get the information needed to send this awesome package to you.

If you didn’t win, I have more contests coming so check back soon for those!

New Super Mario Bros Wii – Plays for You!

I remember back when I was a kid I actually had to play the video games to beat it. It took dedication and talent. Now the New Super Mario Bros for Wii will go into a “Kind Code” (::cough:: cheat) if you die numerous times and allow the game to play itself if you wish so you can get past levels. WTF?!?

I get that they are claiming this game is super hard, but really? Is it not enough the kids don’t want to even play on the Wii Fit now they can be so lazy they don’t even have to have the skills required to beat a game anymore?

The game does look fun (watch video below) and if I ever had a Wii and played it, I would never use this cheat mode. If I failed at the game so badly and I couldn’t beat it myself (which I doubt), I’d give up (which also wouldn’t happen).

Read more about it in this article: Mysteries of the New Super Mario Bros. Wii "Kind Code" Revealed

Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters Review + Giveaway

Thanks to MyBlogSpark I was able to review the new Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters in Nut Lovers, Roasted Almond, Roasted Cashew and Honey Roasted Peanut. I was really excited when I got this package in the mail because I love doing reviews and giveaways and this one is very eco-friendly (which I love even more).

New Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters come in four easy-to-crave flavors: Nut Lovers, Roasted Almond, Roasted Cashew and Honey Roasted Peanut. My favorite was the Roasted Cashew, but they all taste really good. I also love the fact that they are re-sealable so they won't go stale and are easily re-opened later. This is definitely something I will be buying in the future.


Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters Info
Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters are a bite size blend of 100% natural ingredients that include select roasted nuts, whole grain oats and a touch of honey - a wholesome and delicious pick-me-up any time of the day. If you love nuts, you´ll enjoy this flavorful little snack featuring the perfect combination of sweet & salty flavors paired with a crunchy texture that you can see and taste. And with the first unique cluster-shaped granola packaged in a handy re-sealable pouch, it´s perfect for sharing on the trails or in your living room!


Nature Valley Granola Nut Clusters "Snack Pack" prize pack
I am able to give one winner in the USA (sorry international readers!) a prize pack that includes all four (4) varieties of the Granola Nut Clusters along with a sling backpack, stainless steel water bottle, flashlight and binoculars!


If you would like to enter to win, please leave a comment for each entry so the randomizer works as it is supposed to.


1 Entry – Tell me what your favorite elements of nature are.
1 Entry – Follow my Blog.
3 Entries – Blog about my giveaway on your Blog.


Entries accepted until Midnight on October 26, 2009. Good luck!

Bunny Accessories Kit Winner Is...

The Bunny Accessories Kit Giveaway from Lingerie Diva has ended and the winner has been chosen....

I used the randomizer.org to come up with a winner by random and the winner is... Karen!

Congratulations on winning the costume - I hope you love it! I'm going to contact you right now to find out where to send it. Enjoy!

If you didn't win, you can still go to their website and buy one or something else you'd like. They have great costumes and lingerie!

Plus, these costumes are 25% off until Sunday!

The Power of Respect by Deborah Norville

Thanks to Thomas Nelson’s Book Review Blogger program I was able to review The Power of Respect by Deborah Norville. Best selling author and journalist Deborah Norville researches for this book the importance of respect in our daily lives and in society as a whole.

I selected this book because respect seems to be a lost value in our society with the younger generations (my generation included) and thought it would be a great resource in achieving success of my own.

The book cites scientific studies and uses stories based on her personal interviews about the power of respect. Norville reveals the importance and benefits of respect in areas of our lives such as: personally and with others, marriage and parenting, classrooms and education, business and leadership.

The Power of Respect is a great book that the reader can really learn quite a bit from. Respecting others as well as yourself is a key element to success – and this book tells you all about it. The ways to develop your own self respect as outlined by Norville really can help others achieve their own successes in life.

Norville did an amazing job with this book. It is an excellent book that people from all generations can appreciate.

Moon Swept by Rebecca York

Moon Swept includes two complete novels: Witching Moon and Crimson Moon written by Ruth Glick writing as Rebecca York.

I bought this in the bargain section a month or so ago at a book store. I’m not usually into werewolf books (I prefer vampires), but I thought I’d give this one a try. I mean for just under $4 it had two books in one.

Witching Moon is the paranormal love story of Adam Marshal (werewolf) and Sara Weston (witch). Their supernatural powers are enhanced by the swamp by where they live and bad witches have moved back to town to get revenge on those who forced their families to move out many years ago.

It sounds like it could be an okay read, right? So wrong. It took me forever to get through this book and usually I read really fast (if it is something I enjoy reading). This was worse than assigned readings in high school.

The author way overused the word “probably” and changed the point of view not just each chapter but throughout the chapter too. I was so annoyed reading it I almost just tossed the book in the trash halfway through.

I didn’t even bother reading the second novel Crimson Moon included in this catastrophe of a paranormal romance book.

Anyone know of any GOOD paranormal romance books to check out?

Lingerie Diva – Bunny Accessories Kit Review & Giveaway

Thanks to Lingerie Diva I was able to review their Bunny Accessories Kit. The bunny kit includes the gloves, glitter bunny ears and a cotton tail.

It does not come with the black satin dress/slip but that is okay. You can always wear a simple black dress or black outfit to go with it.

The ears are really great! They are sparkly and really draw attention to the costume kit. The gloves are also really fun and feel nice on. The tail needs to be sewn on to the garment worn with the rest of the kit, but it is of good quality as well to pull the bunny accessories kit together.

It does give a Playboy feel, and you could go as a Playboy Bunny in this costume but it is not official Playboy merchandise.

Here is a picture of me wearing the bunny ears. I had on the gloves too but you can't tell from the picture. Overall, I really like the Bunny Accessories Kit. It is a fun costume idea for Halloween or playing dress up with.

Lingerie Diva also sells many other great sexy costumes, accessories and lingerie of all styles and sizes. Check out their website to fall in love with all of their products like I did!



Lingerie Diva - Bunny Accessories Kit Giveaway
I am able to give one winner the Bunny Accessories Kit to wear for Halloween (or whenever you want to). Prize is valued at $17.95.

If you would like to enter to win, please leave a comment for each entry so the randomizer works as it is supposed to.

1 Entry – Leave a comment.
1 Entry – Follow my Blog.
3 Entries – Blog about my giveaway on your Blog.

Entries accepted until October 20, 2009. Good luck!

True Blood: Season 2 – Episode 12 “Beyond Here Lies Nothin”

The season 2 finale episode of True Blood resumes with the crazy large egg in the bed nest with Sookie realizing Lafayette, Tara and Eggs have all gone crazy black eyed possessed. Time to panic? Yes! Lafayette makes Sookie change into a white dress for Mary Ann’s wedding? Mary Ann appoints Sookie as maid of honor. So strange.

Mary Ann is still puzzled over what light/sparks Sookie shot out at her and why. I still think it is the fairy thing (if going by the books). However, the whole Mary Ann thing doesn’t go by the books at all hardly so really who knows? Mary Ann does want to sacrifice Sam to bring her “God” husband there.

Eric is at the Louisiana Queen’s lair still trying to get information on maenads. The queen thinks Eric is in love with Sookie too (though of course he doesn’t admit it yet). She also explains she knows Sookie is not fully “human” and more than just a telepath.



Bill goes to Sam for assistance on getting rid of Mary Ann and makes him go with him.

Jason and Andy go to Sookie’s house (aka Mary Ann’s lair) to try and save everyone but they end up just getting possessed too. At least they tried.

Mary Ann makes the “wedding party” lick the ostrich egg. Gross! Really, what is with the egg?

Mary Ann goes out to the front yard for the ceremony when Bill arrives with Sam to sacrifice in exchange for Sookie. Mary Ann agrees and starts the ritual for the “bull horned God.”



Sam is tied up and Eggs stabs him. Bill tells Sookie to use her gift. She runs to Sam and Sam tells her telepathically to destroy the egg and everything and she does with sparks shooting out of her hands even. Mary Ann is of course extremely pissed off now.

Sookie runs away from Mary Ann in the woods again but this time she is saved by a bull. Mary Ann thinks this is her God and is delighted. However, the bull kills her with its horn and the bull is really Sam who didn’t die afterall. Bill saved him with his blood and they planed it all out beforehand.

After Mary Ann dies everyone returns to normal but doesn’t remember anything that happened while possessed. Some handle this better than others. Hoyt realizes his dad really committed suicide and leaves his mom. Eggs doesn’t deal with it well though because he did after all kill people and almost killed Sam. Jane found her finger she cut off so Jason takes her to the hospital (try explaining that one to the ER doctors!).

Jessica tells Bill she is going to see Hoyt, but she doesn’t. She goes and feeds on a human truck driver. Hoyt did go over to Bill’s though to see Jessica and she wasn’t there.

Sam goes to see his adoptive parents that left him. He still hasn’t forgiven them but just came to get information on his real parents. His adoptive dad ends up giving it to him.

Eggs goes crazy and looks like he is going after Andy so Jason kills Eggs. Andy covers for him and says he did it.

Sookie gets a fabulous dress from Bill inviting her to dinner. He rents out a whole French restaurant for her. How romantic! Bill asks Sookie to marry him – in Vermont since it is legal there for them to wed. Sookie is unsure what to say so she excuses herself to the bathroom. While she is in there though, Bill gets into a fight or something and is taken hostage somewhere. Uh-oh!



I can’t wait to see what happens next season! I wish there were more episodes than just 12 to a season and I wish it came out more often. The suspense!

A Taste of True Blood

Missing your dose of True Blood since the season finale? Today I’ll help fix that little problem for you. First up are 2 fangtastic articles I wrote for Associated Content about True Blood.

True Blood Drinks for Your Halloween Party
If you're throwing a Halloween party this year, why not serve up a fun Halloween drink True Blood style?

How to Win a Chance to Be on HBO's True Blood
Your dreams of being on the hit HBO TV series True Blood could come true... if you have enough cash to win the auction going on from October 1, 2009 - October 15, 2009 at Charity Buzz.

I’m more than likely going to be making a True Blood drink for my Halloween party, so the article helped me do some planning too. Plus, the one about winning a spot as an extra I really wish I could bid on. Seriously. I’d be on set and ask Eric to bite me lol ah a girl can dream…

Later today I’ll keep the True Blood fix going by posting the season finale review (sorry so late, I was waiting for those 2 articles to be published).

Bazar Mask – Geisha Costume Review

BAZAR Costumes, Masks & Props is a family owned and operated business in Evansville, IN. It is an online store that offers a vast selection of high quality products for different budgets and a friendly staff that is knowledgeable about their products offered. They also specialize in creating, designing and fabricating their own line of Hollywood quality deluxe latex masks and props (in limited quantities).

Thanks to Bazar Mask, I was able to do review their Geisha Costume. If you hadn’t noticed, I love geishas, cherry blossom trees and many things about Japan. I’ve always wanted to dress up as a geisha, so this was the perfect opportunity to do so without having to spend hundreds (or thousands) of dollars on a real geisha costume.

The geisha costume includes a beautiful red oriental pattern kimono, red slip dress, obi belt, decorative fan and a black wig.

The red slip dress, kimono and obi were all wrinkled when I took them out of the package. I hung it up to let it de-wrinkle but that didn’t work too well. So, I cool ironed it (very carefully) to smooth it out. It does seem to run a bit small though, so you might want to order a size larger (I find this to be true on quite a few costumes though).

The black wig was okay, but really made me realize I don’t want to dye my hair black ever. It does look really good with the costume though. The fan also adds a very nice touch to the costume. It doesn’t include shoes, but white socks are really all you need – and if you have wooden flip flop sandals that will work great too.

Overall, I really like the costume and will most likely be wearing it for Halloween or a Halloween party (if I can get people to dress up for it). Pictures will be posted if I do so check back on that!



Check out their website to see great prices on fabulous costumes, props and more for all your Halloween and party needs.

Offers and coupon codes available right now:

Bat21 - FREE Economy Shipping on orders $100 or more!
Limited Time Offer – any purchase of $30 or more will receive one free Halloween Safety Strobe trick or treat light. See item number 159907.

Old Fashion Halloween Review

Thanks to Old Fashion Halloween I was able to review some of their Halloween items. Old Fashion Halloween by Dragonfly Design Studio has a wide variety of reproductions, new and original artwork, decorations and original Halloween antiques. They also have a really cool gallery of old Halloween images you can purchase to use as you wish too.

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays (as weird as it is – it is true!) so I was really excited when I received some of their products to review.

The Victorian lamp shade topper was my favorite. It illuminates really well when the lamp is turned on to bring out all of the designs in it.

Paper decorations with vintage original cardboard and tissue doesn’t sound like it would hold up very well. However, the Jet Witch does and it is probably one of the coolest vintage decorations I’ve seen for only $4!

The Chorus Line Banner has such cute Halloween characters on it and it looks even better in person. The only problem with this was finding just one place to hang it. I eventually settled with over the French doors going outside onto our deck.

Hep Cat Orchestra cutouts with stands is a great reproduction of an old fashioned Halloween item that looks fabulous. Plus, they look really fun in any Halloween decorations since they are in orange and black (the main Halloween decoration colors).

The two cards were also really very cool. One was of an old retro image of a girl dressed up as a bat/vampire and the other was a skeleton with glitter on it. They are too nice to send out so I think I’m going to use them as decorations and put them in frames.

I was also pleasantly surprised at how great everything looked out of the package too. Sometimes the pictures can fool you – but these items all looked just as good in person as they did in their picture on the website.

Old Fashion Halloween is a fantastic store that has really unique decorations for Halloween. I highly recommend them for your Halloween needs this year and future Halloween celebrations.

Check out the article I wrote How to Throw an Old Fashion Halloween Party on AC.

Costumes4Less Winner Is....

The Costumes4Less Giveaway has ended and the winner has been chosen....

I used the randomizer.org to come up with a winner by random and the winner is... Lorinda!

Congratulations on winning the costume - I hope you love it! I'm going to contact you right now to find out where to send it. Enjoy!

Find your favorite costumes here

Beautifully Busy

I’ve been really busy lately. Sorry for the lack of updates and posting. I’ve been trying to comment though!

Besides taking random pictures of myself like that one, I really have been busy.

I had some family visiting from Florida last week, so that took up some extra time.

If you didn’t notice all the recent articles I’ve written for Associated Content, check those out. This has kept me really busy and I still have some that aren’t published yet, they’re just waiting on the okay. I also have at least 10 to write this week. I’m not complaining at all - I love it!

Check out my AC Profile and you can see all the articles! Comment on them if you’d like too.

I’m also starting to write some ghostwriting articles as a subcontractor. I really hope that this works out. I need the extra money badly.

This past weekend, I was in charge of the investigation for ghost hunting. That was my first time doing so since I’m team manager now. Usually the leader or assistant leader is there. It was fun and I think it went rather well besides a few issues which I will not be getting into here.

If you’re wondering where my review from the last episode of True Blood season 2 is, I’ll let you know that I’m going to post that when 1 or 2 articles I wrote for Associated Content are published. I’m still waiting on that, but it is worth the wait!

I hope everyone is doing great and is looking forward to Halloween as much as I am! I have 2 more reviews on Halloween stores online that I’ll be posting this week too. Also, don’t forget to enter the giveaway I’m having too!

Costumes4Less Review and Giveaway

Thanks to Costumes4Less.com I got to review the 50s Dance Queen Costume. I love the movie Grease and this cute costume reminds me of that last scene when Sandy has on something very similar.

The costume is really cute in person too. Sometimes costumes just aren’t that cute up close and look really cheap. This one however, looks great! It is made out of 100% polyester, but it feels and looks more like crushed velvet.

It includes the top, pants, scarf and the belt. Shoes aren’t included but any black heels or flats would work to go with this costume.

Another nice thing about this costume is that it is washable! It says that it is able to be washed in a washing machine with cold water and tumble dried on the low setting. However, to be on the safe side I’m just going to hand wash it and then lay it flat to dry.

Costumes4Less is a great online shop for costumes, Halloween and party items. Check it out and shop for all of your party needs!



Costumes4Less Giveaway
I am able to give one winner this costume to wear for Halloween (or whenever you want to). Prize is valued at $38.95.

If you would like to enter to win, please leave comments accordingly… Leave a comment for each entry please so the randomizer works as it is supposed to.


1 Entry – Leave a comment.
1 Entry – Follow my Blog.
3 Entries – Blog about my giveaway on your Blog.


Entries accepted until October 7, 2009. Good luck!

Find your favorite costumes here