Easy Way to Spruce Up a Brownie Mix

Today we are getting together with the extended family for a pre-Thanksgiving celebration. I have been a bit under-the-weather this week and haven't been up to preparing food to bring along, so this morning was a last minute rush.

I decided to go with an old standby for "in a pinch" situations. I use a simple boxed brownie mix and prepare it by the instructions on the box except that I add in about 1/2 to 1 cup of chopped up chocolate candy bars. Basically any type will do. Today I used up leftover Halloween candy. Then to make them look more special after they are cooled, you can use a sifter to sprinkle the top with powdered sugar.

Voila! You have a yummy dessert that looks nice and it takes very little effort!

Aloha Friday - What Are You Thankful For?

Today's Aloha Friday question is an easy one for me. The question is "What are You Thankful For?" I am very thankful for my wonderful husband who left a job he loved and an area he lived in all his life to move with me to my home state of Minnesota. I'm also thankful that while our finances are in no way close to being in order, we at least have a paid-for home and have the security of always having a place to live. I'm also thankful for all the rest of my family and especially my wonderful year-and-a-half-old nephew - - he is the most special little one ever. Gee, I am thankful for a lot more....thanks Kailani for making me think about it today!

Super Easy & Delicious Biscuit Recipe

I made these biscuits for dinner last night. I love that they are so quick and easy to make and they tasted delicious. You might want to make a double batch because they will fly off the table!

Easy Biscuit Recipe

2 C flour
2 Tbsp Sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/3 C oil
2/3 C milk

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Mix all dry ingredients together. Put the oil in a small boil and add the milk, but do NOT mix together. Move liquid into dry ingredients and stir until well blended. Knead a couple of times (I just used a spatula, not my hands) to form it into a ball. Roll out dough to 1/2" thick between two pieces of plastic wrap or aluminum foil. Cut into 10-12 squares. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until very lightly browned. - - I spread the tops with butter for the last 2 minutes of baking.

Maclaren Stroller Recall

I want to help spread the word about this stroller recall because I use a Maclaren stroller for my nephew, so I figure there are a LOT of other people who also use them. It's a great stroller, but according to the recall the hinge mechanism poses a fingertip amputation hazard!!!

Read the details of the recall here. They are resolving the problem by providing a free repair kit.

KISS Alive 35 Concert Tour

Last night I went to the KISS Alive 35 Concert in Minneapolis. I have to admit that I wasn't a KISS fan when I was growing up. My friend Gina's brother Pat was a big KISS fan and that fact actually scared me a bit. I recently reconnected with him on Facebook and admitted to him how much that disturbed me about him when I was little. Of course when I posted on Facebook last night that I was going to the concert his reply was "You're going to hell."

I really had a great time. As most people know, KISS really knows how to put on a show. Besides the rockin' music the special effects were awesome with lots of video, moving stage parts and pyrotechnics. Even though we were up in the "nosebleed" seats, I could still feel the heat from the fire plumes on the stage. Two cool highlights of the show were when Gene flew up on TOP of the upper stage lights and also when Paul flew across the audience to a small stage in the center of the arena. You can check out a tiny bit of video from that below:

Lots of Giveaways on the Other Jinxy Blogs

I just wanted to bring to your attention all the giveaways going on right now on the other Jinxy Blogs. Here's a full list:

Beauty by Jinxy Visine Total Eye Soothing Wipes (Ends 11/10)

Thrifty Jinxy Silk Heart Health (Ends 11/13)

Thrifty Jinxy Chocolate: A Love Story (Ends 11/13)

Thrifty Jinxy 16”x20” Rolled Canvas Print (Ends 11/13)

Beauty by Jinxy How to Be Famous Giveaway (Ends 11/15)

Thrifty Jinxy "Baby Guitars" and "Dog & Buttefly" (Ends 11/18)

Bejeweled - My Addiction Confession

Is anyone else addicted to playing Bejeweled on Facebook? I started playing it a month or so ago because I saw a lot of my Facebook friends playing. I don't know what it is, but I start playing and I keep wanting to play more, and more and more. I have fun playing and really enjoy it (obviously) but what a big time suck! I know there are many more productive things that I could be doing instead - - i.e. doing actual work or even just reading a good book. But, hey, I guess I could have worse vices, right?