Puppy Chow 2009

Christmas time is here again! Some people make cookies, some make fruitcake, but me, I make Puppy Chow! A crunchy, sugary, chocolately, peanut buttery wonder treat, Puppy Chow is sure to please your palate. Come with me as I embark on making this years batch:

INGREDIENTS:

- 1 box Crispix Cereal (Chex will work but I do prefer the Crispix)

-Powdered Sugar

-Tsp Vanilla extract

-1 stick butter

-1 jar peanut butter

-1 bag chocolate chips

-M&M's (optional)

Start by combining the chocolate chips, peanut butter, & butter into a pot.

You can do this in a microwave but I like to feel like I'm really cooking.

Stir it up over the stove till it gets all melty and wonderful smelling. Now add a teaspoon of vanilla.

Don't forget the vino!

Now in a separate gigantic pot, add some of the cereal

Now pour your melty chocolate mixture slowly on top

Stir as you go adding more cereal

Then more chocolate

Toss it gently like a salad until all the cereal pieces are evenly coated.

Now get yourself a brown paper shopping bag like the ones from Trader Joes, or Whole foods. (If you don't have one I suppose you could use one of those giant ziplock bags in a pinch)

Dump some of your powdered sugar in the bottom.

and now here is the exciting part, dump in all of the chocolatey peanut buttery covered cereal bits. You may need an assistant. Maggie helped me hold the bag while she took this picture. THANKS CHICA!
MORE SUGAR!!!!

NOW SHAKE VIGOROUSLY!

If you are feeling crazy, go ahead and dump in some M&M's. I used the mini variety because I like things that are cute and little.

Shake it up again and VOILA!

Puppy Chow! (I may have gotten a bit too happy with the sugar, so maybe start sparingly and work your way up into a sugar coma.)
Even the cats got into the spirit with a box of Tim Tams under the tree.

I then package it up into little containers with Xmas bows and they are ready to be handed out to friends!

Thanks for watching me make the Puppy Chow. Now you go make some!

xo-hMc

My too cute new boots!

Went on a Brooklyn shopping spree with my mom today. She is in town from Florida for the Thanksgiving weekend. I took her to my two favorite consignment stores, Buffalo Exchange & Beacons Closet. I got so many awesome things but one of the best deals of the day were definitely these LOVELY PEOPLE Sophia booties:

These retail for $115 and I found them in brand new never worn condition for $25 buckeroos! Yippeeeeee! Just had to share how good at shopping I am.

xo-hMc

ClareBare

This is a shout out to another one of my super talented peeps.

Clare is a dear friend and old roommate of mine with a fabulous sense of personal style and an absolutely stunning lingerie line. One of a kind organic sustainable pieces, with girly cute and sexy details like ruffles bows and beautiful patterns. She has just started a blog, and since Christmas (and my birthday *wink wink) is coming up. here is the link to her etsy store.

xo-HMc

Thin Line Press

This is my dear friend Maggie. She is a wonderful gal. Recently she has been working on a line of handmade greeting cards. You can check them out here:

Thin line press

Her stuff is really whimsical and pretty.

xo-

hMc

HALLOWEEN HELP!

I have too many good ideas for this years Halloween costume. Here's where I need your help.

What should I be for Hollyween 2009?!!

A) Tinkerbell

B) Jem

OR

C) Paul Stanley

All three of these options would of course be homemade and or put together using second hand things. They would also be very cute & sexy. Yes, even the Paul Stanley option.

Please leave your vote as a comment.

White T-shirts to the rescue!

Last Friday evening I found myself in a terrible situation. I had to be at work (Bartending @ the fabulous Dokebi in Williamsburg) in less than one hour, and I had absolutely nothing to wear. I had completely exhausted all of my options (as the pile of clothes strewn about my room could attest to.) In a panic I grabbed a Hanes white mens v-neck, a pair of scissors and started hacking away at the collar and sleeves.

Here is the result:

I likey the result but it still needed some shape, so I cinched the back with a mini heart-shaped brooch. The brooch has my name on it and was given to me by a friend from a past life. Now the shirt is personalized and extra special.

Not to mention a little more sexy.

Take that white T-shirt!!

On a final note. I don't recommend bartending in a white T-shirt.

xo- hMC

NAKED LADY PARTY!

Last night I hosted a "Naked Lady Party". Stand down pervs. A naked lady party is nothing more than a clothing swap between friends. So after opening a bottle of wine, and snacking on these baby caprese salad bites that I made,

we got right down to business. Look at how excited Leah was!

We started by tossing everything into a pile on the floor. After sorting through and seeing what each of us liked we moved into the dressing room aka my bedroom.

For those of you on the slower side of things, here is why we call it a naked lady party!

We were very civil about the swapping and if I liked something but thought it would look better on Leah I happily gave it to her to try.

In the end I think we all ended up with some great new duds. Even Laser got in on the action!

I am definitely going to be hosting more naked lady parties in the future!

xo- hMC

PEEK INTO MY CLOSET

I've become kind of obsessed with my wardrobe lately. Fueled by my dwindling budget, and my love of a good deal drilled into me by mommy dearest, I've become quite the thrifty shopper. Take a look at one of my favorite finds of the summer. I bought this Mara Hoffman dress at Beacon's Closet for $40. The dress retails at $286, so while $40 might seem steep for second hand it's really quite a steal. Here is the asymmetrical version of the same dress. Mine is the winged version.

Pretty hot right? I didn't even realize the tigers in the pattern until I got it in the dressing room. That was pretty much the dealbreaker so I purchased it. Upon bringing it home my dumbass, (not realizing it was 100% silk) threw it in the washer and dryer. It's nowhere near as silky and shiny soft as it once was but it still makes for a KILLER sexy beach coverup.

Girls and boys, ALWAYS check your labels before washing any garment. Lesson learned.

Stay tuned for more peeks into my closet!

xo-

HMc

CONGRATS MAGGIE & FRANK

Tomorrow I will be heading off to Florida to celebrate in the wedding of two of my dear friends. Maggie is my closest friend in New York. She's also probably the person I've been friends with the longest since living here. We've been through it all together... crappy jobs, awful apartments, and bad boyfriends. This weekend will be a real milestone to me because it's the first of my New York friends to go off and get married. Most of my New York pals have always been single. It's just a more common way of life here. Now as we get older I see everyone around me slowing down, maturing and in this case...getting hitched! It's going to be a great celebration. I adore Frank and can actually say that I was the one that introduced these two. I was dating Franks brother at the time and I forced Maggie to go out with me so I could meet him at the bar. She didn't want to go but I dragged her and as soon as we got there she went to the bathroom. While she was in there I saw Frank who I had met the week before at a party. As soon as I saw him at the bar that night, an imaginary cartoon light bulb went on above my head! Maggie has to meet this guy! They'll LOVE each other. When she got back from the bathroom she told me some guy had been staring at her while she was waiting in line and it really annoyed her. Sure enough, turns out it was Frank. I introduced them and the next thing I knew they were smooching at the bar. They've been smooching ever since and this Saturday we will all celebrate. I can't wait to Party! Congrats Maggie & Frank. I love you both!

Does it matter if you hear me?

Just wanna say that.........

 I moved

 My new apartment rocks

 Having my own bathroom rules

 My cat is the cutest

 I need a cat sitter for a week in June

 My two best friends who are like my sisters are coming to visit 

 I am going to Florida 

 I have valuable friendships

 I am feeling really good

 

Now here is a clip from Harry Nilssons THE POINT. A childrens movie from the 70's that I think everyone should see.

 

Pack it up pack it in

let me begin...again.

 Moving AGAIN. I've done this so many times now! Six times since 2001. Seven if you count moving in and out of storage once. I've got it down pat. Got my boxes. (Liquor stores and coffee shops have the best.) I always pack up my books first. Then comes my favorite part. The purging of my closet. I've come to value my portability and not having alot of junk is the number one rule. That leads me to why I cannot have two cats. See I've been sort of fostering Cookie the orphan kitty since my roommate moved out a month ago. Since then my cat Laser and Cookie have fallen more and more into kitty best friend lovers. They bathe each other, snuggle, eat together and are genuinely really tight bros. I'm moving into a much smaller place and worry about vet bills, litter, food costs and mostly when I travel having two kitties to worry about instead of one. Someone please make me feel better about breaking these guys up, and even better... someone please adopt Cookie so he doesn't end up on death row in a shelter. 

I keep telling myself it's JUST a cat but but it's gonna be sad separating these two.

There is a hummingbird in my head.

I joined a bowling League awhile back and haven't been able to attend games for the past several weeks due to a lack of funds. I need to pay to take a car home and let's face it...you need to have some beer to make it really fun, so I've been staying home. Tonight though I shall return to the league. Yay!

Finding a roommate has been way more difficult than I thought. I'm actually considering moving back to Williamsburg if I can find a room available. The truth is I left my heart behind when I moved from there. It's the only home I've had since moving to NY in 2001 and I'm kind of miserable living in Bushwick where I stick out like a sore thumb, and can't walk home at night by myself for fear of gettin stabbed.  It's also hella noisy in this apartment and sometimes I get woken up in the middle of the night by people shouting outside my window. 

I had a lovely Saturday afternoon this past weekend. I spent all day sitting in the park, rocking my tube top and summer skirt,  laughing, catching up and playing Scrabble with an old friend, and also made some new ones. I hope for more of these kinds of days in the near future. Let this be the summer of healing from last summer of suck.

New old couch!

 I'm heading over to Bed-stuy right now to pick up a vintage rose colored couch that I found for free on Craigslist. I need good vibes. Pray for me that: 

A) Man with the van isn't late

B) It isn't bedbug ridden

C) It fits through my apartment door

I'm also walking to Bed-stuy from Bushwick, so please also pray that I don't get murdered.

xo-

 Holly

Happy V-day!

V as in venereal! Ha!

Happy Valentines day.

Don't be a whore.

Love,

 Holly

I'm back!

Ok. So I haven't written in awhile, and for that I apologize. I was just waiting for the right thing to move me. I figured I'll let you peek back into the window of my life with this little gem of a story.
At this point in my life I have become what many like to call a weekend warrior. Working for the weekend is pretty much my thing now. I love to go out, stay out late and yes I do like to drink. One of my favorite things to do the morning after engaging in one of these late nights, is to stay in my pajamas, make a pot of coffee, tidy up the apartment making it oh so cozy, make some breakfast, and see what awesome 80's movies might be offered on television that day. On this particular day I believe it was a Saturday, I was all tucked into the couch with some coffee and the classic 1980's movie THE WIZARD starring Fred Savage. I couldn't have been more relaxed. That's when I heard it. It came from the kitchen cupboard. The one above the sink. I then noticed that one of the cats had jumped up onto the counter and was starting to go bananas. There was no mistaking it. There was a mouse in the cupboard. In the early afternoon no less! I put down my coffee and got up to get a closer look. Yep, it was in there all right. I could hear him scratch scratch scracthing at my cupboard door. He also seemed to be running back and forth between the three cupboards. Eeeek, I started to get pretty freaked out now. I considered opening the cupboard door, that would surely frighten the little guy away. but that's when I thought...what if it's not a little mouse, but a great big giant rat!? If I opened the cupboard door he was surely to jump on my face and try to eat my eyes right out of their sockets. I started to panic a little and got out the broomstick and started banging away at the cupboard doors. This only seemed to make the little bugger angry. Now I could actually hear him crunching through the cereal boxes and eating all of my Cinnamon Toast Crunch! I ran into the hallway and saw the man who always hangs out on my front stoop. He speaks no english whatsoever but I motioned for him to please come inside. Help, help I have a mouse! He came inside opened up all the cupboard doors, shook some of the boxes around and just like that, it was quiet and mouseless once again. He left me standing on the tabletop gripping my broomstick, and looked at me like I was crazy.
That was a few weeks ago and since then there has been no evidence of any rodents. This morning however I walked into the kitchen and low and behold, the tinest teeniest dead mouse you've ever seen. Lying right there next to the cat food dish. I didn't freak out or scream at all. I much prefer a dead mouse on my kitchen floor to a live one eating my cereal while I listen.




Good Kitty!