Free Popsicles!

The Lili Pad in Cahaba Heights is having the popsicle man again this Thursday July 16 from 4-5. Come shop and get the little ones free popsicles! :)

3138 Heights Village
Cahaba Heights
(205) 298-1811

Free Ads!

Great opportunity for small business owners!
I am offering free ads in the remaining RH Birmingham issues for '09. (Sept/Oct & Nov/Dec) Space is limited.
These ads are also great for promoting MLM businesses such as Southern Living @ Home, Tupperware, Mary Kay, Silpada, Arbonne, etc. because you are hitting your target market.
Readership is going up every day, so there is no telling how many people you'll be reaching for free! And best of all, all ads in the webazine link directly to your company's website.
Email bhamhousewife@yahoo.com for more information.
Ad submissions due by 8/15 for the Sept/Oct issue and 10/15 for the Nov/Dec issue.

Easy Peasy

This weekend I was asked to bring an appetizer to a family get together. Dinner was homemade gumbo and shrimp and grits. Yum! So, going with that theme in mind (seafood) I made something I hadn't made in years and added a little to the recipe as I went along. I wasn't quite sure how it would turn out, but the reviews were better than ever, so I thought I'd share.

Crab Dip with homemade Cocktail Sauce

For Dip
1 block cream cheese
1 can lump crab meat (more if you want it extra crabby)
1-2 tsp. minced garlic (to taste)
juice of 1/2 lemon
lemon zest
pepper (to taste), or Tabasco for a kick
salt (to taste)

For Cocktail Sauce
1/2 c. Catsup
2-3 Tbs prepared Horseradish (not Horseradish Sauce)
1 tsp. Worchestershire
fresh squeeze of lemon juice

Dip
Rinse crab meat and drain well. Add to softened cream cheese and mix in remainig ingredients. For lemon zest, I just run the lemon over the grater a couple of times and then add more if it needs it. Line a bowl with plastic wrap and add dip. Wrap top and refrigerate 'till cream cheese firms again (an hour or two.) This gives you a molded dip and makes it easy to spread.

Sauce
Mix all ingredients together. This is a 'taste as you go' recipe and the measurements are approximate, so do some adding and tasting 'til you get it like you like it!

Serving
Unwrap bowl and place upside down on serving plate. Remove plastic wrap. Pour sauce over dip and serve with Triscuits or crackers of your choice.

Yum!

We've been hit!

Our website is registering hits from the following:
Alabama (duh)
Florida
Mississippi
Georgia
New York
Texas
Louisiana
Tennessee
Michigan
Ohio
California
North Carolina
Pennsylvania
Illinois
Minnesota
Maryland
Utah
New Jersey
D.C.
South Carolina
Nebraska
Virginia
And from Canada...
Ottowa
Don Mills
& Burlington

Wow!

I just recived an email from Heather Morin and RH Birmngham has been named the Featured Website on http://www.eventsbham.com
Please support their site!

July/August Published

The July/August issue is now on the web! Still didn't get all I wanted in, but will (hopefully) be adding more in the next week or so. I'll post updates when I do so everyone can stay in the loop!

www.realhousewivesbham.com

Looking for Contributors

Help! The July/August issue is scheduled to publish on Tuesday and I need one working mom and one stay at home mom to answer a few questions about a typical day in their lives. The fashion show put me under the gun and I left A Day in the Life of... off my list! Yikes! Just email me if you are interested. bhamhousewife@yahoo.com If I can't find any takers, I'll just have to write about myself and that is in no way interesting, I assure you!

I have finished the article about the high gravity beer that is now being sold across the state. Birmingham-Gadsden Budweiser and Dee's Package Store on Green Springs Highway graciously provided me with information about the new beers and even a few samples for the article. Now that the pictures have been made I can do a little tasting for myself!

Khaki Girls Fashion Show

Join RH Birmingham at the McWane Science Center Thursday, June 25th @ 2:00 for a fashion show launching khaki girls, a in-home boutique clothing line for girls sizes 7-14. JigJog Kids will also be previewing their Fall '09 line and holding a sample sale. Tickets are $5 in advance/$10 at the door. Your $5 ticket can be used as a $5 coupon for any khaki girls purchase made during the show or at any JigJog Kids or khaki girls trunk show during the Fall '09 season. If you bring two friends, your $5 ticket doubles to a $10 coupon. The first 50 girls at the show will receive a swagbag. Parking in the McWane Center deck is available to show attendees at no charge, but parking is limited!
Contact emily@khakigirls.com for tickets
Click here to visit the fashion show website

Free Movies

Rave and Regal Theaters have announced their schedules for the Free Family Film Festival and I've added the time and schedules to the webazine. The movies will show at all theaters at 10:oo a.m. and are totally FREE! Now, if that just included free popcorn and drinks...

New Contact/Contributors Needed

I've just added a new contact form to the webazine specifically for events. Just use this handy form to let Jennifer know of any events you'd like to see listed. Just remember that we are a bi-monthly publication and therefore will need to have the info well in advance.
Also, I'm looking for contributors for the magazine in the following areas: Homewood, Hoover, Vestavia, Mountain Brook, 280 Corridor, East of Town, West of Town and Downtown Proper. This is a volunteer position, so no paycheck, but if we can get readership up and in turn make it worth businesses to spend their advertising dollars, it could become a paying gig in the future. As a regional contributor, you'll need to write short, informative pieces on social and public events, address area specific concerns and ideas, local sports events, etc. Anything specific to your zip code. At this time, I will take two reps from each area.
Please email me if you are interested and I'll fill you in. bhamhousewife@yahoo.com Please specify "Contributor" in the subject line.

Em

Many thanks...

The inaugural issue of RH Birmingham has generated many kind comments from our readers and I couldn't be more thrilled! I was initially worried that the content wouldn't be interesting enough but so far I've been able to generate enough interest that we'll have return readers for our next issues. Kinda puts the pressure on, but I'm excited to see what July/August will be like at publication. I have ideas I'm kicking around as well as getting ready to launch Khaki Girls clothing line on June 25th @ McWane Center with a fashion show. One again, I have way more eggs than my basket can hold. But, I have plenty of coffee in the cubbard, a fully charged cell phone and a laptop computer, so I think I'll get it done and take a much needed, cocktail laden breather for a few weeks in July!
Thanks for reading!
Em

What was I thinking?

Okay. I'm sorry I've been absent for a while. I've been busy. And not working on the Thursday challenge of redoing a room in the house, either. I don't have time for that! So, please disregard. I am working on making a RH Birmingham a bi-monthly webazine. Of course, I got this great idea in the middle of about fifteen other projects thinking I'd be able to get it out by June 1st. How funny! I am always convinced that I have all the time in the world. Maybe I should research time management and write an article!
Whether a June 'mini' issue will be out or if we just go straight into July/August is up in the air at the moment, but I'll tell you a little about the issues. The webazine will be totally interactive, meaning that if you see an ad you can click the ad and go straight to the website for that business. Also, if an article features products or focuses on a particular business you will be able to view the website for the business that sells the products or that is featured. Each issue will also have a "Day in the Life" article spotlighting one working mom and one stay at home mom, a "Five Faves" section for a pick of five favorite things on a variety of topics. The first will be five faves under $5. We'll also have items tested by real housewives and their ratings, and other articles and tidbits that are specific to the season.
Thanks to Jennifer Somerset who has agreed to work for fabric scraps until this becomes a paying gig. She is gathering dates for an upcoming article "What to do in the Magic City".
More later! Crying baby in the next room!

Race Without Limits

Who in their right mind gets up at 5:00 a.m. on a Saturday? On purpose? Me! Well, not normally, but this was for a good cause. The Civiettes Club of Birmingham (of which I am a member) organized the Backus Orthodontics Race Without Limits 8K and HealthSouth 1 mile fun run today at Veteran's Park/Spain Park in Hoover.
The Civiettes Club's primary focus is United Cerebral Palsy of Birmingham and LINCPoint Center for Adults with Disabilities.
The race was the first of what we hope is an annual event and everyone put in a ton of time and effort getting sponsorship, donations and spreading the word. There were a few moments of nail biting and anxiety, but everything went off without a hitch. I urge you to support those sponsors that supported the cause: Backus Orthodontics, HealthSouth Corporation, Inverness Dermatology, Southern Natural Gas, Southern Progress, Johnston Barton Attorneys, Tom Williams Lexus, NBC13HD, Jeff Leonard Graphics & Apparel, Bruno's Food and Pharmacy, Trak Shack, Brower Law Firm, and Skinny Water (Birmingham Beverage Company), just to name a few!
Thanks to everyone who put their blood, sweat, tears, time and money into this event! If I've left anyone off, let me know and I'll add you to the list.
Despite the ungodly hour that my alarm clock disrupted my peaceful slumber, it was a great day and a fantastic event!

Sale Alert!

The Bruno's at Inverness Corners is going out of business and they had signs up saying everything 20-50% off. The parking lot was crazy, of course, but it could be worth the trip!
UPDATE: I've also heard from a friend in Crestline and the Bruno's on Montclair is also having this sale. I say, the time to stock your freezer is now!

Weekly Specials

Weekly Specials have been posted to the website.

Thursday Challenge

I have recently been bitten by the 'time to redecorate' bug. This seems to happen every Spring. I get an urge for clean closets and cabinets and then it spills over into making everything new and shiny. I keep wandering around the house looking with a very critical eye at everything from floors to wall color to moulding (or lack thereof). We were graced with white cabinets in the kitchens and baths as well as white tile with, you guessed it, white grout and brass fixtures. It was all so 'now' ten years ago and so on my ever loving last nerve today.
When we bought the house, we were so afraid we'd go over the decorating budget allowed by the builder that we made the most basic of choices and wound up getting a check back at closing. We were so thrilled we went out and bought dining room furniture, which turned out to be a nightmare in itself, but I'll let that go for another day.
At one time, it seemed I was always redoing one room or another. So much so that my dad said we were losing square footage because of all the layers of paint on the wall. Ha-bloody-ha. I don't have a problem with painting. I'll be the first one to haul out the ladder and my good brushes and get right to work. The problem is that, no matter what those redo gurus on HGTV say, a fresh coat of paint only goes so far. I can't paint myself new drapes or tile and the decorating till is sitting at zero.
So, here is the plan. I'm going to start on the boys' bedroom. ("The boys" being my nephews that I am lucky enough to take care of.) This room also acts as a guest room and the room that has THE closet that everything miscellaneous seems to get stuck in. That room is in sad, sad shape and hasn't been touched in about five years when I painted a seaside mural on the wall. I painted palm trees, a light house, waves, sky, seagulls and even sailboats. About a year ago the four year old said, "Look! There's a sailboat on my wall!" So, as you can see, the mural wasn't as big of a show stopper as I had hoped it would be if he didn't even notice for his entire life!
So here's the challenge. I'm picking a room and I'm giving myself six full weeks to get it done. If any of you have been putting off starting a project, let's get it done together. Six weeks beginning Monday, May 11th. Let's get thru Mother's Day first! And no cheating. No hiring someone to do it for you, unless you need some heavy lifting or anything that requires changing lighting, etc. (Although, I have to say. I have changed out three light fixtures myself and it is easy peasy. Just do, please, remember to turn off the power to the room at the junction box!) I'll post pics of my progress and you send me yours and I'll post them. Say, every Thursday you send me your pics and I'll post every Friday. It doesn't have to be a big messy total overhaul of a project. It could just be organizing THE closet in your home that collects stuff.
I'll post the before and after pictures for a vote at the end of six weeks and I'll come up with a prize for the winner.
On your mark, get set, GO!

As noted above, I got a wild hair and decided to go ahead and make Real Housewives of Birmingham a website. I wanted to add more info than a blog allows, so I am already branching out. We can use the blog to interact and the website to gather resources. If there is anything you'd like to add to the site, let me know and I'll do my best to add it ASAP.
Contact me at bhamhousewife@yahoo.com

Hello!

Okay. I love The Real Housewives shows on Bravo, but they often leave me with my mouth hanging open and my mind screaming, "Seriously?!?" I am a real housewife, flesh and blood, although I do have a recurring sense of existing in a state of fog when I realize, more often than not, that I've bitten off more than I can chew and lack of sleep keeps me from forming complete sentences.
Most real housewives I know actually work outside of the home as well as in it in some form or fashion, and I mean work. We don't all have a household staff, though some, like me, are lucky enough to have weekly maid service whom I rank up there with local heroes considering the state of the house when they arrive some times. I mean, I want to run from the house screaming and I live here!
We also don't all have unlimited funds and worry about keeping on some kind of a budget and saving where we can. Unlike Jill (RH of New York) who decided that, due to the current economic climate, a $16K handbag was a good alternative to jewelry for her birthday this year. Now, I'm not bashing these lucky ladies because to them, they are real housewives. They just aren't the majority.
So, I set up this blog so the real Real Housewives can have a place to discuss everything from hubbies and kids (or the lack of either), to work and vacation, to staying in and dining out, to splurging and saving, to wine and water, and every other little thing that we need or want to stay in touch with.
I hope this will become a great resource for everyone who is a real housewife in the Birmingham area.
Enjoy!