Fall is here and that means all things pumpkin! I love pumpkin!

Besides the traditional Pumpkin Pie...


Or Pumpkin Bread that I love to bake...


There's a few other pumpkin treats this time of year!

Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte!


Wawa Pumpkin Spice Cappuccino!


Tastykake Pumpkin Pies!


Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins!


 Coffee-Mate Pumpkin Spice Creamer!


International Delight Pumpkin Pie Spice Creamer!


And this is a new one... but I want to try it! Pumpkin Pie Pop Tarts!

Made homemade biscuits tonight. They are very easy to make! I got the recipe from the blog: Window on the Prairie. My brothers tried them with some butter and a piece of ham in the middle. And I had mine with Apple Butter. Mmmm. :) Bet they would be amazing with gravy or as a breakfast sandwich with egg & cheese, etc.

Oh! And for a laugh- check out these Vintage Ad's! Some of them are hysterical!

9 years later...

Please view my blog from the 8th anniversary for my experience with 9/11.

I've edited the post to include a photo of me with my youth group heading to ground zero back in 2001. Photo courtesy of: Nina Krych.

I love history and I'm always fascinated by the story of Anne Frank. Lately I've bought and taken out several books from the library that go in depth and behind the diary of Anne Frank. (I own the definitive edition.)


1. Anne Frank: Beyond the Diary - A Photographic Remembrance

I bought this about a year or two ago. It's really interesting, has a lot of history facts and family photographs.




2. The Diary of Anne Frank: The Revised Critical Edition

If you have a lot of time on your hands this is an in depth guide to Anne's diary. It contains the diary as edited by her father & published, Anne's diary as written by Anne unedited & and also the published definitive edition with extra entries published after the death of her father. You can read all 3 editions side by side. It also includes the findings of a study that called into question the validity of the diary. They did document and handwriting analysis on the original diary to prove it's authenticity.


3. Anne Frank Remembered: The Story of the Woman Who Helped to Hide the Frank Family

This is the biography and story of Miep Gies. Miep worked for Otto Frank in his office. She & her husband were just a few of the people that helped to hide the Frank family. Her story gives some background and details that go beyond Anne's Diary.


4. The Hidden Life of Otto Frank

I took this book out of the library but I also just recently ordered a copy, it was a really good book. It goes in depth about Otto Frank's life before he was a father up to when he went into hiding with his family and even after the war when Anne's Diary was published and became known worldwide. It also talks about the fact the Frank family may have known who turned them in.


5. The Last Seven Months of Anne Frank

Really loved this book. Six women that were in Westerbork, Auschwitz & Bergen-Belsen with Anne Frank after she was imprisoned tell their horror stories of the concentration camps, conditions and their memories of Anne, Margot & the Frank family. Hannah Elisabeth Pick-Goslar, one of Anne's childhood friends is one of the women that tells her story of talking with Anne at Bergen-Belsen shortly before Anne's death.


6. Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife

Interesting break down of the three. Starts off as a bit of a biography, talks about the diary and the different versions of it, and about the Holocaust.




7. Anne Frank's Tales from the Secret Annex

Short stories, fairy tales written by Anne Frank while in hiding. Also includes some "diary entries" or observations that weren't included in the published book.




8. Anne Frank and the Children of the Holocaust

Very good book. Gives accounts from survivors and children that were in hiding during the Holocaust. Also gives a short biography on Anne Frank.



9. Searching for Anne Frank: Letters From Amsterdam to Iowa

I got excited about this when I took it out of the library. It is very interesting... but don't get too excited over the word "letters". Anne & Margot only exchanged 1 letter each with their pen pals in Iowa before they went into hiding during the war. Still an interesting read. And gives some history about the war and Iowa and the USA back in 1930's, 40's.

10. My Name Is Anne, She Said, Anne Frank: The Memoirs of Anne Frank's Best Friend

I just ordered this. One of Anne's best friends, Jacqueline van Maarsen tells her experiences of the war and about her friendship with Anne.




11. Anne Frank - The Whole Story (2001)

This isn't a book, but it's my favorite Anne Frank movie. It was originally a TV movie back in 2001. I think it gives the most accurate story of Anne and her family- before the war, during the war and after...

Gorgeous weather on this Labor Day. Hope everyone is enjoying their holiday! Took some pictures of my new gang outdoors!

Lily:












Lily with her tongue out!












Rosie:















What's with the tongue?
















Clover:





























Hazelnut:






























Honey:






























(More Pictures Here.)

Today is my birthday. Another Birthday, another year older. Thursday my birthday package from my husband arrived from the Philippines. He got me some cute little rat/mouse items! Sachets of one of my favorite Philippine shampoo's: Palm Olive coconut, and 2 Nivea Star Fruits lip balms: Cherry & Strawberry. (The USA version is called 'A kiss of flavor'. They are hard to find & are too waxy feeling.) The ones F.B. sent me from the Philippines are made in Thailand.



































I treated myself to some L’Occitane. :) Verbena Perfume, Shea Butter Lip Balm, Verbena Ice Hand Gel and Exfoliating Almond Soap.

I think for sure my favorite (early) birthday gift this year was my 3 new girls from SRR!

Spent the day relaxing and we ordered in for dinner. Philadelphia Cheese steak! And Hesh's Bakery chocolate chip cake for dessert. Mmmm.
























My parents got me the purse I wanted from Hot Topic. Hello Kitty at 28... lol. Gotta love it. :)

About 3 months ago I posted about Star's Rat Rescue and the massive rescue they did. Since then they have adopted out about 50 rats, but there are still tons of male & female rats in need of forever homes.

They recently did a rat train that traveled from South Dakota all the way up into Michigan and Canada! There were 13 rats on this current train. And we had one driver drive from Philadelphia to South Dakota. He also dropped off rats in Ohio. And my 3 girls traveled all the way from South Dakota to Philadelphia, PA! They traveled approx 1,500 miles to get here! There are still even more rat trains being organized as we speak. For more information click here.

I have known Brittney of Star's Rat Rescue for about 3 years now. She has worked with me as a moderator on The Rat Chatter Forums. So I was very excited I would finally get the chance to adopt from her rescue since South Dakota is pretty far away from Philadelphia.

I was little nervous this afternoon when I couldn't get ahold of our rat train driver. He had called Monday from Ohio and we had planned for me to call him at his house Tuesday at 12pm. No answer. I called again at 1,2,3pm and left 2 messages. I even called Brittney to get her opinion we were hoping he had just zonked out though after his long trip and had made it home safely. On the way home from work around 3:30pm my phone started ringing and it was our rat train driver sorry that he had overslept. And no wonder- he left Thursday for the drive to South Dakota and didn't get back to Philadelphia until around 3am Tuesday! He adopted 2 male rats.

We met a little after 4:30pm at a Petco parking lot near my work. We chatted for a bit about rats and I got to see my girls. Was so excited to see them after nearly 2 1/2 months of the travel plans being organized and finally getting a driver. :-)

Please meet, Honey, Clover & Hazelnut! Honey is an fawn self, Clover is beige hooded and Hazelnut is a black berkshire.


































































Clover is soooo curious! She is like a little energizer bunny! When our driver handed me my cage all I saw at first was Clover my other girls were hiding and you could just see their little noses.

I put some of their little fleece pieces from the travel cage into their cage to make it smell more like home. Then they had some nice refreshing coconut water after their long trip, and mini marsh mellows were passed out to all 11 rats!

Honey is very shy and a bit frightened right now. She cries a bit when you pick her up but all of them were really handled well and are used to people. Honey will come towards me when she is in the cage to nibble my fingers a bit.

Hazelnut is also a bit shy and scared, but she also will nibble on your fingers. She is also a flying rat! She flew off the chair and onto my shoulder about 2 times when taking photos. She is very quick and hard to get photos of!

Photo Credit

I found this recipe online and wanted to share it. This is so easy to make!

(I edited the recipe).

Ingredients

-3 tablespoons flour
-3 tablespoons sugar
-3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
-1 egg
-3 tablespoons milk
-3 tablespoons oil
-Small splash of vanilla extract
-1 large mug.

3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)

Cooking Time: 3 minutes in microwave.

(Cake will rise over the top of the mug, don't be alarmed.)

I added powdered sugar on top of mine when it was done. So yummy & quick!!!

Also, here is a low fat version of chocolate mug cake. I haven't tried this out, but if you do let me know in my comments how it turned out!

For non chocolate lovers: Yellow cake in a mug recipe.

(I tried the vanilla version and it is just as good!)

My beautiful Holly rat has gone to the rainbow bridge. I had to take my baby to the vet this evening to be put to sleep. There was a noisy dog in the waiting room and I had to keep petting Holly because she was frightened. Holly didn't go quickly... like Ginger she didn't want to let go...

I just lost Ginger & Saffy 3 weeks ago... and now this. I've only had Holly since January. She was around 8 months old. She loved to give kisses. She was the youngest rat I've had develop a mammary tumor. She didn't even know she had a tumor. But she began to develop an abscess and sore on her tumor and I didn't want her to suffer... goodbye my baby. I know Lily & Rosie going to miss her also, as they've been living with her since I brought them home 3 weeks ago.

I do a lot of posts about my travels in the Philippines. I thought I would share today some of my favorite Philadelphia treats and treat places!

Philadelphia Soft Pretzel




Oh my, there is nothing like a Philadelphia soft pretzel! (Usually get them from Jim's!) Whenever I'm in the Philippines, I end up craving one of these by the end of my trip, and Auntie Anne's just doesn't cut it! A Philadelphia soft pretzel is usually longer than a regular rounded pretzel. It has a crunchy oven baked outer layer and the inside is soft and doughy and delicious!

Philly Cheese Steak




You can't come to Philadelphia without trying a cheese steak! You can get them from pretty much any pizza place in the area besides a few places that just specialize in cheese steaks, like Steve's Prince of Steaks. A Philadelphia cheese steak is usually served on an Italian Amoroso roll. (Another Philly company!) It will have thinly chopped beef. Some people like cheese whiz, I rather have American cheese on mine. And don't forget fried onions and mushrooms! Mmmm! Though you can have a cheese steak plain or with any or as many toppings you want.

Hoagie's




You might know a hoagie by another name if you're from different parts in the USA. A Hoagie is a sub, grinder, hero, etc. In Philadelphia the most popular hoagie, is the Italian Hoagie. They are almost always served on Italian Amoroso rolls. With, Genoa salami, capicola ham, provolone cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions. Yum!!!

Tastykake



Tastykake is truly a Philadelphia food! The company started in Philadelphia back in 1914! In Philly you can find Tastykake's in the supermarket, drugstore, Walmart, etc. Love their butterscotch krimpets and the peanut butter kandy kakes. And in the fall they have mini pumpkin pies!

Rita's Water Ice




Rita's Water Ice! This is another East coast chain. They open in the Spring and close just after Labor Day. Though there are a few mall locations that are open year round. Gotta love their vanilla/chocolate custard! Mmmm heaven!!!


Herr's Snacks



Herr's Snacks, is another East Coast favorite. Potato Chips, Pretzels, Cheese Curls, Popcorn, Corn Chips, etc. My favorite are the Fine Cut Ripple chips. They are similar to Ruffles.

Wawa




Wawa is like an upscale 7 Eleven. There are only locations in: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. Gotta love their breakfast sandwiches, salads, wraps, coffee & fee free ATM machines! (And my cousin would say their meatball sandwiches!)

Scrapple




Scrapple is a Pennsylvania thing in general. People either love it or hate it. I love it! Scrapple reminds me almost of sausage. Only without the casing. It's formed into a loaf and cut into very thin slices, then fried in a pan. It's usually served at breakfast time along with scrambled eggs.

Sooo... 2 weeks ago I mailed our immigration lawyer the packet containing all our financial paperwork and I-864. Then nearly a week after I mail it I remembered... "Oh crap! I didn't include my employment verification letter!"

It took me a heck of a time to even obtain that paper. My job sent me in loops and hoops trying to get a paper that says I've worked there the past 8 years! And then I forget to send it to the lawyer! Ugh! I did scan & email our lawyer a copy of the letter, but he really wanted the original to submit to immigration.

I drop the original letter in the mail exactly a week later by USPS Priority. Never a problem... usually arrives at our lawyers office within 1 day. Another week goes by- nothing. It was lost. Never arrived. Did I get tracking or delivery confirmation? Noooo.... idiot me!

This past Saturday morning, I go to the post office when it opens around 9am. I spend $13.00 for express mail so we'll have tracking and I send off a copy of the letter. They write on my receipt will be delivered AUGUST 9TH.

I check tracking early this morning and what does it say?!

We attempted to deliver your item at 7:48 am on August 08, 2010 in PHILADELPHIA, PA 19102 and a notice was left. You may pick up the item at the Post Office indicated on the notice, go to www.usps.com, or call 800-ASK-USPS to arrange for redelivery. If this item is unclaimed after five days then it will be returned to the sender. Information, if available, is updated periodically throughout the day. Please check again later.

WHAT THE HECK?! When does the United States Post Office deliver on Sundays?!

I email our lawyer. By this time it's around 10am. He says he was actually in the office on Sunday, but the Post Office did not knock, etc. It hasn't been redelivered. So he says, "I think we'll have to use the scanned image you sent." About an hour later though, he emails me back and says, "Package arrived! We'll submit the I-864!"

So... no thanks to myself for forgetting and USPS our immigration process has been delayed 2 weeks... arrgh. I'm using Fed Ex next time! :(

Here is our completed steps and what we have left.

NOTE: Our lawyers Peter J. Gonzales & Shanna Stanton have changed firms. They are no longer with Kahiga Tiagha. They are now with Green and Spiegel LLC, but still located in Philadelphia.