Never give up!

I thought I was in trouble. I went through a bunch of Indie books lately but I couldn't find my 5 stars worth of the month until I read Him by Carey Heywood. Then I sighed in delight, not relief ;-) Because the story is so sweet and tender that make you wish you had had a teeny best friend who became your first love as well.
The characters were great, but what I loved the most was the alternating between past and present. The pace of the romance is perfect, I never wanted to skip a page in order to know what was happening in the present days.

Today (22nd July 2013) is on sale on Amazon, hurry up to grab your copy for 99ct ;-)

Yum Yum Smoothie :)

The kids and I have fun creating new recipes for delicious smoothies. Today we tried: banana, peach, grapes, berries and orange juice. So refreshing in this hot summer day!

Oops, I did it again!

Is Britney's song playing and replaying in your mind? Sorry. I didn't intend to mess with your brain. I wasn't thinking about music when I started this post, but books that make me want to bake star-and-striped desserts. 

Again, the book I was reading isn't important (By the way, it was a nice Kindle freebe which title is Kiss the Cook), the point is that today I capitulated to the classic Apple Pie. 

I forgot the last time I baked it. So, I hadn't a recipe within reach and I'd to visit my pusher-web-site aka Joyofbaking (Apple Pie) for it ;)

The smell was amazing. Apples, butter and sugar. So homey  ;)

Chocolate & Avocado

Avocado Chocolate Chip Cookies

 I should give them a try ;-)

http://blog.kitchenaid.com/avocado-chocolate-chip-cookies-recipe/

Sugar, Sugar! Cookie, Cookie!

While Kid2 was playing basketball with the World beach air ball (The kitchen is the court and the kitchen sink the basket... Yeah. I know myself, my toddler has a fervent imagination o_O)
 

Kid2 holding the World

 I'd tried to make cookies for the farewell kindergarten party. Since I'm a very easygoing mom (Well, I like to think that, okay? But I've got my rules and I like that my Kids strictly follow them too ;-P), I left the royal icing decoration for a calmer moment, that is when my little Tasmanian devil might be sleeping ;-)

Ester Williams Coffee Mug

Dinos and the Ducks

Kid1 chose the cookies' forms and colors, but I had to double the number of dinosaurs due the huge numbers of Dino-Lovers in his class :-P o Here they are ;-)

Pink Cookies for the little ladies

F-Cup Champs

My Sugar Cookies

275 gr All purpose Flour
75 gr Butter
100 gr Sugar
1 Egg
2 tbs Maple syrup
1 teaspoon baking soda
Royal Icing

Grilled Meat and Veggies with homemade Guacamole

Another idea for a healthy dinner :-P

SilviaCherryree

My easy-peasy Guacamole:

1 ripe Avocado(It has to be soft and creamy inside)
1 medium size red Tomato
1/4 small sweet Onion
1 Lime (Only the juice)
Salt
Olive Oil (3 tbs)

Clean the Avocado, chop everything in pieces and put them in a blender. Mix well until the cream is homogeneous and that's all. 

NYC fairy tales

In the past week I read two amazing  books settled in NYC. They are two completely different romantic stories, one, Rita Hayworth's Shoes, is a classic Cinderella tale, the other, Sweet Thing, is a bitter sweet one.
I liked both, but truly loved the second.

Corner Cafe | West Village, New York City, NY
©  the cheshire smile

Sweet Thing is a brilliant debut novel and kept me awake until I turned the last page (virtually). I found myself invested in Mia and Will story from the beginning (Plus. The prologue caught me instantly, I just came back from a little trip with my two kids ;-P). I genuinely cared about them and their relationship. I won't tell you about them, because you need to see how Mia grow up along the book, suffering with her for her bad decisions and cheering for her good ones.
Fortunately Will is one of those people able to walk on the sunny side of the street, whatever life throws at him. Even a very confused soul mate :-D

Rita Hayworth's Shoes has a nice magic twist that gives the story the right momentum. It's the perfect reading for a relaxing moment.