no more isp at home… :(

so… I will still be doing the calendar day and IOTD, and I’ll try to do some other cute stuff via the iphone.

please be patient with me and thank you dear friends! Have a beautiful weekend! 🙂

xoxo

Quick and Easy Peppermint Fudge

                         Thank you, Skeen! Isn’t he awesome??? 😀                          

Quick and Easy Peppermint Fudge

Total Time: 2 hr 10 min
Prep: 5 min
Inactive: 2 hr
Cook: 5 min

Yield:
10 to 12 servings

Ingredients:

Cooking spray, for spraying the foil

3 cups semisweet chocolate chips

One 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

Red and white peppermint candies, crushed, for topping

Directions:

Line an 8-inch square baking pan with foil. Spray the foil with cooking spray.

In a medium saucepan over low heat, combine the chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk and stir until it’s all melted and smooth. Pour it into the prepared pan and spread to even out the surface. Sprinkle on the crushed candies. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

Lift the foil out of the pan and peel it off the fudge. Cut into small squares.

Recipe courtesy Ree Drummond

IOTD

 

& a special Hello Kitty as Cookie Monster- I couldn’t resist! =^.^=

 

*Special* Calendar day

Classic Snickerdoodles

Total Time: 35 min
Prep: 15 min
Cook: 20 min

Yield: about 4 dozen

Ingredients:

1/2 cup salted butter, softened

1/2 cup vegetable shortening

1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar

2 medium eggs

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine the butter, shortening, 1 1/2 cups sugar and the eggs and mix thoroughly with an electric mixer on medium speed until creamy and well combined, 1 to 2 minutes. Sift together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt, and stir into the shortening mixture.

In a small bowl, stir together the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar with the cinnamon.

Shape the dough into 1 1/2-inch balls (1 tablespoon per ball), and roll each ball in the cinnamon-sugar. Arrange the dough balls 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake two sheets at a time until the edges of the cookies are set but the centers are still soft, 8 to 10 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through. Transfer the cookies to wire racks for cooling. Repeat with the remaining dough balls. Store in an airtight container.

Calendar day; December 18, 2014

Thursday, the 18th of December, 2014 is the 352th day in 2014 and in the 51st calendar week.

General Events:

International Migrants Day
December 18, 2014 in the World

International Migrants Day is celebrated on December 18, 2014. International Migrants Day is an international day observed for taking into account the large and increasing number of migrants in the world. On December 18, 1990, the General Assembly adopted the international convention on the protection of the rights of migrant workers and members of their families. This day is observed in many countries, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations through the dissemination of information on human rights and fundamental political freedoms of migrants, and through sharing of experiences and the design of actions to ensure the protection of migrants.

http://www.un.org/en/events/migrantsday/

Where is International Migrants Day?
Worldwide

Republic Day of Niger
December 18, 2014 in Niger

Republic Day of Niger is celebrated on December 18, 2014. Since 1958, the 18th has been an historic anniversary, widely commemorated, but not a national festival. In 2005, the government of the Fifth Republic of Niger declared the 18th a national holiday, in conjunction with the August 3rdIndependence Day. The 18th is celebrated in Niger with official festivals and appearances of political leaders, as well as public parties and festivities. It is a Public Holiday, in which government offices and many businesses close.

Where is Republic Day of Niger?
Nationwide Niger

Bake Cookies Day
December 18, 2014 in the World

Bake Cookies Day is celebrated on December 18, 2014. Cookies are most commonly baked until crisp or just long enough that they remain soft, but some kinds of cookies are not baked at all. Cookies are made in a wide variety of styles, using an array of ingredients including sugars, spices, chocolate, butter, peanut butter, nuts, or dried fruits. The softness of the cookie may depend on how long it is baked.

In the United States and Canada a cookie is a small, flat, baked treat, usually containing flour, eggs, sugar, and either butter or cooking oil, and often including ingredients such as raisins, oats, or chocolate chips. Cookies arrived in America in the 17th century, although the word arrived much later with the Dutch in its original form of “koekje”, meaning “little cake”. This was soon shortened to “cooky” or “cookie”, although cookies themselves seem to date back as far as 7th century Persia!

Why not try some cinnamon flavoured cookies (such as the snickerdoodle) to get your kitchen smelling of winter festivities?

Where is the event?
Worldwide

UN Arabic Language Day
December 18, 2014 in the World

UN Arabic Language Day is celebrated on December 18, 2014. The event was established by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2010 to seeking “to celebrate multilingualism and cultural diversity as well as to promote equal use of all six of its official working languages throughout the organization”. December 18 was chosen as the date for the Arabic language as it is “the day in 1973 when the General Assembly approved Arabic as an official UN language”.

Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century. This includes both the literary language and varieties of Arabic spoken in a wide arc of territory stretching across the Middle East, North Africa, and the Horn of Africa. Arabic belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family. If Arabic is considered a single language, it perhaps is spoken by as many as 422 million first language speakers, making it one of the half dozen most populous languages in the world.

Where is UN Arabic Language Day?
Worldwide

National Roast Suckling Pig Day
December 18, 2014 in the USA

Today is National Roast Suckling Pig Day! During the hectic holiday season, it is difficult to imagine that anyone would actually have the time to roast a pig. It typically takes two days to fully prepare the pig and then to roast it. Nevertheless, roast suckling pigs are an iconic holiday dish, often depicted as the centerpiece of a massive feast.

A suckling pig is a young piglet that has not yet been weaned from its mother. Young piglets are considered a delicacy because their meat is very tender compared to older pigs. A suckling pig can range anywhere from 9 to 20 pounds, depending on how many people you intend to feed.

There are various recipes for suckling pig that can be traced back to Ancient Rome and China. Today, pig roasts are a popular tradition in cultures all around the world. To celebrate National Roast Suckling Pig Day, start gathering the necessary ingredients for the roasted pig centerpiece of your holiday feast!

Where is National Roast Suckling Pig Day?
Nationwide USA

Historical Events on 18th December:

218 BC – Second Punic War: Battle of the Trebia – Hannibal’s Carthaginian forces defeat those of the Roman Republic.

1271 – Kublai Khan renames his empire “Yuan” (? yuán), officially marking the start of the Yuan Dynasty of China.

1603 – First fleet of the Dutch East India Compnay under Admiral Steven van der Haghen departs for the East-Indies

1719 – Thomas Fleet publishes “Mother Goose’s Melodies For Children”

1777 – 1st national Thanksgiving Day, commemorating Burgoyne’s surrender

1839 – 1st celestial photograph (of Moon) made in US, John Draper, NYC

1849 – William Bond obtains 1st photograph of Moon through a telescope

1878 – John Kehoe, the last of the Molly Maguires is executed in Pennsylvania.

1888 – Richard Wetherill and his brother in-law discover the ancient Indian ruins of Mesa Verde.

1900 – The Upper Ferntree Gully to Gembrook Narrow-gauge (2 ft 6 in or 762 mm) Railway (now the Puffing Billy Railway) in Victoria, Australia is opened for traffic.

1912 – Piltdown Man, later discovered to be a hoax, is supposedly found in the Piltdown Gravel Pit, by Charles Dawson

1936 – Su-Lin, 1st giant panda to come to US from China, arrives in SF

1956 – Japan admitted to UN

1958 – Niger gains autonomy within French Community (National Day)

1966 – Dr. Seuss’ “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” airs for 1st time on CBS

1966 – Saturn’s moon Epimetheus is discovered by Richard L. Walker.

1969 – House of Lords votes to abolish the death penalty in England, Wales and Scotland (Northern Ireland 25 July 1973)

1980 – Vietnam adopts constitution

1985 – UN Security Council unanimously condemns “acts of hostage-taking”

1996 – During a press conference, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Maleki states that Iran supports the free flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz, but reserves the option of closing off the shipping route if it is threatened