Have you ever been overwhelmed by the time and effort it can take to change the world? You observe friends on life changing mission trips, organizations building shelters and schools, celebrities raising millions of dollars for those in need, etc. and you think “Wow, I’d really like to change the world but I just don’t have the                    (insert: time, money, resources) to pull it off.”

Friends, I’m here to challenge you to consider changing what you think it might take to make a difference in the world. Grand gestures are nice and do make an impact, but so can sharing small acts of kindness and caring around your own community. It doesn’t take a lot of time, money or resources to make a difference in the lives of others. We can make a huge impact by simply showing people that we #CareEnough thorough small acts. …

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If you live in Kansas City, you can’t help but to have caught Royals Fever. The Kansas City Royals post season games have been unbelievable! And here we are, in the World Series, which hasn’t happened for this team since 1985.

In fact, I was in 6th grade and I remember I liked a boy who was hugely excited that the Kansas City Royals were facing the St Louis Cardinals in the World Series. I had no clue what any of it meant, because well, I was a 6th grade girl and couldn’t be bothered by that kind of stuff. But, in order to get the attention of said boy, I pretended to be the BIGGEST Kansas City Royals super fan! I have vivid memories of talking to him in the hallway before class started about the games and being all twitter-pated that he was talking to me. Needless to say, the “relationship” didn’t really last much past the world series… I mean a girl can only fain interest in something she is clueless about for so long. I’m sure he eventually caught on.

Flash forward to 2014, and the Kansas City Royals are in the World Series again…and it’s a BIG deal! And again, I’m trying to get the attention of a boy, but this time it’s my 12 year old son. You see, it’s pretty cool when your mom knows a thing or two about sports. And when you can have common interests with your almost teenage son (which means conversations that get him saying more than a yes or no grunt answer), that’s a good thing!

Kansas City Royals T-Shirt and Cleanup Hat GIVEAWAY!

I’m excited today to share a fun Kansas City Royals inspired cocktail recipe with you from UV Vodka as well as a women’s Kansas City Royals Scrum Tee and Cleanup Hat from 47 Brand.  As much as I wish cap sleeves would die a quick death, I actually really love this shirt! I think you will too!

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This year, McCormick is hosting a multi-series barbecue competition sanctioned by the Kansas City BBQ Society (KCBS) to see who can master the flavor using Grill Mates Montreal Steak Seasoning. At the event, we’ll be sampling burgers seasoned with Montreal Steak Seasoning and hosting a fun grilling-themed photo booth and custom grilling prize pack giveaway. We’ll also be awarding checks to the winners (1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd place) of the Match-Up. Those of you who visit can have a lot of fun enjoying free food samples and entering to win the custom grilling prize pack giveaway! The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle is a super fun family event. I hope you can make it!

If you aren’t local, you can still get in on the action by:

• Checking out the online points chase to track team standings over the course of the competition at www.kcbs.us/grillmates
• Joining the Grillerhood on Facebook – the largest online grilling community – to view event highlights and share their own grilling wins.
• Visiting the Grilling Lookbook on McCormick.com or finding us on Pinterest.com to get sizzling recipe ideas, from mouthwatering mains to savory sides.

As always, you can also follow me on Instagram and Twitter where I’ll be capturing lots of action as it happens!

Just click here to follow along:

I look forward to seeing you all there!

The post Kansas City Local Scene – McCormick Grill Mates KCBS Match-Up appeared first on Dine and Dish.

I know I know… I’m horrible at keeping up with Project 365. Normally it’s this time of year that I stop uploading and sharing and give up. I never quit taking photos every day but if you’ll look at my past few years attempts, this is the time when I usually get so behind at uploading that I just quit The pictures stay on my computer and no one ever sees them.

Not this year. Nope… This year I’m going to bore you all to tears while I get caught up on my photos from July and most of August. Then, I have no vacations or out of town trips planned that should throw me off from uploading for awhile! Thanks for hanging in there! Here we go……

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The post Project 365 2012 – July through Now appeared first on Dine and Dish.

These past two weeks were pretty uneventful, but there are little moments I want to remember that I probably wouldn’t have had I not captured them on my camera. I’m so thankful I’m doing these posts as I know how much I treasure being able to look back in time and re-live the memories. Thank you for being there to take a peek as well. I do appreciate your comments and feedback!

OK…. now on to the pictures from week 25 & 26 of June!…

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The post Project 365 2012 – Week 25 & 26 – A Photo a Day Journey appeared first on Dine and Dish.

In addition, my friend Sylvie and I are both hosting Kelly Moore camera bag giveaways on Monday. If you are looking for a beautiful bag to carry your camera gear in and more, make sure to check back here for details on the giveaways!

Now, for our week in pictures.

Sunday, March 25th: Kelly had pictures and practice for her upcoming First Communion today. I took a ton of pictures at the church with my DSLR but I think this moment captured with my iPhone when I was curling her hair is still my favorite.

Monday, March 26th: School picture day. Since I don’t usually buy school portraits in the Spring, I always take a few snapshots of the kids all spiffed up before school.

Tuesday, March 27th: We had one of those great spring thunderstorms today. It was a perfect day to stay inside with a cup of coffee and a good book. Too bad I had too much work to do to live out my dream for the day, but it was still a great day!

Wednesday, March 28th: Since the weather has turned so nice, we are back to walking to school most days, which means Leah gets to piddle along and fraternize with her favorite neighborhood dogs. Taken with my iPhone.

Thursday, March 29th: I was one of the parent volunteers on the Kindergarten field trip to Kaleidoscope today. If you are from KC and have never taken your kids to Hallmark’s Kaleidoscope (near Crown Center area) you must do it soon! The best part of Kaleidoscope is that it is FREE! So much fun and entertainment in one place and a price that can’t be beat.

Friday, March 30th: Spring weather has just started and Leah’s poor knees and elbows are already so scuffed up from falling onto the pavement. It is going to be a very long and band-aid filled season!

Saturday, March 31st: If you follow me on Instagram, you may have noticed that we hosted happy hour with our neighbor friends Friday evening. I used Pinnacle’s Cake Flavored Vodka for the first time and made Creme Cake Martinis (one of many tempting recipes from their site). Oh my goodness… these were so good. To make the martini you take 2 oz Cake Flavored Vodka, 1 oz Creme de Cocoa and 1 ounce heavy whipping cream. Shake over ice and strain into sugar or sprinkle-filled glasses. Be forewarned… these go down way to easily!

Print

Creme Cake Martini Cocktail

These Creme Cake Martini's go down so easy but are SO good!

Course Beverage, Cocktail

Cuisine American

Keyword beverage, cocktail

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Servings 1 martini

Equipment

• cocktail shaker

Ingredients

• 2 oz Cake Flavored Vodka
• 1 oz Creme de Cocoa
• 1 oz heavy whipping cream

Instructions

• Shake ingredients over ice in a cocktail shaker and strain into a sugar or sprinkle-filled glass.

That’s it for this week. Thanks for stopping by and make sure to come back on Monday for the camera bag giveaway! Have a great week!

Disclosure: This blog post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

The post Project 365 2012 – Week 13 {Recipe: Creme Cake Martini} appeared first on Dine and Dish.

I remember the moments well… our family squashed in among the crowds of people anxiously awaiting the Kansas City Country Club Plaza Lighting Ceremony. I was young, so could usually be found either hiding behind the backs of strangers, desperately trying to peek my head around them for a view or precariously sitting atop my dad’s shoulders, shivering as the cold, Kansas wind would hit my face.

It never failed. As the countdown to the lighting began, my heart would flutter with excitement. The moment… 5-4-3-2….and 1… was always so magical. No matter where you were standing, who you were nestled between, the sudden brightness of the beautiful light display would take your breath away.

After the ceremony we’d walk through the plaza, deciding where our dessert stop would be. The ice cream shop under the brightly lit star (with bubblegum ice cream) always won out, but after eating ice cream I longed to stop at the cute little popcorn shop with the long line of people wrapped all the away around the corner. “We aren’t waiting in a line that long for popcorn, Kristen.” Begrudgingly, I’d move on, but I was always so envious of the folks walking out of Topsy’s with the giant tins of popcorn in their hands.

Fast forward many years later and I’ve been lucky enough to have experienced Topsy’s popcorn many, many times. When my mom became a school teacher, Topsy’s popcorn tins were a common gift from her students. As I grew up and moved into a professional, office role, clients were often adorning my office space with tins of popcorn. I never tired of Topsy’s popcorn.

My friends at Topsy’s gifted our family with a big tin of popcorn this week. As my 5 year old was eating it she exclaimed “When I grow up, I’m going to buy twenty-five hundred of these every year.” Needless to say, we are all fans.

Topsy’s wants to share a 6.5 gallon tin with someone this year, and I thought we would do an “Acts of Kindness” type giveaway. Receiving a tin of popcorn is such a fun treat. This time around the giveaway is not going to you…but to someone YOU want to surprise! It’s your chance to pass on some holiday kindness on behalf of Topsy’s and Dine & Dish. To enter, simply leave a comment on this post telling me whose day you would want to brighten by sending a tin of Topsy’s popcorn. For additional entries:

• Tweet the following: ” I want to brighten someone’s day by sharing a tin of Topsy’s popcorn from Topsy’s & @dineanddish http://su.pr/2gwwHv ” Leave a separate comment on this post letting me know you did this.
• Visit Topsy’s website and leave a comment here letting me know which flavor or flavor combination of Topsy’s you would choose.

All entries must be received by midnight CST on Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011. Winner will be chosen via Random.org and will be notified via email (must have a valid email address).

This is a sponsored post on behalf of Topsy’s. All opinions expressed are my own.

The post Acts of Kindness & Topsy’s Popcorn Giveaway appeared first on Dine and Dish.