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Just received an email from Eme's Mom -- and EmesArmy needs YOU.

Eme is a sweet little girl from Prince William County who is being robbed of her sight by CRB1-LCA, a very rare genetic disease. She is 6 and she is already blind. Join EmesArmy & FIGHT for her SIGHT!! For each new "LIKE" on the EmesArmy facebook page, a local IT company will donate $1.

Please Check out EmesArmy and help support Eme's fight to cure retinal blindness.

 
 
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Woodbridge, VA will be awarded five thousand (13 oz.) jars of free Nutella hazelnut spread and a visit from the Nutella Breakfast Tour Truck this December as winners of the nationwide Nutella Tour City Challenge. 
The truck will be making one last stop in the winning city to spread the love at Potomac Mills on December 23 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., just in time for the holidays.                               

The Nutella Breakfast Tour Truck visited 12 cities across the country from September to December encouraging fans to tweet their favorite way to wake up with Nutella.  Woodbridge, VA posted the most eligible tweets, winning the top prize, a special visit from the Nutella Breakfast Tour Truck filled with free Nutella.

Local residents are invited to come out to celebrate the holidays and claim their free jar of Nutella while supplies last. Fans can also take a picture next to the giant inflatable Nutella® jar, enjoy festive music and spread some holiday cheer. For more information and Official Rules for the Nutella Tour City Challenge, visit the Nutella USA Facebook page at www.facebook.com/NutellaUSA

 
 
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Early Sunday morning, I hosted the Sensory-Friendly Santa event at Fair Oaks Mall. The event could not have been possible with out the gracious support of Fair Oaks Mall (thanks, Ed!). The children and families were so wonderful!

Thank you to Corner Bakery, Sears, and Dunkin Donuts for helping make the event possible. There was such a great turn out - I hope that we can make it an annual event. Special thank you to Valerie Bey Photography for donating your time to photograph the event.

 
 
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write down/email/print/memorize this recipe asap and keep in your arsenal. I use this about once/twice per week on salmon, chicken, or pork.

This recipe is a hybrid of a marinade and a rub - but is best applied by a silicone basting/pastry brush. It is easy to make - and easy to modify to meet the needs of your tastebuds. It always impresses guests and commoners (my family) alike. Crunchy outside, soft and tender inside.

tip: I often make this spread (in a larger batch) every couple of weeks and keep in a mason jar in the refeigerator. it's nice to have on hand, ready to go, with the flavors nicely blended. also, sometimes i heat up the olive oil on med-low and let the rosemary simmer for a few minutes to extract the flavors.

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Ingredients:  
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp dijon mustard (i like something that is really seedy)
2 tbsp Mrs. Dash Onion and Herb seasoning
2 tbsp rosemary (use fresh when you can)
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp sea salt

sometimes I also add other spices: garlic powder, white pepper, cayenne, whatever else is in my cabinet.

Directions: Mix all ingredients together, spread with pastry brush onto both sides of the salmon. The key to success is a grill pan - it's not too shabby in a regular frying pan either. Make sure your pan is hot enough to create the crust on the outside. I usually heat my pan on high for about 2-3 minutes, throw the salmon on, and then turn to medium or medium-high depending on the thickness of the filet. Cook about 3-4 minutes per side. I also find it best to use tongs to turn over so that you don't scrape the crust off the filet.

This is very customizeable - and it's hard to make it wrong. Add what you like and give it a try!
 
 
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Disney On Ice fans in the Washington, D.C. area will have a chance to purchase tickets for just $1 to the Disney On Ice presents Treasure Trove show coming to the nation’s capital from February 13-18.
 
This incredible offer is available one-day-only while quantities last (a total of 1,000 tickets will be available). Those that don’t get the $1 dollar deal will get a $5 savings on tickets to any performance.             

Available to all Disney On Ice fans in the Washington, D.C. area! On  Tuesday, January 8, 2013, tickets go on sale at 10:00 am.  and the sale ends at 5:30 p.m.

You MUST purchase the tickets at the Verizon CenterBox Office:                       
601 F Street NW 
Washington, DC 20004 

Verizon Center, Washington, DC. February13–18, 2013 .
Wednesday, February 13th @ 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, February 14th @ 10:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Friday, February 15th @ 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, February 16th @ 10:30 a.m. 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.
Sunday, February 17th @ 12:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Monday, February 18th @ 12:30 p.m.

Venue/Ticket Information:Tickets are on-sale now and can be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets via charge by phone at 1-800-745-3000; via http://ticketmaster.com; and at the Verizon Center box office.
Verizon Center Ticket Prices: $80.00 (Front Row) / $55.00 (VIP) / $30.00 / $20.00

To discover more about Disney On Ice, go to www.disneyonice.com, or visit on Facebook and YouTube.

 
 
My phone died yesterday by means of internal malfunction. In the past two days, these are the things I've had to do with no "smart phone" at my fingertips:

1. Use my laptop.
2. Look at a map and actually hand-write directions to someone’s house.
3. Use a display phone at the Verizon store to call my grandma.
4. Plead with my child to bear with me at the grocery store – no Netflix to keep him happy.
5. Miss several picture-worthy moments: B with Santa, tacky light tour, sorority alumnae gift exchange.
6. Run without Pandora or my running app.
7. Walk to the neighbor’s house to ask if they wanted a playdate.
8. Mentally calculate my gas mileage after filling up at the pump.
9. Skip talking to my mom every day :(
10. Skip calling and ranting with customer service rep after a shipment I ordered is missing several pieces.

Hopefully, I will get a new phone delivered by noon tomorrow.

Does anything on this list hit home with you? What what you miss if you didn't have a smart phone for a few days? Leave a comment or Join in the convo on my facebook page.
 
 
I'm happy to announce that at the request of some of my loyal readers who have children with Autism, I have been able to connect with Fair Oaks Mall to bring you a sensory-friendly Santa! This event will be THIS Sunday, 12/16 @ the Ice Palace. The event is reserved only for children with Autism and their families.  I reached out to Parents of Autistic Children - Northern Virginia to partner with me for this event. If you know a family that would like to attend this event, please share the information! You must register for the event - space is limited.  Register online via Eventbrite.
 
 
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My friend Wendy came into town to visit me after a whirlwind trip to DC. She was in town for the Kennedy Center Honors weekend - and got to hit up the most fabulous parties, State Department Dinner, White House reception, and of course, the Kennedy Center event and supper. I lushed at hearing all of her fantastic stories! She is so fancy! Her driver dropped her off at my house... and after her stay at the Four Seasons, I can't really even compete... but we had so much fun getting together and reconnecting! She showed up with some delicious Georgetown Cupcakes at my front door.

How sweet is that?