How to host the best Super Bowl Party!

Super Bowl XLVI 

Party Guide

Your Super Bowl party can be made as simple or as fancy as you would like it to be. Just a few dips and some beer would probably suffice most audiences, especially those just interested in watching the game. But if you really would like to blow your friends out of the water and host the Super Bowl party of the year, this guide will help you accomplish that goal!

1. Attire

You have to represent the team you are cheering for! Victoria Secret always has cute NFL wear for girls! Jersey's can be found at almost any sporting store as well! 

2. Food

What would a Super Bowl party be like without some great dips! Here are some quick and easy recipes that I have gathered from my mom's recipe cabinet and other recipe sites. 

Buffalo Chicken Wing Dip

(my own recipe) 1pkg (8.oz) Cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup crumble blue cheese 

1/2 cup blue cheese dressing

1/2 cup Frank's redhot buffalo wing sauce- for hot lovers do half hot sauce and half wing sauce

2 cups cooked chicken, shredded (canned chicken works best)

Taco Dip

First layer: 1 can re-fried beans 

Second: Sour cream

Third: Guacamole

Fourth: Shredded lettuce

Fifth: Salsa

Sixth: Shredded Cheese

(black olives and spring onions sprinkled on top are optional depending upon your guest preferences)

Putting individual cups out with the dip in them is such a cute idea but more time consuming! 

Pizza Dip

• 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup mozzarella, grated
• 1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated
• 1 cup pizza sauce
  
• 1/2 cup mozzarella, shredded/grated
• 1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated
• 2 ounces pepperoni, sliced
• 2 tablespoons green pepper, sliced
• 2 tablespoons black olives, sliced

• Mix the cream cheese, sour cream mayonnaise, mozzarella and parmigiano reggiano and spread it across the bottom of a pie plate.
• Spread the pizza sauce on top and sprinkle on the cheese, pepperoni, green pepper and olives.
• Bake in a preheated 350F oven until the cheese has melted, bubbling and golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Recipe compliments of Closet Cooking 

Classic Pizza is also a great idea and easy for people to grab instead of surrounding a dip! But this is something unique that most other parties won't have!

Here is a great pizza recipe from Taste of Home!

Artichoke Bread

1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts (drained and chopped)
2 green onions (sliced)
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 (4 ounce) package cream cheese (room temperature)
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mozzarella (grated)
1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano (grated)
1 loaf Italian bread (sliced in half lengthwise)

Directions:
1. Mix the artichoke hearts, green onions, garlic, cream cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, mozzarella and parmigiano reggiano reserving some of the cheese.
2. Hollow 1/2 an inch out of the center of both halves of the bread.
3. Spread the mixture into the hole in the bread slices and top with the reserved cheese.
4. Bake in a preheated 350F oven covered in foil for 20 minutes.
5. Remove the foil and continue to bake until the cheese is melted and golden brown.

Also, compliments from Closet Cooking.

 

Baked Chipotle Sweet Potato Fries

(Skinny Taste Recipe)

• 1 sweet potato, (about 5" long) peeled and cut into 1/4" fries
• 2 tsp olive oil
• sea salt
• ground chipotle chile
• garlic powder

Preheat oven to 425°.

In a medium bowl, toss sweet potatoes with olive oil, salt, garlic powder and chipotle chile powder.

These delicious fries taste good with light ranch dip or Greek yogurt dip! Yum! 

 

Baked Eggplant Sticks

(Also, compliments of Skinny Taste)

• 10 oz eggplant
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
• 1/2 cup Italian Seasoned breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp parmesan cheese
• 1 large egg white
• oil spray 
• 1 cup quick marinara sauce for dipping (extra points)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 450°. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly spray with oil.
Cut ends off the eggplant. Slice eggplant in half, then into 1/4 inch thick slices. Lay each slice on the cutting board and cut into 1/4 inch strips. Be sure to cut all the strips the same size so they cook evenly.

Place eggplant strips in a bowl and season with olive oil, salt and pepper. Set aside.

Combine breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese in a bowl, and egg whites in another.
Dip a few strips of eggplant at a time into the egg whites, then into the breadcrumbs. Using a fork, remove eggplant from crumbs and place on the baking sheets. Spray with more oil and bake 10 minutes in the middle rack.
Turn over and bake an additional 5 minutes, or until golden. Serve hot.

 

3. Beverages

If you are hosting the Super Bowl party this year, it is crucial that you have enough beverages for everyone that is coming. Beer is a must! And be sure to have some mixers in case anyone brings their own bottle of liquor. Depending on how wild you would like your party to be, or if everyone can take a sick day on Monday, here is a great recipe for Margarita Jello Shots! They are fun and super cute, easy to distribute to everyone also! 

4. Games

Half time = perfect time for games! As a party hostess, you will be complimented if you are equipped with unique and fun games that no one has played before. So instead of just whipping out a deck of cards, make a trip to Target and pick yourself up the new version of Loaded Questions. This game can be played with 4+ players and will be sure to add an interesting twist to the night! If you don't already know your friends, after this game you will be sure to know more than you want to!

5. Deserts

Drinking seems to be a popular theme for the evening so why not stick with that theme and indulge your guests with some Corona or Blue Moon cupcakes! 

Blue Moon & Corona Cupcakes 

(Compliments of Miss Make) 

3/4 cups butter, at room temperature

1-3/4 cup sugar

2-1/2 cup flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3 eggs, at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp orange or lime zest

1 cup Blue Moon or Corona beer, plus more for brushing on tops

1/4 cup milk

Orange/lime wedges and sanding sugar for garnish

- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line 24 muffin tins with cupcake liners.

- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.

- Add eggs, beating after each addition then add the vanilla and zest.

- Combine milk and beer and alternatively add this mixture and the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture with the mixer on low speed, starting and ending with the flour.  

- Fill the cupcake liners 2/3 full and bake for 18 minutes, or until cake tester comes out clean.

- When cupcakes are done, poke holes in the tops of the cupcakes with toothpicks and brush some beer on each while still warm.  

For the citrus cream cheese frosting:

12 oz cream cheese, cold

6 tbsp butter, at room temperature

1 tbsp freshly squeezed orange/lime juice

1 tsp orange/lime zest

4 cups powdered sugar

- Cream together the cream cheese and butter in an electric mixer until smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes.  

- Add the citrus juice and zest and gradually add the powdered sugar until well-combined.  Beat until smooth for about 2 minutes.

- Load frosting in a piping bag fit with a large star tip and pipe cupcake tops once cooled.  

Recipe yields 24 cupcakes. 

Some more great Super Bowl Desert Recipes:

Football Whoopie Pies 

No Bake Oreo Truffles 

No Bake Cake Batter Truffles

No Bake Nutella Cheesecakes

GO GIANTS!!! :)

Valentine's Day Contest!

 14 Days 'til V-Day Countdown Contest

Dear Valentine's Day Couples and Singles:

How would you like to win a $50 gift card to Exit 9 Wine and Liquor for whatever your Valentine's Day plans may be? It's as simple as tweeting to your Twitter account:

'I love you more than _____ loves ____' 

Some examples include: 'I love you more than Lucy loves Ricky.' Be sure to include @MoveThatBlock and #loveyoumorethan so we can track who has entered to win! 

Simple and fun way to earn a cool prize for Valentine's Day! Can't wait to see all the creative answers our fans come up with! Let the games begin!

Cheap Valentine's Date Ideas

Instead of continuing to complain about the Valentine's Day experience and the billions of dollars that America spent on this holiday last year, I decided to channel my energy into finding a bunch of cute yet inexpensive date ideas. I gathered some from my own experiences, friends experiences and other blogs. If you feel the need to have to celebrate this holiday, here are some romantic ideas that are easy on your wallet!

1. 14 days of Valentines: Pick up a bag of those heart candies and each day hide one where your loved one will find it. It's a cute way to say 'I Love You' and he will look forward to your messages each day!

2. Build a Fort: Grab a bottle of wine, take the cushions off the couch, drape a blanket over two couches and string some white Christmas lights under the blanket. This will give the two of you a romantic star gazing experience and the close quarters will facilitate those loving feelings. 

3. Camp fire: Build a fire outside, roast some marshmallows and try to find the big dipper. The feeling of being a kid again will remind the two of you of the excitement you once had in the beginning of the relationship.

4. Game Night: Operation, Trouble, Sorry and Twister sound familiar? Dust off these old childhood games and have a game olympics. This plain, simple fun will be more fun than you expect! End the night with Twister and by that time your inner kid will have come out. Seeing this side of one another will make Twister interesting! 

5. Movie Marathon: Call in sick to work, put your pajamas back on and spend the entire day watching new movies with each other! Order some Chinese and just enjoy the warmth of the bed and each other's company. Just spending the day together will re kindle your love and remind each other how much fun you can have by just enjoying the simple things in life. 

6. Scavenger Hunt: Turn off all the lights for when he comes home from work, create your own little scavenger hunt where he is lead by candle light. At each candle light, give him another clue that will lead him to the next candle. You could make this romantic or fun, whichever way you would like! It's a cute idea and allows him to use a little bit of his intellectual side! He will enjoy getting every clue right and be happy to find you at the end of the hunt. 

7. Theme Night: Pick a theme for the evening, rather it's something new or his favorite topic! If you guys have been talking about going on a cruise together, create your own little cruise at home. Every room is a different island. The dining room could be in Mexico where he is served nachos, enchiladas and tequila! The living room could be transformed into a Bahama room with the heat turned to 90 degrees, you change into your bathing suites and watch Creatures of the Sea. End the night in the bedroom which is actually Puerto Rico where you are served rum and enjoy the sunset in a homemade hammock! 

8. Learn something new: Dance class, cooking class, or boxing class, learn something together! You will feel vulnerable at times and maybe even a little stupid but putting yourself out there together will create a bond and trust for each other knowing that it's ok to be vulnerable sometimes! Then, you both can show off your new talent once the class is over. 

9. Spa Day: Instead of spending money on going to the spa, create a menu of options for one another, you can pick three things off the menu. Then, one person gives the other a massage, maybe a facial and a manicure. Then you take a break, maybe eat some chocolate cover strawberries and champagne then the other person pampers the other! You both will feel so relaxed! 

10. Breakfast in bed: Sweet surprise! Each of you make the other their favorite breakfast food and feed it to each other in bed blindfolded. Being fed without being able to see what it is you are eating really makes you trust the other person and exemplifies your other senses. 

11. 20 Q's: Create a list of 20 questions, could be personal, silly or just some basic knowledge about each other. Write down the answers you think they might respond with and whoever has the most answers right wins. Take a sip of wine after every wrong answer! Getting to know more about each other will build your relationship. 

12. Bucket List: Sit down with each other and make a list of 100 things you both want to do before you die together. Coming up with this list together will make you both look forward to the future and that you have something to look forward to. Cut up the pieces, put them on a cork board, and every time you accomplish one of them, put them in a little bucket hanging on the wall! Such a cute idea! (Thanks Pinterest) 

13. Dine In: Everyone goes out to eat on Valentine's day, so why not make your home your own restaurant. Create a menu, serve three of his favorite courses and favorite bottle of wine. The best part of the night is that your already home when the meal is over! Pretending to be his waitress will also make it feel like something new! 

14. T.V. Marathon: Chose your favorite T.V. show, record 10 episodes or find it on Netflix and spend the night watching the whole first season of Lost. Take a break to serve each other some t.v. dinners and another break to make your homemade popcorn! 

15. Bar Hop: Create your own bar crawl! Make a map of all the bars that have good happy hour and make a plot of all the drinks you want to try at the different bars. Tell some of your friends to meet you at the last stop and have your own little party! Being around all your friends at the end of the night will make you both want to be alone together again! Building anticipation makes the time you finally get to be alone much more desirable. 

16. Create: Build something together! Rather it be just a book shelf or a wine cork board, creating something together will show you both that you make a great team and accomplishing something together gives you both a great feeling that you can conquer the world and do anything together! 

17. Truth or Dare: Create a list of truths and dares, pick up your favorite 6 pack and see where the night takes you. If anything, more memories will be made and the silliness of the game will bring out your inner kid, bonding the both of you on a different level. 

18: Venus vs. Mars: A little one on one with each other. Place a bet on who can beat who in a race or maybe even a little one on one soccer match. Loser has to wait on the other hand and foot for the remainder of the night!

19. Reminisce: Create a scrap book of your memories or create a memory box and spend the evening going through your memories together, remembering vacations and concerts you went on together. Remembering good times brings back great memories and how much fun you have had together! 

20. Be Spontaneous: Just get in the car and drive! Don't have any plans on where your going but be happy wherever the car takes you. The spontaneity of the act will excited the both of you and make for a great evening escaping just the two of you! 

Be Mine!

Yesterdays blog really intrigued me to do soem further research into the Valentine's day experience. What I found is appalling! According to the NY Times, in 2010 America spent over $15.7 not million but BILLION dollars on Valentine's Day! And as if that wasn't disgusting enough, the average American is projected to spend $112 dollars on their Valentine this year! Imagine all the things you could do with $112 dollars! 

1. Put it towards that student load debt

2. Chip away at some of that credit card debt

3. Put it towards that extended warranty for your car

4. Open a savings account for a new kitchen! 

5. Start a college fund for future children.

The possibilities are endless but there are many other money smart ways to spend $112 rather than on a bouquet of flowers that will die in 3 days and she will forget about in 4. Instead of just sitting here complaining about how Valentine's day is just a scam set up by Hallmark to boost sales (sorry St. Valentine) I figured I was going to think of a way for people to save money this year. MoveThatBlock is going to be promoting their dating site with a contest and prize but would like some insight as to what our fans/users would like to participate in! Would you be most likely to participate in a trivia game for the Valentines 10 Day Countdown? Or how about sharing your worst Valentine's Day experience, best story wins? Tag your worst Valentine's Day present to win a great prize this year? We would love to know so feel free to tell us what your more likely to take part of! But hurry, the big day is only 18 days away :) 

Valentine's Day

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, many girls are looking forward to a romantic evening with their significant others while their guys are dreading having to spend money on a fake holiday. Quite frankly, I would have to say that I am with the male population on this one! So many girls make such a big deal about what their boyfriend is expected to get or do for them on Valentine's day. But at the end of the day, a big percentage of these girls actually end up disappointed because they didn't receive that new Tiffany's key heart necklace they wanted or their boyfriends forgot to make reservations at the fancy Italian restaurant that is now booked for the evening. Where did all of these expectations come from? Before I make any conclusions about what I believe is a bogus holiday, I did some research and found out that there actually was a Saint Valentine which is the reason we celebrate Valentine's day. 


Apparently the story goes that St. Valentine was performing marriages during a time when Roman Emperor Claudius II was banning them. The Emperor believed that single males were more likely to enroll in the army at that time so he banned marriages. St. Valentine was the only one brave enough to go against his rule and performed marriages anyways. St. Valentine was sentence to death on February 4th 270 and it wasn't until 1537 that King Henry VII declared February 14th an official holiday to honor the brave St. Valentine. Who knew there was such history dedicated to this day! Now it sort of makes sense why we spend it with the ones we love but shouldn't it be more about the sacrament of marriage instead of going out to eat with our boyfriends/girlfriends? I believe if I would have known St. Valentine, he would have never imagined that what he was doing would turn into such a superficial holiday full of spending money on fancy dinners or pumping money back into the economy in forms of gold necklaces and diamond rings. He would probably actually be appalled knowing that we still honor his holiday in a society where the divorce rate is at 75% and climbing! So maybe instead of spending the time and effort in trying to find the perfect valentines day bouquet or fancy bottle of wine, we put our efforts into fixing our marriages and actually celebrate the meaning of what this holiday was intended for!   

Superbowl XLVI!

Who else is this excited for the Patriots to beat the Giants in the Superbowl XLVI?!? 

Trust

As I laid in my bed last night tossing and turning in a sweat, unable to fall asleep due to this new cold brewing inside me and attacking my white blood cells, I threw in an old Desperate Housewives DVD that I must have seen at least a dozen times in hopes that it would help my eyes find the back of my eye lids. Like many of my assumptions, this one also proved to be inaccurate. I found a way to find some sort of depth in this particular episode of Desperate Housewives. In this particular episode, the housewives's trust is tested in one way or another. Without going into too much detail, Gabriel is forced to trust Carlos as he was sent to jail for a crime he did not do, Lynette has to trust a new nannie with her children and Susan's daughter has to trust that her mom knows what's best for her.

In my drossy state of exhaustion, I started thinking about trust and how in real life it can be one of the hardest emotions to give someone else. But we are forced to make this difficult decision on a daily basis rather if it's trusting that you will get a pay check this Friday or trusting other drivers as you make a trip to the bank on slippery snowy roads. Obviously there are people who are more trusting than others and people who give out their trust more often than others. My brother is a great example of someone who trusts without reason. In some cases, this is called nieve and it often times gets him into trouble. Cole believes that everyone is made up of good instead of evil and will believe what you tell him is the truth. How him and I came from the same egg is beyond my understanding. I am on the complete opposite side of the spectrum. Maybe I have just lived more and seen more evil but I have been tricked too many times with my trust to the point that I am not even sure I could trust anyone. I don't want to live life this way and sometimes I wish I could be more like Cole. If only I could find the goodness in everyone and believe that no one could hurt you but that is not true at all. With trust comes pain and hurt that the person we once trusted did not live up to our expectations.

I find my brother living a very simple and happy life. He always has a smile on his face and rarely worries about his future, or anything for that matter. I almost think that this would be a better way to live. Not worry about anything and just let life happen. Give out our trust more freely but with some provisions and then learn from the outcomes. People do wrong, that's life, but forgiveness is a virtue!

At the end of the episode, all of the housewives learned to let go of their fears that held them back and were finally able to trust. Who would have thought something so profound could come out of such a superficial drama t.v. show? So maybe we all shouldn't have my mentality nor my brothers but somewhere in the middle lies a fearless and more optimistic outlook on life.  That is where we should all be!

"Love all, trust few and do wrong to none," Shakespeare