Hey there!  I’ve been getting some sporadic reports that some folks are getting my emails bounced back.  For the last couple weeks I’ve been having some weirdo email issues with stuff not making it where I send it and attachments being dropped off into oblivion… you know, the usual. 

So, if you have sent me mail recently and you’ve received no reply, it’s not because I don’t love you anymore. There’s a chance it never got to me.  If you got a bounce notice… well, then we know it didn’t get to me, so please feel free to resend! 

In the meantime, I’m going to try to resolve this issue… somehow.  I’m not entirely sure why it’s happening. I’ve not changed anything about how I read or access my email in the last 6 months, so I’m not sure what the deal is.  Also, just an update, if you are using an @lovemoxie.com email address for either myself or Kathy, please please please please please please update that. I’ll be your best friend. *sing song* We’ve been using @themoxiegirls.com for over a year now and are trying to phase out @lovemoxie.com entirely, so updating your address books would be most kind.

Ok, that’s it.  Have a great weekend, all!

I just wanted to pop in to address the curiosity surrounding Femmeplates™ and their pending arrival.  We know you ladies are waiting patiently and are super excited about it, evident by the slew of email we’re getting asking “When? When? When? Are we there yet? Huh? Huh?” We know waiting is torture!  We’re really excited to unleash them and we’ve got a nice selection coming together that we’re sure will tickle your feminine blog fancy in one way or another.  We wanted to give you ladies a date to mark on your calendar.  We’ll be unleashing Femmeplates™ on August 11th this summer so you’ll have time to scoop them up and get your sites ready for action. 

We’ll notify everyone who is on the mailing list first so if you’ve not signed up, go ahead and do that so you’ll be first in line to take your pick.  There won’t be a zillion so you’ll want to be in the front of the line to peruse the selection.  Boding Femmeplates™ success we’ll continue to feed the beast with new and fresh designs as the year goes on.  Including seasonal and holiday designs as well as we get closer to that time.  Can you believe I just mentioned holidays?  I think I just had an embolism just thinking about that.

Anyway, there you have it girls.  August 11th is the date for Femmeplates™ so be on the lookout. Also, if you are in the San Diego area the weekend of August 23-24 and want to meet up with us for the The Moxie Girls™ Mixer (… it’ll be a cocktailin’ good time) make sure to let us know over there on the right in that nifty poll.  We hope you’ll join us for some fun… who knows maybe you’ll get some freebies out of it. 

Ladies and gentlemen, my Venti cup with the eco-friendly sleeve runneth over.  My schedule is currently full and I am unable to begin any more projects until October at the very earliest.  Full. Full-a-rooni.  Full-o-rama. Fuller than a fat kid in a cupcake shop.  Full.

If you plan to put in a request for a proposal and you’d like to work with me specifically, please know that I am not only not booking any projects at this time, I am not reviewing any requests and will not be preparing any more proposals until Tuesday, September 2nd. 

If you submitted a request and I contacted you for a meeting and you failed to make the meeting or never replied, well… that’s a bummer. Please contact me as soon as possible to reschedule if you’re still interested, otherwise, I’ll assume you’re not and move on. But I will keep your request on file, if you change your mind.

If you submitted a request for an estimate in the last week, but haven’t heard back from us yet, fear not!  One of us will be responding to you this week, we just had to find our water wings before we dove into this email.

In the meantime, your patience and continued interest is really appreciated!  We’re thrilled that you love us enough to keep us this busy, so thank you! 

Kathy is coming to visit me in San Diego this August and we’d love to create an opportunity to meet some of you lovely peeps!  We’re working on putting together a little soirée at one of my favorite lounges for a few hours one evening.  But, in order to best gauge attendance, we’d love to get your feedback on if this is something you’d like to attend. 

To give you a little sneak peek into what we have in mind, while it will be a cash bar for adults 21 and up, there will hopefully be some fun door prizes, as well as a signature cocktail special and some delicious (and I do mean delicious) noshes. I’ll be meeting with the folks at said venue about the details as soon as we can a rough headcount.  We’ll be there for general merriment, meet n’ greet, book signing and blog talk.  Most importantly, we’re there for fun, so bring a friend!

Check out the poll on the sidebar of our blog to vote!

Well, the results are in!  Out of all the totally fabulous cocktail recipes we received, we have drawn our 3 winners.

First, the grand prize winner is Katrina W. with her oh-so-delectable Strawberry Pina Colada Daquiri. My blender thanks you.

Strawberry Pina Colada Daquiri

• 4 oz pina colada mix
• 2.5 oz strawberry schnapps
• 1 oz lime juice
• 1 oz Bacardi rum
• 2 oz frozen strawberries
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• Filled glass of cracked ice

I’m a little unclear on if this is shaken and strained up in a martini glass or if you just throw it all in a blender.  If it’s the latter, I’d stick in a straw, maybe on of those umbrellas and I’m all set.  Use a glass if you must.  Festive daquiri glasses or margarita glasses work great, but any ol’ pint glass will do in a pinch.

Katrina will receive a signed copy of our book, The IT Girl’s Guide to Blogging with Moxie as well as an 8oz. tube of our current desktop favorite, Jaqua Hand Creme with Meadowfoam Seed Oil (though I’m not positive which fragrance you’ll get.  That’s Kathy’s department!) along with a too-good-to-be-true retro cocktail caddy. Oooo ahhh… perfect for trying out some other new drinks, eh?

Next up are our two 2nd place winners:  Chari (or “CLD”, as she’s often known) and Heather H.!!!  Congratulations! Those extra credit entries paid off, ladies! 

Chari sent us an antioxidant-rich recipe (let me pretend, ok?) for something she calls a “Healthy” Cosmo, which she also re-posted on her blog:

“Healthy" Cosmo

1/2 oz. Key Lime Juice
1/2 oz. Licor 43
2 oz. Rain Vodka
3 oz. Pure, REAL Pomegranate Juice
1 Lime Wedge
1 Mint Sprig

Pour all ingredients into a shaker with ice, shake mightily. Strain into a chilled [preferably frozen] martini glass. Garnish with lime wedge and mint sprig. Sit out on the lanai, prop up your earth shoe-clad feeties on an ottoman and enjoy. Feel proud of yourself for managing to up your antioxidants and get a buzz at the same time!

Heather decided to go all Italian on us with a delicious mix of light, sweet limoncello, tart cran and our ol’ girl the Goose!  She also smartly paired it with a white pizza which if I had my way, I’d have in front of me right now. Mmm mmm… And to make it even better, the white pizza is figure-friendly at only 4 Weight Watcher’s Points® a slice.  That leaves room for another limontini!  Let me have my math.

Limon-tini

• 3oz Grey Goose
• 2oz Caravella Limoncello
• 1oz cranberry juice

Pour over ice, shake, and strain into glass.  Enjoy!

White Pizza

22 min | 10 min prep | SERVES 4

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/2 vidalia onions or other sweet onion, coarsely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped spinach or arugula leaves


• 1/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
• 4 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1 (8-inch) prebaked pizza crusts (such as boboli)

1. Spray grill rack with nonstick spray and prepare grill for medium-hot fire.
2. Heat the oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, sugar, and 1/4 tsp of the salt.
3. Cook, stirring until onion is a rich golden brown, about 8 minutes.
4. Stir together the spinach or arugula, ricotta, 2 tbsp of the parmesan, the basil, and the remaining 1/4 tsp salt in a small bowl.
5. Place the crust on a pizza paddle or rimless baking sheet and spread the spinach mixture over it to cover entirely.
6. Top with the onion and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tbsp paremesan.
7. Using the paddle or baking sheet, slide the pizza on the grill, away from the heat source.
8. Cover and cook, rotating the pizza a half turn every 5 minutes, until the pizza is hot and the cheese is fully melted, about 8 minutes.

4 WW Points per serving (1/4 pizza).

Reposted from Weight Watchers.com

Chari and Heather will also each receive a signed copy of our book, The IT Girl’s Guide to Blogging with Moxie as well as an 8oz. tube of our current desktop favorite, Jaqua Hand Creme with Meadowfoam Seed Oil.

We’ll be reporting back about these recipes, along with others that weren’t drawn, in the coming weeks. Plus, stay tuned for the launch of our new website, TheMoxieGirls.com where we’ll be covering cocktails, entertaining, beauty and lifestyle.

Thanks for all of your awesome entries! 

... but he can sharpen his periwinkle anytime.

“Life is like a box of crayons. Most people are the 8-color boxes, but what you’re really looking for are the 64-color boxes with the sharpeners on the back. I fancy myself to be a 64-color box, though I’ve got a few missing. It’s ok though, because I’ve got some more vibrant colors like periwinkle at my disposal. I have a bit of a problem though in that I can only meet the 8-color boxes. Does anyone else have that problem? I mean there are so many different colors of life, of feeling, of articulation.. so when I meet someone who’s an 8-color type.. I’m like, hey girl, magenta! and she’s like, oh, you mean purple! and she goes off on her purple thing, and I’m like, no - I want magenta!”

- John Mayer (singer, artist, performer)

Fab quote courtesy of Lisa.

The Cocktail Contest ends in just under 4 hours, at midnight EST.  We’ve gotten a bunch of lovely submissions and we’re excited to draw our winner on Monday.  I’m not 100% certain what time on Monday we’ll be doing the drawing.  Most likely after Kathy’s bambino is tucked in and we can open the bubbly!

If you’re still interested in submitting your entries, you better get on it. Scoot!  Here are the prizes, in case you forgot. It’s a lot of good schwag, so bring on the recipes!

We’ve gotten quite a few fabulous entries, but we’d love some more!  Hit us up with your favorite summer cocktails!  You can read all about the rules and prizes here.

And don’t forget! There’s extra entries in it for you if you blog it (and send us the link) and/or include a “pairing” or a snack or amuse-bouche (aren’t I fancy?) that would go well with your cocktail.

We’re looking forward to drawing a winner and are loving all these delicious-sounding drinks. Keep ‘em coming!  Contest ends at midnight EST, Friday, June 6th.

It’s that time of year again!  I’ve got a bit more on my plates than I anticipated and that makes it harder for me to spin them, so I appreciate the patience of my wonderful clients. Bear with me, friends!  The train is picking up speed. There’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Let’s see how many more metaphors I can mix before this entry is over.

I am currently booking for late August/early Fall, but have a couple projects in the proposal phase. If you are at all interested in working with me on a project during that time, please submit your request for proposal as soon as you can.  I only have a few spots available for early Fall.  Once your proposal is submitted, if I’m a good match for your project, I’ll email you with a suggested time to chat on the phone to iron out any details before I put together your proposal. (If I’m not a good match, of course I’ll still email you. Maybe even with a referral if you’re nice!)

As I mentioned last time, I will be unavailable from July 18-August 5th.  That means I won’t be working on any projects or be available to meet on the phone. I will be checking email periodically (though not necessarily daily) during that time, but will not be returning any phone calls until after August 5th.

I think I can safely speak for Kathy when I say we really appreciate you interest in working with us and thank you for your patience with our nutty schedules.

Happy Summer!