Oh, Baby!... No, my first name ain't Baby... You called me what?...

Hello and Happy Monday, gang!

Oh, Baby!
First things first ... I was so behind in my blogging last week that I failed to include the biggest news at the station!



Meet the newest member of the Channel 13 family - Aubrey Kathleen. Those of you who know Lynn know that she was counting down the days until delivery and everyone is thrilled that Aubrey is finally here....



... including big brother Jack. Isn't this the sweetest picture ever? Little Miss Aubrey is part of a huge baby boom in Iowa. It sounds like love was in the air for a lot of people last November and December!

No, my first name ain't Baby!


We had a girls' night Sunday at the fair....



... to see Janet! Miss Jackson, if you're nasty. We had a ball. Heather thought there was a lot of lip syncing going on but I guess I don't really care if there was. Janet is 45, looks amazing, can still dance like crazy and put on a fun show. I hadn't been to see a grandstand act since Michael and I saw Styx and REO Speedwagon the summer we were dating .... ELEVEN YEARS AGO. I'm still bummed I was working the night Heart and Def Leppard rocked the fair, but everyone here had to work because of the Straw Poll in Ames. My hubby said Heart was amazing and that Def Leppard was fun but that most fifty-something dudes shouldn't wear tight leather pants and walk on a catwalk. Probably a valid point. Like I'm fond of saying ... "That's what mirrors and friends are for!"


You called me what?
The whole "baby" thing has me thinking about nicknames. Do you have one? I have several and "baby" is just one of them. I've had a lot of nicknames over the years - some easily explained - others, not so much. Michael and I have a bunch for each other and some you would probably think are weird. Do you have silly nicknames or use them for friends and loved ones? Of course you do! The four of us who went to Janet together have many for each other. Examples (left to right)... "Gupta", "Maxwell House", "Heat" and "Moodring".

That's all for now... have a great week!
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com

Belated Blogging!!!

Hello gang!
I am so sorry for my slacking - time has just gotten away from me during the past week or so and now I'm playing catch up.

I'm going to work my way from most recent to most belated in this post. I have some pictures to share, which I always think makes things more interesting.

CAST YOUR KERNEL!!!
Alisa Link and I worked the Channel 13 booth together for part of Monday afternoon. It was a gorgeous day and it was fun visiting with voters and viewers. I wish we had a camera rolling non-stop there. We could stream it on our website and I guarantee you it would be a huge hit. You just can't make up the stuff that comes out of some people's mouths. Priceless.

FRYING FRENZY!
We all know the Iowa State Fair offers a bevy of fried foods but this year I was invited to be part of a brand new fried food contest. It was called the "Frying Frenzy" and it was sponsored by Pioneer because its developed a new high oleic soybean oil called "Plenish". All of the chefs in the contest had to create appetizers and desserts using the oil. Oh my, was it a fun contest to judge!

These are fried pickles make by Matthew Brinkman - Executive Chef at Deerfield Senior Living Community. Yum!


Chef Andrew Newberg won the People's Choice Award for his fried nachos and fried Girl Scout cookies - to die for!!!
Andrew works for Taste! To Go Catering in Des Moines.


Ric Kerr made us cannoli - one of my favorite desserts. Ric is Owner/Executive Chef of Tasteful Dinners in Ankeny.


Bette Dryer had us all in stitches as she whipped up fried green tomatoes and fresh peaches & cream flip. She owns Bette Dryer Catering in Des Moines.


These are the Buffalo Pork Bellies with fried ranch dressing and celery fries made by Tom McKern - Executive Chef at Zombie Burger in the East Village. Delish!!!

First place for both appetizer and dessert went to Chef Tag Grandgeorge - his food was AMAZING! I was so busy eating the fried pork wontons and fried fromage blanc that I didn't take pictures of either. Tag owns Le Jardin Catering.

BEST BAGGERS
A first for me this year was competing in the celebrity best bagger contest. I had no idea how serious this whole event was. Just look at the expressions on the faces of the guys in this round...



Jacob Laursen won the real best bagger contest - he works at Fareway in Cresco. Speaking of Fareway - the store gives $250 to the winner of the celebrity contest to donate to the charity of their choice. I sent mine to Children's Cancer Connection.

A BIG BIRTHDAY


My son David turned 21 on the sixth of this month - wowza. Michael and I went to Omaha to watch David's band play on that Friday night. Of course I'm biased, but I think he is probably the best drummer in the Midwest. :) We had a fun night and the next day did some eating and shopping in the Old Market - always fun.



I can hardly believe it after all the fried food I ate last night, but my stomach is growling ... dinner calls, friends.

Have a fabulous week - enjoy the fair!!!
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com

ASI... To tweet or not to tweet ... Drug store beauty

Hello and Happy Monday, gang! I don't have a lot of exciting news to report from the weekend except that Michael and I had some fun together, the bathroom is scrubbed and the laundry is clean and put away - in my book that means life is good.

ASI

Did any of you do RAGBRAI or any portion of it? It's something I've always thought about doing but when the time actually rolls around I just can't get excited about riding that many miles a day and camping every night. Call me wimpy. Want to feel even wimpier? Meet the Adaptive Sports Iowa team.



If you missed our report on this great group, you can watch it on our website. Just go to the WHO-TV homepage, then click "13 Cares".


To tweet or not to tweet
Do you do it? I know many people who said they never would, who are.
I don't know ...



Drug store beauty

People always seem to be shocked when they ask me where I got clothing, lipstick or shoes and my answer is "Target" or "Wal-Mart" or "JC Penney". I am a thrifty gal and darn proud of it! So, here are some of my favorite inexpensive beauty finds...


If you spent years baking in the sun (and yes - tanning beds) like I did and you're starting to see the results on your skin you may be trying to find a decent self-tanner. I've had lots of luck with this one and many "Gosh, you look tan!" comments from friends. One word of advice - exfoliate first.


I love, love, LOVE this lip balm. It is amazingly high quality considering it's low price. Sonya and I agree it rivals some MAC products we've used.


If you have naturally curly or wavy hair, Iowa humidity is a killer. I constantly fight frizz, even after using expensive shampoo, conditioner and styling products meant to tame it. This stuff is a life-saver during this time of year and it won't break the bank. It may not be quite as good as Aveda - but close enough.


This nail polish is AMAZING!!! I've used this product to do my own mani and pedi and it lasts for weeks. I can't believe I've found a polish I like as much as OPI - and at Wal-Mart, no less! Speaking of which, my nails look horrific right now. Yikes.


I rarely use waterproof mascara but I bought this tube specifically for "Workout of the Week" shoots. It's great... goes on without clumps and comes off fairly easy.


It goes without saying that we wear a TON of makeup in this business. Trust me when I say a good remover is just as important. I've used this one for years and I've tried many others... this is my fav.


And once I swipe off all that gunk, I get clean with these. I've had problem skin my entire life and I feel like these cleansing cloths help prevent some breakouts.

Enough about this silliness ... I'm starving!!!
Have a wonderful week,
EEK
Erin.Kiernan@whotv.com