Having a party on Sunday?  Wondering what snacks to buy?  Americans are expected to spend about $1.02 BILLION on snacks for the big game.  BILLION!

If you want to keep your crowd happy, here's the list of favorite snacks:

1)  Chips and Dip

2)  Pizza

3)  Nachos

4)  Subs/Sandwiches

5)  Barbecue

6)  Fried Finger Goods

7)  Burgers

Vegetables came in a DISTANT 8th.  Understandable. 

What are you serving on Sunday?  Do you have anything that is an absolute MUST have?

I can't explain it... I have been giving a 50's housewife a run for her money lately.  I don't know if it's the New Year or the spring-like temperatures but I have been a whirlwind of cleaning and organizing the house.  I'm not the messiest person around but I'm certainly not someone who enjoys cleaning.  Whatever the reason, I'm not going to question the cause, I'm just going to grab my dust cloth and hang on for the ride.

In my fit of Pledge-induced euphoria, I came across a home remedy for removing carpet stains.  I have two dogs and off white carpet so I was immediately intrigued.  It sounded easy enough and it was super cheap, so why not give it a try?  Especially since one of my little darlings (Tucker, the chihuahua) decided he would cough up a red treat in the dining room the other day.

I got my things together and attacked the stain.  I honestly wasn't expecting too much but I must say, I was pretty pleased with the results.  Take a look at the before and after photos:

It didn't come out 100% but it is MUCH less noticeable.  If I had worked on it a little longer, it may have come out even more.  Also, the after picture was taken when the stain was still a little wet.  It is even less obvious now that it has dried (the color looks a different color altogether because I took the first pic in the afternoon and the second after dusk).

I tried it on other stains in other rooms, even some that had been there for a LONG time and it was at least 80% effective on all of them.

So, what's the magical formula for this carpet-saving secret?  It is SO simple!

Mix equal parts HOT water and ammonia in a spray bottle.  Spray the stain.  Lay a WHITE towel down over the wet stain and apply a steam iron.  As you hit the stain with the steam, you'll start to see color soak up into the towel.  For deep or dark stains, you may have to spray and steam a few times.  I don't know the exact reasons this works.  I guess I don't really care.  It just does.  I bought a super cheap six back of bar towels and used those so I didn't ruin anything good.  I am super happy with the results.  No, it isn't as good as a professional carpet cleaning but it still makes a big difference.  Give it a try, see what you think. 

Oh, and don't throw the towels you use into the washer with bleach.  Ammonia+bleach=bad news... even in the washer.  Use regular detergent or Oxy-Clean instead.

The list of nominees is out for this year's Academy Awards.  There are some movies that I've been meaning to see but haven't yet (sorry, Moneyball, I'm coming for you!), so I have quite a list of films to get through before the awards are handed out in late February.

Click here for the full list of nominees.

Don't forget you can join My 102.5 at the Junior League's Oscar Night America event.  Walk the red carpet in your fanciest gown and watch the awards while raising money to help fund programs in our community.  Click here for details on Oscar Night.