August 29, 2014

I love lists, Friday!

I freaking love Amy Poehler.
Why It’s Impossible to Make Plans Anymore.
Old Timey Life Hacks that still work to this day.
Mind blown also OMG gimme these burgers.
I wonder if this is how Cooper feels.
These DIY notebook tea cloths are adorable.
Just donate money.
I want to make one of these!
If Guys Acted like Girl BFFS. Hilarious.
The ending of Sopranos still has me thinking.
I am a functional introvert. What about you?
Let’s make popsicles before the Summer ends.
This sorbet looks scrumptious.
So much yes to this– School lunches from the 70s vs. 2014.
Do you sleep with your phone?
I can’t wait to transform our kitchen someday!
Mmmm. Spicy Sausage Rolls.
Email is killing us.
The anthropologie catalog had it coming.
YES.

On the latest episode of the Joy the Baker podcast, we talk about the weird people at the gym (and how we have names for them!), bragging about yourself & our thoughts on people who type with two fingers. Check out Episode #128: Hunt & Peckers.

recipes

August 28, 2014

APPLES + LIME JUICE

I think I may have said this once or twice before but fresh cut apples with lime juice squeezed on top is my favorite snack ever. If you haven’t tried it before, DO IT. Chili powder is a great addition to this wonderful combo….but I like it just with just these two things.

recipes

August 27, 2014

Avocado & Banana Chocolate Pudding

We just survived Cooper’s first day of Kindergarten!!! It’s funny how a date can sit on your calendar for MONTHS and then JUST LIKE THAT it comes and goes! New beginnings. New friends. New routines. New clothes. New teachers. New routes to school. New lunchbox. New haircut. New backpack. EVERYTHING IS NEW.

As someone who loves change (when I have some semblance of control!) it’s been nice to be able to say that we made it through! There were no tears (including me!) and Cooper DID NOT want to go home from Kindergarten. In fact, he was like, “Waaaaaaaait. Why are you picking me up so early? I was just getting to know my new best friend.” I did have a mild panic attack when I thought I left my dang checkbook at home and didn’t have a sweatshirt for him like I was supposed to. We made it through and that’s all that matters!

One of the main things that’s new for us this year is school lunches. At Cooper’s preschool they served the children hot meals each day so I didn’t have to pack lunches for him. It was NICE not having that stress every evening. This means I have to beef up my school & after school snack game! I think I might add this Avocado Banana Chocolate Pudding recipe to our rotation because I got Cooper to eat AVOCADOS without a fuss. To fancy it up, I added coconut whipped cream and a sprinkle of chopped roasted peanuts. It’s creamy, chocolatey and DECADENT! It’s the perfect recipe to make when you have a few too many avocados and bananas lying around…and we always have too many cuz I love both with a passion.

favorites, recipes, sponsored

August 25, 2014

10 Ways to Enhance Annie’s Mac & Cheese

So, here’s the thing. My son, Cooper doesn’t like Mac & Cheese. ISN’T THAT CRAZY??! There’s something about pasta he doesn’t like (are we even related?!!) and he’s kinda finicky about melted cheese (only on pizza and sometimes quesadillas). I’m hoping/praying it’s just a phase. We shall see. BUT!! Casey, on the other hand loves pasta in ANY form. Whenever he’s is working late and Cooper has already eaten dinner and gone to bed, I usually whip up a box of Annie’s Mac & Cheese for us adults. It’s very rare that I make a box on its own because I love the challenge of coming up with new additions. I think Casey definitely appreciates the effort!

Every Monday Annie’s shares a new creative Mix-In idea on their twitter, Instagram & Facebook pages. Today I teamed up with Annie’s to show you some of MY favorite Mix-Ins (I created 10 recipes total!) on this fine MONDAY. Let’s get into it!

Inspiration

August 24, 2014

And I Quote:

my everyday life, Photography

August 23, 2014

My Everyday Life: Week 34

Here’s what this past week looked like.

A cupcake to celebrate last day of Summer school!

August 22, 2014

I love lists, Friday!

Texting in movies. I’m intrigued by this concept.
Beauty names products make no sense. I didn’t even think about this!
Let’s trip out for a second.
Ohhhh the life of a foodie.
I’m in it for the cheese and sausage…
I now want to make ketchup & steak sauce.
It’s always fun to see other people’s favorite typefaces.
Casey needs to make me Opraccino.
Do you think Cooper would like these? I really want him to!!
Be careful what you like on Facebook.
Oh, fruit…sigh…
My favorite dress this summer is HUGELY DISCOUNTED!!! It’s so comfy/flattering.
I love this dude on Vine. I’m glad they made a little round up of his puns.
Speaking of puns…check out this Pool PAWTY.
I’m interested in how they’re gonna end True Blood. IT’S TIME (but I still watch!)
A little insight on the Mad Men ending. I’m chomping at the bit!
Yessss…. except I’m NOT down with the word panties. *cringe*
I just bought this book about Willpower and I wonder how long it will take me to start it…
Oh My God.
She definitely HAS A POINT. Amen.

I share a tale of how I lied to an anesthesiologist about my weight on the latest Joy the Baker Podcast.

Check out episode #127 The Wisdom of Our Wisdom Teeth

Thanks for entering my GIVEAWAY! I loved reading your responses. A lot of you loved grilled meats, corn and pineapple!

The winner is:

I’ll be emailing you shortly! Congrats and I hope your fiancé loses his mind!

Just wanted to say THANK YOU for those of you who tagged Shutterbean recipes on Instagram. I love seeing your creations! If you find yourself making one of my recipes and you post it to Instagram, will you tag it with #shutterbean? I’d love to see what you’re up too. Thank you!!!