Today's outfit post showcases a few items I'm wanting to add to my spring wardrobe...ASAP. I love me some ripped denim and flats any day! I am loving this 'Wifey' tank from Laundry Room and the pink quilted Rebecca Minkoff purse is so perfect for spring!
Hope you all have fun shopping for new spring arrivals!
Rachel xo
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
2 mashed ripe bananas
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup finely chopped fresh strawberries
Step 1
Heat oven to 375°F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper baking cups. In medium bowl, combine sugar, oil and eggs; blend well. Stir in bananas and vanilla.
Step 2
Add flour, baking soda and salt to sugar mixture; stir just until combined. Stir in strawberries. Spoon batter evenly into paper-lined muffin cups. Optional: Add a sliced strawberry on the top for decoration
Step 3
Bake at 375°F. for 17 to 21 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately remove from muffin cups.
Step 4
Enjoy!
Hope you enjoy these as much as we did!
Rachel xo
One day while browsing Ikea, I noticed this very different ceiling light called the ‘Maskros’. I thought hmm, this could look kind of interesting somewhere in the house. I showed Daniel the light and he immediately thought.. NO! he didn’t like it very much. After finding a few pins on pinterest with this light used in different rooms, I liked it even more! I’ll be honest, I wasn’t a huge fan of the price… $99.00 for an Ikea light that was plastic and paper kind of turned me off. I started looking locally on kijiji for someone selling one and I was in luck! I found someone selling one close by for $10.00! TEN DOLLARS! Seriously! I was like, I need to have this.. NOW! So I went and checked it out, everything seemed to be okay when I took a first glance at it. I was pretty excited though for getting such a good deal that I guess I didn’t notice it was missing 4 of the petals and the metal part that would attach to the ceiling. Whoops!
The petals seemed like the needed a little T.L.C they were pretty bent out of shape so I took each and every petal off, stacked them in small piles and placed them under heavy books for a day or two. It did the job, they looked great afterwards! (I wish I would of remembered to take a before picture)
I thought how can I jazz this light up a bit, it seemed a bit plain with a white base, white petals and white button looking clips. I wasn’t a huge fan of these and next to the white petal they were more of an off white. Our living room décor is all gray, white/cream and silver so I thought why not add some ‘bling’ to this light! I measured the size of the button looking clip and went to Michaels on a hunt to find some rhinestones. Sure enough they had the perfect size. 20mm flat back rhinestones! Yippie, I was excited to start the ‘DIY’ part of this light. There are 160 petals on this light and the biggest package of these rhinestones I could find came in a pack of 20 at $4.99. So I picked up 8 packs and used a few 40% off coupons to keep the cost down. Originally I thought I would keep the missing petals off at the top of the light but then I thought it wouldn’t look very nice seeing missing parts when you look up. Daniel helped me trace out the existing petal on a piece of paper and then very carefully cut it out. We did this for the 4 that were missing. Since the button looking clip was missing as well I just used a hot glue gun and glued them directly onto the light and then glued the rhinestone onto the petal. Ta-da! You would never know that they were missing!
Next I took the button looking clip and the rhinestone and glued them together… 156 times.. I know, I’m crazy! Surprisingly, it only took about an hour to do all of this.
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Now since I was missing that metal piece that goes underneath the white plastic cover that connects to the ceiling, I needed to find some way to install this bad boy. We recently changed another light in the house and had it collecting dust in the basement so I asked Daniel if we could use the base of that light for the new one and he somehow figured out how to jig it! (thank goodness I have such a handy man!) After he installed the light, I started to connect all of the petals with the new rhinestone clips just like you would with the original way.
Here is the finished product, I am so happy with it! The rhinestones don’t stand out too much but they defiantly look better than the off white button looking things. So here you have it, I spent $10.00 on the light and about $30.00 on the rhinestones. Which is a bit pricey, I know but since I saved on the light I thought why not! In the end, Daniel really liked it. He even admitted that I had ‘a vision’ and it worked! (I love when I’m right)
1. Ikea light (if you don't already have one)
2. Hot glue gun
3. Glue sticks
4. 160 x 20mm flat back rhinstones (not exactly the ones I used but similar)
Rachel xo
The one thing I find even more difficult than potty training is the CONSTANT nipping/biting at my feet, ankles, calves. I will say wearing socks is a MUST! I have even had to start wearing old bootie style slippers to cover and protect me from his razor sharp teeth. That is definitely something I cannot wait for him to grow out of. I also feel like a broken record saying NO! a million times a day. It is hard to not lose your patience at times but then you have to remember he is just a puppy, they all do it. If anyone knows a special way to stop puppies from doing this, please let me know!
He has gone for a few walks although we don’t go very far. The first time I took him on a walk, he kept stopping and looking at me and I swear it was like he was saying ‘why in the hell are you keeping me constrained like this!’ He is doing pretty well but he definitely needs to be taken for walks regularly to get used to it.
Harley out on his first walk. (picture is quite blurry as I had to zoom on my Iphone quite a bit but you get the point)
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Since Daniel plans on being in town for a while, we decided starting him in puppy training classes would be a good idea. (More of like new puppy parents training so we know what we are doing) We have enrolled him in the PetsMart 6 week puppy training course and start on March 12th, I am so excited! We are also taking him for his first puppy bath this Saturday, I hope he does okay and doesn't get too freaked out by the whole process.
A few more recent pictures of Harley!
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Rachel xo
So lets get into it..
I discovered The Regimen from watching a makeup tutorial on YouTube. The Regimen review was actually a suggested video to watch and that’s how I came about to know it. I often think, jeez if I wasn’t wasting time laying in bed watching someone else put make-up on I would of never found this product! Anyway… I was slightly skeptical of purchasing yet another product to try and clear this up. However, at the same time I thought, maybe this will be the last trial and error I go through. I read a lot of peoples reviews, looked at before and after pictures and more YouTube reviews when I finally decided, okay lets do this! I couldn’t wait for the package to come in the mail so that I could start this new product. The Regimen contains a Cleanser, Treatment and Moisturizer. The cleanser is amazing! Before starting I was worried that I would have to first take my make-up off with another product and then wash my face with the cleanser but nope! This stuff does it all. The two important factor’s to this regimen are: washing your face twice a day and being very gentle while washing, treating and moisturizing. The treatment contains 2.5% benzoyl peroxide to kill and dry those suckers out. After reading numerous reviews and how-to instructions on this product, I knew that my skin was going to get dry. I started out slow with the amount of ‘pumps’ of the treatment at the beginning. For the first few days I did ½ a pump, once a day. I then bumped that up to ½ a pump, twice a day. Then I went to a full pump, twice a day. I am now on two pumps, twice a day. Lets just say the drying is intense, like skin flaking intense. After the treatment has completely dried, I put on the moisturizer. Using lots of moisturizer is a must! You can put moisturizer on more than twice per day if you feel really dry. I also sometimes add jojoba oil into the mix to really help with the dryness. They recommend not to wear any make-up while going through the treatment. But really? Let’s be honest, I can’t go without make-up everyday especially going to work. Plus, if you have ever gone through a bad acne breakout, you know that it can leave some pretty bad marks which take forever to lighten. I will say, I skipped wearing foundation everyday about a week into the regimen once the dryness became bad. It wasn’t a nice look, foundation and flaky skin so now I just wear a mineral loose powder for everyday wear unless I am going somewhere that I want a more finished look. I would like to eventually show before and after pictures but it takes a lot of courage to display a bare skin face with acne to the world and I am just not ready for that yet. I will say that I have noticed drastic improvements already and it is just 3 weeks into it. I still get a pimple here and there but it dries out so fast and starts to heal right away.
So there you have it.. I have finally found something to clear this beast! Yippieeee! Believe me when I say, I feel for anyone having to go through this at whatever point in their life they go through it. It’s not easy.. AT ALL. It can have a major effect on your self esteem and make you feel depressed. Especially when nothing seems to work. I would recommend this product to anyone who goes through breakouts however minor or major it is. I will also add that this is not a sponsored post. I paid for the kit and decided to try it on my own.
I apologize for this ridiculously long post but I wanted to get as much information out as possible. I hope that this information can help you or someone you know going through an acne breakout and just remember you are not alone!
Rachel xo
While Daniel was out of town for work, I found the cutest most perfect puppy (in my opinion, of course) We always said if we get a puppy one day, it has to be a girl. Well of course that all changed once I saw this little boy. I sent Daniel a picture to show him how adorable he was and told him he was the last in his litter and that other families were going to see him. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I read his text back saying ‘Go and see him and if you still really like him, bring him home.’ I was smiling ear to ear! Before going to possibly pick him up, I wanted to have the house ready for a puppy to arrive. Saturday morning could not come quick enough. I was so excited the night before that I woke up at 6:00am bright eyed and bushy tailed. Since Daniel was away, I of course wanted to have someone with me so I asked my mom to come for a ride. As soon as I saw him, I instantly fell in love. I sent Daniel a picture of him in the car and said ‘We have a puppy!!!!’ We went back and forth over a name. Most of the names I picked, Daniel didn’t like and vice versa. Except for…Harley. I was sold on the name but Daniel was still on the fence about it. I still think that Daniel didn’t want to agree on the name until he actually saw him. Daniel came home on Monday morning around 2:00am, we were sitting on the floor with him when we decided Harley fit perfectly. It was a very cute moment that I won’t forget.
Harley was 8 weeks old when we brought him home. He is a Chocolate Lab, Golden Retriever, German Shepherd mix. He has such a great temperament, even on the first day of bringing him home he only cried a little when I had to leave him a lone for a short period. Putting him to bed was a breeze as well on the first night.
I am so happy we decided to get a puppy. I can’t wait to see what challenges and memories this little (for now) guy brings. I will keep updating as our Harley adventures continue.
Rachel xo
