Show & Tell Sunday: A Perfect Morning

Hey everyone! I know I haven't kept up on my word of posting more often but I hope that today's post will make up for it. It's only noon and I've already had the best morning I've had in a REALLY long time. As I'm sure a lot of you know or can tell, I haven't been feeling amazing lately... partially because of feeling yucky from allergies but mostly from anxiety and depression issues I have. On the heels of kind of an exciting epiphany I had this week of where I want to be and goals for my future I decided to get off my ass, take some damn Allegra and get outside.

My plan was to get up really early and make the 30ish minute trek out to Huntington to go to the Sunday Farmer's Market. It is one of my favorite drives on Long Island. To give you an idea of the area, I passed three of the Gold Coast Mansions between my house and the furthest destination. In addition, in a Scandinavian fascination frenzy last week I discovered that there is a Danish bakery 10 minutes past the Farmer's Market traveling on the same road so I figured what the hell, let's check it out! You know I love some good bread. So I left at 7:30 this morning and hit the Farmer's Market then traveled the extra 10 minutes to the bakery. It happened to be across the street from the marina in the town of Northport so I took a few pictures so you could see how amazing of a morning it was.

I'll show you those pics first:

This is probably my favorite picture of the day. The sky was so blue and gorgeous and it was so peaceful there. There were tons of boats in the marina and it was a beautiful view the whole way around. I should have taken a panoramic shot...

Looking in the complete opposite direction there are a few more boats and some really beautiful houses. The town was really small and very cute. Definitely a beautiful place to spend a Sunday morning.

There was also a park with a little gazebo, lots of tables and benches for picnicking by the water.

A kind of crappy picture of the bakery. There is outside seating so you can enjoy some treats and coffee with a gorgeous view of the marina. I'm really glad I decided to check it out.

After I went to the bakery I traveled back down the same road (25A for any curious New Yorkers) and stopped into Wild By Nature, a natural grocery store (kind of Whole Foodsesque I guess) on the opposite end of Main Street in Huntington that was on my way home. They have a lot of vegan options and I picked up much more than I was anticipating!!

I'm sure (or at least I'm hoping!) you are curious to see what I picked up on this excursion? Well, let's check out the haul! I took the pics on my phone, sorry about the crap quality. At least Instagram allows for some really great photo editing as you can see above but I did my best to make these presentable.

First, the Farmer's Market haul:

Truthfully, I've never really been impressed by the Long Island farmer's markets that I've been to. They are small and they only have one organic produce vendor. I was pleasantly surprised today! There was still only one organic produce vendor but they had more stocked than usual for this early in the season and everything was GORGEOUS. I got a HUGE head of Boston lettuce for salads and lettuce wraps, gorgeous strawberries and a bag of tuscan kale for juices and smoothies. The berries smell incredible and are super sweet and juicy.

New to the market this year was The Green Neveet. I was drawn in by the vegan sign :) She was so sweet and helpful. I believe she said she is a nutritionist and she sold a few different kinds of cookies, granola and hummus. I wasn't even going to sample the cookies but she just kept breaking off little pieces and handing me samples and I'm glad she did! In my first glance I immediately dismissed the sesame cookies because while I enjoy sesame, I'm not a huge fan of sesame cookies. I was immediately drawn to the coconut and luckily she let me sample it because I wasn't blown away by it. I also tried lemon (really fresh and beautiful), a chocolate mint one (also delicious), a raw cookie and the sesame. I was prepared to hate the sesame but I was blown away, it is delicious! It has almond flour, coconut oil, tahini, maple syrup, anise (I really can't believe I liked it, I am not a huge fan of anise either!), vanilla extract and baking soda. Really good, gluten free and all natural. Gotta love that!

I also tried the sun dried tomato hummus and it was absolutely incredible. Really smooth and creamy with a lovely flavor. I had to pick that up as well. I am so glad I wandered over to her table!

After I went to the Farmer's Market I continued along to the Copenhagen Bakery. It was really cute inside but it was crowded and I didn't really feel comfortable asking questions while there was such a huge crowd so I just settled on a loaf of bread. I don't know which products are authentic Danish products but I wish I knew which bread was. Maybe I'll try going back at a slower time to see if I can ask some questions.

I ended up with a gorgeous loaf of really dark pumpernickel. As you know, pumpernickel is my favorite :)

Finally, here is the Wild By Nature haul. I had gone in to grab some Tofutti for my pumpernickel and ended up grabbing a few more interesting things. I may be going to my brother's house for a BBQ tonight so I figured I'd make my life and everyone else's lives easy and grab this Bento Box for dinner. I've had it before and it's good. I also saw the Hail Merry tarts which I don't come across often and grabbed the Persian Lime flavor! I'm excited to try this, I've heard a lot of amazing reviews of the brand and these tarts. I also picked up Just Persimmons by the Just Tomatoes, Etc. brand (they make the freeze dried fruits and veggies, you've probably seen them at some point). I've never had a persimmon before and thought it would be a fun snack to try. Finally, I grabbed a cucumber to have for juicing, salads and lettuce wraps :)

After I got home I was starving and parched so I put my haul to good use and made breakfast. I had a huge jar of ice water to quench my thirst and enjoyed a pile of super sweet and juicy farmer's market strawberries alongside the ends of the pumpernickel (I love the ends) with some Tofutti. It was a perfect breakfast to cap off a gorgeous morning.

As you can see my morning started early but was really fun, invigorating and peaceful. I felt really happy to be out and enjoying the beautiful morning and finding new, fun foods to try. Being by the marina was really peaceful and was a nice break for me since things have been so crazy lately. And to think I did all of this by 10am! I'm an early bird for sure. The best part is that my weekend just started ;)

So there you have it, my absolutely perfect morning. I hope that you have all had a great weekend and enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

Show & Tell Sunday: Lush Haul & Review

I first discovered Lush many years ago when backpacking the UK and Europe with a friend of mine. We went in and were amazed by the amount of beautiful products lining the shelves and counters and by how AMAZING it smelled. For those of you that have never heard of Lush, it is a company that makes fresh, handmade cosmetics, hair and skin care, and beautiful bath products. They use mostly natural ingredients with "safe synthetics" in there only when necessary.

On the heels of finding out that I have a chemical allergy and knowing that I'm susceptible to develop more, I made the conscious decision to cut the chemicals and do everything I can to use natural ingredients. I have only ever purchased one product from Lush and it was years ago but I knew that going to a company that makes all of their products by hand with natural ingredients was the way to go.

After working a wedding I decided that I was going to use that money to pamper myself. I've been really stressed lately and that has led to stress breakouts on my face, yuck. I decided that I was going to completely revamp my skin and hair care routine to include beautiful products that pamper my skin and hair and leave me smelling amazing. While Lush products are not cheap, I was willing to FINALLY splurge on myself.

Last Sunday I went to my local Lush shop and worked with one of the girl's that worked there to find everything on my list. She was so helpful and explained everything to me and made it a really nice experience. I figured I'd use the products for a week and do a review for you so here it goes!

One huge reason why I love Lush is that they are very vocal in their fight against animal testing. Not only do they not use ingredients tested on animals, but they will not buy ingredients from companies that supply ingredients to companies that test on animals. They are loud and proud in their fight and I love that. All of their products are vegetarian and a huge amount of them are vegan. They label all of their vegan products so it's easy for you to tell which are vegan and which are not. In addition to this, they believe in sustainable sourcing. According to their website, "We give our love (and money) to suppliers that respect the environment, as well as the animals and people living there."

As I mentioned before, everything from Lush is hand made. I think it is so adorable that they place these stickers on every product showing you who made your product! It also includes the date it was made as well as the expiration date (all natural ingredients expire!).

Finally, Lush is extremely environmentally conscious. They believe in naked packaging which basically means that a lot of their products have no packaging at all. The bottles and black pots are made with recycled BPA free materials. They encourage you to bring back your empty black pots by offering a free fresh face mask for every 5 pots you bring in. When they ship their products they package everything in biodegradable packaging and use biodegradable filler (packing peanuts that apparently melt in water!).

So now you know why I love the company... now let's check out the haul!

So many beautiful products. I basically got the bare minimum I'd need to start a new hair and skin care routine. I have seen videos of people that essentially hoard Lush products but I don't have the funds for that ;) Let's go through what I got.

This beautiful bar of soap is called Sultana of Soap. It is a creamy, beautiful soap that smells light but sweet. It is a creamy soap with currants, apricots and cranberries. It lathers pretty well and leaves your skin smelling amazing and feeling really soft. The only thing is that it tends to melt pretty quickly in the shower so it is best to cut the bar into little pieces to preserve as much of it as possible.

While I love using the product I probably would hold off on purchasing it again ONLY because I don't really like using bar soaps. I have always preferred liquid soaps so that is the only thing that would hold me back from buying it again.

Something else that is amazing about Lush is that they are so generous with giving out samples. I wanted to try a few out before I bought them for two reasons. Either the products was ridiculously expensive or it contained chamomile. People that are allergic to ragweed can cross react with chamomile so I wanted to do a patch test with the product before I purchased it. I'll talk more about each sample below.

These are my fresh face masks! In my attempt to pamper myself I figured that a face mask would be the perfect way to do it. All of the fresh face masks are made up of completely natural ingredients and have to be stored in the fridge and used with three weeks. They have three vegan face masks and I have two pictured above.

Oatifix: The Oatifix face mask is made of oats, bananas, almond, and vanilla among other ingredients. It is a cooling, soothing face mask that exfoliates and moisturizes. It is safe for sensitive skin and great for soothing red or irritated skin. I was attracted to this one because of my stress breakouts and because I have rosacea and am always looking for a way to soothe that. The face mask is really cooling and soothing while it is on and it smells AMAZING. It leaves your skin feeling soft and supple and exfoliated. It smells like a beautiful, sweet oatmeal cookie. It is a really lovely product and I'm glad I bought it. I would purchase it again in the future if I was looking for a way to pamper myself but not too often since I don't know if I'll even use it all up in the three weeks before it expires.

Catastrophe Cosmetic: The little sample that I have is called Catastrophe Cosmetic. This face mask contains blueberries, calamine, chamomile and rose absolute. It also has a calming, soothing effect on your skin. This face mask is creamy, unlike the Oatifix so it is nice if you want something cooling without the abrasiveness of the oats and almonds. It smells nice but not as amazing as Oatifix. I got the sample of this to patch test since it has the chamomile. I have not done this yet so I can't review how the product works.

These are my FAVORITE products that I purchased!!

Big: Probably my favorite product in the entire haul. This shampoo (yes, shampoo!!) in the open pot on the left is a beautiful, volumizing shampoo. It is filled with coarse sea salt that melts away and citrus juice, seaweed infusion, coconut and avocado oils. The sea salt scrubs away the dirt as well as volumizes your hair, the oils keep your hair soft and nourished and the citrus juices make your hair shiny. Let me tell you, every claim is correct. After I use this shampoo my hair feels super clean. I don't use heat on my hair so I let it air dry and it has TONS of volume and the sea salt brings out my natural waves. It is super soft and shiny as well. It lathers really well in the shower and smells like a citrusy margarita (which I love). I will buy this product over and over again, I am totally in love with it.

Veganese: I would say that conditioners probably have the fewest vegan options but all you need is this one! This conditioner is light with a beautiful, bright, fresh lemon scent. It has lemon and seaweed that leaves your hair silky and shiny. It pairs perfectly with the Big shampoo, I love the combination of the two.

Moisturizers!

Sympathy for the Skin: The large pot on the left and the body moisturizer that I chose. It contains bananas which are moisturizing and make your skin super soft. A little goes a long way and this lotion is thick and luscious. It smells like a sweet banana/vanilla custard and the scent stays with you for a long time after you apply it. It is a really lovely product that I would definitely recommend. I use it after I shower and my skin feels soft and smooth all day.

Celestial: The facial moisturizer I chose to sample. Since their facial moisturizers are expensive for the size, I decided to try a sample of it before I committed to the full size. This is a sensitive skin facial moisturizer that soothes and hydrates. It contains cocoa butter, almond milk and dove orchid extract. It is a really light moisturizer that smells like vanilla custard. I LOVE this moisturizer. It is really light and doesn't irritate my skin which is really important for me. You'll see how much I liked it in a minute.

Tea Tree Water: This is the toner that I chose to try. It is alcohol free which is great since alcohol can dry out the skin. It is really effective on blemish prone skin and since my stress breakout was driving me crazy I figured I'd give it a try. It brightens the skin, reduces redness and clears excess oils. I love spraying it directly on my face since it is really cooling and refreshing. This is another product I will be incorporating into my regular routine.

Grease Lightning: Spot treatment to get rid of blemishes pretty quickly. It contains herbs like thyme and rosemary, grape juice, aloe vera extract and other ingredients that combine to form a gentle but powerful blemish fighter. I have been using this all week to combat my stress breakout and I am confident when I say that this stuff is amazing. My breakout has improved tremendously in just a week and I definitely believe that adding this product to my routine has helped me calm my skin and reduce the appearance of my blemishes.

Dark Angels: This was probably the product I was most afraid of. It is a facial scrub made of charcoal and black sugar. It is to smooth and brighten skin and reduce redness while exfoliating the dead skin away. Cold pressed olive oil softens and nourishes the skin. Truthfully, I hate the way it smells... which is like a combination of charcoal and licorice and using a black cleanser is messy BUT... it works. The combination of this cleanser, the spot treatment, the toner and the moisturizer has not only helped my breakous tremendously, it reduced the redness in my face as well as smoothed my skin and made it glow. While my complexion still is far from perfect, the combination of these products have definitely helped it improve tremendously.

Rub Rub Rub: The final sample of this haul is called Rub Rub Rub, a shower gel/scrub. I got a sample of this because I wasn't sure how I felt about it and it was pretty expensive. Like the Big Shampoo, it contains salt for its cleansing power and exfoliating properties. The salt isn't as coarse as in the shampoo so it exfoliates gently. It has a refreshing citrus scent and works really well. I want to purchase a full sized pot of this product but it is really expensive so I'm going to wait for a bit. I'm going to stretch the rest of my sample as much as possible ;)

I loved my Celestial moisturizer sample so much and was really happy with my new facial cleansing routine so I went back to Lush this past Friday and picked it up. I picked up a few other things as well as you can see!

Happy Hippy: Since I was going to hold off on Rub Rub Rub, I chose to go with a less expensive shower gel option. This shower gel smells AMAZING. It has a gorgeous and refreshing grapefruit scent. The grapefruit cleans amazingly well, brightens your skin and is the perfect morning wake up scent. The only thing I'm not super thrilled about is that the scent doesn't stay on your skin at all. It's not a huge deal since I use the strongly scented lotion after but I love the scent so much I'd love for it to stay with me for a bit. Honestly, I'll probably use it as a liquid hand soap as well.

Let The Good Times Roll: I was lucky enough to get another sample on this trip and this time I chose a different cleanser. While I will continue to use the Dark Angels cleanser because it works, I wanted to try another one that smells better :X And this one DEFINITELY smells better! I love this scent. My first impression was that is smelled like sweet cornbread. I've heard that it smells like caramel popcorn but I still get the cornbread scent from it. Anyway, this cleanser consists of maize flour, corn meal and cinnamon and is meant to exfoliate and moisturize and leaves you with beautiful glowing skin. The scent stays with you for a long time which I loved. I have only used it once but I liked it. I'm a little nervous to rock the boat on my skin care routine so I may use it as a body scrub in the shower (which is another great use for it!) when my Rub Rub Rub sample runs out.

Popcorn Lip Scrub: Lush is well known for their sugar lip scrubs. It is pretty easy to make your own but I felt like the popcorn flavor was so unique I wanted to give it a try. It is a salty sweet lip scrub that tastes like caramel popcorn. It exfoliates your lips and leaves them soft and smooth. All you do is gently rub the scrub on your lips then lick it off! It works so well and is really yummy too!

So that's everything! Truthfully there is so much more that I want to try but I kept it to a minimum since I'm just starting to rebuild. I'm really happy with the products I got AND I found a way to save money for when I need to re-stock. It is apparently cheaper to purchase the more expensive products from the UK website and I tested it out and added up a purchase of my favorite essentials and including the international shipping (about $13ish US) I would save $35. So I'm going to be ordering from the UK when it's time to re-stock!

So that is my incredibly long Lush haul and review. I hope you enjoyed reading it! I'll keep you posted on any new items I pick up and definitely let me know if you've ever tried anything from Lush or what you may want to try! Also, if you have any favorite all natural hair or skin care products please share them in the comments, I'd love to hear some more suggestions.

Hope you all had a great weekend!

Show & Tell Sunday: Earnest Eats Hot & Fit Cereal

Hey everyone! I'm back for a Show & Tell Sunday post. Today I have a review on a product that I bought a while back called Earnest Eats Hot & Fit Cereal. The cute little individual serving cups caught my eye in Whole Foods so I stopped to check them out. I don't even typically go down the cereal aisle since I rarely eat cereal but I'm glad I passed by! They had the individual serving cups which are fantastic for a meal on the go. And I love that they actually have a lid on them rather than just a peel back top for easy transport. They come in three different flavors: American Blend (cranberry and almond), Mayan Blend (cocoa, pepita and cashew) and Asian Blend (mango and green tea). I purchased one each of the American Blend and the Mayan Blend. Today's review is of the Mayan Blend flavor.

This is the sturdy lid I was talking about. It boasts a vegan label along with the nutritious grain blend that makes up the cereal. It's hard to pass up a hot cereal that has ingredients like these!

Here is the front of the container. It's a really cute container and I'm sure you can see why it caught my eye.

It works like an instant oatmeal. You fill the container with boiling water up to the fill line on the outside of the container (my only complaint: I wish the fill line was inside so it is easier to line up), stir and wait until it thickens up. If you are like me you'll use almond milk instead of water for a delicious, rich flavor ;) It almost tasted like hot cocoa with grains in it!

Here is my final bowl! I topped mine with banana and shredded coconut because why not? The cereal took a few minutes to thicken but ended up being really creamy and warming. The chocolate flavor is so rich and there is a really nice nutty flavor from the grains, the seeds and the cashews. It's such a nice alternative to plain oatmeal. This is a very hearty meal (especially with the toppings) and would be perfect for a cozy breakfast on a brisk morning.

Here is a closer look. Sorry my pictures are so terrible, I took them with my phone and this new tablecloth is driving me crazy. Anyway, I really enjoyed this meal and this product and I'm looking forward to trying the American Blend. I definitely recommend trying this cereal if you enjoy hot cereal and are interested in branching out.

Earnest Eats has other products as well that I have tried including energy bars and granola bars/planks. I used to enjoy bringing them with me when I worked weddings because they were really delicious and packed a nutritional punch in a compact serving. They are perfect snacks to bring with you on the go.

As with all of my reviews, the opinions in this post are my own and solely based on how I felt about the product. I purchased the products myself and I have never had contact with the company. 

So there you have it! Tomorrow I'll be celebrating the first night of Passover so I'll have to hold off on trying the other blend until the week after. I hope you have all had a good week and are enjoying the beautiful weekend. I'll see you tomorrow with some Instagram pictures!

Show & Tell Sunday: The Pinterest Edition!

Hey everyone! Sorry I've been MIA this week. Truthfully I've just been really uncomfortable due to the allergy patch testing I had to do. I've definitely got some allergies going on and because I was showing evidence of a delayed reaction on Friday I have to go back again tomorrow. That will be my fourth visit to the allergist in 8 days. Oy. I will give you the full results tomorrow after I go in. I'm ready for this to be over so I can take care of the horrible itchiness I'm dealing with.

So for today's Show & Tell Sunday post I'm going to take a break from the reviews and show you some of the things I've been pinning on Pinterest lately. I've gotten back into the Pinterest groove and am really excited about some of the things I found and can't wait to try them! Let's check out some of the pins!

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How cute are these DIY Scrabble Coasters?! I love that you can customize them and it's really creative and adorable. I have to figure out where to get the scrabble pieces so I can make these because they are just too cute.

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I am so excited to try this Easy Vegetable Chowder. Assuming I'm not allergic to corn (which I'm testing tomorrow) I will definitely be looking forward to trying this recipe with fresh, sweet corn. Yum!

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I DEFINITELY want to make this gorgeous Roasted Vegetable Orzo Salad. I will probably make it with quinoa or Israeli couscous but it is such a beautiful, easy meal. Pair with with a fresh green salad and it's a perfect spring meal.

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Raw Carrot Pecan Milk?!?! Say what?! This sounds absolutely incredible and I definitely want to try this gorgeous recipe from Deliciously Holistic: Healing Foods Recipes and Lifestyle Tips to Help Increase Your Energy and Immunity by Shelley Alexander. I don't have the book yet but found the recipe posted and it made me really want to get the book. There is no Kindle version yet but hopefully they will make it available soon! 

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This is one I've been most curious about. I've heard of making your own lipstick out of two ingredients: Crayons and Coconut Oil. I'm weary about the idea of using crayons on my lips but every single video and article I've watched/read about this says that it is a completely non-toxic, safe way to make and wear lipstick. Crayons are non-toxic, are made of paraffin (which is what is in lipstick anyway I guess?) and food grade coloring... which makes sense as they are for children and children LOVE eating crayons. I love the idea of making my own chemical free lipstick and personalizing and experimenting with colors. I guess I'll be thinking about it a little more and who knows, maybe I'll end up doing it and I'll post what I come up with!

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I love Lululemon workout gear but it is so damn expensive. Kiava makes really cute workout clothes at a more reasonable price... it's still pricey but it's more reasonable than Lululemon. I'd love to try out some gear eventually :)

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I can't wait to try this gorgeous Roasted Garlic and Tomato Soup! The coolest part? It's thickened with Chickpeas! I feel like that is kind of genius. Again, once I make sure I'm not allergic to tomatoes I'm going to make this beautiful soup.

And on the sweet side...

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If you are a sucker for the Samoa Girl Scout Cookie flavor combo of chocolate, caramel and toasted coconut this sweet treat is right up your alley. These are Paleo Samoa Miracle Tarts and they look incredible. These are vegan, gluten free and refined sugar free. Definitely can't wait to make these.

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Finally, these are Coconut Lime Frosty Cups! I love tropical flavors and lime is a favorite of mine. Lime combined with coconut is a lovely, light, bright flavor combination perfect for a summer treat. These chilled treats will be really beautiful and refreshing dessert or snack on a hot summer day. Definitely will keep these in mind for BBQs and picnics :)

So that's all I have for you today! I hope you liked my Pinterest roundup and I will definitely post as I try all of these recipes and projects out. What have you guys been liking on Pinterest?

I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend! I should have more posts up next week since I will hopefully be more comfortable and less itchy ;) Have a great Sunday!

Show & Tell Sunday: Stuff I'm Into!

Hey everyone! After yesterday's post about my trip to Cassadaga, I think I've sufficiently (almond) milked my trip to Florida for all it's worth ;) I figured that since today is Show and Tell Sunday AND since it has been forever since I've done a "Fun Friday" style post, I would take today to show you some things I've been into lately :) I love doing these posts, it's always so fun! And you get a little peek into my crazy mind, ha!

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My first new obsession is using Argan Oil in my hair. I hadn't heard of it until recently but I was immediately in love with it the first time I used it. I had already stopped using heat in my hair for the most part (I'm trying to give it a break from any harshness I've exposed it to over the years) and I had heard of all of the amazing benefits of using argan oil.  It is moisturizing and nourishing, and makes hair silky, soft and shiny. It is such an easy way to show your hair a little extra love and I can definitely feel the difference when I use it. I basically towel dry my hair as much as possible. I add a few drops of argan oil to my damp hair and comb it through and let it finish air drying. It's as simple as that!

Lately I've been brainstorming ways to earn a little extra money since life just seems to be getting more expensive. Freelance photo shoots are always an option (assuming I can find work) and I'm definitely working on lining up some portrait sessions. I've also been interested in making jewelry for a very long time and decided to give it a try and see what I come up with! I started off very simple with elastic beaded bracelets and I'm pretty happy with how they came out. Above you can see a set of stackable beaded bracelets that look really cute stacked on your wrist.

This one is a simpler, single bracelet with these hilarious skull beads I found. Also, I had no idea how to take a picture of this jewelry and was looking for something to hang it from and I found this guy hanging out on my shelf! He's normally toting a little surfboard but I thought the bracelet was a good accessory as well.

I'm planning on trying to make different kinds of bracelets (especially wrap bracelets!) and I'll keep you posted on my progress. If anything, it's a fun hobby and will be perfect when I need to give a gift (which is exactly what is happening with those stacking bracelets).

Check out this gorgeous cast iron teapot that my friend got me for the holidays this past year! I can't believe I haven't shown you until now. It is such a beautiful piece and steeps up the most delicious tea ever.

As you can see you put your loose tea or herbs/spices or whatever you want to steep into the basket and then fill the pot with boiling water. You let it steep for a few minutes and you have really delicious tea to sip :)

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Have you guys ever heard of water marbling? It is a very cool effect for nails and I've watched a million videos on it and still found it to be a daunting process. I tried it for the first time today and was happy that I only did it as an accent nail because it didn't come out as cool as any of the pictures or videos that I've seen. Not a terrible first try but nothing spectacular either. The colors mixed into a silver and light pink but were supposed to be a burgundy, lilac and white. When I get better at it I'll definitely show you :)

That's all I've got for you today! I hope you enjoyed a peek into what I'm digging lately. Next week I'll show you some delicious raw food I've been eating (and drinking) lately. I've been trying to cram as much produce in my face as possible and I've been achieving my goal through smoothies, juices and salads/raw wraps. I'll show you some of that next week!

Hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Show & Tell Sunday: A Year Later

Hey everyone! I hope that you have all had a great weekend :) The weather has been so amazing here over the past two or three days and I've definitely been enjoying it. Today was a special day because I did a first birthday/cake smash photo shoot for my friend's son. I photographed him when he was 3-4 weeks old and then again over the holidays and now for his first birthday. It is so amazing how he has grown into a beautiful little man. I thought it would be fun to show some pictures of him when he was a little peanut in his very first photo shoot and what he looks like now, a year later! It's always so fun to watch them grow and I can't believe it has already been a year.

Baby Dean's First Photo Shoot (1 Month)

He's been a happy baby from day 1! Such a sweet boy.

I just love this picture. His tiny little feet next to the stuffed animal's foot. So cute.

Baby Dean's First Birthday/Cake Smash (1 Year)

Look at how much he's grown up!

He is such a little man!

I love this picture!

Cake everywhere!

This one is too cute. I love his tongue sticking out! :)

Isn't it crazy how much of a difference a year can make?! Delilah loves him so much too :) They are good family friends and the sweetest people ever and it has made me so happy that I can capture these memories for them. There are a lot more from the shoot but these are just a few of my favorites :)

That's all for this Show and Tell Sunday! Next week I'm going to have another review for you (I'll schedule the post so it still goes up even though I'll be away). I am so excited, just two more days of work until vacation!

That's all for today! Hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend :)

Show & Tell Sunday: Go Brooklyn Munchies! Review

Hey everyone! Hope you are all having a great weekend. I'm so glad you seemed to enjoy my first Nerd Alert! post. I am so excited about starting that series, it has definitely given me something to look forward to in the spring. Today's Show & Tell post is another review, this time for Go Brooklyn Munchies! I was so excited to try this product and got a little carried away taking pics. It should make up for the lack of pictures in yesterday's post.

So as you may recall, I purchased the lemon flavor from Whole Foods in my last shopping trip. I had actually put off trying them for about a week but then I was in the mood for something fun and new but also healthy so I tore into the bag.

Look how cute these little flavor packed nuggets are. Especially in my adorable little panda bowl gifted to me by my dear friend Laura. I seriously couldn't wait to dig in.

Before I tell you how it tastes let me just fill you in on the amazing stats for this product. They are gluten free and certified organic. Seven pieces contain only 146 calories and boasts 4 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber. Not too bad! The real question is how do they taste?

(I was playing with focusing on these two pics... cheap photography trick, ha!)

Well, these things taste AMAZING!! The oat flavor comes through pretty prominently and I love oats so that is ok with me! It is not overly sweet and has a nice lemony tang to it. They have a great texture to them as well. They are crispy but not quite like biscotti. They have a bit of chew and give to them (as opposed to be totally crunchy). I guess my only wish is that the lemon flavor would come from lemon juice and lemon zest instead of lemon oil. I find that provides a fresher taste but even so, the flavor in these little bites is fantastic. I highly recommend them and I'm looking forward to trying their almond cookie flavor as well!

Here is the ingredient list and nutrition information in case you are curious. You can go to the website for info on all of their products as well.

So there you have it! There is no disclosure for this review since I paid for the product and have never been in contact with the company. I love finding new products and reviewing them for all of you and I can't wait to do it again next week!

Hope you are all doing well and hopefully this next round of snow won't be too bad. As of right now I have no Instagram pics this week (I know, I know... so lazy!) but maybe I'll be inspired by the snow tomorrow.