Too Delish!!

Bloggers-the cravings have officially started and this mama wants sweets! Ice cream! Cookies! Cake! Muffins! Donuts! But mama does not want the fat-ass that goes with all of those sweets so I am trying to be creative and satisfy my sweet cravings with healthier options. Newest obsession: Kashi GOLEAN Crisp! Toasted Berry Crumble. It has rocked my world :) I normally am not a Kashi fan (the GOLEAN Crunch is too hard and hurts when I chew it!) but this is divine. It has 9 grams of protein, 8 grams of fiber and has 7 whole grains in it. Yesterday I had it as an afternoon snack w/ cottage cheese and today I had it w/ milk for breakfast. YUMMY! My friend Adam introduced me to this when we were in Lake Tahoe last week and I know if he eats it-then its healthy :) Enjoy!

Affordable and Fabulous!

I love a surprise beauty find!! This one I found while waiting in line for the pharmacy at CVS. The line was so long it went all the way to the cosmetics section of there store-so of course by the time I got to the front I had my arms full of new goodies. This one is great. It is Prestige Soft Blend Khol Eyeliner in Havana. They sell this brand at most drugstores and on Amazon and Drugstore.com. I love the dark brown color Havana, it gives me the option to go dramatic and lay it on thick for a made up look. Or I can just trace my lash line and not even wear mascara and it looks nice and natural. It is a Khol liner-so it goes on very smooth and easily, but I what I adore about this specific liner is that it doesn't smudge!! I wear it everyday and through my exercise classes, yoga, walking, napping, crying at everything (preggo hormones!) and snuggling the Mr and it doesn't smudge! So many friends ask me how to keep their eye make up on their eyes and I now can tell them-get this liner!!

A Pleasant Surprise!!

Happy Monday Product Junkies!!! I am back from a wonderful visit with my sister and niece in St Louis. While I was there I found some goodies to share with you all!! This first one was quite a nice little surprise. Sister (that's what we call each other) and I were shopping in Anthropologie (cant wait to fit into their clothes again!) and as I was checking out I saw a familiar logo in an unfamiliar tube...My old favorite (before Khiels stole my heart), Smith's Rosebud Salve now comes in a tube!!!! Stop the press! Its amazing! This stuff is fantastic-I use it for lip balm mainly, but I also use it on really dry skin and on my cuticles. It is clear-ish but leaves the tiniest hint of pink on your lips which is so cute! This product makes it on InStyle's 100 Best Beauty Buys every year for a reason-it rocks! I love it and the problem w/ the original packaging (in a tin) is that if it melts, it gets really hard to open and close the tin. So-problem solved!! Perfecto!

Want to Smell Delicious?

Happy Tuesday Bloggers!! Don't ya just love a short week? We had a wonderful weekend, we went up to Lake Tahoe and took the pups on their first ever boat ride...it was the funniest/cutest thing ever :) Now I'm here today-but I leave tomorrow morning for St Louis to visit my sister and my darling niece. So this will be my only post this week-but trust me, I'll be back with lots of goodies to discuss next week!!
The products above are too yummy not to blog about. They are Philosophy Apricots and Cream Body Lotion and Body Wash/Bubble Bath. I got them both at Nordies. They are huge-32 oz and smell divine. I love to take a soak in the tub at night before I climb into bed and now I use the bubble bath and after use the body lotion and every single time I do this Kevin makes a comment on how good I smell :) The bubble bath/body wash gets nice and sudsy and the lotion is a pretty good moisturizer-so not only do these products smell great-they work well too!! They feel luxurious and now that I'm getting bigger and bigger-I need all the luxuries/treats that I can get ;)

Best Pumpkin Candle

Bloggers-Anyone else is complete shock that its already September??!!?? I love it-but time sure is flying!! Yesterday I was wasting time before I met one of my best friends for frozen yogurt (Jules! At 21 Choices in Pasadena!), so I popped into Crate and Barrel. I wanted to get Kevin some BBQ accessories and the Weber Grill Cookbook (bc he just got a new grill and I'm encouraging him to be a "grill master"!). I started to walk around and check out the fall stuff and I got a whiff if the best smelling pumpkin/fall smell!! I looked around and there was this small-ish tin on the display table and I picked it up and sure enough-pure fall bliss!! It is the Crate & Barrel Harvest Pumpkin Scented Candle. It comes in this small tin (pictured above) and is $10. The approximate burn time is 30 hours and even with out being lit-it smells sooooooo good (I'm smelling now as I write this!). Ahhhh I can picture it now: A nice cool Sunday afternoon, football on, Kevin BBQ-ing and my scented candle burning away.....heaven!

Delish Skinny Soup Recipe

I told you guys a couple of weeks ago that I was going to make lentil soup...I did and LOVED it!! So did Kevin! The reason I want lentil soup is Im trying to get more iron, magnesium and protein in my diet and of course any way to get more veggies is great. I call this a "skinny soup" because it is really good for you and fills you up. It has a TON of fiber (which I love!) and protein in it and not much fat at all. This is Ina Garten's recipe for Lentil Vegetable soup. I suggest cutting down the recipe a bit unless you want tons left over. I also added fresh chopped tomatoes and right before I served mine I threw in some spinach. I ommitted the parmesan because I didnt need it but definetly add the red wine vinegar, because it tastes sooooo good in this soup :)


Cook Time:1 hr 30 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 8 to 10 servings

Ingredients
1 pound French green lentils
4 cups chopped yellow onions (3 large onions)
4 cups chopped leeks, white part only (2 leeks)
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
1/4 cup good olive oil, plus additional for drizzling on top
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 cups medium-diced celery (8 stalks)
3 cups medium-diced carrots (4 to 6 carrots)
3 quarts chicken stock
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 tablespoons red wine or red wine vinegar
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Directions
In a large bowl, cover the lentils with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drain.

In a large stockpot on medium heat, saute the onions, leeks, and garlic with the olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme, and cumin for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are translucent and very tender. Add the celery and carrots and saute for 10 more minutes. Add the chicken stock, tomato paste, and lentils. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, until the lentils are cooked through. Check the seasonings. Add the red wine and serve hot, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with grated Parmesan.

Call me Mix-Master!

Bloggers, I have decided to become a chemist...well kind of...I just have found the most delightful, anti-stretchmarks, anti-dryness mixture that I have created by combining 2 of my favorite products. I combine Lalicious Body Oil in Coconut Creme (smells amazing!) and Cetaphil Moisturizing Body Cream and voila instant moisture that is the perfect consistency. What I do is pour about 2-3 tablespoons of the oil into a half filled tub of the Cetaphil. I stir it around and then just keep it in the tub. I love this stuff! I slather it all over my body right when I get out of the shower and am still a tad damp. Then I wait for it to dry a bit (So yes this preggo is walking around naked for a few minutes during this time! Scary!) and while I'm waiting I put on my face moisturizer and put on my leave in conditioner. This dynamic duo that I use is fantastic and leaves my skin so soft. Love it!!

Hair Rehab

Happy Monday! I have to say that this was one of my favorite weekends :) The temperature was perfect (70s) and Kevin and I had no plans. We had a few nice meals out together, did a little baby stuff shopping and relaxed...So nothing crazy, but it is just so nice to relax and spend time with Kevin. We laugh a lot and daydream what life with Baby B will be like...Its a very sweet time for us :)

This summer I have not been kind to my hair. I have been swimming a bunch and haven't had a trim in 4 months (the woman who does my cuts has been out on maternity leave). I also just had it colored/highlighted last week (different person cuts vs colors me) and that always makes it dry. Also, I haven't been doing much as far as deep conditioning either. So basically my hair is the longest its ever been and pretty dry :( So, first thing is first, I just scheduled my hair cut and will take off a few inches. Next up is I need to find a good mask/deep conditioner (and you better believe I'll post about it!). 3rd is I need to use my "go to" dry hair products. So today that's what I'm writing about. An old but effective favorite: Redkin Extreme-Anti Snap Treatment. This leave in treatment has proteins in it and it smooths your hail cuticle making breakage less likely. It also has fruit acids that help with shine. I use this after I'm out of the shower (and have already shampooed and conditioned). I towel dry my hair and put a quarter size amount onto my ends. I really feel like this makes my hair stronger, which now that I'm rehabbing it-it certainly needs :) This stuff is sold at beauty supply stores and isn't too pricey. A bottle will last for a long time. Have a great day!!

TMI Week: Body Mint

Happy Friday!! Doesn't it just feel like time is flying by?? Love it. So thank goodness today is the last day of TMI Week. Honestly, I haven't enjoyed blogging about the unglam stuff as much as my usual products. But i committed to a week of it so here we are on the final day. Today's product is called Body Mint. It is called a "breath and body freshening tablet". Here is info from the company that makes its:

"Body Mint tablets are made from an all-natural, highly specialized, derivative of chlorophyll. Body Mint's unique formulation gives it the power to remedy body odors from multiple sources, like bad breath (halitosis), underarm odor, perspiration odor and foot odor. Body Mint works from the inside, out. Take it twice daily and it works to reduce everyday bad breath (halitosis) and body odor both day and night."
And
"Body Mint Is The New Way To Smell Your Best! Made From A Special Derivative Of Chlorophyll And Taken Like A Daily Vitamin, Body Mint Reduces Breath, Underarm And Foot Odors, As Well As Oll Over Body Odors, Also Has Been Proven To Help Bad Breath Cause From A Low Carb Diet Lifestyle
The First 100% Natural Total-body Deodorant, Body Mint Was Originally Created F Or The People Of Hawaii To Suit Their Outdoor/Active Lifestyles, "barefoot" Cul Ture And The Year Round Tropical Heat."

I think it kind of boils down to: you are what you eat. And that includes how you smell...if you eat a lot of onions, cumin, garlic, curry, etc. and don't drink a lot of water then you might not smell as sweet and fresh as someone who eats a lot of fruit, cucumbers, lettuce, etc. So these pills are like short cut!
Whew-done with TMI Week!!! Have a fab weekend!!!

TMI Week: Sweat Buster

Bloggers-Its hot out there!! Especially here in Southern CA where we are having a major heat wave. So in addition to bathing and deodorant what can we do? Well, I personally am a baby powder fan. I sprinkle anywhere that may get sweaty (which when you are preggo is everywhere!). I especially love the Johnson's Baby Powder in Lavender and Chamomile-it smells amazing!! Original baby powder smell reminds me of diapers-so I avoid that smell when possible! Good new is that it is supposed to cool down this weekend!