Real, Not Ideal

End of May/beginning of June was busy. I was on the go all the time, so I needed some easy things. I love breakfast, but I also really like the idea of “grab and go.” I have a couple really great breakfast idea and some smoothies because the weather is getting hot! 1.        Blueberry Muffin Smoothie In an effort to make something yummy as well as healthy when a friend came over, I made this smoothie from Iowa Girl Eats . It was so fantastic. I was slightly thrown off by the lemon zest, but that is what made this smoothie actually taste like a blueberry muffin. Again, this is purely delicious. 2.        Strawberry Oatmeal Smoothie I definitely put way too many strawberries in this, but it was not detrimental to the recipe in any way. Happy Money Saver suggests this recipe as a freeze ahead smoothie with the oats (kind of like overnight oats), but I opted out of that for convenience’s sake. It still wor...

I’m starting this off as a lie. These are all things I did in fall of 2016. But we’ll go with it. As you can tell, I got into some good breakfast routines. For a while, I didn’t work until Thursday evening, so I didn’t have anything to do in the morning. I was really into waffles for a while which is why you see so many here. 1.        Baked Bananas Foster Oatmeal This was one of the best by far. I’ve been meaning to make it again, but it takes a long time, and I just have not had the time. It makes two portions, so I made some for my mom and myself, but you could 100% stick it in the fridge and warm it up the next day. Highly suggest this meal from Culinary Ginger . 2.        Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins Since I work in the mornings, I like grab and go breakfasts. Muffins and some fruit are perfect for that. I made these muffins, and I didn’t think I liked them at first. This recipe from Little ...

I must say, Tuesday’s post was not the easiest thing in the world. It was a challenge for me to post. I was going back and forth about it for so long. I’m glad I decided to do it, and although it was quite a strong post to write after more than month of silence, I needed to do it. Other than that, my life has been absolutely insane in the past few weeks. To be honest, my life is a little bit in shambles. I need to get back into a routine. That also means that I need you catch you up on the adventures I’ve been on! I haven’t said anything about the Cliffs of Moher, London, or Paris. I have so much to share! For now, I’ll share what I’ve been doing from Pinterest. I decided to change the format of my Pinterest posts to fit in a few more things. So check out what I’ve been doing since I’ve returned to Canada! 1.        Flaming Drinks   All you need is 1 oz vodka, 1 oz blue curacao, 3 oz lemonade, Splash 151, Pinch of cinnamon. However, this was...

Here's my dessert plight: my family hates sweets. I know. I don't understand how I'm related to any of them. I adore desserts. The thing about this treat was that I made it for a work birthday party. And it was amazing. Everyone loved it. And just look at them. They are a thing of beauty. This is the second time I've made truffles, and there is one thing I don't understand: how on earth do the people who make these make them so perfect? Chef in Training nailed the look, and I really don't get it. If anyone has a tip to dipping truffles, let me know.       Ingredients:   - 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened - 1/2 cups sugar - 1 tsp. vanilla - 1 1/2 cups flour - 1/2 tsp. salt - 1 cup yellow cake mix - milk - sprinkles - white chocolate for dipping     1. Mix the butter, sugar, vanilla, flour, salt, and cake mix together.  2. Add as much milk is needed to mix everything together. 3. Mix until it reaches a stick...

We all have those days where we just NEED a cookie. For me, those days come more often than I'd like to admit. I've had this recipe from No. 2 Pencil saved for quite some time now on Pinterest,  and I finally decided to go for it. Ingredients - 1 tbsp. butter - 1 tbsp. sugar - 1 tbsp. brown sugar - 3 drops of vanilla extract - small pinch of Kosher salt - 1 egg yolk - slightly less than 1/4 cup of flour - 1 1/2 tbsp. of chocolate chips (moving from top left to right, up then down) 1. Melt the tablespoon of butter. I melted it for about 20 seconds. 2. Add the brown sugar. 3. Add the white sugar. 4. Add the vanilla. 5. Add the kosher salt. 6. Stir until all the ingredients are mixed. 7. Add the egg yolk. 8. Stir until all the ingredients are mixed. 9. Add the flour. 10. Stir until all the ingredients are mixed. 11. Add the chocolate chips and mix. 12. Microwave for 40-60 seconds. I cooked mine for 50 seconds. My rationalization is that cookies are h...

Yes, I am doing a Pinterest Challenge post on Saturday. I've decided to make a few changes for the summer months. I need some new hobbies for the summer, so I decided to use Pinterest and do something every week. I have a schedule written down for the kind of stuff I'm going to be completing. These posts will now take place on Saturdays with the exception of the last Saturday of the month when I will be doing my outfit posts. I intend to keep posting every Tuesday. I have a book review coming up as well as another product review, so this will be a good month! My sister has been loving smoothies lately, and I decided to take one on for breakfast! I was a little hesitant at the whole blueberry and lime thing, but it was actually REALLY good. It's zesty and refreshing. Perfect for the warmer weather I've been seeing here! I got the recipe from Julian the Thinker, and I changed the recipe a little bit. The blueberries I used were huge, and I needed to add more milk. I al...

I had a face mask in my January favourites, and I have been loving them ever since. I have a bunch of DIY face masks on a Pinterest board, and I decided to try one for this month's Pinterest Challenge. I used a recipe from Indian Beauty Spot. The pin said it was acne clearing, but the website was not very clear, and I did some additional research. Honey has moisturizing and antibacterial qualities, so it should clear up scars and make my skin oh so smooth. Nutmeg also clears scars and brighten skin. Cinnamon is anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. Ingredients: - 3 tbsp. honey - 1/4 tsp. nutmeg - 1/4 tsp. cinnamon 1. My mom's really into "designer honey" as my dad calls it, so the honey is organic (don't know if that makes a difference). 2. Add 3 tablespoons of honey. 3. Add 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. 4. Add 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg. 5. Stir the ingredients together. Real talk: this mixture is sticky and burns when it goes in your nose (example: picture...

It's been a while since I've done one of these! The last time I did the Pinterest Challenge was January,  but the last time I baked something for it was Brownie in a Mug.  I clearly love my brownies. Let me tell you, I have used this recipe from Life Tastes Good  many times. I have a friend who has some kind of potluck every few months, and I brought these the first time. The only reason her dad knows my name is because I was the one who brought the brownies. I've brought them for other occasions, and they have always been a hit. And once, I made these when I was bored and my sister's boyfriend and I sat at the kitchen table and ate half the pan while watching YouTube videos. Just a couple notes before we dabble into this: I was worried about the thickness of the batter and the addition of kosher salt, but trust me, I would not be giving this to you if it was a sub-par recipe. And second, the timing always seems to be different whenever I do it, so make sure you real...

So I may have cheated slightly on this one. And by cheating, I mean that I have combined two recipes to make one of my favourite combinations. The combination is completely optional for you. But anyway, last week, it snowed like crazy. The last time it snowed , it did not stick around. This time around, the weather decided to go all Elsa on us (I made a funny Tweet about it), and it was crazy. My sister had the day off school, and I came in looking like a snowman, so we cozy-ed up and made a nice warm drink. It was indulgent and felt so good! I have been eyeing the white hot chocolate recipe from Gimme Some Oven for quite some time now. However, I decided to spice things up (hehe). A few years ago, I was doing a Starbucks run, and someone suggested I try white hot chocolate with a chai tea bag in it. And I LOVED it! I'm not a huge tea drinker, but this was different. When we decided to make white hot chocolate, I remembered a recipe for a vanilla chai milkshake from Chocolate C...

As I mentioned in my last challenge post , I do not do enough crafty things. In fact, I do nothing crafty. Art has never been my forte. My mom bought me the Old Navy shirt that says "less is more" (as seen in Friday's outfit here)  just so I would keep that in mind if I ever ventured into the creative world. And I guess I did. I found the idea on Pinterest , and the title of the article on Buzzfeed is 31 Insanely Easy and Clever DIY Projects , so I figured that it was worth a shot. Aaaaand I messed up the first one. TIP: Do the letters slowly. You can see every mark when you paint it over. 1. You can use any jar or bottle or container you want. 2. Using a hot glue gun, *CAREFULLY* write a word on the bottle. 3. Let the glue fully dry before proceeding to the next step. 1. I used a sponge brush and white acrylic paint for my jars. 2. Completely paint the jar, including in between the letters. 3. Let the jar dry overnight before adding a second coat. When...

Here I am with another post for my  Pinterest challenge! It was difficult to choose exactly what I wanted to do from my many pins. It is easy for me to do something with food, but I have done so many recipes already. I really need to get into some more crafty things. I've got a couple in mind that are more crafty for those of you who like that type of thing. I ended up settling for something with hair. I have recently had a new interest in doing my hair. That came mostly from my mom and my sister telling me that I need to learn how to style my hair, so I figured it out, and now I'm an avid hair researcher. I don't know. Anyway, this style was really easy to figure out, and very easy to follow from the VP Fashion blog website.   (starting from the top left and moving left to right ending with the bottom right) 1. Separate your hair into three sections. 2. Twist one section of your hair. 3. Twist the section into a little bun and use bobby pins to secu...

Today has involved a lot of sleep, a long line, and working with no voice. This is that aftermath of O-week. I regret nothing. It was the most incredible week of my life, and I leave it feeling so fulfilled. However, my life is so disorganized right now. I'm surprised that I remembered to write a blog post (pay no mind to the fact that it is really down to the wire). I took these pictures knowing that I would want something easy to do when I got back from the week away. Excuse me for the awful editing on the number 8. I tried to fix it, but my brain is simply too tired and I ended up messing it all up. So you will just have to deal with this.     Ingredients: 1/2 cup mayonnaise 1/4 cup ketchup 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce Black pepper    Instructions: 1. Add 1/2 cup of mayonnaise. 2. Add 1/4 cup of ketchup. 3. Add 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder. 4. Stir all together. 5. Add 1/4 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce...

I'm just putting this out there right now. I have been up for two hours already. I had this image in my head where I would make myself a coffee and finish this post up. But no. We are out of coffee. All that is left is decaf, and that is just not going to cut it on a day like today. I am soooooo sleepy right now. But I will power through this. So I have another addition to my Pinterest challenge. I don't know about the rest of you who have tried this, but I also have at least five windows open while writing this. It takes effort! Anyway, this post is not exactly like the others. It is more inspired by Pinterest than anything else. The link led to an article on Squidoo  with ideas for Valentine's Day cupcakes. I don't know if you've noticed, but it is not February. So my friend and I decided to make a more summery cupcake. There isn't exactly a recipe for this either. So we'll just get into this. The Cupcake You don't even know how h...

Anyone who has actually been reading this blog knows that I have been obsessed with  Pinterest . As it is summer, I no longer scroll through Pinterest on an hourly basis, but that does not mean that I have not been using it to my advantage! I found this pin for a  brownie in a mug , and it was only three ingredients, so I was intrigued. I made it almost instantly (Pinterest tells me I pinned it 14 weeks ago at this point), and since then, I have been making over and over to the point where I have the recipe memorized (thank goodness, because my computer does not want to let me get on the site). If chocolate is your thing, then write this recipe down. You will never go back when making an entire batch of brownies is simply too long a process. It is certainly moist and gooey and heavenly. Ingredients: - 1/4 cup icing sugar - 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder - 1 egg Instructions: 1. Use a regular sized mug. Please excuse my Christmas mug, but it is the only s...

Look at this! Three posts in one week! And guess what! This is going to be a regular thing. I know, good for me. Let me tell you; when I got my weekly Bloglovin’ stats back and it told me I had -1 new followers, that hit a soft spot. I was losing followers per week. My page views are going down, and I’m not getting comments anymore. So I sat down and I figured out exactly what I want to do and when I want to do it. Now I’m just crossing my fingers hoping that I get some support back. Part of my new thing is these weekly Pinterest challenge posts! I have been looking all over Pinterest (not that that’s the challenge) for new activities or recipes or crafts to try out. And I am not crafty. Despite this fact, I decided to try a craftier activity. I have recently started to reorganize my closet and clothes, so I had a whole bunch of old t-shirts that I didn’t have room for. It’s a little difficult to donate t-shirts with names of people you don’t even talk to on the back. So I took to...