As you guys know I have a major sweet tooth. I love desserts and as I am focusing on living a healthier lifestyle. I’m always looking for a healthy alternative to our every day treats. For the past couple of years, I’ve been seeing recipes that include chickpeas, black beans, white beans and honestly I was really skeptical about having beans in my dessert at first. To be honest with you, one of the things that convinced to give it a try was having the breakfast cake. That cake is so yummy so moist and I said you know what if I’m going to give zucchini a chance. I should try giving beans in my dessert as well. When I was making the recipe, and I was putting the batter in the pan. I decided to try a sample off of the spoon. Honestly, I said to myself we’re on to something with this recipe. I placed the batter in the oven and I want to say within 30 to 40 minutes the recipe was complete. It was so delicious I made again that same week let me just be honest. I’m like completely out of stock of chickpeas now that I've been making this recipe so often. I’ve made this recipe several times With a couple of variations. This recipe is so yummy that my meat eater spouse loves it as well. And that only did he ask to try it. He also asked for seconds. How cool is that?! This is one of those recipes that I will have in rotation. I love that it doesn’t require a lot of ingredients it also doesn’t require a lot of measuring which I love.

Chewy Vegan Blondie Recipe

Have you ever had a dessert made with chickpeas?

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Our Menu Plan

Ingredients 

• 1 Part Three Olives Rosé Vodka 
• 1 Part bitter orange liqueur 
• 3 parts sparkling wine 
• 1 part soda water

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• Stevia In The Raw® is a zero-calorie sweetener, perfect for any baking and cooking needs
• It contains an extract from the sweet leaves of the stevia plant
• Stevia In The Raw® is available in conveniently portioned 1g packets
• 1 packet of Stevia In The Raw® is as sweet as two teaspoons of sugar
• Up to 700 calories are saved for every cup of sugar that is replaced with Stevia In The Raw®

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Recipe HERE

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I can’t believe Father’s Day is this weekend. One of the things that I like to do is try to purchase the Mister’s gift in advance. However, sometimes things don’t go as planned. Today I’m sharing with you some of my favorite items of 2018 that are perfect for the men in your life whether it be your father, boyfriend, husband, and/or son. These are gifts that they truly would love and I highly suggest you save them in your Amazon account so you always have an idea of just various items that you can get for that special person. I know for me a lot of times it’s so hard because it feels like they pretty much have everything so what I do is create a category on Pinterest and Amazon of different items that I can get for them. Whether it’s a simple thank you, birthday, or anniversary gift. I have a list of items that I know that they would possibly love and of course you can always go with a gift card to their favorite store. But let’s be honest sometimes that gets a little played out.

Last-Minute Father’s Day Gift Ideas

Drone

Travel Mug 

GoPro

Starbucks Gift Card

Amazon Gift Card

Alexa

Flask

Gucci by Gucci Eau De Toilette Spray 

Wireless Beats 

Apple Watch

Hammock 

Portable Grill 

Grill Kit 

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Happy Monday! It’s officially countdown time until the end of school we have a little under two weeks left. I have so many mixed emotions about this. Kinda sad that this might be Michael’s last year having his summer free. Sports camp and possibly working and having a social life. I can imagine his summer is going to start to get really busy going forward.
The weather has been wacky in Connecticut. For instance, it was around 80’degrees. However, it was breezy. I know I shouldn’t complain because it’s better than snow...
Last week I tried a yummy homemade jerk chicken recipe. I’m going to try and recreate the recipe and actually take note of the seasoning measurements and not seasoning to taste. The family loved the recipe. I actually made it in the crockpot. The chicken was so tender and flavorful. Per the family. It was nice to create something different and not the same ole same meals. Plus, I love that I was able to create the meal in the crockpot, in the oven or even on the grill. If you don’t own a crockpot. I highly suggest investing in one. It’s such a life saver, especially during the warmer months. Also, I would like to get back into freezer cooking. Freezer cooking used to really come in handy when I would already have the meat marinaded in advance and all I would have to do is thaw it out and put it in the oven, grill or crockpot. As you can see, so many mixed emotions and a lot to add to my to-do list.

Anywho, how was your weekend?

Menu Plan 

Summer is my favorite season. Every year I look forward to it especially with really harsh winters most years. One of the things I love most about summertime is traveling. Getting up and going on a whim. We have so many beautiful states nearby like New York, New Hampshire, Maine, and Cape Cod to name a few. I love waking up on a whim and just going. I'm often asked what are some of my favorite travel must-haves and today I'll be sharing 6 Items that I can't leave the house without during my summer travel adventures.



Stationary/ Reading Material
Whether you're on the passenger side or taking a flight or train. Don't forget to bring some reading material with you. I always suggest bringing back up. I know you may have a ton on your e-reader or even phone. Disconnect from your phone and bring a physical copy of a magazine and/or book with you. Also, I love bringing two pens and two notebooks. An extra pen because let's face it. Pens stop working at any point even if they're new. One of the notebooks is for my “to do's” and thoughts. I feel like I get my best ideas while traveling. The other notebook is to document the journey, I like to consider it my travel journal.

Water Bottle
I know they may sound a little weird, however, having a quality water bottle is really essential for when traveling. I'm obsessed with my Nalgene water bottles. They have a really cool closer just in case you or the kiddos drop them. I've had them for years and love them. I have one specifically for home and two I'll travel with if needed. It's so convenient when you have your travel bag ready and you can just get in the car and go!


Weekend Bag
If you don't own a weekend bag. Invest in one now! A good quality weekend bag really comes in handy. You can use it for your overhead bag during flights and you can also use it for your travels for a weekend or even overnight stays. As prior stated, I like to keep my bag packed and ready when it's time to go. The only thing I have to worry about refilling prior to leaving is my water bottle and I'll typically attach the bottle to the bag prior to heading out so I won't forget it. I purchased the weekend bag pictured at Target and I've had it for a few years now.

Charger/Portable Charger
Yes, we all know to carry a charger cord and a backup. What about a portable charger? One of the life lessons I've learned is to always, always carry a portable charger with you. One of the worse feelings in the world is to look down at your phone and it's about to die when you want to take a photo. Trust me, this has happened to me one too many occasions and I finally invested in the perfect portable charger last year. Earlier this year I visited New York and forgot my wall charger at home. I had my charger cord with me and I didn't have to interrupt my schedule to stop at a store. My portable charger lasted me my entire visit and I didn't even have to worry about charging it at night.

Blanket Scarf
One of the items that I try not to forget and I typically will leave an extra one in my travel bag and the car is a blanket scarf. I've learned that blanket scarves really come in handy. I can't tell you how many times we stopped during our travels at a beach that we've stumbled upon or a beautiful park to have an on the whim picnic and my blanket scarf really came in handy. Let's not forget about those cold summer nights. Especially living in New England. Blanket scarves are perfect and they have so many amazing uses.



Hygiene Essentials
If you've been following my blog or me on social media for a while, you know I do not travel without my Summer's Eve® Feminine Cleansing Cloths and Wash, It's perfect for On-the-go Freshness. Especially, during the summer months. It's so nice to freshen up during a long road trip or even after a flight. It honestly instantly changes my mood. Upon arriving at my destination. I immediately take a shower with Summer Eve® Wash. When traveling I stick to what I know and what my body loves. I grew up seeing my mom always use Summer Eve® products and naturally once I was old enough. I included them in my daily routine. My latest favorite is the new Blissful Escape™ scent. It really smells magical and leaves me refreshed and oh so clean. It's really like escaping to a vacation while you're in the shower. Yes, moms thank me later!



I purchased my Summer’s Eve® Blissful Escape™ at my local Target. You can currently save 20% with Cartwheel through June 30, 2018, HERE!






Do you have any summer travel essentials?

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