Homemade Banana Ice Cream (the lazy way)

I have recently discovered how to make ridiculously easy banana ice cream at home thanks to the lovely kitchen lady on Disney Junior who comes on and bores my kid in between rounds of Jake and Mickey.  It seriously is easy.  Unless you want to get fancy, all you need is bananas!

Ingredients:

Um, bananas.  Probably about a half dozen.

Directions:

Peels and slice bananas.  Place in freezer long enough for them to get nice and frozen.  I used a freezer bag overnight,

Remove from freezer and place in a food processor (don't use a blender) and run it until the bananas start to look creamy.  This one is fun for the kids because it starts as little chopped bits then transforms into what looks like soft serve.  

You can add a little milk in if you think it looks dry or needs some liquid but it's not necessary.  I put in some almond milk and a little vanilla extract and it tasted just like ice cream.  But so much easier and healthy!

You can also get creative and mix in your own ingredients such as cocoa powder, strawberries, etc.

Fun and yum!

Inspired!

So, I have been watching United States of Tara (amazeballs!) and though I do not have multiple personalities (at least I don't think I do :) I do have a LOVE for all things 50s! After watching the first few episodes I was inspired! A fun flirty dress, a few pearls, pink heels, and red lipstick transformed me from 'frumpy mom' (I had gym shorts, a tank top, and slightly broken flip-flops on before this :) to 'primpy mom' (and with very little primp necessary - thank you sock bun ;)

Though it is hard to dress to 'impress,' I did find it quite quick and easy to put this all together (and by together I mean on.) I'm going to take the double-take (thank you husband) and the exclamatory "You look pretty!" from my 4 year old (gush!) as whole house approval for this dress. Now to change back before the sticky hands of a 4 year old makes its way to me ;)

Outfit Details:

Floral Dress- Vintage

Heels- Coach

Pearls- Mom's Jewelry Box

Until the next inspiration...

- N

Things they never tell you...

While there are many glorious things that no one ever tells you about pregnancy (um why is my skin so dark "down there"?  what's with all this hair?  am I pregnant or slowly becoming a gorilla?) and labor (why is my entire body shaking like a 8 point earthquake?) the thing I am thinking about the most during the last throws of postpartum is the freaking hot flashes!!

Yes friends, after birth your estrogen levels plummet making you feel... menopausal.  The hot flashes are sometimes worse for me when breastfeeding, but like a bad comic book villain, they can strike at any time.

Heat, inescapable heat, rising through your body and making you pit out like you just ran a triathlon.  Ah the beauty of being a mother.

Next week, where did my stomach go and who is that sharpei hanging around my midsection?

Fashion Remix

 

Recently I have become inspired to try and come up with something other than the typical shorts and t-shirt combo I work so well. In keeping with my new found love (dresses!) I have been going through my pre-baby wardrobe to see what I can rework into something new. Luckily, I found quite a few pieces I could use differently in my new obsession. 

 

I remember as a kid going through my mother's closet and trying on all of the fun dresses and skirts she had. I remember thinking, "I can't imagine when I will feel comfortable wearing dresses." As I got older I wore them on special occasion (dances, gradutation, etc.) but never just out and about. That is until I got pregnant, you couldn't put me in a pair of pants for all the money in the world. Being pregnant in Miami, ruled out any garment that covered my legs and I was lucky enough empire waists were back in style and I was able to find a bunch of cute, fun, and breezy dresses.

Since then, I have returned to my comfy shirts and t's (how else am I supposed to hide the post-baby tire I acquired?!?) But having become inspired after purchasing my first fit-and-flare dress, I have now started going through my closet for more workable garments (who needs to buy when you can just recycle:) (Oh and I figured out how to use the frame app on my phone :)

Clothing Details:

1. - White Lace Dress - Forever 21
    - Black Skinny Belt - Target (pre-baby)
    - Patent Mary Jane Heels - Coach vintage
    - Pearl Earrings - Gift from husband (then boyfriend:) 

2. - Yellow Lace Dress - Target Clearance
    - Black Horsey Dress (underneath) - Target Clearance
    - Black Skinny Belt - Target (pre-baby)
    - Patent Mary Jane Heels - Coach vintage
    - Black Willis Purse - Coach Vintage

3.  - Luck Be a Lady Dress in Purple - Modcloth (new obsession)
     - Horse Dress in Black - Target clearance
     - Jewelled Black Velvet Flats - Tory Burch vintage

4. - Pink Dress (now a skirt ;) - Forever 21 (pre-baby)
    - Gray Tank - Target
    - Gold Belt - Target
    - Gold Flips - Coach Outlet
    - Silver Necklace - Fred Meyer's (4 Years ago)

5. - Yellow Button Down Shirt - Gap (pre-baby)
    - Printed Skirt - gift (pre-baby)
    - Bow Blue Velvet Flats - modcloth
    - Gold Rhinestone necklace - mom's Jewelry Box

6. - Yellow Button Down Shirt - Gap (pre-baby)
    - Brown Satin Daisy Dress (now a skirt) - Rave (pre-baby)
    - White Skinny Belt - Ross
    - Gold Flips - Coach Outlet

Hope this inspires you to remix your wardrobe :)

N

The definition of "jinxing it"

4:07 pm

Two children both asleep in their rooms at the same time!  And I'm downstairs!!

Victory is mine!!!!

4:12 pm

I'm washing dishes!  Haha!  You shall be clean today dishes!!

4:22 pm

Two children awake and crying.  Yay.

Not another fashion blog!

So, I have to admit I have been spending a bit of my summer vacation visiting blogs. I have found some awesome people out there who too feel they have something to share :) That said, the one I have been most in love with I found while shopping on Modcloth.com. If you haven't heard of this site and love fun, cute, and somewhat vintage styled clothing then you will love modcloth. In addition to selling adorable clothes, they have a style gallery where people can upload photos of themselves with vintage inspired looks. One of the style uploaders was a young girl with her own fashion blog centered around her love for all things vintage. Inspired by her blog, as well as T's own idea of posting our own fashion as mom's, I am going to upload my first fashion post of the Bi- Coastal Mom's, so here goes...

I just received a package (YAY!) from modcloth.com and was so excited to put on the dresses that I had purchased. I had recently purchased the same style dress but with a different print and was so smitten I decided to splurge and purchase 2 more this month. (Shh...don't tell :) In addition, I was so inspired my http://someonelikeyou18.blogspot.com/ that I tried something new with an old dress I bought pre-baby and have yet to squeeze my top half in the way it used to.

Clothing Details:
1. Modcloth "Luck Be A Lady" Dress in Potpourri, Target Berry Cardigan
2. Modcloth "Luck Be A Lady" Dress in Equine
3. Modcloth "Luck Be A Lady" Dress in Purple
4. Forever 21 Polka Dot Dress, Forever 21 Red Bow Sweater

As I was shopping with H (who was kept busy via cell phone game app) I overheard a girl, about 5, delightfully exclaim to her mom "Look she has horses on her dress!" (Awww :)

In future post I will be sharing the art of the 'sock bun' my new obsession!
Stay tuned :)

(Oh and sorry for the makeup-less shots...it's summer vacay :)

N

I've got a feeling...

As I type this I sit with a huge smile across my face- a feeling of accomplishment. Because today I mastered the impossible...convincing my 41/2 year old to go upstairs for bedtime with his father instead of me! Now, I will say he does go up with my husband at times but it is always with resistance and a small (if  not at times humongous) tantrum. How did she do it you ask? Well, by playing to h is interests...why didn't I think of this before? Seriously, though.

So, tonight the stairs leading to his room were not just ordinary wooden steps- no, they were the start of his journey- a pathway leading him through dragons and dinosaurs. The man behind him-  that is not just 'boring' dad. No- the man behind him is a giant, aiding him is his quest. I have to say his eyes lit up! But before he was on his way, he stopped, looked up, and asked for a kiss from the princess (awww- me :) And off they went- up the path and off to battle the dragons...and best of all- not a tear in sight! AAh, now off to relax and enjoy being the cool mom I am :)