Ah, summer...

It's finally here. The classroom is packed up, my toe nails are painted an appropriate shade of bright pink, and I even splurged on a new pair of summer shades (and by splurged, I mean spent a whole $8. I refuse to pay a ridiculous amount of money for sunglasses that I will: a.) lose in 2 days, or b.) scratch because it is simply more convenient to just throw them in my purse than to wrestle with a case).

Summer means many wonderful things. Slip and slides, vacations, sandy toes, and sunscreen. Mental health, ice cold bottles of water, sundresses, and fresh fruit. This summer I have found my new favorite snack:

Kettle organic corn and black bean tortilla chips and Whole Foods guacamole. It's a beautiful combination. The chips alone are worth my 1.5 hour drive to Whole Foods. In fact, we went this weekend and stocked up. I won't tell you how many bags of these beauties we got. Just know we stocked up.

Summer also means more time to blog. So you can expect more frequent posts from my summer test kitchen. -Not to mention the 4,387 recipes I already owe you from a busy school year.

But for now, Happy Summer!!

Spring Break Favorites

I promise that after I post this I will then post a recipe for you to try (like a delicious berry cake or some amazing cheddar biscuits we had last night).

But first, let's talk.
I love spring break for many reasons. Mental health break, yes. Sleeping in, yes. But at the tip top of the list?

Having choices. Like for lunch. I'm not limited to a lunchbox, I can have cheese slices and an apple. Or maybe

a whole wheat, oats, and flax banana pancake with some peanut butter and my Grammy's homemade blueberry jam (Y U M!)

or some steel cut oats with fresh blueberries and vanilla yogurt.

Or something else. But you get the picture (literally).

Some more favorites of mine? (This is basically so I can share a few photos)

Easter eggs. Particularly brightly colored, polka dot Easter eggs. :o)

Love, LOVE this stuff. When buying organic is going to break the bank (I am a girl on a grocery budget), this produce wash helps get the icky stuff off of the fruits and veggies. **And as a side note, when being choosy with your organic purchases, choose organic options (if you can) when buying produce with thin skins (like apples and bell peppers) because these fruits and veggies have more of a chance of icky pesticides leaking through to the flesh. And consult this list for more info on where your money is best spent.

The aforementioned Grammy's blueberry jam

Diaper cakes. No, I'm not pregnant. But I made my first diaper cake (seen above) for a friend's shower, and I am smitten.

This is my new favorite coffee creamer. Paired with a well brewed cup of Trader Joe coffee it's delicious!

And, of course, cute nieces. Honestly. Aren't they darling?

Okay, you all have been great sports. I'll be posting your recipe(s) shortly!

Meet my very own Orka...

Not okra, not orca like the whale, but Orka.

Until I found this little beauty in my stocking, I had no clue they even existed. But they do, and I love mine! Basically, it takes any type of oil (my oil of preference? Why EVOO* of course!) and uses the pump to spray it in a gentle mist. No more "oops!" drizzles, dumps, or floods. Just a spritz of oil with your Orka and you are ready to go! It's like your own homemade Pam out of your choice of oil.

*extra virgin olive oil

I know it's not a recipe, but these bad boys are like $10-$20 and totally worth it!

That's all for now... Laundry and a vacuum await me.

Martha move over!

Or not.

But as I sit here enjoying my banana and yogurt with oatmeal, blatantly avoiding the vacuum, I decided that I would share this with you.

If you're like John and myself, there are some things you buy from the bulk bins. Whether you scoop out a cup of almonds, a pound of granola, or a few ounces of quinoa, you inevitably head home to find yourself staring at a bunch of grains, etc. in plastic bags wondering where in the world you're going to put them.

Well, recently I solved that problem for myself, and it's pretty cute if I do say so myself:

While walking around Michael's, we passed the mason jars and an idea hit me. You see the fruition of that vision above. The mason jars are about $1.00 a piece at Michael's and you can get them cheaper in bulk. I had left over ribbon from the 4th of July (okay... So I have a LOT of ribbon. Bows, ribbon, & polka dots are weaknesses. Just wait until I have a daughter), and some cardstock. I put them all together and there you have it. No more plastic bags and twist ties!

And they fit so nicely in the cupboard! :o)

Okay. I'm going to go vacuum.

For real.

Maybe.

A few of my favorite things

Dear friends, I need to share with you some of my new favorite things. If I were Oprah, I promise I would send you all home with your very own collection of my favorite things. However, I am not Oprah, so please enjoy them via digital photo from the comfort of your very own home.

I know what you're thinking, and no: my favorite thing is NOT the 1981 flowered wall paper in the guest bathroom. It is, however, cucumber mint soap from Restoration Hardware. LOVE it, and one day when John isn't paying close attention, I'm going to sneak the matching hand lotion into the cart.... :o)

Incase you were wondering, my closest Whole Foods is 87.2 miles away (and I know you were wondering. You were just thinking: I wonder how far Emily is from Whole Foods. Well, friend, now you know).

Now, being this far from Whole Foods is something I am familiar with. The difference being that back in the F-L-A, I was constantly visiting people who lived in the land of the Whole Foods. I really don't have a reason to visit Glen Allen other than to drive 87.2 miles for a Whole Foods (and don't put it past me to road trip it for my fresh ground honey roasted peanut butter). Sad news, but then....

Friends, I discovered we had a Trader Joe's!

You're right; it's not Whole Foods. But it is enough of a comparison to appease me and sway me from hopping in the car and driving 87.2 miles (plus the added detours of me getting lost).

And here at Trader Joe's, I found a new favorite thing (you were wondering when I was going to get to that, weren't you?): Trader Joe's coffee! L-O-V-E love it! This in my french press with a little bit of sugar free creamer makes me smile. I am sipping some as I blog to you. Come visit me, and I will make you a cup (or 7...)

Flowers! Particularly yellow flowers, are a favorite thing. Especially when they are a surprise because surprises are another favorite thing of mine! (Good surprises; it's my favorite thing, so I get to qualify, right?)

And finally:

Yep. Favorite!

(PS: Even if I were Oprah, I would NOT give these guys to you. Mine. :o)

Happy Wednesday, friends. It's left over night here at Emily's kitchen (we've got a full fridge, time to clean out), but perhaps I'll blog about dinner's, etc. past if I get bored with unpacking (chances of that are extremely high, by the way).

Enjoy your day!