Hi Friends!, I wanted to to a very quick share of my Memorial Day outfit! I had a few questions about a couple of the pieces which are linked below.
I’m always in for a great, fashionable budget-buy, and was pretty pleased with the overall look of this! Great for a summer BBQ, or even a casual dinner out. It’s still a little chilly in Colo, or I’d have gone with some white denim shorts instead of the jeans! ha!
Just a heads up: This post contains affiliate links. That means if you click a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission at no cost to you. As always, all opinions are entirely my own. Thanks for supporting me!
Just a heads up: This post contains affiliate links. That means if you click a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission at no cost to you. As always, all opinions are entirely my own. Thanks for supporting me!
About 2 years ago I was gifted a little succulent arrangement from a friend. Within a few months, it was overgrowing its original little pot. SO, at this point, I decided I needed to repot, and since my thumb was turning a little greener (after all, I’d kept the plant alive for THREE months!), I opted to hit up a nearby nursery to get a few more baby succulents to add to my collection. Then began the repotting game. Why I am I so obsessed with succulents? Keep reading to the top 5 reasons you should add some succulents to your life.
1. They’re resilient. Let’s face it, my history with keeping plants alive has not been great. Usually it’s because they require more maintenance than I’m able to *regularly* provide. What can I say? I have a busy social life… So- back to succulents. They generally only require watering once or twice per week – EASY for someone who travels or isn’t home often. And I’ve occasionally gone a touch longer without watering, and they bounce back very quickly! If the leaves begin to become shriveled, it’s only taken about 12-24 hours for these little guys to bounce back with a good soak. 🙂
If you’re following me on Instagram, you may note that I have a rather -let’s call her curious pup. Well, she decided to eat half my succulents one lovely afternoon, and this poor guy suffered the consequences; however, even after knocking off all the leaves, the stem began to sprout new little plants!!
2.They are self-propagating. Essentially, you can make more tiny plants from the “mother” plants that you have. Some varieties will sprout chicks/babies from their root (aloes, hens & chicks), and others will begin to sprout roots from a leaf pulled cleanly from the mother plant. Inevitably I always seem to have some fallen leaves sprouting in my tiny kitchen-based gardening project. Keep in mind, if you plan to propagate a plant, this should be done seasonally to optimize the growth potential of your new little plant!
I don’t have the best lighting in my place, so some of my succulents have gotten a little leggy – in other words, stretched out so that they don’t maintain their pretty rosette form any more. This is the perfect time to propagate! I love having these around – not sure my husband would agree because my kitchen looks like a bit of a science experiment… ha!
…TIP! Egg cartons are GREAT for propagating these little guys! (and easy to come by!)
3. They make your house more home-y. Ok, ok, you could claim this about any living plant, but I’m biased. It makes me feel like my house is a lot more homey with some greenery. I love fresh cut flowers, but frankly a bouquet just doesn’t last as long! So, my preference is to go with these little succ-ers (see what I did there?) as my live greenery & have a seasonal bouquet of some gorgeous silk flowers that I keep on my kitchen table.
4. They make great gifts!! I pot them in small 2-3 inch pots like these, or these. I often gift the “chicks” that have sprouted from the mother plant, or the babies that have sprouted from the propagated leaves. I’m big on bringing hostess gifts when friends invite us for dinner – PERFECT option, and budget friendly . If this is an ongoing project you have, you’ll always have something nice to take. Like we’ve already addressed…. they require VERY little maintenance!
Note the mother plants in the larger arrangements – having more babies!! These are the 2-3″ pots (above). Don’t mind the spritzer bottle. Thats for the babes!
5. House plants have added health benefits. We all know that plants create oxygen, but did you know that having indoor plants also reduces stress? They purify the air, can improve your mood, and lower your risk for illness. And this is just me speculating, but there’s something to be said for having good mental health, so if indoor plants reduce stress and create a sense of calm, why the heck not?
Are you ready to add some succulents to your life?? Show me your indoor window garden? I’d love to see it!
What is cauliflower rice, you ask? Well, it’s simply that – “riced” cauliflower. Riced is a cooking term that is similar to “grated”. I love this recipe as a substitute for regular white rice – Bonus! – you’re getting an added vegetable serving! Because of that, it’s low calorie, low carb, and Keto friendly.
To start, wash your head of cauliflower, and remove the stem. I use my food processor with the grater attachment to “rice” the cauliflower florets. This whole process takes less than 5 minutes. Set aside.
You may be thinking – wait, I’ve seen cauliflower rice in the frozen foods section. Well, it’s available pre-riced too, but I like to save a couple bucks and simply use a large head of fresh cauliflower instead. The recipe will work with either version!
Add the olive oil, garlic, and (optional) jalapeno to a sautee pan and allow to cook for a couple minutes.
Once the peppers are softened, add the tomato paste and the seasonings, and stir to combine.
Once all the ingredients are combined, add the riced cauliflower, and stir, integrating all ingredients uniformly.
Once all ingredients are well mixed, add the can of Rotel, juices and all.
Stir well, and continue to cook over medium heat, approximately 7-8 minutes, until cauliflower is softened.
Forgive me guys, I was so hungry, I neglected to take a final photo! But I utilized this just like I would use a Mexican seasoned rice, in my Sweet Potato Black Bean Buddha Bowls, which were delicious! (between the cilantro and the tortilla chips! ha!)
Let me know what you think about the recipe! I’ve also used this to serve as a side with fajitas, fish tacos, or any place you would sub regular carb-y rice.
Mexican Cauliflower Rice
A delicious "Mexican Food" Version of Riced Cauliflower
Clean & remove cauliflower florets from the head of cauliflower. Use grater attachment of food processor to "rice" the cauliflower. Set aside.
Heat olive oil, and saute the chopped onion & jalapeno until nearly cooked. Then add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
Once the garlic is fragrant, add the tomato paste. **Note, depending on how much riced cauliflower you have, you may need to adjust this amount. Just know your finished product will be more "tomato-y" if you use the entire 4 oz container, like I did
Add your spices to tomato & veggie mixture, and cook 1-2 minutes to blend flavors.
Once blended, add riced cauliflower, and stir well.
After cauliflower and tomato mixture are well blended, add the entire can of Rotel, and continue to stir & cook over medium heat until the moisture from the Rotel has evaporated & the cauliflower is cooked through, about 7-8 minutes.
So I can eat! Guys, I’m going to be totally honest here. I’m not naturally one of those people that enjoys physical activity. Im tall, and long, have horrible spatial awareness, and awful hand-eye coordination… And not to mention that the gym is like, the absolute worst place I can imagine. The monotonous frustration of walking on the treadmill and not going anywhere, or just spinning in place for a half hour is just not. my. thing.
But today, I’m celebrating a big milestone. Today I completed my 100th class with Class Pass! (And whoa, by the way!) Haven’t heard of Class Pass before? Well, it’s an opportunity to try out private studios in your area at a significantly lower cost than even a 1 month commitment- Upwards of 40-50% savings at times! (Trust me, I did the math *wink*) Check out locations where the pass is offered- they’re in many of the larger US cities, and have recently expanded internationally.
Just to reinforce, I know myself, and I’m not going to exercise unless I have someone instructing me on what to do. I’m just not. I’ve tried it, and let’s just say I can come up with about any excuse in the book to skip a work out. My husband calls those “MJs” – Marge Justifications.
I NEED that element of accountability. SO, Class Pass has been a great solution for me! You choose the class type you want, either by exercise, time or location, and sign up through the app. It’s so outrageously easy, and allows me the flexibility to work out in different parts of town if I’m out & about. You’re not just stuck at one studio.
Another reason I’ve been loving my class pass is because I like to modify my exercise routine regularly, and I’ve also gotten exposed to several new styles of exercise I would never have ever tried otherwise. I can pick up nearly any type of class, nearly any day of the week!
Have I convinced you to give it a shot yet? Well, just to sweeten the deal, you can get a 2 week free trial by using this link!
Me. Post Class #100. I now understand why people take selfies before working out.
I’d love to hear your feedback! Tried it? Love it? What’s your favorite studio/class?
Cooking is something I really enjoy. While trying to stick to our budget recently, I’ve been avoiding extra trips to the grocery store, and so, extra spending. Welcome to my cooking science project that involves only cooking with food I have available in the house! #projectemptythefridge
I started with some frozen, peeled, deveined shrimp (only way to go) and some seemingly random veggies that needed to be used. And it’s a bit of a pet peeve of mine to let food go to waste – if I can avoid it! If you’re using frozen shrimp, allow time to thaw in ice water (if we’re practicing all our food safety skills…)
Chop, slice & dice your veggies. I had a zucchini that was nearing the end of its life, so I decided to throw that in. I thawed a steamable bag of frozen broccoli (that I normally keep stocked) about half way, and sauteed that with the onion in some toasted sesame oil.
Add zucchini once the onion is nearly cooked. You don’t want to add it too soon, or it could potentially turn to mush when it gets overcooked…bleh.
While the vegetables are cooking, blend the rice vinegar, sriracha, hoisin sauce, minced garlic, minced ginger, hot chili oil and soy sauce in a separate container with a whisk. If you’d like to make this sauce thicker, add 1-2 tsp of cornstarch & set aside. This will cause the sauce to thicken as it cooks. This is my preference! As you can see, I keep many of these ingredients stocked!
I like to make a little “well” in the center of the stir fry veggies at this point so that the shrimp are closer to the heat source.
Doesn’t look like much of a “well”, does it?
Cook and stir, cook and stir, until your shrimp are firm, curly, and pink. If the shrimp still looks gray, it’s not done yet!
Once the shrimp are cooked through, add the cabbage and allow it to wilt (1-2 minutes). Adding a lid to allow the cabbage to steam a little bit may speed this process up.
Then add the sauce mixture, and stir into the shrimp & veggie mixture. Cook for 1-2 minutes more until it begins to thicken. Top with your green onion & sesame seed garnish.
And Voila! We served this over rice & I cooked some pot stickers that I happened to have in the freezer. If you made it, l would love to hear your feedback!
*Tip!: If you don’t have the same veggies I used feel free to sub a bag of frozen stir fry vegetables or come up with your own concoction that would taste great in a stir fry dish. The possibilities are practically endless! And the more colors in there, the better!!
Spicy Shrimp Stir Fry
A delicious, and quick weeknight meal that's sure to please
2tbspToasted Sesame Oil(Could sub olive oil, but sesame has the best flavor!)
2tbspRice Vinegar
2tbspHot Chili Oil
2tbsp Low Sodium Soy Sauce
1tspSriracha
1tsp Minced Ginger
2tbspMinced Garlic(Or 2 cloves, if fresh)
2tbsp Hoisin Sauce
2tspCorn Starch (optional)
4-6eachGreen Onions
Sesame Seeds(for garnish)
Instructions
If using frozen shrimp, allow to thaw in cold water for ~10 minutes
Chop & Slice Veggies appropriately. If you don't have any of the ingredients I used, feel free to substitute any ingredients that would taste good!
Heat Sesame oil in a wok or non-stick skillet, and begin to cook vegetables. Start with the ingredients that will take the longest to cook. Cook the Broccoli & Onion for 3-4 minutes, then add zucchini.
While the vegetables are cooking, blend the rice vinegar, sriracha, hoisin sauce, minced garlic, minced ginger, hot chili oil and soy sauce in a separate container with a whisk. If you'd like to make this sauce thicker, add 1-2 tsp of cornstarch, additionally.
Make a space in the center of your pan or wok, and add the shrimp. By making a space in the center, the shrimp will be closer to the heat source.
Cook shrimp with the vegetables over medium heat until the shrimp are pink and curl up. They should not appear gray at all.
Once the shrimp are cooked through, add the sauce & allow it to thicken.
Add cabbage, and allow it to wilt. This will happen faster if you cover the pan with a lid.
Add the sliced green onion & sesame seeds to the top and enjoy! Add soy sauce or sriracha to taste. (I love the heat!)
Just a heads up: This post contains affiliate links. That means if you click a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission at no cost to you. As always, all opinions are entirely my own. Thanks for supporting me!
About a year ago, I opened my Poshmark closet with the intent to resell some gently used clothes, some even new with the tags…shame on me. In the last year I’ve made nearly$900 off the clothing I’ve wanted to get rid of! Not only do I do a lot of selling on Poshmark, I’ve done a good amount of shopping too. 😉 There are many items in excellent used condition (EUC); however I generally prefer to buy items New with tags (NWT), or New without the tag. (NWOT) New lingo for you?
I got this stellar yellow banana-colored Banana Republic dress that had been worn once! I love this because it’s conservative enough to wear to work, but I can dress it up a little for happy hour too. 🙂 Also perfectly bright for summer!
