Living, Learning, Eating: Budget

Showing posts with label Budget. Show all posts

Showing posts with label Budget. Show all posts

Oct 28, 2016

Review + Giveaway: GoMacro's Thrive Bars

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 9:30 AM

MacroBars are delicious and GoMacro, the company behind them, has recently released a new line of Thrive bars!

Thrive bars are made up of a superfood ancient grain blend, are vegan, and provide plant-based protein, essential fatty acids, and prebiotic fiber.

Thrive by GoMacro

I tried six delicious flavors - chocolate, nuts & sea salt, blueberry lavender, chocolate peanut butter chip, ginger lemon, almond apricot, and caramel coconut.

Healthy Vegan Superfood Bars

How delicious do those flavors sound? Especially chocolate, nuts & sea salt, peanut butter chocolate chip (noticing a trend?), and caramel coconut.

Thrive Bars are all USDA-certified organic, non-gmo, kosher, certified gluten-free, soy-free, and 100% vegan. There's nothing in them that you don't want in you!

And unlike some bars, where it feels like you either have to suck it up and pay shipping fees or you have to go on an epic journey to hunt them down, Thrive Bars are available in stores at Whole Foods as of this month, October 2016. Yay!

GoMacro Thrive Bars Review

I can definitely stand behind their front of package pitch 'Ingredients: Grown Not Made.' Works for me!

Especially because they're chewy, the right amount of sweet, and flavorful.

Thrive by GoMacro Review

They're filling, hearty, chewy, and have a nice crunch from the ancient grains. I liked all the flavors, but was surprised to find that I liked the fruit flavors, like Ginger Lemon (above) a lot more than I expected! They're not boring or flat at all, likely due to the spices that they mix in.

But don't take my word for it - try them yourselves! The team at GoMacro is giving away one box of assorted Thrive bars (MSRP $26.28) to one lucky Living, Learning, Eating reader.

Just enter below by midnight on 11/05. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you don't want to wait, get 30% off of your order of Thrive bars using the promo code Thrive30.

Oct 7, 2016

Giveaway: Honey Ridge Farms Honey Cremes Trio

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 9:30 AM

I love honey!

It's great in my German honey cookies now that it's the baking-all-the-time season again:

German Honey Cookies

It's great just on bread:

Whole grain bread with honey

It's great on oats or acai bowls or ice cream or eaten out of the jar with a spoon or... any and every way!

I also LOVE autumn. So what better combination than pairing the two?

Honey Giveaway

The lovely folks at Honey Ridge Farms are letting me give away a trio of their honey cremes to one lucky reader! Enter below through 10/16. Good luck!

The Honey Creme Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Sep 25, 2016

Style Post: Fall Fashion

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 10:30 AM

It's finally fall! I love the crisp morning air, the leaves changing colors and tumbling down around me, and pumpkin spice everything. Also the fashion!

Fall Fashion: Boho Chic Dresses in Autumn

Pretty girl fall fashion

There's something about the beginning of a new season that feels so magical. It makes me feel so alive and so blessed to get to live in this beautiful world.

Beautiful smiling girl dancing

It's all the better frolicking through Cambridge in a floaty dress, the sort of dress that will be totally weather inappropriate just a few degrees (or 1 or 2 weeks) from now!

Aug 4, 2016

Recipe: Jalapeno Cheddar Bread

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

I love baking bread! While I'm a total wuss when it comes to spicy food, many of my friends love a little fire in their food. This bread is savory, just the right amount of cheesy, and has a jalapeno kick (but not so much that you cry when you eat it).

Easy Bread Recipe

This loaf is flavorful, moist with a good texture, and makes grilled cheese sandwiches, croutons, and savory sandwiches. It's also a nice gift loaf or nice to bring along to a picnic or potluck! Read on for the easy-to-follow recipe.

Jul 20, 2016

What to Consider For Your Apartment Search

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

I feel like I am constantly moving or apartment hunting. Is it just me? I think it must be a millennial thing.

There are so many things to consider when choosing an apartment. Even if you enlist the help of a realtor, you have to make sure you're getting what you want and not what they're trying to get rid of.

As an all-too-well seasoned apartment hunter, read on for the top factors that I consider in my hunt!

Jul 13, 2016

How To: 5 Tips for Cooking for One

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

There are so many benefits to cooking your own food, at least now and then.

- You learn and practice a handy life skill
- You know what is in your food
- You set the cleanliness and food safety standard for how your food is prepared
- It's generally at least a bit cheaper
- It's fun!

There are more, but this post isn't about sellilng anyone on the benefits of cooking at home over eating out all the time. Most people already know that cooking, at least now and then, is a good idea. But with our busy lives, sometimes finding time is tricky!

When you cook for a family, it's easy to cook in a way that's both time efficient and money efficient. When you're cooking for just one person, it's a lot harder to cook in a way that makes sense. If you aren't careful, cooking for one can be a lot more expensive and wasteful than eating out. That undercuts the point of cooking!

Here are my top tips to save money and time while having fun cooking for a one-person household! Cooking doesn't have to take a lot of extra time or be inconvenient, even for the busiest person.

Jul 5, 2016

10 Fun Facts About Providence, RI!

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Did you know that Providence Rhode Island is just over an hour away from Boston on a commuter rail train for ~$10 each way?

I lived in Boston for three years during my undergraduate studies and have lived in Boston for a few months at a time off and on since then, but I never realized how accessible Rhode Island is! It makes an excellent choice for a long weekend getaway.

If you're planning a trip, or need motivation to do so, here are some fun facts about Providence!

1) Roger Williams founded Providence in 1636 after he was forced to flee from Massachusetts Bay Colony due to religious persecution.

The new city was to be a bastion of religious freedom and tolerance. How awesome is that?

2) "What Cheer?" is the city motto!

That's such a delightful greeting. Imagine walking around town and greeting people with "what cheer, friend?" I'm pretty sure it's impossible to sound angry while saying that, just like the words 'cuddles,' 'yay,' and 'sparkly.'

...in reality, people don't actually walk around saying 'what cheer' in greeting to everyone. Bummer.

May 4, 2016

Time Savers: Tips and Tricks from Mom

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Happy hump day! As we pass over the hump of the week and the weekend comes into view, so does something very special - Mother's Day!

My mother just moved back to Germany last summer, so this is the first Mother's Day where she'll be overseas. She is an absolutely amazing mother who always was and still is there for my sisters and me when we need her. She's even there when we don't need her, but just want her.

In South Africa :) Left to right: my big sister, me, my mom (our dog below)

She also taught us all sorts of important time saving tricks:

* Pre-soak shirts in the sink if there's a stain, so you don't spend ages scrubbing.

* Organize assignments in writing, ideally in an agenda but a stray napkin will do in a pinch, to prevent midterm freak-outs.

* Have an assigned cleaning day so that you actually get it done regularly and don't have to waste hours on a deep clean when the squalor becomes unbearable.

* Always use a cast iron skillet pan when you're making pancakes.

Recipe here!

* Cook favorite meals in bulk and freeze leftovers to save on cooking time.

* Be a good person, so you don't have to waste time feeling crappy.

She definitely deserves to feel special this Mother's Day. Now that we don't live in the same country anymore, or even the same continent, gifting is a little bit trickier. But not impossible!

Whether it's to send money for a shopping trip for a spa day or a special meal out, there has to be a convenient and secure way to send money overseas. There is! Especially during holidays, like Mother's Day, it's so great that PayPal and Paypal's Xoom are a fast and secure way to send money anywhere, even overseas - like to my mom in Germany!

Xoom is a PayPal service that powers international payments to family and friends in more than 40 countries around the world - and the number one recipient group of Xoom payments is mothers!

Apr 28, 2016

Style: Florals and Fitting Out

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Fashion isn't just about clothing. I'm not an egg short of a full carton, I just mean that while clothing is, of course, part of fashion, you're not done once you've picked out the clothes for your outfit.

In other words, clothing is necessary for great style, but not sufficient. Accessories finish a look

Accessories are all too often overlooked because, unlike pants, no one is going to raise an eyebrow if you forget them. You'll feel under-dressed if you forget to put on a shirt one day, but the same usually doesn't apply for a bracelet.

But, like lingerie, your accessories can change how you feel in your outfit and throughout your day.

It's great when other people appreciate our style, but most important is that we appreciate our own style and that it makes us feel good and comfortable in our own skin.

Apr 22, 2016

Style Post: Springing Towards Summer

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

The temperatures are warming up and our wardrobes are switching from wintertime drab to springy fun! I love dresses and I love feeling free and light, with swishy skirts for twirling and bare arms for cartwheeling.

I'm spending this summer in Boston and I can't wait! I had a trip out to Boston a week ago for a fun shoot and we stumbled upon this fun hot pink scaffolding in Chinatown. It was the cutest scaffolding I've ever seen in my life and paired wonderfully with this gingham and daisy dress from ASOS!

With a bright, happy welcome like that, I can't wait to return to Boston in just a few short weeks and make it, once again, my warm weather home!

Dec 9, 2015

Recipe: Impossibly Delicious Chocolate Chip Cookies

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Happy holidays! Christmas is my absolute favorite time of year and while I go hard all December, I already start prep back in September.

By prep, I mean I start listening to Christmas music, planning Christmas presents, testing recipes, and watching Christmas movies.

Thanks to my ~~obsessive~~ extensive preparation, this Christmas chocolate chip cookie is the absolute best chocolate chip cookie recipe out there. I've tried so many, I know what I'm talking about!

I love to make the dough for these the night before and then bake them shortly before serving, because they look great after the dough has been chilled and they taste amazing warm and fresh from the oven.

Read on for the recipe!

Dec 5, 2015

Happy Holiday Hack: DIY Gifting Made Better

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Tomorrow is St. Nicholas Day!

Since I'm half-German, that was the first official holiday day of the Christmas season for me. I always cleaned my boots the night before, placed them outside my bedroom door, and found them full of candy and fruit (clementines and apples, mostly, though sometimes I also lucked out with prunes and dates) the following morning. It was so exciting!

st nicholas day gifts

These aren't mine (I'm - sadly - not an owner of wooden clogs) but this is an example of a great haul for a few lucky kids!

Tomorrow is also the first night of Hanukkah! Needless to say, gifting season is upon us.

DIY gifting is a popular way to keep holiday spending in check without missing out on the most significant part of holiday presents - the thought! Since I love to bake, my favorite DIY gifts to give are homemade baked goods.

This year, I found a way to make my DIY baked good gifts even better! Read on to find out how to take your DIY gifts to the next level!

Nov 2, 2015

Recipe: Quick and Easy White Bread

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

I love grainy, seedy, dark breads. Pumpernickel is one of my favorites, especially in Germany!

Sometimes, however, you need a simple bread. If you're feeding a picky eater, a group of kids, or someone with a cold or flu and a sensitive stomach through that, sometimes a simple white bread is just what you need.

This recipe is a quick, easy, no-fail, and short rise time recipe for exactly that! I like to make it when someone has one of those sudden flu onsets. You can start it when they head off for a nap and be done by the time they're ready for some chicken soup (or the vegetarian equivalent) and plain buttered bread.

Enjoy!

Oct 22, 2015

goodness Guide to NYC and $100 giveaway!

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Are you visiting NYC soon? Or perhaps making a more permanent move to the Big City?

First of all, yay for you! I've been living here for over a year and I love it more and more every day. There's so much to do, so much to see, so much to taste, and so much to try! I love New York.

Here's my goodness guide to the best of NYC!

Place for Vegetarians and Meat-eaters to Dine Together: Dimes NYC

There are amazing salads, great vegetarian entrees, and incredible acai bowls (at brunch) for the vegetarians, but also a variety of great meat and fish options. I'm dating a meat eater, so it's the perfect Sunday brunch or Saturday lunch spot!

It's also a wonderful place to catch up with the girls over a chic and delicious meal.

Museum for Adults: Metropolitan Museum of Art

The art is amazing. But you already know that! There's something that's probably equally amazing at the Met that you might not know about! Read on to find out.

Sep 28, 2015

Recipe: Fantastically Fudgy Brownies

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

What is almost as abhorred in the baking world as someone presenting yet another chocolate chip cookie or banana bread recipe?

Another brownie recipe. But before you moan and groan, since that's exactly what I have for you today, please refer to the signature crackly crust and rich, fudgy interior of said brownies (presented above). This recipe is worth giving a try!

Lots of brownie recipes end up dry and fluffy, like bar-shaped chocolate cake, but this one is like bakery brownies or (good) boxed mix brownies! It's the only recipe that I bother with anymore and for good reason - bring these to a party and you won't have to worry about how to store the leftovers. There won't be any!

Here's the recipe - it's a one bowl recipe, so clean up is super quick and easy, too!

Sep 14, 2015

Speedy Weeknight: A Fast & Frugal Homemade Dinner!

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 11:32 AM

I'm a young professional, working 9-5 in an office while balancing a social life and career passions (and hobby passions!) outside of work. What does that make me?

Busy. But I love it!

Still, it's neither a particularly frugal nor a particularly healthy habit to get used to eating dinner out every night, especially since I tend to eat lunch out with my coworkers every day. I love making fun, elaborate recipes, but that's not what I need for weekday dinners. I need something fast and easy!

Barilla® Pronto™ pasta is a great base for a simple staple dinner that's equally well suited to busy young professionals like me as it is to busy working moms cooking for their families.

Read on for my experience and the recipe for the mac & cheese pictured above!

Aug 20, 2015

Recipe: Perfect Pumpkin Pie

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Back to school season always feels like the start of fall to me. Sometimes the weather keeps it pretty summery for a while after all the kids are back at their desks, but either way fall is not far away!

Apple picking, the return of long pants and long-sleeved T-shirts, chilly evenings that require coats, and the coming of the holidays all mark fall. So does fall baking!

Pumpkin pie is not only a Thanksgiving favorite, but also a classic fall dessert. Make a pie now to perfect your skills and get back in the swing of things before the holidays sneak up on you!

Here's the recipe that I swear by for a perfect pumpkin pie!

Aug 11, 2015

Recipe: Flaky Lemon Bars

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Just in time for back-to-school, here's a yummy lunchbox-friendly treat that adults will enjoy every bit as much as adults!

While 'flaky' isn't a desirable trait in people, it's the perfect trait in a dessert crust. This crust is not only super easy to make, but also perfectly flaky!

It pairs well with the intensely lemony, but still sweet, filling and th strong lemon flavor makes a single bar a completely satisfying dessert.

I used a disposable aluminum foil pan to make cleanup quicker and easier, but this bakes just as well in a normal pan. Here is the recipe!

Aug 5, 2015

Recipe: 5-Ingredient Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Going gluten-free? Simply out of flour?

These flourless peanut butter cookies are rich, perfectly sweet, and a great, decadent texture without any flour at all. There are only five common pantry ingredients!

They're super quick and easy to mix up!

Enjoy!

Jul 15, 2015

Recipe: Rosemary Bread

Posted by Living, Learning, Eating at 6:00 AM

Bread is one of my favorite things to bake (and eat) but I tend to make more sandwich and breakfast breads than savory breads. While I never really got into the idea of 'appetizer bread,' appetizer breads are inarguably popular (walk into any Italian family restaurant at dinner time and you'll see).

Here is a recipe for a savory rosemary loaf that is delicious, easy to make, and works just as well served with olive oil as an appetizer bread as it does toasted and served with fried or scrambled eggs for breakfast or brunch!

Don't let the idea of 'baking bread' intimidate you. This is a really simple loaf and, unlike the 1-2 day process of baking sourdough bread, only takes a few hours total from start to finish!

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