Wittlebee: Monthly Kids Clothing Club *Review*

I love, love, LOVE Wittlebee!

It's always an exciting day when the Wittlebee box arrives, like it did today. 

Not familiar with Wittlebee? It's a monthly children's clothing club (birth to size 6). Each month you receive a box of brand new, name brand clothes in the size and gender you've selected. Your personal Wittlebee Stylist hand picks those clothes based on your preferences. You can get the nitty gritty on the Wittlebee FAQ page.

It's just $39.99 a month and that includes shipping. You can save $10 off your first month by using my link, click here. There's no obligation and you can cancel at any time. 

We received our 4th Wittlebee box today and I'm thrilled with it as always. Let me share it with you so you get a better idea of just what Wittlebee is all about. 

Here's what you're box will look like when you crack it open: 

The clothes come neatly folded and wrapped in tissue paper. Sometimes there's even a nice little note from your stylist. 

Here's what we got today:

*Note the Wittlebee logo sticker, which is what my little guy was most excited about. :)*

A pair of super cute Dockers brand dump truck socks and these rad Gap undies...

A black Makaveli polo shirt and Boyz Wear by Nannette denim shorts...

Striped t-shirt from Old Navy...

Blue plaid shorts by Makaveli...

Green Goldenwood polo shirt...

And my favorite piece this box, this preppy Gymboree polo shirt...

I hope you'll decide to give Wittlebee a try too. :)

*In full disclosure, I was not approached by nor compensated by Wittlebee to write this review. I simply think it's a fantastic service that I really enjoy and wanted to share it with you. However, the Wittlebee links included in this review are my personal referral links and I do receive credit for new members who sign up via my link.*

Letter to my 17 Year Old Self

If you had the chance to share some words of wisdom with your 17 year old self, what would you say?

I often wish that Future Me could pay me a visit, give me some direction and share a glimpse of what lies ahead. I'm fairly certain that if my 17 year old self could pop in and check out her future, she wouldn't believe her eyes.

Dear 17 Year Old Self,

This is weird, right? I'm sure you have a lot of questions for me. I can't answer very much for you. Most things you're just going to have to wait to find out on your own.

I already know the first thing on your mind and since it's the most important thing to you right now and the least important of what you actually need to know, I'll tell you:

No, you never have sex with Jack Reilly. Or hold his hand. Or meet his Mom.

I know. I'm sorry. If it makes you feel any better, it won't matter in a year anyway. Honest.

I do have good news. You graduate high school! Come on...you could act a little more enthusiastic about that! Especially since no one else thinks you will, not even you. But you do and if I could go back and do it all over for us, I would -- in a heart beat.

I'm going to tell you something that's really going to blow your mind....ya ready?

You have two kids.

Both boys and they're AMAZING.

Relax. You're really good at being a Mom.

Now if that wasn't enough to send you into total shock, I'm going to tell you who their father is. You'd better sit down for this one...

You know Shannon Nagel's boyfriend, Ray??

Nooo, not him. His brother. No, the other brother, Larry.  I'm not kidding. I swear to God.

I know...I don't even understand it. It's all good. Promise.

I think you've had enough to hold you over. Like I said, some things you're going to have to wait to find out on your own. I do have some advice for you and I really, really hope you'll take it. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about...

1. Get off your ass and start exercising. Right now you think you'll be healthier in the future. That couldn't be further from the truth.

2. Stop smoking. PLEASE. In the future our teeth are yellow and we always have phlegm and it's awful. And we can't stop doing it. The one thing I can honestly say I'd do over for us is that I never would have lit that first cigarette.

3. Save your money. We're broke as shit in the future. All the CD's you're spending $20+ on will be $5 or less at Walmart and in the future no one uses CD's anyway. Oh yeah, Cape May County gets a Walmart. Don't tell anyone. You don't want to ruin the surprise.

4. Do not apply for your first credit card until you are 30. And if you do, don't apply for 8 more after that.

5. Don't take any drugs that you can't immediately pick from the ground and smoke or ingest for the desired effect. Everything else is bad. Despite what you think now, it's true what they say, drugs are bad.

6. Get your friggin' driver's license. In the future we STILL don't drive and we're really lame because of it.

7. Enjoy your friendships now. In the future everyone changes, including you, and for the most part, the bonds won't withstand the test of time.

8. Chill out and calm down. Don't obsess about stuff you have no control over, don't overthink, don't get so angry. None of it is worth it. Life is too short to be anything but happy.

9. Don't stop writing. I wish I could tell you we're on the NY Times Best Seller's list in the future, but we're not. Do it because it's what you love. Do it because you want to. Do it for you.

10. We're going to make a lot of mistakes, I can't save us from them. Learn from them. Grow because of them. Embrace them. They'll make us who we are today.

I love you. I wish you'd love yourself. Remember what Sister Angeline always said: "Good, better, best...never let it rest, until your good is your better and your better is your best."

xoxo,
Older You

P.S. - There's something you need to invent. It's called a Pillow Pet. It's a pillow, it's a pet...it's a Pillow Pet. We'll be friggin' rich.

Recycled Water Bottle Flowers

Mary, Mary, quite contrary...how does your garden grow?

With recycled water bottles, popsicle sticks and nail polish all in a row. 







Here's what you need to make this quick & cute craft project with your kids:

The bottoms of water bottles
Old nail polish
Popsicle sticks
Hot Glue Gun (or good tacky craft glue)
And of course, nail polish remover :) 

 




This is our friend Jamie, with the recycled water bottle flowers she made. 

All you need to do to make these cute flowers is choose two colors of nail polish, use one to paint the center of the bottom of the water bottle and one to paint the rest to make the petals of the flower. We painted popsicle sticks green for the stems and hot glued the flowers to the top when they dried. They look adorable stuck in the garden among the real flowers.

We glued magnets on the back of some of our flowers too.

 








( Be sure to do this project outside or in a well ventilated area. )

How To Make Cookie Bark

It doesn't get much quicker or easier than Cookie Bark. All you need are two ingredients: cookies and chocolate.

I made some Oreo Cookie Bark for the kids for an after school snack yesterday. It's so easy to do that the kids can get in on the fun too.

Here's what you do:

1.  I used Oreo cookies and Vanilla Almond Bark. You can use any kind of cookie and any chocolate you like.

The almond bark is nice because it melts so easily (microwave) and hardens so quickly. Melt the chocolate as per the package directions. Pop your cookie sheet into the freezer for 10 minutes to help the chocolate harden faster when you're done.

2. Put the cookies in a plastic bag (I used 15 Oreos) and use your hands to crush them up. Your kids will be particularly fond of this part.

3. Then combine the crushed up cookies and the melted chocolate in a bowl.

4. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper. Pour cookie mixture onto cookie sheet and spread it out with a spoon. Crush up a few extra cookies and sprinkle them on top, use your hands to push them into the melted chocolate so they stick. Place cookie sheet in the freezer for 10 minutes to harden.

5. Lift the entire piece of wax paper off the cookie sheet and use your hands to break the bark up into pieces.

ENJOY!

BV/BS Pork Chops

I have a mild obsession with balsamic vinegar. It's one of those things that I have to have in my kitchen and I use it as often as I can.

You may just associate balsamic vinegar with salads or salad viniagrettes, but it has many other delicious uses. 

• I love it drizzled over eggplant parmesan!
• You can add a few tablespoons to just about any dark soup, stew or red sauce to give it a unique zing.
• It's great on fresh and grilled vegetables.
• It's an amazing marinade for meats.
• And, believe it or not, fresh strawberries take on a whole new flavor when they're drizzles with a little balsamic vinegar and sugar. Trust me, just try it.

I've done a recipe for grilled flank steak (otherwise known as London Broil) for a while now, where I season the meat with a little salt and pepper, throw it in a Ziploc bag with balsamic vinegar, brown sugar and rosemary, let it marinate in the fridge for a little while and then slap it on the grill. Delicious!  


I adapted that recipe and made Balsamic Vinegar/Brown Sugar Pork Chops for dinner last night and they were so tasty I had to share it. It may just be my new favorite way to make pork chops.


Here's what I did:

I used boneless, thin cut pork chops. Gave them a rinse, patted them dry with paper towels, trimmed the little bits of excess fat off, seasoned them with a little salt and pepper on both sides and placed them in a 13"x9" glass baking dish.

Then I poured balsamic vinegar over the pork chops. I was pretty generous with it, but I think a few tablespoons over each pork chop would be fine. Next I sprinkled brown sugar and rosemary over each pork chops. Maybe a teaspoon or two of brown sugar on each pork chop? And maybe a teaspoon or two total of rosemary divided over all the pork chops (I made 8)? I'm an eyeballer. I don't do a whole lot of measuring. 


When I was done, it looked like this:

I popped the whole dish in the fridge for about 20 minutes, then flipped the pork chops over and put it back in the fridge for another 20 minutes. Before I put it in the oven, I flipped them back over again. You could probably skip all of that, but I never seem to be able to leave well enough alone. It's a recurring theme in my life.

I baked the pork chops for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Your cook time will depend on the thickness of the pork chops, the thicker the longer. 

They came out absolutely delicious, the perfect combination of tangy and sweet. I served them with scalloped potatoes and broccoli. 

Let me know if you try it. :) 

Toad in the Hole

Toad in the Hole is a traditional English dish. It consists of sausages cooked in a Yorkshire Pudding batter. This recipe jazzes it up a bit by adding onions and grainy mustard to the batter. It's quite tasty and a little different than your average American dinner. It's also really cheap to make and really easy to make, which is always a plus. :)

Here's what you need:

8 sausages (about a pound total) *I used chicken sausages. You could use turkey sausages or sausage sausages. :P

2 onions, quartered *I used yellow onions because that's what I had on hand.*

2 tablespoons butter *If you're looking to make it healthier, use 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil instead.*

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon salt *Again, if you're looking to make it healthier, you can easily reduce or even eliminate the salt all together. You'll get plenty of flavor from the sausage and onions.*

2 eggs
1 1/4 cup milk

3 tablespoons grainy mustard *I used Grey Poupon's Country Dijon with coarse ground whole mustard.*

Here's what you do:

1) Cook the sausage. I put mine in a frying pan, covered them with water and let them simmer 10 minutes. Cook yours however you like. You could do the sausage and onions in the same pan if you wanted to...I was concerned about things getting too greasy so I opted to do them apart.

2) Place the sausages in a 13 x 9" baking dish. Melt butter in pan, add onions, cook them a few minutes, just long enough for them to get soft and start smelly yummy. Scatter onions over sausages in dish.

3) Next, whisk flour and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Whisk eggs, milk and mustard together in another bowl. Add wet mixture to dry mixture and whisk until smooth. Pour the batter over the sausage and onion. Bake @ 475 until puffy and golden for 30-40 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes and serve it up.

I'm never sure what kind of vegetable to serve with it, so I go with raw carrot and celery sticks. 

This recipe serves 6 (at least). I averaged it out to about $1.00 a serving.

She's baaaaaaack...

I've been a bad, bad blogger...I haven't posted bupkis since September.

I'm going to make a concerted effort to get back in the blogging groove.

But not today.

Today was just a warning.