Friday Favorites
I'm back with another edition of my Friday Favorites! There are so many products that I just truly adore, I'm pretty sure I can keep this going for a while. This week I've got stuff from shoes to food to kitchen appliances and it's a things that make my days and weeks easier and/or better! If you are anything like me, you love a little recommendation on what's worth trying and what's NOT!
1. Rothy's: Everyone needs a basic flat. In my everyday life I'm pretty much a slip-on sneaker kinda girl but recently I was getting dressed to go out for dinner and I found myself in that in between season where my suede wedges or boots are too wintery and my summer sandals are just too summery! I realized I had NO casual date night, school fuction, girls night out shoes to wear! How did this happen?! Somewhere in my transition from working girl to mom-in-chief I've managed to create gaping holes in my wardrobe. I kid you not when I say these shoes feel like slippers and would you believe me if I told you they are made of recycled water bottles?! They are also machine washable -- win! I've been looking at these for a while and resisted buying them because they are a bit more pricey but every girl needs a good go-to shoe and I've also included a $20 off link here -- hey, an extra $20 is an extra $20!
2. Vital Proteins Collagen Creamer: My morning coffee ritual is nothing without this. Collagen is all the rage right now and I've been consistently taking it for the past year and have definitely noticed a difference in my hair, skin and nails. It's supposed to be great for joint health as well but since I have no way of measuring that, you're just gonna have to trust me. I pour my cup of coffee with two scoops of collagen creamer into the blender and I swear, it is the frothiest, tastiest, most delicious coffee I've ever had. Do you need to hear more than that?
3. Instant Pot: This baby is getting MVP of the week over here. With the arrival of Spring comes the craziness of kid schedules. Everyone has practices at different times on different days and sometimes on the same days and I spend the better part of 4pm-8pm driving around, making sure homework is done, equipment is in the car for whichever sport we are driving to and oh, making sure we all get FED! I did not, I repeat, DID NOT, want to get on the Instant Pot wagon. Why do I need yet another kitchen appliance and why in the world do I want something that cooks things faster?! The end of the day is the craziest time for me and I don't have time to be cooking anything, but I realized with the Instant Pot I can whip dinner up in 5-30 minutes at anytime during the day and food is ready to go for whenever someone has time to eat. Kind of amazing. Have you ever gone to make something in the crockpot and realized you are missing a few ingredients and by the time you go to the store and get them you don't have enough cooking time left? No? Just me? If you can answer yes to that, this thing is for you.
4. Chocolate Peanut Butter BEACHBAR: I hate to admit it but bars have become essential in my life lately. I'm all for REAL food but sometimes you need to have things in your bag for when you are out and about and things don't go as planned and you start to get hangry. There are a few bars I really love but this one hits all the marks nutritionally and it has 10g of protein to boot. It's the perfect calorie count for a snack (150) and not that I'm a calorie counter but some of the bars I pick up have enough to be a full on meal! I don't know about you but I want my actual meals to be more than five bites! With only 5-6 grams of sugar, it's much lower than all of my usual go-to's (RX Bars and Perfect Bars) and the fiber is higher than both of them. What's NOT in them is equally important and that includes trans fats, gluten, artificial colors, flavors and preservatives. Bonus? My kid's like these and they are about 1,000x better than any bar out there catered to kids! Sold!
5. Siete Chips: There are things I don't share and these are one of them. I mean, besides the fact that I think one bag is equal to a serving, these are the best chips EVER! I eat them in the pantry just so my family won't see me and want some. They are grain-free, soy-free, gluten free and Paleo-friendly and are easily the best chips on the planet. 'Nuff said.
6. Farmhouse Culture Sauerkraut: Gut health. You've heard about it, right? It's the current "thing" and it's actually something I can get on board with and here's why. Your gut microbiome is made up of trillions of bacteria, fungi and other microbes. The gut microbiome plays a very important role in your health by helping control digestion and benefiting your immune system and many other aspects of health. When your gut biome gets out of whack it can affect your health in some pretty serious ways. One way to keep your gut in check is making sure to get fermented food into your diet on the regular. I'm a huge lover of sauerkraut and mix it into eggs, put it on salads, or just throw it on the side of the plate. I've even been known to just eat it out of the bag by the forkful.
Ok, I'll keep it at that this week but seriously, check this stuff out! I'm only gonna talk about stuff I've used and loved here and each one of these things I'm a fan of. Happy Friday all!
