LeTote Love

I have to reveal that I still love using LeTote! In fact, I'm a bit obsessed!  I feel like any time I get a complement on what I'm wearing I have to reveal that I'm just RENTING the clothing or jewelry item... Yes, you heard that right!

Here is what came in my last box...

Vice Camuto- Twist Knot Dress 

Retail $128 // LeTote $96

Octavia- Alanna Quilted Skirt

Retail $68 // LeTote $54

 

Potter's Pot - Multi Plaid Sweater

Retail $48 // LeTote $41

 

Ava - Quilted V Pouch

Retail $42 // LeTote $28

 

Lucky Brand - Triple Beaded Necklace

Retail $49 // LeTote $22  

The Way It Works!

1. Complete a style survey on-line and add items that you like to your virtual closet. 
2. About a day before your Tote ships you receive an e-mail which shows the items that are scheduled for you. The newest LeTote feature is that now you have the ability to swap out items that you're not a fan of. ** This is a SUPER helpful feature for me as my needs change based of my work and travel schedule and I can customize my box to meet my needs. 
3. Two - Three days later you come home to an awesome box from LeTote with FIVE goodies. Three items in the box are clothing and two are accessories (i.e.- Jewelry, scarfs, bags...) 
4. Wear your items for as long as you want to! 
5.  Return any items that you don't want to purchase! If you do decide to keep something just don't send it back and you will be charged the LeTote discounted price. OR you can send back all of your items. 
6. The second that LeTote receives the notification that you have sent back your tote (in the USPS pre-paid pouch that they provide to you) the whole process starts back over. AND you can do this for an unlimited number of times per month. It all just depends on how long you hold onto each Tote.  
7. Important to Note: All Items are dry-cleaned and sanitized before they're sent to you! I've never received anything that I could even tell was warn by someone else.

Best Part about it is that by clicking HERE you can join and get $25 off your first Tote! Why not give it a try for a month!

Even better though... if you are one of the first TWO people to leave a comment on this post I will send you the first month for FREE!!!

Go-To Marinade

Today I wanted to share a super easy marinade that is perfect on ANYTHING!

INGREDIENTS 

• 8 Cloves Garlic, minced 
• 3/4 t. Kosher Salt
•  1/2 C Extra-Virgin Olive Oil 
• 2 T. Rosemary, Chopped 
• 2 T. Flat-Leaf Parsley, Chopped 
• 1 T. Thyme, Chopped 
• 3/4 t. Fresh Ground Pepper

Mix all of the ingredients together and you get a delicious marinade! This is perfect on fish, shrimp, chicken, or steak! You can also freeze some of the marinade in ice cube trays to use a a later date!

Meal Plan Monday: Rachel Ray Everyday Mag

Last week I had a MUCH needed break from work and had a ladies trip to CA for Emma's Spring break. On the flight home I bought the Rachael Ray every day magazine (the April 2016 issue) to stay on top of my meal planning game!

Here is what is on tap for the week!

SUNDAY

• Easter Dinner at the Army Navy Country Club... HAPPY EASTER! 

MONDAY

•  Farefalle with Pancetta, Peas and Grana Padano (p.76) 

TUESDAY

•  Baked fish with Esarole, Wine and Herbs (p.82) 

WEDNESDAY

• Detroit Coney Dogs (p.79) 

THURSDAY

• Italian Sausage Chili (p.93) 

FRIDAY

• Turkey Burgers with Poutine (p.18) 

SATURDAY

• LUNCH: Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Pancetta Pizza (p.30 )  

Interested in seeing how this week goes and on the plus side I'm only out of town two nights this week and we are ending the week with Gibson's second birthday party!

Meal Planning: The Quick Six Fix (Part Two)

I'm extremely excited to be cooking from The Quick Six Fix again this week! To see what I made last week be sure to visit HERE

And for this week...

MONDAY

• Angel Hair, Shrimp, Tomatoes, and Lemon (p.70)

TUESDAY 

• BREAKFAST: Lemon Chili Avocado Toast (p.10)
• Pork Curry in a Hurry (p.128)
  

WEDNESDAY

• Bacon, Kale, and Tomato Soup (p.51) 

THURSDAY

•  Jumbo Shrimp Roll with Spicy Chili Butter (p.101)
• Crispy Fingerling Fries (p. 166) and Blender Aioli (p.168)
  

FRIDAY

• Pizza Night for my boys! Emma and I will be on the way to CA for her spring break!

EXTRAS

• S'Mores 2.0 (p.207) 

The Quick Six Fix Recap

This week I LOVED cooking from The Quick Six Fix cookbook by Stuart O'Keeffe.

MONDAY: Chicken Risotto (p.106) -- 

For this first dish I set that timer for 6 minutes and true to the claim I only had 6 minutes of prep work! The dish called for chicken but could also work with scallops or shrimp. I also felt that the  total cook time, between the cooking of the chicken and the risotto, was about 40 minutes... not the 30 minutes claimed BUT well worth it!

TUESDAY: Ten-Minute Coconut Shrimp Curry (p.93) -- 

SUPER easy recipe that I will make MANY more times! In fact I plan to always have the ingredients for this dish on-hand as it would make an easy meal to make when time is short on a busy weekday. I left out the mushrooms (we are not a mushroom family) and I would add snowpeas next time.

WEDNESDAY: Cider Pork with Broccolini (p.131) --

Ahhh the glaze on this dish is killer! Next time, I would even add a few figs and try it with fig jam as opposed to the raspberry jelly. Great just the way it is but I like to mix things up sometimes!

THURSDAY: Pizza Night!  

FRIDAY: Port-Marinated Skirt Steak with Roasted Grape Tomatoes (p.148), Velvety Smooth Mash (p.165, Chorizo Roasted Brussels Sprouts (p.185) 

We had friends over for dinner and everything was yummy. The only thing that I was slightly on the fence about was the addition of chorizo in the Brussels Sprouts. Just not my jam I'm more of a bacon girl!

SATURDAY: BREAKFAST: Speedy Gonzales Eggs (p.13)  

Another great dish! Just added some Avocado on top. Also, would NEVER, on my own, add crushed tortilla chips into scrambled eggs but, guess what people, it works! 

Didn't cook dinner tonight because well... I had a tub to hang out in with a few of my favorite peeps..

SUNDAY: Cider-Braised Chicken (p.114), Creamed Brussels Sprouts (p.186)

 

The Chicken dish was really great. I added some whole wheat pasta as a starch. For the pasta, after it was cooked and drained I put it back into the pan and added two spoonfuls of the reduced leek sauce, for a little favor.

For the Creamed Brussels Sprouts... the only word needed is PERFECTION. I added a 1/2 Cup MORE of the heavy cream, that is called for, and reduced it down for an extra 5 more minutes. I wanted the dish to be extra creamy. Emma was even a fan and she HATES brussels sprouts.

-----------
So that was the week... and I've enjoyed the cookbook so much that I plan to cook a few more recipes from it again this upcoming week! Check back in tomorrow to see what the plan is!

Meal Planning: The Quick Six Fix

A high school friend recently tagged me in a post about The Quick Six Fix Cookbook by Stuart O'Keeffe.

As the cover boasts the cookbook includes "100 No-Fuss, Full-Flavor Recipes." The concept is that each recipe calls for SIX, or fewer, ingredients (outside of staples) with SIX minutes of prep and SIX minutes of clean-up.

Full disclosure, I was all set to cook from a different book this week and has planned out my menu... that was UNTIL The Quick Six Fix showed up at my house. The second I flipped through the pages I knew that I had to get cooking!!! Here is what is on the menu for this week:

MONDAY

• Chicken Risotto (p.106)

TUESDAY 

• Ten-Minute Coconut Shrimp Curry (p.93) 
  

WEDNESDAY

• Cider Pork with Broccolini (p.131)
• Crispy Fingerling Fries (p.166) with a Blender Aioli (p.168)
  

THURSDAY

• BREAKFAST: Blueberry Kick Smoothie (p.20) 
• Cider-Braised Chicken (p.114)
• Creamed Brussels Sprouts

FRIDAY

• BREAKFAST: Lemon Chili Avocado Toast (p.10) 
• Port-Marinated Skirt Steak with Roasted Grape Tomatoes (p.148)
• Velvety Smooth Mash (p.165)
• Chorizo Roasted Brussels Sprouts (p.185)
  
• 
  

SATURDAY 

• BREAKFAST: Speedy Gonzales Eggs (p.13)  
• Angel Hair, Shrimp, Tomatoes, and Lemon (p.70)

EXTRAS

• S'Mores 2.0 (p.207) 
• Black and White Croissant Bread Pudding (p.211) 

It was SOOOOO hard to do the menu planning because I literally wanted to cook EVERYTHING from this cookbook. If these recipes taste as good as they sound/look I will be cooking from this on a regular bases!

March 2016 Goals

I didn't do too hot with my February Goals... in fact we are just going to pretend that month didn't even happen and just start a new with my....

 

1. Return unused tile from our kitchen remodel in NOVEMBER! 
2. Get rid of 100 items 
3. Sign BOTH boys up for pre-school next year... how are they so big???
4. Take Emma on an awesome Spring Break Trip to CA
5. Dye Easter eggs and visit with the bunny
6. Celebrate Gibson's 2nd Birthday with a small family event at home (bigger bash will be in the beginning of April)
7. Clean out the Garage 
8. Clean out my closet