It's Bananas...literally...

My husband is the Chef in our house; I on the other hand prefer baking. In fact, it's become a fun activity that me and my 4 year old do together. He loves stirring, adding ingredients and of course licking the spoons after it's all said and done!

Yesterday I tried out a new Banana Bread recipe that got rave reviews on Foodnetwork.com. It's from Flour Bakery in Boston that was featured on one of Giada's Weekend Getaway episodes. You guys, this bread is amazing.

The recipe is spot on, you don't need to make any adjustments. They do suggest either Sour Cream or Creme Fraiche and I happened to use Sour Cream and thought it turned out pretty fantastic. It's really easy, and you may just have all these items on hand in your pantry ready to make it yourself.

And if you are feeling really sinful, just spread some nutella on a slice...OMG, ridiculously good! 

Happy Baking! 

Gift Guide: For Him

Shop these items:

She did it again...

Kelly Wearstler has done it again. First her amazing home decor and now a jewelry line that absolutely knocks it out of the park? I am obsessed...I want it all...

Shop Kelly's line here:

Gift Guide: For Her

Gift Guide For Her by stylescout1 featuring a leather shoulder bag

Join me for a Wine and Wrap party at Lauren Alexandra!

Get your arm party on...or maybe create one for a loved one for the holidays with some gorgeous baubles from Lauren Alexandra in Brookside! 

Who knew that this darling baby boutique also has such AMAZING jewelry! Sip wine, try on some bracelets and maybe pick up some holiday gifts...the entire store  will be 20% off! 

Come to Lauren Alexandra in Brookside (63rd and Wornall) Thursday November 29th from 4-7PM. I hope to see you there! 

Posting over at Style Spies

I am posting over at Style Spies this evening! Check it out to see my newest jewelry obsession...

A mom on the go must have!

Since having Julian 4 years ago, one of the best new products I have found are the baby food pouches and portable spoons by Boon (Thanks to my friend Annie!). The old baby food cartons are not only bulky, but messy to open and carry around with you. Now with the pouches you have a top that can screw back on (to avoid spills) and the spoons attach right to the pouch which gives you one less thing to carry!

I found the Plum Organics spoons by Boon at Target for around $3 for 2 spoons. Online they sell a 3 pack set...this is the way to go, since we have found that somehow the tiny spoons get lost or accidentally tossed out. 

Have you used these before? Do you love them too? 

The Shopping Scout

So, for those of you who have read my blog the past 4 years may also know that I wrote a very short lived (but the BEST writing job ever) blog for the Kansas City Star called the Shopping Scout. Every day I posted about great finds at stores around Kansas City. Some of my posts were about local retailers, some included items from national chains. I decided I want to incorporate this back into my personal blog as many people I talk to say that they miss the Shopping Scout.

So, I am going to make it a weekly goal to do some "scouting" and sharing with you all. Look forward to great bargains, the look for less and just plain old fabulous finds.

First one comes today from the Limited of all places. I had gone there to try on some colored denim ( a friend loves their fit), but ended up seeing this beauty on the sale rack. $24.99 ladies...yes, $24.99. Wouldn't this be perfect for the holidays? I am loving the exploded houndstooth (the emerald green is much prettier in person) and drop waist. The style is sophisticated but with a bit of edge with the leather and grommet trim. I would style it with black tights and black boots or heels. The dress is a statement in itself, it doesn't need much jewelry at all.

 I didn't snag it up, because I am not sure I need it. But geez, for the price I am thinking I may have to go back...

Our Weekend

Happy Monday everyone! It's nice to wake up to sunshine today as we had a very rainy and gloomy Sunday. It made for a productive day, but we are definitely kind of stir crazy after being inside for an entire day! 

We have spent the last few days trying to get our little lady to take a bottle/sippy cup. We are leaving on a trip in less than a month, so she better get used to it! Don't you love the expression on her face? She's definitely not so sure she likes it. It's going to be a work in progress...

Saturday was the one year anniversary party for the Bar Method Studio in Leawood. They had a girl doing braids and buns after class. My hair really isn't long enough for a cool braid, so she did a full, low bun. I love it; wish I could do this to my own hair! 

Oh and we officially have a sitter! She is getting bigger right before my eyes...I can hardly believe she is 7 months already! 

I also am trying out some new reds. This is Mac's Ruby Woo, which gets rave reviews. It was definitely brighter than I am used to but I liked the vibrant shade. I haven't pulled the trigger yet, I need to revisit Nars Jungle Red one more time before I make my decision. 

It was about 75 degrees on Friday night, and my husband and I enjoyed a date night on the Plaza. We had a Groupon to a classic K.C. Steakhouse called Plaza III. I wore this Forever 21 top (purchased in April), J.Brand jeans and my favorite new J.Brand jeans from Saks Of 5th. 

How was your weekend? Are you recovering too? 

Rescue the Rockaways: Helping out a Kansas native and her family...

My friend Rachael recently emailed me about her sister's family and how they were affected by Hurricane Sandy. Their town of Rockaway Beach, New York was one of the places hit the hardest, and in turn has left them without a home and their family business (The Harbor Light Pub). Elise Berlau Heeran  and her husband who is a firefighter in Rockaway have a 2 girls, 2 years old and 4 months. My heart breaks for them, as I can't even imagine what they are going through...especially with their little ones.

Rachael and a few other Shawnee Mission East Graduates, have set up a way for you to donate and help the communities of Breezy Point, Rockaway Beach and  Broad Channel New York.

Right now, they are at 57% of their goal, and have raised over $11,000! Give a little, give a lot...whatever your heart tells you to do! Click HERE to donate.

Who doesn't love a makeover?

ShopStyle.com has relaunched their website today and it looks FABULOUS. If you aren't familiar with ShopsStyle.com, it is a website where you can search any fashion item which will then pull up all online retailers that carry that item. It is my go-to site to price compare items online. I mean...we all want to get the best deal, right? 

What I love about the new site is that the images are much bigger and easier to see. You can also now "favorite" items which are stored in a favorites folder at the bottom of the screen. You can also filter certain retailers to your liking. For instance if you wanted to see all denim at Neiman Marcus, you can create that custom filter. Overall they make it easy as pie to customize your search...whether it be by brand, retailer, price, size or color. 

You can also search an item and then find out exactly how many of those items are on sale and which percent off they will be. HELLO...this is a bargain shoppers dream!

I had fun just doing some "if money was no object" browsing. Drooling over all of the Chloe handbags...

and the House of Harlow jewelry...

And I am desperate for a great pair of black pumps. Tory knows how to make a great shoe...

The entire site looks amazing, I can't wait to use it for all my holiday shopping this year! What will be on your wish list? 

A Must Have: The Perfect LBD

One item that is definitely missing in my closet is the perfect LBD. As I get a little bit older, I find that I gravitate to more classic items as opposed to something I would wear once. This Tory Burch frock is perfection. The lace detail at the neck and waistband is pretty as can be. This would definitely be worth the investment. 

paired back to some incredible earrings...

and a show-stopper shoe to complete the look...

Do you have a favorite LBD? 

Little Lady

I popped into my favorite Kansas City baby store, Lauren Alexandra this past weekend and I stopped right in my tracks when I saw this dress. It's called the Nellie by Persnickety. The pictures hardly do it justice. It's just SO incredibly precious in person.

I am usually not a huge fan of persnickety..sometimes it's just a little too much pattern and color for me. But this dress is just perfect! And paired with these Baby Bloch ballerina's in red?! Ahhhh, to die for!

Kick off to Holiday

Good Morning! Did everyone survive the time change? My kids were up at 6:15, which wasn't AWFUL...the upside was they were both asleep by 7:30 and I was not far behind them. We had a fun,but crazy weekend. I felt like we didn't stop for one minute to relax.

Yesterday I hosted a WH Hostess trunk show. Kelly, the brains and talent behind the company (and popular party blog, The Party Dress) is a good friend and former co-worker of mine from Chicago. Her line of personalized Social Stationery, Cards and gifts are just adorable. We had such a great time admiring all of her goodies. 

She has a fantastic range of gift items all under $25! A lot of my friends stocked up on Teacher's gifts and gifts for family members.

The personalized mugs are too cute and only $16!

Love the personalized ornaments for $12. 

The chunky notepads are perfect for the kids teachers $18

Personalized paper coasters come in a pack of 36 for $12. What a great hostess gift! 

I am so excited about Kelly's newest product, the Cake Plate Cling. These decorative liners are washable, reusable, non-adhesive, slide-free, residue-free and printed with environmentally friendly ink and material. 

For those of you who have a collection of all white cake plates, these are a great way to add some pizzazz to your table! 

On my wish list is the Lucite Tray...maybe a Christmas gift to myself? 

To pleather or not to pleather?

A hot trend this season is Faux Leather...also affectionately called "pleather". I am loving the look of these liquid leggings paired back to the chunky knits and blousier tops of the season. I am just not sure this is a trend that is going to work for me...too young? Too tight? I am yet to try them on, I have just been admiring these pants from afar...

Gwyneth is doing  it...and she's a bit older than me. Love it paired with her peacoat! 

Miss Palermo steals the show...it doesn't hurt that she is probably a negative 0. 

So, what do you think? Are we loving or hating this trend? 

my favorite pair...by Club Monaco

By Topshop

Not a bad price on these, found on Shopbop.com

Zoli Pop Obsessed

I cannot remember for the life of me which blogger recommended Zoli Baby Gummy Sticks, but I wish I could because I would love to thank her! These are the BEST teething product that I have ever come across.

They look a bit like a tooth brush, which makes them super easy for your baby to hold. The end of the stick is soft rubber with bumpy edges that can gently massage the gums. And they can really reach the back gums, which most teethers don't reach. I like that it has a anti-choke guard which prevents over insertion into the mouth. Our little girl loves them, we take them wherever we go...

ZoLi stick in one hand, and chew beads also in tow...

They come in a pack of 2 for $10. And are worth every penny in my opinion! 

And totally un-related to teething...we had a fantastic Halloween  Julian really was awesome this year. Last year we had to walk up to every door with him, this year he was a pro! Not scared of anything! Vivi even came along and slept soundly in her stroller. Can't wait until next year when she will be walking right along with her big bro!

My Transformer and "Boo" Baby!