I'm an Influenster!

I was recently contacted by Influenster to be a product reviewer for some upcoming new items. I was so excited because I love trying new things, especially if they work good for our family and I can purchase them in the future. For those of you know me, if I like something I love to endorse it but if I hate it, I let my voice be heard. So my first product I was sent was Ivory's 2 in 1 Hair and Body Wash. As a stay at home mom I am always looking for ways to conserve on time bc there are always 101 things to do and never seems to be enough time to do them all, especially when it comes to time for yourself! So seeing that this product has shampoo, conditioner, and a body wash all in one, made me very excited to give it a try.

 

 

First off the appearance, the bottle isn't anything fancy to look at but still presentable looking. The bottle's design kind of reminded me of a Head and Shoulder's bottle. However, it does provide a decent amount of the wash inside (24 oz), which is what's important!

As for smell, it smelled really clean and fresh, which I loved! I don't like shampoos or washes that have an overpowering smell because I have a sensitive nose and get head aches easily. However, it is still smelly enough to make you smell good and freshly cleaned.

As for how it worked, I used a small amount on my hair to see if it would clean well. I have tons of long hair and it seemed to lather really well and clean my hair thoroughly with just the small amount, which is a plus for me. I also used it on my body and to shave my legs. It worked well for both head and body but I think it is better for hair. At least it wasn't my favorite for shaving because it was not as creamy as my usual body wash that I shave with, but it still did what it needed to do. Once I got out of the shower, I brushed my hair and noticed it was super easy to brush through, so I know the conditioner worked. My hair also air dried really smoothly without any frizz and smells so good!

 Here are some pics of my results

The first 2 pics are of my hair air dried first thing in the morning after using it

 

Here are some pics of my results after I styled it for the day

 

 

 

Overall, I was very happy with it! I would totally buy it in the future and recommend it.

Give it a try and tell me what you guys think :)

 

****I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes and did not recieve any compensation for my review. =)

 

 

Organic Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Muffin's Recipe

 

Since I started buying bananas in bulk from Sam's Club, we can never seem to eat them in time before they get too ripe. I usually get down to about 3 ripe bananas before they are ready to be tossed. So I figured I should find a recipe to bake them in something healthy and delicious. So I decided to go on Pinterest in search of a good and healthy recipe. Well I found one but kind of tweaked it to what I had in the house. I've made them twice, once with honey and the other time with brown sugar. I love how this recipes calls for no flour, no oil, or no fake sugar. It taste amazing!!!

****If you have some ripe bananas that look like this, give it a try!!!

Here's how you make them:

Ingredients needed:

2.5 cups old fashioned oats

1 cup organic yogurt

3 ripe organic bananas

2 eggs

1/2 cup honey or agave (you can also substitute with a cup of brown sugar)

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 TBSP ground flax seed (optional)

1 tsp vanilla

Semi sweet chocolate chips (use as much as you like)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grind oats for about 15 seconds and then combine all ingredients, except the chocolate chips. Once everything is mixed evenly, add the chocolate chips to the mixture. I added a lot because I'm a chocolate lover but you can use as much as you prefer.

Then pour into cupcake tins and bake for 18 minutes.

How good does this look?

Enjoy!

A Healthier Way of Living

 

For those of you who know me personally, you know I used to be a healthy eater before I got pregnant. Then I suffered a miscarriage and the doctor told me to put on a few more pounds to  higher my chances of conceiving and having a healthier pregnancy. Well, I wanted to get pregnant as soon as possible, so I started eating a lot more, still healthy though. Then I conceived Logan and Hyperemisis decided to show its ugly face around 6 weeks. That was when I had no control on what I could eat any longer. Who would of thought that I would crave healthy food but couldn't keep it down?!?! I remember eating a bunch of fruit and apple juice in my first trimester and learning quickly that it wouldn't stay down. However, greasy foods like Burger King's croissan'wiches would stay down just fine. So my healthy ways of eating, kind of took the back turn. I was never like Jessica Simpson and wanted fried everything but I did eat things like burgers, steak, bacon, and chicken wings. Things that I never touched prior to getting pregnant. So once I had Logan and Hyperemisis was gone and I had my normal appetite back, you would think I would get right back to eating healthy, right? Wrong! I learned fast that when you have a new baby you eat what is convenient. Which were Oreos, cereal bars, chips, nuts, and other easy access foods. Well nuts may not be too bad but the others aren't good for an everyday go to breakfast or snack. So now that Logan is 8 months and I make him healthy homemade meals, I need to practice what I preach and eat the same way.

So starting yesterday, I went to Sam's Club and bought ton of fruits, veggies, fish, and chicken. I am really going to try and get back on the bandwagon and have Dan do the same. We have spoken about getting healthier for the past few months but haven't really got into it. Of course, I believe in having sweets still (I have a huge sweet tooth) but am eating them in moderation. So cheers to a healthier lifestyle and hoping to return back to my "old Hayley eating ways". ;)

TGIF!!!

Even us stay at home mommies get excited for the weekend. I love being able to be a stay at home with Logan, it's honestly the best and hardest job at the same time. I truly feel so lucky to have the opportunity to do it and watch him reach every little milestone. However, I do miss my other half! I feel like the week days just fly by! By the time Dan gets home from work, it's already almost 6pm (with traffic). We then start our nightly routine of family dinner, Logan's bath, pjs, bottle, and then bedtime. Before you know it the day is over and the next day comes. Mommies and daddies out there, you know what I mean!?!?! So this is why I get so excited for the weekend, to end the routine and do exciting stuff as a family of 3.

This weekend we have some exciting things to look forward to: Marlin's game, swimming lessons for Logan, Movie in the Park, shopping and more!

Happy Friday everyone!!! :)

8 Months Old

Wow, here we are at 8 months old already! I'm seriously amazed that we are just 4 months away of celebrating Logan's first birthday!!! It's seriously crazy to think he has been out of my belly for that long! I am starting to plan, plan, plan like crazy for it, so it's not overwhelming the closer it gets. I am also trying to be creative and make lots of the decor. I am actually pretty proud of myself because I even started selling my items on Etsy and Ebay. That makes me feel so good to know people like my stuff enough to purchase it. How cool is that?!?!

So this month has been a blast with how fun Logan has been getting! We went to a bunch of places for his first time, like the zoo and the beach (there are pics of it in "Our Adventures" page). He is also crawling like crazy now and it's hard to keep up with at times, I can't even imagine how its going to be when he is walking! Oh which I think is going to happen SOON bc he is pulling up on EVERYTHING! Chairs, couches, walls, his crib/playpen....you name it and he figures a way to stand up! He is so clever! It makes me feel like such a proud mommy to watch him learn and figure out the world. Don't get me wrong, I am also scared out of my mind that he will hurt himself, but I am trying to allow him to explore himself but still be there to catch him if he falls. My heart has just been skipping beats like crazy these days. Dan keeps telling me to clap when something happens so he doesn't cry but it's hard.  He looks at my face right away to see how he should react...which is so hard for me to smile at first bc I get so nervous! I'm trying hard though to stay strong.

Logan also started eating dinner with us in his big boy high chair. It's so much fun to give him a plate full of whatever we are eating and see what he thinks. For example, last night he tried spaghetti and meatballs (he was unsure of the texture of the noodles at first lol). Oh and the night before that he had Gardein Chik-n Tenders, broccoli and cheese, and a honey layered biscuit. He sure loved that meal! Oh and what a mess it brings. Good thing bath time is right afterwards!

Oh and talking! He is a blabber mouth like his mommy. He has full baby conversations and gets very passionate about them. He has even mumbled baba, dada, and mama. Now I'm anxiously awaiting for him to say it with actually meaning bc it usually just flows out when he gets upset about something.

I'm really enjoying this age! He is really a blast to be around! The only negative now is napping. Now that he has figured out how to stand he takes longer to fall asleep and gets upset. He also found the video monitor and likes to knock it down. It's kind of creepy seeing his face get right next to the camera and then knock it down, almost like he knows we are watching him lol.

As for his stats, we didn't go to the dr's this month but I know he is over 20 lbs for sure! He is wearing size 6-9 months and is fitting in size 4 diapers still. Oh and he has 4 teeth ( 2 top and 2 bottom) with more coming!!!

Here are some pics of our "big" little man getting into EVERYTHING this morning! ;)

Spaghetti night ;)

March Madness is Over!

I'm seriously in shock that it's already April. Being a mommy and a homeowner sure makes the year fly by!!!!

These past few weeks have been crazy busy with our "March Madness". What is our "March Madness" you ask? Well, besides all the basketball in our house during the month of March we have 3 birthday celebrations in my family (my mom and 2 brothers), Passover, Dan and I's 3rd wedding anniversary (10 years dating), Easter, and tons of home repairs!

 

Here's a quick recap:

For my family's birthday celebrations, we did the usual.....went out for Italian food and then had plenty of dessert. For Logan's first Passover, we went to TooJay's. Logan tried matzo and matzo ball soup for the first time and loved it- but this boy LOVES everything lol. He really is a great eater!

Now for our anniversary, Dan surprised me with........GORGEOUS CUSTOM CALIFORNIA CLOSETS!!! MY DREAM CLOSETS!!! We had been talking about getting them since my birthday but I kept putting it off. He really is amazing! He was so clever and was able to have the closet guy come take measurements of our closets while I wasn't home and had my friend Kristin take me out shopping for the day of the installation so I wouldn't have any idea. How good is he?!?! Check out in the "Our New Home" page for pics. They are just beautiful! We decided to take a little trip to surprise Dan at his work and grab some lunch. Then that night, we went out to dinner to one of our favorite restaurants, Bonefish Grille. We ordered some delicious dinner and drinks. I quickly learned that I don't like martinis and will stick to drinking wine instead lol. We then got some yummy Cold Stones and decided to just rent a movie and return home bc we were already missing our little man. Luckily, he was still up when we got home at 9 pm (can you tell we are partiers now that we are parents???...haha not!). Overall, it was my kind of date night! ;)

My gorgeous flowers he sent me

 

Surprising Daddy at work

 

 

Before dinner

  

Then for Easter, we celebrated at Dans parent's house and saw a bunch of us family, which was nice. Logan was spoiled with plenty of love from everyone and a bunch of goodies in his baskets! Dan was spoiled too with goodies......I even made him a man basket, packed with all his favorite liquor and candies. ;)

 

 

                                          

 

Happy Spring everyone!