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Meal delivery services are everywhere, and I was intrigued when Beyonce backed a vegan version. I knew I'd never pay for something just because her name was slapped on it, but still,  I was disappointed when the reviews came in stating that the food was just overpriced mush. I wished there was in fact a plant-based meal service that was both affordable and demonstrated to everyone just how good plant-based food can be.

Someone heard my wish, because I was stunned to get an e-mail from Veestro asking if I was interested in trying their food...their delivered, plant-based food. Yes, please!

Veestro's huge veggie burger-I brought it to a family grill night.

The founders of Veestro are are two siblings who, like myself , wanted to eat healthy but struggled with having quick, on-the-go options that fit the bill. Cooking is great, but we all know we don't always have the time needed to do so.

Veestro offers plenty of options from a la carte items to a 21-day kickstart program. I opted to try their starter pack which contains an assortment of 12 staff favorites.


The food was delivered via FedEx right to my doorstep (or rather, my office's doorstep) packed in styrofoam with dry ice to keep everything as preserved as possible until arrival. (Since the food itself is all preservative-free, I wanted to get it back in the fridge/freezer ASAP, so I made a quick, on-the-spot video of all the dishes that arrived:)


Of course, I know what y'all really care about...the food!.

I'm happy to report that it is not overpriced mush like some services. I didn't love every dish but that was because, really, if someone picks out 12 dishes at random they're bound to pick something you don't like. In this case, Eggplant isn't my thing, so the eggplant casserole wasn't my thing. If you like eggplant, you'd probably love it!

Overall, I loved most of the dishes sent and often cleaned my plate. My favorites were the oatmeal breakfast pie, 3 layer scramble, empanadas, red curry with tofu and vegetables,  and the golden chickpea stew. YUM!

Naturally, once food is frozen, it's never as photogenic as when it is first prepared, but it tastes amazing, which is what really matters:

Left to right, top to bottom: Savory Croquettes with Veggie Hash, Three Layer Scramble, Oatmeal Breakfast Pie,   Risotto with Butternut Squash and Kale, Red Curry with Tofu and Vegetables, Veggie Empanada with Enchilada Casserole.

The year Sean and I got married, everyone got married. We had 1-2 weddings each month from June until October.

"Next it'll be funerals,"  people would tell us. I guess it's supposed to be funny. Well, they were wrong. It's not funerals dominating our schedule these days. It's not even baby showers.

It's graduations.



Our facebook feeds and personal calendars exploded with graduation announcements and invites this year. This weekend was spent at two parties for three graduates. Our fifth wedding anniversary will be spent at Sean's sister's high school graduation. Oy. Is it time for vacation yet?

Well, nothing breaks the bank like multiple events happening at once, and I hate giving money (even though I know people receiving it, myself included!). Two of the three graduates we celebrated this weekend will be teaching elementary school and I know nothing will break their banks like the constant need for supplies. So, I figured for an affordable, physical gift that would certainly be of use, I'd help get the ball rolling.



I started with a hard basket (those fabric cubes would work great, too) since storage is always needed, and added essential classroom supplies: hand sanitizer and tissues for all the germs floating around, pens and pencils that will have all magically disappeared the first week, lip balm because everyone needs it, and other misc. office supplies. Each finished basket ended up costing around $25 and could easily be customized with other classroom must-haves and even gift cards to places like the dollar store, Five Below, or Target to further their supply fulfillment.

They were so fun to put together, and unlike cliche novelty gifts or inspirational books, I know these will be used!

If dogs could be schizophrenic, that's what Anise would be. Training her at home was easy; she was already housebroken and simple commands like "sit" and "lay down" were a breeze for her to pick up on.

Outside? That's a whole different story, and I'm convinced it's a whole different dog. Girl is crazy on leash, especially if other animals are in sight, getting her attention is about as easy as talking to your man when he's watching football, and she only pees on grass. Not ideal for city living.

Thankfully, we aren't far at all from streets with grass, but it would be nice to be able to take her out back to have her do her business late at night or when it's colder outside. We hope we've found a solution with DoggieLawn Plus. It's a patch of real grass with a tray that fits in smaller spaces (i.e., our parking pad) for pups to have a quick and convenient potty location.


Our DoggieLawn arrived in two shipments (grass and plastic tray)....during the Baltimore riots. So, while I promise the grass was lush and green when it arrived...spending additional time outside to take pictures was not high on my priority list.

Regardless, setup and maintenance are super easy, and if it works for you, there are plans to have fresh grass shipped to you monthly or biweekly. Anise thinks the DoggieLawn Plus is better for lounging than pottying, but thankfully, the folks at DoggieLawn Pluss offer lots of support and training tips to help you help your pup accept their new business spot.


I experienced a really helpful training call, and the tips did help...in a way. She finally went somewhere she had previously refused to go: the concrete. Presas are a very headstrong breed, and while we're still trying to make the DoggieLawn Plus work for her, I wouldn't hesitate to suggest other dog owners (especially those in similar urban settings) give it a try!

A few months ago, My father-in-law's uncle passed away. Shortly after I got to work, Sean texted me:

"Can dad stay the night? The funeral is tomorrow."

Well duh, he's family. Of course he can stay. Except...

He's allergic to dogs.
Anise may be short-haired, but girl sheds enough to make a new bath rug to replace the one she just tore up. I am constantly sweeping our old hardwood floors and shocked at how much hair piles up (and how much is still somehow left behind). Don't even get me started on upholstered surfaces.

Before: Dull. Meh.

I'm sure you can imagine how quickly I got stressed at  having such limited time to de-allergify (I'm sure that's a word) our home on such short notice. It was the middle of the week, and I had put off some tasks knowing we were having company Friday and I was planning on a deeper clean closer to that time.

Thankfully, my work is awesome and my boss let me head out an hour early. I hussled home to walk Anise before frantically removing all covers from our futon and pillows and throwing them in the wash before attacking all our floors: a round of sweeping, then a round of vacuuming before finally mopping everything down.


When I say mopping, it's not what you might think. I live in a historic home (if you couldn't tell by the photo above) and the floors are older than I am. I love them. But caring for them isn't like caring for the laminate floors I grew up around. Water needs to be kept to a minimum and the homemade cleaners I prefer using ingredients like vinegar are also a no-go. I was so stressed at how to keep the floors clean and gorgeous without using harsh chemical cleaners.

As I stalked online forums to figure out the best cleaning option, Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner came up again and again. Turns out, it's pretty much a godsend for hardwood floors. Even better, they make a Free & Simple® Hardwood Floor Cleaner (which is now certified and approved by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America!). I wouldn't have to deal with any nasty synthetic fragrance, and my FIL wouldn't have to worry about allergies - to Anise or the floor cleaner:

• This non-toxic, effective hardwood floor cleaner removes at least 93.33% of allergens from hard surface floors.
• Bona Free & Simple Hardwood Floor Cleaner has passed the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America’s rigorous testing to achieve this certification.
• Free of dyes and scents, Bona Free & Simple Hardwood Floor Cleaner cleans effectively and is hypo-allergenic so it is safe for allergy-sensitive families.
• All Bona products are infused with more than 90 years of innovation and experience to keep floors looking beautiful. 

After: Shiny and allergen-free!

Ugh. When we rescued Anise, I draped a blanket over the back seats and called it a day. Clearly, The blanket wasn't of much use. And car washes got a little more frustrating when I found out about the "excessive pet hair" surcharge. Eeesh.

We rarely carry passengers in the back (besides Anise, obviously), but when we do, we certainly don't want them covered in hair. Plus, I prefer a clean car in general. I started looking at seat protectors to see if they could do any better than a blanket when Zitriom offered me one of theirs...in a beige that nearly matches my seats. Score!

I have to say, it's a steal at $14.99. It was easy to install (it didn't include directions and we still figured it out), looks nice, doesn't leave a smell (despite the rubber backing which does a great job of keeping it from slipping everywhere!), has kept the hair at bay, and most importantly...Anise clearly thinks it's comfortable:

So, run to the car wash, pay that dumb surcharge for the last time, then protect your seats with a Zitriom seat cover:

It's hard to share this, but as embarrassed as I feel admitting it, I know I'm not alone:

I often feel lonely in terms of friendships.

I don't know what changes in adulthood that makes new friendships so hard to come by, but moving from Virginia to Maryland, then moving from one part of the state to another has often left me with depressing moments of feeling friendless.

It's not true, and I know this: I couldn't ask for a better companion than my husband, and wonderful people in our lives have supported us in times of need. But in the little daily moments when I feel like getting a pedicure or going to watch the (not so) new Cinderella film, I'm bummed when I realize I have no one nearby to call.

I'm not sharing this for pity as that's certainly the last thing I want. Nothing feels worse than knowing you've been included out of charity. I'm sharing because, as I mentioned before, I know I'm not alone. It's funny to say that about a problem of feeling alone, but I've seen similar comments all the time about finding friends as an adult.

I'm sharing because when I heard about the upcoming release of Listen, Learn, Love: How to Dramatically Improve Your Relationships in 30 Days or Less! (it's officially on sale today, folks!), I jumped at the chance to review it.

The irony isn't lost on me that I brought the book to read between sets at a social event...instead of being social.

I opted to read the book in chunks (the "listen, learn, and love" referred to in the title) to allow myself a full day between to focus on each aspect presented. Of the three, listening is my weakest area (and I totally already knew this), so I had to remind myself to do so in each interaction.

Again, I know I'm not alone. This interaction with a co-worker tells me so:

Woah!

Listening is first in the title for a reason: it can be an issue in any relationship from your spouse to your colleague to someone who should be providing customer service. And mastering listening is the first step to learning and loving.

This reminded me of all the realtors I passed up last year when we were house hunting simply because I didn't feel listened to. And because I didn't feel listened to, those potential professional relationships never progressed.

I found Listen, Learn, Love to be a helpful resource that gave advice in manageable doses, and I especially appreciated author Susie Albert Miller's authenticity. Just as I clearly missed out on relationship-building opportunities by reading during downtime at an event instead of socializing, Miller, the voice of these tips, admits to moments of not always practicing what she preaches.

The bottom line? If you're feeling stagnant or unfulfilled by your relationships, there are things you can do. Grab a copy of Listen, Learn, Love and get started!

#luckymayhop

I'm a little late to the Moscow Mule Party, but I've adored seeing copper mugs everywhere— they're so pretty!


I finally received a 16 oz. PureCopper brand mug of my own and just love it! It's rarely put away as I use it daily now. It generally contains a "virgin" mule...and I really mean virgin: iced water with lime. Drinks get sooo cold in this thing; it's perfect, especially in warmer temperatures (way more cost effective than air conditioning!).


But, a little cocktail now and then is nice, and in addition to the gorgeous, sturdy mug (it's the #1 new release in it's category on Amazon!), PureCopper includes cocktail recipe cards to try out with all sorts of tasty-sounding variations of the mule.

I know there are maintenance questions since the mug is 100% real copper. It's so easy—just wash and dry by hand and you're done. Try not to leave liquids in the mug overnight. Mine still looks good as new, but I can't wait to see the gorgeous patina as it ages.



With my hubby wanting to set up a bar in his man cave den, I'm thinking I need to buy him a matching set to add to his essentials...and so that I can keep mine to myself!

Gardening and maintaining healthy and aesthetically pleasing green spaces can be quite easy, if you follow a few basic principles. And Monrovia is here to help with healthy plant growing tips.

Monrovia brand plants are available at local garden centers and Lowe’s home centers across the country. I headed to my local Lowe's to see what the fuss was about, and WOW! Monrovia was everywhere!




I wasn't expecting to have so many beautiful choices. I ended up going home to narrow things down before finally choosing two Arabian Jasmine plants to frame our front door (along with our container cucumber and zuchini containers that are already out there).
I can't wait to see them bloom and grow!

What gardening projects are on your to-do list?