simple hot chocolate....

The weather is FINALLY getting cooler - for now.
So I wanted to make a pretty quick (and healthy... ish) recipe for hot chocolate!


There's only two ingredients that I used:

Love Bean Fudge in Original (similar to Nutella but a much healthier option) -
ordered mine online and you can get that HERE.
and whole milk. That's it!

So here's how I did it:

Heated 3/4 cup of milk on the stove and then melted 3tbs of Love bean Fudge into the milk.
I added some of my homemade whip cream (click the link to make your own as well!) to the top & DONE.
 Of course you can add marshmallows or canned whip - do it however you like!
If you want homemade whip cream like I used - click here for the recipe :)
  It's super easy and absolutely delicious.

Also, if you don't want to wait for the Love Bean to deliver before you get to try this recipe, you can easily whip up something similar;
Just add 1tbs of cacao powder, 1/2tsp of sugar, 1/4tsp of coconut oil and that's all it takes to have yourself a healthy hot cocoa alternative! Just sweeten it or darken it to your liking -adding either more sugar or cacao.


Hope this helps y'all stay warm as the weather starts to get a little colder xo

Accessory details:
| Hat
| Sunglasses
| Mug sold out but get one similar HERE

reindeer food......

"Sprinkle on the lawn at night.

The moon will make it shine bright.

As Santa's reindeer fly and roam,

this will guide them to your home."

The BEST bath soak - EVER.

I have been working out like crazy after a few months off so as you can imagine, I. AM. SORE! So I bought some of this Epsom salt in order to relax my muscles a little bit and let me tell you, IT WORKS and smells SO good! My favorite to use is Dr. Teals Milk & Honey salts and because I wanted relaxation AND luxury, I decided to add a few tablespoons of Nutiva Coconut Oil to the warm running water as the salts melted and it was seriously the best bath I have ever had the time to take. You are relaxed and smell DELICIOUS when you finally get out! I should add that I particularly love this coconut oil because it ACTUALLY smells like coconut ;)

 These two go hand-in-hand and are a serious must-try! 

Dr. Teals Milk&Honey Epsom Salts $5

Nutiva Coconut Oil (Purchased @ WholeFoods, linked to Amazon) $15

Crockpot Chicken BBQ - SO EASY!!!!

The The fact that we had some snow fall last night, I figured this would be the perfect time to make something delicious but easy (since we're still trying to unpack)! - that's when I decided to make Chicken BBQ - Crockpot style! This is seriously the EASIEST thing to make with MINIMAL ingredients! This is how I made mine:

Ingredients:

1 1/2 tbs Brown Sugar

2 tbs Apple Cider Vinegar

4 Chicken Breasts

1 bottle Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce in Original (read instructions below on how I used this)

1 Pack of hamburger buns

****Of course, you don't have to use the brown sugar and vinegar mix in yours if you prefer not to, it will turn out fine with just BBQ sauce.... I just prefer mine a little more vinegar-y and a little sweeter ;) 

Add the brown sugar and vinegar into the crockpot, mix all ingredients. Then take out the chicken breasts and add them to the crockpot. You can cut them in half if they are large and you want to cut down on cooking time - I did this and they turned out great. Then swirl the chicken breasts around in the brown sugar and vinegar mix and make sure they are fully coated in the mix. Once completely coated, take the Sweet Baby Ray's and generously apply the sauce on top of the chicken - the amount you use is totally up to you! After that, set your crockpot on HIGH heat and leave in for about 3 to 5 hours. The chicken can be consumed after 3 hours but the longer it cooks, the easier it will be to shred and of course the flavor will be better absorbed. Once the cooking time is up, take two forks and start to shred the chicken. The mix may look a little watery but that will go away once all of the chicken is shredded. Once shredded, scoop some out and put it on a bun! You can add hot sauce, coleslaw or eat it plain, whichever you prefer!

 This is one of my favorite things to make and it works in snowy weather and in the summer time! I hope y'all enjoy! XO

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• Life Essentials: Laundry Detergent •

 This obviously isn't a conversation starter and no one really thinks to inquire about what brand of detergent you recently picked up from Target over the weekend as it's one of the last things you'd think about switching but you probably should. Especially if you have little ones!

I had been using (and still do at times) The Honest Brand for all of our laundry... Way before I was even pregnant with Penelope so I had my fair share of testing before spit-up happened in my life. And for our daily clothing wear, it worked perfectly. It had all of the things I was looking for as far as laundry was concerned: No fragrance, meant for a high-efficiency washer, and of course, cleaning power. But after P came along, and for nearly 6 months of her life, she had horrible acid-reflux, The Honest Brand wasn't working to get out the stains. I always tried my best not to use Clorox or OxiClean but sometimes there was nothing else I could use in order to save her Aden + Anais blankets or cute white onesies that she got to rock for a minute before they became stained... Sigh. UNTIL I began searching for a good brand that was a brightener, spot-treater and detergent all in one AND of course to my green-fashion, it had to be hypoallergenic and safe for newborns and I finaaaally found it: [Molly's Suds].

I have been happily doing laundry for the last 2 months with this stuff - something you definitely don't think of saying about doing all things such as laundry! 

I first purchased the [ Molly's Suds Starter Package ] to test everything out and see if it was something that would work so I definitely suggest this package first.. Even the wool dryer balls are a really cool thing for us because it's become the norm to wash a few things at a time rather than waiting to wash when you have a big load so when I go to dry the clothes, the balls help everything dry evenly so they don't get stuck on one side and go an entire dry-cycle, still wet at the end. They are also amazing for big loads, like washing sheets and towels - always mixing everything up so they are sure to get dry, even with a slammed-full dryer!

We also use the dog shampoo for our dogs and it works really well for them. We have a German Shepherd and Golden Retriever and both of them have crazy sensitive skin... So much so, that they're on special food that we have to order from Texas - Crazy, right!? so when they need a bath, we were always prepared for them to be itching like crazzzzzzy afterwards but since we started using this, we haven't noticed any irritation on them at all. Even though it works like a charm, I wouldn't be being honest if I didn't mention that it doesn't really suds up the way a normal soap would and that takes some time getting used to but it cleans them effectively nonetheless and leaves them smelling just like the product in the bottle and they NEVER itch afterwards which is a HUGE deal for our little guys.

Don't forget to use code DISCOVER for 20% through today on your entire order!!

This is a really good deal and you won't be disappointed xo 

This works sooo well with Devon's hunting clothes and my workout gear

For our everyday wash and spot-cleaner

For our pups

This goes above and beyond when cleaning whites that spit-up has messed up

• Easy Smoothies on-the-go •

Here are two AMAZING smoothie recipes that I make daily with my NutriBullet & are super easy to throw together. I didn't add specific amounts because it all depends on what you like your smoothies to taste like and these are beyond healthy regardless so there's really no wrong way to make em'! 

The green machine was beyond convenient when we were at the beach - it was a quick meal and took less than 5 minutes to make.

Chocolate&Cherry Smoothie 
-  frozen cherries, diced & pitted 

-  frozen banana (half or whole will do)

- chilled almond milk

- a TINY amount of almond extract.. A few small drops works perfectly

- raw cacao powder from Whole Foods (I use about 1tbs or so)
- a handful of dark chocolate chips can be added to make a more dessert-like smoothie
- splash of water
- blend until smooth 

Green Machine Smoothie
This smoothie is great for fighting sickness and improving overall health

- Handful of frozen spinach

- frozen peaches, diced

- 1/2 frozen banana

-  chilled orange juice (I use a little more than a splash of OJ)

- chilled almond milk
-1 tbs of Maca powder (optional)
- add some water to make a thinner consistency


* = You can skip this step if necessary

Pinecone Wreath - EASY DIY xo

About a week ago, I posted a pinecone wreath that I made on my Instagram. I got inspired by a beautiful lookalike wreath that I found online that they were selling for around, I believe, $170. Well, I knew it didn't look terribly difficult and I knew I could easily make my own for waaaay cheaper, so I began my hunt on pinterest and viola! I found the perfect DIY to make the wreath and it even looked similar to the one I was going to buy. Here's the link to Aimee's blog and where my idea came from <3 Pinecone Wreath DIY

I got all of my supplies at Michael's and I ended up having to use wooden wreath forms rather than the embroidery hoops that she used. I also wrapped my wooden wreath forms in burlap to ensure the pinecones would stay on. All of this, including spray paint and glitter, was only about $36! xo

twitter: @taylorpilk

instagram: taylorpilk

xo taylor 

Perfect Winter-Time DIY Body Butter recipe!!!!

     This body butter is so easy to make but I had to go to two different stores, Trader Joe's and Whole Foods, to get the two ingredients that this body butter contains: Coconut oil and Shea Butter - That's it!!!! Here's how I make it:

1. Scoop the Shea Butter into a pot on the stove over low heat - stir until completely melted. (Remember: Coconut Oil and Shea Butter have super low heating points so you only need minimal heat to get the job done.)
2. Once the Shea Butter has melted, scoop the coconut oil into the pot with the melted Shea butter and continue to stir until that's completely melted. *You can put the coconut oil in the microwave to help soften it if it's a little tough to get out.
3. Once everything has melted and blended together, remove from stovetop and start filling the Coconut Oil jar back up, along with any other jars, with the new blend and set inside the refrigerator with the tops off so it hardens faster.
4. Once it's a solid again, you're ready to use it! 

Trader Joe's Coconut Oil - It's
typically white, but in this pic it's filled with
the liquid mixture

In Whole Foods, you scoop the amount of Shea Butter
into this little container and they weigh it and
price it. Just scoop as much as you want
to use.. I probably bought 3/4 cup of Shea Butter for this body butter.

***I chose Trader Joe's Coconut Oil over all of the other brands because TJ's has the distinct coconut smell and all others seem to be odorless and although they work the exact same, I prefer the beachy/coconut smell. Also, the Shea Butter has it's own smell but once it's mixed and melted with the coconut oil, all you can smell is the coconut... delicious!!! 

twitter: @taylorpilk

instagram: taylorpilk

xo taylor 

     

    

DIY Hot Oil Hair Treatment That WORKS!!!! Yey!

 **I posted this on my last blog, but felt the need to repost because it's one of my favorites.**
A hot oil hair treatment that works using JUST OIL - NO CHEMICALS! It leaves your hair feeling super silky and NOT heavy or oily! I do this about once every month, mainly for lack of time on my behalf, but if you have the time, do it as often as you need it. The winter time sucks when it comes to your hair and skin so keep up this regimen and that's one less thing you'll have to keep up with ;) ENJOY! xx

1.            Put the olive oil in a bowl (the amount depends on the length and thickness of your hair) and place the bowl with the olive oil in the microwave. 

2.            Heat up the oil in 10 second increments. You'll probably have to do this a few times. Also, make sure you keep an eye on it while it's in the microwave. *CAUTION: Be extremely careful not to burn yourself, the oil may be hot.* 

3.            Pour the warm olive oil over your hair and comb through thoroughly. Use your fingers to massage the oil through the hair and on to your scalp. 

4.            Once that's done, put your hair in a bun and place a shower cap over it. 

5.            (Optional) Wet a towel with warm water, wring it out and carefully wrap it around your head.  Let it sit for 30 minutes. This will help open pores causing the treatment to be more efficient.

During the 30 minutes, if the towel gets cold, carefully take it off and re-wet it with warm water. Once the 30 minutes is up, wash your hair thoroughly with 
shampoo as normal.

UPDATE 08/13/14:
This particular blog has gotten out over 11,000 times!! I'm beyond happy & would love to know where everyone is seeing this blog link from, whether it be a website, twitter, instagram, google etc - please comment below or tweet me @taylorpilk XO Be sure to check out my website & other blog posts here.