Giving Back Through Shopping: The FEED Projects

I will be honest.  For a long time, I really did not know what the FEED Projects bags were.  I have seen them carried by celebrities and in Nordstrom for some time, and have even purchased some of the Small World products for children.  Other than that, I had no understanding of what this organization did.  Then I received the October issue of Town and Country with Lauren Bush and David Lauren on the cover.  Beyond discussing their relationship, the article also discussed in detail all the philanthropic work they are involved in.  Since Lauren is the co-founder and CEO of the FEED projects, I learned a lot more about what these products mean and continued to do a little research online.  I love what this organization is doing and their mission of feeding the world.  A donation from every sale is made to feeding those in need.  Here are some of my favorite items on their website, all with stories of what this purchase will help to do around the world.

FEED USA Canvas Tote
With purchase, $5 are donated to improve school food and nutritional education 
in America

FEED Back To School Kit
With purchase, food and job skill training are provided to 10 women through 
the UN World Food programme's Food for Assets program

FEED Trick or Treat Bag
With purchase, funding will help UNICEF provide one child in the developing
world with an entire year's worth of micronutrient powder 

FEED 1 Bag
With purchase, will provide one child in Africa with school lunch for an
entire year

To view the all products offered through The FEED Projects, visit the link here. 

All I want is a shower!

Why is it so incredibly hard for me to find time to shower?  Granted, if I had the shower above, perhaps I would find more time to actually take one, but this is real life.  In real life, I race out of bed at 5:45am to throw on workout clothes and get the kids ready for school.  The day takes off from there and suddenly, it is 5:00pm and I have not taken a shower yet.  That is not my intention.  I actually always think about taking a shower when my daughter goes down for a nap.  Perfect time right?  Well, it is also the perfect time to.....

* fold laundry

* empty the dishwasher

* make the beds

* prep dinner

* clean the playroom

* sweep/vacuum the floor

* check email/Facebook/Twitter

* a number of other things I find to do

I constantly tell myself, "Just one more thing then I will get in the shower", which leads to the next and the next until suddenly Baby Girl is talking on the monitor and CRAP, it is time for school pickup.

Don't worry, I do shower.  It just usually ends up being at night instead of when it should be, after I workout (yes, I sit in sweaty clothes all day.  You are welcome to judge).  I know this time will pass.  There will be a day when I will be able to wake up like a normal person, shower and go on with my day.  Kids grow up right?  Until then, I will continue to use Lululemon, TreSemme Dry Shampoo and Degree deodorant to hide how gross I am.

Sidebar: If you have judged me through this post and are one of those woman who has the ability to look absolutely put together with your three kids in tow at 7:00am, I am jealous of you and would LOVE to know your secret.  That being said, if it involves waking up at 5am to do it, I am not interested. 

Robert Rodriguez Leopard Print Dress - Thoughts?

 What do you think of this Robert Rodriguez dress? 

As mentioned in this post, I am loving the leopard print trend this Fall and when I saw this dress on Gilt, I couldn't resist ordering it.  I think it is extremely feminine and sexy without being too revealing and over the top.  I am going to have to wait for it to be delivered to tell if I am really going to love it but let me know what you think!

And the Winner of the Harper's Bazaar Subscription is.......

Heather!

Congratulations!

Thank you to everyone who entered and keep an eye out for another fabulous giveaway coming soon!

Linguine with Chicken Ragu

I have been completely lazy on recipe posts.  Once we got back from Paris I was too busy trying to keep my head on straight to think about cooking anything.  This led to two weeks of crap dinners every night.  I finally snapped out of it over the weekend and decided that to celebrate my return to the kitchen, I would make one of my absolute favorite dishes.  Saturday night I made Giada De Laurentis' Linguine with Chicken Ragu.  It is a labor of love with it taking a couple hours to make the homemade marinara sauce and then the ragu.  In the end, it is totally worth all the hard work.  It is a complete comfort dish and a homemade sauce tastes a THOUSAND times better than a jar.

Camp Spooky at Knott's Berry Farm

This past Saturday my family was invited to attend the VIP Camp Spooky Costume Party at Knott's Berry Farm.  The kids put on their costumes (X-Wing Fighter, Obi Wan Kenobi and Minnie Mouse) and we headed up bright and early to attend Breakfast with the Peanuts Gang and indulge in all that Camp Spooky had to offer.  We had such a fun time!  Here are some pictures from the day...

Camp Spooky runs each weekend throughout October.  Children ages 3-11 are invited to dress up and come to "Snoopy's Costume Party" in Camp Snoopy.  This daytime, non-scare celebration offers shows, activities, and of course, trick or treating!  Children can take part in the "Monster Dance Party and Costume Parade", sing and dance with the Peanuts gang at the "Peanuts Halloween Spooktacular", walk through the "Haunted Harvest" cornfield maze and visit "Linus's Foam-tastic Pumpkin Patch.  If you live in the Orange County area or are planning on visiting Orange County in October, I highly recommend you check it out!


Also, just a reminder that today is the last day to enter the Harper Bazaar's Subscription Giveaway!

Favorite Fall Looks From Tory Burch

Tory Burch keeps getting it right.  Each season I feel like she takes it up a notch and produces a collection even better than the season before.  This Fall is no exception and I can see myself wearing all of it.  These four looks are my favorites with #3 being top of the list.  What do you think?  Do you have a favorite?