SQUIRRELLY MINDS PAPER SHOP

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Squirrelly Minds Gem Print

I'm all about stationary. Like ALL ABOUT IT. One can never have too many blank greeting cards.

An ideal lunch break for me includes a long browse in Chapters, Violette's or the Papery's stationary section. So when I heard the brilliant Tan from Squirrelly Minds was launching a paper shop with her hand painted gems, I got a bit excited...ok very excited!! 

Gem Print

The gems are hand painted and printed on thick card stock. Right now you can get them in greeting card format or a 2015 calendar. But prints are coming soon!

The gems are stunning. I love the vivid colours and the depths! I want them all!

And right now there's a sale on them too! Head over to this post from Squirrelly Minds to grab that promo code.

I need that calendar in my life. It's definitely going on my Christmas list! Congratulations Tan on the launch of Squirrelly Minds Paper Shop...I see big things in store for you!!

 

Hope you all have a fantastic Wednesday. Things around here have been cray-cray!! House hunting and sermon prepping have been on my week's radar. We're learning SO much about this realty game!! We looked at a house this weekend but it wasn't meant to be so we're off to look at a couple more houses next week. I'm speaking at Spark this weekend and I'm getting SO pumped.

Stay gold,

s.s.♥.

BLUEBERRY, BANANA + COCONUT BAKED OATMEAL

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Blueberry, banana, & coconut baked oatmeal!

So I'm a third of the way through this whole "no sugar" thing. I feel good but I miss my chocolate...my goodness, I miss it. My cravings have gone way down but sometimes I still need some sweetness...

Thankfully, this blueberry, banana & coconut baked oatmeal hits the spot. 

BLUEBERRY, BANANA + COCONUT BAKED OATMEAL

Ingredients Needed:

  • 2 medium ripe bananas, sliced into 1/2" pieces
  • 2 cups blueberries
  • 1/4 cup agave or honey
  • 1 cup uncooked quick oats
  • 1/4 cup walnuts or pecans chopped into small pieces
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp cinnamon
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 cup milk (almond, soy, or regular)
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/8 cup shredded coconut

Directions:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees and lightly grease a 9x13" dish.
  2. Arrange the bananas slices in a single layer in the dish. Scatter half the blueberries on top along with 1/4 tsp of cinnamon and 1 tbsp of agave or honey. Cover with foil and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the oats, half the nuts, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. 
  4. In a separate bowl stir together the milk, vanilla, egg, and agave or honey.
  5. When bananas are done cooking, pour the oat mixture over it then pour the milk mixture on top. Sprinkle the rest of the nuts, blueberries and shredded coconut on top then bake in the oven until the top is golden brown (about 40 minutes).
  6. Enjoy!

 

Baked blueberry, banana & coconut oatmeal.

And if you're feeling extra sweet you can sprinkle brown sugar on top of the bananas and then again on the top of the mixture but honestly, the blueberries are so sweet that you don't need that extra sweetness!

xoxo,

s.s.♥.

HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE // GOLD

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Did you know there are only seven Fridays left until CHRISTMAS!!? SEVEN!! Have you started your Christmas shopping yet? We started the other night with shopping for our Operation Christmas Child Boxes. You've probably heard of OCC but if you haven't, OCC is an amazing program through Samaritan's Purse that delivers Christmas presents to kids all over the world. James shopped for a little boy and I shopped for a little girl. We had so much fun filling those boxes with toys, school supplies and clothing. I highly encourage it!

Well my first holiday gift guide is for lovers of gold. Happy Christmas shopping season!!

How cute is everything? I'm especially eyeing that gold lipstick mug!

How do you manage your Christmas shopping? Are you an early shopper or a last minute type of person? I like to say I'm a planner but really, I usually get it done last minute on my lunch hours in those final days before Christmas!

Stay gold,

s.s.♥.

HOUSE HUNTING

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WE'RE BUYING A HOUSE!!!! Well...looking to buy a house....

A few months back James & I started the process of looking for a house. It's a crazy, surreal thing and makes me feel like a reeeeeal adult. Scary but so good. It's a complete miracle that this is able to happen and I am so grateful.

We can't wait to find a home that we can start a family in.

When we first started the process we wrote down things that we were looking for. Some of those things included:

  • Natural light
  • Yard
  • Nearish to downtown (No westshore for us)
  • At least two bedrooms
  • Extra room or potential studio space for James
  • Dining area
  • Suite (hello income!)

We've seen four houses so far and the latest one has a lot of potential...it was the only one that I could actually see us living in. We have a few more to peep this weekend but who knows, we could have potentially found our home.....eeeeeeeeee!

Naturally, I've been pinning house interiors non-stop. I cannot wait to have some new projects!!

Here's what's been inspiring me lately...

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7

See more of my house inspiration on my Pinterest Board!

 

 How gorgeous are those spaces? I can't wait till we find a space that we can make our own!!

We've been googling everything on the home buying process but obviously we are totally newbies. If you have any home buying advice please comment below or send me an email!!

Until next time,

s.s.♥︎.