I haven't been this excited about Friday since last Friday

This is definitely a more laid-back, casual office look but one that could also easily transition from work to a night out!  I am really not a fan of the 'Tribal' look that is so popular right now but I loved this maxi dress and I felt like the tribal elements were subtle enough that it wouldn't bother me.  The sequins provide great texture to an otherwise simple navy maxi dress, and the side slits keep it interesting (and keep you cool in the summer months).

I simply added a black cardigan over the dress to wear it to work, and then simple grey ballet flats to complete the look.  The dress looks great with heels, but since the slits go a bit above my knees I felt that heels made it a bit less office appropriate.  

I loved this outfit with a messy side-braid and a simple rhinestone head band; the head band added the perfect compliment to the dress.  Since the dress has plenty of sparkle I didn't add any jewelry.  I know my braid is not nearly Elsa-worthy but I think I would need more hair for that to happen.

Maxi Dress: Express

Flats: Target

Cardigan: Target

Head Band: Charming Charlie

Loving Him was Red

I absolutely love bold colours.  Although I love how classic and clean the combo of black and white is, I just prefer to have some colour thrown into the mix as well.  Any colour can be paired with black and white.  I personally have always loved red.  It's the color of energy and passion, and if you know me well you know that I am always energetic and always passionate about whatever I am doing.  When in doubt, wear red.  Always wear red.  

Also, there will be more office/work related outfits now that I can branch out from the 6 skirts I own and had to utilize during Lent.  I hope everyone has a great Friday - happy weekend!

Pants: American Eagle

Tank Top: Old Navy

Cardigan: White House Black Market

Flats: Payless Shoe Source

Necklace: New York & Company

Chocolate-Chip Banana Protein Muffins

I know, the title alone sounds good enough to eat!  I thought I would share this recipe for banana muffins that I've been slowly developing and perfecting over the last month or so.  I love muffins (though oddly enough I am not a cupcake fan), but I especially love when I can make breakfast muffins that are (for the most part) healthy and yet taste like they aren't.  That's what I have finally achieved with this recipe.  And it's not just my opinion - my recipes are always tested by my husband and this one got two thumbs up from him!  

So let's begin!  The first step will be to gather your ingredients:

You will need: All-purpose flour (I typically use white whole wheat flour), sugar, baking soda, salt, vanilla extract, two eggs, vegetable oil, Greek yogurt, protein powder, chocolate chips, and of course bananas.

Step 1:  In a medium-sized bowl, beat the eggs well with a whisk.  Add 1/3 Cup of oil and blend well.  Then add 1/2 Cup sugar and 1 tsp. of vanilla.  Mix until the wet ingredients are smooth.

In a separate bowl, mix together 1 1/2 Cups of flour, 1 tsp of baking soda and 1 tsp of salt.  Be sure to mix well so that the dry ingredients are well distributed.  After mixing, add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and stir together just until the wet ingredients are incorporated into the dry (the mixture will be very thick and difficult to stir, but that's OK - we will thin it out later.

Next you will mash 3 ripe bananas and add them to the mixture.  

Mix the bananas in lightly - you do not need to stir too much.  Then you will add 1/2 Cup of Greek yogurt.  I had a french vanilla yogurt on hand so that is what I used, but plain would work just as well.  (it may not look pretty yet but it will!)

Mix the Greek yogurt in until well blended.  Then you will add your protein powder!  I typically use Garden of Life Raw Protein or Meal (Garden of Life) in either vanilla or chocolate.  This time around we used vanilla.  If your protein has a scoop inside you will add 1 1/2 scoops of protein, or the equivalent of roughly 1/3 - 1/2 cup.  Be sure to mix the protein powder in very well!  The you will add 1/2 Cup of chocolate chips and stir gently.

At this point our muffin mix smelled and tasted just like cake batter - it's heavenly!  

Now you will line your muffin pan with paper liners and use a spoon to pour the batter evenly.  

Bake the muffins at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately 20-25 minutes.  (Mini-muffing take about 15-18 minutes).  Let them cool completely and then enjoy! 

You will want to store the muffins in an airtight container in the fridge; because of the yogurt mixed in I have found that they will go bad pretty quickly if they are stored on the counter but in the fridge they will keep for up to 10 days.  If you want to eat them warm just put one back in the oven at 350 degrees for a minute or two or stick them in the microwave for about 20 seconds. 

I hope you enjoy this recipe!  The muffins make a great on-the-go breakfast option that contains a good amount of protein to help keep you full.  

Complete recipe for printing:

Chocolate-Chip Banana Protein Muffins

Recipe from 1918Miles Blog

• 2 large Eggs
• 1/3 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 1 1/2 Cups Flour
• 1 tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 3 ripe Bananas, mashed
• 1/2 Cup Greek Yogurt (plain or vanilla)
• 1-2 scoops (1/3-1/2 Cup) Protein Powder (chocolate or vanilla)
• 1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a medium bowl, beat eggs with wire whisk.  Add oil and mix until well blended.  Add sugar and vanilla extract and mix with whisk until mixture is smooth.  Set aside.
3. In another bowl, mix flour, baking soda, and salt thoroughly.  Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and stir until dry ingredients are fully incorporated (the mixture will be thick and tough to stir at this point).
4. Mash the bananas and add to the muffin mix.  Stir just until the bananas are blended in but do not over-stir.  Add the yogurt and mix well so that the yogurt is well distributed within the mixture.  Once the yogurt is well blended, add the protein powder.  Stir until well combined.  Then fold in the chocolate chips.
5. Line a muffin pan with paper liners.  Using a spoon, evenly portion the batter between cups.  Bake at 350 F for approximately 20-25 minutes (15-18 minutes for mini muffins).  Allow to cool completely before storing.  Store in an airtight container  in the fridge.  Enjoy!

Simple Everyday DIY Life Hacks

I am pretty OCD about keeping things clean and organized in my house.  To that end, I thought I would share a few tips for keeping everyday items organized around your home!  A few of these ideas came from Pinterest inspiration and a few I came up with myself.  Happy Monday, everyone!  I'm off to start some spring cleaning!

So this isn't really an organization tip, but I wanted to share it.  I made this frame for my husband on our first anniversary and we love it!.  Usually, we leave messages in the early morning before heading to work.  It's a fun little way to remind someone of how much they mean to you!

On to organizing! 

I was getting tired of having Makeup brushes stored in a drawer all the time.  I found a solution by re-using this short, wide vase filled with glass stones.  Not only does it look cute, but it helps my brushes dry so much faster after I have washed them out in the morning!  (I think I would prefer to use smaller stones, but these are what I had on hand for now)

My closet definitely has to be organized.  I have a nice earring holder but I needed a new way to store all my necklaces.  These are just simple wall hooks that you can find at most retail stores.  Having these organized in my closet makes the process of picking out an outfit much easier and quicker!  

And not really a life hack, but just to prove that I am OCD about organizing I thought I would show that my closet is color-coordinated.  And I love it.  :)

I've seen some really cute and creative ways to store sponges/soap/etc around your kitchen sink.  I really liked an idea I had seen on Pinterest about using a cake stand to store things, however, my kitchen sink area is too small for a cake stand.  So instead, I found this adorable candle pillar at Target and I use that to hold things!  Usually, I have a small hand towel under the soap and sponges to keep it from being drenched in water.  Either way, I think it looks adorable and helps keep things more organized!  

If you have any unique & creative ways of organizing your house let us know!  We would love to hear your ideas!

A Touch of Lace

I have always been a fan of wearing pink (and not just on Wednesday).  I especially love pale and pastel pink colours, so I could not resist picking up this beautiful maxi dress last year.  It works well for any time of the year and the forgiving cut of the dress works on any body type!  A wide-stitch lace crop top was the perfect way to change up the 'plainness' of the dress and add some interesting flair!  This was from another professional photo shoot with my good friend Bethany over at Bethany Bown Photography.  She is a wonderfully talented photographer and does such an incredible job with every shoot!

It was a super breezy fall day, but Bethany wanted the wind so it all worked out.

Dress:  Modern Vintage Boutique (Similar Style)

Lace Crop Top: Forever 21 (Similar Style) (Second Similar Style)

Shoes: Ankle Boots from Payless Shoe Source (Similar Style)

Happy Friday everyone!

Early Spring Cleaning

This may not be the most exciting post (who really enjoys cleaning the house, besides me?), but I wanted to share a neat & useful cleaning trick that I tried for the first time a few weeks ago.  I am a bit of a 'clean freak;' I can't stand having anything messy or dirty in our house.  And for some reason, dirty grout (the lines in between the tiles of your kitchen or bathroom floors) is hugely frustrating to me.  I had tried multiple cleaning products on my kitchen floor to try to clean up the grout and none of them had even a slight effect on the dirt hiding there.  So I searched Pinterest for other ways to clean it up and came across a winning combo!  It's super easy, and chances are you already have the products you need in your house.  Ready to clean?  Let's get to it!  

You will need:

Baking Soda

White Vinegar

A small bowl or bucket with warm water

A small scrubbing brush

A sponge

Cleaning Gloves

I'm learning that there are so many ways to use this combo for cleaning purposes!  

It's definitely worth keeping extra vinegar and baking soda in your house.

The bowl contains only warm water - you don't mix the vinegar or baking soda in the bowl.

 Step 1: Liberally sprinkle baking soda along the grout lines.

You can spread the baking soda into the grout lines with your hands if you need to.

Step 2: Pour small amounts of vinegar into the grout lines.  The baking soda will react with the vinegar and this reaction is where a lot of the cleaning power comes from!

You don't need a ton of vinegar, just enough to sit in the grout lines.

Hard to see, but the bubbling is the vinegar and baking soda reacting.

Step 3: Wait about 1-2 minutes to allow the baking soda & vinegar mix to really get into the grout.  Then take your scrubbing brush and scrub away at the grout!  You will have to use a little bit of elbow grease but compared to the scrubbing I had done before with other 'cleaners,' this was a piece of cake!  

Step 4:  After you have scrubbed the dirt out of the grout, use your sponge and bowl of water to "mop" up the vinegar mess.  *I've found that it's easiest to work in an area of about 4-6 squares at a time.  This way, you aren't kneeling in vinegar trying to reach across your entire floor.  It takes a while, but the result is so worth it!  

These are what the grout lines looked like before cleaning:

Ugh, so nasty.

And after!  So much better looking!  I honestly didn't know the grout was intended to be white, like the tiles.  (The tiles actually are white - the lighting in this area just happens to be yellow)

I hope this post was helpful!