11.21.21 Issue #2

11.21.2021 THE PIE STORE ENDANGERED SPECIES CHOCOLATE LUSH ARTICLE TRADER JOE'S SPANAKOPITA PRAYER BARR HILL HONEY KOPARI DEODORANT BALSAM HILL VINTAGE MONOPOLY

TRADER JOE'S COCOA POWDER

11.21.2021 THE PIE STORE The Pie Store located in Montclair, NJ is my new favorite place to shop for decadent pies and treats. As the name implies, the store sells pies in a variety of sizes and fillings, as well as a other savory goods enveloped in a crunchy puff pastry. I have purchased several items from this shop and have yet to be disappointed.

Some Recommendations: -Apple PIe -Brandied Pumpkin Pie (FYI: This may be a seasonal item.)

-Sausage Roll (I'm pretty sure they use Irish sausage for this but the sausage to puff pastry ratio exceeded my expectations.

11.21.2021 ENDANGERED SPECIES CHOCOLATE Let's preface this story with explaining that I am a sucker for helping. When standing in the nevermoving line in Kohl's, my wandering eye came across these chocolate bars at the checkout, and I was intrigued and almost instantly sucked in.

The front of the package tells you what flavor of chocolate you are purchasing (Peppermint Crunch + Dark Chocolate for the win!) as well as where the proceeds are going: to help endangered animals. If anything pulls at my heart strings it's animals. I grabbed one without hesitation, actually maybe only slight hesitation considering the price tag for what this is, and couldn't wait to dig into it when I got home.

11.21.2021 LUSH ARTICLE If you don't know, Lush is a company that creates and sells fresh, handmade cosmetics. I know them for their bath products but they also sell hair and face products too. They are committed to creating fresh and organic products and stand behind no animal testing, among other incredibly amazing values they have.

About a week or so ago, I saw an article on my phone telling me that Lush was quitting select social media services the day after Thanksgiving that include Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and Snapchat under the guise that these platforms are being unsafe for their customer's mental health. I found this article to be a breath of fresh air.

Currently, their Instagram says "Be Somewhere Else" and I couldn't agree more.

11.21.2021 TRADER JOE'S SPANAKOPITA I absolutely love me some spanakopita. Cheese and spinach tucked away by some crispy puff pastry and my heart skips a beat. In the neverending quest to find an easy lunch to make, or not make, for work everyday is draining. When rummaging around the aisles of Trader Joe's I found this gem of an item and it has made lunch planning a breeze.

11.21.2021 PRAYER There have been numerous times where I have had a bad day, and I am sure you as well. When we have a bad day there are a plethora of things we can do. Take bubble baths, cook, workout, clean, go out for drinks with friends or our significant other, I mean the list really goes on.

For me, it's always been turning to prayer. Finding time to go to an open church is the best, but when that's not possible, a simple and sincere prayer helps put the strength back into me. It gives me hope, clarity, reassurance that I can go on, among other things. Prayer does it for me.

11.21.2021 BARR HILL HONEY What do you get when a distiller and a beekeeper going forces? Barr Hill Honey. Barr Hill Honey is raw and full of flavor. Once you try it once, you won't go back to the store bought teddy bears you are use to buying. By one jar or buy a one pound case to make sure you never run out. Use this honey in your baking, coffee, and tea. Get creative!

11.21.2021 KOPARI DEODORANT

Hands down one of the best natural deodorants I have used. It's base is coconut oil which is supposedly amazing for the skin. It glides on effortlessly and doesn't leave any weird white streaks or marks on your clothes. It comes with a hefty price tag but I promise it's worth it's weight in gold because it actually works. Quite honestly, to put it frankly, you just don't smell by the end of the day and I think we can all agree that if it works that well, it's worth a try.

11.21.2021 BALSAM HILL There is a love/hate relationship with Balsam Hill in my house. I love the company and my husband, well, he hates whenever the catalogue comes in.

Maybe hate is a strong word. Let's change it to dislike.

I purchased my first Balsam Hill product last year for my home: a pine cone and light filled garland that I attempted to very elegantly and effortlessly drape over our foyer table. I loved how it looked.

When my husband found out how much I paid for it, I got dirty looks from him for awhile, but it was worth it.

If you are looking for some amazing Christmas decorations Balsam Hill has you covered just be ready to splurge a little.

11.21.2021 VINTAGE MONOPOLY On the quest for a gift for a special couple I came across this Vintage Monopoly set from Anthropologie and immediately purchased it.

When it came in the mail the packaging was even more than I had expected. I have not opened it, I don't think my friends would appreciate an already opened present but needless to say I am incredibly excited to give this to them for Christmas. Fingers crossed they like it!

11.21.2021 TRADER JOE'S COCOA POWDER Not sure if anyone has noticed but... chain, store-bought cocoa powder is filled with TONS of sugar. On my quest for cocoa powder to satisfy my chocolate craving, and my sweet tooth, I came across the Trader Joe's version and was surprisingly shocked to see that it had 0g of sugar, SCORE! Now, I do have to say, because of the 0g of sugar it does have a strong bitter taste to it.

Once you had your own sweetener such as Barr Hill Honey, the bitterness subsides and you have a delicious cup of hot cocoa on your hands.

PRO TIP: Top off your hot cocoa with some peppermint flavored whipped cream and you will feel like you are floating a cloud!