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wwww + a J Crew giveaway…!

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wwww45

Welcome to the Easter edition of What We Wore Wednesday! And big news – not only are we showing off our looks this week, we’re giving away $100 to J Crew! FUN, right? You can shop for your little one, your significant other, or – yourself. I’d stick with yourself and check out this or this. LOVE.

Alright – our looks first, and then we’ll get to the good stuff. Easter was beautiful and I was so incredibly excited to get on some summer gear. I love dressing my boys in dress shirts and shorts. A little roll of the sleeve, a little pop of the collar, and bam. Done. Super classic and always in style, even years down the road.

Here is what we wore on a day of visiting loved ones!

On L: H&M shirt ($6.95!), Crewcut shorts, Toms.

On B: H&M shirt ($6.95!), Gap shorts (circa L), and Toms.

On C: H&M dress which, I have to say, is very reminiscent of this dress that I just had to have after seeing my darling cousin wear it. Cloth and Stone can be a pricey brand though, and this one rang up a lot easier at $34.95. The material is so soft and overall the dress is great for chasing boys throughout the yard. Boden shoes, which I love and that necklace… if you follow me on Facebook you know where it’s from.

Alright – enough of my crew! Let’s see yours. Comment below to play along or link up on our super fun Pinterest board.

And now, for the most important part…the J Crew giveaway! Enter below by following the steps in the Rafflecopter widget. The more you do, the greater the chance you have to win.

Good luck to you and happy shopping!
C

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the giveaway: No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to US residents only. Giveaway will run from April 23, 2014 through April 29, 2014 at 11:59pm ET. A single winner will be randomly selected by Rafflecopter (powered by Random.org) and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to claim the prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Participants must read and agree to Rafflecopter’s Privacy Policy before entering and participating in this promotion.

Zagat Dining Card giveaway…!

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Zagat giveaway

I am so excited about this Zagat Dining Card giveaway! You must know them, right? They rate top restaurants in top cities. So cool.

They are launching a new product, the Zagat dining gift card, which is redeemable at 200+ Zagat rated restaurants in Chicago, New York City, and District of Columbia. Don’t live near any of those cities? Hmmm. Maybe you know a friend that does or who knows… spring break is right around the corner – no better time to check out a new city! A card for you, a card for your friend – it’s the easy to buy please anyone gift!

So time for the prize – it’s a $50 Zagat dining card! Want to win? Of course you do! All you need to do is enter your information below and leave a comment letting me know what restaurant you’d like to use the card at if you win! You can find the list here.

Leave your comment to unlock additional entries in the Rafflecopter widget to increase your chances of winning! Just be sure to enter by 11:59pm ET this Saturday night!

Good luck to you and happy dining from ALFS & Zagat Dining Card!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the giveaway: No purchase necessary. Giveaway is open to US residents only. Giveaway will run from March 18, 2014 through March 22, 2014 at 11:59pm ET. A single winner will be randomly selected by Rafflecopter (powered by Random.org) and notified via email. Winner will have 48 hours to claim the prize; failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the prize. Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest do not sponsor, administer, or endorse this promotion. Participants must read and agree to Rafflecopter’s Privacy Policy before entering and participating in this promotion.

Cookie recipe contest – finalist #1

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chocolate mint cookies

Our first finalist of our cookie contest is Lindsey L, who submitted chocolate mint cookies! Thank you so much for submitting your recipe to ALFS. A huge part of this contest was to get some new ideas going and this recipe is so different from anything my family has made before. We couldn’t wait to start baking!

L was of course totally into the shiny green Andes mints. The bargaining began – ‘mom, after dinner can I have two of the mints?’ Sure L but the cookies will be coming out of the oven a little later and the mints go on top of the warm cookies. ‘Hmmm, ok but I really want a treat right after dinner. How about I have one mint then and then wait and eat one mint on top of the cookies later?’ Deal.

We got to mixing, and chilling, and baking, and watching the mints sloooooowly melt over the deep chocolate cookies that baked to absolute perfection.

Finally they were cooled and it was taste testing time. I explained it to L. The scale of 1-10. 10 being the best thing that you’ve ever eaten and 1 being the worst. 5 was decent, 8 was good but not great and 2 was almost near spitting out. We established a base line and I handed him the cookie.

One bite in – ‘mom, it’s a 10. No wait it’s a 20! This one is going to win this one is going to win!’ And B? Well, that would be his little chubby hand in the picture. He couldn’t stay away.

Thank you, Lindsey!

Chocolate Mint Cookies
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
13 min
Total Time
28 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
13 min
Total Time
28 min
Ingredients
  1. 3/4 c. butter
  2. 1 1/2 c. brown sugar
  3. 2 T water
  4. 2 cups chocolate chips
  5. 2 eggs
  6. 2 1/2 c flour
  7. 1 1/4 t baking soda
  8. 1/2 t salt
Instructions
  1. In a large saucepan, melt butter. Add sugar & water and stir until dissolved- careful not to burn.
  2. Add chocolate chips, remove from heat, stir until melted.
  3. Pour in a large bowl and let stand for 10 minutes. Beat eggs in one at a time.
  4. Add dry ingredients a little at a time, mix well. Chill one hour.
  5. Roll into 1" balls and place on foil lined or parchment paper-lined cookie sheet.
  6. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-13 minutes. Do not overbake!
  7. They may not look done- you want the middle to be a little chewy.
  8. After removing from oven, put an Andes Mint on top of each cookie.
  9. Let stand for 5-10 minutes, then swirl it with a spoon. Let stand to harden.
A Life From Scratch. https://a-life-from-scratch.com/

ALFS Christmas cookie recipe contest…!

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alfs cookiesAfter the Minted giveaway, we just did not want the fun to end, so time for some more around here. I’m teaming up with Inspired Blogging Services to bring you the first ever ALFS Christmas cookie recipe contest…!

What does it entail? Well, simply email me your #1 Christmas cookie recipe. You’ve got a whole week to do it, so, by next Thursday (Thanksgiving!). From that point, I will choose the top 3 finalists. Here comes the fun part – for the next three Thursdays I will bake, write about, photograph, and taste test the finalists’ recipes. They will be featured one at a time here on ALFS !

Finally, that brings us to Friday, December 20th, which is when I, along with the help of my family judging, will announce the #1 recipe on my Facebook page. Just think – YOUR recipe could be featured to over 2,300 people! I think that makes you just a little bit famous. Yep, it totally does.

The prize? Well – that would be this adorable apron and a $25 gift card to Williams Sonoma, woohoo! All you have to do is pick your favorite and you’re in the running!

Giveaway CollageThis will be such a fun way for me and my family to get some new cookie ideas – we can’t wait to try them out. So get to emailing me – you know you have a killer cookie recipe…sugar, toffee, sprinkle, yum! 

Good luck to you all – ho ho ho!
C

P.S. And sorry mom, you can’t enter. I have to give everyone else a chance and I need you as a judge.

$100 Minted giveaway…!

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DSC_1499-2-2890007416-Ominted
Well, I have some super exciting news to share with you. We have been a partner of the most adorable company, Minted, for a little while now, and guess what? We’re giving away a $100 credit – just in time for the holidays. So fun!

I love the style of this company. I’ve used them for both L and B’s birthday invites, and they could not have come out cuter. Even the packaging they came in is perfection. If you’re like me and totally obsessed with stationary, then this is your company. Make a statement with a totally custom, hip, and stylish holiday card this season. You know your card reflects you, and you are so all those things.

Already ordered holiday cards? Check out their site for amazing photo gifts!

Want to win a $100 credit? Of course you do! Simply click this link. All you do is enter your first and last name and email, and bam! You’re in. Be sure to enter by Sunday, November 17 at 11:59pm PT. Good luck and have fun browsing the site. I’m not sure exactly how I’m going to pick my favorite…? Just look at these!

minted collage

Good luck to you!
C

Disclosure: This giveaway is sponsored by Minted and is open to US residents only. Refer to giveaway form for official contest rules. The winner will be chosen by Minted and notified via email. I received a Minted credit in return for this review and giveaway, but all opinions stated here are my own. Minted is not responsible for the content of this post.

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