Weekend in Pictures: Dwyer Family Reunion!

I have been looking forward to this weekend for months!  My Dad's side of the family decided to plan our first ever Dwyer family reunion, and it was a huge success!  Our weekend was filled with swimming, a great dinner out in Charlotte, a baby shower, and time relaxing with family.

Thank you to my amazing Uncle Dave and Aunt Nancy for the hospitality :)  They provided their beautiful home for us all to destroy hang out at, and an oasis of a back yard to relax in.  As you'll see we enjoyed the pool, the hammock, and lots of delicious home made food!

After such a hard year for our family, this past weekend was just what all of us needed.  Friday I'll share a review of an awesome restaurant we got to visit while in Charlotte, stay tuned!

Make-up Monday: itCosmetics CC+ Radiance Palette

Walking around Ulta the other day, I asked one of the girls if there was anything new that I had to try.  She pointed out a few palettes, but once I swatched this palette on my hand, I knew it was coming home with me.

The itCosmetics CC+ Radiance Palette ($38 at ULTA) is described as "your one stop for color correcting, brightening, bronzing, and blushing."  It's perfect for traveling as palettes usually are, and you have everything you need for your face in one place.

The packaging is overall nice, but could definitely be a little better quality for the price.  I love the rainbow metallic color and how slim it is.  One thing that bothers me is the magnetic closure.  It isn't very strong so it doesn't feel like it closes all the way (is it just me who loves to hear the click of things closing??).

The packaging doesn't bother me too much, because the product is really awesome.  The color corrector is nice, but the blush and bronzer are the standouts from this palette.  The blush is a gorgeous coral color and the bronzer is a really nice tone for pale skin.  It doesn't look orange at all and applies very naturally.

In terms of lasting power, I tend to think that has a lot to do with whatever products your using underneath (prep, foundation, concealer, etc).  I have found that with my current foundation, the blush and bronzer last really nicely.

Overall I am glad I purchased this palette.  It will be perfect for traveling and the bronzer is a nice color that can be applied year round for a little glow.  The itCosmetics CC+ is a good buy if you are planning on purchasing all the products separately.

I promise I'll be back later this week with an awesome Family Reunion weekend in pictures and a restaurant review!  Happy Monday!

Weekend in Pictures: Party in the Poconos!

This weekend was a full house at my in-laws in the Poconos!  We got to spend the weekend with my SIL Alli and her family, which is always a treat!  The weekend consisted of bike riding, fireworks, "sweep overs!", finger painting, boating, and obviously lots of potato chips.  Side note: I've tried 3 out of 4 flavors for the new Lays... Wasabi Ginger is the best so far ;)  As usual, I'll let the pictures do the talking!

 

 

 

I ended the weekend with a trip to Ulta!  Under the influence of Melissa and the Ulta lady, I made some unnecessary fun buys that will lead to a few future make up reviews :)  You know it was a good trip when you leave with your hand looking something like this...

Hope you all had a great weekend!  I'm hoping to post another restaurant review this week... see you soon!

Review: Beats Solo 2

For my birthday this year Scott gave me a pair of Beats headphones.  He originally picked out the soloHD pair in teal, but after trying them out twice, I decided I wasn't the biggest fan of them.  They felt cheap for how much they cost. 

We took them back to Best Buy and upgraded to the solo2 headphones in gloss gray.  In my opinion, the extra $30 to get the solo2's was totally worth it.  They seem much nicer, are better quality, and sound great.  Disclaimer: I do not use these headphones at the gym... not interested in getting them all gross and sweaty!

 

I love these headphones for a lot of reasons.  The first is totally superficial - they are good looking.  I love the color, a mix of gray and baby blue, and they look so fun!  I'm a fan of big headphones, and there are definitely some perks to the size of these guys. 

The solo 2's cancel outside noise very well (something they HD's did not).  Scott laughs because I tend to speak pretty loudly when I'm listening to my music with them on.  I may or may not be guilty of dancing around my house while rocking out to Katy Perry's "Birthday" lately...

One of the most important thing about headphones is the sound quality, and these sound great.  They have a good amount of bass, and sound very clear.  I'm not a DJ or headphone collector, but these sounds awesome to me :)

I also really like how the headphones fold up to be stored.  They are bigger, so to be able to fold them into a more manageable size is a great feature.  The solo2 headphones also come with a soft case for packing.

Overall, I love these headphones!  It was absolutely worth it to upgrade to these from the soloHD pair, there really is a big difference for that extra $30.  If you're looking for a new pair of big ole' headphones, these are worth a try!

Recipe: Crock Pot Chicken Tacos

These are the easiest and most delicious tacos ever.  We make these probably once a week because they literally take less than 5 minutes to make and use only 3 ingredients.

Crock Pot Chicken Tacos

Total time: Prep work approximately 5 minutes, Total time 4-6 hours
Yields: 1 pound shredded chicken (lasts two meals for us)

Ingredients:

• 1 pound chicken breasts, cut into 4-6 medium pieces
• 1 jar of salsa (we prefer the Southwest Salsa with corn)
• 1 packet taco seasoning (we use lower sodium)

Directions:

• Mix the jar of salsa and packet of taco seasoning together in a medium bowl.
• Use about a third of the salsa mixture to coat the bottom of your crock pot.
• Lay the chicken breasts evenly in the crock pot.
• Cover with the remaining salsa mixture.
• Cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 5-6 hours.  Depending on how thin your chicken breasts are, cooking time will vary.
• Once chicken is completely cooked, shred the entire mixture.
• Serve with shells (soft for the win) and desired toppings.  Our toppings are pretty simple and normally include shredded cheese and fresh guacamole.

Nutritional information is calculated for 4 servings of the chicken only (no taco shells or toppings).  We can usually get more than 4 servings out of this recipe and end up having it for dinner and lunch the following day.

Try these out, I promise you won't regret it!  Enjoy :)

Review: Terrain Garden Café

Terrain is a garden center in Glen Mills, PA.  It is owned by URBN, the same company that brings you Urban Outfitters, Free People and Anthropologie.  As you can imagine, Terrain is way more than a garden center; while they do have an amazing plant selection, they also carry very rustic home and garden décor.  It is a very cool place and, as you will see, is home to an incredible restaurant.

The Garden Café at Terrain will always have a special place in my heart; it is the restaurant Scott took me to before he proposed!  Not only does it have sentimental value, the café is a gorgeous place with unbelievable food.  Every time Scott and I go, we tell each other "that is the best meal I have ever had" at least 5 times on the drive home.

The restaurant is in a greenhouse where you are surrounded by lots of plants, candles, and twinkle lights.  The lighting is beautiful and it is a very comfortable and welcoming atmosphere.

Terrain uses "hand-selected local produce, meats, and dairy products" and their menu changes seasonally.  I was so happy to see my favorite dishes return in time for a perfect birthday dinner!

The café is BYOB, so we brought a bottle of wine to enjoy with our meal.  Looking at the next few pictures makes me want to make a reservation to go back ASAP!  Here's a look at everything we ordered.

Fresh bread baked in a terra-cotta pot with delicious house made butter (even the butter is amazing!)

BBQ cauliflower fritters with a spicy sauce.

Pan seared sea scallops with summer succotash, corn cream, and fenugreek - sooo amazing!

Local harvest filet with potato puree, haricot vert, local mushrooms and a red wine demi - Scott called this the "best filet" he's ever had!

It's safe to say this was not only our best meal at Terrain, but one of our best meals ever.  I can also tell you, from a previous meal at Terrain, the cupcakes they offer are super tasty!  When I went with a few girlfriends we spilt two flavors; my favorite was lavender.

If you're looking for a place to meet up with a bunch of friends or a new romantic date night spot, the Garden Café at Terrain is beyond worth trying.  I'm sure it will become a fast favorite; be sure to go early to check out the shop!