January, 2016 - sparkleshinylove

Roxymandy January 20, 2016

An Easy Make-Ahead Breakfast Casserole from Beretta Farms

I am sure I am known for a few things, but unfortunately “chronically late” is something I may best be known for. I really try to be on time! I set my alarm early, lay my clothes out before bed, and I meticulously plan my exit from the house, only to fall short and arrive ever-so-slightly late for pretty much everything.

Anything to save time is appreciated, so making breakfast the night before is something a girl like me appreciates!

Last weekend I decided to try this make-ahead breakfast casserole for our busy Saturday morning. My son has soccer on Saturday’s pretty early (ok, it’s 10am, but when you are chronically late that seems early!), so having something I could just pop in the oven seemed like the perfect idea!

An Easy Make-Ahead Breakfast Casserole from Beretta Farms

This casserole features Beretta Farms Organic Honey-Garlic Sausages, and they were delivered right to my door! I live outside of Toronto, so often delivery services don’t quite reach me, but Beretta Farms brought my groceries right to my home so I could save a bit more time.

Beretta Farms offers local, farm-fresh, healthy option foods. They only sell grass fed, organic and naturally raised products, without the use of antibiotics or added hormones.

An Easy Make-Ahead Breakfast Casserole from Beretta Farms

The recipe had very few ingredients and was super easy to make ahead! It took me very little time to make the casserole, pop it in the fridge, and the next morning when my alarm went off I put it in the oven and voila! Breakfast was served and it was so much more impressive than cereal!

Not only were we on time for soccer that morning, but we had time for a Starbucks stop. It was a miracle really.

Check out this easy to make and yummy recipe below. The recipe is from Cynthia Beretta, founder of Beretta Farms.Thanks so much to Beretta Farms for delivering some fabulous food to our family, and for saving us some previous time in the morning!

To place your own Beretta Farms order, or to find a retailer near you visit www.berettafamilyfarms.com.

Beretta Breakfast Casserole

Ingredients

1 loaf fresh brioche egg bread, cubed
10 eggs, slightly beaten
4 cups milk
1 tsp Dijon mustard
½ cup chopped green onions
1 tsp each sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 lb Beretta Honey-Garlic Sausage, casings removed, crumbled and cooked
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
½ cup mushrooms, sliced
½ cup red pepper, chopped

Directions

Butter a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish. Arrange bread cubes in single layer. Sprinkle with
shredded cheddar cheese. Beat together the eggs, milk, mustard, salt, pepper, and
Worcestershire sauce. Pour over the bread and cheese. Sprinkle the crumbled sausage,
green onions, mushrooms, and chopped peppers overtop. Cover and chill overnight.
Preheat oven to 350F, and bake uncovered for 1 hour or until set.

Xoxo Mandy

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Roxymandy January 19, 2016

Winter White and Grey + Why I Try to Buy Classic Accessories

Jeans – American Eagle | Sweater – Dynamite | Pumps – Call it Spring | Scarf – Louis Vuitton Monogram Shawl | Handbag – Louis Vuitton Speedy 30 Damier Canvas Bag

I wear white jeans year-round which is wrong in terms of traditional style rules (no white after labour day!), but I think that is why it looks so good!

Practical it is not (I’ve actually shed a tear over ruined white jeans that I wore on a rainy, muddy day), but if you have the right weather and the right style they look amazing.

I think in the winter they look so great because the sky is so dull – white looks so clean on a dreary day.

The other thing not condusive to a white outfit is having a toddler. Mine has an uncontrollable addiction to both mud and ketchup, which is the perfect storm for an outfit disaster.

This look is new except for my Louis Vuitton scarf and Louis Vuitton speedy bag.

I don’t discriminate when it comes to shopping for outfits – I’ll wear anything from affordable brands like Forever 21, Zara, and H&M, to more mid-range like Aritzia, Club Monaco, and sometimes I splurge beyond, but not often.

When it comes to accessories, that is when I splurge. I always have a short list of 2-3 items I’m saving for over the year to add to my accessories collection, and because these items are more high-end, I tend to stear towards the classics.

Although I often love limited edition collections from designers, their price point can be difficult for me to splurge on if I know it’s so trendy it’s only going to be fashionable for a few seasons.

This Louis Vuitton scarf could never go out of style. The classic monogram pattern is timeless, and the colour is neutral enough to layer into almost any outfit.

I really love it as a stand-alone piece as well. It’s so gorgeous it deserves the spotlight.

My Louis Vuitton Speedy Damier canvas bag also follows my style rules of being a classic piece that won’t fall out of style over the years.

Hope you are having a great week!

Xoxo Mandy

Roxymandy January 18, 2016

5 Things You Should Know About Monster Jam!

5 Things You Need to Know About Monster Jam!

Having a boy has exposed me to a whole new world filled with weekends reading books about trucks, playing trucks on the floor, and talking about trucks. I spend many of our car rides looking for cool trucks to point out to my son so he gets a glimpse at one of his favourite things.

I had never been to Monster Jam before, but my son was incredibly excited to go so it was really a no brainer. I have to admit – it was pretty fun!

I know it sounds obvious, but the trucks were HUGE! I had never seen one in person before, so I was surprised how massive they were!

5 Things You Need to Know About Monster Jam!

We had a really great time, and if you are thinking about going to one of the upcoming shows, here are a few things you should know!

1. Ear plugs are a must! The show is extremely loud, so we bought some great ear protectors for my son at Walmart for $20, and we also heard that Princess Auto had them as well. Even when I was in the bathroom I had to keep my earplugs in – it’s that loud. Definitely bring some sort of ear protection with you.

2. There is a lot of enticing merchandise for kids at the show. They even have what looks like monster truck tire ear muffs at the show, but please note these are not actually ear protection – they are just for fun (thanks Steph for pointing that out to me!). There is everything from t-shirts, to snowcones in collectors cups, to toy monster trucks that all of the kids were going crazy for.

3. Monster Jam is not just for boys! As I said, I actually had a great time! It was really entertaining. There was a lot of action happening at once, and it was fun to watch. The girls in the crowd were going crazy for the lone female driver on the course.

4. There is a Pit Party before the main event. We missed out on tickets this year (they were sold out when we tried to get our hands on them), but we have heard it’s really fun and a great way to get up close to all of the featured trucks. Families can see the trucks up close and check out the track before the show. Buy early or you will miss out like we did. Normally the Pit Party is a few hours before the show, with a two hour break in between the Pit Party and show start.

5. Worried about a smaller child sitting through the show? If you have a small child or one that has a short attention span, note that the show is approximately 2.5 hours with an intermission. If you are worried about the length of the show, it’s good to know the first half is where all of the monster truck racing happens, and the second half is just for the monster trucks to do a freestyle of the course. If you are concerned about your child sitting through the whole show, you could just pick the half you would rather see and still have an amazing experience.

Monster Jam is likely coming to a city near you, so make sure to check out the show and see when you can attend it yourself!

For more information about Monster Jam, visit their website here!

Xoxo Mandy

Roxymandy January 16, 2016

A Roundup of All Things Pineapple

A Roundup of All Things Pinapple

I’m not sure what sparked it, but last year I started up quite the little curated collection of pineapple-themed items.

I bought everything from tanks and tee’s, necklaces, candles, and stationary. I find myself always looking for ways to redecorate with pineapple decor in my home!

I’ve been shopping around and have found so many cute finds along the way. I’m sharing my top picks for pineapple-themed items below just in case you have a strange obsession with this fruit like I do!