Instaaant Coffee.

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I'm sharing my instagram photos from this week a little early, as I'm currently in different province now, when I would usually be posting them :) This week had lots of ups and downs. Exam stress and exam-finishing joy, lots of coffee, going out to see my little sister's play, getting ice cream with my family, brunch with my bestie and lunch with my love (separate days of course...this time). I'm looking forward to a brand new week of french-related instagram photos and travel posts! Thanks for stopping by <3

Recipe: Cake Pops!

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Friends - I have an incredibly exciting recipe post for you today! I don't know if you share a similiar philosophy to mine, but I have found through extensive research that anything 'mini' is immediately adorable and usually more delicious. Yes, it could be mind over matter. But without the concept of "mini being better," we wouldn't have things like Timbits, teacup pigs, tiny bananas, or purse-dogs. Alright, the world could probably do with a few less dogs in purses. They're so twitchy. Gross.
On the bright side, I tried my hand at Red Velvet cake pops and came out on top. I made them for a double-date movie night with my boyfriend and our best couple friends. I do feel as though I've failed, however, because the baking supplies stores I called were out of sticks. So these are cake...balls. Sans stick. If you were to put in the stick - just dip it in some melted chocolate and stick it in prior to dunking.
I originally got the recipe from A Beautiful Mess's blog!

Cake Pop Recipe:
- cooked cake (preferably from a box, no need for fancy prep when you're gonna mush it up)
- frosting of some kind (I used cream cheese for this one)
- chocolate for melting and/or decorating
- lollipop sticks

1. Break up your cake and add 1-2 cups of frosting, mixing together with your hands.
2. Form into balls and place on a plate to chill in the fridge for 1-2 hours.
3. Melt chocolate either in microwave or double-broiler, and dip your chilled balls of cake (with stick, if you're doing it correctly) and stick in something to help them cool upright such as a foam block.
4. Chill again to solidify chocolate.
5. Eat all the cake pops before your family comes home!

Recipe: Gluten Free Blueberry Muffins!

Follow @caraallover Hi friends! I don't know if you're like me and have experienced complications between my body and gluten, or the incredibly turmoil it takes to find gluten-free foods. Let alone tasty ones. And when you do, you have to save up about a week's salary to afford a box of cookies. And then they'll still probably taste like fine-ground newspaper. The best way to fix this is to make your own treats, and though they might take a little extra work and a few wacky ingredients, it's better than the stuff that comes out of the box. This are some muffins I baked for my mom's staff meeting. Original recipe can be found here :) Yes, these pictures are weirdly blurry.

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• Gluten Free Blueberry Muffins Recipe:

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• Ingredients:
• 2 cups gluten-free all-purpose baking flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 2/3 cup agave nectar
• 2/3 cup rice milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup fresh blueberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 and line a 12-muffin pan 

2. Whisk dry ingredients together in large bowl

3. Stir in the agave, oil, milk and vanilla, but be careful not to over-mix

4. Fold in the blueberries as gently as possible - don't want to over-work the dough or mush the berries!

5. Divide evenly in muffin pan, approx. 1/3 cup of batter for each

6. Bake for 15 minutes, rotate the pan around, then bake for another 7

7. Don't touch them for approx. 15 minutes because they will be hot as they were just in an oven. 

* These have a interesting texture, kinda raw. like dipping a big spoon into a tub of icing. I like them, but you may not. Of course, if you're gluten-intolerant, beggars can't be choosers ok?

What I Wore: Peach and Mint

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Happy Tuesday! I know, it's really not that exciting of a day. It's not even hump day. The week is barely beginning! But that's ok, because wherever you are I'm sure it didn't snow like it did last night in Canada. So feel blessed. And if you are here, I feel your pain and we'll get through this together. It has already melted and the sun is sort of shining. This outfit is something I pulled together really quickly the other day. I love the skirt, but not so much a big fan of this combo. Oh well, I tried! My allergies are also beginning to go haywire, so hence the little coverage of my adorably sneezy face. This skirt was only $20 at a cute store called Harmony in downtown Guelph, and I plan to wear it as much as possible  for brunches with girls, and drinks on summer patios. Have a good day readers <3

top: Aeropostale (I think), skirt: Harmony, watch: eBay, bracelet: Aldo Accessories

Blog of the Moment!

Follow @caraallover Hey guys. So I just had to share with you my recent blog crush right now. It's Kaylah over at The Dainty Squid! She has only the cutest style that I am nowhere near daring enough to try to pull off. I recently browsed her Etsy store and immediately fell in love. I can just here my mother yelling "Why would you buy something that looks like what Nonna wore when I was born! Just look in her closet!" And the answer to that is - "Mother, Nonna is 5 feet tall and round-Italian-grandmother-shaped. I am far from that. That's why I browse vintage inspired Etsy stores, ok? Anyway, these are some picks I'm just swooning over :) Especially the first pink smock, and blue dress <3

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Outfit Post: Business Woman!

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Howdy. Happy Sunday! I'm having trouble keeping my eyes open as I type this because I've been up since very early in the AM. I got up for a quickie road trip with the BF this morning, luckily we made a pit stop to Timmy's. On the bright side, we sold his un-used longboard! But that's irrelevant. Ignore me. Hopefully going in to Backpeddling to get my bike fixed today if I can get my butt up off the couch. I went to my little sister's school play last night with my fam and it's absolutely crazy how fast they grow up - I could have sworn she was 6 years old yesterday, now she's turning 13? Oh, and she's super tall all of a sudden. Either way, I was so proud :') Then we celebrated with ice cream. Obviously, how else do you celebrate? I also wanted to send a big thank-you out, because last week I passed 1000 views after only a few months of being up and running :) I don't know how important that is, but I'm pretty excited about it - so thanks x 1000! (Get it?)

blazer: thrifted, top: Bluenotes, necklace: West49, jeans: American Eagle, shoes: PayLess

What I Wore: Hanging Out

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Hello friends. You've caught me amidst what I like to call my natural habitat. Also known as "chilling." It mostly involves something comfy, and very little effort. I do a lot of this "chilling" as I really have nothing else to do. And good gracious, it was hot yesterday. I wore this sweater because it was like, 5 degrees all morning and raining. But that's Ontario - raining than sunshine. And humidity. Hence the hair. I hope you've got fun things planned for your Saturday - I am shockingly STILL unpacking. And organizing. And throwing things out. As overwhelming and a pain in the ass as spring cleaning is, it's so refreshing and I feel instantly lighter as I drag a garbage bag of old clothes off to donate. Mostly because it leaves room for more clothes, teehee :)

sweater: Bluenotes Outlet, dress: Garage Clothing, watch: eBay

New Toy! (+Rambling)

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Guess who just got back from the dentist? Me. Guess who got a cavity filled? Me. And guess whose mouth is so frozen she looks like half of The Joker when she smiles? You guessed it. I do. It's fun to have your mouth frozen in a way but also not at all. For example, I am starving (they made me get up early, ugh) and can't eat until I can move my mouth, probably another hour. If you know me, this is nearly impossible. I already tried to suck back blended cake and donuts through a straw. Alright, that is a story I made up - but only because we don't have any cake or donuts in the house.

The point to this story is that you may not be seeing my creepy half-smiling for a bit and decided to show you my new and most prized possession - my new bike! I've been searching for one forever, and surprisingly haven't bought one even though my boyfriend works in the biggest bike shop in Ontario (probably). How sad is that?

Anyway, here are some shots! Just need the seat raised to suit my freakish spider long legs and it's good to go :) The vintage editing is of course because it's a vintage bike. I'm so Guelph. Thanks Neils for the awesome bike!

What I Wore: Miss. Dress-Up

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Hooray! I'm free! No more books. Teachers. Class. Exams. Now what am I going to do with myself? Probably not much. But think about the money I'll save on coffee since I can technically sleep til noon now! I could get a gym membership? YA, OK. Maybe take up a hobby? Only time will tell. I can, however, start practicing my french in anticipation for our trip to Quebec next Sunday. We've been planning this for months, and I can't believe it's actually happening now! 

So this skirt is awesome. It was an impulse buy. 60% off. It has pockets, people. That's like kryptonite. You understand. 

I didn't try it on (elastic waistbands are pretty much a one-for-all kinda thing), and luckily it fits perfectly. It suffocates my waste into Size 000 proportions. But whatever! This has been enough blabbering. Have a wonderful day, ok? <3 

Top: Joe Fresh, Skirt: Skirt Store, Heels: Payless