Over a year ago, I started a monthly series called My Love List. I intended to post on the first Monday of the month, because I love a schedule almost as much as I love lists.
I am now ditching this schedule, for a few reasons. I don’t love posting on Mondays, and I don’t always have five Love things to share. There was no Love List in February, because it was buried under all the snow. Or maybe because I actually have to venture out and find things to love, and I haven’t been doing much of that this year. I did share a huge new Love (The Walking Dead) and my always Loves (books), and my Ordinary Loves.
I missed my Love List, though. So from now on, I will share it when I have enough to share, regardless of the day or month. If I can fly by the seat of my pants, so can you!
There are referral/affiliate links in this post, which earn me huge kickbacks. By huge kickbacks, I mean chump change.
1. Awesome sterling silver earrings from Linkouture
I have been eyeing Bev’s handmade jewelry for over a year, and when she created these earrings I knew I had to have them. I love buying handcrafted items, and these earrings are perfect for every day. They are big enough to see through my hair, and light and comfortable enough to leave in for hours. The added bonus is that I’m supporting a friend and a talented lady! You can buy your own earrings at Linkouture’s etsy shop, or pin it here to save for later. Bev’s photo is better than mine, but I wanted to show off my own personal pair:
2. Skinny banana chocolate chip muffins
My home is a graveyard for bananas. I buy them, a few get eaten, and the rest brown and die on my counter. I found this recipe on Pinterest, and it’s perfect for using up the overripe bananas. You can find the recipe I used at Shugary Sweets, which is ironic because the recipe uses absolutely no sugar. It calls for one cup of regular flour and one cup of whole wheat, but I used two cups of whole wheat. I also substituted regular vanilla yogurt because I didn’t have any Greek. You can pin the recipe here.
My kids devoured these, but not quite as quickly as I did. They asked for a second batch, so I obliged, using blueberry yogurt this time because it was all I had left. I couldn’t even tell a difference, and I ate more than my share once again. I did wait long enough to take a photo, though.
3. Audible audio books
I have been very resistant to audio books, but in December, Amazon (who owns Audible) made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. My three month trial is coming to an end, and I am now an enthusiastic listener. I listen when I walk the dog (much safer than reading), when I’m in the car, and when I’m doing things around the house that don’t require concentration.
Membership is $14.95 a month, and for that price you receive one book of your choice and 30% off other books. You can cancel and rejoin at any time, which I will probably do because I’m not always going to listen to a book a month.
If you’re interested, click the graphic for a free 30-day trial. You will get TWO free books, and you can stock up on any other sale books during that membership. Once you download a book, it’s yours to keep even if you cancel after the trial.
4. DIY granite cleaner
When I ran out of my Better Life all-purpose cleaner last month, I made my own. How Martha Stewart of me, right? Not really – I used Clean Mama’s granite cleaner tutorial, which includes three ingredients, one of which is optional. You can pin it here.
My first thought was to throw white vinegar in the mix, since that seems to be a staple in DIY cleaners. Clean Mama set me straight, though. Vinegar is too acidic for my granite countertops, and would eventually destroy the finish. Her recipe includes castile soap, which I’ve always seen at Trader Joe’s but never had a clue as to what to do with it. Now I do! Bonus: The cost to fill my old cleaner’s spray bottle with the castile soap and water was less than a dime.
Notice the bananas on the counter…I’ll be making those muffins within the week.
5. Snorg Tees
A text conversation between Matt and me last month, after I picked up a package from Snorg Tees from our front step:
They weren’t matching t-shirts. Snorg Tees has hundreds of t-shirts for adults and kids, as well as other accessories. Each one has something funny or witty on it, and this is the one that Matt bought for me:
It may not be flowers or jewelry, but it certainly shows how well my husband knows me. The next time you need a fun gift for someone, check out Snorg Tees. Or just peruse their website for a good laugh. Any shop that has a “bacon” category is one worth visiting.
What are you loving this month?
i really want to do audible, but it’s not supported on my piece of crap work blackberry.
That stinks! I’m surprised so many businesses are still insisting on blackberries.
i’m hooked! i downloaded audible onto a very old iphone 4. would love any recommendations to listen to. so far, i’ve done “Everything I Never Told You” and “The Girl on the Train.” they were both great to listen to! i tried a few minutes of “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn” and i haven’t been able to get into it.
Check out my post tomorrow, Catherine – half of the books I review are audio. One is The Girl on the Train – I agree that it was a great listen!
We are audible fans. It helps me get through my ginormous reading list and allows me to use my commuting time for good not evil. Although, sometimes I get a book and it’s narrator is simply awful. Loved the tshirt. So funny.
I haven’t had a bad narrator yet; I preview them first and so far, so good!
3. Audible audio books!
Let me tell ya, Dana, I am HOOKED and obsessed w/ audio books.
I’ve listened to 100s on my walks.
Heavenly.
Some of my favorites were: The Help, Lolita (read by Jeremy Irons!), To Kill a Mockingbird, The Book of Ruth, Traveling Mercies, Poisonwood Bible, The Invention of Wings ……….On and on and on….
Such a gift.
xxx Great list.
Thanks Kim! I really am enjoying the audio books, much more than I thought I would.
I’m really relived that you’re not the kind of person to wear matching t-shirts like that- I would have had to adjust my whole perception. Very sweet surprise gift from Matt- he sure knows you!
I would not wear matching t-shirts if you paid me. Honestly, I wouldn’t wear the shirt he got me out in public either, except for the gym. But it makes me smile.
I love that tee! So funny 🙂
Thanks!
I think we have the same granite countertop! Total twins there.
And we always have leftover brown bananas. Not sure why no one eats them when they’re perfect because they’re either green or brown around here. And those kinds of recipes make me happy. Less waste.
Bev’s jewelry always stuns me.
Anytime I can use up a food item instead of tossing it, I’m happy. And you have good taste in granite 🙂
I have pinned the granite cleaning tip and will be using it for the long-overdue super cleaning of my countertops! I love wacky t-shirts as do all the members of my family. Thanks so much for pointing me in the direction of Snorg Tees. Isn’t Bev’s work beautiful?!?! I keep hoping that I will be in Boston some time that she is showing at a craft show so I can both buy some jewelry AND meet her in person!
Also, you will be happy to know that I did sign up for Ebates. Thanks for that tip, too!
You’re very welcome, Mo! I think Bev needs to travel to craft shows closer to me so I can meet her too!
My list of thoughts as I read this:
1. My house is a banana graveyard, too!
2. She made muffins, what the hell has gotten into her?
3. Whaaat, she made homemade granite cleaner? I feel like a slouch now.
4. Dana is so witty. Matt has the best dry sense of humor. Together they are hysterical!
5. Your photo shop skills are top notch!
6. Aww, he knows her so well!
7. I always love your blog posts, that’s on my Loves List for this month!
2. I know! I do bake every once in awhile, but don’t tell anyone.
3. It was literally water and soap. Don’t be impressed.
4. Aww, thanks!
7. Yay! Thank you Laura. I’m so glad you love them. I read your comment this weekend and it made me smile, huge.
I’m loving that I lunched with you this month and am bummed I’m not on the list. Love your texts with Matt and the tshirt he got you!!! And I’ve been an Audible customer for years – back when I had a long work commute, it saved me. I never cancelled my membership so when I get too many credits, I gift them to my dad for Father’s day or whatever – and tell him to go shopping on my account. Love them! Also bananas gross me out because when people eat them they sound icky but those muffins look amazing!
I’m sorry you’re not on the list – it’s not that kind of list! But I did love lunching with you – you know that. That’s a great idea to share your Audible books; I’ll have to keep that in mind.
The one thing I love the most this March is the fact that I’m finally getting to a point where I’m confident enough to say, “I deserve better. I know what I want and this ain’t it. I am not going to a damn thing I don’t want to do just because someone says I have to.” Strangely, that even includes schoolwork. I’m a journalism major who is fed up with the track for print majors. I’m finally sticking up for myself and declaring I’ve had enough.
Good for you, Kim! That’s an empowering feeling, and you do deserve better.
Ha! Love that tee. I’ve thought about audio books. I could get through books a lot faster if I could listen to them on the treadmill and in the car. It just always felt weird to me, though, to think about some strange voice reading to me. Maybe I’ll have to try it, though.
You should do the free trial, Lisa. You can listen to an excerpt before you get a book to see if you like the narrator. I got used to it pretty quickly.
Those muffins look so tasty!
Oh, they were. And I only made 12 instead of the recommended 18, so they were BIG and tasty.
I love that shirt!! My daughter has started saying “literally” a lot, but she actually uses it correctly. It’s still annoying though. It’s such an overused word!
It really is. Which is a shame, because it’s such a good one.
Confession: I am that one freak in the universe who does not like chocolate. I know…I’ll go crawl back into my hole now with my plain banana muffins.
I’m envious of you…I’d be my ideal weight if I didn’t like chocolate!
I have a friend at work who loves banana-chocolate chip muffins and though I’m not a baker I may have to give those a try! I like that there is no sugar in them. I recently made banana pancakes that turned pretty good. I always wind up with overripe bananas because it’s just me eating at home. Your text exchange with Matt was hysterical! I could read stuff like that all day long. I literally laughed out loud (insert video of Mike laughing out loud while reading your text exchange)!! 🙂 Have a great day and a great weekend, Dana! 🙂
Thanks Mike – you too! And thanks for sharing on Twitter 🙂
I always love your lists, Dana, and this one is no exception!
Thanks for all the new ideas (especially Snorg – loved reading that great interaction between you and Matt :)).
Sometimes our text conversations are better than our real ones – is that bad to say? I love that I can re-read them and smile all over again.
Hmmm. I Have everything in that recipe but my yogurt is peach and strawberry. I’ve got to make something. I’ve got enough smoothie bananas in the fridge. My go to in banana bread because I can control myself. When it comes out of the oven I slice off both ends and eat that and that’s it.
We actually use Dr. Bonner’s as soap soap. It’s wonderful in the summer time because it makes you feel cool after your shower. But just a word of caution – it’s not private part friendly. I won’t say “his” name but you know who, when he was little said it made his pee pee hurt. LOL!
Use the flavored yogurt – I couldn’t even taste the blueberry when I used it instead of vanilla. And thanks for the soap warning – poor kid!
What a fun idea! Though I completely understand how having a certain type of post scheduled can lead to a bit of exhaustion. They always sound better than they turn out, don’t they? Love the shirt story…I would totally try to pull that on my husband, too.
He was really amusing himself; it was kinda cute.
Thanks for the list and for the muffin recipe (you had mentioned it to me before). I made them this morning (with substitutions because I am not driving to the store in the snow!) and they are delicious! Rave reviews from the child who is awake. The other one will probably have a muffin for lunch! Thanks!
Yay – I’m glad they were a hit! You’ll have to tell me about your substitutions when we can actually walk outside again.
Welcome to the world of Audible! I am addicted and listen at the same times. Honestly, I don’t think I could get through my purging quest, with out my audio books. I think you should get matching shirts for your trip. Just think of all the opinions Europeans have of Americans that you’d be validating! Don’t laugh at me, but I have a t-shirt made ach your for our family road trip and make everyone where it somewhere big – like Niagara Falls.
I’m not laughing; I think it’s cute. For your family 😉
I love your love lists. .can I just have them all in one spot or can I go back and find them all? ? I want to make a list. ..this is one of my fav things you do.
So I have a pair of those earrings but got them in old ec..now I want another to support your friend. I wonder if she made them?
love the muffin recipe but really all whole wheat? ?? You know I don’t dig brown bread!
The text thread is so damn funny. ..I want that tshirt too..quinns fav word is literally, literally. I think I used it wrong:)
Keep listing babe I love it! ! Love you happy Friday.
If you click on the Love List on the menu, or the graphic on the side bar, that will show you all the lists. And yes, Bev did make the earrings – she makes all of her jewelry.
I used white whole wheat flour from Trader Joe’s, so it’s not very brown…
Happy Friday to you too!
Oh wow, I’m so honored to have my earrings featured! What a lovely surprise to read this morning. I’m totally with you on these lists. I didn’t get around to doing my Friday Finds last month, because sometimes life and other things get in the way. I always enjoy your lists, and glad to know why it didn’t happen last month. (Apparently it was a February things?) So now I really want to try those muffins (we always have a handful in our freezer cause they often seem to go bad before we can eat them all) AND I learned I need to stop using my vinegar cleaner on my countertops. Good to know!
I was so happy to feature them, Bev. I really love them. The muffins are yummy and I’m sure they freeze well. They don’t stick around long enough around here, though.
I love that you included Bev’s earrings here and I am like you with a schedule as once I try to incorporate one, especially in blogging I have found I have a harder time sticking to it, too.
I’ve learned that no one really cares but me, so it’s easier to let go!
HaHa – I love that T-shirt almost as much as y’alls texitng conversation!!!
And those earring are gorgeous – might need to go check the site out.
You should, Kim. Bev does beautiful work.