Friday Pick-Six: 3/23/18

Here's what we're loving and living for this week!

1.  How cute are these pants that Jess snagged on sale this week?  Looking forward to wearing them with a strappy heel once it finally warms up!

2.  We love this upcoming collaboration between Keds and Rifle Paper Co.  These will be perfect for spring!

3.  Our grandma is celebrating her 100th birthday this week!  Can you believe it?  In honor of her birthday, we thought we'd share a similar recipe to her signature cookies.  She fries a batch of these up at Christmastime and they always go fast!  Happy Birthday, Grandma!

4.  If you're looking for a killer workout, try this 30-minute tabata on Popsugar.  It will get you working hard in hardly any time!

5.  Mark your calendars, the Royal Wedding is coming on May 19th!  Harry and Meghan have sent their official invitations and you can see them here.

6.  Are you guys following our favorite gal, Jennifer Garner, on Instagram?  She's the cutest and super relatable.  She has shared some cute cooking videos, which you can check out here.

What are you loving and living for this week?  Let us know in the comments below and TGIF!

Friday Pick-Six: 3/16/18

Here's what we're loving and living for this week!

1.  Last week, I saw Black Panther and it was awesome!  The effects and stunts were amazing.  I sure spent time this week looking up what workouts Lupita and the other stars used to get in insane shape! --J

2.  Have you guys watched the new season of Queer Eye on Netflix?  We were fans of the original makeover show and the new one is just as great.  We love the new Fab Five and the transformations are so great!

3.  I recently bought these exercise sliders after doing a Popsugar workout from David Kirsch (J-Lo's trainer).  Hoping they'll make me look like JLO! --R

4.  How cute are these pink Keds?  Do you think I can pull them off for spring? --J

5. I used these tips for early morning travel survival on a recent trip to Las Vegas.  Give them a try if you have an early morning flight coming up! --R

6.  Since this weekend is March Madness, it's as good a time as any to remind you of Ry's Chex Mix recipe.  We will be making it this weekend, no doubt about it!

What are you loving and living for this week?  Let us know in the comments below and have a great weekend!

Spring Beauty Faves

As always, when the seasons change, we change up our beauty routines.  This spring, we've been adding quite a few new products to our beauty lineup.  Here are some of our new favorites!

Top Row (Left to Right):

• NYX #thisiseverything Lip Oil:  We picked this super shiny lip oil after it was featured on Popsugar.  The color is great and it's not sticky like many lip glosses.

• Julep With a Twist Mascara:  After my favorite mascara ran out, I ordered this, hoping to love it.  It has an adjustable applicator to add either volume, length or both to your lashes.  As with most Julep products, I'm a fan! --J

• Pacifica Disobey Time mask:  Rose is one of our favorite beauty elements lately and this mask is an easy way to incorporate it into your day.  This mask will leave your skin glowy and moisturized.

• Essie TLC in Power Punch Pink and Indi-Go-For-It and spring polish in Bon Boyage:  We're huge fans of the Essie Treat Love Color treatment polishes and these shades are perfect for spring.

Bottom Row (Left to Right):

• CO Bigelow Lavender Salve:  This stuff reminds us of our favorite Rosebud Salve but has a springy lavender scent.  Try it on your cuticles or dry skin, too!

• Bliss Spa Fabulips Lip Scrub:  Bliss Spa recently relaunched their beauty products and you can find them at Target now (launching online on 3/18).  This lip scrub is perfect for helping your dry winter lips.

• Garnier Facial Mist Spray with Rosewater:  Another rose-based product, this spray is perfect for when your skin needs a little boost of moisture and freshness.  Try it after a shower, after makeup removal or a workout.  It would also be perfect for travel.  

• Jo Malone London Peony & Blush Suede Cologne:  I got this as a free sample with my recent Nordstrom order and fell in love.  It's a little floral, a little flirty and perfect for spring. --J

• ELF x Christian Siriano Makeup bag:  How cute is this makeup bag from this cool celeb collaboration?

What is your new favorite beauty product for spring?  Let us know in the comments below!

Friday Pick-Six: 3/9/18

Here's what we're loving and living for this week!

1.  We always get excited for great Target collaborations and this week, they announced an upcoming collection with Hunter!  You better believe we'll be standing in line for this one!

2.  We love stripes in any season, but they're especially great in the spring and summer.  Jess immediately ordered these earrings after spotting them 40% off at JCrew last week!   Can't wait to rock them!

3.  You guys know how much we love Smitten Kitchen and this week, we tried her black bean soup.  It was awesome served up with a little avocado toast on a Meatless Monday!

4.  It's time again for the GAP Friends and Family sale.  Everything is 40% off and free shipping with the code FRIEND.  We've got our eye on a few new arrivals for Spring including this top, and this floral dress.

5.  If you're looking for a great neutral nail polish that's perfect as a spring transitional color, try Essie Mixtaupe!  I tried it this week and my nails looked super professional and pretty all week! --J

6.  We each pinned this recipe for Penne ala Vodka to Pinterest within minutes of one another, so it must be a good recipe!  Going to have to try it out soon!

What are you loving and living for this week?  Let us know in the comments below and have a great weekend!

Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Cake

Hi all, it's Jess, baking again, as usual.  My kiddo loves something sweet for breakfast, so I'm always trying to find recipes for breakfast baked goods that aren't loaded with butter and sugar.  After seeing this lemon blueberry cake from Real Simple pop up on Pinterest, I knew we had to try it!

First things first, we gathered all our ingredients, all of which we had in the pantry or freezer. (Mom tip--frozen berries are a freezer staple!)

Mix together your dry ingredients (I know the recipe is a little different, but I try to keep it as simple as possible on a Sunday) in a bowl.  You're going to add a tablespoon of flour to mix together with the blueberries.  This will keep them from sinking to the bottom of the loaf.

Whisk together the yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla.  I like to do this in my mixing bowl with the pouring spout, since it makes it easier to put into the pan.

Mix in your dry ingredients.  It will look a little thick at this point.  Then, stream in the oil as you whisk.  It might look like it's separated at first but will come together quickly.  Fold in the blueberries once it comes together.  Don't overmix it!

Sprinkle on the sugar, or you can be fancy like me and add cinnamon sugar.  Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Let it cool a little before removing it from the pan and enjoy!

This cake is so easy and you most likely have everything in your house already!  It definitely tastes like a pound cake but doesn't have that pound of butter!  I was thinking that it would be super simple to substitute in other flavors to change it up, too.  This summer, I'll definitely try subbing blackberries and lime for the blueberries and lemon!  Also, if you want to make up a batch of lemon sugar for sprinkling on top, it would reinforce the flavors deliciously!

Give it a try and let me know how it goes in the comments!

TTO the Trend: Strappy Sandals

One of our favorite things about spring is switching to sandals!  Of course, it's not *quite* warm enough here, but that won't stop us from doing a little scouting and shopping.  Here are some of our favorite sandals out right now!

Top Row: (Left to Right): orange block sandal, Gladiator sandal, strappy flat, rose gold sandal

Bottom Row: (Left to Right): Knotted sandal, yellow block heel, navy mule, pink block heel

Will you be wearing strappy sandals this spring?  Which are your favorite?  Let us know in the comments below!

Friday Pick-Six: 3/2/18

Here's what we're loving and living for this week!

1.  Last week, we featured a post about our favorite bright lip colors as one of the latest beauty trends.  Check out this video tutorial on Popsugar featuring another adorable set of twins, Shanae and Shaniece Cole on how they rock this trend.

2.  Her recipes are always amazing, but how good does Smitten Kitchen's take on the classic boxed macaroni and cheese look?  We may need to give this a try soon!

3.  After seeing this Lavender Salve on one of our favorite blogs, Sweet Southern Prep, this week, I knew I had to order it.  I'm looking forward to comparing it to my old favorite, Smith's Rosebud salve.

4.  We upped our Taco Tuesday game with these fridge pickled veggies this week and they were awesome.  Next time, I think we'll add a jalapeno or two! I think they'd be great not just on tacos, but on a sandwich (pulled pork?), burger or whatever!

5.  The Oscars are Sunday!  Will you be watching?  Ry hosts an annual party (complete with swag bags), so we'll be watching together.

6.  If you love Meghan Markle (the Duchess to be)'s dress at her speaking engagement earlier this week, but the Jason Wu dress is too pricey, check out this article with some similar looks!  We knew we loved her--she also rocks navy and black together, which is one of our favorite looks!

What are you loving and living for this week?  Let us know in the comments below and TGIF!

Happy Blogaversary!

Can you believe it that it's been a whole year since we launched The Twins Take On?  The last year has been so busy for both of us!  We have really enjoyed sharing our takes on everything from recipes to trends to vacations to nail polish!  We hope that you have enjoyed reading, too.

We're looking forward to bringing you even more in our second year of TTO!  Thanks for all your love and support as our faithful readers!  We couldn't do it without you!  Stay tuned to see what we have in the works!