Friday Pick-Six: 5/12/17

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

1.  Masters of None season two premieres tonight!  We loved this funny and realistic series about dating, family and friendship from the hilarious Aziz Ansari (aka Tom Haverford).  We can't wait to make some fancy pasta, open a bottle of wine and watch!

2.  Don't forget that Sunday is Mother's Day!  You can revisit our Mother's Day Gift Guide for some tips for last minute gifts.  For a gift that will please most any mom, try out these amazing lounge pants from GAP.  They're lightweight and so comfy!  I can't stop wearing them and want them in every color!  Plus, the GAP Cash redemption started this week, so if you earned GAP cash in April, you can take $25 off a purchase of $50! --J

3.  One of our favorite jewelry sources, Baublebar, is having a sale this weekend!  You can take 20% one item with the code SAVE20, 25% off two items with the code SAVE25 and 30% 3 items with the code SAVE30.  We've got our eyes on this Kiara necklace , black and white piñata tassel earrings and this chic acrylic monogram bracelet.

4.  A combination of Benefit High Beam and this killer tutorial from one of our blog heroes, the amazing Eva Martino, are saving our tired looking eyes these days.  If you're short on sleep or if spring allergies are making your eyes puffy (Pollen, we hate you!), try it out!

5.  Smoothies can make for a great breakfast or post-workout snack, but too often they're loaded with sugar.  I made this Blueberry Oat smoothie recipe to share with the kiddo and it was delicious and filling.  You could also substitute almond milk and frozen banana for the milk/yogurt if you're dairy-free.--J

6.  On the recommendation of one of our favorite bloggers, Julie from Peanut Butter Fingers, we recently tried White Claw Hard Seltzer.  These low-carb, 110 calorie alcoholic drinks come in three different flavors.  They taste like an alcoholic version of our favorite LaCroix.  They're definitely going to be a summertime must-have around here!

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

No-Bake Cookies

Every holiday season, our Aunt Margaret (Hi Maggie!) bakes cookies.  We're talking boat-loads of cookies here.  Each year, she tries to limit herself to "Favorites Only" but unlucky for her, we all have different favorites!  So, she's stuck baking sugar cookies for one person (Ry) and Molasses cookies for someone else (Hi Mom).  Even after she pares things down, she still spends the days leading up to Christmas baking her little tush off.

The recipe that follows is Jess's personal favorite, the No-Bake.  These cookies are easy to make and filled with the delicious combination of peanut butter and chocolate.  The best part is that you probably have everything to make them in your pantry right now!  We aren't sure of the exact origin of this recipe and there are probably several variations floating around on Pinterest, but here's the one we use.

Aunt Margaret's No-Bake Cookies 

• 2 cups white sugar
• 1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter (We always use unsalted)
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 cups oatmeal (Can use quick-cook or old fashioned)
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/2-1 cup nuts (She uses walnuts, but you can add whatever you have or omit these)

Directions: 

Add the first 5 ingredients to a large saucepan on medium heat.  Melt the ingredients together and bring to a boil.  Boil for 2 minutes then turn off the heat and cool slightly.  

Then stir in the remaining ingredients.  

Let the entire mixture cool and then roll (or scoop) into balls.  (Maggie's look a little more perfect than ours, we just scoop and leave it at that).  We like to line a cookie sheet with Silpat to cool them on, but you could easily use wax paper.

Cool in your refrigerator and then enjoy!  These last for a few days in the fridge in an airtight container.  

Give them a try and let us know what you think!

Twins Take on the Wardrobe: Summer Wedding Wear

Summertime often means Wedding Season.  As great as attending the weddings of family and friends can be, you're often stuck trying to find just the right outfit to wear.  As you probably know, different dresses are right for different times of day or venues.  We decided to round up a few of our favorite options for any wedding you might attend this year.  Read on and stress out no more!

Scenario: Morning Wedding and Brunch Reception

Our buzz words for a morning wedding outfit are classy and cheerful.  Daytime weddings allow you to experiment with print and color and allow for shorter lengths.  As it can be a little chilly in the morning, you might want to add a cardigan or wrap to your outfit.  You don't want to show a lot of skin in the morning, so keep things a little more conservative.  Here are a few dresses we would wear to a morning wedding brunch.

How pretty is this eyelet detailing?

This color blue!

Obsessed after seeing this on one of our favorite bloggers, Ashley!

Scenario: Beach Wedding

This event calls for a casual, but still thoughtful outfit.  You don't want to look out of place, but you also don't want to look like you're at the beach to catch some rays either.  You also want a dress where you can move around, as you'll likely be walking across the beach to stand/sit for the ceremony.  We like a boho-inspired look for a beach wedding.  It strikes the right balance between not-too-fancy and beach coverup.  Also, don't forget to look for shoes that work on the beach, if you're actually standing on sand for the ceremony.  There's nothing worse than watching your evening wear shoes fill with sand!  For this look, give these dresses a try!

A gingham gown?  Swoon!

Lilly Pulitzer always gets it right!

Nautical-inspired for the beach?  Groundbreaking...

Scenario Evening Wedding and Ballroom Reception:

This wedding gives you the chance to pull out all the stops and go full-on glam.  We may be non-traditional, but we are okay with black at an evening wedding as it usually projects elegance and sophistication.  Length of your dress can be long or short, as long as your dress brings the drama.  Since most evening weddings involve a big dance party, don't forget to think about your comfort level dancing the night away!

This lace and detailing!  

Did somebody say "Drama?"

How elegant is this?  With a great chandelier earring?  Forget it!

Are you attending any summer weddings?  What are you planning to wear?  Leave us a comment below!

Friday Pick-Six: 5/5/17

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

1.  It's Cinco de Mayo today!  We are planning to celebrate with our mom and aunt with some chips, salsa and Margaritas!  If you're in a fiesta mood today, try out these great recipes!

• Our Easiest and Best Guacamole Ever!
• 15 Margaritas You Have to Try
• Crockpot Barbacoa
• Sheet Pan Nachos

2.  If it ever gets (and stays) warm, we are going to break out our sandals.  We spotted these on Instagram earlier in the week and how adorable are they?  Great price, too!

3.  We are big-time fans of La Croix sparkling water.  These drinks have no calories, fat, or sugar but they still taste amazing.  We love every flavor, but our recent favorite is this Blackberry Cucumber flavor.  It's crisp, refreshing and super summery!

4.  We seriously need to do a post about how much we are loving the clothes selection at Target right now.  Merona always has some great stuff (at great prices) and the Who What Wear line is killing it. Ry recently picked up this top and it is perfect for work with a black trouser or with jeans and a block-heel sandal for dinner out.  At only $25, I think we need all three colors!!

5.  Anyone who knows us, knows we love rose', however sometimes it's just inconvenient to worry about bring a glass bottle of wine around town with you.  Well, we were recently introduced to Trader Joe's Simpler Wines Italian Sparkling Wine and we fell in love.  These tasty sparkling wines come in 6-ounce cans that are perfect for a BBQ, the beach or just watching Real Housewives.  Plus, the four-pack clocked in at under $5. We just know these are going to be a staple around the Twins Take On Headquarters this summer! 

6.  We've been excited to try to the Honest Beauty line available at Target since its launch.  Honest is a company co-founded by Jessica Alba that provides great products with all natural ingredients.  We think our first order will be this Honest Beauty Truly Kissable Lip Crayon.  We love this type of lip product and the color selection looks awesome!  We'll let you know what we think when our order arrives!

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

Twins Take on Entertaining: Kentucky Derby Party!

Ryan here.  Anyone who knows me knows I have always loved the Kentucky Derby (I got it from my mama who loves it too!)  Last year, I had the once in a lifetime opportunity to see it in person.  Yes, that picture above is actually one I took during the actual Run for the Roses!

The First Saturday in May is this weekend, and even if you can't make it to Churchill Downs, you can still have a great time watching with family and friends at home.   Here are a few recipes and tips so that your pals will feel like they're deep in the heart of My Old Kentucky Home...

Step One:  Drinks!

Everyone knows you can't do the Derby without a Mint Julep.  This traditional cocktail is simple to make and doesn't require a lot of fancy ingredients.   Here's the classic recipe-- feel free to use whatever bourbon you like.  I'm partial to Bulleit (we visited the distillery when we were in town and it was awesome), but some other great reasonably priced brands are Evan Williams and Buffalo Trace.

For folks who aren't bourbon fans, in addition to Mint Juleps, they also served the Lily, the official drink of the Kentucky Oaks (which takes place the day before the Derby).  Believe me, they are quite tasty and refreshing on a warm spring day.

Step Two:  The Menu

At my Derby parties, I like to serve some of my favorite Southern dishes.  Some of the greatest hits over the years include:

• Shrimp and Grits
• BBQ Brisket- in the oven or smoked
• Hush puppies
• Sugared pecans
• Traditional Caramel Cake (Ok, I've never made this one, but someone should... Jess?  Looking in your direction ;)

Step Three: Ambiance

You don't have to know what a boxed trifecta is to make a friendly wager on the Derby.  Believe me, it took a day's worth of betting (along with some serious assistance from our cashier at the betting window and my BFF's dad, Bob) before we got the hang of it.  However, at home, all you need to do is to print a list of the Field and let your guests pick their favorite.  Whether you decide based on hours of research or if you simply go by name or colors, having someone to cheer for for always makes the 2 minute Derby more fun.  If you want to get fancy, here's a quick reference guide to some popular betting terminology.

Since the Derby is also known as the Run for the Roses, decorations are easy.  Just pick up some red roses at your local grocery store or Trader Joe's and you are good to go.  If you have them, I think it's cute to put the flowers in metal julep cups.

Finally, one of the best parts of the Derby was dressing up (check out my outfit below), so ask your guests to come in their Derby finest.  Think seersucker, florals, linen, pastels, bow ties, and HATS. 

We'd love to hear your Derby Day faves in the comments below.  Cheers!

Slow Cooker Chili

Hi friends, it's Jess.  Admittedly, I'm not the best cook in the world.  Okay, frankly, I kinda hate cooking.  Something about the hustle and bustle at the end of the prep time (drain the pasta, keep the sauce from boiling over, don't burn that bread, etc etc) is a little too stressful for me.  Plus, the thought of touching raw meat gives me the shivers.  However, once in a while, I decide to help my husband out and share the cooking duties.  Whenever I do, 9 times out of 10, I rely on my trusty crockpot to help me out.  Crockpot cooking is convenient, easy for clean-up and often works without that stressful "finish everything off" time at the end.

We got our crockpot as a wedding gift and it sat in the box for longer than I'd like to admit.  However, once we busted that baby out, we found ourselves using it almost once a week.  With both of us working and a busy toddler, the crockpot does its thing and provides us with an easy (and usually healthy) dinner with minimal prep.  I highly recommend it!

During a recent cold snap (Is it even spring around here?), I decided to give this Slow Cooker Chili from the awesome food blog, Gimme Some Oven a try.  I happened to be home all day, but you could easily prep this in the morning pre-work and then arrive home to a delicious smelling house.

First things first, gather your ingredients.  I made just a couple of substitutes from the original recipe.  The first was exchanging a fresh jalapeño for the chipotle in adobo sauce.  I personally like the fresh jalapeño flavor and we happened to have one in the house.  (In the interest of getting the Tiny Person to eat the chili, I removed the stem and some of the seeds, but you could go all in if you like things spicy).  Also, we like a mixture of beans, so instead of two dark red and one light red kidney beans, I used a mixture of red kidney and white navy bean cans.

The next step almost stopped me in my tracks when I pulled this recipe.  You have to brown meat and onions.  I generally look for crockpot recipes sans ANY pre-cooking, but I thought even I could brown some onions and meat.  So, I soldiered on and frankly, it wasn't that hard.

Once that (relatively easy) step is done, you just dump all the stuff into your crock pot and give it a stir.

I set our crockpot for high (4 hours) but adjust your timing accordingly.  If you need it to go longer, then use low for 6-8 hours.  That's it! You're done!  You can do whatever you like!  Go to work!  Take a nap!  Get a pedicure!  Try to catch up on the episodes of "Quantico" on your DVR while your toddler sleeps! (I'll give you one guess which  one of those things I did.)

When the time is up, dinner is ready.  I love that our crockpot has a "warm" setting, so if it reaches the time limit, it will simply switch itself to warm to keep our dinner hot.  As for serving, we served this with Saltine crackers, shredded cheddar, sour cream and a loaf of sourdough bread.

There you have it!  A delicious, healthy and easy dinner ready to go!  This would also be killer for a tailgate or party.  Give it a try and let us know how it goes in the comments below.

--Jess OUT!

Twins Take on the Trend: Feminine Details

One of the trends we are seeing for spring is feminine detailing.  Whether it's ruffles, embroidery or floral prints ("Florals for spring?  Groundbreaking!") lots of cute accents are everywhere.  We don't generally gravitate towards these items, but we are trying to incorporate a few things into our wardrobe this spring.  Here's how we are wearing this trend for spring!

This Who What Wear from Target top has eyelet detailing (not available anymore, but here is something similar), embroidery and a peplum.  We've paired it  with Old Navy Pixie pants, rose gold accessories from Report, Kendra Scott and Bauble Bar and a girly nail polish.

We love this Victoria Beckham for Target dress (we both own it!)  styled with the perfect pink nail polish, classic earrings and wedge sandals.  

This casual outfit incorporates some popular embroidery (Sold out top, but similar), chambray shorts, bright summery nail polish, go-with-everything earrings and jelly sandals!

Also, check out these great picks!

1. Old Navy High-Rise Compression Leggings
2. Gap Solid Ruffle Blouse
3. J Crew Factory Striped Ruffle Hem Tank Top
4. J Crew Embroidered Tie Front Tunic
5. Who What Wear Ruffle Trim Tank
6. Lands End High Neck Tankini

How are you wearing this trend for spring?  Let us know in the comments below!