 And just like that another Bath & Body Works Candle Day has come and gone! Crazy that Christmas is right around the corner!! December is my favorite time of year to shop for myself! I know, I should be focusing on those holiday gifts, but treat your self right?!? RIGHT?!?! So my little holiday gifting hack is to make sure to get all of my holiday gift shopping finished BEFORE Thanksgiving! That way I can take advantage of all those fabulous deals that show up in my inbox daily without a guilty conscience!!! I’m happy to report that 99% of my shopping was completed way before Thanksgiving, so this Bath & Body Works Candle Day, I was able to splurge on every last thing that I wanted guilt free!  Listed below are the candles I scooped up during the sale, in the order of how fabulous they ended up smelling for me once at home! No idea what Bath & Body Works Candle Day is? Make sure to check out my last post so you can take advantage of the next Bath & Body Works  GINGHAMFragrance ~ Blue Freesia, White Peach, Fresh Clementine with Essential Oils. Opinion ~ This is definitely not a holiday candle or a limited edition, it’s just my holy grail Bath & Body Works obsession! Of course I had to scoop my favorite scent up! It will be perfect to burn after I go through all my holiday scents! If you’re into classy perfumes and luxuries, you will love this boujee smelling candle. Smells fancy and expensive!!  PINK FAIRY GUMDROPFragrance ~ This is what Christmas smells like: Sparkling Sugared Berries, Pink Cotton Candy, Sprinkle of Fairy Dust with Essential Oils Opinion ~ My favorite out of all of the holiday scents!!! I was so excited to burn the thing that as soon as I walked into my house, I had to light the thing up!!! Literally smells like candy! So yummy!!! The scent is also pretty strong which is amazing. Everyone who walks in my door always complements the scent of my home when this thing is lit!!!  MERRY MIMOSAFragrance ~ Sparkling Champagne, Red Apple Slices, Iced Sugar Crystals with Essential Oils Opinion ~ smells like berry!! I’m a #TeamFruity girl when it comes to scents so I am in love!!!! Plus, who doesn’t love mimosas?!? Best name EVER! Unfortunately, I do have an issue with this candle. It’s not exactly the strongest scent. Smells amazing, but it can definitely be stronger. I love it when you can smell a candle throughout your home, not just in one room.  BALLERINA ROSEFragrance ~ Ballerina Rose Petals, Soft Peony Blossoms, Summer Greenery with Essential Oils. Opinion ~ If you’re a #TeamFloral girl, this is the candle for you. This is actually the candle my daughter picked out and honestly, it’s not that bad! I usually don’t care for florals since they remind me of old lady lol, but ballerina rose isn’t that bad! Reminds me of the Rose Water lotion Bath & Body Works had out around Valentine’s Day last year. The candle is also pretty strong! You can smell this thing no matter where you are in your home!  TEA & BISCUITSFragrance ~ Iced Lemon, Sugar Crystals, Buttery Shortbread with Essential Oils Opinion ~ Not my favorite, but also not that bad! It does have a fruity scent, I’m assuming due to the lemon which does make it pleasant!!! Unfortunately it just nothing special in my book. Love the packaging! The scent is strong! But it’s just average smelling to me.  CAFÉ AU LAITFragrance ~ Rich Roasted Coffee, Sugared Brioche, Vanilla Crème with Essential Oils Opinion ~ This is probably the saddest thing I have ever said about Bath & Body Works!!! I’m obsessed with the packaging! I love all things Paris!! One of my favorite cities, but this scent?!? Ughhh. I’m just not a fan at all! It will probably be the last candle I end up burning because it’s just not my jam. Very vanilla with a very strange after smell which I still can’t figure out what it is lol. I almost wonder if they put the worst candle scent in the cutest package just to sell them? So disappointing!  Gingerbread Holiday Candle HouseI didn’t purchase this fabulousness at the candle sale, but I did purchase it a few day prior so I figured this was the perfect place to share my latest favorite item of all times!!! I’m literally so obsessed with this 3 wick candle holder house! Every year Bath & Body Works comes out with a collectible holiday candle house. They are always so pretty, but they never had a design that screamed go spend all of your money on a candle holder! This year? A pink house with a nutcracker AND a cat in the side window?! This thing was made for me!!!!! Originally priced at $150, it really is a show stopping conversation piece. The photos above do not do it justice!! I did however stack as many coupons as I possibly could at my local store which knocked the price down a ton! Keep that in mind for next year! Don’t pay full price. Wait for the holiday mailer coupons and stack them at the store to purchase your house. Your bank account will thank you for that savings!!!  Free Gift!Every year Bath & Body Works mails out a free $13 gift coupon out to their entire mailing list! If you’re not on their mailing list, do it just for your free gift coupon! And every year I save that coupon for Candle Day and scoop up a new candle holder! This year I had my eyes on the glittery snowflake holder and I was lucky enough to snag one! I was at our local store at 8am open time, so lucked out and just happened to get my hands on my first pick this year! WooHoo!!!!  Let’s Chat!Did you take advantage of the Candle Day sale?!
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 Cinnamon Roll Casserole!! One of those dishes that both my own family and my husband’s have made forever! If I’m being 100% real here, I would dread it! I am obsessed with all things cinnamon roll, but both sides of the family would serve this soggy mess on a plate. I couldn’t figure out how the most delicious thing ever was always soup. I finally took it upon my self last year to make my own version of the classic recipe everyone in the word seems to make and jackpot! No soupy mess and it still tastes like French toast cinnamon rolls!!!! Enjoy!!!  Ingredients • 2 cans Cinnamon rolls • 1/2 cup butter, melted • 1/3 cup sugar • 2 eggs • 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream • 2 tsp cinnamon • 2 tsp vanilla extract • Icing from cinnamon roll packages  Mix well. In a mixing bowl, pour in melted butter & cream. Crack two eggs. Add vanilla & cinnamon. Mix well.  Cut each cinnamon roll into 4’s and place the pieces into the crockpot.  Pour egg mixture over the cinnamon roll pieces. Place lid back onto the crockpot and cook on low for 2 1/2-3 hours.  Remove lid and drizzle with frosting.  Serve & Enjoy!
 Being a special needs parent is definitely unique. While most days it really doesn’t phase me. I’m blessed that my daughter is higher up on the autism spectrum. However, when it comes to activities and inclusion, ughhh!!!! This is the one area that really makes my heart ache. My daughter misses out on so much. Camps are too scared to take special needs kiddos no matter how high functioning they are. She “can’t” play certain sports. After school programs? Unless I’m wanting to pay out of pocket for an aide to attend or attend myself until the program feels confident she can do things on her own (I’ve done this with many activities, just call me the assistant teacher/coach lol), we are out of luck! While most parents send their kids off to camps and sports during school break to chill with their peers, us special needs parents are pretty much with our kiddos 24/7! As much as I love my daughter, 24/7 around anyone will eventually drive you mad! When my husband and I first found out that ALL Beaches Resorts are IBCCES certified and everyone is included in everything, even the included in your fees kids camp ?!?! We didn’t believe it! We could run away to the tropics during school breaks AND my daughter can chill with other kids while hubby and I actually get some alone, one on one time?!?! I swear I reread the Camp Sesame page on the Beaches Resorts website 1000 times thinking there was a catch. THER HAD TO BE A CATCH!!!! This could not be real!!??!? I’m here to say it’s 100% legit!!!! We went to Beaches Resorts Turks & Caicos and lived like a normal family for an entire week!!!! No one asked 72892 questions. No one glared at us. My daughter had the opportunity to take part in every kids activity the resort had to offer!!!! She had a blast!!! My husband and I had a blast!!! We all had a blast!!! When Beaches says that "The Resorts for Everyone" they mean it!  Camp SesameCamp Sesame is the children’s camp at Beaches Turks & Caicos open from 9am-9pm.Beaches team members have the requisite knowledge, skills, temperament, and expertise to cater to ALL children, including those with autism and other special needs, and offer age‐specific programs for infants, toddlers, pre‐teens and teens!!! At Camp Sesame, kids can truly have a blast and splash the day away in toddler pools, go on a shell collecting hunt, have their face painted, go on treasure hunts, watch puppet shows, costume time, magic shows, sand castle building just to name a few. My daughter even had the opportunity to celebrate Elmos birthday with cake and all!!!  Ibcces CertifiedBeaches is the first resort company in the world to complete the rigorous IBCCES training and Autism Certification! Beaches is proud to offer families like my own and others with children with autism and other special needs specialized service, engaging activities and custom dining options so that all families may enjoy a memorable, award-winning Beaches Luxury Included experience.  Personal ExperienceIf you made it this far in the post, I’m sure this is what you have been waiting for! Our experience! We did email Beaches Resorts concierge for info on Camp Sesame the week before our trip. We wanted to be as prepared as we possibly could! They sent us a two page questionnaire asking everything they possibly needed to know about my daughter and her diagnosis. Apparently they even cater to dietary needs! Honestly I loved that everything the certified nannies could possibly ask me was on those two sheets of paper meaning they wouldn’t have to ask me anything! I filled them out and sent them back ASAP. When we arrived at Camp Sesame the staff already had our paperwork on hand. You just need to have your child’s passport with you to prove identity so do not leave the passport I the room. This is when I got scared. Right off the bat, I was offered one on one nanny services for $15hr. Ummmm I like to think I’m successful and make decent money, but that was not budgeted at all. I was thinking to myself omg here is the catch!!!Once I stated I wasn’t interested and only wanted Camp Sesame they quickly changed the subject. I’m guessing they try to make a sale with everyone so do not get alarmed as I did! I almost had a heart attack lol. We packed a backpack with a change of clothes, swim suit, sun screen, left it with staff with my phone number and off we went. Not a single text!!! We went back several hours later after a fun day at the pool and as we arrived we saw my daughter giggling and smiling away before she spotted us!!!! She was truly having fun! We picked her up and she did not want to leave. She celebrated Elmos birthday. She’s obsessed with Elmo! She swam in the kiddie pool out back! When I asked about her behavior I was told she did great and if there were any issues with other kids being curious. My daughter is “nonverbal” so questions were asked about this, they simply took my daughter out of the situation to do something super fun while they explained things to the kiddo asking the questions and then brought everyone back together to play! I loved this! A very good way to make sure everyone was truly having a blast all day long and my daughter did not have to witness “the conversation”. There are also several nannies to care for the kiddos. I’m assuming someone was most likely assigned to my daughter to make sure she had an extra set of eyes on her if she was really that well behaved. My daughter is 7 years old and we did however place her in the 5 year old camp. My daughter still loves Sesame Street and personality-wise relates to toddler better, so we all agreed this was the route to take. So if you have a kiddo and would feel more comfy if they were placed in the younger camp, they welcome it! Actually, I think they were re leaved I made the suggestion at drop off! Makes their job easier I’m sure! Plus, it gave this mama peace of mind! I know she gets along with younger kids great! My daughter went back for a second day and had just as much fun! She made cookies with Cookie Monster!! Total bragging rights there!! It was truly a dream come true for her to take part in something fun while my husband and I had just as much fun together spending one on one time together as well! Thank you Beaches Resorts for thinking about EVERYONE and making sure all inclusive really is for everyone!!! Literally a special needs family dream vacation!  Let’s Chat!Have you been to a Beaches Resort? O my yum!!!! One of my favorites. Brussel Sprouts!!! My hubby was convinced for years that he hated them! He wouldn’t even give them a chance regardless of how many times I told him it’s all how you make them & I have to admit I make some yummy ones! He finally gave in a few weeks back and tried one of my favorite ways to chef them up, sheetpan style with asparagus! He likes asparagus, so we figured if he really did hate Brussel Sprouts he could at least have the asparagus to eat. Safe to say I was 100% correct! If you make Brussel Sprouts correctly, they are beyond delicious! He enjoyed them so much that I made them again a few days later and this time snapped a few pictures for y’all!! Enjoy!!  Ingredients • bacon drippings • 2 pounds brussel sprouts • 12 ounces asparagus • 2 tbsp pure maple syrup • 6 pieces of bacon • 3.5 bag dried cranberries & candied pecan salad mix (salad dressing isle)  Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice brussel sprouts in half. Place on a large baking sheet. Slice asparagus and place asparagus tips onto the baking sheet with the brussel sprouts.  Cook bacon and then take the bacon grease and pour it into a bowl. Cut bacon and sprinkle the bacon onto the brussel sprouts & asparagus.  Add 2 tbsp pure maple syrup into the bacon grease and mix.  Coat with bacon grease- maple mixture.  Sprinkle dried cranberries & candied pecans onto the sheet pan. Place sheet pan in oven and cook for 12-13 minutes.  Serve & enjoy!
 Thank you PLAYMOBIL for sending us the Crystal Palace. I swear my Lil’Princess is a future engineer. She just can’t get enough of her building toys and puzzles!!! I swear this passion had to come from hubby since if we are being totally honest, such toys aren’t my favorite. I’ve always been #TeamDolls. I will play house all day!!!! Putting things together for fun was never my thing. I had my dad piece together all my toys! Then we discovered Playmobil about a year or two ago. I swear these sets were made for my daughter and I! Totally girly for me to enjoy since this exact set, PLAYMOBIL Crystal Palace is a freaking castle!!!!! A CASTLE!!!!! Ahhhhh!!!!! And not any type of castle, an ice castle!!! We all know what movie just hit theaters. Perfect building toy for all the trendy kids out there and their totally obsessed mom ;-)  PLAYMOBIL Crystal PalaceSet off on a dazzling adventure as you explore the crystal PALACE of the winter Kingdom! In this incredible world, visitors will find a little magic and mystery. As they approach the front gates, lift the gemstone shield to lower two magical icicles and block their entry until the guards determine if the Visitor is a friend or foe. Friends can then enter the Palace and meet with the Royal family on the main floor. The Queen sits upon her throne while magical lights flicker up through the ice floor, a result of the Illuminating crystal sparkling in the Palace cave below (3 x AAA batteries required). when finished greeting visitors, The royal family can ascend to their private apartment via the spiral ice staircase. Fully furnished with a luxurious bed, rocking chair, Vanity, and dressing room, The princess’ chamber has everything she needs. Depending on her mood that day, The princess can select whichever outfit suits her best. Keep an eye on the magical hoop skirt though! It changes patterns in the cold. When the princess wants to sneak away to a quiet place, she can lower the hidden ice steps outside her bedroom and climb up to the palace tower. There, she can look out over her icy Kingdom with the help of the telescope. Set includes the figures, throne, interchangeable outfits, bed, rocking chair, bejeweled scepter, rug, candelabra, vanity, ice flowers, love letter, Quill, magical key, and lots of other accessories.  OpinionI swear these sets keep getting better and better!!!! If I were to rate this set I would literally give it 9.5!! That is how much my daughter enjoyed playing with the PLAYMOBIL Crystal Palace! I will warn ya though, it is an all day project. With 266 pieces, this is definitely a set for kiddos that are ridiculously motivated to build! I would also recommend this set for someone with building experience. For being a 266 piece set, It’s was actually pretty self explanatory to set up, but there are A LOT of pieces to navigate through. Thankfully the box does come with a handy dandy instructions book if you do get lost in the process. I was rather impressed watching my second grader navigatate her way through this entire set. She needed minimal help from me which was awesome. I was one proud mama! Once complete, my daughter played for hours and hours! It’s actually her current favorite toy! She comes home from school and heads straight to her castle instead of asking for iPad time! Every parents dream right there. I’m so happy companies are making more and more building toy sets aimed at little girls! As much as I claim to hate building toys, I bet that if I had the options girls have today when it comes to building, I may have a totally different opinion. Girly building toys didn’t exist back in the dinosaur age. Girls are ridiculously lucky they have fun and totally cute options to fuel their thinking side and not just dolls and dress up clothes like we had in the past. Building AND playing house at the same time? Best combination ever!!! As a parent I love how Playmobil encourages creative play and interaction. Can’t wait to see what else PLAYMOBIL comes out with next! Purchase Here  Let’s Chat!What toys are on your kids Santa lists?! |
welcomeCourtneyLynne is former model turned mommy & wifey! When not blogging all things foodie, fashion, travel, mom life & straight up fabulousness to the masses, she can be found chasing her toddler around in 6in stilettos & laughing at her own jokes her glass of wine told her to tell. Categories
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