Week In Links #3

Pick of the week: *10 Crosby Derek Lam 2 in 1 Combo Top - pretty sure this is the best top I have laid my eyes on in a long time. And who can resist a good 2fer?

Must read: *5 Powerhouse Women Paying It Forward - get inspired by these amazingly motivating women and hear first hand what being a mentor means to them.

Totally share worthy: *Lana Del Ray's Meet Me In the Pale Moonlight - it's everything you would expect from her yet so much more. Equal parts ethereal lounge queen & pumped up perfection all wrapped into the perfect single.

Make this: *Vegan Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Banana Bread - I've made this a few times now - it's been a real winner with my hubbie. I actually played around with the ingredients and replaced the brown sugar with applesauce as I don't love my banana bread too sweet.  The result was super moist - but I did have to cook it a bit longer than what was called for.

How to: *Get The Perfect Beach Curls - I'm constantly working on achieving the perfect beachy waves. This tutorial has just 5 easy steps and I love the fact that it features a DIY organic beach curl concoction. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Banana Chocolate Peanut Butter Smoothie + Top 5 Smoothie Recipe Round-Up

Chocolate + banana + peanut butter = my kind of delicious morning.  Whenever I'm rushed to get out the door in the morning, this tried and true smoothie recipe never lets me down.  The key to making it rich and creamy without being too thick to make it through the straw is freezing your banana the night before and omitting the ice.

Banana Chocolate Peanut Butter Smoothie Recipe:
1 cup almond milk
1 frozen banana
1/2 tbsp chia seeds
1 heaping scoop of chocolate Sunwarrior Protein Powder
1 tbsp PB2 (you could also just use 1 tbsp of your favourite peanut butter)

Bored with your current smoothie recipes? I've rounded up my top 5 picks for delicious and nutritious smoothies packed with loads of interesting flavours that are sure to perk up your morning routine.

1. Toasted Coconut Coffee Smoothie from KitchenTreaty.com
2. Apple Pie Shake from MilkingAlmonds.com
3. Chocolate Strawberry Almond Protein Smoothie from TheHealthyFamilyandHome.com
4. Peanut Butter Bomb Smoothie from OhSheGlow.com
5. Blackberry Coconut Smoothie from ScalingBackBlog.com

All You Need Is Love & A Good To-Do List

Things have been so crazy at work lately that I've found myself making to-do lists of my to-do lists. And while my love affair with Evernote (its installed on every device I own) is stronger than ever - I must say that nothing will ever truly beat the feeling of putting pen to paper and actually crossing items off my never ending lists.

Maybe the only thing better than that is finding a super cute notebook that's just begging to be used.  I picked up this Eccolo stunner at Indigo yesterday and quickly put it to good use. The cover just makes me smile - an added bonus on a stressful busy day.

Here are some other great finds I've come across the web: