Thirsty Thursday: Pineapple Mint Punch

Need an aromatic and refreshing beverage to kick-start your weekend? This week's Thirsty Thursday feature is sure to hit the spot!

For delicious sunshine-in-a-glass, simply follow the recipe below:

2 Cups Pineapple Juice
1 Cup Simple Syrup
2 Cups Tonic Water
1 Cup Rum (white or dark)
5-6 Sprigs of Fresh Mint 
1-2 Limes - sliced

Combine the first four ingredients in a pitcher and chill until ready to serve. Pour over ice, add mint leaves and lime slices for garnish. YUM! (Or, for an equally delicious non-alcoholic drink, just skip the rum!)

My husband had some Brazilian Bossa Nova music playing in the background as I prepped this treat. Imagine: sun light streaming in the windows and the enticing blend of samba and jazz streaming out! Ahhhhh, perfection!

Cheers!

Space for Abundance

-Overflowing fullness. 

-Plenteousness.

-Prosperity and a sufficiency of life's necessities.

ABUNDANCE.

In this crazy mixed up world of ladder-climbing and keeping-up-with-the-Joneses, the definition of abundance seems to be growing rather vague. 

What does it mean to you? 

I whole-heartedly believe that to cultivate abundance in life, one first needs to make some space for it.  And I'm not talking about square footage. For me, making room for abundance means being more human - caring for and giving to others, smiling more, being the kind of person that I would like to see my young son become.

Opportunities to become more charitable have presented themselves to me all year. Sometimes, I'll admit, I have had to remind myself to act on them, but it always feels good when I do. And I know each time I give - whether it's a simple smile or a small token of thanks or a donation to an amazing charity - that I've made a little more space in my metaphorical karma cottage. A little more room for abundance - the REAL kind - to come in to my life.

Wishing you a joyful and abundant day,

Thirsty Thursday - Easy Iced Chai

Happy Thursday, Everyone! For this weeks bevvy, I decided to try something I found on Pinterest a while back. This vegan-friendly (I'm not vegan, but have several friends who are) drink was such a cool refreshing treat, I had to post it. Even the hubby, who rolls his eyes at my kitchen "experiments" thought it was tasty!

Pretty simple: Pour chai tea into ice cube tray and freeze. Add 4-5 chai cubes to 2 cups of sweetened or original almond milk and viola! To make it even  easier, I used pre-made sugar free Chai from Oregon Chai.

Not only is this drink dairy-free, it's also low-cal and (because I used the sugar-free chai) low carb. And it's YUMMY!

For the original recipe, check out this link to SheKnows.

Bottoms up!
-Niki

My Summer Resolves

It's finally here! Today marks the first day of my 10-week summer vacation! I've handed over my classroom keys, dutifully packed away my lesson plan binders and bulletin board posters, and said farewell to yet another school year.

Ah, summer...you beautiful, fleeting, golden time. Greetings!

Hello to sunshine (with a wee bit of coastal fog)!

Hello to brunches and lunches and lemonade! 
Hello to boardwalks and beaches and pedicured toes! 
Hello to grilling! 
Hello to chilling! 
And most of all...Hello to ME!!

To commemorate AND celebrate this joyful occasion, I have penned out the following list of summer resolves:

1. Eat a REAL breakfast, every day.
2. Clean out my closets.
3. Purchase new undergarments.
4. Go for a walk at least 5X per week.
5. Read 10 new books.
6. Learn 5 new recipes.
7. Make photo albums of my family.
8. Take more naps.
9. Go to the Farmer's Market 
10. Blog twice a week.

Here's to all of the wonderful possibilities!
Smiles,