Summer Peach Popsicles

First, HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SUMMER!! Although, it has felt like summer here in Texas since the middle of May. Summer is without a doubt my favorite time of the year! Despite the heat, summer bring the best fruits, the best vacation memories and the best birthday... MINE! (June 25th). Today, it is a bit cooler, only around 88 degrees (cooler for Texas) but this summer treat will still hit the spot! 

These past few days have been no joke with the heat index so I thought making popsicles would be a nice cool treat while I lay in AC or the pool. I have a sight obsession with peaches so I keep a bowl full of them during the summer; except when my dad comes to visit, they always disappear. Go Figure! Actually in my photos, I had about 6 in the bowl and 3 "suddenly" went missing after my dad left my apt. 

These are seriously made with things I already keep around the apt such as honey, almond milk, yogurt and fresh fruit. Honestly, this could be made with a wide variety of fruits if your weird and not a peach fan. Totally kidding! Seriously though, make this your own recipe. In fact, I had some blueberries already frozen in the freezer so in a few molds I threw those in too! If you are making these for a toddler under 2 years old, use raw sugar instead of honey as a sweetener. 

A few fun facts about peaches!!

1: Peaches are actually a member of the rose family. 

2: A large peach has less then 70 calories but has about 3 grams of fiber.

3: Peaches are best from June through August 

4: To check for ripeness in a peach, The flesh should have a slight give, but use your whole hand vs. fingertips to check since the fruit bruises so easily. Also, check for an even coloring of golden or creamy yellow.

Now, on to the recipe!

Summer Peach Popsicles 

Ingredients:

- 3 peaches 

- 1/2 cup of plain yogurt or vanilla greek yogurt

- 1/3 cup of honey 

- 1/3 cup of Almond milk 

- dash of vanilla extract 

- dash of salt 

Directions:

1: Cut and Dice the peaches. Place about 1 cup of the diced peaches in a bowl and set aside.

2: Add the remain peaches to the blender with the rest of the ingredients. Blend until smooth.

3: Pour mixture into a bowl (or a large measuring cup which will make it easier to pour into the molds) and add the remaining diced peaches.

4: Divide it evenly among the molds. Found some fun one on amazon. Freeze until solid, usually about 5 hrs.

Enjoy!! 

What are some of your favorite ways to beat the summer heat? 

5 Ways to Jumpstart Your Smoothies

Y'all.....first let me apologize for being absence for awhile. For some strange reason, I thought it was a good idea to work a full time job, take 9hrs worth of credit for my masters degree in ONE semester and live my life. #GeniusMove It should be against the law to have a full time job and get your masters degree. Personally, I think I should get a weekly check until I graduate but enough of my whining.

With the long nights I've recently experienced, it was even more important that my morning smoothie had a little extra "jump" in it to make it through the work day. I am not the nicest person when I'm sleepy AND hungry so my smoothies must be filling, full of energy and tasty. (I get mad at bland food too)

Hi! Im Jerica and I occasionally get Hangry. 

Anywho!! Here are some of my favorite things to add to my morning/afternoon (depends on how I feel) smoothies to make them healthier and full of energy. 

We're Obsessed Wednesdays

Welcome to our series We're Obsessed Wednesdays! Here we share some of our favorite things we love each week. None of these are affiliated posts, all opinions are our own. We just really really enjoy these products.

1. Let me just say, if you told me to try a drugstore makeup I usually would frown up. Basically out of frustration. Being a woman of color with combo/oily, most drugstore foundations either

A. Don't have my shade (very frustrating)

B. Mostly for dry skin

or

C. Say they are for oily skin and by the end of the day, your looking like an oil slick by the face.

So, I mostly avoid them at all cost. Expensive shades tend to do what they say they do and carry more then 3 shades for us girls with darker skin tones. 

So I was pleasantly surprised when I stumbled across this formula when I was at walmart. 

First, Maybelline Fit Me Matte+Poreless Foundation comes in 24 different shades! Imagine my delight when I didn't have to chose from medium/ dark to dark. (insert annoyed face). 

Second, with the help of an awesome primer, this primer actually stays on the face & I'm not nearly as oily as I am with other drugstore foundations. 

Third, when you find your color, it blends so well!! Omg, I was most impressed with this. Btw, I am 330 Toffee just to compare. I love using this foundation with a brush that has firm bristles.

  Fourth, this foundation is only about $6.50 at Walmart, my usual foundation can run between 32-40 dollars! Can we say Steal??? 

2. Y'all, I only spent 6 bucks in Walmart for foundation so it was only natural that I take my savings and spend them on another item I was excited to try. That is my spend logic when it comes to makeup so judgment shall not pass. Anywho! I've been wanting to try this Expert Face Brush by Real Techniques for sometime now but seriously, every. single. time. I would go to purchase it at the store, it was sold out. Must be something to this brush if the different stores can't keep it in stock. Haha! 

For about $9.00, this brush does the job so well I can't believe it's so cheap! This brush is ideal for cream and liquid foundations so it works amazing with my Fit Me Foundation and my higher end foundations. It gives me that flawless airbrush finish I love but it is so easy to clean. I found mine at Walmart but I do know Ulta and Target also carry it.

3. Sometimes you feel like splurging on some makeup and that's where this BB Gel from Cover FX comes in! It's a Mattifying Anti-Blemish BB Gel that is worth the $45 you spend on it at Sephora. I know, I know...y'all are looking at me crazy right now, but a little goes a long way so it's definitely going to last you for quite some time. The formula is lightweight because it's a BB gel, but has enough pigmentation to give you the full coverage you need. You can go from sheer to full coverage with one foundation! If that's not a blessing, I don't know what is!

4. My beautician uses Moroccan Oil Luminous Hairspray on me all the time. I remember when she first used it, she sprayed so much that I started sneezing and I just knew my hair was going to be stiff as a board. Miraculously, it wasn't! It was actually the total opposite. My hair moved luxuriously with the wind and still managed to keep its style. I fell in love with the stuff ever since and had to get it for myself. You can get it as well for $10-$26 on the website, depending on which hold you need.

D.I.Y. Whipped Shea Butter

Moisturizing your skin is so important. It relieves dry and cracked skin, relieves symptoms of eczema, and can even help stop the development of stretch marks. Store bought lotions aren't always the best choice because they have so many chemicals that can be detrimental to our bodies. That's why I've been going the natural route with my hygienic products! (Check out our post about healthy skin, here.)