Mother’s Day is coming up this weekend and if you still don’t have a gift idea then I have you covered! Mom’s do so much for us on the daily and they truly deserve to relax and enjoy the day….and MANY days throughout the year! One of my favourite ways to relax is to have a nice warm cup of tea and thankfully my husband is a tea brewing connoisseur. Whenever I dive into a hot steaming cup of tea my stress melts away and all I can think of is how relaxed I am in the moment. Add on a slice of chocolate cake and heaven!
Lavender is one of my favourite herbs/plants and I absolutely cannot stop myself from smelling it each time I walk by a some. Not only does it smell heavenly and comes in a beautiful purple colour, it also offers the body many health benefits. Did you know that lavender essential oil is great for reducing stress and anxiety as well as improving sleep? I love putting on my oil diffuser as I go to bed or smelling a lavender plant when I feel stressed. Lavender is also amazing for headaches, healing cuts & burns, and other body pain. If you have not had a chance to use lavender in your life I would greatly suggest it!
Along with its amazing health benefits, lavender is a great addition to recipes – have you ever tried lavender shortbread cookies!? Soooo delicious! As it is summer time and I am trying to stay away from my oven as much as possible, I wanted to create a refreshing summer drink to enjoy. After going to our local lavender farm (more on that below) I was inspired by the beautiful lavender fields and the hot blazing sun! What better solution than to create a crisp, cold lavender lemonade drink! I absolutely love anything with lemon in it and the refreshing taste pairs great with the unique lavender flavour.
Whenever I throw a dinner party I always try to look around the house to see if there are items I can use to incorporate into the decor. You’d be surprised how many things you have around the house that look great if you just style them a little differently. Specifically speaking – have you looked at your fruit bowl lately? You know that lovely pineapple that is about to go bad (am I the only one that has SO much trouble cutting these damm things up before their time expires?) or that delicious watermelon = those are your future flower vases! Fruits can be used in so many different fun ways and today I will show you just that!
I enjoy decorating with fruit as well as using it in my party menus – hello fruit water tower! Sidenote – is there anything better than fruit flavoured water? (I mean not counting sangria of course). I could do a whole post of my favourite flavoured water combinations for entertaining but I’ll save that for another day. When it comes to decorating with fruits I love to use citrus kinds as the bright colours provide an amazing pop of life on a sometimes plain looking table. I dream that one day I will own that villa in Tuscany which will be surrounded by beautiful lemon trees which I can venture to anytime I need fresh juicy lemons. As of right now – I get my butt down to the local farmers market and indulge in some freshly picked fruits.
One of my favorite tips when hosting a party is to have an area where guests can entertain themselves. This could be a photo booth backdrop area or “make your own” activity which allows some entertainment for guests while you put together the last minute touches on your food items.
With a fun suggestion from my sister Patrycja, we decided to spice up our last get together and create a “build your own” Caesar cocktail bar! I always have so much fun putting these types of things together because the possibilities are endless and your imagination can run wild.
