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I don’t mean to brag, but ask anyone who has had it…but I make the best eggplant parm!   Through much trial and error I have perfected this recipe and have learned a lot. I used to fry it on the stove which took FOREVER and made the BIGGEST mess, not to mention I was frying it in a ton of oil, not very healthy.  I learned that you could cook it in the oven and it changed everything! It is so much easier, just as crispy and delicious, and a little healthier.  Plus, it frees you up for a little while in the oven, as opposed to standing in the kitchen for 2 hours.  When my mom first heard I was going to try to bake eggplant instead of fry it, she had zero faith that this would turn out well (lol), needless to say she was shocked at how good this turned out.

I want to mention I only will use certain eggplants and specific ingredients, I don’t substitute any of them ever, because it won’t be as good and I will be annoyed at myself that I wasted my time in the end.  Also, if you have a garden and compost like we do, there is a TON to put into your compost at the end of this recipe!

It starts with selecting the correct eggplant.  If you’re like me and hate seeds then you need to only buy a male eggplants, yes…male.  Seriously, who knew eggplants had a gender, but they do and it makes a total difference in how your eggplant comes out.  So, much like humans, males are long and skinny with few seeds and have just a dot on the bottom of them.  Female eggplants are rounder, plumper, sweeter, FULL of seeds (gross) and her bottom looks more like a slit (crazy, right?!).  I chose to have less seeds over sweetness, plus the sauce adds sweetness later on.  I also peel the eggplant because I am not a fanof the skin.  I slice them very, very thin.  Now they are reading for breading.

Grab 2 bowls, in the first bowl, beat some of the eggs.  I never use all of the eggs at once, I usually start with 3, use that up then add 3 more and eyeball it for the rest as I go (I don’t like to waste the eggs and never use the same number every time I make this).  In the other bowl pour only some the bread crumbs.  I only use a small about of bread crumbs at a time because after a few rounds it gets gross and chunky, so I dump it out (in the compost bowl) and pour fresh crumbs in.  These store brand bread crumbs I use may seem like an odd choice (since they’re the cheapest on the shelf), but they are SO good.  I prefer this store brand over the most expensive bread crumbs out there.

I use this, and only this, oil to coat the baking sheets with.  I pour a little bit then use a brush to cover the entire sheet.

Then start breading. Eggplant, into eggs, then both sides in bread crumbs, and place on the pan so that no edges are touching.  I try to fit as much on as possible to cut down on time, since this does take a while. Once the sheets are filled, I drizzle some oil across the top of each one.  Put in then oven at 410 for ten minutes or so until the bottom looks crispy, then flip over.  All pans have different cooking times, my one is super old and well seasoned to it crisps up quicker than my newer less seasoned sheet.

This is how it looks going into the oven…

Here is how it looks coming out of the oven..

Once the first round is in the oven, I prepare the 9×13 glass dish with a layer of paper towels, this is where the eggplant goes once it comes out of the oven.  I reuse this dish to bake the eggplant pam in also later on.  Lay the eggplant flat on the paper towel and once that layer is full, then a paper towel, and cover that with eggplant, another paper towel, another layer of eggplant… and so on.  This is when the kids and Dadam come in and sneak pieces while I’m not looking!

I coat the glass dish first with a thin layer of sauce like this…

Then layer…eggplant, ricotta, sauce and shredded mozzarella until all eggplant is used up. I dislike when eggplant is wet and mushy so I make sure that the eggplant is baked crispy and not overdo it with sauce.

You can either bake this now or freeze it, just like this and just put in the oven when you’re ready .

I always serve eggplant parm with raviolis, sausage and of course, bread and butter.  Let me know if you try this and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask me!

INGREDIENTS

3 MALE eggplants, peeled and thinly sliced

3 eggs

1 lb. Shoprite Italian Style Bread Crumbs with Romano Cheese

9-12 eggs, depending on how much eggplant there is

Pompeian Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Smooth

Ricotta Cheese, I don’t use the whole container

Shredded mozzarella

Marianara Sauce of your choice – I use Rao because it is delicious and makes my life easier.

DIRECTIONS

Eggplant

Preheat oven to 410

Dip eggplant in eggs, then bread crumbs and line them on the prepared baking sheets

Drizzle tops of eggplant slices lightly with olive oil

Bake for 10 minutes (or once bottoms are crisp) and flip for another 10 mins

Once both sides are crispy, place on paper towels until all eggplant is cooked

Parm

Coat the bottom of the dish with a thin layer sauce then go in this order, starting at that layer of sauce and up.

Thin layer of sauce

Single layer of eggplant

Ricotta smeared on each piece

Sauce

Mozzerella

Repeat…until you have used all of the eggplant.

Bake in the oven at 350 until the sauce is all melted.

ENJOY!

The Best Eggplant Parm I don't mean to brag, but ask anyone who has had it...but I make the best eggplant parm!  

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(Shop this look here )

I am thrilled that this room is done and I can sit at my table that was inspired by CHRIS LOVES JULIA  while drinking coffee out of my ‘HOMEBODY’ mug from PROPER TEE (also from Chris loves Julia).  I was so relieved when this space was finally finished and I was able to stop losing sleep over it and stop harassing my friends with tons of screen shots of ideas of art/tables/chairs/runs…etc. We don’t have a large home, it’s openish with limited wall space and so it was a challenge.  I wanted everything to flow and not look too bulky, I try to keep it light and airy so the space feels a little bigger.  It was time for our dining room table to go, it was our first real dining set that we bought 10 years ago.

I have this bad habit of being drawn to things that are just insanely expensive and just not affordable for us.  So I make an idea board (using screen shots and the app Bazaart) to see my likes all in one picture instead of imagining them together.  I first make an idea board of what my expensive vision is and then start the hunt for something similar but just way less.  I will never sacrifice quality for price though, so it is not always easy.  I also have to be very careful with what I buy because it will be coming into a house with two kids and two dogs, so it can’t easily be destroyed, stained, broken, colored on, spilled on… you get it.  Here it is before, not terrible but definitely dated and bulky. We decided to keep the chandelier and oversized wall clock (no longer available).  My other challenge when redecorating is having Dadam on board with my ideas!  He does not like most things I show him, especially if it’s just a chair I am showing him, he needs to see the chair at a table similar to our style, otherwise its just a “no” from him.  So the idea boards make visualizing and selling my ideas to Dadam more effective!

BEFORE

I don’t like to rush with purchasing furniture or home decor, I prefer it to be well thought out and I don’t mind the time (hours, day, weeks..lol) that it takes me to be confident in my choices.  It makes it all worth it in the end! While browsing the internet for inspiration, I learned there were some must haves for the new table and chairs.  We wanted it to seat 6, and expand to accommodate 8, it needed to be at least 36′ wide, I thought it would be cool if the chairs somehow could stack to store the chairs not in use in the garage, I wanted a wooden table top and knew I wanted black chairs.

I have always drooled over Chrislovesjulia’s dining table and chairs, however, when I read the specifications of their table, it seemed a little too narrow and couldn’t expand. Their chairs on the other hand (LOVE)… I stalked them for weeks. But on wayfair and every other site I found them on it seemed they were always backordered 1 more day every day I checked.  I actually called the manufacturer and was heartbroken when I learned they had be discontinued! I knew I wanted a wooden table top, but not necessarily wooden legs.  We have these stools at our breakfast bar that are visible from our dining table… so I wanted it to all compliment each other without being matchy.  Actually, I have always dreamt of tearing down the wall between my kitchen and dining room and it was soooo close to coming true… then it literally rained all over my parade, and we need to get our roof replaced!  So new roof I suppose had to trump the wall take down, for now.  So my hopes are that eventually this wall will be gone and it will all flow seamlessly. Although at this point, we are having a pool installed next Spring, so my wall coming down takes the back seat again.  But a pool is WAY better than removing a wall I think.

I found this table at west elm, it was almost the same wood as the stools and similar metal legs.  The wooden top looks so similar to the tops of the stools and the legs are both dark metal, complimenting each other…but not matching.  Table was $999, I had a 25% promo code, delivery was stupid expensive ($129 I think), but then our delivery truck broke down!!!! West Elm offered to waive the shipping charges for our inconvenience…SCORE! In the table cost only $750!

Then came the chairs, needing 8…and only liking these expensive ones ($499 each/ $3992 for 8, NO WAY!) or the impossible to purchase ones I liked, for a while I toyed around with the idea of purchasing them in the only color available (orange) and painting them black.  I searched…I knew I didn’t want any fabric because my kids and dogs will make it look dirty quickly.  Then, as I was strolling through target and I found these chairs…they are actually outdoor chairs!  They are metal, so basically indestructible, kid and dog proof (can I get a hallelujah) stackable and I only $31! They were $31 now, but now… they’re $45 and seem always unavailable. These chairs did come back at Target 2 years in a row so maybe next spring they will be out again!  So that was it, table and chairs for under $1000.

Art was another reason I lost sleep…I kept searching on Minted.com, they have really great pieces of art, but seriously too much money for us to spend to put on the wall.  So, I needed to be clever search…I went to Etsy since that is what I used to download and print art for the kid’s rooms.  My good friend made me realize a while back that our art should be reflective of us and not in just a family portrait type of way.  I used the app Bazaart, the same app I use to create idea boards except I use it again to put screen shots of pictures I found on my walls! It is so cool and lets me actually see it rather than just imagine it.

Below are my creations using bazaart!

These were some ideas boards I started with and please don’t mind these wildly imperfect collages but they came from screen shots on my phone while I was brainstorming. And this was pre-blogging days when I just was showing this to Dadam and friends.

This is some app work adding art and rugs to the space from my phone! The rugs and art in the pictures below are NOT really there lol! If you use https://www.rugsusa.com/ from your phone, you can actually open up the camera from the site and put the rug into a space, resize the rug, move the rug.  It is really SO helpful when brainstorming a space.

Here is my final idea board…

The print in the dining room I was just drawn to at first because of the subtle colors and the cute houses on the water,  when I searched for more images of these houses I learned that these houses are along a canal in Amsterdam (a place I find fascinating and always wanted to visit pre-kids).  But when I found shot of these houses from another angle, I noticed that at the top of the one buildings, it looks like it says ‘MOM.’  Since, I’m a mom and I love my mom and mother-in-law it was perfect!

For a while I searched for an area rug to put under the table…trying to find a rug that met my criteria for what I buy for our home, (can’t easily be destroyed, stained, broken, colored on, spilled on, etc.) seemed impossible.  We had a rug once under the table and it just got gross no matter what.  We ended up leaving the area without a rug and seriously so glad we didn’t invest in a rug, it would have been just have been destroyed.  But I did really liked a ton of rugs on rugsusa.com, and it is SO cool, on the site from your phone you can click “see this rug in your room,” and actually put the rug in your space on an existing picture form your phone! So I added rugs and art for weeks playing around with different ideas.  It eliminates you trying to imagine something you have never really seen actually in your home and lets your actually visualize it!

Here are some of the rugs I had in mind…

This rug I actually thought was THE rug…but for the size we needed it was almost $1000 and that just is ridiculous to spend on a rug that will most definitely be spilled on or have food fall on it (gross). So then I spent a few weeks painfully searching and searching for a rug that would be easy to clean, a shade/pattern that would camouflage spills because let’s be honest, that will happen and one that Dadam did not hate (impossible). But I still really love it!

THIS ONE I LOVED! Dadam…not so much (insert eye roll) lol.

I saw this rug in a ton of spaces on instagram and really loved it! Dadam did not love it (shocker).

AND THIS IS AFTER….

I couldn’t be happier with how this space finally turned out.  It is light and airy, it definitely makes the room seem bigger!  It is completely kid and dog proof without lacking style.  I had so much fun being inspired by Chris loves Julia and tring to create this space that I admire and making it my own! I think it is so fun to be inspired by expensive ideas and search for similar pieces and create a space in our house that we can all enjoy for SO much less!

Thanks for reading and as always, any comments or questions feel free! They are actually more appreciated than you know, so keep them coming!

AFFORDABLE DINING ROOM DECOR (Shop this look here ) I am thrilled that this room is done and I can sit at my table that was inspired by…

#OUR HOME

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SHOP MY STORIES

coming soon…

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Why I love investing with Acorns...in a nutshell it's life changing.

But seriously...no WiFi 👻 🤣. You know what else is scary? 💀 The price of ✌🏻 new iPads at the same time of winter clothes shopping 🛒 , building a pool 🏊 and ohhh Christmas 🎄 coming up and just life being expensive🤦🏻‍♀️💸💸💸. BUT these iPads felt like they were basically free bc I used money from my @acorns account 🐿🙌🏻. Have you heard of Acorns? 🐿Well, in a nutshell...it’s life changing😜 (puns intended). 🐿If you’re hesitant or have never heard of it check out my latest blog post where I talk all about it and how much I have saved using it! ✖️Link in bio ✨and if you use my invite link you get $5 when you start investing. ✖️both kids @Minecraft 🤖 zip ups are from @targetstyle 🎯. #growyouroak #sparechange

🐿In a nutshell, using Acorns is life changing😜 (puns intended). It was so easy for people back in the day to save money simply by throwing spare change in a jar.  That jar filled up relatively quickly and would they could cash it in for something cool. I love this idea of saving spare change because at that moment it’s nothing more than some change. But I almost never use cash, making this easy…

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Why I love investing with Acorns...in a nutshell it's life changing.

Why I love investing with Acorns…in a nutshell it’s life changing.

🐿In a nutshell, using Acorns is life changing😜 (puns intended). It was so easy for people back in the day to save money simply by throwing spare change in a jar.  That jar filled up relatively quickly and would they could cash it in for something cool. I love this idea of saving spare change because at that moment it’s nothing more than some change. But I almost never use cash, making this easy…

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The cutest leopard cami paired with closet staples and it’s all mostly on sale.

The cutest leopard cami and some perfect closet staples all mostly on sale.

Shopping for trends can be tricky or daunting even if you don’t have a lot of money to spend…they come and go, and while I dislike investing a lot of money on a trend, I still want to be trendy (the struggle is real, sigh). Keeping current with fashion trends might seem like a expensive task, and don’t get me wrong, it definitely could be expensive.  But I try to really only ever buy closet…

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I very much concerned with my skin and work very hard to take care of it, because (and sorry if this sounds vain) but I want to age well.  I don’t want to look at my skin in my 50’s or 60’s and think “Man, I wish I took better care of my skin when I was younger”.  And while I am only 33 years old, my aging skin is a MAJOR concern of mine.  When I was younger I just was lucky enough to have good skin and taking care of it did not seem necessary to me (not smart, hindsight is 20/20).  Perhaps it is the nurse in me, but I am a firm believer that prevention is key, with skin care or really anything.  If you work to prevent something, like aging, or illnesses or debt or literally whatever if you just try to prevent it, it will maybe not prevent it totally, but definitely lessen whatever it is you are do not want to happen.  I use a variety of different products and I will explain how I use them.

** Full disclosure** I have gotten Dysport injections twice so far and am far from ashamed or embarrassed by this fact.  These injections smooth out the lines that I have in my forehead.  These lines bother me now and will only get worse as time goes on and I continue to make these faces that gave me these lines in the first place.  I look at Dysport/Botox more as a preventive measure than a treatment.  However, these injections do not actually change anything else about my skin.  So what I am saying is, I work really hard despite getting Dysport to have clear skin that is evenly toned and bright.

I think that good skin starts with clean skin, and in order for any product to actually work, it has to be able to work on bare skin, rather than it just cleaning off makeup and environmental debris. Once that junk is cleaned from your skin, then your skin is actually ready to be cleaned.  I use this micellar water twice daily,  I use the ‘matte’ kind, it’s for oily skin, which I do not have, I just like the matte result.  I use this every morning before applying makeup, and every night before I wash my face.  It really just removes everything from your skin without being harsh at all.  I like to use this before I wash my face at night so that there is nothing in the way of my cleanser and my cleansers  can actually work on cleaning my skin, and what is trapped in my pores. I use these cotton rounds as opposed to cotton balls to avoid wasting the product since the cotton balls absorb more than the rounds.  I prefer to use organic cotton rounds simply because I don’t want to be “cleaning” my face with something most likely drenched in pesticides. Also, anything you use after you cleanse your face will work better if it is working on clean skin since your skin will absorb it better.

As for facial cleansers…I alternate daily between two facial cleansers, I have my own little regimen and it works, for me.  I alternate every other day between this cleanser from Kate Somerville and this cleanser from Dermalogica.  I picked two specific days to exfoliate on so that I don’t forget when I did last and over/under do it.  So, on Saturdays,  I exfoliate using the Dermalogica cleanser in conjunction with my Clarisonic. This combo leaves my skin just feeling so incredibly clean.    And on Wednesdays, I use this exfoliator after washing my face.  This 2 minute exfoliator is incredible!  I love when you can actually feel that something is working. If you use this in the shower, I just suggest patting your skin a little dry so it’s not too wet before you apply this.  You rub it in for 30 seconds and then let it sit for 2 minutes. In these 2 minutes it heats up a bit, and almost feels like little sparks on your face.  After the first time using this, my skin was brighter. And after a few weeks of using this my skin was more even and smooth.

Every morning after cleaning my face with micellar water, I apply this serum, let it completely dry and then use this moisturizer.

This serum IS AMAZING, it has Vitamin C, E and Hyaluronic Acid, all of which are really beneficial to your skin.  It is like an invisible shield against all of what is bad for your skin in the environment.  Vitamin C protects your skin by naturally being a powerful antioxidant which neutralizes free radicals, which ultimately damage your skin.  Vitamin E, restores moisture and also helps to neutralize free radicals, supports healthy cell function and improves the appearance of scars.  Hyaluronic acid helps improve dryness, fine lines and wrinkles by keeping collagen synthesis up.  As though that all wasn’t good enough, this serum is all natural, free of parabens, fragrance or dye.

My makeup is much less involved than my skin care regimen, but all contain SPF, which goes along with my belief that prevention is key.  It is known, and has been known, that UV rays from the sun cause skin damage, which cause wrinkles and sometimes skin cancer, those are 2 things that I certainly do NOT want.  So I stick with products that contain SPF so that I can prevent sun damage.  I use this tinted moisturizer (I wear it in, Natural), it has an SPF of 30, I apply it with my finger tips, dot it all over first and then blend it in.  It goes on so  so easy, not greasy at all and leaves a dewy glow.  Then I use this tinted mineral veil, it has an SPF of 25, I use this all over.  I have been using mineral veil forever, it just leaves my skin with a nice matte look and prevents me from looking shiny even at the end of a long day.  I use this bronzer for a little color, there is NO shimmer in this bronzer at all, which is why I love it. And last but not least, this tinted lip treatment, it does NOT have that gross SPF taste that most chapsticks containing SPF have.  There are a TON of shades, I love ‘Petal’, ‘Punch’ and ‘Poppy’.

If you have any questions about any of these products,  please feel free to ask!

My skin care routine aka my attempt at looking young forever I very much concerned with my skin and work very hard to take care of it, because (and sorry if this sounds vain) but I want to age well.  

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Abercrombie sales for us girls and the little ones that caught my 'eye'

Abercrombie sales for us girls and the little ones that caught my ‘eye’

Hi! It has been quite some time since I have posted on my blog, it is simply because life comes first and there just has not been time in my life lately.  So here I am, sitting down to share what is on sale for us girls and some little ones that caught my eye at Abercrombie. Abercrombie is my go-to just because I love almost everything they have, the quality is amazing and mostly everything goes…

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Basic tees that aren't so basic under $20

Basic tees that aren’t so basic under $20

So, if you haven’t been able to tell by now…my  everyday style is prettybasic, mostly a tee shirt and jeans kinda girl.   I wear scrubs 3 to 4 days during the week and most days off are spent chasing kids and running errands, so I prefer casual and comfy.  I shy away from basically all prints aside from camo or stripes, and prefer solids in only mostly neutrals.  But I love when basics are not SO…

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For 5 years we have known that our son, Adam, would need eye surgery to correct his strabismus.  What that means is…when Adam looks out at a distance his brain cannot control the muscles of his eyes well where the muscles are currently attached. Only when Adam looks out at a distance, one or the other, not both at the same time, will wander outward.  It is actually not a problem caused by the eyes, but the brain and how the brain controls the muscles of the eyes. The surgery is quite intricate (involves detaching and reattaching the muscles) and recovery is not fun for a 6 year old in the summer. With that being said, this doesn’t effect him one bit thankfully, some children have balance issues related to impaired depth perception and as a result could have falls. Adam’s surgeon told us for the most favorable long-term outcome, to wait until after Adam turns 6 to surgically correct this problem.

And here we are, he is now 6 and he is now having surgery (the feeling in my stomach as I type this is indescribable).  We have known for SO long and it’s actually, finally, terrifyingly here. And it’s so scary and when I let myself start to imagine the process of having to walk out of the OR while he is in it… I just cry, and when I start I cannot stop.  Listen…as his mom, that spent 9 years working in Neuro/Trauma ICU…my brain wanders to crazy, crazy places and I can’t help it.

When Adam first learned he needed surgery, literally all he cared about was if he could bring his Nintendo DS. But, as the date got closer he was getting scared and really so was I.  The day I realized surgery was 10 days away, I couldn’t stop crying driving to work dreading this countdown I would be doing until the day of.  I felt awful thinking Adam might be feeling the same way.  I am a reasonable person and I know I have zero control over the surgery itself, but I needed to make this better for him and for us somehow, but mostly for him.

SO….since I can’t change the fact that he needs surgery, I thought I can just change what we are all focused on during the days leading up.  I decided instead of dreading the day of and counting down painfully…why not be superrrrrr excited about the night before!? Then it came to me…Pre-op Pizza Party!!!! It’s so fun!!! Adam was SO excited.  I thought it would be fun to be an eyeball theme party because…why not?! And the kids loved the idea (obviously)! Lol

We had our friends and family over the night before and had the best “eyeball party” ever.  There were eyeball balloons, eyeball appetizers, pizza (I was told it’s like an eyeball because it’s round lol) and eyeball dessert.  He ran around with friends and had a blast. At one point this boy came out of the house wearing his underwear and a cape, asking people if they wanted to take a picture with Captain Underpants.  I even surprised Adam wearing a shirt with eyes on it, which he loved!

I would rather look forward to something than dread something, wouldn’t everyone? With this party planned and eyeball desserts chosen by the little ones… Adam couldn’t wait for his eyeball party and was not dreading his surgery.  His happiness and excitement seriously overshadowed his fear and that is how I made this better for him…and maybe us too.

  Thanks for reading!

We threw a Pre-op Pizza Party for our son the night before his surgery! For 5 years we have known that our son, Adam, would need eye surgery to correct his strabismus.  

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Little Black Rompers

I think every girl knows what a LBD is and has one that they LOVE.  I’m not much of a dress girl, however, I am a romper girl and if “LBD” can be a thing…then why not an “LBR” (little black romper)?  I think LBR should be a thing lol! Well…now it is, so here’s a round up of LBRs that caught my eye, under $35.

I love this one!

This LBR is in my cart.

This LBR is my favorite!

I love the back on

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Casual Saturday night look

Casual Saturday night look

Off to see Kevin Hart with my oldest friend, here’s what I wore!

Bralette

Tank

Shorts

Slides

Thanks for reading!

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Express sweater sale round up

Express was my store for the longest time ever, then it lost my attention for a while but recently began pulling me back in.  While I am enjoying summer and wearing summer clothes…I have fall clothes on my mind currently.  Express has seriously so much on clearance, most sizes still stocked and its an additional 40% off making everything such a good price.  If you want to read about how I shop…

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Band shirts for the fam under $15 that caught my eye

Band shirts for the fam under $15 that caught my eye

There is just something about a good band shirt that screams coolto me. We each have a collection of band shirts that we wear pretty regularly. Adam’s favorite is Metallica (because of the skull on the shirt lol), and Madison is a Pink Floyd fan (but only because most of their shirts have a rainbow lol). A lot of band shirts can be pricey and spending a ton of money on just one article of…

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Our favorite end of the year gifts for teachers. 

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