Celiac Awareness Day

Um, where on earth did this week go?!

Today is Celiac Awareness Day. From the Celiac Sprue Association

The date of September 13 was chosen because it honors the birthday of Samuel Gee, MD a British physician and pediatrician. Dr. Gee published the first modern description of the clinical picture of celiac disease and is credited with being the first to identify the link between celiac disease and diet. One of Gee’s famous quotes on celiac disease is “if the patient can be cured at all, it must be by means of diet.”

Do you or someone you know have Celiac?

Megan and Liz at Macy's Fashion Square in Scottsdale!

This post has been sponsored by Everywhere.

First of all, if you haven't heard Megan and Liz yet check them out on their site, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram

Then once you become an instant fan and you're in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area you can come hear a live acoustic performance by Megan & Liz at Macy's Fashion Square this Saturday September 7th at 1pm!  Hear tracks from their new album Look What You Started, including their awesome single “Release You.”  After the show you can meet Megan & Liz with the purchase of $25 or more (as time permits). 

Macy’s Fashion Square

Scottsdale, AZ

http://bit.ly/MacysML

If you have kids that have never been to a concert this would be a fun intro, plus you can get some shopping done ;)

Free Digital Magazines

As technologically advanced as I like to think I am I still love my paper books and magazines. That said it looks as though a lot of magazines are turning digital and some new ones have emerged only on the digital platform. I've found a few free ones recently that I thought I'd share!

Emma - A how to guide for the modern domestic

Jot for creatives who like to document life

 Lonny - design/style/entertaining

Yum. gluten free

Trendenser has a few free issues with gorgeous inspiration

Do you have a favorite digital magazine?

Willow Lake - Prescott AZ

After our last visit to Prescott we just couldn't stay in Phoenix on another hot weekend (I think we're ready for Fall!) so we headed back up to Prescott to see what we could see.

We stopped at Willow Lake and it was amazingly quiet for a Saturday afternoon and gorgeous.

There is a $2 parking fee to get into the park and it's well worth it!

Crazy how quiet and still the water was. Lots of bugs, lizards and some water fowl.

After we explored and talked about coming back with kayaks (no gas motors on this lake) we decided to head into town.

I frequently use the Find Me Gluten Free app to find restaurants who have gluten free menus or options available.

We decided to try Rosa's Pizzeria.

They have gluten free crusts and we were told that all menu items are made fresh so many of the entrees could be altered to be gluten free. We decided to go with the gluten free pizzas. They were well made and delicious!

I was also happy they had my favorite cider - Angry Orchard. I'm not sure if it was the bit of heat/humidity still on me from walking or just the fact that the drink and glass were so perfectly chilled but it was the best bottle of Angry Orchard yet.

We were told we HAD to try the gluten free chocolate cake and while we don't always get dessert I was up for it. I'm STILL craving this cake. The texture was so perfect. It's a flourless cake so it wasn't cakey more ganachey. (like my descriptions?) I'm not sure how to describe it but if you find yourself there gluten free or not. DEFINITELY get the chocolate cake.

On our way out we drove through the woods just a bit and were awarded with this sight.

A perfect end to the day.

(all photos taken with iPhone 5)

Back to School Organization + Giveaway!

Disclosure: I was sent products from Martha Stewart Home Office™ with Avery™to review. This post, my experience and opinions are 100% my own.

It's that time of year again for us, back to school, which means 10x more events, scheduling, planning and organization required on my end. I've said it before but I'll say it again. I am NOT the world's most organized person (not even close) but I've learned that in order to maintain some sort of sanity during the school year, some organization is critical!

Martha Stewart Home Office™ with Avery™ sent me some items to try out and see if they'd help me get a little more organized so I got right to work. I LOVE great looking organizational supplies even if I'm not the most organized.

The center of my life right now is my planner so I was really excited about all the options with the Discbound notebook and accessories. The best part is being able to pick and choose what goes into the notebook and it's easy to take things in and out.

I love the month in review, all the notebook paper, and the little task pad you can stick in anywhere you want! Versatility is big for me and that's what I love the most about this planner!

I've shared my office before but I added in this magazine file with the vertical file folders. I LOVE the vertical file folders! I've never used them before but it's SO much easier to pull out what you need with the files this way. They are sealed on one side too so your papers don't come falling out when you pull out the folder you need.

Chalkboard is still very much on trend and I love these chalkboard decals. I stuck one to the garage door (the last door we exit when leaving for school) as a reminder for the boys.

I also had these smaller labels that worked PERFECTLY in my kitchen. With myself and 1 kiddo being gluten free we have lots of labeling needs.

Chalk label tip - use a pencil sharpener (the larger part) to sharpen your chalk for a thinner point - perfect for marking labels.

I added a message board to our backpack organization wall for smaller papers that get lost in backpacks or the wall file.

And for all those things that get forever lost in the lost and found I used these no-iron clothing labels to label hoodies, lunchboxes and all those things that can get lost at school. You can even put them through the wash and they'll stay on.

One other thing we added was a storage box for extra chargers and other electronic pieces that regularly go missing. This little table sits right at the entryway of the house and is available for the boys' electronics or guests who might need to use one! (I love these boxes for school papers too!)

That's a LOT of organizing for someone who isn't very organized! Now it's your turn!

In case you're already shopping Staples has some deals going on now or very soon!

• Week of August 25 – 50% off Spiral Notebooks and 40% off File Folders & Accordion Files (in store temporary price reduction)
• Week of September 1 – 40% off all Message Boards & Decals (online weekly ad)

GIVEAWAY

Martha Stewart Home Office™ with Avery™ wants to help you get back to school organized and is giving away a $50 Staples gift card to one of my readers!

Follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter widget below to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway