Dough-lightfully Delicious!!

Last week I was able to have a much needed mommy's night out and take a sweet peek at the new Datz Dough gourmet bakery!

I was joined by my bestie, Vee, from One Social Brunette and we dined over doughnuts, gelato and bacon lattes! Yes, you read that correctly... a BACON latte :)

Anywho, when you walk into this place you feel like you are in a dream world. It's either because of the clouds painted on the ceiling or the rows of rainbow macarons staring me in the face...I'm not quite sure yet! 

They had the mural on the ceiling painted three times and it is perfection! With hot pink chandeliers and checkerboard floors who wouldn't want to just stay here all day? Once you get past the beauty of the place we can focus on the most important part...the dough of course!

The doughnuts are freshly baked in house and I had the most decadent Chocolate cake doughnut covered in chocolate ganache that I have ever eaten! As you can see Vee was so fortunate as to grab a Macadamia nut one! And what better to pair my doughnut with than a bacon latte? 

Are you ready for the skinny on the bacon latte? ha!

When I first laid eyes on this latte on the menu I thought, wow Datz has done it again! How could I not try it? So I went for it and it was divine! The bacon flavor was present but subtle enough to where the combination of maple syrup and the essence of bacon was flawless! Never had I expected it to be so amazing!

Here is me INDULGING in it...

We moved on over to the house churned gelato and I can only leave you with two words: peanut butter & Sriracha...ok so three words, but a must try! It doesn't even end there...they make over 300 loaves of bread weekly and have an amazing spread of assorted chocolates which you can see below...

This gem of a bakery is amazing and they have a whole menu that I have yet to explore! The best part of it all is that it's very close in proximity to my route that I take the kiddos jogging on in the heart of South Tampa, so I can already see myself stopping in for a treat after a grueling run! These kids are dough lovers just like their mother :)

Here is a pic of Vee & I before we left...can you spot the little piggy sugar bowls behind us?? 

Too cute!

Have you stopped in at Dough yet?

You Had Me At Helen...

Last year I received a gift for Mother's Day/birthday from Danny. He ordered a Helen Ficalora necklace straight from her shop in lower Manhattan. The necklace has two handmade charms with each of my baby's initials engraved in it. Aside from my children, it's one of my favorite gifts EVER!

This necklace is so special to me since it allows me to have Sienna and Daniel even closer to me at all times. It wasn't a surprise because I knew I wanted a necklace with their initials and I wanted to make sure it was made out of excellent quality for daily wear. The researcher in me finally decided on Helen and boy am I glad I did! I can honestly say I think I have taken it off maybe a handful of times and it still looks as beautiful as ever (this was a quick iPhone shot so the quality could be better).

I used to work in the jewelry industry that specialized in charms so there is a special place in my heart for meaningful pieces. She only has a few shops around the country and I am hoping we will travel to one of those locations soon ;) 

I am such a fan...

Insta Weekend!!!

Happy St.Patty's Day!! I hope you all have had a great week! It is has been super busy over here, but we didn't forget to squeeze in some fun times and photo ops. Enjoy...

Insta Weekend!!!

Happy weekend everyone!! I am excited to announce a new weekly blog post I will be starting called 

Insta Weekend!! It will be a weekend recap of my Instagram photos. If you don't follow me on Instagram (which you probably should: les_stina), you can just follow my blog and see what's been going on in this crazy little world I live in. I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I do...happy Instagramming!!!

Cuckoo for Cookies

Occasionally you can catch me in the fabulous Land of La La dreaming about owning my own sweet shop filled with everything from chocolate truffles to cookies to chocolate dipped croissants! But when I go back to the real world you will find me in my kitchen covered in confectioner's sugar with my hand mixer, rushing through a batch of something or other while praying the kids can stay sleeping at the same time for just a tid bit longer...sigh... I love to bake...I would rather spend that half hour I have alone baking fabulous Nutella-filled chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting than picking up the toys scattered all over my living room... after all no sooner than i pick them up, are they all across the floor again... Just about a year ago I stumbled across a new hobby that I really really really love! Baking and decorating sugar cookies. I've made them for baby showers, holidays, birthday parties, and everything else in between, but most of these events took place before I had two babies. These cookies are extremely time consuming so making them now is a rare occasion, but you never know...maybe one day once the kids are in school I can focus and make my little hobby a fabulous business. Only time will tell :)

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Mommy Must-Haves

all photos/items found here
Leaving the house with the kiddos is definitely one of the biggest challenges of life with les deux. As hard as it is wrestling them to stay in the stroller, feeding them on the go, and double diaper changes at any given moment, there is definitely something freeing about being in the outside world and not being cooped up in the house! Maybe it's because life feels a little more normal. On a side note to all the mommies out there, if you have a choice between two malls, pick the one with a Nordstrom because their little mommy lounge has been my saving grace these past two years...the fabulous shopping helps too!
Anywho, I've compiled a list of some of my mommy must-haves that I can't leave home without.... 5. My shopping cart/high chair cover: being that I am a huge germophobe (see image #3), this little cover comes in quite handy especially at the grocery store! Keeps the little ones from putting their hands and mouths on the dirty cart. This isn't the actual one I own because I am in the market for a new one, but I'm hoping Balboa makes a black and white one like this to match my nursing cover :) 4. My Ergo Baby Carrier: this has been another saving grace with the two little ones! I usually use it combined with the shopping cart cover if I have them both at a store that has shopping carts (Yes I am that crazy woman you see juggling babies, a shopping list, and coupons at the grocery store-thank goodness for cookies & balloons). 3. Babyganics Hand Sanitizer: this is a must when out with the kids! Once again I despise germs and sick kids (proud owner of not one, but TWO humidifiers). Sienna also has sucked on her fingers since a young age so I have to have one without alcohol. Also the kids like it- Sienna thinks its really exciting to rub the disappearing foam in her hands! 2. My Timi & Leslie Diaper bag: I have been rockin this bag and purse since December of 2010 and it is still going strong! It's great because it comes with the stroller straps, bottle holder, changing pad, and and extra small purse! So I have been using it all for 2 years now because I refuse to carry two  big purses. It even looks cute so I don't feel like I am carrying a diaper bag! Don't worry though, mommy has definitely been eye-balling the rightfully deserved purse I will be getting once I hang up the old diaper bag ;) 1. And last, but not least my Bob Revolution Duallie Stroller: this deserves a blog post on it's own so I will keep it short, but this is a great stroller that has everything I need to be out with the babies! I use it if I want to go for jog, go to the mall, or even at the beach! It is amazing for when we visit theme parks as well!  So there ya have it! That's everything I have to have with me if I want to take the kids out! And yes, I've been stuck driving Danny's big SUV while he sports my cute VW CC...sigh...can't wait until the umbrella stroller days!