White Chocolate Cranberry Blondies

These are SO delicious! If you are going over to a friends for tea, or need to bake something for a potluck. These are always a hit. Very easy to make, fast, and yummy.

Check out the recipe and make sure to tag us if you'll be making them! @mama_and_wife_life

Ingredients

 1 1/2 cups of flour

1 cup of brown sugar

3/4 tsp of baking soda

Pinch of Salt

1 tsp of vanilla extract

3/4 cups melted butter

1 egg

1 cup of white chocolate chips (We used the Ghirardelli ones)

1 cup of fresh cranberries

First, butter your 9x13" pan generously. Also, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Cream together 3/4 cups of melted butter (we used the microwave to melt the butter) and 1 cup of brown sugar. Add in the 1 egg and 1 tsp of vanilla extract and mix until combined.

Then, add 3/4 tsp of baking soda, pinch of salt, 1 1/2 cups of flour mix well. Lastly, add 1 cup of white chocolate chips and 1 cup of fresh cranberries and again mix well.

(For the dried ingredients you don't have to use a separate bowl. You can use one bowl for all ingredients following these steps. However, if you'd like to you can use a separate bowl. I tried both ways and turns out the same. :)

Evenly spread out the mixture to the pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until edges are golden brown.

Then, they are ready to be enjoyed! :)

Marinated Mushrooms

Marinated Mushrooms

If you are Russian or Ukrainian then you know that in the Slavic community marinated mushrooms are very popular. Most Slavic weddings and many parties typically have these served as a side dish. However, every family has their own way of making marinated mushrooms. This is my mom's recipe. For this dish: salt, pepper, garlic and vinegar are added to taste preference. 

Ingredients:

Mushrooms (We used 2 packs from Costco - the mushrooms are big in size but they will shrink once they are cooked.)

4 small peppers (color is by preference)

1 medium onion

2-3 garlic cloves

4-5 tsp Vinegar

Dill

First, bring a pot of water to a boil and then throw in the washed and cleaned mushrooms. We cut a little bit of the stems on most of the mushrooms. Add 1 tsp of salt and a few drops of vinegar. Let the water boil again and leave it to simmer for 10 min. Afterwards, pour the water out and put the mushrooms in a strainer to let them cool to room temperature. While the mushrooms are cooling down, start chopping the rest of ingredients (onion, peppers, dill, and mince the garlic). 

Many people don't like onions in their food, not because of the taste necessarily but because of their texture. So what we do for this recipe is chop 1 onion into small cubes and cook it on a skillet with a little bit of oil (1-2 tbsp). Then add the juice from the onions to the mushrooms using a strainer. (Not pictured - press the cooked onions with a spoon and mix them around in the strainer. Continue to do so until all of the onion juices are in the mushroom mixture.) Add the the diced peppers, minced garlic, dill, salt, pepper, vinegar and vegetable oil. As you mix everything, taste it to see if you would like to add more salt and/or vinegar. As mentioned earlier, everyone has their own preference as to how much salt/vinegar they want in their marinated mushrooms.

Since these are marinated mushrooms, they do need to be in the fridge at least overnight so they can really soak up all the flavors. Then they are ready to be served!  We hope you enjoy this recipe. Comment below and let us know how your marinated mushrooms turned out! :) 

                                                               

           #MAMA&WIFELIFE

Good afternoon, ladies. One of our readers asked us to tell you a little bit about ourselves. We are two friends and sisters in faith. We are both first time moms and with this blog we hope to share our real life experiences and not paint the picture perfect Instagram posts that society often portrays. 

Social media makes motherhood look glamorous, easy and effortless. Of course motherhood is one of the best gifts that God can give us, but it's not a walk in the park. We want to share the highs and lows of motherhood with you ladies. We want to connect with other moms and wives through this blog as well. We would love for you to write us if you have any questions or a specific topic you'd like for us to talk about relating to mom and wife life. Feel free to either comment below or DM us on our insta! 

Now lets get to our actual blog post →

As a wife you have many responsibilities. In most cases, wives work full-time or part-time. There are times when you have an exhausting day at work and on top of that you have to come back home to prepare a nutritious meal for yourself and your husband. Even if you had a tough day at work, you can't leave your husband to starve. And eating out isn't always an option. In the sense that most men like a home cooked meal. That was the case for me.  I worked full-time and I would come back home feeling super exhausted. I had a bad day at work with patients giving me an extremely hard time for something that's not even my fault. I was mentally and physically drained and would come home with no mood or energy BUT somehow I would get the energy to start cooking. How? I believe that when you really love your husband/wife you somehow get the energy.  You want to make them happy.  You want to do nice things for them, even if you have to push yourself that day because you don't have that energy.  I also believe God plays a huge role in this.  He gives us that strength and energy when we're feeling tired and have no interest in fulfilling our wife duties.

When you become a mom, things gets a bit more difficult. You have more responsibilities and you need more energy.  Energy that you never thought you'd have.  Sometimes you get three hours of sleep or no sleep at all, but throughout the day you somehow pull through.  I surprise myself sometimes lol even with only three hours of sleep I sometimes try to look at the bright side like hey, at least I got some sleep.  When looking into your precious baby's eyes you can't help but smile and you believe that it's all worth it for this precious little one. You understand that now not only do you have to cook for you and your husband as well as make sure the house is tidy, but you have to watch over and care for your baby, making sure his/her needs are met. A lot of times it's more draining than a full-time job.  Before I had my baby I didn't believe that when other moms would say these kinds of things. Only now do I understand what they go through and feel on a daily basis.

When you become a mother, the relationship with your husband changes as well. You start to appreciate each other more.  You both want what's best for your baby and that's the priority.  Seeing your significant other love and take care of your little one makes you love and appreciate them even more.  You come to the understanding that you are now more than ever a TEAM.  You have to work together in raising and nurturing this human being that God entrusted you with.

Even if your baby is calm, you constantly worry about him/her.  As they grow you have to teach them right from wrong.  A lot of parents think "hey, I'll start raising my kids once they are older and start talking and understanding more".  When in reality, babies understand so much from this young age.  Probably more than we realize.  You have to be strict with them at times, even if it breaks your heart. Metaphorically, your baby is a little seed that is being planted. You as parents water that seed. You water it with good or bad, the choice is yours. You water it by being an example. What you do (or don't do - skipping church or not reading the Bible with them/to them), what you say, how you talk to each other, etc. Depending on how this little seed was watered will show later on in life as the child grows up. Becoming a parent is a big responsibility and sometimes you worry if what you're doing is enough.  All you can do is be the best example you can be and pray for them.

We hope you enjoyed this blog post! Please comment below or DM us on insta if you have any additional thoughts about any of these topics. We would love to hear from you! 

#HOTMESS

Every mama and wife knows that a girls night/date night is so important! It's our way of not going crazy when life gets hectic with all of the cooking, cleaning, running errands, and taking care of the kids! Even though sweatpants and t-shirts are super comfy and cozy to wear around the house, a lot of us probably wouldn't go out like that, lol. Besides that, we practically live in yoga pants and/or sweats when we're doing our daily routine at home and a bit of a change is sometimes all you need to feel freshened up.  As they say, if you look good, you feel good too!  I wanted to share with you how you can easily achieve a "going out" look with minimal effort.

If you have an extra10-20 minutes, you can do your makeup to feel more dressed up.

I like to use my tinted moisturizer by Clarins OR my Forever HD foundation. Of course I need to use some bronzer to add some color to my face. I like to use the hoola bronzer by Benefit. It's seriously the most perfect shade! Of course I need to fill in my brows with my all time favorite Anastasia Beverly Hills brow kit. When I have my eyelash extensions on, I don't do anything with my eyes. However, when I don't, I like to use my Naked palette by Urban Decay as eyeliner and end off with L'oreal Paris Telescopic Mascara. (This may seem like a lot of steps, but once you get the hang of it, it's nice and quick).

Of course, getting dressed up and going out is not always the case for me. As I'm writing this blog post I'm wearing pj's and my hair... lets just say it looks like a blob on my head. It's one of those messy buns (not the cute messy buns). Basically, I look like a disaster. But hey, at least my husband and baby still love me lol. 

I wanted to give some outfits ideas for any ladies night out or date nights, so keep scrolling! :) 

This Cowl Neck Sweatshirt comes in Black and Heather Dark Grey. I own the black one and I absolutely love it! I like to either wear it with leggings or jeans. Super comfy and cute.

The booties I have from Target are no longer available, but here are some cute ones that are kind of similar.  Target is always my go-to for booties because their prices are just unbeatable for the amazing quality!

This is a super cute top that's only $19.99! I have this top in Petal Pink and I love it! I constantly find myself reaching for it when I go out. In the winter, I like to pair this top with a jacket (I'll add a couple below).

I have this faux fur jacket. I love to pair it with jeans and booties! It's not very thick, so if it's really cold and windy outside then it won't keep you very warm. Other than that it's a beautiful jacket and also one of my go to's when going out.

Here's another faux trim coat.
I personally don't own it, but my mom does. I borrow it from her from time to time  :)
I love this coat! It's super warm and the faux fur trim gives it an elegant touch.

#GOODMORNINGGORGEOUS

If you are a mom then you probably have an idea what my morning consists of. The truth is.... I don't always have the luxury to wash my hair (every day or even every other day). Heck, sometimes I wake up in the morning and don't have time to brush my teeth. My number one priority is my baby.
 I make sure he's fed, clean and happy. Me on the other hand? I'm a wreck most of the time. Do you have one of those nights, when you don't know the definition of sleep?
 The nights become long and you have to be up at the crack of dawn? Yeah, well for those mornings I love to use my Clarins Super Restorative Eye Concentrate. Once I apply it under my eyes,
I feel this cooling sensation-it's wonderful! And let me just say it smells absolutely amazing. It's worth every penny! 

When I had my baby boy I was looking worse than a train wreck.
I had a lot of puffiness under my eyes from pushing a human out of me lol and this eye cream helped the puffiness go away like a charm! When my baby boy takes his morning nap, that's
when I can clean myself up by

brushing my teeth and washing my face. To wake myself up a little more I absolutely LOVE to use my Clarins Daily Energizer Cream. With this product a little goes a long way!
It's for dry/normal skin types. In the winter time, my skin gets super dry, so this product helps a lot with keeping my skin hydrated. And again, it has the perfect smell! Seriously. It's amazing. And then, of course, I need my cup of coffee! I have two different coffee makers. I have a Keurig as well as a Mr Coffee. Guess what kind of coffee I drink in the morning? My good old Instant Coffee lol. When I have the extra time and I want to make myself a super fancy cup of coffee, I love to use the Keurig and Mr. Coffee together. Usually what I do is use the Keurig K Kups for the coffee and make foam milk with the Mr. Coffee. It's delicious that way!

 So this is typically my morning routine. 

What's your routine? What do you do to wake yourself up? Did you ever try any of these products? Comment below.

I'd love to hear any recommendations of different products as well.

       

        

Easy Oven-Cooked Potatoes

Easy Oven-Cooked Potatoes

Check out this easy peasy recipe that I got from my mom-in-law! These oven-cooked potatoes are a great side dish with only 6 ingredients! How awesome is that? I hate starting on something only to realize that I am missing a few of the ingredients. Don't have to worry about that with this recipe.

Ingredients

8-12 Potatoes

1 onion

16 oz. or 32 oz. of Heavy Whipping Cream (depending on how many potatoes you are using)

1 stick of butter 

1.5 - 2 tbsp. of Vegeta

Cut up the potatoes into cubes

Dice the onion

Combine the potatoes with the diced onion.  Then add the Vegeta along with the heavy whipping cream and top with slices of butter. 

Put it in a preheated 350 degree oven.  Cover with foil (not pictured). Let it cook for about 2 hours.

We hope you give this recipe a try - it's too easy not to make! 

Manti Aka Steamed Dumplings

Steamed dumplings are a very popular dish in Uzbekistan. Traditionally, the dough of the dumplings is made from scratch.  But these days, us mamas just don't have time for that! That's why we used egg roll wraps instead.  They are very similar to the homemade dough.  It may seem like there are a lot of steps for this dish, which in a way there is, but it's very simple once you get the hang of it. 

Manti are perfect for any kind of gathering, especially if you're planning on feeding a fairly large crowd.  It's very convenient to make this dish because in the steamer you are able to fit about 25-30 dumplings (depending on the size of the pot you're using).  You can purchase the dumpling stainless steel steamer on Amazon.

Ingredients:

1 onion

1-2 sticks of butter

2 potatoes (medium size) or 1 large

1-2 Pack of Nasoya Egg Roll Wraps

1.5-2 pounds of beef (we used sirloin steak from Nugget Market)

1/2 teaspoon - 1 teaspoon of salt and pepper 
(If that seems like it's not enough for your liking, feel free to add more)

First wash the meat, then dry it with a paper towel and cut it up into smaller pieces.

Once again, we are using the amazing KitchenAid Stand Mixer for our recipe.  This time the recipe called for the KitchenAid Food Grinder Attachment.  I love the fact that I don't have to purchase a whole other machine to take up space in my kitchen.  The attachment is easy to assemble and use.  
I would highly recommend it!

We made ground beef and onion with the KitchenAid Food Grinder Attachment. We then chopped up the potatoes (not pictured). I have the KitchenAid Cup Food Chopper and I love it!  It's the perfect size for the small amount of potatoes that need to be chopped up in this recipe.  After grinding and chopping everything, add salt & pepper. 

Fill the pot with water about half way. We will let the water boil and then add all dumplings on top. It is best to do this step closer to when your almost done assembling the dumplings.

You will need some oil for greasing the pan and also the bottom of the dumplings which will be pictured below.

Add a little bit of water on all four sides of the egg roll wrap. This will make it easier to seal the dumplings up.  Add about 1 and half table spoons of the ground beef mix as well as a small cube of butter in the center of each dumpling.

First, we will take the right bottom corner and the left top corner and seal it with a small pinch.

Then  we will take the bottom left corner and top right corner and seal.

We will carefully seal the sides now.

Pinch both corners.

We can push the middle part a little down making it look like a dumpling.

Once the water is boiled put all dumplings on the stove and cover with the lid. Turn the stove on medium heat and it will take about 45 minutes to cook.

Now they are finally ready to be enjoyed! A lot of people like to eat Manti with sour cream. It also goes great with a simple salad of your choice.