It's Valentin'e Week. Which makes me think about all the candy being sold and eaten. If you love candy but love sticking to your no candy resolution more, then you will love these no bake truffles. With a few common ingredients and simple steps I can enjoy a delicious sweet bite without sacrificing my goals. These truffles are perfect for an afternoon break or paired with morning coffee!

Ingredients:
Unsweetened chocolate
Sugar substitute
Milk
Butter
Walnuts
​
Directions:
1. Chop unsweetened chocolate and set aside in a heat resistant bowl
2. Melt butter and stir in milk until well mixed
3. In a saucepan heat butter mixture with sugar substitute until melted but not boiling
4. Pour over chocolate and stir until smooth liquid
5. Let cool in refrigerator
6. Spoon and shape into balls then roll in walnuts

3. You Will Get Personalized Customer Service
Good customer service can be hard to find during the holidays because retail employees are often stretched thin. Small businesses can offer a more enjoyable and personal shopping experience that allows time for more browsing and exploring, rather than scrambling to beat other shoppers to the shelves. Also, small-business employees may have more knowledge of the products and services they’re selling because it's their personal passion and/or livliehood. 

4. Less impact on the environment
Shopping local is better for the environment because small businesses have lower shipping costs. Many large businesses ship products from overseas factories, but small businesses often create their products using local resources. And if you attend the Girl's Night Out Holiday Sip & Shop Social there are NO SHIPPING COSTS or affects on the environment. 

Well, Thanksgiving was last week, so that means that we have officially entered the season where Ugly Sweaters are not only acceptable they are often a requirement for a party! So it may very well be something you seek out to buy this time of year!

Instead of rushing around vintage stores looking for those oldie sweaters that our parents made us wear for real or heading to Target to get the same one that everyone else will get shop UglyChristmasSweater.com for a huge selection of funny, cute and even some that would be only be appropriate for an Adult party. 

I am LOVE this sweater....I would argue that it is NOT ugly but it is festive and perfect to wear to all Christmas parties. I even wore it in my annual photo with Santa at Bass Pro Shop and Santa loved it!

I highly recommend you check out their website, grab something for your next holiday event like one of the December Girl's Night Out events: Holiday Sip & Shop in Boca on December 4th or in Fort Lauderdale on December 13th. The sweaters are high quality, creative and sure to gain some attention. You may see me in that shiny candy cane jacket (pictured at the top) that I also found on the UglySweater.com website! And follow them on Instagram for some inspiration!

If you are like me, you are trying to find a way to get rid of all the candy your kids (or maybe  just you) have accumulated during this Halloween season. I have a few suggestions:

• Have an ice cream sundae party for all the neighborhood kids
• Save it for decorating Gingerbread houses
• Use the non-halloween labeled pieces for stocking stuffers in a month (heehee)
  
• Or my favorite suggestions PAIR IT WITH WINE!!!

THE PEANUT BUTTER JELLY PAIR:
LAMBRUSCO AND PEANUT BUTTER CUPS
We all know peanut butter and jelly makes a good pair. So it makes sense to stick with what works. The addicting little cups of yumminess should be chased with jelly’s boozy surrogate: Lambrusco. Mind you, it is not recommended to consume the fizzy, mass produced bottom-shelf dwellers that must have gave Lambrusco a bad reputation decades ago.. It was suggested to go with Emilia-Romagna’s finest, which are bone-dry, with a touch of violet, raspberry flavors...which come from....yep, you guessed it... Concord grapes.

THE WEDNESDAY WE WEAR PINK PAIR:
ROSé AND STARBURSTS
Pink wines aren’t just for summer or Wednesdays. It's a pretty common household items these days for many ladies. The light, refreshing flavors will calm the bursting fruit flavors of Starburst, Nerds, or Airheads.

THE LOVE IT OR HATE IT PAIR:
PROSECCO AND CANDY CORN
My daughter's favorite is the over the top, sugary little candy corn but I hate it. If you love this waxy candy, then try pairing a handful with some: Bubbles. And lots of them. Supposedly the effervescence of a clean, sparkling wine will mellow candy corn’s over-the-top sweetness. This combo, might even convert a candy corn skeptic like myself.