Nadine

Look at me, with a weekend post on a Monday. Mainly because Chris and I have off today, so it is more like an extended weekend day. How was your 4th? We kept ours pretty low key. I worked on Friday, but Chris worked from home that day and my sister came over as well. Tracy played with Zoe for awhile as I worked, and Chris had his meeting. Then we all went out to lunch at Half Shell Oyster House. It was so delicious, as always! We shared crab dip and fried green tomatoes. I got a poke bowl as my entrée.

We went to Best Buy after, they had a really good sale on their Switch games and we picked up quite a few. That evening, Zoe and I headed up to FatStuff to pick up cheesesteaks for dinner. While we waiting on them to be made, she enjoyed a strawberry swirl ice cream and I had Dole Whip! SO GOOD. I highly recommend traveling up to Springville to check that place out. Even if just for the Dole Whip.

We headed to Ferus for lunch on Saturday. Chris and I shared some appetizers, they had a great poutine! I ordered the best blackberry sour beer I have ever had, and Zoe enjoyed her chicken tenders. After, we headed over to Chris’s parents house to spend the rest of the afternoon/evening with them. His dad smoked ribs for dinner. They are always the best!

For the 4th, we went to Publix and grabbed all the essentials…hot dogs, pasta salad, baked beans, mac n cheese, chips and dip. We hung out at home, crafting, eating, and Zoe played outside in the sprinklers.

I am not sure what all we have in store for today. I would like to get some cleaning done, and we have some burgers to grill. The weather was so nice Saturday and Sunday, in the low 80s. I think it is supposed to heat up again today. I am just glad to have a three day weekend!

It was nice scrolling through Instagram yesterday and seeing all the patriotic posts, families gathered in their red, white and blue. I am today and every day thankful for the rights and freedoms that we have, and I never take them for granted. Despite the issues we have, there is still no greater country to be in than America.

Another week went by, and I never got around to talking about the weekend. Nor did a I finish any of the draft posts I have going. Last weekend we had the opportunity to do several events, which is just felt so crazy, but so normal. Our neighborhood hosted a yard sale. we live on a smaller street with a 4 houses, and one of those houses driveways isn’t even on our street. So needless to say, I didn’t get near as much traffic are the main streets. I did manage to sale $150 worth of stuff, unloading a ton of clutter. The rest I need to take for donation.

We were invited to a birthday party for Zoe’s friend the same day, but we also had my niece’s wedding party! So obviously, we went to the wedding party. We got to see my sister’s whole crew, minus one…and my dad and his wife came down for Nashville. We hadn’t seem him since December 2019. Zoe had so much fun there, and the time flew by. Afterwards, we decided to hit up the Bargain Hunt that was next door. Zoe scored some super cute clothes and two toys that we hadn’t seen anywhere else.

Sunday we walked around the antique mall, grabbed some very disappointing Sonic for lunch, and then hit up Buc-ees! It was our first time being in there, and wow. It was overwhelming. We grabbed some fudge and Buc-ee Nuggets and got out of there. We will have to hit it up during the week when it might be less crowded.

I have been participating in Heather’s ‘Merica Challenge this week. Basically you wear some combo of our nations colors every day this week. I have loved all the patriotism, and her message behind it. Of course, in true fashion of my life lately…I didn’t document any of the said outfits. Maybe I will get a snap of some this weekend.

Favorite Finds: Abercrombie is having a sale right now. Highly recommend their jeans and shorts if you are in the market for some. After a closet purge and examining what I have and what I want to accomplish with my “style,” I am on a mission to find a few really good basics that are missing from my wardrobe. I grabbed this white button down, because shockingly I don’t have one!

I love all the ways that they styled the button down in this picture….

I really loved this Aerosmith tshirt! They had several great bands and I will probably wish I had ordered more.

This tshirt was just a really good price. It reminds me of one of my favorites I had for years that I had to retire a few years ago, as it was literally falling apart.

I am here to tell you that I painfully pulled the trigger on the Skinceuticals C E Ferulic. I have used some vitamin C serums in the past. I used to like Paula’s Choice, but had very minimal results. I used an entire bottle of Glowmaker from Maelove…and while I feel like it did provide a little glow, I didn’t notice much else. It is time to pull out the big guns. People I trust have raved about this, and my dermatologists recommends it as well. I will report back!

Favorite Workout: I haven’t worked out much this week. Whatever cold Zoe caught at princess camp last week has caught up with me. I saw Heather Robertson posted a quick, no equipment upper body…and it is the perfect ease back into my routine. This would be great if you were traveling and didn’t want to bring anything with you!

Favorite Funnies:

Linking up for Friday Favorites! Do you have any plans for the 4th? I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. God Bless the USA!!!!

Friday!!! Man, what a week! I spent a lot of it in the car, on my way to and from the dance studio this week. Zoe had princess camp there, plus the first class of the summer dance session was also this week! Zoe got to meet a different princess each day of camp. At pickup, parents were allowed to snap pictures of their kiddos with the princess of the day. They made some really cute crafts, had snacks, watched movies, and learned some dance moves. I was so glad that we signed Zoe up for it! I had seen it previous years, but she was always enrolled at daycare and the hours aren’t the greatest for parents who don’t have flexible work schedules. This was the perfect summer for her to participate with me still working for home.

I never got around to recapping our weekend….but the highlight for me was going through my closet and getting rid of a TON of stuff. Clothes that do not fit me correctly, ones I haven’t worn in years, things that aren’t really my style anymore. Sadly, I also am clearing out a lot of shoes. Not because I don’t like them…but because I have so much foot pain these days that most of them I simply cannot wear anymore. Like ever again. I am hoping to unload some of it in our neighborhood yard sale this weekend!

Favorite Finds: I am almost through with my first container of the Soap and Glory Glow Your Mind cleansing balm. I LOVE this stuff for removing makeup in the evenings. You rub it on your dry face, and then watch your makeup essentially melt right off. It reminds me of the much more expensive Clinique one, performing just as well for a third of the price. I have already repurchased.

I grabbed this Happiness Project for Mothers journal a few weeks ago, and I seriously cannot recommend it enough. I don’t keep a journal, and I am bad about scrapbooking or writing down memories. This gives you a few lines to write a sentence or two each day based on the date, and you come back and write in it for five years. I LOVE writing down our everyday things. It is really a practice of gratitude for finding something to share about each day, and I cannot wait to give this to Zoe when she is older…so that she can see glimpses into her daily life as a child. It is also on sale right now.

On our way back from camp yesterday, we stopped by a local kids clothing shop called Whoopsie Daisy. They have the sweetest things there. They were having a tent sale, and most everything was marked down. I scooped up a dress, some shorts, a skirt and a dance outfit for Zoe there for an unbelievable deal! They don’t have the tent sale items online…but they do have tons of other cute things and ship all over.

Favorite Recipe: This balsamic chicken salad recipe looks amazing. I think I am going to try it next week.

Favorite Workout: Did this one earlier this week. She always kills me, in the best way.

Favorite Funnies:

Linking up for Friday Favorites. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

I feel like the seasons tend to get away from me quickly. Especially this last year or so, when a lot of my days run like Groundhog Day, working from home full time while parenting full time, and now trying to sprinkle in normal bits of life. Anyways, I don’t want to have any regrets after a season. I always find myself saying “oh we should have done this….or we didn’t get to do that.” I decided to make a little summer bucket list and thought I would share it here in you are needing some inspiration on summer activities. I like that I came up with places to go and things that cost money….but also things to do at home for free.

I think I am just as excited about all of these things as Zoe will be. She has started summer dance, but she also wants to try gymnastics. I am in the process of trying to get her enrolled in that.

I have such fond memories of going back to school clothes shopping with my mom growing up. When I got to around middle school age, we would pour over the fall issues of Vogue, Seventeen, etc. to check out all the fall fashion trends. It was such a fun time. I hope to do that with Zoe as she grows, but right now…I promised a back to school shopping trip since she has been out for a year and will need some new stuff when she starts back.

Do you have anything on the books for summer, or any must do activities?

Happy Friday! Like every week lately, it was such a whirlwind with work I got lost in my days and got nothing accomplished outside of work. I think the great closet purge of 2021 will hopefully be going down this weekend. Been meaning to do that for the last month. Our neighborhood has a yard sale coming up, and I would like to participate if I can get my life together for it!

I have been listening to a style podcast the last few days while I work, and it has really been great to hear some things that make sense and are obvious, but having someone tell them to me has really helped. Things like when you like an item and purchase several just like it….then it doesn’t really give you variety in your closet. That having different silhouettes and styles are needed to feel more fresh and give you options.

There was an episode where she talks about how holding onto things because they used to be your style or were an “investment” piece or gifted to you but doesn’t make you feel good is holding you back. I feel like who I was in my 20s and who I am now, with a completely different lifestyle and needs, doesn’t need to have the same wardrobe. There are definitely things I have held onto forever and need to let go! Even just in the last three years, I went from being in a very formal old school company that expects you to be very business/professional dressed, to a much more business casual office, to working from home. My needs have changed, but I still have the same uncomfortable stuffy clothes that were never really my style hanging untouched in my closet for the last 2 years. Lots of items that don’t really fit, either. Why do I hold on to stuff that I don’t feel good, sexy, confident in????When you wear something you don’t love, it sets your mood for the day.

Just food for thought if you are struggling with your closet right now. It doesn’t help that what is “in” right now, is so not me. I downloaded a wardrobe basics worksheet from the podcaster’s website and realized that I am missing over half the stuff on it. No wonder why I struggle constantly.

Favorite Products: I am obsessed with this Caldrea Rosewater Driftwood counter spray. It smells INCREDIBLE. The mist is perfection, the packaging is pretty. I find myself cleaning my counters more often just because I look forward to the scent lingering after. Must try!

I have been using this Shu Uemura Shiki Worker spray for several months now. (At least 6 months, but I think even longer.) Full disclosure, I initially received it through BzzAgent, but I will 100% be purchasing it when it is gone. I love this SO MUCH MORE than the It’s a 10 Miracle spray. Which was anything but a miracle, that shit literally did nothing for my hair. This spray smells amazing, detangles my hair instantly and tames some of the frizz/fly-aways. The bottle says it is good for fine, medium and thick hair.

Favorite Treat: Zoe had a dentist appointment this week, and in true me fashion, I decided she deserved a treat for being a big girl. Just like I get myself a Starbucks or treat for being a big girl anytime I go to the doctor or dentist. I grabbed myself a coffee for acting like the dentist doesn’t terrify me. LOL.

Also, if you are dentist, please consider sound proofing the treatment area from the front waiting area. Especially in a pediatric setting. Hearing a boy scream bloody murder for about 5 minutes straight did not put my kid at ease in the waiting room. At all.

Favorite Workout: Heather Robertson has a Glow Up challenge going on. I have done 2 of the workouts this week, not prepared for the actual whole challenge. But the two workouts I did were killer, and I plan to follow the 7 day schedule and nutrition tips she has on her site to go with it soon. My shoulder started hurting about an hour after the upper body workout, and I don’t even want to talk about the soreness the next day. You know you got a good workout in when you feel it almost immediately!

Favorite Funnies:

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Linking up for Friday Favorites.