Favorite Moments: Receiving sweet sweet packages for my birthday this week!!! Monday I opened the mailbox to find a surprise from Andrea. She is one of the sweetest bloggers out there and if you don’t know her yet, I am not quite sure what you are doing with your life??
Chris spoiled me on my birthday with a pandora bracelet, a new band for my Apple watch, Jouer Skinny Dip, and another item that is on it’s way. He brought home a slice of cookie cake for each of us, Reeses, M&Ms and my favorite wine. So sweet!
My MIL came by to spend some time with Zoe and I and brought me caramel cupcakes from a local bakery that were absolutely amazing! I enjoyed Rose in a can that we picked up last weekend…
I got lots of birthday snuggles from Zoe too! She is such a sweetie. Is this baby Zoe or ET???
Favorite (Almost Free) Purchase: I have had my eyes on the rose gold Adidas Superstars forever. I was obsessed with this shoe in high school and owned three pairs. I am so happy to see them sitting in my closet again! And you guys, I got these shoes for free!!! I don’t know if you have heard of Ibotta or not, but that is how I was able to get these shoes. I had saved up my money on my account until I hit $80 an then cashed that money out to paypal to order my shoes.
If you don’t already have Ibotta, consider signing up with my link. We both benefit. My referral code is ptgvoaa. All you do is look in the app after you go grocery shopping and add anything you purchased, then send a picture of your receipt. Easy peasy. It only took me a few month to accumulate as much money as I did! I say, if you are going to buy the stuff anyways….get some extra money for it! You can cash in your money for Paypal or a gift card to a few select places. FREE MONEY PEOPLE!
**This is not a sponsored shout out, I just wanted to share because free money is awesome and I may get a few dollars added to my account if you sign up, but so will you!**
Never ever have I felt more TGIF than I do today!!! This first week of daycare has been rough on this mama. Monday morning when I dropped Zoe off, I pretty much cried in the car on the way there, sobbed in the hallway after I dropped her off….and didn’t stop until I got to work. Zoe didn’t nap her first day, and she hasn’t really been napping well all week. She comes home exhausted and she has only been there four days and already has a super stuffy nose. Dirty daycare babies. I am thankful that her teachers love on her and have been super awesome. It has made the transition a little easier. One of them literally tells her that she loves her everyday when we leave. It is the sweetest. I also like how when we walk in the building and every single person who works there knows her name and says good morning to her.
Favorite Moments: Making the most out of every second I get to spend with my baby during the week.She has been extra snuggly in the evenings and that has been awesome. Also, can we talk about how she looks so grown up in that first picture??? Stop it!!!
Laura is the bestest friend ever, and grabbed lunch with me at Soho Social Monday. She knew I was going to have a hard day since she has already been through all of this and sacrificed herself for delicious beer, sweet potato fries and gorgonzola dip…and listening to me. Thanks Laura, you are the best!!!!!
Favorite Recipe: We are getting really close to football season!!! It is time to start pinning all the apps again. I want to find a good balance of splurge and healthier options. This avocado crack dip looks so good!
Favorite Lust: I shared my birthday wish list with you guys earlier this week. So basically all of that!!! I need to find a bag for Zoe to take back and forth to daycare everyday. She is the only kid in her class who doesn’t have one. Basically it will just hold her bottles, food and snacks and her paci. And the teachers may throw in anything that needs to go home. Should I do a shoulder bag or backpack??? I cant decide!!!
Favorite Funnies:
Linking up with Amanda. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!!
We are already knee deep in August and you know what August is? My birthday month!!! I do like to treat myself to a few things throughout the month and create a wish list for funsies. Here are a few things I wouldn’t mind having wrapped up just for me!
This Rose Gold Gorjana Lariat necklace has been on my wish list for nearly a year. I think it would go with so many things in my closet and be such a staple piece!!! It would also layer nicely with my beloved Kendra Scott necklace I wear nearly every day!
I am also obsessed with this BaubleBar Aimee Layered chain. Since it is gold, thicker and layered…it gives a completely different look than the Gorjana one!
How cute are these mules in blush??? I am in need of some new work shoes for the fall/winter and these would be perfect!
I want to get a purse that is a little easier to tote around with baby. I love don’t need to carry as much now that she is a little older and I want something I can take to work too without having to take things in and out of her current diaper bag. I think a backpack style like this or a larger tote like maybe this would be better.
Cole Haan is the only brand of flats I have found that I can wear for more than a few hours without wanting to throw my shoes in the trash. I have a pair of black ones, and I really want to get a pair of nude to wear as well. These look perfect!
I would love a fancier band for my apple watch, this rose gold one would be perfect! Love the price too!
When Andrea emailed me about TBB link up, I knew I had to participate! These are fun questions to get to know someone better and I got right to drafting my post! But then I forgot all about it when I posted about my weekend on Monday. Better late than never, I always say!
Pool, Lake or Ocean?
My favorite place is the beach, I love to listen to the ocean crashing into the shore. But from the pool. I rarely get in the ocean. If I do, it is maybe ankle to knee deep. Never more. The pool is more my jam.
Camping, cottage or hotel?
I am so not an outdoor person. I never say never, but I seriously cant see myself ever thinking that camping sounds like a good idea. Give me all the indoor amenities and air conditioning. Please and thank you! A cottage or hotel suits me fine.
Favorite ice cream flavor?
Cookie Dough
Pj’s, Nightgown, T-Shirt/Shorts or Birthday Suit?
Usually shorts and a tshirt or short cotton nightgowns.
Fave Summer Beverage
Fruity beers and ciders or a mojito. At the beach, I do love a good pina colada! Cant believe I didn’t even have one this year.
Would you rather be hot or cold?
Cold cold cold. Please give me the cold! For someone who lives in the deep south, you would think I would be used to the heat. I hate it! You can always add layers, but you can only take so many off. I am a fall/winter girl.
Sandals with heels or flats?
These days you will find me in flats 98% of the time. I also appreciate a good wedge.
Shorts or skirts?
Neither! I were dresses in the spring and summer or pants in the winter.
Sit in the sun or the shade?
Unless it is in the upper 60’s or low 70’s, you will find me in the shade. See above. I hate sweating.
Water, tea or soda?
water
Fave summer fruit, vegetable?
Pineapple! Nothing beats a pineapple in peak season! I also love fresh ears of corn.
Sunrise or sunset?
I love both, but if I have to pick….sunset. Alabama has some of the prettiest sunsets I have ever seen.
Bike, ride or walk?
Alabama is not so not walkable. Not even our downtown area, so ride it is.
Winery or brewery?
brewery
Garden or no garden?
I do not have a green thumb, nor do I have the time.
Big summer concert or music in the park?
Music in the park, I hate crowds.
Fave cookout food?
Filet or burgers
Dine indoors or patio?
Patio, as long as it is shaded if it is too hot!
Fave summer destination?
Our annual trip to Gulf Shores
Big theme park or local carnival?
Again, I hate crowds. I don’t really care for either. Though I really really really want to go to Disney World!
I looked at the calendar and I can’t believe it, Zoe is eight months old today!!! What???? Didn’t I just post her 7 month pictures? This week (and month) has just flown on by and August is already all up on us. School starts back up here next week, and Zoe also starts daycare. I have been in denial all week and on the verge of tears just about every five minutes soooo it’s been an interesting one. I am not sure what our plans are this weekend. I know the backyard needs to be cut. At least I will get a good sweat in. What are your plans?
Favorite Moments: This week, Zoe started army crawling!!! She had started pulling up on things a week or two ago, and has mastered that skill as you can see from the evidence above. She’s holding her bottles and sippy cups like a pro and basically all grown up now. We got to spend some time with two of her cousins this week, Zoe loves getting to hang out with them.
Favorite Delivery:I had won Kate’sSOAK giveaway a few weeks ago, and my shoes came in this week! They are super comfortable and perfect for a hot summer day. I really like that they aren’t completely flat and provide a little arch support. That is hard to find in a summer shoe. I love that these shoes are vegan, recyclable, eco-friendly and made right here in the good USA! You can find them on sale here. Kate had a code GREEN15 to save from their direct site. Not sure if it still works or not.
Favorite Recipe: These Zucchini Taco Roll Ups sounds fun! I am always looking for different recipes to switch things up in the kitchen while trying to stay healthy.
–My most favorite moment this week was watching Zoe wave!!! We have been trying to get her to wave for months now and one morning I said “wave bye bye to daddy” like I do every morning and she actually did it!!! She has done it every morning since. She also waves at you when she wants your attention.
–I bought these Boon teething spoons last week and put some frozen strawberries in them for Zoe to try. I think she liked it but was a little confused. I also have this mesh feeder that I put watermelon in the other day and she really seemed to like that!
–I knocked two things off my list that have been nagging at me for a very long time. One was my eye doctor appointment. I have been saying for the last four years that I need to go back to the eye doctor. I hadn’t been since 2011 and I knew my glasses needed to be updated to a stronger prescription. After my appointment, I ran over to the car wash real quick while I was sans Zoe. I have been meaning to do that since last July when I bought it. Oops. Thankfully my MIL watched Zoe while I did all that and I felt so accomplished!!! She got to play with her cousin while she was over there, so she didn’t seem to miss me.
–It’s back. My workout mojo is finally back you guys!!! I like to keep it real around here and be as honest with you as I can. I struggled so hard for months after having Zoe with the way I looked and felt about myself. I know I just had a baby and my body did this most incredible thing. And I had major surgery where my ab muscles were literally cut apart and I have a healthy, amazing baby and blah blah blah. But that doesn’t change the fact that I feel like I am carrying around a sack of flour on my midsection. A saggy sack. A mommy pouch. I hate it. But I was too tired and overwhelmed to do anything about it for months. Sure my eating was alright, definitely could be better…but that sack wasn’t going anywhere without the workouts. I knew that, and yet I couldn’t force myself to get up early enough to do them before my day started.
I don’t know what happened, I suppose it was the realization that I have been working from home 90% of the time over the last 8 months and I could have been taking advantage of not having to get ready and have that dreaded commute and really focus on my workouts in the mornings. But when Zoe finally started sleeping through the night, I opted for sleep too. But now that I am closing in on rocking our whole schedule that we have going in another week, I decided to start practicing my new schedule and that included adding my workouts back to my mornings. I have to wake up earlier than I can even discuss right now. UGHHHH. But, I have faithfully done it this week and it feels so good to be back!!! We have started sending sweaty selfies in the ahole bro group that I am in and I remind myself that in the mornings when I want to hit snooze. I know if I don’t send them a picture of my workout, they are going to think I went off the deep end again.
Favorite Recipe: I tried making cinnamon butter keto cookies yesterday, and I wasn’t a fan. They don’t really have much flavor and sort of had a weird after taste. I am going to try to make these instead.
Favorite Lust: I have a thing for Y necklaces and lariats lately. I really have a simple collection of timeless pieces right now, and there are a few that I want to add to be complete. I have a birthday wish list started, and I am adding this one to it! How fun is this layered look??? Perfect to add a little dimension to any outfit.
Favorite Funnies:
Linking up with Amanda. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!
