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Linking up with Kristen for What’s New With You! On the right day even, look at me go!

Reading: I just received the ARC of Coldhearted Boss from R. S. Grey yesterday and I am in deep! Love her! You can pre-order it now for like 99 cents, so get on it!

Listening: Lindsay and Christine went live yesterday with Influenced The Podcast!! I am so proud and happy for these two. I listened on my way in to work in the morning, and it was like they were two friends chatting with me in the car. I cant wait for their next episode to drop!

Watching: Riverdale! We finished the current season Tuesday night. Goodness! Who else??

Eating: A combination of all the healthy things, and not the healthy things. Balance, you all. I don’t know why I am struggling so hard with it right now, but I am. We do pretty good during the week, and that is good enough for me right now. I have upped my workouts in the morning and hoping that helps! Because…..

Planning: Our annual beach trip is coming up! I cant wait to experience all the excitement and wonder through Zoe’s eyes this year. It will be her third beach trip, but I feel like this year is going to really be fun for her. Here is a picture from last year, and two from her first trip. EEEEE she has grown so much!!!!

Just look at her now!

But seriously, can we talk about this little fashionista? The girl can pull off a tutu skirt.

Loving: The Harry’s shower gel!!! I got the fig scent and OMG!!!! It is amazing! I had been using a sensitive skin, no fragrance one but my whole body is itchy and spotchy so I had to make an emergency switch. This is clean, no sulfates, parabens, dyes, etc. I absolutely love the scent!! I cant quite put my finger on what it is about it, but it sort of reminds me of the winter candles from Bath and Body Works but better. I found it in the men’s section, figures they get all the good shit, right?? How fun is the packaging?

Excited: I am meeting up with two of my former co-workers for lunch today. Haven’t seen them since September, so it will be nice to catch up!

Laughing:  

Short weeks are the best weeks! You know what else is the best, summer hours. Who knew that was a thing??? But my company closes at 3:00 pm on Fridays from Memorial Day to Labor Day!!! I will probably just wander around Target alone for 30 minutes before I get Zoe from daycare…because that is what moms do when they have alone time. Its like a vacation, lol.

Favorite Moments: Laura and I grabbed lunch yesterday. We had plans for today, but I had to do a switch-a-roo on her, so we rescheduled our original outing for next week and went to Carrigan’s yesterday. It has been in Birmingham for quite some time, but I have never been. such a fun spot! They have a lot of outside area, and would be really nice on a summer night! (You know, after the sun goes down because we are flying close to 100 degrees here already.)

Anyways, we decided to split our meals so we could have some tastes of each, I got the corn dog and Laura got the au jus sandwich. Both were freaking amazing and they have REALLY good fries. We totally burned all our food off on the several blocks walk back to our offices in the hot hot sun.

We also spotted the Before I Die…mural wall on Morris Avenue that has really filled up since it was done!

Favorite Finds: Another product my dermatologist recommended for me was Elta MD PM Therapy. My morning moisturizer is tinted and has spf in it, so I needed something else for evenings. I am really loving this! I feel like it is a pretty affordable option considering the ingredients and how much some moisturizers can be. (Its half the price of my morning one!) There is no scent, so it works for most skin types. I notice when I get in the shower the next morning…I can tell that my skin just soaked alllll those peptides up overnight. Also, I really prefer pumps to jars where you have to stick your fingers in.

Favorite Podcast: I have gotten back into listening to some podcasts again. I am really loving the Lauren Conrad one! Thanks Emelia for the heads up!

Favorite Funnies:

I saw Rebecca join in this link up, and I thought it was so fun and I wanted to play along. It is originally from Shay.Of course, it has been sitting in my drafts for a few weeks waiting to be completed, but it was so fun to do!

FAVORITE BINGE SHOWS
Blue Bloods
Blacklist
Gilmore Girls

FAVORITE MOVIES
Beauty & the Beast
Clueless
The Grinch (Jim Carey version)

FAVORITE TRIPS 
Gatlinburg for Christmas/New Years with Chris’s family
Gulf Shores in the summers with Chris’s sister
The trip that just my mom and I took to Orange Beach when I was in college

**Bonus trip**- The last trip back to Greensburg, PA when my grandmother was still alive. It was the last time that city felt like home to me.

FAVORITE BOOKS
Anything by TJR – You can’t make me pick just one
Mr Pine’s Purple House (kids book, my absolute favorite one)
Harry Potter (the whole series)

FAVORITE CITIES IN THE US
Birmingham
Atlanta
Gatlinburg

FAVORITE PLACES TO EAT IN Birmingham (Local places)
SoHo Social (Homewood)
Crazy Horse (Trusville/Argo)
Five Points Oyster House (Five Points, Birmingham)

FAVORITE HOLIDAYS
Christmas
Thanksgiving
4th of July

FAVORITE SUBJECTS IN HIGH SCHOOL/COLLEGE
English (high school)
Marketing (college)
Residential Appraisal (college)

FAVORITE MEALS TO BRING TO A NEW MOM
Take out from Ashley Mac’s
Lasagna
BBQ

FAVORITE THINGS ABOUT MY JOB
The actual work that I do
Most of the people I work with
Being in the know about things happening around Birmingham

FAVORITE CELEBRITIES YOU’D BE BEST FRIENDS WITH
Reese Witherspoon
Kristen Bell
Jennifer Garner

TOP THREE PLACES TO SHOP 
Target
Nordstrom
TJ Maxx

THREE FAVORITE NAIL POLISH COLORS 
Bright Pink
Light Pink
Pink
(See a theme????)

THREE THINGS I ALWAYS HAVE IN MY PURSE
Hand sanitizer
Cell phone
Snacks (toddler life)

THREE TYPICAL MORNING BREAKFASTS
Coconut Flour Muffin (1 egg, 1 tsp coconut flour, 1 tbsp almond milk, 1/2 tsp vanilla extract, 1/2 tsp maple syrup – cook in microwave for 2 minutes in ramekin)
Acai bowl (unsweetened acai, strawberries, 1/2 banana, almond milk – blended then other 1/2 banana and almond butter on top)
A kids peanut butter Perfect Bar when I dont have time for above

FAVORITE DRINK AT STARBUCKS THAT I ACTUALLY GET ON A REGULAR BASIS
Butterscotch is the best best best but not available all year
Coconutmilk mocha mocchiato with caramel syrup
Chai tea latte

TOP THREE FAVORITE GAMES TO PLAY 
Mario Kart (video game)
Life (board game)
500 Rum (card game)

PLACES I STILL WANT TO VISIT
Disney World
New York City
Europe

FAVORITE  THINGS TO BUY AT TRADER JOE’S
Gorgonzola Gnocchi
White Cheddar Corn Puffs
Salmon Poke Bowl

FAVORITE  WORKOUT ACTIVITIES
Lifting weights
Walking
Popsugar Fitness videos

FAVORITE THING TO EAT FOR SUPPER (This is stuff on a regular week night, not my absolute favorite)
Oven Braised Pork Chops
Taco Bowls
Tomato soup & grilled cheese

FAVORITE DESSERTS
any sort of pie
banana pudding
cookie

FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE BIBLE
Psalm
Romans
Proverbs

FAVORITE REAL HOUSEWIVES FRANCHISES
Never watched it, don’t plan on ever starting

FAVORITE TV SHOWS OF ALL TIME
Grey’s Anatomy
The Big Bang Theory
Friends

**I also really really love Hart of Dixie)**

FAVORITE SOCIAL MEDIA OUTLETS
Instagram
Facebook
Pinterest

FAVORITE FAMILY TRADITIONS
Baking sugar cookies for most holidays
Watching Christmas movies
Visiting family for Christmas, Thanksgiving and EasterF

FAVORITE INDOOR ACTIVITIES ON RAINY DAYS
Reading
Netflix
Video games

FAVORITE BIBLE VERSES

FAVORITE WAYS TO MAKE TIME FOR MYSELF
Read a book
Workout
Paint my nails

Three day weekends feel so amazing, right??? Like they need to happen every week! But then we would probably start saying that we needed four day weekends all the time.

We didn’t have any real, concrete plans this weekend…which is always nice. We kicked off the weekend with an impromptu date lunch on Friday. I had packed my healthy cauliflower rice, but Chris texted me just before noon and asked if I had eaten yet, which I hadn’t, so he came and got me and we ended up at The Standard at Pizitz. We both ordered patty melts, and they were delicious! We hadn’t been on a lunch date since last year, so it was really nice!!!

Zoe had a good day at school on Friday, and I decided to treat her to a scoop of ice cream on our way home. We stopped at Jacks and got one scoop each. Zoe always wants pink ice cream, so strawberry it is! The look of pure delight on her face is everything.

Saturday, we hung around the house in the morning and let Zoe get in a good nap. Then we headed out to run some errands and spent the afternoon/evening with Chris’s parents who grilled out.

Sunday we went to two Bargain Hunts, Walmart, the Leeds Flea Market and tried a new to us bbq restaurant (Rusty’s BBQ in Leeds.) Chris scored an amazing deal on a record player and Zoe got a few beach toys and two winter pieces on mega sale that I will put aside for cooler days. The BBQ was good, but there are so many AMAZING places around here…that it doesn’t even fall in our top five. But they are opened on Sundays, and most BBQ joints aren’t.

What is amazing, is that Fresa Fire Jelly (strawberry jalapeno flavored) that I poured over some oven baked brie this weekend for a snack. SO GOOD!!! I plan to drop some over cream cheese for our next get together. I found it at Aldi.

Sunday evening we colored, played outside, took a walk and got caught up on the Chicago trilogies. They sure do know how to end a season, am I right????

Monday morning, Zoe and I hit up Target to do our grocery shopping, ran into a daycare friend there, as we always seem to do. Then we came home and she napped while Chris and I had lunch. We headed over to Crestwood after to check out Seasick Records and another Bargain Hunt. All while Zoe was looking fabulous in her bomb pop dress!

Last night, I made a spicy pork tenderloin and cheesy veggie rice for dinner. I got the recipe from Publix, as they were making it a few weeks ago when Zoe and I were in the store. It was delicious!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!!! Let’s rock this short work week!

What up three day weekend!!! Why does the week leading up to a long weekend last the longest?? We are supposed to get off at 2:00 pm today, and I cant wait! I don’t even have any concrete plans, just ready for a much needed break.

Favorite Moments: Tuesday night I watched my oldest nephew graduate from 8th grade with amazing grades, a member of beta club and he made the high school basketball team. I am so damn proud of that kid. I remember when he was just a little thing calling me “Dedine” with his curly hair (that is no more). Now he is a handsome young man that is taller than pretty much everyone in my family and destined to do amazing things!

On my walk through the sauna yesterday, aka downtown Birmingham in the summer with the 90+ degree heat, I admired the Catholic church near my office. There are a few old churches down there, and I just love seeing them and all their beauty!

Favorite Purchase: Revision Intellishade Matte SPF 45 Moisturizer was recommended by my dermatologist. It is a little pricier than I like to pay for a moisturizer, but the stuff is amazing. It has a tint to it that customizes itself to your skin color. It feels so smooth going on, minimizes the pores, gives the slightest bit of coverage, and just feels really comfortable. Holla for SPF 45 too! So basically it is a few products in one!!! Plus I could totally wear it alone on the weekends, as it balances out my skin tone.

I would recommend the original over the matte if you have dry skin. I think I will use the matte all summer, and switch over to the original come winter.

I plan to do a whole post on my skincare, what I tried to desperately love for months that didn’t work…and what I am doing now that I am already seeing results.

Favorite Workout: I whipped out an oldie but goodie lower body workout this week. I forgot how much I sweat and how quickly you burn calories with this quick workout!

Favorite Funnies:

Lord, give me patience….

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and get a moment to reflect on why we have a three day weekend!