Happy Friday! We still have another full week of October. Where do you stand on Christmas this year? Are you still going to wait til after Thanksgiving or December, or are you like us and we are turning this place into Christmas Wonderland starting November 1st?! If 2020 has taught me anything, it is to find the joy wherever you can. Make any reason a reason to celebrate. Christmas is my favorite time of year, so why wait to bring the joy and cheer?

Yesterday, Zoe asked me if I could find some different outfits for her smaller barbie doll. I remember that I had a small doll like that set aside for her from when I was little. I decided to go through that box and give her some stuff that I know she can take care of now. I have been waiting my whole life to pass on my Barbie stuff to her, honestly. She literally played with the things I gave her for hours yesterday. She was upset she had to go to bed last night because she was still playing. It was nostalgic and pretty cool to see her loving them so much. NKOTB for life!!!!

Favorite Purchase: I ordered Kristin Cavallari’s new cookbook, True Roots after seeing a talk show she guest starred on a few weeks ago. She mentioned that she never eats anything white. No white rice, pasta, sugar, flour, etc. Since I have added carbs back in my diet and trying to find a healthy lifestyle balance with it, and I am sick and over all the recipes, I thought this would be the perfect inspiration to reinvigorate me in the kitchen. There are some super delicious looking things in here, and nothing that is too crazy. There is a little bit of everything with main dishes, salads, snacks, desserts, cocktails. So many things I cant wait to try!

I have been using this hand cream for about a month now, and it has become my absolute favorite. I have a problem with dry, cracked skin all year on my hands. Add in all the excessive washing, and its a disaster. This formula is so good because it instantly sinks into the skin, and doesn’t leave that greasy feeling at all. The perfect one to keep at your desk! I LOVE the scent of it too.

I also ordered her hair mask and am obsessed with it as well! Unfortunately, it is out of stock right now. The site says it should be back in late October. There is a reason it is out of stock!!! I am planning a post soon on my hair care routine that has seriously changed my hair for the better.

Favorite Aldi Finds: I was all about the cheese and crackers at Aldi this week. They have so many amazing cheeses out right now!!!! Do yourself a favor and get a bag of the dark chocolate covered pomegranate as well. Or maybe not, because they are seriously addicting.

Favorite Recipe: I made SkinnyTaste Stuffed Pepper Soup this week. It is one of our favorites. I especially love it over some brown rice. Even Zoe was loving this soup and ate it two nights for dinner. She isn’t huge on soups, so I was shocked.

Favorite Workout: I did this full body strength workout this week. I feel like for the length of the workout, you really hit all the major muscle groups. You do each move 4 times so you want to grab a lighter weight for the arm ones! I took a quick 15 minute walk after and felt great!

Favorite Funnies:

This one was funny to me because we shopped at Giant Eagle all the time when we lived in PA.

I don’t know why I always wait until my empties bin is overflowing with products to do these posts! I have so many products to share with you all! I am going to keep this one to just skincare today. Most of my absolute favorites are included here.

LaRoche-Posay Hydrating Gentle Cleanser – This and my CeraVe Hydrating Gentle Cleansers are the two that I use all the time, and have for over a year exclusively. I keep this LoRoche one in my shower and use it in the mornings. The CeraVe stays on my counter and is used at night. Both were recommended by my dermatologist. They do the job without drying or irritating my skin, or breaking the bank. I would rather spend my money on serums and moisturizers that stay on my skin. You know?

Repurchased: Yes. Many times.

Old Spice in Captain – My tenth quest for natural deodorant has come to an end. None of them work consistently. I have basically tried them all. When I switched back to the dark side, I went with mens. For whatever reason, Secret and Degree would make me itchy. And to be honest, if I didn’t rotate them, even those weren’t working all that well. This Old Spice smells amazing and it has never irritated my skin. I am on my third container of it now and it is safe to say I don’t plan to switch anytime soon. It holds up through an Alabama summer and my workouts.

Repurchased: Yes. Many times.

Curology – I started using Curology at the beginning of quarantine. I was intrigued by the fact that each person’s bottle is tailored specifically for them by a dermatologist. You basically go to the website, answer some questions, take some close up pictures of your skin and you are on your way to your very own formulation! I do the every other month subscription, and I think I pay $39? The bottle lasts the entire two months, and I have definitely noticed a different in the texture of my skin since using it! I received my fourth bottle a week or two ago. When I first started using it, I had some dry patchy areas, but I think my skin has gotten used to the prescription strength grade of the product. I love it and definitely recommend giving it a try. (My link for this one is not an affiliate link, just sharing the product.)

Repurchased: On every other month subscription.

Elta MD PM Therapy – This was the nighttime moisturizer that my dermatologist recommended to me over a year ago. I purchased my first bottle from her, and have been getting it on my own since. I love this stuff. It feels so good at night when I finish my skincare routine with this. After following her suggestions, I haven’t really had any major breakouts, irritation, or issues with my face. I have also noticed improvements of quality and texture.

Repurchased: Yes. Many times.

Revision Intellishade – This is the daytime moisturizer that my dermatologist recommended. I love that this is not only a tinted moisturizer (perfect for no makeup days) but it also has SPF. Again, the combination of these products has my skin looking better than ever.

Repurchased: Yes. Many times.

Lancome Bi-Facial Eye Makeup Remover – I get these a lot when I get free gift with purchase from Lancome. It is by far my favorite eye makeup remover ever. I have used it for years and it simply works the best.

Repurchased: I haven’t been wearing makeup enough to need this. Will definitely repurchase or get as a gift with a different purchase when needed.

I am going to do a bonus kid skincare empties in this post! I will make this quick. Zoe has super sensitive skin. When she was a baby, we basically went through a ton of products trying to figure out what would work for her. Now that she is a little older, her skin isn’t as sensitive as it was but we still keep the basics that we used when she was an infant in our daily routines. All three of these are holy grail Zoe items that we have repurchased over and over again.

Eucerin Eczema Relief – This is definitely a cream versus the Aquaphor below. We used this in the mornings before school because it was faster to dry trying to get out the door. We also kept a bottle of this at school for her when her eczema flared up.

Aquaphor Healing Ointment – This is a miracle product in a bottle. Zoe’s pediatrician recommended it to us, and this has cleared up all eczema, dry patches, irritations, you name it, this solved the problem. We use this on her every night before bed. It is almost like a Vaseline consistency, so I recommend giving yourself a little time to dry if you are trying to get out the door. This stuff is so amazing, we buy the big tubs of it and I keep one in my skincare drawer too for when I have dry patches that need cleared up. These smaller bottles are great for travel and diaper bags.

Thinkbaby – This is the only sunscreen I have ever used on Zoe. We started it around 6 months on our beach trip, and when she was at daycare we applied it daily for the playground. It has always done the job and never broke her out. I even use it on myself when I am out of my sunscreen. Love it.

Have you tried any of these products? What is your holy grail.

Another fall weekend in the book, folks! I was happily scrolling my phone Friday, and someone mentioned that there was only 10 Fridays left until Christmas. I thought, that can’t be right??? I pulled up my calendar app and started counting. Holy moly! They weren’t wrong! That sounds insane right? Like it isn’t quite possible?!?!

We have a division in my company that does a lot of analyzing and statistical reporting and such. They predict internet sales will be up 40% this year, and that if you want something by Christmas…you better order it before November 30th. Shipping delays are to be insane. Just throwing a little PSA out there for all you last minute shoppers. I have noticed that our mail is getting dropped off later and later. One day she was in our driveway with a package at 7:45 pm.

With that said, we went in Christmas shopping mode this weekend. I gave Zoe some stickers and made her pin down her absolute cant live withouts from the Amazon catalog. She wanted me to take a picture of her with her favorite page opened. I may have created a picture monster. And yes, we are still rocking our Christmas pajamas from last year on the regular. Who said holiday jammies cant bring cheer all year?

Chris made a sweeping declaration on Saturday that November 1st our Halloween shit goes away and Christmas instantly goes up. And that we are going all out this year. OK!!!!!!! We even ordered a new Christmas tree that I am both anxious and nervous to open when it arrives. I hate ordering stuff like this online without seeing it. We agreed if it doesn’t meet our expectations, its going back and we will try again. Good thing we started thinking early!

Friday it was cool enough here to need a jacket in the evening. Zoe has went from puddle girl to leaf pile girl. You have to hand it to her, she will make the best out of any situation. I love that! I hope she is always like this.

Saturday morning we made pumpkin pancakes and then played outside for awhile before our car ride. If you are at all a fan of yummy pancakes, you have to give these a try. They are not overly pumpkin and they are paleo with no flour.

Zoe and I were twinning in our jean jackets.

We made street taco meatballs for lunch, and then Zoe and I made rice crispie treat ghost pops with a kit I picked up from Aldi. They were so fun to make, and absolutely delicious with the icing you make to go on top! I kept the plastic molds so that we can make them in future years!

That evening, we made some football snacks and settled in for the games. We enjoyed seeing Nick Saban on the field Covid free to beat Georgia! And I made what Laura dubbed “corona-ritas” in the photo I sent. It was large and much needed.

Sunday morning my sister and crew came over for an outside visit. I cannot wait for the day when we can see each other normally again. My great nephew is getting so big and I just want to give him a big squeeze! After she left, we ordered Jim n Nicks for lunch. Everything was extra delicious, especially the burgers and cheese biscuits!

I placed a Shipt order with Target Saturday evening, and had added some stuff in to organize Zoe’s barbie/princess dolls. I had walked in her room that day and about had a heart attack. I said, Zoe, what happened in here?!?!?!? And she was like, sorry mommy, I was trying to find a shoe. I mean, I have done the same in my closet I guess. But I knew that having one small box for EVERYTHING was no longer cutting it. Here is a before and after if you are needing barbie storage ideas! Everything all over the floor is organized into this one system. It honestly took way less time than you would think to do this. I love the little containers I got to organize the small things, and we had a few left over to put in Zoe’s bathroom drawer too. They were $2 for each 3-pack.

After dark, we drove around the neighborhood looking at Halloween decorations, then came back home and settled in for It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and another round of Hocus Pocus. I love both, but I can’t wait to whip out the Christmas movies soon! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Happy Friday! Did anyone shop the Prime sale this week? I will be honest, I didn’t order anything from it. There were some ok deals, but nothing that I just had to have. What I am thankful for, was that everyone else was jumping on the sale train too! Target had such an amazing deal on toys and board games!!! They were up to 40% off PLUS you got to use a $10 off $50 or $25 off $100 coupon on top of the sale. That coupon is still good through tomorrow, by the way. A few things I had my eye on for Zoe were part of the sale, so I got some more birthday and Christmas shopping done. Hurray!

And then Amazon sent the toy catalog, and she circled the entire book. One of my friends gave me the idea to give her a few star stickers to pick what she really wants from it. It reminded me of when I was little and lived in PA, we had Hills. Their Christmas commercial jingle was always “Hills is where the toys are.” And we got the Hills and Sears catalogs in the mail, and my mom would pour over them with us, letting us dog ear pages and put stars next to things we liked. It was like the kick off to the Christmas season!

It was announced Wednesday that Coach Saban tested positive for Coronavirus. I hope that he recovers quickly. It is said that he has been coaching via Zoom meeting. Chris sent me this yesterday, and I about died laughing. Roll Tide!

Maybe if the football god himself came down with the virus, some of these people who still think it is fake will take it more seriously?? I am ready for this shit to be over.

Favorite Purchase: I found the CUTEST sweatshirt from Target! It is so soft and is true to size. It fits like a regular sweatshirt, and is plenty long to wear with leggings. I absolutely loved the leopard print.

Favorite Aldi Finds: I think I might make this a regular thing on Friday posts, since I find so much good stuff there! They had some really fun halloween treats this week. We are going to decorate these ghost pops this weekend! Zoe loved this sticker book, it kept her entertained for quite awhile. We also got salted caramel hummus that both Zoe and I are obsessed with! They make a pumpkin pie one too, but the caramel was more our speed.

Favorite Workout: I have been killing on my workouts lately. I have been doing mostly Heather Robertson stuff this week, and then taking a walk after. Those early morning walks are so good for my soul. I always come back energized and ready to start my work day. It is always fun to see the moon still out while the sunrises.

Favorite Funnies:

Linking up with Steph and Jana. It is the six year anniversary of SUYB! I have been linking up with them faithfully each month since the beginning. I think I only missed one month right after I had Zoe. I have found so many amazing books through this linkup, and I love that it is still going strong!!! I read a few really good ones this month, so let’s jump in!

His Only Wife by Peace Adzo Medie

I want to start out by saying that I absolutely loved the main character, Afi, in this book. She grew so much, and was such a strong character. Reading about the Ghana/Accra culture, the social pressure, how women are treated and what was expected of them as a girlfriend/wife, just everything was very interesting. I feel like even though Afi went into the relationship knowing there was another woman, I can really appreciate how she felt later on and how it all unfolded. I especially liked Evelyn in this book as well. I feel like she helped bring Afi up. I thought about this book often as I was reading it, and it still sits with me now.

Bottom Line: Read it!

**I received a copy of His Only Wife from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are of my own.**

Rosie’s Traveling Tea Shop by Rebecca Raisin

This is my second Rebecca Raisin book. I like her writing alright, she is very descriptive, which I appreciate. I liked the characters in this book, and the idea of traveling from festival to festival, letting the sun guide you along. The Van Lifers sounded like a fun life! Rosie grew as a character, and I definitely appreciated that. The rest of the book fell a little flat for me. It passed the time just fine, but I wasn’t dying to find out what happens next. I pretty much predicted the whole book immediately. I hate when there is a Jason Momoa character in the book. I didn’t watch that show, and that isn’t my type. Why does everyone default to him? Also, I felt like Rosie could be a little too clueless at time, for as strong of a person as she was. The romance was definitely missing from this book for me. Maybe it wasn’t classified as a romance? It was definitely more chic lit-y.

Bottom Line: It was a sweet read that passed the time just fine.

**I received a copy of Rosie’s Traveling Tea Shop from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are of my own.**

The Night Swim by Megan Goldin

This book grabbed me right away, and I couldn’t put it down. I loved how the story wove between a case going on today and one 25 years ago. You really get invested in the town and it’s people. I feel like this book really shows what it is like to be a rape victim, how they always seem to be the one on trial and not the perp. This book did a really good job going back and forth between the two cases, the views of Hannah and Rachel, and the podcast episodes. I had it pretty much figured out, but there were a few surprises for me. I liked Rachel’s character a lot, and I felt like with the way the book ended….there maybe could be more?

Bottom Line: Read it!

He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not by Iris Morland

This was a fun little romantic comedy that had me smiling. Full disclosure, I did not read the first book in this series. I don’t feel like I needed to to enjoy this one…but now I want to read the next one about Kate! Liam is your typical tall, dark, handsome, brooding Irishman. Mari is a fiery redhead, who thinks she is boring, but was wrong. The beginning of the book starts with the two of them in bed the morning after they drunkingly got married. While this might be a story told a few times, the author found a way to keep this interesting and fresh. I really loved how each of them helped the other grow. My only complaint was that I felt there was an excessive amount of crude words. I like a hot romance…but the amount of times the author used certain words, was a little much for even me.

Bottom Line: If romantic comedies is your thing, and you don’t mind hot scenes and some crude language…read it!

Winter’s Kiss by Sienna Carr

Apparently, it is time to start the Christmas books! For me, anyways. Honestly, I will read them anytime of year. But this year, I want as many Christmas romances as I can get! First of all, our characters names are Merry Nicholls and Dylan Fraser. How cute is that? This was a sweet little love story that took place in a cute little town. It is everything you expect a Christmas love story to be.

Bottom Line: If you are looking for a light Christmas Hallmark type movie book, this was sweet.

Winter in Paradise by Elin Hilderbrand

Goodness, there are a lot of characters that Elin throws at you in the beginning of this book! Obviously, she has to build up the town and give you all the details so you can figure out what is going on. But still, you definitely have to pay attention. I ripped through this one. I loved the whole story line and all the mystery and secrets behind it. This book ended on a total cliffhanger!!! Thank goodness my library had the second one available.

Bottom Line: Read it!!!!

What Happens in Paradise by Elin Hilderbrand