Fourth of July Faves

Laughter really is an amazing medicine and being happy is so important for the soul. I forgot what that felt like for a while there but life has become so fulfilling and even more rewarding than I knew was possible.

This long weekend brings family and friends together to enjoy fireworks, food, and fun which is also good for the soul but we must remember the reason for this holiday. The United States gained it's independence and essentially it's own "soul" 240 years ago. That's definitely a reason to celebrate the country we love and live in and I hope you have a wonderful time doing so this weekend.

When it comes to the 4th of July these are some of my faves:

Fashion

Andrea amazes me week over week with her flawless sense of style and well-thought-out outfits she shares on her blog. I adore the cute yet patriotic outfits she featured this week just in time for the 4th of July.

Food

My boss is throwing a party this weekend and I offered to make a festive dessert. Of course I immediately went on Pinterest for some ideas and I settled on this delicious looking Angel Food Cake with Coconut Whipped Cream and Berries.

Decor
Even though I don't consider myself very crafty I do enjoy an easy DIY project and I think these Mason Jar Lanterns are very cute for nighttime celebrations. 

Nails
Truth be told my nails are a hot mess. I haven't had a manicure or nail polish on my nails in a couple months but holiday weekends remind me to be adventurous. I'm hoping to get a much needed mani and pedi this weekend and sprinkle some patriotism in there.

Hydrate

Because that's important in the summer. I thought these Red & Blue Ice Cubes were a cute idea to make a refreshing fruit-infused water for 4th of July which tends to be one of the hottest months of the year.

Enjoy the holiday weekend and be safe!
xoxo


Joining Amanda for her linkup.

Life Lately

Hi there and happy Friday!

I apologize for my blogging being spotty for the past few weeks as I try to find balance with my new work schedule and several other moving parts of life. The good news is that I leave work everyday so happy and thankful for this new opportunity to run my own department and finally advance in my career. In my free time I've been decorating my office with some cute tidbits that make me happy.

There's still so much to be done around our new house but I've managed to get a few rooms organized and decorated. I'm hoping to get some more things checked off my list this weekend but here's a sneak peak of the guest bathroom I decorated... beach-themed of course!

Lola, being the finicky character she is, was just starting to adjust to the new diggs until we took her with us to Cocoa Beach for the weekend which completely freaked her out about moving around so much. We had a little debacle with her refusing to leave the hotel room for 2 days but now that we're back at home, she's finally settled and knows this is home now.

There have been candle vigils almost every night here in Orlando to support the gay community after the senseless terrorist attack. At the Monday night vigil downtown a full rainbow appeared hovering over the crowd. It warmed my heart that the universe works in such mysterious ways!

My best friend flies home today so I'm extremely sad to see her leave after spending the past few months together but I'm excited for her to return home and get settled. She surprised me last night with this gorgeous Pandora bracelet with the Love & Guidance charm. Such a thoughtful gift and she has the matching charm. I'm going to miss her so much.

I worked some long hours this week but loving what you do and the people that you work with makes it feel so rewarding at the end of the week. I'm looking forward to date night with K tonight and a relaxing weekend ahead with some house organizing and decorating sprinkled in there.

Enjoy the weekend everyone!


Joining Amanda for her linkup.

Girls Beach Getaway

Being on unpaid vacation really makes you forget what day it is but I'm realizing now this change really happened at the right time because I was able to get a lot done at the new house and be around when different workers needed to be in and out installing last minute things. Other than that I've been really enjoying the lack of a schedule and break from office life to recharge my batteries.

Before starting my new job on Monday, the bestie and I decided to take a quick trip to the beach for a couple nights. We found a dog-friendly hotel and our girls vacay started yesterday with Lola in tote.

The beach is our happy place and the perfect place to clear your mind. I've become certain all of these changes are turning out to be a blessing in disguise allowing me to grow personally and professionally.

So we celebrate one last hurrah with some sun rain yesterday, sea, and sand before starting my new adventure next week which I'm pretty excited about.

Cheers to the weekend!

Life Lately

Changes. Life lately hasn't exactly been peachy. There's been so many changes in the last few weeks that have made me switch my focus to getting things back on track. I left my job after working there for six years which was pretty sad for me but since then I accepted a new and much more exciting job opportunity to run my own marketing department for a local company. There are sunnier days ahead and I start this new adventure one week from today.

Hurdles. We closed on our new home last week but then some complications arose with selling our current home since the buyers decided to delay another month. After a million phone calls, financial transactions, and tireless signing of documents we were able to successfully close and move in to our new home over the weekend. We spent the entire weekend moving, unpacking, and organizing things. I do believe exciting days are ahead in our new abode while we wait patiently to officially sell our current home.

Escape. In the midst of the chaos, K and I had a trip already booked and planned to visit Denver so we spent Memorial Day long weekend exploring the city and catching a ball game at Coors Field. We were blessed with good weather for the entire trip which allowed us to explore the city on foot and take in all that downtown Denver has to offer.

Sharing. After returning and settling back at home, Kerri and I met up for a happy hour date which was so fun catching up over some delish sushi and wine.

Reality. Other than some leisurely happy hours and lunch dates with friends and previous coworkers, there has been lots of Home Depot trips which probably won't be ending anytime soon.

Adulting. Home Goods also took my wallet for a run over the weekend. That store really has the cutest things for a great price. I was so tempted to buy gifts for everyone. I foresee a few more trips there as I finish up designing and decorating our home.

Celebrate. After moving all day on Friday, we met up with friends at Kobe Steakhouse in the evening to celebrate the birthday of Kate's hubby over some hibachi and sake. It's always a good time with this great group of friends.

Crisis. Within 48 hours of living in our new home (in a brand new gated community), our neighbors house got broken into on Saturday night and then the neighborhood flooded on Sunday because of torrential rains and thunderstorms. Nothing seriously affecting us or our new home but it has us in a serious scurry to get a security system to secure our home.

Release. The bestie and I have been enjoying Yoga in the Park on Sundays when we're not traveling or busy moving.

Bonding. K and I ended the weekend on Sunday with a date evening after a busy weekend consumed with moving and unpacking. We had to go to Home Goods for some final things, then Buffalo Wild Wings for a beer because that's an even trade-off in his books and ending with some barbecue for dinner at Texas Roadhouse.

Recap. Our last Wanderlust Wednesday is happening this week so please help us end with a bang by sharing your favorite travel recaps. I'll be sharing all the details about our trip to Denver.

Joining the lovely Biana for her weekending linkup.

Friday Before the Long Weekend

Happy Friday!

I've been looking forward to this weekend for months now since we have a trip to Denver planned and we fly out tonight. Life has been extremely crazy recently so I only just started planning out some things to do. We did buy tickets for a Rockies game a while ago but other than that I really haven't had much time to research restaurants, main attractions, etc. Either way I know it's going to be a fun weekend!

Life has been busy but I managed to grab a celebratory lunch with the bestie at a local Japanese restaurant and had the most delicious bento box I've ever tried. It even came with a cute little yogurt dessert.

One of my favorite fashion finds this week are these adorable Starfish Rings from Alex & Ani. I have a "thing" for starfish and used the symbol in my wedding as a theme since it was a beach/tropical style wedding. According to various sources the starfish symbolizes perception, sensitivity, and feelings among other things.

I've loved Body Shop products since I was a teenager but rarely make time to go to the mall. I've raved about their amazing eye makeup remover several times before on the blog but a few weeks ago I picked up the new-to-me Seaweed Deep Cleansing Face Wash and I love how well it deep cleans my face after a long day yet it's gentle without a harsh smell. They actually have free shipping right now so it would usually be my time to stock up. 

 

In the healthy food department, these Apple Pecan Chicken Salad made with Greek yogurt looks amazing. I can't wait to try it when I return home from vacay.

 Happy Memorial weekend!

If you have any fun suggestions for things to do in Denver, I'd love to hear all about it. 

Joining Amanda for her Friday Favorites linkup.

Weekend Whereabouts

I hope you all had a fabulous weekend. Mine was very productive doing "house things" with a little bit of relaxing and some fun with friends.

On Friday, K and I had our final walk-through/inspection of the new home which went well despite getting soaked by torrential thunderstorms. After we got that completed it was time for some happy hour and dinner at Graffiti Junktion.

Saturday was spent packing up boxes and organizing things at home before heading out for a quick dinner at Carrabba's with the bestie and her mom. After dinner we went to a friend's 80's themed birthday, although some people didn't dress up (ahem Kate and myself).

 

On Sunday I took the bestie and her mom out and about to do some shopping and errands. We literally spent 6 hours shopping between the mall, Target, Michael's and a few more stops. I'm happy to report I didn't buy one thing despite being tempted by all the cute Betsy Johnson things at Michael's.

We stopped at a Peruvian restaurant and shared some amazing ceviche and seafood for lunch.

It was a nice weekend and I'm already counting down to the long weekend ahead.

Joining the lovely Biana for her Weekending linkup.

Weekend Whereabouts

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.

Friday started off on an extremely exciting note when our realtor notified us that our was house sold... and at the asking price so no heavy negotiating was needed. That was a huge relief and we were able to cancel any further house showings for the weekend which were starting super early on Saturday morning.

My bestie's husband came in town to visit her while she does the course so we all went out for some amazing Korean BBQ & Sushi and had fun catching up while we cooked our meats over the grill in the middle of the table.

On Saturday the guys washed and detailed both of our cars while I did tons of packing of boxes and cleaning before finally heading out for some dinner at Ale House. The rest of the night was spent packing boxes and getting rid of unneeded things.

On Sunday, K and I went to brunch at Two Chefs Seafood Oyster Bar and then the bestie and her husband came with us to walk through our new house.

 On Sunday evening the four of us did some shopping and then settled at home to hang out and cook up a nice dinner - grilled salmon and burgers along with asparagus, kale salad, and sweet potato fries. It was a nice relaxing yet productive weekend.


Joining the lovely Biana for her Weekending linkup.

Weekend Whereabouts

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! Mine was a fairly quiet one since K was traveling for work so I enjoyed lots of "me time" and tried to sleep in but early-bird Lola woke me up at 6 am on both Saturday and Sunday morning.

On Friday night I did a whole lot of nothing other than relaxing at home catching up on some shows.

On Saturday I had a hairdresser appointment which is always a process but I love how my hair looks after getting a trim and some fresh highlights. After the salon, I went to Pier 1 to browse some of their gorgeous mirrored furniture. I talked about some of my current home obsessions on Friday and a pretty mirrored nightstand was on the list - These are the two I have my eye on - one  / two

Kate and I met up on Saturday evening at Brio Tuscan Grille to catch up over some delish Italian dinner and wine. The sweet potato and chicken risotto was amazing even though it looks like mushy baby food in the photo (ha!). The rest of the evening was spent relaxing at home watching the movie Sisters with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler which had some funny parts but altogether not a highly rated movie.

Bright and early on Sunday the bestie and I drove out to Cocoa Beach for some sunshine and fun. We stopped at Ron Jon Surf Shop first to do some shopping and I bought my first floppy beach hat.

 It's so lightweight and comfortable which is perfect for the Florida heat!

Once we got to the beach, we went to Coconuts for some much needed frozen cocktails to sip on while we relaxed on the beach for a few hours. After getting some sun we went to Jazzy's Mainely Lobster & Seafood Company for some local seafood dinner and then made the drive back home.

The weekend was capped off with some food prep and house staging on Sunday night to prepare for the week ahead.

Joining the lovely Biana for her weekending linkup.

April Happenings

Things have been BUSY around here lately leaving me with little time (and energy) to spend on blogging. The biggest time-consumer right now is that our offer on the new house was accepted earlier this week!! So I've spent the past week signing my life away and digging up all kinds of documents needed for home buying. K and I set out a couple months ago to find a new construction site where we could build a home with a particular floor plan and customize the design to our taste.

Last weekend while looking at another new construction site, we walked through a move-in ready inventory home that had the most gorgeous kitchen and the exact floor plan we were in the market for. We slept on the details on Saturday night and decided on Sunday to make an offer because it was perfect and within our budget. We were already sold on the house itself, it was just the location we had to really think about because, even though it's in a lovely new community, it's a bit far out from where we're accustomed living. This week the offer got accepted and we put our current house on the market for sale (more paperwork and signing my life away).

It would have been fun to build and design a house from the ground up but I think that would also come with added stress when things go wrong and not knowing an exact move-in date when you're trying to sell your current home. Our neighbors a few houses down the street recently sold their house much quicker than expected and now have no where to live. Luckily they have family living nearby who are helping them out but that is one thing we don't have. My in-laws live over 2 hours away and my parents live in the Caribbean.

The good news is we've already had a few potential buyers look at the house over the past few days so things are moving in the right direction. I foresee the whole month of May being consumed with the technicalities of buying a new home, selling our current house, and then the most painful part - packing up and moving! Other than the moving process being a bitch, I'm all kinds of excited to settle into our new home and start decorating.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Linking up with Amanda.

Weekend Whereabouts

 

What a nice little break this weekend was.
I indulged in some of my favorite things ~ sleeping in, snuggling with Lola, quality time with my bestie, and some outdoor adventures.

After posting the recipe for Paleo Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos last week, I was craving the real deal so it was an easy decision to have our Friday night dinner date at Bonefish Grill.

The rest of the night was spent relaxing and catching up on some shows at home with my favorite snuggle bug.



Saturday was a Home Depot and Bed, Bath & Beyond type of day, except we didn't go to BBB. Instead laundry, grocery shopping, meal prep, and garden shopping at Home Depot happened before we headed out to continue the search for a new home.

We found a house with the perfect floor plan and it happens to have the most gorgeous kitchen! This week we are going to work on confirming all the details and possibly putting an offer on the house.

Hours of house shopping definitely leaves you feeling exhausted and hungry so we went to the new Buffalo Wild Wings in our area for some dinner and a cold beverage.

 On Sunday, the bestie and I spent the day laying out, chit chatting and canoeing on the river at Wekiva Island. We had so much fun and it was the perfect way to end the weekend

Linking up my girl Biana for her Weekending linkup.