6.30.2017

June Favorites

June has been such a difficult month: My Dad unexpectedly passed away on June 2nd so it's all been a very hard to process and things (like my blog) got put on the back-burner for real life (and to be out of state with my mom and siblings for a week earlier this month). I'm trying to get back into the swing of things because I know my Dad would want me to, he was so proud of my blog and photography, so continuing on is one way to honor him and his memory, after all, I wouldn't be doing any of this without the influence and teaching of both him and my mom. I was home-schooled and they taught me all I know about pretty much everything, my Dad was in PR work for a big majority of his life and both him and my mom are excellent at both writing and photography, so it's great to be able to carry something on that he was proud of.

Recently I decided to discontinue my What I'm Loving Wednesday posts, because let's face it, I rarely actually get around to doing a favorites round up post every single week... So please welcome the start of my monthly favorites posts! June Favorites! In this month's Favorites, I'll be sharing some of the items that I gave Frank for Father's Day and some other our other favorites as well, read all about them below!

What better shirt to wear while relaxing on the weekend than a super soft shirt from Weekend Tee Co.? These shirts are perfect for wearing  while enjoying your days off whether it be napping, BBQing, hiking, picnicking, a movie marathon or whatever your hobbies may be. The XL size fits my husband really great and I also have one in a size Medium (unisex size) that fit's me perfectly (I typically wear size Large in women's tees). One thing that I especially love about these shirts is how soft they are, like I don't want to take it off and I kind of really want to wear it every day (who says I can only wear it on the weekends? haha). In all seriousness though, the weekend isn't just the end of the week, it's a lifestyle and a mind set, every evening can be a little "weekend" if you do it right, relaxing or adventuring together with the ones you love. A few other reasons we love the Weekend Tee Co., which was established in 2015, is their attentiveness to detail in their products. They've chosen eco-manufacturing, paper-less and solar-powered facilities, 100% no sweat shop, and their screen printed inks are water based and are applied by hand!


We love clementines and oranges in our home for more than one reason, firstly because they taste seriously delicious, but secondly because my husband and I actually met kind of because our love of oranges (it's a long story) so of course they have a special place in our hearts. That's why I was so excited to find this new brand Clementine Kids! Immediately I was smitten with their sweet designs and pretty prints and their fabrics are the softest. We have the Clementine double sided quilt from Clementine Kids and it's just so cozy, Bella love snuggling up with it for story times, quiet times, traveling and even bedtime some nights. I just love the size (it's a little larger than most children's blankets) so I can even use it as a throw blanket if I want, perfectly covers my legs while sitting in the sofa writing, editing photos or watching a movie. The huckleberry and ice cream quilts are some other favorites of mine, just loving these pretty blankets. Their swaddles and quilts are made from 100% cotton muslin (one of my favorite fabrics), are never bleached and are designed to only get softer with each and every wash (because we all know that little ones can be slightly messy at times haha), they're also machine washable.


We've been fans of the Killer Roasting Co for some time now. My husband says that their coffee is without a doubt the best coffee he's ever tasted, and honestly, I have to agree with him. Their roasts are the absolute best! We just love shopping small whenever we can to support the movers and shakers of small business USA, because we know that we're usually supporting people just like us, parents, husbands and wives, friends. We're so excited to try this new Nicaragua Los Congos roast from the Killer Roasting Co after we loved the Guatemala roast so much last year. I mean, what better way than to start your day with a cup of steaming hot small batch roasted delicious coffee? I can't think of many better ways. We always take our roasts from Killer Roasting Co. to a local cheese and meat store to grind it (we don't own a coffee grinder and hey always so graciously let us borrow their) and they always ask where the coffee is from because it smells so amazing! These bags of roast coffee beans are the best gift, whether it be for a father's day gift (like it was for my hubby), or groomsmen gifts, or birthday gifts, or even stocking stuffers, you totally have to try this coffee.


I've loved the Baby Mama Sew shop for a couple years now, I originally won a shop credit from her way back in 2014, you know, when giveaway loops had just started and were the BIG thing on Instagram, and purchased a pretty little gold and black clutch that I loved for the longest time before passing it it on to a family member. So I was excited to see all of the pretty new clutches in her shop and especially this striped fold over option with the leather bottom. I mean, you can absolutely never go wrong with stripes (especially black and white stripes), or leather for that matter, both such classics, and to pair them together is simply perfection. I also love the fun pop of floral inside of the bag (I mean, floral paired with stripes and leather, omg). You can also purchase the option to have a strap included (making this the cutest little crossbody purse) and other add-ons like leather tassels (how fun, right?). A fun fact, is that they're designed and handcrafted in Hawaii! SO I mean, even if we can't all live i Hawaii, I think we should buy something that came from Hawaii because it makes us a little closer to those gorgeous sandy beaches, palm trees and waves.


We've just been loving these shirts from Charlotte & Ezra. This "Mom Life" tee is one of my go-to tops the past month, it's so cute and I can just throw it on with a cute pair of jeans for a no-nonsense everyday mom look and it's super soft which is a top priority in my book (life's too short not to be comfortable). I always get so many compliments on this shirt when we're out and about, all the moms love it for sure. All of Charlotte & Ezra's tee and screen-printed right here in the USA (Yay!), and I just love the fit of these shirts, flattering in all the right places but still a little flowy and not too tight, simply perfection. My hubby loves wearing his "Jesus loves you more than kanye loves kanye" shirt too, he seriously cracked up when I showed this shirt to him and was like "I need that shirt". Just loving these shirts, make sure to check out the other fun designs they offer as well!


What have you been loving this month? Let me know in the comments below or drop me a note on instagram!

6.23.2017

Pick-Your-Own


We've had strawberry picking on our to-do list since right after we got married, some way or the other though, we've always either forgotten about or missed the picking season, and the years that we did remember, we had too much "real life" going on. So we were so excited to finally make it to a local farm for pick your own strawberries this past Memorial Day weekend! Even better is that we had a little one in tow who loved every second of picking those pretty red berries! She had so much fun holding the basket for us and loved running through the field looking for ripe red berries. Such a fun experience and we'll definitely have to do it again next year (we'll also be picking blueberries next month so that's always fun as well).


I made a strawberry jello cake on Memorial Day using some of the strawberries we picked and there are still so many left! I've frozen the rest of them and we'll continue to use them throughout the year for pies and cobblers, smoothies, lemonades, etc. So many yummy treats you can make with strawberries, I even love to drop a few frozen ones in my water to have fruit infused water!

Have you ever been strawberry picking? Are you planning to go berry picking this year?

6.01.2017

Summer Bucket List

make homemade popsicles
eat lots of homemade pie
visit the zoo
take a trip to a state park (or two)
go hiking
take a walk
have a picnic
go to a baseball game
make s'mores
go berry picking
watch fireworks
feed ducks
go see hot air balloons
visit the farmer's market
spend the day in a small local town
spend the day in a big city
read a new book
make smoothies
tend to the garden
spot cloud shapes while laying on our gathre mat
make ice cream floats
pick flowers
go to the movies on a hot day
watch a sunset
go on a boat ride
visit a new restaurant or revisit an old favorite (like he bluebird kitchen)
unplug for a day
go wading in a creek
catch fireflies
dance to our favorite songs
visit the beach
take a drive and get lost (just remember to bring your gps haha)
relax in lawn chairs by the garden
have a long conversation
go to the museum
eat at a food truck
make a trip for donuts
go to the county fair
draw with sidewalk chalk
blow bubbles
stargaze
take a dip in the lake
barbeque at the park
have a playdate
visit a local pool
make lemonade (lots and lots of lemonade)
visit a firestation
build a sandcastle
search for beach glass
eat all the fruit (especially watermelon and pineapple)
put on your rainboots and go puddle jumping
have a movie night with snacks
plan a staycation nearby - spend the weekend away
have a treasure hunt outside
go to an amusement park
build a blanket fort
make so many memories