Carrie requested a super-casual, kid-friendly affair which sounded perfect to me. Everyone is arriving around 10 a.m. and while I cannot wait to celebrate Carrie and her little one, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t slightly intimidated by the fact that we’ll have a bunch of toddlers (13!) running around our house! While I love hosting play dates, we haven’t had more than six kids or so over at once since Chase’s birthday party and now that our little ones are a lot more mobile, I hope I’m not in over my head!
I stationed a bunch of Chase’s toys in different rooms downstairs to hopefully disperse the chaos a bit. Fingers crossed it’s not complete madness over here but even if it is, I know my girlfriends and I kind of expect that by now with our toddlers in tow, so hopefully it will be fun regardless.
Other than Carrie’s baby sprinkle, Ryan and I have a date night planned for this evening (WOOHOO!) and then our friend Ben is arriving in town on Sunday (he’s moving to the area and will be inspecting his new house) so we have some fun things to look forward to over the next few days.
I hope you guys enjoy today’s Things I’m Loving Friday post and have a great weekend as well!
Things I’m Loving Friday
- $1 Summer Movies
Earlier this week, one of my girlfriends texted me about Birkdale Village’s Summer Movie Series featuring $1 movies on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings all summer long. A group of four of us met up at the theatre on Wednesday for our toddlers’ first REAL movie experience! We bought $1 tickets to see Sing!, hoping that the combination of a movie with lots of animals, singing and dancing would work in our favor.
I thought Chase would last all of 20 minutes so imagine my surprise when he made it through the whole thing! It felt like such a special treat and I think singing animals and a bunch of other enamored kids around him deserve ALL the credit for our success. (The movie also truly seemed like the PERFECT choice and was not scary at all which definitely helped!) Chase could jump and dance in the aisles with the other kids and no one cared because everyone had little ones doing the exact same thing… Plus, it was only a dollar per ticket so if the experience didn’t work out, we were only out $2! While I don’t see taking Chase to the movies becoming a regular thing anytime in the near future, Wednesday’s movie experience was such a fun one!
I’m still making my way through this year’s Summer Reading List (I’m about halfway through) and began reading The Marriage Lie on Tuesday and it immediately hooked me! I have no idea where the book will end up but I sure am enjoying the ride so far. If you like mysteries with plenty of suspense and intrigue, from what I’m read so far, this is a book I’d recommend. It’s a page-turner for sure and one I find myself looking forward to reading every night when I crawl into bed.
- Big Easy Bucha Pineapple + Elderflower Kombucha
Something about the summertime makes me crave kombucha and I discovered a new-to-me brand and flavor that deserves a shout out in today’s post! Big Easy Bucha’s pineapple + elderflower kombucha called to me at the grocery store since I love ordering cocktails with elderflower syrup when we go out to eat if I ever see them on the menu. I figured this was a nice way to feel fancy at home when I wanted a little pick-me-up at 3 p.m. The flavor and fizz of the kombucha is mild but refreshing thanks to the base of black and green tea. I can’t wait to try more of Big Easy Bucha’s flavors in the future! The Louisiana strawberry + honeysuckle is next on my list.
- Enlightened Ice Cream
Annnnd for the 10,000th ice cream shout out you’ve seen in my weekly TILF posts, I’m featuring Enightened ice cream! The Enlightened team caught wind of my ice cream obsession and sent me a bunch of their new flavors to try and you guys they are SO GOOD. We’re talking CREAMY and satisfying and not at all icy. (I’m lookin’ at you, Arctic Zero… <— Aka the “ice cream” tastes like feet.) Enlightened ice cream is higher in protein per serving that traditional ice cream and much lower in calories. You have to leave it out for 10 minutes or so before you want to dig in (difficult, I know) but it’s so worth the wait. I polished off 3/4 of the above pint of Caramel Oatmeal Cookie Crunch by myself on the couch on Wednesday night when Ryan and I were watching Big Brother. No shame. That stuff is the jam!
- Nordstrom Anniversary Sale (Early Access)
It’s that time of year again!!! The Nordstrom Anniversary Sale is here and it’s majorly hyped all over the internet for a good reason. The deals are great and the items featured aren’t just junky clearance goodies and outdated apparel… We’re talking high-quality stuff!!!
Yesterday marked the beginning of Early Access to the sale (open to Nordstrom card holders) so I wanted to share a super short roundup of some things that caught my eye (and a few that I’ve already purchased!) and will include more goodies in next week’s Friday post when the sale is open to the public as well. Happy shopping, my friends!
FITNESS:
Zella Live In High-Waist Leggings (Perfect for slimming the belly.)
Nike Free Run Distance (My current go-to shoe for boot camp workouts.)
Nike Muscle Tank (I’m such a sucker for flowy muscle tanks these days!)
Nike Free Focus Flyknit Sneakers (Nike Flyknits are THE BEST. I have three pairs and LOVE them so darn much.)
Adidas Relaxed Logo Tank (LOVE this throwback style! Only $21.90!)
Zella High-Waist Midi Leggings
Nike Juvenate Sneakers (I’m super into black sneakers right now and love the lightweight look of this pair! I bought a floral print of Nike Juvenate sneakers during last year’s Nordstrom sale and they’re SO comfy!)
WOMEN’S APPAREL:
Leith Cold Shoulder Dress (So feminine and breezy!)
Cutaway Bootie (I ordered these booties for the fall because I hate the way most booties make me look like I have cankles and I have a feeling THIS pair will be flattering due to the cross-foot cutaway style.)
Sole Society Foldover Clutch (Such a gorgeous bag.)
Longchamp LePliage Expandable Tote (I’ve had my Longchamp LePliage tote for years and especially love it for travel!)
Nordstrom Moonlight Lingerie Pajamas (The fabric of these pajamas = Heavenly!!)
- Dollar Tree Balloons
I’m sharing this one here for any of you out there who may have been in the dark about Dollar Tree’s fantastic balloon selections! Local party stores are not very close to our house so I usually pick up balloons at the grocery store but after a friend told me about Dollar Tree’s affordable foil and latex balloons I was a little too excited! I picked up a handful of foil balloons for today’s baby sprinkle and they look great and only cost a buck! (The above pic is from Lily’s birthday party play date last week when Laura bought the balloons at Dollar Tree. I want to keep the sprinkle décor a surprise for Carrie until she gets here this morning!) I’ll be keeping this option on my radar for future parties for sure!
- Friday Flashbacks
12 Inexpensive Date Ideas (Because fun and memorable dates don’t have to cost an arm and a leg!)
Traveling with a Baby for the First Time (I typed up this post after my first experience flying with Chase – solo! – and shared tips and tricks for what worked for us and what didn’t.)
Question of the Day
What is one thing you are loving this week?
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Ya’ll’s movie out sounds like so much fun! I want to try that ice cream so much!
Have you ever tried the sneakers On Cloud. The are similar to your beloved Nikes and so comfortable. They come in lots of cute color combinations or black?. Also, I appreciate your list of Nordstrom sale items, especially the tummy controlled leggings, but it made me giggle when I read it since your stomach needs no slimming at all!
Where can I find that ice cream? How does it compare to Halo Top?
This week I’m loving all things SUMMER!
I was wondering how that ice cream compared to halo top too, even though I haven’t tried Halo top yet. I know…….silly me. But it’s on my to do list lol
I’ve seen it at our local Kowalski’s and Lund’s / Byerly’s — gourmet grocery stores should have it!
Also wondering about how it compares to Halo Top!
I bought the marriage lie after seeing it on your list. I finished the book in two sittings and had to read the last few pages a few times to actually believe what happened. Loved it!!
So many sprinkles, there must be a lot of little ones on the way! I recently fell in love with kombucha and am obsessed with trying all of the flavors. This week I’m loving peach bruschetta!
I’m totally shopping your Nordy favs! I want to try Enlightened SO BADLY. I do really like Arctic Zero and I know it’s meant to be 100x better!
LOL, I am less than excited to try the container of Arctic Zero in my freezer now! I saw the brand for the first time last week and picked it up to try because it’s lactose free and my husband is lactose intolerant. I usually get him the Ben and Jerry’s Lactose free but the Arctic Zero’s “healthy ice cream” claims had me deciding to give it a try. I’ll keep an eye out for Enlightened for myself (I see it has dairy), it looks much healthier than my usual pints!
Your friend group seems very close! Random edition though, I notice you guys often host parties during week days- do none of your friends work outside the home? I would be bummed to miss a special occasion honoring a friend if I couldn’t finagle time off!
i have a handful of friends who do work outside of the home but a bunch stay home with their kids as well. for this sprinkle, we asked carrie if she’d prefer a weekend or a weekday sprinkle and she was all about a casual weekday morning. we’re throwing chase’s bday party on a saturday so my extended group of friends who also work away from home can come, too! i think some of the weekday stuff pops up because people don’t want to take up a weekend day when people seem to like to spend that time with their families or travel, too!
I’m surprised you’ve never hosted a playdate like this before! It seems like your friends are always having people over, and you definitely have the space! I have a toddler the same age as Chase, and play dates are the best thing ever – we host one a week on average. One of the things you must remember with toddlers is that you have to let go of being so uptight about maintaining the “perfect” house space, so you can relax and let your kid be a kid!
oh yes we definitely do a lot of play dates! i just don’t think i’ve had more than 6 kids over at once in quite a while! if we do bigger groups, we usually choose to meet up at a park/splash pad/pool to make it easier!
That movie trip sounds so fun! I love going to the movies and can’t wait to take our little guy some day 🙂 The nice movie theater near us has a “baby day” on Tuesdays where it’s okay if they talk, etc., so we’ll probably do that when the time comes. Have a great weekend!
I’m sure the sprinkle at your house will be a lot of fun! If the weather is nice you guys could let the kids run around outside for a bit too.
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I’ve got to try that ice cream…yum! Question – what kind of shoes do you wear for running (either long distance or running workouts in general)? I see your Nikes..but am in the market for something different and just trying to do some research. Thanks! 🙂
That book is very interesting… I got it right after you posted the list! I would love to hear your thoughts after 🙂 Enjoy date night!! I would love to try that Enlightened ice cream– I need to find it around me! Happy Fri-YAY!
Hope the sprinkle is awesome and you have a great weekend! I will have to try Enlightened. I am a huge fan of Halo Top, and ice cream in general, so it looks right up my alley.
Good luck with the sprinkle this morning, I”m sure it’ll be great! And I’ve been loving trying local kombucha brands, I tried one recently with elderflower and it was delicious. Happy Weekend!
I just started Marriage Lie last night…you’re right…it immediately hooked me too! I can’t wait to see what happens!
That book sounds like something I NEED!!! I love suspenseful page turners.
You guys are gonna have a blast at the party, can’t wait to see pics on how you decorated!! Have a great weekend!!
P.S. Your weekends always sound WAAAAYYY cooler than mine lol. Love Friday Favorites each week
Adding The Marriage Lie to my reading list right now! I love books that are page turners!
um those kombucha flavors sound AWESOME. i wonder if i can find that stuff near me?! and i’m absolutely dying to try Enlightened – i’m a huge fan of Halo Top so i’m sure i’ll love it!!! have a beautiful weekend 🙂
I read The Marriage Lie a couple of weeks ago (because it was in one of your Friday Favorites posts!) and while I really enjoyed most of the book, I found the ending a little disappointing… but still worth reading!
The Marriage Lie was such a good book!! I finished it super quick, I’m sure you will too! Oooooh I am totally going to be shopping around the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale! I’m going to have to try that ice cream, my husband has been eating Halo Top and I can’t get into it. It tastes like pure chemicals to me and makes my mouth go numb! I hope you have a great weekend! Xoxo
“The ice cream that taste like feet.” LOL! So funny and so accurate! I haven’t tried Enlightened yet, but I LOVE Halo Top! I will have to give this one a whirl and see what I think 🙂
This week, I am super pumped about my half marathon I am running with my husband on Sunday! This will be our first half together, which makes it extra fun!
That’s my favorite flavor of Enlightened, and for Halo Top, I like the birthday cake flavor. That’s awesome you have another friend moving to the area! Happy Friday! Good luck with the sprinkle! 🙂
That picture of Chase and his friend is too cute. They will love that when they are older! Also, you’re really making we want to go out and find that kombucha and ice cream now…
Chris and I are going to Nordstrom today after work to shop the anniversary sale and I can’t wait! Love that expandable tote bag you linked to.
Something that is making me happy this week is ordering our wedding invitations! Hope you have a great weekend and that the sprinkle goes great today 🙂
I’m from NOLA and love that you love the Big Easy Bucha! Definitely going to check out that book!
Oh I’ve never tried Enlightened before….excited to check it out! Oh and I love the nordy’s sale…..an excuse to stock up on some yoga pants right? 🙂
So the Caramel Oatmeal Cookie Crunch sounds amazing! I love that it has more protein in it than regular ice cream.
From one ice cream lover to another: What are the chances you can do an “ice cream round up” post sometime?! I’d love to know how you think everything you’ve tried compares to each other!
Wow! Impressed he sat through the entire movie! I’m thinking about taking my son soon too. He sat for an entire Sesame Street episode last weekend, so I think he’s ready!
Oh man I just whipped through the Marriage lie!!! It was on your list and so I nabbed that and One true loves and both are so good ..well I’ve only started One true loves ( I think that’s what it’s called) and man it’s so good! Thank you for the recommendation and can’t wait to hear what you think of the Marriage Lie!
Dollar Tree balloons are the best! And seriously, so cheap compared to grocery store balloons. And they’re party decor isn’t half bad too if you’re not looking for a super specific character item.