I wish I could be with my dad to celebrate his special day today (over whoopie pies and chocolate marshmallow ice cream, of course) but a mid-June visit is in the works, so I’m hoping I’ll see him in a few weeks. My fingers are crossed!
Though I sadly won’t be spending the weekend with my dad, we do have some fun plans on the agenda since two visitors are coming in town to stay with us for the weekend. Our friend Ben and his friend Allan will be arriving today and we’re planning to spend a lot of time outside and on the boat this weekend. Hopefully the weather with cooperate!
In the meantime, it’s Friday so let’s dive into your weekly Things I’m Loving Friday blog post where I give a quick rundown of the things I’m loving most each week. Feel free to share a little bit about what you’re loving in the comments section of this post!
Things I’m Loving Friday
- Pots and Pans = Playtime Gold
This week, I busted out our pots and pans as “toys” for Chase and was shocked by just how long they entertained him! He had so much fun banging around and playing with our pots and pans and this little activity bought us more “happy baby entertainment” time than usual, so I was stoked. I’ve had a couple of friends recommend taking a bucket of water and some pots and pans outside for even more playtime fun, so that is on our radar, too! At least until our water table arrives! (I ended up ordering a water table last week thanks to an awesome blog reader who let me know about a great sale on Zulily! I ended up going with this one after reading a bunch of various water table reviews.)
- Latest thredUP Haul
I have a minor obsession with thredUP. I send clothes I no longer want that are in good condition to thredUP, but I use the site even more frequently to shop for inexpensive barely-used clothing for me and Chase. My latest haul had a bunch of fun summer finds, including a new bikini top, breezy Free People pants, a neon lace romper (tags still on!), never-worn Gap sandals and a bunch of adorable clothes for Chase. I LOVE the site for Chase’s clothes (I mean how cute are those yellow BabyGap pants!?) because they have so many quality brand name clothes that honestly seem like they’ve only been worn a handful of times (if at all).
I know I’ve blogged about my love for this recipe before but it really is one of the best blogger recipes I have EVER made. I love it so darn much and have Brittany to thank for bringing it into my life when she made it for us for dinner after Chase was born. The ingredients in the recipe are minimal but the flavor is amazing. (I use hot Italian sausage and we think that makes a big difference!) I made it for dinner again on Wednesday this week and encourage you to add it to your meal plan for next week. It’s the best!
Did you guys see the new emojis that are apparently coming out soon? I’m pretty excited to see some new food emojis popping up, especially the avocado, peanuts and pancakes emojis! I also kind of love the cartwheel girl… I have a feeling she’ll be a new favorite of mine, along with the old salsa dancer!
This ice cream is so, so good! I bought it a few weeks ago when it was on sale at Whole Foods and was immediately impressed with the creaminess, flavor and texture of the ice cream, not to mention the nutrition label. As someone who laughs as the idea of a half cup of ice cream as a legit “serving,” I love that I can go to town on a pint of Halo Top without it being a total sugar bomb. So far I’ve tried the chocolate and strawberry flavors but I’m dying to get my hands on the birthday cake and chocolate mocha chip flavors… I am thinking it may be time to request these flavors at my local Whole Foods! And just FYI, I would definitely follow their instructions and let the ice cream melt a little bit before digging in. It makes a huge difference and adds to the creaminess.
- This Reminder
I stumbled up on this quote in my friend Morgan’s Instagram feed and it was such a great reminder. In less than two months, I will have a ONE year old on my hands. My baby is getting so big so fast!
Keeping Chase my number one priority feels natural to me but sometimes I cannot help but feel stressed out by the lack of time I have every day to get anything work-related done. Without any help or childcare yet (which I know I could change but I’m just not ready!), it can sometimes feel like I’m rushing around all day long, entertaining Chase when he is awake and then going into overdrive work mode when he naps. Working from home with a baby is a challenge and it’s not always easy to put my endless list of to-dos on the backburner, but it is always, always worth it.
- Friday Flashbacks
No Bake Peanut Butter Bars (Combine crunchy peanut butter, sweet honey, crispy bran flakes, chewy oats, cinnamon and protein-packed chia seeds and in five minutes you will have a delicious batch of no bake peanut butter bars ready for snacking!)
Weekend Circuit Workout (A sweaty one to try this weekend if you’re looking for some workout inspiration!)
- Around the Web
Fitness: Tabata Workout / Bosu Booty Workout / Arm Workout
Food: Slow Cooker Thai Coconut Ground Turkey / Zesty Italian Chopped Salad / Healthy Double Chocolate Doughnuts
Stellar Sales: aden+ anais and Tory Burch on Zulily / The Dress Sale on RueLaLa (begins at 11 a.m. EST – love their dress sales so much!) / Charles David, Cuisinart, 100 Summer Reads (<—featuring a lot of the books from my Summer Reading List post!) on HauteLook
- Giveaway Winner
Congratulations to Tabathia, the winner of The Honest Company giveaway! Tabathia was emailed first thing this morning. Thanks so much to all who entered!
Question of the Day
- What is one thing you are loving this week?
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The ThreadUp app is life! I order clothes for Mitch between meetings. Talk about a love affair!
loving the constant flow of visitors i’ve had/am having over may and june, but loving this weekend all to myself as well
Well My birthday is MONDAY so this weekend will hopefully be “pre-fun” 😉
Happy (almost) Birthday, Rebecca!!! <3
I saw the Halo Top at Whole Foods earlier this week (actually my first trip there believe it or not!!) and I passed it up! As Julia Roberts would say, big mistake. HUGE. Next time!
Hope you have a great weekend and happy birthday to your dad!
I have to admit that I’m most excited about the avocado!! FINALLY!
I keep seeing halo top, but can’t seem to figure out where they sell it near me. Time to do some investigating because it looks awesome!
o0o0o I didnt hear about the new emojis…I think I will love cartwheel girl too. Those baby gap pants are too much you have to take a picture when he wears those!
This week I’m loving fresh berries and melon! Have a great weekend!
i need a water table! i’m going to check zulily now!!
Yay finally an avocado emoji, lol funny how something so simple gets us so excited. And I haven’t tried the Halo Top ice cream yet only Arctic Zero, which do you like better?
Halo Top BY FAR! I tried Arctic Zero before but feel like it was too icy and not nearly close enough to the texture/flavor of real ice cream. Halo Top is where it’s at!!
I have never used threadUP. Sounds like it could be a great deal though! Can you return items if they don’t fit properly? I know most thrift stores like Second Time Around have stricter return policies.
Yes! I’ve returned a handful of things with no issue! And return shipping is free. 🙂
I also love the idea of ThredUp, but if you return, you get store credit only or you have to pay $9 for shipping back. I understand why they need to do it that way, but good fitting clothes are tricky for me. I really want to try it, but not for the cost.
Julie, I love your new things! Great idea for kids too.
I think I’m WAY too excited for the new emojis! It’s the little things, I guess 🙂
I just made that pizza spaghetti pie last night and I was so impressed! I thought it would be sad without cheese (since I’m doing a Whole30) but it was surprisingly delicious!
I looove Halo Top! Someone told me that they were discontinuing the birthday cake flavor but I am praying they are wrong! I’ve been loving antique furniture shopping lately. I just moved so I am looking for some cute furniture without breaking the bank
Oh my gosh the selfie emoji!!
Pretty sure that’s not an old salsa dancer, but rather from the 70’s as in John Travolta and Saturday Night Fever
I didn’t mean “old” as in age but “old” as in one of the previous emojis! But I definitely thought it was a salsa dancer rather than a 70s dancer. Good to know!!
Interestingly enough, this is one of the few emojis that shows up differently depending on your phone! Check out this Buzzfeed article: https://www.buzzfeed.com/nicolenguyen/one-emoji-font-to-rule-them-all?utm_term=.atNqdAxeK#.vvy5d1D4K
My friend sent me the dancing guy from her Samsung phone, and I have a Nexus phone that renders the image as Stock Android. Pretty crazy difference!
The birthday cake is the best!!!!
Oh my gosh – I finally discovered Halo Top too!!! Lemon Cake and Vanilla Bean are amazing! I had the birthday cake – but I definitely preferred the other two to this one – but still delicious! Next want to get my hands on Strawberry and Mint Chocolate!!
I’m loving that it’s a long weekend (today’s a Holiday in the bahamas) and that we only have 9 more teaching days until summer 🙂
I love and need that bright yellow/white romper, can you share the brand/details from the tag?
Have a great weekend!
The brand is Dolce Vita!
Ohhh new emojis! Loving that cartwheel girl, too. Enjoy your weekend on the boat!
Whew, thank goodness for the bacon emoji, gonna use that one alllll the time! Bahahah
One of my work pals has been RAVING about Halo Top but it’s always sold out at the Whole Foods stores around here! I got to try the vanilla (which was good, but, ya know, vanilla) — I’m dying to try the other flavors!
I learned about ThredUp from your blog over a year ago and I am OBSESSED. I both sell and buy and it’s just the BEST. I love that new items pop up every week!
I’m loving that it’s National Donut Day!!
Have you heard of/used Poshmark? I used to love Thred Up, but I actually have found the prices are often WAY above normal resale prices. Poshmark is person to person, so you can find amazing deals, make offers, ask questions – I deeply prefer it.
Julie,
HALO top is SOOO good. I just discovered it this week as well. I found them at Kroger and they also happened to be on sale. They had Birthday cake and chocolate. They were both delicious, but the birthday cake is SOOOOOO GOOOD! There are even sprinkles mixed in. You have to try it. Reminded me of funfetti. I will for sure be picking up some more. I’m dying to try the lemon chiffon.
Love the new food emojis and halo top! I love the lemon cake and vanilla, but really want to find the birthday cake flavor as well. I don’t like how pricey a pint is in NYC (around $6) but hopefully I can find a good sale soon 🙂
JULIE! Happy Friday. Something I shared this week and KNOW you will love … THIS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5ffOxDIcwc&feature=youtu.be
Can’t wait for the new emojis! I really need to try Thred Up and that ice cream! Have a great weekend!
Yay! I didn’t know that there were new emojis! Is is embarrassing that I am excited about that haha? 😉
I’m actually eating left overs of Juli Bauer’s Buffalo Casserole now – almost as good as the spaghetti pie!
Aww… it’s my dad’s birthday today too (and mine tomorrow). Yay birthdays! (and, yay reasons for eating ice cream!… as if we needed any). That quotation about only having a baby for a year makes me kind of sad. My LO is 9 months today; it’s going way too fast!!!
Happy Birthday to your dad!
I’ve recently seen Halo Top ice cream all over lately but have yet to try it. I’m a sucker for basically all ice cream:)
those emoji’s look cool..
i’ve been loving the weather.
1) LOVE the neon lacy romper. Do you know the brand?
2) try the Lemon Cake flavor of Halo Top!!! It is the best lemony ice cream I’ve ever had – healthy or not!
Hope you have a great weekend!
Yes! The brand is Dolce Vita!
I have to try ThreadUp. Seriously cute clothes. The new food emojis are great. Love emojis. Have a wonderful weekend.
Halo top is my favorite! I haven’t been able to find the mocha or birthday cake though! I tried the mint and it was really good too!
Pots and pans for the WIN! My little one loves playing in the tupperware drawer! My oldest daughter thought the best game ever was taking all the DVDs off the rack and putting them back. Even after we uploaded all our movies onto our Apple TV we still left the DVDs out for her! LOL! I’m pretty bummed there’s no peanut butter emoji yet…all in good time I guess right?! Thank you so much for including me in your faves! 😉 Have an amazing weekend on the lake!
That quote about having a baby for just one year made me so emotional! I’m halfway through my first pregnancy and would love to be able to cultivate my business so I can hustle during nap times but keep baby #1! Definite motivation to make it happen!
I hope you are feeling well, Lindsey!! <3 Congratulations to you!
I’m so excited for those new emojis!
I adore emojis. Can’t wait to see those new ones on my phone & IM – how great is technology or what.?
You have to try the Halo Top Birthday Cake flavor!!! 🙂
I’ve been seeing thredUP pop up everywhere!! I really think I need to give it a try 🙂 Also, thank you so much for sharing my salad!! Hope you guys have a fun and sunny weekend!
I also just tried Halo Top for the first time this week. The Lemon Cake flavor is amazing! I highly recommend it! I have a pint of Birtday Cake in my freezer to try next!
Awe Happy birthday!
Hey Julie,
I wanted to email you…is there an email address I could send a note to?
pbfingers@gmail.com! 🙂
OMG yesssss to Halo Top. The Mint Chip is my absolute favorite. Birthday cake is also worth a taste 😉 Also, must try the spaghetti pie…
I think Chase looks just like your dad !!
So do I!! 🙂
I made your no bake peanut butter bars! They were delic! Thanks for the recipe! I’m loving that summer has finally arrived & my pool opened! Can’t wait to create a summer bucket list!
So glad to hear this! Thanks for letting me know!
Halo top is the best, but lemoncake flavor TAKES. THE. CAKE!! Im dying to try the birthday cake or mint chip. but lemoncake every time!
I love the idea of thread up but I’m a little hesitant. I have a whole Rubbermaid container of clothes, some maternity and some not, and would like see some return on them. Do you find that they need to be hip brands (rather than Loft or Target) in order to resell?
On thredUP’s website, they actually have a list of brands they accept! I know they definitely accept Xhiliration (Target-brand) clothes, as I’ve sent in that stuff before! They don’t pay a TON for clothes though, so I really only send in stuff I’d otherwise donate.