Hey friends! How are you!? Ryan, Chase, Sadie and I arrived back in North Carolina late last night after spending some much-needed time with family over Christmas. We extended our stay a bit to be in town for a procedure my mom had scheduled for yesterday morning (all is well, no worries) and I’m glad we were able to spend so much time together!
The post-holiday blues always tend to kick in for me after Christmas and extending our stay a bit helped fight the sadness I often feel once Christmas is over. Since we were quite busy with my family and traveling back home, I didn’t have many opportunities to sit down by myself and blog last week. I really missed chatting with you guys! Things should be back to normal around here next week!
For now, let’s dive right into my usual Things I’m Loving Friday blog post where I share a short roundup of small things that make me smile every week. (Be sure to scroll to the bottom and check out today’s sneaky $250 giveaway!)
Have the best weekend!
Things I’m Loving Friday
- Pie Heaven
When my mom and I planned my sister’s bridal shower years ago, we ordered quiche from Pie Heave to serve along with other brunch favorites and I’ve been dying to order quiche from the adorable local bakery again ever since. We prioritized a trip to Pie Heaven a couple of days before Christmas and ended up returning to the shop again a couple days later because my entire family inhaled our first round of quiche Lorraine and southwest quiche.
We ended up trying a few of their dessert pies for the first time as well (wild blueberry, peach and apple) and every single one was absolutely unreal. Pie Heaven truly lives up to its name and the pies are beyond fantastic. A must-try if you’re a local or ever find yourself in the Jacksonville area!
Also, I must give a shout out to the two women who own and run Pie Heaven because they were so kind and wonderful to our family. We arrived with Chase and they gave him a holiday bear Beanie Baby and he was beyond thrilled (hence the above picture)!
A new robe was one of the top items I had on my Christmas wish list this year and my sister and brother-in-law surprised me with the coziest robe in the world. I LOVE it. The robe is fluffy and soft and meets three of my biggest requirements: It’s long, has two pockets and feels incredibly warm and cozy when I slip it on. I also love the aesthetics of the fuzzy trim along the neckline and wrists and know this robe will be worn non-stop in the coming winter months. (I guess this means I can finally retire the hot pink Charlotte Russe robe I bought for myself for like $25 when I was in college. It’s borderline gross at this point with stains and singe marks on the sleeves from less-than-careful cooking mishaps.)
- Family Zoo Day
The weather in Jacksonville on the day after Christmas could not have been more beautiful – upper 60s and sunny – and we took advantage of the gorgeous day and headed out for a family trip to the zoo. I’m continually impressed with the large exhibits at the Jacksonville Zoo and love the way it feels spacious and clean. Plus, the zoo has a large train that choo-choos around the exterior of the park which is heaven-sent for a train-obsessed toddler. We rode the train for a solid 45 minutes during our visit and had a great time waving to elephants, giraffes, rhinos, coyotes, monkeys and more.
- Park Playtime + ChunkaBuns Pants for Chase
Chase cannot get enough of playing outside lately (nothing new around here!) and we’ve taken him all over Jacksonville over the past week. His favorite park is, without a doubt, Sunshine Park in Jacksonville Beach. It’s huge and fenced in (hooray!) and Chase had a ball exploring every inch of the park during our visit.
The super-soft pants he wore to play and explore came to us from ChunkaBuns, a company specializing in adorably soft, sustainable and organic eco-friendly pants. The pants could not be softer and they are made to grow with your toddler with a foldable waistband and cuffs on the bottom to give your little one extra length when you need it. These pants are fantastic and I find myself reaching for them right after I wash them because they’re so great.
- $250 VISA Gift Card Giveaway from RetailMeNot
Thank you to RetailMeNot for sponsoring the following giveaway!
And now for today’s sneaky giveaway!! A little over a week ago I shared a giveaway with you guys from RetailMeNot – the BEST site I use every time I want to find the most amazing deals, coupon codes and cash back opportunities when I do my online shopping – and the giveaway was such a huge hit that RetailMeNot reached out for Round Two! We’re teaming up today to giveaway another VISA gift card valued at $250 for you to use toward the amazing post-holiday sales that are popping up all over the place right now.
To enter this giveaway, simply click here to visit RetailMeNot and then leave a comment on today’s post telling me about a specific store/sale you’d be most excited to shop at should you win the gift card. I will randomly select a winner first thing next Friday morning. Good luck!
- Puzzle Time with My Mom
I don’t get many opportunities to kick back and work on a puzzle and the fact that my mom and I were able to complete one together in less than 24 hours this past week felt like such a treat! It’s such a great way to completely relax and unwind while sipping a hot mug of apple cider or hot cocoa. I need to do more puzzles in my everyday life. Now to find the time…
- Friday Flashbacks
Cold Brew Protein Smoothie (Just in case you’re craving a cold mocha smoothie but don’t want to down a total sugar bomb.)
Cardio + Core Burn Boot Camp Workout (This was the first BBC workout I ever did!)
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the Tory Burch sale is calling my name!
I’d love to use the coupons for Dick’s! Baby its cold outside here in Maryland and I could use some cold running gear!
I need some basics for work so I would definitely hit up Kohl’s for their after Christmas sales!
It looks like you had a lovely trip! That fenced park sounds awesome!
Khols and Macy’s are the deals on my radar!
I would hit up the sales at Old Navy with a visa gift card!
Tory Burch!
I am traveling to New Orleans tomorrow, so the $20 or 4 free rides from Lyft would be perfect!
I would love to win the gift card to spend at DSW; it’s my favorite place to buy shoes!
The 20% off at old navy sounds wonderful, but I’d also look at Amazon and target.
I’d try Blue Apron!
So many good onez…Old Navy or Bath & Body Works.
I just recently had quiche for the first time and it was so good! Southwest quiche sounds delicious and I wish I could go to Pie Heaven to try it.
The Macy’s 25% off your purchase sale will come in handy since I lost weight and now all of my pants are way to big on me!
What!? Amazon 70% off Home & Garden? I could use some new decorations for the new year, and we’re planning on doing a garden next year so this is perfect!
I would love to hit up Lululemon for some new work out gear to hit the ground running in 2018!
It is a mix the deals on amazon seem great and I buy way too much from there, but I also want to buy a few things from bedbsth and beyond so it is a mix for sure. Glad you had a great Christmas!
I’d love to shop the Old Navy and West Elm sales!
Amazon and an instant pot would be at the top of my list!
Definitely the Old Navy sale, my girls are desperately in need of some new clothes, at almost 3 and 13 months they are growing like crazy! Ive also finally lost the majority of the baby weight so I need a few new things as well!
Bed bath and beyond. I’d love to redo our bathrooms!
I definitely want to load up on candles at bath and body works since I used up so many during the holidays!!
Bed Bath & Beyond! It’s nice to have a mobile coupon so I don’t have to keep hoarding expired coupons.
I would shop the Amazon home and garden sale for some new home organization and outdoor products in the new year. Happy 2018!
I’d like to use the Target up to 30% offbedding plus 15% off.
Tory Burch!
Old Navy! I really like their athletic wear and with new year’s just a couple of days away…time to press reset and start 2018 out right!
Kohls for sure! My husband is an addict. 🙂 And what a pretty puzzle! My mom and I both love doing those too! She’ll buy one of those combo packs with a bunch of puzzles in it and we’ll split them up and then trade off the ones we’ve finished.
I think I’m going to jump on the discounted care.com membership. My son is 11 months and we haven’t had a date night since he was born!
I love Retail Me Not! Great giveaway! I would use their Kohls coupon 🙂
Definitely the 20% Bed, Bath, & Beyond deal! It always feels good to spruce up your home after the holidays!
I’d love to spend some money on myself at both Teavana (tea gives me such a relaxed feeling) and Shutterfly (I made gifts for everyone else but didn’t finish any items for myself)!
I’d love to use the gift card at Blue Apron! I’m doing the Whole 30 in January, so I can see this being very helpful!
Chase’s face with that bear is so cute!! Target and Amazon are always hard to beat (especially since I’m expecting my first baby), but Tory Burch is also hard to pass up!
Kohls, target or Amazon! ?
Bed Bath and Beyond!
Amazon or H&M!
Definitely the target coupon!! Thanks for sharing julie! Happy holidays!!
I would use the gift card for the Bed Bath and Beyond sale. I want to update the accessories (bath mats, shower curtains) in our hall bathroom and going to BB&B would be perfect!
I love the Old Navy deals!
Love all the family time on here and I couldn’t agree more about a big, fat cosy robe! Happy almost New Year, Julie!
I have to buy a new mattress, and I just saw in the app that Mattrss firm is offing a free Fitbit with a purchase of at least $799! Score!
I love retail me not for old Navy coupons!!!
Nike, I am in need of some new sneakers.
I would love the shopping Amazon or Old Navy!
ohhh I would definitely use the up to $25 off to Kohls. Glad you had a wonderful Christmas 🙂
I would definitely use the gift card at kohls!
100% Loft–I’d love some new work clothes for 2018!
I’m loving the bed bath and beyond 20% off 1 item!
Have a happy new year!
I’m all about that Amazon home and garden sale! We’ve been in our house for a year and a half now, and I still have a lot of mostly-empty rooms (oops).
Target and Amazon!
I would love to be able to use the gift card at Express for my work holiday party that is mid-January!