Things I’m Loving Friday #230

Hey friends! How are you? All is well over here. My mother-in-law and Les arrived in town from Sarasota in time for dinner Wednesday night and will be staying with us through Monday! They had a lovely naked greeting from the boys who were playing in their little pool and ran around to the front yard for hugs and a big wet welcome!

We are so, so glad they’re here and think they’re big-time troopers for making the 11+ hour drive to Charlotte. Phew! We’re planning to fill our days with boat time, evening cookouts, Mexican Train Dominoes (they’re the ones who initially introduced us to it!) and some downtime as a family. (I say “downtime” but is there really any downtime with kids in the mix? It’s more like unstructured playtime around the house.)

As for today, I am heading off to my ob/gyn this morning for my 27 week appointment and glucose tolerance test and am very much looking forward to hearing our baby’s heartbeat! I have a feeling those little thump, thump, thumps will kick off this weekend on the very best note.

I’m hoping to be a decent blogger this weekend and actually snap enough photos to warrant a weekend recap to share with you guys on Monday so stay tuned! In the meantime, I wanted to share my weekly roundup of favorites with you, Things I’m Loving Friday style!

Things I’m Loving Friday

• Floating Animal Pool Petz

My mother-in-law has a knack for selecting toys for the boys that they love and use for years. (She’s the mastermind behind their Power Wheels Jeep and sprinkler splash pad.) Her latest surprise for Chase and Ryder came in the form of these floating animal Pool Petz! We took them to a little beach by the marina where we dock our boat yesterday morning and they played with them non-stop for TWO hours. Diane and I both said we were honestly a little surprised by how well they float with the boys on top of them and they were all about riding them, resting on them and playing lots of pretend games with their alligator and frog friends. Thank you for this fun surprise, Nona!!

• Double BOB Stroller Organizer

I feel like I may have given this stroller organizer a shout out last year when I first bought it but man oh man does it deserve a second round of praise right now since we’re taking our BOB Duallie Stroller on more walks than ever. I first ordered this Booyah organizer after reading some not-so-great reviews about the organizer BOB makes for their double stroller. I wanted an organizer that would hold a TON of stuff — a couple of water bottles, plenty of snacks, sunglasses, keys, etc. — and this one had the BEST reviews.

I took the plunge and consider it a must-have if you happen to have a double BOB stroller. It’s been updated slightly since last year but the most recent reviews are still fantastic and it still has all of the features I love so much including mesh pockets on the outside so I can easily access lip balm, my phone, hand sanitizer and a sunscreen stick, as well as divider pockets to keep toys and water bottles separated and an insulated middle pouch that’s large enough for diapers, wipes, etc. If there’s a mama in your life who is expecting a second child and has the BOB Duallie stroller, I promise she will LOVE this organizer!

• Learning More About Implicit Bias + Microaggressions

Last week when I addressed my desire to become more actively anti-racist, I shared some resources that have proven educational and helpful to me. When I described one of the videos I shared from a Black man, I noted that the video was “articulate and informative.” I received a few comments and Instagram DMs that informed me that referring to a Black person as “articulate” is an offensive adjective as it implies surprise over the fact that a Black person could be intelligent and is a reflection of implicit bias and microaggression. (Also worth noting, the comments I received clearly sought to inform me and did not berate me which I appreciated since I know I will make mistakes in this journey.) So what is implicit bias? Implicit bias often runs contrary to our conscious beliefs and are automatic mental associations we often aren’t aware of that can do harm to others. They operate at the subconscious level but they can be changed. (source) Microaggressions are the “kinds of remarks, questions, or actions that are painful because they have to do with a person’s membership in a group that’s discriminated against or subject to stereotypes. And a key part of what makes them so disconcerting is that they happen casually, frequently, and often without any harm intended, in everyday life.” (source)

The comments I received shifted my personal goals from the week to learning more about implicit bias and microaggressions and since I found this eye-opening and informative, I wanted to share some additional resources with you, should this be of interest.

• We All Have Implicit Bias. What Can We Do About It? (I’d start here with this TED Talk if you want to learn more.)
• What Are Microaggressions?
• Unmasking Racial Microaggressions
• Can We Change Our Implicit Bias?
• How to Outsmart Your Own Implicit Bias
• Overcoming Implicit Bias

(I owe blog reader Emily a big thank you for our email exchange when she provided the first two video resources to me.) 

• Two-Ingredient Chocolate Sauce (Milk + Chocolate Chips)

I had a big-time craving for chocolate sauce on Wednesday night and when I opened up my pantry and saw a half-eaten bag of chocolate chips staring back at me, I turned to Google. I figured some genius out there likely made a simple chocolate sauce with chocolate chips and when I stumbled upon this gem from Baking Mischief, I knew I had to give it a try. After stirring 1/4 cup of chocolate chips into 2 tablespoons of hot, steamy milk, I had a rich chocolate sauce ready to pour over my ice cream. I love the way it thickened into a fudgy sauce at the bottom of my bowl and I’m not embarrassed to admit I absolutely licked my ice cream bowl clean. So good!

• Beach Read by Emily Henry

This book came recommended to me by my friend Kaitlyn a few weeks ago. I enjoyed it from the minute I began reading though it admittedly took me a little longer to get through because I’ve been spending time reading other things at night. Though I didn’t fly through Beach Read, every time I cracked it open, it felt like a summery escape but with a little more depth.

The book follows January Andrews, a women’s fiction author, as she struggles to deal with the heartbreak surrounding her father’s passing (complete with the revelation of his secret life she never knew about), recent breakup and the inheritance of a beach house he owned with his mistress. She’s broke and struggling with major writer’s block despite pressure from her publisher and ends up moving into her dad’s secret beach house, located next door to fellow writer and former college rival, Augustus “Gus” Everett. The two end up reconnecting and challenge each other to write a book in the other’s style — January must write the next “Great American Novel” and cynical Gus must write a rom-com with a happy ending he’s not sure he even believes is possible in real life. As they begin to write their novels and help each other with their research, the two become closer and more secrets are revealed about their pasts that may alter their futures.

• Around the Internet

While I’m disappointed in myself for not making this more of a conscious effort in the past, I’m planning to put more time into finding and sharing links from BIPOC creatives and businesses in this space in my weekly collection of Friday favorites. This week, I’m putting the focus solely on Black food and fitness creators and hope you will check out some of the links below.

Food: Zucchini Lasagna Stuffed Peppers / Chopped Thai Chicken Salad / Sweet Potato Black-Eyed Pea Curry

Fitness: Full Body Bodyweight Workout / How to Squat Properly  / Stretch for Tight Hip Flexors

• Friday Flashbacks

Cold Quinoa Salad (A bright, refreshing salad made with cold quinoa, cucumber, pineapple and cilantro. A great side dish for a cookout with friends and family!)

Oatmeal Apple Crisp (I made this recipe with peaches this week and it was fabulous served on top of vanilla ice cream.)

Exercise Ball Ab Workout (Grab a stability ball and get ready for a serious core burner!)

Question of the Day

What is one thing making you smile this week?