Things I’m Loving Friday #396

Hey friends! How are you doing? I hope you’re all feeling okay and not too overwhelmed by the hustle and bustle of the holiday season. Our week was a pretty typical one. Ryder finished soccer and school went on as usual for the boys — something I know to never ever take for granted.

We’re hoping for a pretty low key weekend over here. Today the boys and I are going to be making a bunch of sweet treats to donate to a local bake sale. (The event is Cookies for Kids’ Cancer in Birkdale Village for anyone local who would like to pick up something delicious for a very worthy cause! All proceeds go toward pediatric cancer research.) Then, tomorrow evening, we have plans to check out the holiday lights at a local botanical garden. Other than that our weekend is wide open! I’m also seeing some hot chocolate and Christmas movies in our future!

As for today, I have somethin’ somethin’ to share with you guys below so keep scrolling for a little giveaway fun. I hope you all have a great weekend and enjoy today’s roundup of Friday favs, Things I’m Loving Friday style!

Things I’m Loving Friday

• Jeans: thredUP AGOLDE + Old Navy Clearance Jeans

Apparently I’m on an Old Navy kick lately (I blame their killer Black Friday deals) because I found another winner when I popped into the store to make a return earlier this week. Since I do 95 percent of my shopping online these days, it felt like a treat to actually be in the store and I was super psyched when a pair of $14 jeans caught my eye on the clearance rack!

I have no idea why the jeans were marked down so much but my theory is that this style isn’t usually available in my local store and maybe somebody bought them online and returned them? (Friends who work in retail, is this a crazy theory? I feel like I remember this from way back when I worked at Abercrombie for 2.5 seconds one winter break!)  Whatever the reason, I was happy to find such a steal on the jeans because the wash is awesome (it is giving me retro ’80s vibes) and the fit is SO good for a pear-shaped body type. If you have a slimmer waist but need more room in the hips and booty, these jeans — the Curvy Extra High-Waisted Button Fly Jeans — are a slam dunk! (I have the Nicky wash.) They’re not $14 online but they are currently 30% off with the code HURRY. I bought them in a size down.

Another winner in the jeans department is a pair of AGOLDE jeans I bought second-hand through thredUP!

I’ve been looking for a high-waisted pair of black/gray denim jeans that have a looser/straighter leg and took my chance on a pair that looked like they checked all those boxes on thredUP. (For some reason they look dark blue in the above photo but they’re definitely a charcoal color in person.) I may have to get them altered a little bit around the waist (although I may order these button pins to see if I can get around that) but I’m happy with the find!!

• In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren

It’s been a hot second since I’ve shared a book recommendation on the blog and that’s because I’ve been in a major slump. It’s no fun to feel like you’re picking dud after dud. I was in the mood for a fun,one  easy read with a holiday feel to it — similar to One Day in December which I LOVED and highly recommend. After Googling reviews of popular holiday fiction novels, I settled on In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren. It ended up being exactly what I was looking for and was perfectly charming (though a little predictable) and Christmasy. If you’re looking for a book that reads like a Hallmark Christmas movie (but steamier!), this is a solid choice!

From Amazon: It’s the most wonderful time of the year…but not for Maelyn Jones. She’s living with her parents, hates her going-nowhere job, and has just made a romantic error of epic proportions.

But perhaps worst of all, this is the last Christmas Mae will be at her favorite place in the world—the snowy Utah cabin where she and her family have spent every holiday since she was born, along with two other beloved families. Mentally melting down as she drives away from the cabin for the final time, Mae throws out what she thinks is a simple plea to the universe: Please. Show me what will make me happy.

The next thing she knows, tires screech and metal collides, everything goes black. But when Mae gasps awake…she’s on an airplane bound for Utah, where she begins the same holiday all over again. With one hilarious disaster after another sending her back to the plane, Mae must figure out how to break free of the strange time loop—and finally get her true love under the mistletoe.

• The Reindeer’s Christmas

When my sister and I were younger, we absolutely loved listening to The Reindeer’s Christmas cassette tape. The songs are so catchy and it follows a storyline about a plot to stop Rudolph’s Christmas party. Spoiler alert: The plan doesn’t succeed and Christmas cheer remains! My mom found a way to transfer all of the music from our favorite cassette onto a CD for her grandchildren and I’m not sure who is loving it more, me or the boys! The first day I played it in the car, Chase didn’t want to get out to go to school because he was so invested in it. It just goes to show that the things kids love transcend generations. I’m convinced they need to bring this one back for kids today! For any late ’80s/early ’90s babies who might remember this cassette, it’s impossible to find online anymore but I found this YouTube video of a recording of one of our favorite songs, “Roly Poly the Polar Bear,” in case you want to listen to it for nostalgia’s sake!

• Everyday Muffin Party by Heather Englund

You guys know we are muffin fanatics in our house so I was so excited when I received Everyday Muffin Party, a cookbook by Heather of @fitmamarealfood! This is Heather’s debut cookbook and it’s so well done. The variety of muffin recipes is fantastic (PB & J Muffins! Chocolate Beet Muffins! Green Oatmeal Muffins! Pizza Muffins with Cauliflower!) and all of her recipes are made with wholesome ingredients. The gingerbread sweet potato muffins are calling my name already. Congratulations on your first cookbook, Heather!

• Bitty Brah Giveaway

The fun part of this blog post is here! It’s giveaway tiiime! One of my absolute favorite small businesses reached out to me about a giveaway for you guys and I couldn’t say yes fast enough. We absolutely love Bitty Brah hats for our kids for a myriad of reasons and if you’ve been reading the blog for more than a hot second, you’ve likely seen lots of pics of our boys sporting their hats. (A lesser-known fact about Bitty Brah: For every hat sold, 10 diapers are donated to a nonprofit for families in need. LOVE that!)

Bitty Brah hats are my favorite for the boys because they’re adorable and look like baseball hats but they’re genius for kids because they have a drawstring that keeps them from falling off… AND they float if they happen to find their way into water. Our boys can be really weird about certain hats but Bitty Brah hats are some of the only hats that don’t result in a battle to get them to wear. (My nieces may also be getting some from me under the tree for Christmas this year!)

I share all this to say I think you guys will love these hats if you haven’t tried them already and I think you will love today’s giveaway! Bitty Brah is giving away $250 worth of hats from their site to one lucky winner. To enter this giveaway, simply click here and follow the prompts! The giveaway will close and a winner will be chosen on Monday. Good luck!!

• Around the Internet

Food: Homemade Peanut Brittle / Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad / Turkey Soup with Sweet Potato Dumplings / Christmas Charcuterie Board

Fitness: 30 Minute At Home Barre Workout (Video) / 45-Minute Total Body Strength Workout

• Friday Flashbacks

Holiday Pretzel Treats (I made a small batch of these pretzel treats for our family earlier this week and they were gone in a flash!)

Peppermint Ice Cream Dessert (3 ingredients and a family favorite in our house!)

Question of the Day 

What is one thing making you smile today?