We’re heading to my friend Carrie’s house to meet her baby girl, Eloise, and I cannot wait for some newborn snuggles. It will be so wonderful to be reunited with some of my closest friends, especially since it’s been nearly three years since we have been together in the same place. (I am pretty sure the last time we were all together was in Park City in the summer of 2019.) Our time together is long overdue and meeting little baby Eloise will be the icing on the cake of this trip!
I will try to find a moment to sneak in some blogging on the flight home so I’ll hopefully have a recap of the weekend to share with you guys on Monday. Until then, scroll on down to check out this week’s roundup of favorites, Things I’m Loving Friday style!
Things I’m Loving Friday
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Black Kraft Paper Wrapping + Chalk Paint Pens
I saw this idea pop up on Instagram over the holidays. I was instantly intrigued by a random Instagram Reel I saw featuring black and brown kraft paper decorated with gold and silver chalk paint pens. The wrapping was beautiful and so unique! Fast forward about a month and I saw an influencer on Instagram apply the idea to kid birthday presents and I was sold!
I’ve been using the black kraft paper and chalk paint pens we already had to decorate random gifts for friends and the boys’ buddies’ birthday gifts and it’s added a little joy to gift wrapping for me! Plus, the boys LOVE helping decorate the gifts they give their friends and personalizing them with the chalk paint pens. (I snapped the above pic so I could include it in today’s post but Chase will be decorating the present before a birthday party he’s attending on Sunday!)
Note: If you balk at the $20 price tag on a roll of the paper, just know that these rolls of kraft paper last forever. We’ve used the white butcher paper we ordered in the beginning of quarantine like crazy for various craft projects and banners and still haven’t needed to order another one! And for further cost perspective, an average roll of wrapping paper is 25 feet and this roll is 150 feet!
I’ve been a fan of NOW’s essential oil roll-ons for years. (The lavender will always be a personal favorite.) During cold and flu season I especially love the NOW Seasonal Defense Roll-On. It has a warm and spicy smell that comes from a combination of organic orange peel, organic eucalyptus, organic clove and cinnamon essential oils. I keep one of these roll-ons in the door of my car and roll it on my wrists a couple of times a day. It gives me a little boost and helps support a healthy immune system.
(FYI, my code PBFINGERS gets you 20% off everything at NOWFoods.com which is where I prefer to order my essential oil roll-ons, organic rose hip seed oil, etc. I do not make any money when you use my code but I do have an ongoing Instagram partnership with NOW Foods and love the company.)
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Inventing Anna
I’ve seen so much hype about this new Netflix show on the internet but three things made me want to give it a shot: 1. I haven’t really been into a show since Schitt’s Creek and have been on the lookout for a new one to stream. 2. It’s based on a true story and 3. It’s produced by Shonda Rhimes. I loved the early seasons of Scandal (produced by Rhimes) and noticed many familiar faces from the show in Inventing Anna.
I’ve only seen a few episodes of Inventing Anna at this point (three-ish?) but it’s proving to be intriguing in an escapist kind of way. The premise is immediately captivating. Anna “Delvey” Sorokin is a 20-something woman who convinced New York City’s elite she was a German heiress worth millions. I like the cast and the show is definitely binge-worthy. It does feel like the kind of show that’s going to semi-quickly run out of steam for me (much like Scandal) but, for now, I’m enjoying it!
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February 2022 Top 10
In an effort to be better at taking the time to analyze some of my analytics, last year I began sharing a monthly recap in my Friday posts highlighting my top 10 blog posts and your top 10 favorite finds from the blog + Instagram. Hopefully this will also help you check out some blog posts you might have missed or help you easily locate an item I’ve mentioned in the past that got buried in blog/social media mayhem.
Here’s a peek at was you guys liked best in February 2022!
TOP BLOG POSTS
- Easy Orange Juice Marinated Chicken Thighs
- Breckenridge Ski Vacation
- Ryan’s Half Ironman Q&A
- Three Minute Egg White Oatmeal
- West Virginia Family Ski Vacation
- Christmas Gifts for Kids: The Winners One Month Later
- Everything Bagel Seared Tuna
- Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins
- 10 Recent Amazon Finds
- Easy Cheesy Crockpot Chicken Corn Chili
TOP 10 FAVORITES
- New Balance Fresh Foam Sneakers (My favorite casual sneakers. Super comfy and I love the leopard detailing.)
- Waterproof Sling Bag (The bag we took skiing! Waterproof, many pockets and great quality.)
- Folding Travel Mirror (Great for travel but I also use mine daily to do my makeup at the kitchen counter while the boys eat breakfast.)
- Choo-Me Pouch Toppers (Game changer for independent feeding for little ones. Stays on the top of a pouch and prevents overflow.)
- ILIA Fullest Volumizing Mascara (My favorite clean mascara.)
- Pottery Barn Foamnasium Blocksy Couch (The hit of Christmas for our boys. They play with this every single day.)
- Athleta Run With It Shorts (My favorite shorts. Perfect length, super flattering and a wide waistband that doesn’t dig.)
- Personalized Busy Board (A great Etsy find and one of Rhett’s favorite toys.)
- Instant Pot Air Fryer (I just made my favorite marinated chicken thighs in this air fryer a week ago and they were incredible.)
- Balaclava (So warm and so cozy!)
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Total Body Reset Program
My blogging buddy and NASM personal trainer Gina of The Fitnessista recently teamed up with registered and licensed dietitian nutritionist Mia Votapka to create Total Body Reset, 6-week program that includes weekly video trainings, workout videos, live Q&A sessions, tracking and progress assessments and an online accountability group for community. It’s not a fitness workout program but rather an educational module-based program that aims to teach you the “how” and “why” to set up sustainable healthy living strategies for life.
Total Body Reset does not rely on diets or deprivation (hooray!) and aims to get to the root cause of the body’s needs, with a focus on hormones and sustainable nutrition strategies. Gina has been a close blogging friend of mine since the early days of PBF and I fully trust and support her programs. She pours so much time, energy and expertise into the programs she creates and I love that she teamed up with a registered dietitian to create Total Body Reset!
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Friday Flashbacks
Teriyaki Salmon Bowls (I am convinced I could eat this dish multiple times a week and never get sick of it!)
Abstainers vs. Moderators (Diving into the differences between the two and how identifying which camp you fall into can increase your happiness.)
Question of the Day
What is one thing making you smile today?
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Have a fun girls trip!
I’ve never heard of Ilia makeup! Have you tired Honest Beauty’s mascara? It’s amazing! She or rather Honesty Beauty has I think recently released a lash tint too. I’m keen to try that, but it’ll be months until I can get it in Spain. Douglas which sells it here has only just got in a few of the shampoos and conditioners!
Enjoy your trip!
Okay I need to check out that paper. I don’t have a ton of need for wrapping paper so it feels silly to buy different roles for different things and then it just sits there. At least with the black I could add whatever I want to it.
I’m so curious what you’ll think at the end of Inventing Anna! I had some thoughts lol
We just finished The Woman In The House Across The Street from the Girl in the Window on Netflix. I love Kristin Bell and it was one of the rare shows both my husband and I could agree on to watch together (we also loved Schitt’s Creek!) Episodes are 25 mins and kept us guessing. Definitely recommend!
Ohhh! Ryan and I are always looking for shows we’ll boy enjoy (one of the best parts of Schitt’s Creek!) and Inventing Anna is definitely noooot one he’s into — haha! Thanks for this recommendation!!
My finance and loved this show! I will say, this isn’t a spoiler, Kristen has been very vocal about making sure people know – it’s meant to be a bit of a “spoof” on all the thriller books women tend to read (girl on the train, the woman in the window, etc) and we didn’t know that until after; we were disappointed in the ending until I heard her on a podcast explaining it and it all made sense and then we loved it 😂
I just finished binge watching Inventing Anna! SO good! I love how Shonda uses the same actors and actresses in her shows! I had no idea that Scott Foley’s wife is in this one (and of course he was on Scandal). I too loved the first few seasons of Scandal…once it got too gory I gave it up. Have a great trip!
Agreed!! The first couple of seasons of Scandal were SO GOOD. I miss that show!!
Have the BEST TIME this weekend! Enjoy all the baby snuggles and friend time.
I’m so pumped you posted about Inventing Anna because I’ve also been lost since we finished Schitt’s Creek. Nothing will ever live up to it haha.
And THANK YOU so much for the shout out on Total Body Reset! We have such an amazing group of ladies already and can’t wait to see everyone accomplish their goals and make sustainable lasting habits 🙂
love you! xo
It’s definitely NO Schitt’s Creek (but what ever will be!?) but it’s entertaining! If you liked Scandal, you’ll enjoy it but I can definitely tell it will be one that runs out of steam for me. And you’re so welcome — always so impressed by the amazing resources you offer to your readers! <3
Love those New Balance shoes! Just ordered myself a pair with a $10 DSW reward I had – score!
That’s awesome!! They’re so, so comfy (the fresh foam insole is amazinggg) and have been a favorite of mine for well over a year now!
Just finished watching inventing Anna.. and I was hooked .. I would definitely keep watching it 🙂
I purchased the Busy Board for my daughters first birthday.
The boards are made in Ukraine 🙁 and I just wanted you to be aware the Etsy shop isn’t currently open at the moment.