What I Wore

We went from winter one week, to 75 degrees the next over here! It's made getting dressed kinda weird, but I'm still trying to make an effort. Here are some recent outfits! I am wearing the exact same jewelry in each photo. This necklace, and these earrings are every day staples for me. 

Cardigan: J Crew | Trousers: J Crew | Flats: Rothys

Cords: J Crew | Sweater: Older Loft | Jacket: Barbour | Sneakers: Adidas

Skirt: Older J Crew | Top: J Crew via ThredUP | Cardigan: Older Loft | Boots: Tommy Hilfiger 

Button Up: Target | Jeans: Loft | Sandals: Target

Dress: J Crew | Flats: Tieks

Jacket: Levis | Tee: J Crew | Shorts: Old Navy | Shoes: Rothys

Shop These Outfits:

-Kristen

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What I Wore

Thursday, February 6, 2025

Florida Snow Day!

When the weather report said that we would be getting snow in North Florida, I laughed it off. Certainly, this is a long shot right? Regardless, I still eagerly peaked out the window Tuesday night, and laughed out loud in disbelief as soon as the first flakes fell. We went outside and took a couple of videos, and just knew it wouldn't stick around long. 

Well, it did! I woke up early Wednesday morning to the sound of my neighbor's kids squealing with delight as they played outside. I could not believe it when I opened my door and we had 3-4" of snow on the ground. This just doesn't happen. 100 degree Julys - for sure. But snow?! 

I know it was more ice than snow, but it was SO cool to see our neighborhood blanketed in white. The neighborhood kids sledding in laundry baskets or on old boxes was such a joy to see. The pugs were unimpressed, but they were oh-so-happy we were home for the day to cuddle on the couch. 

It was all fun until our power went out around 10 am. I think someone took out a power pole trying to drive around. People don't drive well on a sunny day here, so it's not too surprising. Very grateful for the utility workers who got us back up and running really quickly. 

This was just such a cool day that needed to be documented!

-Kristen

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Florida Snow Day!

Wednesday, January 22, 2025

Recent Reads #40

Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen

Jane Austen's beloved book is about Elizabeth Bennet and her sisters as they try to find love. Mr. Darcy makes a terrible first impression - smug and judgmental. But, first impressions aren't everything. I'm making an effort to read more classics, and I don't actually ever remember reading this all the way through. Because it's so beloved, I hate to go against the grain - but this book is just okay to me. There are some remarkable things about it, sure! Jane Austen is truly impressive. This novel has a lot of dialogue, and while I was initially into it - eventually I got bored. ⭐⭐⭐

Very Sincerely Yours by Kerry Winfrey

Teddy has a guilty pleasure -watching a children's tv show (not unlike Mr. Rogers) that stars a very cute Everett St. James. Teddy ends up writing to him, and the two become unlikely pen-pals. 

This one was a Bookstagram recommendation that was described as a cozy feel good book, something I felt like I needed! While that's true, I felt like this might have been a better Hallmark movie or something. Cute, fine, and forgettable...⭐⭐⭐

Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

I found this book to be so fun! Evie Sage really needs a job, and accidentally ends up saying yes to a position as an assistant - to THE Villain. She's all sunshine, and he's all evil, tortured, and has a dungeon. It's just a really fun premise, set in a fairy tale. Their banter was great, and this was super entertaining. The only thing I think this book was missing was them going off doing Villainous things. This actually became a workplace romance because so much of it takes place at 'the office'. I mean, the Villian has an HR department. Language warning. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Apprentice to the Villian by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

As you can imagine, The Villian couldn't be all that bad - and Evie finds herself as his Apprentice in the second book of the series. Eh, I was so bummed about this one! It felt completely different than the first book and I'm not all that sure I want to continue the series when the next book comes out. ⭐⭐⭐

The Widow's Husband's Secret Lie by Frieda McFadden

OMG, this was hysterically unhinged. Freida McFadden is the queen of writing those popcorn thrillers. Honestly, I look to her to get me out of a reading slump. She wrote this satirical novella that I just thought was brilliant. She pokes fun at the genre, using all kinds of funny common tropes and twists. I belly laughed multiple times. If you love a thriller, but also understand that most of them are ridiculous - this is for you. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Shop These Books:

-Kristen

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Recent Reads #40

Monday, January 20, 2025

Thursday Three | 1-16-25

Really Good Blends Honey Balm

Thank you so much to Really Good Blends for sending me this balm to try! The Tallow & Honey Balm is an all-purpose moisturizer you can use just about anywhere. I'm loving it for my cuticles, my lips, and a few extra dry spots I have this winter. It's infused with lavender, which makes it an automatic favorite for me. I love anything lavender! 

A little goes a long way, and I can see myself using this all year long. It could not have arrived at a better time - my skin has been suffering with the weather. 

Bissell Power Shot Steam Cleaner

Have you tried a steam cleaner? I fell victim to Instagram cleaning videos, and talked myself into buying one. Truthfully though, I've been wanting to test one for awhile anyway. It's been a fun new toy to play with! I find myself looking for things to clean with it.

My ultimate review is that it's not the miracle worker that some of those videos portrayed it as, but it is super good for a lot of spaces! I found it works best in bathrooms and on our baseboards! I need to do some more experimenting because it comes with lots of attachments I haven't tried. 

Things Making Me Happy This Week

1. This pulled pork recipe. It's the first time I made it, and it was such a winner. Blake went back for 3rds (he rarely does seconds) and we still had plenty leftover. 

2. Sneaky Sasquatch. Do you play games on your tablet or phone? I never really have, but I'm having such a good time playing this cute game!

3. My car radio. The head unit in my CRV has been broken for *years* now, and Blake was able to replace it for me! We had been quoted something like $1200 for a professional to do it, which was extremely unappealing. He found a great option on Crutchfield, and after lots of Youtube videos and some help from his dad, it's in! It works awesome now, and I can't believe I went so long without music in the car. Car Play is exquisite, haha.

4. Healthy Pugs! Winston and Bailey had their annual check up with our vet this week. Both of them got good reports, and that's always a relief. As you know, we had a rough pet year last year, and I have a little bit of anxiety when it comes to vets/vet offices. We switched to a mobile vet and it has been stellar. It's more expensive, but being able to do this in our own home has helped me so much! The dogs are way less stressed without a car ride, and there is no overstimulating waiting room. I'm less stressed without all that too, and I'm so grateful this kind of service exists! 

-Kristen

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Thursday Three | 1-16-25

Thursday, January 16, 2025

Life Lately #15

After an insane December, I'm so happy to have a fresh start here in January. We will still have a busy month, but maybe we can have some routine in there too. To kick off my first post of 2025, I wanted to share a few snapshots to share life lately!

Pug Update

Winston and Bailey are doing well! In 2025, Bailey will turn 15! We think anyway. She became part of our family in 2016, and we can only guess her age. Aside from her eyesight dimming pretty significantly, she is still so spunky. We will have their yearly vet check up next week, and we are sure we will hear she's got a long time left. 

In December I decided to start making homemade dog food, so that's been quite the experiment. It seems to be going well, so I'll have to update you all with my official recipe once it sticks. I'm still playing with ingredients. It's fairly inexpensive to do, and they absolutely love it. 

Fun Times With Friends

Not only did we have non-stop company in December, but we also managed to have some fun nights out with friends! I'm just so thankful to have found people that are in the same life chapter as we are. It's awesome to have a variety of friends, and I do. In fact one of my closest friends is 90 years old! We hang out with my parents all the time, and we have lots of friends that have kiddos. But, there is something to be said about having friends who are your age and stage of life. People who like the same things you like, have similar budgets, similar schedules. It's just nice is all and I'm grateful! 

Time With Family

Ditto for having lots of great times with family this past month too! We had some family friends come and stay and it's really cool to pick right back up where you left off with people - even though it has been years in some cases. (How sweet is that picture of my sister and my nephews?!)

New Toys

My Grandma sweetly sent me two things that have been on my Amazon Wishlist for ages. First, a gel nail kit with a light. This is such a great starter set, and I'm having fun learning how to use it. I had my niece for a few nights and we had fun doing manicures! Grandma also bought me the Cricut Easy Press, which I am so excited about! It's SO nice, and such an upgrade from using an iron. Gia got a Stitch shirt for their upcoming Disney trip while she was here. I'm really excited to keep using this. 

Peanut Butter Bars

I made these Peanut Butter Bars from the Defined Dish cookbook and WOW! They were fantastic, and I can't wait for an excuse to make them again.

-Kristen

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Life Lately #15

Wednesday, January 8, 2025

Recent Reads #39

The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave

Nora is approached by her brother who feels that their father's death wasn't an accident. Liam Noone was a luxury hotel designer, and he falls to his death off the cliffside of his California home. Her brother gives her enough reason to travel to California and see what they can find out. They quickly discover there is a lot they didn't know about their dad. This is filed under a 'thriller' category, but it definitely wasn't what I'd call a thriller. I'd say it's a mystery mixed with a little family drama. I listened on audio, and will eat up anything Julia Whelan narrates. Overall, it's really good, if not a bit slow. It's mainly about family and loss. I think if you are going into it looking for a super twisty thriller, you will be disappointed. ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨

The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop

This is Kelly Bishop's memoir. As a Gilmore Girls fan, I was interested to see what she had to say! Then I saw this was one of 2024's top memoirs according to Goodreads, so I was happy when my library hold became available. As always, I love listening to the audio version of memoirs read by the author. I learned a lot about Kelly, and specifically the Gilmore Girls chapters. She has some pretty strong views she doesn't shy away from sharing here. 

The Honey Don't List by Christina Lauren 

Carey and James are personal assistants to a very famous HGTV couple. The Tripps have built an empire with a design tv show and they have just written a book about marriage. The problem is their marriage is awful. Carey and James try to keep them from killing each other on the book tour. This was completely a miss for me. Christina Lauren books can be like that in my opinion - really great, or just dumb. I picked this one up because my neighborhood has a new cute little sharing library at the clubhouse and it caught my eye. Overall, just okay. Some parts were cute, but I skimmed a lot. ⭐️⭐️✨

Look Closer by David Ellis

If you like a thriller that keeps you guessing, this is the book for you. I'm almost afraid to write a summary in case I give it away! Simon and Vicky aren't an average couple, and as the book progresses all their secrets come out. Go in blind, and trust me, you won't be able to figure it out. Twists after twists! Five stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodges Burnett

I was desperate for something to listen to on a drive, and had no library books and I couldn't think of anything I wanted to buy. Thus, The Secret Garden - it was free to listen to on Apple books. I remember the movie as a child, but couldn't remember the book. Mary Lennox is a spoiled child who is orphaned and sent to live with an uncle. She's left on her own in a huge house and soon discovers a secret garden. She really changes throughout the book, and is able to help others because of it. A lovely book! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Mother Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon

Lana ends up having to live with her daughter Beth and granddaughter Jack. (Think Gilmore Girls relationships - Beth and Jack are really close and have been pretty independent from the high powered business woman Lana.) Jack works as a kayak tour guide, and one day she finds a dead body in the water. The three ladies get wrapped up in the investigation and it changes their relationship. This started off really strong, but by the end I felt like it was so random that these women were involved in the murder. In a word: bland. 🫣 Good start, lame follow through. ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 

Shop These Books: 

-Kristen

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Recent Reads #39

Friday, December 20, 2024

December Grove Haul

Every month or two I do an order with Grove, my go-to for more natural home/personal products. I started ordering from Grove way back when, and have been sharing my hauls ever since! Because we used to live in a small town, this was the best way for me to get the products I wanted with limited options nearby. 

My shopping habits have evolved somewhat, but I still love my Grove boxes! You can use my link to sign up and get 30% off your first order. Plus! If you are new you can use Rakuten for even more cash back. Here's what I got in December:

The Usuals:

Scrub Brush Head Replacements

I've had this scrub brush forever, and it's so nice to be able to replace the head when it gets gross. 

Grove Co Cleaning Concentrates

These are great cleaners for maintenance, when you aren't deep cleaning. For example, I keep a set in our guest bathroom for quick cleanings between guests. That bathroom doesn't get abused quite like our primary bath. Grove had a serious Cyber week sale on these, and each bottle was like a buck. Perfect time to stock up. 

Grove Co Lemon Essential Oil

Even though I just stocked up on my essential oils, I forgot to get lemon! It's a favorite for the kitchen. So when I saw it was very discounted for Cyber week, I went for it. 

Sea Salt Room Spray

You may remember this from last month's haul! It was SO good, I just needed another one for downstairs. I love spritzing it on all our pillows, and living room textiles. 

Ecloth Set for Stainless

This will be my second time purchasing this set! I wanted to have 2, one to wash and one to have on hand. All you do is add water. I specifically like the scrubbing cloth, it works really well to clean off any build up. Then I polish it off once it dries.

New To Me:

Burts Bees Gift Set

This was just a good price, and I thought it would nice to have a few of these things in our guest room. (We are about to have a lot of company this month and next.) Plus you can never have too many lip balms!

Grove Travel Pouch

Again, another really good sale price. I need a new make up bag, so I'm thinking of using this for that. Either way, it'll make a great addition to our travel supplies. 

Kitsch Sleeping Scrunchies

In an effort to be nice to my hair at night, I'm trying out these sleeping scrunchies! They are made of satin, and are meant to sleep in. Cute colors too!

Kitsch Nylon Hair Ties

Where do these things go?? My stash got depleted so I ordered these hair elastics. Thick hair girlies, if you know, you know. The nylon hair ties are excellent! 

Rooted Vitamin C Serum

I have tried Vitamin C serums before, but I'm not sure if I have given Rooted a go. My skin has been quite dull now that summer is over, so I'm hoping this will help.

Samples:

In this order, I also got the Upcircle serum and the good juju laundry detergent sheets. 

Shop This Post:

-Kristen

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December Grove Haul

Monday, December 16, 2024

Recent Reads #38

I love sharing my book recommendations with you! You can find all of my book reviews here on the blog or by following along on Goodreads. I'm probably not going to make my goal of 100 books this year, but I feel pretty good about getting close. 

Dinner for Vampires by Bethany Joy Lenz

You might recognize Bethany Joy Lenz from One Tree Hill. As a fan of the show, I was curious to read her memoir! The tag line is something like 'being on a cult tv show, while being in an actual cult'. I had no idea that was going on while she was filming the show. This is a very interesting memoir and I always enjoy listening to the author reading their own story. (I don't like to rate memoirs 'cause that just feels odd)

A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston

Eileen finds herself in a strange small town with car trouble as she's on her way to a book club retreat. She quickly realizes this town is home to her favorite book series...and everyone who lives there are characters in those books. Ooof. I really really wanted to like this. On paper, it should be adorable and my perfect genre. The pacing was odd, and the love story felt super rushed and forced. I can look past that if the rest of the story feels right, but it didn't. I rolled my eyes multiple times, found myself wishing it was over, and I couldn't believe how often this book repeated itself. You can play a drinking game with how many times she says "minty green eyes". 

This almost redeemed itself with the 'big reveal'. I thought something was coming that would have made things interesting, but no - it was something else. ⭐️ ⭐️

Veronica Ruiz Breaks The Bank by Elle Cosimano

This was a short story prequel to the Finlay Donovan series. I have been loving the Finlay Donovan series this year, and I was excited to read this! What's missing is the best part of the whole series - Finlay & Vero's antics together. Obviously in this story takes place before they met, so of course that's how it had to be. Either way, if you like the series, you'll probably enjoy this one. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Boyfriend by Freida McFadden

This lady knows how to get you to turn a page, I'm telling you what. I know I can always count on Freida to get me out of a reading rut. This is her newest release! The Boyfriend is told in 2 POVs. Sydney, a woman in her early 30's who has had a tough time with dating. And, Tom - her new boyfriend, but you are reading about him in High School. I had a really hard time getting into this because the timelines were so odd, but of course they do connect. Honestly, this was not my favorite of her books. I was sure I had it figured out from the beginning, so I was happy I was wrong - but the journey to get there was just boring. Just Okay. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

This historical fiction novel takes place in the 1780's, and follows Martha, a midwife. She gets summoned to examine a body that was found in the frozen river. She knows it was murder, but a new doctor in town says it was an accident. It's up to Martha to figure out what really happened. This took me a long time to read, but not because it wasn't good! It's written so well, I was easily engrossed in the story. It does take a long time to play out, and felt a bit repetitive at times. I also felt that Martha's 'voice' was very modern and felt off for this time period. It wasn't until the author's note that I realized this book was based off a real person. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Read With Me:

-Kristen

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Recent Reads #38

Thursday, December 12, 2024

Revive Essential Oil Haul

Revive is an awesome way to get high quality essential oils without doing the MLM thing. I share a lot of my oily posts here. It was time for a restock, and Revive was doing a really good black friday sale, so here we are! 

Here's What I Got:

Old Faithfuls:

Lavender - My all time favorite. Lavender is just so good. It's relaxing, fresh, and clean. I never want to run out. 

Rosemary - Rosemary is good as it gets. I love to diffuse rosemary with peppermint especially. It's a stronger oil, so just a few drops and it lasts forever. 

Citrus Delight - This one you guys! It's citrus with a bit of vanilla, so think creamsicle.  

Pumpkin Pie - If you only buy one oil from Revive, make it Pumpkin Pie. It's fantastic and smells just like it should. 

Grapefruit - Mmmm. Grapefruit is such a simple scent, but so fresh and good. 

Lemongrass - For a bright, invigorating citrus - go with lemongrass. 

New To Me:

PSL - Pumpkin Spice Latte! This is like pumpkin pie, but with a drop or two of their coffee oil. Great for the fall, especially in the morning. 

Cinnamon Sugar - Yummmm! Last year Revive did cinnamon roll, and I was so sad to not see it come back. But this fills that spot just fine! Sweet and spicey. 

Christmas Morning - The description of this just sounded too good not to try. It's spicey with a bit of clove and cinnamon but clearly has a birch woodsy tone to it too. Love it for winter. 

Sand & Sun - I don't know why I got this one 😂. The main oil is ylang ylang, which I basically hate. But, something about this works for me. It was too strong just sniffing the bottle, but diffused it works. It reminds me of being in a hotel lobby in a tropical location.

Bergamot Mint - Someone in the reviews convinced me to try this when they said it had earl grey vibes. That's my favorite tea, so I figured I'd try it. I don't think that's what I get from this one, but I still like it! Fresh with just a touch of citrus.

Marble Display - This was deeply discounted so I gave it a go! It's an awesome display for 3 oil bottles. Right now it's next to my kitchen diffuser, but I think I'll move it to my office. 

 
I have a referral code, but honestly their sale prices usually get you more of a discount! 

I recently shared this diffuser in an Amazon Purchases post, and I just have to keep raving about it. It might be my favorite diffuser I've ever owned. The light is just lovely. It's got the coolest candle flicker effect.

My Diffusers:

-Kristen

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Revive Essential Oil Haul

Monday, December 9, 2024