Thursday, July 18, 2019

My anniversary was this past Monday and I didn’t want to let it slip away without dedicating a post to my marriage.  It’s hard to believe it’s been 19 years on one hand but on the other I feel like we’ve been through so much together.  Hub is a very private person without any social media, so I don’t share much about him in this space.  He is the introvert to my extrovert. I think we balance each other out pretty well, though.  He has calmed my type A tendencies and I have pushed him to take needed risks in his personal and professional life I think.  We share the same core values and sense of humor which I think is really important.  

Anyhow…

We got married in my childhood church in a very traditional ceremony.  

My dress was one of the first I tried on.  I wore one of my best friend’s veil from her wedding the previous October.  Thanks again, H – it’s beautiful!  

Looking through my album (this was pre-digital photos, of course!), the photo below with my Dad made me sad.  And, the photo on the bottom left also made me sad.  My husband’s childhood best friend died of a brain tumor a few years ago. We have also since lost both of our grandmothers.  

Our wedding party is pictured below.  I most definitely was not a bridezilla.  The bridesmaids wore camisoles from Target that were on sale for $8, skirts from Macy’s that were $20 on sale and shoes that were around $20, also.  I was really happy with that.  In fact, I picked my color scheme for the wedding based on the sale items.  They were a deep plum and silver – not my favorites, but I thought they turned out pretty well.

This was really fun below.  We were the first to use my hometown’s trolley.  We rode it from the church to the reception and hub and I hung off the back!

We did not smash cake in each other’s faces. Nope, it wasn’t even discussed.  Plus we were 28 (me) and 33 (him) and and had been to many a wedding where they had done that!  No offense if you did choose to do that but it wasn’t my idea of fun!  

I still love my wedding band and engagement ring and this was my first professional manicure.  My husband had calluses from lifting weights and it made us laugh at this photo.  He is not a ring person and you will die when you hear this – he keeps his ring on his keychain and always has!  He wears it on holidays and out to dinner with me sometimes.  Ha!  

And, two more pictures that make me happy.  The first on the top is my group of high school friends.  I just had dinner with some of them last week.  

And, the bottom one is of my Dad leading a conga line.  He started one at every wedding we went to for some crazy reason.  It became a joke!  He is followed by my high school bestie, my cousins, my sister, and a few others.  So funny!  

Now, on to the honeymoon!  

We had to be at the airport at 3 a.m. to head to Aruba!  It was a dream honeymoon.  We sunbathed on the beach, went snorkeling several times, went on a pirate ship, went on a catamaran, kayaked, rented a jeep to explore the island, had a romantic dinner on the beach.  We had so much fun and it’s a good thing because just a bit over a year later we found out we were expecting twin boys!  

Hope you enjoyed this walk down memory lane with me!  

Amy 

Wednesday, July 17, 2019

I’m actually one of those weird people that loves to pack and talk about packing!  I make lists and I start laying out clothes a few days before my trip so I can make sure not to wear them. 

I like to think about what I will be doing and what I would like to wear to do said activities.  

For my trip last week I knew that I would be mostly at the beach during the day but that one day would be walking in Chicago.  I knew that we would mostly be cooking dinner at home and that we might do some antiquing/shopping.  

Shoes and accessories are always the hardest for me to narrow down.  But, I did pretty well this time.  I also had my grey Nike tennis shoes.  One sister and I walked two mornings and I wore them to Chicago.  

I did well with just two bracelets and three earrings.  

Travel/car outfit for the way up was an old black tank swing dress and a kimono.  I thought I would re-wear this outfit but I didn’t.  

Bottoms were:  palazzo pants, blue denim look capris, 2 cut offs, and 1 skirt

Tops were:  cactus, floral, graphic tee, fruit blouse, plain black, plain hot pink, and one more kimono

Not pictured:  2 bathing suits, 2 coverups, athletic shorts and tanks to sleep in, lounge in, and 2 sweatshirts because Michigan can be cool in the mornings and evenings.  

I thought I did pretty well at choosing and keeping it to a minimum and I found that I was pretty happy with what I brought.  

I don’t usually get a souvenir shirt like my boys do.  We have a t shirt from every trip we have ever taken since they were 2 and I’m going to get quilts made soon!  I really liked this sweatshirt below so I splurged and this is the only new item I bought.  A $50 sweatshirt is out of character for me but I’ve been wearing them more lately!  

This is what I wore to go antique shopping with my mom, both sisters, and a niece that wanted to go. 

This is what I wore to Chicago for the day – denim look capris, pink top, kimono, tennis shoes and a brown crossbody purse with fringe.  I looked a bit frumpy but I was comfortable.  

This was my Friday night outfit to go out to eat when we got back.

Any favorites?  I’m so glad I cut off the cactus top!  It has really improved the look!  

Teen packing tip:  I gave them a list and they had to find everything and lay it by their dufflebags for me to approve.  I didn’t bother with their dufflebag again after that.  It worked well.  They don’t want me to micromanage but I wanted to make sure they had appropriate stuff.  We have been doing it this way since they were probably 12?  

What is your packing and vacation style?  

Thanks for reading!

Amy 

Tuesday, July 16, 2019

Hello!  Thank you for all the wishes for a happy anniversary yesterday!  Often we are on our summer vacation and go out to celebrate while at our destination, but this year it fell on our first Monday back when hub hadn’t worked since Wednesday, July 3! We had a quiet night at home with Outback takeout.  We didn’t do gifts because of our renovation and that’s o.k. with me.  

So, I may be too late with these tips for your travel this year and I may not be saying anything Earth shattering, but here goes! 

This year we rented a place that I found on VRBO.com.  This is my most common way to book a place.  I have used VRBO probably 10 times.  I always read the amenities carefully and always read the reviews.  I ask the owner lots of questions and I often request more photos.  I have almost always been totally satisfied.  I prefer to rent from an owner rather than from a company.  When you rent from an owner, the rental has spices, basic cooking items, etc.  When you rent from a company, it is more like a hotel.  I guess it depends on what you plan to do on vacation, but that is something to think about.  I use the filters and I want:  dog friendly, AC, WIFI, cable tv or satellite, washer/dryer, basic cooking supplies to save some money, an outdoor area to enjoy a.m. coffee, and that’s about it.  

Let me backtrack…

Before I leave home I:

-stop the mail.  It’s super easy to go on USPS.com.

-take out all trash and replace bags.  Lesson learned one time when I didn’t do this –  we came home to our house stinking to wake the dead.

-run the dishwasher so I don’t leave dirties in it for a week.

-Clean and straighten the house as best I can.  It feels great to come home to a clean house.  

-I usually don’t cook the night before we leave because I’m packing and it’s just easier to not make a mess before leaving.  

While on vacation:  

-If we have a washer and dryer I run a load a few times.  This past week I came home with all clean clothes except for a small bag.  Now, I’m not saying to spend your whole week washing clothes like you do at home, but it is really nice to come home without a ton of laundry.  

So, this past week we did a rental from a private owner.  I communicated with her several times and she was very responsive and easy to work with.  We went to a little town on Lake Michigan called Sawyer and stayed in a duplex with access to a community beach.  

Here is the living room.  

We like to take our dog and this was a dog friendly rental.  Ernie is well traveled.  He has been to Lake Michigan and Dauphin Island to name a few places. 

The back yard was really nice.  The gazebo had a ceiling fan in it!  The beds were not very comfortable and the décor was outdated.  Note to self to look more closely at photos and ask about mattresses. 

We also had 12 other family members staying in a big house with 6 bedrooms within walking distance so we hung out in that yard and did dinners there.  

Our community beach access.  

Since I had a washer and dryer in the rental, I should’ve brought even less clothing than I did.  I brought 4 pairs of pants, 2 shorts, 1 dress, 1 skirt, 5 tops, and then coverups, 2 suits, and sleep/lounge clothes.  I usually try to stay in the same color scheme.  This time it was black, white, hot pink, orange basically.  

I only brought 4 pairs of shoes – one tennis shoes, one flip flop, and two sandals.

I only brought minimal makeup and jewelry and it was perfect.  I brought 3 earrings and two bracelets.  

The rental provided beach towels so I didn’t bring my own.  This was a great space saver.

I brought 3 books and only needed 2.  With extended family there was always someone around and I just didn’t read as much as normal. 

Any travel or vacation tips I forgot?  

Amy 

Monday, July 15, 2019

Happy Monday to you!  Today is my 19th wedding anniversary!  I may dedicate a post to that later this week but today is the typical weekend wrap up with a little about last week thrown in.  It’s great to be back and writing in this space again!  Did you realize I was gone last week?  I scheduled my posts ahead of time because I was on vacation.  I’m still old school about not letting the internet know I’m out of town.  Are you like that?  I did respond to comments, but other than that, I was truly on a break.  I didn’t even read many of my regular blogs while I was away, so I’m anxious to get caught up today!  

So, Saturday, July 6th, my family of four plus Ernie headed north to southwest Michigan.  My mom, two sisters, their husbands and the 7 kids between them had rented a house and we rented our own little place within walking distance.  We have done this several years in July.  We get our own place because – teenagers – but also because we like to bring our dog and find a dog friendly place to rent.  We do leave him home when we do big trips but we feel like Michigan is a great place for him.  

A couple of photos of the lake.  It’s really beautiful.  

One day we took the Amtrak train from New Buffalo, Michigan into Chicago’s Union Station.  The train took just over an hour and was part of the fun in my opinion.  You could even buy beer on the train if you wanted!  I did not – don’t worry!  My sisters and nieces and nephews were happy to dog sit for us while we were gone!  

We only had about 5 hours so we walked around, visited the Art Institute, and ate Chicago style pizza.  

We had 6 days of quality time with my side of the family.  We cooked and ate good food, spent time at the beach, went shopping and antiquing, made s’mores, had a talent show, and laughed and talked a lot.  But, my Dad’s presence was truly missed.  He was always in the middle of everything.  I think I underestimated how hard this week would be.  

We came home Friday afternoon and some friends asked us to try a new to us brewery/beer garden called 3rd Turn/Oldham Gardens.  It was amazing.  It is a former nursery with the most beautiful tables, benches, and vines hanging above.  

They have really good food, too.  

I had a pineapple bourbon slushie that I would definitely order again!  

Hub and I split a Cuban sandwich and brussel sprouts – maybe the best I’ve ever had!  

It was a nice night and our boys were happy to be home and we were happy to see our friends!  

Saturday was unpacking, laundry, and grocery run and late afternoon, hub and I went to see Stuber.  We liked it.  It is a bit silly and a lot violent but it was entertaining in our opinion.  

While on vacation, I finished this book and I do recommend it.  It was the perfect book for me.  

I also started this book and I’m really liking it.  Summer is for light reading.  I overdid the WWII stuff last year and I just need decent writing and a story that will engage me.  

We have hardly been able to boat at all this year due to excessive rain and a high river.  Yesterday, we were happy to have our friends join us.  We had a perfect day and stopped for brunch before tooling around and then floating in a cove.  

Sundays just call for mimosas!

What did you do this weekend?  The weeks are really flying by now and I just want them to slow down!  Do you feel that way?  

I hope you’ll come back this week!  I may go into more detail on our trip, what I packed, travel tips (might be too late for you this year, though), my thoughts on 19 years of marriage – lots of options!  

Have a great day!

Amy 

Friday, July 12, 2019

I thought I would make all of my favorites today from Trader Joe’s!  Do I talk about TJ’s too much?  Yes!  But, you know what?  I never get tired of this subject.  I’m constantly reading others’ reviews and constantly learning about new to me items.  They almost always have new products when I visit, too.  They change things up with the seasons.  

I realize if you live in a Trader’s Joe’s – less city you will feel out of the loop and for that I’m very sorry.  But, maybe you can find an identical product at your local grocer.  

Why I shop at Trader Joe’s a couple of times a month in addition to my regular grocery:

-Could I just go here instead of regular grocery, too?  Probably, but for a family of four it makes more sense to get staples at regular grocery for the prices.  But, keep in mind this is a whole lot cheaper than eating out or getting take out!  

–This is a great store for those wanting to eat healthier but who can’t afford Whole Foods.  TJ’s isn’t nearly as expensive as Whole Foods from what I’ve observed.  

-This is a great store for young kids just out of college.  There are some prepared foods that are healthier options and there are smaller portions for singles.  

–This store just makes you happy to grocery shop and that doesn’t happen for me anywhere else! 

-This is a great place for gifts and fresh flowers and plants.  Their bath and body products would also make great gifts.  

-Their greeting cards are all 99 cents and they are BEAUTIFUL! 

-The liquor prices are great.  

-If you are traveling this summer and have one nearby this could be a great place to stock up on snacks and breakfast items to save money.

-Some things are really affordable – nuts and cheeses, for example.  

My TJ’s favorites:

-Everything but the bagel seasoning

-Frozen already cooked jasmine rice

-Frozen green beans, broccoli, and corn to keep stocked in freezer

-Everything bagels (keep in freezer because they go back quickly due to lack of preservatives – that’s a good thing!

-7 grain bread – again keep in freezer for same reason

-Ciabatta bread and rolls (better than a restaurant)

-Brioche bread for French toast (keep in freezer, take out however many slices you need at a time)

Most recent TJ’s run photo below:  

I’m trying for first time:  

blueberry goat cheese log – to die for!  

bloody mary salsa – haven’t tried yet

Ale mustard – really good – we dipped pretzels in it

chili onion crunch – put it atop cream cheese and want to try it in a pasta dish.  The verdict is still out for me on this product.  

The Brioche is to die for!  

My boys like these turkey corn dogs in the freezer section

New product:  Everything ciabatta rolls – I used to make a breakfast sandwich for hub – amazing!  

I like to keep this cooked chicken on hand for nachos, pasta, whatever

Great prices on cheese.  I love mozzarella and tomatoes with balsamic glaze.

We love these sturdy lime flavored chips.  They work great for nachos!  

Where do you stand with Trader Joe’s?  

A. Stop talking about this store!

B. Who’s Trader Joe?

C. Huge fan!  Give me more!

If you said “C”, what products are your favorites?  How do you feel about the prices?  

Amy 

Thursday, July 11, 2019

So, my regular readers know that I had a student last year that worked at the Louisville Salt Cave.  It came up often in class and I had lots of questions for her and as a class we made lots of jokes and were just silly about it.  I was shocked when during our “senior walk” she generously gifted me a gift card to try it out.  

Does your city have a salt cave?  I learned that this is called “halotherapy” and in order to make this they had to ship in tons of himalayan pink salt and also they pipe in more salt in the air while you are inside the cave.  The employee explained it was like the sea salt air at the beach.  

Benefits/Why people go to a salt cave:

-benefits the immune system

-helps with life balance and energy

-helps with respiratory issues

-helps with asthma

-helps with allergies

-helps with sinusitis, congestion, ear infections, skin disorders, eczema, psoriasis, acne, Cystic Fibrosis, depression, anxiety, and sleep disorders

Our salt cave is located in a very unassuming place – a strip mall

They sell salt merchandise and essential oils in the store.  I thought these shot glasses were cool but I didn’t ask how long the last and if they are reusable.  

6 people can fit at a time and you can also do a private booking for your group.  This is while the door was still open and it was bright to take a photo.  When the door is shut it is super dark except for twinkle lights on the ceiling and some glowing salt crystals on the walls.  You sit in my favorite type of lounge chair – the anti-gravity chair.  I have one on my patio.  

Salt cave selfie

My session was for 45 minutes.  Now. let me tell you a bit about myself.  I’m pretty type A and pride myself in getting stuff done and I get bored easily.  I was worried going in that I wouldn’t be able to last 45 minutes and I told the employee I might need to exit early!  Lol! Well, I did last 45 minutes but I looked at the time on my phone maybe 4 times.  

So, it was really too long for me and I would’ve been fine with just 30 minutes.  I loved the feel of the nice cool air, and the air really did feel clean and fresh.  They do give you a blanket but the other 3 ladies in there with me brought their own blanket.  I was a newbie and didn’t know.  You also have to wear socks in the cave which I didn’t know so I had to use the ones they provided.  Also, there was no music.  If I had known I could’ve brought my earphones and done my own music.  I didn’t fall asleep.  I thought that would kind of be a waste.  I did use the time to calm my thoughts but my thoughts were already pretty calm because it’s summer!  I have heard you can do massage add ons and I can see that being perfect – a foot or hand massage or something like that.  Maybe throw in some essential oils?    

They did tell you to drink lots of water the rest of the day because your toxins would be released.  I don’t know if I felt different afterwards but I did notice I didn’t have much energy or motivation to accomplish much after my 11:00 am session.  Maybe I should have done an afternoon session when I was done being productive for the day?  Maybe the cave did really release my toxins and my toxins made me tired!  T-shirt slogan –  “my toxins make me tired”?  

So, there is my honest opinion on my salt cave experience.  Am I glad I went?  Yes!  Would I go again?  Maybe with a shorter session, a massage involved, music involved, etc.  

Have you been to a salt cave?  Would you go?  

Just one more deep thought – it makes me sad that humans run so ragged that we have to have things like this – recreating nature in a strip mall?  Maybe that isn’t the way to look at it, but I can’t help but think about things like that.  

Thanks for reading if you made it this far! 

Amy 

Wednesday, July 10, 2019

Here are my main players for the summer below, but I”m always looking for that next pair!  

Acrylics on the left starting from the bottom:  clear and gold sparkle from local boutique The Prickly Pear, lavendar and white from my dear student, turquoise old from local boutique but can’t remember which, multicolor from Amazon

Raffia from Amazon

Leathers on the right:  white leather feathers from local boutique Apricot Lane, metallic feathers from Prickly Pear, silver, green and pink from ADVdesigns on Etsy (my code is still good!), yellow tassels from local boutique Revelry

I gave my tiered tray a new use this summer!  What do you think?  

What are your go to pairs of earrings?  Any suggestions for me?  

Thanks for reading!

Amy 

Tuesday, July 9, 2019

Do you have a tailor?  Or, better yet, can you tailor your own clothing?  Unfortunately I cannot, but I have a secret – my sweet tailor lady.  What do you call a female tailor?  Oh well, I will leave that for another day.

Last summer I bought this cactus top off of Amazon and I’ve worn it a handful of times but never thought it looked that good.  I decided it was the length.  My tailor took off a good 6 inches from the bottom and it looks like it came that way!  Price:  $10.  So, the shirt originally cost about $16 so I’m still within a reasonable price for the shirt with those costs combined.  

Here is a trick I did myself.  This shirt had really long and awkward tassels and they wouldn’t stay tied.  I cut them and tied these bows myself.  Can you believe it?  Just kidding!  I know many women bought a particular top off of Amazon this season and cut off the tassels.  You can also take out shoulder pads or things like that that bother you.  

Finally, I got three pairs of Matilda Jane pants hemmed.  One I had just cut off this winter and they were fine but I wanted them to be hemmed correctly.  The other two were from a Facebook sale for $17 each.  So, after the $15 price to hem them, they were still under what I would pay for Matilda Jane quality.  They have intricate design on the bottoms so she cut the fabric under the knee and moved the design up if that makes sense. See the bottoms of the pants below.  She kept them intact.  

There are so many things a tailor can do.  Don’t keep something in your closet that isn’t quite right.  It might be able to be fixed!  

Have you altered anything lately?  Any tips for me?  I have heard that custom tailoring is the reason why the movie stars look so good.  That and their plastic surgery, maybe?  Ha!  

Thanks for reading!

Amy 

Monday, July 8, 2019

How was your holiday weekend?  I think many people had four days off for a nice long weekend!  I am going to mix up my normal posting themes this week and today I’m talking about a makeup bag idea and I wanted to follow up on my summer lips post here with my reader recommendations and some new ones of mine, too!  

So, let’s talk about your lipsticks and how to contain them!  

Do you keep your makeup in a cosmetics bag at home?  I do not.  I have plastic containers in a cabinet and only need a bag when I travel.  I went to Target to look for a fairly good sized cosmetics case and either they were too big, too expensive, or I didn’t like the look.  I was in the cosmetics section of the store and then decided to venture to the travel section of the store.  Next to the travel section were these beautiful cases that looked like cosmetics bags, but they were lunch boxes!  Now, some were pricey, but the one I chose below was only $8.99 compared to the $25 that most cost in the cosmetics department.  

Isn’t this print darling?  

Inside is the typical lunch box cooler lining, but I thought that would also be great for wiping down my makeup spills.  

If I decide to use it for a lunch box instead I can always do that.  Also, once I get to my destination, I could unpack my makeup and put it on the counter and throw some adult beverages in this bad boy!  What do you think?  

Now, let’s go back to the lipstick topic.  To briefly recap, Revlon Superlustrous classic is a great bang for your buck.  NYX lip butters are amazing.  I also love Lipsense, but it’s expensive and hard to get.  

I was on a mission to try some of the lipsticks that you recommended.  First I stopped at Sephora.  I was intrigued by this line of $8 lip stories.  The packaging is really pretty and the price was great.  The testers were a mess so I didn’t try any.  

Sephora was really packed, so I then made my way to Macy’s to try some of the recommended brands.  Feel free to read the helpful comments left in that post, too, but here is a round up for the most part.  

Clinique Almost Lipstick in Black Honey – This is very natural and very sheer and adjusts to your lip color.  This is apparently a cult classic.  

Clarins Water Lip Stain – this only comes in four colors from what I could tell.  I only tried this on my hand and I’m so glad because this would not come off of my hand for two days!  I would say that speaks to its lasting power! 

Tarte Quench Lip Rescue Balms – Macy’s didn’t have

Revlon Super Lustrous Gloss in Rosy Future – have not tried this yet

Bare Minerals in Hustler shade – a bright orangey red – did not try it but it looked promising

Revlon Kiss Cushion Lip Tints – haven’t found yet

NYX Stockholm – couldn’t find this color 

Other reader comments:  

Use a lip scrub

Use Carmex

Use a lip primer

Thanks for reading, guys!  Anything else I should try?  Any new favorites?  Help feed my lip product obsession!  

Amy 

Friday, July 5, 2019

How was your holiday?  Are you still celebrating or are you hitting the sales today?  I’m deleting sale emails as quickly as I get them so I won’t be tempted!  Since it’s Friday, I’m linking up with Andrea, etc. so go right here!  Friday Favorites is just a fun and happy link up where people put products, fashion, recipes, family life – really just anything that made their week.  

Here we go…

I finally bit the bullet this week and bought the Reef rose gold flip flops.  I have talked about how much I love Reef brand and Macy’s was having (and is having until Sunday) 40% off of all sandals online and in the store.  These babies were $22.  They are soooooo comfortable.  

Another favorite – still loving the southwestern bowl recipe that can be found here, but I did a little hack this time.  I stopped at Qdoba for chips, queso, and rice.  I was out of rice at home and their queso and chips are really good,  but I had everything else to make the meal, so for $9, I fed all four of us.  

Qdoba’s cilantro lime rice

Qdoba’s chips and queso

I finally found this new favorite at Target.  Melanie Shankle of BigMama talks about it and I had been looking for it.  If you like sparkling water it is soooo good.  I may have to order it off of Amazon.  

I still love yacht rock!  If you are around my age – cough – midish 40s – cough, you will love, love, love this genre.  

Target’s summer reads got me excited this week.  I need more rom coms and chick flicks in my life and because it says “From Page to Screen” I’m hoping I can read a few of these  (by putting them on my library request list, of course) and then see the movies.  By the way, have you noticed there are very few good movies playing this summer?  I have been wanting to go but can’t find a thing I want to see!  Maybe Late Night – has anyone seen that?

I finally did Kroger online shopping this summer.  I was doing it really regularly from fall to spring but then just stopped.  So, I got organized to do it again this week.  When my car said 96 degrees I felt so lucky to have my groceries brought out to me.  However, I felt not so lucky when I got home and was missing 5 items but had an extra 25 items including baby food that I did not order.  I drove back and returned the items and got my missing ones.  Oh well.  

A few other things that have been favorites this week:

The Bachelorette – OMG!  Is anyone watching?  It’s geting good.  Why does she like Luke P?  They show a shocking preview of a conversation they are going to have soon!

Big Brother – one son and I think it’s amusing and watch it together every summer.  It’s special time with him that I treasure and I love his observations.  

-Listening to my other son sing the score from Hunchback of Notre Dame that we saw last week.  I’m not sure he knows I’m listening!  

-Watching our renovation come along has been fun.  I’m still nervous but it’s also exciting.  

-Still loving my Steinmart purchases and my Amazon purchases from posts this week. 

What were your favorites?  I love reading your comments and thanks for visiting me!  If you are new here, welcome, and introduce yourself  in the comments if you would like!

Amy