Peanut Butter Fingers

Friday is heeeere! Woop! We had one heck of a gorgeous week in Charlotte — sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-70s — and it looks like the sunshine will continue this weekend… but the HEAT is comin’. Since the forecast is calling for 90-degree temperatures on Saturday, I have only one thing on my mind for this weekend and that’s spending as much time as possible on the lake.

But before the weekend kicks into high gear, I want to take a moment to share a roundup of some things that are making me smile this week in my usual Things I’m Loving Friday fashion. As always, please feel free to play along and tell me about something you’re loving right now in the comments section.

Have a great Friday and an even better weekend, my friends!

Thing I’m Loving Friday

Kitchen Backsplash Dreaming

After our living room refresh we did at the end of last year, I’ve found myself tempted to tackle other small home updates that have been on our household to-do list ever since we bought our home nearly five years ago. I’m really hoping to swap out the backsplash in our kitchen for something a little more updated and I’m having a little too much fun Pinteresting my heart out.

I have a few self-imposed boundaries I’m following as I’m searching for the perfect backsplash and they mainly center around two things: 1.) The backsplash must go with our current granite (it’s a sandy color with lots of beige) because I have zero desire to replace granite 2.) It must go with our white cabinets and, ideally, also include white to brighten up our kitchen a bit. That leaves me with a TON of options which is a blessing… and a hindrance because I’m feeling a bit frozen about what to select moving forward! (The lantern mosaic style — the top left picture in the above image — is currently appealing to me the most.) Anyone out there with a knack for interior design and home renovations have some advice for me? I’d love your input and advice!

Summer Birthday Celebration

Outfit details: Hat: Wallaroo (I have a feeling this faux-straw hat will be a summertime staple for me!) / Shorts: High-Waisted Ruffle Shorts (on sale for $20 ) / Top: Mcguire via StitchFix

Next week is the last week of 3-year-old preschool for Chase and his teachers invited the parents of the kids who have summer birthdays to the school for a little summer birthday celebration! Whenever it is someone’s birthday in Chase’s class, they have a dance party with a disco ball and all of the lights in the classroom turned off. To say Chase was into the summer birthday dance party is a serious understatement and I’m not quite sure where his hip swivels and pseudo-cartwheel dance moves came from but they were PASSIONATE. I loved the opportunity to see Chase in his classroom interacting with his classmates and am so incredibly grateful for our preschool and the fabulous teachers who care for our children and put so much time and energy into creating such an upbeat, educational and playful environment!

Mother’s Day Craft

Speaking of Chase’s preschool, I completely forgot to share a peek at the Mother’s Day craft he made for me at school last week! I always get the biggest kick out of the fill-in-the-blank questions kids answer about their moms on Mother’s Day and had to laugh at the pink dinosaur jacket Chase apparently wants to give me and the fact that he thinks I look pretty with a hat on. When I asked him what hat he was talking about, he said my “crazy hat,” aka the fascinator I wore at the Queen’s Cup and my parents’ Kentucky Derby party. Maybe I need to bust out that bad boy a little more often!?

Bourbon Pecans

My mom made a mega-batch of bourbon pecans for my parents’ Kentucky Derby party and they may be the most addicting nuts on the planet. They’re slightly sweet and a little spicy and I’ve been doing my best to pace myself through the giant bag of nuts that my mom sent home with us but it’s basically impossible because they’re so, so good.

Cardio Stack Workout

Okay cardio queens, I have a workout to share with you today that I think you will love! I completed this workout during Wednesday’s Burn Boot Camp class and I was shocked when I found myself actually enjoying a stack workout which is almost always my least favorite kind of workout. I think I liked it so much because the running broke up the stacked exercises and kept the workout moving in a way that made it fly by. It’s definitely worth a try during your next cardio session! (Note: I know get up lunges might be a little confusing so if they’re unfamiliar to you, check out a picture tutorial of that exercise here.)

Around the Web

Food: The Truth About Meat + Inflammation / Farro and Kale Salad / The Best Carrot Cake / Turkey Sweet Potato Meatballs

Fitness: Exactly What to Say to Motivate Someone to Exercise and Stick With It / Diastasis Recti Exercise Substitutes / 15 Minute Bodyweight HIIT Cardio Workout (+ Video)

Weekend Sales: Up to 40% off summer favs at Urban Outfitters (love this straw circle shoulder bag) / 25% off purchases $125+ at Express with code 8960 (valid through 5/23 — love these side-tie shorts and this high-waisted linen maxi skirt)