Things I’m Loving Friday #105

I don’t think one day passed this week that Ryan and I didn’t turn to each other and say something along the lines of, “I’m so ready for vacation!” Well, our vacation is nearly here! We’re leaving on Monday for a six-day mountain vacation with my family and everyone is meeting up at our house in Charlotte this weekend before we make the drive to Boone, North Carolina.

I’m so, so ready for quality time with my family and I can’t wait for my sister and brother-in-law to see their nephew again! I’m looking forward to days filled with hiking, relaxing, reading (I just downloaded The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up), exploring and eating!

While vacation anticipation is obviously what I’m loving most at the moment, it wouldn’t be Friday around here if we didn’t share a little bit about what we’re all loving this week in your usual Things I’m Loving Friday post! As always, I’d love for you to join in the fun in the comments section and tell me about something that is making you smile.

I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

Things I’m Loving Friday

• Toasted Coconut Ice Cream Cake

We celebrated Ryan’s birthday on Monday and Chase and I surprised him with a toasted coconut ice cream cake from Kilwin’s! You guys, this cake is unreal. Ryan first tried it during a coworker’s lunchtime birthday celebration and he came home absolutely raving about. It lived up to the hype and I’m not sure whether I loved the fluffy marshmallow topping, the creamy toasted coconut ice cream or the rich fudge layer most.

• Chase’s First Art Work

This first-time mom’s heart nearly exploded on Monday when I picked Chase up from Burn Boot Camp’s childcare after my workout. Miss Lindsay and Chase got a little crafty while I was sweating and when I saw this little foot print pumpkin waiting by my gym bag, I think I was a little too excited. Chase’s first art work! I immediately texted a picture of it to my mom and Ryan since I knew they would think it was just as fantastic as I did. I feel so fortunate to go to a gym with such wonderful childcare!

• Chai Banana Bread

I did a little experimenting in the kitchen this week! I made a loaf of chai-spiced banana bread and it was so tasty. I still want to tweak the recipe a bit before I’m comfortable sharing it on the blog, but I hope to share it with you guys soon. It made our whole house smell fantastic!

• Emily Ley Simplified Planner

I’m a big fan of the paper planner. After using the calendar on my phone for a while, I found myself missing a good old fashioned planner. I like the ability to jot ideas and notes down on the pages of a planner and feel like a paper planner makes me more organized. The Emily Ley Simplified Planner may be the most gorgeous planner I’ve ever seen! Emily recently reached out to me to check out her 2016 planner and I was immediately smitten by the beautiful design (I love the gold pineapple and mint dot!), but it’s not just beautiful! The planner has plenty of space for schedules, notes, meal planning and more. I think it would make a fantastic gift for an organized loved one!

• Fall Nail Polish Colors

Now that cooler temperatures have returned, I feel like it’s time to retire my go-to bright pink shades of nail polish in favor of rich fall colors. Bring on the navy, burgundy and  deep purple! Love ‘em! (I nabbed the smoky blue color above from Marshalls two weeks ago for $1.99! Woop!)

• Friday Flashbacks

Butterscotch Banana Bread Oatmeal Bites (Easy, tasty and perfectly pop-able!)

Cardio and Abs Circuit Workout (For days when you want to get your heart rate up and work your core in the same workout!)

Question of the Day

• What is one thing you are loving this week?