Things I’m Loving Friday #228

Hey friends! How are you doing!? Ryan arrived back home last night after five days in Las Vegas for work and we sure did miss him while he was away! We FaceTimed a lot and Chase talked about Dad’s big trip on an airplane every day. He also seemed very concerned about Ryan’s missing car in our garage so we were clearly ready to have him – and his car – home again last night!

I’m looking forward to some quality family time this weekend as well as some fun with friends. We’re having some of our closest friends and their little ones over for dinner tonight to celebrate my friend Carrie’s birthday family-style! Other than the birthday celebration, we don’t have anything concrete on our agenda but the weather looks a little dreary so it will probably involve a lot of indoor activity and, hopefully, some relaxation, too!

Now let’s dive right into your usual Things I’m Loving Friday blog post, shall we? Below you will find a short roundup of some of the things that are making me smile this week. As always, I’d love to read a little bit about something that recently made you happy in the comments section of this post!

I hope you all have a fantastic weekend!

Things I’m Loving Friday

• Bee’s Wrap + EarthHero

I’m not sure if other toddler parents out there can relate, but Chase loves certain fruits like apples and oranges but he rarely eats a whole apple or a whole orange in one sitting. Same thing with cucumbers, carrots, etc. I constantly have half-eaten fruit and leftover veggie slices on hand and kept finding myself reaching or plastic wrap or a baggie to preserve the other half of his un-eaten fruit or vegetables. I had no idea there was a more sustainable option for plastic wrap out there that I completely overlooked! Have you guys heard of Bee’s Wrap? It’s a reusable beeswax wrap that you can use to wrap up everything from cheese and bread to half-eaten fruits and veggies. You simply have to warm the wrap with your hands and then use it to cover a bowl, wrap up produce, keep cut veggies fresh, etc. It’s resuable and you simply wash the wrap in cool water and let it dry when you’re done. I LOVE this thing!!

The team behind EarthHero, an online marketplace for sustainable products, reached out to me about Bee’s Wrap and sent it to me to try which prompted me to browse their site as well. (Disclaimer: I was gifted my Bee’s Wrap from EarthHero. I was not compensated for this shout out, however if you use my affiliate link to shop the site, you’ll receive 20% off and I will receive credit to also use to shop on the site! You can create an affiliate link to do the same if you wish!) EarthHero is definitely worth mentioning on the blog today because the site is dedicated to making sustainable products more readily available. Every brand listed on EarthHero’s site has been verified for sustainability (focusing on materials, manufacturing and processes) and I already ordered some reusable produce bags to bring with me to the grocery store and some small stainless steel containers to use for Chase’s snacks that will easily fit into my small backpack. Such a great find!

• Blonde Ponytail Instagram Workouts

I’ve been a long-time follower of Jess’ blog, Blonde Ponytail, so I’m not sure HOW I totally missed her Instagram account until a couple of weeks ago. It’s such a great resource for fitness inspiration and in true Jess form, she posts challenging workouts that always kick my butt! While I’m scaling many of them back and using her workouts more for inspiration in creating some of my own workouts to go through at the gym, I wanted to point you guys to her Instagram page just in case you’re constantly looking for workouts you can do at home that are quick and effective. Most of her workouts don’t require anything more than a set of dumbbells and can be done in less than 30 minutes.

• The Last Conversation You’ll Ever Need To Have About Eating Right

I shared this article on Facebook and Instagram this week so you may have already seen it if you follow me there but it’s worth sharing on the blog as well. This article is a breath of fresh air! It is so easy to feel overwhelmed by what we should or shouldn’t eat and get swept up in the latest food fads. This article reaffirms what I think many of us already know but easily forget when some new diet trend surfaces. It addresses everything from eating Paleo, following a Keto diet, intermittent fasting, consuming beans, dairy and meat to going gluten-free, sugar concerns, the importance of organics and more. The bottom line: Eat real food… and lots of plants.

• Amika Nourishing Hair Mask

I received this hair mask through my Birchbox subscription ages ago! It fell into the abyss of small travel-size products I keep in a basket in my bathroom and when I was combing through it a few weeks ago, I stumbled upon Amika’s Nourishing Hair Mask again. After only two uses, I became an instant fan of this hair mask because it seemed to deeply condition and nourish the dry ends of my hair without leaving the roots greasy. Bonus: A little bit goes a long way so even my travel-size bottle has served me well for nearly a month and a half! (I’ve been using it about once a week.)

• Amelie’s French Bakery Surprise At Home Picnic Delivery

Earlier this week, I received a surprise delivery from Amelie’s French Bakery! I previously gave our address to a local Charlotte PR firm without really knowing what they had planned beyond possible collaborations with some local hot spots, so it was such a treat to receive this delivery. Amelie’s is a local bakery and café with locations in the Charlotte area as well as Atlanta, Georgia and they just unveiled their spring menu. (Whenever we visit Amelie’s, I always order their salted caramel brownie and HIGHLY recommend it if you ever find yourself in the area!) The “picnic for two” delivery I received included a couple of their new café sandwiches, two macarons (oh my gosh, the cotton candy one was fantastic!) and some wine which I’ll be saving to enjoy later this summer! The Ham + Honey Dijon sandwich was my favorite thanks to the sweet and savory caramelized onions, crisp apple slices and slightly sweet honey dijon mustard. Get in my belly! Thank you for this fun surprise and mid-week pick-me-up, Amelie’s!

• Collagen Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to Gabby,  the winner of the Great Lakes Collagen giveaway! Gabby was emailed first thing this morning. Thanks so much to all who entered!

• Friday Flashbacks

Cold Quinoa Salad (A great one to make this spring and a crowd-pleaser to keep in mind for Easter weekend!)

10 to 100 Driveway Workout (A quick workout you can do anywhere! No equipment needed!)

Question of the Day

What is one thing making you smile this week?