Things I’m Loving Friday #403

Hey friends! Last week I found myself blogging from Colorado on Friday and today I’m coming to you from West Virginia. Ryan and I intentionally planned two back-to-back ski weekends so we could refresh our skiing/snowboarding skills on our own last weekend before we took the boys on their first ski adventure this weekend. Chase and Ryder have been talking about skiing all week and we really hope they love it. If skiing is a flop, we also have sledding on the agenda so I’m sure they’ll enjoy at least some aspect of our snowy vacation!

I’ll have a recap to share with all of you soon but until then, let’s keep things consistent and dive into my weekly roundup of Friday favorites!

Things I’m Loving Friday

• Sam Edelman Puffer Lace Up Boots

I bought these comfy boots for our ski vacation and wore them non-stop! (These boots and my black mini UGGS were the only shoes I packed.) The neutral color appealed to me since I figured they would go with everything and I loved the cozy interior lining, chunky sole and puff detailing on the exterior. They were incredibly comfortable and kept my feet warm during our chilly January getaway. They were an A+ purchase for a ski vacation!

• The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

Another Christina Lauren book and another winner! I’m on a bit of a hot streak with reading and loving books by this author duo and The Unhoneymooners delivered everything I’ve come to expect from a Christina Lauren novel: Romance, fun dialog, interesting plotlines and a little steaminess.

The Unhoneymooners kicks off at Olive Torres’ identical twin sister’s wedding. Olive is used to being the “unlucky twin” and feels like her entire life has been jinxed to the point that it’s almost laughable while her sister Ami always seems to come out on top. Ami even managed to pay for almost her entire wedding and her honeymoon by winning various contests.

Ami’s luck takes a shocking turn on her wedding day when almost everyone at the reception gets hit with a serious bout of food poisoning. Unable to go on her honeymoon, Ami encourages Olive to take her spot at the same time that her husband offers the trip to his brother Ethan, Olive’s least favorite person on the planet.

Determined to enjoy an all-expenses paid 10-day trip to Hawaii despite her less-than-ideal company, Olive boards the plane next to Ethan after the two agree to make the most of the vacation. Since Ami won the vacation through a contest, Olive and Ethan are forced to pretend to be newlyweds and no one is more surprised than Olive when pretending to be in love with Ethan isn’t as awful as she anticipated. Could there be more to Ethan than the years of awful memories she has associated with her new brother-in-law?

• Seamless Ribbed Leggings

I love funky, colorful leggings as much as the next person but find myself gravitating toward black leggings more than anything else. They’re the most flattering and look the best with my more colorful sweatshirts, sweaters and workout tops. When I saw an Instagram influencer — @thingsiboughtandliked I think? — rave about these black ribbed leggings from Amazon, I immediately added them to my cart because they seemed right up my alley. The minute I tried them on, I became an instant fan. (I ordered a medium-large in black and think they are darker in person.) They’re dark in color but I love the ribbed detailing and the way it adds a little interest to black leggings. They’re also much more flattering than I would’ve expected for such inexpensive leggings (only $25!) and I think this is because of the vertical ribbing (it elongates the legs and hides lumps and bumps) and the thick waistband that doesn’t dig into my sides. I’ve found myself reaching for these leggings on repeat lately and figured they deserved a shout out here, too!

• Daily Harvest‘s Harvest Bakes

I’ve been a loyal Daily Harvest customer for years and love keeping a few of their smoothies, harvest bowls, bites and soups on hand for easy, nutrient-dense meals and snacks. They recently launched their Harvest Bakes, veggie-packed dishes that are absolutely full of flavor and large enough to share. I was grateful to Daily Harvest for sending me a couple to preview and have only wonderful things to say about them! They heated up easily in the oven and made the perfect side-dish to share on busy weeknights (I paired them with salmon or chicken thighs).

I’ve also loved eating the new Harvest Bakes solo and find them very filling! (Sometimes I’ve even had a little leftover if I eat them with roll.) My only complaint with Daily Harvest’s original harvest bowls is the smaller portion size when you eat them alone so I’ve loved the fact that the Harvest Bakes make enough for one full meal for me (sometimes with a little leftover!) and also make enough to share if it’s not our main dish. My favorite flavor so far is the squash + wild rice gratin with the chickpea + coconut curry coming in a close second.

• January 2022 Top 10

In an effort to be better at taking the time to analyze some of my analytics, last year I began sharing a monthly recap in my Friday posts highlighting my top 10 blog posts and your top 10 favorite finds from the blog + Instagram. Hopefully this will also help you check out some blog posts you might have missed or help you easily locate an item I’ve mentioned in the past that got buried in blog/social media mayhem.

Here’s a peek at was you guys liked best in January 2022!

Top Blog Posts

• A Quick House Q&A
• Home Sweet (New) Home
• Life with Three Kids 1.5 Years In (Part One)
• Easy Orange Juice Marinated Chicken Thighs
• Winning Cornbread Recipe
• Top Blog Posts of 2021
• Turkey Vegetable Meatloaf
• Transition from 2 to 3 Kids: Q&A
• Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookie Dough Overnight Oats
• Monday In Real Time

Top 10 Favorites

• Love Does for Kids by Bob Goff (A wonderful book that helps teach kids about God’s love through stories our boys adore.)
• Champagne Puffer Coat (Warm and cozy and still majorly on sale! Size down.)
• Scratch-Off Heart Stickers (Place these stickers over your own notes and your kids can scratch them off to reveal your sweet messages. A huge hit with our boys!)
• Black Bodysuit (This flattering $23 Amazon find continues to be a hit with you guys month after month.)
• Personalized Busy Board (Rhett’s Christmas gift obsession.)
• Personalized Wood Stool (One of our Christmas gifts for Callie! Perfect combination of practical + cute!)
• Cozy Rib-Knit Sweater (An Old Navy steal!)
• $15 Curling Iron (Amazing price point for an amazing curling iron. I love it for creating soft, romantic loose curls.)
• Instant Vortex Air Fryer (This breathes life into frozen veggies. We’ve been using it non-stop!)
• Stars Above Pajamas (Target’s amazing dupe of Nordstrom’s beloved Moonlight pajamas.)

 

• Friday Flashbacks

Where to Meet Mom Friends (I feel incredibly lucky to have a wonderful group of mom friends and this post details how I met many of them!)

Edamame Black Bean Salad (I made this one for lunch this week — topped with shrimp — and was reminded why it’s one of my favs! It also makes a great dip so keep it on your radar if you’re looking for healthy Super Bowl eats.)

Question of the Day

What is one thing you’re loving this week?