Things I’m Loving Friday #561

A Things I’m Loving Friday post!? Whaaat???! Guys, I have missed typing up a list of the simple things making me smile at the end of the week these past few weeks when travel had life feeling so up in the air. Today I’m back and it feels good!

We’ve had a good week over here, mostly consumed by back-to-school activities for our two oldest boys.

First grade for Ryder!

And fourth grade for Chase!

And another two weeks at home before school starts for Rhetty who thought changing the numbers on his back-to-school sign was hiiilarious.

As for the weekend ahead, it’s a free one for our family. Fall activities haven’t begun yet and we’re all home and ready for some downtime together. It should be hot and sunny so I’m fairly certain a lot of pool and lake time will be happening over here.

Now let’s dive right into the meat of this post and chat about the things we’re loving this week, shall we?

Things I’m Loving Friday

• Hanging Toiletry Bag

I used my previous hanging toiletry bag to store kid entertainment goodies on our trip to Alaska (you may see this mom hack here!) so I quickly ordered another large-capacity toiletry bag for myself for the trip. The reviews had me feeling hopeful and thankfully I ended up absolutely loving it, both aesthetically and from a functional standpoint. It has plenty of pockets to hold all of my toiletries and makeup and made it all easily accessible throughout our trip. I ended up leaving everything in it and folding it back up to take to Florida a few days later, too! It’s a great find and a purchase I’ve been extremely happy with as I’ve tested it out!

• Stakt Mat (Code PBFINGERS15 saves 15%)

I recently upgraded my workout mat (I hesitate to call it a yoga mat, as I primarily use it for purposes other than yoga) and my Stakt Mat very quickly surpassed my love of all other mats I’ve used in the past. As I’ve gotten older, my whole body is more sensitive to hard surfaces so I really appreciate the way this mat is thicker than a traditional yoga mat. It stays firmly in place and I love the way it folds up (it doesn’t roll) so I can use it as a block, t00. (I especially love this especially for an elevated surface for lower body workouts at home — Bulgarian split squats, hip thrusters, etc., as well as chest presses/flyes, etc.)

Also, this picture of the boys the day my mat arrived a few months ago cracked me up:

Nothing is only yours when you’re a mom, especially when your mat makes the perfect picnic spot.

Aaand good news! I reached out to the Stackt team through ShopMy and they offered a code in case any of you have this mat on your radar or want to give it a try. PBFINGERS15 will save you 15%!

Also, for any of my creator friends, this is yet another reason I love ShopMy! It makes it sooo much easier to directly reach out to some of your favorite brands for discount codes to pass along if you love their product. I cannot tell you how happy I am I made the switch. You may read more about my experience with ShopMy here. And here is my ShopMy referral if this is something that interests you for your own business.

• 2 New-to-Me Clean Beauty Mascaras: Neen Pretty Extra Mascara + Gee Beauty The Multi Mascara

If there is a beauty product I feel most picky about, it is, without a doubt, my mascara. I cannot stand the vast majority of mascaras on the market, as I feel like most clump lashes or only do one of the two things I desire — either add volume or lengthen. When a mascara can hit the trifecta — make my lashes look voluminous, long and not clumpy — I’ll be a fan for life. I’ve been using ILIA Fullest Volumizing Mascara for years and love it. (I switched from L’Oreal Volumizing Mascara which I loved for years to ILIA when I was looking for a clean beauty option.) This may make me sound crazy, but I often like my mascara a month or two after I begin using it, when the formula gets a little tackier and less goopy. That’s the sweet spot and then it’s fantastic, and that was always the case with my ILIA mascara.

Every so often I get the itch to try a new mascara and I almost always regret it but over the course of the past few months I’ve tried two new-to-me clean beauty mascaras that have both blown me away. They both check all of the boxes detailed above and will be mascaras I purchase on repeat in the future. And BOTH were  wonderful at first swipe — I didn’t have to wait a few months for their formulas to get a little tackier which is usually the case for me with mascara. LOVE LOVE LOVE them.

Neen Pretty Extra Mascara: This clean-beauty mascara needs to be on all the top beauty product lists. It fills and separates lashes in a gorgeously feathery way while also adding length and volume. It’s stunning and does so much to make my blonde lashes look lush and long. I love it for both day and night wear and really appreciate the way it stays on my lashes with zero flaking or smudging — even in crazy-hot Florida heat and humidity. I got a discount code on this one from ShopMy as well — PBFINGERS15 will save you 15%!

Gee Beauty The Multi Mascara: I wanted to try a brown mascara for a less intense look, especially during the summer months when I will often go makeup-free except for tinted sunscreen on my face. As someone with basically clear eyelashes, a swipe of mascara goes a long way to give my eyes some life and this Gee Beauty mascara is the mascara of my dreams for natural-looking lashes that are voluminous and long. It’s also available in black and I love the way the formula seems to adhere to each individual lash. Note: I’ve also been loving Gee Beauty’s Prime Skin primer. I has a gorgeously buildable color that warms the skin with a soft blurring effect. I got shade #4.

• Chia Pudding to Go

I’m all about easy breakfasts, especially now that the school year has begun. Every morning this week, I’ve had a grab-and-go chia pudding for breakfast. It’s easy, delicious and satiating, thanks to a decent amount of fiber from the chia seeds and fruit and protein from the Greek yogurt and milk. I’ve been loving these little glass jars (on sale for $8.99), as they make it super simple to prep the chia pudding and have it all ready to go with a little spoon and everything as I head out the door. I bought a two-pack and prep two at a time and its worked well for me.

• Roomies by Christina Lauren

Genre: Romance / My rating: B+ 

Christina Lauren, the author-duo behind some of my favorite breezy romance novels, did it again with Roomies. I was looking for a light but entertaining read after making my way through some heavier reads and this novel was exactly what I was looking for in a breezy beach read. You have you suspend your sense of disbelief but that seems to be a theme with a lot of romance novels. The plot wasn’t the most creative (two people agree to get married to help each other out) but I loved the emphasis on the power of music in the novel as well as the slow burn romance. It was cute, funny and entertaining.

Synopsis: Holland Bakker is infatuated with Calvin McLoughlin, a subway musician, mainly because of his incredible talent but also because he’s, well, super hot. One night, Holland is rescued by Calvin in the subway, though she’s confused when he doesn’t take any credit and seems to disappear after the event. When Holland learns of an opening for a talented musician in her uncle’s popular Broadway show, she thinks of Calvin. Soon it’s revealed that Calvin is in the country illegally and a plan is hatched for the two to marry. Though their marriage is fake, Holland’s feelings are increasingly real and she wonders if, perhaps, Calvin’s might be, too.

• Top 10 of July 2025

Here are your top 10 favs from July 2025!

Top 10 Blog Posts

• Easy Orange Juice Marinated Chicken Thighs
• How to Make Salmon Bites
• High Protein Breakfast Burrito
• Amazon Prime Day 2025 Deals
• Lasagna Recipe Using Cottage Cheese
• One Week of Kid Breakfasts In 5 Minutes or Less
• Currently: July 2025
• Cottage Cheese Zucchini Breakfast Casserole
• Breakfast Meal Prep Recipes
• Day Trips from Charlotte

Your Top 10 Favorites

• True & Co Bra (My most-worn bra. So soft with zero wires. You just pull it on and the straps are convertible!)
• Salt & Stone Deodorant (My gosh I could not love this stuff any more! It smells like a dream, works well and absolutely blew up my college girlfriend’s group text when we all fell in love with it. If you haven’t tried it yet, I recommend ordering the sample pack of mini deodorants to find the sent you like most. My favorites are Santal & Vetiver and Saffron & Cedar but they’re ALL amazing. Truly. My code PBFINGERS15 will save you 15% sitewide.)
• ELEMIS Dynamic Resurfacing Facial Pads (The pads I use on my face after I wake up every morning to exfoliate, smooth skin texture and reduce the appearance of pores, dark spots and dullness.)
• Avec Les Filles Rain Anorak (I bought this during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale and it’s the most gorgeous jacket I’ve ever owned.)
• Paula’s Choice EXFOLIATE (1000% worth the hype. One bottle lasts me a full year! I use it 2-3x a week and it makes a noticeable difference in my skin’s clarity, texture and overall appearance.)
• hanni The Fatty Moisturizing Stick + Splash Salve (The most hydrating stick I love using on the driest parts of my skin + The splash salve I use right before getting out of the shower to lock in moisture. Code PBFINGERS15 saves 15%!)
• Eby Briefs Underwear (I adore this underwear! It’s crazy soft and doesn’t show panty lines but, unlike other seamless underwear I’ve worn in the past, they don’t slip and slide at ALL! They have a no-slip grip on the inside of the panty to keep them in place.)
• UNO Golf Card Game (So fun to play and different from traditional UNO but in a good way — aka you don’t end up with a million cards in your hands at one time. Our big kid love this one!)
• Amazon No-Show Socks (I’ve been incredibly impressed with these socks. They remind me so much of my BOMBAS.)
• Samsonite Luggage (The luggage we’ve had and loved for years)

 

• Friday Flashbacks

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Overnight Oats (Forever a favorite!)

High Protein Broccoli Cheddar Soup (Made this one this week!)

Question of the Day

What is one thing you’re loving this week?