Hello there, middle of August!!! Say what??? This month is just flying by. Though, the work day can be a little shorter…am I right?? I am not really sure where all of my weekend went but it sure did go.
Friday for lunch I ran over to Brookwood Mall because I had a hankering for some cheese fries only the food court would fix.
The house was cleaned Saturday morning then we headed out for lunch at Hickory Tavern with some friends. I must be on a cheese steak thing this weekend because I had another one!
We hit up Babies R Us afterwards to look at cribs and dressers and picked up a sparkly laundry basket and some Christmas pajamas! How cute are these??? Why is baby furniture so expensive? Yikes!
One of Chris’s friends came over Saturday night, so I read and binged on One Tree Hill.
Sunday was a day for grocery shopping, meal prepping and TV binging of course! I had to stop at Dunkin Donuts on my way to the store because I was dragging bad. A little caffeine and sugar wont hurt anything every now and then 🙂 I hit up TJ Maxx while I was out that way too to scope out what they had. I have a few ideas for a side table for the nursery and they always have the best furniture for stuff like that!
I also attempted to clean my white purse with the Simple wipes. Everyone says its a miracle wipe for denim stains. Hmmm miracle? Not so much. But it does look better.
before
after
Whatever, right? Of course, there was lots of this too…
In the bottom left picture, Mac had his head resting on the baby!! So sweet. I hope that those two become best friends!
And I suppose this post was where my weekend went. Shopping, eating, TV binging and Mac snuggles. I hope you all had a fabulous weekend!!! This week is my birthday week, so I am going to try to make it a good one even though I have to work. The free Starbucks and sandwich from Which Which will help. Have a great week!
Yay, Friday!!! Does anyone else feel like this week just wouldn’t quit? I for one am so ready for this weekend!!! I don’t even really have anything planned, I just am excited to not be at work I guess!
Favorite Song: DNCE -Cake by the Ocean. It’s the weirdest name for a song but it just gets stuck in my head when I hear it and I am bobbing my head before I know it and trying to dance in my car. I cant help it.
Favorite Moment: Yesterday, Laura and I finally got to try the new hot dog place in town!!! Hot Diggity Dog is totally legit and I can’t wait to go back and try some more! This time I got The Birmingham. Next time I have my eye on the one with pimento cheese. mmmmm
Favorite Recipe: How delicious does this paleo nutella fudge look? Three ingredients sounds easy enough to me!
Favorite Bargain Purchases: I ordered the Ozark Trail tumbler from Walmart a few weeks ago. It only took about a week to come in and I haven’t put it down since. It literally goes everywhere with me. Why spend $40 on a Yeti when this is $10 and does the same thing.
Speaking of things I got at Walmart, I had to stop on my way home last week for dishwasher detergent and anytime I make the effort to go in there, I stop by the accessories. Check out this amazing $5 tassel necklace I scooped up!!! The color is perfect on Saturdays for Alabama football! (It’s not the best picture quality here but its gorgeous, trust me!)
Favorite Quote:
Favorite Links:
–Curious about baby registry items? I shared the top items I registered for and a little reasoning as to why because I researched the shit out of everything. Are you surprised? Of course not.
—Beautyblender is going to do a collaboration with Too Faced and Benefits? That sounds exciting! Truth be told, I am loving my Real Techniques $6 version of the Beautyblender though for those that are curious.
Favorite Funnies:
When someone asks if I am still running….
When you are trying to make lunch plans and someone is all I am trying to be healthy…
Linking up with Amanda. I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!
It’s my birthday month and I make wishlists if I want to! I can’t believe a week from today I am going to be 33. THIRTY THREE. Why does 33 sound way older than 32?
I remember when I was younger, like 4 or 5, and people would ask me about my dad and I would tell them that he was really old. Like at least 40. In reality, my dad was in his 20’s so I am sure that made him feel real good. The day he turned 40 I joked around with him and told him that at least now when I told people my dad was at least 40, it was finally true. I don’t think he was amused. Now when my kiddo starts her guesses….it will probably be way more true than how rude I was when I was younger. It was pretty cool having young parents. Sorry dad! 40 really isn’t that old anymore. At all….
Anyways, before I have a panic attack lets move on to my list!!!
The big item I have my eyes on is the Coach diaper bag I shared with you last week. Nearly every single one of you said to get it in black so that is what I am leaning towards!
Michael Kors Sandals – These have been on my radar ever since I saw my birthday twin Kate wearing them! And they are on sale right now!!! HELLO! I love a sale!
Perfume – I am not sure what perfume I want, but I haven’t had any in a long time. I keep using up free samples that I get and they aren’t exactly ones I want to purchase. I love Dolce and Gabana The One, a few of the Michael Kors scents, Coco Mademoiselle and one of my all time favorite scents is Coach Legacy but it is hard to find and is usually just at places like Kohl’s now apparently.
Nordstrom Rack has the most amazing selection of marked down designer sunglasses. Basically every pair I own has come from there. I am digging these Kate Spade ones! You can’t beat that price. You just can’t.
MAC Radiant Rose Concealer – I have heard amazing things about this concealer and with the little amount of sleep I get these days, momma sure could use this!
Linking up with Steph and Jana for another month of Show Us Your Books! I feel like a read a few really good ones this month. In fact, they were all decent reads.
This book you guys!!! I had all the feels. I literally blubbered through sections of it and it was so captivating. Let’s get real for a second, shall we? Alzheimer’s scares the shit out of me more than most diseases. I mean, cancer is awful. But Alzheimer’s? It literally strips away every piece of you and leaves you a confused and lost soul. It is so hard for not only the victim of the disease, but the family and friends. I think that this book really put it in to the correct perspective and it was so beautifully done.
Bottom Line: Just read it!!!!
Rating: 5/5
Audio comment: I consumed this via audio book and the narrator wasn’t my favorite. She was sort of monotone but the story was so good I didn’t care.
I always feel like you can never go wrong with a Jane Green read. They are usually consistently good and easy reads. The premise of the book didn’t really excite me at first. I am not really a fan of reading about cheating in a marriage. I can’t understand that mindset. I have never, could never, would never cheat on anyone. Ever. So it is hard for me to read about it. However, the story line was very interesting. You really get to know the main character, Gabby, and all her thoughts and feelings.
There was one character that I got really mad at for the way she acted, but it was all part of the story and necessary so I get it. I felt like the author didn’t rush the story line and really let things build up and have a solid foundation. I will say that the ending was a bit too perfect of a bow.
Bottom Line: I really enjoyed this book. It had well developed characters and a decent plot. It was a solid read, what you would expect from Jane Green.
Rating: 4/5
Audio comment:Jane Green narrates this book herself so you get to hear it exactly as she meant for you too. I enjoyed it. And her English accent 🙂
I wasn’t sure how I felt about this book at first. Mainly I was irritated that Lila would let her husband’s job take over her entire life. He didn’t want her to have friends or go back to a job she loved because he was afraid of being exposed. It’s one thing if you live cautiously for your job, but you can’t expect your entire family to miss out on life happiness because of it! Besides that fact, I feel like we really got to know Lila as a character.
Bottom Line:Â The book dragged just a little in a few spots for me, but overall I enjoyed it. I would recommend it if you are looking for a light chick-lit type read.
Rating: 3/5
I received a copy of The Restaurant Critic’s Wife from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are of my own.
This is my second read from Sarah Dessen. In the very beginning of the book, you get right to the main plot line…Haley receives a call from her best friend Scarlett while away at camp. Scarlett’s boyfriend just died in a motorcycle accident. Oh, and then we find out she’s pregnant with his baby.
This has your typical YA story line of the good girl falling for the bad boy, the transformation of a relationship with the best friend, an overbearing parent, and your typical high school drama. I really liked that things weren’t so perfect and the ending didn’t really wrap everything up in to a bow. It left something for you to wonder about.
Bottom Line: This is a solid YA read and I enjoyed it.
I actually read this book in about three sittings over two days. That is a rarity for me. What I really liked is that we got some character development before a romantic relationship ensues. I hate books where the relationship is rushed. I also really loved the plot line of this book with Honor’s issues with her family and her upbringing. The side characters had some development as well. I didn’t really care for the whole Lexi and Sullivan line because I felt like it was randomly thrown in. There is a little action in the book with crime going on in the neighborhood which was interesting too. The only thing I didn’t really care for is how perfect Jason was. No one is that amazing LOL.
Bottom Line: If you are in to love stories with a decent plot line, I would suggest this book. I appreciated that there was some depth.
Rating: 4/5
I received a copy of Don’t Tempt Me from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are of my own.
This is a really cute love story between two people who were friends for a long time and realized they wanted more than that. It is the second book in a series, which I was not aware of until I went to add it to my Goodreads. You don’t need to read the first one to enjoy this one.
Bottom Line:Â If you are looking for a light and fluffy love story, then this is it! There are a few hot and heavy scenes in the book, so I don’t recommend it if you are more conservative with your reads.
Rating: 3.5/5
I received a copy of Sunset in Central Park from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are of my own.
I was really hoping to have this one completed for the link up but it is really long!!! I am doing it via Audible and I still have 9 hours left after listening to it for a week on my commute! I am enjoying it, but not as much as some of the other reads by her.
The first weekend of August was here and gone, I hope it treated you well! The heat doesn’t seem to want to let up here anytime soon, so I stayed in most of the weekend. I do have lots of food porn for you today so get ready!
Let’s start it out with lunch Friday at Tazikis. I love Tazikis!!! This is the first time I have ordered the Friday special and I can promise you it won’t be the last. We also had some hummus because when in Rome a Greek restaurant, that is what you do!
Saturday morning we got the house cleaned and I vacuumed and cleaned the inside of my car, then we were off to Tropicaleo for our tasting!!! I was so excited for this event because I love trying new restaurants and this is  a completely new concept here in Birmingham.
Currently, Topicaleo’s building is being finished so they are having a daily Popup at Crestwood Tavern in Avondale. Their permanent location will be in the Family Dollar strip mall located next to Cahaba Brewery for those of you who are local.
This place, where do I even begin??? It is a fast casual type atmosphere where you will order your food at the register and someone brings it out to you. However, the quality of the food is much more sit down restaurant. They source as much as they can organically and locally. Their local collaborations include Urban Food Project (Rev Birmingham), Continental Bakery, D’Agostino Sausage Empire, Wholesome Soda and Wabi Tea. In order to stay gluten free and vegan, there is no flour in their kitchen to contaminate. They very much cater to everyone’s diets!! Even Chris, who is on Ketos very low carb, they made a special plate just for him and the presentation was spectacular!
Their food is Puerto Rican and Caribbean, and you definitely get the island feel with the use of plantains in many dishes. When they move to their permanent location, they will have a liquor license and their drinks sound amazing!!! Can’t wait to try them out!
Let’s get to the food shall we?
They brought out some bread and all of their sauces that they make in house so we can taste. I could have simply feasted on this alone it was SO GOOD!
I ordered the Orange Lime Soda from local Wholesome Soda and it was delicious and refreshing! I cant wait to try the rest of the flavors.
For my main meal, I had the El Cubano. Hands down the BEST cuban sandwich I have ever had. The bread was utter perfection and the combination of the meats, cheese, mustard, pickles and their special mayoketchup? Just yes!
“A” ordered their special of the day which was a sweet plantain filled with eggplant. You guys!!! OMG! I hope this is on special next time I go because she let me try a bite and I about died at how amazing it truly was!
Here is the dish they prepared especially for Chris! It is their La Tripleta sandwich plated with top round steak, broiled pork, chicken, cheese, tomato, lettuce and De La Casea Sauce.
“J” ordered the Mogongo Relleno with Local Artisan Chorizo. The chorizo is served over mashed plantains which to my surprise had sort of a corn bread taste/texture. Very savory!
And to end things, we had a Nutella cheesecake!!! They have a guava one that sounded amazing as well, but we had sampled the guava sauce with our bread and wanted to try everything we could. Delicious!!!
The owners are a husband and wife team and they were so sweet. They spent a lot of time telling us about their restaurant and their plans for their permanent location. They described to us all the ingredients they used in their foods and the different tastes and feels they were trying to accomplish. Well done, I would say! They even brought out their chef to introduce to us. I was very impressed with them and I plan to visit many times to support this amazing business!
This is their menu for the daily pop up. They will have even more delicious options once they are operating in their own space!
After we ate and parted ways, I stopped by Bargain Hunt to check out their baby section. Of course. It will probably be my new addiction for the next few months to see what kind of deals I can score!
I got everything in that picture for $13. Pretty good, I say!! I cant wait to craft something with those chalkie markers!! And how cute is my little girl going to look in her hooded duckie towel straight after a bath???
Saturday night we went to Chris’s parents house for awhile and his dad made us ribs. And Sunday was a day of grocery shopping, meal prepping, and watching Weeds and One Tree Hill. I made my Curried Cranberry Couscous salad for lunches! Yum!!!
And of course, what is a weekend without some Mac?
I hope you all had a fabulous weekend!!! I am linking up with Biana.
