Mood.
Sweatpants and Coffee just gets me. ?
Man, oh man am I ever glad it’s Friday! This week, make that past two weeks, has been nutty, nuts, nuts. Our beloved nanny is due with her first baby well, two days ago now (!) and had to leave us a couple weeks ago, so I’ve been full time Mama + business woman lately and the struggle is most definitely real. As difficult as it has been to keep up with work without part-time childcare, I’m LOVING having Lincoln all to myself right now and, cheeseball alert, I feel like we’re more in sync than ever which I didn’t think was possible. (Children-obsessed parents, you get it.) I’m halfway debating holding off finding a replacement for the summer just so we can come and go as we please, but we shall see. My heart says do it, but my inbox is about to strangle me.
In other news, I took Lincoln bowling with a friend and her kids over a week ago and my hand is still sore. Maybe it was on account of the killer strike I threw – hollar! Just kidding, I didn’t even break 100. That said, it sort of ignited a fire in my soul to start a summer or fall bowling league with friends. Doesn’t that sound like fun? Now for a team name…Snakes on a Lane, anyone? ?
Anyway, enough blabbering, wherever you are and whatever you do have a wonderful weekend and in the meantime please enjoy my favorite finds from around the web and beyond in this week’s Friday Favorites!
Favorite must-have: Chocolate Cloud Cupcakes. Just going to throw this out here first thing today. DYYYYYING. I think I actually laughed out loud at how absurdly amazing these cupcakes look when I stumbled upon them!
Favorite photo. Talk about absurdly amazing… This would be the most gorgeous bouquet for a spring bride, especially on account of the peonies (my bouquet for our April wedding was all peonies in different shades of pink.) Love the pop of yellow here though.
Favorite dip: Baked Coconut Crusted Chicken with Creamy Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce. I saw this photo on Instagram and immediately stopped scrolling. Such an incredible and mouthwatering shot – can’t wait to try these crunchy chicken tenders!
Favorite Insta-find: Tomasz Furmanek. I recently found the Instagram account of an adventurer photographer from Norway who takes photos from his kayak of all the places it takes him. Norway has always been on my must-see list and to see it in from his kayak’s perspective is really cool. Reminds me of Murad Osmann’s account, but all Norway. Could I say Norway one more time.
Favorite snack. I am LOVING this crunchy/creamy, savory/spicy snack I recently created for The Laughing Cow. It’s just GF crackers slathered with their Creamy Spicy Pepper Jack cheese then topped with chopped bacon and roasted jalapenos (place fresh jalapenos under the broiler until the skin is evenly charred then steam in a ziplock bag for a few minutes, peel, seed, and chop.) Lots of spice – totally yummy.
Favorite decor: Bon Appetit Wire Script Sculpture. Is this not the coolest? I have a spot above our kitchen sink window that would fit this sculpture perfectly.
Favorite sip: Blood Orange Raspberry Mojito Recipe. Oh hey there, summer 2016 staple! Despite the chilly temperatures we’ve had here this week, the plants on Herb Hill are already starting to spring up – can’t wait until my mint makes an appearance so I can muddle it into one slash one thousand of these babies.
Favorite fashion: Articles of Society “Sarah” Skinny Jeans. I’ve had white flares for summer for a few years but am craving a more casual, skinny ankle pair to wear with flats vs wedges. Reviews for these jeans are that they’re super comfortable which of course is a must. Order = placed. (Can’t beat free Nordstrom shipping!)
Favorite find: My Bread Gluten-Free Flatbread. I recently found this flatbread in the GF freezer section at Whole Foods and am OBSESSED! It’s got a relatively “clean” ingredient list and is dairy free which means Lincoln can eat it too. I made him a peanut butter sandwich on one the other day and he literally licked the paper towel I served it to him on (mother of the year) to get all the crumbs afterwards. Aka we like it a lot. ? Super (just wrote summer – can you tell where my mind is?!) soft and chewy. I’m dying to fry one chalupa-style to see what happens – muwahaha!
Favorite indulge: Smothered Beef Barbacoa Chimichangas. Forget chalupas, I’m using those flatbreads for chimichangas!! Can’t wait to try this ridiculous looking crock pot recipe.
Favorite hanging: Worth the Wait Sign. I discovered the Etsy Shop “Linen and Lace” through a friend’s Instagram account (apparently Insta has been a gold mine for inspiration lately?!) and really adore their stuff, especially this sweet hanging. Sigh…isn’t it so true?
Favorite crunch: Chili and Lime Popcorn. Chili + lime is one of my all time favorite flavor combinations so this popcorn speaks to my soul. Seems like an awesome Saturday movie night accompaniment. Seen any good movies lately?
Favorite bite: Chocolate Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies. This week Lincoln and I made his first batch of Chocolate Chip Cookies. The process was a total hit (his favorite was flipping the lever on the stand mixer, go figure,) but I didn’t have any vegan butter on hand so we used coconut oil and, well, they’re weren’t horrible but they definitely weren’t Chocolate Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies. Holy. Moly!
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Have a great weekend!
wow, those flowers are like he happiest and pretty bunch you ever did see. i found you through a search for research i’m doing on friday favorites and this most is my fav. xx
Those My Bread flatbreads are so good! Hy-vee sells them too.
Oh I didn’t know that – I’ll have to look harder next time!
Have you considered a summer internship for your blog?? That way you can do the fun summer things with your baby and have someone taking care of some of the backend stuff. If that’s possible. :)
Can you post a pic of the peanut butter sandwich you made for Lincoln?
Just saw your white pants snap and realized that I’d missed a Friday Favorites! I heart eye emojied over like the first five (the cupcakes! the flowers! the chicken and honey mustard!!!) and then just emailed the link to myself to remember to look at it when I’m home and can truly take it all in.
Starting in a couple of weeks, I’m transitioning from working away from home 4 days/week, to working just 2 days/week. I cannot tell you how freaking excited I am for this. We’ll miss our nanny too, but honestly, there’s nothing better than being home with your little, am I right?? This baby/toddler/mini person stage only lasts for so long and then BAM! they’re full blown kids, away at school all day and you can’t go back to the days when you had the option to spend all of your time with them. Of course that time away (possibly drinking?) is important too. But I guess what I’m trying to say is that maybe I’m obsessed with my children too. I feel ya. ;)
Always look forward to your Friday Faves, friend! Love the new laughing cow snack…on my grocery list already. XO
I need to make this popcorn! And the flowers are gorgeous! Thanks so much for the feature, too! Love your blog!
Normally, I’m all over the food but today, I’m all about the beauty of those flowers.
Hi Kristin :) Thank you SO much for featuring my smothered beef chimichangas!! Enjoy your weekend :)
Well this totally made my day!! :) Thanks so much for the feature Kristin, what an honor on one of my favorite blogs! :)
Not sure how sensitive Lincoln is to dairy but OMGhee (find on IG) has a cultured ghee that people with dairy issues can eat.
Hi Kristin! I want to say from an “older” mom prospective – follow your heart and take the time now with Lincoln. Work will ALWAYS be there – this time in his life will pass quickly Enjoy and savor every minute!!
I totally agree about staying home…I’m also an older mom…had my baby when I was 50 (she’s 3 1/2 now) and the time they are little goes by sooo fast. I work full time and carry our health benefits, so it was never really an option. You won’t regret the time you spend with him and he will love it too!
Next time you’re in D.C., hit up Roti, they use My Bread for their Gluten Free Pita, and their food and Gluten Free Menu is amazing. It’s similar to Cava with fast casual Mediterranean.
Hey Kristin! Just FYI, recently saw a gluten free frozen cheese pizza at the WDM Costco. Just thought I’d let you know since it’s nice to be able to pull out a frozen one every once in a while :) Also, my vote would be skip the nanny for the summer….email can wait! I did the same thing last summer and LOVED the freedom. Go for it!
I love that Linen and Lace print! I’m searching for prints for the kitchen so I’m heading over to their Etsy shop ASAP.