Hey, hey everyone – TGIF! Got any big plans for the weekend? Fill me in! : )
Today my sister-in-law is taking me pre-baby registration shopping so Ben and I don’t run screaming from Babies-R-Us when we go to register later this weekend. I will never forget my first visit to the seemingly never-ending warehouse last year when I was picking up a baby shower gift for a girlfriend. I barely made it out of there alive, I tell ya’! So many options – just tell me what I need, right? Anyways, she’s a baby guru and will absolutely steer us in the right direction. Hopefully I can pay it forward someday!
Other than that, it should be a quiet weekend at home filled with sneaker squeaks (is March Madness over yet?) and getting ready for Charleston the following weekend. We never did make it out for a quick, 3-day trip we were talking about taking beforehand. Charleston kind of snuck up on us anyhow, so I don’t feel like we sat around twiddling our thumbs or anything!
Well I hope you’ve got some fun activities on the horizon and in the meantime, please enjoy my favorite finds from around the web and beyond in this week’s Friday Favorites. Have a great weekend!
Click the light blue link to be taken to the original source.
Favorite treat: Salted Dark Chocolate Cupcakes. Salted. Dark Chocolate. Cupcakes. You know my love for salty-sweet combos, and these babies look like bliss!
Favorite furball. I’ve looked at this photo at least 100 times this week, and it cracks me up every single time. I love how he (or she) is staring at a spot on the wall, concentrating SO HARD on getting that little tongue to curl. Precious!
Favorite fizz: Caribou Coffee Fizzy Peach Black Tea. I traded my standard ‘bucks for a ‘bou yesterday and ordered a Peach Black Tea to keep warm with while working the morning away. After ordering the hot drink I was quite surprised when the barista called my name and handed me a cold beverage…that was fizzy! My initial disappointment (seriously, it was freezing) was quickly replaced by sheer joy. This drink is AMAZING! Tasted like a yummy Italian Soda with a black tea base. I’ll be drinking these all summer.
Favorite devour: Italian Drunken Noodles. The only thing I like better than this blog post (it’s a great read) is the recipe for Italian Drunken Noodles within it. Total comfort food – I am so down!
Favorite tip: How to Clean Your Top Loading Washer. A couple weekends ago I cleaned my washing machine using the instructions in this post, and it looks as good as the day we bought it. Definitely give this a whirl if your washer looks as funky as mine did!
Favorite funny: 16 Breakfast Cereals that Should be Obliterated. I saw this on Twitter last night and Ben and I could not stop cracking up. Muesli: could you be any harder to pronounce or enjoy?
Favorite dinner: Chicken Parmesan Chicken. Crispy, cheesy, and decadent tasting for under 300 calories? Count me in!
Favorite thrill: The First Flyer – Grindelwald, Switzerland. I have zip lined through a jungle in Mexico before, but I think speeding down a mountain on a 2,400 foot cable, reaching speeds of 55mph just about sounds like the most fun thing ever. Look at those views!
Favorite sip: Coconut Lime Mojito. Mojitos are my drank, mmkay, and the only thing that could possibly make them better would be a splash of sweetened coconut milk. Yumm!
Favorite project: Travel Keepsake Kits. I always have the best intentions of making photo books when Ben and I come back from fun trips but it rarely ever happens. A fun keepsake kit to hold maps, ticket stubs, and other fun mementos is an awesome alternative.
Favorite cozy: Cheesy Chicken Orzo. Ohhh. Couldn’t you just curl up on a cold night with a big bowl of this?
Favorite decor. Not only do I love this color combo (pink + gold is the key to my heart) but I really like the idea of mixing different patterns and prints of the same color. Makes for a really interesting and cozy look.
Favorite fresh: Mango Coconut Smoothies. Sorry, could I fit anymore drinks into this post?! :) Seriously though It’s been a challenge drinking nothing but water, water, water throughout this pregnancy, as it tends to get boring – fast. Anything with flavor catches my eye these days – especially if it’s thick, cold, and full of fresh mango.
Favorite fitness: 10 Minute Arm Workout. This arm workout is led by Cameron Diaz’s trainer Teddy Bass. If he can get my arms looking ANYTHING like Cam-Cam’s then I’m in!
Favorite splurge: Brown Sugar Pound Cake. You’re welcome.
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Switzerland looks amazing! Have fun shopping this weekend. My only plans are to buy a new car because my transmission died out of nowhere!
I discovered Starbucks’ Iced Green Tea the same way a few summers ago! I ordered an unsweetened green tea, but was surprised to get a cold one. Fortunately it was absolutely delicious and I’ve been obsessed ever since! :)
xo Madie
I love those cupcakes from Ali!! I wish I had some now! Thanks for this post! I always enjoy reading them!
Love those pillows! And cheers to Caribou — that drink sounds amazing! (Especially once it’s warmer.) ;)
Thanks so much for linking up my cupcakes!
I’m going to Charleston next weekend to spend Easter with the in-laws…..what resturants got the most votes a few weeks back?? I might be interested in checking it out. I’m praying for nice weather for ya’ll, it is COLD in SC today!!!!!
SUCH A GOOD IDEA to bring a “baby expert” to help you register:), because it can be sooo overwhelming at first… and then by the time your little one is 6 months old, you have those baby stores & all they’re craziness DOWN PAT! :). Have fun!
Oh March Madness — I will be so glad when it’s over and I can have my boyfriend back!! I’ve been frequenting Caribou over Starbucks lately, and that fizzy black tea drink looks delish, I’ll have to give it a try when (and if!) the weather warms up. Have a great weekend and good luck at Babies R Us!
those coconut lime mojitos looks ah-mazing. like hawaii in a glass. i think the beverage issue will be the toughest for me when we start having some kidlets.
The mango coconut smoothies might just fix my craving for pina coladas during this pregnancy. Looks like something I could drink on a birthday weekend, while turning 30. Ugh! Love your post, and having it 1st thing this morning totally made my birthday. Congrats on the upcoming baby boy :)
I love that keepsake idea–I travel a lot and always plan to make a scrapbook and it never happens!! This seems much easier! Happy Friday.
Oh lord the post on breakfast cereals made my morning!
After BRU, you totally need to go to the Buy Buy Baby on University (kinda by Whole Foods). It is so clean and nice and well organized! I didn’t go until after I registered at BRU, and I wished I had registered at BBB instead. Also- Buy Buy Baby accepts Bed Bath and Beyond coupons, so if you get as many of those in the mail as we do, it’s not a problem to take one with you every trip. You also get Buy Buy Baby coupons everytime you purchase something at Motherhood. (Both the Motherhoods at Valley West and Merle Hay are good.)
That’s on our registration list this weekend too! We went there last weekend and I agree – much more inviting than BRU. We figured we’d start at BRU as they have EVERYTHING we’d ever need!
I’d echo the comment that Buy Buy Baby is great. Definitely check it out. I thought I’d register at both BBB and BRU, but so far I’ve found everything I wanted at BBB.
I’m pretty sure I just pinned everything from this post onto my already massive pins boards. Thanks for this. haha. Have a great Friday!