High Five for Friday 5.29.15

I kid you not I just went to type the title and its been so long since I have done of these posts I forgot what the freakin' link up was called. No kidding I had to go look it up and then come back to this post! Good lord!!

I'm not going to lie I didn't actually plan on writing on of these this week, right now life is pretty boring and I don't have a lot to share. Not to mention the highlights of my week are most likely already shared somewhere in another post and I don't want to be redundant!

So this is going to be a half ass version of High Five for Friday because as you read above nothing is going on and if it is you've probably already read about it.

1. As you know (or maybe you don't) there is an outlet mall across the street from where we are staying and I have managed to find a few steals there already. I grabbed a pair of denim shorts I am in love with at the Loft outlet for $12.99, how could I resist? I also got a really cute pair of linen shorts in faded camo at the Gap outlet. I have been looking for camo bottoms for awhile and was particularly interested in capris but whatever.. I got something.

2. Obviously our weekend in New York! If you didn't read yesterday's post then go and check it out!

3. The gorgeous summer weather we have been having!! Its legit hot here guys but I am not complaining, I will however say that it is obviously the whole of New Jersey that is constantly windy as hell because literally everyday there is a semi hurricane taking place outside, its really getting in the way of my outdoor reading.

4. Reading. I have been flying through books and its so great! I always feel more relaxed when I am reading a lot, I tend to sleep better at night when I read before going to bed which is also a huge plus. Not to mention I feel really great about having found a good home for all the books I am finishing here!

5. Moe's... there is a Moe's Southwest Grill in the mall across the way and let me tell you guys.. I am taking advantage. In moderation of course but lets be honest, you can never have too many burritos! We've never been this close to a Moe's (technically the one by our house is a little farther) for this long of a period of time and so whats the harm in indulging at a little?

Oh also (and I thought I didn't have anything exciting to talk about) I follow Glam Life Guru on Youtube, she puts out really great makeup videos and the other day her video was about a collaboration with Birchbox! Super exciting right? Well keep your pants on because I haven't even gotten to the good part. If you were interested in trying a Birchbox she had a coupon code that got your first box for $1!!!!! You read that right, and since I have never actually purchased a Birchbox in my name (they have always been gifts) I snagged myself one for June for just $1!! I was super excited, if you are living in the States and have never gotten a Birchbox use the code "TATIOFFER" and go get yourself one!

So this isn't my typical High Five for Friday Post with pictures and all that good stuff but it will have to do for right now, sorry!

I hope you guys had a great week and enjoy your weekend! Thanks for stopping by!

Although this isn't my typical Friday Post I am linking up with:

Tanya @ Prairie Girl in the Big Scary World

Cait @ Fierce, Fabulous & Fit

and of course these lovely ladies:

Memorial Day Weekend 2015

Good Morning,

I don't know why it has taken me all week to write this post, we really had such a great weekend! Last week I was watching TV one more and it came up that there was an airshow over the long weekend at Jones Beach, for some reason that sounded familiar to me but I couldn't put my finger on where Jones Beach was or why I thought I knew it. Eventually it came to me that last summer we went to visit Chris and Samantha and they took us to Jones Beach! See I remember some stuff. I sent Jason an email at work and mentioned that there was an airshow and was I correct in remembering it was by Chris and Samantha's house! Long story short Jason text Chris and asked was it there and had he ever seen it, was it worth the trip. Chris said they didn't have any plans for the weekend that we should come down and we would all go together.

Before I get into the actual weekend though I wanted to quickly share a picture I got while we were out last week getting a few things for the weekend, because I know all of you don't follow me on instagram and its too good not to share!

Crazy right? We were in the store parking lot getting ready to go in! Beautiful night. 

Anyways! I won't lie I was not looking forward to driving there with Jason knowing how traffic was going to be and he is always cranky when there is traffic! It was the Friday of Memorial Day so he made sure to prepare himself because it was bound to be bad! Go figure it wasn't at all, not only did we manage to get on the road an hour earlier than we had expected but we managed to get there like 2 hours ahead of what we had anticipated, you gotta love when that happens! 

I hadn't realized that Chris and Samantha had moved, I knew they had been talking about it but I guess I was out of the loop. When we arrived Chris gave us the grand tour along with his beautiful little nieces. We had a pretty quiet night, everyone was tired and we went to bed early in anticipating of the next day. 

Saturday we were heading to the airshow and instead of driving over to it we ended up taking Chris's boat! I will apologize in advance for the crappy pictures but I am basically uneasy rider on the water and so I was far to paranoid to take my real camera. I don't remember what time we actually got on the water but I couldn't believe how many boats were out there, its funny because there aren't any signs on the water, its not like cars on the street but we managed to get there safely and find a place to drop the anchor. 

I'm not going to lie it was quite chilly on the water, or by the water for that matter. I was in a fleece sweater the entire time we were out there.. although I think I was the only one with an issue because the guys were in shorts and tshirts and Samantha was quite warm she said. 

The airshow was great as always, I swear nothing will ever compare to the one we saw in Alaska but we so look forward to going to one whenever we get a chance. Here are a few pictures I got, remember they are crap quality, I told you ahead of time. 

We didn't stay for the entire show, sadly the tide changed and it got COLD! Literally the wind picked up and simultaneously everyone (on every boat) stood up to put on layers.. it was nuts! We toured along the water back to the dock and decided to head back for a traditional Memorial Day BBQ! We had talked about going out but figured we would have a lot more fun at the house, so we cooked up a huge feast and it was absolutely DELICIOUS! I forget how much I love grilling and we sadly just don't get to do it much. 

After dinner Jason and Chris got a camp fire going which I was pretty excited about and Samantha and I made a trip to somewhere I had never been, and now I am not sure how that is possible. We drove over to Carvel which is an ice cream shop and let me tell you guys.. the ice cream was too die for! Jason didn't want any but when I shared mine with him he said.. and I quote "The caramel is the perfect texture" HA! He wasn't lying! If you ever happen to drive by one of these places, do yourselc a favor and treat yo self! 

Samantha and I didn't last as long as the guys did that night, lets just say they were having a very good time! 

Sunday morning although we were sad to leave we decided that because we were so close to the Hamptons we might as well check it out! We said goodbye to Chris and Samantha, who we are so grateful to for having us over and showing us such a good time, grabbed bagels and hit the road. Traffic again wasn't too bad until we actually got into the Hamptons which we basically should have figured being the kick off weekend to summer. 

Honestly the Hamptons is your typical beach town but more on the posh side. Everything is perfectly groomed everywhere, people we clad in beach bonnets and Lily Pulitzer. Most of the homes were gated, and I did notice that a lot of the homes exteriors were pretty much the same, wooden shingles. The street names were all adorable, Lily Pond Lane.. I mean who wouldn't want to live there?

We stopped and checked out a little restaurant in East Hampton which was really good and toured around. It was actually absolutely FREEZING at the beach, the temperature was only 60 degrees and it was quite blustery so sadly we didn't get a lot of beach time! 

If you are into Winery's, Vineyards and antiques this would be a great place for you to visit. I would have loved to have visited a Winery and done a wine tasting but its totally not Jason's thing and we really only had the day because we were heading back to New Jersey so there wasn't really time. Maybe next trip though! The Hampton's really is worth checking out, its small beach town at its best. 

Our trip back was fine, for some reason we ended up driving straight through midtown Manhattan which is about as fun as it sounds, and in case you aren't familiar... its not fun. But that was really the worst part of our trip. Jason and I were both super tired when we got back to the hotel so we got in bed and ordered Chinese.. it was great. Well the Chinese food actually sucked but the night was great. 

Jason worked on Monday which we knew was going to be the case, I won't lie sometimes it sucks. I wish we had just that one more day to enjoy, explore and make the most of. Its rare that Jason gets a holiday weekend off though so I am thankful for the time that we had. Overall we had a fantastic weekend! 

What did you guys do over Memorial Day? Do tell! 

Products I'm Loving 5.27.15

Good Morning,

These are some of my very favorite posts to write, like all girls I love trying new products and when I find something I absolutely love I cant wait to share it with you guys. Trying new products can go either way, you love it or hate it and when you hate it having spent that money feels like such a waste. So its great to review products for others to read and help them decide if they would or would not work for them.

Lets jump in.

1. Aveeno Ultra Calming Foaming Cleanser

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A couple of weeks ago I ran out of my Purity face cleanser that I love so much, because I find that the bottles of that I have owned tend to leak while traveling I figured with all of our upcoming travel I would just try something else. Aveeno was on my list because I have tried their Ultra Calming Daily Moisturizer and loved it. I ran over to Target not entirely sure how much this was going to cost because Aveeno products can run a little high in my opinion but I figured $6.49 was a fair price. 

I am really in love with this product, I like that its a foam and a little really does go a long way. When I use this I feel that my face is really clean and fresh feeling but not dried out. I have super sensitive skin and changing products is really scary for me because I am always concerned about breaking out in spots or a rash but I have been super lucky with this product, it is very gentle. 

I would highly recommend trying this, in conjunction with the moisturizer as well. I will say that I will probably go back to my Purity one because that is just my holy grail face cleanser but I am not the least but upset about using this one in the meantime. 

2. Dr. Pepper Lipsmackers 

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Alright this is a oldie but a goodie! I have been using this stuff for YEARS and YEARS but when I found out that Lipsmackers were soon to be no more I absolutely had to get my hands on a few of these bad boys before they were gone. Plus for $1.47 who can resist! 

If you don't like Dr. Pepper than probably without saying you won't like these, although I'm not exactly sure they smell/taste exactly like the pop! These are just so moisturizing and the Dr. Pepper ones in particular have a red tint to them so if you aren't up for wearing actual lipstick but want to have something more than a regular clean lip balm than I highly recommend giving this a try! 

This is actually a really great example of what this product looks like on...

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Bit of shine and bit of color, what more could you ask for right? Like I said I have been using them for years, when I was a lot younger I use to love all of the sweet bakery like flavors and I wont lie I bet if you rummaged through my make up stash at home I would lay money you would find a few! You cant really go wrong with Lip Smackers, swing by Target or Walmart and get yourself some before you no longer can!!! 

3. Pacifica Island Vanilla Hand & Body Lotion Wipes with Moisturizing Coconut Milk

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So as it turns out this particular scent is just at Ulta, but I have recently noticed that you can purchase the Pacific line, which is vast at Target now! I may or may not have mentioned these in a past post about products I was loving but hey, obviously I am still loving them! I am obsessed with wet wipes, I have them stashed everywhere because I am a little bit ridiculous about germs, not to mention sometimes they are just more convenient and useful then hand sanitizer! 

These bad boys aren't for germ killing sadly but more for moisturizing. My hands get dry from all the hand sanitizer and wet wipes I use so its great to have something like this that puts the moisture back into my hands without leaving my hands greasy, not to mention they smell absolutely AMAZING! I have also used them on my legs when I have shaved them but didn't have lotion on hand to use afterwards and they worked flawlessly. 

You can buy these in a variety of scents, and I know at Ulta they often have promotions going on and off all the time with this brand to get more bang for you buck, but if you don't have an Ulta near you check out their line at Target!

4. Crest 3D White Toothpaste 

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I know, this is kind of an odd product to put in my favorites but seriously guys this is worth buying. I don't know what a difference I see it making in the color or my teeth necessarily but more than anything its the fact that is literally leaves my mouth feeling so fresh forever. I don't even know what else to say about it, I can brush my teeth and an hour later my mouth still feels fresh and minty and almost tingly, in a good way of course. How often do you brush your teeth and then 20 minutes later (and that's probably being generous) you cant really tell anymore. 

I started off getting a little sample one in the travel section at Target just to see if I would like it and I definitely cannot say enough good things about it. If you are in the market for a new toothpaste that leaves your mouth fresh for a very long time, this is the one for you! 

5. Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser with Naturally Active Ingredients & Muslin Cloth

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This is exclusive to Birchbox, the set I believe obviously not the product and that is where I received mine! I got the sample size with the cloth in a Birchbox ages ago and somewhere along the moving and packing and what not it got lost in the mix and I recently found it while we were at home and decided to bring it along and give it a try! 

This is what it says about it on the Birchbox website...

Birchbox Breakdown

This world-renowned two-part skincare system (seriously, it’'s won more than 100 beauty awards) has a major cult following. Try it once and you'’ll find out why. The creamy cleanser gently removes all traces of dirt, grime, and makeup (yes, even your waterproof, wear-all-day, no-flake mascara and eyeliner) with the help of two of nature's best astringents, eucalyptus essential oil and rosemary, and leaves it hydrated thanks to moisturizing cocoa butter. The ultrasoft 100 percent cotton muslin cloth included in this kit gently exfoliates, sweeping away dulling dead skin cells and increasing circulation for a healthy-looking glow. Your complexion is left smoothed, soothed and radiant-looking. The kit also comes with a sleek zip-up bag for easy storage and transport—.

Ok.. so they aren't lying. This stuff is actually amazing! I use it at night to take off all my makeup along with this cloth and let me tell you, nothing has ever made my skin feel softer! Who would have thought a cleanser along with a special little cloth could do such wonders! I have never tried any other Liz Earle products before but I hear people rave about them all the time and I am so glad that I finally tried this. For the full size product on the Birchbox website along with the cloth and travel case it will run you $25.50 which I think is more than a bargain! 

This is definitely going to be on my "Purchase full size product" list from all the stuff that I have tried at Birchbox because it in INCREDIBLE!!! Don't take my word for it, try it yourself!!! I promise you wont be sorry!!

OK so I had another one to share but I believe it has been discontinued which is a total piss off for me and obviously I am not going to share it with you, tell you how great it is and then you cant get it, that would just be mean! But I will say that it was a hand sanitizer and if you are looking for amazing hand sanitizers than I would highly recommend the ones at Bath & Body Works as they have a huge range of scents and they are absolutely amazing! Click HERE to check them out! 

So there are just a few things I have been loving lately! I hope you enjoy and please do tell me what you have been loving lately!!

Hope you're having a fantastic day!! 

Summer Rental By Mary Kay Andrews: A Book Review

Good Morning,

If you follow me on goodreads.com you probably know what I've been reading but you may also know that this year I decided to partake in the Good Reads 2015 Reading Challenge. At the beginning of the year I challenged myself to read 50 books this year and so far I have read 19 books and good reads says I am on track! Everyone choose their own challenge, you could always do less or more and you just track your progress on your Good Reads account and they will let you know if you are ahead of the game, trailing behind and by how many books and if you're on track! I am a total bookworm and this was right up my alley. So although I have trailed off a little with my book reviews I thought I would hop back on that train!

So this is the most recent book I have finished.

Summer Rental By Mary Kay Andrews

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I honestly don't think I have read anything from this author before, although that also may not be true. I grabbed this book at BJ's while we were still at the apartment because I needed something to read and their books are so cheap! I knew it would be a quick read although FYI it is 486 pages!

The book is about 3 best friends who are now adults and all facing some sort of turmoil in their life, they no longer live close together and decided that getting together only for weddings and funerals was just not enough, so they books a cottage in Nags Head, North Carolina for the month of August and couldn't wait to spend a month with one another! 

I really enjoyed this book and the way it was written, she really dives into each character so that you feel like you know them and when their issues in life are revealed you are almost sharing in it with them. 

Throughout the book they/you meet an unsuspecting character who becomes a friend although with a very shady story, her problems soon become the problems of all the women in the house in danger ensues. The women come together as one to protect their new friend from the hand of danger, which said so much about all of their character! 

This book is fun, witty and so enjoyable.. a great read! If you are interested in the synopsis you can click HERE and also add it to you reading list! 

Naturally this book wont be for everyone, its basically a chick flick in book form but I really enjoyed it!

If you have read this book or happen to do so please let me know what you think! As always if you are reading a bunch of books right now, or a book let me know what it is and what you think of it! I am always looking for suggestions on what to read next!

Thank you for stopping by today!! Have a great day!! 

Happy Memorial Day 2015

Good Afternoon & Happy Memorial Day!!

I just wanted to stop in quickly and wish you all a happy and safe memorial day! We have had a great weekend which I plan to post about this week but I thought it was important to stop in and give thanks and honor all of those who have given their lives for our freedom, as well as their families. This weekend is definitely known as the kickoff to summer, boats and BBQ's which we have definitely partaken in this weekend but its about so much more. Take a second today to acknowledge the sacrifice of so many that has give us so much!

I hope you are all having a great weekend, Jason is back to work today so I am going to try and get some posts written for this week!

Enjoy your day and thank you as always for stopping in!!

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Back in New Jersey

So I decided to take a little bit of a hiatus, or rather it kind of just happened. As I mentioned last week it was going to be an absolutely chaotic weekend which it absolutely was and then since we've gotten back here I just haven't felt like I have had much to say. I decided to stop in today and do a little recap and then just start fresh next week.

Where did we leave off? Wednesday right.. I think so. OK, so onto Thursday.

Nothing super exciting happened on Thursday, I met Tanya at the mall for coffee and to catch up as I wouldn't be seeing her and actually hadn't seen her because she was busy with her cousin all week. After that I went home and took apart the dining room table as well as the bed, I have to tell you guys I am super proud of myself for accomplishing these two tasks because I will be the first to admit that I am not very handy. I basically just spent the day packing and taping up boxes, moving things around and cleaning what I could. Jason text me to let me know when he would be home and so I could order dinner! Dinner met Jason outside which was great and we ate before finishing up all we could and getting in bed, knowing Friday was going to be a really long day.

 Friday I was up at 4:30am, when something is going on it is pretty much guaranteed that I am not going to sleep. Jason was up just after 5am but it was really hard to actually start getting stuff done because we had to be respectful of the neighbors and all that jazz. Jason left just after 7am to get and get the Uhaul and I got ready and started doing what I could. I managed to get the mattress and box spring in their plastic covers and get them all taped up and moved out into the living room.. again, a little proud of myself. I moved the dressed out as well (note.. take the drawers out of the dresser, its a major help and when moving put your clothes hangers in the drawers!!!) I wanted to start cleaning out the bedroom as soon as I could. Jason arrived pretty much as soon as I finished that up so we moved the bed and dressed down. I helped with a bunch of stuff and then got to cleaning while Jason packed the Uhaul.

Let me just say again that I had fought and fought with our building to have a walk through when we moved out, I wanted to make sure everything was up to their standards before we left so we could rectify anything if not. They outright refused which only further lead me to believe the reviews online that they would try and screw us out of our deposit. They went as far as to lie that they wouldn't have any maintenance men available to do our walk through that day.. when I went to turn our keys in there was 10 of them sitting in the court yard doing dick all, including the gentlemen responsible for the move out inspections. I was absolutely FURIOUS!

We got on the road before 11am which we had expected and headed South. I wont lie guys, the traffic was horrendous.. I don't know where everyone was going but what a mess. It took up almost 12 hours to get home when it should have taken us 7 and a half! Jason was in a state! We grabbed a pizza close to the house and decided to unpack the Uhaul as soon as we got home. We ended up not getting into bed until almost 1am and let me tell you guys.. I am not a good sleeper AT ALL but I slept more soundly then I have in well.. longer than I can even remember (which isn't exactly saying a lot, but you catch my drift).

Saturday when I got up Jason was already out the door to run errands and I made a coffee and got to unpacking inside. Naturally the clothes took the longest, I decided to purge some of my closet on account that I was finding it really overwhelming. I always have such good intentions when cleaning out my closet.. but then....

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I filled two bags which for me is good. I also managed to go through all my books (because I found two boxes I forgot I had) and managed to get it down to one box. I feel right there that our trip home was worth it. 

Saturday was busy and HOT, which I'm not complaining about. Jason worked outside while I worked inside and then I did some running around in the afternoon and we enjoyed dinner on the back deck.. it was lovely! I would say that was the only moment we actually enjoyed the house which makes me sad, and it was more me because Jason was up every 15 minutes adjusting the sprinkler. He also thought it would be hilarious to spray me with the hose, which obviously I did not think was funny.. so he did it again. Ugh!

Sunday I had an early appointment so while I was gone Jason packed his clothes to come back, I was basically looking for any excuse not to pack but still made my way back to the house as soon as I could to get started. Can I just say how annoying it is to spend a whole day unpacking and finding a home for everyone only to turn around and F with it the next day. I was a bit CRANKY! Because of said mood Jason suggested Moe's for lunch and y'all know how much I love Moe's!! After lunch we were headed North again, ever so sadly. We made it about 5 minutes down the road when Jason realized he didn't pack any shoes, but what was on his feet.. so we turned around. At this point we've been here 5 days and Jason has forgotten a lot of other things. 

The drive back here was a nightmare, and I have officially decided that I will NEVER, EVER do it again. Jason has no patience and get so pissed about the traffic and I instantly am on edge.. the whole drive was absolutely terrible, again taking us 10+ hours! We didn't make it back to the hotel until midnight at which point I just wanted to go to bed. We unloaded pretty much everything, dropped it in our room and went to bed. 

Monday I was exhausted, I'm sure Jason was too and he had to get up in the morning for work. I guess in all the hustle and bustle the night before.. in the dark no less Jason decided the room we were in was not to his liking and called my on Monday morning to go downstairs to talk to the front desk about moving, when I got down there she called me by name so I knew she had already spoken to Jason. We ended up getting a bigger room with a full size fridge and stove which is great because it wont make it seem so much like a hotel. 

We've basically been settling in, every night we have been out running around and getting things we need. We are trying to get into some kind of routine.. gym and so on. I have been enjoying the massive outlet mall across the street, naturally! I forgot stuff too ya know! HA! Really though I only brought my denim jacket and a fleece and its basically winter here! At noon today it was 58... that's just unreasonable, where the hell did summer go?? 

This weekend is Memorial Day weekend which I am excited about, we are going to spend it with friends at an air show and just hanging out! Jason gets the whole weekend off (sadly only two days not the three but we will take what we can get) so I'm really looking forward to it. The weather isn't suppose to be fantastic but whatever, next week is definitely looking up. 

So that's what we have been up to. Next week I plan to be back to posting regularly but this week I just wasn't into it! I would like to get back to more book reviews as well, because I brought a ton back with me to read! I am still banking on being out of here the first week of July, if it doesn't happen then I think I might go home regardless. I am just not OK with going one job to another without having time at home. 

I hope you guys had a great week, if you are celebrating Memorial weekend away be safe!!! 

Have a great weekend and thank you as always for stopping by!!

On the Road Again... Goodbye Jersey City

Good morning!!

As you all know this week we are moving and sadly tonight Jason will have to unhook all of our TV and internet stuff so I wont be able to post until either the weekend while we are home, which I wont promise anything because we are going to be so strapped for time or Monday when we are back! I'm really sorry but I always have such a hard time getting my blog to post from by phone and therefore I don't want to count on that.

I thought because this will be my last post most likely for the week that I would stop in and chat about our week as I will be missing High Five for Friday and just let y'all know how packing and such is going.

Sunday was such a great day, Jason had the day off work and although it was our last weekend in the city we didn't plan to do anything major.. just enjoy the day! We got up and decided to head out to breakfast, we really love City Diner in Jersey City but we were assuming everywhere was going to be packed with people going out for Mother's Day brunch. Jason told me to pick where we would go and it came to me that one place I always wanted to try while we were here but never did was a place called Stacks in Hoboken. It was such a gorgeous morning, we headed into Hoboken and got to Stacks just in time.. we got a seat right away and not 5 minutes later there was a huge line up out the door!

Like all places in Hoboken it was really small but the food was really good! When we went in they brought out corn bread which I absolutely love.. I won't lie though after tasting and discussing with Jason we decided it was definitely Northern corn bread, not the Southern version which I prefer! Don't get me wrong it was really good, but not my absolute favorite! Breakfast was excellent and afterwards we hit up Dunkin Donuts and shared a iced coffee for the walk home!

We came home and dropped off our leftover breakfast and decided to head over to the mall because Jason has been having a lot of trouble with his work boots and because he spends so much time in them and on his feet it is so imperative he has something comfortable. We walked over to the mall and spent a great deal of time in Sears while Jason tried on every pair of boots he could and then decided not to get any! HA! Typical Jason. I mean I want him to be happy and comfortable with whatever he chooses but he found boots he liked he just couldn't decided.

Truth be told we spent a ton of time at the mall, we both got new shorts for summer.. Jason wanted to beach shirts and what not. I wanted to pick up a few things at Kiko Milano (makeup) because they don't have stores everywhere yet and as of right now they are not online to order from so I wanted to grab a few things. Side note... I cannot stress enough, if you haven't tried Kiko products I cannot recommend them anymore!!!

We didn't get home until after 3pm and we both called our Mama's and then Jason made dinner. We headed out after dinner for a long walk that somehow resulted in my getting a new phone case! I have been looking for one since Christmas time and I just couldn't find one I liked.. well that's not entirely true! I found one I really liked from Kate Spade on eBay and I didn't buy it and then it was gone. Go figure. I haven't been able to find anything I love since and while at Target last night Jason and I were looking at what they had there and when I couldn't find anything we decided to run next door to Best Buy and see what we could find. I ended up getting THIS case and I am really happy with it! My phone was started to get scratched so mostly I am really happy to have something on it again to protect it!

We came home and Jason took apart the coffee table because we just weren't using it not having a couch and took apart one of our extra dining room chairs.. just getting things done that will save time later and if we're not using it why not! I absolutely love days when Jason are home.. I wish it was more than once a week.

Monday I started on the smaller things that we wont be using and started packing them up. I cleaned out all the crap under the bathroom sink.. its amazing what you shove under there and forget about. I also have a storage type thing, it has two shelves and a drawer for all my makeup and hair stuff. I went through all that and packed up what I wont be using in the next few days. Packed the wine glasses and picture frames, all that good stuff. Its not stuff that needed to be done on Monday but I like to slowly work away at it when I have the chance because it makes things less hectic in the long run.

Last night we packed way more than we were planning to do but that's good with me! Today I need to pack my clothes *sigh* and clean out all the cupboards, oven and such. I swear our oven isn't really dirty but that is at the top of my list of the worst jobs to do and I would much prefer to pay someone to do it, just sayin'. Tonight Jason will take apart the bed frame and headboard, night stands and probably the dining room table and chairs. He will need to pack his clothes as well. Tomorrow night Jason will have to drop off all the TV stuff and stop to try and get mattress covers because I guess ours got ruined so he wont be home until late and then we are just planning on going out to dinner and having a relatively quiet night in preparation for Friday's long busy day!

We are planning to be up and out at early as possible. Jason wants to be waiting at UHaul when it opens and everything will be ready to go when he gets back. We will move the heavy stuff down first (bed & dresser) so he can tackle boxes while I finish the last bit of cleaning. Ideally we would like to be on the road no later than 11am so we don't get home super later as we will have to unpack the Uhaul when we get there. We are going to have such limited time at home this weekend (getting home Friday night, leaving Sunday late morning) that we need to have the UHaul unpacked so Jason can get a bunch of stuff done Saturday morning. We have high hopes for good weather while we are home!

So that's our scoop now, I apologize for not being around for the rest of the week but I should be back Monday as long as things go as planned!

I hope you all have a great weekend, thank you as always for stopping by!!

I wanted to leave you with this.. I came across it on Pinterest last night and I fell in love. Wise words for Wednesday!

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Tips for Packing

Good Morning!!

So as you all know we have officially spent a year here as of this week and you know what the means.. its time to get on the road again. For those of you who are new to these parts.. we move a lot! There is good and bad about moving so much, I'm less fond of it now that we have a house but all in all it has made me an expert at packing and moving.

I thought I would stop in today and share a few tips and tricks that make packing a much faster and easier process. I may have done a post like this a couple of years ago, or I may just be thinking I did.. however if I did I'm sure through time and a move or two I have changed a few things, so lets get started.

1. Give Yourself Plenty of Time & Find Your Rhythm

When you become a pro at moving its most likely possible for you to pack an apartment in a day, but give yourself enough time so that you aren't left in a panic with not enough time to get everything done. Moving can be a stressful time and you have to make sure to get sleep, eat and all that good stuff, so make sure you give yourself plenty of time to get everything done. If you are working around the time you are moving then start with a box or two a night of things you know you wont need and then when it comes time for the final push you wont feel so overwhelmed.

2. Water & Snacks

Packing and moving things tend to get lost in the shuffle, you get busy throwing things in boxes and it can be really easy to forget to leave out a few things to help you along the way. Always make sure you have lots of water and a few snacks left out, packing and moving can be a lot of work and you have to make sure to stay hydrated. You may think this is a stupid tip but honestly there have definitely been times that we have been packing and moving and thought.. shit we don't have any water! This applies ten fold if you are moving in the hotter months, carrying/moving boxes and furniture you are bound to work up a sweat and staying hydrated is super important. Fuel your body friends!!!

3. Label Your Boxes

I cant stress this enough, over labeling is better then throwing a bunch of crap in a box and taping it up without anything on it. This is going to make your life a lot easier when packing a Uhaul, you don't want a box of books on top of your grandmothers fine china. Not to mention how much easier is it going to be be to unload boxes into your new place and put them in the room they need to be and then unpack them. For us we generally have time off after we move so all of boxes were shoved in Jason's parents barn or now our garage, there is always things that need to be left out of taken out and this makes it a lot easier to find those boxes. My labeling system goes something like this...

KITCHEN - FRAGILE 

- kitchen glasses (small, medium & large)

- pint glasses

- shot glasses

BEDROOM

-Master Bedding/ 2 sets (queen)

- Master bedroom duvet

- Master Bedroom Duvet cover

-Pillow cases (4)

You get the hint, you probably think I should know how many sets of bedding I have and pillow cases, or really what the hell does it matter? First of all I probably wont remember and second of all more information is always better than not enough. I can always find whatever I need quickly and efficiently. 

4. Complete One Room at a Time

This is definitely what works best for me in regards to packing and unpacking, it makes the whole process go a lot faster. Usually two days before we move all the furniture is taken down, and I don't pack any boxes in the bedroom so that is where I usually start. Once the room is completely packed, I clean it and then shut the door. I always do the kitchen the day before, pack everything and wipe everything down.. because we will be using it while moving everything will be clean but I do a final wipe down before leaving. Always leave cleaning the bathroom until last, you will use it before you leave, you know you will. Once you have completed a room, packed and cleaned spray a little febreeze and close the door. Knocking it out room by room makes you feel like you are accomplishing more than if you are trying to do everything at once and this way you are less likely to forget something. 

5. Furniture & Pieces

Like I mentioned above we always take apart the furniture two days before, well Jason does. As he is taking apart the furniture I make sure to collect all the screws that holds it together, I use a plastic sandwich bag and write on it in black magic marker what is in it. SCREWS & BOLTS - DINING ROOM TABLE and once its all apart I will use painters tape and tape the bag to the table somewhere so it wont get lost. This isn't always fool proof, when we got here we realized we didn't have the pieces to one of our dining room chairs. I seriously don't know how the hell that happened and we've never been able to find them, Jason must have lost them. ;) - Since writing this post we actually found them! I don't know how they got lost in the mix but we did have them and we officially have 4 dining room chairs again!!! 

6. Lists

Make lists, days before you actually move you will remember little things and then in the haste of moving you will forget them. Make a list and when it starts to wind down and get checked off make another one. I will make 100 lists in the next week because otherwise I will forget everything. Right now my current list looks like this...

- Save piece of cereal box to wrap Ulu 

- Wipe down base boards

- Cancel utilities

- Count boxes

- Buy paper towel

That list will change a thousand times, and you can bet your bottom regardless of whether its on my list or not I am not going to save a piece of a cereal box for the Ulu, not to mention I have no idea what happened to the box for that thing. 

7. Make Sure You Have Everything You Need

It is the worst when you are in the middle of packing, in your crappy clothes with no make up on, sweating up a storm and you realize you are out of paper towel or all purpose cleaner. Like I said moving can be a stressful time and things are bound to be forgotten.. so again make a list. What are you going to need to pack, clean and get out the door? Do you have enough tape? Its better to have everything you need before you start then be scurrying for things in the midst. 

8. Leave One Last Box Open

Even if its an extra box leave one somewhere out of the way that when you are all finished and going out the door you can throw in the left over stuff... tape, sharpie, febreeze, rags and so on. Generally I make sure I have that box ready and in it I keep a few grocery bags, garbage bags and so on.. those are always things I seem to be searching for when we are in the final hour. Its just an extra box to have things you may need or throw things in you've been using and have no where else to put.. otherwise two weeks later you will go to get your wallet out of your purse and come out with the tape dispenser and the cashier at the grocery store will give you a look. Not everyone carries packing tape in their purse? No?

9. Bubble Wrap

Invest in it. I'm not kidding you guys you will need it to avoid disaster. In all of our moving which you know has been a lot I would say our furniture has held up extremely well and we have yet to have a disaster where we opened a box and things are broken. We always know we are going to be moving again so we collect bubble wrap I swear, but it is totally necessary. I know it would be easier to throw things in a Uhaul and go but in the end you will thank yourself for taking the extra time to wrap things. Our furniture and stuff is by no means in perfect condition anymore, but I think that mostly came from sitting in Jason's parents barn for a years but honestly after a lot of moves all over North America I am pretty impressed.

10. Ask for Help

This is more of a tip for guys like Jason who have a wife that cant move heavy furniture. If possible ask a friend to come over for an hour and just help with the big stuff. Jason refuses to do that and so we end up struggling with the heavy stuff and I'm pissed off because he wouldn't ask someone to help and I'm struggling and its taking forever and he's pissed off because I'm complaining and according to him not putting in legit effort.. we bicker and its just not necessary. We've gotten a lot better but moving it hard, especially when it comes to big furniture and if I didn't have to help Jason with the bed, dresser and couch (which is gone) then I think moving would be a lot easier for both of us.

Regardless of all the moving we have done I still absolutely HATE it, I don't enjoy packing, moving and unpacking.. but it has to be done so these are just a few things that make it easier for me.

I hope that helps any of you who are in for a move!! Thank you as always for stopping in today!

Have a great day!!

What I've Been Reading Lately

Good Morning Y'all!

If you happen to follow me on goodreads.com then you know I have been reading a lot lately, just trying to get rid of all the books I have here before we move so I don't have the drag them all around. I was really flying through the books and although I enjoyed most of them I decided not to review them all around here like I have been doing book reviews, but instead I thought I would do an overall review in a shorter manner.

As you know this week is going to be quite busy getting ready to move and then actually getting on the road so I thought this would be a great post to write ahead of time and be able to post so I wasn't MIA the whole week.

So lets get started!

The Pilots Wife by Anita Shreve 

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I really really liked this book a lot! Immediately into it I couldn't put it down, I so enjoyed the style of writing and right off the bat I knew the story was going to be so good. Turns out it was even better than I could have imagined... her husband leads a secret life that she had absolutely no idea about and when tragedy strikes more is revealed about her husband than she ever could have imagined, and to say she didn't deal well is an understatement. If you are looking for a book that will peak early and keep your attention the entire time I highly recommend checking this out! If you are interested you can read the overview HERE. 

Escape by Carolyn Jessop & Laura Palmer

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I honestly think I got this book years ago when I was part of a book club that sent you books every month and I guess I never read it because I nothing seemed familiar when I was reading it. Tales of a book hoarder, you have so many you forget to read some until years later. Anyways I was intrigued when I read the synopsis of this book and found that I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. You may be familiar with the story of Warren Jeffs and his polygamist community, more so about the abuse that took place in these communities. Warren Jeffs is currently serving a lengthy prison sentence for the assault of underage girls, amongst other things. 

This is a story of one woman's life growing up in this community and being married off at a very young age to a man much older than her, having 8 children and their escape from a life that no one should ever be forced to live. I was more than intrigued with the story and how although she was raised in this community her entire life how different her childhood was to that of her marriage and raising her own children. This is an excellent book about one woman's strength and courage to give her children the best life they could possibly have. Until reading this book I was aware of why polygamy was widely frowned upon and a little about Warren Jeffs but this book was full of information about a life I could never imagine. 

You can read an overview of the book HERE, and if you get the chance I highly recommend reading it for yourself! 

Fall on your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald

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I really enjoy a wide variety of books, I don't tend to read only a specific genre but this book was definitely not for me. I felt like the book was constantly dragging, especially at the beginning. I read on and on and waited for something good to happen and it just seemed to take a long time. Honestly I don't have much to say about this, I just did not enjoy it. The reviews online were really mixed which is not surprising to me, people compared the writing style to that of a grown up VC Andrews who I am not very familiar with. You can read the synopsis HERE on good read, but sadly I would not personally recommend it. 

We are the Mulvaneys by Joyce Carol Oates

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I actually read some of the reviews about this book before reading the book itself and I came across a lot that weren't very good but I wanted to read it anyways. Books are super subjective and I truly believe that even people who like to read the same type of books can feel differently about books, so if you are thinking about reading a book and find bad reviews I would say read it anyways, you might be missing out if you don't! 

Anyways I really liked this book, even though I hated most of the characters. The book is told through the eyes of the youngest brother of a farm family; early on the only daughter suffers a terrible tragedy and it affects the family in a way that I would like to think no one would expect. The book details how their lives play out after this event, and how one life event can change so much about the course of a persons life. Although this book didn't seem widely popular I really enjoyed it and would absolutely recommend it. 

If you would like to read the synopsis, you can do so HERE.

A Dirty War by Anna Politkovskaya

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If you're not much for history and war stories this book probably isn't for you, but I have to rave about how well written it is regardless. I will say that I haven't read all that much about the Chechen War or truth be told don't remember hearing much about it on the news. This book is a first hand account by a Russian woman about the Chechen War and how although it was said to be ending the conflict was still very real and intense. 

This book is raw and real and goes deep into not only the war but the Russian governments attempt diminish the cause and effects of this war. Sadly Anna Politkovskaya who was a journalist, author as well as a human rights activist was murdered in October 2006 in her apartment elevator under a contract hit and although 5 men were sentenced to prison for her murder in June 2014 it is still unclear who ordered her murder. 

If you are a war buff, I highly recommend reading this book. If you are interested in reading more about the book you can do so HERE, and if you are interested in the author Anna Politkovskaya you can click HERE to read more about her as well. 

So those are a few of the books that I have been reading lately. I think when I am binge reading this is a better way of reviewing books than dedicating an entire post to each book, let me know what you think! If you are reading anything good please do share as I am always on the hunt for a good book! 

Thank you for stopping by, I hope you guys have a great day!!

High Five for Friday 5.8.15

Good Morning Everyone!!

Today marks exactly one week until we move out of our New Jersey apartment! Believe it or not I don't have mixed feelings about it at all, as you know I am not exactly jumping for joy because we aren't getting to go home and stay but coming back the following Sunday because Jason's project isn't completed yet. I am glad to be getting out of the apartment I guess, I don't feel like.. oh I wish I would have... we've lived here for a year and lived in NYC for a year 4 years ago.. I'm pretty much done. I will miss the city in a way but I will definitely be happy to go home for awhile.

This week has been good but kind of quiet, the weather has been absolutely amazing which has been great, everyday I have been making sure to get out and enjoy it as much as possible because I feel like it has been so long since we've had it! It definitely felt like a really long winter to this now southern girl. Seriously though... anything under 65 and I'm in layers.

Anyways lets get to the highlights of the week shall we??

1. Mets Game in the Gorgeous Weather! 

Again if you read Tuesday's post Jason and I went to a Mets game with the McMann's! Tanya and I went to a game almost 4 years to the date and absolutely loved it but the guys had never been. We got tickets later in the week and were psyched to enjoy the beautiful weather and the game. Sadly the Mets lost but Jason and I are Red Sox fans and the McMann's are Yankee's fans so oh well. Regardless it was a fantastic day at the ball field and it didn't last 19 innings like the last game we went to.

2. The Wicked Wolf Wings...

Its very rare that I would care enough about food to put it in my favorites, unless of course it was a burrito! However Sunday after the game we finally made it back to the Wicked Wolf which is one of Jason's favorite restaurants here. We discovered it when we got here last year but during the NFL season it was always a beyond crowded and you would have had to wait in line so we never bothered.. but we always missed the wings. We had decided that we wanted to go back before we left for sure and finally made it their on Sunday, Jason ordered the BBQ wings as well as the medium wings and I pretty much ate all the BBQ ones myself.. they were FANTASTIC. If you are ever in the Hoboken area, I highly recommend stopping by the Wicked Wolf. 

3. Central Park in the Spring Time

I've posted quite a few pictures of Central Park lately, but its just so gorgeous this time of year. Central Park is one thing that I will really miss about the city so I wanted to make sure I got back there once more before we leave. Tanya has said that she also wanted to go back and take more pictures so we decided to head in on Monday. Its always better to go to the Park on a week day because although its still busy, its considerably less so than on a weekend. We toured around for a long time just enjoying the scenery and taking pictures, it was such a gorgeous day and as far as I'm concerned a day in Central Park is always a day well spent. 

I wonder if Demi Moore sold her condo up there?

4. Selling our Couch... and not losing a bunch of money!

Did you happen to read about our couch debacle in Tuesday's post that took place on Monday? If not basically we sold it to a girl, offered to help her move it because she had no one else, we took it to her apartment and it wouldn't fit up the stairwells and by this time it was ripped to shit for lack of better words. When we realized it wasn't going to work she basically said.. sorry guys, thanks for trying. We were so upset and worried that not only would we maybe not be able to sell it and we didn't want to keep it but if we could sell it, it was no longer in basically new condition like it had started out and we were going to take a major loss. We came back to the apartment in a bit of a panic and started contacting anyone who had reached out to us interested in it. In the end we took it to show people (yes we were desperate), they are in a similar situation as us, moving around and not looking to spend a ton of furniture and they offered us exactly what we were asking! Thank goodness! It wasn't an ideal situation by any means but in the end it worked out and I couldn't be more grateful.

5. Old Navy Sale

While in the city earlier in the week Tanya and I popped into Old Navy because its massive, has beyond a lot of options and there was a big sale going on. We didn't really go in looking for anything in particular but found a lot. I am in the mark for some summer stuff and managed to find an amazing deal on a super cute and comfortable pair of shorts as well as a pair of boho cropped pants, they are super soft, almost a satin like material. I will say I tried on a ton of dresses and none of them looked right, which was super disappointing but I am very happy with my purchases and even happier with the price! If you are interested online they are still having a site wide 40% off so click HERE to check it out, they definitely have a lot of great options!

So that is my scoop this week. Next week is most likely going to include a lot of packing.. although I have packed all this stuff so many times I will basically have it done in a day. I did a lot of purging this week which always feels amazing and made a really big effort to start cleaning out the fridge, freezer and pantry and I am confident there will be no waste or having to take a bunch of stuff with us. I am gutted that I am going to miss my Thursday shows next week as Jason will have to unhook all our TV/ internet equipment Wednesday night to take it all back on Thursday because its a lot closer to work than the apartment.

I am going to try and blog as much as possible next week, I know its been pretty sporadic around here the last two weeks and sadly that may continue the next two weeks but after that hopefully I will get it together.

I hope you guys are having an amazing week, and have an amazing weekend! We are hopefully going to have really great weather and make the most of our last weekend in town!! And of course Happy Mother's Day to all the amazing Mothers out there, especially mine! I love you Mom!!

This week I am linking up with:

Tanya @ Prairie Girl in the Big Scary World

Cait @ Fierce, Fabulous & Fit

And of course these lovely ladies!!