Keurig | Tray | Mug {careful this gets hot! I use it because it takes me 3 hours to drink 1 cup of coffee!} | Creamer | Vase | Spoons | Sugar Bowl

Photography by: Madison Katlin

As I’m writing this I keep thinking, “Wait! We just got to April! Slow down!” March and April were busy months {to me} in terms of travel, so honestly I’m very excited to just be home the next month and cook for my family. The kitchen is definitely my happy place. We also finished a lot of home decor projects, which I will share more on later. It was such a joy to watch my best friend/brother marry the love of his life earlier this month. Although, Paul and I were EXTREMELY envious of their fabulous honeymoon. Can you take a honeymoon after baby?! Is that a thing? Can we make it one? And we ended the month with a trip to Oklahoma so Maxi could see our family up there.

My Favorites

• Favorite New Serum: I’ve got the pesky fine lines around my mouth and up above my eyebrows! Eek! ha. Enter my new lifting serum. And I’ll be honest, when I first heard another blogger mention a lifting serum I thought, “Huh?!” We lift hair for volume and now skin? But I’m so into it seeing how well it has worked on those fine lines. I’ve used it for a little over a month and would 100% purchase this when I run out. I don’t want to talk your ear off about it, but I’ll do a review on it. I use this as my nightly serum.
• Favorite New Home Project: We finished our patio this month! I shot the patio last week and will share it soon on the blog. I’ve been cherishing the 70-degree weather at night while Maxi and Peaches play on the patio. It’s felt like a date when Paul and I sip a cocktail and eat cheese and crackers. Maxi’s favorite thing on the patio is for me to fill up a plastic bin with water and put her bath toys in there. She has a blast and Peaches does, too. I’m trying to soak up these nights before it gets too warm and the mosquitos get aggressive. We also organized our pantry, which I’ll share on the blog this week. In our last home, I used clear jars and a label maker. While my inner Monica Gellar was beaming, it just felt impractical for me. Maxi can go in the pantry and reach for a snack now {HOW?! They grow way too fast.} so I just didn’t want things “too pristine” if you know what I mean. I did a combination of jars and then baskets. The other morning we were making breakfast and Paul said, “I love our pantry because I can keep it clean.” That is saying a lot, so I hope this method helps you, too!
• Favorite Thing for Maxi: We did wallpaper in her room! Yay! If you’ve followed me since I was making her nursery in our last home, you know I always envisioned wallpaper. It never panned out and so we didn’t do it. I’ll be honest, I love our home and I am SO grateful for our home. However, I’m still adjusting to it feeling like home. When I drive past our old home I still cry. Does that ever go away? We were only in our old home for a little over 2 years, but they were the best 2 years of my life. I married, I got pregnant, I had a baby. And while I know we will make memories in this house, it still just feels like a house. The last house felt like home. I’m trailing off here, but I went ahead and decided to bite the cost of the wallpaper installation and just did one wall. It was magic. Her room automatically felt more cozy, more like her. I’ll show you the entire thing once her drapes are installed, but I’m so happy we did it! We went with Clairebella for the wallpaper.
• Favorite Food: Part of me feels like I shouldn’t tell you about this, because you will eat 4 pints a week like me. When we were in Aurora at MacKenzie-Childs, my friend came up to me and handed me this frozen greek yogurt. I told her I was full from dinner and she said, “You need to eat this anyways.” I thought, “Hmm. This will taste like another version of ‘healthy ice cream’ which is just okay.” Nope! It tastes better than real ice cream. Yasso Caramel PretzelMania is divine and worth every single gram of sugar. It’s actual frozen greek yogurt, so the protein content is much higher and it’s not as guilty. Our entire freezer is stockpiled. You know, just in case. 😉
• Favorite Meal: Well while we are on the subject of food, let’s talk about my favorite meal. During the rS conference, I got to grab dinner with some of my girlfriends and a few girls on the rS team I’ve been friends with for years. We went to Dolce Riviera one of our favorite spots, I shared it here. We got the Gnocchi al Tartufo and I just about died and went to heaven. I wouldn’t normally order such a creamy pasta as I gravitate more towards a bolognese sauce. My friend, Lauren, told me I had to get it so I followed her directions. I ate the ENTIRE plate in 5 minutes. I want to go back next week.
• Favorite Blog Post: I loved this blog post from Damsel in Dior. She wrote about 8 Mistakes Beginner Bloggers Make and I think that it gives fabulous tips on what to do, as well as what not to do!

Notes

• Monthly Flops: While I typically share the products I love, I did have two flops this month! I purchased the Amika Straightening Brush during the Sephora sale and I’ll be returning it. It *does* straighten your hair, but my curl isn’t necessarily the part of my hair that needs to be tamed. My texture is what needs the iron more, and this did nothing for my texture. I tried it twice and really disliked my hair both days, so it just didn’t work. I also purchased the Fenty foundation during the sale and at first, I liked it, but I broke out in two spots after using it. 🙁 Another blogger mentioned she did as well, so it may just not work for our skin.
• Your Most Asked Question: I make this recipe courtesy of my girlfriend Amy Beth every few weeks. It’s quick, easy and a favorite of my husband’s. I shared this recipe on Intsa Stories and I don’t think I’ve ever received so many dm’s about something-ever! She blogged the recipe here so you can have it permanently. 🙂

Favorite Posts

• You May Be Using MAC Fix + Wrong
• SK-II Before & After
• Online Shopping As of Late
• Marriage & Kids 
  • I was so happy that my girlfriend, Caroline, from House of Harper wanted to contribute another quote to this article. She has 2 young boys and here is what she said about marriage with kids:

Your Favorites

• Cristina Earring: Styled Here
• Sneakers: These look like Chanel!
• Swirl Sweater: Styled Here
• TSA Travel Bag: Shared Here
• Hoops: Styled Here

Projects

• Giveaways: This month I’m working on some giveaways for you all! I have one coming up on Instagram Friday [it’s with a brand I know y’all love!].  Stay tuned for all the goodies, but I’d love to hear from you below. What kind of giveaways do you like best? Gift cards or curated gift sets?
• Home Projects: Our formal living is still bare and normally houses things I need to return or take somewhere. It’s like one big mud room. ha! I need to figure the room out and my girlfriend Amy Beth Campbell recommended a few spots to me. I’m going to go see her for 2 days for her 30th birthday so she said we’d go to some furniture spots in San Francisco as she is house hunting as well. I’m excited to see what we find! I also want to decide on window treatments for the master. I’m also worried we have too many animal prints going on in there. Andddddd we need to update the mattress. The list never ends!

 Monthly Read

I didn’t read a traditional novel this month, instead, I read A Simplified Life by Emily Ley {again} and The Complete Book of Home Organization by Toni Hammersley. I still have a bit more to read out of the home organization, one but I do projects as I read it. I read the Kitchen + Dining chapter and it caused me to reorganize my entire cabinet system. I get so antsy with clutter and excess, which is always a little tricky when you work out of your home. I’m always trying to find a new system that keeps things under control.

What did you love this month?!