Friday Five {August 2021}

Happy Friday Everyone!

One – Current Happenings

Happy Friday, friends! Well, I should nickname this post ‘all things birthday’ and ‘lots of yummy food’. August is my birthday month and it is also the end of summer/start of school and we’ve been indulging quite a bit (oops!).

So, one of our summer bucket list items was to try a new breakfast place once a week. And, this may be the only bucket item that we’ve stuck to this summer. Ha! I took the kids with me to The Clover and The Bee in Webster Groves and it did not disappoint! We had a little bit of a late start, so the kids got breakfast and I got lunch (but, with a cappuccino!). It was really good! This wasn’t a ‘new’ place for us, but a place we only visit once a year if that, so it was nice!

Then, after church Brian and I (we didn’t have the kids with us) visited a new to us breakfast place called The Barn in Crestwood. The grounds that the old barn are on are gorgeous, with a pond and ducks, a historical building and a bartender that can whip up and drink you desire! We had fun exploring the grounds while we waited for our table. I got chocolate chip pancakes and a potato hash, it was really yummy (sorry, no photo!).

Here is a selfie of us by the pond. We are enjoying our watermelon margaritas that the bartender whipped us up. I took the kids back here a week later and the bartender lady made me a vanilla iced coffee and then made me up a free one to go (and, it was venti sized!), which I thought was so kind (and I didn’t even ask for it!).

Well, Nathan got his braces off!!! He got them put on October of his 8th grade year and got them off the summer before his sophomore year. Not bad! He wears a retainer when he isn’t eating for 3 months and then he wears it only at night forever. Now I need to get his sister into the orthodontist to see when she can start braces.

We have had a lot of yummy treats this summer! One place that was new to us that we tried was Crumbl cookies. The photo above does not do justice in showing the size of these massive cookies! One cookie gave me a sugar coma. Ha! They’re sooo good! I recommend cutting them in quarters and enjoying one of each flavor. Crumbl has 4-5 new cookies each week and changes their menu weekly. Thankfully, they aren’t too close to our house, so I won’t be going there too often. 😉 But, it is near the Trader Joe’s that I like to go to, so it may tempt me! Have you tried Crumbl cookies and what is your favorite flavor?

Two – My Birthday & Birthday Gifts from Sweet Blogging Friends

My 44th birthday was a lot of fun! We went out to breakfast at The Shack with my mom. Then, we had a relaxing day at home until Brian and I got to go out for a date night at Bristol.

I received some really sweet gifts from some blogging friends on my birthday week! Lauren from Mom Home Guide sent me a really cute box of delicious teas, a tea infuser and some tea coasters. Then, Laura from I do DeClaire sent me a box with an assortment of cute goodies that you can see in the photo above. Thank you SO, so much!!

Then, Kathrine from Kathrine Eldridge sent me a couple Bobbi Brown lip tints, which I absolutely love! And, she also sent me a really pretty candle that smells great, too! Thank you, Kathrine!! (And, the beautiful flowers are from my husband!)

Three – Four Seasons Birthday Weekend

My husband planned a night away at the Four Seasons in our hometown. I have never stayed at a Four Seasons before, but it did not disappoint. The view of the arch from our suite was spectacular and we were surprised with champagne, chocolate covered strawberries and gooey butter once we checked in. Yum!

We had dinner in the hotel at the Cinder House. Scallops are my fave and they normally don’t have them on the menu, but they did for an August special. I totally lucked out! For my birthday dessert they surprised us with two chocolate truffles.

After dinner, we had a cabana by the rooftop pool and enjoyed relaxing with a couple of drinks. After a year of juggling everything that Covid brought, it sure was a treat to just sit and relax by the pool!

We finished the lovely weekend off with breakfast and I went all out with chocolate chip pancakes, potatoes and eggs! Yum!

Four – Latest Book & Shows

Float Plan by Trish Doller

So, I did not read many books this summer!! I always feel like the summer is going to give me more time to read, but it seems the summer is usually busier than the school year! Float Plan was a really easy read and a perfect one for the summer. It’s about Anna who loses her fiancé and decides to fulfill their dream by taking his sailboat out into the Caribbean to tour a bunch of islands. However, Anna lacks sailing skills and is still recovering from a broken heart. Along the way she meets a handsome Irish man named Keane who helps her sail and they both kinda ‘fall in love’ with each other. It is a really cute and cheerful book set on the Caribbean, so it was fun to read this summer. I have one other book I just started that is also a ‘beachy summer read’, although I had planned to finish it before the kids went back to school. BUUUT, regardless, it is good and I’ll share more about it once I finish it!

And, as for shows…

We FINALLY finished Outlander on Netflix, which takes us through season 4! I believe that Starz has Outlander season 5 or maybe even Amazon Prime, so we are going to either see if we can watch season 5 somehow, or we’ll wait for season 5 to come out on Netflix (I read it usually releases to Netflix after it has been out for 2 years).

Five – Pixi Mail

Purchase this Book:

Pixi Cosmetics sends me a little fun mail every now. Before we left for Myrtle Beach, they sent me this HUGE box and I was excited to see their newest collection co-created by Petra and their #PixiPretties.

Tones & Textures Eyeshadow Palette – Highly pigmented eyeshadow palette containing 25 easily blendable shades ranging from matte to metallic & neutral to bright.

Mind Your Own Glow Radiance Palette – Don’t let anyone dim your glow with this beautiful and versatile highlighter palette. These colors can be used together or solo to give your face the perfect radiant finish.

Shapeshifter Contour Palette – Counturing is something that is new to me, but this palette has evrything in it for me to get started!

Cream Rouge Lip Blush Palette – These creamy colors are for your lips and cheeks! There are 25 colors in all! My daughter took this palette from me, but she has been enjoying it! Creamy deliciousness!

I hope everyone has a nice and relaxing weekend!