Hi All!
   Well, I had started a weekend recap Sunday night, but I was so tired and sick that I just couldn't finish. I ended up going to the doctors on Monday and was told I have an upper respiratory infection. No antibiotics but I got an in-haler and was told what to take over the counter. This cold has kicked my butt! I haven't felt any better until today, mind you this cold started last Monday. Unfortunately Zoe also came down with the cold on Sunday, poor kid was leaking from her eyes and her nose wouldn't stop running. I also took her to the doctor on Monday, but after my appointment I knew what they were going to say about her. And now Hubby has this dreaded cold. I feel so bad. I'm hoping he bounces back a little faster than I did. He's been taking the same medicine that the doctor told me to take and he's been taking Zicam. I had more energy today than I've had in a week and I didnt feel the need to use the in-haler today. Both a big old plus in my book. Hopefully this cold is more than gone for everyone in the house by Saturday. We have a busy weekend.

   Since I wasn't able to fill you in on our weekend until now, here's what I had started for my original Weekend Recap:

   Our weekend wasn't all that exciting. We signed Lilly up for soccer on Saturday morning and she had her first game 20 minutes later. I took the girls to sign her up but had to tag out with Hubby for the game since it was just too cold for Zoe and I wasn't feeling well. Lilly loved it! Which was very reassuring to hear since she really has never shown any interest in playing soccer, ever. I've wanted to signer her up since she was 3 but any time our neighbors kids would play she wouldn't play with them. On Monday she was full on playing with them and chasing down our 11 year old neighbor to get the ball. So I asked her if she wanted to play, she said yes and so now I am officially a soccer mom! Well, for the next 7 weeks anyways. And in true Lilly fashion, she has asked that we go get her soccer outfits, because she has too have the right clothes. She will be the girl with a full face of makeup, on the filed kicking butt. I wouldn't want it any other way.

   But in some exciting news, we got a trampoline on Wednesday. The girls are over the moon about it! My mom and I got on the topic of outside toys and than started talking about trampolines. She found one on sale from Toys-R-Us, but we don't have the extra money to spend on that right now. The girls have plenty of toys for outside. My Mom called me back later that morning and said she talked to my Grandmother and they both wanted to chip in and get one for the girls. Hubby and I talked about it and we said okay we can do it. So now we have something in our back yard for the girls (and for myself and our friends- who am I kidding) to play on. Saturday was a big jumping day after soccer. It warmed up a bit and after some lunch we all went out side. Zoe went down for a nap and our neighbors came over to jump and hang out. I'd say the kids got a good 2 hours of jumping and running around in. Needless to say it resulted in a very crank Lilly and a nap at 5:30.

   Sunday was a whole lot of nothing expect me doing laundry and just lying in bed. To say I felt awful was a complete understatement. And taking care of Zoe because she got this darn cold too. I feel like we are all on the mend now except for Hubby, but I think (hope) he'll start feeling better by Friday. I didn't really take this cold serious until about Saturday and he started feeling yucky on Monday and started cold medicine right away.  Plus he's taking that Zicam, hopefully that does what it says it does and shortens this cold for him.

   I'm sorry this isn't more interesting and that it's been almost a week since my last post, but this cold has just knocked me down. I hope your weekend and week have been going well and cold free. As always, thanks for stopping by!!

Xo,
  Nikki

Friday Favorites: First Aid Beauty

Hi All!
   Happy Friday! I hope the week was good to you. We had a nice week besides me trying desperately to fight this cold and unfortunately I am not winning. :( Pretty sure I'm headed to the doctor today to make sure I don't have an ear infections. Its starting to really hurt and I am the biggest baby when it comes to ear infections. And my throat is killing me, it hurts to talk. Should be an interesting weekend...

   My Friday Favorite this week is the First Aid Beauty (FAB) skin care line. If you have never heard of them I feel like you may be missing out on a really great brand. I only know of two places you can purchase it, Sephora and the First Aid Beauty website. You can learn all about the line by going to the FAB website (just click the link), but I'll give you a very quick rundown. The line was created in 2009 by Lilli Gordon, a veteran in the beauty industry, and with the help of Dr. Robert Buka, a board-certified dermatologist. The products (my most favorite part about them) are free of parabens, phthalates, alcohol, fragrances, and artificial dyes. Some products have over-the-counter formulation that is FDA-approved to help with specific skin problem, such as acne and eczema.

This is the Fab Faves to Go Kit

    I don't have major skin problems, but I have enough that I need better products than what you can buy at a drug store. I was previously recommended the Facial Radiance Pads and I did purchase them. I will say I wasn't impressed enough to feel the need to purchase them again. I, however, did not use them with the facial cleanser or the ultra repair cream. Sam was having some skin issues a few months ago and she decided to try the whole kit. She fell in love and told me that after 6 weeks of use with no problems, I had to get it. So I headed to Sephora and got some samples of the cleanser, the 5 in 1 eye cream, and their new Ultra Repair Sunscreen Moisturizer. After two days of use I could see a complete change in my skin. No lie.

   I continued to use my samples up and when we were in NY I purchased just the cleanser and the ultra repair cream, which was dumb because for $7 more I could have purchased the kit (purchase here and here). So when I got back home I returned the two separate items and bought the kit. Also, while in NY, I got samples of the Eye Duty Triple Remedy Overnight Cream and the Facial Eadiance Overnight Cream. Both are amazing and I plan to purchase them. And while in NY I purchased the Eye Duty Triple Remedy: Brighten, Depuff, and Smooth.

    I really like the triple remedy because I usually always wear under eye concealer and on the days I don't want to wear any makeup at all, it helps conceal my under eye circles (gotta love being a mom and genetics). It by no means covers like concealer, but I'm less self-conscious about going out of my house with nothing on my face. Unfourtantly, Sam had to return this because she started to see little bumps. I told her to try the 5-in-1 eye cream. I LOVE that stuff too. I may buy that when I run out of the triple remedy, for no particular reason other than I really like it.

   I do want to buy one of the moisturizers that is specifically for the face. I really love the Ultra Repair Cream (I'll get into more why in just a second) but I like having a specific face cream. I liked the the moisturizer with sunscreen, that will be perfect for the summer and beach days. It wasn't greasy and I didn't break out from it. It very much feels like and smells like sunscreen though. I don't really like that for an every day face cream. I have not actually tried FAB's Ultra Repair Face Moisturizer but I'm sure it's just as amazing as the rest of the line. 

   I also have to share one very interesting fact I was told when checking out at Sephora that will interest a lot of parents (and just to prove how great this stuff really is). The cashier told me that a FAB rep came to the store to give them some training and told him that the Ultra Repair Cream can be used on babies with sensitive skin. I couldn't believe it. Usually you can't use or wouldn't even think to use anything that an adult can on a baby. But because it has no harsh chemicals it is perfectly safe to use. He told me that his 18 month old son has those little red bumps on the back of his arms, so he used the Ultra Repair Cream on him and it took them away. Zoe has horrible eczema and the only product I have found that works on her is the Arbonne baby line. I can't even use the Honesty Company on her, it flairs up her eczema. It's been a nightmare trying to keep this under control for her.

   Being slightly unsure about using an adult cream on my 22 month old who has ultra sensitive skin, I tried it out on my own hands first. My skin gets super dry from washing them all the time and this lovely cooler weather. Between my thumb and pointer finger the skin was cracking (beautiful picture to paint, I know but bare with me), in two days the dry skin and cracking was gone. GONE! In fact, I just realized my hands have been looking so much better lately from just using the cream on my face.  So, this morning I tried it on Zoe for the first time. I'll be able to tell by later today if it is actually helping her, making it worse, or doing nothing at all. I'll keep you posted on what happens.

   I'm fully in love this with brand and have no intentions on switching to something else any time soon. I highly, highly recommend it. Go to Sephora and get some samples to see how your skin reacts to it. I'm pretty positive you'll fall in love with it too. OH! You have to use the products together, don't skimp and just try one without the other. I wish I would have tried everything the first time I purchased the Facial Radiance Pads.

   I hope you have a great weekend and let me know if you try FAB out and what you think of it.
Thanks for stopping by!!

Xo,
  Nikki



  

Summer Clothes for the Littles

Hi All!

   Happy Wednesday! :) So, last week I had to return some stuff that didn't fit the girls so I picked up some summer clothes at Crazy8 and OshKosh and thought I would share what I got. I wish the weather would just stay a consistent 75 degrees around here, but I think I'm asking a little too much for April in New England.

   After going through the bag of summer clothes from last year for Lilly, I was pleasantly surprised to see that a lot of her summer clothes still fit her. And she got a good amount of new summer clothes for Easter from my in-laws. I'm pretty excited here for two reason. One being the obvious, that I don't need to buy her new clothes and second because I really LOVE the stuff she had last year. Especially everything from OshKosh. Lilly's whole wardrobe could consist of OshKosh and I would not complain one bit. I think they make the cutest (and not cheap or cheesy) clothes for kids her age. Zoe, also surprisingly, doesn't need a whole lot either. Not sure how I have as much as I do saved from Lilly in 24 months/2T since Lilly was in that size in the middle of winter, but I'll take it. Zoe does need a few more shorts and maybe some actual outfits (nothing a trip to the outlets or Target can't fix), but otherwise she's pretty good. They both need sandals, but I think I'll hit up Target for those in about mid May. 

   My first return was to OshKosh. I bought both the girls flip flops and although the sizing guide for the flip flops was followed they were much, much too big for Lilly. I'm pretty sure I should have returned the ones Zoe got too, I don't think she'll wear them but we'll see. I picked up these Mary Jane Sneakers for Lilly:

   I think these are so cute and match pretty much everything she owns. These too are a little big on her, but with some socks they fit good. I'm hopping her feet grow some in the next couple of months so she can wear them without socks if she wants too. I know "GASP! white, everyday shoes for a little kid?!" Yes white shoes, they will get dirty and I am okay with that. OshKosh has a few slip-on's and sandals that I love for both of the girls. They are having a pretty good sale right now, 50% off the entire store plus an extra 25% off of $40 or more (the code is SUMMER). I think I might order some for the girls, but they both don't need them right this second. 

   When I was at the store they were having an extra 25% off clearance items so I had to look (of course). They didn't having anything I was in love with for Lilly. She doesn't need any more t-shirts and everything else was long sleeves which she doesn't need anymore of either. Normally I would consider picking up stuff for next fall/winter but since she's pretty much stayed the same size since last summer I'm not sure what I should buy for next year. Zoe's section was kind of the same thing expect I found this Schiffli Twill Jumperall and paired it up with this Flitter-Sleeve Bodysuit in pink (the bodysuit was not on clearance):

   I love anything with anchors and when I saw the jumperall on clearance I knew I had to snag it. The bodysuit is a very bright pink and it's just a great piece to add to her wardrobe. You can never go wrong with a simple bodysuit for a toddler.

   My next stop was Crazy8 to return three outfits I had for Zoe that she never got to wear last year. I was expecting them to tell me that they couldn't take them back because they were so old, but I got about $15 for the three outfits (score!). Crazy8 had some of the cutest summer outfits for both the girls. I find Crazy8 to be a hit or miss for me. They are a sister company to Gymboree and I usually can't find to much I like in there, just not my style. But Crazy8 is spot on this year and you can't beat their prices.

   I decided I was only going to get Zoe one outfit from there and they were having a sale of 30% original priced items. Nothing in the clearance section was grabbing my attention and whatever did wasn't in Zoe's size. So I moved along to the regular priced stuff. I was going to get her an adorable jean romper that has butterflies all over it (I think I still might), but than another shopper pointed out this Dot Tank Top Set and I knew I had to get it for her.

   The shorts are separate so I'll be able to pair them up with another top if I want too. It's so simple but so darn cute! They have this Ruffly Swiss Dot Dress in Lilly's size that matches. Lilly loves dresses and I love to match the girls, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to buy it. It's marked down right now plus I have a coupon so its a win win (right? haha!).

   There are so many adorable new looks out for the summer right now. I know I'll be buying more stuff as it gets warmer and I'm expecting to have to buy a lot more for both come the middle of the summer. I just have this feeling they both wont fit into anything they have. Yay for growth spurts! said no parent ever. I'm going to try an hold out for Memorial Day weekend, all the best sales happen than.

   I hope you're having a good week so far and if you pick up anything for your Littles at a great deal let me know. Thanks for stopping by!!

XO,
 Nikki

Weekend Recap

Hi All!
  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! We were very busy this weekend, between birthday parties and being outside enjoying the weather. It's Spring vacation for Lilly this week and I've never been so happy to not have to rush around first thing this morning.

   Saturday was a beautiful day! Hitting a high of 73 (what, what?!?). Lilly had her best friend's, B (for privacy reasons I wont be sharing any names), birthday party on Saturday around lunch time. We pretty much just relaxed in the morning and than headed out to the party. The party was a ton of fun! It was at a place that has a rock climbing wall, bounce houses, and games. Lilly had her party there too and it's really just a good time for all the kids. They get to run and get all their energy out. Zoe LOVES the bounce house and there is a huge one that is meant to be an obstetrical course, well I probably did that with her about 50 times. No lie. Lilly was off running around with her friends, not a care in the world.

  
   After the party we went home, Zoe passed out and slept for about 2 hours (yay!) and Lilly and I went outside to play with her best friend B and his brother V, again (we are neighbors, it's pretty awesome). I could have used a nap myself, but we know that wasn't going to happen for me. Hubby was working on the lawn so he couldn't watch Lilly outside.  Lilly did more running around (where on earth do these kids get the energy?!), I sat and talked with my friend T (she's B and V's mom). Zoe finally woke up and joined us outside. There was no more sitting for me after that. After playing outside it was just a typical night in our house; dinner, baths, relaxing.
 
   Sunday was a lot cooler and not to exciting other than the birthday party later in the day for one of Lilly's other friends. She had her party at a place called Creative Getaway. It's a pottery painting and art class place. I never knew it was there, but I'm glad I do now. The little girl only invited the girls from her class so it wasn't a very big party and a lot calmer than B's the day before. Lilly had a blast, all though we need to work on her manners and not feeding into the older kids antics. She just wants to make people laugh and once you show her you think she's funny she just keeps going. She hasn't quite learned the art of stopping when your ahead. But other than that it was a great time. We found out that they will be starting paint nights for the adults there, so a couple of us Moms were talking about getting together on of the nights and doing it. I've always wanted to do one and I've becoming good friends with a lot of the mom's in Lilly's class. They are all so great.

Lilly paining her unicorn.

    After that party we went over to T's house to celebrate B's birthday with their family. They are awesome neighbors and friends. They have always included us in their family gatherings sinces we've moved here. Amazing people and we are so lucky to have them in our lives. One of the perks of being a military family, you move around a lot but you make some of the most amazing friends along the way.
  
   We were also there to celebrate T's sister running the Boston Marathon today. This is her second time running, her first time was the year of the bombing. She came in about 10 minutes before the bomb went off. Her whole family was originally standing right where the bomb went off but decided to meet her at the finish line when she passed them. We were suppose to be there too but we had to wait for our siding guy to come and look at our house. The whole thing was so scary and crazy. It's raining today and chilly, but I'm so proud of her for running again and doing this. I've always wanted to be a runner, but I just don't like it enough to motivate myself.

   So that was our weekend. Not anything extraordinary, I didn't buy anything new for myself or the girls. It was just our normal family weekend. I don't have a lot planned for this week, maybe I'll take the girls to the children's museum or a park as long as it's not raining and warm enough. I'm starting my diet and exercise program again today. It's not a specific program, I just start tracking my meals (I do flexible dieting), working out with my weights and doing some T25. It's getting warmer and I'm turning 30, I need to get this body in shape.

    I hope you all had a wonderful weekend, thanks for stopping by!

XO,
  Nikki
 

NYC Weekend (**very long post**)

Hi All!
  Sorry I haven't posted sooner, I'm still trying to recover from this past weekend. NYC was amazing, as expected. It went by too fast (doesn't everything when you've been so excited for it?). The girls and I laughed till we cried and ate till we couldn't button our pants. ;) We didn't do as much shopping as I thought we would, but that's more than okay. We all just enjoyed each other and the time we had.

 Waiting for my plane

   When I left Saturday morning everything went as planned, which I was super surprised. My flight leaving was about 20 minutes late to take off but we got into NYC 20 minutes early. I walked out of the airport and got into a taxi, which was actually an Uber car. I will say I was slightly nervous. I took pictures inside the SUV and sent them to the girls saying if anything happens these are the details, haha! It was so nice though! I felt like I had car service. And the traffic in was non existent, which is amazing for driving into Manhattan. I was at the hotel in about 30 minutes. Everything said it would be about an hour, but thankfully it didn't take that long. As with my flight and the taxi timing seemed to be everything on this trip.

driving into the city, It was a beautiful day.

   When I got to the hotel I met Jenn (more like running off the elevator and shrieking like 12 year old girls when we saw each other). After talking we decided to head to the Intrepid. Not only was it something for us to do while Sam and Jill were at IMATS but it was also about 5 piers away from where IMATS was being held. On our walk to the Intrepid Jenn and I saw a Welcome to NY sign:

We had to take a picture because its TSwift

   We went into the Intrepid and walked around. That Aircraft Carrier is HUGE! I love seeing things like that and how they had everything set up. They have a whole interactive area on the Carrier, so of course we went and played a little. We ended up catching a tour in the anchor room right before we left with this little old man explaining everything. I loved it, I actually didn't want to leave but Sam and Jill were done at IMATS and it was time to meet up with them. I couldn't wait to see those two!

Just relaxing in my rack

   Jenn and I left the Intrepid and walked down a few piers to meet the girls. Sam and Jill said IMATS was a mad house and that they will never go back. Disappointing, but I think it's time they start coming up with a better plan to organize this, it's just starting to get too big. A bunch of the Beauty Vloggers were not allowed in so they were taking pictures outside the venue. Which I found silly considering this thing has gotten so big because of them, but I digress. We arrived just in time to meet one of my favorites, Nicole Guerriero (again with the timing). We also saw Manny Mua and Patrick Star. I've only just started watching Manny, but he's one of Sam's favorites. We wanted a picture but their line was really long and we were starving. I was so hoping to meet Jaclyn Hill but she showed up later that day.

Us and Nicole

   From IMATS we headed to Shake Shack, YUM!! That place is just delicious. I got a chocolate shake, the cheeseburger and cheese fries. HEAVEN! We walked to Central Park, it's just down the street from the restaurant, and sat our happy butts down and ate.  We did this exact same thing 3 years ago, except we couldn't sit on the grassy area we had last time. So we took over a big rock. We did a lot of people watching and literally laughed till we cried. I wish I could share, but those are the fun secrets kept between friends.

Shake Shack Yummy-ness

hanging in Central Park

   After eating and just hanging we walked a little through Central Park, I've never done that and boy is it beautiful. We stopped at some shops on our way back to the Hotel, but didn't buy anything.

    Back at the hotel we relaxed for a little and tried to figure out where we were going to eat. We called down to the concierge and they set reservations for us at this Italian restaurant called La Masseria, it was about 2 blocks away from where we were staying. We got all fancied up and headed out. The food was AMAZING! It was so good we were still talking about it the next day. 

My beautiful Girl Friends and I

because there always has to be one silly face

   Sunday we all woke up before 6:30, go figure right. First night I'm away from the kids and I'm up at normal time. So we all got ready and headed out the door before 8. We stopped at Starbucks in Times Square; got my non-fat tiramisu latte and an almond croissant (if you haven't had one, you need to!). There was this awesome photo booth type thing in the Starbucks that let you take a picture and than email it to yourself. Well, I'm a little annoyed with Starbucks. We took two pictures, one on each of the cameras. I emailed them to myself and I never received them. BOOOOOO!! They came out so good and we never thought to take a picture with our phones. So now they are lost in la-la land. I'm literally just waiting for them to randomly show up one day.

 After that quick bite we walked around Times Square, took in the sites of the crazy people and walked into some stores that are right there. Around 10:30 we caught a cab to Soho where we went to our favorite restaurant, Sanctuary T, for brunch. It's an adorable little place that is mostly known for their teas. I will say their food wasn't as up to par as it had been 3 years ago. It wasn't bad, but I just remember it being amazing and all 4 of us agreed that it wasn't the same. The Sangria I got last time also wasn't available (2 for 2), I did get a Bloody Mary and it was good but extra spicy. Not my favorite. I'm really not talking up this place, am I? Well, even after this trip I will still recommend it to anyone that is going to the city. It's just an awesome little restauranteur to hang in. We also saw Ami James from MiamiInk and NYInk. We couldn't for the life of us figure out who he was, so I had to ask the waitress. She said his shop was around the corner and a lot of celebrities actually stop by there because of how low key it is. Our waitress, Jennifer, was a sweetheart. She started out a little rough, but after getting our drinks she was super sweet and totally awesome. I'm telling you, just go. I'll forever and always tell anyone to go there.

Yummies from Sanctuary T

   After that we walked down to the 9/11 Memorial. I'm from NY, I was in 10th grade when the towers fell and I didn't leave NY until I was 20. I had been to the city a handful of times and I never once made my way over to where the towers stood. We all agreed that we wanted to go see it. The Freedom Tour is amazing. Absolutely stunning. The fountains, where the Twin Towers once stood, are just as amazing if not more so. I got emotional, very emotional. Thank God for sunglasses. The feeling there is just so solemn; sad and heartbreaking. Yet you get a feeling of selflessness and patriotism. I remember everything about that day and to actually be standing there and seeing it as it is today was just over whelming. I looked around at all the people and the kids. It made me realize that kids today don't fully understand the magnitude of what happened. But I believe that same statement can be said for my generation and older about Pearl Harbor or even when President Kennedy was shot. You know the history, you know what happened, but unless you were alive to fully feel the effects, you will never really understand it. I was also a little stunned at the lack of respect that I was seeing. Listen, I'm all for a selfie but I found it incredible disrespectful of all the people taking selfies and smiling with the fountains in the background. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe my feelings are a little too deep. But when I'm fighting back tears reading these names on the wall and other people are smiling taking pictures, well I just can't wrap my head around how they think that's okay. There's a time and a place for a selfie, this isn't one of them. And than the people sitting on the walls of the fountains, UGH! I could go on, but I wont.

Freedom Tower

This was in the Museum, I took the picture from outside.

One of the fountains

   After that we decided we need a little pick-me-up and headed to Serendipity3. We were still pretty full from brunch and couldn't figure out what else to do. So why not eat?! Haha! We got into a cab and drove from downtown all the to the Upper East Side (I think it's on the Upper East Side). We got there at the perfect time, we waited less than a half hour and the host said its usually a 2 hour wait. Once again, timing was everything on this trip. This was dessert heaven!!! We only ordered two dessert between the 4 of us and we still couldn't finish them. The whole place is super cute and the desserts are just amazing. I really wanted to try their famous Frozen Hot Chocolate but I was a little cold and I knew there was no way I could take on all that chocolate. If you happen to ever be in NYC you have to check out Serendipity3.

Heaven in dessert form

End result

The ceiling in the restaurant

   After finishing our dessert we walked to 5th Avenue, than we headed back towards Times Square and stopped to get a slice of pizza. No pizza any where beats NY pizza. You will never be able to convince me differently. Never, ever. After pizza we went back to our hotel. It was about 6:30pm at this point (a looonnnngggg day!). Jenn had some issues with JetBlue, poor girl was so frustrated but it got figured out and she left at 8:30 to get to the airport in time for her flight. Sam, Jill, and I said goodbye to her and than headed out to get some Chipotle for dinner. We brought it back to our hotel room, ate, watched TV, packed and went to bed by 11. We were up at 4:30 to get a cab by 5:15 to the airport. I had to be dropped off first because I was on a different airline then Sam and Jill. It was a short and sweet goodbye. Half rushing, still half asleep. But once I got settled at my gate the emotions started flowing (and so did the sappy texts and Instagram pictures).

   You can only hope you meet at least 1 friend that just gets you in every way possible in your life time. I, some how managed to find 3. We all live in different areas, we are all in different stages of our lives, but yet when we are together its like we were never apart. I can't wait to see them all again. #JJSN

   Thanks for reading all the way the through, I know it was long.  If at any point you are going to be in NYC please check out all the places I mentioned, I promise you will love them all.

Xo,
  Nikki

Friday Favorite: Bakery Charms

Hi All!
   Happy Friday!! Yay for the freakin' weekend! I don't usually get overly excited about Fridays, I'm a stay at home mom so Saturdays and Sundays are no different than any other day. I know, such a problem to have, right? But this weekend is a whole different story for me. I feel like I'm 22 again! lol! Not really, but 22 was a fun age and its a TSwift song (yes, I love her). 
 
   Besides getting to have a girls weekend, I'm super excited to give my girl friends their gifts. These things are just adorable and since I'm excited to give them I figured they needed to be my Friday Favorite.  

   While on Instagram one day I some how (you know how it goes) came across Bakery Charms. The owner is Jenn (absolutely the sweetest!) and she hand makes everything! I WISH I had her talent. As the name states, Bakery Charms, all of her items are bakery items. She makes earings, necklaces, rings, bracelets, key chains, and probably anything else you can think of. For Easter she was making Peeps charms. Cuteness overload!! I honestly wanted one for me and my girls. The most amazing part about what she makes is the size of these charms and the detail of them. Every charms is literally no bigger than a quarter and the detail is just amazing. Here is one of her cupcake necklaces.

Picture C/O Bakery Charm's website

   Isn't that adorable?! I just don't understand how she does it.
 
   I wanted to buy something from her and thought getting key chains for my friends would be a great idea. Different, cute, and something "sweet" for three of the sweets ladies I know. So I asked my girl friends "if you walked into a bakery what would you get?",  but all three of them were no help in narrowing down a bakery item. One said a croissant, which to her defense is a bakery item but not what I was aiming for. So I moved on to their favorite cake pops. Jenn had 2 out of three already made, but I needed a chocolate on chocolate with pink sprinkles. I sent her an email, she responded quickly, with different options for the sprinkles, and for $2 more she made it custom for me. She was so professional and sweet. I had everything within 7 days. This was because I had one custom made, she said normally it's about 3 to 4 days from the date you order till it's in your mail box.  Here are my pictures of the cake pops I'm going to give my girl friends.

 

Chocolate on Chocolate with Pink "Sprinkles"

Birthday Cake Cake Pop

Red Velvet Cake Pop

   I love them! Lilly keeps asking me to keep one. I keep reminding her they are for her Aunt's, but I think for her birthday I'll have to order her one. I'm planning on giving these to them Saturday night when we are at Serendipity3 for dessert. What better time to give a dessert than at dessert? ;)

   If you are looking for something adorable, different, and fun I highly recommend Bakery Charms. Jenn's talent is pretty awesome and her customer services is fantastic. I hope you'll check out her store and you find something that you love! I don't really see how you can't. :)

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! Don't forget to follow me on Instagram to see what me and my besties are up to in the City. I'll see you all next week! Thanks for stopping by!

XO,
  Nikki

   

  

What's In My Bag: Girls Weekend

Hi All!
  I'm packing my bag for my girls trip this weekend and I thought I'd share what I'm bring for the three days.

   I'm not the best light packer, but I'm not planning on checking in any bags (stupid $25 per bag fee can kiss my you know what) so I have to make it work. And since it is a girls weekend this does make picking out outfits and what to wear a little trickery. You just never know exactly what you will need. #Girlproblems

   I leave Saturday morning and my intent is to get dressed for the day. I need comfy for the flight and something good to walk around the city in. So I'm going with a basic white long sleeve T, jeans, white chucks, and my blanket scarf. Easy, cute, and comfortable.
    We will be going out to dinner Saturday night so I have to pack something a little more dressy. It's the city, you have to dress up and go out to dinner if you are spending the night. It's a rule, I swear it. I'm packing this:

   Everything in the above picture is old, haha! I've had the pumps for at least 7 years, they are from Victoria's Secret. The leggings are just basic black leggings that I honestly don't know where I bought, and the tunic top I bought over the winter at Target. Now, if we stop at any stores on Saturday I'm going to keep my eye out for some leather (faux) leggings. These ones look good with the outfit, but leather would spice it up a bit, haha!

   Sunday is probably just going to be a lot of walking around, shopping, and eating. Again just something comfortable but cute. My bestie Jenn has to leave Sunday night (wahhh!) because she has to work Monday morning. So we'll be doing dinner and than saying goodbye. This is what I'm packing for Sunday.

Pants are American Eagle (my favorite jeans on the planet), tank is from Old Navy (last year), the sweater is about 2 years old and I think it's from NewPort News, the flats I just picked up from Target. I wore them all day last Saturday and they were so comfortable! Lets hope they hold up in the City.

   And than there's Monday, the day the rest of us have to leave (boo!) My flight is absurdly early Monday morning (gotta love the cheapest flights), so I'm packing for comfort. I might buy a New York Yankees hat while I'm there. I have a pink one, but I've always wanted the tried and true blue. Plus having a hat means no needing to worry about the hair. And since mine is short I can't just throw it up in a bun and call it a day. Either way I'm wearing leggings, a basic tunic length tank, a beige zip up and my white chucks. Cant get anymore comfortable and basic than that.

   I'm also packing a basic black and white t-shirt. just in case I need a shirt, you never know what can happen. So far it all fits in my bag, but I haven't even packed my cosmetics and hair tools yet. I'll make it fit though, I'm not paying the check in bag fee.Also, be sure to follow me on Instagram, I'll be going picture crazy on there this weekend. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Xo,
  Nikki
  

Easter Weekend Recap

Hi All!
  I hope you all had a wonderful Holiday weekend! Ours was busy, but in a good way.

  My in-laws came to visit on Friday and Lilly was SO excited when she saw them walk through the door. We didn't tell her because Lilly would have been asking every 2 minutes when Nanny and Pop-Pop are coming. It's a 7 hour drive (give or take) so not telling her was better for our sanity. We went to see the Easter Bunny at Bass Pro on Saturday but the line was about 2 hours long. So we just walked around. I just have to say, Bass Pro is amazing. Even if you buy nothing it's just fun to walk around and look at everything.
  We came back home after that, but Lilly really wanted to see the Easter Bunny so my Mother-in-Law and I took the girls to the Mall. Lilly was great, Zoe not so much. I'll save that story for another time, but I will say I was that Mom with that kid. I'm so grateful my Mother-In-Law was with me.
   After waiting for 30 minutes and Zoe having a meltdown, this is how the Easter Bunny visit turned out:
  

Easter Bunny Fail

  Pretty much standard. I did not purchase this. But this picture pretty much summed up the 45 minutes we waited. Zoe wanted to see the Bunny but once I put her down this is what she did. I did buy a picture of just Lilly though. Lilly loved the Easter Bunny so 1 out 2 ain't bad.

   After all that we made Easter dinner because my in-laws had to head back Sunday. After dinner and after Zoe went to bed, Lilly colored Eggs and made some Easter cupcakes with her Nanny. After Lilly went to bed I helped the Easter Bunny set up the baskets, a gift for my in-laws, and hide a few eggs.

   Sunday morning was great. Lilly was over the moon, Zoe doesn't get it yet still. But she loved the sunglasses that were in the basket. It's so much fun watching Lilly's face light up. I can't wait for next year when I'm pretty sure Zoe will actually understand it more. We had a nice breakfast Sunday morning and around lunch time said our good-byes. Time spent with my in-laws is always so great and when we have to say good-bye it always stinks. Just part of having to live so far away from family, but the good-byes are never easy.
 
   Sunday afternoon was spent with our friends (and neighbors) and their family. We are so blessed to have amazing neighbors who include us in on a lot of their family events. They put out over 300 eggs for 5 kids to collect. After that they count out who got the most eggs and give out prizes. All the kids got prizes but it's still so much fun for them and just an awesome thing they do.

    Now it's time for me to prep for NYC and make sure everything is in line at that house for when I'm gone. So excited! I really hope your weekend didn't have any Easter Bunny melt downs! Thanks for stopping by! 

Xo,

  Nikki 

Friday Favorite: YSL Volupte Tint-in-Oil

Hi all! Happy Friday!

  As you will get to know me you will learn that I love make-up. In fact the whole reason the girls weekend coming up was planned in NYC is because of IMATS (International Make-up Artist Trade Show- no I am not a make-up artist but they open the show up to the public on Saturday and Sunday). Much to my dismay, they sold out within a month so I wont be attending... whomp whomp whomp. But my two besties got tickets so they will supply me with my what I want, haha!
  I love make-up, it makes me feel pretty, girly and happy. In fact when I was little, my mom got me off my bottles by trading them for make-up. So this love of mine goes deep. But there is one piece of cosmetics that I never really got into, oddly enough, is lipstick and lip gloss. I wear lip gloss more than I do lipstick, but you'll sometimes see it on me as I leave the house and than 95% of the time you won't see it on me after it wears off. It's just never been one of my things. 

  When I do wear anything on my lips my typical go to color is a natural nude or a light pink tone. Just something to put on but doesn't attract too much attention. Within the last year I've become more daring and have started to wear both lipstick and lip gloss more and bolder colors. And by bolder I just mean reds. I figure since I'm almost 30 I'm old enough to wear a nice bold red, right? I know, my thought processes on this is strange but red always made me think of a mature older women. Not in a only my Grandma can wear red, but in the way that I just wasn't old enough to be wearing it. Does that even make sense? Not really, but I hope you get my what I'm trying to say.
   Anyways, my Friday Favorite is YSL Volupte Tint-in-Oil in Cherry My Cherie 5.  

This is by far the best lip gloss/oil I have ever used! Besides the applicator being absolutely adorable the application of the oil itself is so nice. As it states in the name, its an oil so it's not sticky like a lip gloss. Which is great because I hate that sticky feeling. Your hair gets stuck in it, you take a sip of anything and your sticky lip gloss is left on the cup. Yuck! This stuff goes on so smooth and doesn't leave behind any of that other stuff. Another plus is there is no strange smell or taste to it. Nothing will turn me off faster to a lip stick or gloss than the smell or taste. My lips are pretty pigmented as it is and this color just helps bring out my natural color a little more without being over baring.
     Here is a before and after of what this awesom-ness does. 

Before

After

  Sadly Cherry My Cherie is out of stock online, but if you have a Sephora local I'd see if the have it. Now I don't, wouldn't, and do find it a bit ridiculous to spend $32 on lip gloss. I have never done this before, but I'm telling you this is worth every penny! I don't think I've ever walked out of Sephora knowing I absolutely could not leave without a product. I can safely say this is a holy grail item for me. It took me a little while to figure out which color I wanted because they are honestly all gorgeous. I am planning on getting more, but at $32 a pop its only going to happen on a special occasion. Like this girls trip coming up. Just saying, there may or may not be another one of these bad boys in my bag when I come back home. 
   Let me know if you pick one of these up and which color. If you have a holy grail lip stick or lip gloss you think I might like let me know. I'm always interested in hearing about new products. :)
     
   As always, thanks for stopping by! I hope you all have a wonderful holiday weekend! 
        Xo,
         Nikki

DIY Spring Chocolate covered Pretzels

Hi All!
   This week Lilly was the Super Star at her school. Excited doesn't even begin to explain her enthusiasm about being picked. She couldn't stop talking about it! Being Super Star means she gets to tell her class a little bit about who she is. She gets to make a poster with pictures (let me just say I never realized how much of a control freak I was until I tried helping my 5 year old with a project...lots of deep breaths), bring in 3 of her favorite toys, a game for everyone to play, her favorite book to read and she gets to bring in a special snack for her class.    

    For her snack I wanted simple, cheap, tasty, fun, and minimal clean up for the teachers. I asked Lilly if she thought it would be a good idea to do chocolate covered pretzels like we did for her birthday party and she said "I think it's a great idea Mom!" So we made these yummy chocolate covered pretzels sticks.

 If you want to make some of these super easy and cheap treats this is what you'll need:

•  Pretzel Rods
•  Any colored chocolate melts (I used blue and orange-its what I had on hand- and got both at my local AC Moore)
•  Any colored and type of sprinkles you want
•  A microwave safe bowl to melt the chocolate in.
•  Cookie sheet and Parchment paper to lay the pretzels on to harden

 

And that's it. I dealt with the chocolate and Lilly handled the sprinkles. I melted my chocolate melts in a bowl for about 30 seconds at a time. After each 30 seconds I'd take it out and stir the chocolate. I did it on full power, which isn't what the directions say but I didn't have any problems. I'd say with the amount of melts I put in the bowl it only took about a minute for the chocolate to be fully melted.

 We used all of these sprinkles. I had the Sequins Flowers and the Sanding Sugar purple already. I picked up the three other ones from Target in their OneSpot (score for a $1 a piece!!) The green and the flowers got used the most. After doing a few I kind of realized what looked best, but Lilly got to do what she wanted (with a little helpful advice from Mom, *cough* control freak Mom *cough*).

Lilly had fun with the sprinkles

Working hard

Lilly proud of her work

  After we finished I was trying to figure out a way to get these to her school without just putting them in a Ziploc. I mean, we took our time to make something fun and cute. We don't want to present it in any old way. I remembered that I had picked up some festive Spring/Easter baggies from Target's OneSpot (again!! Only a $1 for 20!! Man I love that place.) So I grabbed the bags and a bag of jelly beans I had bought for Easter and Lilly and I put these little goodies together.

Super Star Snack

  This was so easy and inexpensive to put together. Even with Zoe pulling at me or trying to climb a chair every 5 minutes, it only took us about an hour and half to do everything. You can make these for any type of event, holiday or just a treat to have at home. I mean, lets be honest here, salty and sweet is never a bad combo. Ever.
    Well, thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed it!

  XO,
  Nikki