Tuesday Musings...Because Monday Was Not Happening

How was everyone's 4th of July weekend???

Ours was great....oh man, I definitely went a bit overboard considering being 32 and having 3 kids. I have realized I, for sure, am not 21 anymore. My husband and I were off all day Friday so after a morning of trying to get some weekend chores out of the way, we took the kids to the pool.

I also had plans to go celebrate my good friend, Anne's, birthday that night. We had an amazing time...drinking, dancing and I did not get home to bed until around 2:30am...

...and mind you we still had the actual 4th of July to celebrate. It was definitely hard to summon the energy, but we got to the beach at 10am {to beat traffic} and then to our friend's pool party on Isle of Palms at 2pm and didn't get home until close to 9pm. I could not believe I did all of that without a nap {keep in mind, all 3 kids were with us the whole time!}

Hope y'all have a great week!

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Five on Friday ::: Labor Day Edition

Hello Loves!

I'm sure y'all are looking forward to the 3-day weekend as much as I am. It's also a little sad though...with Labor Day weekend, I realize that the pool time opportunities left are very few, soon the beach will not favor laying out in a bikini and the days will soon seem shorter with daylight losing minutes and minutes with each passing day.

BUT, I also REALLY love fall...I think now that I live in Charleston, SC, fall has become my favorite season. It's when the temps are most ideal 'round these parts. So for my 5 on Friday, I am going to share five things I'm looking forward to with fall on the horizon.

{ONE}
Fall fashion...need I say more, really? Scarves, boots, leggings, cute sweaters and blazers...oh the options are endless! I love love love getting dressed each day when it's fall. I've been pinning a lot of fall outfit inspiration to my fashion Pinterest board the last couple of weeks. Here is one of my faves:

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{TWO}
BBQs! Not that you can't do these in the summer though. But with football kicking off, the BBQs are more common and again, the weather is just better for it. We are hosting a small BBQ with close friends tomorrow evening. Hubby just bought this huge charcoal/propane grill and he's super-excited to host a BBQ.

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{THREE}
Outdoor workouts are going to be much nicer. The warm autumn breeze is much better than this summer humidity. Tanner starts baseball in a couple weeks on Tuesday & Thursday nights, and it's right by the Ravenel/Cooper River Bridge, so Breckin and I will be able to walk/jog the bridge while we wait for his practices to end. Speaking of the bridge, got a chance to jog it this AM - here are some gorgeous pics I took:

{FOUR}

I love fall festivities and events. I've got a couple 5Ks - including the Susan G. Komen in October. I of course love the Boone Hall Pumpkin Patch - it's always so fun to take the boys to - corn maze, hay ride and so many other fun things. 

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{FIVE}

And lastly, though it doesn't necessarily have anything to do with fall, it will be happening for us this fall, and that is yet another trip to Disney World. I'm almost mad at how spoiled my kids are in that regard. Nana & Papa surprised us with a trip for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. The boys are soooo excited. This will be Tanner's 3rd time and Breckin's 2nd. If you count me being pregnant with Breckin on our first trip, well then, it's technically his 3rd too. After all, he did {technically} go on all the rides I went on. These couple videos of Breckin meeting Mickey Mouse this past June are priceless:

Happy Labor Day weekend, y'all!

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Monday Musings

Hey y’all! Hope you had a great weekend celebrating our nation’s freedom! I was blessed with a 4-day weekend {let’s be honest, I made that shit happen…no way was I going to work my 4am shift at the gym on Friday. I gave that away. Ain’t no one got time fo’ that.}

4th of July was great – we went to a pool party at a house a block from our spot at the beach, then when it came time, we walked down the boardwalk to get the boys some ice cream and then headed out to the sand to lay out a blanket and sit and watch the big fireworks show. The boys really enjoyed it. {Aside from the fact my husband had to go tell some obnoxious, cursing, crude drunk guys to watch their mouths because they were in mixed company – kids/families, etc. – thankfully it didn’t start any sort of fight, but I’m glad he had the guts to do the right thing for everyone else trying to enjoy the show with their little ones. I can’t believe some people sometimes – no class, no clue; just plain stupid.}

Anyway, I believe I spent Friday catching up on some chores around the house so I could concentrate on enjoying the rest of the weekend. But the boys and I made popsicles out of frozen berries and yogurt {will share that recipe on here with you soon} and they did a bit of running around in the sprinkler, despite the rainy weather. {If you’re already wet from a sprinkler, what’s a little rain?} I also finally managed to find some great pillows for my patio at Kohl’s! They are perfect. I can’t wait to finally reveal this patio makeover on here. Hubby and I sit out there at night a lot now and chat over wine. It’s a nice end to our sometimes crazy-hectic days.

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On Saturday, Hubby worked because he has a lot going on right now to keep up on, so I took the boys to Splash Zone at James Island County Park with my friends Bill & Suz and their kids. It was a great water park – first time I had been to it.

We started off Sunday with church and headed out the beach after that. Once we got home, Suz invited us over for pool and BBQ fun, so we did that too. Gotta love impromptu dates with friends.

And that brings us to Monday – back to the reality of five-day work weeks. And man, have I got to get back on track! I’m sipping a protein shake made out of nothing but a scoop of vanilla whey, Greek nonfat yogurt and frozen berries as I’m writing this. I had a major “fat” week last week…just felt pudgy…and it didn’t help that my bosses were in town treating me to lunch every day. So with that and then the holiday weekend eating and drinking, well, I’ve got to lock it up. And if you’re feeling the same way, I invite you to head over to The Gym Bunny, my fitness blog, and join in on the Pinterest Fitness Board Challenge I just launched today. I hope you’ll like it and join in on the challenge. Check it out!

Happy Monday!

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Independence.

 

I want to extend a huge "thank you" on this Independence Day to the servicemen and women that have made our freedom in our country possible and continue to fight for that freedom every day. Thank you to my husband, Jake, who proudly serves with the USCG, going on 10 years soon.  It is a huge sacrifice to be away from those you love, to risk your life for others and to do the right thing. May all of those that serve and have served know how very important and appreciated they are.

And as for the rest of you, have a safe and happy holiday weekend!

 

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My Week on Instagram

I'm linking up with Mama Kat's Writing Workshop this week and here is the prompt I chose out of the five offered:

5.) Your week in Instagram photos!

So here goes! {If you already follow me on Instagram, well then lucky you, you get an extra dose of my insta-awesomeness!}

Arm party I showed off this Memorial Day weekend...and also wearing again today!

Cutie McPuppy {aka Sugar} sunbathing with me on the back deck when I was sans kiddos on Saturday...

Enjoying the pool sans kiddos while Daddy had them out fishing with Papa and Uncle Jesse for Memorial Day weekend. It was bliss...

 

 And a Memorial Day weekend sunset...

Guess I wasn't super-Insta-crazy this past week! I'll do better next! xoxo

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Memorial Day Weekend Recap & Skincare in Your 30s

Wow...coming off a long weekend and heading back to work can prove difficult. For starters, my hair looks like this today:

And I'm not sorry.

It was a great weekend. Jake's brother, his wife and kids came to town and all of the boys went fishing with Papa up at Lake Moultrie both Saturday and Sunday. This made for a lot of free time for Momma. I spent it at the pool mostly. So while my boys were out looking like this:

My view was pretty much this:

I got to do a lot of reading on my Kindle - really enjoying The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin. And I've got a hint of a tan now...been wanting to get a little base started before we head to Florida in less than two weeks. I'm using SPF though...don't worry...so it will probably be a while before I have any good color. I just really don't want to burn myself in order to get color anymore - the risks are so not worth it. This is what I'm using - SPF 12 was the highest I could find in a tanning dry oil {please let me know if you know of another that is higher!} So I just reapply often.

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I took the boys to the pool late Sunday afternoon after they got back from fishing and then again on Memorial Day. We avoided the beach as the tourist traffic is just insane and getting to the beach could take over an hour...not to mention also when you were ready to head home from the beach. Just not worth it - we can go anytime.

I went to Target on Saturday to get some skincare products to add to my regimen. Megan of Style Me Swanky had some great products to suggest and I definitely wanted to try a few. She said she has combination skin, so I thought what worked for her might also work for me. I really want the Clinique items she is using because I have always loved Clinique, but I only had time to get to Target, so I may just order them online from Sephora.

Here's what I did purchase:

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This foaming gel cleanser by L'Oreal looked promising. I had not heard of it before, but when I read the back and it seemed pretty gentle and was what I needed to get my makeup off at the end of the day, I decided to give it a go. So far so good. It doesn't irritate my skin and it gets all of my makeup off without a problem.

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Megan had recommended this facial cleanser by Neutrogena. I'm reading The Honest Life by Jessica Alba, so I've been a little more careful about choosing products with the least chemicals in them, so this definitely fit that description. I use it after I remove my makeup with the L'Oreal cleanser. To apply it, I wet my face, neck and decolletage with warm water and then use this:

{source}

Megan uses the Clarisonic, but I didn't have the means to spend that much on a face care item at the moment, so I opted for this one I found by Acne Free. It was only $14.99 and came with 2 removable brush heads. So far, I really like it and my face feels really clean after using it. My pores are looking a lot cleaner. All it takes is a pea-sized amount of the cleanser applied on the brush head and it thoroughly cleanses all of those areas.

After that step, I pat dry and then using a cotton ball, I apply a light layer of pure grapeseed oil. This was a tip I read about weeks ago and I really like the results so far. My face seems clearer and brighter...and the fine lines are less harsh.

Now that I'm 30, I know it's a good idea to start using a retinol product. Megan suggested this one by Neutrogena, so I picked it up:

{source}

A little dab goes a long way. I've been using it every night so far, but it does say if it starts to irritate, to go to once every other day. So I'll let you know if I have to do that.

Then lastly, the night cream I've been using for a couple weeks now is L'Oreal's Revitalift. I have no complaints so far.

{source}

So that's my new nightly skincare routine. I'll let you know how I like it in a few weeks after I have a chance to hopefully see some positive results. I will say though, in just the couple of days I've been doing this regimen, my skin looks a lot smoother, brighter and clearer. My pores are definitely cleaned out! I'm hoping to see some improvement in the "crow's feet" and expression lines I've started noticing the last couple of years.

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Memorial Day Weekend

While I of course want you all to have a very happy and fun-filled Memorial Day weekend, I wanted to pay tribute to what this "holiday" truly stands for. Please honor and think of all those that have lost their lives fighting for our rights and freedoms...those that have survived...and those that are still fighting. And don't forget their loved ones who go through so much so our soldiers can do what duty calls them to do.

I have a little something to spill...I think I'm going to start a fitness blog...again. I know, I know...I really just need to make up my mind already. But I've got a new angle and I'm working on getting some things ready before the official launch. Bottom line is that fitness is really important to me, and for whatever reason, when I'm blogging about something, I tend to be even more about it than I already am {like seriously, I never shopped so much in my life before Style Oyster}. And right now what I need is to get fitness-focused. So I guess I'm just going to go for it. I'll be sure to let you know when it launches...and I hope you'll become a follower there too. xoxo

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Labor Day Weekend

Happy Labor Day Weekend...Hope it's fabulously relaxing and exactly the opposite of labor.

Gawd, I'd love to get my beach cruiser out to the beach this weekend...maybe, just MAYBE I can.

And girl got paid yesterday {woot woot} so I plan on hitting up some fun Labor Day sales...oh yes.

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Enjoy your weekend. xoxo.

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