Weekend Links


You guys! It's been so long since I've done a Weekend Links post and I'm really excited to share one today. I hope you enjoy what I've put together.

Just 20% of Republican women want to see a female president.

Are you planning on seeing the Fifty Shades movie?

Yes: Stop complaining about the 'January People' at the gym...

How to avoid gossip in a small town.

Problems Carrie Bradshaw would never, ever have today.

15 places that should be on your travel bucket list.

I always enjoy reading Megan's Currently posts.

Growing Up Meant Learning How to Wear Red Lipstick.

"But Swift, who loves to do things like surprise fans with Christmas gifts and give them cash for dinner, seems less interested in actual female collaboration and partnership than the appearance thereof."

I can't wait to see this movie. And this new Netflix series!

I love this so much. It makes me sad that I don't see people reading "real" books as much anymore. I use my Kindle about 85% of the time myself, so perhaps I should work on picking up a paper book more often.

And finally, to fall in love with anyone, read this.  And to fall out of love, do this...

Have a great weekend! xoxo
 

Right Now.


It's winter right now and we wake up in the dark, a tiny sliver of light sometimes coming through the bedroom windows, the moon still visible if the clouds are low. Our mornings are as full as ever as we get ourselves and the boys ready for the day, the hustle and bustle of those first hours feeling so comfortable as we all busy ourselves with the usual breakfast-making, lunch-packing, and toy-playing. It's cold outside, so we spend more times indoors, which can make for long days when it's snowy or rainy or the winter wind blows a little too cold. It's so cozy though, and as much as I have been longing for warmer weather there's something about big comfy blankets and warm, wooly socks and movie marathons that satisfy something in my mama heart. Our right now is one baby walking (no, running!) everywhere and learning new words every single minute. The constant chatter and the non-stop exploring and the always-opening, pushing, pulling- it's amazing to watch. Tiring in our adult world at times but it's fascinating to be here as this little person become a bigger person right before our eyes. And Henry, he is growing like a weed. On quiet days sit him down with a numbers book or a word search and he'll be occupied for a good 30 minutes, until it's time to run-run-run again. Skateboarding is on his mind the most, and watching him learn the basics and add more to what he can do every time he's out there has been such a delight, and a bit scary too, but he's spreading his wings and for that I'm more excited than anything. Right now is about family. It's our unit of four but also my sister and Lucy, and my parents. It's going through hard times but being there for each other, knowing that this immediate circle of us, this circle is solid and our love is a safe haven for those of us that need it. Right now is about growth and change. We're getting better, always trying to be better, and I think that has been so important for us- never stopping, always asking how I can do this more efficiently, be kinder to each other, make better choices. Right now is for planning family trips in the spring and summer, getting excited about all the places we haven't yet been. It's for working hard at being intentional in all areas of our life; being present and there for the people who need us. It's for seeing little bits of spring on those special warm days, tiny little buds poking up that remind us that there is more coming- just hold onto each other, stay close during the storm, and before you know it sunshine will be pouring into every corner of our life. We've got this.

January Favorites


[a favorite January outfit]
 
As we wrap up January I thought it would be fun to share a random list of some of my favorite things from this past month. If I received the product for free I put a little * next to it, but by no means am I writing about it because I have to- these are truly things I’ve been loving and I want to share with all of you!

1. Two Natalie-recommended beauty products

I decided to put these two things into one because they’re both items my friend Nat recommended to me! She’s my go-to beauty guru and always finds and uses the best stuff. The first thing is Tokyo Milk’s "Let Them Eat Cake" perfume. I used her solid version oft this on a recent girls’ trip and fell in love. It smells SO good and the scent didn’t bother me at all like some perfumes do, so I ordered the liquid version as soon as I got home and I’ve been so happy with it. Next is Dior’s Addict Extreme lipstick in Sunset Boulevard. I tried on Natalie’s and felt like it brightened my face right up. It’s a really pretty color- not too red and not too loud, so you can wear a light application for day time, or heavier for nighttime. The consistency is great too- a little glossy and not drying at all. Super pretty. 


So I try to wash my hair every 3 days or so- anymore and my hair is way too “clean” too often which I hate. This cream has been a really awesome addition to my hair routine. I feel like it gives me more body and more shine while at the same time holding my curl/waves a little better. I’ll use it after I spray CatWalk’s Root Boost at my roots- I’ll simply squeeze out a small amount into my palm (like a quarter-sized amount) and work it through root to ends, then blowdry. 


I never knew I needed a pair of wireless headphones until I got them and now I feel like I can never go back. These are the BEST. I use them while I’m working and writing, while I’m lifting, when I’m traveling, you name it. I would say the most convenient thing for me has been the working out aspect. It’s so nice to not have a cord in the way while I’m lifting weights. The battery life is also super long which is a huge plus for traveling. Earphones (both in ear and over ear) have a tendency to bother my small ears but these are very, very comfortable. They are definitely on the pricey side- I got mine via a killer Black Friday deal- but if you’re in the market for new headphones and these are in your budget I can’t recommend them enough!


I haven’t ever been a leggings girl. I always felt weird, like a version of my 1980s self with leopard print leggings, a baggy shirt with one of those plastic shirt clips to one side, and a scrunchie in my hair. And although I wear “legging” type pants for working out, as far as everyday wear I just couldn’t do it. But before my New York trip last week I really wanted to wear something super comfortable on the plane so in a moment of “fine I’ll try them” I purchased a pair of the Zellas. And WOW! I’m totally a convert. I do love my Lululemon, but I love that these are a cheaper option with similar quality.

5. Individual Organic Wholly Guacamole cups from Costco.

See? I told you this list was random! These little cups have been the BEST thing ever. For $11.75 you get 20 100-calorie portions of avocado. 100 calories sounds like such a small amount, but it’s actually a great size and is perfect for one person. I use them for everything- along with chips for a snack, in a salad, as a side dish to my breakfast, you name it. I love that I don’t have to gamble with “bad” avocados and although nothing really beats a fresh one, these are a great convenience. 

Enjoy! xo

Currently.


Reading: I've made it a goal to read every night before bed. I always feel better when I end my days looking at the pages of book instead of my computer or phone, so I have a nice little stack of novels (both virtual and paper) next to our bed. There are a couple from this list, but I also picked up The Circle by David Eggers and No One Belongs Here More Than You by Miranda July. Have you read either?

Thinking about: So I've talked about it a couple of times and it's in my Instagram bio, but some of you might not know that I went back to work this past summer as the Social Media Coordinator for Ergobaby and Orbit Baby. I work remotely so it allows me to still stay home with the boys which I am incredibly grateful for. It's interesting though, because if you've been reading Sometimes Sweet for awhile you know that I used to say that I never wanted to go back to work! It's funny how we get these ideas in our heads of what we are supposed to be doing or how things are supposed to be, but then those things shift. I really enjoy what I do, and as busy as I am now it's been the best thing. It just still makes me smile to myself to think I foolishly said "never ever." Yet another lesson learned.

Listening: So I had to open up my Spotify and take a look at a few of the playlists I've been listening to. I have a mix I put on whenever I'm blogging or working, and it includes these three albums all in a row- Little May's Little May, Dustin Tebott's Bones, and Explosions in the Sky The Earth is Not a Cold Dead Place. I've super particular about what I listen to when I'm writing, but these three albums never bug me and put me in a good place! Really any Explosions in the Sky is my main go-to writing music, but this album in particular is one of my favorites. Some other current albums in heavy rotation: Childish Gambino's Camp, Hozier's Hozier, and The Gaslight Anthem's Get Hurt.

Watching: Parenthood. No spoilers, I promise, but oh my goodness I’m so sad the show is ending. I know every show has to end at some point but I’m so not ready- I feel like we need a few more seasons to wrap everything up. I haven’t had too much time to watch television but I have made time for my favorite ridiculously silly show, The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. It’s almost embarrassing how much I enjoy all of the Housewives shows, but I especially love this one. My favorite would have to be Lisa Rinna. Is anyone else watching this season? She’s just such a breath of fresh air and I love her! And on the topic of shitty television, I tried to watch The Bachelor again this season and after the first episode I was really excited that maybe I could get into it again...but I just can't do it. I think maybe the Bachelor ship has sailed for me. Sad!

Planning: Hank and I have been planning our hikes and camping trips for this spring and summer and I'm really excited. Last year we spent so many of our weekends outdoors and nothing makes us happier. We have a couple really special trips planned for this spring both in and out of Arizona and as much as I'm trying to enjoy this cold weather now, I'm really looking forward to it warming up a bit. Once we complete our list, maybe I'll share it here too in case you're local and want to check out some of our favorite hikes, or explore some new places too.

Loving: being in LA right now and this amazing "winter" weather, learning new things at work, Facetiming with the boys when I'm gone and coming home to them when I'm away, tons of sister time, watching Henry skateboard, finding new, inspiring IG accounts to follow, reading nonstop, eggs and bacon for breakfast, Charlie and his every-growing vocabulary, and long car rides with Hank.

So, how about you? What are you up to today? Feel free to do your own "Currently" post on your blog and link back in the comments for everyone to check out.

A Long Weekend in Brooklyn

Whenever I spend time with Emily, it's never enough! In our much younger years (11 years ago!) we would spend days and days together, sleepovers and early morning breakfasts and late night adventures all blending into the fabric of some of my most favorite memories, and one of my most favorite summers. And now we're adults. Wives. Mamas. And it's so neat to share this stage of life together- to see each other for who we were and who we've been, and to have changed and evolved over time and still found ourselves the closest of friends. I feel very lucky.

So this past weekend I spend five days with Em and Jesse...and their new daughter, Penny in Brooklyn! It was such a treat to meet Penny and soak up so much baby time. She is the cutest little thing- a tiny bundle of smiles and laughs and the biggest, brightest eyes. We did so much in my short visit- we visited with upstate friends, explored Brooklyn, ate delicious food, met up with some favorite internet mamas, watched the McGregor fight Sunday night, and in our usual fashion, even took some workout classes. Have you ever tried Soul Cycle? That was one of the classes we took and it was AWESOME. I wish we had one in our town!

As usual the weekend whirled by way too fast, but at least I have some fun iPhone photos from the trip to remember it by. I hope you enjoy them too! xoxo

5 Reads for January


Happy January, happy Tuesday, happy 2015! Yeah! I thought it would be fun to share few things on my to-read or have-read bookshelf (virtual or otherwise) this month, and continue to do so throughout this next year. I hope you'll enjoy this monthly feature. Happy reading!


1. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory

My father-in-law is a mortician/owner of multiple funeral homes, and Hank grew up in and around a funeral home, so I've always been fascinated with this kind of stuff- very My Girl, right? haha. Anyway, I just started this book and I'm loving it. I can't give any sort of review because I'm at the beginning, but so far, so good. Read this little bit from Amazon and tell me you aren't intrigued, too! Most people want to avoid thinking about death, but Caitlin Doughty—a twenty-something with a degree in medieval history and a flair for the macabre—took a job at a crematory, turning morbid curiosity into her life’s work. Thrown into a profession of gallows humor and vivid characters (both living and very dead), Caitlin learned to navigate the secretive culture of those who care for the deceased. Get it and read it along with me!

2. Wild

I almost feel silly recommending this book because hello, who hasn't?! In fact, I recommended it years ago when I first read it. This past week I'd been re-reading as a refresher and goodness, I was reminded of just how much I love it. Then Sunday I went and watched it in the theater and now I really can't recommend both the book and movie enough! I thought the film did the story justice is almost every way, and I walked out of the theater feeling sad and happy and inspired and alive. To me, that's pretty perfect. And as I've gotten older one of my main interests has become the outdoors- hiking, trail running, exploring- and this book totally makes me want to lace up my hiking shoes and hit the trail. It also makes me want to crawl up in bed with my laptop and write, write, write. It's just a really inspiring book, and even though it's completely all over due to the movie, it's one of those picks that absolutely does live up to the hype!

3. Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar

This book has the same author as Wild, Cheryl Strayed, and I can't say enough great things about it. It's part-memoir, part self-help, part something totally different, and I love that because it's a collection of different letters you're able to put the book now and come back to it whenever you'd like. It's the perfect bedside choice to read a bit of every evening before bed. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll relate to bits and pieces of stories that you didn't think you'd relate to. You'll find yourself feeling for the people asking for advice, and wanting to recommend this book to all of your friends, too. A must-read.

4. A Cook's Tour: In Search of the Perfect Meal

So I really love Anthony Bourdain. And I really love traveling. And who doesn't love food? Put it all together and you've got this book, which I'm extremely excited to dive into this weekend. It was recommended by no less than four friends over the course of a couple months, so I took it as a sign I should probably just commit. It looks great, and like it would be a great read for anyone who's interested in any of those things I mentioned above...which basically means that pretty much anyone should love it. It has 200 almost perfect reviews on Amazon so I don't think my prediction is too far off...but I'll keep you posted.

5. We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves: A Novel

Okay this is weird but I don't know anything about this book. At all. A girlfriend suggested I read it but told me not to read any of the synopses or reviews, so I didn't and now it's waiting for me on my nightstand to begin as soon as I can. This friend is generally right on when it comes to book recommendations so I'm taking her word for it. And you should too- in that whole "a friend of a friend told me it was good!" kinda way.

What else is on your to-read or have-read list this month?

Christmas 2014

I wanted to share a few photos from our holidays this year before I totally forgot about it. Although to be honest it feels like a blur way back in my memory already, even though it's only been a couple of weeks! I'm someone who really does love all the hustle and bustle of November and December, but once the New Year hits I find it SO relieving and almost exciting that it's smooth sailing until spring.

This year's Christmas was low-key and great. We celebrated with three sets of grandparents plus our own little family, so it was busy, but really wonderful. I'm still not sure if seeing the boys' faces light up as they run out to the tree early in the morning will every get old- Christmastime with kids is the best.

I hope you and yours had a wonderful, magical holiday season as well!

xoxo


This Home Of Ours


I've been writing this post in my head for a few weeks, thinking about the past year and the things I've learned. There's so much to say- there always is! But I think 2014 been one of the most interesting years I've had in awhile, because lots of what I thought to be true shifted in one way or another. That's a good thing, I think. If we're not growing and changing we're pretty much stuck in the same place, right? And I hope I'm always changing and adapting to what's around me- growing from mistakes, moving forward from where I am, and constantly looking at myself and asking "how can I be better?"

It's interesting sharing things here for so long- really, you've all grown up and changed right along with me over the past eight years (thank you). I started Sometimes Sweet in my early twenties and now I'm in my early thirties. That's a LONG time and a huge span of some very transformative years. If you've been reading since the beginning you know a lot about me from these bits and pieces I share; you might have started reading when I was a newlywed, still a teacher, just beginning to fill up these pages with little stories from our life. Maybe you came aboard when I was pregnant for the first time, post after post chronicling that first baby bump, my mind always going going going, all worries and wonder and excitement. You might have come and gone, as I changed and you changed. The years have flown, haven't they? And now here we are, almost eight years later, an entire blog filled up with this story of my life. I post less, I know that. Last month I posted only eight times. That's the season of our life right now, though. Sometimes blogging.

Blogging is changing; it has changed, both for me and for everyone else too. With the insta-world right there, it's easier to put thoughts there, to fill up those little squares with all of the things I would normally share here. And as life gets busier, I find that blogging slips down on my ladder of priorities. It's okay though, although it does make me sad at times- when I don't blog for awhile a little tiny part of my world feels a bit empty. I promised myself last year though, only the good stuff. If I don't have something I really want to share, don't fill up pages to fill it; quality over quantity whenever and wherever I can. I started this blog or fun, and although over the years it's changed and evolved into other things, the reason for this space is still the same- because I love to write (need to write!) and this place is my online home.

So that's where I am. Home. Times are changing, the world seems to be moving faster and faster, but as that happens all I want to do is go slower and slower. To take time and sit and write. To call a friend instead of text. To go on long walks with Hank and the boys. To tell you some stories I haven't told you before over a cup of tea, you on that side of the screen, me on mine. Enjoy these days as they flutter on by, find beauty in the simplest of things. Slow. Intentional.

As I was writing this I got a sense of goodbye- did you feel that? I think sometimes when you're at the edge of something it can feel like that. Is this the beginning? Or the end? For me this it is the beginning, I know that. As I move forward I want to continue to be present here, maybe eight posts a month, maybe eighteen, but as life moves on and our story evolves, I want to turn the page and continue. So that's what I'll do. Turn the page, tell our story, write these words, continue to capture the little bits of our life in the best way I know how here in this online home of mine (ours).  And I hope you'll be here too.

Here's to 2015, and a lot more of this, and you, and me. I'm excited.


I can't help but use this photo for the 1000th time- I love it so much! Credit: Lauren Ristow