Five on Friday - April 29, 2022

Let's hear it for Friday!  We are so darn happy to see this week come to an end because we are heading to the beach first thing in the morning.  I'm so looking forward to a few days of rest and relaxation.  Before we hit the road, let me share my five for today ~

1.  Ozark Season 4, Part 2

Are you ready to wrap up the Ozark series?  The remaining seven episodes of part 2 are dropping today!  I see some binge-watching in my near future.  I'm so anxious to see how the story will end with Marty, Wendy, and the kids.  This has been a great show and I think they are ending it at the perfect time.  The story is still intriguing and they're going out before they run it into the ground.  

2.  Alton Brown Good Eats 4

I'm such a sucker for good cookbooks and a good one came at this week.  The fourth and final Alton Brown Good Eats was released this week.  Here's the summary from Amazon ~

An all-new collection of must-have recipes and surprising food facts from Alton Brown, drawn from the return of the beloved Good Eats television series, including never-before aired material

This long-anticipated fourth and final volume in the bestselling Good Eats series of cookbooks draws on two reboots of the beloved television show by the inimitable Alton Brown—Good Eats Reloaded and Good Eats: The Return. With more than 150 new and improved recipes for everything from chicken parm to bibimbap and cold brew to corn dogs, accompanied by mouthwatering original photography, The Final Years is the most sumptuous and satisfying of the Good Eats books yet.

Brown’s surefire recipes are temptation enough: the headnotes, tips, and sidebars that support them make each recipe a journey into culinary technique, flavor exploration, and edible history. Striking photography showcases finished dishes and highlights key ingredients, and handwritten notes on the pages capture Brown’s unique mix of madcap and methodical. The distinctive high-energy and information-intensive dynamic of Good Eats comes to life on every page, making this a must-have cookbook for die-hard fans and newcomers alike.

3.  Beach Resort Candle

Last year when we were at Disney, we stayed at the Beach Club Resort.  Every time we entered the hotel, the scent was absolutely amazing!  When we got home, our daughter-in-law gifted me this candle that smelled exactly like the hotel!  She found it on the Magic Candle Company site and they have lots of other scents too.  I love it so much I'm taking it on vacation with me this year so our condo has that beach resort smell.  

4.  Wax Seal Stickers

Invitation season is upon us.  There are all those weddings and showers coming up!  If you're involved in any of the invitation preparations, look at these wax seal stickers.  I love them!  I also love pulling down the lid to our mailbox and having a pretty envelope waiting for me inside.  These make dressing up envelopes pretty effortless.  

5.  How I feel...

Have a fantastic weekend!  We're getting away for a few days and I'm giddy with excitement.  Pop in next week to see where we are.

2022 Spring Mantel

Hello friends - thanks for stopping by!  Welcome to Thinking Out Loud Thursday where I share something on my mind and invite you to link up and do the same.

Today I'm sharing our mantel decorations.  There's always this lull between taking down the Easter decorations and the next holiday we decorate for, which is the Fourth of July for us.  I popped in Hobby Lobby looking for some inspiration and boy did I find it!  I thought maybe I'd find a thing or two to add to some of the items we already had, but I ended up filling my cart with all new stuff and I'm not even sad about it.

It started with this large affirmation piece saying to choose kindness.  It was on clearance and I got it for a steal.  

Come to find out, many of their affirmation pieces were on clearance so I added a few more to my cart.

Next, I went in search of a pop of color.  The biscuit barrel was a little deceiving.  It looks ceramic, but it's really metal.  Which equates to it not being as breakable.  In the cart it went!

The candlesticks were the height I knew I'd needed to balance that end of the mantel.  The opposite end is home to a new glass jar full of willow branches.  

It honestly took me longer to take the tags off my new purchases than it did to put the mantel together.  We love the way it turned out and I'm in no hurry to change the decorations any time soon.

Now it's your turn - what are you thinking out loud about today?  Link up and share!

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Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop - April 27, 2022

 Hi friends!!! Welcome to this week’s Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop! We're so excited that you're here!

Here you will find inspiration from dozens of bloggers including recipes, home DIY, gardening, decor, family fun, traveling, fitness, and so much more.

A friendly reminder to our guests that as a courtesy to the hosts, we ask that you follow every host on at least one social media channel.

If you are a blogger, then be sure to link up below. You may be our next feature!

Before we get this party started, let's meet the hosts and check out this week's featured favorites.

Meet The Hosts

Please follow the hosts on at least 1 social media channel!

1. Ahna - HAMMERS N HUGS | FB | IG | PINTEREST
2. Anne & AnnMarie - SIMPLY 2 MOMS | FB | IG | PINTEREST
3. Angela - THE SHORT ORDER COOK | FB | IG | PINTEREST
4. Bev - ECLECTIC RED BARN | FB | IG | PINTEREST
5. Cindy - SIMPLE STEPS FOR LIVING LIFE | FB | IG | PINTEREST
6. Christin - MY HOMIER HOME | FB | IG | PINTEREST
7. Emily - LeCULTIVATEUR | FB | IG | PINTEREST
8. Jana - HARVESTING HOME | FB | IG | PINTEREST
9. Penny - PENNY’S PASSION | FB | IG | PINTEREST
10. Sinea - DUCKS ‘N A ROW | FB | IG | PINTEREST | TWITTER
11. Tammy - MY LIFE ABUNDANT | FB | IG | PINTEREST
12. Tara - STILETTOS AND SHIPLAP | IG | PINTEREST

Top Viewed

Family Road Trip Items You Need to Pack by Photo Jeepers

Very Popular

Spring Farmhouse and Antique Finds by My Life Abundant

Editor's Picks

How to Make a Topiary with Live Boxwood Cuttings by Vintage Home Designs

Be sure to grab our Specially Featured graphic below if your post was featured this week, and hyperlink it to this post on your blog or sidebar. We love showing you off!

Let's Get This Party Started

• Please follow all hosts on AT LEAST 1 of their social channels.
• Add as many family-friendly posts as you would like to. NO Etsy shops, adult sites, or blog parties please.
• Visit others. Caring is sharing. Like, comment, and pin posts.
• Party entries appear in REVERSE. This way your entries will be seen no matter when you arrive.
• Please TWEET our party and invite others to join.

Let's Party!

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Five on Friday - April 21, 2022

Wow - did this week fly by!  Here we are at Friday already and I'm ready to share my five for this week ~

1.  National Earth Day

Today's National Earth Day!  This is a day set aside around the globe to promote ways to keep the Earth healthy and our planet livable.  It's a great day to stop and think of ways you can incorporate Earth-friendly habits into your daily lives.  Things like composting and recycling are just a few. What are you doing to reduce your carbon footprint?

2.  The Flight Attendant

Season 2 of The Flight Attendant is here!  HBO Max dropped two episodes yesterday and has another six coming out on weekly installments.  The first season ended weird in my opinion and I'm curious to see where this season goes.  Definitely on my watch list!

3.  Might Patch 

In my most recent Allure box was a box of Might Patch.  I had never heard of these before, but as soon as I mentioned them to my daughter-in-law she raved about them.  In case you haven't heard of them either, they are award-winning acne patches.  It's basically a hydrocolloid sticker that improves the look of pimples overnight without the popping.  You see results in 6-8 hours!  They are clinically tested, drug-free, and safe for all skin types.  Amazing!

4.  Jack Daniel's Cocktails

We are gearing up for vacation and I want to make sure we pack some of these Jack Daniel's Cocktails.  We had them at a music venue a couple years ago and thought they were delicious.  I hadn't really seen them in stores, but this year they are popping up at a few places we shop (Schnuck's and Walmart).  If you're looking for a refreshing, ready-to-drink cocktail you should give these a try.

5.  Remember when...

Now let's get this weekend started!  After work today, we're hosting a Selling Sunset viewing party.  Season five was just released! Then the rest of the weekend will be filled with errands and wedding projects I have in the works.  See you back next week!

2022 Bee Kind Tiered Tray

Welcome to Thinking Out Loud Thursday where I share something on my mind and invite you to link up and do the same.  Today I'm thinking about our 2022 Bee Kind Tiered Tray!

I've decorated our tiered tray in the "bee" theme for the last few years.  This year I used all our same decorations, just mixed them up a bit.

For starters, I used my favorite teapot on one side.  My friend gifted me the little jars of honey, which go perfectly with the bee theme!

I love the little sign that reminds me every day to be kind, be positive, and be courageous.

The right side of the window sports a couple cool signs also.

It would be hard for me to pick which layer of the tray I like the best.

How could we possibly not "bee happy" after seeing this tiered tray as we move about our kitchen?  

Now it's your turn.  What are you thinking out loud about today?  Link up and share!

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Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop - April 20, 2022

Hi friends!!! Welcome to this week’s Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop! We're so excited that you're here!

Here you will find inspiration from dozens of bloggers including recipes, home DIY, gardening, decor, family fun, traveling, fitness, and so much more.

A friendly reminder to our guests that as a courtesy to the hosts, we ask that you follow every host on at least one social media channel.

If you are a blogger, then be sure to link up below. You may be our next feature!

Before we get this party started, let's meet the hosts and check out this week's featured favorites.

Meet The Hosts

Please follow the hosts on at least 1 social media channel!

1. Ahna - HAMMERS N HUGS | FB | IG | PINTEREST
2. Anne & AnnMarie - SIMPLY 2 MOMS | FB | IG | PINTEREST
3. Angela - THE SHORT ORDER COOK | FB | IG | PINTEREST
4. Bev - ECLECTIC RED BARN | FB | IG | PINTEREST
5. Cindy - SIMPLE STEPS FOR LIVING LIFE | FB | IG | PINTEREST
6. Christin - MY HOMIER HOME | FB | IG | PINTEREST
7. Emily - LeCULTIVATEUR | FB | IG | PINTEREST
8. Jana - HARVESTING HOME | FB | IG | PINTEREST
9. Penny - PENNY’S PASSION | FB | IG | PINTEREST
10. Sinea - DUCKS ‘N A ROW | FB | IG | PINTEREST | TWITTER
11. Tammy - MY LIFE ABUNDANT | FB | IG | PINTEREST
12. Tara - STILETTOS AND SHIPLAP | IG | PINTEREST

Top Viewed

Spring Home Tour by The House On Silverado

Very Popular

Children’s Easter table in bright colors by Karin's Kottage

Editor's Picks

Easter Bunny in the Tulips by Follow The Yellow Brick Home

Be sure to grab our Specially Featured graphic below if your post was featured this week, and hyperlink it to this post on your blog or sidebar. We love showing you off!

Let's Get This Party Started

• Please follow all hosts on AT LEAST 1 of their social channels.
• Add as many family-friendly posts as you would like to. NO Etsy shops, adult sites, or blog parties please.
• Visit others. Caring is sharing. Like, comment, and pin posts.
• Party entries appear in REVERSE. This way your entries will be seen no matter when you arrive.
• Please TWEET our party and invite others to join.

Let's Party!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Weekending - April 15, 2022

Happy Monday!  We're coming off a fabulous Easter weekend and I wanted to share the rewind ~

I got to kick off the weekend a day early because we have Good Friday as a holiday where I work.  It was so nice to be able to catch up on some things around the house and still have a full weekend too!  We were able to meet our son and daughter-in-law for lunch on Friday, which was so fun.  We met at one of our favorite places, Peel.  

After lunch, Eric and I did a few errands and got home in time for dinner in front of the television catching up on a few of our favorite shows.

Saturday morning we did one of our favorite things - go see a movie!  Pre-pandemic we would go to the theater often on Saturday morning and it felt good to be doing that again.  We saw Father Stu with Mark Wahlberg.  Both of us thoroughly enjoyed it! 

In the afternoon we went over to our son and daughter-in-law's house to watch the St. Louis Blues hockey game and get a jump start on cooking for Easter.  It was a great hockey game and what made it even better was the Blues won!  Kayla worked on a berry croissant breakfast casserole that needed to set in the frig overnight and I worked on a coconut cream pie.  I'm going to have to share the recipe for the berry croissant casserole because it was SOOO good!

Saturday night I worked on making candy flowers to take to our Easter gathering.  They look so springy and were adorable on my Nora Fleming tray with the Easter basket mini!

Sunday we celebrated Easter at our son and daughter-in-law's house.  Her sister has the most adorable little boy and we had so much fun watching him play and hunt Easter eggs.  

Eric got to play with his favorite grand cats.  I think they like playing with him too!

Sunday evening we watched church online and worked on our current puzzle.  We also watched an older movie, Troup Zero.  Have you seen it?  It's really cute.  

And that's a wrap on the weekend!  Don't weekends seem to fly by?  We have a busy week ahead.  I have book club tonight and Thursday we are going to see Bon Jovi.  Then Friday we're having some friends over for a Selling Sunset viewing party.   Fun times ahead!  

Five on Friday - April 15, 2022

Happy Good Friday!  I'm so excited to be off work today.  There's a small amount of work I'm going to catch up on then I'm turning on the out-of-office notice and enjoying the Easter holiday.  And I'm kicking off the weekend with my five for today ~

1.  Bomb Shelter:  Love, Time and Other Explosives

Mary Laura Philpott's newest book hit the stands this week and I can't wait to dive into it.  I hear her speak about the book on a podcast and immediately added it to my TBR list.  Here's the summary from Amazon ~

From the bestselling author of I Miss You When I Blink comes a poignant and powerful new memoir that tackles the big questions of life, death, and existential fear with humor and hope.

A lifelong worrier, Philpott always kept an eye out for danger, a habit that only intensified when she became a parent. But she looked on the bright side, too, believing that as long as she cared enough, she could keep her loved ones safe.

Then, in the dark of one quiet, pre-dawn morning, she woke abruptly to a terrible sound—and found her teenage son unconscious on the floor. In the aftermath of a crisis that darkened her signature sunny spirit, she wondered: If this happened, what else could happen? And how do any of us keep going when we can’t know for sure what’s coming next?

Leave it to the writer whose critically acclaimed debut had us “laughing and crying on the same page” (NPR) to illuminate what it means to move through life with a soul made of equal parts anxiety and optimism (and while she’s at it, to ponder the mysteries of backyard turtles and the challenges of spatchcocking a turkey).

Hailed by TheWashington Post as “Nora Ephron, Erma Bombeck, Jean Kerr, and Laurie Colwin all rolled into one,” Philpott returns in her distinctive voice to explore our protective instincts, the ways we continue to grow up long after we’re grown, and the limits—both tragic and hilarious—of the human body and mind.

2.  Dolly Parton's Cake Mix Line

Duncan Hines and Dolly Parton are teaming up to give us a new line of cake mixes and icings.  I love Dolly and am going to be on the lookout for her Southern-style favorites like coconut cake mix, banana cake mix, and the chocolate and vanilla flavored buttercream to go along with them.  Just look at the packaging - does it get any cuter than that!

3.  Father Stu

If you're looking for a movie to see this weekend, Father Stu just opened.  Here's the summary from Fandango ~

Based on a true story, Father Stu is an unflinchingly honest, funny and ultimately uplifting drama about a lost soul who finds his purpose in a most unexpected place. When an injury ends his amateur boxing career, Stuart Long (Mark Wahlberg) moves to L.A. dreaming of stardom. While scraping by as a supermarket clerk, he meets Carmen (Teresa Ruiz), a Catholic Sunday school teacher who seems immune to his bad-boy charm. Determined to win her over, the longtime agnostic starts going to church to impress her. But surviving a terrible motorcycle accident leaves him wondering if he can use his second chance to help others find their way, leading to the surprising realization that he is meant to be a Catholic priest. Despite a devastating health crisis and the skepticism of Church officials and his estranged parents (Mel Gibson and Jacki Weaver), Stu pursues his vocation with courage and compassion, inspiring not only those closest to him but countless others along the way.

4.  Air Fryer Liners

We love our air fryer and use it practically daily.  But clean-up is definitely not something we love.  I purchased these air fryer liners this week and am dying to try them out.  The disposable paper liner keeps food residue away from the fryer and makes clean up a breeze.  The liners, which are made from parchment paper, will also work in the microwave, steamer, or oven.  Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

5.  Easter egg hunting...

Enjoy the Easter holiday!  We're going to our son and daughter-in-law's house to enjoy the day.  The weather isn't supposed to be the best, but I'm sure we'll make the most of it.  Their nephew will be around to hunt eggs, so it might have to be a last-minute call if the eggs are outside or inside.  Where ever they are, it will be fun watching him search for them.  See you next week!