Currently

I've seen this post on a few other blogs who have done "Currently" posts lately and really like it so thought I'd steal the idea!


Eating.....a banana. I normally have a piece of fruit for a mid-morning snack.

Wearing.....black pants, tan cardigan, and heels. This is pretty much my work uniform.

Reading.....Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn. I'm only about 50 pages in but I am intrigued by the plot. It's not a very long book so I should be able to finish it pretty quickly.

Wanting.....the weekend! It's hard to believe it's only Wednesday.

Hearing.....the Girl on Guy podcasts. A coworker told me about these recently and I am hooked. Basically Aisha Tyler spends 1-2 hours chatting with awesome celebrities about their lives. My favorites have been Scott Foley and Jesse Tyler Ferguson.

Watching.....The Fall. P and I started this BBC thriller last weekend and it is sooooo good but so creepy! Unlike other shows that we can binge watch, I can only handle one or two episodes in a row before I need a break.

Thinking.....how much I love this hair wand! It has really changed how quickly I am able to curl and style my hair. I am still getting used to it (hello small burn on my hand) but am happy to finally have a tool that allows me to add some wave and texture to my hair in less than 20 minutes.

Laughing....about last night's episode of Parks and Recreation. Treat Yourself 2017. It was hilarious. I am going to miss that show so much!

Thankful.....for my sweet dog. I've seen on Facebook a few people who have lost their family dogs recently and it breaks my heart. Calvin has brought so much love to our lives and I'm thankful for all of his sweet kisses and cuddles.

Five On Friday

Happy Friday! Here are five of my favorite things this week.

//One// Favorite Food: avocado toast. Ever since having a similar dish on New Year's Eve I cannot get enough of this. I just simply mash half of a ripe avocado and place on toasted bread. A little salt and pepper on top and you are good to go.

//Two// Patriots are Super Bowl bound: we cannot wait to cheer on the New England Patriots next weekend as they head to Arizona to take on the Seattle Seahawks.

//Three// Favorite Wine: Hugl Gruner Veltliner. Since getting back from Austria we have been drinking a lot of Gruner Veltliner. One of our favorites is Hugl.

//Four// Favorite Quick Dinner: pesto quinoa with chicken and spinach. This dish was inspired by one we tried from Protein Bar. We had some leftover roasted chicken so I simply mixed that in a bowl with cooked quinoa, pesto, and spinach then topped it with parmesan cheese.

//Five// Old Navy workout tanks: I took advantage of Old Navy's sale a few weeks ago and scooped up three of these tops when they were $7 each. They are my new favorite shirts to work out in and are very soft.


Have a great weekend!

Shutterfly Photo Books

Last year while P was away at trial, I created a “Year in Review” book to commemorate the year we got married. We kept it on the bottom shelf of our coffee table with our wedding album and it was often looked at when we had guests over. I quickly decided that this was something I wanted to create at the end of each year to capture our favorite memories and see how our family grows. I used to rely on srapbooking as a way to capture memories but busy schedules have made it hard to keep up the hobby. Photo books are an easy way to organize photos each year while still adding unique touches that fit your needs.

My favorite company to use to create photo books is Shutterfly. Not only did I use Shutterfly for my year in review book last year, I have also used it to create our wedding guestbook a Father’s Day book for my dad from my sisters and I, and recently a book for my best friend.  The thing I like most about Shutterfly is that they have TONS of book designs available.

I always choose the Custom Path because I love being able to add embellishments, text boxes, and play around with layouts (probably because it feels like scrapbooking). But if you are limited on time or want to use Shutterfly’s layouts, you can choose the Simple Path and simply upload the pictures you want in the book.

Next you choose the size of your book. I went with the 10x10 book this year.  It is a new book size to Shutterfly and I thought it would be ta great size for the coffee table. It is also similar in size to our wedding album so they will look nice stacked together. After choosing the size, you then have the hard task of choosing the theme you want. I probably spent a good thirty minutes scrolling through the different themes and looking at the idea pages to get a sense of the colors and embellishments available. One thing to remember during this step is to not feel like you can’t use a certain design because it doesn’t fall into the theme you want.

For example, I first looked under the “Year in Review” category but none of the options were jumping out to me. I eventually found the Chalkboard Chic book under the “Family” theme. I liked the simple and classic look of the book while still feeling like it was on point in terms of current design and décor trends.

The next step is uploading all of the pictures you want to include the book. I recommend uploading at least 10-15 more pictures than you think you will need. That way when working with the page layouts you have several options or can use multiple pictures on each page. I always have the pictures placed in the photo strip versus automatically having Shutterfly place them in the book. That way I have the ability to move them around as I want to.

On the far left of the screen is a really great and easy-to-use toolbar. For each book theme, Shutterfly provides at least five different background options, lots of fun embellishments to add to each page and many page layout options based on the number of pictures you want to use. You also have the option to purchase extra embellishments for your book that aren’t automatically included in the book theme.

One of my favorite features is the “Customize Page.” When this option is selected, you have the ability to arrange the pictures, add/resize text boxes, add additional embellishments and more. This allows you to customize your book even more. In the screenshot above, I had to resize the text box on the page on the right so all of the words fit.

Another feature I use a lot is the “Arrange” view. This really allows you to create your story. Since I did this year’s review by month it was pretty easy to layout the story. But I did find myself playing with the order of the pages that highlighted our vacation.

I cannot speak highly enough of Shutterfly’s photo books. They are easy to create, beautifully made and always arrive quickly. I look forwarding to making these books each year!

The cover of our book!

Weekend (times two)

Since there have been two full weekends since my last post I figured I would do a quick recap of both of them.

Last weekeend I drove up to Pennsylvania since P had to work. I spent Friday and Saturday night with my bestie Aubrey and her family. I just love being their Auntie Em and playing with them. There was lots of Frozen dress up, Tangled watching, and a fun pedicure/lunch date. Taylor was fascinated by getting her toes done and kept checking our toes the next morning to make sure the polish was still there.

Morning selfie with my favorite girl.

On Sunday I drove to Chambersburg to spend time with my grandma, aunt, and cousin. I am so grateful to live so close to them and try to get up there to visit as much as possible.

This past weekend we headed down to Norfolk to celebrate Christmas with my dad and step-mom. Fortunately my younger sister was already planning to be in town too so we got to see her too. Saturday afternoon we went to O'Connor Brewing Company in Norfolk. My favorite was the Green Can Golden Ale with pomegranate San Pellegrino mixed in. We had a nice dinner that night. P and I headed back to DC yesterday afternoon.

Back seat selfie on the way to O'Connor

We have really been on the go most weekends since Thanksgiving. It has been fun seeing lots of friends and family but we are looking forward to a quiet weekend at home.

Friday Five!

Happy Friday! Sorry for the silence the past week. Unfortunately we had to travel back to Ohio last weekend after the passing of P's grandmother. She had been in and out of the ICU over Christmas so we were all prepared but it was still very hard nonetheless. P and his family are finding great comfort in knowing that she is at peace and reunited with her husband. I'm very grateful that I got to spend time with Elsie over the nine years that I knew her and plan to keep her legacy going by making her Derby Pie for many years to come.

Let's move on to this week's Friday Five!

//1// Last night I made this recipe from Skinnytaste and oh.my.god was it good. Not only will it fulfill any craving for mexican food you may have, but it is high in protein and low in fat. I am pretty excited to have leftovers for lunch today.

//2// For Christmas I got a Le Creuset dutch oven and am itching to try some new recipes with it. What are your favorite dutch oven recipes?

//3// I just finished the book called Us by David Nicholls.  While at times it was a very slow read, it shared interesting insights on relationships - between spouses, with children, and with parents. I would definitely recommend checking it out!

//4// Some of my favorite t.v. shows are coming back this month. I'm most excited about The Americans on FX. P and I just love this show about two Russian spies living in DC during the 1980s. It is such a well written show and always keeps us on our toes.

//5// I'm leaving work a little early today to head up to Pennsylvania for the weekend. P has to work all weekend so it is the perfect time for me to visit with Aubrey and her kids and my dad's side of the family.

I can't wait for lots of play time and cuddles with these two!

Hope you have a great weekend!