I don’t think we order a lot from Amazon until we take out the trash on Sunday night and realize that we have a LOT of boxes from Amazon!
NACHOsaurus – This nacho chip holder was a big hit for Jake’s birthday last month!
Chewbacca Bath Robe – Someone kept talking about how much he wanted a cozy bath robe after seeing me live in a bathrobe all winter long so I got Jake a Star Wars themed one for his birthday.
Birthday Decoration Kit – Speaking of birthdays, this was a last minute purchase to decorate the house for Jake’s birthday since we couldn’t leave the house and he had to work.
Storage Bag – Saw a few other people post about htis Amazon find and finally added it to my cart. One bag can hold so much stuff and is a great way to hold all of my extra blankets, duvets, and comforters.
Bucket – An odd purchase but I really needed a good bucket for cleaning and I was happy to find this one for such a good price!
Tomato Seeds – I was jealous of my parents garden last summer so I ordered some tomato seeds to start my own! Fingers crossed we get some tomatoes this summer!
Bird Feeder – Ed loves to chat with the birds in the backyard so I thought it would be nice to get a bird feeder for them. Jokes on us because we have to refill it every two days because we have a lot of happy and full birds now!
Bird Seed – Going to have to put this bird seed on auto ship because we are going through it so fast!
Water Hose Nozzle – One of those things I realized we needed a few weeks ago and the jet stream is similar to a pressure washer!
Scrabble – Saw someone playing Scrabble on tv and immediately ordered one so we could play it the next day ha!
Spiralizer – I found a bunch of delicious recipes to try with zucchini noodles and since it can be pricey to buy them pre-packaged, I got my own spiralizer!
FIRST THING FIRST, click HERE to get a free gift set and receive $10 after your first Grove Collaborative purchase.
Over the weekend, we ran out of dish soap and when I went to the cabinet where we keep back stock items, I noticed we only have fall scented cleaning supplies. I don’t know about you, but this is not acceptable in my house! Meanwhile, Jake has been loving our peppermint scented dish soap when he does the dishes at night. That day, I put in a big order at Grove Collaborative and added one of each Spring and Summer scented dish soap, cleaning spray, and hand soap. My family thought I was crazy for stocking up with one big order every season, but when everyone ran out of hand soap, I was the one with a cabinet full of it! I tried ordering hand soap when we were on our last one last month and noticed that very few online retailers are even shipping it because there is still a shortage because of the pandemic. This is why I LOVE LOVE LOVE my subscription to Grove Collaborative. The website is easy to shop and add items to your cart so you can get everything you need to keep your home clean, and be green while you do it, delivered to your front door. They also throw in a free item when you spend a certain amount and leave you a fun, friendly message on the box.
I put in an order and two days later I got a box of cleaning supplies on our doorstep! I rolled up my sleeves and got to work cleaning the kitchen and organizing our back stock.
Keep A List of Essentials I keep a note on my phone of items that we always have so I can quickly glance and make note of if we are out of it so I can add it to my cart on grove.co.
Stock Up Grove Collaborative makes it so easy to buy multiples and not have to push a heavy cart around and then carry them from the car to the house.
Clean Appliances This stainless steel cleaner is life changing! Once a week I like to wipe down the refrigerator, stove and dishwasher because fingerprints drive me crazy but nothing ever worked until I used this cleaner! A little bit goes a long way and it protects appliances from fingerprints for like a week.
Create a Routine At night I like to put all of the dirty dishes in the dishwasher, press start and wipe down the counters with the multi-surface cleaner. Waking up to a clean kitchen is so nice and it only takes two minutes at night to make my mornings better.
Shop Green My favorite thing about Grove Collaborative (besides the convenience and friendly team!) is their commitment to the environment. I’m happy to pay a little more for products that are made with the environment in mind. Grove offers product refills so it’s less plastic and you just have to order one to last you a while. I get a hand soap refill each order so I can keep my cute bathroom soap dispenser filled with soap without ever running out.
As we are all slowly starting to reenter society, there comes some excitement to get back out there and running and a need to take things slow at the same time. We have been home for a year + now and have been looking forward to this vaccine that will “fix everything” since the word quarantine became a verb and a way of life, but is one shot really able to fix everything? Beyond the superficial adjustments like finding pants that fit and getting blisters from shoes we haven’t worn in a really really long time, can we just wake up, walk out our door like business as usual? In the wake of this pandemic, many of us are home because of a lack of employment, or those who are called lucky, are in a job that would not have been their first choice but every corner of the world was impacted making the workforce shrink like never before. After a year of clicking adding to our cart on our phones and laptops, once we walk back into the world stores that were once there are gone. This time at home made me reevaluate what I bring into my home and I got rid of a lot of clutter. My work clothes are packed away and I’ve been wearing comfy cute clothes for months. For me, I’ll have to remember how to socialize with people again and rebuild old friendships that got put on the sidelines and create new ones in a world where all of us are desperate for some social interaction. I took for granted how much enjoyment I got to grab a coffee with a friend or catch up over dinner when I could but made excuses because of work or focusing on my career. While I am like most people excited to go outside and breathe in that fresh summer air without a mask without fear, I know it will take some time for me to get used to our new normal. The truth is things will never go back to normal after one crazy year that took a lot from us – some more than others. It took some work, but I changed my mindset to enjoy being home all day and not dread it. The world outside my door will take some getting used to, but I want to continue making my home a safe place to be. My heart goes out to everyone who are getting ready to adjust to this new world. Right now I am taking advantage of the warm days to walk to the Starbucks a few blocks from our house to treat myself after making my own coffee for the last year!
I have some cool things planned in the next few weeks and months now that we are vaccinated. (YAY!) My parents are planning a trip up North to spend some time with us and a few days seeing friends in New Jersey. Since we had so much fun with my cousins at my parents house last summer, we just finalized plans to spend a few weeks at their house with everybody in June. I’m trying to create some fun things to look forward to to help me get over the “re-entering society anxiety” I have been having recently. I do know for a fact, that I will never be able to get anywhere on time ever again because I’ve lost all concept of how much time it takes to get ready before leaving the house ha!
Lancome recently launched a new product, Clarifique. I was gifted a bottle of this highly praised essence to try and share with my readers.
WHAT IS IT?
The Lancome Clarique gently exfoliates skin, hydrates and brightens skin over time. It is a two phase formula with a combination of 2 essences. One that nourishes the skin and the other acts as a barrier to keep your skin hydrated all day long. Brightens skin and reduces appearances of pores when you apply it morning and night. The whisk inside of the bottle is a really brilliant feature because it helps mix the two essences really well when you shake before using guaranteeing you get the desired formula.
WHO IS IT FOR?
There is a lot of name recognition with Lancome and when I purchase a product from Lancome, I know it will work and show results. Don’t let the high end name discourage you from trying Clarifique because it is for experienced skincare users and beginners too! It is great for someone new to a skincare system because the two phase essence has everything your skin needs to be nourished and protect your skin from the environment that can cause your skin to look dull. Most skincare systems require a cleanser, serum and moisturizer to show results, but the Clarifique makes it easy because it has multiple benefits. After using the Clarifique essence, I can apply my anti-aging serums and moisturizer.
STEPS
Step 1 shake to mix
Step 2 pour into hand or on cotton square
Step 3 apply to face
After a few uses, this essence leaves me with clearer, healthier, and dewy skin.
Happy Friday! It’s been a while since I have shared what I am loving on the blog so let’s get started!
I’m working on a longer list of all of the shows and movies I have watched so far in 2021 but I wanted to share what we watched this week first! We got the new streaming service HBOMax when it first came out and at first I didn’t really scroll to see what it offered but lately, it’s all that we have been using! We caught up on all of the King Kong and Godzilla movies on our date nights to get ready for the new King Kong vs Godzilla movie that was released in theaters and HBOMax on the same day. The service also has a ton of old shows that are hard to find, like our recent binge What I Like About You, that early 2000s show with Amanda Bynes that is laugh out loud funny!
I recently spent an entire afternoon organizing my cabinets of products to donate to my mom, put some in my shower so I’ll use them, and then used agiant travel pouch to keep all of the skincare products I’m currently using so they are all in one place. I then cleaned out my vanity and put extra beauty products that I haven’t opened up yet that are just taking up room in thisloaf bag that looks cute and hides the extra clutter.
On the blog this week, I talked about the Olay Retinol creamI have been using every other night and shared the new to meHollywood Flawless Filterthat is great for barely there makeup days. One of my goals this year was to really commit to a skincare system that worked for my skin and more importantly, would take like 5 minutes at night to apply. I’ve noticed that my skin tone looks more even and I have more glowy skin now that I’ve been consistent with this skincare routine. By having all of my skincare products in one bag, I do a better job of applying toner, serum, and a moisturizer at night. Find a system that works for you and I promise your skin will love you back!
Keep an eye on my Amazon Findspage because I’m working on a big round up of our recent orders.
The Target Dollar Spot is overflowing with cute summer accessories and activities! This week I walked the long mile + way there to get a few things and my parents got some cute pool floats that we are all excited to use this summer!
I was in a reading slump for a few months because I was reading a very boring book but I’ve never quit reading a book and had to finish it! Since then, I’ve moved on from So 5 Minutes Ago and quickly read The Last Wife of Henry VIII. On my nightstand, I have Little Women and The Jane Austen Book Club. Follow along with my reading list here on Goodreads.
Meals we have been loving recently are:
Teriyaki chicken with roasted sweet potatoes
Gigi Hadid’s penne vodka
Salad with chicken ( I heat up chicken fingers and then cut them in little pieces. Easy and delicious!)
Pasta with roasted cherry tomatoes and basil and sweet sausage mixed with olive oil and parmesan cheese
Quesadillas with cheese, leftover chicken, tomatoes and peppers
We did a big grocery run recently and it’s nice to have a full fridge!
A neighbor posted about giving away two outdoor chairs in our neighborhood Facebook page for free and now they look so nice in our backyard. SCORE!
I ordered a new hose nozzle and the jet stream was strong enough to power wash our front sidewalk and our backyard. Took a few days but every leaf and clump of dirt is gone!
Ed has been loving the warmer weather because we let him spend an hour in the backyard (while supervised) every morning. I’ll water the flowers and enjoy my morning coffee in our new chairs while he roams!
At least every other week we have been ordering Panera for lunch and the seasonal salads are SO GOOD!
Thank goodness for Jake’s craving of a burrito the other night because we tried Jackass Burrito and it’s now our new go-to burrito place!
We had a few days of really warm weather and sunshine so I took a long walk to Rittenhouse Square.
We got our first vaccination last week and get our second dose in May. We are dancing with joy and can’t wait to have a fun summer now that we can safely leave the house and see people.
There is just something about those first few warm summer days when I get a pep in my step and want to spend every minute outdoors. In the mornings, I have been getting dressed in cute outfits that have been neglected in my closet for too long and putting on some makeup even if I don’t leave the house. I’m most excited about using my Charlotte Tilbury Hollywood Flawless Filter. It’s a new to me product and I’ve had some time to play around with it. Great for those barely there makeup days… which is honestly, most days! Applying it doesn’t take much time and is an easy way to get glowing skin that makes me look awake like a highlighter but a more natural glow. The Hollywood Flawless Filter is designed to use under your foundation to blur imperfections and get glowing skin. While looking at reviews, it seems like everyone is in love with this flawless filter and is ideal for barely there makeup days.
Most days I apply it sparingly on my face with a damp beauty blender. With just a little bit on my T Zone and cheeks, I’ll blend it out until it leaves a light layer of product on my face leaving a luminous look with good coverage without a full face of makeup.
Since I want to get ready in under 5 minutes, I love using the Flawless Filter because it gives me good coverage without a lot of product on my face and the eyeshadow pencil is a game changer to add some color to the eyes without any eyeshadow blending. The Charlotte Tilbury Kim K W lipstick has a cult following for a good reason because it’s that good! A bit pricey but I’ve noticed I always grab this lipstick over the dozens of drugstore options I have because it is such a natural great lip color and lasts a long time. I wore it for my passport photo recently and it photographed so nicely without looking like I had a bold lip color on. It’s such a timeless lipstick!
Blonde Rosie Blog 