A random bunch of things today……. 

This knit beaded sweater that I have eyed for so long is finally back in stock! In all sizes! And under $50! Snag it while you can.
You can get 15% off all women’s with code 6457. 
and get free shipping with code 0040

// KNIT BEADED SWEATER //

I was catching up with a friend on the phone tonight and she told me that her co-worker swears by Milk Thistle when drinking.

// MILK THISTLE // 

I have one of my best friends weddings this upcoming weekend and normally we go the Pedialyte route when things like “After Party 12-2:00 AM” are printed on an itinerary (yes please!), but I am going to give this a shot.  I’ll report back with my findings – but I do recommend the pedialyte!
I drink Pedialyte before bed to help the most! And then some in the morning if needed.  It doesn’t taste great, but I wake up feeling so much better!
My friend said to take one milk thistle before drinking, and then you can take one more in the morning! 

I’m antsy for some new recipes to try out.  (Although I’m definitely making the butternut squash noodles with goat cheese again!)
I love casseroles always, but especially when the weather cools off;
anything slow cooker or casserole is right up my alley.

I saw this recipe for Pad Thai Casserole made with spaghetti squash and it’s on my list to make next week when Kip and I are home together.  We both love, love pad thai!

I meant to share my latest read with you all.  I read The Couple Next Door when we were in California and finished it in one day.  It’s a great quick read that kept me guessing, revolving around an investigation of something that happens one night when the couple is next door at a dinner party.

I didn’t love it as much as Behind Closed Doors but it was good.
Next on my list is a book by the same author as Behind Closed Doors, The Breakdown.

I’m in love with a bunch of new arrivals from Tuckernuck.
Tortoise Shell Clutches are my favorite for weddings, and this is one is so gorgeous.
also love this black clutch with a stone clasp.

These suede leggings would be a constant go-to for fall, and they are under $100.

and if leather is more your style, here’s a leather pair also under $100.

These beautiful earrings come in several different styles and are under $50.

and these finial earrings and these gold fireworks earrings
are other great styles for day or night!

Happy Tuesday Everyone !!

I would love all of your help with picking a dress to wear for a wedding this weekend in Chicago.
I really want to wear the watercolor maxi that I wore to the wedding in Italy.  Technically no one attending this weekends wedding “saw it” except my husband…. but ya know…. I instagrammed it, so technically everyone has seen it? And it’s not like I wore it a few months ago, I wore it like 2 weeks ago.  SO.  I sprinted to Bloomingdale’s Sunday and brought home two other options.

What do you all think – wear the watercolor maxi that I just wore in Italy to a wedding, or wear one of these options?
And the black and blue dresses look much better in person than they do in the photos. HELP!
Oh, and the dress code is Black Tie Optional.  I am having Kip wear his tux.  I just showed Kip this picture without telling him these are my options and he said he likes the black one best  — he has already forgotten the watercolor dress and has no idea that is what I wore two weeks ago! 

// WATERCOLOR DRESS // BLACK MIDI DRESS // BLUE LONG DRESS //

I wish they had this red dress in the store because I probably would have snagged that and called it a day – it’s the exact style I was looking for (strapless and midi!)

The most exciting thing to happen this week was Trader Joe’s doing a full re-stock of the Frozen Cauliflower Pizza Crust.  I was so excited to get my hands on it! We made the pizza’s Sunday night and they were delicious – even husband approved!  The key is definitely getting the crust as crispy as you can so that it really has the texture of pizza.   We baked it for 12-15 minutes on one side, flipped it over and repeated that again for 12-15 minutes, and then broiled it to get it crispy.  Once we topped it with our toppings I also did it under the broiler again! Seriously amazing.  I loved it and think this will be a weekly dinner for us – it was perfect for a busy Sunday!

I was very proud of myself for getting such a crispy crust. 

Speaking of quick and healthy dinners, I ordered the Instant Pot/Slow Cooker when I saw it on super sale.  It’s 50% off right now!
We use our slow cooker constantly and I had been eyeing this one for quite some time.  It has the ability to delay start and then to shut itself off while your at work and switch to warm, plus it’s a million things in one : slow cooker, pressure cooker, rice maker, can sautee, etc.  I’m sure I’ll mainly be using it for slow cooking but hopefully we can try out the pressure cooker aspect too.

Skinnytaste has tons of recipes using the Instant Pot and one that I know I will definitely be trying is the 30 Minute One-Pot Spaghetti Squash and Meat Sauce.

She said she was able to cook the spaghetti squash WITHOUT having to cut it in half! This is music to my ears because when Kip is out of town for work I nearly kill myself or lose a hand trying to cut it in half.

You may have seen on my insta-stories that we are in the middle of building a screened in back deck! This has been something we have been wanting since we bought the house, and we had met with 3 contractors over about 10 months, but the quotes were just way too high for what we were willing to pay.  A friend at book club mentioned a referral for someone that did her deck – a company that only does decks – and we got a much more reasonable quote from him! Construction started last Thursday and they are already making huge progress! I almost cried when I got home from work on Friday and saw it after just 2 days!

Day Two Progress :

Day Four Progress :

My orders from the Nordstrom Sale are sporadically coming in.  So far my favorites are below.

// LUSH V-NECK TEE // LUSH FLUTTER SLEEVE TOP // HALOGEN LEGGINGS // HALOGEN DRESS // ZELLA HIGH WAIST LEGGINGS

The sale is only on for 5 more days and I still keep finding new things and things back in stock in my size!
Last night while making that collage I saw that this dress was finally back in stock and only $29!

// LUSH RUFFLE SLEEVE T SHIRT DRESS // 

I watched the Men Tell All last night so I have RHOC waiting for me tonight!
Happy Tuesday!

I felt that out of all of the Villas on Lake Como,
Villa Fanny wasn’t all that pretty, but would be where I would most fit in. 

I am slowly making my way through my DVR,  and my brain seems to be slowly coming back to it’s normal state.  I went through the Starbucks drive through yesterday – for the first time ever – and ordered something other than water – for the first time ever – because I feared I was a danger to myself and others on my drive to the grocery store.  Seriously.  I pray my first day back at work today goes better than Sunday and Monday did.  I truly don’t know what is wrong with me that I am this jet lagged; this has never happened!

I still felt the need to make a home cooked meal for my hard working husband having to go back to work with me having the one extra day, so I knew anything super easy with a crock pot would have to do.  I googled “skinnytaste chicken crock pot” and made this Honey Sesame Chicken recipe.  We both loved it!!

// SKINNY TASTE CROCK POT SESAME CHICKEN //
I served ours over quinoa and added some steamed broccoli as well.
Kip gave it two thumbs up, I added in the enthusiastic + fine holiday fun because I can never not think of Clueless when hearing two thumbs up…. 

We are trying to slowly come down from our all-carb two week diet.  I am having cravings like no other; my body can definitely tell it was given a lot of a good thing and it wants it back!  Now that I think about it, since I had espresso everyday there to stay awake and never drink coffee, maybe I am having coffee/caffeine withdrawals for the first time in my life?? Is that possible from 2 weeks of espresso shots?? Probably not….. probably just the carb withdrawals 🙂

Speaking of catching up on my DVR, I saw the first teaser’s for BIP while watching Rachel’s Hometown Dates (OMG to Dean’s Hometown…. poor thing…. that really does take the cake for “most dramatic/uncomfortable/WTF is happening hometown in Bachelor history” and I felt awful for him) and in my excitement for BIP’s return I saw this news blurb about Robby and Amanda dating.

Can Amanda date ANYONE not in the Bachelor family? Please? For the sake of her gladiator-sandal-clad little girls?

I started working on my packing post,
but wanted to share a key item that I just came across
(and it keeps going on sale so I’ll try to keep an eye out for you!)

I wore a Straw Hat  that I had used for several previous beach trips for most of our time in Lake Como to protect my face from the sun.  We spent two whole days strictly outside sightseeing and being on boats so it was a necessity.  This hat is PACKABLE! I wish I had found this before our trip because the brim on mine was a total mess and completely lopsided from all the rough packing heading place to place!  It has great reviews and it is under $50 even before going on sale!

// PACKABLE STRAW HAT // 

and for those of you wondering if my Most Comfortable Sandals In The World that I had posted about at length were as wonderful as I thought after doing up to 25,000 steps per day?

Please allow this horrific tan line photo (please ignore cankles and mosquito bites) to answer that question: YES.  Not one moment was not PERFECTLY COMFY and heavenly in these shoes.  It blew my mind.

I wore my gold sandals at night, but clearly these were the only shoes that I wore all day every day!!
They were the best purchase I made for the entire trip! I know those exact sandals are only available in limited sizes, but they also have tons of different styles with the same comfy technology built in to shop from!

And finally,
I thought I would share this article I came across for
10 Under The Radar Italian Towns to Add to Your Bucket List.

These all look ah-mazing.
Time to start planning our next getaway?
Yeah right….. I wish…..