um...

Anyone?

We know we left you quite some time ago without a trace of 'goodbyes' or 'see ya laters'. It's no excuse, but we've been plenty busy over the last year...Rachel had a sweet baby girl, Christine graduated from college and Kimberly has been busy lawyering all over town. 

But we realized that we missed blogging and telling you about all the highs and lows of our daily lives. And so we plan to be back next week in full force.

We hope to see you around!

We can't wait to get back in the swing of things!

Hello friends! I know it's been quite sometime since you've heard from us, but alas, we are doing our best to get back into a blogging routine. Sometimes life just gets in the way and the next you know you haven't blogged in weeks. So please accept our apologies

I do have a bunch of beauty things coming up but I wanted to share my experience at Bonnarroo with you through Instagram magic

Bonnaroo is known for its laidback atmosphere and friendly vibes. One of the best places is the Solar Stage, where bands would play some soft tunes and talk a bit while you could lay and nap in the grass

One of my favorite 'Roo traditions is painting on the walls. People sometimes spend hours leaving their mark on the 'Roo walls and my roommate even saw a wedding proposal in action where the guy used the painted walls to propose!

After looking like a hot mess at the festival last year (seriously, during my only attempt to look cute someone said I looked like either a pirate or a Backstreet Boy), I decided to make sure I looked good. I chose flowy tops with either tight stretchy shorts or jean shorts, and I  always had something to cover my head, be it a fedora or a DYI feather headdress

We obviously took full advantage of the body paint-friendly environment

While there were many band that kicked booty, GroupLove was the band that made the festival for me! I was right up front and the energy from the crowd and the band was out of this world. No one stopped clapping or singing or dancing and it was the only show I've ever seen at Bonnaroo with crowdsurfing (not that I'm a crowdsurfing fan, but you couldn't help but smile at how excited everyone was)

Of course I can't help but mention some of the killer bands I saw, such as Radiohead, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, Alabama Shakes, Dawes, The Beach Boys, The Temper Trap and so many more!

Obviously I'm being really productive hahaha! How have you been spending your summer so far?

For Christmas, Santa brought me (and my sisters) a hand steamer. 

I had never used one before and honestly couldn't understand the big deal. I had an iron and an ironing board. What more does a girl need?

Oh how wrong I was. 

Separately, do you know what I hate? Dragging out the iron and ironing board. It's really a problem.

It's heavy and unwieldy and undoubtedly knocks over everything else in my closet as I try to wriggle it out of our washer/dryer closet. Not to mention the fact that I need a space big enough to set it up. Oh and it has to be near an outlet, obviously. And then there's the waiting for it to heat up. And then pressing with all your might to flatten and get the wrinkles out and inevitably I do a poor job and my clothing still has wrinkles in it.

I know this is a lot of complaining about a little old iron/ironing board, but seriously, in apartment living, the whole ironing situation is just not so much. It's a little too much of a production for me. 

But the hand steamer?

It's legit my new obsession. I plug it in every morning and it rests right on my dresser. It heats up and I run it over my outfit for the day. In under a minute, my clothes are wrinkle free and ready to go.

The only thing I could see using the iron for in the future? Creasing trouser pants or pressing dress shirt lapels. Aside from that, give me The Little Steamer, or give me nothing.

Do you use a hand steamer for your clothing?

Do you iron your clothes in general?

Shaun and I are both freaks about having wrinkle-free clothing!

Last month my dad surprised me with an email asking if I would like to go to Las Vegas with him and my mom once I was done with school. Now, as an 21-year-old girl would do, I though about it thoroughly. Do I like to travel? Yes! Do I like flashy and pretty things such as lights and slot machines? Yes! Do I like entertainment- more specifically a show put on my men colored blue and one set to Beatles songs? Yes! Do I enjoy sunshine and vacation? YES!

Clearly the answer was simple and with that the next thing I knew I had a trip to Vegas planned. Flash forward one month later and I'm leaving today!

I wanted to share with you some of the beauty-related things I normally take with me when I travel. Since I'm only going for 4 days I'm not taking too much (or this may be a ton in comparison to others people but for me this is nothing haha).

When it comes to face you really don't need anything that is going to be too heavy.

All I'm bringing facewise is my Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Cream in SPF 55 (BEST face sunscreen that I wear under my makeup everyday in the summer), my BareMinerals foundation (nothing too heavy in this kind of heat and the minerals will keep my skin from getting too shiny), and my Garnier Fructis Skin Renewal Anti-Puff Eyeroller (I think the name says it all).

For color in my face I have my Soft and Gentle Mineralized Skinfinish by MAC for all of my highlighting needs and Benefit's Coralista because it goes with practically everything. I also popped in a waterproof mascara in case the heat decides to melt everything off at least my mascara will stay in place :)

For lipstick I picked my top 2 favorites of the moment and one crazy color lipstick. I have my YSL Rouge Volupte in #23 Lucious Pink (which happens to be my all-time favorite lipstick so I know it will go with anything I wear) and my YSL Glossy Stain in#7 Corail Aquatique (a glossy coral color that looks natural and lasts all night? yes please!). Finally, since it's Vegas I needed something to POP! and I decided now would be the perfect time to play with the orange lipstick trend so I also brought the Sephora Color of the Year Cream Lipstick in Tangerine Tango Cream

For my final beauty products I just have all of my hair and face cleasing supplies which includes my Clarisonic, Cetaphil, Ziana, eye and face cream, deodorent, a light hairspray, hair oil, and Bumble and Bumble Curl Cream.

I'm really proud of my self for packing to lightly. Normally I take practically all of my beauty products, which could basically fill a Sephora :)

Now all I need is a strong drink and my Game of Thrones book to get me through this flight. Wish me luck!

I'm usually a creature of habit when it comes to recipes.  I tend to rotate the same meals throughout the month until I am sick of them and stumble upon a few new dishes to rotate in.  This combo has been in the rotation the last few weeks and I have to say it is quickly climbing the charts as one of my favorites ever. Sweet, salty, health and filling.  Can't ask for much more...oh and its quick and easy too!

Roasted sweet potato wedges

Sauteed asapargus + Sweet Apple Chicken Sausage

Colorful and delicious!  

Do you guys try new dishes or stick to what you know?

I find during the week I stick to what I know will be easy, healthy and quick.  But I do like to experiment on the weekends when I have more time or if I am cooking for more than just myself! 

One reason why I love the changing of seasons is because it's a fantastic reason to update my shoe collection.

I am a total baby about my feet in that they need to be completely comfortable at all times. And I mean, at all times.

This inevitably means that I end up spending a lot of coin on shoes. I actually don't mind...it's one of those things that I'd rather save for and get the right pair that is gorgeous and comfy than...er, not getting the right pair that are gorgeous and comfy.

This weekend I was in Connecticut for my bff's bachelorette party and just as any girly party should include, we went shoe shopping!

I instantly made a beeline for and fell madly in love with these gorgeous gems by Miz Mooz. (And of course, now that I'm home with no ability to return the shoes, I find them on sale at Nordstrom. #FAIL).

I tried them on and they were not only leather and incredibly comfortable, but such a gorgeously green color that they reminded me of the Emerald City. And as the sales girl said,

'These are the kind of shoes that you buy outfits for, not the other way around.'

Well said, my new friend. Well said.

Of course I couldn't leave well enough alone and kinda sorta fell in love with these pretty - and slightly - just slightly - more practical black pair. Again the leather material made them super soft while the thicker heel made them incredibly comfortable.

Plus they are kinda hot, no?

Did I need both pairs?

Obviously.

I really was in desperate need of new summer shoes.

And I remembered that a wise woman once told me,

'Rachel, some people have like 300 pairs of shoes!'

So I was all like, yeah I really need to work on that. Thanks Mom!

So I took home both pairs of these amazing shoes. I cannot wait to break them out! As soon as the sun shows her face again, I'll be wearing them!

So that's my tale of 2 shoes. I may or may not have kept opening the boxes yesterday and making sounds like 'ooooh' and 'ahhhhh' and 'so pretty' while petting them.

Hope you have a great Monday! It's rainy and miserable in NYC today! :D

Questions of the Day:
Are you very specific about what goes on your feet?
Just call me baby!

Do you ever buy fun colors or do you stick to traditional neutrals?
I love having a mix of both!

Hi there! Long time no talk.  Between a busy week last week, even busier weekend and a rough Monday all around, I was more than ready to get my sweat on after work last night.  The catch was that I did not want to go far or put too much thought into my workout.  I knew I had a small window to squeeze in a workout before my body completely shut down for the night - so I jotted down some notes and kinda winged it as I went along!  I was sweatin' and my arms were shakin' big time by the end of this workout. And I very easily did this in the comfort of my living room while cheering on the Rangers!

I completed the following twice through and then finished up with some quickie abs! Not too shabby for a 20 minute workout!

I needed a break from Physique 57 but wanted to incorporate their "exhaustion" technique.  It definitely worked cause my arms were burning by the end of each set! 

What at home workouts are you loving?  Do you prefer to jot down a workout first or make it up as you go along? 

Since I taught myself how to use makeup from YouTube I'm a HUGE fan of this list

Good with colors? This game will put you to the test

Cute mugs on CLEARANCE!! Wahooo

I really enjoyed setting goals in April.

It was nice to a) take a moment to decide what I wanted/needed to accomplish for the month and b) to hold myself accountable for a few things that had been lingering in my life. At the end of the month it really was a great sense of accomplishment! In fact, it kind of makes me feel like I could take over the world!

There are so many things in life that can't be controlled and so for a control freak like me, this was a nice way to make myself think I have some say over things.

Crazy?

Probably.

But in any event, I'm back today to share some of my May goals! It's going to be a busy month and so I'm shying away from big home projects in favor of smaller personal things.

Exercise {at least} 3 days per week.
And I mean real exercise like a run on the treadmill or some physique 57. Random walks after work don't count towards the 3, that's just gravy. Summer is almost here after all! And I want to look like this again.

Clean out my clothes from the den closet.
We just installed new dressers and so the extra bin of clothes in the den has got to go. I haven't worn anything in there since we moved into our apartment - which was almost 2 years ago. So yeah. Clean and donate, that's my motto!

Smile more.
I know it's lame. And in general I'm a pretty optimistic person. In fact, I've been told that my desire to see the good in things/people is one of my worst qualities. But I refuse to be unhappy just because I can. I choose happy! And just putting on a smile goes a really really long way :)

Keep on keeping on with Weight Watchers.

Ok so I rejoined Weight Watchers last July. And how much weight have I lost? Zero lbs. That's right. In fact, I gained 2 lbs. And it's all because I never really got on the program full force and stuck to it. I've been going at it for the last two weeks (even made it through this past weekend!) and plan to keep it rocking through the summer. But for now, I'll set my goal for May and see how that goes. Spring and summer fruits and vegetables should definitely help in this department. 

So that's what I'm feeling this month. I'm sure there are many other things I could add to this list...but realistically...If I did all of the above, I would be a happy camper come May 31. 

Questions of the Day:

What are your goals for May?

Do you do goal setting in general?

Kimberly

Pit: bad frizzy hair days questioning my decision to keep my hair long this summer, feeling like I am in a constant state of living out of a suitcase, and a nagging pain in my calf muscles that has left me a bit wobbly while running, going up stairs and sitting. Yepp - try to get through a week without doing 2 out of 3 of those things.

Peach: a quiet(er) week at work means I dont feel completely out of control and a weekend getaway to one of my favorite cities, Boston, to see lots of of old and new friends :)

Christine

Pit: Slept on my friend's couch last night only to wake up in a pool of sweat. No AC really killed me last night. Also woke up feeling sick to my stomach because I hadn't eaten at all the night before and I think it was starting to eat itself.

Peach: So many peaches I don't even know where to start! The gorgeous weather + I'm done with school + Another week at school just to hangout + Officially going to Bonnaroo again this year + I started dieting and exercising again + Being so happy to be amongst my friends = Pretty much the dream life

Rachel

Pit: Losing only 1 lb this week despite feeling hungry for most of the time; feeling sleepy/groggy/frizzy over this cray Northeast weather.

Peach: Celebrating someone's 30th birthday with too much wine (hmm perhaps there's the weight loss problem?!); finishing the 50 Shades trilogy (sigh); starting Physique 57 and feeling plesantly sore and worked out today :)

Now it's your turn...

What are your peaches and pits this week?