Five on Friday - Oils Storage, Mirror Makeover, and Rainbow Tote

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Hey, y’all and happy Friday!  I’m especially excited about this Friday because… Olivia is officially done with her antibiotic and today is the first day in ten days that I won’t have to deal with a 20-minute tantrum just to get her medicine down.  Yaaaay!  Haha.  But seriously, we are so excited for Friday and the weekend because we have some fun things planned!  Here are some favorites from the week…

O N E – Oils Storage

As you all know, I recently started oiling and I’m still loving it!  I’ve replaced all of our household cleaners with oil products and I’ve also turned to diffusing oils in place of burning chemical-filled candles the majority of the time.  I’ve been using oils to aid with my reflux issues, to aid with sleep, to aid with overall wellness and immunity, and for a ton of other things.  The possibilities are truly endless. 

When I initially signed up, I ordered the starter kit to “get my feet wet” to see if I actually liked oils, and I ended up loving them so much that I’ve purchased many other oils to add to my collection since then.  I have so many that it was getting hard to find what I needed when I needed it, so I was on the hunt for several months to find somewhere to display all of them.

I found several display shelves on Etsy that were perfect, but they were all insanely expensive and I just couldn’t justify spending $200 on an accent piece to hold my oils.  One day I happened to be in TJ Maxx looking for something totally unrelated and I passed right by this little hanging shelf that was the perfect size.  It was gray which didn’t match anything in our house, but it was only $19.99 and it wasn’t anything that a little bit of spray paint couldn’t fix!  I sprayed it white, hung it up, and now I have the perfect place to display all of my oils!  If you're looking for one similar and can't find one at your TJM, check out this one!  It's pricey, but it's handmade and beautiful.  It would have been my second choice.

It’s hanging right in the kitchen so now when I want to diffuse something, all I have to do is walk right over, easily select what I want, and it takes way less time than digging around through the little basket I used to have them in.  The shelf is big enough for my collection to grow, and it’s even deep enough to stack bottles behind one another when I have multiples of the same oil… ahem… Peppermint.  (It’s, like, the best thing ever.)

I organized the oils in ROYGBIV order because – duh – and it’s just the happiest little nook in our kitchen!  We diffuse oils pretty much every day now, and I use my rollers multiple times a day for lots of different reasons.  If you’re ever interested in oiling, do let me know!  I’m happy to talk to you about it, or you can just check out my page here to see how to get yourself started.

T W O – Mirror Makeover

My Nana was recently moved to a nursing home and I acquired her old mirror when my parents cleaned out all of her things.  The mirror was made of cherry wood which doesn’t match anything in our house (and also isn’t really my taste), so I decided to give it a makeover. 

I taped off the mirror and hardware, and used my beloved Rust-Oleum Chalked Spray Paint in Linen White to spray paint the whole thing.  It only took about 15 minutes and a few coats and it looks like a brand new mirror!  It’s the perfect addition to our master bedroom and it’ll also come in handy for taking better outfit pictures for the blog and Instagram.  Our current floor-to-ceiling mirror hangs on the opposite wall as the windows, so all of the natural light is at my back when I face the mirror which makes for dark, grainy pictures.

This stand alone mirror will allow me to place it anywhere in the room to snap pictures towards the natural light, so I’m super excited!  But above all, I love having this little piece of my grandmother close to me. 

Before

All taped up

Spray paint done, waiting for it to dry

All done!!  <3  Still need to wipe down the glass, though.  ;o)

 

T H R E E – Swim Suit

I finally bought a new swimsuit this summer after not buying any for several years and I could not love this one more (top here and bottom here)!  Y’all know how I feel about polka dots, so that’s what initially attracted me to it, and the olive green color is beautiful.  It looks so pretty against tanned skin!  I honestly can’t even pinpoint why exactly I love it other than that, but I do.  Brian also complimented me the first time I wore it, so he must feel the same way!  ;o) 

The cut of the suit is nice because the top and bottoms are both full coverage.  I’m not a fan of all of the newer “cheeky” cut swimsuit bottoms… momma needs the junk in the trunk concealed!  So this suit gives me all the coverage I need when I’m out playing with the kids, but without feeling like a “mom suit” if that makes sense!

It’s from Target and it’s super affordable – the top and bottom are each $14.99 – and right now Target has free shipping and free returns on all women’s swimwear. 

F O U R – Rainbow Tote

This past school year I was the room mom for Jacob’s class so I was constantly coming and going and toting lots of arts and crafts stuff, food, gifts, etc.  I realized early on that I didn’t have a good bag to carry it all in… all of my bags were either small tote bags which weren’t large enough, or they were awkward sized duffel bags which didn’t really work for what I needed to carry. 

I found this tote on Walmart.com a few weeks ago and I could not love it more!  It’s basically the size of one of the large reusable shopping bags, but sturdier… and also cuter!  :o)  This one may be sold out by now, but I found this one that's nearly identical... and cheaper!

Y’all know I’m a sucker for rainbow anything and I’m also a sucker for stripes, so this bag is right up my alley.  It’s looking like I’m going to be Jacob’s room mom again next year, I’m hoping to be Olivia’s as well (just call me crazy), so this baby will be making itself verrrry useful starting in August. 

F I V E – Funnies for the Week

Here are the funnies for the week!

Olivia's and my relationship for the last two weeks.  Hahahaha.

The struggle is real, y'all... especially in the summer when the pageviews are lower!

Bahahaha.  But seriously, thanks for trying.

And in case you missed it, here’s what happened on the blog this week…

Summer 2019 (Week 4)

30A Beach Trip 2019 - Day 4

What's Up Wednesday - June 2019

30A Beach Trip 2019 - Days 5 & 6

Happy Friday, y’all!

*Linking up with A Liz Adventures and Carolina Charm for Five on Friday, A Little Bit of Everything for Friday Favorites, Meet @ the Barre for Friday Favorites, and By BMG for High Five for Friday.

30A Beach Trip 2019 - Days 5 & 6

As expected, we woke up on Thursday (day five) to rain, rain, and more rain.  We knew that we wanted to hit up the outlet mall in Destin anyway, so we decided that would be our indoor activity for the day.  We started the morning slow with cereal in the condo and then we decided to take a few pictures on the deck during a break in the rain.  Y’all know I had to get some pictures of my girl and I twinning and the three of us tripleting in our Seaside sweatshirts! 

While we were down there taking pictures, one of the ladies staying in our same complex came out of her condo and offered to take a few family pictures.  She was one of the three ladies who had sat in front of us on the beach that day, so we’re thinking maybe it was a peace offering?  Regardless, it was kind of her to offer, and she ended up playing director and telling us how to pose and where to stand and she even told Brian and me to kiss.  Haha.  The pictures turned out pretty great even though they’re a little dark since there wasn’t a lot of natural light that day.

After pictures, we hopped into the car for the 30 minute drive to Destin.  The drive was quick and easy despite the rain, and by the time we arrived, it was POURING.  We decided to stop at Chick-Fil-A right across the street from the outlet mall for lunch since it was already after noon.  We love that CFAs all have indoor playgrounds… they are perfect for rainy days! 

After filling our bellies and getting out all of the sillies on the playground, we drove across the street to the outlet mall (in the pouring rain) and we ended up sitting in the car for a few minutes after arrival because the rain had gotten SO HARD..  Once the rain slowed down slightly, we made a run for it, and then we spent the next few hours making stops at Sketchers, Nike, GAP, and J. Crew, and of course, The Disney Store.  We let each of the kids choose a small toy – Jacob chose a Star Wars Droid Maker and Olivia chose Princess Jasmine’s necklace and clip-on earrings set. 

After a few hours, the kids were tired of walking, so we grabbed some chocolate chip cookies from the cookie store, and then hit the road to go back to the condo.  The rain had slowed way down by the time we arrived, and the next hour was spent relaxing.  Jacob wanted to make one of his droids and I wanted to tidy up the condo a little because our family seems extra messy when we travel. 

The weather ended up being awesome for the rest of the day (no more rain!), so we decided that Mexican was in order for dinner.  Olivia decided to wear her fancy new necklace and earrings, so I had to get a picture of the cuteness!  

La Cocina in Seacrest has some of the best margs we’ve EVER tasted, so we made the two minute drive there.  B and I remembered how quickly and easily the margs went down the last time, so we splurged and ordered a pitcher to split.  We’d earned it after all that walking at the outlet mall.  ;o)  Dinner was delicious, as always, and we were completely and utterly stuffed when it was over. 

Since the weather was so lovely (cool and dry!), we decided to take a stroll through Alys Beach to walk off some of the food we’d just eaten.  Alys is one of the most picturesque little areas, and there are sidewalks everywhere, so our walk was perfectly pleasant and it was nice to get some fresh air after being trapped indoors most of the day.

We stopped by a couple of little shops on the way back to the car because I wanted to find a souvenir frame to add to our travel gallery wall, and then we called it a night!

Friday morning the sky was ominous, but it wasn’t due to rain for a couple of hours, so we decided to put on our swimsuits and spend some time at the beach.  We knew the bottom could fall out at any minute, so we traveled lightly, only carrying our phones and a couple of toys – chairs and wagons weren’t necessary. 

We ended up getting to spend a good hour down there playing in the sand and surf, but the water was off limits because it was a double red flag kind of day.  The ocean looked plain angry and I wasn’t about to get out in it. 

We took a little walk westbound and then turned back towards the condo when we could see the rain moving closer from the distance.  We ended up timing it just right, because right as we made it to the top of the stairs big, fat drops started falling from the sky and it started pouring just as we rounded the corner of the condo to get under cover.

We all showered and got dressed for the day after that, had a quick lunch of sandwiches and fruit in the room, and then headed towards Panama City to Pier Park so we could hit up our other favorite rainy day place – Dave and Busters.  On the way in, we got to walk by the new Sky Wheel and I was so sad that we never got a chance to ride it.  I wasn’t about to get in there while it was rainy and windy!  They probably don’t allow it anyway!

We stayed there for a good couple of hours and the kids had a blast.  Olivia even won the jackpot of 250 tickets on one of the games!  I swear, she's the luckiest person I've ever met!  Those places are always fun for a while, but the incessant noise gets really old really quickly.  The kids ended up with 1,458 tickets to share, and they both came home with some pretty good prizes. 

Since we were in Pier Park and we hadn’t had dessert the night before, we decided to stop by Kilwin’s for an afternoon snack.  B and I LOVE their S’mores ice cream, so we were both craving that.  Unfortunately they were all out, so I settled for cookie dough and B had mint chocolate chip.  Olivia decided to try something new and she had Blue Moon.  My friend Emily has always told me that’s her favorite flavor ever, so of course, I had to try a bite, and it was SO GOOD.  I may have to get that the next time it’s available!  Although, I don’t know if I could choose that over my beloved S’mores…

It rained all the way back to the condo and it was looking like the afternoon was going to be a total washout, so we spent the next couple of hours relaxing in the room.  Jacob made another droid and B assisted, Olivia played with some of her toys, and I read and tidied up the condo a little more.

I was feeling kind of blue from all of the rain, and just as I was worried we’d be stuck indoors all evening, the clouds rolled out and blue skies rolled in!  WOO HOO!!!!  We decided to celebrate with another trip to Seaside because we’d been wanting to try the food trucks there.  When we walked out of the condo, we were greeted with a full on rainbow, so I took that as a sign that the rest of the evening was going to be perfect.  Spoiler alert, it was!

Jacob and Olivia opted for hot dogs from Wild Bill’s Beach Dogs while B and I opted for grilled cheese sandwiches from The Meltdown.  They have so many different options of gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches that I would have loved to try, but unfortunately my reflux had been acting up off and on all day and I didn’t want to exacerbate it any further, so I just stuck with a plain grilled cheese.  It was still so gooood, though, even if it wasn’t fancy. 

After dinner, we walked around the square a little more taking in all of the sights.  They have the absolute cutest post office I’ve ever seen in Seaside, so naturally, we had to take a picture with it!  We also let the kids go run around on the green to burn some energy since they’d been stuck inside all day. 

Later in the evening we walked down to the beach for another sunset, and then we made a quick stop at the Five Daughters Bakery air stream to grab donuts for breakfast in the morning.  If you’ve never had Five Daughters, you need to try them.  B and I had them for the first time in Nashville and the donuts are a sight to behold.  They’re HUGE.

And that wraps up days five and six!  As much as it stinks to have rainy days at the beach, I really think we made the most of them!  We were also lucky to have clear evenings that allowed us to get out and enjoy all of the nightlife that 30A has to offer. 

I’m hoping to have the final beach post up the week after Fourth of July, but in the meantime, here are the others in case you missed any of them!

Have a great day, y’all!

By the Numbers

30A Beach Trip 2019 - Days 1 & 2

30A Beach Trip 2019 - Day 3
30A Beach Trip 2019 - Day 4