Welcome, Spring! I’m loving the sunshine, chirping birds, and blooming daffodils outside. It’s been nice to get out more, too, now that it’s warming up. I’m excited to share some of my favorite things from the past month with you, ranging from clothing, accessories, and beauty items to home goods, multi-media picks, and food.
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Clothes & Accessories
❊ Merrell Grassbow Air – You know you really love a shoe when you repurchase the same exact ones after you wear out your old ones. These sneakers are my wear everyday, go everywhere shoe. They’re super comfortable and supportive. I love the neutral gray color with just a hint of mint.
❊ Wendy Bellisimo Maternity Anorak – I purchased this coat last fall when I was pregnant to be a mid-weight layering option thinking it might just work postpartum in the spring as well. I was right! I still love this jacket, which fits well without the bump and doesn’t make me look pregnant like some other maternity designs.
Beauty
❊ Juice Beauty SPF 30 Tinted Moisturizer – I actually purchased this tinted moisturizer late last spring but had tucked it away because it was too light for my skin tone at the time. It’s the perfect shade for me now. I use it daily as my morning moisturizer. It provides light coverage which helps even out my skin tone. I love that is has SPF 30 protection as well. It’s a three-in-one time saver!
❊ The Balm Batter Up Long Wearing Eyeshadow Sticks – I asked for eyeshadow stick recommendations last month and got some great recommendations (thank you!). My favorite that I’ve tried are the Batter Up eyeshadow sticks from The Balm. They’re creamy without creasing and shimmery without being overly sparkly. Shutout is a beautiful bronzey taupe and Moonshot is a cool-toned champagne. They’re my go-to every day shades.
Home Goods
I do laundry a lot more frequently now with a baby in the house, so I thought I’d share my current detergent and stain remover picks.
❊ Ecos Baby Laundry Detergent Free & Clear – I’ve used Ecos laundry detergent for many years now, but recently switched from the lemongrass scent to the free and clear baby version. It’s gentle but effective. I can’t ask for much more from a detergent!
❊ OxiClean Laundry Stain Remover – This stain remover spray is another long time laundry favorite of mine. It’s a really effective spot treatment.
❊ Honest Oxy Boost – New to my laundry faves are the Oxy Boost pods from The Honest Company. I bought these before my daughter CC was born with baby laundry in mind. I pop one in with each load (in addition to using detergent) for a *boost* in spot treatment. I also find our clothes come out looking a bit brighter whenever I use these, so I generally use one with every load of clothes, stains or not. For really bad stain situations I will break a pod open and dilute it in water to soak heavily soiled items. Works like a charm!
Multi-Media
❊ Pandora – I know I am years behind at jumping on the Pandora bandwagon, but I’m finally on it! I recently downloaded this music streaming app specifically so I could play Disney tunes for me and CC to dance around to. I love it! I decided to upgrade to the paid subscription which is about $5 a month so we wouldn’t have to listen to ads, but even with them I think the free service is pretty sweet. I like how it remembers your preferences and puts together like songs.
❊ The Amazing Race – I wouldn’t normally watch a show like this (too stressful, LOL 😜), but decided to give it a go because some familiar YouTube faces are competing this season. Don and I have quickly become fans! It’s so interesting to see all of the different parts of the world the contestants travel to. I love how they highlight local cultural activities and traditions for challenges. I think we’ll continue to watch after this season with the social media cast ends.
❊ Snapchat – I’m back on a Snapchat kick after a long hiatus. Not only am I enjoying snapping daily, it’s been a joy to follow some of my favorite YouTubers & bloggers there and interact with some of you, too. Come hang out with me (my username is prettyneatlivng – no second “i”) if you’d like!
Tasty Treats
I was on a pretty limited diet last month while I continued to battle thrush (thankfully now gone!) and had to rely on a few staples to make sure I was getting enough calories and nutrients in every day with breastfeeding. Easy snacks are especially important as a hands-on Mama and I discovered a couple of new ones that continue to be favorites as I ease back into a more well-rounded diet.
❊ CB’s Nuts Organic Pumpkin Seeds – I gave up nuts for awhile and needed something filling and healthy to replace them. Enter pumpkin seeds. Yum! Don came home with these from the store on a whim one day and I went through the bag faster than you can say “scrumpdiddleumptious!” Protein, fiber, healthy fat, magnesium, potassium, and antioxidants galore!
❊ Lundberg Brown Rice Cakes – Avocados were high on my list (and continue to be) for providing healthy fat and good calories, but I wanted a way to eat them like I used to enjoy on toast. Brown rice cakes to the rescue! These crunchy cakes are the perfect avocado delivery system. I eat the two together almost every day!
If you’d like to hear more about my favorites this month, check out this video:
It’s giveaway time! I wanted to share one of my favorites with two of you. The March 2016 Favorites Giveaway will run until Tuesday, April 12, 2016 at 6 PM CT. The giveaway is open internationally. All entrants under the age of 18 must have parental permission to enter. TWO winners will receive my favorite The Balm Batter Up eyeshadow sticks in Shutout and Moonshot.
You can enter by following the directions in the Rafflecopter widget posted below (check out this blog post for more information on entering Rafflecopter giveaways). I’ll announce the winners on THIS blog post and contact them directly through email, as always.
Good luck!
Sometimes Rafflecopter experiences technical difficulties. If you can’t enter for some reason, try again later and it will probably work.
I would love to know what some of your March favorites were if you care to share.
Happy Spring! 🌷
* Post contains affiliate links. This is not a sponsored post. All opinions are genuinely my own. *
