Weekly Gratitude: 27/28 Editions

{What do we do with leftover 3D glasses? Put them on Lennon and take photos, of course.}

Things I'm thankful for this week {and last week}:

• Hubby finishing his summer semester! He got an A in the course {of course!}.


• An extra day off of work to rest, relax, and read this.


• The City on Netflix instant. NY, DVF, Kelly Cutrone, Whitney Port, and Olivia Palermo drama? You had me at DVF.


• The stormy weather. It makes for perfect sleeping conditions.


• One Girls' Night in watching True Blood Season 1.


• Sparkly pink polish on my toes.


• Seeing "Captain America" with my love and 4 other nerdy dudes.


• Scoring a Qdoba Groupon {$7 for $14 worth of food!}


• Vogue's Age Issue: SJP's still got it.


• A lovely bubble bath in the middle of a crazy week.

Happy Weekend!

xoxo,

PJ

Inspired Tuesday: Pinterest

{source}

When I’m on the internet {not reading blogs} I’ve been spending time on this new site: Pinterest. Similar to tumblr, Pinterest allows users to "pin" the image, and then allows each user to organize different boards/categories and share with others.  It’s a fun way to keep track of sources of inspiration for the home, outfits, beauty, tutorials, etc. It's kind of addicting.

Not on Pinterest? Sign up here.

 

xoxo,

PJ

Sisterhood

{photos 1&2 taken during our summer in panama, photo 3 at my wedding, photo 4 during a visit in chicago, photo 5 last summer in santa cruz}

One of my oldest and dearest friends has set out on an adventure of a lifetime. She has been living in Santa Cruz, CA for the last few years {Hubby and I visited her out there last summer} and has recently accepted a position on the other side of the country on the coast in Georgia. Being the true adventurer that she is, she decided to Vespa her way cross-country mapping out a 6 week route from coast to coast {literally}. I'm so excited for her, to hear about her adventures, and keep her in my prayers for safe travels. She is going to be updating her blog An Ocean of Trees, if you want to follow along in her adventure. Betsy and I first met in Chicago when I was a Freshman in high school. We've lived near each other on and off over the years, when we lived various places throughout the Midwest. She's celebrated with me, cried with me, and has been a consistent source of encouragement in my life.

In 2004, we traveled to Panama together and spent two months living/volunteering at a children's home for the summer. If any of you have traveled out of the country with a friend, you know that there are memories made that last forever. Silly {and very strange} things that make you laugh or cry when remembered. It truly was an adventure, and I'm so thankful for that summer. Fast forward 7 years later, and I can still picture us on a beach somewhere in Panama: me terribly sunburnt, Betsy terribly tan, feeling so terribly blessed to call her my friend.

xoxo,

PJ

Summer Makeup

These are the current products that I use {and love} during the summer.

1) Stila tinted moisturizer: I don't like to wear foundation, so the helpful Sephora staff suggested a tinted moisturizer. This stuff is amazing! It evens out my skin tone without looking like I'm wearing any foundation. Bonus: SPF 20!

2) Gold shadow: This color adds a bit of shimmer and is so fun for the summer.

3) Clinique concealer: For any blemishes and under eye circles.

4) L'Oreal mascara: My favorite "Target mascara" that defines and lengthens my lashes.

5) Stila Lipstain/Cheekstain in Mango Crush: So I was very skeptical about the coral/orange tones, but this stuff looks so pretty on my lips and cheeks, I'm a believer.

6) Rosebud salve: Hands-down my favorite lip balm, regardless of the season.

Do you change your beauty routine for the season?

xoxo,

PJ

Weekly Gratitude: 24/25/26 Editions

Source: beyondbeyond.co.uk via Pilar on Pinterest

I've been missing in action from my Weekly Gratitude posts for the last few weeks. I've still been thankful {of course} but I've missed cataloging them here on the blog. Learn more about Weekly Gratitude here.

Things I'm thankful for:

• Spending an entire week with my sister who was in town from Michigan.


• Celebrating with family for my cousin's wedding; I'm thankful for safe travels to/from Minnesota.


• Another year of life {aka my birthday}!


• Laughing with my sisters and hubby through "Horrible Bosses" this week.


• New friendships through our small group from church.


• A husband that loves and respects me.


• A bicycle that I love to ride!


• Discovering a new favorite Vietnamese sandwich shop in our neighborhood: Bun Mi. Absolutely delicious!

xoxo,

PJ

Chloe Getting Married

{Candy Bar ... Swedish Fish? Yum! }

{Me, Chloe}

{Cousins: Cyndi, Me, Jill, Chloe, Carolyn, Sophie}

{They had a Bubble Tea Station at the reception!}

{Jasmine leaves instead of birdseed/rice/confetti ... they smelled amazing!}

{Don, Chloe}

This past weekend I road-tripped with my younger sister and parents to Minnesota to celebrate my cousin & her new husband. Car trips are hilarious when you're twenty-eight years old and traveling with your parents. Example: Dad asking if I had enough money to buy myself a Subway sandwich and requesting a 15-minute notice for potty stops. Some of my favorite memories with family were our summer road trips to various places {Corn Palace in South Dakota, anyone?}.

Since my family lives all over the place, it's rare that most of us are together other than for weddings and funerals {unfortunate, but true}. The weekend was spent catching up with family, sharing hilarious stories about our mothers {because there are five sisters}, and making sweet memories.

I was appointed to the Instax guest book photo station, where I had a blast asking people to take photos and attempting to get babies to smile {unsuccessfully}. The last photo is the snapshot of my sister and I.

I'm so happy for my cousin and her new hubby.

xoxo,

PJ

28 Years and a Sprinkles Cupcake

Twenty-eight years.  Twenty-eight years wiser? We'll see.

This year for my birthday I demanded to see Paul McCartney in concert for my birthday present from Hubby. He graciously met my demands. In lieu of a party this year I opted for a low key day spending time with Hubby, family, and relaxing. We biked to the newly opened Sprinkles downtown that I've been dying to try. I opted for a classic chocolate cupcake; Hubby opted for a peanut butter one {of course, because the man loves his peanut butter}. Both of our cupcakes were delicious. For dinner, we ate at one of my favorite Thai places in the City: Joy's Noodles in Lakeview.

My parents gifted me a new bike basket for my bike. They oh-so-coincidentally picked out the exact bike basket that I emailed to Hubby {hint, hint} a Peterboro woven bike basket. Apparently requesting a bike accessory for your birthday at twenty-eight can be a source of humor for parents. They gently pointed out that said basket would have also been an appropriate gift for my tenth birthday. Who knew?

I'm thankful for another year of life. I'm thankful for another year that I can spend learning, un-learning, and growing old{er} with my lovah.

xoxo,

PJ

PS. Photo Three = Edited to remain PG on the blog.