I have some really fun things to share with you guys this week! I worry about the Friday that comes along when I have nothing new to rave about, so I’ve been paying extra close attention to everything I try out to see if it’s worthy of sharing or not. I found a lot of fun finds this week!
DRINK
- For St. Nick’s Day I was gifted a sampler pack of holiday coffee blends. Which has been AWESOME, trying out each new flavor of coffee. I believe each bag is meant to brew one pot of coffee, but I just use it in my small pourover so it’s enough to make two mug’s worth. While I’m definitely recommending the sampler itself, my favorite blend has been the Kuma Bear Clause Holiday Blend. It’s one of the tastiest coffees I’ve ever had. I’m currently drinking Fundamental Coffee Company’s Winter Solstice Blend and it’s also fantastic. I NEVER EVER would have purchased a large bag of coffee that is meant to taste like bell pepper, red basil, white pepper, cedar, and mint, but it’s really good!
EAT
- While I’m trying to eat mostly whole and unprocessed foods, it’s frustrating to not be able to grab something really quickly when necessary. At Costco last week they had a sample of That’s It Bars – and it was so good! Each bar only has two ingredients – like apple and mango, apple and blueberry, and apple and strawberry. Costco offers a bag of mini bars in those three flavors, but you could also buy from their website or amazon with a lot more options. I think these mini bars are SO good. And they’re the perfect little sweetness if you’re like me and really, really like having some kind of dessert to end a meal. And only two real food ingredients?! I don’t know how you can go wrong. One note, though, I would NOT recommend their chocolate treats. I purchased a truffle variety pack on amazon and while the strawberry one is okay, the fig and date ones are disgusting. Stick with the fruit only!
- I really miss restaurant food. I’ve been avoiding it as much as possible because I don’t know how to make good decisions and most places don’t have many good options to begin with – other than salads. And guys, I just do not want to eat salads. Especially when other things sound SO much better. But I ended up at Mod Pizza the other day with Cindy and decided to try the gluten free crust. And it was great! I missed the real crust a TINY bit, but not enough that it bothered me. Mod Pizza is Shepard’s favorite restaurant, so I’m excited that I can still go there with him without the stress of giving in and eating what I’m supposed to be avoiding. Or getting a salad. 😛
READ
- I also received (from myself lol) a copy of Live in Grace Walk in Love by Bob Goff for St. Nick’s Day. I always love the idea of daily devotionals, but if each page doesn’t pack some sort of great emotional punch, I lose interest VERY quickly. But this one is really fantastic. I’ve been reading two every morning and find plenty of passages to highlight. I’m really excited to go through this whole book. The only other book that excited me in the same way is Only Love Today by Rachel Macy Stafford. That one is particularly valuable to moms.
BUY
- To go along with a great new devotional, I also picked up a package of these Zebra Midliner Highlighters. I’m such a sucker for a new writing instrument, especially when it comes in such pretty colors. I had this large set on my wish list for awhile, but once I started the devotional and knew I had a lot of highlighting in my future, I decided to buy the slightly smaller pack for myself at Target the other day. They lived up to all my highlighting hopes and dreams! The thicker end is great for highlighting and the fine point is perfect for writing or journaling. I’m really happy I made the splurge!
LISTEN
- I have another great Christmas playlist to recommend! Bri McKoy’s Christmas with a Crisp. I LOVE this one. I’ve been listening to it every day.
ORGANIZE
- So I randomly came across this quick youtube video the other day, showcasing a method Becky Higgins uses to organize all of her to do list items. I’m the kind of person that NEEDS to write something down when it pops into my head, otherwise I’ll never be able to focus on anything else. I’ve been trying every method of planner and journal, trying to prioritize three tasks a day, and any other list writing way I can think of. But this easy three step process is what I just might stick with forever. Basically, you get an empty notebook page and list in pen every single thing that you need to do in the coming days or week. Then you grab a highlighter (hello, Zebra Midliner!) and highlight the two or three things you need to focus on NEXT. As you finish them you use a sharpie (supposed to be black to really cross it out, but…I like color too much for that) to cross it out entirely. Maybe this whole thing sounds dumb to you, but I LOVE that it’s a way to totally brain dump everything that’s weighing on me so I can stop thinking about it. Then choose in a very visual way which things are most important for me to do next. Not even necessarily that day, but a higher priority than anything else. And only think about those highlighted items until I can cross them out and highlight something new. This system is awesome for me.
Happy Friday, everyone!
