kapachino

Category: things i love

  • recent things i love

    things i love

    The Wet Brush – I don’t like to condition my hair more than once a week, but that means that any time I shower in between conditionings my hair is kind of a beast to brush through when it’s wet. I used to skip showers just so that I wouldn’t have to deal with it. (Now I just skip them because…eh. Don’t need a good reason.) This brush really does make it a lot easier. It doesn’t get the tangles out on the first pass through or anything, but it doesn’t make me want to hack off my hair or arm, either.

    Aden + Anais muslin blankets – Everyone says these are the best so I finally shelled out for them even though we had tons of other blankets. Now they’re the only ones I’ll use. They make swaddling super easy and I love how large and thin they are, so they’re a lot more versatile than other blankets.

    Apple TV – David got this for his birthday a couple weeks before Liam was born and I am so grateful. We have the worst cable imaginable and considering I’ve spent most of my days resting on the couch it’s been so nice to have good TV to watch. I haven’t really watched TV at all since my last maternity leave, and without it the days can feel very long and lonely. With Apple TV I can watch most new shows, Netflix, and HBO Go. We also use it to play YouTube clips and songs for Meredith to dance to. :)

    Q-snap frame – For any of you stitchers out there, this is an alternative to an embroidery hoop that I discovered a few months ago. It comes in a bunch of sizes but is a square or rectangle shape. I find it a lot easier to hold and manipulate than a hoop.

    The Honest Company diapers & wipes – We were given a generous gift by my brother and SIL to try this out, so I went ahead and signed up for the diapers and wipes bundle. So far it’s awesome and I’m afraid I’m going to be addicted. The diapers are super cute and Liam has not had a blowout yet. They are natural and eco-friendly and the bundles are really customizable. This is working great for us right now, but I am not sure yet what we are going to continue to do for the whole diaper situation. But that’s a topic for another day, and I’m sure you can’t wait. :)

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    Not a sponsored post, but some affiliate links are used. 

  • baked oatmeal

    Hey let’s have a rare post about food from me, shall we? I always struggle with what to eat for breakfast. It has to be fairly filling (enough to get me through at least 4 hours without my stomach growling), easy to make or heat up in the morning, and portable because I eat on my drive. For a long time I ate refrigerator oatmeal which really is delicious and perfect for my requirements, but I ran into a big problem with it once I got pregnant and that is that I can no longer tolerate very much dairy! Refrigerator oatmeal calls for milk AND Greek yogurt which is just too much.

    So then I tried making ahead breakfast sandwiches and freezing them, but they just didn’t taste great heated up. I am not above buying prepared foods, but since I tend to eat the same thing every day for breakfast I really wanted to find something that was less processed and cheaper in the long run. For awhile I went back to eating regular oatmeal prepared with water, but it was very blah.

    Then I remembered a recipe for baked oatmeal my best friend Becca gave me a long time ago! I had made it in the past and loved it but just forgot about it for awhile. I just substituted almond milk for regular milk and it came out perfectly.

    baked oatmeal

    Here’s what you do:

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

    Mix up the dry ingredients in one bowl:
    2 cups rolled oats
    1/3 cup brown sugar
    1 teaspoon baking powder
    1 Tablespoon cinnamon
    1/3 cup raisins or other dried fruit (I usually use cranberries)
    3 Tablespoons chopped walnuts (optional – I’ve never used them)

    Then mix up the wet ingredients in another bowl:
    1 cup milk (or almond milk)
    1/2 cup applesauce
    2 Tablespoons oil
    1 egg, beaten

    Combine the two and stir well. Pour it all into a greased 8×8 pan and bake for 25 minutes.

    Also, I double the recipe and bake it in a 13×9 pan which yields the amount you see in these photos. It requires a few extra minutes of baking, but your oven may be a little different. It’s so good! Just the right amount of sweet.

    baked oatmeal

    What do you eat for breakfast? Any other ideas for me?

  • fall loves

    fall loves

    Yesterday, the first day of fall, something magical happened: it actually cooled down in Houston! Granted, it wasn’t cool exactly, but it was in the upper 70’s and 80’s which felt amazing compared to the oppressive heat we’ve had the past few months. Most importantly, it made me hopeful. When I was younger I loved the heat of summer, but as I get older I have less and less tolerance for it. Because of the relief fall brings us it is quickly becoming my favorite season. I was even inspired to spend the day baking yesterday – cookies and a delicious apple crisp, yum.

    Here are some things I’m loving lately!

    A Good Day Journaling Cards – I really like these cards as filler for Project Life. I haven’t done a “day in the life” in awhile but I think I’m going to bring it back soon!

    Threshold Organic Sheets – In my quest to make over our bedroom one thing I fixated on was getting new sheets for our bed, and I wanted them to be white. I found these at Target and they were cheaper than any pair of sheets we’ve ever bought and they are SO comfortable. They also come in lots of great patterns and I can almost guarantee that I won’t ever buy another brand.

    Maxi skirts – No link to anything specific, but I’ve been loving these for the weekends. They’re obviously not a new trend but they’re perfect for the transition to fall, especially for a pregnant lady.

    Custom Note Pads – At home we always have spare paper around for lists and notes, and for awhile we’ve just been using a generic spiral notebook. Ours is almost full though, so I want to find something cute to take its place. I love these custom jotters from Paper Source.

    Transport Tote – I am in love with this tote bag by Madewell. My current bag is great but it is just a little too small so this is going on my Christmas list. It’s a color that will go with anything and it’ll last a long, long time.

    What are you loving these days?

  • favorite podcasts

    I have a long commute to work and most of the time I listen to audiobooks, but this year I’ve also added in podcasts to the mix. They’re so fun! My criteria for a podcast is: has to be light & upbeat, not explicit, and I can’t be annoyed by anyone’s voice. Here’s what I have on rotation.

    podcast faves

     

    Must Listen

    Joy the Baker – my first podcast love and still my favorite. Joy and Tracy just chat about random things and answer questions from listeners. I feel like I’m talking with friends when I listen, and I frequently laugh out loud.

    Book Riot – this is relatively new but it’s so great! Jeff and Rebecca talk about news and happenings in the world of books and publishing. They are the editors of Bookriot.com which is a site I love, and they’re also super personable and entertaining. If you’re a reader you should definitely check it out.

    Simple Mom – hosted by Tsh of the blog of the same name, with a rotating list of guests. They talk about blogging, motherhood, media, food, fashion, and all kinds of things. I relate to most of it and it feels like another chat with friends.

    Give it a try

    It’s A Thing – this is kind of fun and quick. Tom and Molly each talk about one trend they’ve noticed that has lately become a “thing.” Totally unscientific and with a southern California bent, but still interesting and light. I think they’re on break right now but they say they will be back!

    Freakonomics Radio – I’ve never read the book but it’s hosted by the authors and they talk about all sorts of subjects. It’s super interesting and I’ve learned a ton; enough to impress my trivia-obsessed husband. :) The more I listen to this one the more I like it.

    Radiolab – This can be hit or miss for me, because some of them are too serious for my liking, but I have heard some truly great stuff on it. I guess it’s kind of sciency-based, but sometimes they just have short stories or other random things.

    That’s all I have in rotation right now, but do you have any more to suggest I try?

  • popsugar must have may 2013 box

    My latest guilty pleasure is monthly subscription boxes. This is not a new thing, but I’ve recently become fascinated with them. Right now I’m signed up for two of them, and the first one I chose is PopSugar’s Must Have box (referral link there). It’s $35 a month – but use code REFER5 to get $5 off your first month – and you get all sorts of products from fashion, beauty, food, entertainment, home, etc. I researched a lot of subscription services before choosing this one, and it seemed like you get the most for your money with it and the variety of products is exciting.

    I have to say that even if the contents of the box were a dud, the anticipation of receiving it (they emailed me about a week before it came saying it was on its way) was awesome. I didn’t look up any spoilers so I had no idea what was inside when it arrived, and my level of excitement surrounding it was ridiculous. So now I’m going to be a total dork and show you everything that came.

    This was the first look:

    first look

    And this was what was inside! So much stuff!

    contents

    1. Kooringal Giselle mid brim hat (value $28). Right away I was super happy because I do not have any summer hats and I plan to spend weekends at the pool with Meredith. My hat is black (which matches my swimsuit), it looks great on me and has a tie on the inside to tighten it if needed, and the brim is bendable. I’m going to be wearing this a lot.

    2. Modern Cocktail margarita mixers (value $10). I was sad about this at first because we don’t drink at all in our house (long story). But then I realized that I could probably use them to make mocktails, which I never do, and would probably be fun.

    3. Way Better snacks sweet chili tortilla chips (value $2). I devoured them in short order.

    4. BeautyBlender and BlenderCleanser (value $24). I’m kind of skeptical of beauty items because my routine is super simple and I am aiming to use only natural products. Apparently this little sponge is really great at applying makeup like cream foundation, but I don’t know if I’ll use it much because I only wear powder foundation, blush, and mascara. But I’ll save it for a special occasion I suppose. The cleanser I’ll probably use for my makeup brushes, which have never been cleaned (oops).

    5. Charm & Chain gift card (value $30). I will still have to spend some of my own money to get something with this, but I probably will at some point. I browsed their selection and there are several things that I like.

    6. Pacifica Natural Color Quench Lip Tint (mine is in guava berry, value $7). I’m really excited about this because it’s all natural and it’s super subtle. Perfect for daily use!

    7. Mindy Kaling’s “Questions I ask when I want to talk about myself” card deck (value $15). This is kind of a strange product. On each card there is an anecdote from Mindy’s life along with some questions to get conversation going. It’s really pretty, but I’ve already read (and enjoyed) her book so the blurbs aren’t new to me, and I don’t hang out with girls in social situations much (which is what the deck says it’s intended for) so it’s not something I ever would have bought. I was thinking of using it for blog prompts but since most of the questions have to do with the anecdote on the card they wouldn’t really make sense. I don’t know if I’ll do anything with this one.

    Favorite item: Kooringal Giselle mid brim hat

    Runner up: Pacifica Natural lip tint

    Least favorite: Mindy Kaling conversation deck

    So that’s my first box experience, and I have to say that overall I’m a fan! It was so fun to open, but also strange because you are confronted with all these products you’ve probably never heard of before and I really had to sit with them for awhile to form a solid opinion on them. But for now I’m definitely keeping my subscription active and I’ll keep sharing what I get. :)