Lately I'm Loving

Things making me smile/on my mind/causing distraction these days: 

--Obviously, the news of my bff Kate (aka the Duchess of Cambridge)'s second pregnancy started my day off on the right note. The first time I found out, I was en route home from Vail with my family after a wedding...needless to say I totally freaked out when I didn't have ready access to a computer to read all the coverage. This is where my priorities lie, people. Today, I'm scoping out Suri's Burn Book for the hilarious take on the baby news, and also enjoyed this article about historical second sons in the English monarchy. Let's be real though...I'm clearly insanely pumped for more Kate Middleton pregnancy fashion. Duh. 

--My mom and I are home alone currently, as my dad is being epic as usual and deep-sea salmon and halibut fishing in Alaska. Cool right? No thanks. Mom and I shopped all day on Saturday, including a trip to the brand-new Eagan Premium Outlets. They just opened a few weeks ago, and Twin Cities friends, it's so insane. Saturday, for example, I stocked up on a few great basic sweaters from J.Crew Factory for over half-off even the normal price, picked up some jeans at the Gap, and even decided to give ankle boots a try. Why not, when they're practically giving them away??

--I put together a new playlist for gym trips last week, and have been doing my best to carry this summer's pop hits into fall. One of the additions to the playlist, however, wasn't quite the vapid, gym-conducive crap the rest of the playlist consisted of, and I've found myself looping them everywhere from the car to the office. Kaitlin, Max and I fell hard for Johnnyswim at Firefly, and the more I listen to them the more I like them. They're soulful and hipster with this great bluesy tinge that I think is perfect for fall....and did I mention they're stunningly gorgeous? Yup. Check them out--you'll be glad you did. 

--Confession: Sometimes at work, I don't have enough work to keep me busy all day. It's a common problem for my team--our roles are very cyclical. I was searching for something to kill time with and stumbled on 40 Days of Dating, which chronicles two friends' attempt at dating each other for 40 days straight from each of their points of view. It was fascinating--I read the entire site in about two days. Apparently they have a movie deal too, which should be interesting!

--Folks, it's football season, and I for one am super excited. My beloved Fighting Irish ended Michigan's 384-game shutout streak on Saturday night in one of the most beautiful victories ever...now I'm all pumped to cheer them on through a great season after all the pre-season drama and scandal. With my move back downtown imminent, I'm looking forward to (hopefully) hosting a gamewatch or two, and if I do, it will definitely feature at least two of these 25 Cheesy Dips That Will Make You Swoon. Click the link. I dare you. It's food porn in its most extreme form. 

Lately I'm Loving

Things making me smile/on my mind/causing distraction these days: 

--As we all know, I am a girl who reads excessively. I'm led to believe that most people either find this intimidating or laughable. Dearest Hannah, however, sent me this article about why readers are the best people to fall in love with. Citing our ability to empathize and our greatly-expanded worldview, the article also extols our higher-than-average levels of intelligence and kindness as reasons you should totally be trolling the library instead of bars for your next date. It's science. 

--In heartwarming human interest news these days, if you haven't seen the story of Emmett and Erling of Farmington, MN, you need to visit KARE11 right now and watch/read this. This is a town close to where I grew up, and it's one of the more precious fluff pieces I've seen. Summary: Precocious two-year-old befriends 90-year-old WWII vet and they share a bond the likes of which even "Up" can't touch. Be still, my beating heart!

--I started hunting for a new apartment a few weeks ago, and with that, for the essentials to fill it! Although I still have all the furniture I could possibly need, I'm sorely lacking in kitchen goods and bedding. I picked out this gorgeous Anthropologie quilt awhile ago, and just recently discovered these Nate Berkus sheets at Target to go with them. I picked up "Coral Crosshatch" and "Citron;" both are perfect matches for the colors in the quilt and are so soft it feels like they've been washed and snuggled in forever. 

--Since I was a little girl, I've notoriously bitten my nails and picked/scraped at my cuticles and the skin on my thumbs until they bled. Enter A La Mode, an Edina nail salon that Alyssa, Steph and I tried out in mid-June. I got my first shellac manicure and, instantly, miraculously even, my nails are now gorgeous and my hands are untouched and flawless. Manicures have lasted me over three weeks without a chip or hangnail in sight. Best part? You get complimentary champagne with your nail service, and the salon also functions as an adorable boutique. Twin Cities girls, who's joining me?

--And ending on the word-nerd note I started on, I discovered the Anagram Hall of Fame the other day in perusal of another blog. This stuff is my crack, guys. I mean, as if "dormitory=dirty room" and "Clint Eastwood=Old West Action" wasn't enough, they basically had me at United States of America and Church of Scientology, and then won my heart forever with their rearrangement of Hamlet's "To be, or not to be." OMG.

Lately I'm Loving

Things making me smile/on my mind/causing distraction these days: 

-Caribou's salted caramel creamy cold press. The salt-to-caramel ratio is pretty spot-on, and they froth it in the blender. The best is waiting for the ice and foam to melt in the bottom...I'm utterly smitten. Looks like I won't be checking off #12 on my 101 in 1001 list this summer...

-I'm working to start getting things ready for "Lizzie Moves Back Downtown," and one of the major hurdles I have yet to get figured out is a bed/bedding. I ordered two quilts from Anthropologie and can't decide which I love more...but I do know for sure that I can't wait to get to redesign a girly, all-me bedroom again!

-When I think burgers, I think beef, turkey, or veggie. There was a disastrous attempt at trying quinoa burgers last winter (which always makes me think of the Bud Light commercial), but apart from that I've never ventured out of the trifecta above. We tried these Spicy Hawaiian Chicken Burgers over Memorial Day, and it opened my eyes to a whole new world of (moderately) healthy summer grill options. 

-Last week the book club I'm part of met at the Lake Harriet Bandshell, and I found out that every night this summer the Bandshell is hosting live music! That night's show was a kind of odd techno-folk-fusion thing, but I looked over the lineup and there are several I'm really excited for, including Dustin Hatzenbuhler on 6/27 and Cantus on 6/15. 

-On a more serious note, I've been reading a lot of the coverage of the 70th anniversary of D-Day, which was celebrated yesterday. Seeing the photography from the invasion juxtaposed with yesterday's photography and footage of the veterans fascinates me. I highly recommend this compilation of invasion photos by the Huffington Post, as well as coverage by the Wall Street Journal and The Guardian of yesterday's events. 

Lately I'm Loving

Things making me smile/on my mind/causing distraction these days: 

-The DIY "messy French twist." I've had this pin sitting on my (so-totally-aspirational-and-unrealistic) hairstyle Pinterest board for months, and finally attempted it this morning with day-old hair, a lot of Dove volumizing dry shampoo (it's lifechanging I tell you!), a little patience and a lot of I-don't-give-a-damn. It only took six bobby pins and it held up all day...which may or may not be due to the insane amount of care I took to NOT touch my head every 30 seconds and marvel at my amazing hair skillzzz. 

The original/my attempt. I have clothes on, so clearly I didn't replicate exaaaactly...

-Twin Cities girls: who's heard of the Garden of Eden? Not the sweet real estate in Genesis, the precious little shop on Grand Avenue in St. Paul. It sits right across from the J.Crew, which naturally means I...just pass through...the neighborhood way more than necessary. They sell a ton of great bath and body products from really reputable brands, but I have a particular love for the custom scent-blending bar they have. There are dozens of different essential oils to choose from, and a customer can pick one or pair several to create a custom fragrance. One of my all-time favorite combos: grapefruit and pink jasmine, which I just switched over to in hopes of speeding along spring. It's lovely and really affordable! Check it out!

-Target's patio furniture is out and making my heart go pitter-patter all over the place. As if that store wasn't tempting or dangerous enough on a regular basis, Jon and I have this great, giant and semi-private patio at our apartment that's just begging to be turned into a fabulous outdoor entertaining space. I'm scoping out this set in a neutral color, and dreaming of jazzing up the space with some fun throw pillows, oversized lanterns, a couple potted plants, and a to-die-for ottoman (for real, this is the cutest thing ever). Spring, come quick!

-Another Pinterest find: this whole smoothie thing is all the rage but I have some kind of a mental block that keeps me from finding any of the green smoothies swallow-able, let alone appetizing. With a tender and sore ankle holding me back a bit (a lot) at the gym, I'm trying to focus on eating extra-mindfully, and a smoothie sounds light and refreshing. This "pink" smoothie is a nice change-up from the green ones and looks super-easy...I have everything but the almond milk in my fridge already. 

-I love internet quizzes. Who doesn't? With Buzzfeed blowing up my Facebook every day, I've found myself spending a lot of time finding out what 90's boy band member is my soulmate, what sandwich embodies my personality, and which Full House character I should be. For those craving something a little more cerebral, though, I stumbled on this Positivity Ratio quiz. Sounds like it's meant to accompany a book, but I've been taking it toward the end of every day for a couple days now and I think it's really interesting...if not quite as fun as "Which Rapper Are You!"