How is your weekend so far? I’m currently curled up on the couch, typing this post as I sip a glass of wine and look in awe at the pristine snow.  In New York, I feel like our snow is disgusting and dirty just hours after it falls due to foot and car traffic. But here, in the suburbs of Cincinnati, the snow is still bright white two days after falling! We are in Cincinnati visiting our good friends, Ryan and Amy, who are now the proud parents to two children, their youngest who is just a few weeks younger than Katie. It’s been wonderful curling up in their living room and watching the little girls play together while their older son reads to them. Our weekend has been relaxing as we’ve only left the house for a brisk neighborhood stroller walk and a hot yoga class. We cooked dinner in two of the three nights and tonight, we took the relaxing way out and enjoyed leftovers.

This week, instead of Friday Favorites, I’m sharing some weekend reading which includes recipes, articles, posts and other things that caught my eye this week.

• This Bon Appetit slow cooker recipe was a hit with everyone last night and perfect for the cold, blustery weather!
• In light of the recent articles advising us to avoid romaine lettuce, I’m glad i’m not pregnant right now. During my first trimester, romaine was the only lettuce I could stomach and I found myself craving Cesar and Greek salads multiple times a week!
• I love making a big batch of quinoa and keeping it in the refrigerator as it is versatile enough to be used at breakfast, lunch and dinner and it’s an easy way to add protein to any meal. These 29 incredible quinoa recipes will be a delicious way to change things up while using one of my favorite refrigerator staples.
• During my manicure on Monday I asked the nail tech to recommend a light pink and I immediately fell in love with her recommendation – CND Vinylux Romantique. which is a happy medium between gel and regular nail polish. I love the light pink color and am impressed that is hasn’t chipped yet!
• Since our apartment tends to be cold during the winter, I’ve been wearing these cozy socks to bed each night.  After wearing them for a week, I fell in love with their warmth and weight – they aren’t as heavy or bulky as some of my socks but still keep my feet nice and toasty. In fact, I ordered two more pairs so I could wear them during the day with snow boots and then at night with pajamas!
• After yoga yesterday, I realized just how much my body needs the practice. My back and shoulders were so tight from carrying and holding Katie and my hips are perpetually tight. I tried this 20-minute Yin Yoga class on YouTube that Grace recommended and felt SO relaxed afterwards. While my goal is still at least one hot yoga class per month, I’d like to try and do short but effective yoga videos like this more often.
• After seeing these gold collagen eye patches on countless blogs, I finally ordered them a few weeks ago from Amazon. These 100% natural eye masks left my face looking more energized and reduced the fine lines after the first use!  I’ve been using them 3 times a week and love that they are affordable ($1.25 per use) and so easy to use.
• Never did I ever imagine I could make my favorite everything bagels at home! But, this Easy Bagel Recipe makes me think that it may just be possible! The recipe only has five ingredients, all of which I have in our pantry at home. Since we’re not traveling next weekend, this may have to be a fun Saturday activity!
• I’ve been searching for a pair of brown, leather booties and luckily my friend Amy introduced me to the most COMFORTABLE and stylish pair ever this weekend! Even better, they are on sale for less than $60 and the memory foam padding makes them not only stylish but also very comfortable. Amy loved her first pair so much that she immediately ordered a second pair in black. I just ordered these tonight, as brown booties or boots was one of the items on my list “to purchase” after last week’s closet purge.

 

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored and instead is a list of the things of my favorite things this week. As normal, it includes lots of beauty and fashion items which means there are a few affiliate links via ShopStyle. It takes time and money to maintain a blog so I thank you for the support and few cents that come from clicking through the links!