Happy happy Friday! How was everyone’s week? I don’t have any complaints over here! I’ve been taking alllll of the workout classes lately and it feels really, really good to get back in my groove there – especially after a rather indulgent summer six months. I made it to hi def at Studio Three, a yoga sculpt class at Yoga Six down in the South Loop, and then went to a workout with Shred415 on the rooftop at NoMi at the Park Hyatt hotel which ended up being the perfect start to kick off a Wednesday. Yesterday I took it easy (read: barely made a dent in my 10,000 steps on my Fitbit…oops), but I’m getting myself to Sweat for cardio and core with my friend Kristen this morning!

I kicked off the week at the pre-opening of Casati’s Pizza Vino in Lincoln Park, a cute new pizza joint serving up pies made with pinsa flour which is said to be better for you than regular flour! Everything I tried was delicious and I’m looking forward to going back with friends sometime soon. Wednesday night I had dinner and drinks at Eden with the Juice Beauty team and other than the fact that I got caught in a torrential downpour on my way there (and showed up looking like a hot mess) and the storm put an end to our tour of Eden’s greenhouse, it was a really great night with even better people. Oh, and the raspberry lemon sorbet the chef served as part of the dessert was out of this world. The theme of go, go go isn’t going anywhere anytime soon! I’m gearing up for an even busier weekend ahead. Tonight I’m heading to Happy Place (a pop-up experience filled with larger than life size installations, multi-sensory immersive rooms, and dozens of moments curated to “capture your happy”) with Maya and then we’re going continue to channel those feelings with a little happy hour and catch up! Happy Place is only open through September 3rd, so if you haven’t had a chance to see it for yourself, time is of the essence! Tomorrow I’m hoping to catch some of the air and water show before getting ready for BLU at Shedd Aquarium with Sarah! This is my second year going and last time around was one of the best nights of the summer so I’m really looking forward to the evening. As if that wasn’t enough, I fly out bright and early Sunday morning to spend a whole week back in Kansas (the longest I’ve been back since moving to Chicago two years ago!) and I’ll be basically be bouncing around from city to city while I’m there. I always joke that I need a vacation from my vacation when I get back, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’m beyond excited to see my family and friends, meet my best friend’s newest little one, celebrate Camilla’s third birthday, and spend some time out on the lake. After that, it’s back to the grind as I start a new job first thing Monday morning! I spent the rest of my week cleaning my apartment, attempting to check off those things I’ve been re-writing on my to do list for the last four months (please tell me I’m not the only one who does this), and making sure everything is in order and ready to go on that front.Here’s a look at what caught my eye recently!

Song of the week: No Brainer – DJ Khaled ft. Justin Bieber (not afraid to admit I have the fever), Chance the Rapper, and Quavo. Turn it up and listen as you browse this week’s links 🙂

AROUND THE WEB/WORLD:

• I shared more about why I ended my engagement, thoughts on dating apps, and my eating habits last week and was overwhelmed by the number of you who reached out saying it resonated with you in some way! Hands-down the best part of blogging.
• I’m slowly but surely getting everything from my closet uploaded to my Poshmark closet. I know most of you said you preferred I share these to Insta stories, but that proved to be more work and I just couldn’t keep up (I’m sorry! ) so I hope you don’t mind!
• I’m going to start incorporating some kind of at home core workout to my routine a few days a week (something reasonable and that I will stick to) and I’m going to try this 20 minute routine of pilates moves to start.
• The perfect neutral slides to wear through the end of summer and into fall. I don’t think Madewell can do any wrong when it comes to button up tops either and I have my eye on this white courier shirt and this striped top!
• Dermstore is having a huge sale through the 19th and you can score some of my favorite beauty products at 25% off, which rarely happens! Just use code BIRTHDAY when checking out. I swear by Sunday Riley’s Good Genes, Tidal Brightening Water Cream, and Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Extra Strength Daily Peel Packets. And I’ve been dying to try this retinol eye cream. Actually, pretty much everything from the Dr. Dennis Gross line. I highly recommend browsing the top participating brands and pulling the trigger before the sale ends!

• Macy’s is also having a big sale and my down comforter (which I shared in my apartment updates post) is marked down from $540 to $260!
• Nicolette launched her new site (it looks incredible!), but I really love the post she wrote announcing the change and can relate to it on so many levels.
• This chocolate chip pancake recipe has been on my mind since I first stumbled across it, but I need someone to share them with, otherwise I’ll eat the entire stack. Might have to see if my mom is up for making them when I’m back home!
• Shop my shelf (which is very much a work in progress and nowhere near Pinterest-worthy): zodiac journal, Bose speaker, Bananagrams, Cards Against Humanity, Instax camera (on sale!), and don’t forget the film so you can fill up this instax picture frame, All in Good Taste book, Living With Pattern book, and Elements of Style book (more swoon-worthy covers here!)

SHOP THE POST:

Any big plans for the weekend ahead? Whatever you’re up to, I hope it’s the best! I’ll be sharing in real-time over on Instagram stories, Snapchat, and Twitter, so be sure to follow along there!