Scenes From Our Weekend

The weather here was so nice all weekend.  It made me excited for Spring and spending more time outdoors.  Vitamin D is good for the soul,  I swear I felt happier just having some warm weather and the sun!  My parents got in town Thursday and my sister and brother in law got here yesterday so we had lots of family time!

Thursday night I went to a party at Finicky Filly celebrating The Brown Box Club. Then afterwards we had dinner at Muse.

Rebecca Taylor Blouse | McGuire Jeans | Vince Pumps | Julie vos Ring | Dina Mackney Necklace

Friday my mom and I ran some errands- aka shopped at TJMaxx and Homegoods and then we had a small family birthday celebration for Sterling.  I made Feta Artichoke dip one of my favorites.

I mentioned before that my next door neighbors frequently take my pictures for my blog- if you need photos they are awesome to work with!  They stopped by to wish Sterling a Happy Birthday Friday.  This is Gary marveling over my giant rose pour and Rick with Frances. I could not ask for better neighbors! You can check out their photography site here.

Saturday night we went out to dinner with some of our favorite couples.  Our friends booked all 16 seats at R Kitchen and we had the best time.

I am kind of obsessed with the white blouse I am wearing.  I like that it is off shoulder but with straps and I love the detail around the top. I am wearing a size small for sizing reference.

Rebecca Minkoff Blouse (also in stock here)| Green Necklace | Jeans | Vince Pumps | Alesya Clutch

The dishes at R Kitchen are always so fresh and innovative. This was my second time dining here and I loved every single dish again.   This sashimi was made with fish caught earlier that day.

We had a blast.  I love the intimate atmosphere.  The perfect spot to catch up with our friends. 

Sunday we spent the day with my sister and my nephews.  I love getting my newborn fix with Rutledge:) As you can tell Frances hates it when I hold another baby, she gets so jealous.  She likes to be the baby:)

I am wearing an Equipment Dress, I will be featuring it tomorrow on the blog, along with some looks for the guys too!

Today only Beauty Counter is offering a free angled brush with any purchase of their blush duos.  The angled brush is awesome for applying bronzers and blush. 

I love the Tawny/Whisper Duo it is the perfect bronzer/highlighter! 

  

I have mentioned on here before how much I love my Essential oils.  Well for the month of February they are offering 10% off all starter kits.  If you are thinking about trying the oils it is a great time to and take advantage of the discount.  With all the germs and viruses going around I have been running our diffuser like crazy!  If you are interested you can email my friend Nicola neej29@hotmail.com.  She is a nurse and also a rep for YL Oils.

I also wanted to share one of my favorite Clover Canyon prints was just reduced to 40%.   I have the long sleeve dress in this same print which is now sold out but love these two versions.

Dress | Blouse

Have a great Monday!

Our New 4Sleep Mattress + Giveaway

When Matt and I first got married we had a queen size bed, we quickly realized we needed and wanted a king size bed.  When his parents decided to move down here they gave us their old king bed which was so generous and nice.  Problem was it was already fairly old.   We used it for probably 5 years and then Matt started having back problems.  His chiropractor even suggested a new mattress to help with some of us back pain.  

Enter 4Sleep, when they offered to give us a mattress to try out we were both beyond excited.  As adults it's the little things that make you happy like a new mattress.  I was a little uncertain about this mattress as it arrives folded up in a box.  I was like how can a full size mattress fit in this small box, but it does.  

It arrived and we eagerly took it out of the box.  Here are a few pictures of what it looked like inside and as we pulled it out.

I love the pattern on the fabric.  

I think Matt has been the most excited of all.  As soon as we put the mattress down he had to test it out.  Then he said he might never get up.

You can see from the side angle how thick and plush this mattress is.

A few facts about 4Sleep Mattresses

- They are made with four 11 inches memory foam layers

- Every mattress comes with a 10 year warranty

- Free fed ex shipping

- 100 days return policy.  You can try your mattress out for 100 days and if you don't love it,  they will take it back. 

I also found their prices were way less than many other memory foam mattress companies.   All the mattresses are under $1000.

Within a few nights of sleeping on our mattress Matt and I were in heaven.  I swear I get excited to get in bed.  The mattress is plush but offers support at the same time.  If one person moves the other side of the mattress stays still.  It has also helped Matt's lower back pain.  Plus it is so comfortable!!

With our old mattress I had to use a thick mattress cover and pillow top insert and it still wasn't comfortable.  I would get in bed and it would still just feel hard.  With the 4Sleep Mattress I use nothing.  I climb into bed and it feels so soft yet still offers support at the same time.    My body just melts into the mattress- pure heaven I tell you!

Now the exciting part!  4Sleep is letting me giveaway one free mattress in the size of your choice!  Just follow me on instagram (@snoopnattynat)  to see how to win!  

Right now there is also a promo that ends tonight at midnight.  Use code 4SLEEP4PRES and you can take $100 off any mattress order.

The kids love it too!  They always want to get in our "comfy" bed now.  It truly is a family bed!

A huge thank you to 4Sleep for our new mattress and for partnering on this giveaway! 

Sweet Dreams indeed!

Real Life Confessions

Today I wanted to share a few real life thoughts.  We all like to look at pretty clothes and good food but sometimes you just gotta keep it real.  

- We have officially hit the Terrible 2's with Frances I am talking about full on tantrums in public  and often.  If you tell Frances no she does not like it.  She flings herself on the floor and screams.  Then when I try to pick her up she stiffens up her body so it is hard for me to lift her, it's beyond embarrassing.  This was taken after I told her it was too cold to wear her bathing suit- I am clearly such a mean mom.

- I have been going to Barre class regularly for about 6 weeks.  Before I started barre I was certain I was fairly fit.  I run and walk and I am fairly active.  I was so wrong.  I got to class and could not physically lift myself off the ground to do a sit-up.  My ab muscles were shot.  I saw 60 year old ladies pumping out sit-ups and I could not do one.  I am slowly making progress but damn its hard.

-Then the downside to exercising more often, is I am hungry all the time.  I am not losing weight because I am eating more.   

- Sterling's new favorite word is poop.  Drives me nuts

- Speaking of poop every time we go into a nice store he has to poop.  It never fails,  my mom and I joke about it now.  As soon as we walk in he has to go and can't hold it and of course it always smells horrible and takes him forever. 

- Both of my kids have suddenly turned into the pickiest eaters.  All they want to eat is pimento cheese, applesauce and oranges.  It frustrates me to no end they won't try what I cook.

- Instead of showing her belly Frances is now obsessed with showing her "hiney." This should bode well for her collage days.  

- Every single morning Frances checks to see if I have underwear on.  As soon as I lift her out of her crib she lifts up my robe and says "mommy have gina, mommy wears panties. " I have no idea why but she likes to make sure mommy is covered up- haha

-  Our oven has been broken for about a month.  We have a new one but didn't realize what long process it was to have gas run to our house since we didn't have an existing gas line before.   We have been using our toaster oven to cook the majority of our meals and I have to say you really can cook almost anything in a toaster oven!  I miss my oven though and can't wait to get the new installed hopefully next week.  Maybe Sonja Morgan was onto something with her toaster oven line:)

- My kids think seltzer water is coke.  I think maybe because it is carbonated like coke they think it is the same.  I love it they ask for a coke and I give them a seltzer and they are happy.

- It never fails as soon as I get on the phone both of the kids start having a total melt down.  They can be outside or back in their bedrooms but I swear they sense when I am on the phone and come in just to bother me. I was having a conference call the other day and Frances screamed the entire time.  I actually had to go outside to talk and watched her scream through the window. 

- 90% of the time my car looks like a homeless person lives inside.  There is always crushed food, papers, and toys everywhere.  That is until my parents come to town.  I always vacuum it before my parents come  because at the ripe old age of 35 I still don't want them judging me because my car is dirty.  When they are not in town it is a hot mess.

- My past two shellac manicures I have peeled the nail polish off every single nail.  I have no patience to wait to have it removed and strangely I like the satisfaction of peeling it off- so weird I know.  

- Last night I rode in an Uber that smelled like rotten eggs, at first I thought it was the sewer but alas I think the driver had horrible gas.  It was so bad.

- I yell at my kids more than I wish I did

- I am addicted to my phone.  I can't go to bed or wake up without immediately grabbing it and checking emails and scrolling instagram.  It is a horrible habit.

- The other day we had cashier whose gender was questionable and Sterling loudly goes " is that a girl or a boy I can't tell."  I wasn't totally sure so I just tried to pretend like I didn't hear it.  I love when kids say embarrassing things.  

- Frances beats up Sterling every single day.  I had no idea a 2 year old could make a 6 year old cry so much but it happens several times a day.  It is like a role reversal.  I try to tell Sterling to toughen up and Frances to be nicer:)

- I love to throw away toys when the kids are not looking.  I am always finding random pieces that go to who knows what and I immediately chunk them.

- I came home to this scene the other night after Matt watched the kids while I was at Supper Club.  He was "too tired" to clean up.  He promised he would clean it the next day but I am too OCD and had to clean it all immediately. 

- I turn 36 in a few weeks and I am not gonna lie starting to be in the upper 30's is starting to freak me out.  All I notice now are my wrinkles and fine lines.

Have a fabulous weekend!

Thoughts For Thursday

Happy almost weekend! My parents get in town today and I could not be more excited.  They have not been down here since before Christmas!  My mom and I are off to walk around downtown today. 

We are making some slow progress in our den.  I just ordered these awesome pillows for my wing back chairs.  Check out Talia's etsy shop, she makes some really cool custom boho pillows.

I love the idea of this pink one in a little girl's bedroom.

We celebrated Sterling's birthday on Monday at Camp Perri.  Perri offers many after school activities and does birthday parties too.  Perri is awesome with kids and she came up with the funnest games and crafts for the kids to do at the party.  Sterling is shark obsessed these days so we went with a shark theme.  Perri took care of everything all I had to do was show up with a cake, super easy:)  Sterling is still talking about how much fun he had!

 How adorable are the decorations?  Sterling was so excited.

Ashley's daughters are his favorites.  We joke one day it will be hard when he has to choose between the two.

The entire crew.

My loves.

His favorite part the shark cake.  I used Luckhaus and Brubaker in West Ashley for the cake.

Still can't believe this sweet boy is 6!

Can we discuss the fact that I am so excited Chrissy Teigan is coming out with a cookbook.  I of course already pre-ordered mine.  I have such a girl crush on her.  I love a girl that loves to eat and who doesn't love John Legend.

A recent outfit this week.

Butterfly Blouse | Sweater is sold out similar | Jeans | Flats | Holst and Lee Necklace

I am not sure why but this new Mara Hoffman Dress is on sale.  Some sizes are 50% and some are 20%.  I have it in a different color option and love it. It runs on the large side I have an XS. It is perfect year round, I wear mine now with a cardigan and then solo when it warms up.

If you need nude pumps these Loeffler Randall ones are 60% off, its says the total savings is $227!  The pumps come to under $100.  I love the embossed detail.   I swear Amazon has the best deals.  I didn't think to look for clothes on Amazon until recently and now I always check there before I purchase something because it is frequently cheaper.

Several of you asked for my green juice recipe after I shared this picture on instagram.

This makes two glasses.  I have recently gotten Matt on the green juice train so we both enjoy it.

GREEN JUICE

2 granny smith apples, 1 bunch kale, 1 lemon peeled, 1 inch piece ginger peeled, 3 celery stalks, large handful spinach, 1 jalapeño seeded, and 1 baby cucumber.

I am completely addicted the new app Face Swap Live.  Do yourself a favor and download it.  It is hilarious.  The kids and I have so much fun with it- although sometimes the pictures are creepy!

This is me and Sterling with our faces swapped.

Matt and I.  Seriously your stomach will hurt from laughing so much after you play around on this app.

Local Friends stop by Finicky Filly tonight if you are out and about for a fun event! I will be probably get there a little after 5 to hang out!

Stay tuned because this weekend I will be reviewing our new mattress and giving one away!  All I can say is this mattress has been truly amazing.The kids love it too!

Enjoy your day! It's all about balance!

Garden Veggie Lettuce Wraps with Spicy Black Beans + Green Goddess Dressing

I have recently become a huge fan of lettuce wraps.  It is a great way to eat a healthy meal minus the carbs.  They are also great for entertaining because you can make a huge platter and everyone can serve themselves.  That being said if you don't love lettuce wraps you can easily sub out the lettuce and use flour or corn shells to make tacos.  If you want to add meat I would recommend using ground turkey, chicken or beef.  They really are awesome without the meat though.

This recipe came about as a way to clean out our fridge.  Every week on taco night I make a big batch of black beans in the slow cooker so I always have extra on hand.   You can most definitely use canned black beans or canned refried beans for this recipe but slow cooking the dried ones tastes so much better and it is really easy too. If you make a big batch every week or two you will always have some on hand for quick dinners.  

I love the combination of the creamy green goddess dressing with all the crisp veggies, and spicy beans.  It is such a great flavor combination. I eventually want to try and make my own green goddess dressing but I used store bought this time.   

Enjoy!

|| G A R D E N   V E G G I E  W R A P S ||

- 1 cup spicy black beans (recipe below)

- 1 squash sliced thinly

- 1 zucchini sliced thinly

-3 ears of corn cooked and shucked

- handful cherry tomatoes diced

- 1 jalapeno sliced

- 2 green onions sliced

- crumbled Queso Fresco cheese

- 1/2 avocado sliced

- Bibb lettuce (you could also use Romaine)

- Green Goddess Dressing (I used Annie's brand)

Heat about 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet and add in the squash and zucchini.  Season with salt and pepper and cook on medium heat about 5-10 minutes until they are slightly cooked.  Remove from heat.

Bring water to a boil with corn and cook about 15 minutes until corn is cooked but still slightly firm.  Remove corn from water and cut off kernels.

Reheat spicy black beans and I like to mash them as they cook.

Wash the lettuce leaves and arrange on platter with other ingredients.  Layer black beans, corn and zucchini\squash mixture.  Then top with cherry tomatoes, green onions, avocado, and crumbled cheese.  Drizzle with green goddess dressing and hot sauce.

|| S L O W  C O O K E R  S P I C Y  B L A C K  B E A N S ||

- 1 bag dried black beans

- 3-4 tablespoons sliced pickled jalapenos

- 1 vegetable boullion cube

- 1 tablespoon hot sauce

- 1 tablespoon cumin

- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

- 2 tablespoons chili powder

- 1 teaspoon garlic salt

- 3 tablespoons butter

- salt and pepper to taste

Place the black beans in a pot on the stove filled with water.  Bring to a boil then turn off the heat and then let them sit covered 1-2 hours.  This helps the black beans cook quicker.  You can place them straight in your slow cooker but keep in mind they will need all day to cook prob at least 8-10 hours.  Black beans cook really slow and by boiling them first it helps speed up the process a little bit.

After an hour or so dump the beans and the water into your slow cooker.   Add the next 6 ingredients.  I always cook mine on high for 4 hours first and then I switch to low until they are ready.  When the 4 hours on high are done add in butter and then switch the setting  to low.  I usually cook another 3-4 hours or until we are ready to eat.  Taste the beans and season to make sure they have enough salt and pepper.