Vacation Shopping is the Best

I feel like it's been forever since I went shopping, and what better excuse to break the drought than shopping for an upcoming trip?

Top - Gap | Shorts - J. Crew | Bag - Target

I've been wanting a pair of mint colored shorts, and loved the chinos at J. Crew plus they were on sale win-win! And I needed a cute *and cheap* crossbody bag for site seeing and thought the polka dots were too cute to pass up.

I also couldn't resist placing an order on VS the other night. When one has 3 offer codes that include a $19 bikini, free shipping, and 30% off a clothing item one must make a purchase!

The V-Neck Dress (I got it in pinstripe)

Triangle Bikini Set in grape

Ponte Full Skirt in rhumba pink

What are your fun recent purchases?

Gap J. Crew Old Navy Target Victorias Secret

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Recipe Swap Tuesday: Cheesy Rice Bake

I'm sold on any recipe that has brown rice, chicken, and cheese. So, when I found this recipe on Pinterest I immediately pinned it with the intentions of actually making it soon. And I did, plus it was easy to throw together after a busy day at work and super yummy. I of course tweaked it a bit to our liking, as I prefer it without the salsa and less rice.

This dish is now on regular rotation for dinner, and we always enjoy it.

Ingredients

2 cups of brown rice
Diced grilled chicken (I used about a handful)
1 can of low sodium black beans
1 can of no salt added corn
1 7oz. can of diced green chiles
1 cup of fat free sour cream
1 cup of reduced fat cheddar cheese

Directions 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Cook rice according to directions on box

Combine all other ingredients in a large bowl, mix well

Once rice is cooked, add to the mixture

Spray an oven safe dish with non-stick cooking spray

Transfer mixture to oven safe dish and sprinkle top with some more cheese

Place in oven and cook for about 30 minutes at 350 until it bubbles

Ready for the oven

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Link-up Rules:

1. Follow Emily and myself on GFC and Bloglovin

2. Link up your favorite recipes or food related posts

3. Grab our Recipe Swap button and link back to both of our blogs

4. Be sure to visit other blogs and find new recipes!

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Recipe

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Relaxing Pool Weekend

A very relaxing weekend by the pool was exactly what I needed before the madness of the next several weeks begins.

I kicked off the weekend with a mixer at my new job. Nothing says getting to know your new co-workers like key lime pie shots and margaritas before posing with silly props in the photo booth!

The rest of the weekend was spent in the pool with Skinny Girl Sangria. Saturday night, we enjoyed some chicken fajitas on the patio and Sunday, I found a fantastic deal on my Target cartwheel app. 50% off the above Sony bluetooth speaker which is perfect for our pool area. No more radio with overplayed songs! Now we can stream our iTunes, Pandora, and Spotify. Perfect for parties too....

I also painted my nails with one of the beautiful polishes that comes with Jessica Simpson's new Fancy Girl gift set *more detailed post to come*. 

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Don't forget to enter the Nutribullet and $30 Target gift card giveaway that I teamed up with the below lovely ladies for:

​a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Ending to a Fantastic Week

I love wrapping up an amazingly good week and am even more happy that it's Friday!

1.) We had a nice dinner at Bahama Breeze with my parents on Monday night toasting to my amazing new job and saying goodbye to my dad who flew back to CT on Wednesday. Just love the ambiance there! Outdoor fire place, live Caribbean music, and yummy cocktails!

I ordered the Caribbean Magic - YUM!

2.) I took on painting our master bath before starting my new job. We chose a warm peach color that has a beautiful glow especially when candles are lit.

*it looks pink here, but is a beautiful peach color*

3.) Toasting to my first day at an exciting new job with champs... which in the words of my fav RHOC housewife is always a good idea.

4.) I still can't believe I won the April Showers Bring May Flowers giveaway!!! My beautiful new Hunter Rain Boots arrived this week, and I'm in love!

*full post coming soon*

5.) Planning a weekend trip to Miami with our neighbor-friends in September for the Chiefs-Dolphins game. What better way to root on H's Chiefs than a weekend in Miami?

Linking up today with April for 5 on Friday and Lauren for High Five on Friday. Hop on over and join us! Happy Friday!

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Travel Must Haves

With our upcoming trip across the pond I've not only been ridiculously excited, but I've also been thinking of must-haves for the plane ride and once we're there.

Travel Must Haves by greenfashionistablog featuring lightweight purses

~ A jean jacket since it'll be chillier over there than it is here

~ Sunscreen is always important when being outside all day

~ My favorite pair of sunnies

~ A pocket umbrella in case the skies open up unexpectedly

~ A good camera... I vow not to take the majority of my pics in Europe on my iPhone

~ Hand sanitizer, because the last thing anyone wants is to be sick on vacay

~ Kindle for reading and watching movies on the plane

~ Passport which is the absolute most important item I'll pack!

~ My rose gold MK watch so I'll know when the locals are taking a siesta in Spain and when to re-board the ship during our cruise.

~ A pretty set of luggage

~ Wipes to clean my hands, take excess oil off my face, and of course to wipe down items to prevent the spread of germs. Yes... I'm that girl.

~ Sleep mask and neck pillow for the long flight

~ Power outlet adapters so I don't brown out western Europe :-P

~ A cute cross-body bag to carry the necessities in while site-seeing

~ Makeup brush travel set, I plan on taking my new rose gold set.

~ Makeup bag to carry my every day essentials for easy packing and unpacking since we'll be staying in 2 hotels and taking a cruise.

What are your travel essentials?

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Cheesecake Fruit Dip

I made cheesecake fruit dip for Emily's Easter potluck this past weekend, and it was the perfect compliment to cut up fruit. Sweet, but not too sweet.

Ingredients

1/2 cup of light brown sugar

1 cup of fat free sour cream

1 8oz. package of reduced fat cream cheese, softened

1 tsp. of vanilla

1/3 cup of Kahlua

1 cup of Cool Whip Lite

Directions

Mix the brown sugar and cream cheese until smooth
Add sour cream, vanilla, and Kahlua and mix until smooth
Mix in cool whip
Cover and chill in the fridge for 4 hours
Serve with cut up fruit for dipping

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Link-up Rules:

1. Follow Emily and myself on GFC and Bloglovin

2. Link up your favorite recipes or food related posts

3. Grab our Recipe Swap button and link back to both of our blogs

4. Be sure to visit other blogs and find new recipes!

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Recipe

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Easter Weekend w/ Jake from State Farm

I hope everyone had an amazing Easter weekend. Mine was the perfect combination of fun with friends and quality time spent with family. It was the first time in years, we got to spend a major holiday with both sets of our parents. Priceless :)

On Saturday, our Disney magic bands arrived! Now that we're annual passholders, we can use the magic bands to make dinner reservations, enter the parks, fast pass reservations, and even for discounts on souvenirs and restaurants. 

That evening, we went to Emily and K's for an Easter potluck party. Soooooooo much good food! They did a fabulous job with both a turkey and a ham. And of course, shenanigans ensued after dinner.... good times had by all. And how cute is that peep on my wine glass? Such a cute idea for an Eastery garnish!

Dress & Necklace - Express | Bangles - Jessica Simpson | Sandals - Tory Burch

I wanted to wear a light and airy colorful dress, and felt this dress was perfect for the evening. 

I brought over some cheesecake fruit dip ~ recipe coming tomorrow during our recipe link up. *Grab the button from my sidebar, and join us.*

One of my friends was getting texts from a random number (which ended up being someone there) and didn't know who it was, so I took his phone and decided to be Jake from State Farm asking who it was.... a little role reversal. I lost it when the mysterious texter played along beautifully. Well played....

Easter was nice and relaxing, we woke up to a breakfast casserole and homemade cinnamon rolls that my mom made and some mimosas. YUM! H's parents came over, and we enjoyed a ham feast that sent me into a food coma best suited for a movie night on the couch. I was a bad blogger, and didn't take a single pic of the yummy feast or of all of us together as a family *epic fail*. 

How was your holiday weekend?

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Happy Easter Weekend

Happy Friday! This week went by rather quickly, and I'm looking forward to 2 Easter celebrations this weekend. One with friends and one with family :)

1.) We had a mix of beautiful sunny days and some dreary rainy days. However, even on the rainy days there were beautiful views to be had....

2.) My nails are Easter ready with Essie's "Nice is Nice" and "Turquoise and Caicos"

3.) Bellinis and mimosas are on the menu this weekend YUM!

4.) Finally got to jump on the bandwagon that is Frozen this week when it came in the mail from Netflix. Such a cute movie! Disney movies haven't been as good as they used to be, but Frozen and Tangled are 2 of their best releases in recent years. Oh and I'm officially obsessed with Olaf and Sven!

5.) H ran in the corporate 5k around the lake downtown, and it's always a big event. Company tents everywhere, live music, and even a fireworks display afterwards.

Linking up today with April for 5 on Friday and Lauren for High Five on Friday. Hop on over and join us! Happy Friday!

Essie

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