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{photo via Instagram}
Happy Friday everyone! I hope it is sunny and warm wherever you are, and you have had a wonderful last few weeks. We spent the majority of April traveling, where it was definitely not spring-like. It was fun to get another chance to experience snow in the Alps. But we are happy to be back home in beautiful Vienna where the sun is shining. We are heading to one of my favorite places up in the Vienna Woods tomorrow to spend a nice afternoon in the sun with great friends. Trying to soak up every last second we have remaining in this amazing place!
A few of my favorite things this month…
theSkimm
I can’t believe that I haven’t written about theSkimm in one of my favorite things posts yet. I have been obsessed with it for years, and I talk about it all the time to anyone who will listen. So I am finally sharing it with all of you, too. TheSkimm is a daily email, with just about everything you need to know about current events. I find watching or reading the news quite depressing, and often it is not appropriate with young children around, but I still want to be informed and educated on what is going on in the world. TheSkimm gives it all to me in a witty, succinct little email that takes less than 5 minutes to read. It has truly changed my life, and allows me to have much better conversations about world events, politics, and even pop culture. It is especially important to me now that I don’t live in the US, so I can keep up with what is going on. Sign up here.
Madewell Transport Tote
I have had the Madewell Transport Tote for almost 4 years, and it still looks as good as new. It is my go-to, good-for-everything, everyday workhorse bag. It has been used as a purse, computer bag, camera bag, diaper bag, library book bag, beach bag, farmers market bag and shopping tote. And it works well in every single situation. I usually love bags with lots of organization, but the beauty of this bag is that it is so simple. I just throw everything in and call it a day! It is big enough to fit everything I need for myself and both kids for an entire day, and then some.
Oil Pulling
Have you all heard of oil pulling? It is an Ayurvedic practice where you swish oil around in your mouth for 10-20 minutes first thing in the morning to clean and detoxify your teeth, gums and mouth. After your spit the oil out, you rinse your mouth with water, and brush as normal. In addition to cleaning and detoxifying, it helps whiten teeth, eliminate bad breath, strengthen gums and jaw, and more. I first heard about oil pulling a few years ago, but it sounded like too much trouble, so I didn’t try it. Then a few months ago, as I was doing a major overhaul of my morning routine, I decided to give it a go. And I ended up loving it. It did take a while to get used to, but I actually look forward to it now. I use organic coconut oil with a few drops of peppermint essential oil mixed in. If you don’t want to mix yourself, this is a great option, and comes in a cute jar, too!
Ikea Koppla Charger
OK, yes, this is just a plain little charger. Nothing fancy at all. But it is simplifies things immensely, cuts down on clutter, and only costs a few dollars. What is not to love about that? You can plug 3 different USB cords into it, meaning you can charge your phone, watch, and iPad at once. It is especially great for traveling, sine it is impossible to find enough outlets in any hotel or AirBnB.
Kapla Blocks
My girls are completely obsessed with Kapla Blocks. My 7 year old has played with them quite a bit at school, so put them on her wishlist. They each got a set of the colored blocks for Christmas, and we quickly realized that we needed more for what they wanted to build. So we recently added a set of 200 plain blocks to our collection. There is so much to love about Kapla blocks. They are beautiful, natural, well made, simple, open-ended, and don’t look terrible when they are left all over the living room. But my favorite thing about these is that they are good for any age. I love building with them almost as much as the kids do!
A few more of my favorite things from around the web…
- I’m going to try this spring detox next week
- Always appreciate Intentional Sparseness
- Toy Free Kindergartens sound awesome
- Smartphones are the New Cigarettes
- My kids would love this movie
- How To Make Friends As An Adult
- Reading makes your life better
- Perfect little Mother’s Day bouquets
- This bag would be a great simple gift for mom.
- Plus a cute minimal Mother’s Day card and you are set.
What are some of your favorite things lately?
