My Favorite Things: Cold Brew Coffee

Hey Loves!

Man oh man, in my morning me time, when I take the first sip of my coffee, I swear I can hear Sarah McLachlan singing, “In The Arms of The Angel”. I mean, I really feel like Gabriel himself engulfed me in a deep embrace of love, comfort, and eternal joy. It took me a while to get to this place. Coffee, for me, used to be reheated a bazillion times and drank to literally make it through the next 20 minutes. Savor what? Why? Give me the caffeine IV because I AM DYING! If I am being honest, even Starbucks in Target was kind of a treat but I downed it before I left the dollar spot. (If you don’t know what I am talking about… I’m sorry. This is one of those, “you have to feel me” things.”) 

Then, I discovered Lucky Goat coffee… y’all, I most certainly am not a coffee snob but this stuff is a game changer (<— clearly, my new favorite phrase). Don’t ask me why. I don’t know anything about bean color, roasting techniques, sourcing or harvesting. I know it is good. Very, very good, in fact.

But, I live in Florida and in the summer it is 106 degrees at 8 a.m. so cold-brew is a must, for me anyway.  I looked up cold brew recipes and, let’s just say I never finished one. Why? Entirely too much work! Then, I stumbled across the “Coffee Sock” while getting a massage with a friend. (that sounded really snobby like I do it all the time… I DON’T). Y’all this contraption is easy, very affordable and makes an amazing cold brew.

Also, you should know I am not one of those people who can drink coffee without creamer. I’m very far from one of those people. I also have standards when it comes to my creamer. It has to be refrigerated. It must not contain dairy. It must increase the taste of the coffee to make me feel like I am drinking from the streams of Heaven. I have found two that do this. You should know that I have not looked at the back of the labels on these products because they are awesome and I am happy and I do not want my heart broken by numbers and words that are most commonly found on labels on the back of products. You do what you want and keep your findings to yourself please and thanks. Califia Farms flavored creamer is ahhhhhhhhmazing. It is pricey and sold at select stores and mama doesn’t always have time for that. So, I normally get Silk Almond Milk coffee creamer, Caramel flavor. 

Then, I drink it from a mason jar! How chic am I! (Please read above where I informed you I am not a snob and repeat it several times.)

Just a note, I make myself drink at least 20 ounces of water before I have my coffee AND after, because #selfcare is hydration.

Is there something I need to make this experience better? Tell me!

Love you. Mean It.

My Favorite Things: Good Nail Polish

Hey Loves!

So, I don’t think I’ve ever defined myself as a “girly girl” but I have always loved nail polish and manicured nails. I remember my first manicure at age 8 and asking for my own cuticle clipper in the sixth grade. Don’t judge me. Anyway, My struggle was nail polish lasting 2.72 seconds from drying until the chipping began.

This continued into adulthood. No matter what I did, how I did them, what top coat I used, 24 hours later my nails looked like that of a 3-year-old who played with markers. But, none the less, I persisted.

I’ve tried professional manicures. No luck. Gel manicures were a game changer but they were expensive, time-consuming to remove and were not the best for my nails. Oh, the agony! Why is this life so hard?!?!?!

 Anyway, perusing Pinterest to escape from reality, I came across a pin saying a nail polish that will really last all week. Because I am a masochist, I believed this could be the answer knowing full-on it was not. Armed with my sally’s coupon, I bought Gelous. Eager to try it, I slapped it on, slapped on nail polish and slapped on another coat. You know, for good measure. A day later, the chipping of my nails and my heart began. So, I gave up. I mean, I gave up on a lot of things at that point but having nice nails was definitely not something I believed was in the cards for me.

Sometime after Mother’s Day (because I got a gel mani for Mother’s Day), I realized how much manicured fingers and painted nails meant to me. Not in a superficial way, but they really delighted my heart. (See judgment clause above because I feel you starting to judge me.) I also wanted to invest in taking care of myself, improving my appearance and making my heart happy. So, I searched Pinterest again for the pin where I first discovered Gelous. You guys, that’s when I realized that not only did I not read the pin I also did not follow any instructions. Not one. *insert several facepalm emojis*

 I was supposed to apply one coat of Gelous, let dry. Repeat. Apply one coat of nail polish and let dry. Gelous. Let dry. Nail Polish. Let dry. So, again, I and my bruised masochistic heart tried it again with those instructions and glory from the heavens! It worked! This manicure, done at home with any color polish ( 5-free of course) lasted an entire week! A week of swimming, cleaning, butt-wiping, dish cleaning, food cooking, floor sweeping and laundry folding. It lasted! Hallelujah!

 As if that wasn’t enough, I got sparks of delight during the day from a manicured nail. Y’all, I AM WINNING! 

Now, here is the kicker: For this to work and work well, I need at least an hour, really like 1.5 hours, where I can do my nails and not mess them up. This requires planning and the setting of real-life boundaries Y’all. So, I do it during nap time when my husband is home. I communicate in maybe not the best way that I am not to be touched or have to touch something and/or someone until further notice. So far, that works.

I haven’t used a top coat because I don’t know of an awesome one. Any recommendations? 

Love you. Mean it.