My last few newsletters have been a little heavy so I thought I would lighten this one up with 20 of my favorite things that have made my life this summer a little breezier. I’m gonna start sending out more rec newsletters in the coming months so this is the first of many to come!
I was late to the Baggu craze but I impulsively bought this bag at the beginning of the summer and as a childcare worker, it’s the best. I constantly spill kid’s drinks or leave wipes in here and it dries so quickly and also fits an insane amount of items at the same time.
Another impulse purchase was this Olio E Osso blush/eyeshadow/lip balm I got when I was last in New York. I use it almost every day and it goes on so smoothly and I rarely have to blend it in.
Years ago I saw an Instagram story about an influencer who bought pallets of mason jars for an event they were hosting only to find out they couldn’t fit those pallets into their apartment. Now I am forced to consume every single piece of media about this influencer, the Caroline Calloway. I ate up this piece about the dueling memoirs between Caroline Calloway and her former friend/assistant/ghostwriter Natalie Beach. I will most likely read Natalie’s before Caroline’s, only because on principle I refuse to purchase anything directly from CC.
The Bear season 2 a solid two times through (no need for further explanation).
A fun tip I realized a few weeks ago when my friend asked me to call their phone because they couldn’t find it: instead of placing a regular call, call them on FaceTime. It’s 1000 times more efficient I promise.
Kathleen’s hot yoga class at Kinship solely because in this torrid heat, she makes sure we all receive one cold, wet hand towel right before Shavasana.
I’ve been in a big purge mode lately and recently took every single sock and pair of underwear I own of of their drawers and threw away anything that gives me the least bit of an ick. I think throwing socks out in the summer is the ideal time because none of them are precious anymore and the idea of warmth is so off putting right now in this heat that I was able to finally release a third of my sock collection.
I am very late to this, and probably an embarrassing omission as a former Floridan, but I finally got a windshield cover and my hands hurt a lot less now grabbing the steering wheel in this 90 plus degree weather.
This winter’s LA storms really did a number on my deck and in the spirit of purging I decided to finally tackle the barely surviving plants on my deck. A lot of them I was holding onto for purely sentimental reasons but they were finally laid to rest last Saturday morning. I also repotted a lot of my succulents which felt like a nice, fresh start after such a torrential winter.
I didn’t think I would fall back into a trap for season 2, but I blew threw all the available episodes of The Summer I Turned Pretty, and yes you will absolutely ball your eyes out within minutes of the first episode.
A real fun thing happening in my life right now is that one of my best friends lives down the street from my nanny job and he has a two year old. Even though I am still waiting for the day I can finally give up watching kids, I am absolutely relishing in these days I get to meet up with him and his daughter to hit up the zoo/museum/HomeState with the girl I nanny. I will eventually miss these days so for now I’m trying to be extremely grateful for the work I get to do.
Did you know that if you are summoned for grand jury duty in LA they require you to attend for one full month? In this economy? After a grueling 10 months of trying to get out of it (purely for financial reasons) I was finally able to get the sweetest woman named Robyn on the phone to dismiss me. I’m not against serving but this nanny cannot afford to miss one calendar month of pay in the name of civic duty.
This wine from Trader Joe’s is $6.99 and it’s been a nice, little refreshing summer wine that also doubles as a reusable water bottle.
And speaking of Trader Joe’s these cookies have also been a pantry staple in my household.
I’ve been doing that thing where you try to get sunlight first thing in the morning, and everyone is right- it’s the perfect way to start your day.
I recently needed to get new jeans and decided to see if the pair I was envisioning might be found at Crossroads. I also had a bag of clothes that’s been sitting in my trunk for months ready to sell so I thought maybe I could even it out if I found the right jeans. Well the good news is I did find the jeans and I did get a great trade amount but more importantly I learned that you can download the Crossroads app and sign up to sell on there and they will give you a time estimate before you even have to go into the store.
I bought those Hair, Skin, and Nails vitamins (the famous ones that come in the pink bottle) at the beginning of the year and I’ve been blown away by how well they work. My hair, skin and nails all see notable differences when I am able to remember to take them.
I recently remembered my perfect snack of sour cream and Ruffles chips that you also probably forgot about but now will go immediately to a grocery store to acquire.
I downloaded Solitaire on my phone last month and it has become my newest addiction. It’s been nice to get away from social media but now I start playing first thing in the morning and I let it dictate how my day will go based on how fast I can win a hand.
And finally I got a reed diffuser for my favorite P.F. Candle Co scent Sandalwood Rose and my apartment smells the best it’s ever been.
If you have any recs that have brought you through this summer let me know! Also I’m gonna try my best to never link to Amazon on here, unless it’s completely necessary. And finally I would like to note that this newsletter just hit its 3 year anniversary. I hope to start churning out weekly content for the foreseeable future so thank you so much for sticking with me for so long!