Easy Entertaining for a Festive 4th!

I thought I've give something new a try on the blog today!   I'm actually sharing a recipe!!

During the summer, my family and I have a ton of BBQ get-togethers!  I joked last year, that we are not your typical BBQ crowd.  When you think BBQ you think hamburgers, hot dogs, cole slaw, potato salad and such!  More times than not, in my family a BBQ means chicken, salmon and steak. And sides like spinach salad, corn salad, and couscous! We are a healthy bunch I suppose!  I'm not really though!  Everybody is so good about bringing things.  I bring a bottle of something or a case of beer, the hummus, cheese and crackers...lol.  Like I said....EASY!

My sister reminded me the other day though that I actually have a summer recipe that everyone loves, that I haven't made in forever!!!  And that got me really excited for making it.  I plan to bring it to our 4th of July party.  I got this recipe from a friend of mine I used to work with.  She was our school nurse so all her recipes are easy and healthy!

Sun-dried Tomato  & Spinach Bow Tie Pasta

1 lb. bowtie pasta (really you can use your fave pasta!) I like to use the mini pasta!
3 green onions chopped
2 oz. of sundried tomatoes-cut into strips.  You can get the jar or strips as well!
1 bag of baby spinach, shredded (I usually don't use the whole bag)
1 T dried oregano
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, divided
3 T olive oil
1-2 tsp crushed red pepper (optional...but so good!)
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste


Cook pasta, drain, and rinse under cold water.
Place pasta in a large bowl. Add onions, sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, oregano, salt and 1/2 cup of the Parmesan.

The Dressing:
In a small jar with a lid,  (mason jars work!) combine oil, crushed red pepper, minced garlic, salt and pepper.  Shake well!

Pour the dressing over the pasta and toss until evenly coated.
Before serving, sprinkle with the remaining parmesan cheese.
Let sit out 15 to 20 minutes before serving.  Can be made and placed in the fridge over night too!

This is super yummy!  Enjoy!

Lots of time when I'm over at The Blended Blog, cocktails are my thing!!  So I thought I'd share a fun festive one on my blog today! I saw this one on pinterest and thought it sounded delish. The Original recipe calls for Razz Rum. Because I didn't have that, though, I changed it up a bit!  I used 2 shots of Raspberry vodka.  Raspberry vodka and lemonade is a favorite.  The red in the drink is a splash of grenadine. And the blue is 2 shots of Blue Curacao.

Here's my recipe...

I'll be sippin', eating, and all decked out in patriotic goodness this holiday weekend!!  Hope you and yours have a fun and festive 4th!!


And don't forget to head over to The Blended Blog today to check out favorite posts from around our individual blog from the past month!!

Create 28: Final Rewind!

The last few days of Create 28 with The Blended Blog are here!!  I think the fun of this made the month fly by!  I did ok participating this week, even if I did spend lots of time in my bathing suit and cover up again!!

Since I haven't gotten anything new lately, I found myself scrolling older blogs to help me find something to wear.  I have a pretty long list of fashion blogs to choose from these days.  Most items I still have but there were other times, I regretted throwing something in the "donate"  pile!!

For Lovely Lace, I wore the lace top on the left, with a pair of my fave bold, bright JCrew shorts on the right.

Because that's how I mistakenly read the prompt for the 24th!!  Abbie had it right and showed us all  how to make Bold Baubles look really good, on moms and babes!!

Leslie and Carrie looked ravishing in gingham for summer!  Hanging out with my nephews on Saturday night I sported this, minus the leopard flats and wore strappy sandals instead.

It was the perfect look when they wanted to go night swimming.  I was covered enough that I only came away with 4 mosquito bites.  That right there is a WIN in my book.

I was so happy to see Carrie back in the mix on Sunday with her mint looks!  I didn't participate, as the sunshine was calling my name.  That's ok though because nobody looks better in mint than Carrie!!

Monday I got a lil Patriotic for ya'll!!  

Sadly, on Tuesday I realized my closet is missing a pair of espadrilles!  What!?!  I must rectify that immediately!  Whitney looked just as cute as can be in hers!

Today Alison's up with a super stripes look!  Makes me wish I had something stripe-y red!!  Love it Alison!!  I'm just throwing this old suit on today and heading into the sun!!

Head on over to The Blended Blog to see a Recap of all this week's looks and get all the deets on a new fashion linky for July and August!!

Did you love Create 28 as much as I did? Link up your looks below!!

An InLinkz Link-up

Summer...Solitary Life Style!!

School's out for Summer!!!    Wooooo hoooo...no one is more excited than me!!  

With the exception of heading to the Dominican Republic next month, and two fun concerts, I  have nothing else "planned"! 

Last year I shared my Summer Bucket List, so I thought I'd do the same here!  Like I said, with the exception of a few things, nothing else is really, planned, so I guess instead of a bucket list, I'll call it a "wish list" of sorts.  Living this Solitary life I do, I'm pretty content doing all or nothing.  I know this might shock some people, but it's the truth.  I'm pretty content relaxing in the sunshine!

Some things I hope to do this summer...

I had said that I had a goal to read 12 books this summer!  I have been off a total of 6 days so far and have not picked up one single solitary book, I might STILL be reading a book I started back in February (I think!) so chances of me getting through 12 are slim to none!! In fact, I still have a few books from last year's Summer Reading List that I have yet to read!!  LOL.  I will be sharing this year's list next week so come on back for that!  My new goal is 4.  Any more than that will just be bonus!

I might have only gotten through ONE of these books last summer!

Last week a family friend of mine and a R+F consultant had a giveaway on her Facebook page.  The winner would receive an R+F mini facial just for sharing one item from her Summer Bucket List. So I gave a whirl, commented and WON!  YAY!!  I shared that one thing I wanted to do this summer was go to the breweries out east.  Last year at this time, I posted all about the fun my bestie and I had when we went to one local brewery.  And I want to do that again.  There are so many craft breweries around here, I think that would be so much fun!!

I've also made it a goal to get up and walk four times a week.  The last two months of work, I walked to and from school almost every day and I loved it.  I want to keep it up.  And we have been so lucky with this great weather!!  I made this goal last year too but  more often than not, I skipped it.  This year, I'm hoping that the cute outfits I've bought can be motivation enough to get up and go!  But I have to go early, because it's hot.  The other day I didn't get out as early as I had planned and it was bloody dang hot!!


Other than these, I am just hoping my days are filled with sunshine, relaxation and fun sprinkled in along the way!

What are your plans for the summer?  I'd love to hear about them in the comments below!!  Have a great Tuesday!!

Getting my Patriotic On! {Create 28}

I'm back today with my final installment of  Create 28.  So hard to believe that the month is almost over!! The ladies of The Blended Blog have really rocked it this month!!  I'm really excited about today's post!  I get to show off my Patriotic side, showing you my 4th of July style.  I jumped right on board with this one.  I am that girl that dresses for holidays.  I don't know if it's the teacher in me, but I really enjoy it.  I dress for Christmas, Valentine's Day, St. Patty's Day, Thanksgiving....I might have even just rocked a look for Flag Day too!  HA!!  Fourth of July is really fun to dress for because it's in the summer!  When I was younger, my family always wore the $5 Old Navy Flag tee every Fourth of July (thank goodness I can't get any pictures of that right now!) But can I just give a shout out to Old Navy for keeping it at $5 all these years???...and even adding cool new styles like a tank.  Hmmm....I might have to go get one!!

I have since graduated from that.  Here's a few looks from my style collection from years' past for the holiday...

Original Post

Original Post

Original Post

Maybe I get my love of dressing for all holidays from my mom!  HA!!

Here's a sneak peek at what I'll be wearing next week!  I saw this on sale, thought it was pretty funny and just plain fun so I picked it up!!  The day is always spent by the pool, so this relaxed, breezy tank will totally work!!

Looking back on the blog this month, I'm realizing that it's been all about Create 28!  Now that school's out for summer, I'll be blogging more regularly.  I've missed it and missed my interactions with my blog buddies!!  So come on back tomorrow for a Solitary Life post!!  And thanks for always sticking with me!

And who knew that today is Nation Sunglasses Day?!?  Celebrate by reading this!! LOL

Linking up today with Erika and Andrea for their Let's Talk Series!

Create 28 Week 3 Rewind

I'll admit it...I was a failure again!!! But I did a little bit better than last week, when the only day I participated in was my own!  I was up again this week with a feature prompt, Sunglasses style.  You can see how I style my favorites here!

Following that, on Friday, Deena lover of all things Blue Jays, had for us a Ball Park Babe look!  Super cute and fabulous!  Here I am in my baseball look, showing love for my Red Sox!  {I know...I know...I should be a NY fan, but my heart belongs to Boston!!}

Saturday was an Easy on the Go look with Shaunacey.  The perfect prompt for a busy Mom of two!! Being a busy but not so busy "around the house of chores and work (my typical Sunday on Saturday due to Father's Day!) Saturday for me, does my bathing suit count as an easy on the Go look?!?  LOL

Sunday was Father's Day and the day Joy was up with a chambray shirt styled! She had a bit of a hard time finding a shirt that she liked, but rocks a denim jacket with the best of 'em!!

Here's my chambray shirt styled.  Is it weird that I only wear these shorts with this shirt.  They are so bright but I love this look together!

Monday and Tuesday were the last two days at work and were super busy ones, so I neglected the prompts!  But Leslie's "pin it and did it" look is spot-on! Leslie is awesome with these prompts!!  And Christy, a fellow queen of cardis, ditched them for a super chic, hot mustard top!!  This inspires my to try wearing more mustard in the summer!!!

Have you been participating in Create 28 a long with us?  Link up your looks below!!  It's so fun to see everyone's takes!!  And join us next week...here are the prompts to help you along the way!! Pick one, some or all!  Can't believe it's the final week!!

Linking up this week with:

The Blended Blog/The Pleated Poppy/Sydney Fashion Hunter/Lisa @Daily Style Finds/Thursday Fashion Files

An InLinkz Link-up

Sunglasses Style {Create 28}

Sunglasses...the perfect summer accessory!!  For some, they have a dedicated pair.  Maybe they're prescription, maybe they're the most expensive!  For me I like to switch it up!!  I once saved up for a Coach pair...that not long after, I lost.  So me getting expensive glasses kinda went out the window.  Now the most expensive pair I have are Marc Jacobs, that I got on sale last summer.  Those are my everyday glasses.

These are them.

Most times I like to switch it up depending on what I wear!!  So I get cheaper pairs.  I keep a cheaper pair at work in case one day the weather changes. Because there are some days it pours rain in the morning and by afternoon it's beautiful!!

And I like to bring cheaper pairs to the beach and if I'm outside all summer. I also bring the cheaper pairs on vacation!   This way if anything happens to them, it's totally ok!!  I might have gotten these on Amazon for $4.99...{similar}and I think it was buy one get one!!  Perfect!!  LOL

I've tried the mirrored trend but I'm still on the fence about whether or not it's for me!  Ya win some, ya lose some!

As you can probably tell, aviators are my favorite style!  And the ones I am drawn to over and over!!

What's your sunglasses style!?!  Let me know in the comments below!!

Have a great day!!

Create 28 Link up!

Admittedly, blogging and my social media social life has gotten away from me this week!  Because real life has stepped in and taken over.  This time next week I will be on summer vacation, so end-of-year duties at school and all the comes with it has overwhelmed me.(I work better under pressure!  HA!)  I was not too active in Create 28 this week, but thought I would link up my featured post of the week, "Beach Bum" style from Friday!  Enjoy...and head on back to the blog for my future this week, Sunglasses Style!!  {Which I pretty much just remembered I have to write!  LOL...I'll be back on track soon!!}  Also, don't forget to hop on over to see a recap of all this week's looks styled by the babes of The Blended Blog!

And don't forget to link up your Create 28 posts with us below and hashtag your looks across social media with #theblendedblogstyle!


Create 28 Beach Bum Style (Original Post)

Seriously!!  How much fun is Create 28!?!  I've just loved seeing everyone's looks styled.  And I'm super excited to take a turn today and show my Beach Bum Style!  Earlier this week on The Blended Blog, I posted about my summer essentials!  And now I'm totally in Summer Mode....

 So C'mon...today we're heading to the beach!!

This is basically my look when I go to the beach!  For maybe the last three years!  HA!  This super versatile cover up is easy to throw on on your way to the beach and just as easy to take off when you hit the sand.  I bought it at Victoria's Secret a few years ago, and it was still available up until this year!  They've finally updated it a bit.  But being plain black, I'm ok with keeping it for years, and years...and years!!  A great cover up is key!!

I'm not sure why but this is one of my favorite photos ever!

If you saw my post over at The Blended Blog Monday than you know hats are my thing!  The fedoras my favorite, but the floppy hat and baseball caps are in rotation too!!

When I picked this prompt, I promised the girls of The Blended Blog that I wouldn't post a selfie in my swim suit, and I won't, but what is a Beach Bum post without a swimsuit?  When it comes to suits, I wear what I am most comfortable in or what the situation warrants.  I once wore a "cheeky" bikini to the beach with my family...and will NEVER, EVER live that down!! So these days I go for the classic bikini or bandeau style one piece!!  LOL

This chick looks better in this suit than I ever will!!

I got this suit last year and love, love, love it!!  (it's no longer available, but Adore Me has super cute suits for every body at super affordable prices!!

I attempted a new bikini this year, but hated the way I looked in it and ended up returning it! #thumbsdown #stillonthehunt

I bought this suit two summers ago and wore it maybe twice!  I found it again recently, so plan on making it my go to one piece this summer!!  

And who goes to the beach without a trusty pair of shades!  These are my beach sunnies for the summer!! (Come on back tomorrow to see a few more of my favorite pairs!!  

There you have it!  My Beach Bum style.  I might be working today, but the weather's great!  If you are lucky enough to be off, head to the beach....and don't forget the sunscreen!!

Here are the next round of looks to play along!!  Happy Wednesday....we're almost there!!  

An InLinkz Link-up

Beach Bum Stlye {Create 28}

Seriously!!  How much fun is Create 28!?!  I've just loved seeing everyone's looks styled.  And I'm super excited to take a turn today and show my Beach Bum Style!  Earlier this week on The Blended Blog, I posted about my summer essentials!  And now I'm totally in Summer Mode....

 So C'mon...today we're heading to the beach!!

This is basically my look when I go to the beach!  For maybe the last three years!  HA!  This super versatile cover up is easy to throw on on your way to the beach and just as easy to take off when you hit the sand.  I bought it at Victoria's Secret a few years ago, and it was still available up until this year!  They've finally updated it a bit.  But being plain black, I'm ok with keeping it for years, and years...and years!!  A great cover up is key!!

I'm not sure why but this is one of my favorite photos ever!

If you saw my post over at The Blended Blog Monday than you know hats are my thing!  The fedoras my favorite, but the floppy hat and baseball caps are in rotation too!!

When I picked this prompt, I promised the girls of The Blended Blog that I wouldn't post a selfie in my swim suit, and I won't, but what is a Beach Bum post without a swimsuit?  When it comes to suits, I wear what I am most comfortable in or what the situation warrants.  I once wore a "cheeky" bikini to the beach with my family...and will NEVER, EVER live that down!! So these days I go for the classic bikini or bandeau style one piece!!  LOL

This chick looks better in this suit than I ever will!!

I got this suit last year and love, love, love it!!  (it's no longer available, but Adore Me has super cute suits for every body at super affordable prices!!

I attempted a new bikini this year, but hated the way I looked in it and ended up returning it! #thumbsdown #stillonthehunt

I bought this suit two summers ago and wore it maybe twice!  I found it again recently, so plan on making it my go to one piece this summer!!  

And who goes to the beach without a trusty pair of shades!  These are my beach sunnies for the summer!!

There you have it!  My Beach Bum style.  I might be working today, but the weather's great!  If you are lucky enough to be off, head to the beach....and don't forget the sunscreen!!

Have a great weekend!!!  And don't forget to follow along with Create28 all June long!  And link up with us each Wednesday!!

7 Days of looks...or three! Who's counting?!?

Create 28 with the Ladies of The Blended Blog kicked off on June 1st! Each day during the month of June a Blended Blog contributor will showcase a look based on a specific summer prompt on their personal blogs! Then on Wednesdays, like today, we are all linking up to show how we interpreted one, some or all the the week's looks!  Join in on the fun and link up with us!

I followed the prompt to a tee on three days, but only photographed two!  #Fail  I might have spent a lazy weekend in nothing but yoga pants (or pjs...whatev!), so I was out for those days. but figured I could show my takes on the looks previously too.

Here's what I came up with!

Day One: Lana  showed us her go-to summer dress!  That was also the day of the final Style Perspectives, which was a maxi dress!  For me, the maxi dress is definitely a summer go-to!  It was also, Alison's prompt on Day 6....so two birds, one stone, as they say!

This maxi got was the most commented on, so I thought I'd feature it again!

Day Two was a surprise look care of Lisa. This one I did follow!
I surprised myself with I much I liked this look!  It's a corally, lacy, light top!  I am still wearing dress pants to work.  But can wear white jeans with it in summer or even with a pair of my favorite JCrew shorts.  Even though it's longer sleeves, it will be a good outfit for nights out to dinner on the water, where there's a little breeze.  Lots of restaurants in town are on the water and I like to frequent them in the summer!

I also didn't wear the leopard flats in the picture you see here.  I swapped them out for these fun flats....prompt on day 7!  Thanks Christy!!

Saturday's  prompt was a navy/nautical style, much like a prompt during our Style Perspectives where I came up with this look.  Sheila, the Queen of all things Nautical looked great on Saturday.!  I saved this look for a Monday night at the movies with my mom but failed to get a photo!  Booooooo..... (A light sweater is always good for the movie theater!)



Sunday, Sarah was a beauty, showing us her warm weather wedding looks. The only wedding I had this summer was my cousin's back in May.  I wore this dress, which I also featured as a graduation look during Style Perspectives. 

 I actually have now gotten something else to wear to Friday's graduation festivities.  It was a hundred dollar dress on sale for $20 bucks, and I has sleeves, which being in church is a must!  I thought it was a good buy!  LOL


The only other look I am not featuring today is Pretty in Peplum from day three, but please head over to Whitney's blog to see her peplum...pretty indeed!!

Create 28 is so much fun and gives me lots of ideas about how to wear things.  I'm up on Friday, with my Beach Bum look.   I'm really excited for it.  Come on back to see how it turns out!!

And join us for the next round of looks!

Now get to linkin' ladies!!  :)

An InLinkz Link-up

What's in my handbag?? {MY LIFE}

Linking up today with my bloggy buddies at The Blended Blog and Andrea at Momfessionals for Show and Tell Tuesday, to share what's in my Handbag!  So fun...or is it?!?  Ha!  Just kidding...it is!! I gave you a peek into my handbag a  year or two ago  (and before I switched over to my Spring bag, that was the one I was carrying! HA! These two bags are my favorites for work!) and wanted to update it for today!  Luckily, this time around I'm sharing less, but I think my bag has gotten heavier!


I'm currently carrying this bag to and from work for spring! Large enough to carry any paperwork I might need to bring home, but still a purse, so no need for extra baggage.  Which is helpful now that the weather is nice and I am walking more!  I always get so many compliments on it.  It was the very first purchase I made at the Nordstrom Anniversary sale two summers ago.  And thus my love with Nordstrom began!  It's a bp!

Lets see what's inside....

 My planner!  I never leave home without it!!  I just love this thing!  It keeps me super organized and I can write anything down at a moments notice! (I plan on switching out the cover for summer!)  Basically this is life!

Some days, it's my coffee mug, some days it's my water bottle...most days it's both!!!  I can't live with out either.  I've had this Starbucks mug forever.  It's my favorite, because, I can throw it in my bag and not worry at all about it spilling!  Usually, my water bottle is empty both in the morning and afternoon because I fill it up with water at work, so leakage is not a problem!

Wallet, Keys and Wristlet.

I know keeping a wristlet in my bag might be a little weird, but I keep it in there for days when I head out right after work for happy hour.  This way I don't have to bring in my whole wallet or bag in with me.  I just throw in my id, credit card, and a lipstick.

These two cases are really helpful at work.  The blue is my pencil case and the striped one is my makeup case.  It's has a lipstick, gloss and mini mascara and mini perfume inside. Especially helpful when you run out of the house in the morning without one or the other!  No mascara during the day insthe worst!!   I also carry a few aspirin, band-aids and peppermint oil in there as well!

And last but not least....my sunglasses!  Yesterday over on The Blended Blog, I named sunnies one of my summer essentials.  Really though, they're just daily essentials.  Especially when you walk INTO the sun every morning! HA!!

Well there you have it!!  A peek inside my bag!  What's in yours???

Have a great Tuesday!  Be sure to head on over to The Blended Blog to check out what's in Lisa's bag...

May in Numbers

YAY for a super fun May!  Lots was going on in my world in May.  Last week I shared a Sentence-a-day for May to recap.  If you missed it, you can find it here!

Today, I'm linking up with Canadian Lovely, Deena for her monthly numbers recap! May was eventful!!

2 big trips, two weeks in a row! 4 airplanes traveled on!
Mother's Day Weekend I headed to The Villages in Florida to spend the weekend with my mom.    Read a little about it here!

And they very next weekend, my family and I headed to North Carolina for my cousin's wedding!  I vow to recap both these trip in full as soon as school's out for summer!!

The day after the wedding my sisters and I had spent a glorious day in Charlotte where we had a million laughs drove hundreds of miles  and one hell of a good time!!

I worked a total of 18 days in May,

• had off 1 day for Ascenssion Thursday
• took off three days for travel {"sick"} days
• and walked to work 14 days of 18
•  three of those days, I walked back and forth to work 2 times, because I either forgot something, had to get my laptop or had to pick something up!

Also walked a mile to and from the park with my school during the WALKATHON!!  I've been trying to walk more, because it's better for me and I can go a lil later!  Which totally works!!  I am so not a morning person.

All this just means that the weather in the month of May was pretty damn fabulous in my neck of the woods!  Helping me to keep up the tan I got in Florida!  YAY!!

Because I traveled so much I ate out a lot. And when I was home, it was either a trip to Meetball (ha!) or a Hello Fresh meal for dinner!  5 Hello Fresh Meals, and even more days of leftovers!

3 fun nights out with school friends to Meetball. 2 nights out with with my besties!!

Countless beers were consumed this May, thanks to a growler that needed to be finished before I went away, airport beers, a wedding at a brewery, and LI craft beer week!  But on the bright side, I also had my first Sam Summer of the season!  (Maybe 3!)  Ugh...the thought of it all...good thing my ass has been walking!!

I will admit, thanks to the Memorial Day sales, I over indulged in the shopping a bit!  I don't know how much was spent (thank goodness) but i know it was a lot.  But if it wasn't all on SALE I would've spent way more...so go me!!

One summer vacation booked..these girls are headed to the DR this summer!!!  Woo Hoo!!! And all that shopping just means I'm totally set for the trip!!

May on the blog:
15 posts
Most viewed post in May: Five Things Friday
Only 6 of which I posted on FB!
The most viewed on FB was #TBT: My First Trip to The Villages
Photos posted to Insta: 51

Woo...I think that's enough for now!!  It's always fun recalling all that happened throughout the month.  Check out more Numbers recaps here.

Also, head on over to The Blended Blog today to check out my first post in our Summer Series!  I'm sharing my 5 summer essentials...it goes with today's number post!!  HA!