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For a lot of Americans, MLK Day is just a day off of work. For me, it’s a whole lot more. See, these two kids of mine already experience racism and discrimination on a consistent basis. I’ve witnessed it. I’ve been a part of it. Today, I hope we can all take a minute to be introspective about the state of our country and the way we treat our people.

When we left Boston, one of the first things I decided right away was that it was time to redesign my kids’ bedroom. My daughter was still sleeping in her crib that converted to a day bed and my son was sleeping in a hand-me-down twin that was really a girl’s bed (white with scalloped details).

Moving back to California, one of the things I looked most forward to was all of the produce. I had no idea that I would actually find a lemon tree, with ripe lemons, in my yard! The first day we arrived, my kids were super excited to see the vibrant yellow lemons hanging, very ripely, from the tree off of our patio.

My birthday is in January. The older I get, the more my thoughts on getting older have shifted. I hate having a January birthday for one major reason. It is way too close to all of the other major holidays, so it kind of gets forgotten. (Not that I need a parade for my birthday, but as a kid I always got the combo gifts and it always felt like an afterthought).

Choosing a sofa for your home is not an easy task. There are so many options that it can feel very overwhelming.

When we decided to move to LA in December, I knew it would mean some challenges. My biggest fear, aside from finding a place to live on super short notice, was changing schools in the middle of the year.

A few weeks ago, I realized I haven’t been putting my effort into my kids’ clothes. One of my good friends’ kids always look so stylish, so cool, and my kids always look, well, clean. The best I could come up with was clean and cute. Sure, they are cute, but their clothes weren’t accentuating just how cute they are, how much personality they have, how full of life they are. Then I saw this animal print bomber jacket, and I knew my daughter had to have it.

When we finally had all the details in place to move to California from Boston, one thing we knew was that we weren’t going to take our old beds with us. Although they were still in good shape, shipping several mattresses for my entire family, across the country, just wasn’t a smart, or cost-effective idea.

This is the second time I’ve received the Box of Style and it just keeps getting better. I loved the items in this box so much this time around, I wanted to give one away to my readers and followers. It means so much that you all stick around, so I want to give back to you.

In 2018, I’ve done a lot to soul searching. Maybe it’s my age, maybe it’s that I’m mid-career, maybe it’s that my kids are entering school. I’m not sure what it is but it’s been a year of trying to figure out what I want, where I want to go next, who I want to be, and what type of role model I want to be for my kids.

When Nourish Food Co. contacted me to try out their meals, I was dubious. I had tried some of those meal prep subscription boxes in the past, and I was always left underwhelmed. Although the idea behind those meal prep boxes is a good one – save time, make cooking easier – I just never loved how the food actually tasted.

Have you found your New Year’s Eve outfit yet? If you’re still not sure what you should wear, I’ve pulled some of my favorite New Years Eve looks under $50. Believe it or not, my top and skirt are under $50, combined! Although I do totally support getting a special occasion dress every now and then, I generally don’t like to buy expensive dresses or outfits I’ll only wear once.

Even before we had kids, we decided Santa wasn’t going to be a thing in our house, not in a traditional way. We both didn’t like the idea of lying to our kids, but I personally also hated how hurt I felt when I found out Santa wasn’t real. I can still remember the exact day, the entire scenario that played out, and how crushed I was.

How would you like to start off your holidays with a $100 gift card that you can use at some of your favorite stores? I’m giving away 2 $100 Happy Cards!

I’ve made A LOT of cookie recipes over the years. Given that fact, t’s about time I share some of my all-time favorite cookie recipes that I’d definitely make again. As I scrolled through old recipes, I actually forgot about several of the Christmas cookie recipes I’ve made.

Moving to Boston has its positives, but (for me at least) winter isn’t one of them. I left the cold weather of WI when I was 23 because winter just isn’t my thing. I also don’t like how harsh winter can be on my skin. That’s why I’m taking the Olay Winter Skin Challenge – after just one use of their Moisture Ribbons Plus moisturizing body wash – they promise your skin will be softer and more moisturized.

If you got the song reference above, you already know my big news.

Do you have people in your life who don’t quite make the gift giving list, but you still want to do something nice for them? Or are you heading to a holiday party and you don’t want to show up empty-handed? I have the perfect solution for you. This super quick, easy and totally thoughtful cookie gift box is your answer.

I’m getting invisible aligners. When I told some people, they looked at me really strangely.

This was not my first trip to the Caribbean. I went to the Bahamas (part 1 and part 2) back in 2014. But in those four years, I forgot about its beauty. I forgot just how indescribable the colors of the Caribbean are.

During the holidays, I’m sure you’ve heard people talking about taking the time to shop small, but have you ever really thought about what that means? Have you ever thought about where your dollar goes?

Here’s your chance to win a gorgeous Coach saddle bag purse in a denim blue color! One lucky winner will be randomly selected and walk away with this lovely Coach purse, valued at over $300.

I’m really into long cardigans this fall. They are so cozy and easy to wear for work or on the weekends. They look great over dresses, with jeans, or dress pants, depending on whether I need to dress up or dress down. You can never go wrong with a black cardigan, because it’s so versatile, but they can also get pretty boring.

I’ve teamed up with Neutrogena to give one lucky reader all of their best skincare and beauty products! I attended their Rapid U event a few weeks back, and I got to try so many of their amazing products that I had to share them with you! Entering is super easy – just follow the rafflecopter link below and decide how you’d like to enter!

I love when it’s finally sweater weather – when you can wear a sweater and don’t even need a coat yet. I also love to wear turtlenecks – the chunkier the better. The only problem is, chunky turtlenecks don’t actually look that great on me because I have broad shoulders and a fairly large chest. V-necks are actually way more flattering on me.

We are all so busy during the holidays, we need quick and easy solutions. That’s why I want to show you how to set up a cheese board in 5 minutes or less.

Fall is one of my favorite seasons. You can finally wear jackets, but you don’t need a heavy coat or all the winter layers just yet. If I’m honest, I own way too many jackets. I just love them. More than any other piece in my wardrobe, jackets can really make an outfit. That’s why I collect them, and that’s why I’m really into my new faux suede moto jacket this fall.

What are you serving this holiday season? I have the perfect fall drink recipe for you. This warm spiked apple cider drink recipe is seriously perfect with all the best fall flavors.

Raise your hands if you’re busy during the holidays! Just like me, I bet you’re super busy and find it really hard to fit in the time to cook or bake as much as you’d like. I absolutely love baking, but making homemade pies is often something I just don’t have time to do.

It was the morning of November 6th – voting day. I woke up early, got the kids ready for school, and headed to the train for my daily commute to downtown Boston. Just as I was getting off the train to walk to work, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket.

On my recent trip to Turks and Caicos, I packed way more things than I needed. I didn’t go crazy, but there were several things I didn’t end up wearing. Since I was there to attend the Beaches Social Media on the Sand Conference, I actually left a lot of space in my room for swag. Good thing I did! I ended up receiving quite a few items, that actually made the packing list!

I try not to regret decisions I make because I don’t make decisions lightly. I often spend days, weeks, months analyzing something before I make a decision, so I try not to question them. Since I don’t come to decisions very quickly or without great thought, I try to have faith in myself and my thought process. But every now and then, I just get it wrong.

One of my current favorite trends for fall are long cardigans. They vary from just below the hips, all the way down to duster lengths. I prefer the mid-thigh length, personally. But I’m really loving all the options out there. You can definitely find the right long cardigan for your body type, because there are just a lot of choices.

When fall and winter hit, does your skin freak out? Mine becomes super dry and often irritated. All the wind, cold weather and lack of humidity really takes a toll. But you can maintain healthy skin all year long, and last week,I learned some new healthy skin tips from my friends at Neutrogena.

I know what you’re thinking. Weekends are all about the yoga pants and sneakers. Don’t get me wrong – I’ll wear that on the weekends too. But, I try really hard to relegate those looks to when I’m actually going to the gym on the weekends. There’s nothing wrong with black leggings and sneakers, but there is a way to achieve chic weekend outfits that look more together without that much effort.

About a year and a half ago, I learned about the Social Media on the Sand Blogger conference and I knew I wanted to attend. I actually visited a Sandals resort back in 2014 and had the best time, so I wanted to visit a Beaches resort. Every so often, I see their commercials on TV, so I wanted to check out the Beaches line of resorts for myself. Plus, now that my kids are the perfect travel age, I was hoping to get an insider look at the resorts to see if it would be a good travel choice for my family.

Here is your chance to enter to win a whole collection of makeup, beauty, skincare, and hair care products!

Are you a hat person? I wasn’t much of a fashion hat person until really recently, but there are so many cute fedoras for fall that I’m crushing on right now.

When I was in LA earlier this summer, I had the chance to visit the Getty. The reason I attended was because one of my friends told me about the Icons of Style Fashion exhibit. Given my love of fashion, it definitely seemed like something I should check out.

Do you struggle to find the perfect jeans? Over the years, I know I have. Since having kids, my body isn’t quite the same. I prefer a little higher rise than I used to. Plus, I want stretch, and I want them to hug my curves too. After a lot of searching, I think I finally found the perfect jeans!

The other night, I realized something. My kids aren’t so little anymore and there are a lot of things I’m going to miss about kids being little. It may be obvious to someone from the outside that they’re growing. But sometimes, seeing them everyday, the transition from baby to toddler to preschooler to school-ager just flies by in a flash, without even realizing it.

OK, I finally did it. I finally gave into the mule trend. I’ve been eyeing all these cute mules on my IG feed and I finally bit the bullet and got some for myself.

One of my favorite parts about living in the Northeast is the opportunity to see a brand-new part of the country I haven’t seen before. We’ve done some traveling around MA, ME and RI, but we’ve mostly stayed on the coast. This past weekend, we had the opportunity to travel to Wachusett Mountain for their annual Kids Fest.

One of the hottest trends for fall is ponchos for women. I’m absolutely loving the cozy comfort of throwing a poncho on when the days get a little chillier. A poncho is the perfect replacement for a fall jacket or a chunky sweater.

A couple weeks ago, I talked about my second trip to NYFW and why it wasn’t really what I expected. After hitting a few shows, I realized I wasn’t loving the energy. I decided to stop hustling all over the city to get to all of the shows. Instead, I chose to spend time with some friends and experience the amazing energy of NYC. This was the first time in awhile that I just explored the city without an actual plan. Night in NYC is something special.

Last week in LA, I lucked out. I was in town for a work conference, but I also got to attend a first look at two hot shows returning to FOX this fall, 9-1-1 that has a two-night premiere on September 23rd and 24th at 9/8 central and The Resident, which premieres on Monday, September 24th at 8/7 central only. Not only did I get to hang out with some local bloggers, I also got to learn from an expert about infant and child CPR.

To make your Fall shopping a little bit easier, I’ve teamed up with a group of bloggers to give you

It’s never too early to talk to your kids about money. Understanding financial literacy is a fundamental skill that all people should have. Getting your kids to understand finances when they are very young will set them up for financial success when they get older.

Fall is one of the busiest times of the year. School is back in session and the holidays are right around the corner. You’re likely already juggling many kid activities, your work, and everything else you need to get done each day.

Living in Boston, I’ve finally had the chance to go to NYFW. I went in spring and I was able to go to these NYFW Fall 2018 shows too. It’s almost difficult for me to describe what this meant to me. Since I’ve been an adult, I’ve been dreaming of going to fashion week. It really is a cool experience. But ironically, it has lost it’s appeal now that I’ve been a couple times.

I love baking and I love sweets. Except, I try to limit the amount of refined sugar and fat I have in my diet. This creates a problem. How can I still bake but not create food that isn’t good for me? Well, I’ve been experimenting a little more with adding in beans. I know it sounds weird, but black bean brownies actually work. It’s not just black beans either. I tried chickpea chocolate chip cookies last month, and those were pretty delicious also.

Clearly from the headline, I have a current obsession with red purses. I realized, I mostly just own black purses, with a few other neutral purses thrown in. I have two grey purses, two white purses, maybe 10 black purses, and a few other colored clutches. But I don’t have any red purses! I had a red Balenciaga a couple years ago, but I loved it so much, it got worn out.

We’ve lived in Boston for nearly a year and we haven’t seen much of the city. This summer, I’ve tried to change that by planning little day trips to the city. Most recently, we visited Boston Common on a sunny Sunday morning in August, and we had a fantastic time. If you’re considering a trip to Boston anytime soon, and want to check out Boston Common, here are a few of my tips.

When I was in elementary school, I thought glasses were so cool. Fast forward to my 20s, I knew I needed them for distance, so I got a pair. But I never wore them. I actually still have those glasses, collecting dust in my nightstand, I think. On a recent trip to LA, I realized the time has come to finally invest in good glasses, especially driving glasses.

Are you ready for back to school? I can’t believe my son starting kindergarten this year! We are (mostly) ready, but I did want to get them a few new things to kick of the start of the new school year. With back to school shopping in mind, here are 6 fall fashion trends for kids that I’m loving.

To make your Fall makeup shopping a little bit easier, I’ve teamed up with a group of bloggers to give you

If you’ve followed my travels on Instagram this year, you know I’ve spent quite a bit of time in southern California. Although I actually lived there for a few years and visit regularly, this was my first trip to the Getty. It’s one of those places I’d heard about, but I never took the time to drive up there. I had a free day on my most recent trip to LA, so I decided it was time. I’m so glad I made the decision to spend the day at the Getty. It was so worth it.

Have you heard of chickpea cookies? Sounds gross, right? Well, they aren’t! I don’t know how it’s possible, but when you add just the right amount of nut butter, honey and chocolate chips, they really do taste like some version of a chocolate chip cookie.

2018 is a year of change for me. I’ve been pushing myself in a lot of areas, to get more comfortable with uncertainty and change. This mentality has infiltrated all aspects of my life, including my fashion and style choices. I realized I was really stuck in a style and fashion rut. In general, I tend to play it safe in most of my life decision. I’ve been working to change that.

If you follow me on Instagram, you probably saw that I was in LA last weekend to attend the SIMPLY LA conference. I attended the SIMPLY NY conference during fashion week back in February and had a great time. Given that I was already going to be in LA for work, I decided it was worth the effort to check out the SIMPLY LA conference. I’m so glad I did.

When I was a baby, my mom let me eat dirt. I was probably about one at the time, and I had a mouthful of dirt. This might make you cringe, but I’m glad my parents never limited my ability to explore nature. To this day, I’m a nature-lover and when I’m in nature I feel the most at peace. Whether they knew it or not, they were onto something. There are major benefits to let kids get dirty. It’s actually good for them.

To kick off our last month of Summer, I’ve teamed up with a group of bloggers to give you

I’ve made pie crust before, but I’ve never made a fresh fruit pie. I’ve made turnovers and galettes, but never a homemade pie from scratch. After a very stressful week at work, I came home and decided to bake. Given that there weren’t many groceries in the house, I didn’t have a lot of options. I opted to make a cherry pie with fresh cherries because I had all the ingredients I needed. Plus, I really love to use summer produce when it’s at it’s peak.

August is here and summer vacations are starting to come to a close. If you’re like me, you haven’t had your fill of sunshine quite yet though! We decided to keep the warm weather fun going this year and give away a tropical getaway to one lucky winner.

I don’t have tattoos, but I’ve always been into piercings. Just ask my college roomie. She watched me get at least two body piercings, if not three. (?). Believe it or not, I had my tongue pierced in college, well, up until grad school. My boyfriend, at the time, pointed out to me that it wasn’t very professional to be in grad school with a tongue ring because of what it ‘said’ about me.

When I spotted this navy blue lace dress (on sale!), I knew I had to give it a try. I’m such a sucker for lace, but I also love a fit and flare-style dress. Plus, I loved the little black accents in the dress. The black bands are extra flattering because of how they accent the waist and add definition to the flare at the bottom.

I never really thought much about astrology until I got this vintage Pierre Cardin necklace (from here). When I first saw it, I knew I had to have it. I’m a sucker for gold necklaces, as it is, but this one felt extra special with the floating diamond that you can place on your actual birthday. Anyway, the necklace is beautiful, but it also got me to think way more about astrology than I ever had before.

I’ve thought about posting this picture for about two months, but I’ve been afraid. I’m not perfect, it’s not perfect, my body isn’t perfect. Being an ‘influencer’ and in the public eye, so to speak, I often think long (and way too hard) about what I’m going to post. I sensor myself to the point of feeling overwhelmed with what to post next.

Are you looking for some recipe inspiration for your next gathering or BBQ? You need to try some of these healthy and fresh summer vegetarian recipes I’ve created over the years. All of them use fresh produce that’s at its peak during the summer.

When I was a kid, my parents took thank you notes very seriously. Every birthday, Christmas, graduation – the very same day I received the gift, I wrote a thank you note. I know that might seem pretty intense, and it was, but I’m so glad they instilled the value of hand written thank you notes in me from a young age.

We moved to Boston less than a year ago. It’s been a tough adjustment, if I’m honest. But, I’ve quickly learned the best part about living here is the close proximity to historical and unique places, like Newport Rhode Island. We had a rare weekend free (I’ve been traveling to the west coast a ton), so we decided to check it out.

Are you ready for the Apple Watch Giveaway + Cannon Rebel Bundle? I’ve teamed up with some of my favorite bloggers to give away a Canon Rebel and an Apple Watch. Visit the link below to enter for your chance to win this Canon Rebel Kit Bundle + Apple Watch Giveaway.

When I was in California last week, I also learned that one of my IG friends was there too. I’ve been chatting with this blogger babe for a couple years, and we’ve talked about meeting up in the past, but it just never happened. Finally, we were in the same city at the same time, so she suggested we meet at the Anaheim Packing House.

I’ve been to San Diego more times than I can count. I thought I’d seen everything, but then my friend told me about Chicano Park in San Diego. Seeing all the amazing murals, I couldn’t believe it was a place I’d never seen or heard of. I guess it’s not that surprising, since I’m not the target demographic. But, I’ve seriously been to San Diego at least 10 times, and I thought I’d done everything (like the 59 mile scenic drive). Given my serious love of street art, it was about time I made the trip.

Like a lot of moms, I’m extremely busy. I have two kids under 6, I work full-time as an Assistant Dean at a University, I travel a lot for work, and I also somehow manage to maintain nearly a full-time side-hustle as a blogger, while trying to also fit in family time and parenting duties. It’s a lot. The first thing to go is getting to the gym, so I’ve had to get really creative on other ways to get more exercise throughout my day.

What was your go-to lunch as a kid? Mine was almost always the same. A peanut butter sandwich, some baby carrots and an apple. For my kids, I try to change it up and I regularly try to incorporate new foods into their lunches. I have a super picky boy and a much more adventurous girl, which makes lunch time a bit of a challenge.

Asked me what one of my favorite hobbies is, baking would be at the top of the list. I absolutely love to bake. I find it so therapeutic. I’ve also got a major sweet tooth. If it wasn’t ultra-unhealthy, I’d probably live on desserts (and maybe this pizza).

This was my first time in Utah, which I found a bit ironic given I lived in Phoenix for 7 years. Nonetheless, I was excited to visit a new state and see some new things. The week before I left for Utah, I asked my IG followers what I should do while I was there. One of my blogger friends, Sandy, suggested I visit the Hall of Breakfast. I checked out their IG page and it looked so darn cute, I added it to the top of my site-seeing list.

What are your favorite summer flavors? This cherry lime spritz combines two of my favorites. Cherries are my far my favorite summer fruit and I’m always a big fan of limes, all year long. This drink really is the perfect drink for summer and you can customize it to fit your flavor preferences!

You need 20,000 instagram followers to visit this exclusive LA private mural, and I fell for it. I honestly contemplated not even admitting I visited the mural, because it felt just oh so pretentious. Then I decided to turn it into a story. So here it is.

This giveaway is brought to you by the wonderful influencers above! We love shopping the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, so to help spread the love, we are giving away a $500 Nordstrom E-Gift Card so one winner will have the chance to shop the sale on us.

If you would have told me in 2013 that I’d have a five-year-old blog that’s given me a lot of really unique opportunities and also allowed me to earn a supplemental income, I’m not sure I would have been able to envision what that would mean.

One of the best perks of being a blogger is all the free things I get to try. Nearly every week, I receive something in the mail to try out. Skincare and beauty products are by far the most common thing that I receive. I always try out all the products I receive, but they usually underwhelm me. Every now and then, though, a product really blows me away. That’s how I feel about Skinceuticals serums.

“G, look at you, only 3 months old!” as I showed my daughter one of my favorite pictures of her as a baby. “Am I Black or White?” she asked, with her big brown eyes staring up at me.

Honestly, I’ve been stuck on my diamond studs for about a decade now. I hardly ever change out my earrings, but I’ve been trying to do it more often. Earrings are an accessory I loved when I was younger. I think I had four holes in one ear and five in the other. I’m actually thinking about breaking out the stacked earrings look this summer.

What do you do when you have a whole bunch of ripe bananas and kids who are so ‘over’ eating them? Well, I usually make some version of banana bread – muffins or a loaf of bread are my standard go-tos. I recently made this recipe, and it was a winner. But I get so bored with regular banana bread, so this time I decided to try making double chocolate banana bread mini muffins.

When I was in high school, I owned a couple pairs of Adidas slides that I’d change into after volleyball practice. I didn’t really rock the slides outside of my sports seasons, but I do remember thinking they were ultra-comfortable and looked pretty darn cute with my knee-high Nike socks (I also wore pig tails for most games, btw).

Remember last week when I talked about taking more fashion risks? Well, this floral suit outfit is waaay out of my comfort zone.

Are you headed to any summer weddings? If so, I’ve got you covered. I’ve chosen some of my favorite dresses for every type of wedding, so you’ll know what to wear to a summer wedding.

I’m so excited to share this Argentinian alfajores dulce de leche sandwich cookies recipe with you! I’ve been dying to make a traditional Argentinian recipe ever since I got back from Buenos Aires.

I’m half Italian. My grandparents immigrated to the U.S. before my dad was born. Although we are Americans first, my dad always instilled a strong Italian pride in me as a child. As an adult, I’ve consistently seek ways to connect with my Italian heritage. That’s why it’s so surprising it’s taken me nearly a year to get to the North End Boston.

One of my goals for 2018 was to step outside my comfort zone, in as many areas of my life as I could handle. I’ve always loved fashion, but I have never been much of a fashion risk-taker. I’m trying to shake things up with my wardrobe and also how I style myself. This front zip dress is one little way I’m trying to shake things up.

Despite our best efforts, our son is a super picky eater. He has been since he was an infant. He didn’t even want to eat solid foods for the longest time. I really thought being a picky eater was a phase, but my son has taught me some people are just pickier eaters from birth.

The handkerchief dress trend is one I’m still not 100% sure I love. Sometimes, I think it’s just absolutely the cutest, and other times, I feel like Tinker Bell. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. I just prefer to dress like a grown-up vs. a child-like fairy (lol).

Do you remember Rainbow Bright? I do. I had a doll and I even had a Rainbow Bright costume one Halloween. Rainbow striped things have been my thing ever since then. In college, I even rocked a rainbow striped bed spread that was from deliA*s (do you remember that brand? I was obsessed in late HS and early college).

Getting to travel for my day job is a major perk. I love getting to experience new places and cultures. This wasn’t my first time in Detroit, but I hadn’t been back since I was 8 or 9 years old. I forgot there there are a lot of cool things to do in Detroit.

I can distinctly remember my parents warning me about becoming a parent. They told me how hard it was and how much it would change my life. They didn’t really talk about any of the positives. I remember thinking at the time – wow, my parents regret ever having me. I don’t actually think that’s the case, I think they just wanted me to understand the weight of becoming a parent.

Spring has finally arrived in Boston. I am almost ready to put away my boots and coats, and I even broke out a dress last week. Even though it’s not quite warm enough for summery clothes, I’m ready to update my spring makeup. If you’re ready to try some new products for spring, I’ve pulled some of the ones I’m really excited about trying.

What’s your go-to weekend outfit or, if you’re a mama, what’s your ‘momiform’? Mine varies depending on the season, but most of the year, it’s jeans, and a t-shirt with a layer on top. I personally love wearing blazers and jackets because I think they really tie a look together, yet are super comfortable. Lately, I’ve also started a bit of a sneaker collection.

If you follow my blog or instagram, you know. Scratch that. I loooooovvveeee street art. Seriously, I’m obsessed. Everywhere I travel, I make an effort to find street art. I personally love the juxtaposition of a city and the art, out there for everyone to see, and hopefully, appreciate. I’ve been to a lot of cities and written about a lot of street art, but Detroit street art is some of the best I’ve seen. That’s saying a lot.