Friday Favorites #184: Week of 9/22

Good morning my friends! How has the week been treating you?

We’ve been all good over here, with the exception of feeling completely disheveled from living out of garbage bags in our living room.

Do you member a few weeks back when I mentioned that we had bedbugs? To make a long and dramatic story short, we had a two week delay on treating our apartment because our landlord chose to ignore the problem. We finally got the exterminators to spray a week and a half ago. They casually mentioned that they would be back two weeks later for a follow up spray, and that we should leave everything prepped as they walked out the door. Cool.

I called to schedule the follow up appointment yesterday, and it turns out that we will be rummaging through bags for another week before they can get here. To say that I’m looking forward to putting our master bedroom and closet back together would be a serious understatement.

In other news, Cali has a large kidney stone. She’s been bleeding on and off for over two months, and it’s literally taken that long to figure out what the heck has been going on. She’s been on several medications and treatments for all sorts of things, and the vet finally took an x-ray at her last appointment on Monday to see what we suspected might be the culprit all along. Now she’s on a special food that will hopefully dissolve the stone over the next month, and if that doesn’t work, surgery will. Poor kitty!

Apartment and pet issues aside, I’ve had a good week, and I am excited for a few days of recouping and attempting to piece things together this weekend. We are running a special event at the studio called the Dri Tri on Saturday (are any of you doing this?!), and I’m pumped to see how members have progressed since the last time we ran it six months ago.

As usual, today were forgetting the stress and remembering what makes us smile by reflecting on the happier parts of the week through Friday Favorites. Below you’ll find a collection of what I’ve been loving lately, and I always invite you to share your favorites in the comments and link up sections, too.

Happy Friday!

 

Friday Favorites #184: Week of 9/22

 

• Weekend Surprise

Those who follow LIL on Instagram might have caught this one already. Last Friday, Scott and I had plans to meet our friends from Detroit for dinner in Manhattan. When they showed up, they brought a few of their friends with them. Those friends just so happened to be Scott and I’s best friends from Detroit, Alex and Alex!

The group pulled a fast one, and Scott and I were both generally surprised and grateful for the weekend that we had to spend with them. We did our best to explore new-to-them restaurants and things in the area including dinner at Hunt & Fish Club, Friend of a Farmer for brunch, shopping on Fifth Avenue, and late night fun at Cafe Wha? (<- awesome spot for live music!) and a bar called The Folly. (<- one of our favorites!)

It was sad to say goodbye to them last Sunday, and I can only hope that Scott and I can get back out to Michigan to see them sooner than later. Love you guys!

 

• Zesty Chicken & Black Bean Salad Bowl

Maybe I’m just now noticing it, but I found a new salad at Starbucks this week that I’m slightly obsessed with. It’s actually a salad bowl and it comes with a variety of goodness including grilled chicken, black beans, roasted corn, jicama, tomatoes, feta cheese, spring greens, and quinoa with a mild chili vinaigrette dressing.

I’d be lying if I said that there weren’t days where I stop in to the coffee shop for a latte on the way to work and end up grabbing a salad to save for lunch while enjoying a second breakfast of the infamous Turkey bacon and egg white sandwich, too. Nothing like a one stop shop, right?

 

• a return to Orangetheory Fitness workouts

I’ll be sharing more on the subject very soon, but I will say that it felt amazing to get past the front desk and back into the gym with Orangetheory workouts this week.

I ended up taking two months off from intense workouts altogether, and have been taking it easy and listening to my body.

Since it had been a while, I jumped into my first 45 minute express workout on Wednesday as a power walker, and I lifted lighter weights than I would normally grab. As cautious as I was, all of the lateral lunges  did me in, and I am now walking like a pterodactyl from soreness. I think it would be my best interest to find a yoga class tonight or tomorrow to check my legs out. Even so, I’m thrilled to be back and slowly diving into a semi-normal fitness routine again!

 

• small bathroom organization

This may seem like a silly favorite for some, but if you live in a small space with hardly any room for storage, you might appreciate this space saving hack. As you can see, our bathroom does not leave much room for… well… anything.

We keep the bear necessities under our sink, and I can’t tell you how many times all of my bottles have fallen out of the cabinet on and onto the floor because I wanted to get my hairdryer straightener out. Great minds must think a like, because as soon as I was going to ask Scott for a solution, I came home to hooks drilled into the side of our cabinet and the perfect way to organize and store my hair styling tools.

And while we’re on the subject, this technique round brush that I purchased from Hairstories after my last blowout there makes blow drying my hair a thousand times more effective.

(also found , , and )

Have you ever tried using a round brush? Worth it.

 

• Everything but the Bagel Sesame Seasoning Blend

I can’t remember the last time I had an everything bagel. Oh wait, just kidding, I have them at least 1-2 times per week now that I work right across the street from an authentic NY bagel shop. I really wasn’t a bagel person until I moved to New York. It’s currently one of biggest food weaknesses!

Since I clearly can’t get enough of them, I was so thankful when our neighbor gifted us this everything but the bagel seasoning blend from Trader Joe’s this week. (You can also purchase it on Amazon.)

You can make anything taste like an everything bagel by simply sprinkling it on top. I have been using it on toast with butter, English muffins, and even mixed in with rice, and it’s the bomb. Thank you, Hillary, for introducing this new gem into my life!

 

• favorite LIL posts

» Living Room Resistance Band Workout

This workout is perfect for busy days at home. The only equipment you need is a resistance band! (Click for photos and exercise descriptions.)

 

» Healthy To-Go Snacks for Road Trips

Stay on top of your game and fully energized on your next road trip with snacks that are great for you!

 

Your Turn

What have you been loving this week? Link up your favorites!

<div align="center"><a href="https://lifeinleggings.com" rel="nofollow" title="Life In Leggings"><img src="https://lifeinleggings.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Friday-Favorites-Button-Life-In-Leggings-Link-Up-2.jpg" alt="Life In Leggings" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Have a great weekend!

 

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post. Friday Favorites is a series of posts that features items I genuinely want to share with you, and affiliate links may appear from time to time. As always, any support is much appreciated! <3