Good Morning, and Happy Friday to ya! Today I woke up extra early to try and get the link-up ready and have to say… part of me misses seeing the sunrise in the mornings.
I am a girl who loves her sleep, and usually have Friday Favorites up around midnight or so the night before for you early birds. This week, however, I told myself I would get up with the rest of the early risers, which instantly took me back to the days I taught 6 a.m. barre classes.
Those were the best. I might have been a little more tired to start, but once things got going I absolutely loved it! The clients were so hardcore, loved being there, and I always walked outside to the sunrise when it was over.
Anyways – as I down the rest of my large cup of coffee – we have an end of the week celebration to get to. Here is my list of things I have been loving this week, and as always, I invite you to join in at the bottom by sharing some of your favorites as well!
Friday Favorites #49: Week of 8/8
• Biotin vitamin gummies
My hairdressers have been telling me to take biotin supplements for years. I have tried it to grow out my hair on and off over the past five of them, but never consistently.
After I chopped off my hair earlier this summer, I took that as a chance to start with a shorter, clean slate. I have been trying to get it back to it’s natural color (whatever that is) and grow it out again without all of the damage attached to the ends from constantly styling and dying it for games over the past six seasons.
I have always been horrible at taking vitamins, so I gravitate towards vitamin gummies for an every day multi-vitamin. So far, I haven’t missed many days since I started and have easily added these vitafusion Biotin gummies into my routine.
It’s kind of like a fruit snack treat I oddly look forward to every morning!
• Reebok Skyscapes (again)
I have been in love with Reebok Skyscapes ever since I was sent a purple pair back in December. Last March, I was excited to attend the official Skyscape Launch Party, which only doubled my swoon-factor when I was also gifted a pink pair.
I received an email last week from Reebok sharing a one day July sale on the 31st including three print choices for $39.99. I ignored it at first, but couldn’t stop thinking about them as the day went on. I needed a neutral pair. Okay, fine… I wanted a neutral pair.
I have had my eye on the grey color since I spotted them in New York, but saw these black beauties with a pop of pink as one of the sale choices.
I have been looking for a solid black shoe I could wear to dance and around town for a while and knew I might just need to get them.
It’s quite possible that I also need an intervention at this point.
#threepairsonegirl
I felt silly ordering them, but have been loving them ever since they arrived at my doorstep just a few days later. I love the solid black with pink bottoms and also the look of the extra pink laces they came with!
Black and pink is the new black? I think so!
• this extremely smart dog
Just when I felt confident in Roadie’s sit, stay, shake and lie down commands, this guy appeared on the Internet. Man he’s cute and that jump and rope grab is crazy impressive! Yeah… we’re working on it…
• RIZE natural energy drinks
A couple of #FFavorites ago, I mentioned that Scott requested me to keep a more natural version of energy drinks available at home for him to grab on busy, long days.
I hadn’t heard of RIZE Energy before, but picked a 4-pack of it up from the health aisle on my last trip to the grocery store. The apple/pear flavor looked intriguing!
He drank one yesterday and I stole half of it to approve or disapprove. For an energy drink, I was pleased to only see the use of cane sugar (opposed to regular) and an absence of preservatives and artificial flavors. The folate (as folic acid) kind of creeps me out a bit, but I have a feeling that would be present in any sparkling energy drink. Overall, I was very happy with it!
• professional eyebrow waxing
I mentioned this years ago (<- woah, throwback on my old, slightly embarrassing writing style… sorry), but I have been getting my eyebrows threaded ever since I tried it for the first time in college. I have extremely sensitive skin around the brows and have had some horrible experiences using hot wax at professional salons.
When I danced for the Orlando Magic, we were sponsored by a salon that offered waxing with cold wax for sensitive skin that I would try from time to time, but I always preferred threading.
Since we moved up to Michigan, I haven’t found a threading place I am fully happy with, or a consistent shape to my eyebrows for that matter.
About a month ago, I stumbled upon a salon a couple of miles from me that offered threading, but ended up getting waxed instead. She has been trying to grow my eyebrows out, and so far I haven’t had any troubles or bad reactions to the wax.
I am embracing the thicker look in my brow and can attest that it’s a much more pleasant experience!
• Hillsong Young & Free
Earlier this week, I shared that I went to the Hillsong Young & Free concert in Plymouth. For those of you who might not be familiar with this group, it is an Aussie youth ministry with an inspiring mission and story.
Many of you commented that you know Hillsong, and this is their band composed of a younger generation! It’s incredible to hear and see live.
I often recognize their hits in our church services and didn’t realize just how many I already knew until I heard them playing them at the concert. I purchased their album as soon as the concert was over and have been hooked on it all week!
Alive and Wake are two of my favorite tracks, but the best part of the concert for me was hearing this track. Ahh, chills!
• pretzel crisps
Gah! These pretzel chips. Addicting, no?
Before the concert, I ate about half the bag of the original flavor at a friend’s place. I bought her a new bag of them to replace it and also brought home this bag of Everything with me. Dipped into hummus, I could literally eat the entire bag without even thinking of it.
I’m not sure if that is a good or bad thing…
• talk to text
I don’t know why it took me so long to utilize this option on my iPhone, but I finally started using Talk to Text this week and it’s been great!
Simply click on the microphone button on the bottom and speak normally.
I have found that it picks up the majority of my words, but not always the punctuations. Also, if you say smiley face it types the nose included version. This works perfectly fine and does the job, but the perfectionist side in me usually comes out and fixes it when I’m done.
I forgot the word *there above, but she got the point, nonetheless.
• working out of the house
Ever since I purchased my MacBook I have been absolutely loving getting out of my basement, and even house to get work and studying done.
(Before, I was glued to my iMac desktop in the corner of our basement.)
Yesterday, I spent a good four hours at Panera and loved being around people, yet in my own little working bubble. I was so much more productive and didn’t have the distractions of laundry and random things that come up at home throughout the day. The food was a great break too!
• favorite posts
Hey… I remembered to close this week’s favorites with post highlights. Woop!
Two that stand out to me (in case you missed them) are reasons why I run and why I think you should start too…
And the importance of fitting in “me” time and how to get and fit it into your busy schedule!
I would love to hear some of your suggestions and reasons you run (or don’t) in the comments section here as well!
Your Turn
Happy (almost) Weekend!
![[in our elementary school era] 🚌😭
Skyler did great walking into KINDERGARTEN with a big smile on his face this morning. I, however, was a bit of a mess on our walk home. 🥹
It’s wild how fast these 5 years with him have gone … 7 since we moved to NYC and into our apartment, dreaming of the day our kids would someday go to the *awesome* school right down our block. 🏫
That day is today, and I still don’t believe it — feeling allll of the emotions and thanking God for placing us here and for being able to trust His timing through the journey. 🫶🏼 #hbshinnyc
SO proud of you, SK - you are going to rock your first year at your “big boy school” - WE LOVE YOU !! 🩵👑](https://lifeinleggings.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed/img/placeholder.png)
I love Hillsong! My skin is super sensitive, so I never brave the wax anymore… maybe I should let my new salon give it a go…
The talk to text… Siri never understands me! Must be the southern accent! LOL!
Ha, Siri is another story. She hardly ever works for me either! I’ve had more success with talk to text! 🙂
I saw that email too and should’ve purchased another pair. I LOVE the skyscapes and have had people stop and ask me where I got my shoes (I have the pink ones). I love the zebra print ones! They’re just so comfy.
I love those and the cheetah ones! I kind of want them all. I have a problem.
Ooohhh I’m so excited to see the results of those biotin gummies!! I took some a couple years ago and they helped my hair grow pretty fast, but I also had to stop because it was making my skin break out pretty bad! But it wasn’t until this year { after two years of eating protein at every meal/eating mostly paleo } that I really noticed it getting thicker and actually having strength. And have a love/hate relationship with running haha. I love how good it is for our cardiovascular system but I hate how hard I make my runs, even though at the same time I love the challenge. Plus, running is just great for my mental mindset, it’s me competing against me, me allows me to just sit there and think. It really is the cheapest therapy out there :).
Oh no! And interesting about the protein/paleo diet tip. Running is a great mental release for me! Even if it’s just a mile or two, it can make such a difference in my mood!
Love your eyebrows!! I had an amazing girl when I lived in Texas and could not find someone in Atlanta. After a bad experience, vie been growing mine out and finally braved a salon last week. What a difference fresh, thick brows make!!
Also, I’ve got to try those gummies!! I have a love/hate relatiomship with biotin because it makes all my hair grow… Not my fav having to shave so often 😛
Thank you! Yeah… it can be frustrating trying to find someone in a new area. Ha, I know what you mean about the biotin! But, better all than none in my eyes… 😉
Those pretzel chips are SUPER addicting. I love dipping them in hummus. I should really try the talk to text option too because I am the worst for writing texts quickly and having many, many errors.
Pretzels dipped in hummus is one of my favorite food combos… ever. So addicting!
I’ve never had my eyebrows waxed, but I get other things waxed 😉 and so I can definitely vouch for the necessity of a professional. Ps on my blog today is the easiest, most delicious gluten free muffin recipe that I have ever had–definitely check it out!
That’s funny… I’ve literally never had anything else waxed. I’m such a baby! Yum, those muffins sound great!
That talk to text is truly amazing!! I absolutely hate having to type on my phone because the keyboard is so small that it takes me ages to write something with no spelling errors. I either give up or just write a bunch of unreadable stuff!
I love it for those times I feel like I have to respond to something on the road. The punctuation might be off, but it’s so much safer and more convenient than texting sometimes!
I need to get some of those Biotin gummy vitamins! I’ve heard of biotin being great for helping your hair grow out, and even better that they come in gummy form. I feel like my hair is STUCK in this spot and I’m dying for it to get longer!
Love your new Skyscapes! I have them in pink and ADORE them. I’ve been seeing some different prints around that I love, and I may just have to splurge on another pair one of these days too. A girl can never have enough shoes, right? 😉 (Or so I tell myself!)
I’ve been letting my eyebrows fill out a little more too, and I’m loving it! It isn’t quite as much maintenance and looks a little better too, I think.
Happy Friday! <3
It’s too soon to really tell much, but my hair has been growing. Which is a win that normally doesn’t take place! LOVE my pink ones! I just couldn’t resist 😉 Happy Weekend!
I’ve been working out of the house this morning, and it’s been glorious! I’m so much less-distracted, which is easy anyways, but especially so when I’m nesting 🙂
This is so embarrassing, but my mom’s the one who introduced me to talk-to-text, just a few months ago. I shouldn’t be embarrassed my it, because she’s a super-texter, on her phone all the time, but still. lol
I need to make a point to get out more often! And hey… go mom!
Ohh I’m not really an athletic shoe girl but those Skyscapes are so cute! And thanks for the heads up about Hillsong’s youth band! I’m listening to the songs your recommended as I write this! And I always forget to use talk to text option but I’m going to start giving it a try!
Aw, hope you enjoy the music!
Pretzel crisps are addictive, especially the Everything flavor. Sometimes I smear a little cream cheese on top and pretend they are bagels, so yum.
Oh my goodness… YUM!
Those pretzel chips are amazing! I love the original, did not need to know there was an everything flavour, haha.
There are tons of flavors!! Not sure if that’s a good thing… ha!
Everything pretzel crisps are the best thing EVER… and SO addicting.. it’s bad! :/
Right? SO amazing. All of them.
I love your eyebrows! They look so good, I can never get mine to look that great ha. I’ve got to try those Biotin chewables. I will need to make sure that they are okay to take while breastfeeding first though 🙂
Aw, thank you! I can’t take any credit for my eyebrow shape though! Hmm… that’s a great question. Let me know if you find out!
Love those skyscapes! I keep seeing them everywhere and feeling myself getting slowly convinced that I need them. 🙂 I’ve been trying to grow my eyebrows out for awhile now, but after so many years of plucking, they just will NOT grow. I don’t know what to do!! I know they’d look a lot better if they were fuller. I don’t get them done professionally either though–maybe that would help??
I’m sure that would help the process of growing them! You’d be surprised what a little professional shaping can do! 🙂
My favorite this week is… GETTING MARRIED! 🙂 Today is my wedding day!!! (and I’m catching up on my blog reading since I’ve been awake since 3:30 this morning… #stress).
I ALWAYS use voice to text now!! And even sometimes if it messes up but I know it’s pretty close to what I wanted, I leave it! Never done the smiley face options. I usually just say ‘period’ or ‘exclamation mark’ haha. Really want to try some skyscrape shoes out soooooon!!