LA/Southern California Blogger Meetup this JUNE

I was so excited when Leeann and Meg announced the meetup they have planned for next month: a night at J.Crew Factory! The store will be closing for a private party. There will be drinks, appetizers, and of course shopping!

Date: Saturday, June 29
Time: 5-8pm
Location: J.Crew Factory
Ontario Mills, 1 Mills Cir #839D, Ontario, CA 91764 (about an hour from LA, depending on your location)
Special Discount: 20% off $125 or more

RSVP

Summer Totes for Every Budget

Under $25:

Barnes and Noble Navy French Stripe Canvas Summer Tote with Anchor Charm ($25)

Barnes and Noble Blue French Stripe Canvas Summer Tote with Seahorse Charm ($25)

Under $50:

Gap large striped tote ($40)

Under $100:

Lilly Pulitzer shoreline tote in bright navy raise the sails ($98)

Nordstrom stripe tote ($88)

Over $100:

Virginia Johnson for J.Crew tote (also available in shark print) ($148)

Milly lobster print canvas tote ($245)

And I am back

I will be doing a recap of my DC trip later this week but I just wanted to check in. I decided not to bring my computer with me to DC and I didn't schedule any blog posts while I was gone. We had a great weekend in DC celebrating my sister's medical school graduation. I was supposed to get back relatively early last night but due to weather our flight was delayed and I didn't get back until late last night. H is currently napping while I catch up on emails and take a quick breather.

The past few months have been super busy and I laugh when I think of my college self thinking I was "so busy" back then!

Pottery Barn nautical entertaining

Combine all of these nautical new arrivals from Pottery Barn together and you could have one fun nautical party this summer!

Anchor tiered stand

Seahorse drink dispenser stand

Bronson boat cooler

Whale cocktail shaker

Seahorse salt and pepper shakers

Whale bookend

Shell wreath

Wood buoys, set of 3

Even more inspiration from Pottery Barn for a nautical summer party:

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Maui recap

There wasn't going to be a big work trip this spring but then at the last minute my employers changed their minds and booked a trip to Maui. I had less than a week's notice (not ideal for my type A control freak) but I made it work. First trip post-potty training I was excited to ditch the diaper bag (separate post on the new system next week) and baby gear. Lots of beach and pool time (our hotel had a really fun kid pool with a pirate ship and water slide and a playground in the grass right next to it), fruity drinks, eating, and a little bit of shopping. We even went to a goat farm where I got to feed some adorable goats (highly recommend visiting this place if you have children with you). I had planned on doing more reading and tv watching in my downtime but never opened my book and only watched the finale of the Mentalist and an episode of Revenge on my computer. I did manage to draft some blog posts at least.

And a big thank you to the guest bloggers that filled in with little notice! coastal finds at Dillard's, nautical outfit ideas for work, the gym, and going out, summer movies, nautical summer camp, and Charleston

view from my hotel room

have to have at least one beach photo right?

And of course a sunset photo with a tiny sailboat in the background

Going to our special dinner together the night mommy and daddy went to their fancy dinner

Luau on our finale night

Lavender farm with the ocean/beach way in the background

sailboat salt and pepper shakers I brought back with me

Restaurants (keep in mind that I am a picky eater and not super into seafood so these are the ones we went to BUT I can't really say much about the food itself):
Gazebo
Duke's
Son'z at Swan Court (in the Hyatt Regency)
Haliimaile General Store (this is where I got the sailboat salt and pepper shakers)
Cheeseburger in Paradise (Hands down H's favorite. He loved getting his fruity drink in a giant pineapple)
Honu
Leilani's

Nautical Diaper Cakes for Baby Showers

From Fried Pink Tomato's nautical baby shower!

From Two Preps in a Pod's two nautical baby showers (one and two)!

From Uncommon Designs

From Pinterest

From Pinterest:

No time to craft your own? Buy one from Etsy!

Nautical girl whale seahorse diaper cake

Nautical beach themed diaper cake

Anthropologie Nautical New Arrivals

Star chart skirt

Windward halter dress

Seahorse measuring spoons

Jetty compact mirror

Tiny ships canape plate

Reflected seahorse shower curtain

Port of Call bedding

Open-stitch anchor sweater

What's in my beach bag?

I just got back from a week at the beach/pool and I thought I would share my beach/pool bag essentials. Nothing ground breaking but I like seeing what other people bring along. I assume you are already wearing sandals/flip flops and sunglasses! For this trip I used my Forever 21 anchor bag that was easy to pack flat in my suitcase and zips (I will only use zip bags for the beach and pool-nothing falls out, no sand gets in, etc). Normally I use a Vineyard Vines tote but I didn't want to get my clean Kentucky Derby tote dirty on this trip.

Water! I think that's a given but I never forget to stay hydrated if I am going to be in the sun. I lost my nalgene but am going to buy a new reusable water bottle.
Snacks: I always have snacks with me. Maybe it's the nanny in me? I don't want to be starving or searching for food. I love these Annie's fruit snacks or a granola bar
Sunscreen: Number 1 thing! I put on moisturizer with sunscreen every morning, rain or shine! When I go to the beach or pool I use the Neutragena UltraSheer dry touch sunblock because it isn't greasy, doesn't make me break out, and just feels good on my face. I am looking for a new sunscreen for my body though. I would prefer something with a low number on the EWG site if possible (they haven't released the 2013 results yet). SPF 30 or 45. Any recommendations?
Chapstick with SPF: I love Nivea Lip Care A Kiss Of Moisture
Gossip magazines
Ipod (or iphone) for music
Hat: I have a Marley Lilly monogrammed baseball hat
Cute coverup: I have several coverups. I have a striped one from Vineyard Vines that is my go to. I love this Vineyard Vines whale tail tunic
A good book: Lots of bloggers have recommended The Fault in Our Stars so that is what I brought for this trip
I also bring my wet swimsuit bag if I am going to be in the water at all

What's in your beach bag? What should I add to mine?

Favorite Weekend Outfit

I definitely have a weekend uniform right now: J.Crew popover and jeans or shorts. I currently have 3 popovers: 1 from J.Crew factory that I got on final sale (neon pink) and then 2 from J.Crew that I bought after loving the factory one (a chambray one and a mint green one). A bit more relaxed than a button down I love in these tops on the weekend!

This is the mint one (doesn't look mint in the photo though). You can see the tiny pink monogram above the pocket

I just bought this multistripe popover from J.Crew and decided to get it monogrammed (the monogram is tiny)

You can get a monogram under the pocket or on the sleeve

Clockwise from top left: J.Crew multistripe popover, J.Crew Factory oxford popover, J.Crew Factory chambray popover, J.Crew Factory polka dot popover, J.Crew Factory oxford popover, J.Crew Factory Oxford popover

Take an additional 30% off everything at J.Crew Factory with code: SALE30 (ends 5/19)

Linking up with Long Distance Loving for Friday's Fancies

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