Friday Roundup

Well, it's the beginning of the end. The end of summer, that is. It's gone by so fast, as it always does. I'm trying my hardest to avoid looking at people's back to school related posts, and pretending to believe it'll be summer forever. I hope you all enjoy a lovely three day weekend.

A collaboration between an artist and her for year old. The results are amazing.

If guy best friends acted like girl best friends…

Tiny Houses for the homeless in Austin

I tried this cake at a baby shower last weekend and it is amazing.  EVERYONE SHOULD EAT THIS CAKE.

Foods that taste amazing when frozen.

The Somebody App. Have you heard of it yet? The concept is both hilarious and pretty cool.

New fall shoes from Uxibal...

We've been eating this all week. Easy. Summery. Healthy. Perfect.


Image above of astronaut Anna Fisher via 52 Powerful Photos Of Women Who Changed History Forever.

Cold Brew Coffee DIY

After seeing people go crazy for it in coffee shops for the last few summers, I decided to give cold brew at home a go.

What's so great about cold brew, you ask? A few things. There is a lower acidity level, giving the coffee a smoother taste (and making it easier on your stomach), also, hot coffee when cooled rapidly gets a bitter after taste, that isn't the case with cold brew since it's never hot. So, hypothetically, you're making a smoother, sweeter, cold coffee. (That's the Jenny paraphrase of info from Food 52 and the NY Times)

I chose to go with this incredibly simple and informative recipe from Jamie Oliver. So simple in fact, it suggests using paper towels to strain your coffee if you don't have anything else on hand. 

Don't get caught up in the world of crazy contraptions. It's really very simple and you can make a big batch and keep it in your fridge for a week. Also, to keep it even longer, you can freeze the coffee into ice cubes. 

This is the easiest version of coffee I've ever made. No equipment required. Seriously, paper towels. You can do this.

Photos with Rings

Anything stand out to you about this adorable first sight photo? Yep, it's before the ceremony and the groom already has his ring on.

Couples frequently ask if they should wear their rings in all of the photos, and well- I don't have a good answer one way or another. Some people do and some don't, it's entirely up to you. But I really do like seeing the ring in this photo :)

Photo By Studio JKoe 

Life Lately

We have been very busy with fun activities lately! The weather has been glorious in Seattle so we are trying to soak it up as much as possible. The above picture was taken at Gas Works Park just a few blocks from our house -- we walked down after dinner with Mylo already in his PJ's.

I didn't get as many pictures at Priest Lake as I wish I would have but here are a few of Mylo enjoying his first boat ride (and driving the boat with Pawser!) and hammock with his Dada.

Last weekend my good friend Tracy got married and I was privileged to be a bridesmaid in the wedding! Tracy was such a beautiful, calm, fun bride I had a blast celebrating with her and Kevin. Congrats!

No More Razors

Anyone who's spent time with me in shorts-wearing weather can attest to the fact that I am TERRIBLE at shaving my legs. I cut myself practically every time.

After years of feeling like my choices were either living with lots of cuts and/or razor burn or being a hairy leg beast, I finally decided to try something new. 

I bought an epilator. 

And (so far) I LOVE IT! 

My only regret, not having tried this sooner.

For those of you who aren't familiar with epilators, they're look like an electric razor but instead of cutting they basically tweeze the hair out, pulling it from the root, like waxing. The pros being that it lasts for as long as waxing would and it's virtually impossible to cut yourself. The cons, it's painful, again, like waxing.

I was a little scared it would be unbearably painful, but honestly, on a pain spectrum I'd describe it more in the realm of very unpleasant and only slightly painful. Overall, completely worth the results. I'd much rather suffer through this every few weeks than daily shave my legs for sure.

Tips I've learned from my own experience thus far/read in reviews:

-Do this at night! My legs looked like I had a splotchy disease when I finished, but were perfectly smooth the next morning.

-Just as you would with waxing, you need to exfoliate as the hair grows back to avoid ingrown hairs.

-Don't put any lotion on your legs before you exfoliate, it makes it harder for the epilator to grab the hairs. 

If you're interested, this is the epilator I bought, it was a little more expensive than some of the other models, but a personal recommendation from a friend combined with the good reviews on Amazon won me over.

Image by Slim Aarons, via Like Me Some

Monday Motivation

The end of summer makes me want to make resolutions for some reason, probably that "back to school" will never cease to feel like the true beginning of the year. More on that to come...

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Friday Roundup

Happy Friday! Hope everyone had a great week. I'm super excited to be in my friend's Tracy and Kevin's wedding tonight at a gorgeous winery in Woodinville. Patrick and I are leaving Mylo at home (thanks Mimi!) and heading out to enjoy ourselves and celebrate a wonderful couple!

Hope you have a great weekend! Here are some links to kick us off:

Super-cute superhero bedroom and a stylish baby-gate.

History of texting in movies and a new movie that looks fascinating.

Touching and fascinating tribute to Robin Williams by the animator of the Genie in Aladdin.

List of the 25 best "best friends" of rom-com heroines. Agree?

No wonder I still like listening to Ace of Base.

Great techy interview with Ira Glass (ATTN: JENNY)

Looks delicious and refreshing.

Love this: one bookcase, three ways.

One interesting way to celebrate your birthday. 

6 things you swore would never happen when you had kids. :)

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