July is such a fun month! There is the Fourth of July, fireworks, barbecues, and swimming! It is also another month full of favorites that made aspects of the month more enjoyable. Some of these items I just got this month, others I have had for a little while, but used this month, making some part of my month more enjoyable.
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I have broken up these favorites into sections so that they are not just one big giant list. This month, I have ten favorites falling under the categories of Baby, Style, Books, and Miscellaneous. Take a look through and see if something might become your next favorite item!
Baby
Nuby Snack Cups: These Nuby Snack Cups are so helpful when you have a tired and cranky toddler who needs a snack to pick them up. They hold so many dry snacks that make taking Lydia on little trips, or even being around the house so much easier. I have put Cheerios, Annie's Bunnies, Goldfish, Annie's Bunny Grahams, etc. in the snack cups and Lydia loves being able to grab her snacks right out of the cups (and I appreciate the lack of mess!) Cheerios can be a little tough in them because they are smaller and therefore can get all over the car seat if she snacks on them in the car, but I will usually just clean out the extra Cherrios and chuck them in the woods.
Keen Water Shoes: When getting Lydia sized for shoes a few months ago, I wanted to get her a little pair of StrideRight sneakers and was thinking of getting her some dressy shoes for a wedding we were going to in June. The gentleman helping me suggested that instead of dressy shoes, getting Lydia water shoes instead (since she could just wear the sneakers, who cares, right?) and it was such a good thing that I listened to him! During the summer months, Lydia pretty much only wears her Keens and they are perfect for the hot New England weather. She gets a lot of compliments on them, too, cause they are quite stylish! (To get her fitted for her shoes, we went to Alec's in Nashua, NH, btw!)
Style
Burt's Bees Tinted Lip Balm: One thing that I find helps elevate my look when I am going out, especially as a mom, is tinted lip balm. Let's be real, my lips are always a mess. They chap easy for me no matter the season, and to make matters worse, I pick at my lips (bad, bad, bad!!) making them even more chapped. I use Burt's Bees Tinted Lip Balm in the color Red Dahlia and it really does take my look from being plain to being a little more polished. I already have more naturally pigmented lips, and the Red Dahlia color makes them pop even more. My look usually consists of Too Faced Mascara and Wet n' Wild highlight, so the tinted lip balm just takes it to the next level!
SUNGAIT Vintage Round Sunglasses: I have been using the same RayBans Sunglasses for over ten years, and though I still love them for their classic and timeless design, I wanted a change. I found these sunglasses by SUNGAIT and fell in love. They are also a timeless design, are different enough from my RayBans, and are super comfortable. They do not slip off my nose even if I am wearing them out on a walk in the hot weather. With the vintage design, I feel like they give my outfits a more vintage vibe as well. I have never been a big sunglasses wearer, but these I have a hard time taking off because I enjoy wearing them so much!
POPFit Leggings: You may have seen ads for free POPFit Leggings in your Instagram feed, like I did, and think... no way. There is no way that a company is offering free leggings. Well, I kid you not, they are and I did not see any loopholes on my way through paying for them and you only have to pay for shipping and handling. Once you are about to make your purchase they do ask if you want to become a VIP to get either a second pair of leggings or different item for free (I did do this, but eventually had to cancel since I now have more than enough leggings). And when my two pairs arrived, I was still skeptical of how they were going to fit since I have seen some mixed reviews on them.
For me personally, these leggings fit really well (especially after losing 9lbs on the Whole30) and they are not, I repeat, NOT see through!! As a yoga teacher, this is an extremely valuable feature because as the teacher you do not want to be instructing a class and have everyone get a peak at your undies! They have pockets that fit my phone, keys, license, a credit card/$20 bill, etc. and it makes life so easy. I have worn these leggings on walks with a friend and been able to have what I need in my pockets. It makes grocery shopping so easy as well, since I don't have to dig around in a purse to grab my wallet. I can use my Monet case on my phone to store my license and card and boom, done.
The two styles I got of the POPFit leggings are the Jane with pockets and the Lily Crop with pockets, both in size small!
Books
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: If you follow me on Instagram, you will know that I have recently been following the KonMari method of tidying my house for part of my 100 days of 100 goals challenge (see this previous post and don't forget to use the hashtag #tbs100daysofgoals if you are joining me). I ended up picking this book up out of my nightstand drawer and felt inspired to read it as I am in a period of feeling like making lifestyle changes before I turn 30. I will be putting up a post soon that goes into more detail on this, but wanted to include it here as a monthly favorite since I started reading it in July and decided August would be the month to KonMari our home!
The Fourth Trimester: I have been reading this book during the month of July (still need to finish it) but have been blown away by how necessary this book is to the postpartum experience. I cannot stress enough how much I wish I had had this book before I had my daughter. The notion that you need to rest, and really truly rest, after having a baby is so forgotten in our culture of being supermom and doing literally everything perfectly. I took Lydia to Target three days after delivering her... three days!!! Why?!?! Because I felt like I needed to be strong and dive right in to taking her out so that I knew how to do it. I should have been home eating ice cream with my feet up and her breastfeeding. If you are pregnant, a new mom, recent mom, human you need to read this book as it is a truly incredible resource for the postpartum experience.
Miscellaneous
Calligraphy Duo Markers: As someone who enjoys doing modern calligraphy, these markers are a great way to make invitations, journal entries, little notes, etc. even prettier with beautiful handwriting. I really enjoy using these markers and have used them a few times for posts on Instagram (100 Days of Goals, 100+ followers). They come in pretty colors and are duo because they are double ended with a different tip at each end of the pen. If you enjoy modern calligraphy, these are a great way to add some color to your hobby!
Eagle Creek Packing Cubes: For the Fourth of July we traveled to the Utica, NY area to visit Aaron's family and I always overpack. Without fail I will pack at least two more shirts than I actually need and this year I packed two bathing suits. Because I overpack, I tend to have a stuffed bag, which drives me nuts. When I worked at the Container Store a few years ago, I used my discount to get myself a few of the awesome Eagle Creek packing cubes in a variety of sizes and they have been the perfect packing tool. They hold so much, but compress it down to such a small size that it makes my bag not as stuffed so that I can fit other items like shoes in there. I used these when traveling to Ireland, Scotland, Austria, Italy, Norway, and Denmark and many of the states which made all of the trips I have taken in the past few years a lot easier to pack for. If you travel often, or even do a lot of weekend trips, these are a great way to have your clothes take up less space, leaving you room for your other items or for souvenirs!
GreenPan: Since Aaron and I started the Whole30 after the Fourth of July weekend, Aaron started making his own hashbrowns. His first time trying them, he used a cast iron pan and it did not go so well. The hashbrowns stuck to the pan and it made a mess. At the time we did not have a nonstick pan, but it became clear that this was something that would be useful in our home. We went with the GreenPan from Target so that it would not have any toxins and would be eco-friendly. So far, we have absolutely loved this pan and it made cooking eggs for breakfast so much easier, as well as making cooking the hashbrowns a dream.
That is all for my list of favorites! I hope you enjoyed reading these "reviews" and hopefully got some useful tips out of these favorites of mine. Have you used any of these products and what did you think of them? Do you think you will try any of these items in the future? Leave a comment if you do with your thoughts!