Today's post is a little all over the place but I wanted to share some random things that I've been loving lately! I can't quite put my finger on why but I've been feeling less and less inclined to share things on Instagram stories lately. I was talking to my girlfriends about this and said that I used to post on Instagram stories all the time and lately just haven't felt like sharing and have even become more self conscious about it. One of my friends pointed out that it could be that I posted a lot more frequently because I was living away from all of my friends and family so that's how I kept in touch was by posting more of my everyday life online. I think that was a really insightful point and could be applied both to social media and to the blog. When we were living in California I had way fewer social plans because I didn't have a ton of friends there so I was blogging and Instagramming more in my free time. Now that I'm back in MN and see friends and family frequently I haven't made sharing online that much of a priority. All this to say that these are some things that in the past I would have probably shared on IG stories but haven't so I wanted to put together a little roundup of my favorite recent purchases here!

My cordless vacuum. This is a game. changer. Our very cheap vacuum didn't make the trip to MN with us so I was on the hunt for something new. I really wanted a Dyson but couldn't justify shelling out hundreds of dollars so I decided to try this version since it had such good Amazon reviews and is only $120. Overall I really like it! The only issue is that every once in a while the battery won't last if I'm trying to vacuum the whole house at once. It can be kind of annoying when that happens but is way less annoying than a cord IMO so I'm happy with the tradeoff!

This gorgeous Tuckernuck scarf. You may remember a similar red scarf from last year (seen here) so when I saw this beautiful summery option come out I pre-ordered it right away and have already gotten so much use out of it!

Non-slip shoe grips. I don't know about you but a lot of the flats and sandals I buy have zero traction so I picked up these sticky grips that you put on the bottom. Et voilà: traction! Such a simple product but they're so helpful.

Spring tops. I realized that this was an area of my closet that was seriously lacking so I picked up this cute Swiss dot top and this linen button up in two colors! I wear one of these pretty much every week and want to pick up even more colors. I'm wearing the French blue in the picture above!

This Target palm print headband also pictured above. I was hesitant to join in on the headband trend for fear that it would look too juvenile but I couldn't pass up this adorable palm print option for only $15. I wore it to work last week and received so many compliments on it!

Natural dry shampoo. I've been trying to swap out my beauty products for natural options where possible. There are some things I'll never be able to give up but dry shampoo seemed like an easy enough product to swap out. I was previously using baby powder as dry shampoo which my old stylist pointed out is just talc. Needless to say, that made me want to switch things up since some studies have found talc linked to cancer. I bought this natural replacement and while it's more expensive than baby powder it lasts for a while and works really well. Pro-tip for applying dry shampoo: blast your hair with your blowdryer after you apply it. It helps it absorb and results in zero white residue! 

This book that has helped tremendously with my anxiety. I haven't mentioned this anywhere but when we flew to Florida in March I had a panic episode on the plane which has never happened before and I was completely unprepared for how to handle it. I think it was a combination of not being sure about my return travel plans, sitting in a middle seat and having to sit on the tarmac for an hour before we took off. It wasn't a full blown panic attack but needless to say it was not pleasant. That was the catalyst that lead me to finally find a therapist in MN. I am happy to say that I found someone I really like and she recommended this book which I have found extremely helpful. We flew to SF over Memorial Day weekend and because I had built it up so much in my head that I might feel panicked again I was very nervous for the flight. At the beginning of our flight to SF I was feeling on edge but was able to use some of the practices in this book to work through it and am happy to report that both flights ended up going very well! 

That seems like a good place to end things — hope you enjoyed! Funny how this roundup of recent products doubled as a little life update as well!

xo Catherine 

Well, I’m happy to say I finally got my act together and wrote a blog post! Today I’m sharing the eight books I’ve read in the last couple of months (there are some really good ones!). One thing to call out is that I’ve switched it up from previous Recent Reads where I would either recommended the book or not to a rating system because when I read other book reviews I find ratings really helpful!

The Death of Mrs. Westaway. Harriet is in her early 20s getting by on her own as a tarot card reader at Brighton Pier. One day she comes home to a letter saying her grandmother has died and left her an inheritance. Harriet knows that they’ve sent it to the wrong person but goes anyway to collect the money so she can pay back some debts. Once she arrives at the Westaway home she realizes that things are amiss and gets tangled up in the family drama and mystery. We read this for book club and all agreed that it was just okay. It kept me entertained but there were some plot holes and I really didn’t love the main character. 

Rating: B-

Proposal/Remembrance. I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I was ob-sessed with the Mediator series when I was in elementary and middle school. It’s a YA series about Suze Simon who is a ghost mediator. Naturally, I was thrilled when I found out that she had written new books about Suze as an adult. Proposal is a novella and Remembrance is a full book that continues the Mediator storyline. It essentially felt like a warm hug to step back into one of my favorite literary worlds, so I was loving every minute of these books. If you love YA, paranormal activity or teen romance I’d definitely recommend these books.

Rating: A

Balthazar. This was another trip down memory lane. After tearing through the Twilight series in middle school I wanted something similar to fill the vampire void, so I read the Evernight series.  It’s about a boarding school for vampires with lots of teen angst, love triangles and mythical creatures. This book was the last in the series but told from a different character’s point of view. Again, it was so fun to step back into one of my favorite series and I think these books hold up as an adult!

Rating: B+

Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win. This had been on my list for a very long time, so I was excited when I finally got it from the library! Charlotte Walsh is a tech executive living in Silicon Valley with her husband and 3 daughters. She decides she wants to challenge herself even more so her family moves back to her home state of Pennsylvania so she can run for senate. Needless to say, the campaign is grueling and she’s attacked about everything from her appearance to her marriage and living in California. The campaign takes its toll on her personal life, especially when secrets are dredged up, so she has to decide how far she’ll go to win. Overall, I liked this book but I wasn’t blown away. I had heard it was the only fictional book ever written about a woman running for office, so I felt I needed to read it!

Rating: B+

Blink. This is a Malcolm Gladwell book that wouldn’t normally be one I’d pick up on my own but it was chosen for book club. It’s all about “thin slicing” which is the split-second decision-making our brains do in order to keep us from having to labor over every decision or judgment we’re faced with. He lays out both the ways we do this to our benefit and to our peril. The topics ranged from racism to marriage to predicting heart attacks. It was very interesting and educational. It did take me a while to power through it because it was so research-heavy that I found myself going much slower than normal to absorb it all. I enjoyed it and learned a lot but some parts were pretty dated (it came out in 2005) or were a bit frustrating. 

Rating: B

The Other Woman. Emily and Adam meet in a bar and quickly fall in love. Everything is going great until Adam introduces Emily to his mother, Pammie (honestly could she have come up with a more obnoxious name?). Emily can’t figure out why but Pammie seems to hate her. Adam can’t see it because he adores his mother but Pammie goes to great lengths to make Emily’s life a living hell. This book was a little predictable but it didn’t stop me from tearing through it. There was some suspense and a few twists thrown into the mix so I liked it. 

Rating: A-

Daisy Jones and The Six. I’m so excited I finally read one of the ~it~ books in a timely manner! Usually I have to wait months to get it from the library but my mom had a copy. This book was unique because it was written as if it were a Behind the Music documentary. It’s told from several people’s perspectives who are being interviewed. Daisy Jones is a singer-songwriter living in LA in the ‘70’s. The Six is a semi-popular band that’s on their way up. Their mutual record company suggest they do a duet and after it’s a smash they decide to join forces to become Daisy Jones and The Six. There’s a lot of relationship drama, band tension and addiction. The story was very interesting, I really loved the way it was written, but I don’t think it lived up to the hype. That’s the trouble with hyped up books, even if they’re really good they might still disappoint because they’re not the best ever. Anyway, I did really enjoy this book and can’t wait for the mini-series!

Rating: A-

The Idea of You. You guys, I saved the best for last. This is by far my favorite book on the list! Solène is a 39-year-old divorcée who takes her 12-year-old daughter to an August Moon concert (August Moon is clearly supposed to be One Direction). They go to the band’s meet and greet and Solène meets 20-year-old lead-singer Hayes (the Harry Styles of the band) and they are immediately taken with each other. They go on to have a love affair despite the 20-year age difference. This book was v. steamy while still being well-written. I loved all of the characters and was not ready for it to end. Definitely read this book!

Rating: A+

xo Catherine