Five on Friday - Carolina Charm

Happy Friday!

After months of rehearsals and super late nights this week, The Little Mermaid school play weekend is finally HERE! Shows began last night and there are 5 more this weekend! My mom flies in today and Matt’s parents arrive tomorrow to see Caroline on stage. She is cast as a sea creature and while she doesn’t have a huge role she does get to be in almost every scene and has multiple costume changes which she is pretty excited about.

This weekend Thomas also has basketball playoffs! His team has been so much fun to watch this season. All the boys are his friends from our neighborhood, and we absolutely adore our coach who is my longtime friend’s dad!

It’s going to be a great weekend!

One more thing before we get down to it, newsletter subscribers, check your inbox! And if you don’t see my newsletter, check your spam! There’s a little surprise in it!

In Case You Missed It

A few things I shared this week…

This Week’s Top 5 Reader Favorites

Bird Feeder: We always have so many cardinals and bluebirds around our home. And being the old lady that I am, I decided to mount a pretty bird feeder right outside my kitchen window to host these little beauties. It’s really nice that the tray is removable too so I can bring it inside to fill with wild bird seed! And we’ve already had several visitors!!!! It’s been so fun to watch! Would also make for a great Mother’s Day gift!
Girls Sparkle Star Shoes: I got in my friend McKinsey’s car one morning this week and she immediately handed me a shoe from the backseat and said “you HAVE to share these with your readers!!” And so I did…because my goodness these sneakers are adorable!! They go up to size 3 and are under $20!!!
Embryolisse Lait-Crème Concentré: Still a best-seller for several weeks now! It’s a 6-in-1 French skincare cream and the 26K+ glowing reviews sold me. I’ve been using it for about 2 months now and I honestly cannot believe how amazing it really is — especially for the price!!! It’s super creamy but lightweight, smells clean, super hydrating and since it’s also a primer, you can apply your makeup right on top (and also use it at the end of the day as a makeup remover milk).
Makeup Brush Cleaner: I have tried many types of makeup brush cleaner over the years and finally purchased Cinema Secrets Professional Makeup Brush Cleaner! If you hate washing your brushes, this cleaner is for you. You can tackle this chore in under 5 minutes with this stuff. No water or rinsing is required and my brushes are dry in 5 minutes (gone are the days of laying my brushes out all night to dry)! The cleaner also conditions the brushes and smells good!
Ultima Hydration Powder: Just refilled my favorite electrolyte powder and decided to try the orange flavor! It’s good, but doesn’t beat watermelon! Several of you shared I really need to try the raspberry next!

Alright, let’s get down to the 5!

1. Daddy Daughter Dance

Last weekend Matt and Caroline had the best time at the Daddy-Daughter Dance! The theme was “Through the Eras” and my heart was so happy to see Caroline confidently rock the bright red romper maxi dress she picked out for the “Red Era!”

Caroline’s Romper Maxi Dress / Matt’s Sequin Bomber Jacket

Before the dance, McKinsey hosted a little pre-party so we could get photos of all the girls and dads together. She served the cutest Taylor Swift themed apps and Lavender Haze cocktails for the adults! Then once the girls were off to the dance, we took the boys to hibachi! And then the girls came back to our house for a sleepover. It was such a fun night for everyone.

2. Big Mac Casserole

I made Big Mac Casserole last week and it was a hit! I whipped up a different version of the Big Mac Sauce for ours with a few more flavors and next time I think I’m going to use tater tots!

3. $5 Target Spring Plates

I recently scooped up these gorgeous scalloped dinner plates from Target! These are not melamine, they are high quality stone plates — and are only $5!!! I cannot wait to use these for spring dinner parties, Easter dinner, and so much more. But for real, $5?!?!! There is also a super cute pink option too — and matching bowls! Oh, and they are dishwasher and microwave safe.

4. Thomas CEO Award

This month, Thomas’s peers nominated a classmate off the character trait of kindness, and Thomas was so honored to be selected! We got to attend a little “Chief Example Officer” ceremony at school and his classmates had so many sweet things to say about him including how great of a friend he is to everyone. Gosh, I love this little guy’s heart so much!

5. Twisted Bangle Bracelet Stack

I recently added this pretty gold bracelet stack to my Walmart order and have been wearing them every day. They go with everything and I love that they are intertwined and don’t loosely slide around on my arm. Oh, and they are less than $6!