Lemon Blueberry Trifle

As a new mom I absolutely do not have the time to be making some fancy, time-consuming dessert to make to a cookout. So without further ado...if you want to spend approximately 5 minutes making a dessert that looks like it took an entire day I present to you...Lemon Blueberry Trifle!

Ingredients:

Angel Food Cake (I bought the already prepared store version that is sold in the bakery section at Krogers)

2 boxes instant lemon pudding

2 pints of blueberries

1 container of Cool Whip

4 cups of milk

Preparation:

1. Cut the Angel Food Cake into 1 inch squares

2. Mix the 4 cups milk with the instant lemon pudding. Once it has a pudding like consistency, add in half of the container of Cool Whip.

3. Layer 1/3 of the Angel Food Cake, 1/3 of the pudding, 1/3 of the blueberries in a trifle dish. 

4. Repeat Step #3 twice. 

5. Refrigerate for 2-4 hours. 

Seriously that is it. So stinking easy and SO delicious! When you are ready to serve it,  you can either top it with the remaining Cool Whip or allow people to add it themselves! Do yourself a favor and make this for your next get together...everyone will be super impressed. I promise!

Beachy Finds from Amazon

Amazon has been absolutely KILLING it recently. It's like the Target for the online world. I go on their website to get 1 thing and next thing I know I'm 4 pages deep in related items with a cart full of unnecessary crap. My husband doesn't have any idea how many Amazon packages are delivered each week. 

Today I have rounded up some of my favorite finds for the beach! With summer quickly approaching I am dreaming more and more about our upcoming trip to Hilton Head. I can't wait to introduce Cam to the beach! He will be 5 months when we go, which I think is going to be such a fun age for his first beach trip. He will be at a playful age, but we won't have to be running after him the entire time. I may or may not have bought him a few swimsuits before he was even born...

1. Leather Handle Straw Beach Bag- I am obsessed with the blue and white striped detailing on the inside of this!

2. Coola Face Sunscreen- This is my absolute favorite sunscreen for my face. It is organic, sensitive on my skin, and smells fantastic.

3. CUPSHE V-neck One Piece- CUPSHE runs small so make sure to order a size up! I love the ruffles of the shoulders of this one! It's perfect for all you new mommas!

4. High Waist Tassle Bikini- This swimsuit is ALL OVER the internet because its a great dupe for a much more expensive one. I love the red version of it and think it's going to be perfect for a Memorial Day pool party.

5. Straw Beach Bag with PomPoms- I can't resist a bag with pompoms. It's a weakness of mine honestly and I'm embarrassed to admit how many I own.

6. Sunset Beach by Mary Kay Andrews- This is top of my list for summer reads this year!

7. Bow Jelly Sandals- I have these in multiple colors and they are perfect for the beach. I love that they are jelly and can be hosed down after getting all sandy.

8. Hello Sunshine Hat-  A cute hat to protect your face from the sun!

9. Yeti Coozie- These truly keeps cans cold for hours. Perfect for holding a soda, beer, or can of wine at the beach.

10. Yeti Water Bottle- 18 oz to keep your water nice and icy cold!

These items are all making their way into my suitcase for our upcoming trip. What are some other must-have items for the beach?? 

Summer Beach Reads

Reading is one of my favorite hobbies. I used to absolutely devour books. Now that I have a baby I wouldn't say I read as quickly as I once did, but I still make sure to make time! People ask me when I get the chance to read with a newborn and my response is always "I hold a sleeping baby 5+ hours a day...I have plenty of time to read." I am a firm believer that if something makes you happy, you will make time for it no matter what! These are the books I am most excited for this summer. All but 1 are from authors I have previously read. 

The descriptions are from Amazon and I can't offer any reviews since I haven't actually read any of these yet. They are just the ones I am most excited to read...

1. The Last Time I Saw You :Dr. Kate English has it all. Not only is she the heiress to a large fortune; she has a gorgeous husband and daughter, a high-flying career, and a beautiful home anyone would envy. But all that changes the night Kate’s mother, Lily, is found dead, brutally murdered in her own home. Heartbroken and distraught, Kate reaches out to her estranged best friend, Blaire Barrington, who rushes to her side for the funeral, where the years of distance between them are forgotten in a moment.That evening, Kate’s grief turns to horror when she receives an anonymous text: You think you’re sad now, just wait. By the time I’m finished with you, you’ll wish you had been buried today. More than ever, Kate needs her old friend’s help.Once Blaire decides to take the investigation into her own hands, it becomes clear that all is not as it seems in Baltimore high society. As infidelity, lies, and betrayals come to light, and tensions rise to a boiling point, she begins to alienate Kate’s friends and relatives with her relentless, accusatory questions, as she tries to find Lily’s killer. The murderer could be anyone—friend, neighbor, loved one. But whoever it is, it’s clear that Kate is next on their list. . .

2. The Bride Test: (I received this book as my book for May from Book of the Month) Khai Diep has no feelings. Well, he feels irritation when people move his things or contentment when ledgers balance down to the penny, but not big, important emotions—like grief. And love. He thinks he's defective. His family knows better—that his autism means he just processes emotions differently. When he steadfastly avoids relationships, his mother takes matters into her own hands and returns to Vietnam to find him the perfect bride. As a mixed-race girl living in the slums of Ho Chi Minh City, Esme Tran has always felt out of place. When the opportunity arises to come to America and meet a potential husband, she can't turn it down, thinking this could be the break her family needs. Seducing Khai, however, doesn't go as planned. Esme's lessons in love seem to be working...but only on herself. She's hopelessly smitten with a man who's convinced he can never return her affection.With Esme's time in the United States dwindling, Khai is forced to understand he's been wrong all along. And there's more than one way to love.

3. The Mother-In-Law: From the moment Lucy met her husband’s mother, she knew she wasn’t the wife Diana had envisioned for her perfect son. Exquisitely polite, friendly, and always generous, Diana nonetheless kept Lucy at arm’s length despite her desperate attempts to win her over. And as a pillar in the community, an advocate for female refugees, and a woman happily married for decades, no one had a bad word to say about Diana…except Lucy. That was five years ago. Now, Diana is dead, a suicide note found near her body claiming that she longer wanted to live because of the cancer wreaking havoc inside her body. But the autopsy finds no cancer. It does find traces of poison, and evidence of suffocation. Who could possibly want Diana dead? Why was her will changed at the eleventh hour to disinherit both of her children, and their spouses? And what does it mean that Lucy isn’t exactly sad she’s gone?

4. The Unhoneymooners: Olive Torres is used to being the unlucky twin: from inexplicable mishaps to a recent layoff, her life seems to be almost comically jinxed. By contrast, her sister Ami is an eternal champion . . . she even managed to finance her entire wedding by winning a slew of contests. Unfortunately for Olive, the only thing worse than constant bad luck is having to spend the wedding day with the best man (and her nemesis), Ethan Thomas. Olive braces herself for wedding hell, determined to put on a brave face, but when the entire wedding party gets food poisoning, the only people who aren’t affected are Olive and Ethan. Suddenly there’s a free honeymoon up for grabs, and Olive will be damned if Ethan gets to enjoy paradise solo. Agreeing to a temporary truce, the pair head for Maui. After all, ten days of bliss is worth having to assume the role of loving newlyweds, right? But the weird thing is . . . Olive doesn’t mind playing pretend. In fact, the more she pretends to be the luckiest woman alive, the more it feels like she might be.

5. Drawing Home: Summer has started in idyllic Sag Harbor, and for Emma Mapson that means greeting guests at the front desk of The American Hotel. But when one of the town's most famous residents, artist Henry Wyatt, dies suddenly, Emma learns he has mysteriously left his waterfront home - a self-designed masterpiece filled with his work - to her teenage daughter, Penny. Back in Manhattan, legendary art patron Bea Winstead's grief at her lifelong friend and former business partner Henry's passing turns to outrage at the news of his shocking bequest. How did these unknown locals get their hands on the estate? Bea, with her devoted assistant Kyle in tow, descends on Sag Harbor determined to reclaim the house and preserve Henry's legacy. While Emma fights to defend her daughter's inheritance, Bea discovers that Henry left a treasure trove of sketches scattered around town. With Penny's reluctant help, Bea pieces them together to find a story hidden in plain sight: an illustration of their shared history with an unexpected twist that will change all of their lives. Drawn together in their battle for the house, Emma and Bea are forced to confront the past while facing a future that challenges everything they believe about love, fate, and family.

6. Sunset Beach: Drue Campbell’s life is adrift. Out of a job and down on her luck, life doesn’t seem to be getting any better when her estranged father, Brice Campbell, a flamboyant personal injury attorney, shows up at her mother’s funeral after a twenty-year absence. Worse, he’s remarried – to Drue’s eighth grade frenemy, Wendy, now his office manager. And they’re offering her a job. It seems like the job from hell, but the offer is sweetened by the news of her inheritance – her grandparents’ beach bungalow in the sleepy town of Sunset Beach, a charming but storm-damaged eyesore now surrounded by waterfront McMansions. With no other prospects, Drue begrudgingly joins the firm, spending her days screening out the grifters whose phone calls flood the law office. Working with Wendy is no picnic either. But when a suspicious death at an exclusive beach resort nearby exposes possible corruption at her father’s firm, she goes from unwilling cubicle rat to unwitting investigator, and is drawn into a case that may – or may not – involve her father. With an office romance building, a decades-old missing persons case re-opened, and a cottage in rehab, one thing is for sure at Sunset Beach: there’s a storm on the horizon.

7. The Southern Side of Paradise: With the man of her dreams back in her life and all three of her daughters happy, Ansley Murphy should be content. But she can’t help but feel like it’s all a little too good to be true. Meanwhile, youngest daughter and actress Emerson, who is recently engaged and has just landed the role of a lifetime, seemingly has the world by the tail. Only, something she can’t quite put her finger on is worrying her—and it has nothing to do with her recent health scare. When two new women arrive in Peachtree Bluff—one who has the potential to wreck Ansley’s happiness and one who could tear Emerson’s world apart—everything is put in perspective. And after secrets that were never meant to be told come to light, the powerful bond between the Murphy sisters and their mother comes crumbling down, testing their devotion to each other and forcing them to evaluate the meaning of family. **This is the third book in the series and I cannot recommend the first two enough! Slightly South of Simple and The Secret to Southern Charm were 2 of my favorite books I read in 2018.

I love sharing books, so if there are any other MUST READ books please share them with me! 

Favorite Sandals from Amazon Prime

It is no secret to anyone (just ask my husband) that I LOVE Amazon Prime. But in all fairness, I'm not sure I've met a new mom who doesn't love Amazon Prime. Those 3AM pumping sessions really bring out the best version of me when it comes to online shopping. I have even been known to add a few things to my cart just to reach the $35 minimum to have my package delivered to me that day. No shame in my game. 

While I order a lot of necessities on Amazon, I also order quite a bit of clothing/accessories/shoes. You can find GREAT deals on items, and even if they are the same price as other major retailers, you are still going to get free two-day shipping which is always a win in my book. 

These are some of the shoes I have ordered recently that I am obsessed with and are on constant rotation in my closet.

1. STEVEN by Steve Madden Greece Slides- These are so comfortable and easy to slide on and run out the door. They come in a bunch of colors and I especially love the ones with trim around the edge!

2. Circus by Sam Edelman Canyon Flat Sandal-  People have been labeling these as Tory Burch "dupes" and while I personally wouldn't call it a "dupe" I would say its a look for less. I bought these in black because they were sold out of the brown in my size.

3. Jack Rogers Lauren Sandal- Jack Rogers are such a classic to have during the summer. I love them because they are comfortable and also hold up well. My exact color is sold out, but I'm obsessed with these cork ones! This is a pair you can wear for many years without a lot of wear and tear. I also bought these Jack Roger jelly sandals off Amazon last year which are perfect for wearing to the beach!

4. Sam Edelman Carter Flat Sandal- I got these last year in tan and loved them so much that I bought the pink color this year. I am a dedicate neutral shoe lover. Tans and black are my jam, but I just couldn't resist the fun pink color. Do I have anything to wear it with? Probably not. Do I have anywhere to wear it to? Definitely not...but the 3 AM version of myself insisted that I couldn't live without a pink pair of sandals. And truth be told...I still agree.

5. Sam Edelman Bay Sandal- At this point you're probably thinking I am a walking, talking billboard for Sam Edelman, but honestly I just really love their shoes. Especially their sandals. They are comfortable, cute, and in my opinion, affordable. I love wearing these with a simple black swing dress. It adds some flair to an otherwise easy, basic outfit!

New Mom Essentials

Let's be honest. Being a new mom is HARD. I don't care how many books you read or classes you attend. I don't think anything can truly prepare you for the lifestyle change that is having a baby. I will never forget the night we brought Cam home from the hospital. He was crying because being 2 days old is hard and I was crying because he was crying and I was in pain and I loved him so much and I hadn't slept in 48 hours and the list goes on and on. It was that exact moment that my husband was probably like "what in the world is going on and how do I make this end!?" He told me to go to bed and I'm fairly certain it's because he could only deal with 1 crying human at a time. He thought the baby would be easier to handle and he wasn't wrong. I was a hot mess. 

While I firmly believe that nothing I say can truly prepare you for the reality that is welcoming this tiny miracle into the world, the least I can do is send you on a virtual shopping trip of my MUST HAVE ITEMS. Everyone will have an opinion, but these items truly got me through the first couple of days/weeks!

1. Lansinoh TheraPearl - If you plan on breastfeeding or pumping do yourself a favor and get these immediately. Breastfeeding is no joke and chances are at some point it is going to hurt and you are going to be sore and you are going to curse the universe. These will make your boobs feel like new.  Also, these. Trust me, you will never regret having these on hand. 

2.BLANQI Everyday Highwaist Postpartum + Nursing Support Leggings -  These were the first things I changed into after giving birth and I still wear these almost every single day. They are supportive without being too tight and offer the perfect amount of compression. They made me feel comfortable and also put together (or as put together as you can be right after having a baby) when there was a constant stream of visitors in those first few weeks after having a baby.

3. MomWasher Peri Bottle There is a lot of stuff I wasn't prepared for after giving birth. Like the fact that you have to use a squirt bottle every time you go to the bathroom. The hospital will provide you with one, however, imagine the absolute smallest, cheapest, kids size water bottle you can imagine and that's basically what you will get. Do yourself a favor and splurge on the nice squirt bottle...you can thank me later.

4. Kindred Bravely French Terry Racerback Nursing Bra- I am a nursing bra connoisseur. I have bought and tried every single one on the market...and not on purpose. I just hated every single one of them. I had had multiple recommendations to get these, but I didn't want to splurge on a nursing bra. I mean come on. There are way more fun things to spend money on. However, in the end, I spent a small fortune on a million different bras and then got these anyways. Skip the others...just get these.

5. Wirarpa Womens High Waist Cotton Underwear - At first you will want to wear the gross mesh undies the hospital gives you. I was adamant I would never wear those and I did. Everyone does because they are actually pretty great. Eventually, you will want some form of normalcy and for me, that came in the form of underwear. I really just wanted to wear normal underwear as weird as that is. These are like a step up from the hospital underwear and I actually bought 2 more packs of them.

6. Botton Down Shirt- these are the "look for less" version of the ever-popular Urban Outfitter version. I highly recommend these and so do the 764 other 5 star reviews on Amazon. They are perfect for nursing and also comfortable AF. I own it in 4 colors and have no shame in my game that it's all I wore.

Also, caffeine. All the caffeine and all the googly eyes for that adorable, squishy, newborn baby that is going to have you wrapped around their finger!