May Favorites

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Another month come and gone! I can't believe we are already deep into the heat / humidity of summer. I guess that's good, though, because that means fall will be here in no time flat and this basic white girl loves her some pumpkin spice! I found lots of new products and items this month that I'm madly in love with (plus one I keep re-buying and thought I'd share). Have you tried any of these or do you have similar ones you would recommend? Let me know in the comments!

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MDW Sale Roundup

Photo by AW Photography

Three cheers and a shimmy shake for Friday! A Friday of a three-day-weekend, at that - the best kind there is. We are all packed and heading to the airport for a little three-year-anniversary getaway to Santa Fe, New Mexico! Both C and I visited Santa Fe when we were kids, but we are excited to experience it again as adults. If you have any recommendations, musts, Instagram-worthy spots or travel tips, please leave them in the comments. You can follow along on our trip in my Insta-stories - I'll be doing a full Santa Fe recap and travel guide when we get back.

Today, though, I'm rounding up some of the best weekend sales below + sharing some of my favorite sale items that I own! My Nordstrom 1/2 yearly picks are here, but everything else is below. What does your holiday weekend hold?

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How to Pack a Carry On Suitcase

LA Hat | Ruffle Sleeve Tee, on major sale! | Similar Jeans | Nike Juvenate Kicks

There is no such thing as packing light when you're a blogger slash clothing fanatic. I will forever and always be an over packer - it is far better to have too many outfits than not enough, amirite?! And don't even get me started on the amount of hair products I travel with..... BUT, you also have to save room for any souvenirs you might bring home! That being said, with all of my weekend trips this year, I've learned a few packing secrets. It is possible to squeeze everything into a carry on and I'm here to tell you how.

I thought I'd do a little "Pack With Me" type post as I get ready to head out of town this weekend for a three-year-anniversary getaway. Any guesses as to where we're headed? It will be slightly cooler (temperature wise) and much more scenic than Oklahoma, I'll give you that!

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Friday Favorites

Haaaaappy Friday, friends! Somehow we totally skipped over spring and went straight from sweaters to tank tops in no time flat. That's OK, though, because it means pool days are here! I've been making a point to spend a few hours in the sun every weekend to get a jump start on my summer tan. We don't have a pool so I've just been laying on our picnic table in our backyard....it isn't glamorous by any means but it is 100% necessary. My legs were ghostly!! Luckily we have a few friends with pools and C's parents have the best pool of them all. We're headed there tomorrow for some R&R; my mom-in-law makes the best sandwiches, snacks and poolside cocktails so I'm v. excited.

In other news, life is busy as all get out. Que, "all I do is work work work work work!" Whether that is working on the blog, working at my day job or teaching at Beyond Studios. Not complaining, just stating. I'm ready for vacation and/or a spa day, stat. T-minus one week until we head out of town on a little anniversary trip....it is much needed!

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A Bag for Every Occasion

Jumpsuit | Heels | Monogram Necklace | Snake Skin Palace Street Crossbody Bag c/o Radley London | $14 Heart Sunnies, dupes for these! | Lips

I remember carrying around one of my mom's old purses when I was a young girl. I'm pretty sure the only thing inside was a stuffed Dalmatian puppy and a Lip Smacker, but by God I carried that bag everywhere we went. Things haven't changed, much. I am still a purse lover and never leave home without one (or three if we're going on a trip)! I'm the type to buy a few really nice, high-end purses - a couple different colors, a tote, a cross body, a clutch and a shoulder bag - so no matter the occasion, I have the perfect purse to match. For me, it is about quality, not quantity, so I don't buy purses often.

What I've noticed as of late, though, is that I'm constantly changing purses...going back and forth from black to brown and from big to small in order to match different outfits. I end up leaving my license in one and my credit card in the other by mistake! When Radley reached out to me to collaborate on this post, I was sold in a heartbeat. Not only are their purses super stylish, but they are high quality and versatile, too!

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Best of OKC Desserts

Not so little known fact about me - I have the world's biggest sweet tooth. Seriously. I think it is 100% necessary and acceptable to eat dessert after every meal. I normally have decent self control with my diet, but if I take one small bite of a delicious dessert, I'm screwed (I type this as I eat my third plate of homemade banana pudding from our Mother's Day cookout).

That being said, I like to think I'm a pretty good judge when it comes to sweets! I know what is worth the splurge and what isn't. Below are the best desserts in Oklahoma City by category....in my personal opinion!

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Brunch at Buttermilk Biscuits

We have a small problem occurring in Oklahoma City right now - too many new restaurants, not enough time....or money or macros. Buttermilk in the Paseo district has been on my to-try list since before they even opened. I'm such a sucker for biscuits! We finally found the time to check it out last Saturday for brunch and I'm so glad we did. The weather was absolutely glorious so we sat on the patio - always a plus!

Buttermilk is a order at the counter and take a table number type of restaurant meaning it is quick and casual. It was SUPER crowded (kids and babies galore) but we didn't have to wait very long for our food. One hold up was that the cashier was also the bartender for mimosas and bloodies - it wasn't really an issue, but I think relieving the cashier of drink duty could really speed up the line process.

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Get Your Beauty Sleep | VIIcode Oxygen Eye Masks Review

There's not much worse than someone saying, "Wow, you look tired." Jee, thanks..... Since I started teaching 5:30 a.m. fitness classes I've been hearing that phrase pretty regularly. I'm normally an early riser, but I am by no means a 5 o'clocker. On top of that, I've been teaching or working most weekend mornings recently, so I haven't really had a chance to catch up on rest lately.

All the early mornings have been taking their tolls on my body as a whole, but you can really see the negative effects in my eyes - they look puffy and have dark circles and bags underneath. Lucky for me, VIIcode reached out to me just in the nick of time! I had heard great things about their products from fellow bloggers and their O2M Oxygen Eye Masks for Dark Circles did not disappoint.

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One Year Blogiversary | 10 Things I Wish I Knew

Similar Free People Top | Polka Dot Skirt | Tory Burch Miller Sandals | Boater Hat | Leather Earrings, c/o Nickel & Suede | Heart Shaped Sunnies (only $14 and a Chloe dupe!) | Gucci Purse | Lips, color is Patina

Happy Birthday, Amanda's OK!

Well....sort of. This little blog has been around for over five years but I never dedicated much time to it. After a blogging hiatus, I decided to actually put effort into blogging and start trying to make something of myself and find some satisfaction in work. That "relaunch" happened a year ago in the beginning of May, 2017. It has been a hectic year filled with highs and lows, mistakes and growth. Some days I wish I never inserted myself into this over saturated influencer world but most of the time I'm so thankful for the experiences and friends that it brought my way! For me, blogging provides a creative outlet and a way to share things I genuinely love with the world (photography, travel, fitness and shopping). I know some people make fun of bloggers or think we are too into ourselves, and that's OK. Blogging makes me happy, so I keep doing it.

I listed a few "Things I Wish I Knew" below. Looking back on the last year there are a lot of things I could have done better at or been more successful with. I thought I'd share them incase any of you are interested in beginning the blogging journey! If you aren't, that's fine too, just enjoy my cute outfit pictures and tell me congratulations. ;)

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10 Ways to Bounce Back to the Gym After a Break

Tank (on sale for $10!) | Similar Sports Bra | Leggings, Similar Here | Nike Metcons, Similar Here

If you've been following along for a while, you know that fitness is/was a HUGE part of my life and that five months ago I had to take a break from the gym while I recovered from a shoulder surgery (from a non-gym injury, I might add). It has been a loooooonnnnngggg five months, but I'm back! As of May 1, I have been officially released to start running, ellipticalling, crunching and lifting w/my lower body. Hallelujah, Praise the Lord! I don't even like running but I ran - because I could - and I loved every step.

I was really worried that getting back into a workout groove would be difficult. Would I still enjoy it? Would it hurt? Would I expect too much from myself and get frustrated? Would I struggle to get back to where I was pre-op? Would I re-injure myself? Would I hate the commitment to working out now that it wasn't a part of my daily routine? Would I forget what I liked about working out in the first place? Would I.......you get it, just fill in the blank. Luckily, for me, I instantly remembered what I love about fitness. It hurts soooo good and I can't wait to feel good, too.

Needless to say, these last few months I've been taking notes on ways to get into a workout routine / how to bounce back after a break. Scroll on down to check them out!

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