Alyson’s Obsessions // July 2016

Happy July ladies! We are coasting through this summer, which is crazy to think, and I for one am counting down to the end of the month… Adam and I are headed to California for a week, no kids!, and it’s just what we need. We’re doing wine country, driving down the coast, and then spending a few days in LA, where I’ll be attending the BlogHer blog conference (totally an amazing coincidence time/location wise!). We get back the day before our 12th anniversary.

Unbelievable how quickly time flies and so beautiful to think about the life you can build with someone in these years. As I know many of you can relate, days can roll into weeks, much of which can focus around work and kids and errands and life, and I believe you have to take time to focus on the core of the family: your relationship. Excited for us to spend days soaking in time together, seeing new sights, adventuring, and sleeping. Hope you’re having a great summer, and please let me know what you’re obsessing over this month!

Fizzy Sangria by Flip Flop: We just finished building a new pool in our backyard, so I couldn’t resist picking these up over the weekend at Publix for a pool playdate on Sunday. Those end cap displays get me every time! Like sangria, they’re on the sweet side but the refreshing light bubbly/fizz was a fun twist to the normal and I love a good portable can situation.

Cozy Cardigans: if you follow any bloggers you know the Nordstrom anniversary sale sneak peek for cardholders is going strong. I’ve been sharing my favorites here and on Instagram (PS: until the end of the day, Monday, enter at @avggirlsguide to win $100 gift card for you and $50 each for two friends!). I finally bought a Barefoot Dreams cozy cardigan last year and man, love it more than words can describe. It’s so soft and cozy, is great for hanging in my house, for the movies, for travel, you name it. They have that style again this year, plus this shorter version with pockets so I had to get the navy, and paired with these new Frame jeans (the fit is perfection & so good on the booty). Ok cardigan: you’ll want to snuggle forever, and yes, I wear these in July in my house in Florida. The reviews are stellar on both, and I think at least a few dozen of you have emailed me love affair testimonials so we’re clearly all in agreement. 😉 (By the way, for a budget, longer comfy cardigan, get this; I ordered in camel).

UnReal: Have you seen this Lifetime show that’s a crazy behind-the-scenes at a Bachelorette-esque reality show called Everlasting. Watching this parallel to this season’s Bachelorette has me wondering what’s semi-real (I get that none of it is real-real) and what’s being totally manipulated by producers for ratings. Plus, UnReal has some good steamy chemistry between the characters to add to the mix.  I just finished season 1 last night and am eager to start season 2. If you watch the show, did you hear about this engagement??

Stream TV shows from Amazon Video to your TV:  OK, so I’m feeling a bit like a tech genius here… it all started when I wanted to watch Season 2 of Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce but the best value was on Amazon video for $10 (it wasn’t available On Demand, Apple TV, etc) but I didn’t want to watch on my phone or laptop so I figured out how to stream it to my Apple TV and felt pretty genius. Download the Amazon Video app on your phone and then follow this to use the airplay function on your phone. No need to buy Amazon’s device (our secret).

it! Cosmetics CC Cream with SPF: Are you familiar with this beauty brand? It honestly deserves its own post here because I use at least a half dozen of its products, along with many brushes, too. I love, love how this CC Cream flawlessly covers my skin, yet it’s ultra light weight and provides ample SPF coverage. Candidly, the brand sent me a sample about a year ago however I continue to purchase on my own just about everything I’ve tested. By the way, clean brushes are everything; I use this mat, and if you need a new foundation brush, this looks like an excellent value (free shipping).

Design Love Fest paper cups: while I often use a coffee mug or to-go coffee mug, it’s super handy to have paper cups in my office but man, the cup options are ultra lame. Seriously, I’ve spent an offensive number of hours searching (covers eyes in shame). So, I cannot get over the cute factor of these Target x Design Love Fest collab with these seriously cheeky, adorable paper cups & sleeves. Yeah, they candidly do get a little warm as you hold them — though I like that feeling — compared to some others, but it makes up for it with a larger cup (holla, caffeine!) and serious cute factor.