BABY POWDER: A FINE-HAIRED, SWEAT & HUMIDITY-HATIN' GIRL'S BEST FRIEND

I told y'all yesterday that I am so over summer and ready for fall. It still stands. I'm ready to get my brrrr on.

Meanwhile, I was reading this post over at my shugpie Sydney's about the best dry shampoos. I am not one of those chicks who can go days without washing my hair. Eww. Fine, thin, hot ass mess. BUT - know what really helps me go two days instead of one? And better than any dry shampoo I've ever tried? 

Baby powder -

 on the roots before bed (even if it's before your hair starts to feel oily). Don't be totally freaked if your hair looks white like a Halloween witch. Typically, sleeping on it all night gets rid of that and you can't even see it. {But, I mean, if you are real worried about it, you can try it when you ain't got no place important to be the next day.}

And then -

well, then I read this post over at Helene's. Hahahaha! It's funny because of 1) the photo and 2) it's a post about keepin' a fresh vadge. I love Helene. 

Haven't tried the Summer's Eve wipes she was talkin' about over there, but - once again, baby powder's my #1 beauty product in the summer time, y'all. You can put that shit anywhere. I mean, no, it's not the same as a shower, but say you get out of the shower, and you're goin' to Davis Store in the summer time - or, sayyyy, a cookout and you KNOW you are about to be hotter'n forty hell. Pays to put on some baby powder to at least delay the swamp ass and keep your thighs from chafin' the hell outta each other every time you walk. The possibilities are endless. But here's a good place to start - I mean, this is basically me gettin ready:

Works like a charm.
Just sayin'.

Baby powder.

 

Cheap.

Smells good.

Keeps your thighs from startin' a fire.

Keeps sweat from makin' little rivers all over your body.

This concludes the most awkward post I've ever written. 

Peace.

shh.

A lot of times when I'm here by myself, I go the whole day with no noise, except maybe the washer or dryer, and the birds. No music, no TV.

Y'all know I love some music, and don't know what I'd do without it.

And, I also love me some conversation.

But, you can't put a price on quiet.

We went to the beach this weekend, and my favorite parts were when Andrew and I, and sometimes Big Silas, my FIL, were just sitting under the tent, reading our books or just watching the waves.

Over, and over, and over. 

Total peace and calm.

I also really enjoy moments when it's just me at the pool. I especially enjoy it at night, when I don't have to worry about sunscreen.

I love the way sunscreen smells, but I HATE applying it. 

Especially REapplying.

There is something so refreshing and relaxing about cool pool water.

Dunking your head under, and you can't hear anything but your own splashes.

And maybe the sound of some leaves rustling in the breeze.

Time to clear your head.

To talk to God.

To listen.

Now that summer's coming to a close, I will turn to evening rides of back roads with the windows down as my alternative.

wilmington

hubs and i enjoyed the weekend with one of my best friends from high school and her hubs.
this was my first beach trip of the summer, and i was beyond ready for the water and some seafood.
didn't get a pic of the seafood, but trust, it was good.
prepare for photo overload.

the first day, we managed to enjoy some beach time via tent shelter. total necessity. no sunburn, no drenching when the rain came. 

RIP tent leg. mean old wind.

the second day, we started the day off right with breakfast at salt works. yum. it is a mandatory stop. good breakfast and good lunches. but the line'll be long, just warnin you.

i am also madly in love with these trees.

  then we played with our nikons downtown while the weather permitted.

  if the weather did not permit, we ducked in shops and ate delicious frozen yogurt from the fuzzy peach.  this place always has tart yogurt. and they offer fresh peaches in addition to the usual strawberries, blueberries, and pineapple that i am accustomed to.

i also fell in love with blue, whose personality reminded me a lot of brody, but much calmer and much more willing to snuggle.

if you're ever near coastal nc, wilmington has a little bit of it all.

history, good eats, good bars, and duh, the beach.
 

linky, linky: check out these shugs to see what everybody else did this weekend!  leeann @ join the gossip dana @ five 30 three sami @ sami's shenanigans

peace out, shugs.

mmm ... motor boatinnnn

on the pontoon.

hope everyone had a great weekend! 

summer salad: bbq chicken cobb

{sounded like a good name for it - better than "salad me and anj have been eatin for weeks"}

this is no rocket science, life-altering, recent discovery. i'm sure there are 6 million salad recipes just like it, or very close. 

but, since anj and I have been eating the hell out of this combination of tasty ingredients, i thought i'd share - because y'all know i love food, and if it's easy? even better. also, i love to share {the recipe - not necessarily the food itself}.

ingredients:

iceberg lettuce (crisp, watery, and easily cuts off into a wedge)

avocado

tomato

red onion (much better than white onion in this)

bacon crumbles (duh)

bleu cheese (or goat)

hard boiled egg (i only eat the white and toss the yolk to get protein but not cholesterol)

grilled bbq chicken (although i think it would be good with any meat that's seasoned/covered in marinade)

i also add black pepper and a pepperoncini

also, i HIGHLY recommend this crack delicious dressing (tastes like olive garden, i swear)

yummo! 

quick, easy, healthy. {except for the bacon, but hell, you ain't gotta go crazy}

you should drank this

I could spend a fortune on iced bevies from Starbucks, but let's be honest. 

I ain't got a fortune. {And, goin to Starbucks on the daily would involve me gettin up, doin hair and face so as not to be frightening, and by the time I've done all that, **** it.} Plus, the Starbucks version leaves me feelin' a taaaad too cracked out.

So, I make this shiz at home, and you can too. The good part, is you can decide on milk type {no fatty, supa fatty, almond, whatever}, your hot chocolate mix can be sugar-free or real deal holyfield or whatever, and you can do high octane or decaf. Whateva you want, playa!!

I brew my coffee, and then mix in my Truvia and hot chocolate mix while it's hot so that all dissolves together. 

I then put it all into the stainless steel shaker, which has already been in the freezer for awhile to speed up the process.

I let it sit in the shaker in the freezer for about an hour to get it nice and cool, and then I dump in however much milk I want, and shake, shake shake. 

Dump it over ice.

Add bomb diggity whipped cream.

YUMMation.

it ain't natural

... to not like watermelon.

{Sorry, Mama.}

Sweet, deliciousness, runnin all down your face. 

Yes, please.

The best part is that first slice off the top of the wedge.

Only bad thing - there are only two of us in this hizzle. And, even though I picked out one of the smaller watermelons, it's still pretty hugemongous.

Also, once I take a bite, I tend to take twenty.

Let the watermelon weight gain and frequent trips to pee begin.

wanna go to the pool?

i love the smell of chlorine and sunscreen. the sight of bright colored pool bags. those floaties that babies wear. a toddler strollin in wearin his eye goggles, totin his new noodle.

i think i must've spent about 40% of my childhood at the pool.

when i was really young, i would go with my meemaw to the pool. i had the floaties. i didn't know how to swim yet. climbing to the top of the water slide {extra magical because it had a waterline which kept the slide slick all the time} was a huge adrenaline rush for me. sometimes, i'd get to go to the deep end with my aunt or when my meemaw would get in. hours and hours of inhaling, drinking, coughing up highly chlorinated water. holy sweetness. complete with blood shot eyes. who needs goggles anyway? and the lifeguard's whistle blow. "Clear the pooool." what a buzz kill.

there are a couple of childhood bathing suits that i remember most fondly. i had a blue and white tie-dyed one piece that i wore until i was too tall for it. and a bikini - top was blue and white stars and bottom was red and white stripes. it was my birthday bathing suit. loved them both.

in middle school, the pool became THE social hangout - and place of utter mortification, almost daily. i am the oldest of four, and my mom would haul us all to the pool in the gray dodge caravan because we were wild as hell and it was a great way to tire us out.  my siblings were all in elementary school, and i was in middle school and we were the new kids in town. awesome. oh, and my chest was flatter than a fritter while it seemed like every chick at the pool was built like a brick shit house. not cool.

it was like a day-long affair - tons of chips, sandwiches, and those quaker chocolate chip granola bars, diet drinks, juices. my brothers would NEVER tire of diving for sticks and wearing goggles to chase each other around under water for dayyyyssss. i had my magazines and tanning oil, praying for God to make me invisible.

but - sometimes i'd go with my friends, sans siblings {y'all know i love y'all}, and it became a gossip fest with my friends, and more analyzation of how other chicks were built like they were 17 when we looked like 5th graders. there was an art to prancing around the pool with your shorts pulled up, but unbuttoned, and flipped down while you walked to buy a drink or something. {wth?} and everybody had those adidas flip flops with the blue and white stripes.

hubs and i pooled it up recently, and i swear, it seems like i get hotter sittin out there a hell of a lot faster than i used to. and there was no music. whaaaaaat? i had some mags, and my sunglasses, and my sunscreen, and my baby oil ... and a lot more lovin' than i did back in the day. {part of it did make it to my boobs, thankfully.} some other new additions include a pump site, and a sensor site. hotness, brought to you by diabeetus.

i REALLY want a one piece. not a i'm-fat-and-don't-care-enough-to-lose-weight kinda way, but in a i-don't-want-to-be-stared-at-by-children-and-rude-adults-alike-because-of-my-medical-shiz kinda way.

knah mean?

i'm on the hunt. suggestions? websites?

pinterest it is ... fingers crossed.

Dear Lord, thanks for makin me southern.

Hey frands. Can we talk about Southern Living? When I think Southern Living, I think of when I was in fourth grade and my meemaw lived in Alabama, and we drove for what seemed like a day and a half to get to her house, and while I was there, one of the things I did was cut up lots of Southern Living magazines to make a giant flower collage. Thinking of Southern Living also conjures up images of the 80s and Designing Women.

BUT - my mama bought the May issue, and y'all, I am pretty much wanting to ask for a subscription for my birthday. First of all, there is something to be said for holding real magazines. Real books - with real pages. The only time I have been able to tolerate the Kindle was when I was readin 50 Shades and I had to get to the next book fast.

But anyway - look at this room:

1) hydrangeas 

2) birds

3) blue and white vases

4) green

Yum!

And who wouldn't want to investigate the best pints in Alabama with these two shugpies who happen to be brothers?

Mmmm ... recipes, road trip ideas, party plannin. Yes, ma'am & thank you so kindly.

I read my mama's Southern Living tonight and painted my toe nails bright, happy pink.

I am ready for summer.

And eatin chicken salad.

I wanna throw a party.

With tea-inspired cocktails and beer.

And take pictures of it all.

Isn't it funny what a song can do?

Maybe this sounds weird, but I swear, every time I hear this song ... it's like time stops for a second and I am  transported somewhere else.

Kenny Chesney - Somewhere with You

(here it is below - song only - no video)

As soon as the beginning notes start, this is where I go:

Summer (just when I'm all excited for fall)

early twenties

college

tan girl

tan boy

NC State

painted toes

drama

car ride, with windows down, late night

hangin out with crush - but none of your mutual friends know 

(Ash Manning, do you remember when Ryan totally spilled the beans at your party because he got nosy and snooped my purse for my ID that night I made the fried chicken? And then, all hell broke loose ... )

Lord Berk

Western Bully

Bathing Suits

secret text messages

Tank Tops

Lip Gloss

beach trip down 40 - Ash Manning = instigator

Cookin on the Grill late at night

Sand colored Chevy Silverado with exhaust ... mmmm

Bud heavy

sunscreen

muscles

random glimmer of our honeymoon in Puerto Rico

annnyhooo ...

what's super weird - this song hadn't eeeeven begun to be thought of when I was in college fallin for some Andrew Davis

but I still enjoy going through all this in my head every time I hear it ;)

and what I wouldn't give to go back ... just one day week month - a college summer at Lord Berk/Ivy Chase

ps - I have listened to the song 5 6  23 times while writing this post

*if you don't know me personally then this is THE MOST random post ever

thanks for stickin around anyway

Do YOU have a "special" song that takes you to a "special" place? Hmmm? Do tell. I need to know.

PPS - If y'all never hear from me again, it is because I embarrassed Anj and he made me quit bloggin

xo,