Two iPhone Apps I’m Loving

I don’t know if any of you follow or have heard of the “Flylady” system of housekeeping. I can’t really explain it in a few sentences. Here’s the website. Some of it is a little corny, but if you pick up a few of the habits, it’ll make a big difference in your household.

I found a great app called “HomeRoutines”. Although it’s “technically” not affiliated with the “Flylady” system, it coordinates beautifully with what she does.  If you don’t know or care to know about that system, this app is still a great way to develop household routines and “to do” lists.

photo source: iTunes

photo source: iTunes

The HomeRoutines app is very user friendly. I like the fact that I’m not scribbling lists on paper, then losing it. You can always have a running list at your fingertips.

Another feature I like is the timer. When I feel particularly unmotivated to do a household chore, I will set a timer for 10 or 15 minutes. When the timer goes off, I stop and am often amazed at how much I can get done in a short amount of time.

You have to check out HomeRoutines! It’s $4.99, but I have used it every single day since I downloaded it.

The other app I love is “iFitness”. It’s like having your own 24/7 personal trainer. You can look up particular exercises and there’s a complete picture of how to do it. Areas of the body are broken down, so if you want to focus on legs, you can click legs and get a whole series of pics/videos of leg exercises.

There’s even ways to track your progress and a series of workouts to achieve specific goals, such as weight loss, strengthening, etc.  You can record your workouts with what amount of weight you used and how many reps completed.

photo source: iTunes

photo source: iTunes

photo source: iTunes

I’m always looking for fun, useful apps for my iPhone. Please share your favorites.

I’m in Love With Gap “City Flats”

Last night after our date night, my husband and I ran over to the mall to get him a pair of boots. We NEVER go shopping together, so it was fun to walk around for a while and look. I thought he might get to see me in action messing with the “Dead Sea” lotion kiosk trolls (inside joke for those that follow me on Twitter). But…no luck. haha

We were walking past Gap and I saw their “City Flats” display near the window. I put on my shopping brakes and went inside. They’re foldable ballet flats, and there’s even a cute little bag in which to store them! How wonderful would these be for travel, or to throw in your purse to change into after a day in heels?

Not only are they super functional, but they are soooo comfortable.  Y’all know I love me some Tory Burch “Revas” and I recently bought a pair of her “Eddie” style flats, but for comfort….the “City Flats” have them beat.

The “City Flats” are not what I’d call dressy, but I could see myself wearing them everyday. This may seem odd to some of you, but another thing I love….no toe “cleavage”. I hate ballet flats that have half your toes showing. There’s very little of your toes showing in these.

Here they are with the drawstring bag.

unfolded

These are really a dark gray, but are showing up black.

I found them to be true-to-size. It looks like there are more colors in the store than online. At the store, there was also navy, metallic gray, and maybe a few other colors. If you’re looking for a great flat for the fall, I highly recommend the City Flats!

***Idea alert***    For those of you getting married, I think these would be great for bridesmaids!  They have ballet pink!!

Getting Ready For Fall

I will regret saying this….but I’m kinda ready for fall. For us moms with school-age children, fall means we dress a little more “stylish”. All summer, I’ve lived in swimsuits, sundresses, and flip flops.  Once school starts back, I find myself trying a little harder to have a put-together look.

Luckily, a lot of the trends from last fall/winter are still around and I can still use those pieces again. Here’s a few things I’ve bought to get ready for fall.

On my recent trip to Tampa, I hit the Nordstrom anniversary sale and got these 2 pair of boots.  And, um no, I did not pay nowhere near the prices listed now.

 

Vera Wang Lavender “Vicky” Stretch Boots

(Meow, right?) They’re actually quite nice in person & I plan on wearing them with a long tunic sweater & leggings.

Stuart Weitzman “Hammer” Over the Knee Boot

LOVE these. I know I’ll wear these a lot more than the boots above. These are such a great over-the-knee boot for everyday wear.

“Big City Blues” Coat from Modcloth

I love this navy coat. You might think the ruffles would make your hips look wider, but they lie really close to my body. It’s made very well and is true to size.

I love to mix navy with black and especially navy with camel and rust.

Taupe Couture Cape Sweater from ModCloth

I am so in love with this sweater. I can’t wait to wear it with skinny jeans and boots.

Sheerly Beloved Top from Modcloth

This looks hideous in this picture, but this top is so cute with a black tank, skinny belt, and leggings. I’ve worn this top a lot the past month, & think it’ll make a great transition piece for fall.

Forever 21 Crackled Liquid Leggings

I got these back with my big Forever 21 order in July. If you saw this post, I showed you Olivia Palermo’s outfit…..

photo source: celebstyle.com

I’ll admit to you girls…….I plan on copying that outfit. he he. Even though she has real leather leggings, all I can think about is how bad I’d sweat. The Forever 21 leggings fit the bill, are much cheaper and definitely a lot more comfortable.

I’ll throw on the Stuart Weitzman boots & a J Crew military jacket I recently bought on eBay & ----yes, totally be her fashion twin (in a very non-stalkerish kind of way) haha

These babies are on the way after the (not-so) private Tory Burch sale.

Tory Burch “Bari” Slouchy Bootie

Tory Burch “Jim’ Trench

Tory Burch “Reva” Python Ballerina Flat in Storm Gray

I’ve been wanting these forever, and when they’re 50% off…I couldn’t resist.

Have you jumped the gun and bought anything for fall, or am I the only crazy one? ;-)

Easy-Peasy Salad

I don’t know what it is about summer, but I c-r-a-v-e fruits and vegetables.  I don’t think you could pay me to eat chili or a heavy lasagna. I want salads, fish, cold watermelon and cantaloupe. 

The best part---I made this salad around 3 o’clock before we were leaving to go to a ballgame. I made individual salads, and put a paper towel over it to prevent it from getting soggy. Then I covered it with plastic wrap.  When we got home, “Ta-da! Dinner is served.”

This is my easy version of a Cobb Salad.  You can see I’ve made some substitutions. The original Cobb Salad has iceberg lettuce, tomato, bacon, chicken breast, hard-boiled egg, avocado, and Roquefort cheese. 

Easy-Peasy Salad

Ingredients:

• Baby greens, washed and spun
• Chopped smoked turkey
• Cooked, crumbled bacon (not bacon bits—the real deal)
• Chopped purple onion
• Sliced sweet grape tomatoes
• Ripe avocado, sliced
• Cheese of your choice—I didn’t have blue, so I used Weight Watchers’ light shredded cheddar

Directions:

• In a deep salad bowl, mound several handfuls of lettuce. (I used a small casserole or pie dish)
• Put a small handful of each ingredient around the bowl.
• Sprinkle with black pepper and serve.
• You can make ahead for a few hours. You may want to wait on the avocado & cheese. However, I put a paper towel & plastic wrap on ours, and it wasn’t soggy or brown.
• Serve with chunky blue cheese or ranch dressing.
• Remember-you only need a little bit of dressing. There’s plenty of flavor in this salad without a lot of heavy dressing. I used less than a tablespoon on my salad, and it was plenty.

It’s not very original, but this is yummy & so filling!