Favorite Things Friday #36

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Hello!

It has been the rainiest week in the history of EVER here in Maryland and I’m ready for a sunny weekend! Not sure if we’ll get it or not, but fingers are crossed! We tried to make the most of it, and rainy (or snowy!) days always bring us in the kitchen. There was a LOT of cookie baking going on especially (BTW- I know I’ve said it before, but Joanna Gaines’ Chocolate Chip Cookies are just EVERYTHING. Holy. Moly. You HAVE to try them if you haven’t already! They were around for less than 24 hours;). All this cookie talk leads us to my first favorite for today!

1. Covered Cake Stand

It was oh, maybe Day 487 (just a slight exaggeration) of rain, and the kids had hit their point. We were DONE. I know time together in the kitchen makes us all happy, so we hopped in the van and headed to the store. I said yes to all the things I always say no to (hot pink and dark blue icing? ummm…sure?), because sometimes you gotta let go a little, right? We came home, got to baking, then to decorating. And just like that, the kids were happy as can be, then the skies cleared momentarily, and they were even able to run around outside and ride bikes for a while, burning off all that sugar! Thank you, Jesus.

I try to keep something in this cake stand at all times on our kitchen island (though there are plenty of times it sits empty!). There’s something homey and inviting about a fresh baked goodie sitting out, isn’t there? A handful of scones under that glass dome and I’m a happy lady. 🙂 I love the marble one I snagged from HomeGoods a few months ago – since I can’t link it up, I’ve found a lovely one at Target from the Hearth and Hand Line – click here for an affiliate link to that one: Hearth and Hand Covered Cake Stand

Happy baking!

2. A Fun Summer Book

Few things make me happier than diving into a great book. During the cold weather months, I’ll read all sorts of books – heavy, heart wrenching tales of war, biographies, dark mysteries – but when Summer hits, I am ALL about the fun, light, don’t-have-to-think-too-hard kind. Give me a book based in Nantucket during a wedding over Fourth of July weekend where scandal abounds – OH YES PLEASE. This week I gobbled up The Perfect Couple – the new one from Elin Hilderbrand, and it was alllll of that and then some.

If you’re headed to the beach, or the pool, or just a staycation at home, pick this one up and devour it in all it’s WHO DID IT???? glory. Enjoy!

Here’s an affiliate link:

3. Mr. Rogers

Oh, friends. Have you seen the documentary in the theater right now called “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” If not, please please please do. I wish everyone could watch it. My girlfriend had the idea for a bunch of us to go out to dinner and then see it. And it was a wonderful night. We all said our cups were running a little on empty lately, and this was just what we all needed. Mr. Rogers is what the WORLD needs right now. Imagine if we all had the heart, the kindness, the love, the peacefulness he exuded. What a world this would be! He was so passionate about children and how they mattered – how their feelings were so validated, so important. The lives he changed – it’s just amazing. We all left the theater in tears, and couldn’t wait to get home to hug our babies. I felt refueled. My cup was full again. The next morning, we all group texted about what a great night it was – and we agreed that we had moved at a slower pace, with more intention and more patience, thanks to Mr. Rogers. I highly recommend making plans to go see it.

On that note, it’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood (see what I did there?!) and I’m going to unplug and enjoy this sunshine while it’s here!

Have a great weekend, friends!