My sun-worshipping, baby-oiling, SPF 4 days are long-gone, but I try not to blind my friends and loved ones with the post-winter pastiness if I can help it.  Well, and there's also the fact that a sun-kissed glow just looks good.
A Mystic Tan is a great way to go if you want a quick, full body coat that will last up to 8 days, but if you're a DIY-er and like to try all the self-tanners out there, here are some of our favorites:



St Tropez is known for its sunless tanners, and now has a great bronzing mousse in a formula we love.  It has a light, airy feel and smells great!  Bliss has such fun packaging and truly pampering spa products that we couldn't pass up the self-tan spray...and we weren't disappointed.  The color is great and realistic, and is easily applied.  If you're not a Sephora or Ulta frequent-flyer, you can find L'Oreal Sublime Glow Daily Moisturizer at most drug stores.  The Sublime line is one of the best drug store buys and gives the best color and application for the money. 
Of course, a product can only do it's best job on a well-prepped surface, ladies!  So, exfoliate, exfoliate, exfoliate!  Whether you're applying to face or body, remove unwanted dead skin cells and hair so that the product can easily penetrate the skin and give you the color you want.  We love our products, and recommend:

We love a good scrub, so if you don't have a chargeable exfoliator such as the Clarisonic Mia, a physical body scrub, such as Fresh Brown Sugar Body Polish works great and softens skin with nourishing essential oils to help your tanner sink in.  And, as always, nothing beats a good shave to remove that unwanted hair and leave a smooth surface.
So, tan-up, girls!  Let us know what your favorite tan prep strategies and no-fail self-tanning products are this season!

Sarah

Summer + Baking = Peach Cobbler...didn't you know?  Sweet, juicy peaches...warm, bubbly crust.  Ok, you get the point.  I'm always looking for easy, delicious, nostalgic recipes, and you can't beat this one with a stick!  It's easy, fool-proof, and only 4 ingredients!  You're welcome.
Good ole' reliable Pinterest.  I stumbled upon this recipe from Just A Pinch, and pinned it right away.  If anything, it wouldn't cost me much money if it completely failed, and I already had most of the ingredients in my kitchen.  So I tried it, and it rocked.  Then I tried it with apples, and that also rocked.  Now I'm thinking of trying it with cherries...pretty sure we know how that will end up...rocking.  The possibilities are endless.  Just like a well-tailored pencil skirt, I knew instantly that this was a good investment.  So, if you have granulated sugar, self-rising flour (or flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt), a stick of butter, and some sliced peaches, you've got the ingredients for a night of emotional eating; a meet-the-parents dessert pleaser; a welcome-to-the-neighborhood gift, or this past weekend at my house--breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  Click on the 'Just a Pinch' link above for the full recipe, and get ready for your Paula Deen moment!

Sarah

Are you as addicted to Instagram as I am?  I LOVE IT!  I adore my iPhone and love the great filters you can find out there.  There are lots of additional apps that provide way better filters than just the standard Instagram ones.

I saw a post on Pinterest about Artifact Uprising and discovered this great little company.  You can upload your Instagram pics and have them printed in soft cover books in various patterns and formats.

Visit thier website in the link above LOVE thier tagline, "Because Design Matters".  How great is that?

Have you ever heard of Black Crow Studios???  I discovered this fantastic company and art through a blog I follow pretty religiously called Look Linger Love (check it out if you have not already!).

Black Crow makes the most AMAZING watercolor wallpaper!!!

Say, What?!?

Been a super busy week...sorry for the lack of communication!  We saw this image and thought it rocked!

So as I mentioned before, I own a business.  My company, Kingston O'Neill Search (check us out at www.kingstononeill.com) is a search firm, which is a fancy way of say we are recruiters.  We work very specifically in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology space and companies hire us to help them identify talent.  I LOVE my job and feel so lucky to have found "my calling" so to speak.

Okay, so my point--I hear people ALL the time say, "I want better work/life balance" when I ask them why they are considering a new opportunity.  I think this has become a catch phrase that everyone is using.  Here is my personal opinion, and it may not be a popular one, but I think the concept of work/life balance is overrated.  I think it needs to be about work/life integration.  I can only speak for myself, but I am a lot happier when I feel like I can do it all, versus compartmentalizing my life.

So how exactly does one integrate???  Here are just a few ideas:

1. Get a good smart phone!  I swear by my iPhone and find that it gives me the freedom to feel comfortable walking away from the office at 5:00 pm.  
2. Meal plan, but only a few days in advance.  I can only speak for my family and the whole "plan the entire meals for the week" thing does not work for us.  Tastes change and we like to mix it up.  So, every Monday we decide what we are doing for that evening and Tuesday.  Every Wednesday we decide for that night and then Thursday and then every Friday is pizza usually (boring I know, but easy and fast!)  I find that knowing what I am cooking during the work week takes the stress out of that time of day.  The weekends I usually try new recipes.
3. Give yourself a break!  I recognize that as a business owner I may have a degree of flexibility that is not always there when you work for someone else, but twice a week I give myself what I call a "meeting time".  I step away from the office and do something with my daughter and I tell myself that if I was meeting with a client right now, I would not be plugged in.  It is my way of letting myself off the hook.
4. Get back on at night.  If you need to respond to emails in the evening once the kids have gone to bed and it enables you to leave the office at a reasonable time and spend time with your family in the evening, do it.  It is worth it!
5. Take long weekends.  I am personally not a fan of taking a week off at a time.  Owning a business that is client driven does not allow me to unplug for 5 days straight.  I end up working the whole time and then I am mad at myself.  I would much rather take a 3-4 day weekend once a month.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

So...technically...I'm on the market.  I say this enthusiastically, because categorizing myself as an aspiring wife carries the undertone that I feel it's necessary to be married to have a fulfilling life.  Actually, I feel it would be an enhancement to the life I'm already so proud of.  That being cleared up, there's the issue of the D-word.
The ever-evolving, ever-awkward, ever-magical dating world has its perks and nightmares.  However you choose to tackle it--be it online, just plain blind, sports-playing, speed-dating, or becoming a regular stool pigeon bar fixture, there are some things to remember...
Dating is a discovery phase, and it's important to treat it like an interview of sorts.  It has to be a good fit for both of you in order to become a full-fledged relationship.  You date to determine fit, and sometimes, the fit just ain't right.  Women are notorious for taking on the responsibility of making things work for both parties in a relationship, so remembering that you can only control yourself is key.
I get much inspiration and reality kicks in the face from one of my favorite relationship blogs:  Baggage Reclaim.

Here's some helpful tidbits to remember from one of the posts on this blog:

"Unfortunately, we don't all date for the same reasons...my motivation + your motivation may not bring about an ideal situation...

LOOKING FOR A RELATIONSHIP + LOOKING TO PASS TIME = YOU BEING IN LIMBO   WHILE THEY FLIP FLAP

LOOKING FOR A RELATIONSHIP + LOOKING FOR A SHAG = YOU BEING USED FOR A SHAG & BEING AN ‘ACCIDENTAL BOOTY CALL’

LOOKING FOR A SHAG + LOOKING FOR A SHAG = GOOD TIMES (but if you change your mind and start looking for a relationship, you’ll become an accidental booty call)"

So wade into that dating pool wisely this weekend, single gals.  Make sure it's a fit, and that your motivations are the same before diving in.  Read the inspiration behind this post here:  http://www.baggagereclaim.co.uk/why-dating-is-a-discovery-phase-to-work-out-if-you-want-a-relationship/

Sarah

This was advice last week from my 3 year old, yes, my wise beyond her years 3 year old.  I am so glad she is picking up these concepts early on in life and I am so hopeful that she carries this confidence and security with her into her teen and young adult years.   What random words of wisdom do you hear from your kiddos???

We have started painting the dining room Urbane Bronze by Sherwin Williams.  It is dark and I love it!  By the look of things, you would think we are creating a kill room (for the Dexter fans out there!)

Soooo, I have many obsessions and they all happen to be pretty darn random.  I am sure there will be posts about Trader Joe's (don't get me started--super obsessed!).