Sharing a Spain packing list and all of the things I packed for our trip!

Hi friends! I hope you’re having a wonderful week so far. The kids and I are off to a base event, and I’m looking forward to a hot yoga class later today.

I’ll share a full recap of our amazing trip to Spain next week, but in the meantime, I wanted to share a packing list with some of the things I brought!

Spain summer packing list

Wear on the way there and back:

(I did a couple of loads of laundry while we were at the Airbnb)

Spanx Air essentials set. I’m always cold on planes and this keeps me warm, and is comfy enough to sleep in

Dresses:

My goal with travel dresses is to bring short ones I can wear with sneakers during the day, and just swap to dressy sandals for dinner at night. I also brought a couple of dinner-only dresses. I found that the vibe there was pretty casual and anything goes (besides athleisure. Don’t do it lol). Skirts, shorts, dresses, with sandals and sneakers all worked.

Daytime dresses:

This floral mini dress (so cute with the white Vejas)

High-neck traveler mini dress

A Maeve short sleeve collared mini shirt dress (OOS right now and I can’t find anything similar)

Hutch mini shirt dress (size down)

Rails striped dress

Ulla Johnson dress

Derek Lam flutter sleeve dress

An old Madewell short floral dress

Dinner dresses:

Farm Rio ocean tapestry dress. SO pretty, true to size, and on sale right now.

Embroidered Farm Rio dress. The details on this are exquisitive. It was a splurge, but I’ve worn it so many times already. This one is on sale right now, too!

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Honey Mustard Bacon Chicken Skillet [+Video]

This isn’t your normal one skillet recipe. This honey mustard bacon chicken skillet is healthier for a few reasons but still totally craveable!

Serve up this bold honey mustard chicken recipe with a loaf of crusty artisan bread and a bright, fresh tomato cucumber salad, and you have a winning dinner the whole family will love!

A while back, we made honey mustard bacon brats and let me tell you, they are delicious. Like major good. It’s hard to want a brat any other way now. But as Cade and I were cleaning up dinner he said, “That sauce tastes so good I want to eat it on everything!” and as he snagged one last piece of saucy bacon from the pan to gobble it down before washing the skillet, I had the idea.

This really would be good on anything. Like really. At first I was really going to go to town and make a crunchy chicken but Cade and I are trying really hard to make good eating choices during the week, which is difficult today as I just photographed the best, oh my goodness amazing pumpkin cookies ever and I can hear them calling my name from the kitchen, “Carrian, you know you could have just half a cookie and you’d feel so happy…”

Ingredients for Honey Mustard Bacon Chicken Skillet

Ok, I digress…back to this tasty one skillet chicken recipe! Here are the ingredients you will need:

• Chicken Thighs: You can use boneless chicken or use bone-in. If you use bone-in chicken, it will just need a little longer to cook through.
  • NOTE: Chicken breasts (boneless, skinless) also work great with this recipe if you want a more lean dinner.
• Water: helps with the base of the honey mustard sauce
• Honey: adds flavor and natural sweetness
• Dijon Mustard: any brand works great or you could go with spicy brown mustard too if you want a little kick
• Cilantro: adds a bright pop of freshness
• Bacon: because you never need a reason for bacon
• Olive Oil: helps finish off the sauce and sauteing
• Garlic: adds flavor

The measurements for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.

Supercharge your cookout side dish game with this Dill Pickle Potato Salad. Classic tender potato salad gets a glow-up with scandalous amounts of dill pickles, pickle relish, pickle seasonings, and hard boiled eggs.

Pickle Potato Salad

You can use any potato you like to make this potato salad. However, I like to use thin-skinned Yukon Gold potatoes. There’s no need to peel them and the texture stays nice for the salad.

If you use new or white potatoes, you don’t need to peel those either. However, if you choose to use a russet or red potato, you’ll want to peel the potatoes for the best results.

Potato Salad with Dill and Pickles

You’ll need the following ingredients for the recipe:

• Yukon Gold potatoes
• mayonnaise
• dill pickle relish
• dried dill
• salt and pepper
• baby dill pickles
• hard-boiled eggs
• green onions
• fresh dill OPTIONAL

We enjoy a good amount of hard-boiled eggs in our potato salads. If you prefer fewer eggs, or not to have a bit of egg in every bite, feel free to reduce the number of eggs for your tastes. 

Summer Must Haves on Amazon

Amazon Prime Day is just around the corner (July 16-17) and these are a few of my summer must haves. Put them in your cart and save them in there until Prime Day, and then proceed to checkout! Happy shopping!

KITCHEN

1. Rubbermaid Food Storage Containers
2. Large Airtight Food Storage Container
3. Small Bowls for Dipping Sauces
4. 2 Pack Kitchen Tea Towels
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Sharing the books I read in June and if they’re worth adding to your collection!

Hi friends! How are you? I hope you’re enjoying the morning so far. We are back from Spain, with happy and full hearts after such an amazing time. I’ll share a full recap soon!

For today’s post, I wanted to share a recap of June’s books. I had more time to read this month – 10 hours on a plane from Phx to London will do that to ya lol – and there were quite a few great ones (and one suprising flop). I’d love to hear what’s on your list and what you’re reading right now!

Here are the books from June!

June 2024 book recap

The Strands of Health: A Guide to Understanding Hair Mineral Analysis

This book offers an in-depth exploration of how hair mineral analysis can be used as a powerful tool for assessing and improving overall health. The book provides a comprehensive guide to understanding the significance of mineral imbalances, the impact of toxic metals on the body, and how this non-invasive testing method can uncover hidden health issues. By presenting detailed case studies and practical advice, Malter empowers readers to take control of their health through better understanding of their body’s mineral needs and the benefits of hair mineral analysis.

I found the info repetitive, but I liked that. It helped me to truly understand and retain the information and I feel like I’ll likely refer back to it many times. 9/10

From Amazon:

This new book by Rick Malter, Ph.D. is an introduction to understanding hair tissue mineral analysis (HTMA) and its role in preventing disease and maintaining optimal energy and health. This book relates nutrient minerals to chronic fatigue and other common health problems that are poorly understood by traditional medicine and psychiatry. Drawing on over 40 years of personal and professional experience with hair TMA, Dr. Malter explains how the mind and body are closely connected by the effects of stress and other life style factors on nutrient minerals. This is a comprehensive book that will help you to make sense out of the vast amount of health and nutrition information that often seems contradictory and confusing. If you take vitamins and minerals, this book is essential reading.

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