Friday Favorites: Cozy kitchen designs, thoughts on health, and recent purchases

Friday favorites today include cozy kitchen designs, very honest thoughts on health (yikes), and some very random finds I’ve purchased recently. This post contains affiliate links – full disclosure here.

Cozy kitchen designs:

OK so it’s no secret that I love everything cozy in my home. As we’re thinking forward (nothing happening yet!) to kitchen design ideas, I’m looking at inspiration pictures. The pictures I’m drawn to have lots of cottage influences, and plenty of collected pieces. Wood tones, lamp lighting, wall treatments, and open storage seems to be a recurring theme in my pinned images. Here’s some that have inspired me recently. Check out this blog post for all the cozy kitchen inspiration too!

Stunning mix of old and new in this kitchen from Lauren Liess

Yep, yes, and yessss. Love the colors and textures in this kitchen. Such a beautiful inspiration image.

 

I just love this mix of wood tones, painted cabinets, and black. Gorgeous! Image found via Domino

 

OK so this one may be a little less attainable but the FEEL of this kitchen feels so good. You know what I’m saying? The open shelving, farmhouse ink, vintage pieces mixed with moody colors – *chefs kiss*.

 

Again, with the feelings. The sconce lighting, vintage pieces, wall details…it’s all cozy and beautiful.

 

Some thoughts on health:

I haven’t talked about health related issues on my Instagram / blog for a while. Honestly? It’s too hard! I don’t think people need to know my full medical history/current issues – that’s for my doctors to know. And when I share things, I get SO many (well meaning) opinions. Sometimes it feels like this: 

Me: I have been having thyroid issues and I’m trying some things to try to manage my symptoms.

• Message 1: Oh, I had thyroid issues. I took _____ medicine and it changed my life. SO thankful for modern medicine!
• Message 2: Whatever you do, don’t take _____ medicine. My mom did that and it wrecked her health – it’s a poison!
• Message 3: Have you tried (insert natural remedy here)? My cousin swears by it!
• Message 4: You probably don’t have thyroid disease at all. We thought my sister had thyroid disease and it ended up actually being cancer. Better get it checked out – rather be safe than sorry.
• Message 5: OMG girl you’ve got to try this stuff! It’ll cure your thyroid in 30 days or less. I have a discount code you need to try – you’ll wish you started it sooner!
• Message 6: I have thyroid issues too. I am having such a hard time finding clear answers online – let me know if you find something that helps.

I write this not to complain…just to give a glimpse into what it’s *realistically* like to share health information online sometimes. To message 6 girl: I know. I feel that too. It’s rough out there. 

All I WILL tell you is I had a lump on my neck that wasn’t going away, and I finally got it checked out and was completely fine. I had plenty of anxiety about it ahead of time though! 

While I sat in the radiology department of the hospital, I had so many thoughts. Mostly “God, please don’t let this be my story.” Right now, it isn’t. I cannot control the future and it is foolish of me to think that I can. 

However, I can do things that I know will help support my health and longevity. Having this lump on my neck renewed my drive to do what I can to be a good steward of the health and body I do have. I have been working on doing things like:

• getting outside every morning for movement (usually a walk)
• drinking more water (one of the hardest things for me)
• getting sunlight + barefoot outside time daily
• getting more sleep (probably the hardest on this list for me)
• aiming for getting 8,000-10,000 steps per day
• reducing processed foods + replacing with homemade
  • Here’s what I make weekly to help support eating this way
• replacing plastics in our home with glass
  • Just wrote a post about the glass storage containers in our kitchen + how I replaced plastic on a budget
• replacing paraffin candles (with toxic fragrance) with beeswax (with clean fragrance)
  • here are the candles I make and sell! Fall scents now out – my favorite!

Also been watching Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones. Fascinating stuff!

 

Random things I bought for myself lately:

I actually bought 3 things for myself recently! One of them is a given 😂

1. I bought this bra after seeing IG ads for it a LOT. And this IG ad actually turned out to be a great one – I love this bra! Use their sizing guide to find which size to order. 
2. I bought a candle from my own shop 😉 I know, I know, I told you it was a given. But I bought myself a 16 oz Autumn Spice candle and I loooove this scent! Cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, 
3. I shopped the Tarte sale as well – I rarely buy makeup/face products and this was nice to take the guesswork out of what I needed. You get 7 products for $67, and my total would have been over $200 if I would have bought the same items outside of the sale. Here’s what I got for that price:

Not sure how long they’re running the sale but I’d take advantage of it if you’re in need of some new face products ☺️

 

Random things for the kids:

If you’re anything like me, then most of the things you actually end up purchasing are for your kids. I thought I’d share 2 things I bought recently that could be good Christmas gifts if you’re getting a head start on that!

First, these walkie talkies. I got these for my son (10) for his birthday over the summer. They’ve been so fun – we don’t have phones for kids, but this helps give them a little more independence. We love to hike as a family, and my son is usually the one that wants to walk/run ahead. When he takes these with him, it gives both of us much more peace of mind! He loves the independence that comes with them too. They have a 3 mile radius, but we haven’t tested that yet. He also takes them when he goes for scooter rides without us. I’d recommend them if you have kiddos around that age too!

 

Second, this microscope. This is an early Christmas present I got for my kids and I can’t wait to give it to them! I love the screen on it and the reviews seem like it’s a great product. I haven’t personally actually used it yet though! I’ll report back in 2024 for that 🙂 

 

Third, this refrigerator meal planner. OK OK this isn’t REALLY for the kids. But it kind of is too! I have been keeping meals on a note on my phone, and realized I hated answering the question of “what’s for dinner” every day. Now it’s all on the fridge and we don’t have to worry about it. I think my kids like being able to see the week’s plan as well. Also, they can write when they need certain grocery items on the “notes” board I put under it (or they just write random Pokemon related things on there haha).

 

Recipe I’m loving:

We just made these muffins this week and they were so good! I mean, there’s plenty of butter and sugar in them so of course they’re good 😂 But if you’re looking for a fall treat, check these out!