Hello Monday, Hello James

Welp, it's Monday again! Is it just me or do the weeks go by WAY. TOO. FAST?!!

So this week was (mostly) spent at home in Bakersfield. After ALL that driving we did, we basically just lounged and took it easy. We swam, we sat, we watched a lot of TV. Vegging out at its finest. 

We made a four hour round trip to Ventura because I'm crazy (more on that in a previous post). And on Friday we drove two hours to see my family AGAIN. I'm telling you, I see my family and stay with them 50% of the time. We're going to be here for a week and have some fun stuff planned. (Like the birthday party we went to yesterday that I just posted about). 

Anyway, here's what we've been saying hello to!

Hello to coming home to a LOT of packages. This is less than one weeks worth of my online shopping. Ya, I shop A TON. 

Hello to Happy Meals inside Target. Bribery at its finest. 

Hello to my new favorite hair product. Meet Beach Waves by The Gnarly Whale. I'm guilty of washing, blow drying, and straightening every day and I'm trying to be better about it. This product has been a lifesaver for letting my hair air dry!

Hello to swim days. 

Hello to the new bag I'm obsessed with. 

Hello to lunch dates with your bestie. 

Hello to another kimono from The Oxford Trunk. You guys, I'm obsessed. 

Hello to dry shampoo. Oh my gosh you guys. Mind blown. So I usually wash daily and I'm really bad about using a lot of hear products but I'm super determined to be a healthy platinum blonde so I knew I needed to change my game plan. Insert dry shampoo. I picked up this bottle from Target and it is my new best friend. All I did was spray it on my roots and my hair INSTANTLY looked like it had just been washed. It's going to save me so much getting ready time and be my best friend on the in between wash days. 

Hello to my new favorite picture in the whole world. Oh my gosh you guys. I was dying when I took this. Classic. 

Hello, hello, HELLLLLOOOO to finally being able to shop H&M online. I'm freaking out. We don't have one near us so I can only go when we visit my parents.. Now I can shop from the comfort of my own home. This could be bad. Real bad. 

Hello to the cutest little rascal refusing to let his grandma buckle him in. 

Hello to going through old photos that flood you with amazing nostalgia. I've had a wonderful life surrounded by love and friendships I will cherish forever. Those were the glory days! Look how young my husband looks!!

Hello to our ritual of going to Starbucks on Sunday mornings. We read bible stories while we are there and feast on whatever James wants. Please note the tiny stack of books and the old flip phone he insisted on taking. I love him SO. 

Thanks for letting me recap our week for you. How was your week?? Let me know! 

A Birthday Party

Today, James and I went to a birthday party. My sweet friend Ashley's little girl Talia turned one year old.

I had a custom pair of   Thief And Bandit leggings made for her and matching bows for Talia and her big sister Brooklyn made by Jennifer Ann How cute are they?!

Anyway, we had a great time at the party and I will keep this short by just sharing a few photos I took- 

^^ The cute fam. 

^^ Umm ya, he had a great time. 

^^ Some cute photos of James and his bestie. 

^^ Some of my best girls. 

Hope ya'll had a fab weekend! 

James' Outfit Details- 

Tank- Hello Apparel

Leggings- Thief And Bandit 

Moccasins- Freshly Picked

Being This Boys Mom

Being this boys mom is a joy. 

My biggest pleasure. 

A blessing. 

The most important thing to me. 

What I'm called to do. 

Watching James grow is a gift. 

Seeing him smile and laugh warms my heart. 

Every moment spent with him is cherished. 

I love him more than anything. That's why I constantly take him places, adventure with him, and get him out of the house so he can learn and grow and explore. 

That's why I brave the 110 degree heat to take him to the playground, why I swim with him in our pool twice a day and why I watch the same Veggie Tales about Pirates every single day. There is absolutely nothing I wouldn't do for this boy. Nothing. 

Outfit Details- 

Tank- Old Navy

Shorts- Currently at Target

Sandals- Salt Waters

Beauty Tip: Whitening Lightning

I'm all about the teeth. I always notice when someone has a perfect bright white smile. I love the dentist. I get giddy when six months is up and my appointment rolls around. I'm passing that on to James and he looks forward to brushing his teeth everyday.

The thing is, not all teeth are always sparkling white. Especially if you're a coffee drinker (guilty) or a lover of soda and candy. 

That's where Whitening Lightning  comes in. I was recently introduced to this amazing company and had the opportunity to try out the Dial A Smile Professional Teeth Whitening Kit as well as the Super Booster Whitening Pen.

I used the dial a smile kit for three days in a row- just like the instructions said to. 

The kit comes with everything you need to do a professional teeth whitening in the comfort of your own home. 

This set is really easy to use and the instructions are simple. My kind of product. 

I think the best way to explain this product to you is to SHOW you. So here are some not so cute selfies as your guide. 

First, you need to use the dial included to match your teeth to their current shade. My teeth were at a 6 and the dial goes from a 1 being the best to a 16 being the worst. So 6 isn't too bad but I'm determined to get to a 1!! This product says you can get 4-7 shades lighter if you use it correctly for the three days. 

Use the blue pads provided to completely wipe down your teeth. You want those babies DRY!

The whitening gel is in a syringe. You simply squirt a third of it out into the provided cap and then use the included q tips to clean and protect your gums and then the little black brush to put the gel on your teeth. Store the syringe in the fridge. 

A tip I learned when applying the gel- yes, you want to apply generously, but not TOO generously or you are going to have some intense drool. 

Use the LED light for 20 minutest each of the three days. 

Tip- it's MUCH easier to just put that sucker in your mouth so you can be hands free. It's totally comfortable. 

So I did this for THREE days exactly as I was supposed to. 

They give you a VERY generous amount of gel that I actually had enough to repeat the process and do it a second time for a total of SIX DAYS. 

I also used the super booster whitening pen for 14 days. It recommends using it once every day for 2 weeks right before bed time. 

The pen is very easy to use. You just twist the bottom until the gel comes out and then paint on a thin coat on each tooth. Smile wide for 60 seconds so it dries and you're good to go. 

So between the six  day professional at home treatment (I had enough to do the three day treatment twice) and the fourteen days using the super booster whitening pen, here are my results- 

I went from a shade six to a shade two. So FOUR shades lighter. These products definitely whitened my teeth. While they did not bring me to the perfect one I was hoping for, it did lift my teeth four whole shades and that's so close to the one I was hoping for!

I'm pretty sure that if I continue to use the super booster whitening pen and if I repeated the dial a smile kit again that I would easily get to a shade one. 

What I liked about the product- 

-easy to use

-everything is included 

-you can be hands free while doing this

-definitely gave my teeth a whitening boost 

Overall I would recommend this product to anyone who wants whiter, brighter teeth, wants it done in the comfort of their own home and on their own time, and doesn't want to shell out thousands of dollars to get it done in a dentist office. 

I'm impressed and I'm satisfied with a level TWO. 

SO, if you are convinced and like what you see, YOU can buy your own Whitening Lightning products today for a SERIOUS mark down! Whitening Lightning is offering my readers a special discount code that will give you 70% off anything on their site. Ya, you read that right. SEVENTY PERCENT OFF!! 

All you need to do is enter code CANDICE (that's me) upon checkout to get the discount. 

What are you waiting for??

*This post is sponsored by Whitening Lightning but all opinions are my own. 

Petunia, And Pirates, And Playgrounds, Oh My

So yesterday James and I made the two hour drive to Ventura to the Petunia Pickle Bottom HQ and the Petunia Boutique that's attached. This was our fourth trip. Yes, I'm crazy. Four hours round trip with my two year old all for the love of Petunia.

Here's my dirty little secret- I have almost 30 of their bags. And if you count accessories, I have over 50 Petunia items. Yup, when it comes to bags and clothes, I'm a crazy shop-a-holic hoarder. 

Their fall line was released today so I wanted to get a sneak peek at the store so I could finalize my purchase decisions. 

Before we headed out James and I whipped up some super cute cupcakes to bring as a little "congrats on the new line" gift. I've come to know and love some of the employees there and they are all gems. 

I think the cupcakes were a hit because they gave me a sweet shout out on Instagram. 

So, THE FALL LINE IS OUT. I'm much more of a spring girl since I love bright and bold colors but their fall line is still to die for and of course I had to snag some stuff. 

The best packages are wrapped with neon tissue and a petunia tag in case you were wondering. 

I got some shopper totes, some powder room cases and this gorgeous new bag- 

Here are a few photos I snapped of the new line- 

They have a ton of gorgeous new prints, practically EVERYTHING comes in embossed now (the solid colors that I adore) and I'm dying over this new "Baby's first year book" thing they created which allows new mothers to keep records and all baby info all in one stylish spot. 

If you don't have kids in diapers, don't fret- they make handbags now and I am lusting after a certain leather one SO BAD. 

Now of course I couldn't drag my kid all the way to Ventura and back after he had just done a 12 hour stint in the car without making it worth his while now could I? So I looked up the closest pirate park Ventura had and we found a great one! It was right on the beach and beautiful. 

Here are a few photos I snapped- 

All in all we had a fabulous day! I scored new cute Petunia items, James got to go to a pirate playground, and on the way home we ran into the grocery store to get a few items and James got a new fun noodle for the pool and a big pink sugar cookie. 

Thanks for letting me diaper bag gush.. Now go check out the new line and shop!! 

Stop by tomorrow for a fabulous review I've got on an amazing product you won't want to miss!!