I must say… I’m quite proud of myself with setting goals and deadlines, and actually sticking to them! And though I would love to write a Favorite Things Friday every week, it’s quite daunting when I have a full-time job and I don’t want to always have my head buried in my laptop.

So, without further ado, here we go!

This Week’s Tidbits:

1. The two books you NEED to read
2. The kitchen gadget that’ll save your favorite veggie
3. My go-to coffee pods
4. If you love chicken salad, you’ll be OBSESSED with this restaurant
5. The shopping app that’ll save you money
6. BONUS: Election Day is upon us – Here’s what YOU need to know.

Note: All of the following recommendations and opinions are of my own, and this is not sponsored post.

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Two Books You MUST Read –Where the Crawdads Sing & The Road Back to You

I know so many of you have already read Where the Crawdads Sing, but if you haven’t…. please add it to your list. It’s safe to say that this is the best book I’ve ever read, and it’s one of those books that I look forward to reading multiple times. It pulls (yanks, actually) on your heartstrings; it makes you think, makes you want to hug your loved ones tighter, and brings you closer to nature, all while dropping you in the middle of a whodunit murder mystery. I cannot praise this book enough. The author is such a wonderful writer, and I look forward to reading her next novels (Where the Crawdads Sing was her FIRST! Incredible!).

The second book that you need to read is The Road Back to You which is a fun, easy read about the study of the Enneagram. I actually wrote about this book in a blog post from a year ago, and I recommend it to pretty much everyone I meet. (You would think I was receiving royalties by how much I talk about it!) The Enneagram study is a personality identifier, similar to Myers-Briggs, but better… and on a deeper, more spiritual level! I had taken several Enneagram tests online, but none of them were accurate representations of my personality, and the outcomes were definitely skewed based on my mood that day… or lack of caffeine. This book breaks down every number, each ones’ characteristics, provides a window into what makes other numbers “tick,” and how to live in harmony with other numbers. It’s honestly a surprisingly humorous read, and absolutely enlightening. It’s a MUST-read – You won’t regret it. And tell me your number after you read it… I LOVE hearing about everyone’s number!

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Kitchen Gadget – Evriholder Avocado Saver

Random, but I had to tell y’all about a kitchen gadget that I never knew I needed, but HOLY GUACAMOLE, I couldn’t live without it now!

Chris and I have been eating more avocados lately, especially since we’re sticking with our keto diet, and avocados are so high in healthy fats, and they make great snacks and additions to meals. It’s not often that I only need a portion of an avocado, but when I do… I love using my Avo Saver!

I was hesitant about this product because it seemed like you had to cut the avocado perfectly in half to keep both ends air-tight against the holder, but you don’t! My avocados stay fresh for several days, no joke, and having the pit still inserted helps the whole avocado to stay fresher for a longer amount of time. The adjustable strap allows the avocado to be tucked in snugly no matter how big or small it may be.

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My Go-To Coffee – Rapid Fire Ketogenic Coffee Pods

This coffee is delicious, even if you’re not on the keto diet. It is, however, high in fat which may not be ideal for people NOT on keto, but I digress… This coffee is delicious and hardly needs any additional flavorings to make it a yummy vanilla latte consistency! I usually add sugar-free vanilla syrup and maybe a splash of heavy cream, but the coffee is already made with organic Green Mountain coffee, organic grass-fed butter, MCTs (medium chain triglycerides) from coconut oil, and a touch of Himalayan salt.

We buy the large boxes of the coffee pods at Target and Walmart, and the powder is available at select stores. It comes in Original, French Vanilla, and Caramal Macchiato flavor – You can’t go wrong with any of the flavors!

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Quaint Restaurant – Chicken Salad Chick

Silly name, but a totally underrated restaurant. The brand’s look, feel, and approach isn’t very appealing (as you can see in the photo, the tablecloth is something else), but the food speaks for itself… man oh man, they have some AMAZING chicken salad.

My Mom had been raving about this restaurant, so we decided to go together one day. The first time I visited Chicken Salad Chick, I was overwhelmed by the menu (and stressed because the person at the register just continued to stare at me, waiting for me to speak). Essentially there are different types of scoops of chicken salad, and they can be eaten alone, placed on bread, or placed on a salad. There are several combo options that include yummy sides like salads and soups. My favorite is the Fruity Fran which is the normal “chicken salad base” (all-white meat, shredded chicken, finely minced celery, mayonnaise, and their secret seasoning) with a refreshing blend of Fuji apples, seedless grapes, & pineapple. I like to get the Fruity Fran as a trio – On croissant with a seasonal salad, which also comes with a drink, a pickle spear (YUM!), and the BEST iced mini shortbread cookie I’ve EVER had. Seriously. Find the location nearest you here! (If you don’t have one near you, let me know and I’ll ship you some!) 🙂

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Shopping App – RetailMeNot

I’ll keep this one short and sweet – If you don’t have the free RetailMeNot app, you’re throwing money out of the window.

Nah, but seriously… I don’t do ANY online or in-store shopping without it. There’s almost always some type of discount code or coupon, and I since I’ve started using it, I hardly ever pay full price for anything!

*ALSO, if you’re into earning rewards just for shopping (ANYWHERE from which you receive a receipt), check out my post about the Fetch Rewards app. I’ve accumulated over 10,000 points to-date, which is the equivalent to $10+ in gift cards to a multitude of stores and restaurants.

If you’re reading this, it’s because you:
a) are actually reading my blog, and are confused as to why this is interrupting your experience
b) saw that I was giving something away, and came specifically to my blog to find the magic sentence

SO, thank you for stopping by 🙂
1. Follow me on Instagram (if you’re not already)!
2. On my latest Favorite Things Friday post on Instagram, comment your FAVORITE CEREAL. (If you do not have an Instagram account, you can comment on this blog post.)

You’ll be entered to win FREE Starbucks for a year. HA, JUST KIDDING. But I WILL give away a Starbucks giftcard!

(Ends Sunday, October 11th at 10:00pm CST. Winner will randomly be selected, and will be contacted Monday, October 12th via the platform on which they commented.) Good luck!

& if you were wondering, my favorite cereal is Cinnamon Toast Crunch 😉

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ELECTION YEAR – Listen Up, People!

Don’t just VOTE – Be smart about it!

Wherever you stand as far as politics go, we can ALL agree that the Presidential Debate was indeed a dumpster fire of a hot mess… And if you’re anything like me, you’re seeking out any and ALL information about each candidate that’s truthful, straightforward, and non-partisan. I want to know my options rather than blindly walking in one direction only to regret it later.

I originally was going to post an article that sparked my interest on the Everygirl, one of my FAVORITE online publications. However, the bias was immediately obvious and I was annoyed. I then stumbled upon this quiz that was released by Pew Research and after taking the quiz (honestly), I was given a breakdown of where my beliefs lie within each party.

There’s also this website that has listed out OTHER websites in which you can trust to be non-partisan. Also, I hope that you pray with me that whatever decision is made on November 3rd, (IF we even find out on that day) that our nation is in good hands.

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And there ya have it, folks. I could honestly list and talk about all of the things I’m loving, using, watching, smelling, and eating, buuuuut this would be such a long post that even I wouldn’t read it.

Speaking of not reading, I’m going to try something new this week: I’m going to make a video which basically goes over what I just wrote about, and it’ll be short soundbites and descriptions of things that I’m currently loving. So, in whatever form you want to know my favorite things lately, I gotchu.

Until next time,