Favorites

{via}

My new bowl from Alisa Burke. I’m not sure where I’m going to display it permanently. For now, it’s hanging out on my kitchen island, and I love seeing it there every day. Also, if you haven’t checked out her free coloring pages, go check them out now. She’s still releasing a new page weekly. Alisa also recently released a new set of for purchase coloring books, which are available over here.

The same day Lindsey Stirling’s new album, Brave Enough, released (obviously, it’s awesome, go check it out), I also started listening to Every Open Eye by Chvrches and Fishing Blues by Atmosphere, both of which are fabulous. I don’t even really know what to say about them, hence I’m mentioning them in a favorites post and not a music-specific post. All of these albums are streaming on Prime so have a listen for yourself.

Dan O’Donnell is my single favorite person to listen to on the radio right now. In addition to news reporting, he fills in regularly for several local shows I listen to, and he also recently got his own podcast. Not surprisingly, he’s had great coverage of the recent Milwaukee rioting (which now has its own Wikipedia page…).

Pexels.com. I am always on the look out for image sites with high quality, free creative commons or other commercial use licensing for my own articles and for clients who want images with articles. For the past four years or so, my go-to sites have been Flickr and Morguefile. Pexels kind of blows everything else I’ve ever found out of the water for both quantity and quality. Recently, I used some of their photos for this new article and this newly overhauled article.

Grammarly. I can’t believe I just started using Grammarly this summer. I should have started using it ages ago. When you write 30,000 words per week, it’s really easy for little mistakes to slip through the cracks. Grammarly helps me correct mistakes on everything from emails to blog posts to client articles. Plus, you get a weekly report with activity, accuracy, and vocabulary with your own stats and a comparison to other Grammarly users (i.e. you were more accurate than 80% of other users). So amazing for grammar nerds like me.

Back in my July favorites post, I mentioned wanting to try making Asian Ramen Noodle Salad and Chopped Brussels Sprouts Salad With Chicken and Walnuts for weekday lunches. Since then, I have made both dishes. The Ramen salad is awesome. The prep is quick, and the flavor just gets better over a few days. The Brussel sprouts salad is solid. The dressing is awesome, delicious and really different. The prep is a little involved. Don’t wait until you’re hungry to start making it. I like Brussel sprouts a lot, but the Brussel sprouts flavor is really strong, even when you cook the sprouts and add the dressing. I think in the future, I would substitute half the Brussel sprouts for cabbage or another vegetable with good crunch and more subtle flavor. Next up, I want to try Lindsay’s garlic herb chicken salad, and I think Heidi’s slow cooker Thai chicken soup will be perfect as the weather gets a little cooler.

For my fellow photo geeks. Hilarious.

Finally, now that we’re back from Montana, we’re planning our next trip: New Orleans! We’ll be there for a short stint this fall for a conference, exclusively or nearly exclusively in the Lower Garden District, Central Business District, and French Quarter. I want your personal recommendations for restaurants, tours, jazz, etc.

What have you been loving lately?
Feel free to leave links in the comments!

Save

Save

Save

Save

Save

{via}

This story. I can’t even think about it too much without getting teary eyed. I am following his Instagram account now, though, and it’s amazing.  Recently I read that Vanilla Ice STILL gets daily tweets with snaps of the A1A because of the reference in Ice Ice Baby. Proof from this account just last month that this is a real thing. Mind blowing.

Alisa Burke has been creating free coloring pages for over a year now. This summer she’s been releasing a new one every week. If you are into the adult coloring trend, check them out. For those who have anxiety about messing up favorite pages from coloring books, you don’t have to stress about Alisa’s pages because you can save and then print them as many times as you like. Also, on the subject of coloring books, did you hear about the new Lisa Frank coloring books?! Too awesome for words.

Some of the most amazing drone footage I’ve ever seen. The music is…a little distracting. If you’re tempted to quit watching the video because of the music, mute it. Make sure to watch all the way to the end because the final footage of star trails is unreal.

These infertility announcements are priceless. I think that cheezy social media announcements are really stupid anyway, but obviously I’ve been really over cheezy pregnancy announcements for a long time…and so have a lot of other people. The “we spent all the dough…still no bun in the oven” is my favorite. On the same subject, this announcement cracks me up, too.

Jake came across Displate recently, and it’s so great. I especially love their minimal movie posters. Eventually we’re going to expand the seating, upgrade the sound system, and add a bar area in our finished basement space. I’ve moved all the art from the finished basement space in our old house to other areas of our new house, leaving the basement a blank slate. We’ve talked about decorating it with movie posters. I haven’t seen anything I’ve liked nearly as much as the minimal movie collection. I haven’t nearly browsed all of them yet, but a few initial favorite include Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, The Italian Job, Casino Royale, and Back to the Future (there are actually multiple minimal Back to the Future designs, and they’re all great). Also, I LOVE the design for Casablanca. I don’t want the theme to be classic movies because I’m not a movie buff so it would feel pretentious, but the Casablanca design is so fabulous.

Many of you know that one of my favorite places in Milwaukee is the VA grounds. I recently learned the Milwaukee Preservation Alliance has a Soldiers Home walking tour app for the grounds. How neat is that? Save the Soldiers Home also has lots of cool photos and historical information.

Getting a new Crate and Barrel catalog in the mail is always a little highlight in the day. I’m flipping out about this colorful kitchen spread in the latest fall preview catalog. I want all of their colorful kitchen items.

We have tickets to see Lindsey Stirling in Milwaukee this fall! I’ve already talked about my love for Lindsey Stirling on this blog and am so excited to see her live. When I was browsing the tour schedule for her new album, I ended up browsing her merch as well. She has a lot of awesome t-shirt designs. I’m still on the fence about whether or not I’ll get one before her concert, but if I do, it will be this one or this one.

What have you been loving lately?
Feel free to leave links in the comments!

Save

Save

Save

{via}

The above shot from Jason Peterson is by far my favorite fireworks photo from the 2016 4th of July (and possibly all previous 4th of Julys). It’s SO DIFFERENT from anything else I’ve ever seen. Who would have thought that a black and white image of fireworks could be so amazing? Plus, Chicago skyscrapers. Always amazing.

Also, on the topic of photography, I LOVE photos that tell a story. Check out The Denizen’s feature on official White House photographer Pete Souza and Photo Collective Studio’s shots from The Bike Prom in Salt Lake City.

I decided to make our powder room Bath, England themed because I recently found an amazing set of Bath postcards I picked up in Bath back in 2000 (I save a lot of postcards), and it seemed to fit that room. Then I picked up this print. I wanted one more wall art piece to complete the space, and I just wasn’t finding anything else I liked on All Posters or Etsy. On a whim, I searched Pinterest and came across this amazing artist. I’ve got a few prints ordered and am so excited to see the room come together.

This article about digital hypocrisy. I could write a whole post about this topic. People frequently underestimate how the behavior that parents and teachers model in front of children is integral to their development. The topic of digital consumption only becomes more and more relevant each year.

Of course I can’t write a favorites post without talking about cats at least once. This comic and this comic are both so true. And does it get any cuter than this photo? Kills me every time.

This has been my go-to appetizer for social gatherings this summer. I’ve already made it twice, and I have the ingredients to make it again tonight. So delicious and so easy.

Finally, also on the topic of food, I have big plans to make these two salads for weekday lunches in the near future: Asian Ramen Noodle Salad and Chopped Brussels Sprouts Salad With Chicken and Walnuts.

What have you been loving lately?
Feel free to leave links in the comments!

Save

Save