since fourth of july fell on a friday this year, i took a hiatus from IF, IIL last week. but i’m BACK! so here are the things that have me smitten this friday afternoon.

one || austin in august. we might be completely crazy braving the texas heat in the peak of summer, but four college girlfriends and i are headed to the lone star state in next month for a mini reunion-slash-spa weekend. with every response from our epic email chain, my excitement grows ten-fold. i can’t wait to pack my cowboy boots, bathing suit, and have a weekend of rest and relaxation with some of my best gals.

 

 

two || the perfect bathing suit cover-up. in anticipation for my upcoming trip to austin, i treated myself to this printed caftan from j.crew factory. i love its honey comb print and adorable white-piping detail. it arrived last week and it is even cuter in person (and also extremely comfortable). i can’t wait to debut it in texas next month! p.s. it’s on super sale right now, so get one before they’re gone!

 

 

three || movie dates at cinepolis. i feel like my movie-going tendencies come in waves. i’ll go months without seeing something the theaters and then all of a sudden, i’m there every weekend. clearly moderation and i aren’t best friends. anyway, when i do go see a movie, there’s only one way to view it -in the comfort of my own lay-z-boy at cinepolis. (just fyi: this is not a paid advertisement for the popular luxury theater chain, though i wouldn’t hate it if they wanted to give me a couple free tickets for touting their services. hint, hint). in the past few weeks i’ve watched the fault in our stars, edge of tomorrow, and 22 jump street all in the lap of luxury. honestly, i do not know how i survived an entire movie experience in those generic folding chairs for so long. shudder. anyway, i have another movie date tonight, this time with a gentleman (<– oh hey) who’s about to have his first ever cinepolis experience. i hope those arm chairs live up to the hype. just kidding, i know they’ll will. p.s. we’re seeing begin again because i vetoed planet of the apes, transformers, tammy and have already seen 22 jump street. but i’ve actually heard that it’s a good date movie, so process of elimination wins in our favor this time.

 

 

four || fresh gardenias. while i was at lunch one day last week, i came back to my office to discover a special delivery from one of my sweet members -a beautiful bouquet of gardenias from her garden. sure, of all of the flower species, these ivory blooms are hardly the heartiest, one touch of their delicate petals and they bruise as easily as a peach. but my goodness, is their scent ever intoxicating. the bouquet lasted nearly a whole week and my office smelled like a dream for every single one of those seven days.

 

 

five || with nothing to watch this past saturday night (and an empty dvr), L and i scrolled through our options on on demand. we finally settled on an episode of so you think you can dance -the top 20’s first performances as pairs. admittedly, i haven’t watched this show in a few seasons, so sometimes i forget just how amazing the talent is in the competition to become “america’s favorite dancer.” while almost all of the ten routines were impressive, jessica & ricky’s contemporary routine choreographed by sonya tayeh was by far our favorite.

 

still not our favorite, however? the sound of mary murphy’s voice. oof.

six || fire up the best man’s speech and pour a glass of champagne. wedding season is upon us! two of my dearest friends are tying the knot tomorrow and i could not be more excited to celebrate their big day. i anticipate lots of tears (of joy), lots of dancing (duh), lots of reunions (i went to high school and college with them), lots of delicious food, and most importantly, lots and lots of love. all that and i get to wear my polka dot silk romper again? is it tomorrow yet?

 

 

and seven || it’s one of my oldest and dearest friend’s birthday today! M, i love you so dang much. from our days as sfc cheerleaders to delta gamma sisters and every road trip and car dance to christina aguilera’s “fighter” in between, i have treasured every single one of our past fifteen years as friends. welcome to club #twentyFINE, may it be your best year yet.

 

 

so on that note, have a wonderful weekend! it’s supposed to be another hot one, so get outside and do something fun. and by do something fun, i mean, don’t forget your sunscreen.

 

image via read cereal

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