{Last night happy hour festivities}

Returning from vacation is never easy. Ever. There is the amazing high that is experienced… being away with those you care about, spending time disconnecting + reconnecting, relaxing, eating good food, imbibing in delicious cocktails, and exploring new places. I usually struggle for a few days, post vacation, as the reality sets in (not that my reality is too shabby) that the trip you anticipated is now over.

I typically learn so much when I am traveling, sometimes about myself, sometimes about my relationship, and often times about the place I am visiting. Yet, this trip was a learning and growing experience for me, where I learned much more about myself than I anticipated. In reflection, I realized that I need to be more flexible with my little one, with life in general. Being in a new place forced me to do just that, and it felt very liberating. For the past few months, I feel as if I have been bound by a schedule, which was mainly to keep my little miss on a healthy sleeping pattern. I wouldn’t dare let her take her morning nap in the car as I read that it is an extension of her evening sleep… and I valued that 12 hour block of time that she slept so much that I wasn’t going to risk losing it. On this trip though, if we wanted to fully experience the days, and evenings, I was going to have to bend. So I did so… hesitantly at first. Guess what? Things didn’t come crashing down around me… if she didn’t get in a full morning or mid afternoon nap, she certainly took in a full late afternoon nap AND slept throughout the evening. If I didn’t have her down exactly by 7:30pm because I wanted to watch the sunset (with her), she still slept. She is the adaptable one and she sent me the message that it’s okay for me to be more flexible too…. funny how my little munchkin is already teaching me so much about myself.

So, upon returning from this trip, while I am still in a state of shock that it’s actually over, I feel renewed. I feel as if I learned such a valuable lesson that will provide so much more opportunity. Will I be abandoning her schedule with reckless disregard? Um, no (partially because my personality simply doesn’t mesh with those two words….). What it does mean is if I want to go for a training run in the morning, I can do that. She will be okay. We will be okay. Life will be okay. On that note… here is to a week of increased flexibility and embracing the lessons that we are given. Have a good one everyone!

{Just love the cotton candy colored Hawaiian sunsets}

{Sister cocktails}

{Acai bowls + breakfast pizza… all about the #balance, right??}

{Post-vacation clean eating starts tomorrow, so a grocery store run was necessary}

With all the indulging I did on this trip, I’m ready to get back into my healthy eating patterns. Among my grocery store haul were items to make this salad, chocolate acai bowl, and I’m going to try my hand at an avocado smoothie (I’ll share here if it’s successful).

We have so many fun things planned for this summer, and I can’t wait for it all to unfold… from a few weekend trips, to festive celebrations, and exploring locally. So, I’m on the hunt for good basics that can pair well with anything. Among my recent finds include this side “tied” top (in so many different color options), this tank and this tank (both which have such cute backs), a basic top (I’m leaning towards the olive color), these braided tie sandals, this ivory and taupe shift dress, and these chambray joggers (perfect compromise between jeans and sweats). For the more “festive” events, I’m loving this handkerchief dress (so flowly and an excellent price point), this floral slip dress, and this v-neck coral dress.

I’m also on the hunt for a new white cross-body bag and looking at this one, this one, and this one. I’m having trouble deciding! I’m also looking for a cute pair of denim espadrilles and love this lace up pair, this platform option, and this frayed version.