DIY Iced Tea Bar

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #TeaProudly #CollectiveBias

August is quickly coming to an end, but summer doesn't have to just yet! Who doesn't love cold iced tea on a hot day? Water and iced tea are two of the only things I'll drink and Bigelow is one of the only tea brands I enjoy. Iced tea is so refreshing and the best summer drink for all ages and with as many flavors as Bigelow has, it's impossible not to find one you love! These warm and steamy summer days are unfortunately quickly coming to an end, so enjoying each and every one is so important. Finding time to relax is only easy in the summer and doing so with friends and family makes it even better. Patio and pool parties are about the only thing I want to do this time of year so I can soak up all of the sun possible!
With Labor Day coming up next week and lots of parties, this is the perfect time to make your guests feel welcomed and cool them down with yummy flavors of iced tea. The new Cold Brew line from Bigelow is a healthy option for more sugary drinks and yet it tastes just as good, if not better! It's caffeine free and beyond easy to make; no water boiling or waiting necessary. The ingredients are all natural too and all you need to add is cold water.

Must See Spots in 48 Hours in Sorrento, Italy

Ciao d’Italia - hello from Italy! The past few days have been crazy; I landed around 11 PM (EST) which is 5 AM in Italy on Wednesday and I feel like I haven’t stopped since! I flew into Naples and have been exploring the stunning Amalfi Coast ever since. Picking a hotel in a foreign country really can be difficult; especially if you haven’t been to it before, but I’m so lucky with the one we picked and you’ll see why in some of these pictures… Literally jaw dropping and breath taking! Any way, since I’ve done so much in the past two days here, I wanted to share some of the best tips for traveling around Amalfi in a short period of time. As you may have heard me mention before, we have a family home in Southern Italy that’s been in my family for hundreds (yes, hundreds…) of years. Pretty awesome to get to say, and it’s pretty awesome to have! It’s old but beautiful and in good condition - although I would LOVE to have the Property Brothers do a European spin-off and renovate the entire thing! ; ) Can you imagine?!
I’ve already almost filled up an entire 16 GB memory card of pictures on my camera in the matter of two days, that’s how beautiful this place is! There’s something about the Italian lifestyle that is just SO insanely relaxing and let me tell you - SO different than in the United States. The majority of the roads are steep, narrow and windy and no matter how much traffic there is, you can guarantee that there will be dozens of vespa’s beeping their way in between traffic! It’s sort of insane, but it’s awesome to see and experience such a different culture/atmosphere.
Even though there’s more to do along the Amalfi Coast than you could ever do at once, Sorrento is definitely one of the most beautiful spots in my opinion and I just can’t stop staring at the views! In fact, I’m sitting on an ocean-view terrace as I write… I mean!!! The other awesome part of the Amalfi and Italy in general is that you really can easily dedicate one day to each place and be perfect with it; there's so much to see but there are so many spots to visit too, so fitting a lot in is easier than you'd expect. Before I ramble any more, I’ll dive into my travel experience and tips for seeing as much of Sorrento as possible:

Packing Tips for International Travel

In just about 24 hours, I'm heading to Italy! I am so excited, I haven't been there in a few years and I cannot wait to see family and literally just travel. The last time I went, I think I was about 14 and I know that I'll experience things so much differently this time. I'm beyond excited, but definitely not that excited to pack... And yes, I still haven't packed, eek!! As organized as I like to think I am, I'm one of the biggest procrastinators ever and it never works in my favor, like ever. #realtalk - but on a positive note, I do have some tips on how to pack quickly, easily and without forgetting anything. International travel is a LOT different than domestic travel and so is packing. Between airport rules; weight of baggage, limitations, etc., it's difficult to know what to do and what to pack. I find it difficult to remember what I can bring in my carry-on specifically, and because of limitations I've come up with what I *hope* to be a helpful cheat sheet for packing for international travel:

Late Summer Essentials: Inside the POPSUGAR July Must Have Box

TGIF! I'm so happy it's Friday, and I'm so happy with this Must Have box from Popusgar! I love these boxes; for $39.95 a month you get a filled-to-the-rim box of amazing goodies. This box is all about living the life in the water, and I'm all about that! Everything in this box is so fun, here's what's inside:

Save vs. Splurge: Summer Edition

This is my first save vs. splurge post, and I really don't know why I didn't make one sooner! These are so fun - I love finding designer dupes and it never fails to amaze me how many dupes are available for super expensive items. Some things are definitely worth the splurge, because it's no secret that higher quality items (that, yes, cost more) will last longer. That being said, there's still tons of ways to save! Since we're in late summer now (how in the world did that happen?!?!) I wanted to round up some great summer finds, and share their "cheaper twins" as I like to call them! There's definitely things you should splurge on, and what's wrong with treating yourself every once in a while? ; ) Each trend usually has a ton of different priced options and I'm so excited about the dupes I found for some of my summer favorites:

Quick & Easy Breakfast Sandwich Ideas

This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and Tyson Foods, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #JDgreatdays http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV
No matter what time of year it is, breakfast can be a struggle. In the summer, I find myself either waking up too late for breakfast or getting out of the house early enough to beat beach traffic; and during the rest of the year getting up, ready and eating in time to get to school/work is nearly impossible! It's so bad that breakfast can be so easily overlooked, because it's clear on how important it is for a productive day. I think I've found the solution to my (and all of yours, too) breakfast problems - Jimmy Dean breakfast foods! Having a healthy breakfast is the best thing you can do to start your day, especially when you're busy!

Finding the Best Beauty and Health Deals

Thank you to Groupon for sponsoring this post! As always, all opinions are my own.
...from Groupon, duh! It's no secret how much I love Groupon and who wouldn't with how many great deals there are daily and locally? I start my day by washing my face, drinking a glass of water, checking my email and checking for new Groupon deals. I've found so many awesome goods and services via Groupon and especially ones that have to do with beauty and wellness. It never fails to amaze me how many local deals there are that you'd really never know about without checking Groupon!

Rio 2016 Olympic Gear

We're finally in the final stretch to counting down until the Rio Summer Olympics begin!!! Tonight is the Opening Ceremony and I am SO excited; I look forward to this every 4 years more than anything. If you've been hanging around here for a while, you likely know that my little sister is a competitive gymnast so we've always paid very close attention to gymnastics in the elite world. That's my favorite event to watch and cheer for, but I'm also looking forward to the rest of the events! Everything about the Olympics is so much fun and if it weren't for all of the craziness going on in the world, I would of tried SO hard to be in Rio for the games this year! I mean what's prettier than Rio de Janeiro?! This event is the one thing that brings the world together and I think that's a huge part of why it's so exciting to watch.
There's so many awesome ways you can root for your favorite teams and sports and so many different options when it comes to Olympic gear; Under Armour, Nike, and Ralph Lauren are the main three brands selling Olympic gear but there's other brands like Alex and Ani that are selling awesome must haves for the games. Here are my favorites:

Currently Craving: July Favs

I'm finding it very hard to believe today is August 1st... And yes, I'm totally aware that I say the same thing during every one of my currently craving posts each month! The months are flying by and I really don't like it - especially the summer months! But I have so many exciting things happening this month, including heading to Italy! I cannot wait and although I keep telling myself I'm pretty much ready, I'm truly no where near ready and that includes not having a single blog or social post scheduled yet, ha! Typical me ; ) But I sure have had time to shop as we all know... Between the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, summer shopping and a fun time buying Bahamas-gear in the Bahamas last week, my bank account needs a break. I'm also planning on doing a closet makeover this month with full re-organization and man does it need it, everything is a mess!
July has been an awesome month and if you want to check out some of my early favorites for Fall and more, you can check out my Nordstrom Anniversary Sale series that are linked below! Here are my favorite products from July; what I'm loving, currently craving and more: