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Friday Favorites

Friday Favorites #81

Hello all!

Happy Friday! I hope you have had a smooth and successful week and were able to celebrate Valentine’s Day or Galentine’s Day. We made it to Friday which means the weekend is just hours away! I don’t know about you, but I am ready for the weekend.

Some sweet treats from Valentine’s day!

As always, I’m linking up with Erika and Andrea for some of my favorite things this week for this week’s edition of Friday Favorites. This is a mix of some books, music, food and some recent refreshes.

Let’s dive right in!

New Chair Cover- I’ve had the same desk and chair in my room since the second grade (yes, I still live at home and it’s one of the best decisions I’ve made). The desk and chair are in great condition, however, they have endured wear and tear over the years, so I’ve had to get the chair re-upholstered a few times. This chair covering has gone from pink, to checkered, and now patterned. After more rips and tears, I decided to get it cleaned up again, rather than buy new. I found some of this patterned Paris fabric from a local remanent store and brought it to an upholstery store to get it fixed up. I’ve had it on my to-do list to get fixed for months and I finally got accomplished it. I’m so happy I was able to keep what I had and spruce it up rather than buy new. If you are looking to update something in your home, here’s your sign to do it.

New Lock Screen- Speaking of refreshes, this may sound silly, but I updated my lock screen for my cell phone and it was such a good reminder that the little things truly make the biggest difference when it comes to bringing joy in my life. I found this picture on Pinterest and swapped out the colors for my clock. I had a winter/Christmas background and now this one of Paris reminds me of the month of love. It’s a small change, but it makes me smile especially as we make our way through a new month. 

Little Italian Hotel– I finished “The Little Italian Hotel” on Libby this past week. I listened to it as an audiobook and loved my experience with it. I don’t often listen to audiobooks, but I decided to give it a try and was so happy I did. The story follows a talk show host who ends up taking her anniversary trip alone. Rather than go with her husband, she invites four strangers to accompany her. The five people bond over heartbreak and become friends as they create memories during their three-week trip abroad. I listened to the book in the car, while I was jogging, and while I was cleaning and doing things around the house. I like the narrator’s voice and she had me hooked the entire time.

Stir Fry- I have been enjoying easy meals this winter. I love easy soup and sandwich nights, a soup and salad for lunch or a stir fry. A hearty stir fry has been a go-to for lunches and dinners. I love this meal because it’s a great way to use what you have in your fridge and not waste food, it combines a lot of food groups, and it’s fast. This past week, I used leftover ground beef, rice and some frozen veggies to put together this meal in under 20 minutes. Major win! I also have made chicken stir frys, veggie frys and shrimp stir frys too….the possibilities are truly endless. 

Billy Joel’s New Song– I know this is a few weeks old, but I have been listening to Billy Joel’s new song “Turn the Lights Back On”, non-stop. This is the first song he has released in 30 years and it’s so good. I love the message and the melody. I really appreciated his performance during the Grammy’s too. If you haven’t listened to it, give it a listen.

That’s a look at some of the things I have been loving this week.

Tell me, what are some of your favorite things from this past week?

Let me know in the comments below!

Have a great weekend!

Categories
Fabulous living

Screen Time Feature: YAY or NAY?

Hi All!

Happy Tuesday!

I hope your weeks are off to a great start. February is flying by, it’s crazy to think we are more than half way to the end of the month. I hope you all had a relaxing weekend and were able to celebrate Valentine’s day with your loved ones. 

Today, I wanted to share my thoughts and get your thoughts on the new update on iPhones with the screen time feature. Essentially, your iphone monitors how long you spend on your phone from social media, to productivity, entertainment and more. 

The screen time feature is found under your settings

You can check your screen report by going under settings and then half way down you will see screen time. From there it shows you how long you have been on it for the day, how many times you pick up your phone per hour, and how many notifications you receive per day. For more of an overview you can see how long you have been on it for the week. Every week, your phone will give you a screen time report of how much time you spent on your phone for the week compared to past weeks. 

It shows you how much time you spent on your phone per day (Note: I wrote this post in the afternoon so it’s not a full day, but you get the idea)

If your amount of time on your phone alarms you, you can schedule time away from your phone or app limits, so you can control how much time you spend on your phone. 

This breaks down screen time hour by hour and you can see your notifications and how much time you spend on each app

When I first heard about screen time, I was intrigued. The first day I checked my screen time at the end of the day, I spent over five hours on my phone, I couldn’t believe I wasted so much time on my phone when I could be doing other things. Now, granted some of the time was listening to music, talking on the phone, replying to emails and social media but I wasn’t scrolling through Instagram for 5 hours straight. HAHA. Now, thanks to screen time I can monitor how much time I’m on my phone through the day and I can see when I need to put it down and away. After using screen time for a few months, I average being on my phone for about 3.5 hours a day, I wish it was lower but I’m glad it’s gone down since I’ve been aware of screen time. I have liked using the screen time app to be aware of how much time I’m spending on my phone. This is not an advertisement nor a sponsored post, I just wanted to share my thoughts on screen time and get your input from about it too!

Look at the full week-this week it was higher due to a number of interviews I was doing over the phone

What are your thoughts on screen time? Have you tried it? Did you love it? Hate it? Let me know in the comments below! 

See you Thursday for a new look of the day!