Sure, it’s been a billion degrees for over a month, but now it is officially summer! It’s a season of big changes for me, which has life feeling pretty chaotic at the moment, but I know it’s for the better in the long run. (Sorry to vague blog, but more on all of that soon!)

Here’s what I’ve been loving lately!

 

1. The new season of “Real Talk Radio with Nicole Antoinette” (one of my fav podcasts) came out last Friday and it’s been so hard not to just binge listen to the whole season. (She releases 8 episodes every 2 months.) This season’s episodes touch on topics including writing, courage, grief, and more. It’s so good, you guys! (I never know how to link to podcasts since everyone uses different apps to listen, but you guys are smart, I trust your ability to find it!)

 

2. I just found this artist on Instagram and I’m really loving her work.

Still standing. It’s been a pretty rough year for me and I’m so happy that at the end of it, I’m still standing strong! (Thank you @dorientju for reminding me!) #dailysketch

A post shared by Yaoyao Ma Van As (@yaoyaomva) on Dec 27, 2017 at 8:32am PST

“It’s going to be ok, mama!” #sketch #sketchoftheday #itsgoingtobeokay

A post shared by Yaoyao Ma Van As (@yaoyaomva) on Apr 9, 2017 at 1:33am PDT

 

3. I’ve been feeling really overwhelmed lately, to this week I decided to try to figure out one thing each day that will make my life a little easier. I SO suggest doing this. Take a look at the things you do all the time and see if there’s any way to either semi-automate them or just make them 10% more convenient. One of the best examples of this is when I finally gave in and bought an extra phone cable to just keep in my car so I didn’t have to grab mine anytime I left the house. (and then grumble about having to go get it from my car at midnight because I left it in there and my phone is dying.) I can’t even imagine how many hours of frustration I saved myself with that $5 purchase.

Along the same lines – I have kitty litter boxes at both ends of the house, and I spent YEARS filling a little bucket with litter to take to the other box each time I cleaned it before it *finally* occurred to me to just buy containers of litter to keep at both boxes. Also? Stick a trash can right inside your front door so you can dump junk mail as soon as you walk in the house.

 

4. Speaking of cat care supplies, it’s time for this week’s review of something awesome that Chewy sent us for their #chewyinfluencer program! This week it’s Instinct by Nature’s Variety Grain-Free Wet Cat Food Cups in the Tuna flavor.

Here’s how that went:

 

Thought I’d change things up and do a video for this month’s #chewyinfluencer review! The boys were sent a package of these @instinctpetfood cat food cups, and as you can tell, they’re a hit! 👍 (BTW, I know Captain Kitten’s collar looks awful. He’s a master of turning a night new collar to trash in a matter of weeks!) #catlady #catfood #catfoodreview #petfood

A post shared by And Blue Sky (@straightontillmorningblog) on Jun 22, 2018 at 8:12pm PDT

 

5. I am serious need of a quick getaway, so I’m planning to head back down to Northwest Arkansas sometime in the next few weeks. There’s a new Georgia O’Keefe exhibition at Crystal Bridges Museum, and I still have a museum membership that I received when I worked with the museum last year to cover the amazing Chihuly exhibition. (You can find that post here. I LOVED those stunning outdoor pieces!)  Funny enough, I was checking out a list of the top articles of 2017 on GoNomad, and I was excited to see that an article about Crystal Bridges made the list! Definitey a sign that I need to revisit it. (The GoNomad article is here – Crystal Bridges, The Great Museum You’ve Never Heard Of) I think I’m going to see if GoNomad would be interested in an article about Eureka Springs; You can’t cover Bentonville and not discuss its super-quirky neighbor! (My upcoming plans involve quite a bit of travel writing, btw, so prepare for lots of updates to that “Destinations” tab up at the top of the page!)

 

Tomorrow is my one day a week job at the thrift store, so I’m preparing to curl up with a book soon and attempt an early night! (I’ve gone in on less than 3 hours of sleep the past few weeks. I’m not good at mornings!) Will this be the week I finally get some decent rest? Let’s hope! (I’m considering sharing some of the weird things that show up at the store in my Instastories on my personal Instagram, so be sure to follow if you aren’t already!)

Happy Weekend! 

 

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