What's in my (Beach) Bag

I don't know about y'all, but when I get myself down to the beach for the day, I plan on staying at the beach for the day unless I need to help make lunch (PB&J for the entire family) or it appears that a hurricane is coming my way. Since I want to stay down there all day, I make sure to pack a bag with everything that I am going to need in order to stay down there!

Beach Bag: Getting a beach bag in the right size will make your life so much easier. It is far better to have a bag that is a tad too big rather than having one that is too small and you have to juggle the bag, chair, and stuff that won't fit. I know people have differing opinions about what bag they like best, but I am a big fan of a straw beach bag. I actually got one when we got down here that was on clearance for $10 (I believe due to the hideous pom poms that I had to cut off the side) and it is just the right size. 

Towel: Obviously you are going to need one of these! Make sure you wash it before you use it though because otherwise you'll end up covered in little pieces of fluff that it sheds. 

Sunscreen: I am the biggest wuss when it comes to putting on sunscreen at the beach but it needs to happen unless you want to fry out there. Ideally this will be done with a spray bottle, but if you can deal with the sandy sunscreen being rubbed on your body then more power to ya

Water and Pretzels: Keep yourself hydrated out there and if your family doesn't packed a stocked cooler, get your priorities straight....kidding, pack another drink or two for the day. Also, I believe that pretzels are the greatest beach snack so I highly recommend them, but just bring a little something to crunch on throughout the day. 

Sunglasses and a Hat: Sunglasses are going to be your saving grace on by hat bright beach, but please remember to wear a hat too if you can. You do not want to end up with a sunglasses tan and the hat will prevent you from getting too much sun on your face anyways!

Music and a Book: Getting some reading done at the beach is one of my favorite ways to relax. I brought The Goldfinch and Bitter is the New Black with me this week and fingers crossed I will get through them. As for music, I need to make a new tanning playlist after accidentally deleting mine...on that note, it should be more difficult to delete a playlist on your phone than to just have to sideswipe it...

PGF: I love my PFG and would recommend it 100 times over to anyone who loves the beach but can't necessarily stay in the sun the entire time. We bring two big canopies with us, but sometimes I need the coverage when I'm down by the water too. The PFG is so lightweight and on Amazon they are reasonably priced. 

What's in your beach bag?

xoxo,

Sugar Snap Pearls

20 Sunglasses Under $20

Klutzy people don't do well with expensive things. White clothes, for example, tend to have a shorter lifespan and phones seem to be made for dropping. I am absolutely one of these people. No, seriously, ask my Momma and Shannon, who witnessed me trip over a laptop cord in my kitchen and completely bite it as they couldn't help but laugh at the total ridiculousness of the situation. Since I don't have great luck with the finer things in life, I tend to try to find cute items that I am worried about ruining at a fraction of the cost of the designer prices. Yes, I also engage in this because I am a broke college girl and unlike Carrie Bradshaw, Vogue does not feed me more than food does...

Recently I have been on the hunt for a cute pair of sunglasses that won't break the bank. I had a pair of Ray Ban Wayfarers but a few years of rough wear on those have resulted in me being back in the market for some sunnies. This time, I decided I would rather have a cheaper pair that I was less concerned about ruining, though I do still need to invest in a case!

If you are on the hunt for affordable glasses, look no further because I have done the hunt for you and here are some of my favorite, affordable pairs:

Nordstrom (L-R): Fantas Eyes 'Rewind' Sunglasses; Icon Eyewear Glitter Wayfarer Sunglasses; Fantas Eyes 'San Juan' Aviator Sunglasses; Icon Eyewear Butterfly Sunglasses

From Target (L-R): Women's Vis A Vis Sunglasses; Xhilaration Tortoise Surf Sunglasses; Aviator Sunglasses- Grey; Merona Plastic Square Sunglasses

H&M (L-R): Sunglasses; Sunglasses; Sunglasses; Sunglasses

Forever 21 (L-R): Classic Round Sunglasses; Heart Shaped Sunglasses; Iconic Aviator Sunglasses; Retro Cat-Eye Sunglasses

Which is your favorite pair? I bought the Rewind Sunglasses from Nordstrom but these are all great choices! Happy Shopping, Barganistas!

xoxo,

Sugar Snap Pearls

Playing Hooky...I Wish

Oh, Lilly Pulitzer planner, why do you have to tempt me to skip Mondays more than I already want to? unfortunately, as tempting as it is to play hooky today, it's back to reality for me and that means that I am back on my spin class-work-blog-sleep grind (not that it's the worst thing in the world). That being said, my planner got me thinking about what I would do if I got to play hooky today, so, if I were to have the day all to myself, it might look a bit like this:

7:30am- Wake Up and get ready

8:30am- Head to the Metro to go Downtown 

10:00am- Sit in a coffee shop with my iPad and catch up on blog reading and theSkimm

11:00am- Go to the National Gallery of Art (and have gelato in the café) 

1:00pm- Walk Around the Botanic Garden Conservatory

2:00pm- Head Home

4:00pm- Take Luther for a Walk at Burke Lake (4.7mi)

6:00pm- Quick Trip to Target

7:30pm- Make Dinner (Pinterest Recipe!)

8:30pm- Write a Blog Post

9:30pm- Get Ready for the Next Day and Watch Some Netflix

10:30pm- Bed Time!

What would you do if you had the day off today? Gosh, writing this list makes me want to play hooky, or at least head downtown to be a local tourist soon!

xoxo,

Sugar Snap Pearls

Summertime Hiking

Those of you who follow along on Instagram already know that I crossed another item off my 22 by 22 list on Sunday. I am really behind on this list, so I am super excited that I got to cross this off and that I had so much fun doing it!

I hadn't hiked Old Rag in easily 10 years before Sunday. It used to be a regular hike for my family, but with the divorce and my one incident up there, it really lost it's appeal and we just didn't go back. Honestly, I was totally nervous about having to conquer the mountain again, but the trip was so much fun! For those of you who haven't been before, it is a pretty strenuous 8 mile hike with a lot of rock scrambling towards the top. I was definitely feeling the burn after that hike, in large part because I decided to pace myself with one of my brothers who apparently wanted to treat the hike as a sprint, not a marathon.

Regardless, it was such a wonderful hike and if you are looking for some sort of weekend activity or alternative exercise, the summer is the perfect time to hike! This hike was largely in the shade so we didn't feel the midday sun and the views are absolutely spectacular!

And of course we had to stop at Moo Thru on the way back! (we totally earned it) Seriously, the best Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream ever...

If you are looking for places to hike in your area, check the NPS site or just a google search will show other local and state parks! Also, always be sure to check if you can bring pets before you leave for the park because some (including Old Rag) don't allow pets for various reasons.

xoxo,

Sugar Snap Pearls

Summer Soles

I so wish I could wear sandals to the office over the summer. I mean, it just doesn't seem fair that I only get to show off my pedicure on the weekends! I have a great pair of close-toed espadrilles that I got last year and are perfect for days when I want to wear heels to the office, but most days I just opt for flats. I don't really have any summer flats, but after looking around on the internet, I am loving some of the fun colors and prints:

Addie Loafers

Printed Anya Flat

Peep-toe Flats

Cutout Ballet Flats

Lainey Perforated Flats

What is your go-to summer shoe for the office?

xoxo,

Sugar Snap Pearls

Baseball by the Numbers

If you read my blog post from last week, you know that I was MIA due to a few wonderful days at the beach. Oh, and on that note, I somehow failed to upload the pics of the actual decorated Bubba Keg to my blog, so they're up now if you want to take a look!

Also, yesterday on Instagram I revealed that I will be spending my summer interning for MASN (Mid-Atlantic Sports Network) and I could not be more excited for it. I love that things are falling into place for this summer and can't wait for it all to start on Monday. Actually, I am really enjoying this weekend of doing absolutely nothing so that might have been a bit of a lie.

Part of my R and R weekend is going to a Washington Nationals game later today. I love baseball (obviously) and an afternoon at a ballpark is my ideal summer afternoon! That being said, it's a bit chilly and cloudy today...what gives, mother nature? In light of my internship and afternoon plans, I have decided to do Baseball By the Numbers:

1- Number of Hot Dogs You Should Eat

2- Maximum Number of Strike you can get on Foul Balls

2:57- Average Game Length

3- Strikes in an out and Outs in half an inning (aka each team gets 3 outs)

4- Number of Balls for a Walk

6-4-3 or 5-4-3- Common Double Play Combos (shortstop-second-first or third-second-first) each position on the field has an assigned number

9- Numbers of Players in the Field

16- Ounces in a Beer

30- Number of Teams in the MLB

60-70- Number of Baseballs Used Per Game

396.5- Average Home Run Distance

xoxo,

SSP

Starbucks Lite: What To Drink This Summer

It finally feels like Spring and I am so excited for this weather. Thank God I am going home for a bit this weekend so that I can grab all my sundresses and officially transition my closet to reflect the temperature. In addition to changing my closet, I will also be transitioning my go-to Starbucks drinks. Don't get me wrong, coffee is still going to be an important part of my diet, but now I will readily ask for it to be served on ice!

Starbucks has a great lineup of iced drinks, and I even tried their Sweet Tea the other day! A lot of people worry about the calories of a Starbucks iced drink, immediately associating it with a frappuccino, but the menu has much more to offer than that, and many of these other drinks won't kill your plans for a beach body!

One quick tip before we go into their drinks: Get Light Ice! Usually they put a ton of ice in a drink and quite frankly it's largely unnecessary unless you like it watered down. Personally, I love getting light ice because when I get a drink, I really want to enjoy it...all of it! haha

Iced Coffee is always a safe go-to, plus it only has a couple of calories if you get it unsweetened. They can add milk to the drink, but if you just want a tiny bit for flavor, I would recommend just going over and adding a bit at the station on the side.

I love Iced Chai and when I have a free reward, I get a skim dirty iced chai (add a shot or two of espresso)! Again, I really recommend this drink with light ice because a watery chai is no bueno! Iced Vanilla Lattes are also a good option if you get it with nonfat milk, a tall is only 120 calories!

Their iced teas (sans the Sweet Tea) have no calories. Yeah, zip, zero, nada...oh and they're delicious. I alternate between the iced green tea and passion tea all the time in the summer. The advantage of a green tea is that there is a bit of caffeine you won't find in a passion tea. Plus, this drink is wildly customizable as a base drink. You can get it mixed with lemonade (more calories, but delicious) or blended as a frappacino. Also, if you really like the taste of either of these, getting it sans water is delicious. Usually if I do that, I don't ask for light ice, but I do love the extra kick of the stronger green tea. This is a drink to mess around with until you figure out what you like, but it is always delicious and an iced tea is very cheap (for Starbucks)

None of these sound as appealing as that Frappuccino you're craving? Well, if you still want a frappuccino, just get a tall, skinny, light one...sans whipped cream!

Also, you can get a Trienta size in iced drinks, basically a supersized Starbucks!

What is your go-to Summer Drink?

xoxo,

SSP

Maxed Out: Styling Maxi Skirts

Happy Opening Day, Happy 21st Birthday Meghan, Happy Warm Weather Day...HAPPY DAY! Y'all, this is actually one of the best Mondays ever, and you know I mean it because I do not like Mondays, ever.

Over Spring Break my momma and I ventured down to Old Town Alexandria for a day of shopping and came across an awesome sale at the Gap outlet. One of the items I got was a cotton maxi skirt and I only wish that I'd realized how awesome these are sooner! These skirts are perfect for transitioning weather as it was chilly when I left this morning (40 degrees) but by the mid-afternoon when I walk home it'll be 70 degrees! Maxi skirts are so easy to style and you can change up the look of them so many different ways. Oh, and whean I was looking for skirts for this post, I came across Target's collection of them for around $20...how great is that? If you don't already have a cotton maxi skirt, go get one now. They're the perfect solution for looking more put together than you feel on a Monday morning!

And just in case you need a bit more convincing, these skirts can be styled as more than just a casual, running errands look. You can also throw on a nicer blouse and dress it up for a nicer event, even the office! These skirts come in cotton, chiffon, silk, etc. and the possibilities for styling them is endless.

Any other maxi skirt fans out there?

xoxo,

SSP