Dress, c/o Ann Taylor | SHOES: Sandals, in tan | BAG: Bag, c/o | Sunglasses

This time last week, I was seriously suffering from jet lag.

Why you ask? Two Wednesdays back, I flew to France for a very quick, last-minute trip that was graciously hosted by Grey Goose. We landed in Paris on Thursday and waited for the rest of the group to arrive before taking the train into the town of Angoulême. From the train station, it was just a quick drive to Le Logis Grey Goose, which roughly translates to ‘the Grey Goose house’, located in the Cognac region — not far from Bordeaux, France.

Despite being incredibly exhausted when we arrived, the cheerful staff, stunning views of the French countryside and the beauty of the elegant 17th century manor and surrounding grounds was enough to give me a second wind. We got a quick tour of the manor — every inch of it was impeccably decorated and I’ve decided that someday, we’ll have chevron wood floors in our home. My favorite rooms were the kitchen, which had a big fireplace for cooking and a huge communal table where we ate breakfast and lunch, and the living room where we spent every night sipping cocktails and chatting.

We had some free time on our second day there to wander and explore the property and surrounding area. Le Logis had bikes on hand, so we could easily go exploring. It was one of the most peaceful and picturesque places I’ve ever been to, so naturally, we took advantage. How gorgeous is this place?! These pictures don’t do it justice!

One of the coolest parts of this trip, aside from the amazing location, hospitality, delicious food and perfectly-crafted drinks, were the people. I met a bunch of inspiring and creative folks and surprisingly enough, the majority of us were from Chicago! Not only did I get the chance to meet new peeps, but I also got the opportunity to do some fun and creative photo shoots with some of the photographers. Hopefully I’ll be sharing some of those with you guys over the next few weeks!

My packing list included this breezy shirt dress, my favorite sandals of the summer and my new bag from Lo & Sons. The bag is technically a camera bag, but looks like a leather cross body bag. It’s definitely one of the best travel pieces I own.

Make sure to stop by next week, I’ll be sharing more pictures and details from our trip!

BTW, pretty in pleats, and three days in Iceland.

Thank you to Grey Goose for sponsoring this amazing trip! As always, all opinions are my own!

Once upon a time I was a food blogger.

And once upon a time I entered a contest hosted by Whole Foods. To enter, all you had to do was create a video. So I asked forced my youngest sister, Caroline, who was still in high school at the time to film it for me. It actually took us forever to film it because every time we’d start shoooting, she’d burst out laughing. I mean, I can’t blame her, I do look like a total goof in the video. Eventually, I gave her the ‘let’s get serious look’ and we got it done.

Unfortunately, I did not win the grand prize which was a food tour in Europe, but the sandwich that I made for the video still brings back some amazing travel memories.

If you watched the video, you’ll know that the sandwich was inspired by the very first trip Rob and I ever took together as a couple. We went to San Francisco for a long weekend and ate lunch at a spot called The Grove. We were recently in SF and wanted to go back, but noticed the sandwich was no longer on the menu — sigh.

Anyway, I was thinking about that sandwich and realized that all the ingredients would make a pretty bomb salad, so I made it and guys! It’s so delicious. If you’ve never had chimichurri, you’re going to be obsessed. It’s garlicky, a touch spicy and has so much flavor.

Since the ingredients in this were minimal and simple, I wanted to elevate their flavors as much as possible so I pickled the red onions (I promise it’s not hard) and roasted the tomatoes in a hot pan instead of leaving them raw. It’s filling salad and perfect for an entrée — even Rob, who’s always hungry, was full after dinner!

If you wanted to do the tomatoes and steak on the grill, you totally could! I imagine it will add a nice smokey flavor, so if you try it out let me know!

BTW, homemade pasta on Tuesday? why not, and a day in Sonoma.

Dress, c/o | Sandals (also available here and here) | Sunglasses | Nail Polish | Bag | Necklace

Now days, doesn’t it seems the world is only getting smaller and smaller? Living abroad doesn’t seem like such a big ordeal as it did when I was younger. Rob and I have always loved traveling and have talked about living abroad for years.

I think one of our date night conversations completely revolved around, if we won the lotto, where in Europe would we buy a home? Copenhagen? London? Paris? Barcelona? The possibilities were endless!

I think I’d also be okay living somewhere tropical too. I have another day dream where I live minutes from the beach in Costa Rica and start my day with ocean swims and yoga on the beach — gah, I’d be so healthy.

We’ve talked (in detail) about which cities would be fitting for us and where else we’d like to travel to if we ever got the opportunity. But it made me wonder, does everyone else have this crazy imaginative dream where they live in a cute European town and ride around bicycles and work in picture perfect coffee shops? You know, because, obviously, this is what living abroad looks like (HA, I kid).

If we ever did move abroad, I can imagine my life looking a lot like this. Easy dresses (my palm print dress here), beautiful sandals and of course a matching bike with a basket on it to get around town and pick up fresh vegetables and flowers from the market.

So far, the opportunity hasn’t presented itself for us, but I’ll never rule it out!

Would you live abroad? Where would you ideally want to live and why? If you have lived abroad (or currently are) what do you love about it and what do you miss from home? Chime in below!

BTW, why we make travel a priority, and the travel bag every girl needs.

One of my all time favorite things to eat in the summer is a good, crisp and fresh salad. Unlike winter, I don’t crave soups and stews (my other go-to food group) when it’s hot outside and nothing really hits the spot like a crunchy, cool salad.

Since I work from home, salads also make for quick, easy and healthy lunches so lately I’ve been preparing the ingredients early in the week and eating them throughout the week. It makes my days so much easier and lunch time less stressful. Half the time I’m rummaging through the pantry trying to figure out something to eat — usually that ends in me making pasta which isn’t exactly ideal for a beach body.

You might have noticed that there’s a No.1 in front of the post title and that’s because I’m starting a little series on salads! Expect more healthy and delicious combinations throughout the next few months.

Rob and I make a point to eat healthy when we’re at home and as best as we can when we’re out, in fact, one of my old blogs was called Cookin’ Skinny and was completely dedicated to healthy recipes. Now that summer is in full swing, I’ve been cooking a lot more and making some really tasty creations that I wanted to share with you guys!

I think we can all agree that eating a little healthier never hurt anyone, so hopefully you guys enjoy this series and get inspired to make some healthy meals of your own!

This salad is one that I make pretty often so I figured it’d be a good one to start with! I love adding quinoa to salads for the extra protein and avocado for the creaminess! This vinaigrette is one of my favorites too and is a great one to make and keep stored in the refrigerator because it’s mild and tastes delicious on almost any salad!

BTW, this heirloom tomato salad and 6 yoga poses for strong abs.

ON ME: DRESS: Palm Shirtdress, c/o | SHOES: Marie Sandal | NAILS: Clambake | NECKLACES: Ann Revere Essential Layering Necklace, Mini Gold Bar Necklace & Matchstick Pendant Necklace, c/o
IN THE KITCHEN: Ceramic Egg Carton | BOOS Cutting Board | Pasta Maker | Pasta Bowls | Small Cutting Board

Years ago when I was in culinary school, I got really into home-making a lot of different foods. I tried my hand at making dill pickles, fresh raviolis, salted caramels, BBQ sauce and even homemade mozzarella. For a while I was pretty set on being a cheesemaker, but that dream was short-lived — especially when I realized that I’m a wee bit lactose-intolerant.

Despite my failed attempts at becoming a cheesemaker, I still do love the process of making something from scratch. I don’t do it very often, but every time I do, I remember exactly why I love cooking so much.

It can be so therapeutic.

Well, if you have the time! But when you do, there’s something so soothing and peaceful about being in the kitchen alone and working with your hands. It’s a bit like meditation for me, but with an tastier end-result!

A few weeks ago I had finished work early and got a strange urge to make homemade pasta. If you’ve ever made it, you know it’s time-consuming, but it’s also really fun! So I pulled out my pasta maker and all the ingredients and got to work. You can find the full recipe below.

After the pasta was complete and my sauce was simmering, I poured a glass of rosé and waited for Rob to get home.

So peaceful!

Have you ever made homemade pasta? Do you find cooking to be therapeutic or does it feel like a chore?

BTW, how to make blueberry goat cheese ice cream and the dream kitchen debate — which kitchen would you pick?