Simple Joys of the Week, September 4th Edition

Labor Day weekend is here! On the Cape, we think of this weekend as the final weekend of summer craziness...which means that September, or "Local's Summer," starts now. Hooray!

I've worked my booty off this week, so plan on taking some serious time off this weekend to enjoy the sunshine, the beach, and probably do some work on the house + yard (obvs). 

But before we move on and start discussing our weekend plans, lets look back at our #SJOTW from the past week. What brought you happiness over the past 7 days? Here are some of my simple pleasures...

HEAR: Hunter Hayes Concert
I know it's kind of hilarious, but Hunter Hayes came to Cape Cod last weekend and we went to see him (along with all of the 12-year old girls who live in New England). It's not that my expectations were low, per se, but I was pleasantly surprised by the concert because he was a great performer + has a truly wonderful voice. It was also my first time at the Melody Tent, an outdoor venue here on the Cape that's only open in the summer, so that was fun ;) 

You can listen to a fun little Hunter Hayes ditty, "Everybody's Got Somebody but Me" below: 

SEE: The *amazing* response to Namaste Nantucket: An Island Yoga Retreat
As you probably saw on Monday, I'm co-leading my first Cape Cod-esque (technically not Cape Cod, but an island off of Cape Cod) yoga retreat next summer (!). My co-leader and BFF, Laura Whitaker, and I were excited + slightly nervous to officially announce the retreat, but were thrilled to see the immediate positive response and how many of you plan on joining us! Want to snag one of the limited spaces? Get more info + sign up here. 

TASTE: Spinach, Kale, + Berry Smoothie
I love green smoothies, but I don't always love having a smoothie for breakfast because I have this thing about liking to chew my meals (don't ask). That being said, I was in a hurry one morning this week and went for a green smoothie with berries, a banana, + greek yogurt, and it was DELICIOUS. I've decided to start having them two mornings a week and see where it goes...I'd love to be a green smoothie for breakfast every day kinda gal... 

SMELL: Burt's Bees Sensitive Facial Cleanser
Just bought this cleanser because I needed something really gentle, and so far, I love it! It has the most subtle, clean scent--the kind of scent that is not a scent, but is actually the scent of NOT being scented, which makes me happy that they didn't scent it, ya know!? Lovely. 

TOUCH: Veggies from the garden 
You know I don't have a veggie garden--although I would also like to be that person someday--but lucky for me, lots of my students have veggie gardens, so I get to enjoy freshly-picked cucumbers, kale (see smoothie above), tomatoes, swiss chard, + more during the summer. I used a bunch of gifted veggies to make a big garden salad during a small cookout that we hosted last weekend, and it was divine.

Other SJOTW? Getting back to podcasting with Ben (did you see that Season #2 of Starr Struck Radio dropped on Tuesday?), being featured in a sweet Q&A on Jessica Lawlor's blog, Get Gusty, and spending some time at the beach last weekend. 

Oh, and my BIGGEST simple joy of the week is one that is SO big that I need to save it for an entire post or podcast episode: I finally have help! As you may have read in my newsletter, I've hired my first Starr Struck "employee" and this week was her first week. Having someone share my workload has been the most exciting thing EVER, and I keep pinching myself when work gets done and I'm not the one who did it. Eek!!! Will introduce her and share more on this big change soon.

Have a *WONDERFUL* long weekend, everyone! Soak it up.