#18: The Weekly Rundown
Recipes, kitchen favorites and lots of books
I hope you had a great long weekend! Mine was mostly slow, peppered with some fun friend get-togethers. RJ and I have been watching Friends — he has never seen it before !!! — and it has been so much fun to watch from start to finish over the last year or so. We have gained some momentum lately as we’re finally wrapping up the final two seasons. It’s my ultimate comfort show, but I haven’t watched it so intently in years.
I am headed to the beach with my mom on Sunday, so I’ll be taking next week off of eudaemonic! I’m hoping to come back refreshed and ready for lots of new content (and life in general) as we head into the fall.
Today, one of my very best friends is joining us on eudaemonic. On the creative front, Alexandra Flint is a creative consultant, stylist, and design editor with an impressive log of clients and experience. On the friend front, she is incredibly loyal and thoughtful, exuding warmth to everyone she meets. Always up for a lighthearted laugh or a more serious cry. I absolutely adore her style — in her home, the homes she styles, and in her closet. Excited to introduce you to my pal, Alexandra Flint.
What is eudaemonic for you lately?
ALEXANDRA: A small personal luxury turned nighttime ritual bringing me happiness recently is applying my EvolveTogether hand cream. I found the brand this summer and ordered their discovery set. Each scent is divine, and it’s the only hand cream I have tried that is not sticky. Moisturizing my hands each night has become a favorite way to end the day and ground myself.
What’s your best latest purchase?
ALEXANDRA: This Madewell Slip Skirt in Tangerine. It’s the perfect summer skirt I must endorse! A total departure from my normal wardrobe color palette and I love it. I wear it with yellow sneakers + a white tee and have never gotten more compliments. Also for context: I am 7 months pregnant so any piece of clothing that makes me feel a little like myself is a true hero item. I purchased the blue too (on sale!) and am contemplating getting it in my regular size so I can wear next summer. Another selling point: it’s machine washable!
What is always stocked in your fridge or pantry?
ALEXANDRA: King of Pops Raspberry Lime Popsicles. They are *chef’s kiss* with only real ingredients and a shaved ice texture that makes them so good. I have one just about every single night. And while they’re local to Atlanta you can find them at WF or Sprouts!
Who is your favorite follow of the moment?
ALEXANDRA: On @airmailweekly, they have started a new IG reel series where they ask their brilliant culture editors different questions like what they’re reading, what their favorite NYC summer restaurant is, what art exhibit they are most excited to check out, etc. While their answers are a bit pretentious (they are culture editors after all) and usually something I’ve never heard of, the casual off-the-cuff video style makes it approachable and totally intriguing. I always look into their recs after watching.
Lilly Sisto @lillysisto. A fashion-focused creative I started following on IG this spring; her style is appealing, fun, and utterly cool. She’s the exact kind of chatty-casual-authentic vibe I like. I love her Substack, too. And her sister Alexandra @alexandrasistodaniel is another fav new follow: equally-stylish and a fellow boy mom based in Palm Beach.
What’s your favorite restaurant in your city?
ALEXANDRA: Le Bon Nosh. A must if you are ever in Atlanta! A beautiful space designed by SF-based Commune Design with equally incredible food. All locally sourced and organic ingredients so the quality is unmatched. Two current menu favorites: the earl grey raspberry scone and lentil salad.
How do you turn around a bad day?
ALEXANDRA: I call a friend. They usually make me laugh, get me out of my head and ground me in a way I cannot describe!
If there’s someone you’d like to see featured or a question you’d like to see answered, please let me know! You can reply directly to this email or use the comments.
COOKING
I feel like I’m writing a blog a la Julie and Julia in mentioning What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking again. That said, we have yet to go wrong! The lemony garlic butter orzo with shrimp was so easy and so tasty. When I was down with more back issues (fun!) last week, RJ made the harissa roasted veggies with whipped feta for us. Unreal!
Seems like you guys loved the cutting board last week, so I thought I’d share a few more kitchen items that I can’t live without. My brother and sister-in-law gave me the Our Place Always pan for my birthday, and I do not know what I was doing without it!!! We cook everything in this — eggs, pasta, bean bowls, sautéed veggies, frittata, etc. — and use it at least once per day. It is the best nonstick pan I’ve ever had, and I like that it’s deeper than our other frying pans. I love it enough that I’m considering purchasing more from their line (and apparently they’re having a sale right now!).
These dish towels are super affordable and very absorbent. I keep them stocked beneath the sink!
I think I’ve mentioned them, but our pasta bowls are my obsession. They’re the most used item in our kitchen (alongside the Always pan and our cutting board/knife). We love a veggie bowl for dinner, but I also love them for serving dips or making a snack bowl with hummus, veggies, chili crisp, etc. I just found out that they make a plastic-free outdoor unbreakable version, and I think we need them!
I learned on Sunday night that crispy rice salads are all the rage on TikTok, and I then came across this recipe on Cup of Jo — on my list to make!
READING
I spent most of the weekend reading! I’m trying so hard to let my back fully heal this second time around, so it was a quiet weekend with my Kindle. I finished five books in the last week — all page-turner thrillers that I couldn’t put down. The Other Mothers and House of Glass were probably my favorite, but Don’t Let Her Stay, Greenwich Park, and Darling Girls also kept me so entertained and up late reading every night. (That’s the tradeoff with reading at night … better sleep but fewer hours.)
Reading-adjacent, I bought a pop socket for my Kindle! Makes it much more comfortable to hold with one hand.
SHOPPING
I enjoyed Grace Atwood’s post about things she’s looking forward to wearing this fall that are already in her closet. I’m hoping to have that mindset a bit more this season and planning to document a bit of “shopping the closet” here instead of shopping online. We’ll see!
Per usual, my favorite recent purchases came from Gap. I’m excited to have these horseshoe jeans for fall, and I think Gap has the best sweatshirts, so I grabbed a fresh one of these when they were on sale. I keep thinking about this oversized denim jacket, too.
In extremely not fashionable shopping, I bought these Oofos slides to wear *around the house* for my back, and I have to say, they’re extremely comfortable, and I do think they take some pressure off of my back. RJ has been singing their praises for a month now, and I finally caved.
That’s all for now. I’ll see you back here in two weeks!
xo, Annie
Lovee this chat with Alexandra! I feel lucky to have met her through work and totally forgot that you two are friends!! #worldscolliding.!! Also bought those slides for the house and while they'll never grow on me visually, my feet officially cannot live without them anymore!