13 Cool Things You Need to Click On Today

Chillin' on a farm. On vacay, With some goats

Hiiii. Soooo...long time no blog, I know. I've been crazy at work (a big shoot, a big collaboration, a big issue of the magazine), I went on a vacation (always somewhat stressful), our nanny went on a vacation (always even more stressful), and to be quite honest, I've just had a major case of writer's block meets blogger fatigue over the past month or so. 

I've come to discover that blogging is kind of like eating well. When you're doing it regularly, it's actually not that difficult. But the minute you fall off the wagon and skip a few posts or eat a donut, it is so. damn. hard to start up again. 

But here I am! What are you guys up to this weekend? We're not usually big Hamptons people, but we'll be heading out there for a day to hang out with some friends who have a house there. Pray to the traffic gods for me, please.

Whatever you're up to this weekend, I hope you make it a great one! Here's a few fun links to check out in the meantime.

• You guys seemed to love this 10 Great Books post that I did earlier in the summer, so I've been working on another one for you, which I'll be posting soon. But I could not wait to tell you about the book I just finished. I absolutely tore through Kitchens of The Great Midwest, and ended up finishing it at 3am this past Wednesday because I could not put it down. As I said on my Facebook page, it is an incredible novel with fantastic characters, great writing, and a thoroughly engaging story that whips back and forth between hilarious and heartbreaking. It is so totally different than anything I have ever read--and just so much fun. I cannot recommend it highly enough. Get it now!

• Ooh! I wrote about this dress earlier in the summer and just saw that it's now on sale for under $100! So cute and so, so cool. Love.

• I adore the brand Carol's Daughter. Their founder, Lisa, is such an incredible, inspiring woman and their products smell completely amazing. (The Monoi haircare line is my favorite!) They just launched their empowering #BornandMade campaign (you've probably started to see the images popping up on social media) and you can join it here. (And check out my pic right here!)

• I found out this week that there is a COOKIE DOUGH STORE here in NYC and I damn near fell off my chair. 

• Moto boots meet rain boots. WANT.

• One of the funniest things I have seen in ages: a compilation of cheesy video clips from the '80s (complete with celeb cameos!) about how to model.

• This 300-pound NFL player eats 10,000 calories a day. And oh yeah--all of them are vegan.

• Now, that's a braid.

• Here's your "whoa" of the week: The crazy (and true!) story of a volcanic eruption back in 1815 that darkened the world and caused summertime blizzards.

• Fun back-to-school traditions that you can start doing with your kids. I'll be doing the first-day photos, but I'd love to add the interview, too. (What are your back-to-school traditions? Tell me below!)

• These one-star Yelp reviews of national parks are hilarious. My two favorites: the idiot who panned Death Valley because it was too hot, and the scary guy who blamed the bad time he had at Pinnacles on Obama. (h/t Felicia)

• Okay, so maybe GMOs aren't so bad: These pre-modified bananas are going to give me nightmares.

•  And, in case you missed it: I wrote about why those "selfish" women wanting to get their hair or makeup done soon after giving birth...are just fine by me.