recap: four week vacation

Your employer has given you four weeks to do whatever you want - outside of work - and you have to take all four weeks at once. So what would you do and where would you go? 

See some gorgeous new places...

make some new friends...

and find some new favorite places...

What a great vacation it was. Two weeks on the west coast, including a beautiful wedding of two of our friends (complete with dolphins in the background - for real), followed by two weeks at home doing everything I don't normally have time to do (like go to the gym). I have a newfound love for kale (thank you, Lovely's Fifty-Fifty of Portland), determined that I need real help when it comes to packing for a vacation (we had to mail ourselves packages - twice - because we didn't have enough room in our suitcases), and decided that I would 100% love to have a job where I could bring Sprout to work with me every day (someday?).

Sidenote: I also added two states to my 50 before 50 list!

Sunday sales

With so many sales happening right now, I'm having a hard time not spending too much on purchases I don't really need- so instead, I've already started my Christmas shopping! (And decorating, but we'll save that for another day.)

Old Navy's 30% off site wide sale makes these already-budget-friendly coats even more so (1 and 2). You can also find some great cozy knits that are also budget-friendly. Nordstrom's 40% off sale has these fab shoes and this gorgeous watch for much less than their normal prices. And J.Crew's 25% off sale (when you spend $100) has some great mixed media pieces, like this leather-sleeve top and this sweater. Happy Sunday shopping!

Monday notes

I have some fun things in the works, but in the meantime, I'm getting really excited for the holidays. We are hosting Thanksgiving at our house again this year, and then the day after will be a decorating frenzy. Few things get me as excited as decorating for Christmas!

In case you missed it, I'm back from a two-week vacation on the west coast: to Seattle, Portland, Napa, and photos from San Francisco coming soon. I'm spending the day snuggling with my Sprout before I get into cleaning the house and doing other chores.

The Everygirl has some great tips on how to do well at a meeting.

Don't miss Piperlime's 25% off items under $100 sale!

Some items I'm coveting this season: over-the-knee boots, a monogram necklace, elbow-length leather gloves, a dog bed with Sprout's name on it, and much more vacation time.

image via

leopard print in Napa

I can't remember the last Halloween when it was ridiculously sunny and in the high 60s. But that's probably also because I've never spent Halloween in California, where such things are possible. We did two vineyard tours/tastings back to back, which made for a very full afternoon. At one of the vineyards, they let us eat grapes off the vine. Most delicious. things. ever.

(Yes, I always carry bags this big. If it can't fit half my life, I can't use it.)

The scenery was incredible. Occasionally this meant driving up very, very windy roads. I have a thing about heights, so that wasn't cool. But the wine and the view were spectacular once we got to the top.

leopard-print button down (old from J.Crew, similar here) // Banana Republic navy sweater (old, similar here) // Banana Republic jeans // nameplate necklace from Etsy // Ray-Ban sunglasses // Michael Kors watch // JPK bag (this one is another great option)

3 days in Seattle

As I mentioned, T and I are vacationing on the west coast, exploring new cities. We spent a few days in Seattle, where these photos were taken. From the first-ever Starbucks to the aquarium to an underground tour of the older part of the city, it was a great few days.

Aquariums are usually one of my favorite attractions. The Seattle Aquarium did not disappoint, with some adorable resident sea lions and sea otters.

Our home team is in the World Series - go Red Sox!

Fall kitchen: baked apples

One of the easiest (and almost-healthy) desserts you can make this Fall is a baked apple. And if you've never had one, get in your kitchen right now. You'll need:

4 apples, cored
1 cup rolled oats
4 large marshmallows
1/2 cup brown sugar
teaspoon cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
(you'll divide up these ingredients among the four apples)


Once your apples have been cored, place them in a grease-free baking dish and stick half of a marshmallow in each apple as a sort of cork. Then put a spoonful of brown sugar in each.

Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg into your apples, following with a spoonful of rolled oats. Top with the other half of your marshmallow. Optional addition: A drizzle of honey (or maple syrup) adds an extra sweet touch. Bake about 20 minutes in a 400 degree oven and serve alongside your favorite pork dish.

Do you have any family-favorite apple recipes that make their way out in the Fall year after year? I'd love to hear about them!

trend spotting: pretty in pink

One trend I can't get enough of right now is a lady-like pink coat (especially when paired with gray, black, or leopard). 

images via 1, 2, 3

If you can't get your hands on pink outerwear, Boston-area ladies can head to MiniLuxe for a mani with their newest color, a pale pink to benefit the Ellie Fund Do Good Campaign’s effort to battle breast cancer. All net proceeds from the nail polish bottles go toward the campaign, so you can do something for yourself and for others at the same time! (They recently opened a new location in Lynnfield and have a gorgeous new garnet-colored polish to celebrate the opening.)

how to dry a bouquet

The bouquets for my sister's wedding were gorgeous. The flowers were exactly what she wanted, and after the weekend, I took her bouquet home to preserve it for her while she got ready to jet off to the honeymoon.

I used a crochet needle and yarn to string up the bouquet and hang it upside down on a hanger. It's important to hang it upside down so that the flowers keep their shape. Then into a dark, dry closet it went for two weeks to dry.

Mold or mildew may start to grow on some of the flowers, and you can easily kill this with white vinegar. It's amazing stuff. I put some white vinegar into a spray bottle to easily get to the spots I needed to.

Two weeks later...

With the flowers dried, I took them outside and used a Krylon clear spray to seal them. It's tough to get into the stems, but do it as best you can. Coat all of the leaves and flowers (and berries), and then let dry for about an hour.

I tested everything first on my bridesmaid bouquet before doing her bridal bouquet. My bridesmaid bouquet is definitely not as pretty dried as it was on the wedding day, but it is now dried and preserved. Once you've dried your bouquet, the best place for it to go is into a tissue-lined box so that nothing snaps off.

chocolate goodies and Card.com

If you follow on Instagram, you know that I'm in one of those dreaded weeks - midterms. Whether you're still in school or can think back to that time, you know it's miserable. This morning during a marathon study session, I decided to treat myself to a whole lot of chocolate with a chocolate croissant and a chocolate-and-whipped-topped latte. (The wedding diet can wait.)

Note: I had to dig into that whipped cream before I could even snap a photo.

I was excited to pay for my treats with my new prepaid debit card from Card.com. I chose this giraffe card because I knew opening up my wallet to see this instead of a boring old card would make me happy. They have a variety of other choices, from animals to cartoon characters to nature scenes. But how cute is he?

There are a ton of great features you can find out about on Card.com, but one of the best things is that you can't get overdraft fees. Go check out Card.com's prepaid debit cards- and, as with anything having to do with your finances, make sure you read all of the rules and fine print.

Compensation for this post was provided by Card.com. As always, all opinions are my own.

game day style

I come from a family of Patriots fans - yes, the type of people who say "we" instead of "the team". Huge tailgates, Sundays at the stadium, and wearing snowsuits outdoors for hours among thousands of others are typical for us. But on gorgeous Fall days like the ones we've been having lately, I'm drawn to slightly more fashionable items in team colors.

shop the look:

Other style notes...

How gorgeous is that LK Bennett blue coat? Here's a similar wrap coat in a camel color for those of you who cheer for a team without blue.

These lace-up style booties are a good alternative to the stacked heel style above.

I like to keep a pair of comfy gloves with me in case it gets chilly when the sun goes down.