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8.30.2016

this or that: sneaks.

When it comes to sneakers, which do you prefer? I've been a 574 girl since college, but I've found myself drawn to the classic Stan Smith as of late...and at $75 for either pair, you're not breaking the bank.

8.26.2016

j.crew september 2016.


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As much as I've been loving summer, fall is fast approaching. We had some significantly cooler temps in New England at the beginning or the week and I have to admit, I didn't hate it. There was a nice breeze and crisp air and it made for perfect sleeping weather with windows wide open.

The taste of fall coincided with the arrival of the September J.Crew catalog, and I am seriously loving so many things. I think what I appreciate most is that they're bringing back classics each season and my closet will only need a few updates to recreate the outfits above. I have my eye on this white skirt, this purse and this sweater blazer. Happy weekend!

8.23.2016

weekend in pics.

Friday night sushi.
Bedside table carnations (sidenote: I don't know why these get such a bad rap--I love them and they last forever).

Yet another western Mass. lunch at my favorite place.

I had a pretty solid weekend--I ran a bunch of errands Saturday morning (which included picking up cotton candy grapes--so weird but good), had lunch with my sister and then made crabcakes for dinner. On Sunday I went to my grandparents' house to help with sorting through my grandmother's things--it was tough at times, but it was great to bring back memories and share stories with everyone. I'm hoping this week goes fast--work has been rather stressful lately and I'm seriously counting down the days until Labor Day weekend.

8.19.2016

my sweet nana.



My dear, sweet Nana passed away on Tuesday morning from ovarian cancer. She was the most elegant person I've ever known--she was a world traveler, a selfless volunteer and had an incredibly sharp wit. I'm so grateful that I had the past 34 years to get to know her, and being able to spend time with her these last couple of months was especially great.

I will miss her very much.

8.16.2016

weekend recap.



I had a really great long weekend in Maine. Olive and I headed up on Thursday morning (I had been planning on leaving Wednesday evening but I couldn't seem to get organized, so Thursday it was). Our dear family friends have the place next to us, and they invited me to dinner at the Reading Room. I was so psyched to finally be able to go.




It was pretty hot (in the 90s which is crazy for Maine) but there was  nice breeze coming off the water which made everything much more bearable.



I had the vegetarian dish--it was puff pastry with wilted spinach and sautéed onions and mushrooms in a mushroom cream sauce, and it was heavenly. It was seriously such a great way to kick off my mini vacation.

I had originally thought that I'd have some company this weekend but it work out and I ended up flying solo--at first I wondered if I should just bail on the entire weekend because I was all by myself, but it ended up being great. I did my own thing and brought books with me to restaurants and really just enjoyed having a little "me" time--five years ago I never would have done that, but now I'm pretty comfortable doing things/going places alone.



I went to my usual places and had great meals (including the eggplant pesto ricotta pizza above) and plenty of wine.




I also treated myself to these earrings at Serendipity in Portsmouth--I had been looking for delicate gold studs for a while, and these were a steal at $14.



Olive thoroughly enjoyed herself--she loves going for walks around our neighborhood and checking out the beach (I had to pick her up a couple of times to bring her back to the house--she wanted to keep going and going).

To cap everything off, I played in a charity golf tournament on Monday. It was so much fun, but now I'm wiped and super crispy thanks to a lack of sunscreen. Here's hoping my relaxing weekend acts as a motivator at work!

8.10.2016

maine bound.



After some careful contemplation regarding my professed desire for summertime joie de vivre, I decided to head up to Maine for a long weekend. This summer has been a complete 180 from last year's, and while I've so appreciated the special focus on family, I've also missed my time in my favorite place. I think a few days away will be a much needed refresh. See you next week!

8.08.2016

weekend things.

The most delicious post-run Iggy's bagel with smoked salmon cream cheese, heirloom tomato slices and a bite taken out of it. (I couldn't wait).
This weekend was essentially a repeat of the previous weekend--I went out to western Massachusetts with my sister to visit with my grandmother and mom (which was great) and then I returned to have dinner with my dad (also great).

I went for a run on Sunday morning and it was super hot, although I'm pretty pleased with myself for consistently going for runs all last week. It hasn't been pretty, but I've been telling myself that the more I do it, the easier it will get (and that one good run amidst all of the crappy ones makes it worthwhile).

I've also been on a bit of a homemade ice cream kick: after perfecting the lavender honey combo, I branched out on Sunday and made s'mores ice cream with gluten free graham crackers (I made it gluten free so my dad and my sister could eat it and I wouldn't be stuck with three pints of ice cream calling my name every time I opened my freezer). The end result was delicious, and I'm already brainstorming my next batch.

This week is a short one for me--I'm taking Thursday and Friday off. I was originally planning on going to Maine but I might just do a staycation here...regardless, I will be very happy with a few days sans work.

8.05.2016

rifle paper les fleurs.

rifle paper les fleurs

Have you seen Rifle Paper Co.'s recent fabric launch? I'm in love. I've wanted to get some fabric to make a cushion for a window seat in my living room for a while now and this collection might be the push I need (and when I say "make a cushion", I mean "ask my mom to make a cushion" because she is a sewing maestro and I can barely replace a shirt button).

My favorites are the carousel in blush (cotton):

carousel blush
Or the rosa in natural (canvas):

rosa natural 
Or the folk horse in coral (also canvas):

folk horse coral 

Decisions, decisions. Happy weekend!

8.02.2016

this or that.

this or that: porch edition.






I added some wicker chairs, a chaise lounge and an umbrella to my deck this summer, but my screened-in porch needs some serious TLC. I'm in love with the swing chair (it reminds me of one my grandmother had growing up) but I could totally see myself getting comfortable on the swing bed with a good book.

Which do you prefer? 

8.01.2016

weekend things.

Happy August! I'm ready to really buckle down and start this month on a strong note--increasing my running and eating healthy are definitely my number one priorities...we'll see how long my motivation lasts.

{ target table }

After seeing this table on Chic Geek on Friday, I headed to Target to snatch it up. I had been wanting to get a new table to put adjacent to my fireplace to hold my DVD player, cable box and phone, but everything I liked was stupid expensive and I really didn't want to break the bank. I thought this would go with the rest of my living room and it was cheap (currently on sale for $45). I initially wanted my dad cut open the back so I could hide a power strip and associated cords, but he ended up mounting the power strip directly to the back so everything was hidden and the table wasn't butchered. After some help from my sister organizing everything, I'm super happy with the result:





Saturday was very low-key and after grabbing lunch with my sister, I hung out at home and my dad came over for dinner. On Sunday my sister and I headed out west and went to our favorite lunch spot-- I had the most delicious Caesar salad with gorgonzola, peppers, bacon and portobello mushrooms:



It was great to spend a little time with my grandmother and also have some one-on-one time with my mom--she (and my aunt) have been essentially living with my grandparents since my grandmother got sick, so it was great to take a little break and catch up over wine. I stopped by Insomnia Cookies for a treat afterwards (they deliver oven-baked cookies  until 3 a.m.--I'm so glad there wasn't one of these near me when I was in college--it would have been a total disaster) and headed back home to have dinner with my dad. It was a fun weekend.

Here's to a productive week!