Legacy

I popped into the Coach store in Charlotte to pick up some fabric cleaner since my Carly bag has gotten a little dirty from everyday use. With my purchase, the saleswoman gave me a sample of the new Legacy perfume and I must say its a very pleasant smell--floral but not overly sweet.

I'm back!

I feel bad for neglecting my little blog for a whole week. After being gone for five days and then trying to catch up at work and home, I've been a tad bit busy...

My trip to Charlotte was great. I had a lot of fun just exploring the city with Hunter and driving through cool neighborhoods, sightseeing, and shopping. It was such a huge contrast from DC, where the streets are bustling with energy from pedestrians, noise, and traffic. Charlotte's downtown felt deserted compared to DC. Hardly any traffic and hardly any people! (granted, we explored downtown on Sunday, during the big Panthers game, which I think the whole city had gone to). Charlotte has lots of cool, unique restaurants and tons of cozy wine bars--and the shopping is fabulous as well. Just about every store you would ever want or need.


My drive down route 29 wasn't too bad either. The colorful fall foliage along the scenic country road made the 7 hour drive not only bearable, but enjoyable. My secret to getting through long road trips is to get a good book-on-tape. Sounds kinda nerdy, I know, but listening to a good story on CD makes the drive go by so much faster. Books-on-tape got me through the countless 12 hour drives home from Tech to St. Louis during college. I went to the library and picked up The Debutante Divorce by Plum Sykes on CD. I had already read her first book Bergdorf Blondes, and needed a lighthearted chick-lit that would make for easy listening. It fit the bill perfectly.

My first day back to work happened to be our agency outing, so I didn't really do any work since the whole office went downtown to the ESPN Zone and proceeded to eat, drink, and compete in countless arcade games as a means of "team-building." Mandatory fun that was actually really fun.

So it's already the end of the week and I've only really done one full day of work. Yesterday was super busy trying to catch up on all our jobs, but I'm finally caught up and back to the daily grind.

Today's Halloween. I don't have a costume planned and I don't have any candy to give to the trick-or-treaters tonight. I've never really been that into Halloween, so I don't put much effort into it. I didn't even carve a pumpkin this year (never got around to carving Michael Phelps). I like the idea of these glittered pumpkins from Martha Stewart instead.

Charlotte bound

I'm excited about my trip to Charlotte this weekend! I'm taking Friday, Monday and Tuesday off, giving myself a nice long weekend to visit Hunter. I've never been to Charlotte before, but I've heard tons of great things about it, so I'm looking forward to visiting and exploring the city with my love. I love traveling to new places!

Firefly

I recently discovered Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka. It's reaaaalllly good.

Try it with Lemonade. Or just on the rocks. Or with cranberry juice. Or with lime and mint. Or maybe peach schnapps. Oh the possibilities!!

crush on cranberry

It's weird how as soon as fall hits and it starts to get colder, my affinity for certain things becomes much more pronounced. Case in point: cranberries. I can't get enough of their tart, juicy goodness during the fall and winter months. The taste, the scent, the color--I love 'em.

I bought some straight-up real organic cranberry juice from Wegmans (best grocery store ever) last night. I'm done with that sweetened fake cranberry juice cocktail. I've decided to cut back on my soda and Starbucks intake--I'm only allowing myself these pleasures in moderation on weekends--so I figured I'd indulge in some delicious Cranberry juice instead. High in antioxidants!

And this...


...is the best smelling stuff there is. Instead of candles, I have a home fragrance oil burner from The Body Shop that I love. And the only fragrance I use is their Cranberry scent, 'cause it smells so good.

And I already posted these, but these Pumpkin Cream Tarts with Candied Cranberries sound delish:


I really want to make them, even though the recipe seems a little complicated. It's going on my to-do list!

what if...

...I carved a pumpkin with the likeness of Michael Phelps?


Cuz if I really wanted to, I could use the stencil from here.

my daily j.crew fix

Can I just say that J.Crew's Tissue tees are the most comfortable shirts ever?!

They're basic and simple and overpriced, but perfect and comfy and I could wear them every day. So today I'm wearing this one that I scored on sale:

Tissue Turtleneck

I need to break my habit of daily checking the J.Crew site, so that I won't be tempted when I find fabulous new stuff that I *need* such as:

Classic Peacoat

Siena Metallic-Leather Driving Mocs

Gayle Patent-Leather Heels

I recently ordered this Matilda Dress from the big sale they just had, since it was already marked down about 65% plus an extra 20% off. It's supposed to be arriving today! Yay!


I am all about the deep purple/plum color lately. I love it. So perfect for autumn.

knitting

A special little project in the works:

thank goodness

With all the economic turmoil hovering around, it's reassuring to know I live and work in the safest city to live in during a recession! (at least according to this article) Whew!

baking with pumpkins

Thanks to {ritzy bee blog} for pointing out the scrumptious pumpkin recipes found on the Country Living website. These pumpkin treats make we want to bake like crazy! They all sound soooo good.

Pumpkin Spice Cake


Donuts with Cream Cheese Pumpkin Icing!


Spiced Pumpkin Waffles!!


Pumpkin Cream Tarts with Candied Cranberries!


Pumpkin and Cream Cheese Muffins!


Mini Pumpkin Cakes


And oh my gosh! Pumpkin BISCUITS!!!


I will definitely be trying some of these recipes!