Friday Favorites

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How are we two days away from October? Time is going at warp speed right now. I made it through my single parenting week. We have a lot of bumps (literally), but I am glad I got to have this time with my girls.

Let's get onto Friday Favorites and Happenings.

ONE. There have been a lot of attempted kidnappings in my local area. Not just on women, but children too. You can guess why they are being kidnapped. This week, our local police put out a huge warning, sent out photos of these creeps and ways to protect yourself. It has made me really weary of taking my girls out anywhere. The attempts have been at retail stores, so I haven't wanted to take them anywhere near a store.

I am super cautious and have already taken steps on adjusting the way I go about my business at the stores. I will no longer put the cart at the rear of my car and take one child out, load them and get the next child. I will be taking them both out at the same time, bringing them to the car and having one stand in front of me between me and the door while I load the other.

I will be more cautious about my surroundings. I will take my keys out before leaving the store. I will watch what is going on in the store to make sure no one is following me or checking me out.

This is scary stuff going on. I don't know why in the last month it has gotten worse, but it has.

I wanted to get the girls some new pjs, long socks and other Fall/Winter things, but I just don't want to go to the stores, so I will order online for now. And I am really considering (but not fully committed yet) getting the girls the harness leashes. Yes that sounds awful and I am not a big fan of it, but when you have two toddlers running around, I think it is better to be safe than sorry. I am looking at getting one of these two:

 Butterfly

Mickey

TWO. I am always looking for Fall clothes and I am sure my husband shakes his head every time there is a package on our doorstep because it usually is mine or the girls. This week, I found the cutest sweatshirt with bow sleeves. It is on sale for $35 and I could pass it up. I mean how cute is this?

THREE. I have been binge watching Bloodline on Netflix. It has the coach from Friday Night Lights in it and I am almost done with it. This show is amazing. I LOVE it. It was recommended to me a few times, but after reading the synopsis, I was not interested. But after a ton of people said to watch it, I did. I chose it over watching Friday Night Lights which everyone said to watch as well.

Well I just found out Friday Night Lights is leaving Netflix on Sunday October 1st. I don't think I can binge 5 seasons without locking myself in my house and keeping away from my girls. So I hope it either comes back (license gets renewed) or you all can tell me where else I can watch it without buying the series.

Otherwise, what other Netflix shows do you recommend? And in the meantime, go watch Bloodline.

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FOUR. I bought the cutest Sam Edelman flats last week and they arrived this week. I have been wearing them to work every since and I LOVE them. There is no break in time, they fit perfectly (true sizing) and are by one of my favorite brands. If you are looking for flats to wear to work or for fun this winter, get these. They come in many colors too.

flats

FIVE. Today I have to grab a few things from the store, so I am going to pick up the ingredients for these cookies. I am going to bake them today before I pick up the girls from daycare and before my husband gets home from his week long trip. I love pumpkin everything and I am not sure these will be as good as my moms pumpkin oatmeal cookies, but I am hoping they are close. I love classic sugar cookies and adding a bit of pumpkin to it sounds like perfection. Have any of you tried these? I will let you know what I think of them.

Pumpkin Sugar Cookies

I hope you all have a good weekend. I will be relaxing most of the weekend and catching up on missed sleep from this week. I also hope to go to watch the Nevada Wolf Pack football game at the bar with my friends and brunch on Sunday with some amazing twin moms.

I am linking up with April, A Little Bit of Everything, Meet @ the Barre and Cup of Tea.

Mug Love Exchange Reveal + A Starbucks Giveaway

A few weeks ago I mentioned a mug exchange that I was co-hosting. Well now is the time to reveal your mugs. Don't forget to use the hashtag #MugLoveExchange on your IG.

This year I was paired up with Tay (Antavia). She has two small boys and so like me, she lives on coffee. She told me she loves caramel and chocolate, so I found the cutest mug that has a chocolate theme. I really hope she loves it.

As for my mug, I received this beauty. I told Tay that I loved coffee, my favorite colors were pink and gold, I used creamer in my coffee unless I get my favorite, a vanilla latte.

Not only did she send me the mug, but she sent my girls Halloween cookie houses, a Starbucks gift card and a pumpkin chap stick. She truly went all out. Thank you so much.

I had so much fun participating and co-hosting this blogger exchange. I love meeting, new to me bloggers and IGers. If you participated in the mug love exchange, please link up below.

Also, along with our link up, we are giving away a $50 Starbucks giftcard. I mean who doesn't love their daily Starbucks? I know you would get a Starbucks daily if you could, right? I know I would.

Enter now! The giveaway goes from September 28th to October 8th. Good Luck!

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An InLinkz Link-up

What's Up Wednesday

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I actually remembered to participate in a What's Up Wednesday.

WHAT WE ARE EATING THIS WEEK...

This week I am single parenting, so I had to meal plan in order to save my sanity. My co-worker sent me a Blue Apron code to get a free week of meals. I got 3 meals, 2 servings per meal and even decided to try a week (where I pay) to see if I really like it. And if I want to try another meal service as well.

Sunday: Pork tenderloin with a verde salsa and panzanella salad
Monday: Sesame beef lo mein with bok choy and shishito peppers
Tuesday: Fresh gnocchi with summer squash
Wednesday: Tomato soup with grilled cheese
Thursday: Pizza night with my girls
Friday: Take out
Saturday: Not sure

WHAT I'M REMINISCING ABOUT...

My trip to England, Scotland and Gibraltar last year (part 1, 2 here, 3 here and 4). Rory is in England and it brings back memories of my trip last year which is almost exactly a year apart. I can't wait to go on another foreign work trip. 

WHAT I'M LOVING...

My Big Star Vintage jeans. Did you know that Big Star is not making their jeans anymore? Well I found that out and my favorite pair of jeans are from there, so I have been looking in their stores to find another pair before it is too late. I didn't find any in my stores nor on my work trips, but found the exact pair online with only one left and I bought them. They have a bit of stretch, hug all the curves and are so comfy.

I am also loving the dark chocolate covered divinity that I got at the Genoa Candy Dance this weekend. I shared the first piece with my girls, but have been eating a piece a day since then. I told the girls it was all gone.

WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO...

Going to football games (the Wolf Pack is losing big time), potty training the girls and prepping our fall day trips. 

WHAT I'M DREADING...

I am not really dreading anything at the moment. I love Fall and all the fun that it brings.

WHAT I'M WORKING ON...

I have a work trip coming up, so I am working on finishing a few cases. Plus I am working on our clothes choices/theme for our Fall/Christmas photos at the end of October.

WHAT I'M EXCITED ABOUT...

We go to Apple Hill in a week and a half. I love going there. I get all things apple and pumpkin...apple donuts, apple pie, pumpkin butter, pumpkins, etc. Plus I have been going since I was a little girl and it is fun to show this tradition to my girls.

WHAT I'M WATCHING/READING...

I am still reading The Perfect Stranger and have my eye on The Husband's Secret next. The Husband's Secret is by the same author as Big Little Lies and it is being made into a movie, so I need to read it before it comes out.

I am watching all the new Fall tv. All my shows are back on or coming back on and I couldn't be more excited.

Did anyone watch The Sinner? So weird and good.
WHAT I'M LISTENING TO...

Not much. Just some Pandora.

WHAT I'M WEARING...

My jeans I mentioned above, and a few things I have picked up at Nordstrom, Loft and J Crew.

Bell sleeve shirt

This shirt from Pearl and Monroe.

WHAT I'M DOING THIS WEEKEND...

Saturday I am not sure what our plans are, but on Sunday I am having brunch with a few of my twin moms. This has been in the works for months and I can't wait to see them and dish. It has been too long and they really get me through the tough times with twins. I know I am not alone when they are going through the same things as I am.

WHAT I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT MONTH...

October brings more football, Apple Hill, a work trip, Halloween (which is the girls second trick or treating) and so many get togethers. October is definitely a favorite month of mine.

WHAT ELSE IS NEW...

The girls are pretty much fully potty trained. Now that I say that, we will have some accidents, but they are doing so well. They rarely have accidents anymore, hate when we put them in pull ups at nap and nighttime because they don't like the wet feeling and they are going both #1 and #2. This is huge as a lot of kids have problems with #2. I have the daycare teachers to thank for this because they did the most work. Sure we got them ready for it, but they really helped them out. We continue at home and during the weekends and I am just impressed with how well they are doing.

WHAT TV SHOW ARE YOU MOST EXCITED ABOUT THIS FALL?

I can't wait to watch This is Us because last season was so amazing.

Single Parenting Weekend

Can I just say that I am glad the weekend is over? Single parenting is hard. It is even harder when you have twins who are obsessed with their daddy and don't want to listen to their mommy. Phew. But we made it through and now we only have the week left of single parenting, but weeknights are so much easier. Don't get me wrong, there were definitely high points of this weekend with just my girls.

Saturday morning after we woke up, we all cuddled in bed for a bit before Rory headed off to grab some breakfast burritos and coffees. While he was gone, I showered because I knew I wouldn't get much of a chance after that. When he got back, we quickly ate and then the girls hung out with Rory while he got ready and finished packing. He left at 8 am and the girls and I did a few things around the house before heading down to my parents house.

We met up with my mom and aunt and headed to the Genoa Candy Dance which is basically a huge craft fair. The girls were doing pretty good until we gave them one piece of candy that I bought and they wanted more, but I told them no since the first pieces were huge and they hadn't had lunch yet. Luckily, I had my mom and aunt there to help calm them down. We looked at some crafts and then headed to the food area to get the girls pizza.

The girls ate while we all hung out and chatted. After pizza and a quick change into a pull up, we went to look at more crafts. The girls are doing soooo well with potty training, but they didn't want to use a porta potty and no store owners would let us use their bathrooms, so after 2 1/2 hours, Avery had an accident and I changed them into their pull ups. But can you blame her? I hate porta potties and she held it in for a long time.

Anyways, after buying somethings, we headed back to my parents house. The girls slept 20 minutes along the way and that was it for their naps. The girls facetimed Rory about half an hour before he boarded his flight. I thought it would turn into a meltdown after, but they were more interested in my mom and aunt than talking to him.

My mom painted the girls toes blue and they were so excited for it. They even had us blow on their toes every couple minutes to make sure they were dry. My dad got home not long later and the girls were soooo excited. They chased him around, played with him and followed him everywhere. Then we finished getting dinner ready and had dinner all together. We had short ribs, rice and baked banana squash. It was all so good and I even got to take leftovers home.

The girls were getting tired and asked to go home around 6:30 and so we did. They stayed up most of the drive home, but did fall asleep. Once we got home, I got them into theirs beds, gave them kisses and they went to sleep quickly. They didn't sleep that well, but they got to sleep quickly.

 My first Blue Apron order came in

Sunday morning we got up and headed to breakfast at My Favorite Muffin which is the girls favorite place. They get mini chocolate chip muffins and absolutely love it. I had a bagel sandwich and we just ate and talked. After I thought it would be ok to take them to the grocery store to pick up a few items, but they were crazy in the store, pulling things off the shelf and just not listening. I booked it out of their quickly.

Once we got home, I did some cleaning while they played. Then we had a somersault and tumble session while counting. You may have seen the video on IG.

Then I made the girls lunch and told them that if they went to sleep quickly and took a good nap that I would take them to the park when they got up. They took 40 minutes to go down, but slept for and hour and a half.

We met my in-laws at the park and they played for over two hours while I caught up with my in-laws and we pushed the girls on the swings. They left before I did, but we went not long later. When we got home, I made the girls dinner and then bathed them. Then I did some laundry while cooking my first Blue Apron dinner which I told the girls they could have some if they wanted. They only wanted the bread part of it, go figure. They were not listening that well while I was cooking, but they were having a blast together.

Once my dinner was almost done, I put the girls to bed and they went down surprisingly well. I only went in there twice to turn on their humidifier and give them extra hugs and kisses.

Then I settled in for some Bloodline and went to bed.

The girls slept pretty good and I did sleep in their room for an hour but that was because I fell asleep on our new little mattress for their room. Walter woke me up with licks to the face and then I slept in my bed the rest of the night.

And now we are into a new week and hoping the rest of it goes smoothly and I have a great time with the girls.

How was your weekend?

I am linking up with Biana from B Loved Boston.

Friday Favorites

ONE. Wednesday night I went to my salon's grand opening with two of my favorite girlfriends. I now go to this salon for three different services. They are THAT amazing. I get my hair, lashes and I had microblading (post coming soon) done there. It was so much fun. They had wine, complimentary services (hair braiding, eyebrow waxing, make up and hair tutorials), product giveaways, discounts on products and so much more. Plus I got to spend time with my girlfriend which I haven't seen in forever it feels like.

The owners are the two ladies in the middle. The one on the right does my hair.

TWO. As I mentioned above, I got my hair braided at the salon opening. When I checked in, they told me that my former hairstylist was going to do my hair. I haven't seen Marie in forever. The only reason I stopped seeing her was her schedule changed so much that I couldn't ever get in during a time that I was off of work.

I was able to catch up with Marie, she did a fantastic job on my top braid and she gave me advice on how to achieve a similar look for myself.

She used Bumble and Bumble Does it All Spray (I own this already) and she added in some Bumble and Bumble Nourishing Dry Shampoo. I bought this stuff because I can use it in my hair after the gym and it will soak up any sweat and greasy look. Plus it smells heavenly and I LOVE Bumble products.

Dry Shampoo

THREE. I have been looking for new meal ideas and this week, Jen from The Lucky Lifestyle posted a chili recipe that she made and really liked. I have a chili recipe that I follow from my mom, but it isn't a crock pot recipe and who doesn't love a crock pot recipe? So I am making this tonight or when Rory gets back from his trip. I can't wait.

FOUR. Speaking of more recipes, Lindsay made a Pumpkin Marshmallow Frozen Pie recently and everything about it sounded right up my alley. I love pumpkin, marshmallows and cold pies (like chocolate cream, coconut cream, etc.). I really want to make this this weekend and would probably eat the whole thing myself, but I am thinking of bringing it over to my parents house when I have dinner with them on Saturday night. How good does this look?

recipe

FIVE. If you signed up for the Mug Love Exchange, don't forget to link up your posts next Thursday September 28th. Please save the image below to use in your posts and also use the hashtag #MugLoveExchange

And come back here on Thursday to see all the mugs and enter in our Starbucks giveaway!!

I am linking up with April, A Little Bit of Everything, Meet @ the Barre and Cup of Tea.

Thoughts on Thursday

It's time for another round of confessions and thoughts on Thursday. Spill your guts and come back here to link up.

- Yesterday I was at work and I was looking through the local newspaper (online). There was an article about a local daycare and suspected abuse. It has a video with it and it is very disturbing. A daycare worker walks over to a 2 year old boy who is reading a book and grabs him by the arm and yanks him up. Then she pulls him over to another area. Then the video shows the same teacher at a later time go near the same boy who is washing his hands and yanks him again. It breaks my heart to see this and makes me fearful of my own kids going to daycare. What gets me even more is we looked at this daycare for my girls to attend. They are two years old and would have been in the same class with the same teacher. She is a new teacher apparently, but that just upsets me. This is not ok.

She has not been fired and they are putting her in counseling. But I am sure with this video in the newspaper and going viral on social media, they will have to fire her because I would take my kids out of that daycare if they were going there. My mama bear instincts would fly off the handle if this happened at my girls daycare.

If you want to see the video, head over to my FB page.

- I am having the hardest time finding long enough dress work pants. Something that has a skinny leg, accommodates my long inseam (at least 32 inch inseam) and isn't frumpy looking. I went to J Crew and didn't find anything except more of a legging style dress pant which is fine, but the only pair of "work" pants that are long (for the winter) that I have are legging style. I used to get them at Express a long time ago, but when I tried on a pair there recently, they fit weird. I think they changed their styling up on them. So ladies, do you have recommendations for slacks/work pants? Please send them my way.

- So one of the recommended vitamins/supplements I take is magnesium #8. It helps with my joints, muscle pain, etc. When I had mentioned it here on my blog and in my twin mom group, people said to be careful of it because it makes you go to the bathroom a lot. Well I can now attest to that. So if you are thinking of taking magnesium in any form, just know that. I don't know if I can take this long term. TMI? Sorry.

- I went onto Nordstrom's website hoping to buy more of the Leith sweater that I loved last year, but unfortunately they don't carry it anymore. Ugh. I love cozy oversized sweaters that I can still wear to work, so if you have any recommendations, send them my way.

- Can you tell I have Fall shopping on my brain?

Life Update

I haven't done a weekend update nor any updates in a few weeks, so I thought I would share a little about my work trip last week and then my weekend.

Last week, I traveled to Memphis, TN, all over Mississippi and Louisiana. I did a lot of driving which definitely wears on you. But I had a great time, only experienced rain one day from hurricane Irma and got to see a blogger friend.

When I got to Memphis, I settled into my hotel and walked to Gus's World Famous Chicken. I had chicken tenders, a chicken thigh, mac n cheese and cole slaw plus a beer. I was also told to have some pecan pie and so I did all the while watching football.

After a huge meal, I walked around a bit and stopped in a wine bar to watch more of the game, but only had a small flight before heading back to my hotel. I fell asleep at 8:30 pm and it was glorious. I never get to sleep that early.

From Memphis, I made my way through Mississippi and ended up in Ridgeland, MS. But not before I had lunch in Olive Branch at this cute spot called Pinks. It was a cafe that specialized in BLTs and chicken salad. I opted for a BLT with an egg on it and it was really good. It came with chips and the most amazing iced vanilla latte.

Tuesday morning the rain hit and after working, I had a long 4 hour drive to Alexandria. Rory has family that lives an hour away from Alexandria, so they came up to see me and took me to dinner at Tunk's. This place was so cool. They give you crackers that you can feed to the catfish and turtles in the lake. We had fun feeding them and then had some amazing southern food. I had a dish that had snapper stuffed with crawfish, crab and shrimp in a yummy wine and garlic sauce. So good. Plus it was fun catching up with family that we rarely get to see.

Wednesday I worked all around Louisiana and ended in Baton Rouge. I had plans to go visit the LSU campus and see the new tiger enclosure, but it was a nightmare to try to find parking, so that was a no go. I love that campus and always visit it when I am there, but this time was a no go.

Thursday I worked and then drove to New Orleans. I took a street car and met Missy (from My Shitty Kitchen) at the Columns Hotel for drinks. Then we walked to this yummy restaurant where we shared crab cakes, steak skewers and a whole fried fish. Amazing. Plus hanging out with Missy is ALWAYS a good idea.

Friday it was time to head home and this time all of my flights were on time. I made it into LAX and saw the newly renovated terminal and waited forever to get a super expensive lunch, but at least everything went smoothly.

I made it home and got to snuggle my girls, give them baths and hang out with them the whole evening while Rory golfed.

Saturday we went to the Nevada vs. Idaho State game which was awful. The tailgate was fun and I love that it is football season, but this game sucked. We should have won it and we played awful to a Division 1 AA team. Ugh.

Sunday we headed to Tiburon, California for Rory's grandfather's memorial service. You may remember, he passed away a year ago and we finally had a celebration of life for him. We hiked to a spot that his wife/Rory's grandmother's ashes had been spread and spread some of his ashes. It was so nice to get the family together and see everyone and celebrate the life of a great man.

After this part of the celebration, we headed to a local park for some amazing eats, looking through old photos and a family gathering. It was a perfect celebration of life.

We headed back to Pleasant Hill to see my sister-in-laws new house. This is where we stayed and the girls had the best time hanging out with their cousin Carson. Monday we headed back home, but not before stopping at the Livermore Outlets where the girls got a bunch of stuff. The Disney store, new shoes and clothes.

That is what I have been up to the last two weeks and why I haven't been on here as much.

$10 at Target - Halloween Edition

I am back from my work trip. Sorry to have been MIA last week. I only posted twice and haven't gotten to read any of my favorite blogs or comment anyone back. Don't worry, I will be working on that this week.

Today is another round of spending ten dollars at everyone's favorite place, Target. This month was a no brainer. I walked into the dollar section and saw everything Halloween and Thanksgiving. And then I headed over to the actual Halloween area and I couldn't help myself. I will definitely be going back once we pull out all the decorations and get a better sense of what I need. In the meantime, here are three things I grabbed.

 The classic spider web. We have done it in years past, but not recently which is a bummer because I bought huge spider for it years ago. It will be making an appearance this year.

Isn't this the cutest table runner? It is simple and will look perfect on our new table. Now that I don't have a table that is over 10 feet long, this one will suit us. I can't wait to get more runner like this in the future. Plus for $5, you can't beat that. Especially if my dog gets it which has happened before.

We have had several of these for each holiday and the girls love them. They love to move them around the windows and I hope to find more. They were out of the other one, so I hope to go back again and snag more of them.

So how did I do this month?

Spider Web $3
Table Runner $5
Gel Clings $2
Tax at 8.265% - $0.83

Total $10.83

What did you buy this month? If you participated, please link up below.

An InLinkz Link-up

Girl Chat - Favorite Fall Recipes

It is time for our monthly Girl Chat and this month we are sharing our favorite fall recipe(s). I am going to share a few of my recipes that I have featured and made from my blog, but also a couple that I love to make that others have shared on their blogs.

Butternut Squash Soup with Pears and Bacon

Butternut Squash Soup

I found this recipe in a local grocery store magazine. This is a family favorite and we always add a bit more bacon to it because why not?! This soup is easy to make and is amazing as leftovers.

Sweet Potato Nachos

Nachos

I know I just posted this last week, but these are so good. They are perfect for a weeknight meal or even for tailgating or while watching college or NFL football. We will be making these often.,

Autumn Penne Pasta with Brussels Sprouts in a Light Ragu

SkinnyTaste

I found this recipe a few years ago and I always make it in the fall. It combines turkey and sausage with a lighter ragu and then you add in brussels sprouts and it is so good, hearty, but light.

Stuffed Shells

Stuffed Shells

These stuffed shells are so good, hearty and perfect for a little date night. I make these year round, but I love them during the Fall. I love making them on a Sunday and settling in with these, a veggie and a big glass of wine while watching football.

To link up - just grab our graphic, link up, and let's getting to chatting!  Make sure to stop by a few others linked up for an extra bit of girl chat! 

Danielle / Sparkles and Lattes - Bloglovin' - Pinterest - Instagram
Emily / A Little Bit of Emily - Bloglovin' - Pinterest - Instagram
Lindsay / Lindsay's Sweet World - Pinterest - Facebook - Instagram - Twitter
Lizzie / This Happy Life -  Bloglovin' - Pinterest - Facebook - Instagram
Sierra / Beautifully Candid - Bloglovin' - Pinterest - Instagram - Twitter

9/11

Today is a day that was forever changed. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was a freshman in college and I made my way to my macroeconomics class. It was bright and early at 7 am and upon entering my classroom, the professor was watching tv. We didn't have a real class that day because we were glued to the tv. The planes had hit the World Trade Center and it forever changed everyone lives.

I had new friends who were from NYC who were frantically calling home to see if their families were ok. My father was in the army and we wondered what he was going to have to do following this tragedy. This day brought our nation close together. It changed the way we felt about our nation, our thoughts on our personal safety and made our hearts ache for all the people who died that day.

I can't believe it has been 16 years since September 11, 2017.

My children will read about this day in their history class. It is crazy to think how much we live through and what makes the history books and what doesn't. It doesn't feel like it was that long ago, but we are approaching 20 years.

I visited ground zero several times. I go every time I visit NYC. I went to the memorial site and seen the beautiful Freedom Tower and still to this day, it makes my heart sink and a pit in my stomach.

So take a moment today to remember this day, the people who died during the 9/11 attacks and what our county has become today.

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