Friday Favorites

We made it! Well, the week wasn't as chill and slow as I had hoped, so here's hoping for next week haha. On to some favorites...

// A Henry update! He's doing much better and being suuuuch a trooper about all the shit we're making him wear. I'm hoping today is his last day and night with the full getup and the vet tells us he's fully healed tomorrow.

// I got this emailed to me yesterday and it reminded me how close his birthday is! I'm so excited to celebrate in two weeks. Initially Sammy had the day off and I was going to take the day off too so we could all hang out, but now that he's on a 8-4 schedule, he's obviously not off so we'll have to pack a lot of celebrating into that evening ;)

// Another random favorite: just how much I love my job and the people I work with. Which isn't really random since I say it all the time. This is perfect evidence from our recent Harry Potter party that I work with the best people.

// One of my favorite writers announced she has a new book coming out next spring and I obviously dorked the hell out about it. SO good. If you haven't read her stuff, you're sorely missing out.

// Speaking of books, my book instagram is slowly gaining followers! This community is so much fun, all I want to do is spend time on there haha.

// My mom and I got to spend some time together randomly on Tuesday night after work so we went to a few department stores so she could start trying on mother of the bride dresses :) We're ahead of the game by a good chunk of time but she figures she'll start eliminating styles now. And ya girl had to try on a jumpsuit, of course.

Truly can NOT with her. She's so gorge.

// I had my last (foreseeable) walk/bike to the train this week and was living for the sun bursting through the trees on my way. Even though getting to the train that way was certainly a pain sometimes, I'm definitely going to miss it.

// I found some good finds at TJ Maxx last week with Tina and one of them was this botanical printed kimono. I probably didn't need it (ok, def didn't need it) but oh well, it's pretty!

// I also grabbed these leggings per a blogger recommendation and am looooooving them. Same quality (if not better) as my Zella leggings but softer, cheaper, more comfortable, better length, and has pockets (!). Highly recommend. 

// I grabbed these at TJ Maxx too. They're Adidas cloudfoam shoes. I wanted a pair of "athletic" shoes that I could slip on for errands but could also use for easy workouts at home. I LOVE them. So comfortable even if they do look a little senior citizen-y. And they're great for my plantar fasciitis. Because I'm literally a senior citizen. 

// And biggest update of all: I got my car! If you've been reading (or know me personally), you know I've struggled with a driving anxiety for over a decade, so this is pretty big for me. My therapist and I are very pleased with this development ;) 

It's a big change to my entire mindset which has operated under "I'm not a driver" for the last 10+ years, so even though it's exciting and a really cool thing, it's thrown me for a loop, especially since it means I won't see my dad quite as much as I'm used to (we used to carpool before and after work when I didn't have a car). It's a big adjustment, so I'm trying to really give myself the time I need to get used to everything. 

That wraps up my favorites! My plan for the afternoon is to surprise my grandma and take her to lunch, then stop at the park district to buy a pass to the dog park and hopefully get over to the library. (We've lived in CL for a year and I STILL haven't gotten a library card, so I'm very excited to get over there today, which should come as a surprise to no one.)

We have some shopping to do tonight and then we're hoping to see Toy Story 4 FINALLY. Has anyone seen?! 

Tomorrow we're celebrating Sammy's brother's 30th birthday at their house and we have a graduation party on Sunday. Hoping to sneak some relaxing in there where I can—I feel like I could sleep for a week!

Have a great weekend all! xo

*linkin up with Andrea

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday! Per usual, got some random favorites to share. Shall we?

// To start with, Sammy recently got a new position at the department that he's incredibly excited about! It's going to be a lot of work and different work than he's currently used to, but he's absolutely up to the challenge. It's a four year position with a M-F, 8-4 schedule which we are definitely not used to. He started yesterday and having him home when I got home was so weird haha! Weird but good. It's like we're moving in together all over again because we're just not used to being on the same schedule. It's going to be an adjustment but there are so many good things that come with this schedule. We can plan weekend trips more easily now, he doesn't have to miss holidays for the next four years, and he'll be home for dinner every night (theoretically). Because this position is focused on community relations, I'm hoping he ends up with a lot of freedom to create new programs in our community, especially with children, and I'd love to get more involved, if I can.

// Our wedding website is finally up! Took me a stupidly long time to do it, but I think it turned out pretty nicely.

// I finally took the plunge and started an Instagram account specific to book stuff. I'm hoping I can keep the hobby up and it doesn't become all consuming because I would love to get involved in the book community via Instagram which is growing like a weed lately it seems. Follow along if books are your thang.

// Has anyone tried these pretzels before?! Tina's coworker brought them to our picnic last weekend and Alicia and I became obsessed. She said she found them at Binny's, so if you have a Binny's nearby, TRUST ME. You want these.

// I shared these already but I've been loving the peonies growing in our yard. I've been cutting bundles once they start to droop outside because they'll last for another few days to a week inside. Fresh flowers in the house makes me so happy.

// Sometimes Sammy's snaps just kill me. For some reason, when I play music over Alexa in the house, it interferes with his music in his car. I came home after seeing the Disney cover band and had an itch to hear "So This Is Love" from Cinderella so I was playing it a few times as I cleaned up downstairs before going to bed. He sent me this snap while he was working... <3

// I spent some of last weekend organizing books I was storing in our garage (which I had to clean out to make room for my car that I should hopefully be getting in the next week or so) which led me to reorganizing my children's shelf in our library :) Ugh I love looking at those books and that growing collection.

// We celebrated some June birthdays in the office this week and had a Harry Potter potluck of sorts and I wish I had taken a picture by the end of the day because there was SO much good stuff. Not pictured: butter beer that I literally died over, chocolate bars in case you're faced with a dementor ;), more cakes, "slugs," a cheese ball shaped like the sorting hat, etc. Unreal. 

My insanely creative coworkers had a Nearly Headless Nick in the kitchen, dressed Jamie (our cardboard cutout from Outlander) in HP gear (which was both alarming and sexy at the same time and yes I'm as off put by my own reaction as you are), house flags on the walls, and Ministry of Magic signs in the bathrooms ;)

I made "Luna Lovegood's Pudding Trifle" which was an adaptation of something I saw on Pinterest. I just found whatever colorful things I could find to use as layers between the pudding and whipped cream. And then hot pink and gold sprinkles for "magic" on top :) Love a trifle.

// Tina's engagement gift (Disney themed because they got engaged in Disney!) finally arrived and I got it all wrapped and ready to go last night since I'm meeting her for lunch today aaaaaand forgot it at home. So annoying. Hopefully we can get it to her this weekend sometime.

She got me a "police wifey" shirt when we got engaged along with a wine glass that said "wifey" so I basically copied her gift ;)

That's all the randomness I got! After my half day at work today I'm meeting Tina for lunch and some TJ Maxx-ing and then heading home to be with Sammy and Henry. Tomorrow I have a wedding on my dad's side of the family up in Wisconsin, and on Sunday we have Sammy's cousins big graduation party (over 100 people were invited!) in the afternoon. Lots of family this weekend—my favorite.

Have a great weekend all! xo

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday all!

The week seemed to crawl a little bit at the front end but certainly sped up at the back end. Happy the weekend is here :) I've been looking forward to it. Some favorites, shall we?

// Still very much a favorite... saying yes to my wedding dress! It was exciting but super surreal. Per usual, I've needed some time to adjust (might seem like a silly thing to have to "adjust to" but big moments do that to me) but am totally in love with it and keep looking at photos and can't wait to wear it.

// Earlier this week I had a lunch phone call with our travel agent to discuss our honeymoon! She asked us to come up with a "must have" list which I kept on my desk on bright post-its haha. We may have bitten off a little more than we can chew (read: pay for) in our grand plans so she's going to do a little research and get us a ballpark total cost and then we can decide if we need to reevaluate. It was such a fun conversation though.

// One of my best friends is getting married in September and we've all started looking for bridesmaids dresses since she's letting us pick our own (in her chosen color). I think this might be the one I go with :)

// These are the texts I get people. A few notes:

-It's not staying at our house. She'll live at the department. Thank god.

-I still want to learn to shoot it...badly.

-I named her Don Corleone. Because we can never be too Italian.

// Been treating myself to medicine balls this week. They're my favorite thing to get at Starbucks (aside from seasonal drinks) and have been hitting the spot. Please note: my name is now "Alce." 

// I've always loved Rob Thomas's voice, so I was excited to hear his new song on Ellen this week. SO good. I've been listening to it on repeat.

// I posted my March book review this week, if you'd like to see. I think of the ten books I read this month, these two YAs were my favorite. They just left me feeling so good.

   

// One night I was trying to use all these random ingredients we had leftover in the fridge so we wouldn't waste them and I decided to throw together "Mexican" grilled cheese sandwiches, which I thought Sammy would think were bogus, but he ended up LOVING. Outright requesting them (and he never requests specific meals, bless his heart). So I made burrito bowls earlier this week so we'd have leftover ingredients I could use for grilled cheeses.

You could make them with a bunch of different Mexican-inspired ingredients but I use black beans and green chilies for ours. Regular cheddar cheese but I would love them with pepper jack or something more authentic. Sammy asked for chicken in his for extra protein, but I ate mine vegetarian. He also mentioned adding an egg into it (actually he suggested scrambled eggs which I think is weird unless they're breakfast sandwiches. So I suggested a fried egg and he replied, "that's how you die"—I think his heart is put off by how much butter I use when cooking ;)—so I guess I'll be having a fried egg by myself.) I will admit, they are really good. But I think they're really good because I use a the "secret ingredient" I read on Cup of Jo: mayo.

// I met a friend for dinner last night in downtown Arlington Heights. We went to Passero and enjoyed it! Everything was good. I got the carbonara and we split a cookie dessert that was as rich as it looks. It was good but I thought overpriced for the portions. Plus I kind of hate when people want to take perfectly fine Italian food and mix it up. I don't need squash in my carbonara, okay? Even though I'm a snob, I'd probably go back haha but wouldn't waste time on the apps or dessert.

That's all the randomness I got!

Sammy and I are hoping to head to Sam's Club tonight or tomorrow morning when we'll become real suburbanites (we always have been, who are we fooling?) and finally use the gift card my dad gave me and get a membership. We're very cool.

Saturday I hope to do some purging or idk something productive during the day. Maybe take Henry for a walk since it's supposed to be in the 60s! But in the evening, I'm having a girl's night with one of my best friends to catch up on all important things (we have a running list of topics 'cause we're very, very cool people and not dorks at all), eat good food, and watch Crimes of Grindelwald (see, not dorks at all). I'm so excited for it.

We rescheduled plans with my BIL and SIL for Sunday morning to meet them and our niece for breakfast, and I'm excited to start this monthly breakfast tradition with them. Just the siblings, no parents ;)

It's gunna be a good one. Happy weekend! xo

*Linking up with Andrea!

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday, all. The week went by a little slower than I thought but went better than anticipated. Big task this week was to get my taxes done, which happened and I'm happy to cross that off the list. Since I'm home alone tonight, I'm hoping to get at least two little organizational projects done in the guest room. Shredding papers and organizing drawers anyone?! I'm a ton of fun on a Friday night, anyone will tell you that.

Anyway, some "favorites," shall we?

// Truly getting behind the spring wardrobe aesthetic. It's my favorite season to buy and wear clothes—I get so jacked up about it. Last Saturday was the first time I felt relatively spring-ish. I can't wait to put my (beloved) winter jacket away for a while. Feeling the same about my knee boots. I love ya'll, but you need a rest, right?

Normally I wouldn't include a wool coat as a "spring" item, but in Chicago it certainly is. Plus this coat is so cheap, it wouldn't keep anyone warm so you can really only wear it when it's mildly chilly.

// I posted about spring and the impending changes it brings yesterday (or in my case, already brought), if you'd like to see.

// I couldn't find any bowl filler I liked to fill the bowl I normally have here, so I ordered some faux lavender on Amazon and put it in this pitcher. It's a nice, easy change for the room. My mom said it looks very French which is the highest compliment you can give moi.

What's not a favorite is faux flowers of any kind so to combat that, I soaked two cotton pads in lavender essential oil and put them inside the pitcher hoping it would give the illusion these aren't fake ;)

// Sammy has been working weekends lately, so having time to do nothing but hang with Henry and watch rom-coms with some wine and popcorn has become my favorite way to spend a Saturday night alone.

// Siding is done on the house! This is a picture from earlier in the week when they had just completed the front. You can see the color difference in this picture—the new color is a cool tone beige. Our door is getting repainted a dark green I believe and new or newly painted shutters to match (which is why they're missing from the photo). We really like it!

// I attempted a turkey meatball minestrone soup this week which, as all my soups do, turned into mush. I can't keep broth to save my life. Still tasted good.

// Easter basket items arrived this week! I know I'm early but some of these things sell out super quickly, so I grabbed them while I could.

For our niece, I picked out pajamas, the sweetest doll (with bunny ears!) I snagged on Amazon for $6.99 (!! and it even came with a tall gift bag!), an Easter book, bath color drops, and egg shaped sidewalk chalk. We have an Easter basket we use every year for her, so I'll throw everything in there and call it a day! I kind of wish this was for me haha.

And since it's our cousins' kid's first Easter, we got him a little something too. I'll grab a "baby's first Easter" book from work to add to his carrot teether (which was sold out last year! I really wanted it for our niece) and Good Night, Moon bunny toy.

// We've changed our initial honeymoon idea and are very excited about it. I'm getting on the phone with our travel agent next week to get that process started even though we're early (go figure). Currently our plan is to honeymoon in Sicily and make our way up through the French countryside, eventually ending in Paris. Basically my dream vacation. 

I normally love planning things, especially trips, but I figured enlisting some help was the smart way to go in this case. This trip is probably going to include a lot of traveling between towns via train and rented cars, and I'm not suuuper interested in wrangling all that while planning a wedding, so I'm very happy to relinquish control to someone else. She came highly recommended so I'm thrilled to see what she comes up in terms of an itinerary. She asked Sammy and I to come up with with a list of our "must haves" before our phone call and he and I are giddy to do it.

Very excited for this weekend. Going back to the bridal store we went to in Algonquin a few weekends ago to try on the dress I fell in love with at Kleinfeld along with a few other styles she had at her other location and brought over to this one. I'm excited to go back with a slightly larger group too: my mom, grandma, matron of honor, MIL, and SIL. My sister is the only one missing because she has to work but hopefully she can come next time!

Sunday we're meeting Sammy's brother and our SIL and niece for breakfast and then I'm having a friend from high school (who I recently found out lives in the next town over) come over for coffee in the afternoon.

Hope everyone has a great weekend! xo

*Linking up with Andrea!

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday, all! Another good week in the books. 

It's been really nice having Sammy home every night this week (which hasn't ever happened since we've lived together!). As an introvert, having time to myself many days/nights throughout the week because of his work schedule is amazingly helpful, so I was surprised when having very little "alone time" this week didn't bother me...at all. 

Not sure how long I could sustain that past this week haha but it's really been great spending the extra time together. Next week may even be a little lonely when I'm wearing my face mask and in bed by 9 p.m. ;)

Some favorites, shall we? Starting with some spring decor I broke out (and by broke out I mean pulled out the ONE thing I had to display...). I've had this silver bunny for several years after picking it up from Crate & Barrel during a sale. It's sat in a box, waiting for me to buy a house so I could use it. And then we picked up a little plant from TJ Maxx on Sunday because I felt like we needed some greenery in our lives (but faux greenery because I can't be bothered to keep plants alive).

I stopped at Target with some coworkers during lunch this week and grabbed this dish towel. I also have a French inspired one that feels "spring-ish" in my Amazon cart and an Easter one shipping from Etsy soon. I didn't want to decorate super hardcore for Easter or spring but definitely wanted to freshen and liven things up, so in addition to these additions and swapping out our candles for some spring ones, I have some faux lavender in my Amazon cart that I plan on filling a white vase with and sticking on our table instead of the bowl I always have there. And we'll call it a day.

I don't know that I would necessarily call this a favorite but getting new siding (the palette of shit on our lawn) is nice haha. Still unsure of the color the association chose, but hopefully it turns out OK! We were hoping they would be done today but they haven't even started on our house (they started on the opposite end of our building on Monday). So I foresee a future "favorite" being the completion of this project haha.

But the first grill of the season is definitely a favorite. We were out in 42 degrees with coats but that's basically summer in Chicago after winter and we were thrilled about it.

And this boy was very happy to be outside in his "backyard."

So happy that he tired himself out ("new" experiences tend to really drain him haha) and cuddled with us for the rest of the night which is always my favorite.

On Tuesday, these Italians celebrated St. Joseph's Day which is one of my favorite days of the year. My grandparents used to host just under 100 people every year for St. Joseph's and I always looked forward to it more than almost any other holiday. We haven't done it in a few years because of my grandma's health but she's really hoping to do it again next year. But as soon as Sammy and I get a bigger house, I'm taking over :)

This year, I insisted we celebrate and make some of the traditional foods especially since Sammy wasn't working.

These two while Mom cooked...

I started by making my papa's braided bread.

Sammy really wanted to help braid it, so we did that together which was special because we value our grandfathers' traditions a lot and it felt really nice to do something together that honored my grandpa's legacy.

She turned out pretty well! Didn't taste like my papa's, so I want to find his original recipe and play with it, but it still tasted pretty darn good.

My grandparents used to make an enormous amount of food and it's tradition that people bring something "to the table" as well, so they always had a crazy amount which I obviously couldn't recreate, but I did make the traditional stuff.

We don't eat meat on St. Joseph's Day so my family always makes fried fish, which I did, along with salad, regular pasta for Sammy, and St. Joseph's pasta which is long pasta mixed with cauliflower and toasted bread crumbs (to symbolize Joseph's wood shavings) which is my FAVORITE dish.

It's also traditional to wear red (don't ask me why, we still can't figure it out), so we all had our red items on ;) and took a blurry family photo.

And I wore my grandma's apron which made her endlessly happy :) It was a fantastic night and it made my grandma so, so happy to know we plan on continuing their tradition of celebrating. It really meant a lot to me to celebrate as our little family in our own home.

Not to purposely include back to back selfies or anything, but I had ordered these "bride" shirts several weeks ago and the original package got lost in the mail so the shop sent me a new package and it finally arrived this week. I'm obsessed with the two items I got.

The sweatshirt is seriously SO soft. It's roomy (I definitely could have ordered a small which hasn't happened since like the fourth grade) and just feels like quality. The color isn't showing well here but it's the prettiest peach/blush color.

I beg of you to ignore this pose I'm doing and please don't ask me about it. But this is my "Le Bride" shirt I just had to have. I looove it. It's definitely too big (which I'll never complain about) so I have to roll up the sleeves and tie it at the bottom, but I think it's going to be so cute with a denim jacket or blazer.

I'm definitely going to be wearing one of these next Saturday to my dress appointment. YES, ANOTHER ONE, OK?

I reached out to a recommended travel agent this week to see if we could get a super head start on honeymoon planning. We want to do a honeymoon registry as part of our overall registry so I was hoping to get some ballpark ideas cost-wise even though organizing our registry is many months out as well. My little OCD heart loves to start planning early, what can I say? A little sneak peak as to where we might be headed... ;)

I just ordered this dress (since it was 60% off from Tobi!) as a possible engagement photo option. I'm super anxious to get it in the mail to see if I like.

I'm meeting Chelsie tonight after work for a mani/pedi dinner date which I'm really looking forward to. Tomorrow is our cousin's 30th birthday, so we're headed downtown for that which should be awesome, and then I'm spending the evening with my momma. And Sunday I get to fully relax and prep for the week...lazily ;)

Have a great weekend! xo

*Linking up with Andrea!