Friday Five - Cozy Style

Happy Friday, friends! We've finally gotten a few shots of cool weather up here, the leaves are changing, and even though tomorrow will be in the 70's, most of the week after will be in the 50's. So all of that calls for some serious coziness as you relax by the fire with a cup of chili or a mug of cocoa and the latest season of the Mindy Project (or Doc McStuffins, depending on your lifestyle choices.). 

So, my Friday Five this week is all about the coziness. And, you guys, that crewneck is something you will seriously love this fall/winter. I've had mine for a week and I'm already living in it. So so soft! 

Plush Crewneck | Pom Beanie 

Socks | Lounge Pants | Plaid Scarf

And a bonus pick for you guys to curl up under on a cool night. I've been dreaming about these throws for a few years now and I'm hoping for a good Black Friday deal. Fingers crossed!!

Now, I'm usually one of those who insists on waiting until the day after Thanksgiving to even think about Christmas, but the ABC Family (or Freeform. Whatever.) 25 Days of Christmas schedule is out and it's awesome, as usual. I don't know if it's the new baby, or the fact that Zoey is at the right age to make it extra fun, or the fact that the world has been a little crappy lately, but I'm so jazzed for the Christmas season! Can't wait to decorate and get things started. Z and I may or may not have plans to bake a batch of Christmas cookies this weekend and it's all I can do to not take down Fall and bust out the Christmas decor. Anyone else feeling the holiday spirit?!

Friday Five - Hello Fall!

Hey friends! Happy Fall!

There's just something about Fall. The light is different somehow. More...glowy. Season premiers & the sound of football on the tube ALL weekend is kind of the best, but honestly, it's the marching band in the background of the Florida games that takes me right to my happy place. And now that we live in Virginia, the changing leaves and crisp air - open window & fuzzy sock weather (I'm sure that's starting one of these days). I just love it! 

I think this year I'm more excited for Fall than ever. Maybe because it was surface-of-the-sun-hot for three months, or maybe it's the new baby and all of the big firsts coming his way in the coming months. Even Zoey is excited for football, Halloween, and a visit to the pumpkin patch. She's at the age now where she kind of gets it, and that makes it all so much fun!

 I haven't done a Friday post in such a long time. So here's five favorites for ya on this fall Friday...

I'm such a sucker for a cute flannel shirt...its the 90's girl in me, I guess. I have two of these boyfriend flannels from falls past and they are so cozy and forgiving, especially if you're still holding on to those last few pounds of baby weight. I've got my eye on this one this year. 

It's been fall for, like, five minutes, and it's barely stopped raining here in VB. We had so much rain at one point, that the pond behind our house rose at least 4 feet, submerging part of our fence. So I think its time to finally get some rain boots. I've been swooning over a pair of Hunters for years, and I think it's time to pull the trigger once and for all. If I could just decide on the color...hunter green or purple? Or black? Ocean blue? Gah!! I'm sure the minute I make up my mind and buy a pair, the entire mid-Atlantic will be thrown into a terrible drought, but it's worth the risk!

Now that pumpkin spice is everywhere in everything (pumpkin spice chapstick? really?), I'm super over it. So I gave the new Salted Caramel Mocha a try. Chocolate and caramel is one of my favorite flavor combos and it's waayyy better than that old pumpkin spice any day. It'll be perfect once things finally cool off around here.

Cat & Jack, Target's new line for kids. I feel like every time I'm in there, I'm grabbing something new for the kids. Such cute stuff! Zoey is already obsessed with this Halloween T and I can't wait for the temps to cool down a bit more so Beck can wear this romper. - Not an ad, I just seriously love it!

Not particularly fallish, but seriously yum! Z & I tried this banana-Nutella "ice cream" and, you guys, its kind of the best thing ever! The hardest part about this is remembering to freeze the bananas ahead of time. And cleaning the Nutella out of the food processor. That part was kind of a mess. You just throw the two ingredients into the processor, our the mixture into a loaf pan and freeze. We had ours with purple sprinkles, of course! 

Hope you guys had a wonderful week! We are looking forward to a weekend full of football and, if the weather cooperates, the Neptune Festival down at the Oceanfront. And if Zoey has her way, we'll start building our pumpkin collection so we can get the place more festive.

Happy weekend!!

Hello Fall!

I have always been a huge fan of Fall. In my old pre-mom teacher life, Fall meant fresh boxes of Crayolas, stacks of pocket folders and stickers, and sweating with my students out at recess. Fall in Florida is effing hot, you guys. It's no secret that I am more excited about experiencing our first Fall in Virginia than is normal for a grown woman. And while the last few months have had some not-so-awesome moments (read about that here and here), I'm kind of sad to see Summer fade into Fall. And as Z seems to be growing extra fast these days, I'm trying to hold on to every moment and memory while she's still my baby girl. Trips to the aquarium, lot's of time in the backyard with Scout, water balloons, getting buzzed by the Blue Angels, and the smell of sunscreen in Z's hair. It's all kind of amazing.

And as I enjoy these cool Fall breezes, collect colorful leaves with Z around the neighborhood, and switch from tank tops to flannel, I can't wait to make more memories! (Ugh! SCHMALTZ! I know! I'm having a moment.)

Happy Fall, y'all!! 

Friday Favorites - Fall Style

It's been about a hundred years since I did a Friday Favorites, and this time I'm doing it a little different.  With the mornings getting cooler here in Virginia (although it's gonna be hot again in a couple of days, it's sure to cool down for good sooner or later), I'm getting super jazzed about Fall. Gator Football starts September 5, which means it's officially time to start shopping for the season! 

Spending the majority of my days at home chasing around a toddler, I'm all about comfort. These girlfriend jeans are a little slimmer and more flattering than boyfriends, which means I'll probably be living in them! 

Nothing says Fall like plaid, and this shirt seems like the perfect addition to my collection, especially with a cute puffer vest for the cooler days and nights. And these booties? So cute! I think it's about time I cute-ed up my shoe collection.

I love a nice slouchy sweatshirt and I've been eyeing this one for a while now. It comes in a bunch of colors, but this blue is perfect for watching Gator games. Those green sneaks? Just what's needed for tossing the football or playing a little corn hole in the backyard. 

Finish everything off with a cute simple necklace (those chunky statement necklaces aren't really my jam) and a comfy lightweight jacket...I'm so ready for temps to cool down and for the leaves to start changing! 

It's also been brought to my attention (thanks Sara!) that PSLs arrive in ten days! I've been kind of over them for a bit, just counting down the days till red cups and peppermint everything arrive. But now that I'll be enjoying a proper Fall, I'm really looking forward to a little pumpkin spice. 

What are you guys looking forward to this Fall? 

Pumpkin Patching

Monday's weather was super sunny, clear and warm. I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that I just described perfect pumpkin patch weather. Well, yes actually. While I'll admit that the eternal summer we've been experiencing this last year has made me pretty grouchy, it actually was a beautiful day for a visit to the pumpkin patch.

bat shirt (on sale!!) | sparkly Toms (I purchased for $12 at a local consignment shop. Jackpot!)

So we headed out to a local church, fully expecting it to be a hot morning and slim pickins in the patch, but we had such a fun time chasing Z around the church yard. Tons of pumpkins were laid out underneath a huge beautiful oak tree, which made it so wonderful in the shade.

Z had a ball running around patting all the pumpkins, and even picked out two

little ones for herself. There was a random milk crate in the middle of the sea of orange, so naturally the kiddo put her pumpkins in it and carried them around for a minute.

It's always been so hard to get a really great pic of Z since she is always in motion, and this day was no exception. I usually end up with a million photos of her back...maybe I'll end up doing an album of just those! I was totally that mom. I kept trying to hop in front of her to snap something with her smiling, but only managed to get a bunch of blurry pics and even backed over a pumpkin or two, practically falling on my ass. 

In the end, we came home with two toddler-size pumpkins and one for carving. It wasn't quite as amazing as our pumpkin patch adventures last year up in Georgia, but we had such a great time following Z around as she checked out each and every pumpkin! 

This weekend was also Zoey's 20 month b-day and we did her monthly photo shoot on Monday before our pumpkin patch adventure. Last month it was a nightmare trying to get a good shot and most of the outtakes feature a red face and teary eyes. But this month some of the outtakes were so hilarious, I had to share a few of my favorites...

This really is the best age, isn't it?!

Any great pumpkin patch adventures this October for you guys?

Happy October!

felted ball garland - similar here | multi-color bunting - DIY

In my mind, fall officially begins on October 1. Living in Florida, September is still so so summery, but October is a whole different ball game. (Not today, though. Today it was well over 90 degrees!) The sun starts setting earlier and there something a little different about the sun's light. And word on the street is that the first cold front (and by cold front I clearly mean "not-as-hot-but-still-technically-warm front") is on it's way this weekend. So it may not be crisp air, fallen leaves, and apple picking down here in SoFlo, but we probably won't sweat ourselves into a puddle for a few days at least. And while I have yet to taste my first PSL of the season, I'm still pretty psyched about the free iced white mocha I scored today in Target, thanks to a computer meltdown. Nothing ushers in fall better than free Starbucks! 

Around here, we've started decorating (keepin' it simple this year thanks to our table-clearing toddler), thinking about what Z will be for Halloween (a ladybug? strawberry?), the kid has mastered the word "Boo!", and I've found a yummy sounding recipe for homemade skinny pumpkin spice latte (I'll let ya know how it tastes!).  The Halloween books have made their way to the bookshelf, and a certain cutie is already sporting her festive glow-in-the-dark pjs.

As for fall style, well, for me (and my mini), it's all about cute jeans, long sleeve tees, and cozy sweatshirts (most of which we won't be wearing until it's technically winter). So here are some of our favorites so far this season:

sweatshirt tunic | leggings | heart sweater

pom pom beanie | denim moto jacket | eek! tee | chucks

hello sweatshirt | plaid skirt | baseball tee | jeans

denim jacket | striped tee | plaid shirt

jeans | sneakers

sweatshirt | hello tee | varsity sweater

 I'm really looking forward to the days when I can cozy up in some fuzzy socks and that red sweatshirt for a viewing of Hocus Pocus with the kiddo. Ok. So maybe we'll wait another year or two for Hocus Pocus, but surely there's a Halloween episode of Doc McStuffins we can snuggle up and watch together!

So, what are your fall favorites this year?