Wishful Wednesday

This is my first Wishful Wednesday post and I loved the topic this week. It is always fun to daydream about going on vacation to a beautiful place.

I wish I was going on vacation tomorrow, and I would want to go to Bora Bora in Tahiti!

This is my dream vacation. I’ve wanted to go for a long time and someday hope to actually make it there. If I go, I would have to stay in one of the over the water bungalows. I could literally walk out of my room and into the ocean!

I see this being a very relaxing trip far away from everything. I don’t know if I would ever want to leave.

Want to play along? Please visit Kelsey at The Seattle Smith's!

Awards & Tag catch up

In celebration of “The Sweetest Day”, I was given “The Icing on the Cake Award” from Kathie at My Net Finds. I had never even heard of this day until Kathie explained what it was. I’ve been following her blog for awhile now and Kathie always finds the most interesting things on the web. She has also been a loyal follower of my blog and I think that she deserves this award too!

I would like to pass this onto the following 5 bloggers:

1. Tasha @ Biology Gal
2. Taryn @ Mr. Jones & Me
3. BLC @ The Company She Keeps
4. Kari @ 2 Dogs and a Blog
5. Katie @ The Adventures of Katie and Josh

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Many thanks to Blair at Reasonably Swanky for the Over the Top Award!! I recently found her blog and I’m happy I did. She is so sweet and always has interesting posts. We share the same love for shopping and she is adorable!

The rules: use only one word, pass along to six favorite bloggers, and tell 'em you did so. Here goes!

1. Where is your cell phone? Purse
2. Your hair? Blonde
3. Your mother? Best
4. Your father? Fun
5. Your favorite food? Pizza
6. Your dream last night? Vague
7. Your favorite drink? Diet
8. Your dream/goal? Mom
9. What room are you in? Dining
10. Your hobby? Movies
11. Your fear? Loss
12. Where do you want to be in six years? Satisfied
13. Where were you last night? Home
14. Something that you aren't? Mean
15. Muffins? Banana
16. Wish list item? Concert
17. Where did you grow up? Pennsylvania
18. Last thing you did? TV
19. What are you wearing? Pjs
20. Your TV? Large
21. Your pets? Dogs
22. Friends? Best
23. Your life? Content
24. Your mood? Happy
25. Missing someone? Grandmother
26. Vehicle? Nissan
27. Something you're not wearing? Watch
28. Your favorite store? Target
29. Your favorite color? Pink
30. When was the last time you laughed? Today
31. Last time you cried? Awhile
32. Your best friend?(s) Favorite
33. One place that I could go over and over? Hawaii
34. One person who emails you regularly? Work
35. Favorite place to eat? Jones

I now tag the following 6 bloggers:

1. April @ dot...dot...dot...
2. Hailey @ Destined For Royalty
3. Kelsey @ The Seattle Smiths
4. Shannon @ Life After I "Dew"
5. Angela @ Tales of Short Southern Mamma
6. Michelle @ Stuttering Shell

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Finally, I was given the Lovely Blog Award by Melissa at Love, Marriage and (someday) A Baby Carriage

She is a newlywed and I've been following her along her journey from fiancé to wife. She is a special needs teacher and shares my love for the color pink and the sport of baseball!

Thank you ladies for these awards!! I appreciate each and every one of them!

Weekend recap

Friday, I went to my friend Colleen’s house for a Jewelry Party. I’ve been to plenty of home demonstrations, but never one of these. My other friends, Krystie and Deidre were there and we had a nice time trying on fun jewelry and snacking on delicious treats. It was fun to catch up with the girls and relax. I ended up buying a necklace that I really liked.


Colleen, Krystie, me & Deidre

Saturday was skating and then my mom, her boyfriend, Geof and I headed to my mom’s river house in Peach Bottom and then went to dinner in Maryland at The Union Hotel. The weather wasn’t great, but we made the best of it. The river house was where I spent most of my summers as a child and I haven’t been there in a long time. Now that I’m an adult, I think it would be fun to go back and spend a peaceful weekend during the summer or early fall. The place is in need of some sprucing up, but I will always remember it how it was when I was a kid. My grandparents bought it in 1962 and after my grandmother passed away, my mom bought it from the family. It’s nice to know that it is always there.

Once we left the house, we drove to Port Deposit, Maryland and had dinner at The Union Hotel. I love that place so much. My dad used to take me there when I was younger and it is still going strong. It was built in 1794 and has such a classic and rustic feel to it. They bake these fresh loaves of bread and bring them to the table with honey butter and raspberry butter. It was so good. We also had the best crab dip I’ve ever tasted. The place was decorated for fall and the restaurant is separated by different rooms, which gives it a cozy feel. They brought out “Union Cake” for my mom’s birthday and it was homemade vanilla cake made with gelatin to make it extra moist. In between the two layers of cake were crushed pineapple and vanilla pudding. It was topped with a whipped cream cheese frosting and walnuts. It was decadent!


The Union Hotel (it was raining, so it came out blurry)

Sunday, Geof and I made our annual autumn trip to Linvilla Orchards. This is one of my favorite things to do during the season. This place has everything that someone who loves the fall like me could ever want. We started by visiting the animals and then fed the deer. They were so gentle and it was very cute. We then went to the snack stand and got some apple cider and an apple cider doughnut. Next, we went to the pumpkin patch and picked out the perfect pumpkin. I also got some cute signs for the house. We also visited the pumpkin carving station and the artist that does the designs makes some amazing creations out of the pumpkins. Finally, we visited the farmer’s market and stocked up on some fresh groceries for the house and I got a pretty mum for our garden.


Us in the pumpkin patch


Geof feeding the deer


Mums everywhere


Food stands


Gourds

Pumpkins!

Us in the pumpkin patch

Phillies pumpkin

Mr. Pumpkinhead

Our pumpkin

Apples in the farmer's market

Cute sign that I got. I need to find a better spot for it.

Another sign I got

My garden

Neiman Marcus shopping night

I received a gift card and decided to finally get the Tory Burch Revas I’ve been coveting for almost a year. They had so many colors, which made it hard to decide. It was between the black with gold logo and the gold snakeskin print. I went with black and I absolutely love them. They’re so comfortable and I see them going with everything. If it weren’t for the rain, I’d be wearing them out tonight (I’m going to a jewelry party at a friend’s house).





I also got the Christian Dior 5 palette shadow in #508. It didn’t show up well in the pic, but 2 of the shades have a lot of shimmer and I think these shades will go nice with my coloring for fall and winter. I’m excited to use it.

The funny part of this shopping trip was that my mom and I were just going there to get what I needed and get out. It turns out they were having a shopping event last night and it was really fancy. They served butlered hors d'oeuvres with champagne/wine, had a ton of staff on hand and were showing special collections. I tried on a strand of David Yurman pearls that was over $4,000! It was fun to play dress up and browse around. The problem was that I had dressed for skating in typical gym clothes and looked like a bum compared to some of the shoppers. It was a little awkward, but still fun.

Dinner & Reconnections

Tonight, Geof and I met up with someone who used to be one of my best friends. Somewhere along the way we lost touch and thanks to the power of technology (Facebook, texts), we got connected again. We hadn’t spoken since about a year before my wedding and both missed each other a ton. When we saw each other tonight, we hugged for the longest time and I even got a little emotional. Isn’t it amazing how when you haven’t seen someone in a long time that you have history with, you can just pick up right where you left off? I felt bad for Geof, because we could have chatted for hours! It was wonderful. We made a promise never to let anything separate us again because life is just too short.

Iron Hill Brewery

Okay, enough of the sappy stuff. For dinner, we went to Iron Hill Brewery, which I love. They have a wonderful menu and delicious brew. I was bummed because their pumpkin beer isn’t in season yet (which makes no sense), but ended up with the good old Light Lager. The three of us split some cheesesteak eggrolls and nachos. For dinner I had Belgian Meatballs with Yukon gold potatoes and beer braised red cabbage. As if that wasn’t already enough, we split crème brulee and old fashioned oatmeal cake. We hardly touched the desserts. It was pure gluttony.

Barb and I. We both came right from work!

It was a fantastic night and I left feeling so happy. Because I don’t have any siblings, my friends are my family. I feel like I just got back a sister and it feels so good.

Think pink!

October is a special time, not only because it’s my favorite month of the season or my anniversary. It is also Breast Cancer Awareness month and many companies come together to offer special items with a portion of the proceeds donated to charities that help fund research towards a cure or help patients coping with Breast Cancer.

Here are some items that I think are wonderful and donate a portion of the profits to charity:

Scout Original Dean-O Pink Gingham for Breast Cancer Awareness Tote from The Preppy Princess - $32

30% of the amount will be donated to raise breast cancer awareness

Carousel Cakes Pink Velvet Cake - $41.95

$2.00 per cake will be donated to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. I have tried this cake before and it is delicious. Their traditional Red Velvet cake made the Oprah list a few years ago.

Coach Multi Floral Scarf - $38

20% of the retail proceeds from sales of this product in the month of October, 2009 will go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation

Sonia Kashuk BCRF Brush Up on Pink 4-pc. Purse Set - $12.99

15% of the purchase price of this item going to support the Breast Cancer Research Foundation

Conair Breast Cancer Awareness 1" Straightener - $19.99

$1 from each sale goes to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation

Clinique Limited-edition trio of Long Last Glosswear SPF 15 minis on a keychain - $18.50

$10 from each sale goes to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation

Zoe & Morgan Silver Swallow Pink Sapphire Necklace - $178.20

20% of each sale goes to Breakthrough Breast Cancer

Bobbi Brown Pink Ribbon Collection Blush Pink Creamy Lip Color & Pink Crystal Glitter Lip Balm - $55

Bobbi Brown is contributing $35,000 to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation

DKNY Be Delicious Fresh Blossom Perfume - $55/1.7oz.

DKNY will make a donation of $15000 in connection with the sales of the DKNY Be Delicious Fresh Blossom to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation

Zak Nesting Bowls - $32/4

10% of sales go to the Continuum Cancer Centers of New York

OPI Pink of All Hearts Nail Polish - $7

OPI is donating $25,000 to Susan G. Komen for the Cure

I also like to buy Yoplait Yogurt during this time so that the lids can be saved and mailed in. Each lid counts for $0.10 to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

Weekend recap

Friday, the ladies and I were overdue for a night out. It was nice, because the 4 of us were able to go and it’s rare these days that our schedules align. We headed to where else – The Deck. The weather was mild and we were able to stay outside all night long. I never thought I’d be able to do that in October. We danced, laughed and just had a really nice time.


Us minus Jess...I think she was still doing her makeup ;)

Saturday was my first day back at skating and it went well. We had most of our students from previous seasons come back and have added some new ones. It gives me great pride to see the girls that I have in my higher level classes continually push themselves and do a great job. After skating, my mom came over and her, Geof and I had dinner. He went out with his friend, Dan and my mom and I caught up on So You Think You Can Dance and then watched The Cutting Edge. That is one of my favorite movies!

Sunday, Geof and I watched the Eagles game and lounged around most of the day. I made sure that cleaning was done and bills were paid last week so that I could just relax. It worked out and was a very lazy day. I think we all need that from time to time!

Postseason Phillies Game

Geof was able to get us tickets to the Phillies postseason game today against the Colorado Rockies. We took the day off and headed to the game for the 2:30pm start time. The vibe at the stadium was completely different than going to a regular season game. It was a sea of red and the cheers were louder than I’ve ever heard before. The Phillies were down most of the game, but started to make a comeback in the 6th. They ended up losing 5-4. It was a tough loss, but there are still 3 games to go in the series.

Our seats were on the 200 level and we had a great view of everything. One of the suites began where our row ended and there were some Phillies alumni in the suite. John Kruk was sitting right behind us. It was awesome to see some of the old players from when I was a teenager.

The series is currently tied up at 1-1. I’m so excited to watch the next few games and see how everything plays out. A repeat trip to the World Series would be ideal!


Ready to head into the game


View from our seats


Us at the game


Look at those people on top! We couldn't figure out what they were doing up there.

Fall + new Yankee scents = Love

It is around this time each year that I get completely wrapped up in the fall season and try to take everything in while it lasts (because it is gone in a flash). One thing that I do is treat myself to a new candle or two from Yankee. They released their new fall scents late in the summer and I ran right over to scoop some up.

Here are the scents that my home will be filled with each evening and all weekend from now until Thanksgiving:

Almond Cookie

It smells like warm cookies fresh from the oven. This is one of those candles that might make me hungry when it’s lit!

Farmer’s Market

This is a combination of several fall fruits and spices.

I’m also excited for the holiday scents that are coming out. They have one called Christmas Cupcake and another called Christmas at the Beach. I have a feeling that I will love both!

What are some of your favorite candle brands and scents?

Weekend recap

Friday, Geof had our masseuse come over and give him a massage and me a facial. It was just what the doctor ordered. Crystal (the masseuse) worked at a salon & spa that I used to go to and she does work on the side cheaper. She has her own table and products and nothing beats the comforts of home. I even turned on the soundscapes music channel and lit a Yankee candle. It was incredibly relaxing. I talked to her about having a spa party with all of my girlfriends one night and can’t wait to set that up. Later, my mom wanted to take us out to dinner for our anniversary. We wanted something good and easy, so we went to Olive Garden.

Saturday, it was our first anniversary and we ended up going to some fall fairs/flea markets and just browed around. After that, we went to Target to get a few things and then BJ’s to stock up on staple food items so that we can start cooking at home more. We came home and Geof cooked his famous tacos for dinner and then watched The Killing Room. It was a thriller that was never released in the theater and had an interesting twist. We both liked it. After the movie we had a slice of the top tier of our wedding cake (that I thawed out all day) and some champagne. I was pleasantly surprised that the cake wasn’t bad at all. I think the fondant on the outside helped preserve it. I forgot that the top tier was my favorite flavor, strawberry parfait.





Sunday, we watched football and I did some work (I actually worked on and off all weekend…blah). We caught up on some television, my mom came over to visit and we called it an early night.