1. My annual girls weekend getaway!
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| Back Row, L to R: Steph (from Ohio), Me (from Wisconsin), Aly (from Florida), Kelly (from Georgia), Kent (from Georgia), Marcia (from New York), and Beth (from Alabama). Front Row, L to R: Natalie (from Louisiana), Jenna (from Ohio), and Allison (from Minnesota). |
This year my group of girlfriends came from our homes all across the country to converge in Watercolor, Florida – one of the most beautiful little towns I had ever seen. (For real. I kept blinking my eyes thinking we were on a movie set.) To top it off, my friend Beth’s husband, Jeremy rented one of the most beautiful homes I had ever seen for us to stay in – it was stunning! (For real. I kept expecting the faucets not to work, thinking it was a prop house.) As always, we had an amazing weekend filled with great food and drinks, the beach, a pool, a little bit of dancing, and a whole lot of laughs!
2. Celebrating my birthday!
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| Kate & Mommy, taking a birthday train ride at the zoo! |
After a whirlwind girls’ getaway in mid-September, it was nice to come home and have a relaxing birthday weekend with my family. G and I had a date night on Friday night and on Sunday (the day of my birthday) I got to sleep in – one of the best gifts you can give a mom! We spent the rest of the morning at the zoo (per Kate’s request) and I worked on a home improvement project in the afternoon (per my request). At dinner, G and Kate “surprised” me with an ice cream cake (that Kate had already spilled the beans about, hahaha) and sang happy birthday. It was a wonderful birthday weekend!
3. PicFrame app
PicFrame is a photo collage app that my friend Allison introduced me to. Instead of sharing several separate pictures with the same theme to your social media sites, you can use PicFrame to create a collage and turn your related images into just one picture! The PicFrame app features 67 adjustable frames and cold hold up to 9 pictures in a frame. Once you’ve perfected your masterpiece, you can easily share your newly collaged pics via email, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Flickr, and Tumbler. It’s a great little app that only costs $1 and does a ton!
4. Homemade Lara Bars
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| Homemade Chocolate Lara Bars from Our Family Eats |
I’ve been loving this homemade lara bar recipe from Susan at My Family Eats. It’s quick and easy to make, and a great mid-afternoon snack to have on hand at work or at home when the munchies hit! My first batch was initially a little crumbly and didn’t hold its shape, so I added a little bit of peanut butter to the mix and mmm, they tasted so good!
5. Outlander, by Diana Gabaldon
I was at my friend Beth’s house last winter and she was so into this book that she convinced me to buy it. I knew nothing about it, other than Beth couldn’t stop raving about how obsessed she was over it! (And she was – she even picked it up and read a few sentences during a thirty second break in our conversation while I checked a message on my phone.) So, at Beth’s insistence, I ordered the book. It arrived. I grimaced at how thick it was, put it on my nightstand, and hadn’t touched it since.
Until last month.
And now I’m obsessed, too.
I wouldn’t say I’m Twilight obsessed – let’s not get crazy here, people – but I might be in the ballpark.
I’m not even going to try to attempt to describe the storyline of this book to you because it’s a little strange, and frankly, if I tried it would probably turn you off, because admittedly, it doesn’t sound that interesting – but it is! This is typically not the kind of book I’d want to read: it’s long, I don’t care about 18th century wars, and (warning!) there is a very disturbing torture scene in the book. All signs point to it being a book I’d hate, but I couldn’t put it down! Outlander was written 20 years ago, and is the first book in an 8 book series. I loved it so much that I ordered the next three books in the series before I even finished the first!
What were some of your things loved in September?
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I’m on the second book of that series, enjoying reading something a bit different
Outlander is the next book on my Kindle – I bought it for when we were going on vacation, but I didn’t have a chance to start it (still working my way though another book…)
I too am an Outlander fan. Just a warning, the second book is a bit slow, but the third book is the best! Happy reading
I am a voracious reader; have been all my life. I don’t know how I missed the Outlander series since the first book was written 20 years ago. I have the first 6 on my kindle. Got the last from my library to save money. Read them ALL this summer and I am obsessed! I can’t wait for number 8 to be published next year. These are hands down the best books I have ever read!
Ok so now that you know and love picframe, share more pictures – I miss your face (and KPR too)! lol
I’ve gotta get that iphone app. After my 4 hour long ios6 updating session is over I’ll get right on that.
OMG that house you guys stayed at is amazing! So gorgeous!
Ooh I loved the Outlander series! You’re right, the plot sounds ridiculous (enough that I would pass it off as “historic” literature if anyone asked what I was reading) but if you can get past that, they’re awesome. Enjoy!
I love love Outlander….I’m sure you’ll hate to start another series but you would probably love the book, The Bronze Horseman….seriously check it out!
Ooh, I finished Outlander last month as well! Loved it. (I read it via kindle, so as to not freak myself out by how dang thick it is!) I’ll be starting the next one soon, but had to take a break to read the newest book in the Thursday Next series, an absolute favorite of mine.
Happy birthday! And happy getaway. I am still dying to have my first EVER getaway–you’ll have to tell me how you have wrangled annual ones.
September was crazy for me, and I was glad for it to be over. So not much love. But October is great already: I saw Madonna last night!
jbhat
That house is AMAZING! Hands down one of the most gorgeous beach houses I’ve ever seen. And, I’ll have to check out Outlander — thanks for the suggestion! Glad you had a great birthday month!
What a fabulous September indeed!
OMG that house IS amazing. Holy Weekend Getaway. Now I REALLY want one.
jbhat
That video was so sweet! Kate is lovely:)
LOVE the Outlander books!!!! I guarantee that you’ll be hooked – the worst part is that the series hasn’t all been written yet, so once you get to the last book you have to wait a couple of years for the next one! (Totally worth it though
Thank you for your comments, everyone!
@Lauren: I’m on the 3rd book right now and really liking it so far. I’m excited to hear you think it’s the best!
@Allison: Will do. I miss you, too!
@Beth: You are just the sweetest; thank you. And a 4 hour update? Yikes! I haven’t done mine yet, so thanks for the warning!
@Big A: Thanks for the recommendation!
@Sarah: I’ll have to look into that series, too!
@jbhat: Madonna?!?!! Consider me 50 Shades of Jealous. That would make the Things Loved in My Whole Entire Life list if I had one!
So happy to hear so many of you checked out the house we stayed at – it really was incredible, and such a wonderful treat from Mr. Jeremy Bryan!
Thank you, Anonymous!
@Lynn: I was wondering if the series was still going or if the book this next book was the last one. It’s crazy that a series that started 20 years ago is still going strong!
Congrats on discovering Jamie & Claire! Never have I read a book where I felt like I personally know the characters. I’m in the process of yet another re-read of the series (these books are long, so you know its taking me a while.) but I’m on book 7 taking my time in anticipation of the new book. I can’t wait!
Wow, I love the Outlander series and early await every new book. Diana Gabaldon is a favorite.
I meant “eagerly”
Thank you for your comments, Deanna and Kim. I almost hope that I don’t get caught up in the Outlander series. Waiting is not my strong suit!