September 2015

whew! this is a little long but HOW could it not be long... I am covering 30 days in a catch-up post. Enjoy!

First stop—DALLAS 8/31-9/1— for a short two day work trip. The hotel where we stayed was super nice and served these cool waffles in the morning. While in Dallas, we drove past the Cowboys stadium, which was neat, and we also ate at In-N-Out burger. This was my first time and I loved how the menu is just a few items, it makes ordering easy & the food was delicious too!

Labor Day 2015 Jack and I traveled to Oak Island with our friends Ben, Christina, Brooke, and Zac. We stayed in a tiny house that was just a few steps away from the ocean. The weather our first beach day was great. We played bocce ball, Christina’s parents came up to visit us, we met a dog wearing doggles, and we went to dinner at Frying Pan in Southport for dinner. Our second day was a little drearier, but we still made it out to the beach and had an afternoon dance party at the house. That evening, we decided to stay on the island. We played putt-putt and tried to have dinner at an oyster bar, which turned into a disaster mixed with monsoon rain. Needless to say, we ended up back at the house and made frozen pizza & pasta. On Monday before we left, we headed to Southport one last time for some seafood at Provision Company.

9/11-9/13 I headed up the mountain to Seven Devils, NC to spend the weekend with my Life Group. We stayed in a huge cabin and in the basement there were enough beds for us all to stay in one room. The first night was when the launch of the iPhone6S went live, and we stayed up until at least 3:30 in the morning talking & so one of the girls could place her order. In the morning we went on a hike to see a waterfall and the leaves were just beginning to change colors. We also stopped over at the original Mast General Store where I scored a new Columbia coat @ 50% off!!-- you know your girl LOVES a good deal In the afternoon we went to Grandfather Vineyard and Winery. My favorite wine was the red Grandfather blend. Sunday morning I headed to Raleigh to hang out with my parents since I had an eye doctor’s appointment on Monday.

While driving to Raleigh, I received a call from Jack that Enzo had gone to doggie heaven. I will never forget the call because I was driving past the exit where Jack and I met his parents when we first went to go pick up little Enzo. Enzo was such a loving dog and I miss him very much, especially around Halloween. Enzo loved to celebrate Halloween just like I did. You might remember this post on his Halloween costumes. RIP Enzo, I love you!

On 9/19 my committee for Junior League hosted our Family Health Link event, where we provide pre-K and Kindergarten children with physicals, dental check-ups, vision screenings, and hearing screenings, which are all required for these students to continue in school. We served over 100 kids that day and although the day was long & the hours were tough, I was humbled by serving so many in our community. That evening Jack and I celebrated the engagement of our friends, Andy & Kayla, at their Stock the Bar party. 

My parents celebrated their 30^th wedding anniversary on 9/21 and 9/26 Jack celebrated his Golden Birthday, 26 on the 26^th!! Although it was yet again a dreary, rainy day we made the most of it. For lunch we celebrated with Ben and Christina at The Porchfollowed by a visit to Raylen Vineyards. For dinner we went to a new restaurant in Winston, Quanto Basta Italian Eatery & Wine Bar, with Jack’s family. Everything we ate was amazing and I hope that we go back soon **hint hint**. Sunday, per Jack’s request, we had a cookout and cheered on the Panthers in their victory over the Saints. Since the theme was all things panthers, I got Jack a new Panthers polo and made him personalized "you pick the game" Panther's tickets. Also, check out the awesome cake that Jack’s mom custom ordered from Lorene's Bakery!!

A few other fun things in September: 

-Jack, Amanda, Canaan and I went to Scarowinds on the first night it opened.

-Amanda revealed to our friends that she’s pregnant and due in March 2016!!

-One of my dearest friends, Lyndsey and her husband, moved back to the States from Puerto Rico.

-A picture of Jack's family from Eve & Gray's wedding was in the 2015 Triad Weddings Fall/Winter Magazine.

-Brooke, Lyndsey, Amanda, Sarah Jo, and I met for lunch one afternoon, which was so nice because almost everyone else lives in a different city/state.

- I worked out a lot and have kept up eating healthy, for the majority of the time.

- Not so fun first—I got rear ended on 9/22, thankfully I was not hurt, and now my car is all fixed up!

xx

ETB

Catching Up

Over the past two weeks I have been traveling A TON! In the past two weeks I have been in 5 different cities over the course of 12 days-- and i'm glad to finally be back! Through all of my busy days of traveling (mostly for work) I have neglected the blog, but I am happy to say that I’m back!! I wanted to share a round-up of what I have been doing over the past two weeks + some fun that I had back in Charlotte this weekend.

Raleigh:
Celebrations for my mom's birthday, grandfather's 95th birthday, and getting to see my parents house they are renovating & eventually going to move into {so far, they have removed trees/bamboo in the back yard and have a new hvac installed} I should also mention that my car had some trouble and it took my brother and I an extra 2 hours to leave Charlotte on that Friday-- we were so thrilled!

Orlando, FL:
Every year FD has an Annual Leadership Conference where over 1,200 team members gather to review business and learn about what is coming to the stores for 4th quarter {Halloween, Harvest, & Christmas seasons). This year I was asked to speak on stage in our version of the Today Show when we featured Halloween. From early mornings to late evenings the team learned a ton, but we also had a little fun too! Some highlights included getting to go to the wax museum - can you guess which one is me?, stuffing SWAG bags for the Today Show, Universal & islands of Adventure party, and great food and catching up with co-workers.

Charlotte: 
When I got back to Charlotte to say I was exhausted is an understatement. I am pretty sure that Jack would say I slept through the weekend just in time to leave again for another trip. Besides sleeping I did get out a little bit. On Saturday I was able to take Alex to the airport to catch his flight to China... at about 4:15 am. My mom wanted a picture--so here you go mom! On Sunday Jack and I went to a day trip to Mount Airy to visit his family & have lunch and dinner.

Chesapeake, Va:
Monday I left with co-workers for a 7 hour bus ride to meet our counterparts at DT corporate. This was my view for the entire trip, which was nice because after I got bored watched almost 3 movies on the way up I was able to enjoy the scenery as we pulled into the hotel. Also after a week off from the gym I hit up the hotel exercise room. I was pleasantly surprised at the equipment & that they had free weights!! 

Charlotte: 
Finally back in Charlotte again I was able to meet up with some friends to catch at The Wine Loft. Recently two of them have gotten engaged-- 2016 is going to be a busy year! 

Weekending:
My weekend kicked off with an evening walk, wine, pj's, and Panthers football! I was so happy to see that the Panther's won their first pre-season game and hoping that means we are going to have a good year ahead of us {Jack was in Cali, so I kept snapping him bits of the game to enjoy}. Saturday and Sunday were spent trying new things. Saturday Sara and I headed to Orange Theory  for a mid-morning class. This was my first time visiting and I cannot wait to go back. The workout is intense, but you leave dripping in sweat knowing that you got in an amazing workout. For the afternoon we stopped at Sycamore Brewery, again first time there, and enjoyed a cold beer + live music. 

Sunday Jenn, Sara, and I went to Cafe Monte, my first time, and I had the Croque Monsieur with side salad. The sandwich was to die for & the service was great. I cannot wait to go back for an omelet or french toast! For the afternoon I me up with Hannah, Kayla {two engaged from above} and Patricia for The Bridal Showcase hosted by Belk. Although it was so overwhelming to have all of the vendors in one place it was nice to see a little bit into that industry. Afterwards we had wine & joked about how we will not go to another show-- here's to trying something at least once! Sunday evening I finished up the first season of Bloodlines and now will wait until season 2 releases.

How was you weekend? Try anything new?

xx

  

Weekend || Father’s Day 2015

What I loved about my weekend:

Celebrating #1 Fan, my dad!!

Looking through tons of old family photos with my grandparents that my mom has found & getting to hear stores and tall tales from when they were growing up

Looking for “the goose”

Creating a succulent oasis for my desk using the old vase from flowers from JG

Watermelon + cherries

Driving through terrible rain storms, but getting to see the rainbow

Spending the weekend in Raleigh

Letting my hair be wild due to the heat and humidity-- anybody have a cure?!

Enjoying the outdoors, grilling out, and making s'mores

How was your weekend?!?

xx

Five on Friday || How is it already JUNE?

ONE|Mississippi

Over the weekend Jack and I hustled down {approx. 19 hors round trip} to Pascagoula, Mississippi to celebrate the nuptials of our dear friends Drew and Madalyn. Although the ride was long we got to spend some quality time together. The wedding was beautiful and I will never forget the toast from Drew’s brother, Tanner. I guess I’m a sucker for wise words.

TWO| T.SWIFT

Monday night Jack took me to Taylor Swift’s 1989 Tour and going to the concert has been one of my most favorite gifts… Like EVER!!! As soon as she got on stage to kick the night off with “Welcome to New York” I got chills all over my body…literally. Taylor’s talent is simply amazing the way that she commands the entire stage and arena all the while making the concert feel so intimate. Our seats were great, the music was great, and spending #NationalBestFriendsDay with Taylor Swift {&JG} was something from my “Wildest Dreams”.

THREE|Carib

The bliss of vacationing in St. Martin is still on my mind… I am super ready to travel again. JG insta-tagged me in this picture of Woody + Carib earlier this week and I cannot wait to find this beer for sale in CLT… anybody know of a place who sells it?

FOUR| AIR Social

Last night I attend the June AIR Social event and had a great time meeting new people and trying new products from Charlotte Based companies. Garrett Tichy, the face of WeLoveCLT spoke about what drives him to love Charlotte and the people who live here. There was food from Fit You Meals and Roots Hummus, drinks with Three Hunters Vodka and D9 Brewing Company, shopping with Fresh Boutique and Pearl- Dentistry Reimagined. AIR Socials happen once a month on the second Thursday of the month, so come out and join me for July’s event!

FIVE| Have You Met Sara?

Meet Sara. I have the pleasure of getting to see Sara and talking with her almost every day. She shares her passion of fitness, food, beauty, fashion, and the outdoors over at Oats and Rows. She loves sharing her experiences and adventures from her point of view as she explores her new city, here in beautiful Charlotte. Sara also has a cute little Frenchie who tends to pop up from time to time named Winston. Be sure to add Oats and Rows to your bloglovin’ feed – Sara will not disappoint!

Hope that you have a wonderful weekend!!

It's Friday and I am linking up with…5 on Friday: Darci, April, Christina, + Natasha | Friday Favorites: A Little Bit of Everything, Momfessionals, + Grace and Love | Oh Hey, Friday: September Farm + The Farmer's Wife

xx