What's up Wednesday

Sunnies: Ray Ban | Bag: Rebecca Minkoff "Regan" (similar colors here and here) | Sweater: Express | Bottoms: American Eagle "Jegging crop" | Booties: Free People "Hybrid" (last worn here)

It's the last Wednesday of the month which means it's time for another dose of What's Up Wednesday, the linkup hosted by Mel, Shay, and Sheafer. I really don't have an editorial type blog, if you didn't notice. Because work can be stressful, I often keep my content on the blog very light and easy to read. But, it's also nice to share actual life stuff with you guys once in awhile, and these prompts are the perfect conduit to allow me to share! Let's get started!

What we are eating this week:

I've mentioned our local meal service a few times on the blog now. What's great about her menu is that she doesn't try to reinvent the wheel all the time. There are some favorites that she makes and adds to the weekly menu often, so we can enjoy it more than just one time! This week we had: chicken pot pie (holy amazing crust), pork rib ragu with penne (the pork is crazy tender and juicy), and barbecue chicken breasts with broccoli salad and roasted carrots (this was more of a Hawaiian tasting chicken to me than a BBQ - still amazing.)

Also, with fall upon us, one of our favorite frozen custard places will be closing for the season at the end of this month. The husband has been stocking up on his favorite Pumpkin Pie concretes as a result! I normally just do Heath and chocolate hardshell in mine. Or white chocolate chips if they have them!

Finally, I have been obsessed with this jerky lately! The husband picked some up a couple of times and I immediately fell in love. It's not overly salty like a lot of jerky can be, and it has the perfect amount of sweetness to it.

Lorissa's Kitchen Korean BBQ jerky

What I'm reminiscing about:

Facebook does a really good job at resurfacing posts from previous years on this exact day. Well, all month I have been tortured with photos from past trips to Mexico. We normally go for our anniversary (which was Labor Day weekend), so yeah. The husband and I keep saying we are going to plan a trip for October, except next week is October and we have no trips planned yet. Insert crying emoji here. We seriously need to schedule a coffee date again where we sit and do nothing but look at the laptop and figure out where we are going to go. It will happen before the year is up dangit.

Originally posted HERE, Beachwaver tutorial HERE

What I'm loving:

I have been obsessed with the Beachwaver! I've been using it on my hair as much as I can. It curls my hair so quickly, it's pretty amazing. I used it on my hair for today's outfit photos, but you can also see the tutorial I did HERE along with how I even learned about it in the first place in this post HERE. If you are in the market for a new curling iron, I highly recommend it!

What we've been up to:

Not a whole lot and yet a ton. September came and went, and I'm not really upset to see it go, if I'm being honest. It's been a challenge. Our rat terrier had major surgery and is doing well, but needless to say it's been stressful! My car seems to hate me a bit because it locked itself on me and I had to get a tire replaced. All of these unexpected expenses have made September a big financial burden, but we made it through, and I'm thankful to have all that behind us. I'm looking forward to a relatively easy October, knock on wood.

What I'm dreading:

The ending of Daylight Savings!! Insert another crying emoji here! I hate hate hate losing sun so early. I'm thankful that it doesn't end until the first weekend of November, but I know it's going to be here sooner than I want! Fall is definitely my favorite time of year, but it comes at a cost! Leaving for work when it's still dark and getting off work when it's dark again is the most depressing thing ever!

What I'm working on:

As far as blogger related, I have a couple of collaborations going on. First, I was so flattered that Katy asked me to be be one of the co-hosts for the Wear What Where style challenge for October. The prompts are always relatable and fun, so it will be exciting to see what everyone puts together knowing I got to contribute to the prompt ideas! You can read more about it, including how to win prizes by clicking on any of the host posts HERE.

Get all the details, including how to win prizes HERE

Second, I have a fall collaboration series that launches next Tuesday with 9 other bloggers!  I really enjoyed the summer series, and it's been fun shifting gears into fall with some fresh faces and new topics! I hope you'll check back to see who is participating and what we are talking about!

Transitional favorites: See original post HERE

What I'm excited about:

Transitioning into fall outfits is definitely my favorite time of year. If I can't have sunshine, half-day Fridays, or the beach, then give me all the layers! You can't go straight into blanket scarves through, so I put together a list of my favorite pieces that I rely on to help me switch gears from summer to fall. You can read more about it in this post HERE.

What I'm watching:

I don't really watch TV, BUT! We just finished watching Stranger Things on Netflix. I had been hearing good things about it, and I got hooked instantly. We watched all 8 episodes over a matter of 3 days. We are trying to figure out what to watch next, so if you have suggestions, let me know!

We also watched Sully in the theaters last week and I loved it. I didn't know all of the details of the Hudson River landing, so it was interesting to watch the behind the scenes drama. I am a sucker for any movie that is based on real life events.

What I'm listening to:

Currently Kenny Chesney and Pink are on with their "Setting the World on Fire" song. I love when two unsuspecting artists come together with a collaboration like this!

What I'm wearing:

OK, let's talk about today's outfit a bit, shall we? I am OBSESSED with this cold-shoulder sweater! The lace up details are a unique twist to the cold-shoulder trend. Plus, everything seems to have a crisscross/lace-up detail nowadays so I'm killing two trends with one stone. The lace-up shoulder is little more subtle than an abrupt cut out at the shoulder, which is nice since a super vented sweater seems counter-intuitive. Speaking of vented... these booties! The husband got them for me for my birthday not knowing they were on my wish list. I've worn them a couple times now and miraculously, they do not make my feet sweat even though I'm wearing them without socks! I'm obsessed with them. Very comfy, and such a great quality boot.

What I'm doing this weekend:

I have zero things on my calendar this weekend! That just means I need to get the house straightened up, do some laundry, and maybe purge the closet room to make more space for my new fall purchases.

What I'm looking forward to:

We have two big things in October that I'm looking forward to. The first is the annual bonfire at the in-laws. They host this every year - they ask everyone to bring enough chili for themselves and then throw it all into two big pots. Let me tell you, that makes for the most amazing chili EVER! I'm salivating thinking about it! The second is a cruise to a local winery with the Camaro club! We used to go to wineries a lot when we were more active with the Corvette club, and I told the husband we need to do this with the Camaro club - especially since the Camaro club is more our age vs. the Corvette club who is more his parents' age. I can't wait! I love wineries!

What else is new:

I can't do one of these "What's Up Wednesday" posts without touching on Pilates because it definitely takes up a lot of my time nowadays, in a good way! September has been spent finishing up my Pilates certification prerequisites! I had to schedule (5) private classes and (5) mat classes on top of the reformer and tower classes I'm already signed up for throughout the week. That means I've been practicing about 6 times a week now, and it  still doesn't even feel like working out. It's so much fun and I love the challenge! It's been an awesome learning experience, especially since I've been able to take classes at different studios and work with different instructors. I bought an old-school handwritten planner to keep track of all my classes. I also use it as a journal, recording my calories for each class and noting anything new I learned or how I felt during each class. I'm so excited to start the program!! 

Alright, that's about all the word vomit I have to offer you on this hump day. Thanks for hanging in there with me and have a great rest of your week!

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Linking up with: Oh, Hey Girl!, What I Wore Wednesday,

Mel, Shay, and Sheaffer for What's up Wednesday