post #48 - F5: Gossip Girl, Waze, Office, Bubble Bath, & Blog Design!

Happy Friday! The weekend is very welcomed after what has felt like the longest week! Here are 5 things getting me through the week:

1. Gossip Girl

I know I'm behind the times here by, say, 6 years? But I forgot how awesome it is to watch a show at your own leisure and not have to wait for the following week. I'm on Episode 8 - only 100 something more episodes to go! So addicted.

2. Waze

In honor of my hubs finally converting to an iPhone yesterday (hooray!), I have to share one of my new favorite apps. I'm on the road a lot - for work and play - and this is really a lifesaver! It can serve as a navigation system (instead of Google maps), but that's not the exciting part. With this app, users can submit hazards, police, traffic, etc. You can also chat with other users - helpful if there is a wreck ahead and you're trying to figure out what's going on. And, lets be serious, everyone wants to know about those cops hiding behind the trees!

3. New Office!

Today, I'm officially moving into an office! This is a big step up from my current situation, with much less noise! I went shopping last night and found a cute rug, but no lamp. The search continues - I'll keep y'all posted!

4. Bath and Body Works Aromatherapy Stress Relief Bubble Bath

I've been pretty stressed this week, and this stuff has been a lifesaver! It really does have a soothing smell. B&BW is currently having a 25% off sale - pick it up if you need a boost!

{purchase here}

5. Blog Design!!!

I got the first draft of my blog design this week! I can't wait to unveil the finished product soon, hopefully next week! Keep your eyes peeled and follow along to see my **major** upgrade!

Thanks for following along, friends! Stay updated on BlogLovin, Facebook, or GFC!
And, thanks for all of your comments! I love reading them! ;-)

post #47 - Lemon Spinach Spaghetti Squash

Happy, happy Hump Day!

I got some questions about the spaghetti squash I posted on Friday, so I figured I'd share the recipe with you. We have started making this almost every week - it's delicious and healthy! And, RIDICULOUSLY easy.

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash

1 bag of spinach

1 lemon

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon garlic, minced

Instructions:

1. Place spaghetti squash on a plate. Use a medium sized knife to punch around 10 holes in the squash. Microwave for 9 minutes (give or take, depending on the size of your squash).

2. While squash is in the microwave, heat oil and garlic over low-medium heat (I use 3-4). Zest and juice the lemon and add both to the oil mixture.

3. When about 5 minutes remain for the squash, add spinach to stove and saute. I generally cook this at a 5. 

4. Remove pan from heat. 

5. Slice spaghetti squash in half (long ways) and scrape out the seeds from the middle section.

6. Once seeds are removed, use a fork to scrape squash out of the shell. It should come out in strings. 

7. Combine spinach/liquid in the pan with the spaghetti squash.

8. Enjoy!

Don't forget to follow along on Facebook, Bloglovin, GFC, etc! Xo!

post #46 - F5: Breast Cancer Awareness, Healthy Food, Sangria, Clemson, & No-Reply Bloggers

Happy Friday!!! What 5 things are making you smile this week?

1. Breast Cancer Awareness

On Tuesday, I joined the main ladies in Jordan's life for a great event held here in Columbia - Women's Night Out. This event raises money and awareness for breast cancer. The night started with a silent auction and raffle. To make the raffle more exciting, everyone started with about 20 tickets (there were close to 30 different prizes, so you could distribute your tickets any way you wanted). Then, it was time for a delicious dinner. There was a fashion show with some beautiful cancer survivors and guest speakers - sisters who were separated at birth and later were brought together, and who both (along with their biological mother) suffered from breast cancer. I had such a fun night - although the figures are scary, it's so great to see so many strong women coming together for such a great cause. 

{i'm already looking forward to next year!}

2. Healthy Food

This dish has quickly become one of our very favorites - sauteed spinach, olive oil, garlic, and lemon juice tossed with spaghetti squash. This week, we added a marinated portobello mushroom cap for some extra tastiness!

3. Fall Sangria

I'm thinking about making Sangria for the game this weekend. Is this a terrible idea for an 8:00 game? Someone talk me out of this. I am surely going to regret it and fall asleep before the game. (just kidding. that wouldn't happen). I found this recipe for Apple Cider Sangria (with hot sauce, I'm intrigued!)... I'm also considering this Pomegranate Sangria and Honeycrisp Apple Sangria. 

I definitely have my go-to recipes (is it a recipe if you combine by heart?) for the summer time, but do y'all have a fall sangria that is just to die for? I'd love to know, if so!

4. Date Night in Clemson

Tonight, we're hoping to head to Clemson a little early so that we can go out to eat and enjoy the Tigertown atmosphere. Weeknights are so tiring, so I'm really looking forward to a little down time! 

{florida state game, 2009. is it bad that neither one of these outfits has retired from our game day rotations?}

5. No Reply Comment Bloggers

This doesn't make me smile. This makes me frown, a lot!! Your comments make me so happy, and I try to respond to every single one! However, yesterday over half of my comments were from no-reply bloggers! I was so sad - I love email chatting with all of you! 

Are you a no-reply comment blogger? I found this tutorial - it's a quick fix, and you can finally start chatting with your bloggy friends!

Hope y'all have a wonderful weekend! Throw some prayers up for no rain, the perfect level of Sangria-induced-happiness to be great at cornhole, and a huge Tiger win!

Dying to stay up to date on my weekend shenanigans? Follow along on Instagram. Just want to see the recap next week? Stay posted on Bloglovin, GFC, or Facebook!

post #45 - Halloween Decor

I always loved holidays as a child, but as I've grown up, they have really given me something to look forward to. Whether it's seeing my family, a break from school/work/finals, or a fun party, a holiday is always something to gear up for. Loving holidays for me also means loving cute holiday decorations. It has been so much fun collecting my own and feeling like a real grown up as I decorate the house.

Insert: My Husband. He loves holidays. On the holiday itself. Not before. Not after. My husband does not love holiday decorations. Not a single bit. I'm not sure if this is a trend with all males, or just him. However, I'm pretty sure his head was about to explode when I made him come along to purchase our pumpkins at the end of September. (As my luck would have it, one of our pumpkins must have been bruised and is already beginning to rot. This is not helping my case.)

Anyways. Some of our biggest fights have been over my pre or post-season purchases of holiday decor. He can't understand why we should buy a Christmas tree stand in January (in his defense, we were moving soon and it was more stuff to lug around) or Easter decorations in May. Needless to say, he wasn't pleased with my Target/World Market haul last November after Halloween. However, I am loving the spooky touches, and it's a fun way to celebrate Halloween throughout the month since I'll be on a work trip over the 31st. And I waited for October to decorate - perfectly acceptable, right?

And, of course, my autumn table! (previously posted here)

How far in advance do you decorate for holidays? And what's your favorite Halloween decoration this year?

xo - Morgan

Stay updated Facebook, GFC, Bloglovin, and Instagram!

P.S. I was so excited to be chosen as a Krystal's Kitsch Blog Crush last weekend! Did you miss my Working Woman's Wardrobe - Fall Dress Edition post? Check it out here!

post #44 - Weekend Review, Clemson v. Boston College

Happy Tuesday! Hope y'all had a great weekend. 

We spent Saturday in sunny Clemson. I knew going into Saturday that it was a high of 80 - unfortunately, I envisioned a breezy, beautiful 80; it ended up as a sweaty, feels-like-100-degrees kind of day. Our Tigers pulled it out, but it wasn't pretty.

{tailgating}

After a terrible first half, I ended up meeting up with two of my besties from college. The boys went back into the game while we stayed out at the tailgate, drank wine, and caught up.

I've really been cherishing time spent with friends lately! It's so funny how you take the time spent with your friends while you're in school for granted. I was lucky to have such great groups of friends, both in undergrad and law school. Now that law school is over and most of my friends have moved to other cities, it's been an adjustment not being able to run across town to grab something from someone's apartment - or better yet, walk down the hall. Luckily, between football games, girls and/or couples nights, and frequent visits between us, I've been lucky to get to see my bffs fairly often! And, lets be honest, most days involve group texts/emails.

I can't help but think ahead to this weekend! Clemson is arguably playing it's biggest game that I can remember on Saturday. We have an 8:00 home game, complete with ESPN GameDay (yes, again!!) and a day full of tailgating, followed by a stressful football game.

Now the question is - what to wear?!

Follow along on Facebook, Bloglovin, Instagram, or GFC!!

post #43 - F5: Banana Milkshakes, Black Bean Chicken Soup, The Blacklist, Renaming Posts, & The Little Things

Happy Friday, y'all! So glad the weekend has {almost} arrived!! 5 things for this Friday...

Banana "Milkshakes"

No recipe or picture needed. All you need to do is peel a few bananas (I used 3), freeze them, and blend them with 2 spoonfuls of peanut butter and a can of low-fat coconut milk (I used Trader Joe's). This might be my new favorite treat, and it's not terribly unhealthy, right?

Black Bean Chicken Soup

Tuesday was really cold here in Columbia. That's not something you hear often, since Columbia, SC is quite possibly the hottest place on the planet. Or, at least in South Carolina. I was so excited to come home (after a day of getting shots, fainting at the doctor's office [a story for another day] and windy weather) to the smell of delicious soup cooking in the crock pot. I saw this recipe for chicken & black bean soup on my friend Paige's blog (check it out here) and decided to give it a try. The greek yogurt and avocado were the perfect toppings to this hearty, delicious soup. We added some extra chicken (because what are you supposed to do with that 3rd chicken breast when cooking for 2?) and the leftovers were just as tasty. Highly. recommend. Fall is officially here people.

The Blacklist

Have you seen this show? If not, set your DVR right now. Best new show of the season, without a doubt!! I won't give any spoilers, but for those of you who like intense shows (Scandal fans out there?) it's just what the doctor ordered for a new fall TV show. Oh, and Elizabeth Keen is a badass crazy character. (P.S. There is no good substitution for the word badass. I tried kind of.)

Renaming My Blog Posts

I usually put a good bit of thought into the content of my blog posts. But the title? That's the tricky part. I can never think of something creative. And there are only so many "Friday Five" titles I can use. Our Life in the Queen City titles her posts by Post #s. I am totally copycatting this idea. So, enjoy post #43 my friends! (Don't worry, you can still search by tag!)

The Little Things

This week, some little things have made me super happy. Things like getting a haircut (3 whole inches, wowie!) catching up with my old roommate over a (free!) wine tasting, wearing a sweater for the first time that i got on sale last spring, going to a nice-ish dinner at Cellar on Greene with my handsome hubby, having our next door neighbors show up at our door with an entire smoked chicken, etc. etc. Sometimes, I get so caught up in big things that I forget to appreciate all of the little things that are happening every day!

{photo}

I love this quote.

We're headed to Clemson tomorrow morning for our 3:30 game against Boston College. Is it time for Florida State yet? I'm also still counting the minutes until I receive the first draft of my new blog design! Any day now. Any day.

Thanks for reading! Don't forget to follow along on Facebook. BlogLovin. Instagram. GFC. Whatever keeps you reading!
Xo - Morgan

post #42 - Working Woman's Wardrobe: Fall Dress Edition

Working Woman's Wardrobe - Fall Dress Edition

Happy Monday!! Thanks so much for being patient with me last week! I was so excited to receive texts on Friday asking where my Friday Five was! To be honest, I fell asleep the second I got home from work on Thursday (at 10pm) and didn't have time to plan a post. But, this week, I'll post 3 times, so get excited!

In my online browsing this weekend, I couldn't help but notice some of the cute work dresses floating around. While I can't afford most of these dresses, I do have one of them and it's definitely a staple! Can you guess which one?

I give you - my fictional wardrobe for the week!

Monday: Kate Spade Benedicta Sheath Short Dress, found here
Tuesday: St. John Collection Fleck Tweed Knit Dress, found here
Wednesday: Theory Icon Shift Suit Sleeveless Dress, found here
Thursday: J. Crew Peplum Dress, found here
Solid Orange Friday: Ted Baker Payton Scallop Neckline Long Sleeved Shift Dress, found here

Have you found any precious work dresses lately? I'd love to hear about them!
Don't forget to follow along on Facebook, Bloglovin, and GFC!

Xo - Morgan

post #41 - Revenge Wears Prada {Book Review}

Book Review - Revenge Wears Prada

Happy Tuesday, my friends!!

Sunday I was riding back from Clemson in the car with my sister in law when I spotted a book I'd been hoping to read for a while. As a big fan of The Devil Wears Prada (lets be serious - book, movie - I love it all), I was excited when I heard that Revenge Wears Prada was going to be Lauren Weisberger's latest novel. Truthfully though, I'd forgotten about the book until I saw it sitting in her backseat. With a conversation about football taking place between her and my husband, I started reading.

For those of you who are familiar with The Devil Wears Prada, as I'm assuming most of my readers are, the famous Miranda Priestly is back in this book. Andy is also back and better than ever. As an added bonus, now you know to picture her as Anne Hathaway while you read. I loved Andy in the first book, and loved watching her character develop in this book. She's a girl that I feel like everyone can relate to in some sense. Weisberger also set things up perfectly for another book in this series (yay!). I was a little surprised (but not surprised) by the turn the last few chapters took, but all in all, another good pick.

Looking for an earth shattering read? Probably not the greatest choice. This is by no means an in depth book. But if you're looking for a good piece of chick lit for a quick and enjoyable read, I recommend this sequel! And who knows, maybe there will be another movie starring Meryl Streep? I wouldn't hate it.

Hope y'all had the BEST weekends and your weeks are off to a great start!