three things

Today, I'm thinking back to my fab weekend. On Saturday night, Dave's Aunts threw us a wonderful engagement party. So fun and loving the beautiful flower arrangement they had on display and gave me to take home! Also, finally caved and made my pumpkin nutella muffins (seriously can't stop eating them). And, we finally (it only took two weeks, but felt longer) got our engagement photos back, which we absolutely love. 

my beautiful engagement party bouquet

um, yum

one of 195 photos. we love almost all of them! (by o'grace photography).

friday night relaxing

Sometimes after a hectic week, Friday evenings are the perfect time to veg out. After a relaxing mani/pedi, it was time for some takeout from LGO and a glass of red while I perused pinterest, flipped through my latest magazines and caught up on my current read - The Happiness Project. It's the small things that make me happy. :)

yes, that is almost a half eaten pizza for one. it's that good.

pumpkin + nutella lovin

Okay - anyone that knows me, knows about my love for Nutella. Did you know there is a Nutella truck and it's coming to Phoenix in Nov. as part of their breakfast tour? I'll be there! (more details here). Anyways, I also love pumpkin desserts during fall so this Nutella and pumpkin combo is clearly epic in my mind. 

Last year, a colleague of mine turned me on to these delish Pumpkin Nutella Swirl Muffins from Real Mom Kitchen. Everyone that tried them fell in love with them and I'm anxious to make them again, now that the cooler weather is finally kicking in.

Here's my photo:

But I suggest you visit Real Mom Kitchen for the recipe + photos that will actually make you want to make them. 

three things

On Mondays, I often find myself reflecting on the past week and noting the little things that are making me happy. I'm currently loving the fall flower bouquet on my kitchen table, which I got to take home from my ad agency's 30th anniversary celebration last week (also feeling lucky that I have such a great job!). Thinking about Vanessa's baby shower and how great it was for all us old high school friends to hang out this past Saturday and look forward to meeting baby Ava! And lastly, loving my Trader Joe's cinnamon broom that makes my house smell a-mazing.

Beautiful centerpiece for the fall

All five of us, Megan, me + Cami, Vanessa (with the cutest little baby bump ever), Sarah & Michelle

(photo via Fashion Lush blog)

Cinnamon Broom! If you're doubting it, try their mini version for just 99 cents.

life reminders

Some days, you just need a few little reminders to start the day on the right foot, turn a bad day into a good day or to take a moment to truly appreciate all the fabulous things in your life. Here are a few of my pinterest "thoughts." 

dress shopping

After spending the past few weekends hunting for the perfect wedding dress, I finally found it! It was quite the search. My mom and I, often accompanied by friends and family, went to five difference places and visited one of the places three times! This past Saturday, on my third visit to Lillian Lottie, we got the dress! I had been in the weekend prior with my mom, her friend of 25 years Bernie, my friend Melis, my dad and my brother and we had it narrowed down to three dresses. But I ended up leaving in tears. It's hard when everyone loves different dresses and you're not sure which your favorite is. I showed tons of people the pics that week, trying to get a feel for which looked best on me. Then I came to the realization that I didn't think any of the three dresses were for me.

So, when I came into Lillian Saturday, I showed Becca (the most awesome person ever) pics of some dresses I had pinned early on in my wedding planning that I just loved. She found some that were similar and turns out the very first one I tried on, was the one I loved. I almost didn't want to try on the other 8 or so dresses, but I did. And was still in love with that first one. Everyone else loved it too. And - it's like it was meant to be...they only had the dress in for that weekend. Someone had wanted to try it on, so the shop had called to get in a loaner for that weekend only. Perfect.

Becca even had tears in her eyes when I realized it was my dress. She's never cried for a bride before. :)

fun happenings

This past week was a crazy, busy one. After jetting to Vegas and back on Tuesday for work, on Wednesday, my fiance and I had our engagement photos. After working a half day, I got my hair and makeup done and made it just in time to our 3:30 appointment at the beautiful  Hyatt at Gainey Ranch for our photo session.

As soon as I met my photographer, it was a huge relief. We love her and are so glad we booked her. The entire two hours she spent with us, she gave us photo tips, wedding vendor recommendations and kept us entertained with her stories. We had lots of laughs and then afterwards, Dave and I stayed at the resort for drinks and dinner. What a fun little Wednesday night!

Now we're really anxious to see our professional photos! Here's an iphone pic while we were sipping our pre-dinner drinks.

a little girl time

I love weekends spent with girls, even the busy ones! This past Saturday, my mom and moh/bff/Sarah came with me to help me find the perfect wedding dress. My mom and I had been to a few places, but finally found a good selection of dresses with exactly what I was look for: lots of beautiful lace at the lovely Lillian Lottie in Old Town Scottsdale! It was so fun and there are about six amazing dresses we found. Lots to be decided but at least it was a productive dress session.

Sunday, I met up with Sarah for coffee and then we made our way over to Anthem for Michelle's surprise birthday party (she was really surprised, yay!). We gabbed and munched on pizza, and took turns holding Miss Camdyn. We've known each other forever (Sarah since freshman year, Michelle since middle school and Megan since our early elementary days) and it's sometimes strange to see how grown up we are. It's just a reminder of how quickly the years go by and the importance of making the most of every moment. 

 

Sarah, me + Cami, Michelle & Megan

Camdyn fell asleep on Megan and then I stole her for some cuddle time :) 

~ Love ~