Midweek Ramblings.

 

 

{Delilah always loves being in the living room once the Christmas decoration are up! Follow me on Instagram @miss_alk}

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Ramblings:

• A beautiful story of friendship: I dare you to read this article and look at the photographs and not tear up. This piece from the AP tells the story of a 90 year old Serb woman in Kosovo who is in poor health, and she's also the last resident in her home village. There has been a lot of tension over the years between Serbs and Muslims in the area, but she is currently being cared for by a Muslim man who grew up knowing her sons. Their friendship is breaking cultural norms for their country and is just so, so beautiful. This is one of those news stories I know I'll never forget reading!
• Selena the Series: One thing that I have been really enjoying this week is watching Selena the Series on Netflix! This was announced last year, and I've been eagerly anticipating it ever since. If you're not familiar with Selena Quintanilla, she was an incredibly talented Tejano singer in the 80s and 90s. She was just on the brink of crossing over into mainstream pop music when she was tragically murdered in 1995. There was a 1997 film made about her (Jennifer Lopez's breakout role!) that remains one of my favorite movies of all-time, so I was very excited for the Netflix show. It's different than the movie, and I might still like the movie slightly more... but the Netflix show is still great too. If you weren't previously familiar with who Selena is and want a little more context about her life,  this article is a great summary of her tragic passing and musical legacy. And I would recommend seeing the movie before you watch the Netflix show if you haven't!

Weekend recaps: 

• Last weekend: It was a big weekend for getting a lot of productive Christmas stuff done! I addressed and mailed my first 40 Christmas cards, and wrapped and packaged gifts for my parents and friends that live out-of-state. I'm shipping a lot more than I have in years passed since I'm not traveling home this season due to COVID, so this was definitely a more time consuming process than years passed. Glad most of it is done now! It was a pretty chill and normal 2020 weekend otherwise- some Netflix, some reading, and some working out. I also hit a couple wineries on Sunday afternoon with my new friend Cara.
• This weekend: I was supposed to be in Charlotte visiting friends so I took off Friday and Monday, but I ended up cancelling due to the rising COVID cases. But I kept my two days off! I don't have any PTO to use Christmas or NYE weeks this year, so this is my early holiday long weekend. So far on the agenda is blog photos (last shoot of the year!), an outdoor socially distanced gift swap with my local friends, and perhaps a Richmond day trip on Monday.

Purchases:

• These gorgeous Kendra Scott earrings from their winter collection- they will match so many of my colder weather outfits!

Wishlist:

• If you are lucky enough to live somewhere that's warm and tropical at Christmas, how gorgeous is this pink resort dress?
• Slip dresses are a blast from the 90s past and all the rage right now. This slip dress is under $30!
• This new blue leopard print sweater is so cute, and also the closest thing I've found to this sweater that I got a few years ago!
• Another sweater I'm loving that's under $40- I love the sleeve and neck details.
• I've shared that I recently finished watching Gilmore Girls on Netflix... how fun are these masks inspired by the show?!

Currently reading: The Same Sky by Amanda Eyre Ward - still working on this book from last week! I'm halfway done and it's wonderful- beautifully written and captivating. I just haven't had a lot of reading time this week. Hope to finish it soon!

Recipe of the week: I wanted to re-share yesterday's blog post, which was a collection of all the recipes myself, my roommate and our friend used on Thanksgiving for our untraditional brunch feast! All were so good. 

Song of the week: Guess I'm a Liar by Sofia Carson - I first heard this when Sofia performed it on this year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. It's so good! She reminds me a lot of Camila Cabello.

Favorite blog posts of the week:

• Style Charade - Jenn shared the design plans for her dream walk-in closet! Cannot wait to see once it's finished.
• Carolina Charm - Christina recapped her annual Favorite Things Swap with her girlfriends. I love this idea for a unique type of gift swap- I might have to try to organize one like this next year.
• Carolina Style - One of my blogger besties, Cara, finally got to publicly announce her and her fiance's move from Charlotte to Atlanta! I'm excited for their new adventure, and I hope I can visit once things are safer with COVID.

On the blog this week:

• Lilly Pulitzer Holiday 2020: Try-On and Sizing Guide
• Designer Diaries: Olivia Rubin Cardigan 
• Untraditional Thanksgiving Menu: Our Thanksgiving Brunch

     God Bless,

     xoxo Annaliese