Midweek Ramblings.

 

{Scenes from Virginia Beach this weekend! Follow me on Instagram @miss_alk}

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Ramblings:

• Car accident: I've talked about this a bit on Instagram over the past few days, but a week ago today I was in a car accident on the interstate when a deer jumped in front of my car in the early evening. I was in the fast lane- this is the first accident I've ever had at high speeds, and I was pretty shaken up. I am so lucky that I wasn't hurt! But my car wasn't in good shape, and that was tough to see since I've only had my lease for just 10 months. The insurance review process ended up taking a lot longer than I thought- the accident happened last Wednesday evening and I didn't get an insurance decision until yesterday. Unfortunately- it's totaled. So this afternoon I'm now beginning car shopping for the second time in less than a year. Wish me luck!! 
• Three years in Charlottesville: Tomorrow is my third anniversary of moving to Charlottesville! I can't believe it's been three years of work and play here in Virginia. Typically I do some sort of a special blog post on 3/18 to commemorate this (see them from 2019 and 2020)... but it's been a crazy few weeks so I actually don't have anything planned for the blog for tomorrow to commemorate this year's moving anniversary. But, I still wanted to acknowledge it here today. Cheers to three years! 😊

Weekend recaps:

• Last weekend: My dad came down to visit! I hadn't seen either of my parents since August- I didn't go home for the holidays this past year due to COVID. My dad was able to get vaccinated pretty early on due to his job, so he's been safe to travel for awhile now. We ended up going to Virginia Beach! I can't believe it took me three years in Virginia to finally make it there. It was in the 60s most of the time- pleasant enough to be outside walking around and enjoying the beach, but not too hot. I took the weekend off from most blog stuff- sometimes it's nice to be out of town and not feel the need to take photos of everything to blog about or post on Instagram!
• This weekend: I'm assuming Saturday will be spent car shopping and figuring all of this out. I'm starting test drives today, but I'm assuming it will take a few days like it did last May. My friend Emily's birthday is also coming up, and she's having an outdoor celebration on Sunday which I'm looking forward to. Maybe I'll have a new car by Sunday to drive to that! 

Purchases: No fun purchases to report this week- and probably not many to come soon with all of these unexpected new car expenses. 😅

Wishlist:

• This dress has such a fun retro feel to it with the print and the silhouette! 
• What a unique and pretty new color option for my favorite sandals.
• J. Crew Factory does some variation of a low heel block sandal every summer- I've bought the versions from the past two years and loved both! This year's version just came out- I am adding these to my spring shopping list. 
• I've heard such good things about these affordable denim shorts from a few bloggers- definitely curious about them!
• Definitely feeling flowy midi dresses for this spring. 

Currently reading: The Gilded Life of Matilda Duplaine by Alex Brunkhorst - This was my absolute favorite book that I read in 2019- in fact I read it all in one day the first time! I don't often re-read books, but I wanted to read this one again to see if I still enjoyed it as much. I blew through it so fast the first time that I was curious if there were any parts that I missed at all. So far I'm enjoying it just as much this time!

Recipe of the week: Ang's Creamy Tortellini Soup from Pinch of Yum - I was majorly craving homemade soup when I got home from Virginia Beach, so I tried this recipe on Sunday evening. It is very filling and yummy! There are also a good number of veggies in it, and I ate all of them (even the spinach!). I'm normally a very picky eater with vegetables but this was good enough I didn't really taste them much.

Song of the week: Fever by Dua Lipa & Angele - First off- can we talk about Dua Lipa's amazing performance on the Grammy's on Sunday night?! Wow! She was phenomenal. Anyways- this song of hers isn't one that's super popular in the US, but it's doing well in Europe. It features French singer Angele, and it's just so good! 

Favorite blog posts of the week:

• The Homes I Have Made - Megan wrote a great post about why she and her husband have decided to rent homes for all the years they've been married instead of buying. Her husband is in the military, and I found this post so fascinating and insightful!
• Monica Dutia - Monica and her fiance recently moved from DC to NYC, and she shared a helpful post of moving tips! I can't believe it's been three years since I did an out-of-state move- reading this brought back a lot of my past move to-do lists. 
• Girl Meets Bow - My friend Gentry gave birth a couple weeks ago to her sweet little girl Eliza Ann! I loved reading her birth story.

On the blog this week:

• Blogging FAQ: 3 Things I Won't Share On My Blog Or The Internet
• Inspiring Woman Interview: Meet Jenn of Style Charade

     God Bless,

     xoxo Annaliese