Southern Belle in Training

Fashion, Travel & Lifestyle Blog || Est. 2012 || Virginia Beach, VA

January 19, 2022

Midweek Ramblings.

 


{It was such an honor and joy to be part of Ciera and Patrick's engagement in Charlotte this weekend! Follow me on Instagram @miss_alk}

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Ramblings: 

  • The surprise Charlotte proposal: This weekend had something that I had been waiting months for!! My dear friend Ciera got engaged to her boyfriend Patrick in Charlotte, NC. I met Ciera during freshman orientation for college, and we remained close throughout the four years and then became roommates at our first post-grad apartment in Charlotte. Through Ciera, I got to know and also become close friends with her high school best friend, Priyanka. (We even have a name for our little trio: the Flamingo Tea Pack). Patrick invited both Priyanka and I to be there for the big event, and it was so special to be included! Patrick proposed in front of the beautiful Confetti Hearts Wall in South End. Priyanka and I got there early to set everything up, and Patrick also booked the best Charlotte photographer, Deeana, to capture the big moment. I wouldn't have missed it for the world!! (Even though the weather forecast changed my initial plans of spending the whole weekend in Charlotte and flying in. I ended up driving and making the whole trip in under 24 hours.)
  • HIMYF premiere: The HIMYM spin-off, How I Met Your Father, premiered finally on Hulu yesterday. As a huge HIMYM fan, I'd been really excited to watch this! But last week, I read this review of the pilot and first few episodes from Rolling Stone, which did not give the show a favorable review. I then read a few more critics' reviews of it, and they had similar negative tones. Boo! I am still going to watch of course, but going into it with lesser expectations. I meant to start it last night but ran out of time before bed- planning to start tonight instead! I'll be sure to share my thoughts on Instagram Stories.
  • Tenille Arts interview: Something cool from my day job: I got to interview country artist Tenille Arts on Instagram Live this past Monday!! You can catch the replay of our conversation here. She also performed two songs acoustically and did a wonderful job!! I have really been enjoying her music this past year, so it was an honor to chat with her for work. 
Weekend recaps:

  • Last weekend: My whirlwind trip to Charlotte was the main event! 😊 Since you can read all about the surprise proposal above in the Ramblings section above, I'm not going to go super into detail with that part of the trip here. Although I was in Charlotte for less than 24 hours, I was happy to also make time to have breakfast with my friend Perrin and her husband, and then go to lunch with a group of my friend Priyanka's friends from her fitness studio. Lunch with Priyanka's friends was at Restoration Hardware, somewhere that I've been wanting to eat at ever since it opened in Charlotte a couple years ago. RH is not a cheap place to eat, but I thought the food and the amazing décor and ambiance was totally worth it to get to experience! I made it back to Virginia Beach very late Saturday. Sunday I was pretty sleep deprived from the late drive back to Virginia Beach, but I did start watching Cheer Season 2 on Netflix! 
  • This weekend: I was actually supposed to be going to Atlanta to visit my friend Cara! Unfortunately, the weather forecast isn't looking too good for Virginia or Georgia, and it appears another big snow storm for the South is on the way. I'd say as of now there is a 95% chance I will be cancelling and rescheduling my flight later today, and instead planning to visit in February or March. 

Purchases: No fun purchases for me this week. This month has had a lot of other expenses, so I haven't wanted to shop for myself as much in January.

Wishlist:

  • The most luxurious looking bathrobe. This would be so fun for a bridal party especially! I can't believe it's under $50.
  • This is more of a splurge, but it's a gorgeous statement top for spring.
  • I guess spring really is on my mind- I love these chic white dress parnts.
  • If you need a new clear bag for upcoming sporting events or concerts at venues that require them, this one is on sale right now and so cute! (Use code MISS_ALK for an extra 10% off too!)
  • This is the most darling little long sleeved dress. I like both the solid colored options and the prints. And it's under $50!

Currently reading: Teach Me by Olivia Dade - I rented this as an e-book from my library and started it on my drive back from Charlotte. It's a cute romance novel about two 40-something divorced teachers. I haven't finished it yet but I'm enjoying it so far.

Recipe of the week: After School Vanilla Sheet Cake with Milk Chocolate Frosting by Chrissy Teigen - There are few things I love more than yellow cake with milk chocolate frosting. When I saw Chrissy Teigen had a recipe for this in her newest cookbook, I had to give hers a try! It was definitely tasty, and fairly easy as far as cakes go.

Song of the week: Back Then Right Now by Tenille Arts - I think I've shared this song before as Song of the Week, but I wanted to highlight it again since I mentioned earlier in the post that I got to interview Tenille Arts for work this week! And it's still a great country song.

Favorite blog posts of the week:

  • Dresses and Democracy - Talia shared her favorite purchases of 2021 in a fun round-up. I always enjoy reading these posts from other bloggers (I'm planning to share my own soon too).
  • Amy Littleson - Amy finally shared her NYC apartment closet reveal!! Just like her, I don't currently have a walk-in closet, so I might steal some of her storage tactics for inspiration in my own bedroom.
  • Going by Grace - Poor Grace has COVID right now! I feel so badly for her and her family, but I really enjoyed her blog post about experiencing COVID in real-time. (Knock on wood) I hope I manage to keep avoiding COVID, but if I do get it I could see myself doing a similar type of post.

On the blog this week:



     God Bless,


      xoxo Annaliese

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1 comment

  1. I love that you were able to be there for your friends engagement- I’m sure that was so special for both of you!!

    ReplyDelete

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