{Monthly} Midweek Ramblings: August 2024

August 2024:

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Highs of the Month:

• A low-key but fun day date with Ryan at the end of the month as an early celebration of my birthday. We spent an afternoon doing several of my favorite things in Norfolk. It was a nice reminder that the little things can truly be so meaningful, fun and special! 

• A quick 24-hour trip to Charlottesville with my friend Megan for our friend Lily's bridal shower! We also got to have dinner in Downtown Charlottesville with our friends Emily and Meredith, had a fun sleep-over at Emily's house, and stopped at Reviresco Coffee in Richmond (owned by an Instagram friend of mine- my first time visiting!) on the way back to Virginia Beach. 
• My (other) friend Emily's wedding! Emily and Luke were married in Virginia Beach in the most elegant and lovely coastal garden party wedding during the first week of August. This wedding was especially fun and special for Ryan and I because so many of Emily and Luke's friends have become our friends! It's always a blast at weddings when you know many people there. I also think it's such a small world that both of my friends named Emily both got married in 2024... which is also my wedding year! Lol.

Lows of the Month:

• My grandmother (mom's mom) in Maine passed away at age 99. While her passing didn't necessarily come as a shock to me due to her age, it is still a huge loss nonetheless. She was truly quite a woman! I was able to make a quick trip to Maine for the wake and funeral services. It's also hard to see your parent lose their parent. My other three grandparents all passed away before I was born, so this is the first time I've ever seen one of my own parents going through this type of loss.

• Bridesmaid attire sizing troubles for my wedding!  The sizing chart for their attire from the company it's from seems to be quite wonky and off. I feel so badly for the hassle it's causing! Really hoping that everyone's second (or third) times ordering will be successful. It will all look so lovely if it's able to come together, and I don't have to switch to a Plan B or Plan C for bridesmaids outfits. 

• A lot of people in my life are dealing with really tough things this year. My heart was heavy in August for so many people for these various serious things going on. (And heck- it's been kind of a tough year for me too!) Some days all of this weighs on me more heavily than other days, and I feel like that happened a lot in August.

August Weekend Recaps:

• 2nd-4th - Our friends Emily and Luke got married!! They had a fun welcome party at a local restaurant on Friday evening that Ryan and I attended. On Saturday morning I went to a workout class, and then Ryan and I spent time at our apartment pool. Amazingly we were the only ones there- super rare for a Saturday! We then got ready for the wedding, and had the most fun night celebrating Luke and Emily in Virginia Beach! On Sunday evening, I went out for drinks at a nice local bar with some of my younger coworkers from my new job. It was our first time hanging out outside of work!
• 9-11th - I had to work most of this weekend. Sunday thankfully I was off work, and I had some more pool time that afternoon after I got home.
• 16th-18th - I also worked most of this weekend! I did enjoy going to my friend Bri's birthday dinner on Sunday evening after work. We went to Cooper's Hawk (one of my favorite chain restaurants) and it was great.
• 23rd-25th - I flew home to Virginia Beach on Friday afternoon (getting back from my grandma's funeral). I got back to VB just in time- Ryan and I and some of our friends had concert tickets Friday night. On Saturday we went wedding band shopping at Adele Diamond, which is the jewelry store my engagement ring is from! We then had lunch at a place we'd never tried before at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. I then napped the rest of Saturday away- I was so tired from travel and the concert on Friday. On Sunday morning, my friend Megan and I were up bright and early to head to Charlottesville for our friend Lily's bridal shower! We spent Sunday afternoon at the shower, and then had dinner in Downtown Charlottesville with our friends Meredith and Emily that night.
• 30th-1st - Ryan and I were both off work on Friday, so that's when we did our Norfolk day date as an early birthday celebration for me! I'm going to try to write a birthday recap blog post for this year, and if I do I'll share more details about the spots we went to. Then I worked all day Saturday and Sunday. 

August Purchases:

• A pretty light month for shopping for myself. I was influenced by another influencer I follow to try these jeans! I've had many pairs of jeans from this brand, but I hadn't tried this specific cut before. It's still been too hot in Virginia most days to really wear denim, but I'm excited to wear them more this fall. I really liked them from trying them on! 

• I bought this single eyeshadow color specifically for blending into my crease for everyday eyeshadow wear. I'm trying to get away from using palettes everyday and into a more streamlined routine before work with single eyeshadows. I also repurchased my all-time favorite eyeshadow stick this month! I've been wearing this on my lids and the new single shadow I bought in my crease for everyday. 
• And a really fun purchase: I bought the dress for my next bridal shower! 😊

August Wishlist:

• These shoes are quite impractical (and quite expensive), but I can't get over how cute they are!! Preppy colors and golf designs?! Sign me up!
• These gold earrings would be so pretty for a fall formal event.
• The most classy and chic pink lady jacket. I have two lady jackets currently (black and white and an aqua one), but now convinced I need one in pink, too!
• Closing out this month's wishlist with a home decor item. I love the color and style of these nightstands! And they're really quite affordable too.

August Blog Posts: 

• A Day in My Life (Summer 2024)
• J. Crew Factory Summer Date Night Outfit
• Travel Diary: 48 Hours in Highlands, NC
• Wedding Wednesday: 3 Months Out Checklist + Q&A

    

      God Bless,

      xoxo Annaliese