May 2025:
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Highs of the Month:
- It'll be hard to have any highs this year that top this one, but I accepted and started my new job in May! 😊 I am so unbelievably thankful for this new opportunity and career path after a lengthy and difficult job search. So far I am really enjoying working in higher education! My managers and colleagues have all been so kind and welcoming. This job truly is an answer to months of prayers!
- Ryan and I had a quick but wonderful trip to my favorite city- Charlotte, NC! We were there to attend our first Major championship for golf, the 2025 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow. We bought the tickets for this golf tournament last summer, so this had been planned almost a year before I got my new job. But it ended up working out so perfectly that this was my final weekend before starting the new job. The whole weekend truly felt like such a celebration!! !
- My dear friend and Matron-of-Honor Caroline had her baby shower at the very end of May, and it was such a special day for her. Caroline's high school best friend and sister headed up the majority of the planning, but I was happy to be included with a few other friends of Caroline to assist with the planning and set-up. Caroline absolutely loved the theme and decorations, and it was also great to spend more time getting to know some of her other friends from other facets of her life.
Lows of the Month:
- I had a surprise urgent care visit this month. Everything was easily resolved and I was lucky to see a great provider, but still- any surprise medical stuff popping up is never a pleasant surprise.
- I was bummed not to be able to see any of my Charlotte friends while we were there for the PGA Championship. It was a very quick and busy trip (and we were so exhausted on Sunday and just wanted to get home to Virginia Beach), but I have several good friends that still live in the Charlotte area, and I was sad to miss them!
- I had to stop attending my favorite evening workout classes due to my new work schedule. As a morning radio host and during my job at the hotel, I would attend 5pm Jazzercise classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It was such a staple part of my weekly routine, and I really enjoyed the instructor for those classes! At my new job I work past 5pm daily, so I had to switch to other weekly classes. Totally worth it for the new job, but still sad.
May Weekend Recaps:
- 2nd-4th - The beginning of the end for my time at my hotel job, as I gave my two weeks notice that Thursday! I still had to work Friday and Sunday, but I was off on Saturday. On Friday night after work, I met my friend Bea for dinner at a new-to-us local spot called Tides Coastal Kitchen. On Saturday, My friend Amanda invited me to a play in a women's golf scramble at a local course. It was my first time doing a scramble or something like that, and it was fun! We also had lunch at a local taco restaurant before golf.
- 9th-11th - My final weekend working at the hotel!! 😊 I worked Friday and Sunday again, but was off Saturday. I went to a workout class Saturday morning, and then Ryan and I spent the next couple of hours tidying our apartment. I met my friend Maddy on Saturday afternoon for some consignment shopping followed by ice cream! On Saturday evening, Ryan and I went to watch my father-in-law's band perform at a local pizza spot.
- 16th-18th - We made a quick trip to my favorite city, Charlotte NC! We were there to attend the 2025 PGA Championship for golf at Quail Hollow Country Club. We had tickets for Saturday of the PGA! We arrived on Friday in the late afternoon. I ran a couple errands at Charlotte spots I love, and then we checked into our hotel. We had dinner Friday night at a Charlotte spot that I'd always wanted to visit, Fahrenheit Rooftop in Uptown! It was partly a dinner to celebrate my new job, partly a celebration of six months of marriage of Ryan and I. We spent all of Saturday at the PGA Championship with our friends Bailey and David, who met us in Charlotte from Florida! We got an early start home to Virginia Beach on Sunday morning, and after we got home we spent the rest of the afternoon watching the conclusion of the tournament on TV.
- 23rd-25th - Memorial Day Weekend! I was so happy not to be working at the hotel anymore!! On Saturday morning I went to workout class, and then I caught up on stuff at home. Ryan and I went to a friend's cookout in the evening, and then a sunset beach walk after that. On Sunday, I played golf in the afternoon with three girlfriends at a new-to-me course! On Monday the weather wasn't great so it was mainly an indoor day for us. Ryan and I did meet his parents for lunch at a local spot which helped break up the day.
- 30th- June1st - Friday was a normal workday at the new job. I headed out of town on Saturday for my friend Caroline's baby shower!! She had it at a hotel in her hometown of Blackstone, which was a part of Virignia I hadn't been to before. Myself and some of of her other friends from out-of-town got hotel rooms and spent Saturday night there with her after the shower. I drove back to Virginia Beach on Sunday morning, but stopped along the way for lunch with my friend Kelly-Anne. When I got home, Ryan and I decided to go play a spontaneous 9-holes of golf at a local course. We ended the evening with a casual dinner at a local sports bar by our house.
May Purchases:
- My biggest splurge of the month that I'm still so excited about was a new Barrington tote for work! I've been a fan of Barrington bags for years now, and decided months ago that whenever I got a new job, I'd upgrade my beloved navy St. Anne tote with my maiden monogram to a new bag with my married monogram. Worth the wait!! I am obsessed with my new bag. This post is a few years old now, but I do have a blog post comparing Barrington's main two styles of tote bags.
- My new job has a business professional dress code M-Th, and I badly needed some additions to my work wardrobe. I bought this work dress to wear for my first day a few weeks ago. The fabric is extremely comfortable and soft, I love it!
- My favorite purchase of the month (it might have even been more of a favorite than my new Barrington bag) was these nude heels for work! I am obsessed. They are so comfortable for longwear, and they look so flattering on! They're also incredibly affordable. I bought mine at full price (which wasn't bad!), but as soon as they go on sale, I'm planning to buy pairs in all of the other colors, and more in the nude color to have as back stock, lol.
- A shopping fail this month that I sadly had to return was this high-necked vest. I love the high-necked vest trend, and I thought this one looked very chic and high quality. It ended up being both of those things, but unfortunately the way this one was cut it just didn't fit my shoulders and chest well! I tried two sizes, and had the same issue with both. If you are smaller chested or don't have broad shoulders like I do, I'd still recommend trying it!
May Wishlist:
- I've been on the hunt for more pairs of trouser style pants for the new job, and this pair is such an amazingly low price point! I was going to try to order them during Memorial Day Weekend sales, but they were sold out in my size that weekend.
- This colorful and flirty one-piece swimsuit for summer caught my attention in May. We will see if I do order it or not before summer is over!
- This tweed jacket comes in some great color options for the summer months. A fun way to brighten up a summer wardrobe!
- I stumbled upon this cute and preppy patriotic top that would be just darling for any July 4th festivities! Honestly though, it would be so cute to wear all summer long.
- The absolute last thing I need to buy is another sweatshirt, but this Maine summer themed graphic sweatshirt is so darling!
May Blog Posts:
Current Discount Codes:
- Armoire (Clothing Rental Service) - Use code miss_alk for 50% off your first month of clothing rentals, plus two extra rental bonus items!
- Cloth + Bristle (Non-toxic cleaning products) - Use code ANNALIESE at check-out for 20% off your first order!
- Loopy Case (My absolute favorite phone cases) - Use code missalk at check-out for 10% off your purchase!
- Maggy London (Classic and chic work + occasion dresses) - Use code ANNALIESE15 for 15% off your purchase!
God Bless,
xoxo Annaliese
Love reading your midweek ramblings! And that Maine sweatshirt is too cute!
ReplyDeleteThat tweed jacket is adorable and soooo tempting! Love your May ramblings! - Katie of The Pink Chickadee: https://pinkchickadee.com/
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