Happy Halloween!

In the spirit of kicking off Halloween weekend, roomies Caroline, Julia and I had an impromptu pumpkin party!

There was baking of pumpkin-y treats!
Julia baked pumpkin bread. I baked pumpkin-pie smash. The smells from the oven filled our apartment with pumpkin spicy deliciousness.

There was pumpkin carving!
Julia and Seaver bought a pumpkin and Caro decided that it should probably be a Longhorn pumpkin. So I drew the outline of a Longhorn and Seaver carved it up. A very happy Longhorn Jack-o-Lantern!



And of course there were pumpkin seeds!
Julia dug them all out of the pumpkin goo so we could bake them. Kind of the best part of carving a pumpkin if you ask me.

I love any kind of pumpkin-y treat. I love a night of baking with my roomies. I love the delightful smells that fill our apartment. I love joking and giggling and catching up, because sometimes with our busy schedules we go all week without seeing each other. And we laugh a lot.

Pumpkin Party = Happiness. Happy Halloween! And Go Longhorns!


Oh! And special thanks to Bethany for introducing me to the incredibly addicting Theta Mix. It was a big hit with the roomies + Seaver too. xoxo!

i am a blonde. the end.

a conversation between me and roommate julia this weekend. . . .

Julia: have you ever thought about letting your highlights grow out and keeping your natural color?

LJ: blank stare. no. then i wouldn't be blonde anymore.

Julia: i know. but i think the underneath layers of your hair are a pretty color. and your eyes would stand out.

LJ: but i'd be a brunette!

Julia: haha, i think it would be really pretty!

LJ: and it would be brown! noooooo.

Sometimes Words Aren't Enough. . . .

A little bit of love from The State Fair of Texas. Priceless.

Thank goodness for the iPhone upgrade to picture texts. Without which this magical moment would not have been possible. Oh and thanks Linds for this gem.

They say there's something about New York in the Fall

Oh, just a few autumn-y things that I'm absolutely loving right now...

• Longhorn Football!


• Pumpkin Spice Latte's are back


• The crisp fall air
  


• My new jean jacket that is a daily addition to my wardrobe


• Pashminas! With everything!


• Pumpkin's for sale at every corner bodega


• Gray nail polish - Essie's Chinchilly gray in particular


• Spice flavored candles


• Anything purple

• A DVR full of new fall TV shows - like Glee!
  

• Boots, boots, boots
  

• How switching out my closet with fall & winter clothes feels like getting a whole new wardrobe

• The brilliant orange, yellow and red tree leaves.
  

They say there's just something about New York in the Fall.
And you know? I must agree. It's kind of like falling in love all over again.

"Autumn, the year's last, loveliest smile." ~William Cullen Bryant

cute cute!

Artist / Designer Julene Harrison was featured in today's Daily Candy.

She may or may not have been included in the the wedding guide for invitations, save the dates and such.

Irrelevant. Because I couldn't help but click through to see more of her designs. Cute sayings and whimsical patterns. Cut from paper!

Super cute. And creative. And made me smile!

Let Texas Fill My Soul

So I think you can tell by the frequency of Texas-themed blog posts that I am quite fond of my home state. So here's a super short version of my latest Texas-y adventure for your enjoyment. Jamie's quotes in italics.

Hello LGA, I feel like I was just here!
Diet Dr. Pepper on the flight? That's when you know you're headed south.

Welcome to DFW. A quick nights stay at my parents house. Up early Saturday morning. ATX bound!

Road trips definitely require a soundtrack. Southbound 35! From Jamie's "This is what I think Texas sounds like" playlist.

I told Jamie that Texas was exceptionally flat. And treeless. Wow! I think that's the furthest I've ever been able to see. Except from a mountain. HAHA

Do you think I could get some cowboy boots? I really want some and I think it would sound best to say "Oh, you like them? I got them in Texas!"

It's a beautiful day in Austin, Texas. Perfect for tailgating. Oh how I've missed Saturday's with the Bigham's (and Ford's!)

Stubbs BBQ + Sunshine + Being surrounded by Burnt Orange + Laughing with good friends = Recipe for perfect Saturday afternoon


GO HORNS!

Welcome to the UT Co-op. It's like a burnt orange department store! Where can I find just the normal t-shirts?

Campus tour! I forgot how hot it was in Texas in September. 92 degrees, wheww!

This is the new Aquatic Complex at the gym. It's like a country club out here!

My only request is for really good Mexican food.
Check. Guero's! The perfect choice for Tex-Mex with outdoor seating while you wait, light-wrapped trees and live music. Oh and the queso...yeah I miss that.

Night out downtown on West 6th! Rooftop bars, more friends, cheap drinks. It's official - New York, you are a rip-off.

Woke up to a gorgeous Sunday morning. Lunched at Shady Grove. Oh this place is perfect! This is exactly how I pictured Austin, little bit hippie, outside, absolutely perfect.

Afternoon driving tour of the Hill Country. I almost forgot how gorgeous it is out there. I kinda fell in love all over again. Thanks to Kayla for being a fabulous tour guide and host!!

3 new pairs of shoes from the outlet mall later (a few more for Jamie, 2 pair for Les - us and shopping always = trouble) and it was back to Big D.

Northbound 35. Is there a song for that? No. Northbound isn't nearly as exciting as Southbound. It is if you're coming from Mexico.

And then, much too soon, our Austin adventure was over.

I dropped Jamie off at her hotel for her conference and spent all day Monday shopping and hanging out with Mom. Couldn't have asked for a better spontaneous weekend.

Thank you Jamie for convincing me that this trip was totally necessary. It so was!

I think it's safe to say that sometimes I just need wide open spaces and a lil Texas sunshine to refill my soul.

You might call it weird, I call it quirky - Part deux

The search is over! You might remember my quarter collecting confession from a few months ago. You know, the one about D and P state quarters? And how a quarter fascination is so NOT weird, it's totally normal? Yes, that confession.

Well, I have news about said collection. It is complete! Yay!

Photographic evidence of completion --

Mom & Grandad's collections of D & P quarters for each state. That's right, you're looking at $50 in state quarters neatly placed into these books. As you can imagine, they are quite heavy.

This is my finished book. The map Grandad gave me that began this whole silly fascination. A quarter for each state. Mine is prettier than the books, don't you think? I didn't care if the quarters were D's or P's. I just wanted to fill in my map. It makes me happy.

I think Grandad would be just as happy as Mom and I that these are finished. But now that they're done, does it mean I stop shifting through my quarters at the laundry mat? Hah, I don't know, it might be a habit I never break.