Falling for Chicago!

Well for one, I am just like 90% of the other girls in the world that just love fall.  I love the colors, and smell..everything.

Sights: Every City Park.  Omg.  I just drive down Devon Ave between Milwaukee and Caldwell and feel like I am in the country.  The Forest Preserve provides some amazing color!

Smells: Leaves burning.  Illegally, but burning.  Pumpkin everything, or just whatever I am making in my kitchen.  Usually involving apples.  Lots and Lots of apples.  I get more motivated to bake in the fall.  I bake 1 time a week, at least, and have DH bring in stuff to work.  We keep one of each for us.  The rest goes to the guys and gals!

Eats: Trying out new recipes/restaurants.  I have made stuffed acorn squash, chili, and about to make some great barley soup.  It is an excuse to cook more of the "comfort foods".  I try to slim em down with some skinny taste recipes.  I also grab 1 good coffee a week.  Just 1.  I can't afford that Starbucks PSL habit.  But I can have 1 carmel apple spice, PSL, or Toasted Graham Cracker latte. Yesss.
Some of the new restaurants are Smoque, Smak Tak, and XOCO.  BBQ, Polish, and of course, Rick Bayless' own restaurant.

Churros and Chocolate at XOCO

Things to do: Apple Picking!  We just did this, and I thought my husband was going to hate it.  He loved it.  Maybe because we went to a nearby brewery afterwards?  Eh, either way, it was fun!
Pumpkin patch/hayride (usually with apple picking)
College football!  We traveled to Champaign, IL to see my beloved ILLINI play!
Oktoberfests.  Many at local parishes.  St. Alphonsus throws a big festival.

ILL-INI!

What do you love about fall in your city?

Fashionista

So I am definitely not a fashionista, nor do I pretend to be.  I do, however, love to look nice, and often rotate items in my wardrobe. 

I try to do the 30 in 30 as often as possible, so I am not wasting money on clothes. 

I found this on the internets today, and absolutely love it.  Rules to live by!!

Some of my recent favorite stores:

JCrew
Nordstrom (Paige Jeans..hellooo)
Macy's
Gap
Anthropologie
Versona

Stay tuned for an online closet sale as soon as I get my act together.  Need to sell to make room for the new!

Rent the Runway

Since I was gearing up to go to the wedding in Annapolis, I decided to "Rent the Runway" instead of buying a new dress.  I have so many dresses from J Crew and Banana Republic that just sit in my closet after one wear.  Some of you may ask "why?!?"  Well, being in the Navy, I don't have a lot of use for daily dress wear, but I do wear them for date night, ladies night out, and weddings. 

My good friend used www.renttherunway.com many times, and had nothing but wonderful things to say about it. 

I did it, and was nothing but impressed!  I received the box from UPS, and opened it with my SIL.  I had three dresses in a garment bag, and a box with the jewelry I rented.  It all looked amazing.  I rented the primary dress in a size 10 and size 12.  Then, I ordered another dress, just in case those two didn't work out.  I also ordered a necklace to make the outfit whole. 

I loved the way it all turned out.  The size 10 was perfect, and the necklace really went well with the dress.  If I had bought the dress and the necklace, I would have spent over $720 for something I would never wear again.  Instead, I spent $100, and no dry cleaning bill!  Oh yeah, did I forget that?  You send the dresses, other items, etc back in a UPS bag, and they do all the dirty work. 

Let's just say, I can't wait to rent the runway again!  Let me know if any of you ladies need an invite or recommendations!

Oscar Wild dinner dress with the Crystal Cluster necklace.

Anthropologie

I don't normally shop at this store, but I have found that some of their recent clothes are just amazing!

I bought this shirt, and absolutely love it!  I bought the copper color, as I often wear blue or black.  Had to branch out in the color spectrum!

I also bought this cardigan.  I am in love.  I have a black one from Jcrew, and I am glad I just branched out.  I bought this one in burgundy.  The material alone makes this purchase worth it. 

I don't normally blog about fashion, either...but I had to blog about these two finds.  I need to branch out in my wardrobe.  Too bad cammies all day every day kind of puts a stop to that!

Pics of me wearing my new finds to come!!

The Night Sky

Last night, I went to dinner with a good friend, and we met up with some of her friends afterwards.  As we left their house, we noticed something.  The sky.  How clear it was.  The stars.  Honestly, it was amazing.  We all just kind of stopped, and looked up, appreciating the beauty.  It may sound silly, but it was breathtaking.  That is something you don't see in a big city..

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