what i'm loving this week

It's already the second week of March – isn't that insane?

I've been planning a lot of things and a lot of things have come across my desk or my inbox that will need to happen in April – getting my car inspected, for example, and Patrick and I are going to a Jimmy Buffett concert with his parents – and I've been thinking all year that April was decades away. Ummm it's somehow only 16 days away. How and when did that happen?

• I was a little skeptical about this cardigan when I first tried it on in my StitchFix this month, and I decided to keep it because I love cardigans so much and because I liked how light yet sturdy the fabric was. Well. I have worn it every. single. day. since the box arrived on Friday. I wear it all over the house during the day (I run colder than Patrick, always, and it's easier for me to layer than for him to walk around half-dressed, ha!) and on the last few colder days, to work and on errands under my coat. Now that it's gotten a little warmer again, this is what I reach for to take Theo outside. So, I'm glad I kept it.

• I have been spending so much time on Instagram watching everyone's Instagram Stories. Am I totally behind? (As usual.) Why are these so much fun? My favorites are @carly, @lonestarsouthern and @brightonkeller. I could watch for HOURS. (And I probably would.) I am also doing more of my own Instagram Stories and have been doing shopping hauls & other fun things whenever I have a chance!

• I got my hair done again and added even more blonde! (And hello, little piece in front that has a mind of its own and is going red? Unsurprising.) I had a ton of blonde in the back but not as much in the front, so I went back to the salon to go a little brighter and I think this is exactly where I'm going to stay! And my hair is finally starting to go back to a length that doesn't make me want to scream. What was I thinking cutting it so short?!

• I got my Spring 2018 FabFitFun box on Thursday, and I am so excited! A lot of people were really bummed about this box, but considering I paid $49.99 for the box and the clutch, earrings and candle total up to way more than that, not even considering the other items... I'm happy! I'm trading some of the skincare & makeup items with my mom for a crossbody purse that came in her FabFitFun starter box but am really excited about the Rachel Pally clutch, the earrings (which I got to pick), the candle which smells AMAZING and is a gorgeous copper and the lip masks – because I'm all about my lippies these days.

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Currently...

... reading: To Kill A Kingdom by Alexandra Christo. SO GOOD.

... listening: Audiobooks and my Hipster Cocktail Party Pandora playlist are getting me through the day. But it is almost spring which means it's country music with the windows down season!

... eating: Pita bread & Trader Joe's roasted garlic hummus. YUM. Oh, and bagels with cream cheese and a heavy sprinkling of TJ's Everything Bagel seasoning. 

... drinking: Water with lemon slices. This is one of my favorite things and I have not been drinking enough water lately. 

... wearing: This J. Crew Factory scalloped t-shirt. 

... wanting: A pair of Tieks. Am I crazy? Are they totally not worth it?

... loving: March Madness. 

... watching: Planet Earth II. Y'all. I cannot tell you how excited I am that this exists. 

What is on your radar this week?

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november favorites

I cannot believe we are already at that point where it's time to wrap up November and start December. Eek! If you missed it, my birthday was last Thursday, and once my birthday and Thanksgiving hit, the rest of the year always feels like a total blur. And I love every second of it.

Because I know December is going to be such a blur and I want to pack the next few weeks with holiday-themed posts and gift guides, I am getting ahead on my end-of-the-month post and sharing my favorite things from November with y'all now.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

• Rereading the A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Maas.

I have not been great at reading in November – although I have bought a ton of new books to add to my collection, because of course I have – but I suddenly got the desire halfway through the month to reread my favorite books in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series, A Court of Mist and Fury and A Court of Wings and Ruin. Both are absolutely amazing new adult fantasy novels and I recommend them to everyone. Just get ready to have your heart ripped out every once in a while. 

I read the first book in the series, A Court of Thorns and Roses, in one night and cried for a full hour afterward – it's that good and hits you that hard in the heart. Worth it! And the next book in the series is coming out in May! 

• My new bread machine, my birthday gift from Patrick!

Patrick knows that the way to my heart is with food. He picked out a bread machine for me for my birthday to add to my growing arsenal of kitchen supplies! My stepdad makes the best pizza dough with his bread machine and we are so excited to try that out tonight. I have a whole week of bread planned! 

(Out of deference to sweet Pat, I am not linking to a bread machine / the one he got me here, because I don't want to look it up and see how much it was!)

• My straightening brush.

I asked my sister for a straightening brush because I have been hearing so much about the new gadget, and my hair is a beast to straighten. I was tired of frying my hair with a flat iron and also just tired of using a flat iron, because it totally annihilates any volume your hair might've had. But I love my straightening brush! 

(Again, this was a gift, so I am not looking it up on Amazon to get a link!)

• The peppermint mocha iced coffee at Dunkin' Donuts.

Oh. My. GOSH. I found out that Dunkin' Donuts has new holiday flavors come out every Christmas – I don't know why I thought it was just Starbucks – and the peppermint mocha iced coffee is going to change my life. It is so sweet, I know, but it is delicious. 

• Theo.

Let me be clear, here: I always love my dog, but he has been so good, so sweet and so lovable this month that I love him extra and wanted to brag about how fabulous he is. Patrick and I have really worked hard to train Theo and get rid of any concerning or frustrating behaviors he displayed early, and other than his tendency to freak the h*ck out when we're walking outside and he sees someone else, he is the perfect dog. He did escape on Thanksgiving and did not want to be caught – but instead of running away he was just goofing around, being Theo, and he was finally captured. 

I could go on and on about Theo but my little mutt is the perfect dog. I have no strong opinions about adopting versus breeders (as long as you're finding a responsible breeder, not encouraging a backyard breeder!) and figured my first dog would probably be from a breeder, but Theo is honestly the perfect blend of who knows what.

• Brandy Bell Designs!

I stocked up on glitter during Brandy Bell's holiday launch! Most of what I snagged will be gifts, but I am keeping a rose gold pair and a white and gold pair for myself. They are so cute! If you've never heard of Brandy Bell, I thoroughly recommend you check out her website and stock up. First of all, she is the sweetest human, and second of all, she is so talented and has a great eye! I love these lightweight, affordable and chic handcut leather earrings.

• The Artist's Loft notebooks at Michael's.

I am an aspiring bullet journalist who has trouble committing to things like that, so I didn't want to drop $20 or more on a Leuchtterm 1917 or a Scribbles that Matter notebook – the two most popular ones in all of my bullet journal Facebook groups. But then I heard that Michael's has a $5 notebook! I don't care much about ghosting to begin with, but the paper quality is really good, and the notebooks have plenty of pages and two ribbon page markers. Now I can try to be a committed bullet journalist... without the pressure of an expensive notebook staring back at me.

• Crayola's new brush-tip markers.

I got to buy new pens for myself when I reached a specific goal with NaNoWriMo, and the Crayola brush tip calligraphy markers were at the top of my list! They are fun in my bullet journal and come in great colors. I am still carrying them around in this too cute tin case, too, although they'll eventually make it into a pencil cup in my supply cart.

• Literally everything from Old Navy right now.

I cannot help myself from shopping for everything at Old Navy right now. The last time I was there, everything in the store was 40 percent off (I missed the 50 percent off Black Friday sale, I am very disappointed in myself!) and I got some adorable stuff – like this flannel shirt (SO soft!)

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What are you loving this month?

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3 on Friday: What I'm loving and recommending this week

I am writing this on a flight to Sacramento for a very quick, whirlwind work trip – in on Wednesday evening, back on Friday night – and am honestly so, so, so tired. I don't know about y'all but when the seasons start to change and the temperature drops, I swear that I immediately get sick. It is like clockwork. And then, depending on my work schedule and my state of mind, it will take me forever to kick whatever I pick up.

And that is where I am this week. But I'm still in the weird not-full-on-sick-as-a-dog-but-not-feeling-100-percent stage, too. So, it's been fun, and my symptoms have definitely been exacerbated by the close quarters and the recycled air of this plane.

Anyway, I have more chipper things to talk about. Here is what I am absolutely loving this week.

• Patrick and I started this great podcast by the Cincinnati Enquirer called Accused. We just finished Up and Vanished by Payne Lindsay, and I was so angry about Payne's complete lack of journalistic ethics (and his complete obsession with himself and his ideals about journalistic ethics), his long monologues about himself and how he is the reason this crime got solved and his poorly timed sponsor messages.

But Accused, which is hosted by reporter Amber Hunt, is totally good and absolutely riveting. I am totally into it. If you like true crime podcasts, this one is worth a listen. It's about the case of Elizabeth Andes, who was killed in Ohio in 1978. The police decided her boyfriend killed her, and even after he was acquitted twice, once in a criminal court and once in a civil court, the police never continued investigating her case because they were convinced that her boyfriend did it. Now, 40 years later, they're trying to figure things out so the family can have closure.

• I finished a book this week that actually brought tears to my eyes – Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index. It's not rare for me to cry – in fact, almost every single episode of Hart of Dixie makes me cry, almost every single time I watch them – but books have to be especially emotional, since I usually read in public or with Patrick, who lovingly laughs his head off when I start to cry about some work of fiction. But I really loved Juniper Lemon's Happiness Index. There were a lot of loose ends at the end that kept it from getting a 5-star rating for me – I like books to be somewhere between no loose ends are tied and every loose end is tied up – but Juniper is a great character trying to find balance while still feeling overwhelmingly guilty about her sister dying in a car wreck. She doesn't know if it's OK to go on living her life, because if she forgets about Camilla, who will remember her? It was really, really, really good. All of the characters are well-developed and the dialogue is witty and fun.

• Speaking of things that bring tears to my eyes... can we talk about what a great guilty pleasure show Hart of Dixie is? If you haven't binged this on Netflix yet, OMG. Go. Stop what you're doing. It is so worth it. I am going to see if I can download it for offline viewing on my iPad for the flight home from Sacramento. It is absolutely foolish but so delightful. Zoe Hart is the most cringe-worthy character but I swear, I cry all the time when I re-watch this show. I finished it for the third or fourth time last week and started it up again over the weekend. It's the perfect light show to watch when you just need to laugh and smile and, yes, of course, cry.

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What are you loving this week?

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3 on Friday: what I'm loving and recommending this week

With Hurricane Irma on her way to really tear sh*t up this week, I can honestly say that I haven't been paying much attention to much of anything except Hurricane Irma. The photos of her aftermath on the Caribbean islands like St. Maarten are devastating. 

My parents do live on the coast of North Carolina, and I have a dear friend in Wilmington. Here in central NC, I'm less worried about the actual hurricane and more worried about the rain and wind that comes with her, but the safety of my friends and family on Oak Island is at the front of my mind this week. I also have a lot of great coworkers at the Miami Herald who are preparing for the storm.

Please say a prayer or think good thoughts or whatever it is that you prefer to do, for those who have been or will soon be impacted by Hurricane Irma. She's not messing around. And hey – if you are in the path of Hurricane Irma, PLEASE be careful! You are in my thoughts. 

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1. Fall clothes. I am all about fall clothes all the time, so I was so excited when there was an actual chill in the air on Thursday and I could wear a Lularoe Irma with jeans and Converses and my favorite ever vest from J. Crew. (similar here) While I really haven't been paying much attention to anything other than this impending hurricane, I did a little bit of online window shopping last week and am loving the ruffle details and the color wine that are everywhere right now. Don't even get me started on all the boots and booties (I am loving these and these and these.)

2. Personality tests. My friend Samantha blogged about personality tests last week, and I decided to take a couple of them just to see what my results were. I am absolutely obsessed with these sorts of quizzes and really enjoyed taking the Big Five personality test (here) and the Myers-Briggs 16 Personalities test (which most people are familiar with, here). On the Big Five test, I scored low on open-mindedness, high on conscientiousness, high on extraversion, low on agreeableness and high on negative emotionality. And then on the Myers-Briggs test, I found out that I am an ESTJ (which is extraverted, observant, thinking, judging.) This hasn't taught me anything I didn't know about myself but it has helped me identify some places where I can work on my personality to be a better team player and coworker! I'll blog more about my personality tests sometime next week.

3. Target's A New Day leggings. I am 100% a Lularoe leggings girl, but unfortunately, they don't make enough black leggings to keep up with my demand for them. So I grabbed two pairs of the A New Day leggings from Target's new line last week, and they are a steal and super comfortable at $14.99 a pair! I tried on a ton of things from this new line when I was at the store and was really disappointed by this dress and all of the other items that I tried on – the fits and the fabrics just weren't quite right – but loved the leggings.

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What are you loving this week? 

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my August favorites

I usually do a recap of everything I accomplished/did/ate/read during the month before, but since I didn't really read much and August was almost entirely a blur, I bring you a quick and dirty roundup of my favorite things from August.

The summer is probably my least favorite time of every year, and I've always been a fall girl. But this summer has been pretty good to us, at least so far. (Since summer in North Carolina doesn't seem to end until November at the earliest...) I am not even a little bit sad that it's September! I'll have a fall bucket list coming at you in the next week or two, because I am so pumped to be back in the Triangle for the fall. We have a lot to accomplish this season with our little Theo, and it 100 percent includes pumpkins.

Anyway... Here are my favorite things from this month.

Crayola Supertips.

When I was having a terrible awful no-good very bad day and also took a trip to Target (which was stupid), I managed to guilt Patrick into letting me throw a 50-pack of Crayola Supertips into the cart. I think I mentioned this once already – I already have a 20-pack and love using them in my bullet journal, but I really wanted even more colors. And was having a terrible awful no good very bad day.

Really, for $5-$8, nothing beats these markers for adding some color to your planner/bullet journal, doodling, scribbling notes on whatever scrap of paper you can find. Crayola, you did good.

Pureology Shampoo, Conditioner + Leave-in Conditioner/Detangler/Etc. 

I got my hair done sometime in May or June, not too long after we got Theo, and was lectured (not at all kindly) by my stylist about the buildup in my hair and how crucial it is to use not-crappy-drugstore-shampoo and conditioner on color-treated hair. She recommended Pureology and even though buying this shampoo and conditioner definitely put me in pauper's prison, I did it anyway. And after my most recent cut and color (which I'll expand more on below!) I appreciate that advice even more. My color hasn't faded even a little bit and my frizz, which used to take over my life, is pretty much non-existent.

Poppy Salon + my new cut and color.

I decided I wanted a darker color for fall and needed to trim off some length so my hair stopped doing that horrible flip at the ends – the cut didn't actually resolve that, I guess my hair just hates me – so I found a new salon here in Durham! I was going to Hudson in Huntersville and it was great, but once we moved, obviously I needed to find somewhere new. Leah did a full Balayage and my cut and I am in love with the results!

Lays Poppables.

Patrick pointed these out in the store one day and I tossed a bag in the cart just because... but now I am addicted. I can clear an entire bag in an afternoon – which is so healthy – and I love both the white cheddar and the sea salt. (I think those are the only two flavors, but I'm not sure.) Theo loves these, too!

Hello Sunshine by Laura Dave.

I just finished Hello Sunshine on my flight to Kansas City and I absolutely loved this read about a celebrity chef who loses everything when it's revealed that she's not who everyone thought she was. There's a lot of pondering about a carefully curated online presence and on being yourself, and the main character, Sunny, is the perfect character to cheer for. Everything is very relatable and not at all melodramatic – one of the best contemporary lit reads I've read in a while! 

Cooking in my kitchen again.

Oh my heck, I cannot tell you how glad I am to have a kitchen with pots, pans and dishes again! And to have more than three spoons! And to have Tupperware to store things in! And glass baking dishes and cookie sheets and more than one skillet. I just finished unpacking my storage unit from our college apartment, so I have all of my kitchen gear back. I am not a gourmet chef or anything, but I actually do enjoy cooking dinner or scrambling eggs for me and Theo for breakfast. 

Binge Mode by The Ringer.

This is not the first time but I am so grateful for and so in love with Binge Mode, The Ringer's Game of Thrones podcast. Jason Concepcion is so funny and I love listening to hours and hours of Game of Thrones analysis after each episode. My heart is still breaking that the season is over and I have to wait until 2018 for the final season.

Audible.

Speaking of Game of Thrones, a lot of the podcasts we listen to are sponsored by Audible, and one of the Game of Thrones podcast hosts mentioned how much he loves the Audible versions of the Game of Thrones books. I still hadn't read the last of five released books, and I've been an Audible member for a few months, so I went ahead and downloaded A Dance with Dragons. I am so glad I did! It's 48 hours of audio, and when I'm driving or sitting on a plane and don't feel like reading, this is the perfect thing. 

Red bell peppers.

This is ridiculous I'm sure but the pasta salad that I've been making for mine and Patrick's lunches calls for diced red bell peppers, and suddenly I can't get enough of them. I am not one for vegetables, but bell peppers are often on sale and are so darn tasty.

My new to do list format.

I posted about my new to do list on Monday, and it has been a total gamechanger this week in Kansas City, where my schedule has been absolutely packed, hour to hour. It's hard to get anything done outside of meetings on these trips, but designing my own to do list to cater to exactly what I need to keep track of has made things way easier for me. If you haven't been able to find a to do list or planner page that works for you, check out my post from Monday!

Bottled ice coffee + my cold brew coffee maker. 

Even though Patrick and I still go to Starbucks a fair amount – and it's reasonable because we have gift cards and gold status points from when I go while traveling for work! – I start my day with a cup of iced coffee, either from the bottles I grab at Target – I buy Stok – or ground coffee that I put in my cold brew coffee maker and leave in the fridge overnight. Sometimes I just need to get out of the house for a couple of minutes, but when I have a lot of work to do, the coffee is a life-saver.

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What were your favorite things from August?

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on my radar: what I'm loving and recommending this week

What a week. It started slow and sped up very quickly, right around when we took Theo to the vet to get fixed. He's finally asleep as I'm typing this, but after a dopey, sleepy, snoozy evening after his procedure, he has been totally amped up otherwise. The pain meds are supposed to have a sedative effect on the little guy... they don't.

1. I'm really excited to share with y'all the to do list template that I made for myself. I've been wanting a planner that would allow me to both have a to do list and a section for time-blocking, especially for when I'm traveling and my free minutes are priceless. I am going to blog about it next week because I am so pumped about this layout and think y'all will like it, too, so stay tuned. Just know it makes me FEEL more productive!

2. I already had a 20-pack of Crayola Super Tips that I ordered on Amazon, but when I was in Target this week and also in a foul mood – shocker – I used my best puppy dog eyes on Patrick and snuck the 50-pack into the shopping cart. They were only $6 in Target! I love these markers for my bullet journal, my planner and for just general writing and list making. I usually use Papermate Flair markers, but these are better for handlettering and doodling. Cheaper, too!

3. I have been eating yogurt more often than I usually do, and I've tried two different brands recently that I wanted to recommend. Oui by Yoplait might be the cutest little yogurt brand ever. The yogurt is fluffy and sweet and in these cute little glass jars. And then I tried Siggi's the other night because I had an ibotta rebate. Siggi's is a little more tart than Oui but still good – and there are a ton of flavors, too.

4. Look at this adorable burnt orange shirt I scooped up at Nordstrom Rack for less than $20. I can't find the exact one on the website but here's a similar top. And another one. I absolutely love ruffle sleeves and this orange color. And all the other fall colors out there, too.

5. Michael's has fall decor out! I grabbed some adorable white and turquoise pumpkins and cinnamon pine cones – just a few of my faaaavorite things – and can't wait for real fall to hit. I also thought these gold mason jars were just too adorable for words (and so I bought multiples.) Yay for fall!

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What are you loving this week?

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on my radar: here's what I'm loving and recommending this week

It's been a totally wacky week in the Ladisic-James-Theo household. Patrick has been running like crazy all over, and as soon as he stops running, I start. I'm heading to Oak Island for the weekend to help my mom with her Lularoe one-year anniversary celebration – yay! – and see my stepdad, who had a pretty rough week. Then once I get back, I'll dive into launching one of our newsrooms on Monday morning. At least it's just a short drive away this time, not a six-hour flight, but still. It's going to be a busy week!

Here's what I am loving and recommending this week.

I do use affiliate marketing in this post, but only to feature items and products that I really love! If you click on a link and/or make a purchase, I'll make a little money on my end – but really, is that so bad?

1. Every single home decor item Target sells. Seriously. I don't know what Target does to read into my mind and know exactly what I want to buy for our apartment, but somehow, they know. I love gold, brushed metal and marble, and my favorite colors are navy, grey and white – Target speaks to my soul.

2. Jon and Dany. If you've been watching Game of Thrones, you knew the episode was coming where Jon and Dany met. But were you waiting for them to fall madly in love? That is coming, I promise you. Yeah, yeah, yeah, they're related. But honestly, I'm pretty sure everyone on Game of Thrones is related. I'm not here to judge when the two most beautiful people on television are going to fall in love before our eyes.

3. Our new key + leash hanger from Etsy seller MemorEase. Isn't this the cutest?! We've pretty much always put our keys in a basket or a bowl or just on top of a table or shelf, but I wanted a hanger to make it a little easier for us to keep Theo's leash untangled and so I didn't lose my keys every 3 seconds. I am LOVING this! I just hung it up yesterday and it's been fabulous.

4. I consider myself the QUEEN of snack food on any day, and I especially love these Lay's Poppables. My favorite are the cheddar but the sea salt are pretty darn good, too. They taste like potato chips but are extra crispy and delicious. Don't judge me but Theo also enjoys them.

5. I've started making my own cold brew coffee at home. I use this cold brew coffee maker that I snagged on Amazon for under $25 (steal!). I'm still figuring out exactly how to master it so it's not too strong (my first batch was a little strong for my taste, so I had to temper it with extra milk and sugar) but it makes 2-4 cups of iced coffee (depending on the size of my caffeine craving that day, and my cup) and I just have to leave it in the fridge for 12 to 24 hours. It's perfect!

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What are you loving this week?

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on my radar: here's what I'm loving and recommending this week

I wanted to take a minute to tell y'all what I am absolutely loving this week. I have been so totally productive all week long (which has been amazing) and I hope I can carry my productivity through the weekend and start unloading my storage unit! Maybe!

I do use affiliate marketing in this post, but only to feature items and products that I really love! If you click on a link and/or make a purchase, I'll make a little money on my end – but really, is that so bad?

1. How did I not know that Post-Its makes black sticky notes? With metallic Sharpies, these are SO cute. I grabbed a pack of both as an impulse purchase from Target this week because I am nothing if not an impulse shopper. I am using them to stick important reminders, dates, events, etc. on the fridge, so Patrick knows what's coming up on my schedule and I know what's coming up on his, but I also took one pad and a marker into my office to make notes and lists while I work. I'm inspired already! I don't love black, but I love gold and silver! I'm having a ton of fun.

2. This isn't new to me, but I love the Stok cold brew coffee! You can grab it in pretty much any grocery store, near where they keep the juice and milk in the refrigerated section. One bottle of this cold brew coffee is enough for four days of coffee consumption for me – so, it basically takes away my need to go to Starbucks for four whole days! That saves me a ton of money because I can never resist going to Starbucks. I just mix it with skim milk and ice in my Corksicle cup. (similar here.) And because my Corksicle keeps it cold all day long, I don't have to worry about inevitably misplacing it and not finding it for four hours.

3. I love what I did with my office chair! I got this Poly and Bark Lucite chair from Amazon and then found a white faux fur rug from Target (similar here) for $20! You might think the chair would be uncomfortable since it's basically clear plastic, but it actually forms to my back perfectly and the arms are at a good height for me. And then the pelt adds a little padding to the back. I love sitting here and getting work done!

4. The Tasty app. I downloaded this free app that is essentially the app version of the very popular and addicting Facebook page, and OH MY GOODNESS. I've already tried two recipes from the app, and I check almost every day to add things to my repertoire. I love that you can search for 5 ingredients or less or 30 minutes or less recipes, and there are new recipes added almost every single day. I am definitely tackling this pesto chickpea snack salad next!

5. The Ringer's Game of Thrones podcast, Binge Mode, is so good it hurts. I don't really read anything else The Ringer does – sorry 'bout it – but LOVE everything about Binge Mode, which is their Game of Thrones recap and analysis podcast hosted by Mallory Rubin and Jason Concepcion. They are absolutely hysterical and bring up some great points and theories about each episode of GoT. If you aren't keeping up with the new season, I recommend watching GoT from the beginning and listening along to all of their podcasts, episode by episode. If only for the impeccable imitations.

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What are you loving this week? Tell me your recommendations in the comments!

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[on my radar] what I've been doing, reading, working on

This week has been so super weird. I am not a huge fan of the holiday interrupting the work week, and even though I was so productive on Monday, I was the opposite of productive on Wednesday, the day after the holiday. Wednesday basically felt like Monday. Not a fan. Anyway – here's what I was up to this week.

We got some great news on Thursday. I can't and won't spill the beans online quite yet, but let me assure you that it is great and we are so, so, so excited for said beans.

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So much blog work. I redesigned the vibe a little and added more Pale Dogwood (one of my favorite Pantone colors of the spring!) and new social media buttons. I also started up a Facebook page for my blog – if you're interested in following me, you can find me here. My next step: Adding an email subscription option (should I do a full newsletter once a week or a daily email with a new post?)

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Theo went to the vet for his very last shot until next year! Thank the lord, because these monthly vet bills were breaking me. He cheerfully sprinted into the vet (our dog is weird) and got his shot, then he sprinted back out and cheerfully rode in the car with us to Starbucks. He doesn't ask for much. He was terribly un-photogenic during this trip, unfortunately, so I have no photo documentation (other than a gorgeous picture of him trying to leap out of my arms and break my wrists.)

I tried to meal plan this week... (I swear we ended up buying more than just brownie brittle, ground beef and water. There were lots of potato chips and frozen pizza purchases, too.) I want to blog about my go to meals that we keep on hand – basically, a ton of Mexican food – so stay tuned for that. We made Trader Joe's orange chicken on Monday and tacos on Thursday, and we grabbed JJ's Red Hots on Tuesday and ate at TopGolf with a gift card we had on Wednesday. A happy food week.

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What Chopped judge are you? I took this Buzzfeed quiz and found out that I am my idol, Alex Guarnaschelli. We watch Food Network more than anyone else on the planet, considering we don't really know how to cook, and Alex is my favorite Chopped judge and my favorite Iron Chef. And if you're wondering, my pick for Next Food Network Star is Matthew. Haters be damned.

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What I'm reading this week...
• The Song of the Current - I started this book a couple of days ago and am having a lot of trouble getting into it. It's just... meh. I'm not sure. I'm not wild about it.
• Lord of Shadows - I preordered this because I loved the first book in the series and knew I would dive into the sequel. But... It's been a slowburner so far. Lots of action, but there's a lot going on all over the place.

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on my radar

Happy Wednesday!



1. Just wanted to share with everyone what it's like to try and organize anything, or simply do anything, with a nosey corgi in the house. There was not a butt-sized empty space there when I began.

2. If you've been following along, you saw that my goal is to read 52 books this year. Hardcopy books are my favorite, of course, and ebooks are second, but I love the convenience of an audiobook, too! This summer, I had a 10-minute walk to and from my office every day, plus I drove a heck ton – so I borrowed an audiobook from the library through an app called Hoopla and finished one every two weeks or so. The only thing that gets me about audiobooks: The narrator can totally ruin it for me!

I'm listening to The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout right now, a little here and there when I have a chance, and that's what's happening. I think I would really enjoy the book a lot more, but the person narrating the book is killin' me!

3. This is a fun one – I'm moving back to Charlotte on Monday, so I'm brainstorming all the things I want to do, places I want to eat, cafes I want to work from... I've missed living in my city, but it's finally working out that I'll get to be there for the next couple of months with Patrick. I'm coming for you, Amelie's!



4. My new Stella picks for spring are arriving TODAY! I will do an unboxing tomorrow, and I am so excited to get my hands on everything. I've still got my eye on a few more things – specifically those gorgeous blue tassel earrings. And hey, you can shop here any time, friends – www.stelladot.com/sites/paigealadisic

5. Here's what I've been reading this week...

• A Feast for Crows by George R. R. Martin (book #2 of 52)
• The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout (book #3 of 52) (audiobook version)
• Not a book, but I'm re-watching Season 1 of Game of Thrones. Goodness. I remember how violent I thought it was... as if Season 6 wouldn't be 100 times worse.

on my radar, stella and dot

on my radar

1. I ordered a Tombow pen and a graph paper notebook yesterday on Amazon, because I am #determined to learn how to handletter this year.

I ordered the black Tombow brush pen and a simple graph paper pad. I plan on using some Pinterest tutorials to figure it out, and

2. I'm in the market for a new concealer – CC cream is NOT doing it for me.

What are your recommendations? I need something with full coverage that comes in very light shades. (I'm super ghastly, thanks to Instagram filters for saving me!)

3. It's almost time to pick out my Stella and Dot samples from the spring collection.

I am SO excited. I mean, LOOK at some of these new arrivals I will have to choose from. That will be one of the hardest things I'll have to do in January.

4. What I'm reading this week...

• 57 Products On Amazon Our Readers Loved In 2016 – I'm a sucker for Buzzfeed listicles about crap on Amazon I don't need.
• Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham – Reading through Lauren Graham's thoughts as she rewatches Seasons 1 through 7 of Gilmore Girls has been such a wonderful experience. I may need to read it three or four more times. I love to see what she found the most memorable in some of my favorite episodes. 
• 8 Creative Hobbies To Take Up In 2017 – should I learn how to cross stitch?
• The PopSugar reading challenge for 2017 – I don't like these kinds of challenges, because I consider myself 

on my radar, stella and dot