happy halloween!

what a beautiful day for trick or treating! i'm kind of sad that shawn and i do not get any little visitors where we live, but i did see some adorable costumes at school today:) this year, october got the best of us, and we unfortunately did not even get a pumpkin!! so our night involves some homemade chilli, a scary movie (probably Hocus Pocus;) ), and lots of snuggling because our apartment is quite chilly!

happy halloween friends!

xo,

a sneak peak

it's sunday evening after a long week and surprisingly relaxing weekend, though it was filled with a decent amount of snow. and although there are a millions things going on in my mind and all around me, i keep sneaking back to the computer to sneak a few more peaks at the engagement photos my photographer sent to me on friday morning. these are just a few, and there are still many more to come, however, i can't help but to get giddy whenever i see these & am reminded of our fun afternoon just two weeks ago.  so, here are a few i'd like to share...

i love the effect of the polariods & am so excited that our photographer plans to use them on our wedding day as well!  more to come...:)

for more photos & to see more from our fabulous photographer, you can visit his website here.
(click "buy prints" on the left hand side for more from our session)

hoping you had a fabulous weekend!

xo,

celeb crush

two words: ryan gossling.

what. a. stud!

happy tuesday!

xo,

running

with my half marathon on the horizon (just under a month away!) i have had running on my brain nonstop.  i always enjoyed running, but lately, i can honestly say i LOVE it.  getting up to go to the gym at 5am started out to be quite the task, but now i don't mind it at all. i've gotten myself to the point where walking on the treadmill takes more effort than running, and i'm so proud of that. i've gotten myself to the point of running a solid 10 miles no problem, and i'm so proud of that. i love being able to lace up my running shoes and hit the pavement, turn on my music and just go for an hour or 2. i love that i have built up the endurance and made my body stronger than ever. i'm so excited for my half marathon - this is something that i have wanted to do for a long time! so, if you are in need of some runner's inspiration, here are a few of my motivators when i'm feeling the runner's slump...

all images via pinterest

special thanks to kristen and her motivational mondays for the inspiration behind this evening's post :)

xo,

a fall fashion must have

one of my favorite things about the cooler temps is the option to wear scarves..what is more cozy than being wrapped up in something warm and stylish! i have always been one to stick to the neutral, but this fall i decided to go a little brighter with a mustard yellow scarf that i picked up for our engagement session.  since its purchase i have been noticing that i can wear it with almost any outfit, and i love that it is more neutral than i originally thought it would be. below are some of my favorite scarf images via pinterest...

 now i'm wanting scarves in teal, pink & purple!

xo,

sunday thoughts

something about a crisp, autumn sunday morning that makes one want to sleep in a little later; linger around in pjs a little longer; sip morning coffee a little slower; & snuggle with the boy a little closer.

monday morning always comes too soon. .

xo,

a few tips from yours truly

 as mentioned previously, shawn & i had our engagement photos taken this weekend.  to say we had fun would be quite an understatement!...i am still smiling about it 3 days later =)

the day of the photos, i was a nervous wreck! i don't quite know why..but i was second guessing everything - my outfit choice, shawn's outfit choice; we thought it would have been cooler outside than it ended up being, so everything was not exactly how i pictured it would be.

needless to say, i had a glass (or 2!) of wine before we left;)

so, looking back on our day, i thought i would list a few tips about prepping for your engagement session!


1. plan your outfit.  then plan your backup outfit! 
we had planned to have our session mid october expecting it to be a crisp, autumn day.  and while we had an absolutely gorgeous day, it was about 71 degrees, when we were anticipating much cooler temps. so the cute sweater outfits i had chosen for shawn and i were no longer going to work.  at the last minute i ditched my jacket sweater and shawn opted for a clean white button up.  i wanted to look casual and simple, yet classic.  i opted for a plain white tee, skinny jeans, and boots.  i added some color with a yellow scarf (to add in a pop of my wedding color)


2. choose your location!
this was an easy one for me.  i knew before we even got engaged that i wanted to have our photos taken along kelly drive between the back of the art museum and boat house row. we have become quite familiar with that area from our long runs... there are so many options! we were able to get shots by the water, by rocks, in trees, in gardens, on benches, with people in the background, with the skyline in the background, etc... it is helpful to be knowledgeable about the location, that way, if you are on a time limit (which you most likely will be) you will know which areas you definitely want to be photographed.

3. have a glass of wine!
...or your drink of your choice!  i don't know why i was feeling so anxious, i think it was mostly excitement, so a glass of wine was just what i needed to calm my nerves a bit.


4. get comfortable!
having your photo taken while holding a kissing pose is NOT NORMAL.  it's awkward! but it's also a lot of fun, and after the first few photos are taken, you will loosen up and it will be a little more comfortable.  trust your photographer to know what poses look good, but also don't be afraid to let your photographer know if you have something specific in mind.

and last but not least..

5. HAVE FUN!
at the end of the day, these are not the most important photos you will have taken, but they might be the most fun! i felt like shawn and i were on a date, flirting and being silly for the whole time, and it was fun! enjoy yourselves:)

and a little sneak peak:

george, our photographer, has sent us a little teaser of sunday's session.  this is one of the photos...i am so excited & cannot wait to see the rest!

have a great day!

xo,

always remember

woke up feeling so blessed this morning. yesterday was filled with fun & excitement as we got our engagement photos taken. when we got home we were still giddy. it seems silly, but the photo session was just so FUN and it felt like we were flirting all afternoon. what girl doesn't love a cute boy flirting with her?

at dinner, shawn & i were talking about how we never want to forget what yesterday felt like. being silly and cute and sweet with each other. i will always remember yesterday with a smile...

xo,

so i have decided..

for the time being, to remain my blonde blonde self.  previously, i expressed my desire to go slightly darker in the hair department for the change of season. but the more i thought about it, and the closer we got to our engagement session, i realized that honey blonde is not me. i loveeee blonde blonde, and it sounds silly, but to go slightly darker, i feel that i just may lose part of my soul...hehe...  and with our engagement session this weekend & a hair appointment tomorrow directly following work, i feel the need to remain blonde blonde due to the fact that that is who i have been our entire relationship!!

plus, i know that i want to be blonde blonde for the wedding. 

so, blonde blonde it is...:)

xo,

a few things

no secret here... i LOVE fall! by far, my favorite season of them all. (and not so secretly i wish the seasons went spring, summer, fall, spring, summer, fall, etc..) one of my favorite attributes of fall is the sight of PUMPKINS.  last year (and this year too!) i was head over heels for the fairytale & white pumpkins.

 source

 source

source

source

aren't they cute?

****

source

i'm still waking up every morning thinking about my wedding dress.  ahhhh...i cannot wait to wear it on my wedding day! it's crazy to think that i still have about 11 months to go. i know it will go by fast, but now that i have found my dress i feel like i am ready to walk down the aisle! this morning in church, as i was walking up to the alter to receive communion, i was literally getting teary eyed, imagining the same walk on my wedding day..dorky, i know!! but i am definitely overwhelmed with happiness & excitement!!

speaking of the wedding, i have chosen the designer for my bridesmaids' dresses- bill levkoff.  i want my girls to choose their own style for their dress, and the color is called "french canary."  from the start, i knew i wanted my colors to be gray & yellow.  early on, i stumbled across this wedding, and have been using it as my "inspiration."

i just adore all of these images..although my guys will be wearing gray instead of black.  i also love the look of the bridesmaids having different style dresses on, as well as silver OR gold strappy heels.

*****

and, a little recap of my week, since i have not been finding the time to blog!

last weekend, shawn and i were gifted some tickets for the eagles game! and although they lost terribly, the weather was cold & wet, and we were surrounded by a drunk or 2;)...we had FANTASTIC seats, and we enjoyed every minute!

the rest of my week has been filled with working and running and spending time with my fiancee :) on most mornings, we have been up at 4:45am to get to the gym by 5am.  at first it was really hard to get up so early, but now it is a part of our daily routine, and i can honestly say that i much prefer the early workouts.  by the time i get home from work, i am exhausted and the last thing i want to do is get changed and head to the crowded gym to wait around for the machines or weights i want.  in the AM, the gym is not crowded and i never have to wait to use anything.  to top it all off, there is no feeling like getting home from work & knowing you already have your workout done for the day! however, about once a week, if we know the weather will be nice, we will allow ourselves to sleep in and go for a run when we get home from work. 

check out my view from our run on kelly drive this past thursday.

that run was followed by:

some delish homemade pizza and:

our new seasonal favorite...soo good!!

***** 

coming up this week, i am most excited about our engagement session on sunday! i'm hoping for a cool, crisp, autumn day...a good hair day & a cute outfit;) can't wait to share those photos with you!

hoping you had a great weekend and wishing you a fabulous week!

xo,