Trip to the Myakka State Park

To celebrate my birthday this past Monday the boyfriend and I went on an adventure to Myakka State Park. It was a nice fall day (for us that means below 80) and it was relaxing to wander around the park taking in the trees and wildlife while snapping some photos along the way. For dinner we went to Cassariano, an authentic Italian restaurant in Venice, FL where I had my fill of wine, bread and pasta (pretty much my 3 favorite things!). All in all I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday! I highly encourage everyone to check out their local state park ASAP, grab a camera and enjoy the outdoors! And it never hurts to follow up with some great Italian food ;)

myakka state park

[please note the 2 alligators in the background, eek!]

myakka state park

[only the 2nd time I’ve made it to the top!]

myakka state park

[definitely worth it] myakka state park

[canopy walk]

myakka state park

[field full of deer !! ]

Reading list

“You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.”― C.S. Lewis

kindle

I’ve surpassed my goal of reading 10 books this year (by 3!) so that was the first time that’s ever happened, yay! I usually try to rotate between books that are more fun reads to more serious/non-fiction books. Here are the next few on my list and one that I’m currently reading and enjoying:

the goldfinchTo Entertain: The Goldfinch By Donna Tartt
I know this is super long and I’ve read a lot of mixed reviews but overall everyone seems to think this book is worth reading. I’m finally ready to give it a try. Also, doesn’t it always feels like you really accomplished something after finishing an especially long book? It seems like a perfect read to dig into for the winter.
“…a novel of shocking narrative energy and power. It combines unforgettably vivid characters, mesmerizing language, and breathtaking suspense, while plumbing with a philosopher’s calm the deepest mysteries of love, identity, and art.”

 

25460To Inspire: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver
This seems a little different than something I’d usually pick up but it may help me on my journey of eating better even if it is a little extreme!

“This is the story of a year in which we made every attempt to feed ourselves animals and vegetables whose provenance we really knew . . .”

 



18052969To Learn: The Confidence Code: The Science and Art of Self-Assurance by Katty Kay
I just saw this book recently and was intrigued. It’s not so much about how to gain more confidence but more about the science behind confidence. I can’t wait to learn something new and see how I can apply it to myself!

“Confidence. We want it. We need it. But it can be maddeningly enigmatic and out of reach. The authors of the New York Times bestseller Womenomics deconstruct this essential, elusive, and misunderstood quality and offer a blueprint for bringing more of it into our lives.”

the engagementsCurrently Reading: The Engagements by J. Courtney Sullivan
I’m not too far into this but so far I’m loving it! I’m immediately interested in anything about advertising (it was my college major) and I like how there are a few different stories that apparently intertwine somehow in the middle. Can’t wait to find out how!

“…an exhilarating novel about Frances Gerety, the real pioneering ad woman who coined the famous slogan “A Diamond is Forever,” and four unique marriages that will test how true—or not—those words might be.”

Project Life

project life

I’ve always liked scrapbooking. Before this year I completed 2 scrapbooks in my life: one of a family road trip when I was in high school and one for my sister’s graduation gift. Since then, it’s been a little more of a challenge. I started one for a trip with my sister to New York when we were in college but I never finished it. Now there doesn’t seem like much point to since I’ve been to NY since then, so I have no motivation to go back and document that specific trip. After this incident I was a little turned off of scrapbooking even though I knew I enjoyed it. What was the point of spending all this money on a book, paper, photo prints etc if I was just going to do a few pages and then quit?

After making the executive decision that scrapbooking was probably not the best hobby for me, I came across Project Life. I was intrigued by the simpleness of it. The biggest perk was definitely not having to use glue. It was like they did a lot of the work for you and just left you with a simpler yet still satisfying solution to scrapbooking. I figured after all this time I’d let myself try it again. So my sister got me a core kit and a variety pack of pocket pages for Christmas last year.

It took me a bit of time to get motivated to start but once I did I was pleasantly surprised! First I went through my pictures from the last year and got them printed online at Snapfish. I put them in date order and got to work fitting them into the little sleeves. It was so easy! I didn’t have to cut anything and my hands weren’t covered in glue! Any spots that weren’t filled with a picture I added one of the many choices of adorable cards. After filling all the slots on a page I went back and wrote a little something about the pictures on the cards. And that was it. On to the next page!

project life

Now I can say I have successfully scrapbooked a year of my life and plan to continue doing more. I already have my next batch of pictures picked out and ready for printing so I can keep adding to my book! If you have always wanted to try scrapbooking but are a bit intimidated by it or just don’t have the time to do traditional scrapbooking, this is definitely the way to go!

scrapbook

Organizing apps you’ll actually use

iphone appsI try and keep as few apps on my phone as possible yet I am always intrigued and downloading every new organizing app! After trial and error with a lot (and I mean A LOT) of these “organizational” apps I finally have it narrowed down to the ones I use regularly and actually do help keep me organized. Here you have them (oh, and they’re all free!):

  1.  Any.DO– this is my favorite app EVER. It’s super simple, easy to use and is easy on the eyes. The main screen is separated into 4 lists: Today, Tomorrow, Upcoming and Someday. I use this to keep track of everything I want to get done TODAY. If you don’t get it done that day it automatically goes to the next day. Upcoming is where I put something I don’t want to deal with now but need to make time for sometime soon (like a hair cut). And Someday is great for things I want to do everyday (like blog or read a book) but don’t necessarily need to get done and things that just need to get done some time in the future but I don’t want to forget.  You can also hide certain lists so you just see the title and the number of items under it. That way you can focus on just what you need to get done now. Ok enough about this one. If you can’t tell, I really really like this app :)
  2. Clear– Another simple list app but with fun colors (that you can “unlock”) and sounds! I use this for lists that aren’t things that necessarily need to get done but things I want to remember. For example: things I want to buy for my house, gift ideas, places I want to go etc. It also works great for making a grocery list!
  3. ThingList This is the app that filled in the hole in my to do list apps. It is separated into categories of things like Food, Movie, Bar and Book so you can easily jot down things people mention to you in conversation without having random notes jotted down everywhere. Or just immediately forgetting what they told you. There’s also an Idea category if you randomly think up a great idea and aren’t sure what to do with it.
  4. Mint I use this to organize my finances. At a glance I can see all of my accounts at once so I know how much I have in my account but also how much I owe on my credit cards. You can use it way more in depth for budgeting and I’m sure it’s awesome for people that are into that kind of stuff ;)
  5. Bloglovin– If you read more than 2 blogs a day you need this app! Instead of checking back to a blog site every day to see if there’s anything new, this app only shows you the new, unread posts so you only get the blogs you want to read. It’s also a great source for discovering new blogs to follow!

Now go download some apps! and Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Fresh oregano.

oregano

Today I planted carrots, broccoli, cabbage and basil. The giant oregano plant from last year was finally trimmed and I saved a couple sprigs to throw in the pasta I’m making tonight. It’s the first chilly day of the season and between gardening, a bike ride and reading on the couch with the windows open, I think I successfully took advantage of it!

// FALL

Fall officially arrives tomorrow! Even though it takes Florida forever (seriously) to feel  even an inkling of autumn I still can’t contain my excitement. I realize it’s a little ridiculous to wear my fur lined sweater around the house, make chili and paint my nails dark colors when it’s still 84 degrees outside but I can’t help it.  Even if the weather isn’t going to corporate I’m going to transition my mind into fall! Here’s to boots, bonfires, college football games, making soup and curling up with a cup of tea!

Check out my style inspiration board for Fall on Pinterest and get started on your own :)

Follow Alexis's board //Fall on Pinterest.

fall style inspiration

Fresh flowers.

I’ve been trying to fill my life with things that make me happy. I’ve realized one simple thing that really does the trick: fresh flowers.  I simply buy some each time I go to the grocery store and put them on the dining room table in a mason jar. It immediately brightens up the room and really makes me smile every time I look at them. I’ve started getting another bunch each time and putting some in the living room as well. So simple but it really changes the room. My next goal is to buy some of the beautiful flowers at the farmers market I go to each weekend. For now it’s a little too intimidating! Here are some pictures from around my house:

Flower

 

flowers

 

fresh flowers

Weekend Trippin’

I just got back from Washington D.C for the weekend visiting my best friend. It was a lovely weekend getaway and I was very proud of myself for packing super light (even though I didn’t write a blog about it) Here are a few pictures from the trip!

string lights

El Rey [an awesome outdoor bar made of shipping crates with even more awesome tacos]

IMG_4467Walking around a pretty park

IMG_4454

Brunch at the Tap and Parlour [and $7 bottomless mimosas]

postal museum

National Postal Museum [stamps on the ceiling]

IMG_4474

Arlington Rooftop Bar and Grill [pre-dinner drinks with a view]

The quest for the perfect closet.

personal style workbook

Today I purchased Into Mind‘s “personal style & the perfect wardrobe // a workbook” as soon as I got home from work. I’m super excited to put aside some time and dive into this! It looks like it’ll be full of inspiration and that extra push I need to completely renovate my closet and love/wear everything I have in it. I’ll let you know how it goes!

I meant to post something today about packing for my trip to Washington D.C. this weekend to visit my best friend but I didn’t end up doing much packing and I’m thinking about using one of the packing worksheets in the above workbook to help me. So maybe later this week!