top ten on the tenth

I know, I know it's the eleventh.  But in order to really give myself a break, I don't update on the weekends.  But I'm seriously, seriously in love with all the songs I posted this month, so I hope you love them, too!  I know some of you probably can't watch videos at work, but come back when you're home... I don't think you'll be disappointed!

10. And the Birds Sing - Tyrone Wells (if you're sick/tired/it's raining/your bank account is empty/you stepped in dog poo/the world is actually ending, just play this song.  Not even kidding.)



9. Just a Dream - Nelly (your hip-hop for the month.)



8. Light Outside - Wakey!Wakey!  (This song reminds me of how my dad used to tell me to keep playing violin because it was used in popular music more often than I thought.  I didn't, but he was right!)



7. Telephone - Glee Version (y'all know I love Lady Gaga, but Charice and Lea Michele are SO GOOD in this version!  Plus, I almost fell out of my chair when Sue walked in at the end.)



6. E.T. - Katy Perry (music video's not out on this one, but I see a So You Think You Can Dance hip-hop routine in its future!)



5. Oh My Sweet Carolina - Zac Brown Band (this is a brilliant cover of a Ryan Adams song, and it's on their most recent album. I don't have to tell you why I love it.)  :)



4. White Blank Page - Mumford & Sons (if you haven't heard of Mumford & Sons yet, go stand in the corner until I tell you to come out.  :)  You may have heard this on Grey's Anatomy, but if you love bluegrass, give it about a minute to build up and you're bound to fall in love.)



3. Solsbury Hill - Ingram Hill  (this song was, obviously, originally recorded by Peter Gabriel, but Ingram Hill is my favorite band of all time, and their cover is just perfection, even if this video isn't.  If you have iTunes, check out their new album here!



2. The Lucky Ones - Brendan James (y'all, his concert was INCREDIBLE.  Check out my post on it here!  This song is featured in the trailer for the new movie, How Do You Know?, with Reese Witherspoon, Owen Wilson, and Paul Rudd.  So amazing!)



1. Runaway Baby - Bruno Mars (just downloaded this song yesterday, and I'm already in love with it!  Just try not to dance.  I double dog dare you.)



Until November... happy downloading!

bridal shower invitations

I realize these last two posts have been 100% wedding, but I can't help it!  At least this one is about something I did myself.  I sent out invitations to the shower I'm hosting for Amanda this past Wednesday, and once I got past the frustration of creating a printing template from scratch, I really loved them!

I bought the cardstock pieces from Swoozies during their liquidation sale back in April, so I got a great deal!  Putting together your own invitations instead of buying pre-designed ones adds a little work to the process, but y'all know how I feel about crafts.  It was really hard to wait six months to put them together!  Plus, that means they're one of a kind, and I love that!

And, just in case you missed the post on my old blog, here's the invitation from her bachelorette beach party a few months ago... I think I'm even prouder of that one!

Happy Friday!

iloveswmag. i really do!

I have so many friends planning weddings right now, it's incredible!  Sometimes, I'm so surrounded by invitations and save-the-dates and registries and gift wrap that I almost feel like I'm getting married!  But for now, the living vicariously is pretty fun (and much cheaper, let's be honest)!

Tackling Maid-of-Honor duties for the first time has been a complete whirlwind, but I have loved every minute of it!  From being there with the camera when Nick proposed to trying on bridesmaid dresses and printing bridal shower invitations (pictures to come... stay tuned!), it has been quite an experience!  And I'm sure Leanna appreciates the fact that I'll be a seasoned pro by the time she has a ring on her finger (yes, I did just self-appoint).

Anyway, all of this pre-wedding commotion sort of gives me a reason to devour wedding websites and magazines more heavily than I normally would, and I think I've found one of my favorites in Southern Weddings magazine.  Right now, the issues only come out about once a year (they're small, but I know they'll be huge one day), but their blog is TO DIE FOR!  So many beautiful pictures and adorable stories, plus one of the girls on staff went to Girls Nation the same year I did!  And she was such a sweetheart.

So, stalk them, lurk them, fall in love with them.  On facebook.  On twitter.  In print.  Doesn't matter!  Weddings are just good for the soul.

pumpkin pancakes!

First of all, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my old roommate, Ellie!  Miss you, sweet girl!

One of my favorite things in the WORLD is getting an email from Molly in the middle of an otherwise normal workday.  It just makes everything happier!  We usually end up deciding in the course of these emails what we want to make for dinner, and y'all, yesterday I was seriously craving some pumpkin pancakes.  I had my first ones of the season at Flying Biscuit in Atlanta after the UNC/LSU game (but they have locations in Raleigh and Charlotte, too, so go immediately!), and I'm officially addicted.  And it was like magic when I told Molly that's what I wanted, because she told me she had been craving the EXACT same thing!  We are just meant to be roommates.  God is so good.

So, I knew since Martha Stewart hasn't let me down yet, she would have a recipe for pumpkin pancakes.  And I was right!  Hers were definitely made with white flour, though, and since Molly and I are both in love with whole wheat pancakes, we changed things up a little. (Sorry, Martha!  Please forgive!)  We wanted to make about 16 pancakes, so we used...

- 2 cups Aunt Jemima Whole Wheat Pancake Mix

- 2 cups organic milk

- 2 eggs

- 1/2 can organic pumpkin

- cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger to taste

MAN DOWN!!!

This is seriously what our stove looked like.  So much efficiency, it blows my mind.

At one point, Molly even ordered us tickets to Jonsi (one of her faves) at the 9:30 Club while flipping pancakes.  Skill, ladies and gentlemen.

It's okay if you're drooling.  I already miss them.

SO DELICIOUS!  We really couldn't believe how amazing they turned out (and we also found that they go really well with a cozy blanket and a new episode of Glee).  Try them immediately!

taste of bethesda!

Last week, one of my friends at work suggested that I try out Taste of Bethesda on Saturday, which is basically a big street festival where you can buy a set of tickets and trade them in for "tastes" of food from what seemed like hundreds of Bethesda restaurants.  I thought it would at least make for a fun lunch, so I grabbed my friend, Katie, and we had a BLAST!  Katie and I actually went to high school together but didn't know each other back then.  We just happen to have a bunch of mutual friends from home who told us we each had just moved here, so we met for the first time over lunch last week and it's like I've known her forever! 

Still working on forgiving Katie for calling these guys Civil War soldiers... and still not sure why they were there.

Katie and her ginormous hot dog...

Notice Katie is now double-fisting a hot dog and a cupcake... she said she "didn't want there to be any down time between lunch and dessert."  I think I laughed for a solid five minutes!

Katie just graduated from NC State, so since the Carolina game wasn't on tv, we went back to my house and cheered on the Wolfpack!  Too bad they came up a little short, but my Heels dominated! 

I love Saturdays.



happy october!

Don't you just love October?  The leaves start to change, the air begins to feel crisp, you have every reason to bake pretty much any pie ever invented, and you can run through a pumpkin patch like you're five again.  It's just magic.

One of my favorite photographers from Raleigh, Nancy Ray, blogs her monthly goals on the first day of each month, and I figured a little goal-setting of my own couldn't hurt!  I know I already missed the first, but a Monday is its own kind of first, so here are my goals for beautiful, enchanting October.

- Run at least three times a week.  I have such a cute, runner-friendly neighborhood that this one should be easy!

- Take pictures of the leaves changing near all the monuments.

- Throw Amanda the world's most fabulous bridal shower!

- Learn the ins & outs of Adobe Illustrator.

- Participate in the office Halloween costume contest (that'll be bloggable for sure!)

- Get my Groupon manicure with Molly!

- Buy curtains for my room.  Finally!

- Switch some of the picture frames in my room to ones that match better.

- Save at least 20% of each paycheck for my "rainy day fund".

- Carve a pumpkin (or two) of course!

I'll let you know how I did in November!  And if you blog your monthly goals (or just want to write them out), leave a comment with your list or a link to your blog! 

(And yes, that is my dog in a pumpkin costume up there.  I love it enough for the both of us.)



for a friday laugh...

What do you think are the chances this guy actually went to UNC?

I actually took this picture a few months ago in Downtown Raleigh and just never got a chance to share it, but I thought it was hilarious and a perfect lead in to college football Saturday!  Go Heels!  Beat ECU!