Happy Friday Everyone!
One – Bratches, My Sweet Calico Kitty
Happy Friday, friends! Last month, we had to put my sweet baby girl down to rest. I don’t want to dwell on what happened, because she was 17 years old and her little body was just so tired. But, I do want to share some photos here of Bratches and how much she blessed our lives while she was alive. She was always MY kitty, she loved her momma and followed me around and would just stare at me in awe. We have a ragdoll and she is more Brian’s cat, even though she is loving to all of us. I miss my little shadow and gosh, I haven’t had grief hit my heart so hard in I can’t remember when. Losing a pet is just heartbreaking, especially one that has given you their undivided love for 17.5 years! I got Bratches one month before my son was born, so she has been around during both my pregnancies and has seen the kids grow up. It just won’t be the same with her absence, but I made a photo album, wrote down everything I could remember about her and stowed it away with some of her toys and other cherished items. I don’t know if I really believe in pets going to heaven, but I do hope I’ll see her again someday.
Bratches had beautiful eyes! The photo on the right reminds me the most of how she looked while she was healthy and thriving.
Another photo of us together, just hanging out.
I adopted Bratches from Petsmart after seeing a photo of her online. It is hard to believe I was almost nine months pregnant in this photo! I remember a lady at Petsmart telling me she couldn’t believe I was adopting a kitten, when I was going to have my hands full with a new baby soon! She was right, kittens are a lot of work. I had lost my prior cat of 9 years from cancer and I was on a mission to get a new cat (to help with the grief) the very next weekend… and, that is how Bratches showed up in my life.
This is a photo of Bratches a month before she passed. She was still my girl even when she didn’t feel good! One of my great regrets is that I didn’t get more photos of her while she was healthy and I wish I had more videos of her, especially of cute little things she did that I will now have to try to remember in my mind. I’m a content creator and I can’t believe I didn’t take more photos and videos of her. I really wish I had some better photos of us together, but I’ll hold dear the photos I do have of my sweet girl.
I had two sweet friends send me sentimental gifts to remember her by. Lauren sent me a basket filled with beautiful plants and flowers. So far it is staying alive for me! And, Ashley had an artist create a portrait of Bratchey from some photos I sent her. It is SO accurate, I just love it and have it on my desk. Thank you!
Two – Friday Night Lights, Cross Country & Lancerettes Dance Team
We have the excitement of having BOTH kids performing in some way at the football games this year. Nathan is on the pep band and Autumn is on the dance team.
Nathan is doing cross country for his fourth year! He made varsity at the time trials, which means he was in the top 7. They figure out varsity at the end of each meet, so who is on it will vary throughout the year. Autumn is a freshman this year and is doing the Lancerettes dance team for the first time!
Three – Latest Munchies
I just updated a post from 2010 for my 3 Ingredient Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins. These are SOOO good and they can be whipped up in less than a half hour. The recipe make 3 dozen and you can freeze them and pop them into the microwave for later. I’ve been making these for my family or for fall gatherings for over a decade, so I know you’ll love them as much as I do!
Well, I got my first PSL of the season!! I thought I’d take a photo of it by my zinnias. My mom helped me plant these and they are SO beautiful. They have bloomed all spring, summer and now are still blooming in the fall. I sometimes will see the hummingbirds by them. Do you have zinnias in your yard?
Well, I try not to go to Chick Fil A too much, but they had me with their new Honey Pepper Pimento Chicken Sandwich. And, it did NOT disappoint! Yum! It was like a little taste of the south in the midwest!
Brian went on a work trip recently in Wisconsin and brought me back these dipping pretzels and a jar of honey mustard pretzel dip. It was the perfect snack!
I decided to treat myself to one of my favorite breakfast places on one of the mornings of the teens first week of school. It is called Honey Bee’s Biscuits and it is in Kirkwood. Their biscuits are SO good! I usually get a savory biscuit sandwich (they also have biscuits and gravy) and then one of their sweet dessert biscuits. I save the dessert biscuit for later in the day, it is the perfect pick me up in the afternoon! They have flavored coffee too! I saw these cute little knitted bees on the counter at my last visit.
Four – Latest Book I’ve Read & Shows I’ve Watched
One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle – I had wanted to read this book last summer and was excited to finally get to it this month. It is about a daughter who loses her mom and has a hard time coping with the grief, because her mother was her best friend. She decides to take a magical Italian trip that she had planned to go on with her mom. On this vacation she makes some friends, but she also “sees/gets to know” her mother from the past and starts to put together the puzzle pieces of her mom’s younger years and how they related to the mother she knew and loved. This book describes the sites, food and overall general passion of Italy delightfully throughout the pages. A great summer read!
The Five Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand – This might have been my favorite summer read! This book is about The Five Star Weekend where food blogger Hollis gets in a fight with her husband and then he dies in a snowy car accident after he leaves the house to head to the airport. Hollis is devastated and blames herself and starts to share her feelings with one of her followers on her food website. When Hollis decides to have a “Five Star Weekend” with five of her closest friends, she decides to invite this mystery person she has friended, but never met. The Five Star Weekend is where you select a friend from different parts of your life and you get together for a weekend and enjoy good food, drinks and each others company. Hollis friends get together for the weekend and she hires her daughter to be the photographer/videographer. As you can guess, there is A LOT of drama to unfold and Hollis finds out more about her husband and marriage through this mystery guest. Her friends also find out a lot more about each other AND themselves. Such a great read!
We watched TWO shows recently, which were shows that we had watched previously. First up, we have Sweet Magnolias, Season 3, which was delightful with all of its small town charm and drama.
Then, sadly, we watched the FINAL episode of Mrs. Maisel, Season 5. This show is SO inappropriate on so many levels, but man it gives me a good laugh! Next up? I want to watch the new Virgin River AND season three of The Morning Show with Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon.
Five – Latest Finds that I Love!
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So, there has been A LOTTA talk about these tiny little LMNT packages. They have a TON of sodium in them and some magnesium. I was skeptical, because… like I said, that’s A LOT of sodium! I sweat A LOT when I do my double digit long runs for my half marathon training and I wanted to try them out in my water that I drink while I’m running (I typically take a few sips every mile). WOW, these have been SUCH a game changer for me. I feel like I don’t fatigue as easily AND I have SO much more energy. The Watermelon Salt is THE best flavor, but the other ones aren’t bad either.
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We have a trip to Ireland coming up and my luggage has seen better days. The wheels on my check luggage doesn’t swivel all ways and it is hard to lug around. I decided to upgrade to a set of Calpak suitcase in gold. I also have THIS carry on bag that is Calpak that I love to take on the plane with me. I got these in Gold, but they come in Black, Gold, etc. I received a duster bag to store over them when they’re in the basement, which is SO nice.
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I stopped by Ulta for a little browsing and it did not disappoint. They let me have my birthday gift, even though I was late (it was a trial size Drunk Elephant product) and then I stocked up on some shampoo/conditioner, my eyebrow pencil and the Elf clear brow gel (I mainly use it on the top of my hair at my crown to keep my hair nice and down)… but, I got a new (to me) Too Faced product called Milk Chocolate Matte and I LOVE it. It is a highlighter that goes on silky smooth and it is the perfect shade I would say for almost anyone… especially as we get more into the fall. It even smells like a chocolate bar, which is so delightful when I put it on. I picked up some Touchland Power Mists, these are so fun and smell great… plus, I like to stow them in my bag or car for a little hand sanitizing action.
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Pixi sent me a box for a dreamy night of relaxation with lavender scents! I received their Dream-y Mist with jasmine and lavender, which will smell so good misted on my face or silk pillow before bed. They also sent me their Dream-y Eye Patches, which I have tried some of their other eye patches and they have worked wonders of relieving the puffy news under my eyes in the morning. Last, I received a vegan silk Dream-y Sleep Mask and it even has my name monogrammed on it. Such a great package!
I hope everyone has a nice and relaxing weekend!
