Thursday Three

I finally went home this weekend and it was by far the best part of my week. I loved just being able to be with my family again, and I was lucky enough to get to spend some time with each of them. I also got to see one of my best friends and go out for coffee too many times. All of this makes for a good weekend. Here was my week:

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The best part of my whole week was getting to bake with my mom. We made everything for thanksgiving (see that post here) and I also got started on Christmas cookies. We made gingerbread cookies and chocolate covered pretzels. I am going to miss being able to make cookies all of December, but I know will make up for it when I am home for break. Hint: Come back soon for the gingerbread cookie recipe. 

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After a long day of classes, nothing is nicer than being able to snuggle up under a cozy blanket with a cup of coffee (decaf of course) and a bit of chocolate. I love to either watch Hallmark movies or read a good book. Both are great ways to be able to destress. This book, The Garden of the Beasts, is so good. I fully recommend it to anyone who is interested in historical fiction (rise of Hitler) or just generally likes to read. 

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This Christmas decorating has begun in my dorm. I have two trees, one fake with ornaments and a small little pine tree (real) that I am trying not to kill. I also bought some cute Christmas pillows for my bed because one can never have too many pillows. Finally I added tinsel around my bulletin board. All of this adds a christmasy touch to the room so I hopefully I won't feel too left out of the Christmas fun at home.

Can you tell I love the Christmas season?

xoxo,

Maddie

Thanksgiving Eats

Seeing as Thanksgiving is primarily based around food, I figured it would be fun to share some of what I had. I had a lot of fun taking pictures the various foods, especially since the lighting in my families kitchen is so good. My favorite part of my thanksgiving break was being able to make a bunch of different things with my mom. For a Thanksgiving with only five people, we sure managed to cook a lot. 

For lunch on Thanksgiving we made shrimp cocktail with a hearts of palm salad. I love shrimp cocktail. It was the perfect meal before a dinner as big as a Thanksgiving feast. Filling, yet you are ready for dinner when it comes around.  I ended up eating leftover shrimp cocktail for most of the weekend to give you can idea of how much I love it. 

For as long as I can remember, pumpkin nut muffins have been one of my favorite parts of thanksgiving. Most people have corn bread or rolls, but we have never failed to have my muffins. This year, an important part of the muffin (one of its mixes) was discontinued, so they were an experiment. Thankfully they turned out just as good as always and I ate way to many like usual. 

As an appetizer this year, we made Gougeres. They are cheese puffs, and always a hit with my family.  They are really simple to make, but taste amazing. Anything that is puffy and cheesy will always be a winner in my book. 

This isn't everything we had for Thanksgiving, have no fear, but it gives an idea of what I eat. Pictured is the turkey (duh), angle biscuits and sweet potato-apple puree. I am not really a big turkey  fan so I tend to stick to the sides for my overall meal. The sweet potato-apple puree has always been one of my favorites, even when I hated sweet potatoes. It is sweet, creamy and doesn't taste as healthy as it actually is. (all of which make it a good side) Not pictured: broccoli, gravy, and cranberry sauce. 

Last but not least, the dessert. Pictured is the pecan pie, and we also made apple pie. In my opinion, dessert is always the best part of thanksgiving so why not go all out. My sister tried the pecan pie for the first time this year and loved it, which means that I can make it more often! In the past, pecan pie was a dessert only my mom and I would enjoy so we only made it once a year. 

Here was a peek into what I made and ate over Thanksgiving break. It was so nice to be home with my family and away from all of the stress of college. Also, if you want to check out what else I have been up to, here is the most recent article I wrote for Spoon University- UW Madison. Check it out and let me know what you think. (Hint: it is also on Thanksgiving)

Now all I have to do is wait until Christmas break to bake some more...

xoxo,

Maddie

Thanksgiving Outfits

I never know what to wear for Thanksgiving. Do I wear a dress? Or maybe just a nice top? This is such a tricky holiday because there is rarely a set dress code. It also tends to depend what else you are doing that day. A day filled with football game watching would require a different outfit than a formal dinner. I tried to make some different outfits, so at least one would match up with what your Thanksgiving requires.

| Vest | Flannel | Jeans | Boots |

 | Sweater | Jeans | Booties | Scarf |

| Black Jeans | Sweater | Necklace | Flats |

     I will probably end up wearing something similar to the second outfit. I love pairing plaid scarves with sweaters in the fall. It is a perfect way to look festive but still be comfortable. Any of these outfits would be perfect for Thanksgiving. 

    I am so excited for Thanksgiving since it will be my first time home. I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't go home until Thanksgiving, and even though I made it, I don't think I could have lasted much longer. I am ready for my mom's cooking, my own bed, and not having an insane amount of work to do each day. 

     Speaking of work... you might have noticed that I haven't posted anything in a while. I have been crazy busy with midterms and my sorority right now that each time I have a moments rest, the last thing I want to do is sit on my laptop. I also haven't been able to come up with any great content ideas, and I would rather not post anything than something bad. I am planning on using this break to regroup, so hopefully I can come back next month with some good posts again!

Happy Thanksgiving!

xoxo,

Maddie

Thursday Three

The highlight of my week was my Mom being able to come for the weekend. I had a such a great time with her. We went out for a lot of great meals, walked around a lot, and just overall it was exactly what I was needing. Here was my week:

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When my mom was here this weekend I went to the cutest bakeshop called Bloom Bakeshop. I've been wanting to go for quite a while, and thankfully it was everything I hoped for. The owner was so nice and the food was amazing. I had a delicious cinnamon roll and a pumpkin chocolate chip muffin that melted in my mouth. I would 10/10 recommend going. 

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I finally got my hands on the dairy free Halo Top ice cream. I am lactose intolerant, which means I haven't been able to try anything from Halo Top until now. This was the chocolate peanut butter flavor. I really liked it, but I did feel that something was missing. (probably the dairy lol) I definitely want to try the other flavors. Has anyone else had the dairy free Halo Top?

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There is no doubt that it is fall now. The leaves are finally completely changed. The reds, yellows and oranges make such a pretty picture. I love my morning runs (now that it is light again) because there is nothing quite like seeing the fall colors with the sunrise. 

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie

What I Wore This Week

 This week was a crazy cold week. I had to break out the parka for almost everyday, which meant planning my outfits around that. I didn't want to be too warm since it was still round 30 degrees so the parka wasn't 100% necessary. I also wore the bean boots a lot, but my feet have been hurting and they seem to provide enough support for me. With that being said, here is what I wore this week. 

Halloween over? That means I can finally wear my christmasy flannel. It doesn't scream Christmas, but I feel like I can't wear it until Halloween is done, but then I will wear it all winter. I love just pairing flannels with sweaters or vests for cozy, but cute fall look.

One day this week was warm enough to just wear a vest (for 1/2 the day) so I knew I needed to take advantage of that. I love my J. Crew vests because they are legitimately warm, and look so cute. I have vests in black and navy so there is nothing that they don't go well with. 

Remember how I said it was parka weather, well I wasn't lying. I have been so thankful I brought my jacket to school right away. This week I was crazy busy with homework,  and this particular day I sat in the library all day. The comfort of a sweatshirt and jeans cannot be matched. 

This shirt is probably one of my favorite ones. I got it from Vineyard Vines early this fall, and I wear it any chance I can get. It pairs really well with a vest, scarf or just on its own. It is honestly the best purchase I have made recently 

And finally, it round out what I wore this week we have Friday's outfit. I felt a sudden urge to wear my oversized Vineyard Vines quarter zip so I just went for it. Sometimes being comfortable and lazy is the nicest outfit for a Friday. 

And last but not least I might as well throw in the Halloween Costume. I didn't end up taking good pictures with friends (go figure) so this is the best I have. I was a gum ball machine and in my fanny pack I had a bunch of gum balls to give out. 

Hopefully this could give you some outfit inspiration or ideas. I probably changed my clothes about two to three times each day because it seems like something else is always needed, but this is the best representation of what I wore. Sometimes I get in such a rut with wearing the same thing over and over which always sucks.

Is this a type of post you'd want to see more often?

xoxo,

Maddie

Thursday Three

This has been a crazy busy week. Halloween was this past weekend and there was a ton of hype surrounding the weekend. Sadly, I found the weekend to be overrated which was a disappointment. The weather has plummeted recently. It went from fall to winter real quick. I am talking about 35 degrees each day. Here was my week:

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I have started cooking for myself in the dorms and I have loved it. It means that I get a good, warm meal and then some tasty leftovers for the busier days. My favorite thing I made this week was the chicken with veggies and brown rice shown above. I added teriyaki sauce which made for a yummy meal. Here is one of my recipes. 

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I got new winter hat from Great Lakes Clothing Company and I am so excited to wear it! Getting something in the mail is always fun, and it is even better when it is something as cute as this hat. (This is what it looks like). Now I am fully prepared for the crazy cold weather we are having. 

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I finally was able to go out for coffee this week. Yes, it was to do homework, but it was still such a nice change of pace. I went to Michangelo's Coffee House and had the best pumpkin pie ever. I had been craving pumpkin pie for a while, so it was the perfect solution. It was so relaxing to spend time off campus and just be by myself that I know I will need to do it more often. 

How was your week?

xoxo,

Maddie