JC Penny Finds

This weekend my mom and I ventured into JC Penny because they have a full Sephora inside, and I need some blush.  I haven't been into a JC Penny in years, and I don't think I've ever purchased something from there.  I had every intention to make a bee line for the Sephora store, buy my blush, and get the heck outta there- but it didn't quite work out that way.

We walked in and were immediately entranced by the Joe Fresh section.  I've seen a lot of their stuff on commercials and on other blogs, but hadn't seen it yet in person.  From the Joe Fresh section we made our way around the entire ladies clothing area.  Everything was so cute!  Here are some of my favorites.  I actually purchased the top three, and I'm loving the looks of the bottom three. 

 

Buffalo Drape Cardigan

Joe Fresh Flocked Spotted Jeans

a.n.a Anorak Vest

  Joe Fresh Sequin Skirt     a.n.a. Mandarin Collar Popover

 

Bisou Bisou Sequined Sweater

I ended up getting blush while I was there, too.  It's actually kind of a funny story.  I was ready to finally jump on the NARS blush train, and I did a little research before I went.  I liked the look of Orgasm (their most popular color), and had also heard good things about the Deep Throat.  When I went to go check out those colors, they appeared to be out of both.  I called one of the associates over for help, but she wasn't sure if they had more of either.  So, she screamed over to her coworker asking if they had more orgasm or deep throat in stock. Oh the looks I received.  At that point no blush was needed.  I could just feel the blood rush to my cheeks. 

Weekend Recap

This weekend we went to a wedding in Columbia.  This wedding ended our marathon of weddings for the last two years.  We don't have another until November of 2014, and we sure did end it with a good one!  The bride, Meg, and I have been friends since high school.  We also went to college together, and were in the same sorority.  Meg married William, her sweet long-time boyfriend who is a Citadel grad.

The wedding and reception were absolutely beautiful.   Southern and romantic with a lot of great Citadel tradition.  I love the Sword Ceremony at a military wedding. This is where they stop the bride and groom from exiting the church until they provide the password, which happens to be a kiss.  

One of my favorite parts about a wedding reception is seeing the personal touches that the couple adds to the event.  I love seeing how a bride and groom's reception reflects who they are.  Meg and William are both big hunters.  Don't be fooled by Meg's small figure and beauty.  The girl can out hunt and fish you any day.  So, in addition to the traditional wedding food (which was awesome) they also served venison. I must admit, that's the first time I've ever seen that offered at a reception, and I loved it! 

Here I am with the bride and all of my best friends from high school.

The band was soooo good.  Something about them just made me want to dance all night, and their music even managed to get T out on the dance floor.  It was so much fun dancing the night away surrounded by some of my best high school and college friends.

What a fun night we had, and congratulations to Meg and William!

Sunday Meal Planning #2

Here's a look at  we've got on the menu for this week.

Garlic Parmesan Green Beans from foodnetwork.com

Sunday: Creamy Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese {and bacon} Sandwiches

Monday: Left Overs

Tuesday: Honey Soy Grilled Salmon with Garlic Parmesan Green Beans and cous cous

Wednesday: Sauteed Garlic Lemon Pork Chops with Mushrooms & Onion and Roasted Zucchini (for the second week in a row- we love this zucchini)

Thursday: Tailgate Food- Clemson Game!

Friday: Take Out

Five On Friday: Hair Edition

Everyone has that one thing about them that they're always super self conscious about.  The thing that you notice first in every single picture.  Mine is my hair- or lack thereof.  I have baby fine super thin hair, and not a lot of it.  Since I was in middle school, I've always been on the search for the perfect hair products that would make me look like I had more hair.  I've practically tried everything under the sun, but I finally have a few products that I really love.  

{one.} Moroccan Oil Extra Volume Shampoo- I would have never thought that Moroccan Oil shampoo would work for me.  Oil and thin hair typically just aren't a good combination, but this stuff is great.   It keeps my hair moisturized with out weighing it down.  I've been using it for the past few months and I've received several compliments on how shiny and healthy my hair has been looking.

{two.} Style Sexy Hair Spray Clay- If you have fine or thin hair, you know how lifeless it can look sometimes.  No matter what you do to it, it just falls.   This Spray Clay is a great solution.  It adds texture to your hair and actually helps it to stay in place.

{three.} John Frida Luxurious Volume Blow Out Spray- Although I have to add a lot of products to my hair, I hate feeling like my hair is completely gunked up with product residue.  I love this spray because its super light.  Your hair still feels clean and soft even though it's been volumized. 

{four.} Sebastian Shaper Hairspray-  This is the best teasing hairspray I've ever used.  I typically tease the crown of my hair to add some extra height and to hide the crazy cowlick I've got going on.  This is the first hairspray I've found that will actually hold my tease throughout the day. 

{five.} L'Oreal Professionnel Fibercuetic Masque- When you're using all of these things on you're hair, you've got to make sure to keep it moisturized.  I use this L'Oreal masque every Sunday to cleanse, repair and moisturize before I begin my week.

Y'all don't judge on the amount of hair products I use.  It takes a village.

Old Navy Steals

I've recently been loving a lot at Old Navy.  A lot of their items are spot-on with the trends I've been seeing this fall, and their price points are always so reasonable. I practically live in big sweaters and cardis in the cooler weather, and I can never have enough plaid shirts and vests. Here's a few of the items I've had my eye on.

Fair Isle Cardi Coat

 V-Neck Doleman Sleeve Sweater

Laced Short Boots

Women's Plaid Shirt

Quilted Tweed Puffa Vest

Happy Friday eve!

Greektown Grille

Greenville's culinary scene has been growing at a very rapid pace.  So rapid recently that I can't even keep up with every new restaurant that opens downtown.  A new Mediterranean place, Greektown Grille, opened up a few months ago and I recently tried it out for lunch.

I was pleasantly surprised at the prices of their sandwiches.  They are all served with a small portion of seasoned steak fries and ring in under $7.00.  It's rare to get that downtown these days.   I opted for the Chicken Souvlaki Pita at $6.55.   The pita was nice and soft, and the flavors were just right.  When I got it I thought I would want more taziki sauce, but once I started eating it I realized it had enough flavor without additional sauce.

I have a problem when I go to new restaurants.  I get so excited to try the menu items, that I can't just order one thing.   So I also ordered the Spanakotiropita, layers of filo dough filled with spinach, feta, and herbs.

The Spanakotiropita was equally as tasty.  The crispy layers of filo dough are so good in combination with the creamy cheesy spinach-y goodness inside.  This is one of my all time favorite Greek foods, and their version was executed very well.

Overall I was very pleased with Greektown Grille.  To be honest, I typically shy away from any restaurant with "Grill" or "Grille" as part of its name.  Why do they have to add that extra "e" in there?  And isn't it obvious that some of there menu items are grilled?  Is it completely necessary to put it in the name, too?  I think that's just the inner marketing major in me coming out, it's no secret that I can pick apart a restaurant's branding.  Regardless of my weird hang-up about the name, the food is great (and cheap) which is the most important part. If you live in the Upstate, you should give it a try.

Sunday Meal Planning #1

Every Sunday I sit down and make a meal plan for the upcoming week. Recently our weeks have been pretty predictable. Dave Ramsey course on Sunday, bible study on Monday, free nights Tuesday- Thursday, and then out of town on Friday through the weekend. I've found that it's easiest to have somewhat of a template to go by each week for meal planning. Since it's started to get cooler, this is what we've done: soup or crockpot recipe on Sunday/Monday, Fish on Tuesday, and then a chicken or pork dish on Wednesday/Thursday. I always love looking at other bloggers' meal plans for the week, because it gives me inspiration for my own. I've decided that I'll be sharing our weekly meal plans every Sunday. Here's what we've got on the list for this week.

Baked Brown Sugar Chicken Wings with Roasted Red Pepper Cream Sauce (photo from damndelicious.net)

Sunday:  

Lemon Orzo Soup with Easy Parmesan Garlic Knots

Monday:

Left Overs

Tuesday:  

Parmesan Fish with Broccoli Cheese Bites

Wednesday:  

Baked Brown Sugar Chicken Wings with Roasted Red Pepper Cream Sauce and Roasted Zucchini and Carrots

Thursday: 

Left Overs

Friday: 

Out of Town 

Hope y'all have a great week!