Alyson’s Obsessions // October 2017

Holy October! I feel like I say it every month but where did this month go? It’s nearly Halloween, and then we have both kiddos birthdays, then Thanksgiving, then the holidays. Yup, peace out 2017. LOL, did I give you anxiety, too? Womp, womp. Adam and I are also traveling for 10 days to Israel with 20+ other young adults and while I’m so excited to be there, all the prep amidst work and life has me nuts. By the way, we went to Adam’s 20th high school reunion. There’s nothing to make you feel ancient more than going to your 20 year anniversary reunion, LOL. Weren’t we all just IN high school?

PS: how good and right is that quote above? Love it so much.

Alright… so here are more of my obsessions for October!

Girl, Wash Your Face: “stop believing all the lies you were told about yourself so you can become who you were meant to be.” <—- THIS. If this doesn’t get you, what will? I had to pre-order this book from one of my favorite bloggers. If you appreciate my honesty and transparency, meet your newest home girl, Rachel Hollis. And yup, awkward… I just used the term home girl. Life is messy, is chaotic and is crazy, and I’m super pumped to read a book that will hopefully motivate each of us to live just a little bit more of a bold, truthful life that helps us rise up to the incredible women each of us are. Get it.

 

Leith Ruched Long Sleeve Dress. The ultimate dress for every girl! I love the tank version (have it in black), so I recently purchased the long-sleeve option in “red tannin”. Why is this obsession worthy? They’re super soft, under $60, insanely flattering, and extremely versatile: wear them with your Adidas superstars or converse or any sneaks, booties, strappy heels, with over the knee boots, or with tights and any shoes. Layer on a chunky necklace or keep it simple. Friends and bloggers have this in multiple colors… I can see why. For sizing, I wear a small.

Bold Earrings: can’t get enough of the bold earrings and BaubleBar is fully kicking my obsession into high gear. You might have seen me talk about these bold gold and black earrings on a recent Facebook Live, “Wine Down Wednesday,” and loved knowing you guys are into this trend as much as I am. In full disclosure, BaubleBar does send me some complimentary jewels but also in full disclosure, they get a fair share of my money, too. 😉

 

QUICK DINNER IDEA: Spaghetti squash stuffed with bolognese. Anyone else always looking for a super easy dinner idea? This! It’s healthy, delicious and satisfying. Simply make spaghetti squash (tip: ask your grocer to cut it in half for you, then remove seeds, add salt and pepper to taste and bake at 375 for 35-45 minutes). You can make your own bolognese but time-limited girl over here purchases the frozen turkey bologenese from Trader Joe’s… it’s SO good! We’ve also topped it over gnocchi but this is just as good, and way healthier. For a similar recipe, try this.

 

Kwik Stix Solid Paint: It’s paint that’s like a glue stick… million-dollar idea! We saw these kwik stix at a children’s event and LOVED the concept. Real paint, easy to use and without the mess. I immediately ordered on Amazon and they’ve already been so fun for arts-and-crafts projects, and have come in handy for one of Sarah’s class projects, too.

 

Cat and Nat share “Mom Brain”: If you’re a mama, you have to watch this. That is all.

 

The Levi’s denim jacket: I never loved my previous denim jacket. The color was just ok, the fit was slightly off and every time I wore it, I just didn’t love it. Well, if you’re petite… introducing the girl’s Levi’s denim jacket, for $35! I’m wearing the XL and the just slightly shrunken fit is perfection. Levi’s is back in general in a big, big way so love the idea of updating your jacket with theirs. Shopbop also has a big selection of women’s Levi’s jackets, with the faded black being my favorite.  (For reference, I’m wearing this midi dress in this horrible, blurry photo… so sorry!).