Coffee and Cocktails at the Casa

Monday, October 20, 2025

I had a really good weekend! Let’s link up with Sarah and Holly to share! And all of a sudden, it’s looking and feeling like fall here in Louisville, Kentucky!

What about you? Did you have a good weekend? Is it looking and feeling like fall? And, just like that we only have eleven days left of the month! Talk about scary!

Let’s go back to Thursday. It was Brunette Heather’s birthday and we knew we weren’t going to be able to go to dinner as couples for a few weeks so we spontaneously did a brunch during Brunette Heather’s workday. She works from home and we picked a place close to her house.

As a reminder, I met both of these girls on day one of college. Well, I met the blonde at orientation in July and then we decided to room together. Then, we met the other one like day one and we have been tight ever since. We all live within a few miles of each other now.

It was so lovely out and we sat on a patio! After we ate we went across the street to a couple of little boutiques. I went home and napped! Tom came home from work, we ate Mexican lasagna for dinner, and that was that.

Friday I went to Trader Joe’s – it had been a few weeks!

I bought these brie bites and the best rice cake I have ever tried. Seriously. Both of these will be repeat buys!

Even though I like pumpkin, I didn’t enjoy it in this kringle.

I didn’t like cinnamon bun nearly as much as brown sugar so I am going to stick with my Starbuck’s brand creamer from Kroger since brown sugar is gone from Trader Joe’s now.

I love this salad mix and I had this for lunch with Trader Joe’s already cooked chicken on Friday.

Fig butter for grilled cheese and raspberry to go with the brie bites…

Jack came home to do laundry, and I made lunch for him and he and Mason spent some nice time together all afternoon. I offered to buy them dinner if they went out together because neither of them had plans. This has been a big change for both of them, and I will never understand the twin bond but it’s a special thing. I remember Gretchen Rubin saying her parents paid for her sister to travel to her and vice versa so I try to help with that bond when I can.

Tom almost always says “yes” to my schemes. He had had a long week at work, but I wanted to go to this bar in the river/on the river before it closes at the end of October…

I do feel that going out on a Friday (even briefly) makes you feel like you had more weekend.

You can park your boat there or go by car and we went by car. I had a delicious blackberry margarita.

They had an authentic-ish Mexican food stand on one end of the bar. Ok!

Neither of us felt really confident that the floating barge bar would hold up but sometimes you have to live on the edge.

We saw the most gorgeous sunset from the bar. The drive home with the horse farm fences and the sky darkening was gorgeous, too.

This little outing made me so happy! Maybe I am a quality time person instead of words of affirmation person now?

Tom brought me home a new laptop! His work allows them to buy old phones and laptops. He was worried about my lack of Ls on my old laptop even though I bought a new keyboard. My new laptop is so nice!

I woke up Saturday and immediately went outside. Then, I decided to spend some time reading outside and it was a nice way to start the day. Saturday is my day off from Eddie Otis – lol.

He hung out on the porch with me for a bit and then he got to have a field trip with Daddy. I balanced so much cleaning with a bit of self-care and reading before they returned home…

Tom had to mow before the rains came and then he blew some leaves and Eddie Otis “helped”. Eddie Otis was beside himself when Tom climbed up on the garage roof to blow leaves and clean gutters. He just didn’t know how to get to Daddy to “help”. Yes, we do call ourselves “Daddy” and “Mommy” to Eddie Otis. What are you even doing if you don’t? Also, what do people do without a dog?

We did sheets, more cleaning inside, watched some football, and all kinds of boring things and then Tom and I went to my favorite street to get a gift from the bookstore and to eat at our favorite pizza place currently. We usually just order it but we wanted to go eat there.

We came home and watched a bit of tv and then woke to rain yesterday…

I lit my new Trader Joe’s vanilla pumpkin…

Tom and I ran a couple of errands together, but it was a cold, windy, lazy Sunday for us!

Amy

Friday, October 17, 2025

How was your week? Mine flew by! It’s Friday and time to link up with Andrea and Erica to share some of my favorites from the week.

I had a rare Monday night dinner out this week! I have to say it was fun to go out on a Monday. I met Erica on this lovely patio.

And, one of my students from last year works there and wanted a pic!

Do you study a menu ahead of time? I usually do. I decided I wanted the warm bacon spinach salad with grilled chicken and stuck with it. It was delicious. I need more real estate, though. I like a bigger plate to spread my salad out. Lol.

Tom’s office had to be evacuated Monday for a gas leak and Eddie Otis benefitted because he got a weekday river swim out of it. I am still laughing at his Monday afternoon swim where he found a big piece of floating pumpkin from all the pumpkins that had been chucked in up river the day before!

Sometimes I like to let myself run out of a product and see if I miss it. I ran out of dry shampoo and I missed it badly! It hides roots in between salon visits and it gives your clean hair a bit of boost if you need it while styling. Basically if you don’t have dry shampoo in your life, you need it. I ordered a new brand from Amazon and I love it and the smell. This is less than $7 and my old brand was $10 or $13 in the grocery store last time I checked. Now, if you are brunette you might need to get one specifically for a brunette. This does come out light in your hair.

I enjoyed wearing my new boots this week! Check out my post yesterday for more details.

If you don’t have one of these chairs in your life, you need one. You also need to give this to someone for a gift if they don’t have one. I have put in some time in this chair this week reading.

I know I’m sounding like a Karen but I don’t think there is enough learning going on at the school behind my house. They are always on recess. Get in class, kids!

I did not finish this book. The guy was quite a bit older but the big deal they made about it and the slow pace of the relationship you knew was going to happen…

I didn’t finish this, either. I took back the sequel, too. It moved too slowly for me. It was such a long book, too.

Holy dirty book, Batman. My sister warned me and I thought how bad could it be? I like the golf story line but man, oh man, are the physical romance scenes graphic.

I picked up these two from the library this week:

I don’t like to recommend a product to you all right away, but I have been using this for about 3 weeks now, I think. I love this product! It’s so good! I got mine at Walgreen’s.

The elementary school starts at 7:30 so Eddie Otis and I can walk without kids out at the start of the school day. He needs to be off leash and I need him to be off leash as much as possible.

You guys – the number of bikes at the school just makes me so happy!

Eddie and I went to the nature preserve again, too.

Eddie met a new friend named Abby. Abby’s Dad must have hot boxed before walking so we didn’t stay together for very long.

While I was waiting for more Love is Blind Season 9 I started Season 3. This group is from Dallas. It’s really good, too. I can’t tell you how much enjoyment I am getting from the memes on Instagram about LIB Season 9.

Then, LIB 9 came back on Wednesday night and Annie and Nick’s conversation was hysterical. Nick, “I just want to eat my chalupa”.

I made Mexican lasagna for us and someone who had surgery this week…

And, I had a patio wine pairing with Elizabeth this week. It was her idea for each of us to pick a wine and something that went with it. I used my cute little guest check plates. I am so mad that I forgot a picture! My wine was this cabernet sauvignon and it is so good! I paired it with a sharp cheddar and it worked. Elizabeth did a beaujolais and paired it with a cranberry goat cheese.

Do you ever go to The Kitchn website for recipes?

They are looking for people to submit a week’s worth of grocery diaries! Think about it! I got paid $150.

Here is mine and it’s kind of depressing because it’s before the prices went up!

Thank you for your sweet reactions to the funny quotes from my kids on Tuesday. I found some other old pics when I was going through things this week:

Our first family of four photo – I think we went to JC Penneys!

I love this pic!

This was on the stairs at my mom and dad’s. Look at those sweet faces!

And, yes I did have a lot of fun dressing them!

Happy Friday to you! Do you have something Halloween/Fall on the agenda? I am working through my Fall Bucket List pretty well!

Amy

Thursday, October 16, 2025

It’s already Thursday and time to link up with Kellyann and Jill.

Loving my new leopard Mary Janes but darn it, it’s 2025 – why can’t we make shoes that don’t rub your heel. I put a piece of duct/duck tape on the back. Classy!

I got a pedicure last week because I am still showing the toes sometimes. I really like this color but I have already chipped one toe and I messed up the big toe when I removed the toe separator.

I’m going to go back and get them fixed this week.

And, this is my current press on mani. I bought Olive and June brand press ons and it was a disaster. Impress brand for life.

These are my burgundy velvet Mary Janes from Spain. They were pinching the toes a bit so I did the old ice in a baggie in the freezer for 24 hours trick and it worked!

Yes, yes I do want to wear Mary Janes! Do you remember me telling you a year ago how many Spanish women were wearing these?

I wore this outfit in order to match the leopard:

Straight leg Halaras, new black boutique blouse by Umgee, and Dolce Vita leopard Mary Janes. Sorry I cut off the feet but you can see the photo of the Mary Janes above. I like the contrast of a light jean with a black top. I wore this to run an errand.

Boy, I am getting my money’s worth out of this Umgee blouse below. I wore this to the distillery event last Saturday. It was going to get pretty warm so I did sandals with my medium wash Halaras. You tired of seeing me in this outfit yet?

I wish I had taken a better picture but on Sunday I wore the tiny pumpkin tee with my pink sweater for the breast cancer fundraiser punkin’ chunkin’ event. Most people try to wear pink. It was pretty warm so I did flip flops.

Monday I broke out the Amazon pocketed flare leggings/yoga pants that could almost be a dress pant, my Halloween tee, and my scalloped cardigan. You need both the pants and the cardigan in your life. They are both excellent Amazon buys. I got to thinking I needed to start wearing my Halloween tee or I would run out of time! By the way, the pants and the cardigan come in multiple colors.

I had a dinner out on Monday night and got to wear my new blouse with my Walmart mini skirt and my new banana boots! The blouse is Umgee from a local boutique (I swooned when I saw the print) and the skirt was like $12 from Walmart! The boots are Frye & Co. I measured my calves and ordered the wide calf version but I am right on the border. The real leather Fryes are $500 and these were $140.

They gap a little bit but I think the regular calf would have been uncomfortable. The other nice think about wide calf is that I think they don’t come up as far to your knee. I have had boots before that came up too close to my knee.

Remember when I said I was going to try not to shop this month? Yeah, I don’t remember that, either. Let’s go with that.

I placed an order from Old Navy for a Christmas graphic tee (I got to thinking about having one after receiving my Halloween one) and happened upon these little elastic waist skirts, too.

I got black and maroon.

Since I am 5’4, I got the regular and it will hit me a little lower than you see on the model, which is what I want.

The graphic tee:

I think I can wear the skirts with my boots and the graphic tee will be fun under a cardigan.

I took a trip to DSW the other day and I was pretty shocked that the boots and booties look the same as the boots and booties of the last several fall/winter seasons. I need to replace my dressier black suede bootie because mine were too worn. I haven’t found the ones I want yet, though.

Remember my fall shoe post?

I didn’t show you many black shoes but they are a necessity and they look great when one is wearing a black pant or jean. It makes a continuous leg line.

I love these booties below so much that I ordered a second pair when my first was showing too much wear and tear. These are teacher approved. I love that I can wear them sockless and slip them on. They are by Lucky:

They have tiny little perforations and I like that they are a little bit western.

I also have these booties:

I have two other pairs that aren’t shown here – one is a light brown Jack Rogers brand and the other is a gray/tan that might look dated.

Do you have a shoe horn? If you have any boots or booties that are harder to put on, you need a shoe horn.

I am glad I have kept my very old Target suede look/slightly Western vibe boots, too.

I have these in black, too. See, sometimes I do make Target exceptions and they pay off! The heel on this isn’t too high, either.

I think I have basically made myself a fall capsule, you guys. I might do a post on it.

What have you been wearing? Shopping for?

Amy

Wednesday, October 15, 2025

It’s Hodgepodge day with Joyce! Are you a fan of candy corn? I like the Brach’s brand the best and yes, I am a fan! I only buy a couple of bags a year. It’s best mixed with lightly salted peanuts. Yum!

1. Do you make an effort to see/hear live music? Last time you went somewhere for the live music? 

I love live music in smaller venues or outdoors. I had a great time at the music festival in my hometown in September. I have also gotten to hear my friend Mike at a cute little venue and a Nashville Australian singer at a small tavern recently.

I want live music to start earlier! Who said “music shall start at Amy’s bedtime”?

2.According to HGTV the colors of the year for 2026 are mostly decided. Top paint companies declare a color of the year, and decorators will incorporate that into their new year home and room designs. Here’s what’s on tap in terms of paint trends for 2026 (check out the link here to see photos)

• Sherwin Williams-universal khaki (inspired by heavy canvas and outdoor gear)
• Behr-hidden gem (a confident shade of teal)
• Valspar-warm eucylyptus (a warm sliver tinted green)
• Dutch Boy-melodious ivory (a honey tinted beige)
• Glidden-warm mahogany (a classic brick red)
• Krylon-matte coffee bean
• Clark and Kensington -Hazelnut Crunch (warm reddish-brown)
• Graham and Brown-Divine Damson (cherry red with a subtle violet undertone)
• Dunn and Edwards-midnight garden (the green that works everywhere) 

I love hearing the names of paint colors, nail polish colors, etc. In fact, I would like to have the job of “color namer” but my two Heathers were talking about shades of white paint the other day and I was so bored.

I believe the announcement of colors of the year to be marketing and a ploy to get people to buy new paint.

I have PTSD from the crazy wallpaper that was EVERYWHERE when we moved into our house. There were stripes, florals, black wallpaper, red wallpaper, pandas with bouncing balls…I stripped it all myself and it was a nightmare. Now I am such a neutral paint color person (my kitchen and dining room are yellow, but soon to be changed) and I feel like some of these colors listed are too much for me.

My bedroom and bath are Egret White and my mudroom and hall bath are Agreeable Gray. Blonde Heather told me her mom’s new house was done in these colors and I said “done”. We have lots of paint left for our remaining rooms we need to do.

Now, with that said…the swatch really doesn’t look the same as it does on the wall.

Exhibit A:

I held these up in my Agreeable Gray mudroom. It’s not nearly that dark.

My mudroom (it’s still waiting on cabinetry):

I know that people are saying that the gray trend is over but it just looks neutral to me with the sunlight coming in and whatever decor you put up.

Hall bath:

First question-did you know there were so many different paint manufacturers? Which color on the list most appeals to you in terms of your own decorating style? Do you have plans to do any painting in your home in the coming year, and if so might you choose a color from this list? 

I had not heard of some of these. No, I did not! I am pretty loyal to Sherwin Williams but I’m not sure why.

I guess I would have to say Universal Khaki. That is basically what my basement is. I would like to go lighter down there, though, and maybe I will see if we can re-paint the basement, too.

Yes! We need to paint kitchen, dining room, living room, and Mason’s room and Jack’s old room. We are hiring painters. Tom and I both hate painting and think it’s worth hiring it out.

No – I really don’t like any of those colors. I already have all the Egret White and Agreeable Gray I need.

This topic is boring me. I’m sorry. Tom is the design person in our relationship. He has an idea and asks if I like it and I always do. He has great taste. In his line of work he sees lots of design elements.

Now, forget painting walls, which color name appeals to you most? 

I guess the food names are my favorite like “hazelnut crunch” and “matte coffee bean”.

3. What’s something in your life you have to do-watch-or participate in that’s about as exciting as ‘watching paint dry’? 

Nothing anymore. It used to be school professional development!

4 . Tuesday, October 14th is/was National Dessert day…did you/will you celebrate? Tell us how? What’s your absolute favorite dessert. Yes, just one. I know!! 

I made and had some of the candy corn/peanut mix!

5. Perhaps today is the day I will __________________________________. 

I need to shop for my brunette Heather’s birthday present! I love gift shopping. Sometimes I accidentally find something for myself. Oopsie.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Remember how on Sunday we went to an event where they catapulted pumpkins into the river?

Eddie Otis got to do a swim the next day and look what he found down river…

He got a piece of pumpkin! Good boy!

Happy Hump Day!

Amy

Tuesday, October 14, 2025

I didn’t start my blog until my twins were 16 and they were no longer funny. Just kidding! They were still funny when they weren’t being angsty teens.

For years, our Christmas card was a photo with a typed up sheet of the funny things our twins had said over the past year. We did this from maybe kindergarten until 7th grade and then the following year I did a “best of”. You wouldn’t believe how many comments I got about this. People said they read it to friends and that they waited for it to come in the mail!

So, I thought you might like to hear some of their quotes, too! I might do this a few times because I have so many. They played off of each other, too, as identical twins.

Safety Patrol in 5th grade – I can’t believe they were keeping people safe!

I decided not to attribute names and ages but to just list some quotes:

“If I never learn to tie my shoes, I’ll just let my wife do it.”

While grocery shopping together, “Mom, you know these prices like an owl knows its prey.”

“You’re the best mom ever. I can’t imagine cuddling with those thin moms.”

“You smell like a mom. It smells like mustard and roses.”

“Why does this show need a girl? For the sarcasm. Girls are good at dishing out sarcasm.”

“There are two kinds of people to stay away from – immature and crazy.”

I was taking pictures for the last day of school… “You are half mother half paparazzi.”

I went on circus field trip with their school and I was worried about the safety of the trapeze artists…”Remember this is for the kids.”

While driving by a windmill…”that’s a run of the mill windmill.”

A salesman came to our door…”Ah, khaki pants. The working man’s uniform.”

After shopping at store, I told them to put hand sanitizer on for all the germs from the store from people who touched everything…”especially the blind people germs since they rely on touch.”

Out of the blue…”I feel so sorry for Indians missing out on bacon.”

“I think that guy over there is a school principal based on the bags under his eyes and his receding hair line.”

“Dad’s level of anger has gone up and his hair quality has gone down. I think they are directly related.”

Tom listing all of his teenage jobs…”Wow, Dad, you really couldn’t hold a job.”

Upon arriving at Great Wolf Lodge water park…”I wonder what their water bill is.”

“No offense, Mom, but the left side of your face looks like one of the before pictures of a Neutrogena ad.”

Driving downtown…”So, here we are in the concrete jungle.”

Writing thank you notes…”Dear Aunt Kate, Thank you for the 3D puzzle. My Dad and I already tried it and unfortunately is has an abundance of pieces and minimal instructions. I’m sure we will figure it out eventually.”

“The Bachelor should boot anyone immediately who has their job listed as free spirit because he will have to pay for her.”

Describing a new school friend…”He is a Jehovah’s Witness and he talks about it so much I think he’s trying to convert me.”

Tom takes computer away as a punishment…”Now I’m not going to achieve my dreams. I will just have an office job.”

“Watching Dad work is like watching those lifeguard scenes in movies.”

“That lady has the Jon and Kate Plus 8 rooster haircut circa 2005.”

I said we needed to update their fall wardrobes…”Mom, men don’t have wardrobes.”

Upon arriving at a vacation rental and seeing the front porch…”this is the porch of my dreams but in my dreams it was a little less feminine.”

The bathroom of the vacation rental had fake rock tile…”I guess we’ve really hit rock bottom.”

On circus field trip…”Wow, mom you look younger than the other circus moms.”

“Could you not be a helicopter parent?”

A restaurant hostess sat us next to an aquarium full of live fish at a seafood restaurant…”It’s really cruel that we are sitting here eating their brethren.”

I hope you enjoyed these!

Amy

Monday, October 13, 2025

It’s Monday and time to link up with Sarah and Holly to share the weekend…

After our rain on Monday and Tuesday we have had some gorgeous weather and it looks like it will continue – 50s in the morning and 70s and sunny during the day. I don’t remember a fall this beautiful and a fall where we get a true fall and not go straight from hot to cold. Is this our reward for such a rainy and hot summer?

My kids agreed to happy hour with me on Thursday! It was just the three of us and we went to an Italian place.

I went home and did dinner with Tom while they hung out for longer.

Friday morning I did a grocery pick up bright and early. I am having luck doing two grocery pick ups a week. I have not been inside the store for a bit now.

Then, I attempted the nature preserve by myself for the first time with EO. Eddie Otis is pretty hard to walk on the leash (we are working on it) but off leash he is an angel.

Cutie boy!

He did so well and it was so good for both of us!

I came home and made my breakfast and he was worn out so he was super chill the rest of the day. Mason and I had some lovely patio reading time together for a couple of hours.

EO seemed to love us both being on the patio.

I finished this! I loved it! You can tell they have left it open for the next book because they didn’t tie up an important loose end.

We ordered dinner Friday and just stayed home.

Saturday Tom and I went on a fairly country Kentucky drive to a distillery opening. I grew up on a lake in a close knit neighborhood of kids my age and one of the kids has opened his own distillery. He has been master distiller of Maker’s Mark, Heaven Hill, Jim Beam and some big names in the bourbon industry.

We got to visit with one of his sisters:

And his mom and dad. This is his mom with her famous punch in her car!

We had a really nice time and drove home through Bardstown and visited a bourbon themed hotel that Tom’s construction company did.

When we got home I started a pot of soup for a dinner of soup and grilled cheese and then read on the patio.

Sunday was Punkin’ Chunkin’ at Captain’s Quarters which is a breast cancer fundraiser. They catapult pumpkins into the river to try to hit targets.

Boats were decorated for Halloween this year!

And new this year, they tried to hit some targets from dropping pumpkins from a helicopter…

It was so nice to be outside! We came home and I read outside, talked to my sisters on the phone (as a 3 way call), and heated up soup and made the Hawaiian ham and swiss sliders for dinner.

Oh…Diane Keaton…you were the best!

I want to go watch all her movies. You know what movie I really like? Baby Boom.

Someone asked to see my mom’s miniatures/shadow boxes.

Here are a couple of Halloween themed shadowboxes:

And, here are some of the Christmas ones:

Tell me something about your weekend!

Amy

Friday, October 10, 2025

It’s been a week around here! Let’s link up with both Andrea and Erika to share our happenings!

Here are some of my favorites from the week…

Monday brought a lot of excitement for Mr. Eddie Otis. He was guarding our house from some tree men. There were no women or I would have said tree people.

We had three ugly trees removed and one ugly tree encroaching from a neighbor’s yard removed. We are excited to get the stumps taken out and new trees and landscaping. It rained all morning and we didn’t know if they would come but they worked in the rain for about 3 hours and EO was pretty on edge. He wasn’t able to do his daily napping routine since he was on high alert to guard his family.

We are happy for a clean slate and a chance to make the front of our house look better!

I got a wild hair in the rain and made some bread in my bread machine. My Dad gave me this for a gift over 20 years ago I think. Rain makes me want to bake.

It turned out great and this is what I had for lunch.

After the tree people left I was able to enjoy some light rain while reading…ah…

Let’s talk about Taylor Swift…I am not a Swiftie. I missed the boat on all that and didn’t have tween or teen girls. But, who doesn’t like Shake it Off, you know?

I actually listened to a few songs from the new album – they all sound the same to me – sorry! I heard two funny quotes:

1. It sounds like someone put into Chat GPT: “Make an album that Taylor would make”.
2. It sounds like Travis wrote the lyrics in crayon.

Even if you like the album, you have to admit that those are funny!

My own thoughts: Taylor Swift adults also Disney adults?

Sunday night was much anticipated. Tom and I had a date night that had been on the calendar since last winter. We went to a brew pub for dinner and then walked down to the KFC Yum Center which is our big area where University of Louisville plays basketball and there are other events.

The downtown was hopping!

We had tickets for comedian Nate Bargatze and you guys, we had the second worst seats in the house. We could have only been one more row closer to the ceiling. You just have to laugh when you end up in this type of situation. Our tickets and fees were still really expensive for the second worst seats in the joint!

Let me paint you a picture…

I feared for my life. I needed a seatbelt. I was so vertical I really thought I would roll down the seats in front of me. I hung on to the back of Tom’s seat like my life depended on it (because it did). I am not used to being around so many people – 19,000 – and it set a new record for most people at a comedy show in Louisville, I think is what they announced.

People were coughing and hacking around me. When I looked down, my neck hurt.

Nate was supposed to start at 7 and he came on at maybe 8:45.

There were 5(!) comedians that opened for him. There was an MC comedian and then comedian friends. They were not funny. I am not being mean. They were supposed to warm me up but they warmed me down. Also, the sound system stopped working well after the second one and we struggled to hear.

Yes, you can call me Debbie Downer. Now, I didn’t complain online or do anything Karen-like. I am just sharing with you guys cuz you’re my friends. And, I probably should have known some of these things ahead of time but your girl misses details a lot.

I got a new keyboard to put on top of my laptop? Now I can use many L words! I can use words that start with L or contain many Ls. Love, life, liberty, luck, lucky, ludicrous. I am so totally jolly, silly, and really full of folly.

I got my Southern Living! Now, I am subscribed to Southern Living, Magnolia, and Garden & Gun – more for the garden part and less for the gun – don’t @ me as the kids say.

I love my new Pavoi earrings and have worn them every day!

I watched this show all this week! It was so good in my opinion and it made me see making dinner in a whole different light. If this young chef can make that I can make dinner! Harrumph! I got my butt up and I chopped my onion, carrot, and potato and put them on my sheet pan for dinner like I was a new woman.

I got a much needed pedicure and got rid of the royal blue!

I picked this without looking at the name but then the name made me laugh – “I knead sour-dough”.

And, I messed one toe up trying to get the toe separator out. Ugh.

I had a library pick up!

This is a series of 5 and they might be too cheesy for me but my sister talked about Tessa Bailey books this summer.

And, this….

I abandoned my current book to start it and I can’t put it down! I am loving it!

I went in Target to get a few things one afternoon this week and saw these decorative books that are really boxes. I got NY, Paris, and London and gave London to Mason.

They also had Bahamas, Hawaii, and maybe one more. They were $5 and would make great gifts. You could put money in it for a teen or young adult. You can hide your remotes from your dogs.

I got this at Target and it is also excellent like the brown sugar shaken.

Cute scene:

Eddie Otis has such an expressive face! He is getting so filled out and looks like a big solid boy. I wouldn’t be surprised if he is our biggest lab yet. I know he is more than 79 pounds now. That was his last official weight.

Happy Friday and tell me one of your favorites!

Amy

Thursday, October 9, 2025

Well, last week was way too hot and this week started out so rainy!

I am linking up with Kellyann and Jill for Fashion Files!

Last Wednesday I wore this first outfit to breakfast with my friend Victoria. This is my Marshall’s blouse, striped Halaras, and Kork Ease sandals. My shirt gaped a bit when I sat down. Should I try fashion tape or one of those tag guns to hold it in place.

Let me tell you about Vic – she can sew and she offered to move the button over. Say what? You can do that? Her son is an aspiring fashion designer and she taught him to sew. He repurposes thrift stuff, too. She and I always talk consignment. We have done a lot of consignment shopping together and we have offered each other stuff when we are done with it.

Later in the day I changed to this shirt for happy hour. This is also Marshall’s and the tag said it was originally $118.

I wore this to hear music Thursday night. Same jeans in all three photos, by the way. They fit me perfectly with the hemming I had done and I just decided not to overthink the stripe. Meaning, I am not too worried about it matching anything.

Meh – the weather threw me off Friday for my friend’s birthday lunch. I had a better dress option but we were going to be outside and it was very hot that day. I felt I was a little too casual and the other dress would have been better but was lined and had long sleeves.

First time wearing my black jeans this season – I wore this on a rare Sunday night outing. This is my new Umgee blouse, Adidas, and my black Halaras. I wore sneakers because I thought we would be walking a fair amount and I was right.

This is a rainy day home outfit. My new grey leggings were recommended by Jenn with pockets on both sides, my new Birks dupes from TJ Maxx and the best button up from Aerie. I threw on my rain jacket to run errands. By the way, I have the best rain jacket if you need one. I took the belt off. It went with me to England and Scotland.

I put this on to run errands and tried my black Mary Janes with my wide legs and they worked out ok.

I added to my Pavoi earring collection and I have worn them every day since they arrived!

This is The Big Boo Cast business coach and I started following her for her amazing coffee recipes. Look how cute her outfit is. I have that shirt from Aerie!

And, I have red Matilda Janes. Boo – I hate how it looks on me. Oh well – you gotta try sometimes!

Did you see my fall shoe post? You guys talked a lot about my cow print driving mocs and look at the Target Mary Janes! Now, don’t take this the wrong way, but I generally don’t let myself buy Target shoes anymore because it got me in trouble. I was buying too many lesser quality shoes that weren’t working for me. They were uncomfortable and I was donating them. I make some exceptions, but I had to be pretty hard on myself. I also am not buying many Target clothing items anymore. It was a problem, so again, I had to be hard core.

You guys… look what came across my IG…

A red stripe! Swoon!

I’m not going to get them, but is this the trend going forward?

And, I love how she styled her burgundy velvet Mary Janes like the ones I have in my fall shoes post.

I love trying to “copy” looks and it’s so satisfying when I have similar wardrobe components!

Oopsie…

I wasn’t going to shop in October except for consignment. But, I went in a boutique and accidentally found two blouses by Umgee.

I loved the pattern and mustard color of this first one:

And, this is just a basic black blouse with an interesting fabric:

Do you have a favorite outfit of mine this week?

What have you been wearing?

Amy

Wednesday, October 8, 2025

It’s Wednesday and that means it’s Hodgepodge day with Joyce. If you have a blog, you should join in and if you don’t, it would be fun to answer these in your head or leave me an answer in the comments. She comes up with the best questions!

1. ‘The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.’ How does this saying ring true in your own family, either the one you grew up in or the one you made? 

First of all, I love sayings! I had my Spanish students translate and talk about sayings in Spanish – do they have equivalent ones to us and do they agree with those sayings? We had some good discussions. I do miss that part of teaching so much! One favorite of mine is “No todo lo que brilla es oro” which means “not everything that shines is gold”. I like this one because I think it appeals to the teen mindset about appearances and things they see online looking perfect or shiny.

As a teacher, meeting a kid’s parent really enlightened me most of the time. Oh, that’s why they are the way they are! It all makes so much sense now. Lol.

I am noticing more and more things about myself that come from my parents. My sisters and I talk about this often – how one of us said or did something just like one of our parents. They live on through us. It’s sometimes hard to acknowledge this if it is seen as a negative behavior. I am also noticing so much about Tom that is like my Dad as he ages. Is that weird? My Dad went to bed at 8:30, too, and prioritized exercise first thing in the morning. Also, Tom has been using his middle finger to tap the car control panel and I have been noticing how that was how my Dad did it, too.

2. Something you’re nuts about these days? How about something that’s driving you nuts? 

I am nuts about my little pumpkin tee and I am going to start wearing the witches one now, too. I love a graphic tee and cardigan combo. I don’t want to look like an elementary teacher (no offense) but I think this is just an ok amount of holiday spirit?

I am tired of the mosquitoes and yard work noise! That is how I know I am ready for the changing of the season!

3. What does abundance mean to you? 

Hmmm…I guess I am in a place of privilege because I don’t think of this much. It is also not lost on me that I am “grocery store rich” meaning I can pretty much buy what I want at the grocery. Have you heard that term? I worry about people affording food and affording all the stuff that comes with having kids in today’s world.

Abundance means to me that I have everything I need and just enough to be comfortable. I am not a hoarder. I don’t want to have stacks on stacks of canned goods or laundry detergent. I do want to have a nice stash of toilet paper, paper towels, and Kleenex, though.

Abundance in life means that I have purpose and people to care about and that care about me.

I think I need to think on that word some more!

4. Caramel apple-caramel cake-caramel corn-caramel sundae-caramel macchiatto…what’s your caramel treat of choice? 

I love caramel. I think I would say caramel popcorn.

I make a homemade caramel icing for a yellow cake. I use a box mix for the cake and then make homemade icing. It is so delicious!

Here is the recipe:

Caramel Icing

5. What’s a childhood memory that always comes to mind as the leaves start to fall? 

For some reason, I picture myself with shorts and long sleeves on riding my bike in my neighborhood. The neighborhood had lots of trees. I lived in a great neighborhood around a small lake and had lots of kids to play with. We played Dukes of Hazard on bikes. I’m still in touch with many of them! One of them has opened a bourbon distillery about an hour away.

I picture trick or treating in my neighborhood and a really cool haunted house we got to make in my church basement.

6. Insert. your own random thought here. 

My mom’s hobby was miniatures. She had them all my life, really. After retiring, she really got into making shadow boxes of miniature scenes. Every October there was a miniature show here in Louisville (the closest big city to my hometown) and Molly would bring my mom here and we would have a day of it.

One year I made this miniature charcuterie box for each of us – bahahahaha. That is a tiny fork. Look at my hand for reference.

Lena was probably 10 when I made this and she laughed and laughed. I love making Lena laugh!

Lena and I a couple of summers ago:

Amy

Tuesday, October 7, 2025

Today we are going to tak about fall shoes – not winter but strictly fall. I have more than this but these are the ones that I am most excited to wear. I am leaving out rainboots and exercise sneakers.

I talked about my new boots. It has not been cool enough to wear them but I picture them with my denim skirt and a couple of other skirts and some fall dresses. These are by Frye & Co.

These are not new but I still get excited about my Hush Puppies driving mocs in cow print. No cows were harmed in the making of this shoe.

I am counting my Kork Ease for fall since I will be wearing them for at least another month.

These are from last season and they are from Macy’s I believe.

I got these Rothy’s flat on sale last winter

I love these heels. I think they look like J.Crew but they are Hush Puppies and I bought them at DSW I think. They come in black as well and I think I need them in black.

I have the burgundy Mary Janes from Spain, the black from Target, and the red/orange from this season Free People. I feel like I can wear the Free Peope for a bit longer but then they will start looking too summery.

These Birk dupes

Fashion sneakers

Cassic white. I love the Adidas Stan Smith with the gold and they are really comfortable for my foot.

The Dr. Scholl’s is nice, too. I mainly bought those for teacher shoes.

I really want leopard Mary Janes! I just love this trend but I am worried about some of my jeans being too long – I guess I woud just wear the jeans that work.

I also feel like I need some black shoes. I do have black lucky short boots. Ever since I heard a stylist say she hates black shoes because nude is better and doesn’t cut off your leg I have struggled with wearing them.

Do you have any favorites here?

What new pairs have you bought?

What are you wishing to add to your repertoire?

Amy