Hi everyone!! I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving last week whatever that looked like for you. I can’t believe it will be December 1st tomorrow. This year has gone by so fast! If there’s anything this year has taught me its that the saying “the days are long, but the years are short” is a hard truth!
I’m so excited for December and to continue to enjoy all the things during this fun, busy holiday season. To recap November, we had a super fun month! We started the month out in Nashville (my first time there!) which was an absolute blast. I won’t get too much into the details because I wrote a whole blog post recaping the weekend, but here are some photos in case you missed it!
We then had two weeks of normalcy and routine before we ventured up to Caseys’ parent’s home in north GA for a little over a week for Thanksgiving! We did a lot of fun activities there I’ll share about below. Overall November was a lively month full of lots of family time & getting ready for the holiday season.
PETTING ZOO IN DAHLONEGA, GA
Casey was out of town for 5 days prior to Thanksgiving, so I stayed with his parents to have extra hands with Blakely. One of the days we headed out for an adventure to the Chestatee Wildlife Preserve & Zoo in Dahlonega, GA. It was about a 45 min-1 hour walk through zoo (see pic below of map) where we got to pet & feed certain animals including horses, buffalo (so cool!!!), zebras, donkeys, and more! We got to see animals like bears, white tigers, wolves, alligators and sloths too. Blakely (and I) loved it so much!!
THANKSGIVING RECAP
Casey got back into town the Monday before Thanksgiving, and we headed up to his aunts house for Thanksgiving Wednesday through Friday. We had the most delicious dinner spread & it was so great seeing everyone. There are a lot of little kids on this side of the family, so it was great for Blakely to have other kids to play with!
CHRISTMAS TREE LIGHTING IN DAHLONEGA, GA
Dahlonega, GA is a short drive from Casey’s parents house and it is just the cutest, most charming little town. Many Hallmark movies are actually filmed there. We stopped for appetizers and a drink at a cute restaurant called Shenanigans Irish Pub (very cool atmosphere and great food/drinks!), then headed to the town square for the Christmas tree lighting. Walking through the town and seeing all the Christmas lights, horse carriage rides, & lively streets bustling with people, it really did feel like I was on the set of a Hallmark movie!
NOVEMBER FAVORITE THINGS.
1.) BOOKS
November was not a big month of reading for me! I finished The Last Thing He Told Me early on this month (a good mystery, but I didn’t love the ending), and recently started The Paris Library which I’m still currently reading. My goal is to finish that book soon so I can reach my goal of 24 books in 2022 (I’m at 22/24!).
Since I don’t have much to report back for this segment of the favorites, I’ll instead be sharing 5 books on my want to read list:
- It Starts With Us by Colleen Hoover– still have yet to get my hands on this one, but looking forward to reading this follow up book to It Ends With Us.
- Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry– an autobiography (by character Chandler Bing from the show Friends) I can’t wait to read! I’ve heard mixed opinions, so I’m excited to see for myself.
- A Flicker In The Dark by Stacy Willingham– this book is on my Christmas wish list so I’m hoping to receive and start it early next year.It’s a twisted thriller and is a nominee for best mystery and thriller on Goodreads.
- Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus– another Goodreads nominee for best historical fiction which is one of my favorite genres. I’ve heard great things about this book and have been seeing it everywhere!
- The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts by Gary Chapman– I love learning about other people’s love languages and think it would be super interesting to read the book by the creator of this idea. This book is especially timely in my life considering I’m about to get married!
2.) PODCASTS
My top 3 podcast episodes that I listened to this month:
- Selena Gomez ON: Befriending Your Inner-Critic & How to Speak to Yourself With More Compassion | On Purpose with Jay Shetty.
- This episode was so good. Selena shares her story on her struggles with mental health & how it has led her to be a voice for those in the same position. They even brought out Selena’s mom halfway through to interview her which was interesting to hear her perspective on the things Selena has shared about her life.
- Healthy Lifestyle Tips, Practical Meal Ideas + Morning Routine Inspiration With Sydney Adams | Gals on The Go.
- A power trio!!! This episode came out today and I listened to it during my morning workout and had to include it in the favorites. Sydney Adams is a fitness & wellness influencer who shares all about her life + practical tips on how to live a healthier lifestyle.
- Joe Jonas ON: The Fear of Failing & How to Find Courage to Leave Your Comfort Zone | On Purpose with Jay Shetty.
- Can you tell I’ve been obsessed with this podcast recently? I love how Jay Shetty brings famous people on the show to get vulnerable and talk about real topics. I grew up a huge Jonas Brothers fan, so this episode was really cool to see how far Joe has come in his journey and to hear about his struggles.
3.) SHOWS/MOVIES
Shows we watched this month:
- Yellowstone– a veryyyy out of my comfort zone show, but I became hooked after the first season! The latest season just came back on TV so Casey and I have been watching Sunday evenings. It’s the perfect show to watch with your significant other!!
- Bachelor In Paradise– this season was WILD & the finale was absolutely crazy! If you missed it, all the episodes are on Hulu! Looking forward to watching Zach’s season of the bachelor this January!!
Movies we watched this month:
- Falling For Christmas on Netflix – Lindsay Lohan stars in this cute Christmas movie! It was incredibly cheesy & predictable (as you would expect from most Christmas romances), but was entertaining and fun to see Lindsay Lohan act again!!
- A Christmas Story Christmas on HBO Max- this is the long-time-coming sequel to the 1983 Christmas classic A Christmas Story. This was just released on Nov. 17 and was super cute and nostalgic. A good one for the whole family to enjoy!
4.) RECIPES
Have a holiday party coming up? Here are 5 cute & festive dessert ideas from Pinterest that will wow your next Christmas party:
CHOCOLATE MELTING SNOWMEN COOKIES
VANILLA BEAN CHRISTMAS LIGHT COOKIES
CHRISTMAS MONSTER COOKIES (I’ve had these & they’re 10/10)
NO-BAKED GINGERBREAD CHEESECAKE
5.) THINGS
5 Things I’m Loving Right Now:
- TARGET MINI CHRISTMAS TREE DECOR… Time to get festive!!! I bought the cream finish ceramic tree in a larger size and the green finish in the smaller size as decor for our home this year! I’m obsessed.
- BOOTS FROM NASHVILLE… First off these are on sale rn!! Second, I wore these all weekend in Nashville & they are so comfy and stylish. I got a few questions in my DMs about them when I posted so here is the link!
- DAILY ADVENT READING… If you’re looking for somewhere to experience the real reason for Christmas, author Hannah Brencher released her 2022 season of Advent readings which includes a 28 day journey through the story of Advent. They’re easy to read, only take a few minutes, & remind me what to focus on during this Christmas season.
- SKIMS BRAS & UNDERWEAR… Sometimes you just need a refresh on these items, so I just purchased my first Skims order for underwear & bras. I am so excited for them to come in and to try this highly recommended brand!!!
- CHARLOTTE TILBURY FLAWLESS FILTER & CONTOUR… The flawless filter has ALL the hype right now, and I have tried it for a few weeks to tell you it is WORTH IT! I actually got the mini size to try and when the bigger one comes back in stock in my shade I am jumping on it quick. Also I had to shoutout the contour stick because it is literally the best one I have ever tried (def a splurge item!!).
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