Wander in Style

Anyone who knows me knows my love for adventure. Be it a spontaneous road trip, trying a new restaurant, or months spent abroad. It takes very little to ignite my imagination and spiral me into daydreams of new places, flavors, and things. 

Another thing that isn't very secret is my love of Kate Spade. I feel like her line is so imaginative, cheeky, and on point. 

Looking through the most recent spring collection, I was excited to see new luggage options that have been added. It's always fun when two of my favorites smoosh together, even in an unintentional collaboration. Read: wanderlust + pretty designs.

A few of my favorites are below.

(Also, I always eye Kate's new line, but wait for the 75% off sales to actually purchase anything. Just subscribe to her emails to get the insider scoop when the "Surprise Sales" are on.)

 

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Weekend Photo Recap

This weekend was one of my favorites in a long time. 

Nothing in particular made it exceptionally special.

No grand plans or far away travels.

Nothing anticipated or above and beyond. 

Spontaneous, close-to-home adventures, sunshine, new places. 

Simple, but somehow extraordinary. 

In the midst of the weekend, it felt as though it would never end. 

Like an endless summer vacation.

Disclaimer:

This is very play-by-play. (Read: a little boring) I write it less because I think my readers care about the mundane moments of my weekend and more because I get stumped by the question, "What'd you do this weekend?" on Mondays, much less months after the fact. And, I wanted to remember this.

Friday: 

We had a snowstorm, so I worked from home. 

Pajamas and coffee should be mandatory work accessories. 

F got home and we headed out to Happy Hour at a new Southern-style restaurant by us and then to go see The Grand Budapest Hotel. (My review? Wildly imaginative, hilarious in parts, quirky, and enjoyable.)

Saturday: 

Woke up early.

F met with a friend for coffee and bible study.

I went to Zumba at the gym - First time braving the class alone.

To say I'm uncoordinated would be an embarrassing understatement.

#forthesakeofcardio

Showered. Tidied. Put this in the crock pot for dinner. 

Took the bus downtown to visit Macy*s flower show. 

Stopped and picked up a couple bottles of wine. 

Rented Frozen from Red Box and it was so good. #believethehype 

Played dominoes (because we are 90).

At approximately 11:30pm, I was super craving a dirt cupcake I'd seen earlier on our shopping escapades. 

So we walked to the grocery store 1 block from our house and bought it. 

I am not ashamed. That thing was amaze fest USA.

And, yes, I am a child.

Sunday:

Went to church. 

Brunch cravings set in and F decided to whisk me away to a new brunch spot. 

I absolutely love trying new things, especially food related, so this melted my heart. 

This place did not disappoint.

We sat and did a crossword puzzle while we ate. Further proof that we are 90.

(My dad and I have a tradition of brunch and crossword puzzles, so it was a sweet nod to him.)

We decided to walk around the lake by our house, since the sunshine was just begging to be soaked up and played in. It was so nice to see the lake paths once again filled with activity. We walked and wandered and avoided the puddles of the stubborn snow piles and "awwwww"-ed at all the puppies and wandered into an open house of a property just a little over our budget. (only by about 2 million dollars. #pettycash) F bet me $5 to go downstairs and excitedly yell, "We'll take it!" I chickened out, but it was a fun detour.

I'm curious, have you guys ever wandered into an open house simply because you were curious about what it looks like inside? I always think that sounds fun but never had the audacity to before Sunday. 

 For dinner, we had popcorn, smoked Gouda, and Pimm's cocktails (recipe coming tomorrow) because that's what adults do. 

Such a fun, refreshing weekend. 

Here's to Monday and hoping the week follows suit. 

images: hilaryclair

All stamped up

  This, ladies and gentlemen (do boys even read this blog? Doubtful. Except for F - shout out for being a rocking husband! Whew, I digress..) is my passport. Isn't she a beaut?

The passport is filled with stamps and documentation,

and a picture of me right after I learned to straighten my hair. (Shield your eyes.)

More than that though, it's filled with reminders of some of the best times of my life. 

I page through it every now and again feeling incredibly blessed to have traveled to faraway places -  Ireland, Mexico, Paris, Rome, Milan, Bologna, Florence, Venice, Brugges, Amsterdam, Holland, London.

Remembering the smells, the twisted roads, the uneven cobblestones, the flowers and windmills, the bridges, the people, the transportation, the languages and accents, the sights, the sounds, the crowds,

the street names.

I see the stamps and try to remember the Customs people who put them there. Were they crabby, pleasant, suspecting, curious? Did they ask about  my travels or avoid eye contact altogether? 

I think of how these adventures that shaped my life and widened my horizons are documented only by mere stamps and wild memories. 

 

I see my student visa from studying and working abroad and remember the mounds of paperwork, expensive overnight shipping costs, and how many times I almost thought, "This is too much work."

And, then I'm all wrapped up in the feeling I had when I was there. 

"I did this. I made this happen. I'm living my bucket list."

Nothing like it.

Nothing that makes my heart beat fast quite like travel. Being somewhere completely new and yet familiar. I'm always struck that the places that are a world away from me are home to the people there. That the people walking around me all have stories to tell, have fallen in love, sigh when bills come in the mail, and have bad hair days. 

This passport and I - we had a good run. 

Since my name changed when we got married, it needs to be replaced. 

Hopefully with one that gets even more stamps and a better photo to boot (fingers crossed).

One that has just as exciting a story to tell.

images: hilaryclair (special thanks to TW for the passport background)

lovely whirlwind

oh goodness. i have nearly abandoned this blog with the madness of life lately.

let's rewind to three weeks ago---chicago.

i had an inkling that this was going to be the weekend i added a sparkly ring to my jewelry menagerie. perhaps it had something to do with me telling francis i always dreamed of a december proposal in a downtown city with all the sparkling lights in the sky, or the fact that a day in downtown chicago was how we spent our first day as an "official" couple. be what it may, i was hopeful.

after spending a lovely, lackadaisical day meandering around the streets of the city we love so much, we headed to dinner atop the John Hancock. with a 360 degree view of the sparkling skyline, we sipped wine, stared incredulously out the window, dined on deliciousness including but not limited to scallops, risotto, and kimchi slaw. we planned to split a cupcake for dessert (previously purchased from our absolute favorite cupcake shop, sprinkles).

at dinner, daringly confident that a proposal of any sort wasn't in the works, i admitted my inkling to francis. he looked me straight in the eye and said he was sorry for letting me down.

after dinner, we stepped out to this view... i absolutely love chicago.

francis suggested taking a walk through a park draped in Christmas lights and splitting our cupcakes. with a stomach full of risotto, i declined and suggested we head home instead. after a bit of persistence, i obliged and we walked through the park to a bench where we sat and talked a bit about our day. 

francis handed me the cupcake box and nonchalantly said, "which one should we split?" i opened the box, expecting to choose between vanilla peppermint or red velvet, but was caught off guard by a ribbon-wrapped box. 

i stared at the box, silent, in shock, soaking it in, feeling silly for having brought it up at dinner and handled the situation as any classy girl would.... i said, "what? what? what? what? what?" enough times to leave my voice hoarse. francis untied the box and dropped to one knee. i continued with the "what?" interrupted only by, "obviously yes!" and that was that, we were engaged. 

we called our parents and headed to a tea shop. i asked francis long ago to keep a very detailed journal (be it on paper or in his head) of all the details leading up to the engagement -- asking my parents, choosing the ring, telling his parents, how he decided when to do it, if he was nervous -- so he shared all the minute details over a latte (on the house, our first engagement present, thanks to the sweet boys at argo tea). 

we spent the evening reliving the details with my mom and aunt, sipping bubbly in celebration, and distractedly staring at my lovely forever ring.

i still can't quite believe it. i am absolutely smitten with the sparkle, romance, but more than anything else, having francis forever.

the celebrations continued into the weekend with more family, champagne, and retellings of the proposal story. before we headed home, my mom, aunt, francis, and i went to breakfast at m.henrietta---scrumptious!

a lovely, surprising weekend that was everything i ever hoped it would be, but also nothing i expected, in the best way possible.

and the whirlwind continues....

ps. as soon as i upload the photos from my camera, i'll upload one of francis on bended knee. stay tuned, lovelies. xo

{photos: hilaryclair}