Pinterest Love

Hi friends! Hope you all are having a nice Thursday! I am currently sitting in Panera, watching all lovely fellow Midwesterners celebrate the Cardinals with cups of hot chocolate and cinnamon bagels. I'm also currently blogging studying! Two days till the big test day. Can't wait to get back to my normal workout regimen and blogging schedule!

Lately, in lieu of a longer post, I've been posting on Pinterest, my new obsession. You can follow me by clicking the Pinterest link to the right of this blog post. ;) It is such a fun way to express your thoughts, desires, or likes with a click photo upload/link-up. If you haven't tried it out before, click here. I think you'd like it!

Here are some of the fun pictures I've loved on Pinterest:

(Posted by Lilly Pulitzer's Pinterest)

There are so many more! A quick scroll down the Pinterest screen, will have you hooked. I've been using it to send Mrs. Darcy photo inspiration for her farm re-do. (Reminder: will be posting photos of it soon!) Have a great day! Sending you all much happiness!

What I've been up to and some Donald Pliner Boots

Good evening! I hope you had a great day. My life has been lacking excitement lately, mainly because it has been spent studying... five days!

While practicing logic games in the library, I kept staring at my new Vera, a gift from Mrs. Darcy. The colors seems very musically-fall. There is a rhythm to the print and color scheme that I find extremely pleasing to the eye. These were my thoughts, while I should have been going through numerous logical reasoning exercises. 

Then I looked up at the ceiling. Interesting light fixture. 

Then I mindlessly walked around the Teen Section of library, mesmerized by the age division in YA lit. 

I eventually complete some sections, but the smell of heavily read texts brought up so many strong memories of the book mobile and getting lost in Harry Potter and the Anne of Green Gables series. 

Recent OOTD

Friends, I am hooked on the velcro rollers. IN LOVE! Thanks to PinkLouLou for telling us about them. PinkLouLou is my go-to guide for hair tips and styling ideas. 

Outfit: Banana Republic Sweater, Lululemon Groove Pant, and Gap Tee

Jaw-Dropping Dessert

I should never have had this. After a rather stressful morning, I felt that I should treat myself to a little ice cream treat. Vanilla custard, pie crust, cinnamon apples, whipped cream, and cinnamon-sugar dusting. Um... yum! And such a perfect fall flavor explosion. 

I have decided to do a 180, and stick to the following healthier treats for when I need a pick-me-up. I've printed this and put it in my console for when I hit up my local drive-thru Starbucks. I wish they put the calories on their menu. 

Recent Fashion Finds

Donald Pliner Couture Collection

SisterT found these "hidden" in Nordstrom's Rack. She says that someone really tried to hide them, as these 9 1/2 beauties were under the a pile of 6's. This made me laugh, because we both used to do this when we'd find something that we love, and wanted to come back for. Mrs. Darcy can't wait to wear these. Will post them in an outfit soon.  

Red Jeans to... Red Skirts

Loving this look on Blake Lively. Gossip Girl did not disappoint. 

Lastly, look at these cards!!! This cute goldendoodle looks just like my darling Raquel. Can't wait to write letters on these soon.

Have a wonderful evening!

Lazy Sunday and Movie/Show Recommendations

I hope you all are having a relaxing day. I had class this afternoon, and I've been in front of the television either folding clothes or doing mindless homework. Now, I am sitting down about to watch one of my favorite shows in existence right now... Boardwalk Empire! I am so happy it starts tonight. If you watched The Emmys, you'll know it is one of the more popular shows right now, and has been awarded with numerous honors.

This show excels in casting, costuming, sets, acting, soundtrack... everything! 

There is a very strong female cast, and it is fascinating to see what women wore in the 20s. 

(Side thought, we'll be entering a new 20s in a little over eight years. Crazy!)

Every Wednesday during show season, by dad and I watch Modern Family. It seriously makes us laugh out loud. I love how it celebrates and mocks the simple things in life. This week's premier didn't disapoint. I end up crying at the end all the time, because I am laughing so hard or because they showed such a sincere family moment. 

I finally saw The Kids are Alright, and I totally didn't expect the plot. It is such a fnatastic movie, again incredible acting. I highly recommend it. 

Lastly, Cinema Verite, an HBO film. Out-of-this-World!!! This movie has been added to my top 20 list! It tells a story so rich in emotion and inner conflict, and so beautifully and artistically. It's a film about the first reality family, the Loud family. It takes place in 1973. The movie shows the outside view of filming a reality show, and how it changes the family. If anything, you must check this movie out. It is available OnDemand, and probably many other sources. It's on my list of future Amazon purchases.

And to celebrate the get-out-your-chair-and-dance music featured in Cinema Verite, here's today's Sounds of the Study Week.

A great song to end your day! 

Have a lovely Monday mornin'!

Playboy Club Review, Song, and Granola Bar Recipe

How's your Tuesday going? I hope you are having a lovely day.

I caved, and watched the new Playboy bunny show on NBC, Playboy Club. I really thought the acting was not that well-done, and the main character (Nick Dalton played by Eddie Cibrian) was trying way too hard to sound like Don Draper from Mad Men. The show felt more like a mystery than a drama. Intriguing aspects of the show, and why I am going to watch it again next week, is that it was entertaining to see the inside of the Playboy club in the sixties in Chicago. Dancing to a live Tina Turner concert in your living room and dressed in your pajamas is quite fun to imagine!

I give the Pilot episode a B-/C+, it'll be interesting to see how the series progresses. The previews showed some promising clips.

In honor of last night's episode; here is Frank Sinatra's "Chicago."

(Playboy Club takes please in Chicago, and the song opened the Pilot.) 

I love to have a healthy snack while watching an hour long show, and these quick granola bars hit the spot! 

Chocolate Fiber No Bake Granola Bars

In the mix: 

Dry Ingredients

~1 cup rolled oats

~1/3 cup sunflower seeds

~1/3 cup chia seeds

~1/3 cup ground Flax Seed

~3/4 cup high fiber cereal

~1/3 cup Life Cereal (for some sweetness)

~ a pinch of the following: ground cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, nutmeg, and splenda

Wet Ingredients

~3/4 cup Brown Rice Syrup

~3 dark chocolate morsels melted into Rice Syrup 

Directions:

1. Take dry ingredients and mix together in bowl. Set aside. 
2. Take wet ingredients, put together in microwave safe bowl. Microwave till chocolates are slightly melted into rice syrup. Stir till combined. 
3. Pour wet mixture of dry mixture. Stir till well blended, and dry mixture is coated into mixture. Will look crumbly. 
4. Put mixture into shallow pan, press down, and spread evenly. You can wait a while and put the entire dish into fridge, or cut into squares, wrap in Saran wrap, and pop in fridge. That way they are pre-portioned and ready to go. No baking required!

This recipe is a spoof off of The Healthy Tipping Point blog's recipe; unfortunately I could not find the exact recipe's post. Her recipe calls for peanut butter and coconut, equally as delicious! 

If you like organic, whole, and vegetarian recipes, check out her blog. She also has a wonderful pancake truffle recipe!  

Sound of the Study Week and Favorite Emmy Dresses

Happy First Annual Sounds of the Study Week at TheAlyWay!

There are two weeks left till I take the LSAT, and in order to study as much as possible I have decided to keep my posts somewhat short for the next 12 days. Thus, study song week has begun! (Assumption made that songs posts are shorter than written/story posts. I have the Kaplan course on my mind.)

Song 1: "Wonderful Life" by HURTS

I hope you enjoy this song as much as I do. I had it on replay the entire way home from school. Obsessed!

Have a wonderful night! I thought the Emmy Awards were extremely well done. Funny, entertaining, and never boring/slow.

Favorite Dresses:

Sofia Vergara looked like a goddess. 

Kerry Washington looked purely stunning. 

The Civil Wars

Have you heard of the music group The Civil Wars? Vampire Diaries featured the below song the other night, and I immediately fell in love with it.

Check it out!

I like the sound of their voices: they are the perfect combination of raspy, soulful, and new.

How's your weekend going? Hope you are having a great one!

The Coffee Sundae

Good morning friends! I have a delicious recipe for you. My school calls this sinfully refreshing and rejuvenating concoction a "Coffee Sundae." But, it is more like an Espresso Float! 

Included in the Mix: 

~1 Scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream~ 

(although I could see this being unbelievable with Cinnamon Ice Cream)

~Three Shots of Espresso~

~Whipped Topping~

~Caramel Drizzle~ 

Voila! Superb! 

If you have the ability to make espresso in your home, you must give this a try. It was such a treat for me during my study time. Fair warning: I had this drink at 4:30 in the afternoon... I was wired till 12:30 last night. It'd be a perfect end of lunch dessert. (Takes mere seconds to make!)

I hope you are having an amazing day so far. I have to tell you, I heard Christmas music on the radio this morning. I believe they were playing it due to the unusually chilly temperatures we are currently experiencing. Anyway, not yet radio stations! I'll go for the "Monster Mash" and scary sounds till Halloween, but come November 1st... it is Christmas music for the next two months! When do you start listening to the sounds of the Holidays? 

Dogs "Save the World"

Morning! 

The other day I found these old pictures of Raquel and Angus... 

10 Week Old Raquel

(Six years ago February)

We named her Raquel, because she has long eyelashes like Raquel Welch. 

Angus was 14 years old here. 

I wish I could have videotaped the change in him from before we got Raquel and after. He became the most lovable, charming, gentlemanly dog after Raquel arrived. I truly believe in the power of having two dogs; they entertain each other, love each other, and it makes leaving them for work/school not so hard. 

All Angus would ever do is cuddle. He was a rescue, and hated to be alone. 

His "vanilla" paws pranced like Bambi's when he would move from room to room. 

If there was a blanket in the room, he'd be on it. 

Same for Raquel when it comes to pillows! 

I slept on the floor with her for the first two weeks we had her. She was the most adorable little baby girl. 

While I was reminiscing on how fast the last six years have flown by (Angus passed in 2009), BFFTay sent me this video. 

It is the music video for "Save the World" by Swedish House Mafia. It definitely pulled on my heart strings. Dogs save the day in this video; it is silly and cute at the same time. Enjoy. 

Wishing you a beautiful Thursday.

Mrs. Darcy's Missoni Finds

Have you heard the news? The Missoni for Target line is so magnificent that it crashed the site, and almost everything is sold out around the country. Unfortunately for me, I was in class all day yesterday and did not have an opportunity to check it out. 

Mrs. Darcy did, and she said that (from the items that were left, which was not much) the pieces feel great and fit wonderfully. 

She purchased this cute little number... and some gorgeous coffee mugs. 

She plans on wearing this with black tights and knee-high boots. I love the way the sleeves are cut, and the very slimming block line down the center. I am hoping Target will restock their website, as the Missoni for Target line has been featured in over 40 magazines just this past month! 

Congratulations Target! 

Check out the madness here! 

Mrs. Darcy and SisterT visit NJ and Ben the Bachelor

SisterT and Mrs. Darcy visited NJ  over the weekend to visit Grammy (Mrs. Darcy's mom). They surprised Gram for her birthday, and had a great trip. Here are some of their pictures. They could see the new WTC buildings from where they were staying.

Now did you all hear who the next Bachelor is going to be?

It's this guy. Ben Flajnik. 

And... the BFFS and I are not excited, not happy, and we are not looking forward to the next season. 

They should have waited a few weeks, and picked this guy!

Michael Stagliano 

At least we have quality shows such as Boardwalk Empire, Castle, and Modern Family starting next week. Have a wonderful evening, and I'd love to know your thought on all the news shows starting. What do you think about all the new NBC shows? 

Till next time!

New Blog Design

I hope you enjoy the redesign of TheAlyWay! I am fond of the simpler and cleaner interface. Still working on my signature. Have a wonderful night. (And this makes 3 posts for the day... new record.)

Home Inspiration Photos

Mrs. Darcy is in the act of demoing and designing a barn house that was originally built in 1910. She is struggling with figuring out how she wants to tackle the bathroom and kitchen.

Here are some design-inspiration photos found on the web:
(P.S. Just discovered pinterest.com, and I love it! It is a very easy interface for sharing a variety of photos based by topic/interest.) 

Kitchen

I am obsessed with wood countertops on islands. I love the softness it adds to a space. 

This is gorgeous. I love the beams and recessed lighting. 

Bathroom / Dressing Area

My father is finally finishing his basement (after postponing the completion 14 years!). Here is an idea of color scheme (and maybe some day for his bathroom). 

This oozes Masculine-Wine Country

And lastly, I stumbled upon this gem of an outdoor living space... 

I'll post pictures of all the projects soon. Hope you are enjoying your day! 

(Leaving you with my favorite scent right now. Extremely feminine.)