Falling for Charleston

I feel like fall is the season in Charleston that I've documented most on this blog.  But how could I not?!  The weather is finally cool enough for walks around town, houses put out the cutest Halloween decorations, and there are so many delicious fall beverages to sip!  If you're local and looking for my recommendations, I would definitely suggest the candy corn latte at Second State or the orange autumn spice latte at Revelator.  Now for all of these pretty homes!  

Fall Pumpkin Party Cooler

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and The Coca-Cola Company. All opinions are mine alone. #HomeGatingHacks #CollectiveBias

Football season and fall just go hand-in-hand in our house.  We love having our friends over on Sunday afternoons to watch all of the games and root for our favorite teams (and fantasy players!).

I'm always looking to create something festive, whether the party is big or small.  This time of year, how can you go wrong with pumpkins?!  You can find them at any store (even the market!), and they last so long, even when carved.

Last weekend, when we had our friends over for the games, I carved out a pumpkin to use as an ice bucket.  Of course, we filled it with our favorite Coca-Cola beverages.  What's great is that Coca-Cola offers so many different varieties that there's a Coca-Cola for everyone.  Coca-Cola Zero has all the real Coke flavor with zero sugar and Diet Coke is always a fan favorite.

When I went shopping at Food Lion for my Coca-Cola, pumpkin, and pumpkin-carving tools, I also picked up a few of their Private Label items to serve with my favorite soda:

Once you get home, all you will need to make your own festive fall cooler is:
- 1 medium to large pumpkin (preferably with one flat side)
- pumpkin carving knife and scoop
- ice
- your favorite Coca-Cola varieties

Directions:
1. Lay the pumpkin on its flat side, and cut a wide hole around the top side of the pumpkin.
2. Remove the lid, and scoop out all the insides of the pumpkin and discard.
3. Fill the pumpkin with ice and Coca-Cola.

What's great about this DIY is that after you're done, make sure you save the lid!  You can stand it back up and carve a pumpkin face for Halloween!

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With a Coke for everyone, you can be sure that it's an integral part of Fall Football!

Fall Tablescape Inspiration

It has been quite a month... and it's only halfway through October.  Mike and I have been out of town for six of the last seven weekends (and the seventh weekend was Hurricane Florence), so I cannot wait to relax at home this weekend!

Being so busy, I haven't had 5 minutes to take out all of our fall decor.  Doing that is definitely on the list for this weekend, along with creating our fall tablescape.  We will be doing Thanksgiving in South Carolina again this year, and I love having our table all ready and festive throughout the next month.  My favorites are always designs that work from now until the beginning of December, when I'm ready to transition to Christmas.

Searching all over Pinterest, I found 10 pieces of inspiration, many of which I will be putting into my own tablescape this year.  Which one is your favorite?

Apples - I love the way the bright red looks on this table.  Pears or oranges would be great, too!

Mini pumpkins - Painted at that! I love this color scheme so much!

Scarf - I love the way this plaid scarf looks under the tablescape - and most of us already have one at home!

Brown paper - You can either DIY a design or leave out crayons for your guests to be creative before dinner starts!

Succulents - We have succulents around our home (hello one plant I actually haven't killed!), and this is such a fun use this time of year!

White - Especially on this light wood table, I love how everything white looks here!

Wooden slabs - These look great as chargers at each place setting, or you can use them as the centerpiece!

Pink - Think about a non-traditional color. I love the pink glass below, or anything in blue would be great, too.

Leaves - Go for a walk, find some seasonal nature, and add it to your table!

Stripes - Is anyone else as obsessed with striped anything as I am?

All inspiration found here, here, here, and here.

September Review

September was a great month!  We went on a few trips, got super lucky when Hurricane Florence missed up, and enjoyed our 4th anniversary!

Darlington - To start Labor Day weekend, we went to a Nascar race at Darlington Raceway, just north of us in South Carolina.  We had never been to an Xfinity race before, and it was such a blast!

Ocean Course - We finished Labor Day weekend with a round of golf at the beautiful Ocean Course on Kiawah Island!

Florida weekend - My parents came to visit us for a week, and we spent the second half of the trip in Florida, visiting my aunt in St. Pete Beach.  We made a stop in Disney, visited a couple of breweries, and watched the most beautiful sunsets.

Hurricane Florence - Charleston boarded up and got ready for the Flo.  We got lucky this time as it slid north of us, but the northern part of SC and NC are both still dealing with intense flooding.  If you would like to help, please consider finding an organization to donate to here. 

4th anniversary - Our anniversary was low-key and perfect!  We decided on NO GIFTS this year and bought some chocolate-covered fruit to share.  We went out to dinner, too!

Richmond - We went to a second Nascar race last month!  This time, it was to the short track at Richmond Raceway with a couple of our friends for a Monster Energy Cup series playoff race. 

Pebble Beach - Our last trip of the month was for my work to California.  We had such a blast seeing Monterey, Carmel, Big Sur, and everything in between!

30 for 30 Birthday Wrap Up

HAPPY MEAN GIRLS DAY (and my birthday!).  At the beginning of this year, I put together my own 30 before 30 to keep me intentional throughout the year, and I'd like to think I did an okay job.  Yes, there were a few things I wish I could have accomplished, but that's what 30 is for now, right?!

1. Invest in an original piece of art - Pretty little canvas from Modern South Studio

2. Get back to my ideal strength and weight

3. Volunteer

4. Get 8 hours of sleep each night

5. Purge and donate my closet - Did this twice this year!

6. Start an herb garden - I started this last October and added more this spring.  My basil is out of control!

7. Have a girls night once per month - most months?!

8. Visit more baseball stadiums - We got to Dallas and Tampa this year!

9. Network more

10. Run another race - I did start running daily again but haven't signed up for anything. 

11. Take a cooking class - Big ole nope

12. Try yoga - Okay, so maybe I went on YouTube last night and did a couple of online videos, but hey, I did try it!

13. Start a family tree - This is definitely something I will be doing next year. 

14. Do something nice for a stranger everyday

15. Visit the rest of the breweries in Charleston - We only have 3 more!  Here is my latest installment of local breweries.

16. Try something just for the adrenaline rush - I bet I did, but I can't think of it now!

17. Learn about wine - errrrr, not professionally

18. Make a plan to get to Cuba - There's a cruise starting from Charleston in the fall of 2019!!

19. Be a positive encouragement to those around me - I tried my best!

20. Make an effort to break out of my introverted shell - This has definitely been helped with #9.  I'm trying to meet new people every way I can!

21. Go on a hike - Memorial Day weekend was a blast!

22. Advance my career - I went to a few events over the last year!

23. Buy a new camera - I bought my Canon 80D around Christmas and could not love it more.  There is so much versatility.

24. Travel internationally - Well, the London trip isn't happening due to work reasons, but we are hoping for a trip somewhere fun this winter. 

25. Invest for the future - We are now meeting with a financial planner, and we're on our way!

26. Cut my hair to donate again - I didn't donate it yet, but it is the right length!

27. Grow this blog - Such a big nope.  I just haven't felt like I've had the time or motivation to make it happen recently.  

28. Stay more connected with family - I need to start writing birthday cards again, but I have become better at texting and calling!

29. Learn all the words to Rapper's Delight - SO upset about this one.

30. Write to my congressmen about causes about which I'm passionate - Yes, yes, and yes.  Calls, emails, and letters.  This year has been a wreck.

Well, looks like I was 20/30 with (what I believe are) a couple more half points in there.  Now, if you need me, I'll be drinking all the coffee today while I still try to recover from West Coast jet lag!  I'll be sharing all about that trip (and my last month in the 20s) on Friday!