Recent Ann Taylor Purchases

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Autumn is approaching and I have began my hunt for some things……. not a lot. I have so many great pieces and items in my wardrobe that I don’t know if I will be buying anything for the fall but we will see.

I did however lust over these earrings for about two months. I finally ordered them when Ann Taylor had a 50% off sale.

These are called the rosa earrings and I am sorry but they sold out before I could even share them. They are so lovely. They really are. I am not a chandelier earring kind of person but these are the perfect size and just enough sparkle. 

The next item that I ordered but I have not worn yet are these chic gray pumps. 
I adore the tassels on them. They are called the devin suede tassel kitten heel. They are the perfect heel height for me. Perfect for the office and an evening dinner. The gray color is very neutral and will go with most items in your closet. 
Well I hope that you enjoyed these quick little finds. I love sharing these with everyone. Especially when they are on sale. 
Enjoy!

(photos via Mrs. Shockley)

Trying Natural Soap

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I have been so inspired by Jennifer L. Scott’s natural home series on Youtube. I first shared a book called The Woman’s Herbal Apothcary and I have not stopped reading it. The next item that I was inspired to try was some natural soap.

Jennifer posted a video about natural soap from a company and I was just too curious not to try some.

Now I did not order the natural soap that she posted about in her video but I am going to be ordering the goat milk bath very soon. It sounds wonderful. 

I did however see this natural soap stand in my local mall. I was curious about it and began to ask questions. This is Finchberry Soap. All of of their soaps are natural and safe to use.

The Finch Berry promise…. 
Their soaps contain, water, olive oil, coconut oil, palm oil, shea butter, sunflower oil, lye, mica, oxides, select essential and/or fragrance oils and it smells WONDERFUL!
I purchased the sweet dreams bar. It smells so good and I have been USING it. My skin is so soft and afterwards so is the water. It’s kind of weird but it does something to the water too. 
It is a beautiful bar and you can smell the lavender and vanilla. It is quite lovely. The price was great too! Only $9 which I thought was very fair. If there are some natural soaps near you give them a try or order one of these delicious bars. I don’t think you will be disappointed. 
(photos via Mrs. Shockley, opinions are my own and this is not sponsored)

Refreshing Moments

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On Saturday and Sunday mornings I do my very best to make sure that I sit down and enjoy a quiet breakfast. Before I got my new settee I did not use my sitting room (see blog post here). I just did not like the way it looked.

It’s amazing how one item changed the whole environment of a room. I now look forward to my weekend mornings in that room. Especially on Sundays. Sundays are the best for me because I usually have all of my weekend chores done and all of my errands finished.

I am completely dressed when I come down for breakfast and I usually make some whole wheat toast with butter, some fruit, a cup of tea, orange juice and water. 
On this particular morning I made scrambled eggs.
I will open my window and listen to the birds chirping and watch the butterflies fly around. 
We had a lot of butterflies this season! I love our butterfly hydrangea bush. We planted it last year and it has done very well this year. 

It has a wonderful light smell and the butterflies can’t seem to stay away from it. It is a wonderful sight in the mornings while I enjoy my breakfast. 
While I eat, sip and watch I do take a moment to read my devotional and plan my week using my day designer. 
I really do enjoy these moments and it does feel like a “refreshing moment” happens. I sit look around at my home and I take it all in. I remind myself of how grateful I am and how life can be good. 
Enjoy your moments!
(photos via Mrs. Shockley)

A Frozen Banana Treat

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Another great and quick recipe that I saw on Youtube….

This is great for that Friday evening that you will be spending at home. I put some bananas in the freezer and left them in there for about 3 days. I took them out and let them thaw a little. Then I cut them in halves and poured chocolate syrup on them and added a few sliced almonds. 
It was delicious and very simple. Honestly you can add any kind of toppings that you want and it still will be healthier than most desserts. I hope that you enjoy this recipe and let me know if you try it. 
Enjoy!
(photo via Mrs. Shockley)

My Herbal Teas

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I have been on a quest for healthy living. Ever since I have been reading this book called the Women’s Herbal Apothecary my interest in herbs has been sparked.

In the first section of the book she discussed the many different ways to use herbs and herbal teas was one of them. She talked about all of the natural herbs that could be used for certain types of ailments. She mentioned chamomile tea as a good tea for mood swings and your menstrual period. She mentioned the same about peppermint tea.

Here are my herbal teas. I have been making weekly visits to our organic stores here in our city. These are all of the herbal teas that I have purchased so far.

The first tea is my detox tea. I normally have this Saturday morning. The chamomile tea has been my favorite. I usually have this at night while I am in the bed. I love it with two teaspoons of honey. The herbs in this tea is used to sooth and support your digestion. My herbal peppermint tea is a tea that I normally have with my lunch. This is so refreshing and aromatic. 
The next herbal tea is my organic Belly Comfort tea with peppermint flavor. I normally have a cup of this after dinner. It is suppose to relieve feelings of fullness or gas and get the juices flowing. 

Now this has been my favorite too! Do you see the box? Relieves temporary water weight gain? Yes, please! I have a cup with two teaspoons of honey when I feel bloated and it helps! Plus the cranberry flavor is marvelous. 
Here are the honeys that I use. You can find these teas or honeys at your local grocery store or Walmart. I did find this on the Traditional Medicinals website. It will help you to find your best herbal teas for you. 
Well I hope that you enjoyed this post and are inspired to take a glimpse at some herbal teas that may help you.
Enjoy!!

(photos via Mrs. Shockley)

August Favorites

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It has been another month of wonderful finds for me. No need to have a long starting point, let’s just get right into the new items that I have loved during this HOT month of August…..

I’ll start with my most recent consignment find. I found this gorgeous gold Michael Kors Hamilton tote in saffiano leather at my local consignment store called Style Encore. I only paid $80! What a fantastic deal! The previous owner took very good care of it. There was no damage to the bag. I am very blessed to have found it. 
The second item that I have been loving is my red polish manicures. I believe that red nail polish is such a classy color and looks good on everyone. 
The third and fourth item that I have been enjoying all this month is the new heirloom apple scent at Bath and Body Works. When they had their candle sale this month I purchased 6 of these! I love it that much. My home smells so wonderful when I have them burning. 
The next item was this rose gold candle pedestal. It sold out online pretty quickly but I did manage to find this one. You may have to check your local stores to find the one I have in the photo. 

This fifth item has been my weekly trips to our new Whole Foods store in downtown Indianapolis. It is only a few blocks away from my building. I have been taking my lunch breaks to walk the three blocks and it has been wonderful. I am getting out of the office, getting fresh air and finding new healthy items to eat and enjoy. I also found a new source to obtain my weekly bouquets. Like these beautiful flowers that I found there for only $8! Fantastic right?
Another healthy store that I have added to my favorite this month is called Fresh Thyme Farmer’s Market. I have been loving their rotisserie chicken salad and this beautiful kale salad. Doesn’t it look delicious? I have been eating it non-stop this month. I have been so inspired by the Women’s Herbal Apothecary book that I have been visiting local organic stores all over the city. 

Okay, now my seventh favorite this month has been our new mattress. I have been waiting 2 years for this mattress. It is a long story but we got it a week before we left for Charleston and August has been our full month with it. It feels like a new bed. I love it so much! It is a pillow top mattress with foam memory. Oh gosh…… 
And my last favorite has been this fantastic movie called Sense & Sensibility. It was released in 1995 and I am just now seeing it. I had a few hours at home and was scrolling through our on demand section. I always look at the “free movie” section and this was there. I thought why not. I am so addicted! I have watched it five times this month!

I adore everything about this movie. I love the beautiful English countryside. It has just enough of everything. I love the clothes, the language and it was wonderful acting. Sooo much better than so many films today. 

photo credit Annie Spratt 
At first, I didn’t quite understand why the snobby daughter-in-law made fun of this cottage but then I thought well they are living in these huge estates so they don’t quite see the charm in this beautiful English cottage. I adore this cottage. I thought it was so much better than that estate that they had lost. 
And I must admit that I was hoping that Marianne would end up with Colonel Brandon. I admired his character. I thought that he was so charming, attractive and attentive to her. But I don’t want to spoil the movie for those who may have not seen it.  
Well, those are my August favorites. Please let me know in the comments section if you enjoy these posts about my favorites. I know I posted one for July (see here) if you missed it. Thank you so much for stopping by and I hope that you may have found a new favorite for yourself. 

(photos via Mrs. Shockley)

Healthy Sausage and Veggies Pan

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I just wanted to quickly share a recipe that I found on Youtube recently. It is called healthy sausage and veggie pan.

You can cut up any kind of veggies that you want. I used green and red peppers, sweet potatoes, french green beans, cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, and the sausages that I used were turkey sausages. 

I added salt, pepper some of my herb seasonings and some parmesan cheese. 
I placed both trays in the oven on 400 degrees for about 40 minutes. 
While they were cooking I put some white rice in our steamer and everything came out delicious and it looked so healthy! It tasted wonderful! I am so glad that I found this recipe. It has now been added to my dinner rotation for easy, healthy meals. 
If you wish to watch the video and get the recipe you may see it here.
Have a great weekend and Enjoy!

(photos via Mrs. Shockley, video via Youtube)