Monday always too come soon right. Its almost like I went to bed Friday and wake up Monday morning. But I guess thats a sign of a great weekend! I spent some good quality time with my friends, family and John. Some highlights of each day were...

Friday Going out with John and some friends...it was nice to catch up! Plus I was really happy with my outfit and makeup that night, but did I take a picture? Of course not. I need to be better with taking pictures to post on here!

Saturday Went out to dinner with my family and then saw the last Hunger Games movie. Did any of you see it this weekend? I thought it was a little gruesome...its been a few years since I read the book, so maybe I am just remembering scenes wrong?

My reaction during a few scenes...via

Sunday Had brunch with John at our favorite brunch spot in Portland. We ran errands after for ski equipment and then caught up a bit on Homeland and started Twin Peaks (its so good so far!)

Some things I am looking forward to this week are...

One Having two Thanksgiving dinners...one with my family and one with John's.

Me by the end of the week after eating so much...via

Two Hopefully getting some good deals on online Black Friday sales

Three Getting more into Twin Peaks with John. We both love TV and movies and we have been wanting to start this cult classic for a while!

Same, Kevin McAllister. via

Four Finishing my Thanksgiving Break To-Do list

I hope you all had a great weekend and have short work weeks coming up ahead!

Linking up here!

Did someone say Friday?

Happy Friday! I hope you all had a great week. I have been busy catching up with everyone at home and its been so nice to be back in Maine...although it is a little chilly! I have nothing big planned for this weekend, probably just spending time with friends and family. What are your plans for the weekend?

Here are some of my favorites for the week!

Favorite Movie Trailer
Have you seen the new trailer for Zoolander 2? It looks hilarious! I wish it was February already...

Favorite Lust: 
This Kate Spade bag looks just like a regular bag but it has a very cool feature...a phone charger!

Favorite Blog Post 
My favorite blog post this week was from Helene in Between, as she announced her new e-course...which is free! It is about how to build a successful blog, and I signed up right away because I have really be trying hard to amp up my blog game lately. I haven't started looking at the course material yet, but probably will today as I have some free time this afternoon!

Favorite Quote 

Favorite Purchase 

I was in T.J. Maxx this week with my mom and found a faux leather jacket for $25! I had seen so many cute photos this fall of people wearing leather jackets and had lusted after a couple online. I usually try to not buy things for myself in November or December, but I just couldn't help it. When I found one this week, I was so excited and you bet I have worn it every day since...It just seems to top off every outfit perfectly! 

Favorite Moments

1) The feeling when I finished my last clinical before break

2) Having my mom pick me up at the airport in Boston

3) Having one of my cats wake me up at 4:45am yesterday wanting to play...I miss them so much when I am away at school, and being woken up by them is a nice reminder that I am home (still I hope he doesn't do it again tomorrow)

I hope you all have a great weekend!

Linking up here and here today!

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Thanksgiving Break To-Do List

This post is an exciting one, because I am writing it from the comfort of my own bed at HOME! I made it! I had a hectic past few days...Like I mentioned in my post Monday, I hustled over the weekend to get my online class work done for the week so that I wouldn't have to worry about it while I was home for Thanksgiving break. Then Monday, I had a clinical shift at the hospital for the day, and had a quick turn around to get up yesterday at 2:30 am to start my journey home. I had a super early flight at an airport about an hour from school so I made my way there and fortunately had good luck with both of my flights. On one flight, I watched Me, Earl and the Dying Girl...have any of you seen it?! It reminded me of an indie-ish version of The Fault in Our Stars, but part of me liked it better than TFIOS. But anyway, I made it back to Maine safe and sound and happy to be with my animals again, and my family too!

During this break, there is a lot I was hoping to get done, both fun and not so fun. I started a list on my notes app on my phone, but then decided to publish it on because I always find myself to be a little more accountable for my to-do lists when I put it out into the universe on here. Here's what I was thinking for this break!

1. Figure out what I am getting everyone on my Christmas list. I am so excited that there have been so many posts on gift guides already because I need some inspiration! 

2. Read at least one book for leisure on this break. I am hoping my mom has some good recommendations from her book club! If not, I have a huge to-read list of my own. 

3. Study the equivalent of at least 20 minutes everyday. I am home for 12 days, so thats 240 minutes at minimum, and I will probably break this up into larger hour-long sessions so that I have a few free days. I plan on taking my licensure exam in January so I need to start upping my studying! 

4. Help my mom with making a gallery wall. We started it over the summer and bought all of the frames, but never got around to picking the right photos for them. 

5. Play this trick on my cats. 

6. Go for a couple good, long walks with my dog. We have a great walking/running/biking trail near me that is beautiful to walk along and I would love to spend some quality time with Reilly out there!

7. Find a dress for graduation. I have already tried on a few, but haven't seemed to find the right one!

8. Clean up and organize my room. I know this sounds silly, but I have accumulated a lot of unnecessary junk in my room over the past few years from only being home for summer and holiday breaks. I want to get it all cleaned out and organized so that its easy to move back into in December!

How organizing/cleaning has gone in the past for me with my cats around...via

9. Try at least one new restaurant or bar. There are so many restaurants/bars in Portland and I feel like I have only really touched the surface of them!

10. Try to work on a content calendar for December. Do you guys do content calendars/find them helpful if you do? I have a notes section on my phone for writing down thoughts about new posts, but never plan out ahead of time when I am going to do them. I was thinking that with the last month of school coming up with graduation and the holidays, it might make things easier for myself if I really work hard to plan out my posts!

If you have a break or a few days off for Thanksgiving, is there anything special you plan on getting done? Besides demolishing the Thanksgiving leftovers...

Linking up with Jenn today! 

25 Get to Know Me Questions

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a great weekend. I spent mine getting work done for my online classes so that I wouldn't have to worry about them while I am home later this week. Because of that, I don't have much to report on anything else I did this weekend, expect for eating a good portion of the pan of brownies that my roommate generously made. Instead of a weekend wrap-up, I thought I would do a "get to know me" question tag because I love reading them and finding more about the bloggers I read, and I thought you might all feel the same. Feel free to take the questions from this post and answer them about yourself on your blog!

1. What is your middle name? 
My middle name is Elizabeth...pretty basic but I like it because all the women on my mom's side of the family have Elizabeth as their middle name too.

2. What was your favorite subject in high school?
My favorite class was anatomy and physiology, but over my four years of high school, I always enjoyed math. Even calculus, haha!

3. What is your favorite drink?
Coffee. I usually go to bed excited to wake up in the morning because I look forward to having my morning coffee so much. Anyone else?!

4. What is your favorite song at the moment?
Ugh, I usually don't like questions about music because I feel like my favorite song changes every day. But today I am really feeling Sunday Morning by No Doubt (love them!) My all time favorite song is I Don't Feel Like Dancing by the Scissor Sisters...listen to it and try to not dance, its impossible!

5. What is your favorite food?
Adult Meghan says tacos or burritos. Or just Mexican food in general. Child Meghan will tell you vanilla frosting, but Adult Meghan knows thats an unrealistic favorite food.

6. What is the last thing you bought?
A Blue Moon while I was out last night with some friends.

7. Favorite book of all time?
Harry Potter series because I feel as though it taught me so many important life lessons and they are all just so good!

8. Favorite Color?
Purple! Which is funny because I don't have a lot of purple clothing, but I have a ton of purple accessories.

9. Do you have any pets?
Two cats, Rocco and Watson, and a dog, Reilly!

10. Favorite perfume?
I don't usually wear perfume, so can I just say my old reliable deodorant?

11. Favorite holiday?
CHRISTMAS. I love the spirit of Christmas and the feeling of nostalgia that accompanies the holiday. I get so excited to give gifts and there are few things that I like better than cuddling up on the couch with Christmas cookies watching a Christmas movie!

12. Are you married?
No! Not for a while for me.

13. Have you ever been out of the country?
Yes, I went to Quebec City in Quebec in 8th grade on a French class field trip for a weekend! It was a blast, and I don't think I spoke any French during the weekend...

14. Do you speak any other languages?
Does sarcasm count? If not, I can say a few words in Spanish, but not sure if that counts either...

15. How many siblings do you have?
Two! Jack and Sam.

16. What is your favorite shop?
I love Express, J. Crew and Banana Republic for clothing, and then I think Target probably goes without saying.

17. Favorite restaurant?
There is a restaurant chain in New England called Margaritas and (you guessed it) they are known for their yummy Mexican food and margs. I have had so many of my birthday dinners there and I always try to find more reasons to go!

via

18. When was the last time you cried?
Last night, I cried from laughter while I was out with some friends!

19. Favorite blog?
 This is a mean question, I have too many favorites to list!

20. Favorite movie?
Once again, I have too many that I would want to list out..but when I get asked this question, The Wedding Singer always pops into my head because that was always my answer when I was in middle school. Maybe thats my subconscious saying that its really my favorite?!

21. Favorite TV show?
I think I would have to say Gilmore Girls would have to be my all time favorite. I love the witty banter and the New England small town setting!

22. PC or Mac?
Mac!

23. What phone do you have?
iPhone 6!

24. How tall are you?
5' 6", but my family would tell you that I am rounding up from 5' 5"...

25. Can you cook?
Yes I really like cooking most of the time. Its fun to play around with different spices and flavors. My favorite thing to make are tacos... I know they are technically easy to make, but I don't use a packet of seasoning so its fun to just throw spices in!

I hope you enjoyed this sort of post today! Have a great week!

You can always have more than one favorite...

Happy Friday! I feel like I blinked and this week went by. Is this how adulthood always is? If so, no thank you, I am going back to grade school. I had a same old week, with online class and blogging and so sometimes I feel like my eyes are going to burn out of my head from staring at the computer for so long. I read a blog post a few months ago about glasses that blocks the blue light from getting to your eyes that is emitted from the computer...has anyone tried those? I am seriously considering getting a pair! But enough with my rambling, and lets get on with some favorites on this great Friday! I usually do favorite links that I have found throughout the week, but today I was feeling like mixing it up and doing a whole bunch of different types of favorites!

Favorite Video
Please don't ask me how many times I have watched this video this week...its too embarrassing to count! I think its definitely been around for awhile, so I probably missed it when it was first out, but better late than never! Plus I don't think I will ever be able to get the song out of my head. Its slightly obnoxious, but completely endearing.

Favorite Music
I know I am late to the party (same with the video mentioned before), but I just downloaded Spotify a few weeks ago...and I am loving it! Its great to have the flexibility to be able to listen to any song I want on all of my devices. Last week, for their #TBT playlist, they had girl anthems from the 90s that include a lot of Alanis Morissette so I was really into that this week! The only thing I don't like about it is that now since I am listening to music a ton more, I have to wait until my roommates are out of the apartment so that I can have a concert in the shower without judgment.

Favorite Blog Post
I loved all the posts this week that had the best items to get for the Sephora VIB sale that starts today. I think I even started drooling while reading a few! My favorite post about it though was from Biana from B Love Boston because everything she included in her want list are things that I would lovvee to have...especially this and this too! Are you picking anything up from this sale?! Let me know!

Favorite Quote
I know I included her in my favorites post last week, but I was watching a Kandee Johnson video about how to have more self confidence with clothing and style in general (something I have lacked until very recently!). She quoted her grandmother who gave her a comeback to say when people gave her a hard time about what she wore...She said to say "Just be glad you don't have to wear it!" and I couldn't agree more. I actually wish I had seen the video at the beginning of the week when my roommate was dissing faux fur vests (which I love!)

Favorite Moment(s) of the Week
1. Realizing that Thanksgiving is only 13 days away now! I think I can already smell the turkey...
2. Sitting down to have coffee on Wednesday and thinking about how in a week from then, I will be having a cup of coffee with my mom.
3. Buying a sweater for John for Christmas that he really wanted, and then checking back the next day and seeing that it was sold out (and I probably got the last one!)

Favorite Surprise
Finally seeing the Finding Dory trailer come out! I have only been waiting since Finding Nemo came out like ten years ago. What are your thoughts on it?

I hope you all have a great weekend!

Linking up here and here today! 

*This post does contain affiliate links*

Instagram Favorites: Fashion

I know that most of us here in the blog world appreciate Instagram...its my favorite social media account and I don't care what Essena ONeill says about it. Not only do I follow my friends and fellow bloggers, but I follow a lot of accounts for laughs, for their makeup/clothing inspiration, and for their cute animals. I did a post back in the spring about my favorite cat and dog Instagram accounts, and I thought I would continue that series today with my favorite fashion accounts.

1. @galmeetsglam //  Julia is the gal behind Gal meets Glam and she has a beautiful wardrobe. She also does so much traveling and does photo shoots in amazing locations...you have to check out her latest posts from Colorado! I feel like I talk about her a lot...both with friends and on here. She tweeted back at me a few weeks ago and I might have fangirled (a lot).

Hop on over to galmeetsglam.com to see today's post from Colorado🌨 #colorado #gmgtravels #duntonhotsprings #snowdays

A photo posted by Julia Engel (Gal Meets Glam) (@juliahengel) on Nov 9, 2015 at 12:08pm PST

2. @carly // Carly is a blogger and creator of The College Prepster so you can guess her style is...yup, preppy! I think I tend to dress fairly preppy, so I love going to her account for inspiration.

One thing I LOVE about Connecticut?! Having so many great hiking trails around. (Seriously, who am I? Hiking?! I hardly recognize myself!) I've been tracking my activity with the @garmin #vivofit! 🍂🐿🍁🐶 more on thecollegeprepster.com this afternoon!

A photo posted by Carly A. Heitlinger (@carly) on Oct 28, 2015 at 1:32pm PDT

3. @emilyanngemma // Emily is the blogger behind The Sweetest Thing and I am obsessed with her style! If I could be half as trendy as she is then I would be more than happy!

This dress is 🙌🏼🙌🏼.. It's the perfect throw on & go dress and it is under $50!❤️ Details: @liketoknow.it www.liketk.it/1WGyI #liketkit #ootd #wiw #fallready

A photo posted by Emily Gemma (@emilyanngemma) on Nov 7, 2015 at 7:00pm PST

4. @maine_blonde // I found her while searching for Maine Instagram accounts and I couldn't get over how stylish she is!

I can't believe it's November! Time for #octoberfavorites. Pictured are all my favorite things - the red clutch you all loved (under $30!!), blanket scarves, capes, and my "You had me at pumpkin spice lattes" sweatshirt. I get so many compliments on all of them.🍁🍂🍁 @liketoknow.it www.liketk.it/1VGmw #liketkit

A photo posted by // Maine Blonde // (@maine_blonde) on Nov 1, 2015 at 5:48am PST

5. @inthefrow // Victoria is a British blogger/YouTuber who has her PhD in fashion, so how could I not include her on this list?! She has gorgeous style and hair that I could never even dream of pulling off, but she does it perfectly!

Over on Inthefrow.com, I'm talking how to style the sleeveless coat 💙 www.liketk.it/1UQkq

A photo posted by Victoria (@inthefrow) on Oct 27, 2015 at 12:05pm PDT

What are your favorite fashion Instagram accounts? Let me know who I need to follow!

6 Tips for Combating Stress

Happy Monday! I hope you all had a great weekend! I had a quick little trip up to northern Virginia for a memorial wheelchair basketball tournament for my mom's best friend's son (same one I wrote about last year) and it was so nice to visit with my family and my mom's best friend/her family. We hadn't seen them since the tournament last year so we were absolutely due for a visit with them! They are just the sweetest family (extended family too!) and I love spending time with all of them. Since I have written all about the tournament before, I included the link to that post above. I wanted to share a little bit about de-stressing today, instead of a weekend wrap up!

When I got back yesterday, I had the worst emotional combination of stress and anxiety and sadness. I was sad for having to say goodbye to everyone and then stress/anxiety about a presentation I had to work on for my clinical group at the hospital today. Do you ever get so worked up about doing something (homework, actual work, anything really) that you just stress about stressing about it? That's what I was doing yesterday. I worked myself up into a tizzy during the drive back to my apartment about prepping for my presentation and then when I got back, I was too worked up to work. Weird, I know! In order to chill myself out, I did a couple of short activities to make myself focus on what I needed to accomplish for the day. I wanted to share those things today just in case I could help anyone else!

1) Make a to-do list
In this case, I had to break apart all the different sections that I had to cover for my presentation and so I could focus on just one part at a time. I love the feeling of accomplishment after I get to cross something off the list and it helps to give me motivation to keep working.

2) Have some tea
Specifically herbal tea, and not a tea with caffeine in it. For me, too much caffeine makes me too wound and feeling even more anxious. Today I went for a lemon tea, but I would also recommend chamomile!

3) Take a shower
Kind of an cheesy, but I swear showering washes away my stress. Showers really relax me and help to clear my mind so I can really focus on the task at hand and not the hundred other things that are running through my mind (Like other homework/missing my family/the blog/dinner/laundry/etc) .

4) Call/text someone...
...who will really set you straight. For instance, I texted my friend who has all the same classes/work as I do and asked her if I really needed to be stressing about the presentation as much as I was. She promptly responded that I didn't need to worry for another second and that it was ridiculous that I was stressing. Although a little harsh, it was well appreciated and snapped me back to reality!

5) Work really hard for one hour
Then re-evaluate whether you should really be stressed about what your doing. Chances are, if you really kick ass in that hour, that you'll get a lot more done than previously expected and feel less stressed about whats left to do.

Although an annoying tip, I thought I would include it anyway as the last one...

6) Plan ahead to prevent stress!
Like I said, its an annoying tip, I know! There is always good intentions to plan ahead and get everything done so that you don't have to worry about XYZ in the future, right? In this case, I actually had got a good chunk of the work done before the weekend started, since I had known that I was going to be super busy with the tournament. I think had I just done an hour or two more of work before the weekend then I would have been way less stressed yesterday evening. Even though I could have done more, I know I still helped myself a lot by getting some done beforehand. If I hadn't, this post probably wouldn't have been able to be written last night! For the most part, I am pretty good about planning and use my planner and to-do lists to help keep me in line.

I know there are so many tips out there, but these are the ones that I have found to work best for me! What are your tips for de-stressing?