2 Weeks, 7 Cities, and Blurred Lines on Repeat

Brace yourselves for a post FULL of pictures! This is the second catch-up post from my August recess travels and there is no better way to show you all what I was up to than a bunch of photos from the road! After hitting up Gettysburg, I left for a 2-week tour across 6 cities! But that wasn’t before traveling home to Philly for my best friend’s bridal shower and some family time (I’m leaving this part out from the post, but it still counts as another city traveled to)! From Tampa to Indianapolis, I definitely experienced more of America over these two weeks than I had in the previous 22 years!

Coffee played a MAJOR role in the completion of this tour…

It was a true whirlwind experience – fast-paced, stressful, and tiring…but I loved every minute of it! Traveling with an experienced coworker was such an incredible learning experience  – plus we just had so much fun together from gossiping, to eating, to blaring and dancing along to “Blurred Lines” on our long car rides. I’ll let the pictures do most of the talking in this post, with a little narration.

Bye, DC!!

Stop #1: Fayetteville, Arkansas!

It is fair to say that I had never truly experienced the “deep south” until I went to Fayetteville….and it was everything I imagined it to be. So quaint, such nice people, and SO beautiful. This was probably one of my favorite cities on the tour – maybe just because the venue was just so unique and fun (see below for pics of the BARN we held our event in)! Unfortunately we didn’t make it to the site of the giant Wal-mart in Bentonville, but we did visit one a little down the road in Fayetteville and I’m counting that as close enough.

This song may also have been on repeat all trip…

U. Arkansas campus

Casually getting lost on back roads trying to find Wal-Mart….

Taking a preemptive strike against day 1 – ready for anything!

the most beautiful place on earth – yes, this is real!

Inside the barn!

wish I got to test this out…

Stop #2: Tampa, Florida!

We didn’t have that much time in Tampa, but it was also exactly what I imagined it to be. And yes, that means it was BLAZING HOT. But it was also beautifully sunny. I don’t think I’ve ever seen clearer skies. Tampa was my favorite hotel – which is good because I really don’t think we left it at all – hah! But check out the view from my room below!

Stop #3: Birmingham, Alabama

Birmingham is the ONLY city I don’t have pictures of, despite it being the city I was in the longest – go figure! This is probably because we were no where near close to downtown Bham. I did, however, get to experience the southern charm of suburban Alabama! I even went to  Publix for the first time. It’s no Wegmans, but I’ll admit, it was pretty nice.

Stop #4: Indianapolis, Indiana

After a full week in the south, I was SO ready to be back up to familiar territory above the Mason-Dixon line! Though I loved my time spent there, I think I’ll always be a northern girl. That being said, I was ECSTATIC to land in Indy. Especially because I’ve never been there. I was lucky enough that our hotel was right in the heart of downtown and I landed early enough on Sunday to have some time to walk around the city and relax.

Capital Building

Circle City!

Excellent photography skillz with my finger in the corner..

How much do you just want to be that guy sitting there reading a good book?

I just love this building…Gov. Pence, you home?

Stop #5: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

I had never been to Pittsburgh either, so this was particularly exciting for me too. Plus one of my best friends from school just moved there so I got to see her! We went to a delicious Mexican restaurant followed by delicious ice cream – the perfect way to spend my night before my last event!  The next afternoon we took a quick break to get the famous Primanti Brothers sandwiches…and they were SO worth it! If you’re ever in Pittsburgh you need to make sure you get a hold of one! By the time we finished up in here, I was totally worn. I would like to think I could have kept going, but my body was so beat up and tired that I was glad to come home and rest!

Just some random pretty church?

View of the city from our hotel

Stop #6: Finally home to Washington, DC!

In the end, there is no place like home! My favorite part of traveling is always coming home to my city with renewed appreciation for how lucky I am! A year later, I am still completely in love with DC and I hope I remain in this honeymoon phase forever.

the happiest home!

That’s all until my next adventure…

xO -S

What’s Getting Us Through the Week

It looks like it’s an indulge yourself kind of week over here at Liberty on Less. We’re barely holding on until Friday, but check out what’s been keeping us alive and getting us through the week:

E says…

Both of my WGUTTW are liquids today.. I’m not sure if that’s a bad thing but it definitely shows that this week has been CRAZY at work, and there’s been barely any time to actually consume solid food.

1. Starbucks Mocha

As I said, the week is crazy. I generally try to avoid spending money at Starbucks, but on Monday my boss and I went for a walk down the street to grab coffee and I suddenly decided on a whim that I wanted a hot mocha. It hit the SPOT.
I know, I know..calories.. but with the walk outside, which has been hard to find time for this week, the delicious chocolaty warmth, and the shot of espresso? Here’s my $3.95, Starbucks!

2. Wine Nights

This week was my roommates birthday.. so we went out for dinner and drinks at Ezme on P street in Dupont. I HIGHLY recommend it. Delicious Mediterranean tapas, and fantastic wine selection. Last night was a work happy hour and again the wine came out. I’m not saying over-do anything, I’m just saying a glass or two to wind down at the end of a crazy day is fantastic. Even if it just lets you SIT for a minute. Tonight’s plan? The mimosas nail salon… I see a theme, but hey its a quarter close! Forgive me?

S says…

1. Reese’s Pumpkins

We warned you this week was about indulgences! Maybe it’s the pumpkin shape, or maybe it’s just the chocolate…but I have eaten so many of these this week! Festive and delicious, though…how could I turn them down?

2. The Return of Fall Television

Between Mindy last week and Modern Family & Nashville this week – I’m in fall TV heaven! My favorite shows are all back and funnier than ever! I’m very easily entertained, so naturally I’m a total TV junkie. And thanks to Hulu Plus I can watch all my favorites even if I miss them at their original air time. 🙂 These little television indulgences have been keeping me going all week and giving me something to look forward to when I get home from work each night!

Well, I guess you can tell the kind of week we’re having! Are you as ready for Friday as we are?

-E&S

Tuesday Shoesday

After chatting this weekend, Elyse and I came to a funny conclusion – no matter how much we shop or how many shoes we own…there are ALWAYS another pair we are coveting. From this thought came the idea for Tuesday Shoesday, where we post pictures of the shoes we’re currently pining for, or ones we finally splurged on!

S’s Picks – 

1. Chinese Laundry   2. Aldo Shoes   3. DV by Dolce Vita Flair   4. Francesca’s Collections
5. Jeffrey Campbell   6.  AK Anne Klein   7. Zara

E’s Picks – 

1. Marc by Marc Jacobs   2. Marshalls 3. Sigerson Morrison 4. Zara

5. Coconuts   6. Mia Ashley   7. Stuart Weitzman 50/50

And speaking of Shoesday…Piperlime is having a special 20% off all shoes special just for today! So if you’ve been been holding off lately, this is the perfect excuse to finally splurge!

In the future we may just do a quick post of one pair we’re really loving, but we had a lot of catching up to do for today! What about you? What shoes are you currently coveting?

xO -E&S

Peanut Butter Lava Snickerdoodles

Get ready for some rich, melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness! This weekend I decided to take it easy and enjoy the simpler things in life. I cooked, watched movies, and even came up with a new cookie recipe. After searching multiple grocery stores for a certain type of pudding mix, I gave up on the idea of White Chocolate Pudding Cookies…but instead, I came up with these gems..

They may look like regular snickerdoodles, until you bust them open to a smooth peanut butter surprise! I basically just spooned out peanut butter in globs and froze them for about 30 minutes – note that it doesn’t matter if the globs are perfectly sized or rounded, since they will melt in the oven anyway. While the peanut butter balls are freezing, start prepping the dough. Once the peanut butter and the cookie batter are ready, wrap the batter around the frozen peanut butter and pop the new, larger cookie balls back into the freezer for a couple hours. Of course, you can also put them in a regular fridge, but I’m not patient enough for that. Chilling the dough is important because it’s what allows the cookies to become fluffy and thick, rather than fall flat, but I’m so unwilling to wait a whole 24 hours to enjoy so I cut corners a little and use the freezer to speed up the process. After the dough is sufficiently chilled, you can pop the cookie balls into the oven – easy as that! The peanut butter melts in the oven to become a delicious, gooey filling.

You’ll also notice that I’m using a new format for the actual recipe (scroll down to see)! I found that the line-by-line method is a little too hard to follow when actually cooking, so I decided to create a template that wold be easier to read for those who choose to reproduce the recipes.

Here are some more pictures followed by the recipe:

Peanut Butter Balls in the freezer

Cookie balls with peanut butter inside in the freezer

mmm finished products

These are the perfect fall cookie and go great with a pumpkin spice latte 🙂 Try it out & let me know what you think! And of course tips on the new format are always appreciated as well!

-S

Fall Foliage & Fashion: Our First Glossi!

Have you guys heard of Glossi? Well we just learned about it over here at Liberty on Less and it is so much fun! It’s basically just a new and cool way to display pictures and text. Here is our first go at it featuring some of our favorite fall fashion trends!

(Click to open the pages!)

Click to view Fall Foliage & Fashion on GLOSSI.COM

Let us know if you like it and maybe we’ll have some more coming your way soon!

xX E&S

Living Proof Hair Serum

GUYS. I finally found it! The product that ACTUALLY TAMES MY THICK, CURLY HAIR!!! This is not a drill. Go out and buy Living Proof Hair Serum right now.

(Please excuse the selfies in the post…but I felt that I couldn’t really illustrate how great it works without pictures!)

Having naturally curly/wavy hair is a blessing and a curse. Sure, it’s pretty and can easily be straightened if I want a change, but it is also so thick and sometimes out of control that I don’t even know what to do with it! And the frizz – it’s like nothing else you’ve ever seen!  I have tried everything from hairspray and expensive shampoo to debating more drastic measures like chopping or thinning it out. Thankfully, one of my good friends, Sophia, recently discovered Living Proof Hair Serum at Sephora and swore by it. I was hesitant, but she was convinced so I figured I’d give it a try. The name would be total overkill if it weren’t SO. COMPLETELY. TRUE.

Here are some pictures to prove it:

so shiny!

limited frizz and perfect waves!

It’s also really low maintenance – just pump some out and work through damp or even dry hair and alas! The perfectly tame, shiny, beachy waves all year around! Living proof is an absolute God send for me and I’m so glad I didn’t go the extreme route with a cut! It’s a little pricey – coming in at $29.99 a bottle – but it’ll last a long time and it’s definitely worth it if you’re like me and just can’t seem to control the frizz any other way! I’ve already been told by multiple coworkers that my hair looks particularly good lately and I have no doubt this is why!

What are some of your favorite hair products?

xO – S

Work Trip: Gettysburg

As we mentioned in an earlier post today, we’ve got a LOT of catching up to do! So here is the first of my catch-up posts on travel – my work trip to Gettysburg, PA!

Okay, so maybe I’m a total nerd, but I was SO excited for this trip! I was there to run the event (my first official trip by myself!), but I also really love learning about American History…so it was the perfect way to test my professional skills and to learn about something I was personally interested in! Win-Win. We started the day with lectures before we moved to the Gettysburg Museum for some presentations and then finally ended on a 2-hour tour of the battlefield. It was dark and rainy, but none of the guests seemed to mind since the content was so interesting. I learned so much that I didn’t know about the Civil War, and it was crazy to think that I was standing where it all happened! We walked Pickett’s Charge, ventured up to Little Round Top, and even stopped at some of the memorials and heard the stories behind them. Here are some pictures from the tour:

Little Round Top!

As the lead contact for the event, I went up the night before to ensure everything was prepped and ready for guests upon their arrival at the hotel. This meant that I had a little bit of time the night before to explore downtown Gettysburg. Let me tell you, it was everything you imagine adorable small-town America to be. Beautiful scenery, great food, and friendly people. Below are some pictures I collected from around town – including the tavern we ate at and some delicious drinkage.

Gettysburg is only about an hour and half from DC so it’s a perfect day trip! I highly recommend taking a weekend and heading up to see all that Gettysburg has to offer – I know I’ll be returning soon!

xO – S

While We Were Away….

DC is said to be a ghost town in August. Congress is out on recess, and everyone else is on vacation escaping the crazy DC heat & humidity. Well, even though neither of us are Hill staffers, we decided to embrace that outlook anyway and took a short hiatus for some summer fun (and work!) in August.

Here’s just a few pictures and snipits of what you missed while we were away (don’t worry – we’ll go into more detail soon with some belated posts about our adventures):

S – From bridal showers to baseball games, with 2 weeks of traveling in between!

E – Traveling home, friends visiting, taking advantage of the fantastic warm weather!

What have you been up to?

xx S&E