What About Me Wednesday: Monogram Love

Hi, my name is Rachel and I have a small obsession with monograms.

Call me weird, but show me anything emblazoned with an R or an H and I will simply have to have it. I'm not sure what it is, but I simply love anything personalized like that. Perhaps it's because I feel like they were made just for me? (were they not? ;))My love for the monogram is evidenced by my extensive collection of all things lettered, and for today's What About Me Wednesday, I'm giving you a glimpse into my obsession...

Number one on my list: my Helen Ficalora gold initial charm necklaces.

 

I love these so very much. I gave these as bridesmaids gifts from my wedding and then my mom gifted me with one of my own...a nice, shiny R. To my delighted surprise, Shaun added to my collection with an H charm on our wedding day to signify my new last name. You may see these in many a photo of me (because I wear them all the time!) and even in my profile photo on the side bar.

 

I have a thin gold bracelet with a cursive R on it...a piece that all of the women in my family own (with their own initial, of course). This is one of my favorite pieces of jewelry and it always feels so special to wear because I feel like I'm somehow connected to my mom, sisters, aunts and cousins.

 

Our wedding cake topper was a giant, crystal studded H atop our whimsical blue polka dot cake. Purdy.

I dig my Anthro Misses tea cup! It's just cute and makes me want to drink tea all the time.

Shaun and I even own a pair of MTA beanie bears (signifying the NYC subway lines) in yellow R and gray S from way back in the day. We bought these one day while strolling the streets of NYC when we were in college. I have these tucked away in a box somewhere, but it will be fun to pull them out someday when we have a baby, and maybe even add to the collection with a new initial.

And now, I'm seriously crushing on this monogrammed ring from Laurel Treasures' Etsy Shop (which just so happen to be stacked as my initials backwards)...

So that's the tale of my monogram love. I'm sure there are others around this place that I'm forgetting, but these are the ones that stand out to me! Call me crazy but there's nothing like a solid letter to make my day.

Questions of the Day:

Do you own anything monogrammed? Spill it! Maybe I'll add it to my wish list :)

Do you gravitate toward any particular style, pattern or color?

My Holiday To-Make List + November Foodie Penpals

One of my favorite things about the impending holiday is the copious amount of baking that I get to partake in.

Last year, I spent an entire day in December baking with my mom. We set up both of our stand mixers and went to town until her beautiful kitchen looked like this:

To me, it's simply not Christmas without cookies. For as long as I can remember, I've baked holiday cookies with my mom before Christmas and this year will be no exception. Next weekend, the baking shall commence! Of course, we have a list of our 'regulars' that must grace our Christmas party every year, but I also have a few things that I want to add to the mix this year, if not on our baking day, but at some point during the season.

Our 'Regulars':

Thumbprints (filled with raspberry jam)

Chocolate Cherry Kisses

Chocolate Crinkles/Snowflakes

Butter Cookie Cutouts

Eggnog Snickerdoodles

Seven Layer Italian Rainbow Cookies (a first for us last year, but one that is now in the permanent collection!)

We also add a few new ones in the mix to try. Last year it was Mama Pea's peanut butter dough balls, malted sandwich cookies, and red velvet sandwich cookies with white chocolate buttercream!

our cookie tray from Christmas '10

On My 'To Add' List (so far):

Marshmallows (perhaps of the peppermint persuasion)

Salted Caramels (I have a recipe I've been eyeing!)

Gingerbread Cupcakes

Something with eggnog

I'm sure I'll have more as I start scouring magazines, cookbooks and Pinterest! I can't wait to start on some baking this weekend! With so many holiday parties and gatherings coming up this month, I have no doubt that the goodies will be put to good use :)

On another fun note, today is the November Foodie Pen Pal Reveal Day! This is my first time participating and it was incredibly fun! Thanks so much to Lindsay @ The Lean Green Bean for putting this together...what a fantastic idea. For my first pen pal, I received a box of goodies from Emily @ As Dreams Become Reality. I am so happy to have found Emily and her blog because she is simply adorable and we clearly have similar tastes, based on her care package :) I opened the box to find her sweet note...

So incredibly thoughtful to not only send me lots of pumpkin & peanut butter goodies but to also include Shaun! Very sweet :) Let's take a peek at the goods, shall we?

In the mix: Trader Joe's pumpkin butter, pumpkin spice granola & tempting trail mix, Clif MoJo bars in mountain mix & pb pretzel, some Tazo tea bags in calm and cinnamon spice and some pb packets, including Justin's & PB & Co.

Wow! Isn't that a great mix of goods? You know I dug right into all of it, especially that pumpkin butter! How perfect for the season. I also thoroughly enjoyed the Clif bars post workout this past weekend :) Thanks so much to Emily for such a great box of goodies!!

If you want to learn more about Foodie Penpals, or to join up, check out Lindsay's blog today for info, and also for a whole lotta links to other Penpal write ups!

So there you have it! Lots of fun and yummy things happening this week in the Humiston house :)

Questions of the Day:

What's on your baking list this season? Anything I should be including on my list?

Have you ever had a pen pal? I had a French pen pal in middle school via my French class. It was so cool to get letters from a girl my age in another country!

Buh Bye Thanksgiving!

Whew! I cannot believe Thanksgiving & this weekend has come and gone. I'm sad that it's over and do not feel rested at all! We spent the weekend doing lots of fun things but I do wish we had a little more time for relaxation.

We kicked off the weekend with a Wednesday evening showing of The Muppets. Ok you guys, this movie was soooo fun and just made me feel like a kid again! I highly recommend it...you know, if you like smiling for like 90 minutes straight.

 

Of course, I woke up bright and early to shower, finish cooking and watch the Macy's parade! It's kind of annoying that it has become one big commercial for businesses and new toys, but I still love the nostalgia of the entire thing.

We then spent the day between Shaun's aunt's house and my aunt's house. We continued the festivities with college football watching at Ryan & Kristen's, dinner at my parents' house with family friends on Saturday & dinner at Shaun's parent's house on Sunday. It was a long, but delicious & fun one! Here are some pics which capture our Thanksgiving weekend...

My round 2 dinner:

Jake...

Rocky...

<3 my sisters...

Christine & me in a post-dinner food malaise...

Dessert...yep, that's my plate...

My Chloe dog, still kickin' at 15 years...

So that's how we spent the weekend. Eating. Drinking. Spending time with friends & family. It was great.

Now I'm sad to say buh bye to Thanksgiving, but excited to bring on Christmas! We will be decorating and putting up our tree this coming weekend. I am so ready for holiday music, movies, hot cocoa and cookie baking. Eeeeee, I'm giddy just thinking about it! For me, Christmas starts directly after Thanksgiving weekend...today!

Have a great week everyone!

Questions of the Day:

How was your Thanksgiving weekend?

Any Black Friday shoppers?

When do you segue into the holiday season?