So, remember when I was SO excited to start a blog, and document all of the adventures of a newly engaged girl with a full-time job, a new puppy, and a new apartment?

Yeah, I don’t know what I was thinking.

🙂 To say I’ve been a little busy is an understatement. It seems like just yesterday that Chris and I got engaged, and it’s been one heck of a fun journey for both planning and trying to keep each other sane… and we’re more than excited to share our lives with one another. Many people have asked me how “married life” is going, and I can honestly say not that much has changed, but we’re still just as much in love with each other (if not more!) than when we first started dating.

You’d think that after being back from the honeymoon, I’d be adjusted to a normal sleeping and eating schedule, but nah. The post-honeymoon struggle is so real. That, and I’m desperately missing the all-inclusive amenities, and constantly being surrounded by sunshine and palm trees.

We stayed at Couples Tower Isle (which is, fun fact, the first all-inclusive resort in Jamaica) and we cannot speak highly enough of the accommodations, service, food and beverage, and overall experience. They’re a top-notch resort and we WILL be going back.

Now it’s officially fall (aka it’s-still-the-same-temperature-in-Texas-but-we’re-still-excited), and we’re ready for everything fall-related; All things orange, spooky, and pumpkin. And it’s okay to admit that you’re obsessed with PSLs…. I’m actually not one that likes them, but I am indeed married to someone who does…

**PSA – Did you know that the four seasons aren’t capitalized (not the band… the four seasons that us Texans don’t really get to see… summer, fall, winter, and spring), unless they are in the name of an event, a title, or at the beginning of a sentence? Makes no sense, but you know… the English language really doesn’t. **

 

“Few of My Favorite Things” Friday

A trip to At Home for fall decor
Right when I think I have enough decor for fall and/or Halloween, I realize I don’t. The wreath and the doormat in the photo below were both under $15 each! Also, sign-up for At Home emails, and you’ll periodically receive coupons and discounts (I used a 15% off my total with a birthday coupon!)

Cinnamon Roll K-cups
Y’all. We’re officially part of the Keurig family. I honestly don’t know what we did before the Keurig life, other than spend a few extra minutes making coffee every weekend because I didn’t have the patience for it in the mornings before work, but we’re loving it. We received the K-Café™ Special Edition Single Serve Coffee, Latte & Cappuccino Maker from Chris’s aunt and cousins for our wedding, and our lives have changed forever. So, naturally I went a little crazy at Target and Bed, Bath, & Beyond, and bought about seven different types of coffee. My favorite is the Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll K-cups – They’re keto (0g carbs), and I add a little bit of heavy cream and a couple pours of Sugar-Free Vanilla Torani syrup. DAY. MADE.

Hello Fresh + Green Chef
I was always curious about food delivery companies, and when Hello Fresh had a table at one of my malls, I spoke with a rep about the program. I ended up signing up for Green Chef, which is the keto “branch” of Hello Fresh. You can setup your delivery frequency however you’d like – once a month, once a week, every other week, or heck, maybe even just once every 4 months. It’s completely customizable based on your schedule and budget. Chris and I chose the 6 serving box, which is 3 meals for 2 people, and we have it delivered to our door every other week. Best part: Prior to delivery, you can actually select the meals. Each week, there are about 7-10 recipes to look through prior to ordering, and you can select your favorites. If none of them appeal to you, you can skip that week, and look at next week’s (you can schedule and select from meals up to 6 weeks ahead of time.) You can even skip weeks that you know you’ll be on vacation, or ones in which you just don’t want a delivery. You’ll never be charged unless you receive the meal. No memberships costs or fees!

I’m not exaggerating when I say that the meals are DELICIOUS. The instructions are very easy to follow, and Chris and I love getting to spend quality time together, listening to some music (with some occasional dancing and goofing around) and prepping a yummy, healthy dinner.

The screenshot above is this week’s selections (the Roasted Fennel-Cumin Shrimp is our absolute favorite). All of the dishes are in a good rotation, so you’re less likely to repeat meals, which is cool if you’re wanting to try it all!

Want a $55 off your first order??? Sign up with my link below (and enjoy!):

https://greenchef.com/invite/icFN5O

Pandora Premium
I’m a big fan of my Spotify Premium account (I have a Spotify/Hulu bundle for $9.99 that’s unfortunately no longer available to new sign-ups), and I am constantly building my song library and curating playlists, as well as listening to ones created by other users. I’ve recently been all about Pandora because I can just set it as my background music and I just set it and forget it… However, the ads drive me absolutely bananas SO I found a 3-Month Pandora Premium Groupon for $0.00 (yes, it’s free), and you just have to enter your payment info at the time of “purchase.” Then, if you don’t want to continue with the Premium Account, cancel before the 3 months is up! It’s $9.99/month if you decide not to cancel. & boom.

Here’s the link for the Groupon listing: (Note: You cannot already have an existing account with Pandora, it has to be a new account/one with another email address)

https://www.groupon.com/deals/pandora-37

Bring on the holiday tunes!!!  But not until after November 28th… You’re welcome, Thanksgiving.

NEW Shoes – Great Bargain!
One of the bloggers I follow posted a photo of some shoes a while back, and I just couldn’t get them out of my mind. Not only were they cute, but they were super affordable  ($16.99!) at Wal-Mart. Yup, Wallyworld has definitely stepped-up their game when it comes to a higher quality clothing and accessories with their Time and Tru line.

So, naturally, I went to Wal-Mart and made a beeline for the shoe aisles. Not only did I treat myself to those (COMFY!) beauties, I bought another comfy pair of Champion sneakers for $9.99. FOR TENNIS SHOES. Shoutout to my cousin Kelli for rockin’ them at our family reunion, and basically convincing me that I needed them! And did I REALLY need this much more leopard in my life. Why, yes I did. Thank you for asking!

Morphe Makeup Palettes
Why spend so much money on Urban Decay palettes when you can have several Morphe palettes for the same price?! Don’t get me wrong – I still love my Urban Decay palettes, but I’ve recently fallen in-love with Morphe, which I purchase at Ulta, both in-store and online. My fabulous makeup artists for the wedding, the boss babes that own Shear Thairapy in Colleyville, made all of the ladies in our wedding absolutely beautiful with a combination of several colors and Morphe palettes. I recently purchased the 25A Copper Spice eyeshadow palette, and it’s AMAZING. It comes with 25 colors, and it’s only $19! The highly-pigmented copper shades make my blue eyes pop, and I love experimenting with all of the color combos. This is deffffinitely the first of many Morphe palettes to add to my collection. Next up: The Morphe x Jaclyn Hill collaboration palette *insert praise hands emoji*

Check it out here: Ulta – Morphe Palette

Enneagrams – “The Road Back to You”

My bestie Ashton actually introduced me to the Enneagram Personality Test, which is basically a faith-based personality identifier, similar to Myers-Briggs, but better… and on a deeper, more spiritual level! I had taken several Enneagram tests online, but none of them were accurate representations of my personality, and the outcomes were definitely skewed based on my mood that day… or lack of caffeine. Ashton told me about “The Road Back To You” by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stable, and it breaks down every number, each ones’ positive and negative characteristics, provides a window into what makes other numbers tick, and how to live in harmony with other numbers. It’s honestly a surprisingly humorous read, and absolutely enlightening. It’s a MUST-read – You won’t regret it.

PS. I’m a 7. And once you understand what that means, you won’t be surprised at ALL.

And clearly, the book is Ellie-approved!

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Welp, not too bad for a post that follows a looooong bought of silence. I hope to post as often as I can, and I hope you come back to read more about my random musings, an update on married life, and just to humor me by reading about recent goings-on in my crazy, beautiful not-so-boring life.

And if you actually read the entire post, or even just skimmed to the bottom, give me a shout – I’d love to know who’s reading!

Much love,

Chelsey Graham
(Has a nice RING to it, huh?)