Today’s post will be brief – I’m in Blacksburg for my sister’s wedding(!!!) and we have a lot to do.

Last week was Sam Rogers Week for Hokie fans. Andy Bitter of the Roanoke Times wrote this great piece about him prior to Saturday’s game against UVA.  Then, as if it were a movie, Sam had a fantastic day on Saturday that merited another story. It makes me happy when the Lord so clearly shows His kindness to His children.

Why We’re Obsessed with “This Is Us” – insightful Washington Post article by Russell Moore.

In case you were wondering, I ended up making the pie I wrote about in my last Friday Finds post — twice.  And it was delicious.

Pecan Praline Baked Brie – now I’m looking for an excuse to try this one.

Lastly, I just bought myself a Christmas present with the Christmas money I don’t have yet! Zulily had a special on these Rachael Ray hard-anodized pots and pans and I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to buy them at 75% off! Don’t need to wait for a wedding registry to have nice things.

Have a lovely weekend, everyone. I know I will.

This week’s post might be a boring one. I apologize in advance.

For Readers:

7 Books That Changed My Life by Russell Moore – of the books on this list, I’ve only read Mere Christianity, and that was a long time ago.  These are all going on my “To Read” list.

The 2016 National Book Award winners were announced this week. The fiction and nonfiction winners, The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead and Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America by Ibram X. Kendi, have both been on my “To Read” list for a while. I need to bump them to the top!

Side note: I’ve been thinking about my 2017 reads lately. In my quest to read 100 books a year I’ve been a bit unfocused in planning what I read. Next year I want to plan out my reading a little better (ie., at all).  I have so many books in my house that I’ve been meaning to read for months – they will be my first priority.

For Fun:

Check out this quiz: Which Hogwarts House do you belong in based on your Gilmore Girls preferences? I must say I’ve never read or watched any of the Harry Potter series (I know, I know). I got Slytherin, so somebody tell me what that means about me. Thanks.

I really want to get my dog this Lion Mane Costume from Amazon. He would hate it, but it would be so cute. Maybe Christmas.

I have no Thanksgiving cooking or baking responsibilities this year but that hasn’t stopped me from spending way too much time looking up pie recipes. If I were baking a pie next week, it would be this Maple Apple Pie with Walnut Crumble Topping.

And finally, how cute are these two?

I look forward to spending the holidays with these darlings.

A couple links of reactions to Tuesday’s election.  My heart is heavy and I’m struggling to articulate it. I’m slowly writing a post that I may or may not share…we’ll see.

What the Exit Polls Reveal About America

Victories That Will Never Satisfy – this is written by the husband of a dear college friend.

And on to lighter things, because that is what we all need right now.

These are the conversations I have with my students and it’s why I love my job, even during the harder  years.

My sweet sister is getting married three weeks from tomorrow! You can view Amy and DeWayne’s engagement photos here. I cannot wait to stand next to her while she pledges her life to best guy for her.

And finally, I just read this amazing blog post about a little girl who was recently adopted. Our God is one who works miracles of all kinds. Check it out! 

This is the last Friday before the Presidential election! The ads and the idiocy will [maybe] be over! #canIgetanAmen

It’s also my sister Heidi’s 25th birthday –woohoo!

Are You Taking the False First Step? This post is so challenging and convicting.  How many times have I invested money into a new initiative or goal before actually doing the work? This advice is so good: Build the habit before spending the money.  My (broken) FitBit immediately comes to mind.  “Don’t let buying something be the action you take towards accomplishing your goal.”

The Gone Girl with the Dragon Tattoo on the Train – this was so interesting to me.  “A number of patterns emerged in our analysis: The ‘girl’ in the title is much more likely to be a woman than an actual girl, and the author of the book is more likely to be a woman. But if a book with ‘girl’ in the title was written by a man, the girl is significantly more likely to end up dead.”  Side note: I’m currently reading The Woman in Cabin 10.

Any other Hamilton fans out there? It was just announced yesterday that “The Hamilton Mixtape” is coming soon. Pre-orders begin today, and I personally can’t wait. My favorite song in the musical is “It’s Quiet Uptown” and I’m excited to hear Kelly Clarkson sing it. I’m pretty sure Usher’s version of “Wait For It” will be memorable, too.

Finally, since my one and only regular reader has asked for an update, I’ll share some more about Blue Apron.  I’m 2/3 of the way through my second week of meals and I am most definitely a fan.  This works for me — the two person/3 meal plan provides me with all of my dinners for a week, so all I have to buy is eggs and coffee for breakfast, and salad fixings or hummus and pitas for lunch.  The impact on my grocery budget is negligible.  What I’ve noticed is that I have far less food to throw away, since Blue Apron sends me exactly what I need for the recipe (example: 2oz of baby kale for last night’s dinner, so the other 6oz that I would have had to buy at Kroger don’t get wasted).  It also allows me more variety in a weekly menu, since I have yet to figure out how to make a meal that serves fewer than 8 people (thanks, Mom). I will be the first to admit this type of meal service won’t work for everyone (or probably any super picky or nonadventurous eater – this week includes beets, cranberries, farro, kale, collard greens, and saffron) but I love it.

It’s coming! I will definitely be having a Gilmore Girls marathon on Black Friday.  No shopping for me! Netflix put out an official trailer this week and you can watch it here.

A beautiful rendition of “Hallelujah” from Pentatonix here. I’ve listened to this quite a bit the last few days.

If you aren’t watching NBC’s new show “This is Us”, you are missing out. It is my favorite show on TV right now. The first five episodes are still available to watch if you want to catch up.  Seriously, I laugh and cry and feel good about humanity every Tuesday night.

This is Not a Day Care – this was written about a year ago by Dr. Everett Piper, President of Oklahoma Wesleyan University, but is still so relevant today.  I just read it for the first time this morning after hearing Piper on Eric Metaxas’s podcast this week.  What is wrong with the world? The episode can be found here, and you’ll want to listen to October 26, hour 2. I am so thankful to have attended Grove City College – where faith and freedom have always mattered.  For those of you who don’t know, Grove City does not accept any federal funding for education and therefore is not obligated to abide by the arbitrary and capricious mandates of every “Dear Colleague” letter.  Hearing what’s been going on lately makes me want to give Grove City even more of my money.  Have mercy.

Enjoy your weekend, y’all.

And I’m back with some of the best things I’ve found this week.

Some political humor: Trump Book Report.  This hashtag might be the only thing good in politics this week.  I loved it.

I tried Blue Apron for the first time this week.  The two meals I’ve made so far were AMAZING.  I’m making the third tonight.  This week’s menu was Caramelized Onion & Kale Quiches with Frisee and Pear Salad, Pan-Seared Chicken with roasted honeynut squash and apple, and spiced pork burgers with pickled beets & cone cabbage slaw.  I am now seriously considering getting it more often.  I’ve gotten into a rut with meals lately and the 2-person, three meal plan covers all of my dinners for a week! It also gives me variety and no leftover waste, something that happens a lot.  I do think it could even save me money in the long run.  Consider me a fan.

I love this video of the Virginia Tech football team singing “Tech Triumph” after their win over Miami last night.  Oh the joy of sport! And I am pleasantly surprised that they actually knew the words.

Lastly, I just want to say how excited I am for tomorrow. It’s the Saturday since the school year started with NOTHING on the calendar. I am so pumped! I plan to sleep in as late as I can, drink lots of coffee, read Hillbilly Elegy, and listen to Johnnyswim’s new album on repeat. I hope whatever your plans are for the weekend you are as happy with yours as I am with mine. 🙂

Happy Friday!

Here are a few things I’ve “found” to share this week…Actually, these first two I found last week, but forgot to post before I got on the train last week.

Beware the Instagram Bible – great thoughts from Jen Wilkin.  I am working through her Hebrews Bible Study right now and appreciate her approach to studying Scripture.

Three Questions to Ask Before Quitting Your Church – this is so good.

…Now for new finds…

I went to NYC last week to visit a dear college friend and wish I’d seen these articles prior to my trip — Bookstores of Manahattan and Bookstore Tours of New York.  Laura and Adam actually live close to a few of these shops and I did happen upon and walked through both Westsider Used and Rare Books and Book Culture on my Sunday stroll.  I would have loved to see the Strand, had I known about it.  Alas, it’s probably better that I didn’t, because I had a tightly packed bag and did not need any excess weight to carry home 🙂

How Evan McMullin Could Win the Presidency – I had not heard of Evan McMullin until yesterday.  I am ashamed.  But he’s on the ballot in Virginia and he may end up with my vote.

Lastly, if you haven’t tried Starbucks’s chile mocha, you need to get one ASAP.

 

 

It’s been a dreary, rainy week but temps have finally started to come down and feel fall-ish so I can’t complain!

I hope to do a little decorating this weekend and thought this article had some cute and rather easy ideas.  I really love the plum front door.

My FabFitFun fall box arrived this week and it may be the best one yet.

This eyeshadow palette alone is worth the box.  The colors go on so smoothly and the brush is soft.

If you want spoilers – you can see everything in the box here!  Personally, I like to be surprised each quarter.

Finally, if you aren’t watching NBC’s This is Us, you should be.

In an attempt to post more often I thought I’d begin by adding something easy to write.

On Fridays, I will share things I’ve found or appreciated during the week, likely a random selection of articles, podcast episodes, links, recipes and/or products.

Here goes nothing 🙂

51 Most Beautiful Sentences in Literature – there are some great lines in here; some that I’ve read and some I haven’t.

I made this Maple Bacon Cinnamon Roll Cake last night. I haven’t tasted it yet but I think it’s going to be delicious!  I also made these Pumpkin Bars with Brown Sugar Frosting and they are so good!

I just received my shipping notice for my 2017 Planner! I used inkWell Press this year and love it! Their 2017 updates make me very excited.  For $10 off your own planner, use this link 🙂

And lastly, I’ve really enjoyed these two podcasts lately: Hamilton the Podcast is great for all you Hamilton/history nerds and Broadway fans alike! Robbie and Vinton break down a different song each episode and highlight nuances that a casual soundtrack listener might not know.  It’s awesome!  Also, Real Crime Profile has been highlighting some of our most compelling crimes in recent history.  They are currently discussing the JonBenet Ramsey case (two of the hosts also produced the CBS documentary that airs Sunday and Monday), but recently highlighted the OJ Simpson trial, the Colonial Parkway Killer, and Oscar Pistorius’s trial.  It’s interesting and informative.

What have you found lately? Share in the comments!