Happy Monday! Who else experienced their first true fall weekend of the year this weekend?

Though it was rainy and gray here in the Mid-Atlantic, this weekend was definitively no longer summer when judging by the thermometer. My coworkers and I ended up a the hotel bar near our office as we have done the past few Fridays, which is a great way to kick off the weekend. On Saturday, I slept in without an alarm for the first time in forever, which is seriously one of the best treats. I rounded out the rest of the day with some much-needed Chick Fil A at my parents house and a margarita-filled birthday night for a great friend. Sunday was spent tending to things at home crossing things off my to-do list and getting ready for the week ahead.

Looking ahead to the rest of October, there are some fun things on the calendar. A weekend in Charlottesville for UVA’s Homecoming and plenty of excuses to hit the Albemarle-area vineyards, another weekend in Charlottesville to see Carrie Underwood with my sister, and hopefully I find an orchard or pumpkin patch one of these weekends to really get in the spirit of autumn.

Regardless of what I’m doing away from home this month, you can bet I’ll have the Vera Bradley Lydia Satchel with me. Seriously y’all, this is the best medium size bag. The strap is long enough that you can wear it as a cross body if desired or you can swing it right over your shoulder like I did here. Inside, instead of having one large pocket where you can’t keep track of anything, it has a divider to create two separate spaces. There’s also a zip pocket on the back in case you need quick access to anything, like your cell phone or credit card. If you left Vera Bradley behind in middle school, now’s the time to jump back on the bandwagon—no paisley required, unless of course, you want it! Definitely check out their new arrivals because they are on point and the quality of their products is unparalleled.

Now that we’ve got the easy part out of the way—the perfect accessory—let’s talk about how hard it is to dress for fall. In the morning, it’s chilly. By high noon, you no longer need a jacket. Yet, come dinnertime, it’s chilly again. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to leave the house with a change of clothes or 50,000 extra pieces to carry with me throughout the day.

I picked up this J Crew Factory Striped Dress last spring—you may remember it from this post. They no longer sell this exact version, but they have a similar one you can snag here. What I love about this dress in particular is that it’s thick enough fabric you don’t need a jacket and it’s simple enough—#stripes #blessed—you can throw your favorite blanket scarf on top of it for those chillier moments, but strip it off the scarf when the sun starts warming things up.

And if you haven’t picked up a pair of Sam Edelman Petty Booties yet, drop what you’re doing and take care of that now. They come in all different colors—I own two pairs and am picking up a third this season—and are so comfy. Cute with jeans, cute with dresses, cute with skirts—these booties will be workhorses in your closet from now to March. Trust me on this.

I know I talk a lot about hating the cold weather here on TOT, and as much as I complain about cooler temps, I actually do love fall—I just dread winter more than most ;].I recently stumbled across this post about fall, and thought it was a great way to wrap up our post today and give you some food for thought this Monday:

“The soul needs autumn. Let what’s dead fall. Let the wind sweep it up and blow it away. Your colors are changing; it’s so beautiful. Don’t be sad it was a part of you and now is gone. Some things have to die. It’s their season. You can’t hold on. This is your season to let it all fall. Shed what’s dead. Be free, stand tall. There will be a time to bloom again.”

*** SHOP THIS POST ***
Vera Bradley Lydia Satchel c/o
J Crew Factory Striped Dress—similar here
Sam Edelman Petty Booties
Michael Kors Chronograph Watch
Plaid Blanket Scarf
Ray Ban Original Aviators
Revlon Lustrous Spicy Cinnamon Lipstick
OPI Big Apple Red

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Photos by Rosa