Sung in your best Adele voice: hellllllllo, it’s me.

Long time, no talk friends!

First, I want to say that I am horrified by the disgusting events that happened in Charlottesville this weekend. It was especially hard for me to watch such bigotry and hatred occur in a place that is very near and dear to my heart. I’m still hurting over this one.

Second, I hope everyone has had a good week since we last caught up. I apologize for the radio silence—last week was probably the craziest week of my year yet! On top of a happy hour of some sort after work every night last week—woof, I can’t hang like I used to—I also moved into my new apartment, which brings me to my first update for you. So, let’s just dive in, shall we?

MY NEW APARTMENT /

I’m all moved into my new apartment which is completely mine! I’ve never lived alone before and am really excited. It’s been about three days, but I’m loving it so far! I’m sure there will be ups and downs, and once I have some more experience under my belt about flying solo, I’ll be sure to share my thoughts.

I have to say, I got really lucky with this move. I had the foresight to pack most of my things before all the fun stuff started happening last week, and while it wasn’t super fun to live with all those boxes, the prep really paid off. I picked up the keys to my new place on Friday afternoon after work, enjoyed it for a couple of minutes, and then got right to moving. I had loaded up my car the night before with smaller or delicate items I didn’t want to trust movers with and made a couple of trips to get everything in. I then went back to my old place, loaded up another car load of stuff, and then hit Target—for the first of four times that weekend, I might add. (Someone, PLEASE, cut up my Red Card.)

On Saturday morning, I woke up bright and early to finish packing all the items I was using up until that last moment and then let my parents into the old place. It was so nice to have their help for the day—one large benefit of having family close by! I hired professional movers for my furniture—local folks, I can’t recommend A-Anytime Movers enough—and they showed up right on time. It took us about three hours to load everything up at the old place and get it into the new place. Their help was worth every penny and nothing was broken or damaged!

So I could feel settled immediately, I also scheduled my Verizon Fios installation for that afternoon and the tech came early (!). I also scheduled the delivery of my couch for the same afternoon. I am so happy with the one I selected—and so grateful to have somewhere comfortable to sit again while watching television and blogging!

I spent the rest of the weekend sorting through boxes and bags, hanging art, and enjoying a house warming wine night with my BFF Molly. I took Monday night to myself—no exercise classes, no blogging, no work—and am finally starting to feel settled. I have several design projects to work on and then I’ll be sure to do a full apartment tour for you—I’ll try to snap some sneak peeks this weekend though!

SUMMER + LATER TRAVEL /

I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to travel to some really fun and beautiful places this summer—Miami, Charleston, Palm Beach, Savannah. I love being on the go, exploring new places, and seeing how others live their daily lives. However, it has been really nice to have last few weeks at home before going on what seems like the “second leg” of my summer travel.

Next weekend Molly and I are off on a romantic trip for two to Virginia Beach—hah! I went to an event hosted by Virginia Beach here in DC back in March. It was a cold, rainy night and I didn’t really want to go, but decided to go for whatever reason. I’m glad I did because I ended up winning a free three-night stay on the oceanfront! I invited Molly to tag along and am excited to make the trip back to the 757 for the first time since 2013. I’ll be sure to recap our trip here and give real-time highlights on Instagram.

The weekend after is Labor Day and I’ll be heading to Boston for my former coworker’s wedding! I will have some free time on Saturday to explore the city, which I am excited about as I haven’t been for more than 8 hours since 2008. Definitely let me know if you have any recommendations on what to do with limited time—and especially if you have advice on where to eat.

Then, in September, Monica and I are heading to Richmond for a two-night stay at the recently renovated Jefferson Hotel, which I am so excited about! I haven’t been to Richmond since 2013, and am excited to explore this iconic hotel with my blogger bestie. Rounding out my TSA appearances this year is a newly booked trip to San Francisco in October with my good friend Emma. Please send me any and all recs! I am so excited to see the Golden Gate Bridge and the Full House house. Keeping it real, y’all ;].

ORANGE THEORY FITNESS /

Last life lately, I had just started Orange Theory Fitness. I am about three months in, and am really loving the workout. I’ve found my favorite instructors at my home studio and figured out that I like the workout best when I start on the treadmill. (I find you spend the most amount of time wherever you start, since that’s also where you do the warmup. I used to start on the row machine, but am still not the best at it, so starting there wasn’t optimizing my workout.) I think I am seeing some small results, which makes me want to keep going and getting stronger!

I also find that their weekend class times are particularly convenient as compared to other fitness studios in the area—they offer a 12:30pm class which I really enjoy because I don’t have to get up early to get there. I recently upped my membership to eight classes a month so that I could go twice a week. I’m still trying to go to spin class twice a week, too, so I’ve been in a nice exercise groove as of late—and it’s amazing how it positively impacts my ability to handle stress.

OLLY VITAMINS /

This might be my most random update yet, but I am obsessed with Olly Vitamins. I was given some at a Bethenny Frankel event a couple of years ago and never re-purchased until I did on a whim recently. I’ve noticed a significant difference in my skin brightness after starting these Vibrant Skin vitamins. I also take the Undeniable Beauty vitamins and believe they are helping my hair grow faster and keep my nails stronger amid my affinity for gel nails. The only one I’ve tried that I don’t really recommend are the Mega Omega-3 Fish Oil vitamins. Even though they are disguised by the strawberry, you can still taste the fish oil, which just makes for an overall weird taste.

That about sums it up for me—I’d love to know what’s going on in your life lately!