candlelit autumn nights

♥ i visited fairhope during the first weekend of october and spent some time with my parents. the weekend included an early birthday dinner with my grandparents, hanging out at fly creek cafe with mom and dad, and saturday lunch with my grandmother and brother. i hadn't been home in a while and i had a really relaxing weekend, only to return to, you guessed it, crazy things to do! i won't get into all the work i've had to do - just trust me, it's lots. but aside from that, i've been enjoying the change in weather, even though it's minimal. it's getting into the 40s at night!

♥ last week i went to birmingham and tried flip burger, and was pleasantly surprised. the whole concept is a "gourmet" selection of burgers - shrimp burgers, lamb burgers, and of course, the basic beef. i'm not really sure what i was expecting, but it surpassed my expectations. because of course, let's face it, gourmet burgers are right up my alley anyway. they put dry ice in their cocktails, which was sort of unnerving... but i'm alive, so i guess it's alright. i wish the summit weren't the only place around "these parts" with a chic array of eateries to choose from (check out my foodie speak...)

♥ sooooo... i got a starbucks card. this has been a long time coming. i've also learned to enjoy paying with my card via passbook, thanks to iOS 6. the starbucks card makes me feel special, but it also makes my marketing senses tingle. sometimes i hate buying into little gimmicks (like this) that really don't provide astounding returns for my unwavering loyalty, but regardless, i like aspiring to being a "gold member". see, it even has a nice ring to it. meredith, the gold member at starbucks.


♥ i turned 22 on the 13th. 22 is not an exciting age, it just means i'm one year older and closer to graduating. just a few of my birthday goodies - a new ID holder for my keys, a pumpkin buttercream (!!!) candle, a nintendo 64 (+ zelda ocarina of time, pokemon snap & mario 64) from my sweet boyfriend, beautiful flowers, a bracelet from bauble bar & a new watch! i have been dying to have a nostalgia fest and play the game console from my glory days - i'm already in love with zelda all over again, it's quite literally one of the most fantastic games ever created in my opinion.

♥ i carved a pumpkin! corey, charla and i got to work on saturday night carving pumpkins - it had been years since i'd done it and it was super fun. i love fall. speaking of which, i've got a fall baking list that keeps getting bigger that i need to tackle soon!