(Just waiting for the fall temps to accompany all these fall decorations…)

 Since the tragedy in Las Vegas, TJ and I have had several conversations about the ways we want to try and change the world Harper will grow up in. While there were some very obvious ways that we chatted about, one way that kept coming up was the idea of “paying it forward….”

When I graduated from college, part of the closing comments was a quote from Desmond TuTu which read, “Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.” Since, those words have always been with me. I used it as the theme for my graduate school application essay, and have always felt that doing a random act of kindness here and there goes a long way….

TJ shared with me that he had actually started doing it throughout the week… small gestures, such as paying for the person after him in the Starbuck’s drive through… and putting a few extra dollars on a gift card at a coffee shop and leaving it for the barista to use for the next few customers. I’ve had someone do the same for me, and I remember feeling overwhelmed by the small act of kindness. I found myself remembering it throughout the day, and “paying it forward” myself….

I guess I share this because we never really know the magnitude of our actions on an individual, both positive and negative. Those very small acts of kindness can have a profound impact on someone’s life…. and when those add up, hopefully it can make for a softer world for little miss and all her little friends out there. So, as we head into the week ahead, our little family does so with the intent of paying it forward in small ways. Have a good one friends! xx

(A flutter sleeve top to weather the heat wave…)

(Patio goals at a favorite breakfast spot- Juice Served Here)

(Favorite post-spin breakfast…. garden avocado toast… always with a runny egg….)

(Saturday morning spin dates….)

(Harper’s baptism…. she lived up to her firecracker personality during it… you know what I mean if you saw the instastories! my dress, my booties, Harper’s dress)
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This weekend ended up being fairly indulgent, with all the celebrations we had, so it’s back to clean eating and working out this week. Tone It Up is starting a 21 day fall challenge, would love to know if any of you are doing it too?? We also had a delicious brunch on Sunday after Harper’s baptism and my mom made this “skinny” pumpkin bread (without the pepitas)… it was seriously so good. Not one piece was left.

I didn’t even realize that today was Columbus Day…. and with that, some pretty good sales! Abercrombie is having 40% off the entire store. A few pieces that I am loving include this long sleeve shirt dress (in the mauve color), short marled cardigan, sleeveless suede dress (obsessed with this style for fall…), puff sleeve sweater, cable sweater dress, and this velvet tee.

LOFT is also having a huge sale and some of my favorites are included like this ribbed grey sweater (size up for it to fit like it does on the model, it runs small), ruffled sleeve sweatshirt, sleeveless coatigan (one of my favorite pieces for fall), and this longline open cardigan in white. 

And one last good sale is at J.Crew… everything is currently 30% off. I’m in love with this graphic sweatshirt, lace-up tunic sweatshirt, and this oversized v-neck sweater (in the rust color… so gorgeous for fall).

Some other favorite items I have my eye on, but that aren’t on sale, include this furry hooded jacket, slouchy pullover, sleeveless turtleneck sweater (great for those transitional fall days), hooded duster cardigan, cable knit pullover (just got it and love it!), gorgeous cabled off the shoulder sweater, and this basic pullover knit (which comes in several color options, I bought in a couple to decide which I like best). Oh, and how gorgeous is this velvet cami?

I also have my eye on a new pair of booties… and this navy pair is at the top of my list.