it was such a beautiful day. such a gorgeous, sunny, warm, perfect day in september. as the days become shorter and cooler, i revel in rare days like these when the temperature and weather is just right. plus, this was literally the last days of summer…’cause today is the first day of fall!

i met dana at our favorite place {southport grocery} and we brunched alfresco. the sun was so intense, i loved it. we caught up on life’s current happenings. there is always so much going on with dana {lately} due to the fact that she is getting married next year and there is always something super exciting happening.

i definitely remember that time in our lives when we were engaged. it was so much fun, exhilarating, and joyous. there were always such positive vibes coming our way. we loved the parties, the people, the attention, the love that went along with being engaged!

anyhoo, we enjoyed our meal and banter while we basked in the sun. after brunch, dana needed to complete a few errands and per usual, we did them together. we headed on over to papersource to peruse a few gift items and in typical fashion, i purchased waaaayyyyy too many cards. i absolutely love stocking up on cards. birthday cards, christmas cards, wedding cards, thank you cards…you name it, i stock it. if you ever need a card, just stop on by. haha!

[mmmmm, refreshing iced coffee]

[hi dana…you’re the best]

[my usual, the southern]

a last minute thought i had was to get our nails done! sweet! dana was game and so i made some last minute appointments at a nail salon i have been to. the nail bar that i frequented often was actually on southport. the lovely place was bought out to put in bigger retailers {boo!} and the techs relocated to different locations. i found out my tech had relocated to a shop just down the street, so that is now the nail place i go to but getting an appointment with her is always a tough task!

well, she was booked that day, so i had to, unfortunately, go with someone else and let me tell you! this nail tech was alright. she was a little rough and that was no bueno. in the end, my tootsies were done and i was a happy camper. dana and i managed to pick out the same nail color {without knowing}. if you know dana and i by now, we tend to show up in similar outfits, so picking out the same nail colors was a given! ha!

[give me some color]

[selfie at the nail salon]

[we chose pinks. my pedi and her mani and some bling]

after a relaxing time at the nail salon, we headed out to a bookstore where dana needed to do an errand. we perused the wonderful items on the shelves. my favorite section was the kid’s book area. i loved reading as a child and i hope the same for olive. kids books nowadays are so cute, cool, and chic. yes, they are! dana gifted olive with the cutest book ever too! i must say, this girl knows a good, perfect, hit the nail on the head kind of gift to give. she is always on point.

[boys town chicago]

after several wonderful hours together, we parted ways. dana walked home and i headed back to go see my beautiful babe. it was a lovely, serene, relaxing day together. a much needed time to spend with my dear friend.

xoxo