{Monday Meal Planning}

I don’t know about you, but figuring out what to eat/make for dinner sometimes feels like the biggest chore on the planet! Especially after a long day at work and a long commute home in the cold and dark. Sometimes we’re really good about meal planning, other times we end up grabbing soup or a sandwich at our corner grocer and calling it a night. This week we’re a little more on the ball, and I thought I’d share what we're planning on making in case you are looking for dinner inspiration like I always am! Enjoy!

Monday: Grilled Chicken Tzatziki Gyros

Tuesday: Roasted Brussel Sprouts and Soy-Glazed Salmon

Wednesday: Red Lentil Coconut Soup 

Thursday: Quinoa Veggie "Fried" Rice

Friday: Scallops on Creamy Leeks + Apple Crisp for dessert

{J.Crew Wish List}

Did you hear? J. Crew is having a 25% off + free shipping sale this weekend. I can't imagine a better way to spend a Saturday than with a little online shopping in my PJs with a cappuccino in hand. And if we're dreaming, I'd scoop up each one of these pretties below! Happy shopping!

Kelly Green Wool Coat

iPhone Case

Frenchie Sweater

Leopard Print Heels

Pink Cashmere Snood

Polka Dot Clutch

Blue Blazer

Green Printed Cords

Yellow Crossbody Bag

Pink Earrings

{Happy Friday!}

Happy happy Friday! I am so happy it’s the weekend! With Friday not only means the weekend, but some new friends for you! Feel free to peruse these amazing blogs over the next few days :) Enjoy! 

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Hello Explore.Dream.Discover readers! I'm Holly (but everyone calls me Holls) & I blog over at Little Miss Holls. I live in Liz's gorgeous hometown of Portland, Oregon & think it's the best little city there is! When I'm not working my 8-5 corporate retail gig, I'm probably knee-deep in planning my summer beach wedding, trying out a new Portland restaurant, or taking a million pictures with my camera. All of which can be found over on my blog! You can also find me on Pinterest, Twitter & Instagram. I look forward to meeting you! :)

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Hi Friends of Explore.Dream. Discover! I'm Bri, a food product developer turned full time culinary student/blogger. I split my time between beautiful Napa California and Southern California where I call home. Between my desire to eat delicious food and my pilot husband we are constantly on the move and seeking out edible and fun adventures! With the constant repetition of traveling and seeking out good eats in my life I decided to give birth to my lil blog called Travel Eat and Repeat, to pay homage to all things delicious and adventurous. My lil humble blog has a heavy emphasis on food and travel, I believe the two go hand in hand because I love learning about places through food (in my head I like to think of myself as Giada meets Sam Brown...Ahhh a girl can dream...okay back to reality). I often times will post my trials and tributes as I cook my way through one of the United States' hardest cooking schools (trust me its not a walk in the park). So if you would like some entertainment with your morning coffee head on over  to www.traveleatandrepeat.com (after your done reading Liz's Fabulous blog of course). I promise you can stay in your PJ's, but I can't promise that it won't make you hungry or give you the urge to scout Orbitz for your next adventure! Cheers to hopefully becoming Blog-ends (blog friends...okay I'm a dork)!

{Holiday Plans}

Hi There! Sorry for the absence this week. My work schedule has been a little weird

and last night I met up with some friends in honor of halloween.

Also, apparently the hard drive on my computer is full, so I haven't been able to

upload photos from my trip home or this past weekend. So, that leaves me with less posting material.

But then I thought, it's actually been an exciting week!

Apparently I'm ready for Christmas because this week I've ordered our Christmas cards, ordered a custom stamp to make addressing those puppies easier (and cuter!), andddd the most exciting of all...

We booked a gorgeous Swiss chalet for the week of Christmas!

Since I was just home in August and October, it seemed silly to go back again for the holidays. 

(We were going to go on this trip, but it turned out to be a logistical nightmare)

We are going to miss our family like crazy, so to make ourselves feel better we decided we would stay here to celebrate our very first Christmas all on our own:

 Now all I can think about is being in this gorgeous chalet with Corey. 

Sitting by the fire reading books, listening to Christmas music, watching Christmas movies, drinking hot chocolate, cooking comfort food, and staring out at the gorgeous view we have of the Swiss Alps. Pinch me!

And of course, I'll need some cute and cozy new things to fit in with our pretty chalet, right? I'm ready to press purchase on these pieces from ASOS (if only I hadn't spent all my money on the rental...)!

Knit Slouchy Sweater

Extra Long Funnel Knit Snood 

Fur Cossack Hat

Ugg Gloves

{Happy Friday + More Friends}

Happy Friday everyone! I must say that this week absolutely flew by. Unfortunately I'm having a hard time getting over my jet lag so I've been getting little sleep and feeling a bit zombie-ish.

This weekend I have a few fun things planned. Tonight, we're going out for curry + beer with a bunch of friends (apparently it's a British thing?), Saturday I'm treating myself to a facial (ah, can't wait!!) and Sunday I am heading apple picking with the girls! The weather forecast looks perfectly fall - chilly but clear - and the leaves are changing and falling all around us. This is definitely one of my most favorite times of the year so I plan on soaking it all up. Hope you have something fun planned for the weekend!

If you're cozied up at home this weekend and need some new reads, check out these awesome ladies! You might already know them, but if you don't, you will be so excited to add them to your list of daily reads. Enjoy!

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Hello, friends of Liz! I'm Betsy, an American re/expat. That means I split my time between Washington, DC (where I grew up and where I'm officially living now) and London, where I studied and worked for three out of the past four years.  Stop by Betsy Transatlantically to read about how I try to keep one foot in the US and the other in the UK - of course, it helps that I'm in the middle of planning my wedding to my handsome English fiancé, which will be celebrated in the deepest countryside near the North Sea!  You'll also find a bit of style, cooking, and politics on the blog, plus a dash of humor and the lessons I'm learning as the #1 girlfriend of my new Labrador puppy, Charlie.  Can't wait to meet you over there - and, in the meantime, you can get to know me on Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram!

Hi Liz's friends! I'm Amanda and I blog from beautiful Okinawa, mostly about cooking, travel and life abroad. I lead a simple life out here {big change from working in Washington, DC!} and am so grateful for it. I love to ride my bike to the neighborhood farmer's market and create beautiful & yummy meals with fresh ingredients. Some of my favorites I've created this season are Pumpkin Ravioli with Brown Butter, Rosemary & Thyme, and Cinnamon & Spice Pumpkin Pancakes with Homemade Whipped Cream. I'm looking forward to saying hello to you {or konnichiwa...}! (:

{Meghan + Jeff via iPhone}

I wanted to share some iPhone snaps from the wedding I was in last week. I’ll post more about the wedding when I share the “real” photos, but what I’ll say now is this wedding was a true testament to Meghan and how unbelievably creative and detail-oritented she is. This would’ve been an impressive fete to plan no matter what, but knowing she has a full-time job and a small baby at home made this even more extraordinary. I was so honored to be a part of Meghan + Jeff’s big day and couldn’t be happier for them! Can’t wait to share more!!

{Salzburg, Austria // Mirabell Gardens}

I made it back to Amsterdam! While I fight my jet lag, I thought I'd share some eye candy with you. I'm still catching up on travel posts from this summer - crazy, right?! 

You may remember back in July my brother and sister-in-law came to visit Amsterdam. We took a trip to Munich together and did a few day trips from there. Salzburg was one of them! It was our first time in Austria and it made me so excited to go back in December. What a stunning place!

We didn't go to Salzburg with much of a plan other than to just stroll around and check out the city. We just happened upon the Mirabell Gardens and I am so glad we did because they ended up being my absolute favorite part of the city! Everything was so perfectly manicured and breathtakingly beautiful - I could've spent our entire day there!

{Photos ©  Liz Denfeld}