A Blonde's Moment

Labor Day Weekend Sales & Back to School Q&A

September 4, 2017 by Rachel McCarthy

Happy Labor Day, friends! I hope you all are enjoying the long holiday weekend. Just a quick post today to share a few of the Labor Day sales with you and a fun Back to School Q&A at the end. Have a great and safe rest of the holiday!

Ann Taylor: 50% off full-priced items & an additional 50% off sale styles now through 9/5 at 3am EST

Banana Republic: 40% off everything now through 9/5

BaubleBar: Additional 20% off sale through 9/4

H&M: Up to 30% off & free shipping now through 9/4

J.Crew: 30% off select items with code YESPLEASE now through 9/4

J.Crew Factory: 50% off everything plus an additional 50% off clearance with code DELISH now through 9/5

Nordstrom: Up to 40% off now through 9/10

Sole Society: Up to 60% off select styles now through 9/4

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In honor of Labor Day weekend and back to school season, I am teaming up with my fellow bloggers over at The Blended Blog for their September Asks!

Love school or hate school? I loved school!
Start school before or after Labor Day? We always started the day after Labor Day thanks to the Canfield Fair.
Wake up: eager beaver or slow poke? Eager beaver! I’ve always been an early riser.
Favorite breakfast? Oh wow, that’s a tough one. Probably scrambled eggs.
Favorite cereal? Reese’s Puff was by far my favorite. However, I was rarely ever allowed to eat it!
School uniform or no uniform? No uniform.
New outfit for first day? Of course!
Walk to school or ride the bus? I lived pretty close to my schools so my mom or dad would drop me off. However, depending on the year, I did ride the bus too!
Backpack, tote or messenger bag? I started with the traditional backpack, but by high school I migrated to the messenger bag.
Eat school lunch or pack lunch? Packed lunch, unless it was Baked Potato Bar day in the cafeteria. I loved that!
Remember the little milk cartons? White or chocolate? I wasn’t allowed to drink chocolate milk at home, so if I would get milk at school, it would definitely be chocolate!
Paper bag or lunch box? Lunch box, that was almost always pink.
Favorite thing to do at recess? Four Square! Anyone else remember this?
Favorite back to school supply item? Pens and pencils. I still have a pen addiction today!
Chalkboard or dry erase board? Dry erase board most of the time. Some classrooms had chalkboards. I was never a fan of the chalkboards, especially the sound they make!!
Regular pencil or mechanical? Mechanical. With spare lead in my pencil case!
Homework as soon as you got home or after dinner? It depended on when I had tennis practice, but usually in the car on my way to and from tennis.
Favorite after school snack? Anything with peanut butter. (see last Tuesday’s post!) I did love Bagel Bites but rarely had them.
Favorite after school show? When I didn’t have tennis right after school, I loved to watch Clarissa Explains it All!
Favorite school subject? Anything with history or social studies.
Least favorite school subject? MATH. It was the only thing I didn’t like about school. I dreaded that class!
Name of your best friend in high school? That’s a tough one. I had a few!
High school mascot? Canfield Cardinals!
SAT or ACT? I took both, but much preferred the ACT (for as much as you can prefer taking a standardized test!).
Favorite year in school? That’s a tough one. Probably my senior year. I was very much looking forward to moving on from small town Ohio to head to college in Pittsburgh!
Class ring or no class ring? No class ring.
Attend or not attend class reunions? Not attend.

Thanks for stopping by, friends! See you back here tomorrow for an all new easy weeknight dinner recipe!

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Shop the Post

Grey Bell Sleeve Sweater

August 31, 2017 by Rachel McCarthy

If fall is anything like this summer to fall transitioning time, my fall wardrobe is going to be pretty heavy on the sleeve show. Bell sleeves, statement sleeves, I can’t get enough! I spotted this grey bell sleeve sweater during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale and knew it had to be mine. I mean, look at the sleeves!

Styling One Jacket, Two Ways

August 30, 2017 by Rachel McCarthy

With the start of September only two days away, I am totally in a fall state of mind. Bring on the layers, jackets and autumn colors! Whether it’s dressing casually or dressed up for work, there are certain versatile pieces in my closet that I love wearing for both, especially in the fall. Today’s post is dedicated to styling one jacket, two ways.

Peanut Butter Power Bars

It’s no secret that my love for peanut butter runs pretty deep. I eat it at least once a day and I am always look for excuses to eat more. Peanut butter power bars were always my go-to snack while playing college tennis. Now, they are my favorite pre- and post-workout snack. Last weekend, my mom and I decided to remake the power bar recipe from college and switch up the ingredients. Since we lost the original recipe, it was a good excuse to create our own. As much as I loved the power bars in college, I am completely addicted to this new peanut butter power bar version.

Fall Floral Blouse

August 28, 2017 by Rachel McCarthy

It has been unseasonably cool here in the D.C. area the past few days. Very uncharacteristic for August, but I won’t complain! I spotted this fall floral blouse during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale and loved the darker colors. This weekend’s weather presented the perfect opportunity to break out the fall colors for this summer to fall transitional look.

Summer Beauty Round-up and Review

August 24, 2017 by Rachel McCarthy

With summer nearing it’s end, I wanted to round-up and review some of the beauty products I have been trying out for the past few months. There are a few things that I have been absolutely loving recently and some products that have been just alright. From makeup to skincare to hair products, here is a summer beauty round-up and review!

Weeknight Summer Dinner with al fresco

As summer is quickly coming to an end, one of the things I will miss most about the warmer temperatures is quick weeknight dinners on the grill. The grill has become our go-to the past few months. You can’t beat how much of a time saver it is! Once a week, we reach for one of our favorite summer meals on the grill, al fresco chicken sausage. I always love coming up with new ways to serve this “better for you” sausage, but this sweet Italian style has become our favorite. Today, I am sharing the perfect quick weeknight summer dinner with al fresco.

Pattern Mixing with Leopard and Stripes

August 21, 2017 by Rachel McCarthy

Pattern mixing in the fall is one of my favorite things. And although it isn’t fall yet, I could not resist sharing this stripe and leopard combination with you a little early. Especially these leopard ankle booties. Of all patterns, stripes and leopard are one of the easiest to experiment with. Today is all about pattern mixing with leopard and stripes.

Oversized Camel Cardigan

August 17, 2017 by Rachel McCarthy

Yesterday’s post was all about my color crush with rust for fall. But when it comes to a basic, go-to fall color combination, I will always gravitate towards camel and black. It’s an easy combination of two colors that fill my closet and I love the contrast of the two shades. This oversized camel cardigan will be a closet staple for the entire fall season.

Fall Color Crush: Rust

August 16, 2017 by Rachel McCarthy

Each fall, there is an “it” color of the season. For me, I typically gravitate towards green, camel and burgundy in the fall. But this year, there is one color in particular I have my eye on. I think it’s safe to say I’ve found my fall color crush: rust.