plaid loves to read

Two Saturdays ago, my book club had the extraordinary idea of reading a book filled with life excerpts and recipes, so that we could have an excuse to all bring tasty treats for a brunch meeting!

In case you're scratching your head trying to figure out what that plate of yumminess is, it's bacon-wrapped dates filled with goat cheese, and thank you, you're welcome, they're delicious.

The culprit for this day of plaid-wearing, book-celebrating and treat-eating is Shauna Niequist's Bread & Wine which has already become a staple in my kitchen and my heart. (You can read my full review here!).

We had a wonderful morning, discussing the recipes and what we'd still like to make.
We also had a wonderful time stuffing our faces and drinking warm hazelnut creamed coffee while we discussed the book itself.

I haven't given much thought to reading and critiquing books, other than the analyzing I did as an English major in college. I rarely get the opportunity to really dive into the content of my pleasure reads, so being a part of a book club has been enlightening, as well as fun (and occasionally savory)!
Whenever I really love a book, I try and get all of my friends to read it so I can have someone to talk to about it. Bread & Wine has been one of those books. For some reason it was exactly what I needed to read this month, and I swallowed it up in a similar fashion to my bacon-wrapped dates.
My book club has been a great outlet for that kind of one-on-one discussion over a shared piece of writing. We choose a book, and then we can all love it (or hate it) together!

Dress: J. Crew, Belt: Ruche, Necklace: Barefoot Pathways (similar on Etsy)

In other great news, our local J. Crew outlet store decided to close down in order to expand their other location, so everything in the outlet store was an extra 75% off. 

Needless to say, I took a rather fabulous lunch break with a friend and spent $30 for two dresses, a skirt and a scarf.

This dress was included! To say it was love at first sight almost seems too casual.

It was the only one in the store. One of the only dresses in the store, actually, aside from wedding dresses - it was pretty cleared out by the time we got there and I can only thank the plaid-haters out there who passed on this beauty before I arrived.

It was such a treat, and seemed to be the perfect choice for our book club brunch event.
Everyone knows that plaid loves to read. :)
Plaid and books go together like librarians and denim skirts.

Since I'm only sort-of a librarian and have semi-vowed never to wear a denim skirt, this plaid dress seemed to be the perfect alternative.
It was a happy coincidence that left me grinning like an idiot in the dressing room.
Kind of like this:

happy saturday: outfit 7

Outfit number 7 was for a relaxed and fun-filled Saturday.
In the morning I had book club, and that evening we were heading out on the town with another couple for a double date night.

Top/Shorts: J. Crew, Shoes: Zulily, Sunglasses: Ruche

I cheated a little bit in these first few pictures and sported one of my very favorite pairs of sunglasses from Ruche. While they're not an official accessory, they just worked so well with my Saturday ensemble. It was a sunshiney day!

That morning I went to a spot downtown that I had never been to before, to have breakfast with my book club. We read The Poisonwood Bible this month, and are starting on Bread & Wine for next month, which I couldn't be more excited about!

Market at Main is a great spot downtown and I loved my sweet potato pancakes. I really look forward to going there again!
Bread & Wine: A Love Letter to Life Around the Table by Shauna Niequist is a darling book filled with life excerpts and personal recipes. It's a quick and delightful read, and the book club is mixing things up a little this month by meeting at one of our houses, and having all of us make and bring one of the recipes from the book. I'm thrilled!
One of our book club members reached out to the author, and asked if the publisher could maybe provide our book club with free copies of the book so we could read it together, and review and blog about it. And they said yes! And sent us all copies.
Our book club is filled with students and stay-at-home moms, so having these books provided for us is such a treat. I normally just request the book from our library, so having my own copy of this one which I already love is really exciting.

That night we went out to The Dahlia to mark the first day of Restaurant Week.
I love Restaurant Week. It's one of my favorite parts of summer in Lynchburg!

My absolute favorite thing at The Dahlia is the beer cheese soup. It's creamy and flavorful and served with popcorn, and it's pretty much brilliant. Pub food at its finest and yummiest.
After dinner we drove around admiring the old money houses of the surrounding neighborhoods, and enjoyed having the windows down with such gorgeous weather.
It was a great Saturday.