Past Email Newsletters

Happy November! The pumpkins are put away (maybe) and at least half the people I know are ready to deck the halls! If you've not grabbed the Fall Guide to RVA, do it now, and look out for the Holiday Guide dropping next week! In the meantime, Happy Gratitude Month! We're also testing out a new newsletter format. Do you love it? Hate it? Couldn't care less? Please let me know!" Today we're talking about: ✔️ RVA Events this Month (and my fall guide) ✔️ Top 3 Home Maintenance Tips to Remember this Month ✔️ Things I'm Loving Right Now ✔️ Autumn Orchard Salad ✔️ October Market Recap 📅 November Events 3rd & 4th - Urbanna Oyster Festival Head on down to Urbanna for their 65th annual oyster festival. Oyster Shucking, classic cars, parades, wine and beer tasting, music, and of course - oysters in just about every way you can imagine. Click HERE for details. 11th - Richmond Marathon The 46th Annual Richmond Marathon will take you through historic sections of Richmond, including along and across the James River. Enjoy the beautiful scenery while running either your first or fiftieth marathon. Click HERE for more information. 20th - GardenFest of Lights Beginning November 20th, and running through January 7th, Dominion Energy’s GardenFest of Lights returns with the theme of Rhythms of Nature. Millions of lights will line garden paths and twinkle in the trees. Check out this beautiful display for a wonderful experience. For more information and tickets click HERE. Check out my Fall Guide HERE for a full list of events and details. Be on the lookout mid-month for my Holiday Guide! 🏠 🛠️ Top 3 Home Maintenance Tips to Remember This Month Install storm windows if you have an older window system. Walk around and check for drafts. (Weatherstripping and insulation can make a huge difference in the colder months.) This is also a great time to spend a cold day organizing your kitchen before the happy chaos of the holidays. 💗 Top 3 Things I am Loving at the Moment (Thanksgiving Edition) 🥗 Viral Vegetable Chopper - If you’re on social media at all and you don’t have this, you have a stronger will than I do, but it really is a huge timesaver, and is versatile enough I don’t feel guilty about adding one more gadget to my kitchen. 🍽️ Large platters - Mora ceramics. Perfect for turkey, charcuterie, desserts, etc. 🥤 Paper to go containers - These are perfect for all those holiday events, so you’re not stuck with all the leftovers or chasing your containers. (More fun, let the kids decorate these as a fun activity before or at the event. Shop all my favorites in my Amazon Storefront HERE. 📈 October 2o23 Market Recap for the Richmond Metro Area What to say about the market? Inventory is still down, rates and prices are still up. That sounds pretty grim, but it actually is still a great time to sell- you just want to make sure your house is “showroom ready." With higher rates leading to higher payments, buyers are being understandably choosy. If you're buying, it's really not a bad time. Prices are not out of orbit right now, as the buying pool (and your competition) is diminished a bit at the moment, so even with higher rates, you can likely get a better price than when rates are lower. Click HERE for more breakdown. 🍴Autumn Orchard Salad with Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Pecans Yep, I'm the psycho that brings salad to Thanksgiving. If your holiday is anything like ours, there's not a lot of fresh and light on the table. A salad definitely fits the bill, and if you're going to serve a salad on Thanksgiving, it better be a wow. This one solves all of those problems! Click HERE to get my recipe!

Happy October! As we head into sweater weather, spooky season, or whatever you want to call it, I'm dropping in with some news you can (hopefully) use. Read to the end on a great giveaway, and don't sleep on that recipe. It's a forever family favorite. We're also testing out a new newsletter format. Do you love it? Hate it? Couldn't care less? Please let me know!" Today we're talking about: ✔️ RVA Events this Month (and my fall guide) ✔️ Top 3 Home Maintenance Tips to Remember this Month ✔️ Things I'm Loving Right Now ✔️ My Perfect Fall Goulash ✔️ Looking ahead to the Fall Real Estate Market 📅 October Events Oct 7th is Powhatan's Festival of the Grape Take a trip out to Powhatan's Historic Courthouse Village and experience over 30 wineries, distillers, and craft brewers. There will also be over 100 craft vendors, live music, and much more. Click HERE for more information. Oct 13th - Taylor Swift The Era's Tour Movie If you missed out on seeing the Era's Tour in person this year, don't miss it in theaters! I'm doing an “Allie's Version” giveaway for 4 tickets to the Goochland Drive-In to see the movie opening weekend. Check below for all the details and how to enter. Oct 13-15th - Richmond Folk Festival One of Virginia's largest events, this event is worth the drive, even if you're not local. Come on out and experience different types of music. You may even find a new favorite style of music to enjoy. Click HERE for more information. Oct 28th - Lewis Ginter Harvestfest Enjoy live music, food, adult beverages, and family-friendly activities in the Garden. The Garden Cafe & Bloemendaal House tent will feature German fare, so come hungry! Click HERE for more information. Check out my Fall Guide HERE for a full list of events and details. 🏠 🛠️ Top 3 Home Maintenance Tips to Remember This Month 🚪Refreshing front door or exterior paint? This is the perfect time. Summer is just too hot, and paint doesn't set up well if it's below 55 degrees. (It's also a great time to get interior painting done, as many painters are wrapping up those summer exterior jobs.) Get those gutters and ditches clean! Service the HVAC to get it ready for the cooler temps. 🌡️ 💗 Top 3 Things I am Loving at the Moment 🧹 Broombi Squeegie Broom - It gets pet hair, dust, dirt, liquids, and everything off your smooth floors, and even works great for pet hair, etc, on carpet. It’s pretty fantastic. Click HERE to shop my Amazon Storefront. 🍴 Clio Yogurt Bars - If you don’t know, I’ve been counting my macros for a while now, but I love sweets. These little bars are available in the yogurt section almost everywhere, and they taste just like cheesecake, but with 60 calories, 4g protein, and 5g sugar. (Not a paid endorsement, I just love them!) You can get them almost anywhere. 🧢 Power Cap Lighted Cap - If you follow me on social (or know me in person), you know that I broke my foot a couple of weeks ago. I was going out for a walk in the dark, juggling a leash and my phone, and hadn’t turned on the flashlight yet. My brother sent me this, and it’s fantastic. Look Ma, no hands! (And no surprise falls!) As the days get shorter, this is worth its weight in gold! Shop HERE. 📈 Market Info For Fall If you watch the news or have even a passing interest in the real estate, you probably know some of this, but remember, real estate is LOCAL. In our market, we're still seeing quite a few multiple offer situations, but things are shifting a bit in most price ranges, given the increase in interest rates. Homes that are totally turnkey and marketed well are still selling quickly, but those that are not? They're sitting a bit longer than they were a few months ago. If you're buying, inventory has gotten slightly better in some areas, so aside from the rates, buying may be a little more accessible for some. For the full breakdown, visit my blog post HERE. 🍴My Perfect Fall Goulash Last month, when I was trying to come up with a recipe for September, I wanted cozy, easy, comforting foods that would work well for busy days and back to school. While I think Baked Ziti fit that bill, I completely forgot about the OG easy to fix, one pot, always a fan favorite, perfect dinner on the run, even when everyone is eating at different times. And that, my friend, is Goulash. Not the original, but the good old, totally Americanized dish that’s a hearty cross between chili and pasta, topped with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese. (It’s what Hamburger Helper only dreams it was.) As we head into cozy season, it’s the perfect thing! Click HERE for the recipe.