Top Five Friday #30

Happy Friday!  This week has been flying by like usual, and I'm really excited for this weekend.  I'll share more on Monday!  I also want to share a huge congratulations to my fellow Pittsburgh blogger Heather - she gave birth to a beautiful little baby girl!

Today I'll be sharing my usual favorites from the week, as well as some TV Show thoughts and some new music to listen to.  I hope you all have a fantastic weekend and I'll see you on Monday!

Fall Moscow Mule

I finally discovered a drink that's easy to make and tastes really good!  As I mentioned last week, I really want to start playing around with cocktails and learn how to make some tasty mixed drinks.  I picked up a few different liquors, and found my first big winner.  It's a really simple recipe based on a Moscow Mule (which happens to be my favorite drink): 1 shot of vodka (I only had vanilla so that's what I used), 1/2 glass apple cider, 1/2 glass ginger beer (I used nonalcoholic), splash of lime.  Stir- don't shake!  Really refreshing with the tiniest bit fizzy and barely alcoholic.  Delicious!

Pumpkin Pie Latte

I'm finishing up this post from my favorite Pittsburgh coffee shop - Crazy Mocha.  I decided to have my first pumpkin drink of the season (gasp!) and this is fantastic!  I decided that Starbucks's Pumpkin Spice Latte is too sugary (and #basic) for me, but this one is perfect.  In general, I'm a huge fan of Crazy Mocha's lattes, especially the caramel latte, and this one didn't disappoint at all.

Cross Training

One reason why I was really excited for my half was to get back into cross training, and this week I hit the ground running!  I went to the gym on Monday to swim and relax in the steam room, then I went to Centergy on Tuesday.  Both of these were fantastic for recovery, and I was excited to feel the burn in an area besides my legs! 

Black Bow Flats

I needed a new pair of black flats, and was really excited when Kristen suggested a great pair from Target.  I ordered them right away, and I've been loving them!  They're fantastic quality for a really low price.  They're leather, so it takes some breaking in, but they're really comfortable now!

TV Shows

Dancing With The Stars

Who else was really excited that Maks was back to be a judge (but I have to admit I'm not into the long hair).  There were a ton of great dances this week, but I have to admit the first perfect dance of the season  didn't really "wow" me!  I really liked Bindi's and Carlos's dances, and really enjoyed the choreography (and chemistry) in Alek's dance!

Quantico

The show is starting to get really crazy, with pretty much every character being a double agent.  I just don't know who to trust anymore!  I'm hoping that all of the open questions will eventually get answered (and not have a Lost situation).  Overall I'm still really into this show and it's definitely keeping my interest!

Project Runway

I may be a week late, but I'm still so sad that my favorite designer got eliminated!  I thought that Swapnil was such an interesting and talented designer, so it's a shame that he wasn't putting in 100%.  If you get Tim Gunn to swear, you know you're doing something wrong.  On the other hand, I was absolutely in love with Kelly's modern overalls!  So edgy!

The Voice

The show is finally at the point that I start to get really interested - when the Blind Auditions are over!  This week the Battle Rounds started, and so far my favorite is Mark Hood.  He had my favorite audition (even Dan made a comment about how good he sounded, and he usually hates these competitions!)  I thought that his battle was incredible, and I loved the arrangement of such a classic song.

Music

I've talked about my love of Amazon Prime time and time again, and they've once again won me over.  In the Amazon Music app, I saw that they recently added a ton of new and old albums from some of my favorite artists!  We're talking artists from Jason Aldean to Rush to Dr. Dre- there's something for everything!  I spent a lot of this week listening to these albums, and today I'm sharing my five favorite albums!  There are so many to choose from, so I recommend browsing for yourself (and letting me know what to listen to next!)

Speak Now - Taylor Swift

It's so hard to picture the young, country singing Taylor Swift.  Her old music is so different than her current style (including the long curly hair and conservative dresses!).  All of her older albums are great, but I especially love Speak Now!  Favorite Track - Dear John
 

Songs in the Key Of Life - Stevie Wonder

I've never listened to an entire Stevie Wonder CD before, so I really enjoyed listening to his music.  Now I can understand why everyone raves about him- his music is incredible!  Not only is it interesting and funky, but he has such a great voice.  There are so many different styles of music in this CD and I am a huge fan.  Favorite Track - Sir Duke

Hands All Over - Maroon 5

I'm always a huge fan of Maroon 5, and this may be my favorite album of theirs.  There are so many songs that I absolutely love and can jam out to on a run!  Favorite Track - Stutter

Wicked Sountrack

I love a good Broadway musical, and one that features Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel can not be beat!  The music is a mix of haunting and joyful, which I absolutely love.  This is a great album to sing along in the shower or car, and I really love listening to it during runs.  I'm very eagerly anticipating the release of the film (hopefully in 2016) since I've never actually seen the musical - I've just listened to the music!  Favorite Track - Defying Gravity

Kiss Land - The Weeknd

I absolutely love The Weeknd's newest album, so I was really excited when I saw that his older music was recently added to Amazon Music.  This album is full of great songs that all have a soothing, slightly trippy sound to them.  I love listening to his music at work because it makes great background music.  Favorite Track - Kiss Land


Have a great weekend!  Good luck to everyone racing this weekend!

Linking up with Mar, Cynthia and Court 
as well as Heather!