green sleeves

details:

green cardigan~express

blouse~anthropologie

jeans~hudson~tj maxx

shoes~steve madden

longest.week.ever! i'm not feeling very inspired by my wardrobe lately. i don't want to spend an entire post whining about the weather so here it is....winter, we are sooo over!! enough said.

there's nothing spectacular about this outfit except that i found these hudson jeans for the low, low at tj maxx a few months ago. i finally hemmed them so that they're wearable. i love green but i'm feeling a little leprechaun-ish in all this green. tonight it's a bottle of red and cuddling of the sofa with my honey. happy friday!!

wedding day accessories

i'm rarely seen without a cardigan. why would the wedding day be any different? i'm considering this lovley from anthro for the party portion of evening but i'm worried that the ruffle detail will be too much with the top of the dress.

i have a pearl bracelet already but it seems so boring. this is amazing! but is it too much?

i think this may be the perfect wedding day bracelet, but there are no reviews of it and they don't have it in my local store. i've been waiting patiently for it to go on sale but it's still at it's regular price...$198...ouch! :(

prepster

details:

wide leg jeans~target

red blouse~wal-mart

sweater~f21

necklace/bracelet~f21

you can take the girl out of prep school but you can't take prep school out of the girl! my entire k-12 experience took place at a private, catholic school and the blame for my attraction for all things plaid and/or preppy rests solely on their shoulders. i saw this sweater on the f21 website and i knew i had to order it in all of it's crested, cable knit glory:) i have a feeling it will become a wardrobe fave. my initial plan was to pair it with a striped oxford shirt, but that didn't happen because i was running late and i didn't feel like ironing. i think that the red adds a nice pop or color against the ivory sweater. i've been wearing this jeans a lot more lately. i think i'm officially over the skinny jean trend. i love the fact that i can wear these all day and not feel like i'm suffocating.

i'm feeling guilty for over indulging last night, especially when my first fitting is monday! this afternoon i have 45 minutes scheduled with my trainer and then i think i may have to add some extra cardio:( i. hate. cardio! i have nothing exciting planned today. i'm hoping i get to bed early and get some much needed sleep! happy almost friday:)

can't wait!!

another reason to want spring to hurry up and get here!

dance, dance

i'm not sure why the search for the first dance song has become so complicated. if we had a song that was "our song" it would be so much easier! we like different kinds of music and so far we haven't been able to meet in the middle. these are our two newest contenders. my pick(and girl crush)adele. this song literally brings tears to my eyes. it's her interpretation of a dylan song, which may be the only reason he's considering it.



his pick, jamie cullum. we both like him and we saw him in concert when we first starting dating. i love his take on this song but i love the adele song more. what so you think?

walking on stilts

details:

t-shirt~f21

cardigan~ the gap

skirt~f21

tights~old navy

shoes~jessica simpson~baker's

hello!!!i've missed blogging! my real life has been so busy. when i get home i can't wait to jump into my pajamas. i finally invested in a nicer camera and i'm loving how great these photos turned out.

i've been dying to wear these shoes even though they're kind of ridiculous. it's kind of like walking on stilts and i prayed most of the day that i wouldn't fall off my platform and break my neck. can you imagine...death by platform, quelle horreur! despite their ridiculousness i'm kind of in love with them:)

the weeks have been hectic and drama filled but one of my best friends is in town and we had a lovely dinner that included buffalo chicken egg rolls, a bottle of sparkling rose and lots of catching up. it was exactly what the doctor ordered. happy wednesday!

snow again!!!

more snow.....gaahh!!! seriously mother nature i promise never to complain about the heat and humidity again if you could see fit to let us bid winter and these snowstorms buh-bye!!another 7-9 inches today and they don't expect it to stop snowing until tomorrow evening.

yet another snow day means i spent the day in old jeans and one of doug's sweatshirts building outfits on polyvore(which is totally like a grown up version of paperdolls!) because i'm bored i'd thought i would share my all time favorite super bowl commercial this year. is it strange the i have this bokmarked and watch at least once a day because it makes me gigle like a school girl?



have a lovely evening:)

i heart you grandma audrey

today, valentine's day, would have been my grandma audrey's 92nd birthday. we lost her two years. i was just getting to know her as an adult. she came and spent a week at our house and i got to ask her questions about her life and questions about what my mom was like as a little girl. we made peach cobblers and apple pies. she played chess and checkers with my son and sat in the back yard and watched my girls swim(something she never learned to do). she caused a little bit of a scandal when at 15 she ran off to marry my grandfather who was ten years older and the trumpet player in a band! lately with wedding on the brain i've been thinking about how much i wish she could be there because i know that she would have enjoyed herself and danced her heart out. she had a fondness for prince. you haven't lived until you've seen you 80 year old grandma bust a move to prince's version of "kiss":) happy birthday grandma! i love you!!

flats a wrap!

details:

jeans~??~tj maxx

striped button down~f21

cardigan~the gap

flats~calvin klein~macy's
triple strand pearl necklace~target

i know that i don't often post on the weekend. mostly it's because i don't really get dressed on the weekend. in all honesty, unless we are going out somewhere i typically spend the weekend in baggy jeans/t-shirts or sweats/t-shirts. i thought i would post a shot of what i look like when i'm running around on my off days . this post also features something you rarely see me in during the week-flats! i' m a heels girl and the higher the better. i have bad knees and i once had an orthopedic surgeon tell me i shouldn't wear heels. well, i got a second opinion. i try to give my knees a break on the weekend:) i decided to wrap the shirt and pin it after seeing it on another blog this week(and for the life of me i can't remember which one). i added the pearls to dress it up a bit and what is becoming my favorite cardigan for a little warmth.

the house is so quiet today. doug and my son, zachary, had a boys bonding day and all of the girls are out. i thought i was going out for sushi with a girlfriend but she wasn't feeling well and cancelled:( after that i thought maybe i would check out a matinee but it was madness at the movie theater. the combination of valentines day and a relatively warm and sunny day brought people out in droves. i took it as a sign that i should hang out at home. it was just me and the dog for most of the day. i hope you're enjoying your saturday.

mix it up

details:

denim shirt/fair isle oversized cardi~the gap

lace skirt~f21

red tights~hue~macy's?

booties~steve madden

the sun made a an appearance today! it was lovely. i actually ran some errands this afternoon without my coat :0 it's not enough to defrost the icy tundra that used to be our back yard but it was so nice to feel the sun on my face.

i've discovered that i love the look of light colored skirts and dresses with dark tights and light colored shoes. this is something that i would have never tried before but having this blog and looking at myself objectively has really helped me work on figuring out my style, what i like and the things that look good on my body. i was kind of mish mosh of styles today(preppy, romantic, funky) and i'm not sure if this really work appropriate but these days i find myself dressing more for myself.

i'm lounging on the sofa after a kind of busy day enjoy the opening ceremony of the winter olympics. they lost a young athelete today during a training run and watching the horrific video on the news literally made me weep. it was heartwarming to see the respons his delegation got as they entered the arena. there something about the olympics that makes me feel like the world is a better place than we give it credit for. on a lighter note...i loved the us team's outfits:)

no big plans this weekend. maybe i'll surprise the family with heart shaped waffles on valentine's day. have a lovely weekend!

*sorry for the headless pic but today not one of my pictures turned out well. i really need a better camera*

a few details

if you've spent any time perusing the wedding blogosphere you may be familiar with snippet and ink and kathryn's lovely inspirations boards. seriously i could spend all day dreaming up different weddings for us to have....swanky city bash, modern loft, traditional ballroom...the possibilities are endless! we have chosen may 1 as THE DAY for a few reasons but the main one is because i love the kentucky derby! we didn't want to do a full on theme wedding but i hope to have some subtle bluegrass influences on the day.

our reception is being held in renovated barn. it was donated to the township where we live by a generous family. they disassembled the barn piece by piece and reassembled it. since it's so close to our house we got to watch it being rebuilt from the ground up.

our menu has been a bit of a challenge. i wanted really good food from day one. i also wanted a sit down dinner. the budget is tight and i had to give up my dream of sit down meal but the food is awesome! some of treats we'll offer the guests-shrimp and grits and sweet potato fries with aoili dipping sauce for cocktail hour-chicken with bourbon bbq glaze, biscuits and honey for dinner and my favorites-chocolate chip pecan cookies(a twist on derby pie)with a shot glass of milk during the dance party, vodka spiked lemonade(since mint juleps are an acquired taste) and red velvet donuts as our favors. i'm hungry just thinking about it:D

these three boards are the ones i've been carrying around with me. i want to feel like a cross between a jazzy/bluesey al fresco dinner party and a backyard barbeque. does that make sense? hydrangea are my favorite flowers so we decided to go with pale blue, creamy white, linen and a touch of black as an accent for the colors. i've been second guessing them but since his mom bought a blue dress to wear i think it may too late to change my mind. style wise we are going for modern country with a dash of anthropologie. if we get anywhere close to that i'll be a happy bride!

and now THE DRESS....i really thought i wanted more of a ballgown or a somewhat of an a-line dress. something floaty and airy and sweet. then i worried that an over 30 bride with her kids in the wedding party my look absurd in a s*&t load of tulle. then i said to hell with it wear what you want. i finally realized that feeling(a little bit sweet and romantic) i wanted didn't necessarily mean ball gown. i tried on a lace dress that i thought might be the one but i felt like a tablecloth. i tried on dresses my friends said were sexy. i don't really consider myself a "sexy" girl and i'm not sure how i feel about being described as "sexy" on my wedding day. and then i saw this. fit my description as modern with a little bit vintage. i'm in love! i can't wait to wear it!!

above images taken from snippet and ink: dress picture taken from the alvina valenta website

mellow yellow

details:

sweater dress~anthropologie

leopard belt~rodarte for target

cardigan~gap

gold ballet pumps~bebe

tan fishnets~target

necklace~anthropologie

i was determined to get shower, get dressed, dig my way out of the snow and become part of the human race again!

it was freezing but at least the sun was out. at least that was what i kept telling myself as i was freezing my face pumping gas this morning. oh to go back to more civilized times where you pulled into a gas station and a nice attendant came out pumped your gas, checked your oil and washed your windows. i don't remember those times but i've been told they were fabulous;) i feel kind of like a proper lady in this outfit. this dress manages to make me look put together while being extremely comfortable. the leopard belt gives it a little sass and the grey cardigan is a more interesting neutral than black or brown(which would have a little too matchy matchy for me). these sweet little metallic "ballet" pumps were my favorite neutral shoe until my beloved nude steve maddens stole their thunder...ha! i think they were outrageously priced to begin with but somehow i managed to get them on sale. this morning my dad told me i liked pretty(thanks dad!). no matter how old i get that always makes me smile.

i'm off to work out and then it's project runway for me! have a lovely evening:)

a brief update

we have been buried in snow, not as much as those of you in the northeast, but enough to shut down schools and keep me home from work for a few days. the kids are getting restless and i am bored to tears but i have vowed to leave the house tomorrow! since i've been lounging around the house in sweats and my favorite old sweater(which i should have thrown out years ago but i can't manage to part with it) i've also been totally slacking on working out:( not good since my first fitting is on march 1! i've tried not to blab on and on about wedding details because i'm not sure if any of you want to know any of the details. i do have a dress which is super exciting and i loooove it!! but if you're interested in the plans i'd be happy to share.

anyway, i promise i'll be back tomorrow:) have a lovely evening!

finally!

details:
sweater~target
skirt~f21
necklace~anthropologie
tights~old navy
shoes~harajuku lovers

finally!!i managed to get in a photo today! things have been crazy but now with all of the big things in place i can breathe again. this was not what i intended to wear today and looking at these pictures i'm not really thrilled with the way i looked, especially when i realized how short this skirt is...yikes! i wasted a good twenty minutes searching for the skirt i'd planned on wearing and when i couldn't find it this is all i could come up with.

we, like much of the country, are expecting a huge snowstorm. this means that my plans of meeting friends for sushi tomorrow may be postponed. i guess being snowed in will give me a chance to catch up on all of laundry i need to do:(

i'm off to watch project runway! have a lovely thursday evening.

let's (first) dance!

wow, i've missed blogging! things lately are pretty hectic and yesterday was the 90 day mark!! we finally have all of the big things figured out.

ceremony venue~check
reception venue~check
florist~check
caterer~check
music~check
photographer~check

of course now the fun(or madness depending on your point of view)begins...the details. i'm sure we should be following a plan or checklist that has some order to it but that's not how we roll. instead, we've been thinking about our first dance. initially i wanted something fun and upbeat to dance to, but i'm now thinking i may be somewhat emotional and it could be good to stand and sway. anyway here our are top first dance contenders.

michael buble and sharon jones "baby you got what it takes"


ray lamontagne "shelter"

i guess we need to decide if we want to be sweet or sassy:)