hazy, hot, humid, hustle and bustle

details:

blouse~tara jarmon for target

skirt~hustle and bustle skirt~anthro

shoes~steve madden

belt~random not sure where it came from

bangle bracelets~f21 and aldo

good grief!this week is dragging on!! if the heat and humidity are any indication i'd say summer is here.

trying to look pulled together and stay cool is a major challenge in the summer and i usually opt for dresses because they are so easy. because i'm trying to learn to stretch my wardrobe a little more instead of buying something new when i get bored i decided to try separates. this skirt is another anthro sale purchase. i bought it because i was sort of drawn to the pattern. i don't remember seeing it in the store but it looked interesting online. i was pleasantly surprised when it arrived because it was cotton. for some reason i thought it was some sort of silk or poly blend but cotton means i can wear it in a more casual way which is good for me. i was sure that it would hug me in all the wrong places but i love the fit of it! today i paired it with this very lightweight cotton blouse and my favorite steve madden pumps. i could see wearing this with a tank top and a pair of flat sandals for a more casual look. i added the belt and the arm full of bracelets to make it look more polished. i really like the end result:)

it's a three day wekend and i can't wait. seriously, friday could you hurry up and get here!

such a tease

our super talented photographer posted this teaser on her facebook page last night. i'm DYING to see the rest:) hopefully they'll be ready within the next week or so. then i will turn into THAT bride-boring people to death with millions of wedding photos:D

photo taken by ashley bowyer-shoes in the window photography

pattern mixing

details:

top~h&m

skirt~do-si-do skirt~anthropologie

shoes~f21

belt~?

this week has not had the greatest start. our internet was having connection issues, my computer crashed again, and my car is pretty much on life support! i'm trying not to dwell on it. it is what is. i'm not sure what we'll do about the car thing. i've needed a new one for a while but i was hoping it last the summer:(

the remedy for life handing you lemons is to try to look cute while making lemonade:) i bought this skirt during the much hyped but disappointing anthro sale. it was marked down to $30 so i thought i'd give it a try. i'm not in love with it but i think it's a cute summer skirt. i'm not one for wearing black(i don't even own the basic lbd) i'm glad that the cross stitch pattern offers some color and a cute detail. i paired with the h&m striped shirt that seems to be make it's away around fashion blogs. i also have it in black and white stripes. it is seriously cute, comfy and cheap! the shoes give this outfit a little bit of an edge and keeps it from looking to folksy:)

have a lovely tuesday!

floral week continues

details:

blouse-urban outfitters

jeans~converse~target

cardigan~the gap

shoes~jessica simpson peep toe pumps

necklace~target

the sun has finally returned! thank goodness. the dark rainy days were seriously starting to effect my moods. floral week continues:) i still found it hard to get dressed this morning. i've lost some of my will power post wedding and have been eating things that are not so good for me and i think i've only managed to work out twice since we've been back. the subsequent bloat has not made getting dressed much fun. i'm going to try to get us back on the healthy kick this weekend with a visit to the farmers market.

on to the outfit! i bought these jeans a few months ago. i wasn't sure about the light wash denim but since they were on super sale($10) i decided to get them. i didn't try them on in the store and when i got them home they were too tight! i was on the verge of giving them to one of my daughters when i decided to try them on this morning and what do you know they fit(comfortably)! i bought this top at urban outfitters in savannah. i love the almost abstract quality of the print. the color of this cardigan picks up the blues in the top and of course it needed a little sparkle so i added one of my favorite necklaces. i hope everyone is having a wonderful thursday!

floral week day 2(for me)

details:

cardigan~f21

tank~the gap

jeans~the gap~long and lean ankle length

necklace~anthro

ballet flats~the gap

i missed a day in floral week:( yesterday i was suffering from the worst sinus headache. as soon as i got home i took some medicine and crawled into bed where i slept for about 12 hours. i'm feeling a lot better today but really tired. isn't it funny how getting so much is exhausting?

anyway, it's a gloomy, rainy and cool wednesday here...boo!where did spring go? it feels like it's october. i have lots of florals but most of them are pretty sundresses or summer skirts. it was hard to find something i wanted to wear today. jeans were a must because i'm freezing! i remembered this adorable cardigan i bought from f21 a while ago. somehow it's never made it's way onto the blog. i love the little peplum. it almost gives it the look of a jacket. i layered this super soft lace trimmed tank underneath. i love how this anthro necklace sometimes looks grey and at other times looks blue.

today is my youngest daughter's 16th birthday. happy birthday skylar!! we do smaller birthday celebrations. it usually involves taking them to dinner anywhere they want to go(within reason), a few gifts and cake and ice cream. i'll bake her a cake when i get home and i think she wants chinese food for dinner...yum! then, on sunday i'm taking the girls to see legally blonde the musical! it should be so much fun.

are there any glee fans out there? last night's episode...killed me! can't wait to see the gaga episode next week:) happy wednesday!

floral week day 1

details:

skirt:(dress worn as skirt)~f21

tank~the gap

cardigan~f21?or maybe target?

belt~f21

shoes~jessica simpson

initial pendant~the paris market~savannah

trench~tara jarmon for target

i must admit that i've been a bit of a slacker:( i've been trying to adjust to post wedding life and things have been super busy! being married is wonderful and i'm trying to save the the whole wedding recap and wonderful-ness of it all for one long post when my pro pics are ready. i will say this that wedding planning really allowed me to tap into my creative side that i've been ignoring for a looong time. it's a bit like someone has opened pandora's box. now that i've uleashed the creative it's been really difficult to get back into the office day to day thing. doug and i are now trying to figure out what direction this should take. how do i find i way to do what i love and earn a living?

i've also had a situation with a friend that has left me feeling a bit..ick! there have been some things brewing in this relationship for awhile but i think i've been clinging to it because we've been friends for so long. how do you know when it's time to let someone go? i think it's especially hard for me because i'm a little bit guarded and i don't make friends easily.

monday morning and it's cool and rainy(apparently mother nature hasn't figured out it's the middle of freakin may!). it's actually a perfect morning to sit in a cafe nursing a pot of tea and trying to figure out the answers to some the questions i have for today, but i must work:( when i saw the call for floral week on {have a cute day} i felt inspired to try to be cheerful in spite of the gloom outside. i bought this dress two summers ago and i've never worn it. it's a bit short for day wear so i opted to fold it down and wear it as a skirt. to make it a little less sweet i added my go to items of a tank and a cardi(not very original, i know). this $6 belt from f21 has also become a favorite. i don't know why it took me so long to discover how rad belts are?!! this coat was one of my first target~designer callabo purchases. i love the tomato-y red color. it certainly cheers up a gloomy monday:) and briefly i bought this pendant on our honeymoon in savannah. i found the BEST.STORE.EVER.-paris market! i haven't taken it off since the day i bought it!

floral week

the lovely {have a cute day} is sponsoring floral week. i'll be back later with my monday floral inspiration:) ...hopefully!

tuesday blues

details:

blouse~liberty of london for target

cardigan~gap

jeans~hudson

belt~f21

shoes~steve madden nude pumps

i'm still trying to back into my daily routine. today is tuesday but all day long it felt like a monday...ick!

the temperature has dropped drastically here in the buckeye state. it was also a rainy morning. i needed to be warm but i also wanted to cheer myself up a bit. i grabbed this blouse. i love the cheery floral print and the ruffles around the shoulders. while on vacation i strolled into the gap. they were having sweater sale. all sweaters for $25. i grabbed two of these basic cardigans for the price of one!

i'm going to curl up on the couch and work on thank you notes until it's time for glee:)

happy mother's day

me with my oh so stylish mom;)

my brood! logan, rian, skylar and zachary.

happy mother's day!

i became a mother very early and almost without thinking about what it meant. sometimes i think it's a blessing that i had children so young before i could fully absorb what a huge life changing thing it is. i also hate that i didn't choose a better family circumstance for them. i grew up quickly because i didn't want them to suffer for having a young mom. for a long time it was just us. we are a tight knit group love fiercely and argue often-that's what happens when you have four opinionated women in small family. being their mom has been my job for almost half of my life and as i see them getting ready to leave home and take on the world i'm awed by the people they have become-intelligent, funny, quirky, sarcastic, compassionate, honorable. they've taught me how to love, be loved, and not always to take myself too seriously. i am an infinitely better person because i'm their mother

newly wed!

the wedding was amazing!...seriously. we had an amazing time. i'll be back with updates and more pictures but i thought i'd share a few non pro images from some family members. i'll post more in a day or two when i have more time.