PMT - Belt Something

Well, I'm still working through neglected items, which brings me to this scarf!  My sister-in-law gave it to me for my birthday a couple years ago and I thought it was so fun and I could just wear it with all the colors!  And then?  I don't know.  It must have gotten buried under all the other scarves and therefore neglected.  Have I really only worn it once?  Not cool!

I was anxious to wear my new maternity dress from Loft, and I think they look quite nice together.  Add a cardigan for warmth, and a belt for the PMT challenge this week, and I think I have a winning combination.  

Here's a close-up, so you can see the elephants better, and you can also see the quiltiness of my dress.

Scarf: Gift
Cardigan: Gap outlet
Belt: Chinese Laundry
Dress: Loft Maternity
Leggings: Old Navy
Boots: Madden

Skirt Week - Black Pencil

There aren't many items of clothing that I'd say every women should own, but I do think a basic black skirt is one of them.  I almost said a black pencil skirt, but I know some people really don't like the style.  So whatever style you like best, but you should probably have a black skirt.  I had one from Old Navy for about 8 years, and it finally got too tight, so I was happy to find a replacement from Dillard's.  And this one is a stretchy fabric, so it's much more forgiving!

One thing probably no one needs is a pair of floral print ballet flats.  But look how cute they are!!  I wish I had worn them more over the summer, because I don't see them transitioning into cold weather very well.

In other news, it's officially one month until my birthday!  I never made one of those 30 before 30 lists, but now I have 30 days before I turn 30.  I don't think it's going to happen.  BUT I think I've had a pretty great life so far.  No bucket list needed.

Link up below for SKIRT WEEK!

Cardigan: Gap Factory (similar)
Top: Gap Factory (similar)
Belt: Chinese Laundry (similar)
Skirt: Gibson & Latimer (similar, similar)
Shoes: J.Crew Factory (similar)

#25 - Another Weekend, Another Wrap-Up

How was the weekend?  Mine was pretty good.  John and I went to see Guardians of the Galaxy on Friday night.  It was pretty good.  I actually liked it more than most of the recent superhero movies.  My apologies to everyone who loved The Avengers, but I didn't.  On Saturday, I had a coffee shop date with a friend, but neither of us drank coffee, because we are cool like that. Then I just spent the rest of the day doing miscellaneous things around the house.  Sundays are generally the same around here - church, lunch, housework, church, dinner.  Sometimes our Sunday school class hangs out in the evenings, which we did again this weekend.  And in an interesting turn of events, I made a last minute decision to visit my family next weekend.  I had a quick video-conference with my nieces to tell them, and they are pretty excited.  My campaign for favorite aunt continues...

And now I'm a little concerned that I need to leave town in just a few days!  At least I'm driving, so don't have to worry about airline approved packing.

Cardigan: Gap (similar)
Tee: J.Crew Factory (exact)
Skirt: Macy's (exact)
Shoes: Old Navy (option, option)

#22 - Writer's Block

New hardest part of the 30x30 is that I apparently don't have 30 days worth of things to say in a month.  So let me just talk about my outfit.  I like it in theory, but I think the proportions are a little bit off.  I still need to take this skirt in a couple inches, because it's still way too big.  And the cardigan is a bit more fitted than the shirt, so I think it looks a little funny.  In a normal world, I would have switched out for a longer cardigan, but in 30x30 world, this is my only option. 

Don't forget to take the survey if you haven't yet!   

Cardigan: Gap  (similar)
Top: Old Navy (similar, similar)
Belt: Chinese Laundry (similar)
Skirt: Gap  (similar, similar)
Shoes: Old Navy (similar without captoe)

#14 - Navy Week - Throwback Navy

In the last few years, navy has become one of my favorite neutrals.  I used to wear a lot of black, but navy seems like the less goth/emo cousin, and still goes with everything.  So I've been drawn to it more and more. Prior to about 2012, I don't think I had anything navy in my wardrobe, except maybe a Cardinals t-shirt (this one).  

I blame my previous aversion to navy on my private school uniform.  I had to wear a navy jumper every day from 2nd-5th grade.  And then in middle school and high school, my options were either a khaki skirt or a navy skirt.  The high school navy option was plaid.  (and no, it wasn't a cute Catholic school uniform.  It was very unflattering, midi-length before midi-length was a thing).  But anyway, I dug through my photo albums and found this fantastic Throwback Thursday picture.

I would guess this is the first day of 4th grade.  I obviously hadn't gotten the hang of smiling like a normal person (am I trying to wink?  I don't even know what is happening).  I cropped my brother out, because I don't want him to hate me (not saying he looks bad - I don't think he had an awkward phase).  And I'm not sharing the first day of 5th grade picture that I found, because it's really really bad.  I'm not really sure why I had any friends that year, because I looked ridiculous.  I must have had a great personality or something.  Or I was very blessed with non-shallow classmates.

Judy Greer talks about this in her book.  When you go through a phase where you are super awkward looking, and then you think you are pretty much gorgeous once you start to look normal.  I mean, I might be average looking now, but I've improved exponentially since I was 10!

Anyway, what are we even talking about anymore?  Navy!  I used to have to wear navy, so I didn't like that.  Then after about 10 years of not having to wear navy, I started liking it again.  Great story, Andi!

Do you wear navy?  Link up with us below!!

Cardigan: Gap (similar)
Tee: J.Crew Factory (exact)
Skirt: J.Crew (exact)
Shoes: Old Navy (similar without captoe)

Dress Week - Summer Essentials

It's Third Thursday Threads day!!  Again, it's working out that my theme weeks play nicely with Bri's themes.  And we had a little ESP(n) going this month, because I sent her a guest post all about Summer Must-Haves before I saw the TTT theme.  Great minds, I tell ya!

So here's a pretty typical summer outfit for me:  light dress + bright colored cardigan + belt + comfortable shoes.

That's a formula for easy summer style.  Plus, this dress is famous!  It was on the season 2 finale of New Girl!  I wish that Zooey Deschanel had been wearing it (that would be cooler), but it was just Schmidt's girlfriend.  Anyone else get excited when their clothes are on TV?

Dress Week is still going strong!  Linkup below!

Dress: Target (similar)
Cardigan: Gap (similar)
Belt: NY&C0 (similar)
Shoes: Old Navy (similar without captoe)

Defying Gravity

Last week, I got to sit in the front row at Wicked.  This is one of the perks of having season tickets to the Broadway Across America shows - I get early access to the good seats, and I don't have to pay as much for them.  It's such an incredible show, and sitting up front was even more amazing.

I was so excited about the show that I completely forgot to take outfit pictures beforehand, so I took these when I got home.  You can kind of tell I am slightly drunk on musical theater.  If I had an ounce of singing/dancing/acting talent, I'd probably quit my job and move to New York.  Okay, I wouldn't do that, because I'd miss John too much.  But you know, if I was talented enough, I bet he'd come with me.  And when I failed, I could always come back and do local theater.  That would be fun, too.  

Anyway, I took it as a good excuse to wear my airplane dress again.  Because Elphaba defies gravity, and so do airplanes.  See what I did there?

Cardigan: Gap
Dress: eShakti
Belt: Limited
Necklace: inPink
Shoes: J.Crew Factory    

On the Radio

From 2002 until 2011, I didn't listen to the radio very much.  I was all set with my iPod and my car mp3 player, so the radio was just not necessary.  Then some total jerks decided to break into my car and rip my stereo out, and I really hope they felt stupid when they tried to pawn it and only got about $5 because it was SO OLD. But I digress...

For the past 2 years or so, I've been listening to the radio every day to and from work, and wherever else I might drive.  Over these years, I've noticed a few things about the radio that are just very strange.  As a blogger, I am pretty much an expert at sharing my opinion about frivolous things, so here we go!

• Modern hit music.  Define "modern" please.  I think if you are going to describe your station as new/modern, you should play mostly songs from this year, or at least the last couple years.  One station in town frequently has their little jingle for new music and then plays something that I remember listening to in high school.  It's been 10 years, okay.  That's not new.  
• No Repeat Workday!  - this applies to those 80s-now stations.  Shouldn't they have no repeats for several weeks?  I'm making some general assumptions here, but say they are playing music from the last 35 years, and say they stick to only the 100 top songs from each year.  That gives them 3,500 songs to play.  I have it on good authority (Google search), that most radio stations play between 200-300 songs in a day.  This means that I shouldn't hear the same song more than every 2 weeks.  Sure, current hits will get more play, which means I REALLY shouldn't hear the same Pat Benatar song every day on my drive to work.   
• Delilah - I don't understand where they find these people who call in (sorry if you are one of these people).  I recently heard a guy who wanted to dedicate a song to his friend, who he had asked on a date, and she's been avoiding him ever since then.  Delilah played "Slide" by the Goo Goo Dolls, which includes the line "do you wanna get married?" I bet the guy's lady friend is completely freaked out if she was listening.  I also wonder if they just play the same "callers" over and over again.  I'm sure no one would notice. 
• Certain Artists - I know everyone has their own opinion, but can anyone explain to me why Katy Perry and Bruno Mars are so popular?  Katy Perry's voice is so irritating - I can't change the station fast enough when her songs come on.  Bruno Mars has a decent voice, but all of his songs just sound like bad leftovers from the 80s.  Am I alone here?  They get played all the time, so I assume most people like their stuff.  

 Do you listen to the radio?  Any pet peeves to share?  Or am I just crazy?

Top: Target

Cardigan: Gap

Skirt: Banana Republic

Sandals: Love Culture

Golf Pro

These pictures have nothing to do with golf, but I wasn't allowed to take pictures at the US Senior Open on Saturday, and I wanted to blog about it.  I also wanted to show off my new dress.  I found it when my sister was in town, and I sort of love it.  I mean, floral with lace details and buttons up the back!  It felt a little too fancy for work, but I think the cardigan and flat sandals helped keep it casual.

Anyway, about golf...

When John asked me to go to the golf tournament with him, I reluctantly agreed.  The more I learned, the less excited I was, for various reasons.  Golf can be a tad boring.  The forecast was hot, sunny and humid.  It started at 8, so I would have to wake up at 6:45 on a Saturday!?  No cell phones or cameras allowed?!  But I thought it might be fun and I should give it a try.  A few random thoughts:

• I had no idea what I should wear.  The internet is NOT helpful with this question.  I found the following advice:  
• Wear comfortable shoes, as you will be walking around a lot
• Wear wedge sandals, because you shouldn't wear tennis shoes, but heels will sink into the ground.
• Dress like you would if you were golfing
• Don't dress like a golfer, or you will look like a moron.  You wouldn't wear a swimsuit to a swim meet, for example. 
• Wear a sundress 
• Don't wear anything sleeveless
• So....???  I ended up wearing my pink shorts, a v-neck tee, and tennis shoes.  I felt like I was dressed appropriately and was very glad I didn't wear wedge sandals.
• I have no short-term memory when it comes to golf.  I watch the ball and see it land.  John was looking away and asks me where it is.  No idea.  This type of thing happened pretty regularly.  I kept trying to really remember, but it was no use. 
• Watching golf in person is way more interesting than watching it on TV.  It was actually really cool, because you can be in the front row most of the time, unlike other sporting events where you are so far away from the action. 
• When it comes to golf (both playing and watching), men are all of a sudden into bright colors and crazy patterns.  I saw so many pairs of bright colored and plaid shorts, it was ridiculous!  
• Being away from my cell phone for a day was really nice.  I wasn't worried about checking email or social media or taking pictures.  I should remember to do that on a more regular basis.  
• Allegedly, the high yesterday was only 88.  It seemed much warmer as we were trekking across the hilly course. Thankfully, there was a pretty good breeze to keep us from being miserable.    

Overall, it was a really fun day!  I would happily attend another golf tournament!  

What did you do this weekend?

Dress: Gibson&Latimer
Cardigan: Gap
Belt: Limited
Sandals: Carlos Santana

Lazy Weekend

Happy Monday!  Since this was my first and last weekend with nothing going on for quite sometime, I am happy to report that I did a whole lot of nothing!  Friday after work, John and I met up for dinner and then caught a late showing of World War Z.  It was decent, but not as good as I wanted it to be.  I started reading the book on Saturday, so I'll probably end up doing a comparison post soon.

After staying up too late on Friday, I seriously slept in on Saturday.  I think this is the secret to controlling my caloric intake.  Sleeping until noon is the new trendy diet - celebrities should be paying me for this insight.  I just need to quit my job so I can sleep for 12 hours every night.

Saturday afternoon was reserved for catching up on laundry and running errands.  I think I ironed every single item of iron-able clothing on Saturday evening.  It's a glamorous life, I know.

The above outfit is from Sunday morning church.  After church, we went to lunch with some friends, and then I spent the afternoon cleaning up in our "extra" room, so it will be ready for my nieces next weekend!  I'm pretty excited for them to get here!

Here's a bonus for your Monday morning.  When John is my photographer, he usually convinces me to do silly things, like jump or twirl.  This is a great skirt for twirling, by the way.

Top and Cardigan: Gap
Skirt: H&M dress (refashioned)
Shoes: Target

Literary Junkies and a Maxi Dress

 

It's time for the Literary Junkies link up again. I'm so bad at answering these questions each month!  

What are you currently reading? Tell us about it.
Some of My Best Friends are Black by Tanner Colby - this was a recommendation from one of my friends.  The subtitle is "The Strange Story of Integration in America."  He is basically looking at four areas of American life (work, school, church, neighborhoods) and how we are still pretty separated based on race.  I'm only a few chapters in, but so far it is very interesting. 

Who is your favorite book character and why?
I hate picking favorites!  I tend to like books where the characters aren't super likeable, so this is tricky.  Thinking about the past year or so, my favorites are probably Hazel and Gus from The Fault in Our Stars.  I just liked them and how they interacted with each other.

What would the title of your memoir be?
Probably "Just Another Smith" or something equally un-clever.  Although after reading a few really boring memoirs in the past few years, I've actually thought maybe people would like reading about my life.  I mean, if people liked Eat, Pray, Love, they would pretty much like anything, right?! 
 
What book or series do you remember reading as an elementary/middle school age?
As a kid, I READ ALL THE BOOKS!  I was very into the Boxcar Children series, and then I started reading the Babysitters Club and a lot of the different series by Christian authors.  One of my favorites from the church library was the Sadie Rose Adventures.  I remember walking out of the library on a regular basis with a stack of books so high I couldn't see over them.  

Go check out the other book nerds here!

About my outfit...  
Usually when Marion announces the Trend of the Month, I have to plan an outfit for it.  This time, I was actually wearing my only maxi dress on the day she posted the theme.  I mean, I can pretty much read minds.  Her link-up goes live tomorrow, so you still have time to join in on the fun! 

Dress & Belt: Old Navy
Cardigan: Gap
Sandals: Carlos Santana    

  

Ten Years

My high school reunion is this weekend.  I really can't believe it has been 10 years!  One of my best friends was Senior class president, and somehow I promised her that I would help her plan the reunions, so she and I have been busy gathering everyone's contact information and planning the event.  I'm really hoping everything goes well!  (If not, I will deny my involvement in the planning)

Honestly, I am super excited to see everyone!  I wasn't sure how many people would actually come, but most of my favorite people from high school will be there.  I had a dream the other night that we were at the reunion and I was so excited that John locked me in one of the classrooms to calm down.  I mean, I hope that doesn't happen.  I'm not THAT crazy, right?

Many things have changed in my life over the past 10 years, but 2 things have stayed the same:

1. My car - my parents bought a 1997 Honda Civic for me in 2002, thinking it would last me through college.  Well, I'm still driving it.  I'm way too sentimental about this car, and will likely drive it until it stops running. 
2. My Hairstyle - since my hair isn't every particularly trendy, I think it's okay that I have the same style 10 years later, right?  I even use the same mousse.  I've tried other products, but just don't like anything as much as Pantene! 

If you are interested in learning more about high school Andi, you should check out this post I did last year about my adventures at school dances. 

Do you have any exciting weekend plans?  Or any fun stories about high school class reunions?

I'm linking up for Casual Friday today!  

Top: Target
Cardigan & Shoes: Gap
Jeans: Old Navy

So Embarrassing

Today's topic is:  Most embarrassing moment.


My official most embarrassing moment happened with I was in middle school.  You can read that story here.  I wanted to think of a more recent embarrassing moment, and it was tough.  I'm a walking contradiction when it comes to embarrassing moments, because I do embarrassing things all the time, but I tend to forget them pretty quickly.  Most of my embarrassing moments involve me crying in a situation where any normal person would not cry.  Here's an example from a couple years ago:  

I had been out all day running errands, and was just a few blocks away from my apartment.  There's a stop sign, so I stopped (I promise, I stopped!).  I saw a police car down the road, and he proceeded to pull out behind me and follow me down the block.  I was nervous (because I always get nervous when a cop is driving near me), but knew I hadn't done anything wrong, so I just went on my way.  Right at the turn to my apartment, he flipped his lights on, so I pulled over.  He came up and did the standard spiel of "License and Registration!  Do you know why I stopped you?" and I said no, and he said I didn't stop at the stop sign.  I didn't argue, because I was too busy trying not to cry.  He took my documents and went back to his car.  At this point, I broke down sobbing - like I can't breathe, totally upset.  When he came back, I was trying my best to keep it together, and I had my sunglasses on, so I thought he wouldn't notice.  The cop said "Ma'am, are you crying?"  and I was like *sob*gasp*sniff* "NO!"  He sort of raised his eyebrows at me and then I say "Maybe!"  I was so embarrassed.  He just gave me a warning and sent me on my way.  Probably the most embarrassing thing about this story is that I keep telling people about it.  Any time the subject of getting a ticket comes up, I have to tell my only story of getting pulled over!  (until last week, when I got caught at the check-point and totally didn't cry!  I'm getting so tough!)

Top and Cardigan: Gap
Skirt: Old Navy
Sandals: Carlos Santana via DSW

Tough

Take One, Pass It On Item: boyfriend shirt from last Friday's post

I recently learned that someone in my office described me as "tough."  When I told various other people (husband, sister, friends), they all laughed heartily.  I'm about as NOT tough as is humanly possible.  There are several definitions (according to Merriam-Webster):    

1. characterized by severity or uncompromising determination <tough laws> <tough discipline>
2. capable of enduring strain, hardship, or severe labor <tough soldiers>
3. very hard to influence : stubborn <a tough negotiator>
4. difficult to accomplish, resolve, endure, or deal with <a tough question> <tough luck>
5. stubbornly fought <a tough contest>
6. unruly, rowdyish <a tough gang>
7. marked by absence of softness or sentimentality <a tough critic>

The only one that I could maybe believe about myself is #4.  I'm sometimes "difficult to deal with", but that is because I am so sensitive, so I'm not sure we can really apply it in this case.   

I just thought it was funny - the perceptions others have of us are sometimes very far from reality!  And I figured I should let you all know the truth, just in case you haven't figured it out: I'm not really tough at all. 

Shirt and Cardigan: Gap
Belt: Old Navy
Skirt: Kenneth Cole Sweater (refashioned)
Boots: Target

Squirrelly

My photographer is easily distracted by the wildlife in our backyard.  This is one of many friendly neighborhood squirrels.  They are pretty cute, I guess.  They also destroyed our bird feeder last summer, but I definitely prefer them to the rabbits who destroyed our garden.  I'm glad we don't have too many crazy animals in our backyard.  My neighbor recently told me there has been a possum around, which totally freaks me out!  I haven't seen it, so I just pretend she was wrong.

When I was in high school, (actually the day of my junior prom), there was a wild turkey in our backyard.  We lived in the middle of a city, so it didn't really make sense.  Of course, I was the only person home, so I called my dad and told him about it.  I don't think anyone believed me, but I had taken a picture as evidence.  This was back in the olden days where we actually had to get film developed, so about a week later, when I got my prom pictures back, I had a very blurry picture of a turkey to prove I wasn't imagining it!

Shirt and Cardigan: Gap
Skirt: Bass
Shoes: BCBGeneration

Third Quarter Reflection

Where did Jul-Sep go?  I can't believe it is already time to review my goals.  My instinct tells me I am not doing very well, but let's have a look:

1. Be more active!  Um....pass?  Jul-Sep was not awesome for motivation.  I mostly blame my own laziness, but it was also ridiculously hot outside for most of the summer and we were traveling more than usual.  John and I played tennis a few times, but I have not had a consistent routine at all.  I have a coupon for 30 days at Curves, so I am starting that this week.  I've never been to a Curves, so I hope it's a good gym for me! 
2. Be a More Discerning Shopper.  This is so subjective, but I think I am doing better.  I have been trying harder to have list in mind of things I want to add to my wardrobe instead of just buying whatever is cute and on sale.  Just this past weekend, I had an armload of clearance dresses from Banana Republic that I was going to try on, because they were like $15 each!  Then I thought about it, and realized they were all summer dresses that wouldn't transition into fall/winter very well.  And I wasn't sure I would like any of them next summer, so I put them back without even taking the time to try on.  That's progress, my friends!
3. Be a better wife!  Mostly in the realm of dinner preparation.  I haven't been keeping track of this, but I think I am doing better.  I should really have a measurable goal for this.  I'll have to think about that and determine one. 
4. Be more creative!   The beginning of July was a good time for creativity.  I made the July 4th tank top, and fixed up my purse from Goodwill.   I also recently painted my front door, which is kind of creative, right?  I'm also re-decorating the hall bathroom, and am halfway through attempting this project.     
5.  Read 50 books in 2012.  It was a good quarter for reading, at least!  I read 17 books in Jul-Sep and am now at 40 for the year, which puts me 3 books ahead of schedule.   I was worried I wouldn't be able to hit my goal on this, but I feel like I am on track now.  Just have to read 10 books in the next 3 months - shouldn't be a problem!


Top: J. Crew
Cardigan: Gap
Skirt: Old Navy
Shoes: Michelle D via Dillard's

The Overlook

I think these are the only legit outfit photos from our trip.  We got dressed a little bit nicer for dinner one night, and I figured I should pose with the Southwestern decor.  I didn't even notice the kachina behind me!

Earlier that day, we took a walk from the house and ended up here:

These were taken from Overlook Park, which is just right in their neighborhood.  It kind of blows my mind that John's grandparents live less than a mile away from such an amazing view.  I guess it's a pretty popular spot for tourists to stop and take pictures.  John's grandma told me that she ran into a tourist there recently who said "well, now I don't have to go to the Grand Canyon!"  She told him he might still want to give the Grand Canyon a shot.  I mean, the Overlook is beautiful, but it's not quite as epic as the Grand Canyon.

You can hike down to the Rio, which we did back in October 2006.  It was quite a bit cooler in the fall, so we skipped the hike this time, but I would recommend it if you ever go there.

Outfit details:
Cardigan and shirt: Gap
Scarf: H&M
Shorts: J.Crew
Sandals: Carlos Santana