More Orphans Combined

My plan to wear closet orphans is kind of haphazard.  You don't mind, right?  Good! 

I love this skirt, but I apparently forgot about it when it got cold.  And I don't think I've even worn these boots at all this year.  Yep, the evidence shows it has been almost a year!  Hopefully that evidence doesn't mean we will have snow in late March this year.  I bought these tights in November, and haven't worn them at all.  And guess what?  They ripped about halfway through the day, so this is also the last time I will wear them.  Fun patterned tights do not play well with my fingernails.  I need to give up.  And this fun sequin/leopard top needs to get more action in the outfit rotation. 

Anyway, I really loved this outfit.  It felt very "me."  Apparently animal print, a bright color, and a cardigan are my staples.  That sounds about right. 


Cardigan: Limited
Top: Chaus
Skirt: Gap
Tights: Old Navy
Boots: Rampage

#21 - Forever Young

This is an outfit I created on Polyvore, and it looked like a good idea on the collage.  Then I put it on, and decided the polka dot scarf was too much.  Then I felt like I was trying to look younger than I am.  Each of these items is somewhat "junior-ish," so combining them all just didn't quite work out.  But I had to get to work, so I just went with it.  Not my favorite look, but hopefully no one judged me too harshly.  Be honest, do I look like a 29-year-old pretending to be 19?  Because if you can't trust strangers on the internet to give reliable feedback, who can you trust?

Jacket: Target
Dress & Tights: Old Navy
Belt: Limited
Boots: Steve Madden

Doctor Who

 

The problem with binge-watching television shows is that eventually you catch up, and then you have to be patient.  John and I finally jumped on the Doctor Who bandwagon several months ago, and pretty quickly worked our way from 2005 to current.  And now I have to wait until the Christmas special comes out and then I have to wait until fall of 2014.  This is ridiculous.  (hashtag: firstworldproblems)

Any other Doctor Who fans out there in style-blog-land?  Either way, what other TV shows would you recommend to keep me busy while I'm waiting for new episodes of my favorite British shows?

Jacket: Relativity
Chambray: J.Crew Factory
Jeans: Gap
Shoes: Old Navy

Vivacious

It's an exciting week for 2 reasons (well, maybe more, but 2 that I know of):

1. My birthday is on Thursday.  I'm kind of obnoxiously enthusiastic about birthdays (particularly my own), but I'll try to keep it to a minimum.  
2. Marissa and Heidi are hosting another Pantone-Inspired challenge this week.  I participated in the spring, and met some of my very favorite bloggers, so I'm excited to see who I find this time!  

So, today's color is vivacious, which is basically just a bright purplish pink, so I figure this skirt qualifies.  I want to know who gets paid to come up with these color names, and then I want that job!  

Also, this sweater and boots combo will be back tomorrow, because they are TURBULENCE-colored.  

Tee&Skirt: Gap

Sweater: Urban Outfitters

Boots: Wanted

Necklace: Phoenix gift shop

Back to Reality

 

The first few days at work after a vacation are rough.  It's been such a busy week, just trying to get caught up on everything I missed, and on top of that, we are having some internal training this week, so I'm in meetings most of the day.  Trouble.  I'm tempted to go back to the mountains where the internet doesn't work.

I'm hoping to find time this weekend to sort through my vacation pictures so I can share them with you. Warning - Glacier National Park is sort of beautiful, so you might want to go there!

Top, Cardigan, Skirt: Gap
Shoes: Michelle D

I've Got a Number of Irrational Fears

Only a week in, and I think I need to admit that I won't be participating in the challenge every day.  I'm just going to jump in on as many days as I can manage.  Day 7's topic is the thing(s) you're most afraid of.  (dun dun dun).

• Spiders - and really all bugs except for maybe roly-polies). 
• Birds - particularly ones in buildings, like Lowe's - terrifying!)
• Lots of other animals, like snakes, bats, 
• Drowning - I love being in the ocean or a pool, but if my head goes under, I flip out!
• Getting Alzheimer's or dementia when I get old  
• Taking outfit photos in public (but I'm overcoming this one!)

If I'm not careful, I can really spiral into being afraid of every possible thing that could happen.  For example, if I call my husband, and he doesn't answer, I pretty regularly assume he has probably died.  BECAUSE WHY ELSE ISN'T HE ANSWERING???  Perfectly reasonable!  Seriously though, that's probably my biggest fear - bad things happening to the people I love.  

I'm also afraid of over-sharing on the internet!  One of the reasons I decided to join in on this challenge is because I read the topics and was sort of intimidated by them.  But then I thought it would be good for me to get out of my comfort zone and get a little more deep on the blog.  But then I realize that I'm like "hey guys, I'm sort of crazy!" and kind of want to delete this whole post and just say I'm scared of spiders.  So, I hope I'm not alone in my irrational fears.  (And if you noticed my title is stolen from a Weezer song, let's be friends!)

PS - this outfit is 100% stolen from Kendi.  That girl can rock a camo jacket!

Jacket: Old Navy
Shirt: J.Crew
Skirt: Gap
Shoes: BCBGeneration

April Showers

Let's talk about the weather, okay?  It is mid-April and last week we experienced all of the seasons.  Monday was warm and beautiful, and I wore this.  Rumor has it that over the weekend, we even got up into the 70s, but I was gallivanting around Arizona, so I can't really confirm those allegations.  Tuesday started out nice, but got significantly colder as the day progressed, and then we had a crazy hail storm that night.  It rained all day Wednesday, and then snowed on Thursday, and I'm just not really sure how to dress myself when there is so much variability in the weather!  I'm falling back on my jeans almost every day.  

On the rainy Wednesday, I started with the thought that I should wear my rain boots.  Then I worked from there.  Add my giraffe umbrella and I was ready to go!  Sadly, the giraffe umbrella is now broken.  Don't worry, I have another one!  (I just have to find it...)

Trench coat, Sweater, Jeans: Gap
Blazer: H&M
Boots: Target

Big Hair, Chambray, and Fake Spring

A few weeks ago, I switched to sulfate-free shampoo and conditioner, and I have noticed that my hair seems less frizzy.  Then last week, I tried the new Pantene "No Crunch Curls Whip", after using only this mousse for about 10 years.  I liked how it made my curls softer, and I don't even mind how much fluffier/larger my hair is, but the tangles are out of control.  I had some giant knots in my hair that did not want to untangle.  I'm not sure if I can put up with that.  I did get a few compliments from strangers on this big hair day.

I also have to share a recent conversation with my husband, about the ever-popular chambray shirt:

• J:  You are wearing a jean shirt, aren't those out of style?
• A:  Yeah, but this is a "Chambray" shirt, totally different.
• J:  So, fashion bloggers were embarrassed that they liked Jean shirts again, so they are just calling it    something different?
• A:  Ummmm.... yeah, I guess so.    

Friday was also a gloriously warm day, and I was very excited to let my knees out to play.  Fake spring has come and gone, and we are supposed to get more snow this week.  Come on, real spring!  You can show up any time!

And finally, since everyone is talking about the coming death of Google Reader (and probably GFC), don't forget to follow me on BlogLovin!  

Jean shirt: J.Crew factory
Cardigan & Skirt: Gap
Boots: Rampage

Budgeting Blogger, Take 2

Take One, Pass It On Item:  tan scarf from last Tuesday's post

I'm linking up with Franish again this month for Budgeting Bloggers.  As I said at the end of January, I am trying to save up my shopping money so I have extra to spend when I go to Phoenix in April.  February was pretty successful in this regard.  I did get a couple dresses, but they were both very reasonably priced, and I am getting rid of several old dresses, so I have some room in my wardrobe.

1. Limited Striped Dress:  $18 (originally $98)
2. Kohl's dress (not online, but I found it here):  $6.40 (originally $64) - plus I had a gift card, so it was free.  

Grand Total = $18

Pretty good, I guess!  I'm going to avoid shopping in March, too, and then I will probably go a little overboard in April, but the clothing budget rolls over from month to month, so it is OK!   I am also hoping to clear out quite a bit of my closet in March.  If I haven't worn it all winter, I will probably try to sell it or donate it! 

Did you stick to your budget in February?

Sweater: Old Navy
Scarf: Calvin Klein
Skirt: Gap
Boots: Rampage

Weekend Recap

 

Take One, Pass It On Item:  bubble necklace from last Monday's post.
**Today, I am copycatting Kate's look from early December.  It's kind of exciting when I have the exact same item as another blogger, because it's very easy to get inspired.  Don't be surprised when I pass along this cardigan and copycat her again next week.

***I also need to get a better plan for taking photos at work, or figure out how to avoid taking photos at work.  These are not great!

Well, it's Monday again.  I swear, it's like it happens every week.  I had a pretty good weekend.  John and I finished painting our hallway bathroom (updates on that later).  I met a friend for lunch, and then we had some other friends come over for dinner and an epic game of Catan.  On Sunday, we had church and then met up with John's parents for lunch.  I also got caught up on some basic household tasks, like laundry and dishes!

I'd say it was a pretty successful weekend.  Did you do anything fun?

Cardigan: Old Navy
Necklace: Charming Charlie
Top and Jeans: Gap
Shoes: Born

Grammar Police

We've established that I'm sort of a nerd sometimes, and there are certain grammatical errors that just drive me crazy.  I will refrain from turning this into a blog where I only rant about grammar, but sometimes I just have to say something.  Please bear with me while I preach for a minute (or just skip to the end where I tell you where I bought my clothes).

"I's" is never correct.    

I've seen this all over the place, so if you are a recent offender, do not take it personally.  For example, if I was talking about the house that my husband and I own, it would NOT be correct to say "John and I's house."  Ever.  Like EVER!  (See, I can channel Taylor Swift when I'm grammar ranting).  

I think this is a problem because little kids tend to say "Me" all the time when they should say I.  Like "Me and Susie are going to play outside!" and our parents all drilled into us "Susie and I!"  This does not mean that every time you say "someone and" it should be "I".  

I remember my dad teaching me to take the "Susie and" part out of the sentence, and then I would know the appropriate option to use.  "Me is going to play outside" or "I am going to play outside"?  It's pretty obvious there.  

I pretty frequently hear people say things like "Do you want to have dinner with Susie and I?" and I cringe every time.  Again, would you say "Do you want to have dinner with I?"  Of course not.  

Compound possessives get even more confusing for people, especially when "I" is one of the subjects.  If the 2 subjects each have their own item, they each get their own apostrophe (John's and Andi's birthdays).  If the 2 subjects are sharing one item, they can share the apostrophe (John and Andi's house).  I like this example - think of the apostrophe as a hair dryer.  

Once you change one of the subjects into a personal pronoun, the other subject needs to have the apostrophe, or the sentence can get confusing.  If I say "John and my house is painted brown" it kind of sounds like John is painted brown and my house is painted brown.  I have to say "John's and my house" and then everything is right in the world.  

I think this is one reason coupled up people just say "we" and "our" all the time.  It might be annoying, but can we all agree it is less annoying than "I's"?  

Now please don't point out all of my grammatical errors.  I've probably got quotations on the wrong side of punctuation all over this post.

Since this was pretty random, I'm linking up with Shanna!

Scarf, Black Sweater, Jeans: Gap    

Cardigan: Urban Outfitters

Boots: Wanted via Piperlime

Favorite Books of 2012

Since I read 50 books in 2012, and I didn't write reviews on most of them, I figured I should write up a list of my favorites.  These are in no particular order:

• A Storm of Swords - Since this is book 3 in the series, it's kind of tricky, because you'd have to read books 1 and 2.  Right now, I am about a quarter of the way through book 5 and really love all of the books, but book 3 was my favorite.  
• Divergent - dystopian future, teenage girl is the main character, not quite as good as The Hunger Games, but still a pretty great story!  I also read Insurgent, and am looking forward to the next book this year!  
• Let's Pretend This Never Happened - not your average memoir.  Jenny is hilarious and heartbreaking and somehow manages to be both of those things in a completely believable way.  I read it on a flight this summer and had to be very careful about laughing uproariously on the plane.  
• MWF Seeking BFF - the author moved to Chicago to be with her boyfriend (who becomes her husband), but then realizes she doesn't have any close friends in town, and doesn't really know how to get them.  I am very happy to say that I have some great friends here in town, but I could really relate to that awkwardness of making friends as a grown-up.  How do you ask someone out on a friend date without being awkward?  I still don't really know, but it made me think I should make more of an effort to spend time with my friends.  That's kind of an unofficial resolution for the New Year.  
• Neverwhere - I don't even know how to describe this story line, but it's a great book!  Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite recently-discovered authors.  

What were your favorite books of 2012?  My to-read list is out of control, but I am always looking for books to add.  Speaking of more books,  I'm pretty excited to be participating in my first book swap.  If you like books, you should join in on the fun!

Shirt, Sweater, Jeans: Gap
Boots: Wanted via Piperlime

Carbon Copy

It's been such a busy week with Christmas and being lazy, that I haven't had much time to upload and edit current pictures, so I'm glad I had these pictures on reserve. 

This outfit is from a couple weeks ago, when it was still somewhat reasonable to wear flats with no socks.  I wore a very similar outfit back in September.  Since my jeans are pretty much the same color as that skirt, it was a no brainer that I should recreate the look. 

I'm looking forward to another 4 day weekend!  I am hoping to get a lot of stuff done around the house, and then kick off 2013 with some motivation to be better at everything (but more on that later)!

Happy Friday! 

Cardigan and Jeans: Gap
Tank Top: Old Navy
Shoes: Target

Winter White

It's Third Thursday Threads link up time again!  Have I mentioned that I love these theme link-ups?  I just have a hard time decided what to wear most days, so having a prompt is super helpful.  This month's theme was a bit more challenging than the previous ones - Winter White.  Now, I don't really believe in the whole "no white after Labor day" rule, but when I thought about the challenge, I was envisioning white pants.  I don't currently have any white pants, but I used to have an awesome pair of cream-colored corduroy trousers from Old Navy.  I actually wore them to my college graduation way back in December 2006 (how has it been 6 years?).

evidence

Since I don't have any white pants to build an outfit around, I decided to wear bright fuchsia pants and white everything else.  I really like the look of white layers in winter.  It still feels cozy and seasonally appropriate.  It was probably a mistake to wear these shoes, because it was pretty chilly outside, but I didn't really want to add heavy boots to the mix.

What do you think about wearing white in the winter?  Go check out the other looks here.

Button-up and jeans: Gap
Sweater: Old Navy
Jacket: Relativity
Shoes: BCBGeneration
Pearls: Gift (from China)

Seeing Stars

This outfit is almost entirely new.  I tend to shop quite a bit when we got to Indy, since they have several stores that we don't have.  Shopping is also a fun activity for my nieces and sister.  We had a sisters shopping date on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving - which is when I got these jeans. The girls were very excited about how I could wear the jeans with my pink cardigan, and I should buy a pink shirt to wear under the cardigan and then I would look soooo good. They are very into matching these days.

The top is from Macy's.  I ventured over there on Wednesday morning when everyone else was working or at school.  I always find a few great things at Macy's, so I really wish we had one in Omaha.  Maybe someday.  Here's a close-up, to prove the dots are really stars.

The cardigan is the craziest story.  My sister had to be at work on Black Friday at 3:30am, so I offered to drive her, since we figured it might be busy and hard to find a parking spot, or not busy at all and creepy in the parking lot all alone.  We decided to go a little early to see if there were any good deals.  It turns out the mall was totally dead, but a few stores were open.  Urban Outfitters had 50% off all clearance, so I got this cardigan and a little purse.  Then I dropped Jill off and went home to sleep.  I have no idea how she survived the day!

Top: Alfani via Macy's
Cardigan: Urban Outfitters
Jeans: Gap
Belt: Old Navy
Boots: Bare Traps via DSW

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

On Saturday, we went to get our very first real Christmas tree.  When we lived in apartments, we just had a little fake tree.  Last year, we didn't bother getting a tree since we were going to be travelling.  I am SO EXCITED to have a real tree this year.  Our house smells like magic.

We went out to dinner and then broke out the Christmas decorations!  I love (love love love) Christmastime.  It is so fun to get the ornaments out and remember where each of them came from, whether they were gifts, or souvenirs from a vacation, or we have no idea where they came from, I just love it!

Mostly finished - we need to buy a topper and a tree skirt

I also Christmas-ized the table in our living room.  Isn't that baby poinsettia the cutest!?

Outfit details:
On Me:
Chambray top: J.Crew Outlet (I finally got a Chambray shirt!)
Sweater and Jeans: Gap
Boots: Wanted via Piperlime

On John:
Sweater: Gap
Corduroy pants: Old Navy
Shoes: Kenneth Cole