'Twas the Night before Christmas...

And we were taking pictures!  This is the Ann Taylor dress I wore to the Christmas party a few weeks ago.  I'm having fun styling it in different ways.

This is my sister/best friend.  She and I have very different styles, but always have fun shopping and sometimes even share things.  Isn't her sweater cool!?  I wish she lived in the same town as me so I could steal it sometime!   

I asked my nieces what they think about our outfits and got the following comments:

M:  First, say this is me and my big sister.  She's only wearing that sweater because she can't see it.  If she could see it, it would make her dizzy.
S:  I don't know
D:  They are both kind of white at the top, like the pearl necklace and the other necklace.

E:  That's BEAUTIFUL!!!

On me:
Dress:  Ann Taylor
Sweater:  Gap
Belt: from another dress
Necklace:  InPink
Boots:  Bare Traps

On Jill:
Necklace:  from China, borrowed from me.
Everything else:  Gap

Merry Christmas!!!

 Merry Christmas!!!!

 Merry Christmas!!!!

 Merry Christmas!!!!

 Merry Christmas!!!!

 Merry Christmas!!!!

I'm just a little bit excited about Christmas tomorrow!  We are having fun with my family, and I have been slacking on my every day posts.  For all 7 of the people who read this, please forgive me!  

I'm getting a lot of fashion advice from my nieces, like the following:

Those jeans make you look a little bit fat.

That sweater isn't very cute.  Maybe if it was red instead of orange. 

You look like a teenager in that outfit!!

 

These pictures are from Thursday night, when we went to the Yuletide Celebration.  I used it as another excuse to rock my gold skirt.  I kept it simple with a black sweater, tights and boots.  

We took a "coming down the stairs for prom" picture, just for fun.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas tomorrow! 

Sweater:  Gap
Skirt:  Gap
Boots:  Bare traps via DSW
Pearls:  gift - from China
Bracelets:  gift - from a friend's wedding

Wedding Wednesday - Flower Girl

I was sorting through old pictures the other day and found this one:

This is from 1990 or 1991.  I was the flower girl in my Aunt's wedding, and I was super excited.  I have no idea why I look so sad in this picture.  My mom was the Matron of Honor, and my older sisters were bridesmaids.  My mom made all of our dresses.  I got a lot of use out of this dress, for Christmas, Easter, and other fancy occasions that year.  A couple years ago, my nieces found it at my parent's house and I think they wore it a few times. 

I don't remember much from that day, but I'm sure I was happier than the above picture implies!

Lay off of my blue flannel shoes

These shoes were a total impulse buy at Gap one year.  Now I can't remember if it was last year, or 2 years ago.  They were cheap, and I thought I needed some plaid shoes.  They look much better without socks, but since they are flannel, it feels weird to wear them when it's warm enough to go without socks.  I mean, there is a pretty small window of weather where flannel and no socks are appropriate.  Maybe I should get some plaid socks to wear with them.  That wouldn't be too weird, right?


Cardigan: Loft
T-shirt: Mossimo from Target
Jeans: Gap
Shoes: Gap

Red Stripe

 No, not the Jamaican Beer! 

Saturday, I went shopping for Christmas presents, and somehow ended up in the dressing room at Loft with about 25 items to try on.  I have no idea what happened, I must have blacked out or something.  I was relatively good and just walked out with a pair of trouser jeans ($20) and this red striped top ($12).  I was pretty pumped about this shirt, so I wore it over to my in-laws for dinner and game night.

My sister-in-law said I looked like a candy cane.  Her boyfriend said I looked more like "Where's Waldo".  I don't have any idea why he thought that.  

At least I have a good idea for next Halloween!

Anyway, we had a great night, and my sis-in-law and I destroyed everyone else at Hand and Foot. 

Top:  Loft
Sweater:  H&M
Jeans:  Old Navy
Boots:  Wanted via DSW

Gray Boots and good friends

 I just got these boots back from the shoe hospital, and couldn't be more excited!  After being worn almost every day for 2 winters, they were in desperate need of some new heels.

Sweater: Old Navy
Skirt:  Gap
Tights: Target
Boots: Wanted via Piperlime


















I wore this outfit to work on Friday, and then to a cookie exchange with my friends from college.  This was the 4th year we have done this, and I hope we can keep it up in the future.  Here's a look at the spread of treats: 






We mostly just sat around and talked about life, while enjoying some hot chocolate and chowing down on treats.  It was such a great time!  And of course,  we had to snag a group picture:

Love these girls!!

FBFF Holiday Quiz

I'm linking up to Modly Chic's Fashion Beauty Friend Friday today, and answering some holiday themed questions!  I'm SO excited for Christmas! 

No holiday party is complete without: Christmas music!

My favorite Christmas song/album:  I wrote a whole  post about Christmas music this week.  Currently, I'm loving the Weezer Christmas Album and Michael Buble!

My favorite seasonal recipe: the fudge my mom makes!

The perfect New Year’s Eve outfit includes: something sparkly

At the parties, I’ll be drinking: hot chocolate

Eggnog, good or bad?  bad

Did you ever take pictures on Santa’s lap at the mall? I don't think so.  My family wasn't really into Santa Claus

Gingerbread Latte or Peppermint Mocha:  neither, I'm not much of a coffee drinker.  I'd vote for Peppermint Hot Chocolate

Worst gift I ever got:  I can't think of anything terrible, although when I was in junior high, my sister bought me Steve Madden panties for Christmas.  I was so embarrassed!

Best gift I ever received: How to decide!?  2 years ago, my husband got me a new camera, which was pretty sweet.  And when I was in high school, my parents bought me a leopard print chair shaped like a high heeled shoe. 

My family has this weird tradition: every year, my mom makes my dad walk around the house shouting "HO HO HO! Get your presents!  Wake up!" and shake jingle bells to wake us up.  Every year, he says he won't do it this year, but he always does!

My best bargain find for a gift this year:  I can't divulge that information at the moment, because the recipient might be reading this!

If I could only buy all my gifts from one place, I’d shop at:  Amazon!  You can find everything there.  If it has to be a physical store, I'd say Target.  

Rudolph the Red-nose Reindeer or Frosty the Snowman:  I vote for Rudolph.  I remember in preschool, we had to learn all the reindeer names, but now I can't remember

My favorite holiday memory:  I have no idea!  There are so many great ones.  Probably when my nephew was really little, and he was terrified by my dad's Christmas morning wake up call (see tradition above).  It was the funniest thing ever, and we now refer to the tradition as "the Santa Monster"  

The best part about holiday decorations is:  again, how do I pick!  I think the lights are my favorite.  

Rip off the wrapping paper or neatly pull off the tape:  depends on how pretty the wrapping is.

Miracle on 34th Street or It’s a Wonderful Life:  It's a wonderful life!  I honestly don't think I have ever seen Miracle on 34th Street, so I should probably watch it sometime.

All I want for Christmas is:  to spend time with friends and family who I don't get to see very often!  Oh, and presents.  Lots of presents! :-)