WIWW: What I Wore Wednesday

Well, I hate to say "I don't really do link-ups" but I don't. But I am now.

I used to do E's Midweek Confessions, but I kind of fell off that wagon. 

And then I saw this What I Wore Wednesday on Ashley's blog and got a little excited.

If you follow me on Instagram (or unfollowed me because of too many selfie outfit posts), you know I like to post my outfits all the time from time to time.

I don't do it to brag about how great my outfit is (its not) or how skinny I am (I am not!), but I like to see other people's outfits for inspiration and to find new combinations I would never have though of that look great together (sorry, Ashley, this is almost exactly the same as my comment on your WIWW, but its true!) and I thought I will return the favor by posting my own creations.

(ok, you can stop laughing at me now.)

So, on with the show...

I'm going to back a little further then a week, and most of these I already posted on Instagram but here they are again, with a little detail.

Yes, a picture where people poop. At work. Sorry.

Sweater: J.Crew (but I had to hunt it down on ebay because it was sold out - I LOVE it!)

Skirt: H&M

Sweater tights: H&M

Boot Socks: H&M

Boots: Payless ($30 and I LOVE them!!!) 

Cardigan: American Eagle (old)

Chambray button-up with anchor print: Old Navy

Navy striped tank: H&M

Red Corduroy skinnies: Old Navy

Camel ballet flats: Payless

I had to put a lot of thought into last week's outfits as they would be all I had while traveling to Germany. I had to consider the weather (cold and snowy) and the logistics of packing and dragging a heavy suitcase around old cobblestone streets with clothes I may not even wear (a mistake I made when traveling to Italy when I was 19 - I brought a different pair of shoes for each outfit! That was a heavy bag to drag around Rome - never again!) I think I did good this time:

 Sunday:

Coat: Old Navy 

Scarf: Old Navy

Jeans: Tommy Hilfiger

Boots: Sorel Caribou (best 10lbs I ever lugged across the Atlantic)

Bag: Orla Kiely (my girl crush)

 Monday:

Scarf: gift from my mom

Dress: Target (for $6!!!!!)

Sweater tights: H&M

Leg warmers: Kohls

Boots: Macy's (I forget the brand)

Tuesday:

Sweater: Old Navy

Striped Tank: Gap Outlet

Red Corduroy skinnies: Old Navy

Boots: Sorel Caribou

 Wednesday:

Chambray shirt dress: J.Crew factory

Sweater tights: Target

Leg warmers: H&M

Boots: Macy's (and still can't remember the brand)

Thursday (bad photo in my hotel room)

Cardigan: J.Crew Factory

Striped Henley: Cynthia Rowley @ Marshall's

Jeans: Tommy Hilfiger

Ballet Flats: Payless

**Please disregard hair & glasses as my flat iron would not work in Germany and I was flying home so no contacts**

Friday I wore a gray cardigan from J.Crew, a coral and white striped with gray collar and sleeves, long sleeve T from Gap, a mint tank from Target, Levi jeans from Marshall's, gray Uggs. I didn't get a photo but we did go see Yo Gabba Gabba LIVE! and it was SO much fun!

Saturday:

Sweater: Gap

Striped tank: H&M

Mustard yellow skinny cords: Target ($7!!!)

Leg warmers: H&M

Boots: Payless 

Sunday I gave my phone a day of rest and my family my undivided attention so no photo. But I wore:

Gray striped sweater: Gap, Navy tank: Old navy, same jeans from Friday, Gray Uggs. After church, I changed into old college sweatpants and slippers. 

Monday:

Scarf: Some weird store in Germany 

Sweater: Banana Republic

Tank: Old Navy

Pants: Gap

Mustard yellow corduroy Ballet flats: DSW

Tuesday:

Sweater: J.Crew

Long sleeve shirt: Old Navy

Blue Corduroys: Old Navy (old)

Shoes: Target (they are considered "slippers" but I wear them as shoes.

Go link up with The Pleated Poppy, if you feel so inclined:

And share your latest and greatest. I already feel a Pinterest sesh coming on as I go through all these fun links.

Ps. Thanks, Ashley!

We Survived.

Five nights and four full days away from my girl is the longest we have been apart. Ever.

And we all survived it.

I will admit, by Tuesday, I was ready to jump on a plane to come home.

FaceTime helped a lot. The time difference did not.

As I've said before, I had to take a business trip to Germany for five days. I left on a Saturday night, arrived in Germany Sunday morning and came back to the States on Thursday. I knew it would be good for all of us. And absence does make the heart grow fonder. I missed my guy and my girl so much.

Some highlights of my trip:

- a very uncrowded plane so I got an entire row to myself. So nice.
- my Sorel boots. It snowed and those kept my feet nice and warm.

- not speaking German (not a highlight) especially when everyone around you is talking (= rude).
- cappuccino every where. every day.
- Haribo gummies.

- wanting cereal so bad and then taking my first bite and it's room temperature milk. BLECH! (not a highlight)
- posted some outfits pics on Instagram. Lost some followers. Oh, well. Can't win 'em all. (I am always curious as to what exactly it is that makes someone unfollow you. Too many selfies? Too many kid pics? Too many dog pics? Just all around annoying? I annoy myself a lot of the time so I can understand that one. I don't follow people that post pics of their cats. I just don't. I'm not a cat person. (have I said this before?)And so I guess some people just are kid people. Or pug people. Or selfie people. That's fine. It makes the world go round.) *stepping off of soapbox*

All in all, it was a good trip. Can't say Germany has been one of my favorite countries to visit. But then again it is January and cold and snowing. Summer might be nicer. I am very grateful for the opportunity to travel. I always gain a better perspective when I travel. It makes me realize how small we are and what a big, unique, complex world we live in. From the decent of the plane landing in a foreign country, the land looking like Mr. Roger's Neighborhood to the many different people you meet leading lives similar to your's. I love to travel.  I hope I can instill this same interest in my own kids.

Of all my travels, this life is the greatest adventure of all.

xoxo

too-da-loo mutha @#$%

I know, I know, three days of consecutive posts!

Go ahead, I'll wait. Go change your pants.

To start, one of my To Do's for this year is to Stop Wasting Time.

I can waste time like no one's business. Give me 10 extra minutes, I can waste 20. Part of it is from my undiagnosed ADD. Some is from my unrealistic view of time. It is something I am really working on.

And it is not easy.

I have been thinking of ways that I can save time and use the time I have to be more productive.

One of them is blogs. I spend a lot of time reading blogs (a lot more then writing my own!), it can be such a time suckage. Especially when I come across a new blog and I have to catch up in the archives.

I have come to realize there are blogs that I take the time to read, and sometimes take the time to comment and I get nothing. Not even a "Hey, thanks for taking the time out of your day to read my blog". So I resolve that I will not follow/read/comment on any blog that is not responsive. That should save me some time.

And the blogs I love? They are the ones that take the time to acknowledge the time I took to read and comment on their post. Even Naomi, an undeniably true rockstar blogger, has taken time to respond back to a comment or an email. That is cool. And some of my favorites, Katie, Kate, Elizabeth, are my favorites, not just because of how much I love their writing and photos, but because they take the time to acknowledge the people who take the time to read their blog. And I don't want to leave out my homegirls, Kaly, Laura, and Sarah. You guys changed my mind in thinking that having "internet friends" is weird. Well, it's still kind of weird but I swear I am not an old, fat man. My Instagram should prove that, no one could make that up. Although do not watch the movie or TV show Catfish on MTV or you will start to question everyone on the the other side of your screen.
*And if any of you girls ever happen across this lame-o blog of mine, Thank you. Keep doing what you are doing because it is a gift. Love you lots (and not in a SWF kind of way)

So, in closing, it comes back to prioritizing priorities. Filtering out what is needed and what is wanted and what is necessary.

I like being an un-follower.

xoxo

girl crush

I know everyone is jumping on the Pitch Perfect bandwagon now that its out on DVD. 

But I saw it in the movie theater. Which means I paid $10+ to see it. Which means I could drive one of the bandwagons.

Or I'm a total nerd. 

Whatever, I still love this song and these girls are pretty dope.

Auf Wiedersehen!

This time next week I will be freezing my bums off in Germany. Since I am going for work, I do not expect a lot of sightseeing but I did map out the shopping areas in the town I am staying in so I hope to get to one of them in between meetings or at the end of the day. 

I am feeling a bit overwhelmed at all I have to do to get ready for this trip. Not only do I have to get all MY stuff in order, at work and at home, but I have to make sure the Husband and Child do not starve and have clean undies/onesies. Good thing I love to make lists. 

This will be the first time I will be away from Avery for over 24 hours. And while I KNOW she and I both need a break from one another (bad), it is still hard. As my anxiety grows with the looming thought of flying for! 8! hours! so does the thought that if something were to happen to her, God forbid, or The Husband, will I be able to get home "in time"? 

I know it is one of those Let Go, Let God situations (and pop a Xanax or two, washed down with a strong rum and coke - let's be honest, that is the only way I fly) and I am really trying to. It's one of those weaknesses we have to keep our eyes on Him. I am OK with that because it is a testimony to others and most especially, to myself. Bible thumping done.

Back to needing a break from my child. I am the kind of person that needs breaks from people, I need to miss them. My best friend (since we were 7) and I learned the meaning of "taking a break" early on in life as we would spend so much time together we would want to kill each other. And while our mothers' new this bit of wisdom, it took E and I over a decade to realize, I think. The Husband is probably one of the only people on the earth that I do not feel this way about and we have been together for 10 years. 

But my child? My spawn who carries 1/4 of my genes and is in some ways very much like me, even at 21 months old? We need a break. And yes, I do work full time and I am seeing more and more how what I once so desperately wanted - to stay home with my kid(s)- may not be the best for me, for US. 

In the past month, she has begun teething, getting her 2 year old molars. And the terrible 2's have started to creep in. Pssshht, who am I kiddin? I swear this kid is possessed or the first bipolar one year old. I can deal with the "no,no,no,no"s and the limp noodle, drop on the ground. I am having a really hard time with the blood curdling screams. So are my ear drums. I have to clean my ears out at least twice a day because my body is producing so much wax to protect my hearing from Regan MacNeil.

When we are home, it is not so bad because I put her in her crib, close the door, turn on the air purifier in the hallway and go downstairs and turn the TV up or go out side and take some deep breaths - any place I cannot hear the screaming. But when we are out in public? What do you do? I have no problem ignoring the fit, remember I am the oldest of 6 kids, it is a survival skill. I just feel bad for everyone else around. I know it is just a stage, but dang...I still look at her and see that sweet little babe who smiled and cooed, who slept like a champ from 2 weeks, and rarely cried or fussed. 

I guess until I see her head spin around and she projectile vomits pea soup, I know we just have to ride this one out. 

What am I doing complaining about my perfect blessing of a child? This is real. And no sugarcoating. Thank God the good days out weigh the bad 7 times 70. 

Must get back to my list making. Prayers for all of us that we survive this next week!

xoxo

Think before you speak.

I've written a few posts, only to abandon them because I could not figure out where they were going (or I was taking them)

As a person of absolute minute detail, most of my unpublished posts border on the long-winded side.

I am sure you are thinking "HA! yeah right! All your posts are long-winded". But I just find the need for details. In everything. That is one of the reasons I hate when men gossip. (not the I care for any gossip, and it is something I am convicted of daily and making a large effort to change) Men just do not get the details, at least the men I know, specifically my husband. He will tell me some juicy tidbit and like a machine gun, I go off with question after question, trying to get every last morsel of news. 

via

Like how I am describing gossip like food? But it is not. Because you NEED food to live, you do NOT need gossip. In fact, the more I remove and resist gossip in my life, the better I feel.

This is not a New Year's resolution.

This is something I have been struggling with for ever. And most recently have felt the effects of other people gossiping and have been figuratively b!tch slapped with my own sin.

It is such an easy weakness to give in to. And sometimes I don't even realize I am doing it. I make the effort to stop myself before I say anything about anyone. I think "would I say this in front of them?" and "would I want this said about me?" Usually the answer is "NO!"

On the occasion that I do fall into my flesh and gossip, I feel awful. Like I want to take myself and just slap me upside the head. It is so weird to me though, because I remember feeling a kind of satisfaction by spewing some gossip, especially when I got a good reaction. I know why this has changed. And it is one of the things I am thankful for every day.

See? I intended to write a quick post about the last 3 weeks and here I am talking about one of my biggest weaknesses. But there it is. And I am human, and I have struggles just like everyone else.

The moral of the story: Do your best to try not to gossip. It is never fruitful and most likely hurtful to the person or persons being talked about. I hold myself accountable every time I open my mouth. It feels a lot better then making some one else's ears burn.

xoxo