Short but sweet

Whew, what a busy weekend!  It was good, but way too short.  Not to mention, we're still recovering from the crazy snowstorm.  The main issue now is it's super crazy cold again, so all the roads have turned to sheer ice.  It's fabulous.

Even as busy as things were it was a good weekend though.  Friday was a bit of a trying day because of the storm and also Oliver was in a bit of a growth spurt and super cranky and refusing the bottle at my parents house, so I received a couple of frantic calls from my mom.  But then the rest of the weekend got better. Saturday we went out for breakfast.  After that I got a few things done at home and then after Ollie went down for a nap I ran and got a haircut finally!  Feels SO much better having it short and spiky again!  I went to do a mass with our church group while Mr. Monkey took the baby to his parents house, then we had dinner with them and they watched him while we had a birthday drink with a good friend.

Blazer - two birds vintage via b. (a resale shop)

Tank top - Motherhood Maternity nursingwear

Pants - Worthington, JCPenney

Necklace - gift

Buttonflower - MMD

Shoes - Mossimo, Target

Yesterday was then a pretty big day - it was Oliver's baptism.  I'll have pictures to share in another post, but it went pretty well overall!  I was pretty proud of my little guy!  As great as it was, it did lead to the weekend being a bit too short feeling though!  Next weekend we have absolutely nothing lined up at all and we're really excited about it.  Quality family time here we come!

Inspiration Monday - SO a Monday

Well.  It's SO a Monday today you guys.  It's not even 9:00 yet and I managed to spill the old coffee grounds from our coffee pot at work all over the bathroom floor here.  And I somehow misplaced my camera, so today's outfit is photographed with the self timer on my iPhone.  Let's hope this day starts to turn around!

It is Inspiration Monday with two birds and today we have Miranda Kerr in a skirt I wouldn't be caught dead in at this stage of my pregnancy - but I like what I did manage to pull together.

Bad lighting for the photos, but otherwise I really do adore this outfit.  It was a chore getting it all put together I tell you - the Pants Monkey was laughing at me this morning as I struggled into my leggings and boots.  But I made it work!!

White shirt - swap

Blazer - b. a resale shop

Skirt - Liz Lange, thrifted

Leggings - Steve Madden, via DSW

Boots - from mom

Buttonflower - MMD

Earrings - S&D
Necklace - gift from friend 

In spite of my whining about Monday, we did have a good weekend.  Our music group threw us a shower and we got another bigger ticket item crossed off of our list so that made me happy.  We also went to a car seat install clinic, so now I feel like the car seat will be safe and secure.  We also managed to have some lazy time with breakfast on Sunday and dinner on Sunday night, so that was good too!

But now it is Monday and I just hope that the way the morning started isn't an indicator of the entire day!  It's early yet though, there's plenty of time to turn this ship around right?  Optimism!!

For more Inspiration Monday outfits, head on over to two birds over here.

50 Shades of Gray

Apparently I wanted to wear all the gray the day I wore this outfit!  I said it in a post last week during the color challenge though - I own a lot of gray!  It's just one of those neutrals that works with everything!

So speaking of 50 Shades of Gray - I still haven't read that book.  I do still want to because of all the hype about it and I'm still not sure how I feel about the movie.  There are many books that have transferred to the big screen very well, but many, MANY others that should just be left alone too.  At any rate, this is one I think I will want to read before seeing the movie, so I should really get on that one of these days.  Been too busy reading birthing and baby care books.  I need more fiction in my life!!

Dress - Motherhood Maternity, consignment

Sweater - F21, thrifted

Tights and boots - Target

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower 

And speaking of things that have colors in their titles - we finished Orange is the New Black last night which makes me saaaaaaad panda.  Love everything about that show.  I did hear it's getting another "season" so to speak so I will be anxiously awaiting new episodes.  It's almost November Sweeps anyway, so many of our regular shows should be getting good here!

Acai and 33

TGIF my friends!  We have made it through another week again!  I'm so excited today - my shower with my girlfriends is tonight.  I'm sure that will make the day drag a bit.  I love my families and those showers were fun and wonderful, but there is something about time with your closest friends you know?  I've been craving a night like this and I'm just so excited to hang out with my lady peeps!

Today's color for the Pantone color challenge is Acai - a nice shade of purple.  I wore the perfect outfit to my shower and Josh Groban concert last weekend and had every intention of using it for today but I never took the time to actually photograph it!  Blogger fail.  So, I chose to style my super comfy purple leggings for today instead.  The Pants Monkey said I looked cute this morning, so that's always a win.  And, I have had this shirt for a couple of months now but haven't shared it on the blog yet, so that's something too I suppose!

The button sweater is the gray one I was talking about earlier this week that I picked up at the swap.  And it may be my new favorite thing ever.  I don't know that I'll need to wear it all day, but it was below freezing this morning and the striped shirt is thin, so I needed the extra layer!  It's supposed to actually be pretty nice out later today though, so maybe I will be able to shed a layer!

 Sweater - swap

Striped shirt - Zulily

Leggings - Simply Vera, Kohls

Necklace - Stella and Dot with MMD buttonflower

Boots - Target

Bag - 31 Gifts

And of course, Friday is the day we count weeks and so we're at 33 weeks today, so there's my 33 week bump.  I'm trying to no longer panic over how much time is or isn't left.  We've made good progress at home and we still do have some time left.  And that's all that matters at the moment.  This weekend I'm treating Mr. Monkey and myself to a break, we're going to take some time for ourselves on Sunday, getting breakfast out somewhere and maybe just being lazy with movies all day.  We try to take a day and do that every Fall and I feel like we need a day like that before the baby comes.  We've been working hard on baby prep and house projects in addition to our regular jobs and our music group and it can get a little crazy sometimes.  So I'm quite excited for a "me and him" day!

And that brings us to the end of the Pantone Inspired Fall color challenge week!  I had a lot of fun!  I haven't decided what outfit this week was my favorite, but I loved all the colors, that is for sure!  Make sure you head to Heidi's blog to see other how other bloggers styled Acai today!

Where's the boat?

Well, I feel like I'm all ready for a day on a yacht or something!  A bit of a sailor vibe going today, but I love it. I haven't worn this dress since before the 4th of July.   I thought I wouldn't have that many other style options for it, but then saw this new sweater and thought, hey, those would work together.  I now have some other ideas too, which is good because it still fits well and the material is a little heavier so I should be able to wear it awhile into this Fall!

Finally got my haircut.  It's been five weeks instead of four this time and let me tell you, every moment beyond that four weeks I could totally feel.  I am glad I made it this long, but man.  It grows fast these days, so I'm glad I no longer have a mullet going on!

Dress and sweater - Motherhood Maternity, consigned  via Nancy's Nifty Thrifty and Clothes Mentor

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower

Sandals - consigned via Clothes Mentor

And for a short week, it's starting to feel like a long one - anyone else?  Seriously.  Since I have little else witty to share, I'll use my go to filler - cute cat pictures.  Haven't shared any in awhile.  I thought Miss Pippin here looked quite comfy here this morning on the couch.  Took all of my will power not to join her!

And here we have Taylor enjoying the new front window.  She loves sitting in windows, so she loves the fact that we now have two double hung windows in the front of the house instead of pop outs.  She can take in so much more this way!

That's about all my foggy preggo mind can give this morning.  Hope you are all having a good week so far!

The heat goes on

Uffda, another HOT one out there.  So, it's another sundress!  And it's another totally not maternity outfit.  I kind of love that I have some things that still work!  And I'm cool and comfy and that also makes me happy!

Dress as skirt - thrifted unknown

Shirt - Ruff Hewn, from friend

Sandals - Xhilaration, Target

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower

Bracelets - Target and Bead for Life 

It might be crazy hot, but we're eating a winter meal tonight!  Got a nice crockpot of chili waiting for us at home.  We had all these tomatoes and peppers from our CSA and thought - what better than to use some of that up than with some chili?  Who cares that it's over 90 outside?  The crockpot doesn't heat up the house!  I remember we ended up doing that on a hot day last year too.  Eventually I get tired of summer meals, you just have to shake it up a bit!

In other news, you may remember I mentioned I had a friend who was due any second with her third child - she finally had him yesterday!  He's a big one, but I'm so very happy for her and excited that my little guy will have a playmate.  I went to visit over my lunch hour yesterday, got me pretty excited about meeting my little man too.  Lots to do before then though, so he can just keep right on cooking for now!

Getting my art on

I dressed for comfort today rather than style all that much.  After work I'm going to a mosaic class with my mom and a friend.  We bought a Groupon deal, so figured, why not try it out?  I'm curious, I've done many different art forms before, but never mosaic!  Apparently I'll be making some sort of mirror or something.  I'll be sure to take a picture and post it here!  Anyway, figured something comfy and simple would be good for getting my art side on!

I like Groupon and Living Social deals sometimes, especially for things like classes.  It forces me out of my comfort zone a little bit and gives me opportunity to try something new!  I've done glassblowing, beer and wine tastings, boat rides and now I'll do mosaic!  I've got a deal to go paint your own pottery with my sister in law too and I think we'll be doing that fairly soon as well!

 Blazer - American Eagle, thrifted

Shirt and capris - Motherhood, thrifted

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower

Bracelet - S&D

Shoes - Target

Of course, the best part about Groupon or Living Social too is - you save money over what you'd spend normally.  I can say I don't know that I would have paid full price to go take a mosaic class, but getting a really good deal makes it much more worth it!  Have you ever tried something different through a deal website?

PS - I get nothing for mentioning Groupon and Living Social - just spreading the love because I like them, no compensation here!

Sweet on you

Hello everyone!  Thanks for all the sweet comments on my love story yesterday.  I promise you'll hear the rest of the story later on!  It would take until later in March before we finally became a couple, so you'll have to wait like I did when I was a teenager!

Today I wanted to share two outfits.  First up is what I wore to my Valentine's dinner with Mr. Monkey.  We had decided to skip the crowds on actual Valentine's Day and have a nice dinner out this past Sunday instead.  I still dressed in a Valentine type theme though!

I pulled my favorite red sundress out of summer storage and attempted to winter it up a bit.  I like the result, kind of sassy and fun.  We went to a newer Italian restaurant (Louis Ristorante, attached to Cossettas in St. Paul for you locals) and had a really nice, though somewhat spendy meal.  We figure we only do a big meal out like this a couple of times a year, so we deserve a treat every now and then.  We had fantastic red wine, Caesar salad, veal chop and some sort of pasta with Italian sausage in a thin wine type sauce.  Delicious.

Dress as skirt - thrifted

Floral shirt - Decree, JCPenney

Jacket - Mossimo, Target (old)

Boots - Target (very old)

Necklace - thrifted

Today it was crazy cold once again, which ok, I know, it's Minnesota, what do I expect?  But man, we have had a lot more cold, windchill type weather this winter than we had last year for sure.  So anyway, I had to do layers today.  Added a touch of flair to my sweater with my newest Megan Mae buttonflower.  I realized later I should have done a close up.  I will next time!

Sweater - H&M, thrifted

Green shirt - thrifted Target stock

Pants - Alfani, Macy's

Necklace - Bead for Life

Buttonflower - MMD

Shoes - Mudd, Kohls

Can you guys believe that February is more than halfway through already?  This means spring has to be around the corner though right?

A little this and that

I'm kind of excited about how this outfit came together today.  I had received this shirt from Lynne for Christmas (thanks again lady!) and it was sitting by these pants in my closet for the longest time - but it's short sleeved so it's a little too cold to wear on it's own right now.  Then I had the inspired idea to add this blazer and I like how it turned out!

 Blouse - gift from Lynne

Blazer - two birds vintage via b. (a resale shop)

Pants - Squeeze, handed off from Megan Bird

Buttonflower - MMD

Shoes - Sonoma, Kohls

So I've been tagged twice with Liebster fun in the last week from both Jess of J's Style and Ada from Elegance Personified, so I decided to answer a little bit of both of their questions because it's fun and I don't have much else to share today!

From Jess:

1. Morning person or night owl? This question is always a funny one to me - I would say neither!  I do not get along with morning - but I am an old lady who tends to be in bed most nights no later than 10 pm.  So I'm a middle of the day person, I do my best around lunchtime.

2. What is your favorite magazine? I usually splurge on Glamour each month and a friend of mine shares her People magazines with me, so I'd say both of those.

3. Where would you go on your dream vacation?  Well seeing as it's going to get crazy cold here in MN over the weekend, right now I'd say anywhere warm!  I've also never had the chance to bring the Pants Monkey to Disney World, even though I've been there a few times, so I'd really like to take him there someday.
4. What city/town do you live in and how would you spend your ideal weekend there? I live in a suburb of Minneapolis in MN and our city rocks.  I've said time and again - we have a thriving arts community, the craft beer industry is booming and we have awesome parks and places to go in the summer.  An ideal weekend for me would be eating at one of our great restaurants, stopping by a taproom for samples, and if it's summer time, going out to the zoo or a park and relaxing.

And here are a few questions from Ada:
1. Do you prefer your coffee black, with cream and sugar or just sugar?  I like my coffee with just cream actually!  I'm pretty plain on regular coffee, but I do enjoy a good latte with vanilla every now and then!
2. Do you prefer stripes or polka dots?  I like putting them together, lol.  If I had to choose, I think I'd choose polka dots though.
3. Do you prefer skirts and dresses to jeans and pants or vice versa?   I would say in the summer I definitely prefer skirts and dresses over jeans or pants!  In the winter though I reach for my pants much more often.
4. What are your most favorite colors?  This has changed for me over the years, but right now my most favorites are purple, pink and orange.

There you have it!  Thanks to both Jess and Ada, I love playing along with these things!  If anyone else wants to play along, feel free to answer these for yourself!

MMD Celebration

One of my favorite blog friends, the awesome Megan Mae of Megan Mae Daily is having a birthday this week! She's been a big supporter of my blog, so I had to devote a whole post in her honor! She asked all of us to come attend her virtual birthday party - so here is my outfit of celebration!

 Sweater - Maurices

Long sleeve shirt - Mossimo, Target

Skirt - Old Navy

Buttonflowers - MMD (of course!)

Boots - Payless

I chose a Megan-inspired outfit, lots of layers, fun yet comfortable shoes, and of course, buttonflowers!  In my opinion, you can never have too many of her awesome buttonflowers and I have quite a few!

I took a more detailed shot of my buttonflower arrangement on the sweater collar.  I like the layered effect of them and the different shades of pink.

I also added the fun socks Megan sent me for Christmas even though no one will see them under my long skirt - I will know they are there!

And no post in honor of Megan would be complete without a couple of kitty photos - she is a big kitty lover like myself, so I had to grab pictures of my furry loves this morning for her - not to mention, it's been awhile since they've been on the blog!  They were both pretty sleepy this morning!

 Taylor giving her kitty "laser death eye stare"

 Pippin curling up as an invitation to join her.  Wish I could kitten, wish I could.

Megan will be posting her virtual party on Thursday, so make sure you check out her blog to see the other guests and to wish her a very happy birthday!!

Festive

Since I was going to be going out for a Christmas breakfast with my work team this morning I decided my red pants would be nice and festive.  And we got a very small amount of snow overnight so I figured, can't go wrong with a cozy sweater as well!

 Sweater - vintage, b. (a resale shop)

Pants - Old Navy

Boots - Payless

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower

I'm short on words today, my mind is anywhere but here, I'm so mentally checked out of work, I can't wait to start my Christmas vacation and really start celebrating the season!  I'm so excited to give out my gifts and I just want it to be here right now!  It will be over too fast I know, but I'm still very anxious!!  Of course the four cups of coffee I had at breakfast are probably not helping that fact either.

This and that

First of all, look, I braved the weather and wore a skirt and tights today!  Ok, well a dress as a skirt.  That was one of my favorite things to do with dresses this summer, I realized, that doesn't have to change because it's winter!  Many of you told me yesterday though that you're right there with me on the lazy train, so thank you for that!  We should start a Lazy Girls for Life club or something.  And at the club meetings, we could sleep.  Ha!

Dress as skirt - handed on from Lynne

Shirt - Mossimo, Target

Boots - Target

Tights - Target

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower 

Next up, I know some of you do this from time to time, look up your blog stats and the search terms that direct people to your blog.  I did this on Tuesday and I laughed so hard at one of them.  "1980's jeans butts everywhere."  Um, ok.  I know I have a big booty.  I was born in the 80s.  I wear jeans.  That's all I got.

It dawned on me that there are now less than two weeks until Christmas.  I'm doing relatively well on the shopping front and with another trip this weekend should finish pretty easily.  I've done some baking.  I've listened to Christmas music.  I'm severely behind on my required Christmas viewing though!  I need to get a marathon of my favorite movies stat!  I think most of all, I'm just going to really try to enjoy every moment of what's left of the season, it's going by so fast!

Finally, I failed to mention yesterday that I did a guest post for the adorable Mary at Style That Moves yesterday.  Head over here to check it out!

Winter laziness

I'm so lazy.  I had every intention when I went to bed last night of forcing myself to wear a skirt today with some fun colored tights.  It's going to be back close to 30 degrees, cold still, but not frigid so I figured, I could totally handle it.

Then I woke up this morning and I was cold.  And tired.  And I didn't want to shave my legs.  I felt lazy, so I opted for pants again.  I still like my outfit though!

Pink thermal - F21

Sweater - Maurices

Pants - Maurices 

Shoes - Mudd, Kohls

Necklace - Bead for Life with MMD buttonflower 

There is something about the cold and the snow and the less amount of daylight that really makes me just want to hibernate.  It's funny, in the summer, going out and doing something at 7:00 at night doesn't seem so bad, but in the winter, it's like, are you kidding me?  I want to go to bed at 7:00, it's dark!

I'm kidding, I don't really go to bed at 7:00, but I can pretty much guarantee I'm already in my pajamas by 7:00 most nights!  Does winter make you hibernate?

Bring it on

Twas the day before Thanksgiving and I have to work.  The Pants Monkey is asleep, all snug in our bed, with visions of a lazy day dancing in his head.  And I am jealous!

Oh well, at least I look cute!  Even if these purples don't totally match up, I felt like they still kind of work together somewhat.  I'm kind of excited I'm managing to extend the life of this maxi skirt a bit beyond summer.

Sweater - Daisy Fuentes, from Lynne

T-shirt - Herbergers

Skirt - Old Navy

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower

Earrings - swap w/CC

Barrette - C. Jane Create

Boots - Payless 

I also realized I'm wearing a lot of gifted items today - all through this wonderful blogging community.  That makes me smile.  You are all wonderful people and I am so thankful for each and every one of you!!

I have to be honest, up until about yesterday I was feeling a little blase about the upcoming holidays and that it was all happening so fast, too fast, but today I am giddy.  I am so excited for Thanksgiving and then for mine and Mr. Monkey's birthdays this weekend.  And I'm starting to get excited for Christmas.  It will be a crazy time, but I'm ready to embrace it!  Bring it on!!

I'll probably post my Thanksgiving outfit and I'll be here on Friday too, gotta pass the time that day somehow!  But if you won't be around the blogosphere for awhile, I wish a very blessed and Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!  Be safe if you are traveling!  EDITED TO ADD  - Breaking News, I just found out I have the day off on Friday now!!  I won't be doing any shopping but you can believe I'm very happy to now have a FOUR DAY WEEKEND!!!

Love...peace...

Big day yesterday.  History was made in my glorious home state of Minnesota.  Love is stronger than government.  I'm proud of what we did, I'm proud to be a Minnesotan.  I chose to wear purple today as a symbol of pride, in celebration for many of my good friends and hope for what this could mean going forward.

Beyond that, while I'm happy with the outcomes, I'm happy the election is over!  No more ugly ads on TV.  Probably some grumbling and debate on social media for a few more days and then we'll move on.  At least I hope so.  Love is stronger than hate.

Speaking of love, how much do I love my new blog layout designed by the fantastic Laura Go?  She did a wonderful job, thanks for all the compliments so far - she deserves all the credit.  I could not be happier with how this turned out.  THANK YOU to Laura!!

Shirt - Donna brand, from cousin

Skirt - East 5th Street, thrifted

Sweater - Mossimo, Target

Shoes - Rampage, DSW

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower

Bag - Coach via Ebay

I know that there are people who are hurting today because the election didn't go the way they wanted.  I respect that.  I hope you all can respect my happiness. In a spirit of peace as we move forward, I am leaving you with a quote from Jim Henson that was read at his memorial service in 1990, it seems very appropriate today.

Please watch out for each other and love and forgive everybody.  

It's a good life, enjoy it. - Jim Henson