Pulling out the Neon

ignore my weirdly strained face - I was twirling!

If you look closely, you'll see the little pink flowers in my skirt that matched my shirt. Those little bitty bits of pink are what I was trying to pull out of my skirt with this bright top. Before, I always wore this skirt with a tan/beige top, but I'm realizing there really are a lot more ways to wear it than with a plain top. I thought about wearing something with stripes to do some print mixing, but the skirt already has 3 different prints, so instead of adding to the busyness, I added a solid. What do you think?

Oh, and it was a bonus that my new necklace perfectly matched the mint color in my skirt :)

Linking up over here today!

shirt: Kohl's

skirt: Nordstrom

necklace: Trends

sandals: Sears

Mr Picks Mondays: Summer's Last Hurrah

Since yesterday was Labor Day, and I had the day off, Mr. Picks Mondays was VERY casual. He chose the shorts AND the top (typically he chooses the top and lets me pick the bottoms, or vice versa) for a very summer-y combination. I know Labor Day marks "the end of summer," but since the first day of autumn isn't for a few weeks yet, I'll be sporting my summer clothes as long as I can (that, and I LOVE summer). Have I mentioned that I don't love fall, because it leads to winter? #truestory 

Also, I don't like Pumpkin Spice Lattes. 

There. 

I said it.

I find them underwhelming. Whip me up a cup of coffee and I'm a very happy girl. No artificial pumpkin flavoring for me! Blegh!

Anyways, enough of my rant about fall & winter (#summerforever). As I mentioned yesterday, we were in a wedding this holiday weekend, and then spent Sunday & Monday laying low and getting caught up on little things around the house, er, apartment.

My Labor Day started off with this read by Jessica Quirk of What I Wore. A really interesting and beautiful book, and I even took it to the pool with me and jotted down some notes. I think she did the illustrations for the book herself - umm, amazing! I can only draw stick figures, so I'm always really impressed by the artistic ability of others. I've been reading a lot of fashion books lately, and can't seem to get enough! I think I've checked out all the ones at our local library...I've already ready "Tim Gunn's Fashion Bible" and Stacy London's "The Truth About Style," among others. Any recommendations for me??

Wellllll, here's to a (short) week, my friends!

enjoying not laboring on Labor Day ;)

parrot tank: Target
shorts: Kohl's
mint tank: Marshall's
sandals: a recent find at Target for $6!

linking up over here today, because I loved spending Labor Day with my sweetie ;)

Running Gear

See, I told you I wore neon orange running shoes. And they make me run faster. Obvi.

These leggings are the last of the items I picked out at Aéropostale a few weeks ago. I've got running shorts and tights, but these are my first pair of capris - I'm a new fan! I am digging the marled gray, as opposed to the ever popular black. 

this headband was in a swag bag from the event at Aéropostale

You like? What do you think? Would you try out a new brand of workout gear? Specifically Live Love Dream?

top: Kohl's

capris: Aéropostale

shoes: local running store, but they're Mizuno Wave Inspire 9s

Navy & Neon

I know, I know. I tell my real life friends about my blog, and then POOF! disappear for a few days. But I've been busy (I know everyone says that and it's my least favorite excuse to hear come out of peoples' mouths because it means "I was too busy for YOU") but, I was busy! I mean, I went to Vegas. BUSYBUSYBUSY. So, cut me some slack, will ya?

I went to Lost Wages for a dear friend's bachelorette party for a quick 48 hours - pictures to come! We  had fun, but Vegas isn't really my speed - it's a bit too fast. Consider Sin City the fast lane - I'm waaaay over in the right lane, with the little old ladies merging. Regardless of the difference in speeds, we merged lanes and had a fun girls' trip. I think our bride-to-be is ready for her bride-dom & wife-dom (just made those up - ya like?)

And here's that maxi skirt again. And twirling. Again ;)

I'll be here the rest of the week, simply because my life is slowing down for the next 2.5 days, but then picks up again right after! Whoever said summer is a slower time was confused...it just doesn't stop!

shirt: Kohl's

skirt: thrifted

sandals: WalMart

jewelry: Kohl's

linking up over here today :)

Mr. Picks Mondays: Bright Stripes

Here's another bright shirt on a Monday - I think he's into bright colors for spring, don't you?

 

bracelet my mama got me

"It's what's on the inside that counts"

WHY can't I keep that in mind more often?!

I'm not sure that horizontal stripes are doing me any favors lately (too much snacking), BUT, my half marathon is this weekend. I can hear you asking: "Why haven't you been training consistently for the last 3 months?" That, my friends, is a great question. 

Seriously though, I get pretty bad blisters on my feet: on the balls of my feet, my heels, the sides of my feet, even between my toes. It's no fun to run when your feet are killing you. Couple that with the fact that I'm really slow (I mean REALLY. Somehow I walk faster than I run), and I always wind up really sore after a run. Unfortunately, I haven't gotten my rear in gear like I should have.

My dad is doing this half marathon with me, and he's been training, so we all know who will be feeling better after running 13.1 miles. Not to worry: I've scheduled a massage for the day after, and a mani/pedi might be in my future, too. 

I'll keep you posted on how it goes. One way or another - walking, crawling, running, handsprings, or on piggyback, I will finish those 13.1 miles! And I've set a pretty generous window as a goal for myself ;)

Top: WalMart

Jeans: Gap

Sandals: via Trends

Necklace: Kohls

Watch: a gift from our honeymoon

Bracelet: gift from my sweet mama

Playing Catch Up

This was Monday at my work. We closed early at 3 due to the bad weather. 

This is today at home - it hasn't stopped! Instead of grumbling, I'm just going to stay warm inside, and drink lots of hot chocolate. And coffee. Always coffee.

Highlighter Top: ??

Sweatshirt: Kohl's

Jeans: Gap

Boots: (not pictured) UGG (they were SOAKED)

Socks: (there are snowmen above the trees) from my Mama 

(she has a thing for funny socks - guess I do too!)

This is what my Mr. picked out for me on Monday. SO BRIGHT. I got lots of comments on the brightness of it - I'm trying to encourage spring! Obviously, that backfired, but hey, Jack! I tried. Or, my Mr. tried. Either way, this is the only pic I got - I was on a mission to put on my sweatpants and curl up on the couch with my Mr. and the pooches.

He gravitates towards picking out simple things. Let me explain: simple in that he likes the color. Or that its not new or trendy. Or that I've had it forever. Or that it's like something I would have worn in high school (or did wear in high school - I have some things in my closet from those days...). For example, he doesn't like skinny jeans/pants. Leggings are fine, but skinnies - he makes a face when I put them on. 

*sigh* 

Some people just hate change :) 

Top: Target

Sweater: Macy's

Corduroys: (they're navy!) Joe Fresh via ARC

Boots: Rackroom Shoes

This is what I wore yesterday. Not for very long - I went home with a bad headache and spent the rest of the day sleeping. I won't go in to detail, but I get bad headaches. Consistently. They get in the way of my life, which is very frustrating. 

Unrelated, what do we think of this sweater? I like the ruffles, and the buttons are crystal-type bling, but am afraid the sweater borders on Grandma clothes. Not that I have anything against Grandma clothes - I LOVE them (on Grandmas)! But, I'm not a Grandma. Or even a mother (yet). I can add some more pics of it to give you a better idea - I know you'll lose some sleep over this, big decision!