Movies and Snacky Snacks!

Our family tradition on New Year's Eve is to watch movies and eat snacks (not dinner) all night.  We are all about comfort!  Tonight on the bill so far are Beauty and the Beast, (newly out on Blu-Ray, and totally for the kids benefit.  The kids including me and Jen.) and The Fifth Element.  That's all we've decided on so far. 

For snacky snacks, we've got homemade cheeseballs (regular and dessert), cheese dip, cookies, little sausages, popcorn...everything you could want.  And what could be more comfortable than leggings, a tunic, and slippers?

Necklace - pressie from my Mama
Top - Avenue
Moto leggings - Avenue
Slippers - Comfortview

My first year of blogging!

 

I started my blog on January 17, 2010, and this is one of the very first photos I put up!

In February, note the still awkward smile.  Hmm, this is when I was wearing makeup more often.  I'm a very lazy person, so I go through stops and starts of makeup-wearing.

March brought some awkward outfits, continued uncomfortableness around a camera, and crazy hair.  (Don't get me wrong, I love the crazy hair!)

APRIL!  I brought the sexy back!  I'm so sorry.  I couldn't resist the bad joke.

In May, I started a little fling with scarves.  Also, I stopped posing so much wearing my shoes.  Because I'm LAZY!

June, I showed you a mirror self portrait and also that I never clean my bathroom mirror.  Yeah, it still looks like that.  Also, I'm the color of milk.

July started a ton of outside pictures in our crazy overrun rock garden.  Wisteria doesn't fool around, people.  It also started the death chill of the air conditioning at work, which is why I'm wearing long sleeves in July.

August!  I had finally realized that I could wear belts as an accessory, and started to build up a collection.

In September, I started experimenting with overdying.  This apron type dress was a great success!

October.  I was nicely addicted to OneStopPlus by now, and my super comfy gray cowl neck sweater is still one of my very favorite items.  Also, I'm starting a new addiction to head scarves.

By November, I'm much more comfortable in front of the camera (or Jen's cell, as the case may be).  I've begun to realize that I look pretty when I smile for real, not doofy.

And now in December, I've discovered a new color that I look good in!  Red looks good on me.  I guess I should have listened closer to Sleeping Beauty.

And it doesn't show signs of stopping...

Outside my house at 8pm

It might have started snowing a bit here.  Around midday.  It might still be snowing.  And by might, I mean most definitely.

So, the worst part of my new camera?  Being able to take photos that show how real-life/in focus cute both my niece AND my sister are!  How can Jen be that cute wearing a child's snowflake headband?  These were from last night, celebrating Christmas Eve at our house.

Our mother loooooooves holiday appropriate tops.  Loves them.  Me, not so much.  But Mama gave me one for Christmas, and as she told her older sister when I got a compliment on it, I wore it to make my mama happy.  I really like these earrings I got as a gift from my cousin Teresa.  If you look close you can see a few of my silver hairs that glint so prettily in the sun.  My sister loves them on me, but I'm positive that she'll cry when she finds her first gray hair.

Guess who got a camera for Christmas?!?!

That's right, sugar-babies!  It's ME!  I got a Kodak EasyShare as a pressie from my sister and her family.  (Thank you, Jen and David!!!)  This looks a little better than the previous few weeks, doesn't it?  Our family opens our presents on Christmas Eve, and then the various parts visit around on Christmas.  I hope all of you have/have had a very wonderful Christmas/winter holiday of your faith/choosing!

Yes, our whole house is full of piles and shelves of books.  My whole family is full of readers.  It's in the blood.  Everyone gets books for Christmas and is overjoyed about it.  Seriously, how much clearer are these pictures?  And the camera?  So easy to use! 

Also a pressie.  Really this stunningly colored!

Sweater - Roaman's
Leggings - Avenue
Socks - old and I discovered huge holes in the heels

Last Day of Work of the YEAR!

Yesterday was my last day of work before the holiday break.  Our college is closing the library from December 23 to January 3, so I have a nice long break.  I love my little head scarves, but my mom HATES them.  She loves my hair all wild and curly, and keeps trying to convince me to take off my "babushka".  But I'm having issues growing out my hair, so I love how they control the tiny pieces of hair.  The hair around my face and at my neck is so short it won't stay up in a ponytail.  Keep in mind I went through almost a decade with hair at my shoulders or longer!  This short hair just confuses me to no end, so I'm working on getting it back to my shoulders.  

Shirt - Avenue
Pants - Avenue
Jewelry - self-made

Chiffon flowers make me fancy

We had our Christmas party at work yesterday.  I only dashed up to get some food, but I figured I would wear a pretty shirt at least.  I always forget that when I lean far over in this shirt I flash people though.  Happy Holidays, random people that saw my pretty bra!  I actually have this huge nitpicky deal with wishing people a Merry Christmas.  I'm Christian, I go to church every week.  And I know that most people in America celebrate Christmas.  But I think it's...way too assumptive to wish someone a Merry Christmas.  It really hits my politically correct nerve.  What about Hanukkah or Kwanzaa or even people who don't celebrate?  So I take the most inclusive way and wish people "Happy Holidays".  Okay, I'm done with my little soapbox rant. 

Shirt - TJ Maxx

Pants - White Stag

Shoes - Crocs

Jewelry - self-made

Yesterday...was the longest day I've had in quite some time

What, you want to make something of my raised eyebrow and flushed face?

So my little title doesn't have quite the same ring as the Beatles song.  Look, I'm all happy in the pictures and standing up straight!  That's because I took these in the morning.  Yesterday night I was hobbling like an old woman.  Too much shopping (because MOM needs to, not me) and too much standing at work (taking stuff off the reserve shelves ALL FREAKING DAY) killed my legs and feet.

"Do you think your sister would like this? Or this? Or this?"

Sweater - Roaman's
Pants - Denim 24/7
Shoes - ...old and from the thrift store

Why are they so stealthy?

At work today, the books came in droves.  Turn your head...*poof* twenty more books in the return bin.  Check those in and *poof* 50 more in the outside bins.  But, I swear, we never saw anyone turning them in!  I was run off my feet, and all hot and sweaty.

Shirt - Ellos
Jeans - Avenue
Scarf - Dollar Tree

“What have you been reading, the gospel according to St. Bastard?”

Okay, the post title has nothing to do with today's post.  But it's a quote I like from Eddie Izzard WHO I LOVE!

All righty, let's get going.  I really like this new Avenue shirt.  I bought it on sale, with a coupon, thinking I might like it and I might not.  Evidently I got one of the last ON EARTH.  I wanted to put up a link to the shirt in a different color, because I didn't know if the seams would show up what with the shirt being black.  But no luck!  It's been taken off the website.  And now I'm all irritated that I can't buy more in different colors.

Shirt - Avenue
Pants - Denim 24/7
Overshirt - Winter Sun

An open and shut case

I have a new coat!  One that my mother hates.  "It's too...shiny."  I also took the excuse of buying some more shirts from Avenue while I was getting my coat, and this is one of them.  It's a neat little take on the traditional ribbed henley.  Instead of a button placket, it has the open vee slit (oddly described as a "taj" neckline), and it flows nicely like a tunic.

I only worked a part day today!  The university actually closed early.  All it took was snow, sleet on top of that, and the threat of even more bad weather on top of all that.  So I got off a whole hour early...not so very exciting when you think about it, is it?

Shirt - Avenue
Pants - Torrid
Coat - Roaman's

It's ELECTRIC!

Yesterday was the day of frenetic static electricity in my hair.  Crackling, live wire, static electricity.  But it wasn't frizzy!  My hair has officially decided that it wants to be a mass of contradictions.  I don't know if it's the dry cold weather, the fact that I actually wore a wool beret outside to keep my head warm, or what.  Eh.  It was also a long day, starting with a full day of work, then stopping by the house to get workout clothes, eating at church, working out with my sister, coming back to church for choir practice, and then stopping by my sister's house to drop off my niece's DS.  Up at 5:30, and back to the house at 9:50. 

Shirt - Chadwick's
Vest - Torrid
Pants - Avenue

Cantata!

Ignore the random terrified look.  You really don't scare me that much, readers.

The first performance of our church Christmas Cantata was last night, and this is what I wore under my choir robes.  Minus the shoes, because I sing better in my bare feet.  No one could see that outside the choir loft, though.  I had the big black spiritual solo again, and managed to do pretty well.  I just looked at the angel on the Christmas tree and belted it out like Aretha.  You know, if she had lost all the pigment in her skin.  We do it again this coming Sunday, so I have another chance to win or lose.  Let's hope I knock it out of the park.

Comfort over style

My gorgeous new bracelet, found here.

It's okay.  I know you're hideously jealous. This bracelet is from Jewelmint, the jewelry line done by Kate Bosworth and Cher Coulter.  Every piece they make is only $30.  And I had a coupon, so it was only $15!  They do this whole vaguely piece of the month sort of thing, but you opt in rather than opting out every month.  Plus, no shipping!

I dressed like a cold hobo today.  Or like one of the college kids in the throes of exams desperately studying at the library I work at.  I just needed to be comfy today, and I felt that comfort would be best expressed in layers and grayness.

That's a dress (JMS) over leggings (White Stag), covered in leg warmers (Sock Dreams), and all topped off by a long hooded cardigan (Tallisseme).  Unseen are my socks and clogs.  I didn't even have my bracelet to impress people with until after work!  As a side note, these leg warmers are the best in existence.  They come up well over my knees and have plenty of stretch.   And they're only $13.

It's like a drug...

I get obsessed with colors, and then I have to buy more and more clothes in that color range!  You guys have seen how purple has slowly been taking over my wardrobe.  Oddly enough, now it seems to be red.  I guess I've just gotten so excited that I can actually wear red (see this post) that when I look at sweaters and such, I think, "oooooo, RED!"  And it's been making my mom excited, because she thinks I look all nice and festive for the Christmas season.  (My mother has a metric ton of Christmas sweaters.  Starting the beginning of December, she's worn one every day, and I'm pretty sure she'll be able to go right through to Christmas without repeating.)

Count yourself very lucky you got this smile, and not the dead-eyed cranky look of the other closeup.

Miss Sugar Erin, Miss Work With What You've Got, are you liking my necklace?  I saw these faux horn pendants, and they made me think of your bone jewelry.  They were so neat that I bought several!

Lesson Learned

Lesson: If your camera batteries are dying, it won't take the best pictures.  This goes double if you dropped it a few days earlier, and now you have to hold the battery part shut since the crucial piece broke off that keeps it locked shut and the camera on.  Also, self - pull up your leggings at the end of the day photo shoot so you don't have to delete all full-length pics because of an epic polterwang.

Plie, please

So I put on my clothes this morning, and turned to my jewelry.  I tried on a few things, eventually deciding on the green beads and matching earrings, along with the ring that has hints of green. 

And as I did my hair, I realized that I had created a look.  Or at least what seemed to me to be a look.

Ballet Teacher Chic!

I know.  Completely random.  But the slicked back hair, along with the scarf...the flowing light sweater top...the slim pants...and the flats. (If I was truly going to commit to the look, I would have switched to leggings.  But it was 23 degrees outside this morning.  That called for actual pants.  (It ended up snowing...and I was wearing my little felt flats!)

Top - JMS

Pants - Denim 24/7

Shoes - Mossimo

Jewelry - handmade

Scarf - from the Dollar Tree!

Grow, Damn You!

Aren't I totally cute?

My hair, that is.  It seems to be stuck at this completely annoying in-between length, with the front (and the underneath of the back!) too short to do hardly anything with.  I can leave it down, use a headband, or little clippies on the sides.  It's perfectly healthy, no split ends or anything.  (I could do a somersault easier than I could learn to blow-dry my hair.)  It just seems to be stuck here.

Amazingly, not the first picture reversed.

I don't even know why I'm whining when this outfit looks so cute.  Not that I felt cute at all today.  I was rushed and grumpy and felt blah all day long.  But apparently it photographs reeaaallly well.  Maybe the hip action a la Chelsea helped it too.

Shirt - Avenue
Jeans - Torrid
Shoes - horrible Born ones look comfy but aren't at all.  But I wore slippers at work.

Bleeding Love

Red is a color that I don't wear often, and hardly ever as a solid.  See, in my head, red is one of my sister's colors.  Jen looks FABULOUS in almost all reds because of her darker skin tone.  I need just the right shades of red because of my super-pale paper white skin.  So my closet is full of blacks, greys, blues, and purples, mostly.  But, I bought this red sweater in the same style as my grey one (just a size smaller, since the grey one turned out so big).  And I liked it!  And I got compliments on it!  I'm starting to get a few red items in my wardrobe.  But screw orange.  It sucks as a color.

Sweater - Roamans
Pants - Denim 24/7
Shoes - Crocs

November's End

Shiny!!

 You know you want these shiny glittery thin leggings!  Sadly, it looks like they've sold out online.  They're from Avenue Body, but I can't find them available anymore on OneStopPlus.com or the Avenue.com store.

Super comfy!

 I paired them with a comfy oversized sweater and it was fantastically snuggly all day.

The smug face of of a girl who's finished her Christmas shopping.

 That's right!  All done!  (Okay, I'm going to make some jewelry, but I've got all the stuff at home in my room.)  All the money has been spent, so December can be used to start paying it all back.

Done before December!

And of course, I've been entering online contests like mad!  I have one of my own going on!