Quiz floating around

Five names you go by

1. Erin

2. Erinfer

3. Ellie (my niece's name, and what my sister, mom and dad frequently mis-call me)

4. Mommy/Mama (munchkin mistakes)

5.Daddy/Dad (munchkin mistakes)

Two of your favourite smells

1. Lavendar

2. Lemons

Three things you are wearing right now

1. Pajama Pants

2. socks

3. a t-shirt

Two things you want very badly at the moment

1. to eat breakfast

2. to watch Leverage

Two things you did last night

1. ate dinner with Mom

2.  bought my new purse

 

Two last things you cried over

1. not getting another job

2. when Dom died on NCIS: LA.  It was totally unfair!  (I get a little wrapped up in TV.)

 

Two things you ate today

1. Nothing yet, come on pay attention!

2. ditto

 

Two people you last talked to on the phone

1. Dad

2. Jen

Five favourite bands/songs

1. Ludo

2. Glee Cast

3. Regina Spektor

4. Gillian Welch

5. Flobots

Two things that you are proud of

1. My sense of humor (Cause I am hi-larious)

2. that I have not gone crazy yet.

Two things that you are not proud of

1. My dislike of most people

2. My laziness

Two things you are going to do tomorrow

1. Watch the munchkins

2. Finish a job application

Two longest car rides

1. Kansas City to Phoenix, AZ for a cousin's wedding.  Me, Jen, David, and the munchkins when smaller.  It took about 4 billion hours.

2. All ambulance rides.

Two favourite beverages

1.Hot chocolate

2. Coke (real coca cola, thank you very much!)

Two of your favorite memories

1.Killy's birth (munchkin #1)

2. Ellie (munchkin #2) always being SO HAPPY to see me

Three favourite concerts you have been to

1. Barenaked Ladies with my sister (and brother-in-law, but David hates crowds so he doesn't count)

2.Nickel Creek with my very pregnant sister

3.uh, that's all?

Accessorize, Baby!

My outfit may be an old standard, but that's okay because this post is all about the accessories!  I got a new purse to replace the one that was falling apart.  It was on sale (naturally) at Target (for $15), and it's a Converse One Star.  It's not leather, but it's as thick and heavy duty as leather. 

Plus, it satisfies my "edgy" side with all those exposed zippers and such.  The next pic shows how (not quite half) full it is with all my usual stuff in it, along with a paperback.

And the other crucial accessory for me?  Jewelry!  I made these over the weekend, trying for a more steampunky vibe.

Aren't the teeny tiny gears adorable?

And the necklace is great, but it requires a low neck (or I suppose a really high one).

I even had an old man in Wal-Mart tell me he liked my necklace!

What new accessories have YOU gotten lately?

Puffed Sleeves!

This is a Jonathan Martin dress that my mom thrifted for me.  On the hangar, it looked like it was going to hang down to my navel!  But instead, it's the only wrap-type top that I haven't had to sew shut in order to avoid flashing people by accident.  Plus it has puffed sleeves! 

True, they start around mid-arm, but I bet Anne Shirley would still be pleased.  Matthew would have gotten it for her in a second.  (See Anne of Green Gables if the above confused you.)  All in all, this dress fit amazingly well.  Much better than it photographed.  Of course, I am sort of doing a weary housefrau pose, so some of the blame lies with me.

Purse Degradation (AKA Purses I Want)

So, you know how I won that purse?  Well, either the purse is shoddily made OR I have been cramming too much stuff into it.  It's made of "man made materials" and called a patent hobo bag.  It's starting to look like hobos have been at my bag, because bits of the faux patent leather are getting scratched off.  And yes, my sister makes purses, but what I want is not quite the kind of purse she makes.  She makes cute little-ish purses that WILL NOT HOLD ALL THE CRAP I CARRY AROUND.  Also, I need to have a bag I can sling over my shoulder.  This is the only problem with my mom's old bag, which I would otherwise carry forever.  Do you want to see what I mean?  I KNEW you did!!

If I wanted to be super cool and show off my indie web graphic novel...uh, coolness, I would have to get one of the FREAKANGELS fieldbags. (Warren Ellis is a weird and brilliant man.):

But it's $60, and I would want it filled with FREAKANGELS books.

What if I wanted to support other Etsy sellers?  This bag is awesome, and it has free shipping!

Still $55.

How about a little cheaper and a reference (in my head, anyway) to Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate series?

Only $44

Or this one?

Only $25

But you know, I'm really cheap.  Like, super cheap.  So, if my local Target has these two, I might go for one of them.  $15 each, made of canvas (so they won't peel apart at least).

Here

Or the other is this one:

or here.

Lately, it seems like I have a thing for birds.  Not real birds of course.  HAHAHAHAHA.  Cute little stylized birds.  I have also begun to link EVERYTHING to EVERYTHING ELSE.  I am the connections the world runs on, mwahahahaha....um, never mind.

In the pink

A rare photo of an Erin in nature

This skirt is gorgeous!  It's one of those "miracle" skirts/wrap skirts/1,000 ways to wear it skirts.  I wear it like a skirt because I'm boring like that.  I bought it in one of those ubiquitous stores at the beach (a SuperWings, I think, even though that sounds like a feminine hygiene product). 

Skirt - Kariza
Top - Lane Bryant
Shoes - Montego Bay Club

Yesterday...I was too lazy to post

This is the other shirt from Fashion Bug.  They still have some great sales going on; like I said previously, they seem to run a little large (not a big deal on shirts, but potentially big deal with skirts and such).  I really like the bat wing sleeves, even though I've been against such things in my heart for a while.  See, the thing is, I didn't realize the sleeve fit like a normal sleeve up around your armpit and then belled out.  That makes a world of difference.  You can see my other "high heels" in the picture, that are helping me relearn how to walk in heels.  Give me a break, I've been wearing flats for the last 5 or so years.

Shirt - Fashion Bug
Jeans - Riders
Shoes - Montego Bay Club

Dude, Fashion Bug Rocks!

I'm not being snarky.  About Fashion Bug.  I totally would have before I bought this outfit (and another shirt) on clearance.  They all came in the mail on Friday, and when I tried them on, THEIR SIZES WERE REAL SIZES, MAYBE A LITTLE LARGE!  I tend to do a lot of my shopping in Wal-mart and Target, you know, and there the sizes are definitely on the small side.  The pants are palazzo style pants, very full.

See the fullness?

The pants might also be a little long.  Or a good bit long.  I have short little legs, and I'm wearing my highest heels (my wedges) but the pants still come almost to the ground.  But, they cost a whopping $1.98.  I can totally deal.

slow day

No big descriptions or anything, just a shot of what I wore.  Black, white and some poppin' purple shoes.

Yes, I know the mirror is filthy...

But I just don't have the time (care enough) to clean it.  I liked this outfit, even though it's very simple.  It's just my usual jeans and two tank tops from Big Lots.  I know, I'm so FANCY!  The white one is a men's wife-beater and the grey is a woman's tank in a beautiful dark heathery gray.

Plain, no frills shot.

I hadn't ever tried layering tank tops before.  At least not over each other; as layers under other shirts, sure.  Plus size women (or at least me) tend to be wary of piling lots of fabric on.  There's no need to bulk up around the waist for me .  But this turned out well, I thought, and it kept me surprising warm all day long in the air conditioning inside.

Ooh, fancy pinup hair!

Just for fun, I turned one pic into a black and white shot, and I think that looks even better!  And yes, I am the color of paper.  (My sister found me at the beach by looking in the ocean for the whitest person she could see.)

My body is like marble...or maybe white play-doh.

It's a belt!

My mom brought home this great dress from a thrift store.  It fits so nicely over my chest and hips (read: not tightly)!  But the waist is completely undefined.  So I thought of Chelsea and raided a very old drawer of belts.  I bought this Little Earth belt several years and LOTS of pounds ago.  But while it's tight around the waistline of my pants, it fit fine to the point of almost loose around my actual waist.  

Isn't this belt AWESOME!

The dress is made by Dialogue, a company I've never heard of before, but it was very comfy.  And I love how you can roll up the sleeves and secure them with the little straps.  It's sort of a "prairie" dress, sort of a shirtwaist dress.  Neither of which are exactly my usual style, but I really like this.  I'm glad I ended up wearing the leggings rather than pantyhose or footless tights, though.  At one point today during work, I was down on my knees, fighting with an evil poster-sized picture frame, trying to get the back off so I could put a diagram inside.  And all that I broke was the skin on my knuckles.  The library's not all fun and games, you know...

Purse Redux

I have no brain.  I forgot to tag people for the purse post!
Okay, I tag:
1. RMb of whats that?!
2. Chelsea of bright side dweller
3. my sister, Jen, of lalala...oooh! clothes!
and
4. Roisin from But it can't be from Dolly Clackett....

Also, a little factoid for you, my hair was getting inescapeably HUGE at the beach.  I don't know if it was the humidity, the salt water, or what.  I've got a lot of volume anyway, due to my "obese" hair (as my loving sister terms it), but this was getting ridiculous.  And yet sort of fun.  I know now what my hair would look like if I back-combed it.  Sadly, we have no pictures of the HUGE hair, only ones with moderate hair that I've posted.

What's in my purse?

Holly from Starlit Home tagged me in a purse post  and luckily enough I just got that new purse.  I took it to church, then completely filled it up for this coming work week.  The straps on this purse are actually big enough that I can carry it over my arm!
*Note: I just finished a book and I haven't put a replacement book into my purse yet.  Also missing are snacks for the day, like almonds and cranberries.*

Here is the purse! Buy it at maurices.com

 

 

Here is the purse full of things!

And now, as to what all those "things" are...

Stuff for my period and my phone.
(I thought I would start off glamourous.)

My wallet, with my etsy business card carefully obscuring my ID.  Go to BirnamGrove.com and buy things!

My iPod and headphones (that everyone but me hates with a burning passion).  And yes, my iPod has all 3 Glee cds on it!  But not the Madonna one or the Regionals one yet.

This bag holds stuff to make me smell and taste better.  Hence, gum and altoids, and also hand sanitizer and hand salve (for little ouchies).

This....is the random bag.  It has my keys, a pen, some hand moisturizer, and two pill-boxes.  Yes, one pill-box is very pretty and used to be my step-grandmother's.  The other is a mini-altoid tin that I keep a stash of aleve in.

I might have a lip-gloss problem.  I keep amassing lip glosses and colored chapsticks.  But 99% of the time, I use my Burts Bees one.

Makeup.   Put on hurriedly in the car as my mother and I car-pool to work.  Some eye makeup, some powder, some mascara and I'm good to go.









Okay, so I carry a WHOLE LOT more stuff than Holly.  And I often end up carrying another bag full of books to return, or with a lunch inside.  But.  You get the basic idea.  How about you?

Beach 2

I'm back home from the beach. Sad chibi face...

Anyway, a few more interesting things:

My sis and her husband brought their Wii, so we watched lots of Netflix Instant Demand.  LOTS of Spongebob, more than I ever ever ever needed to see.  But, also when the munchkins went to sleep, Sandra Bullock's movie "The Proposal": great start, then wrapped up way too quickly, I thought.  Also, I made everyone else watch the first ep of "Leverage" which is FANTASTIC (quick, go watch both seasons so you're caught up when it the third starts soon).

2.  I do the same pose every time I'm in a swimsuit.  Look:

                                      A:








And later in the week,

                                    B:







                                     Fascinating, huh?









I sat in the back of the suburban on the way home, with my nephew.  I don't talk about Killy nearly enough on here.  I guess I just talk about my niece more because she's my god-daughter and a complete sweetie-pie.  Killy is a total momma's boy and saves most of his sweetness for my sister.  He's a giant six-year-old whose head is at my chest!  (I'm 5'4")  Like all of us but my mom, he has a GIANT head.  He also looks exactly like a boy version of my sister as a child, so he's BEAUTIFUL.  Oops, I meant "handsome".  Sorry, Killy.

Doesn't his hair look like a messy Vulcan?

And finally, when we drove up to the house, the UPS fairy had come and gone, leaving the purse I won from Erin of Work With What You've Got.
This is what it looks like, but mine is pearlized white.

Thanks, other Erin!

Beach 1

So yay, I'm writing to you from the beach! (the town of Avon, on Hatteras Island, NC to be precise)

Here's a list of things I've done so far (with some random photos) :

1. Before starting off from home, I walked into the edge of our kitchen's swinging door, resulting in a
(little) fat lip.

Me at Hatteras Lighthouse

2. Had FANTASTIC sushi on the way there at a random restaurant in Raleigh!

Dude, I totally had the sushi! Now where can I get it in the ocean?

3. Ripped a jellyfish off my poor little niece (much wailing, sobbing, and liquid Benadryl required).

Yes, from this little cutie!

4. Bought beads! Specifically, sea glass!

Okay, my sis and bro-in-law are WAY TOO CUTE!

5. Tormented my niece and nephew with the jacuzzi tub before it got full enough. (Jets shooting everywhere, a six-year-old boy jumping up on the edge of the tub like a monkey...)

She doesn't know what's coming....

6. Slept, slept, slept!

Aren't we a couple of cuties?

7. Eaten a ton! (My dad turns into a Jewish mother, and tries to force feed everyone multiple times during the day during vacations.)

I''m a movie star!

8. Gotten a heat rash on my thighs from wandering around Ocracoke Island looking for a store my mom wanted, that ended being VERY rinky-dink.

And this is the crazy face BEFORE walking around so much!

9. Went thrift-store shopping and got a pair of Born leather shoes for $4 that were probably in the $70-90 range originally! (Just a little wear, enough to look comfy.)

You can barely see them, but there are the shoes!

 There will be more to come!!

To Cleave?

Let's play a little game called "What did Erin find in her bra last night?"
Okay, first let's rewind back earlier in the day.  I had worn my lucky number 9 necklace and I decided that I needed bronzy earrings to go along with it, since all my earrings are silver or black. 

So I made somewhat matching earrings using #0 charms.  (I have charms like this for numbers 0-10, ten being a 1 and a 0).  The hoops I slipped the charms on were simple ones and not exactly...sturdy.  So I checked regularly to make sure the hoops were latched.  And at the very end of the work day, I checked and one wasn't!  And the 0 charm was gone!  I retraced my steps, grumbling about how someone would probably find it later but I wanted it now.  No luck.  I got home, ate dinner, packed some more for the beach, did all sorts of things.  And at the end of the day, when I took off my bra, guess what fell out?  That's right.  The charm.  I wasn't wearing a low-cut top, or a push-up bra yesterday.  I was wearing a loose t-shirt and one of my work-out bras.  But between my DD's, there is plenty of room and apparently it calls to little objects.
And when I do wear a push-up bra or a low-cut top, I can leave a wake of horny men behind me!  Of course, they don't have to see me brush the crumbs out of my cleavage...