Housekeeping on a Saturday

Rare Saturday post!  And even worse - no pictures!  For shame.

All I'm here for really is to tell you that I received some feedback regarding Disqus from some of my favorite readers that they could not comment on my blog - and I want this to be a fun welcoming place for ALL so I'm trying a different third party commenting system.  Please let me know if this works for those of you who had trouble with Disqus.  If this doesn't work, I'll just go back to good ole' Blogger comments.  It is just my hope to be able to have more conversations with some of you, but as I said, I want everyone to be able to stop by and say hi if they wish, so we'll do what we have to do.

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend!

Old friends who just met

 So it might sound cheesy, but go with me on it.  There's a song in the original Muppet Movie from the 70's sung by Gonzo (yes the weird blue one) called "I'm Going to Go Back There Someday".  It's somewhat melancholy in nature and comes at a point in the movie where they're kind of down on their luck, but there is one lyric I have always loved - "There's not a word yet for old friends who've just met."  Well, that is how I felt about my meetup last night with Maca!  I don't want to take away from the other experiences I've had with meeting bloggers - I have made some wonderful friends and connections both locally and across the country and world and you all mean the world to me.  I just found that from the moment we sat down together it was like Maca and I had known each other for years.  We had so much fun!  We chatted about everything from fashion and shopping, to our childhoods, our husbands,  our pets, and we talked a lot about food - cause we're two girls who like to eat!  We enjoyed cupcakes - me a Tiramisu one, her a Dulce de leche one and also some rose wine and some nuts to munch on as well.  Before we knew it - three hours had gone by!  Being it was a work night we had to call it a night and head home at that point - not to mention the staff at the restaurant were kind of starting to clean up and kick us out since they were closing up in a half hour.  I even surprised Mr. Monkey with how long I was gone - he was getting ready to send out a search party!

Anyway, it was a blast and I can't wait to meetup again - thank you Maca for a delightful evening!!  Below is a picture we asked one of the restaurant staff to take of us - though I think she thought we were nuts and I'm pretty sure she was like "I wish you ladies would just get out of here so I can be done for the night!"  Besides that though - if you're local, I highly recommend Cupcake - the cupcakes are delicious and as long as you order something small (like the nuts we shared) you can also order wine!

And because this is still a fashion blog, I also had the Pants Monkey take a picture of me before I headed out.  I took my look from yesterday and jazzed it up a bit for nighttime.  

Shirt - Pequot Lakes Boutique

Jeans - Maurices

Shoes - Steve Madden, thrifted

Necklace - S&D

Sweater - Thrifted

Headband - C. Jane Create

And finally, I liked my casual Friday outfit enough that I thought I'd share that real quick too.  Channeling a hippie vibe today.  Thanks also to your feedback/patience as I test out Disqus.  So far I *think* it might be working.  We'll give it a few days I think!  Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Shirt - Decree, JCPenney

Tank top - Arizona Jean Co, JCPenney

Jeans - Old Navy

Shoes - Rampage, thrifted

Necklace - Bead for Life

Improvement

Oh my goodness what a difference a day makes my friends!  I am in a much better mood today.   Last night the Pants Monkey and I ate one of my favorite meals and just zoned out to television for about three hours (no joke) and I got to bed nice and early and just woke up on a better side of the bed today!  And I love my outfit today, so how can I possibly not be in a good mood?

And I have a very exciting blogger lady date to look forward to this evening!  I am finally getting to meet the fantastic Maca from the Spanglish Life.  You may remember she guest posted here while I was on vacation in August.  Anyway, she wasn't able to make it to the MN Blogger meetup and since we've been wanting to meet for ages now I just said, ok, then let's plan a lady date!  So we are meeting up at a place called Cupcake in St. Paul to have cupcakes and cocktails and just be fancy ladies!  Or something.  No matter what, I'm looking forward to it!!

I had to get a close up of my bracelets - two of them you've seen, they're from my Stella and Dot party, but the third one I just picked up last weekend at the newly re-opened World Market.  You guys have no idea how happy I am to have World Market back in my life!  They pulled out of MN about three years ago and I was devastated   We loved shopping there for gifts, stocking stuffers at Christmas time, unique kitchen and dining pieces, etc.  They have everything for such great prices.  So this summer I was at my regular Clothes Mentor which is in the same strip mall that World Market once was - and saw the sign back up on the building and about had a hyper spasm.  They opened up about two weeks ago and I just had to go there this weekend, it's the same place I've always loved, possibly even better than before.  And I bought this awesome little bracelet for only $4.99!

To top everything off, it's another beautiful day outside.  We are suffering a drought, so I know we need rain, but the beautiful sunny days have been so nice and the leaves are getting so pretty outside!  I love this time of year!!

Outfit rundown:

Shirt - Boutique in Pequot Lakes

Dress as skirt - Ragstock

Necklace - S&D

Bracelets - S&D, World Market

Shoes - Steve Madden, thrifted

Belt - JCPenney

*Edited to add - I'm trying out Disqus as a commenting system again.  I know some of you really dislike it, but they seem to have made some improvements so I'd like to try it out.  I hope this will make it easier to have conversations.  Please bear with me as we see how this goes!*

Appreciation

Happy Wednesday friends!  In case I don't say it enough - I just want to say thank you to all of you who stop by, leave comments and show me a little love.  It makes my day and warms my heart more than you can know.  Yesterday I said I felt my outfit was boring and I had so many wonderful comments stating that it couldn't be further from boring. 

I'll let you in on a little secret too - I've been mildly cranky this week.  Works is a little frustrating and then there are those lovely monthly surge in hormones that I can't control - so again, your comments have really helped perk me up and cheer me up.  You guys are just the best.  I love this community so much!  Thank you all!

Today's outfit I'm pretty sure is a repeat of an outfit I wore back in the spring sometime.  I don't mind though, it's comfy and it's a bit classic feeling with the black and white.

And that's about all I got today. My mind is just a bit mush this morning! I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Outfit rundown:

Shirt - Alfani (handed down from cousin)

Pants - Style & Co, Macy's

Shoes - Rampage, DSW

Necklace - S&D

Bracelet - Charming Charlie

Sunshine on my shoulder

 I love the sun, I really do, but it's back to making a challenge for my early morning blog photos!  Here I thought maybe we were past the point that it was at a bad angle, but sadly, I think I was wrong.  I know, I know, first world problems, whine, whine, whine.  My outfit isn't terribly exciting today so maybe it's just as well.

I still can't get enough of this pencil skirt though.  I can't believe how much I've worn it since it came home to live with me in late January!  I like this simple button down I found at the thrift store on Labor Day too.  It has many different colors and I can't wait to layer it under a jacket or sweater.  Since it's going to be into the 60's today I figured it'd be warm enough on it's own.  And I still love these shoes even if my boss comments every time I wear them.  It's not in a bad way, it's mostly "I used to be able to wear shoes like that."  I had to laugh, this weekend I went to Clothes Mentor with my mom, where I had found these shoes originally, and they had the exact same pair in black.  I almost grabbed them, but thought better of it.  I don't need these in every color!

 And because they haven't been featured on the blog in a while and they were being flipping cute this morning, you get a cat picture today.  I was outside taking my blog photos and the Pants Monkey comes to the door and says, "when you come inside, look on the couch in the basement."  So I did and I found this.

It's rare that they cuddle together so when they do, you'd better have a camera near by.  I love my little furballs.  Oh and for any new readers, Taylor is on the left and Pippin is on the right.

Outfit rundown:
Shirt - Old Navy, thrifted

Skirt - two birds vintage

Shoes - Madden Girl thrifted

Necklace - F21

Earrings - Unknown

Inspiration Monday - They were all yellow

Good morning friends!  Welcome to Monday.  It was another good weekend gone by too fast.  I was able to spend time with family, a couple of college friends and went on a thrift date with Lori, not to mention I was able to spend some nice time with my Pants Monkey too.  Aren't those the best kind of weekends?  Anyway, it is Monday and here is today's Inspiration Monday choice - Olivia Palmero.

And here is my interpretation.  It's funny, I wasn't going to wear this yellow skirt and had even considered being done with this yellow skirt for the season, but after watching the Emmy's last night and seeing Julianne Moore's bright yellow dress I decided to go for it, especially when it's going to be warmer this afternoon.

Speaking of the Emmy's, I only got to watch the last hour or so, but from what I saw, did it seem like they were rushing to anyone else?  No, I don't want the winners to be allowed to drone on and on forever, but it just seemed like they were cutting them off super fast this year.  And I also felt like the presenters were speed reading the nominees too.  I don't know, I am all for keeping it to three hours but come on. Oh well.

I was happy to see Modern Family win again as we just started watching it this summer and it's comedy gold.  But, I would have liked to have seen the love spread around a bit too - I love me some Big Bang Theory too and think it's time for the nerds to have their day.  I've never watched Homeland - I honestly thought Breaking Bad would win, but they've also won a lot in the past too (for good reason - very intense but well done show), so maybe it's time for another show to shine in that category too.  And I'm sorry - best comedy actor - Jon Cryer, really?  Sorry to any fans, but that show is soooo past it's prime.

Back to my outfit, I do wish this yellow skirt was a little more on the mustard side - I think that might be a color I'll be looking for either in pants or a skirt to take me into winter a bit more.  But for today, this bright yellow guy works!

For more Inspiration Monday looks visit the two birds blog over here.  Have a great day!

Outfit rundown:

Sweater - New York and Company, thrifted

T-shirt - Mossimo, Target

Skirt - Shabby Apple via giveaway

Shoes - Mossimo, thrifted

Necklace - S&D

Bracelets - S&D, A Little Bird on Grand

Bag - Coach via consignment

Red pants and Fraggles dance

Well it's Friday!  And I'm actually working for a change, shock!  That's ok though because I finally have red pants!!  And what better a day to wear red pants than a Friday??  I didn't get too crazy with them for this first time out - kept it simple with a black shirt in fact.  But I'm excited to try out different things with these as we go through the rest of Fall and even into the winter!

They're really brightening up a gray day too. It's a typical gray, cool and drizzly Fall day outside today.  I don't mind so much though, since I'm not off today!

And my red pants for some reason make me think of Red Fraggle from one of my favorite Jim Henson properties Fraggle Rock. And there was something awesome this week for Fraggle fans and also fans of Ben Folds Five - they stared in a music video together.  It's super adorable, so I will leave you with that!  If you haven't seen it, it's worth a quick watch.  80's children rejoice!  Have a great weekend everyone!

Outfit rundown:

Shirt - Gap (old)

Pants - Old Navy

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower

Shoes - thrifted via Clothes Mentor

Zumba is good

Well I survived my first experience with Zumba last night!  I actually really enjoyed myself, but my friend's studio is way too far for me to go on a regular basis, so I'm going to be looking for options closer to home.  I'd like to keep doing it though, it's a great workout and I think it is the kick in the behind my exercise routine needs!

Today felt like another maxi skirt kind of day.  I picked this one up for super cheap on season end clearance at Old Navy.  I have wanted a gray striped maxi for pretty much the whole summer.  While I do like the purple on this one it wasn't exactly what I wanted but for as cheap as it was, I'll take it!  And magically the sun is at a better level for outdoor pictures in the morning again, at least it was today.  I'll take what I can get!

And this next photo just proves to me why I need Zumba.  I've seen a lot of cute pregnant gals out in blogland lately turning to the side and showing off their baby bump.  Well I have a little pooch going on here but it is not a baby bump - think I'm getting a beer belly, eek!  Yep, time to step up my workouts for sure.

I've been missing my Jenna Lou bag, so it was time to switch back to her for a bit.  I still love the versatility of this bag, it's probably my favorite one that I own.  Which if you know me and my love of purses, that is a very bold statement!  Do you have a favorite bag?  Or have you ever tried Zumba?

Outfit rundown:

T-shirt - Herbergers

Jacket - White House Black Market (thrifted)

Skirt - Old Navy

Necklace - S&D

Flats - DSW

Bag - Jenna Lou Designs

Hair clip - C. Jane Create

It's all Quinn's fault

It's been no secret I've loved maxi skirts and dresses this summer.  I think I'll get some more mileage out of them into the Fall here because they're long so they keep me warmer!  Today I decided to bring out my very favorite maxi and add a long sleeve shirt - and I think it worked out pretty well.  I'm comfy and warm.  Besides, I needed to wear something for a little pick me up, I'm quite wiped out this morning.  Last night was interesting.

I take a bath most evenings to help unwind and relax before bed.  I've been doing it since I was young and in fact, if I don't take my bath, my muscles flip out a bit and the Pants Monkey says he thinks I get restless leg syndrome while sleeping, so I try to not skip when I can help it.  So last night was no exception.  And I'll preface the rest of this story with - my house is old and we haven't done much to update it.

While I run my water I usually play with my iPhone - catching up on FB, Twitter, Words with Friends, Bejeweled, etc.  So I'm playing a game and I get a text message.  "Hey, it's Quinn."  It's a local number, but I  think over all the people I've met lately and none of them are a Quinn.  So I just deleted and ignored it.  I'm nearly done running the water when my phone buzzes again from the same number.  "Hello?"  Fine.  I respond "sorry I think you have the wrong number."  By the time I'm done messing around with all of that, my tub is really, REALLY full.  But I've filled up pretty full before and the backup drain usually kicks in and sucks a little out so I figured it would be no big deal.  Bad judgement call on my part.

I get in and it slops over the edge a bit.  Water is all over the bathroom floor.  Oops.  In my head I say "it's just water, I'll get out in a little bit and towel it up and the Pants Monkey will never have to know!"   Well all of a sudden, Mr. Monkey comes flying in, looks at the floor and goes "oh my God."  I start promising to clean it up but then he says "no, that's not the problem, water is pouring into the basement."  Um, crap.  Apparently the seal by the floor and the bathtub is really not good, so when I slopped water over the edge, it drained into the floor and through the ceiling into the basement.  Right above his bar.  You know, the really nice one he houses his homebrew in?  I felt awful and leaped out of the tub, toweled off quickly and threw my pajamas on.  By the time I got downstairs though he had more or less cleaned it up and it wasn't as bad as it sounded.  It was dripping, not pouring. And everything is fine now.  But at that moment, it was not cool.  So, I definitely learned a lesson! I should really just blame Quinn for distracting me.  Darn you Quinn whoever you are! After that it was a bit hard to fall asleep, hence my saying I'm wiped out today!

Even though I'm tired after work I'm going to meet one of my closest friends for a Zumba class.  I've been wanting to try it for awhile now and she has a good place she's been going so I said I'm going with you and then I won't feel so awkward the first time!  So that should be interesting!

And before I go I wanted to share a picture of the group from the MN Blogger get together - credit to Megan Bird, she has other photos up on a nice recap over at the two birds blog as well.  Click the photo to make bigger and see all the lovely ladies up close.  It really was a great time and I can't wait to meet up with all of these gals again!  Sounds like it might be sooner rather than later too!

L to R: Jen, Chelsea, Lindsey, Becky, Kimi, Christine, Lori, Me, Erin, Rachel, Nora, Megan

Outfit rundown:

Dress as skirt - Cliche Mpls

Shirt - Mossimo, thrifted Target stock

Sandals - Merona, Target

Necklace - Charming Charlie

Belt - from cousin

Career Day

When we were on the boat the other night, we ended up sitting with a charming older couple and their brother.  They were wonderful people with awesome stories to share.  At one point the woman turned to us and asked what we did for a living.  So the Pants Monkey talked about working in IT and we found out that one of the sons of the couple works in California for Pandora - how cool is that?  Then she turned to me for my answer and I said I was an administrative assistant for a health organization and started to explain I work more behind the scenes but somehow she heard "assistant" and "health" and automatically assumed I was a medical assistant and started telling me how wonderful it is that I do that kind of work and how important it is.  I didn't bother correcting her, I didn't want to make her feel bad.  But it made me think, I've talked a little about my job here, but not too much about what it is I "do".  So today is career day!

My official title is Administrative Assistant, Facilities.  My boss is the Director of Clinic Facilities for the clinics in our organization located in the northern suburbs of Minneapolis. In layman's terms - she makes sure the buildings are in good shape, the heating/cooling is working, the building isn't falling apart, etc.  Our office is on the 3rd floor of one of the clinic buildings and it is a building that has tenants that are not part of our organization, but we manage the building.  Part of my job is to field calls from those tenants when they have a light out or something and route it to our maintenance staff.  Another part of my job is to print the employee ID security badges that each person wears.  Sometimes I even take the new employee photos.  I replace badges when they break or are lost.  And then finally, because my boss is someone who is often on the road and busy, I do everything I can to make her life easier - manage her calendar, reconcile her company credit card, enter her mileage, code invoices for payment, etc.  It's your basic admin type job.  So as you can see, I do nothing with patients at all.  I don't even really interact with patients or really even clinic staff other than when I go get our mail or punch in and out for the day down in the clinic.

Sounds so exciting doesn't it?  It's really not too bad though, I do enjoy it for the most part.  Fact - I probably way overdress for this position in all honesty.  Our maintenance staff wears jeans and polos.  My own boss is pretty much a chinos and a nice shirt kind of woman.  Most of the clinic staff wears scrubs.  The front desk staff don't even dress up much, many of them wear khakis and we're all allowed to wear these fleece zip up jackets that our company provided us, so many of them wear that.  Not to mention, I'm holed up in this office with just my boss, so I really don't have to dress up as much as I do sometimes.  But I do it because I enjoy it!  I love clothes and I like to look good!  I do dress down on Fridays as you've seen.  I have to say though, when my boss's boss comes to visit he always has a suit on, so I feel good when I'm dressed up if he stops by!

And even though I'm not directly involved in patient care, I still get a lot of perks that come with working in healthcare.  I get a free flu shot every year - in fact it is required.  Our benefits are so crazy awesome and uber affordable.  We carry both myself and the Pants Monkey on our health insurance and barely pay anything.  And you've probably noticed with all these days off I've had lately, our time off program is sweet - if you don't use the time you accrue in a year it carries over.  So I had a bunch saved up because I hadn't understood that when I first started here.  So that's been kind of nice to have!  We get a lot of employee discounts for things like cell phone service.  So I really can't complain!  Not to mention, I'm about 10-15 minutes from home and 5 minutes from my parents house at this office.  Yay short commutes!

So there you have it.  That is what I do for a living.  My boss is awesome to work for and I'm nervous because she plans to retire in January 2014 - so in just over a year things may be different here, but for now things are good and stable and I'll enjoy it while it lasts!

Outfit rundown:

Dress - handed down from Lynne

Blazer - F21 (last year)

Shoes - Madden Girl, thrifted

Necklace - Maurices

Tights - Target

Inspiration Monday - Rock star weekend

Oh man, I just had the best weekend.  I would love to go back and do it all again!!  More on that in a moment, but first, I'm back with Inspiration Monday and that is taking the sting off of Monday just a hair!  Today's model is Eva Mendes in a nice autumn-ish type ensemble.  And a giant dog.  Perhaps he is her guard dog?

So first off, it's not sunny here like it is in her picture.  And secondly, this is actually my second attempt at the outfit, my first choice didn't quite work out.  And, it's a little chilly outside today, but I went with short sleeves anyway!  I am actually quite pleased with how this turned out, even if it wasn't my original plan!  I also tried to get one of the cats to pose with me to be my "guard dog" but they were sleeping.  Lazy cats.

So, back to my weekend, I am sorry to brag, but it was pretty rock star fabulous.  Friday's boat ride was awesome.  The weather was perfect, we had a lovely sunset as we cruised the lake.  The beer was very tasty.  The brewery's taproom was open until 11 too, so we headed over there after the boat ride so we could have one more pint and also get a glass to bring home for our collection.  They had this giant Jenga game and it was really fun.  I might have to gently suggest to my wood working father that it would make a nice Christmas gift for Mr. Monkey and me!

Saturday was jammed pack but was equally awesome.  Spent some time in the morning with our music group working on a CD we're making.  Headed home for lunch and then went to sing at a wedding.  And then from there I went to the MN Blogger meet up at Megan Bird's.  It was a blast, we had a great time sitting in her backyard, drinking beer and talking girly and celebrity gossipy stuff solving the world's problems.  It was wonderful to finally meet many of my favorite bloggers in person.  I felt so at home with everyone and couldn't believe four and a half hours went by!  I can't wait to do it again (and next time won't be so lame and bail before the "after party"!)  Thank you again Megan and Nora for hosting!  Of course, I totally forgot to take a picture of my outfit, but there was a group photo taken so I'll share that when it's available!

Sunday we slept in and then had brunch outside since the weather was still amazingly beautiful.  Then the Pants Monkey worked on making dinner for his family - we wanted to thank his parents for taking care of our cats while we were out of town and what better way to do that then with food?

So it was a great three day weekend.  And it'll be my last one for quite awhile I think.  It'll be weird working five days again!  I know, wahh, wahh.

For more Inspiration Monday looks visit the two birds blog over here.

Outfit rundown:

Shirt - Express, thrifted

Skirt - East 5th Avenue, JCPenney

Shoes - Mossimo, Target, thrifted

Necklace - S&D

Bracelets - S&D, A Little Bird on Grand

This is gonna be a good life

Happy Friday! I'm off from work today as I mentioned that I would be yesterday.  The Pants Monkey and I are going on a beer cruise tonight on Lake Minnetonka (huge MN lake south of Minneapolis) and needed to be there kind of close to when we both get off work, so we thought, let's take one more day off and enjoy some lazy time before we go boating!  We're going to go run some errands though, so I am not being super lazy, I'm dressed for the day. 

This shirt was in my box of goodies from Lynne.  It's very similar to the Michael Kors shirt from earlier this week but it's a little more casual.  I thought it would be a fun shirt to wear on the boat and all I need to do is add a jacket and I'm good to go!  I did add a camisole under this one as it is a little lower cut than the other one, to the disappointment of Mr. Monkey, but I'd rather not risk overexposure or as far as that goes, totally catching a chill on the boat!

The rest of my weekend is going to be crazy awesome as well.  Tomorrow I'm singing at a wedding - yay extra money - and then there's a MN Blogger get together at the fabulous Megan Bird's house!  I am beyond excited to see some of the bloggers I've already had the pleasure to meet and to finally meet some of my other favorites!  It's going to be a good time.  Sunday we have blissfully free, so we'll probably sleep in and go out for breakfast.  Yes, it's going to be a good weekend!

I think I'm going to add this hat for the boat tonight too.  Just in case it is windy.  I totally caught a chill on a boat ride we did up in Itasca on our vacation last month, so I'm being extra cautious, don't need that happening again!

I hope you all have wonderful weekends as well!

Outfit rundown:

Shirt - handed down from Lynne

Pants - Gap, thrifted

Hat - Target

Necklace - thrifted

Bracelet - Charming Charlie

Buy me maybe?

 Hey hey it's Thursday!  But it's another Friday for me.  I know.  You're all thinking, does this girl ever work five days?  I have a lot of time saved up and my employer is very generous with it's time off program.  This is my last short week for awhile though.  Back to normal next week.  Anyway, since it's my Friday and since it's cooler outside, it's time for the return of my favorite plaid pants!  Those who have been following my blog for awhile know how much I love these pants.  And patterned/printed pants are totally on trend this year, so I know I'll be wearing these a ton again!

So, I'm showcasing my new purse a little bit more today.  I've been trying so hard not to buy purses you guys, but when I was up north this weekend we went into one of my favorite little purse boutiques and before I knew it, I had this one in my hands.  I don't listen to a lot of pop music, but I am familiar with Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" - partly because of all the parodies of it.  Anyway, this purse went all Carly Rae on me.  It said "hey, I just met you, and this is crazy, but you like purses, so buy me maybe?  All the other girls will want to take me, but you love purses, so buy me maybe?"  And I couldn't resist.

It's crazy versatile though, which is becoming more and more of a requirement when I buy a bag.  I like that it can be a shoulder bag or a crossbody.  It has a bajillion pockets.  I love the flap that folds over the top of it. And burgundy is perfect for Fall.  Can you blame me for taking it home with me?  I did get rid of a couple of purses when I cleaned out my closets last week.  I have two more I'd like to sell, but haven't had much luck consigning - they're both Coach, but slightly loved.  If anyone is interested, I'm willing to sell them pretty cheap.  Message me and I'll send pictures.  I'm not joking.  They're nice purses, they're just not my style anymore.

See what I mean - this purse just draws you to it and says take me home!  My mom and my music director loved it too and bought one in other colors.  So we're purse triplets now!

Outfit rundown:

Shirt - Maurices

Pants - No Boundaries (thrifted)

Sandals - Duck Head

Necklace - S&D with MMD buttonflower

Bracelets - various

Bag - Fun Sisters Nisswa

EBEW - School days

As my mom would say, I'm a day late and a dollar short on Everybody, Everywear once again - but I say better late than never!  I had totally forgotten to look to see what the theme was before yesterday and then once I saw it was "back to school" I wanted to do an outfit because I thought it would be fun!  So, here is my back to school look!

I went for a preppy look, plaid button shirt and khaki skirt.  Truth be told though - I wouldn't have worn this to school back in the day.  When I was little, I loved wearing dresses and skirts.  I stopped wearing them somewhere around 4th grade though.  Then I entered a hideous phase I'd love to forget called "oversized shirts with leggings or bike shorts".  Oh 1990's.  By the time I was in about seventh grade I was into more jeans and t-shirts/sweatshirts or flannels (still the 90s) and that was my uniform more or less through high school.  I was just a casual girl for the most part, somewhat frumpy, no nicer way of saying it. I'm not saying I was Josie Grossie, but style just wasn't that big to me back then!  But hey, I still got the boy - the Pants Monkey was my high school sweetheart, we started dating our sophomore year.  Still, I'd love to go shake my 16 year old self and tell her that denim overalls are just not that awesome.  Man I wish I could show you guys some pictures.  I'll have to see what I can do to scan some in at some point!

So anyway, if I could go back in time, I'd encourage my teenage self to wear something like this on the first day of school.  It's simple, chic and comfy!  Ban the baggy sweatshirts Teenage Bethie!  Just say no!  He he.

Were you stylish in school or did you choose comfort over style like me?

Outfit rundown:

Shirt - Mossimo, Target 

Skirt - Old Navy 

Shoes - DSW

Necklace - S&D

Bracelet - Bead for Life

Summer strikes back

Well it appears summer wants to give us one last hurrah.  Actually, knowing MN, this won't be the true last hurrah, we'll probably get some Indian summer too.  Today, it's going to be 90 again.  And dry.  Oh man is it DRY.  I cannot keep enough lotion on!  We need some rain and some moisture.  I hear we may get some tomorrow and then it'll be back down to 70 for a high.  Fall in MN.  You have to love it.

With the warm weather, I knew a sundress was a necessity.  I have already packed away some of my "springy" colored clothing, but this one I felt was a good choice to take into the Fall because of the colors.  And it's so crazy comfy, can I get a Amen for jerseyknit material?  

 So remember I said the Pants Monkey made homemade hot dogs with his dad?  Yesterday they smoked them in his smoker and since today it's summery, we're going to grill them for dinner!  I smelled them yesterday and they smell fantastic.  He said he and his dad tried one for lunch and they were really tasty.  So I'm excited to give them a try tonight!

Outfit rundown:

Dress - Gap (thrifted)

Sweater - Maurices

Necklaces - S&D and Charming Charlie

Bracelets - S&D

Headband - C.Jane Create (via blogging bestie swap with Christa)

Sandals - Italian Shoe Company - DSW

For the love of Lynne

Gasp, no Inspiration Monday again.  Love the look the birds picked, but I couldn't quite pull it together while being out of town this weekend.  We had a great, though cold, weekend away!  It's hard to be back at work today, Mr. Monkey was smart and took today off as well, I wasn't quite that smart!  Anyway, what helps today is while I'm not doing Inspiration Monday, I do have something else fun to share!

A little while back, the fabulous Lynne of Practical Paralegalism emailed me and said she had a new with tags Michael Kors shirt that she bought from Ross and couldn't use and wanted to know if I'd like it.  It was exactly my size, so I said, sure!  Then her daughter got sick and all those life things that get in the way sometimes and I was rather busy myself, so I kind of forgot about it.  I got home from work on Thursday and there was a large box sitting in front of my door.  I'm like, ok all my jewelry came, this must be for the Pants Monkey.  I picked it up and saw it was for me and it was from Lynne - and it was heavy.  I'm thinking holy cow!  I went inside and opened it up and it was like Christmas!  Not only did she send me the Michael Kors shirt, she also sent a few other items, including an amazing dress I can't wait to share because it fits me like a glove!

So anyway, I sure hope I'm not embarrassing her too much - but this was one of the nicest things anyone has ever done, I hope to repay the favor soon!  In honor of Lynne and her fantasticness, I named my outfit today "The Lynne".  I am wearing the Michael Kors shirt, some nice dress pants and dressy shoes and I topped it off with my obi belt from Megan Mae, because Miss Lynne is a huge fan of Megan Mae items - you should see how ladyfriend styles them, let me tell you, she's super creative. And this might just be a new purse I may have bought up north this weekend. Cough, really need that shopping ban now, cough.

So anyway, Lynne, I know I've already thanked you via Twitter and your blog, but I had to give you another shout out here, thank you, thank you, you are the best!!  I can't wait to show off the other items that worked out well for me!!

Some more photography challenges this morning.  I remember having these same issues last Fall too.  So, I added this one from indoors as soon as I got to work today, but I didn't have my tripod so it didn't turn out too much better.  Yeah, first world blogger problems!  I just don't want to use a big SLR camera, I really like the portability of my point and shoot!  Might be time for an upgrade though.  We'll see.  Happy Monday! And PS, even though I'm not over there today, go visit the two birds to see all the Inspiration Monday looks!

Outfit rundown:

Shirt - Michael Kors, from Lynne

Pants - Old Navy (last year)

Shoes - Madden Girl, thrifted

Necklace - S&D

Bracelet - Charming Charlie

Obi belt - Megan Mae Daily

Here, but not really here

So here's my first thrifted item from the stuff I bought on Labor Day - gray striped pants.  They're Old Navy brand, go figure, they fit well though.  I tucked in my shirt so you'd be able to see this adorable lace at the top and then it turns out you can't actually see it in the picture all that well.  Oh well.  I think next time I won't worry about tucking something in.  And you're finally seeing the other denim shirt I bought awhile back - also thrifted.  I love this one because it can be easily turned into a more summery shirt by rolling up the sleeves and buttoning them back!  

And as we speak I am hopefully on the road to Northern MN or am already there, in the hot tub with a glass of wine or beer.  Which is where I'm likely to be found for most of the weekend, I'm not going to lie!  Hope you all have great weekends and we'll see you back on Monday!

Outfit rundown:

Cami - Old Navy

Denim Shirt - Talbots, thrifted

Pants - Old Navy, thrifted

Sandals - SO, Kohls (old)

Necklace - S&D

Retro cutie

Well it's not any of my thrifted items yet, but how adorable is the final item I got from the ModCloth sale - this retro blouse?  I am in LOVE.  Shame on me, I didn't think to get a picture of the back - there are these delightful buttons.  Someone remind me to do that next time!  

Also, taking pictures inside = big difference right now.  I may be able to get more good outdoor pictures on weekends and later this Fall when it gets a little lighter out again after Daylight Savings time, but for now, the lighting is just too weird with the sun coming up!  I was much happier with how these turned out!

This bag is not new, but is new to the blog.  I don't believe I've shared it here before.  I felt it kind of matched the vibe I had going, while I don't always match my bag to my outfit anymore, I wanted to do it today.

I am excited, it's my Friday!  I could get used to these uber short weeks!  We're heading up to a cabin with our music group tomorrow for the weekend.  We do it once a year.  It's just a time of fellowship and fun instead of work.  I'm looking forward to it even if it's a short getaway.

I'm sure my attire for the entire weekend will consist of a sweatshirt and jeans - but never fear, I'm ahead on outfit photos this week, so there will still be an outfit post tomorrow!  I'm such a nerd!  Ok, well Happy Friday to me and Happy Thursday to the rest of you!

Outfit rundown:

Blouse - ModCloth

Capris - Mossimo, Target (old)

Flats - DSW

Bag - Maurices

Bracelet - Charming Charlie

Necklace - jerseymaids via Etsy