Selfie City

I've been debating this post for awhile now.

I started this blog almost 3 years ago, kind of on a whim, and amazingly enough I'm still posting.

I am not quite sure why.

Maybe because the 4 of you that read it get on to me when I don't, 

or maybe because I just feel better when memories are documented.

Anyways, the reason I started the blog was my love for fashion blogs.

I basically just wanted a "Blogs I Read" list down the side so that I could keep up with all the fashion blogs that I was reading.

I've kept reading those blogs all this time, and they have inspired me, and challenged me.

They simultaneously make we want to go out and buy all the fancy clothes, 

and never shop again, but remix what I already have in my closet.

Well, here goes nothing.

^^Bottom Middle: My least favorite outfit

^^Bottom Right: My most favorite outfit

 ^^Top Right: Everybody needs a casual weekend outfit.

^^Bottom Photos: I was loving the cold Houston weather!

^^Top Middle: That coffee mug is real, not posed.

^^Bottom Middle: Michael's favorite outfit.

^^I was kind of loving my leopard scarf this week.

Obviously, I am not a fashion blogger.

For one thing, I only use my phone to take photos.

I didn't take these photos to be a fashion blogger though.

I really don't know why I took them, but they have helped me to put more thought into my outfits, use a better variety of clothes in my outfits, 

and they've kept me from wearing the same outfit with the same clients.

So there you have it.

The first outfit post (or outfits as the case may be) by me.

It might also be the last.

Only time will tell.

Make Your Pins Matter

My motto when it comes to Pinterest is "don't pin it if you're not going to use it".

Lately I have been on a Pinterest kick, 

and I have been using several of the things that I have pinned.

Here is a quick run-down, as well as my rating of the pin itself.

1. Crock Pot Cooking.

I love a home-cooked dinner, but I am rarely home from work before 7:30pm.

Which usually means we're having frozen pizza.

I've been trying to step up my game recently and the best option is the crock-pot because it can cook all afternoon while I'm at work. 

This week I tried two meals.

- Chicken Chili

via jocooks

This was basically the chili recipe that I already use, but with chicken instead of beef.

It was so simple to make, with basic ingredients.

I give it a 7 out of 10.

Michael gives it an 8.

- Chicken n Dumplins

via suburbanepicurean

The only problem is that you have to add biscuits with an hour left, and again at 30 minutes left.

On a normal night, that wouldn't be possible, 

but since we were home tonight it worked out.

This recipe could not be any more simple though.

You can even put the chicken in frozen.

Score for being absentminded.

My rating for this is a 6. 

It has the potential to be really good though. 

I just plan to add more chicken and soup next time, and less biscuits.

Michael gives it a 5.

He agrees about the biscuits.

2. Use what you've got

 via pinkpeonies

This outfit is from one of my favorite fashion bloggers.

And the best part, I already had all the pieces.

I don't have a picture, but I received several compliments that day!

3. Still Judging

^^ This is for you Jacinda!

I have been judging this recipe for quite some time.

There is no link to a blog, the recipe is in the caption of the photo,

which I think made me judge it more.

It was very simple to make, and I already had all of the ingredients - double bonus.

My rating is a 5.

Michael gives it a 6.5.

I will say that it wasn't terrible...but I probably won't make it again.

Michael did really like the green beans though.

 

4. Closet Re-do

 via confessionsofaserialdiyer

This girl is amazing!

I stumbled across this post looking for ways to control dust in a closet.

(Does anyone else have this problem??)

She has some GREAT tips, and I got to work right away.

I didn't use all of her tips (its expensive to buy all new hangers) but it gave me a great jump start to feeling clean and organized.

It gets a 10.

5. Making the Cut

Olivia Palermo >>>

I had a hair appointment today and came across this pin last night.

I love Olivia, and her hair, at all times.

I told my hairdresser that I wanted this style, but wanted to keep my length...

^^Ahhh! 

I know that to most eyes, my hair still looks long.

My eyes gave me a small panic attack as she was blow-drying my hair.

I've gotten used to it though, and I am loving it!

The best part - Michael gives it a 10!!

And that's really all that matters.

You are welcome for this mostly pointless rating of my recent pins.

If you take nothing from this post, I beg you to please Make Your Pins Matter.

Seattle By Foot

Our third day in Seattle was all about the tours.

We decided to stop for breakfast at the doughnut shop just a block from our hotel.

We sat outside to eat and found out that this is a place President Obama ate at when he visited Seattle during his first term. 

I don't really care much about Obama, but we still thought it was pretty cool.

The first item on our itinerary was the Seattle by Foot Coffee Crawl.

I had come across this tour online, and Michael and I instantly agreed to do it.

Seattle is basically the American birthplace of coffee, so we knew the tour would be good.

 ^^ Outfit picture waiting for the tour to start

Our tour guide began the tour by asking each of us what kind of coffee drinkers we are, 

just to get an idea of her audience.

Then we were off to the first stop on the tour, Caffe Ladro.

He we tried a different kind of coffee than I have ever had.

It was a more juicy, tea-like blend of coffee.

Michael didn't really like it, but I thought it was okay.

Definitely not the best on the tour though.

The next stop was probably the best stop on the tour.

Caffe Darte.

*The funniest thing happened on the way to this stop. 

Our tour guide stopped to tell us a story about the Hard Rock Cafe, and a homeless man walked up.

I might add that he walked up right beside Michael.

The odor coming from him was enough to knock me over.

He started talking about who knows what, and tried to get Michael to "give him some skin"

Next thing I know he is calling Michael "Brad Pitt" and giving him some pats on the cheek.

He then turned to me and said something about Alicia Keys and Beyonce.

I was too busy stifling my laughter to respond. 

We finally started walking again, and I was cracking up.

Our tour guide turned to Michael, who was still in a state of shock, and asked "You okay?"

He said he was fine, but then he looked at me and said, "He touched me"

It was completely hilarious.

I laughed for at least 3 blocks.

So, so funny!

 Back to Caffe Darte.

There coffee blends were the best that I tasted all day.

We even got a latte art demonstration!

It was so neat.

Our tour guide told us that this would be the best latte of our life,

and she was right!

It was so delicious!

Moving on with the tour, our next stop was for some biscuits at Caffe Lieto.

 We only got a small sample, but the biscuits were good!

The next stop of the tour was Trabant Coffee and Chai.

Here we got to watch an interesting method of brewing, can't remember the name, but at the end it produced this coffee cake that was completely dry grounds.

The coffee was pretty good, but the second drink was amazing.

It was called the BruPaul, and was a combination of coffee and lemonade.

I have never used the word refreshing to describe a coffee drink, but this was refreshing.

The last stop of the tour was Intrigue Coffee Co, for some chocolate and coffee pairings.

This guy is what I would call a chocolate engineer.

He makes these delicious truffles, that have the most interesting flavors and seasonings.

My favorite was the Basil.

So, so good!

We also had his cold brew coffee, which has quickly become my favorite!

This was an excellent tour that we would reccommend to anyone who travels to Seattle.

Be warned though, you will walk alot, and you will feel a little jittery!

We ate a quick lunch and then we were off to our next tour:

Century Link Stadium

This guy was so excited.

He has been looking forward to this for at least a month now.

And, we have decided to make this Michael's thing, and we will tour as many NFL stadiums as we can in our lives as we travel together.

 It was a pretty good tour, and it was neat to hear about the Seattle 12th Man.

The stadium is really beautiful too, especially with the view!

Unfortunately, someone bought the land behind the stadium and is currently building a skyscraper,

which will cover that famous Seattle skyline.

Michael was excited that we got to walk on the field,

and that we got to have our own little press conference,

but he was most excited when a random guy told us we could go in the home locker room.

Apparently, this is something that never happens on the tour, and we were told that we were very lucky they let us in.

*Michael was pretty disappointed when he found out that our tour guide (who has worked there many years) has never met a player.

Michael was just sure he was going to meet a player.

The tour was still great, even without the players.

By this point in the day, I was completely worn out and tired of walking.

Seattle has a pretty good public transportation system, but it is hard to get to and out of the way.

We stopped by to pick up our rental car on the way back to our hotel, a

and then I got some much needed nap time.

Our reservation was not until 8:45 so we had plenty of time to rest and get ready for dinner at the Space Needle.

We decided to take a taxi to dinner, because it was kind of raining, and I was wearing heels.

^^ This was the only rain we saw in Seattle

We had a few minutes on the observation deck, and then it was time for dinner.

We had such a wonderful experience at the Sky City restaurant.

First, weeks ago, I signed up for the Celebration Club.

It is completely free, and as soon as I signed up they emailed me a coupon for free dessert.

A week before our visit, they emailed me a coupon for a free entree to celebrate our anniversary.

This coupon was good all month, so we decided to use it.

We would have eaten here regardless, but having the coupon made it a much easier decision.

Besides the price - the food, the service, and the view were amazing!

^^ Michael had tuna. I had sirloin and lobster tail.

It was so good!!

We even got the smoking dessert - the Lunar Orbiter.

The restaurant also had a complementary photographer that came to our table.

After dinner we went down to the gift shop, gave them our photo numbers and our email, 

and they sent them to us for free!

It was the perfect place to celebrate our 5th Anniversary!

It was a long day, but so much fun to see so much of Seattle.

We completely fell in love with the city and all it has to offer!

Friday's 5 Photos

Remember the pollen problem I told you about last week?

I was serious.

These were Buster's paws after about 10 minutes outside.

Gross.

Anyone else take dressing room pics?

Nope?

Just me?

Cool.

Usually I reserve this for Target, and then I text them to Michael who is in Electronics to see what he thinks about it.

I've recently started taking pics at other stores too, and it really helps me to think through the purchase.

In this case, I said no to the dress (bad fit, cute stripes though) and big time YES to the blazer.

I just love Kohl's.

Thanks for the support Lindsay.

That is all.

Last weekend we were invited to dinner by a family from church,

and we FINALLY got to meet their pet chicken!

That's right, I said pet.

Her name is Clucky, and she is 9 years old.

It was pretty awesome.

Isn't this cake adorable?!

One of my friends at church has her own at-home bakery,

and this week she did a Tiny Cake fundraiser for some of the teens that are going on Wilderness Trek this summer.

This is the cake I bought for my internship site (and future workplace!! Eeeekk!!) Shield Bearer.

Fighting for Hearts is our motto, and my coworkers LOVED it!

Plus, the cake was completely delicious!

*Hope you enjoyed the blog's newest addition - Friday's Five Photos.

It may not happen every Friday,

but I hope it will help me to take and post more pictures!

Today's Trends

While shopping last night, a friend asked me what my favorite trends are right now.

And I went completely blank.

I could not think of any current styles that I was loving.

That's a problem.

I love clothes, and fashion, and being trendy.

It was then that I realized I have been in somewhat of a rut lately.

Maybe because it is summertime, and extremely hot

(I'm really more of a fall/winter clothes person)

or maybe because I am working now and professional clothes are a whole new realm for me.

I don't know.

But I am still trying to work out being fashionable and professional at the same time.

After thinking about it a little longer, I realized that I do have some favorite trends right now.

*Keep in mind, these could very well only be trends to me.

1) Peplum

I love that it is professional, with an extra ounce of fancy. 

2) Ankle trousers

This is me in ankle pants and peplum, both from The Limited.

I didn't buy either of these items due to the price.

But I found black ankle pants at TJ Maxx for $15 the next day.

Score.

And I will be back for that top.

I can't stop thinking about it.

3) Wedges

Payless

Dress Barn

I am obsessed with wedges.

I own both of these and it is a struggle to not wear them every single day.

4) Two-tone shoes

Jessica Simpson

Ann Taylor

I don't have any two-tone shoes, but as soon as I find the right ones, 

I will be buying them up.

5) Bubble Necklaces

This necklace.

This color.

I love it.

Jewelry just helps me to feel less stiff while in professional clothes.

What trends are you loving right now?

Do you have certain pieces of clothing that are getting you through this terrible 

in-between period of changing summer to fall?

Let's all think thoughts of fall weather this weekend, 

and maybe it will get here faster.

What's Your Style?

Last week I had the pleasure of helping my good friend Cindy (and jewelry lady extraordinaire) with some more photos of her beautiful jewelry. 

I had so much fun!

Any day I get to spend with Cindy is a great one,

but add in playing dress up and acting fancy - and you have the perfect morning!

She really made it super easy for me. 

I brought a few things of my own (clothes and shoes)

but when I got there she already had clothes picked out for me,

she did my hair for each photo,

and she put all the jewelry on me and posed me.

Then she does some editing tricks to the photos and just makes them gorgeous.

I really don't have to do anything but sit there.

Its awesome.

Anyway, here are some of the photos we took and the different styles she is using in her new show.

Casual Chic

Classic Lady

Boho

Polished Glamour

So, which one do you think is more your style?

I would say I am casual chic, but I love me some glam too!

 

Thanks so much again Cindy for letting me spend the day with you!!

I absolutely loved every minute!

Sneak Peek

My morning was spent helping out a dear friend with a new business she has just started.

I had such a blast spending the day with her, 

 getting all dressed up, and feeling fancy! 

Here is a sneak peek of her work!

I'll take one of each please!
(If you would like some details about her business, just leave a comment with your email address)
Hope your Wednesday is full of blessings from our Lord!

Vintage and Classic

Have you seen the new Jason Wu for Target line??

If you haven't by now, then I'm sorry to say, but you won't be seeing it in your closet.

It came out this past weekend.

I went last night and barely got my hands on 2 shirts in my size.

That is literally all that was left.

Here are some of the pieces from his line.

 He even has accessories.

And here is the shirt that I got...in two colors. Ha!

(Gotta get what you can, right?)

I would suggest running, not walking, to Target and getting whatever you can grab.

For real.

Do it.

The topic for the photo today was front door

This is the front door to our brand spankin new clinic at school.

I spend every Thursday night here, and get my therapy face on.

Happy weekend!!