What I've Been Wearing:
Monday Outfit Fail :)
I put this together for a trip to campus & dinner with some of my gals....and then uh, didn't wear it. It seemed TOO young to me, too unprofessional, and it didn't seem quite "on" like I wanted. I don't know....I think I'm my biggest fashion critic. Maybe I'll try another take on it, as I'd like to figure out a way to wear that awesome summer dress in other seasons!
(Kohl's: dress, Target: belt, cardigan, leggings, boots)
What I Actually Wore Monday:
Yep, loved it...so much more me. And I dressed it down even more with my puffy black winter vest...plus the stripes and the vest do a great job of hiding the fact that things are baggy & loose these days! Definitely will be wearing the combo pictured above again!!
(Kohl's: merlot pencil skirt, Target: sweater, Nordie's Rack: Steve Madden flats)
Tuesday Evening Lecture:
Same sweater---told you I'm on a "wear it back-to-back" kick! :) I've had this outfit in mind for a few weeks now and it originally stems from an inspiration here that I found months ago.
(Thrifted: Skirt, Belt: Came with another dress)
Tonight's Lecture:
In all actuality, I didn't wear this with the cardigan but I did sort of love this. I'm not sure that tucking shirts in is the most flattering on me, but these days I care less and less. I got the mint green lace covered shirt from Target last month and I've been in love with it....PS this outfit also made me realize that I'd look much better if I'd actually stand up straight for once.
(Target: cardigan, skirt, shirt; Nord Rack: shoes)
What I've Been Cooking:
Pasta w/ my canned homemade pasta sauce & parmesan bread crumb encrusted baked salmon (with enough left overs for another 1-2 meals)
Fried Apple Pancake Rings (Pinterest find & fed me for two breakfasts!)
Baked Apple Halves w/ Oatmeal, Cranberries, Pecans, Rum & Brown Sugar--YUM!
While I don't have a picture, I also produced a couple times last week another Tall D specialty: Take a black bean burger and heat in the microwave for 1 minute before breaking it up into mush with your fork. Add some grated cheese & a bunch of salsa, mix, and warm for another minute. Spoon mixture into tortilla w/ sour cream & homemade guacamole---DELISH!
Thursday, my cousin & I met at McMenamins so I could savor again that amazing speciality autumn pear & walnut pizza
Saturday, T & I had happy hour (salads, crab cakes & drinks for me) at Bartini
This Monday night I met my gals for American Dream pizza
And then I've survived on my usual standbys of smoothies, omelets, and the like. For the last week, I've had a massive case of the munchies and have been wanting to eat myself out of house & home, probably due to a variety of factors: increased but avoided stress, still working out, reading students food assignments, and the fact that since the separation & start of half-marathon training I've lost a total of 15 pounds while still packing on a decent amount of lean muscle. Which all leads me to say that I'm completely jonesing to win my gal Heather at Townsend House's give away this week!! A box of The Cravory cookies is just the extra totally delicious even if unhealthy calories that this gal right here needs these days :) Me, pick me!
Randoms:
- This new Iphone5 takes awesome pictures but my FAVORITE feature is that it converts talk to text for text messages, emails, notes, etc. For a verbal processor this is AMAZING! (Even if it's probably going to decrease the abilities of the next generation!) Although today I had my first kink: all morning I could only text other Iphone users rather than recipients in my contact list!
- I've got a weird sort-of rash developing between my neck & breasts. I've been wearing perfume lately and I've been more stressed. I'm pretty sure the perfume is probably the culprit, even though I've worn off-and-on that same stuff for years. Just another indication that the chemicals in perfumes (and all fragrances) are actually NOT good for us.
- When people don't lock their FB profiles and are easily searchable on google...it sort of makes it easier to do checks on potential housemates.
- The knee has been recovering and I think I've potentially figured out some of the problems. I realized that it's worse when I run with the dogs because they pull and so I land on my knee differently with them. Also I'm recognizing that my right foot kicks out to the right as I run which cause the knee to turn out--I'm trying to be mindful of keeping it straighter but it's a challenge to do so. The 5.7 mile run I did this week was the first 4+ mile run without Motrin and while it was stiff, it wasn't painful for once.
- Today I've been thinking again about who I was four years ago. More insecure and unsure. Plus I'd learned too much about the fashion & make-up industry to be an eager participant...and now look at me with an abundance of hippy make-up items, loads of Target clothes, and rashes due to again using fragrances...sigh! :)
- I'm half-way through the book Radical: Taking Your Faith Back From the American Dream....and I'm honestly not loving it like I thought I would nor in the way many others have responded to it. It's challenging me yes, but thus far, I'm not sure that I agree with it all...and that surprises me 100%....I've had this book on my shelf waiting to get to a place to dive into it for almost two years..I'll let you know what I think when it's wrapped up.
- I love exam days in class when I can work on other things while ensuring students are doing alright. I can't believe it's already week 7 of the term.
- The leaves look so gorgeous on the ground in the backyard...that I seriously don't want to rake them! Again thanks Heather for reminding me that leaves are great winter cover in the raised beds :)
- And....I'm again slowly taking steps to ensure that I could register to complete pre-med prereqs should I decide to try to go that route after all. IF my course rebuttal was accepted, I'd have less prereqs and issues than I thought. I get 6 free credits a term and could use financial aid to cover the rest of housing costs & tuition....I'm just battling with a) whether it's truly an option b) do I really want to potentially look at 6 more years of school at this point c) and whether I can be okay with being a student in classes with my own students in my classes......thoughts?!
- And guilty pleasure of the week: I didn't want to drive out of the way just to go replenish my coconut-milk-based alternative but organic creamer...so I purchased the preservative-laden peppermint one at the grocer down the street. I'm not gonna lie....it tastes AMAZING...and I'm relishing each cup I make this week! :)
Thanks for all the shout outs! I really liked Radical. I didn't agree with everything, but a lot of it was good. I have been feeling more of a pull toward "simple" church now. Realizing that churches can sometimes have the anger that I am trying to get away from in the world, and the judgement because they believe they are right no matter what. And realizing that I myself used to be that person too. When you talk about how much you have changed over the past 4 years, it makes me think about how much I have changed as well...and it is a lot! And that peppermint creamer sounds delicious :-)
ReplyDeleteI hear ya gal. Tall D had been raised Baptist. I was raised Presbyterian--of the side that has a very liberal, social justice bent. I appreciate more the notion of love & service being the teaching of Jesus, rather than the notion of judgment that also is evident in the Bible...which is why I've been struggling some with Radical! I can imagine you've changed a ton---just look at how much you've increased around the home/yard and with the kiddos too! And yes, the peppermint creamer is amazing...I splurged on some peppermint icecream this week too :)
DeleteGood outfit combos. :) That was fun to see how you used the striped sweater twice.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you and I are in a similar debate about more schooling. I'm not sure if I want to commit to 3 more years but it might be a great adventure too. If only loans didn't come with!
What type of med career are you looking at?
I can totally see you doing SLP stuff though, but I hear ya....it's a hard debate whether to KEEP going or not. I'm actually not overly excited about going back to school and I'm not totally sold on it...but I'm going to trust if all unravels in that direction to move forward with it. No education is ever wasted. As shared in our texts, right now just pre-reqs while I explore options. :)
DeletePS - the rash thing is most likely due to the fragrance. I've had that happen before (I can't use Bath & Body Works body spray for that reason - can't use many of their products actually). I use Burt's Bees Blood Orange spray and I still break out time to time.
ReplyDeleteYes I used to not do ANY fragrance as fragrances are protected by trade secrets thus companies don't have to disclose the chemicals in them at all. AKA most fragrances are probably not great for us regardless of any type of product they are in.
DeleteI like all of those outfits! Because of time constraints these days, I feel like I never really feel put together. I just grab a pair of pants (too big for me) and a sweater and call it a day. Not cute, just works. :) Today, I'm wearing skinny jeans and boots to work so I actually like my outfit.
ReplyDeleteI hear ya---you're so busy these days gal, I don't know how you're doing it all but I'm totally impressed! You always look cute in the pictures you post :)
DeleteI like the tucked in shirt! I would say VERY flattering!
ReplyDelete