The Guilty and the Innocent are Always Side By Side

I love when I have out-of-the-ordinary days at work.  It adds a bit of spice to life and keeps things from getting dull.  Today was one of those days.  I was able to leave for a few hours smack in the middle of the work day to go shopping.  I needed to pick up some things for a Staff Retreat we have coming up next week and also some new storage materials.  I was able to hit up 3 different stores in 2 hours all on someone else's (work's!) credit card.  It was a nice change of pace and I came in $5 under budget, which, let's face it, rarely happens!

I feel like this outfit is my go-to summer uniform.  I find I wear it frequently in the hot months!  I can dress it up or down, it is casual with flip flops or ready for a night out with heels, it is entirely machine washable and the bright color (although this is technically a "winter" shirt) seems summery. I'm sure you'll see this pairing frequently over the next few months!

Necklace, shirt, skirt: Anthropologie
Flip Flops: J Crew

Fear the Beard

Recently, my boss announced his retirement.  It is a bittersweet time- while I am so happy for him to begin this next adventure, I am nervous about who will replace him!  He is rather famous for (and proud of!) his long beard.  Last week at our leadership team retreat, we had a celebration with beardy cupcakes and gave him a tee-shirt that my friend Amanda found online that "measures" the length of a beard!  Here are a few pictures, plus the outfit of the day from that retreat.

Dress and belt: Anthropologie
Shoes: Aldo
Cardigan: The Limited

Getting Caught in the Rain

I realized I haven't worn many of my summery dresses yet. By that, I mean all of the white dresses and skirts haven't left the closet.  I decided to bring out the Beda dress on Friday.  Unfortunately, Friday night I was meeting friends for dinner and a movie and was caught in hurricane-like rain.  I am not exaggerating; I have never seen rain fall so furiously!  I couldn't even see 5 inches in front of my face as I darted from my car inside.  Once inside, I realized that not only was I soaked to the bone, but I was also wearing a white dress which became instantly see-through. Ugh.  Luckily, Old Navy was near by so I could purchase a cheap pair of yoga pants, tee shirt, and flip flops to survive the evening. Here's the dress before I turned into a drowned rat:

Women are from Venus

I am trying to view the transit of Venus.  It won't happen again until 2117, and by that time, I feel certain I will be dead so this is my one opportunity.  Unfortunately, it is so cloudy I can't see anything in the sky!  My efforts are always thwarted by something.  Sigh.

Anyway, here is the first view of pictures from the new camera.  They aren't great... I have to adjust to the zoom.  BUT, I love how clear they are!

I can't remember the name of this dress OR cardigan, but they are both from Anthropologie.

Happy Tuesday!

The Moment is Now

This is it! The moment has finally come. At last, I purchased a new camera. I really debated over what to buy. I wanted something small and compact that I can keep in my purse and have with me everywhere.  At the same time, I wanted something that would be durable for the next few years as well as a camera that will take better pictures than, say, a phone's camera.  I went with a Canon Powershot.  Small and compact, we'll see how it works out.

So, this is it!  These are the last blog pictures I will be posting with my dying Nikon Coolpix.  Hopefully you'll notice a difference in clearer pictures after today.  Time will tell!

Dress: Secret Treasures, Anthropologie
Belt: Belle Bow Anthropologie
Shoes: Nine West
Necklace: Macys

Tina and Noka Tie the Knot

Last Saturday, two of my friends, Tina and Sonoka got married in their backyard in a lovely sunny ceremony.  The weather that day was extremely HOT, but clouds rolled in just in time for their 5 pm wedding to shield the sun from our eyes.  After a brief ceremony, that had a fabulous barbecue with a variety of tasty food and desserts.

I did get a new dress to wear to the wedding and I went with Anthropologie's Novella Strapless dress.  In general I hate strapless dresses because they never quite stay up or in place but this was definitely did!  It has a lot of stretch to the back which keeps it snug. Also the shape of the neckline helped keep the dress from dipping too love.  I LOVE this dress and think I will get a lot of wear out of it this summer.  It is machine washable which is always an added bonus. If you're looking for a fun frock for the summer time, I would highly recommend!

Here are some pictures from the main event:

Ode to Canon Mac

This outfit is a shout out to my high school days as it primarily features my high school (Canon-Mac) colors of blue and gold (but really yellow).  This skirt was a steal on sale!  I tried it on originally at the Anthropologie opening I went to in Old Towne in the winter.  I loved the skirt and felt it was one I could wear year round.  I wasn't about to pay $150 for it.

Then, a few weeks ago it went on sale, and I planned to purchase it after work but completely forgot!  Luckily, about 2 weeks ago, Anthro emailed me a friendly, "Did you forget this was in your cart?" email and I was able to snag the skirt for a mere $39.95.  I can't remember the name of the skirt, though, and they oddly removed it's name from the website.  Anyway, this skirt is definitely a keeper.  It is nicely lined, and will go well with boots in the fall.

This outfit is extremely Anthro- skirt, shirt, AND cardi are all Anthropologie
Shoes are J Crew

How was your Memorial Day weekend?  Mine was just lovely- I was able to get a lot of sun (partially because I was locked out on my deck for the better part of Saturday afternoon) and also catch up with many friends over dinner, drinks, and movies. 

Olivia's Baptism

In March, my cousin Katie had a beautiful baby girl, Olivia Marie.  This weekend is her baptism weekend!  My cousin Emily is heading down to Abingdon, Virginia for the mass as she is the Godmother.  Unfortunately, I am unable to attend as I have a friend's wedding on Saturday.  I made a card to send with my gift for the sweet baby girl. It's been awhile since I posted a card, so it seemed like now is the time!

I used Stampin' Up!'s Designer Frames embossing folder for the oval-dot design. Then, I used rhinestones to make a cross.  This card is extremely simple and definitely baptism-appropriate!

Celebrating Jill

On Saturday, nine of us headed to Nostos, a Greek restaurant in Tyson's Corner for dinner and drinks to celebrate our friend Jill's birthday!  It was the first time any of us had dined there and everything was delicious from start to finish!  I am considering taking my family there when they come to visit in July.  I drove Jill, as she lives near me, so we had a few drinks at the bar before the other girls arrived.  Once we were seated, we tried a variety of appetizers and entrees and had a lot of laughs over wine. Here are a few pictures:

With the birthday girl!

A birthday cheese!  A treat from the bartender

All the ladies

Dress: Banana Republic Petite, circa 2008
Shoes: Aldo

May Showers

Last Wednesday, my friend Tina had a surprise bridal shower.  Two of her friends from college organized a surprise for her at Lebanese Taverna.  She was shocked when she arrived and saw nearly 20 friends waiting for her!  The shower had a garden theme with fresh flowers and tiny flower pots of cake pops on the table.  Her friends are wonderful party planners.  Her wedding is this upcoming weekend, so I'll be sure to snap a picture of the bride then. Unfortunately, I took one picture!  I wore one of my Tracy Reese dresses to the shower. 

Cream of the Crop

I bought this dress in February from Banana Republic's Mad Men collection. I wore it in March to my friend Courtney's baby shower and decided it was high time to wear it again!  I had a presentation for work so I decided to dust it off and wear it around my colleagues.  I received a lot of compliments on the dress, so I guess it is a keeper!  In keeping with the cream theme, I wore a thin wool open cardi over top. 

Dress and Cardi: Banana Republic Petite
Shoes: Nine West

Back in Action

I am returning from yet another blog hiatus.  Sigh.  I need to get my blogging-act together. It's not that I haven't had as much time to blog per se, but more so that I haven't taken any pictures to use in blog posts!  Today's post is really from the first weekend in May.  My entire family traveled to Penn State for my youngest sister's graduation. It was a beautiful weekend (with a few little spots of rain) and Erin had 3 graduation ceremonies.  It was a great opportunity for me to wear a few Anthro dresses, too.  We had a lot of laughs, drinks, and Creamery ice cream while in Happy Valley!  Here are a few pictures of the family all together.

This photo is from Friday night, after Erin's Honors Medal Ceremony

My cutie pie niece, Grace, at the Paterno Fellows Graduation on Saturday.  She wore her best Penn State dress.

Erin, the graduate

My siblings and niece

With the graduate (who has her eyes closed in most of my pictures)

Grace learned to drink from a straw... somewhat unconventionally

PSU Bound

Tomorrow I am heading to Penn State for my youngest sister, Erin's, graduation. It is hard to believe she is graduating from college already!  She was only a tiny 4th grader when I moved out of the house and left for college.  I'm looking forward to the weekend not only to celebrate her, but also to spend time with the family.  I am planning to spend the afternoon catching up with some friends who still live in State College and then head over to Happy Valley to meet up with the family and celebrate Erin's accomplishments. I'll post some pictures next week.  In the meantime, here's a outfit of the day:

Dress and Cardi: Anthropologie
Shoes: J Crew
Necklace: Ann Taylor Loft

Outlet Finds

A few weeks ago, I was visiting my family and my sisters and I went shopping at the nearby outlets.  I am generally unsuccessful with outlet shopping because I tend to be sized out or the fit doesn't often work on my petite frame.  This time, however, I had a few victories!  At the J. Crew outlet, I snagged both this polka-dotty skirt as well as the not-quite-navy tee.  I paired this ensemble with an Anthro cardi to add both color and texture. The skirt is a bit loose, but certainly not unbearable. I think I will get a lot of wear out of it this spring and summer!

Beginnings and Endings

A lot of life changing news has come down the pike over the past few days!  My younger cousin, Ally, recently became engaged to her long time boyfriend, Derek.  Let the family wedding planning begin!  Too, my boss announced yesterday that he will be retiring in a few months.  While this is fabulous news for him, as he deserves more time with his darling family, it leaves a lot of unanswered questions at work about next steps and the future.

While pondering all of that, here is an Outfit of the Day:

Dress: Armani Exchange, 2012
Cardigan: J Crew Jackie Cardi, 2011
Shoes: Nine West, 2011
Necklace: Notice, 2011

Two Were Meant to Become One

Over the weekend, two of my very dear friends, Hyun June and Jason, tied the knot. For the occasion, my friend Chad came down from Pittsburgh to attend some of the wedding festivities with me. The wedding was held at a small Presbyterian church in Arlington, followed by a reception at a hotel in Crystal City.  Friday night was the rehearsal at the church followed by a rehearsal dinner at Kora.  Saturday, we met early in the bridal suite at the hotel to have our hair and make-up done, then we piled into the limo to ride over in the rain to the church. Afterwards, we returned to the hotel to party.  Here are some photo highlights:

The bridesmaids!
I am wearing Anthropologie's Sweet Enticement Dress and Belle Bow Belt with a headband from Lou Lou Boutiques

With my friend, Chad

I Can, I Will, I Do

Today marks the beginning of the wedding festivities for my friend Hyun June's wedding.  Tonight we are meeting for dinner, drinks, and mani/pedis.  Tomorrow is the rehearsal and dinner.  Saturday is the main event!  My friend Chad is driving down from Pittsburgh to spend the weekend and accompany me to these events (well, not the mani/pedi part... but everything else.)  Because we will be busy wedding it up, I'll be taking a little blog break until next week when I can get back on track.  For now, here are pictures from last week when we celebrate Hyun June's bachelorette by visiting a few local wineries and finally have dinner at Wolfgang Puck's The Source. Deliciousness.
A few photos:

Green and Navy

Green and navy make one of my favorite clothing color combinations!  I decided to wear this older navy J. Crew dress and pair it with my new melodious cardi from Anthropologie.  The pop of color definitely added something to this plain cotton dress! The melodious cardigan was a worthwhile addition to my wardrobe.  When I first bought it, I wasn't sure if I would wear it often but it has definitely come in handy.  I like the unique shape and cut.  Also, the color works well with so many things I already have!  Kendi Everyday would be proud of my remixing of this cardigan. :)