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:

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. 

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!

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. :)

The Return of Spring

Some cold and wet weather blew in so I guess we are actually going to have a bit of spring with a few days in the 50s and 60s.  For the cool down, I decided to wear my Lost Time skirt because I definitely haven't been giving it much love this year and I wore it a ton last year!  I paired it with my new Evening Chill Pullover which I was able to snag via popback on Anthro's website in March.  The necklace is from the Banana Republic outlet last summer.
Of course it warmed up during the day and by the the the evening rolled around and I was out at a concert I was ready to melt under the sweater.  Oh well.  The outfit worked well for most of the day.

Outside Looking Inside

Wow.  I'm very glad it's Friday. This has been en extremely intense week at work and I am definitely ready for a relaxing weekend. I don't have too many things on the agenda for the weekend so it will be a great time to engage in a bit of spring cleaning around the house.  The weather is cooling to more seasonal temperatures, but before it did, I was able to wear the Even Flurry dress again! This was the same dress I wore to church on Easter Sunday, but as I only had it on for a few hours, I figured I could appropriately wear it again a week later. 

The polka-dotty dress is sheer but with a tank underneath it works fine.  I paired it here with the Belle Bow and the Whirl and Wind Cardi, both from Anthropologie.  Of course, I also felt compelled to where my yellow nine west shoes to add a bit more color to the ensemble.

Life's Full of Disappointment

Good morning readers!

I am still pouty from disappointment... yesterday the space shuttle flew by, directly overhead of where I work.  And, I missed it.  I was stuck inside my little office in a meeting and missed all the hoopla until it was all said and done.  While not a big deal, I am sad because I wanted to see it and lost my chance! It's not everyday a space shuttle flies by to view with the naked eye.  Did you see it?

On a non-disappointing note, I happened to be in an Anthropologie 2 weeks ago on a Tuesday... not even consciously thinking that it was a sale day! I was able to snag this Mountain Time A-Line skirt on sale.  I love this guy. He's full but not too full and the natural and navy song combo make this skirt perfect to wear year round.  I paired it with the Whirl and Wind cardi to give it a pop of color.

Back To the Same Old, Same Old

After all the excitement of trips and parties to show, now we are back to just a boring Outfit of the Day.  I actually wore this a few weeks ago, but am so far behind on posting, I am just getting to it today.  This is the Banana Republic Mad Men lace dress from last summer paired with Anthro's Melodious Cardi.  I love everything about this cardigan- the color, the length, the fit, you name it- I love it!  I wore this again with my Jenna Pumps from Banana.  I feel like everytime I wear this dress these are the shoes of choice!

A New Edition and a Mini Hiatus

This has already been an extremely eventful week.  Saturday, my cousin Katie had a sweet baby girl.  Welcome to the family, Olivia! Over the weekend, I was in NYC for Newsies and arrived home very sick and a bit crabby. Work has been insane this week, and I am greatly looking forward to the weekend!  Next week, I am going home to visit some family and celebrate my grandpa's 85th birthday.  Because of the packing and traveling I am taking a little hiatus from the blog and will return to posting sometime next week.  For now, here's an outfit of the day:

Dress: Sugared, Anthropologie 2011
Cardigan: Banana Republic
Shoes: J Crew

In Review

Monday morning I arrived home after a fabulous weekend in NYC around 3:30 am.  After a brief sleep, I woke up with a ridiculously painful throat and pounding head, so I stayed home from work.  More on NYC later, today's post is about the Hunger Games premier, which, by now I am sure you have seen.

Thursday night my friend, Jen, and I joined the line around 5 to wait for the show.  The theater was fairly crowded, but not nearly as packed as I have seen it for a Harry Potter event!  While waiting, we played some games on ipad, did a bit of work, and just chit-chatted.  Around 8:45 we were allowed in the theater and scored prime seating making it worth the wait.  Around 10 our friend, Sara, joined us.  For a midnight showing, I always say 8-10pm is the hardest time to wait.  After 10, the excitement starts to build again.  I think I must be getting crankier in my old age.  This time around, 10-12 was by far the most difficult time!  By 10:30, everyone in the theater was annoying the heck out of me and I was ready to leave!

I'm glad I stuck it out, however.  The movie was well done. Sure, they left out some of my favorite parts and didn't truly develop many of the relationships.  But, I understand that they had to cram an entire book into 2 and a half hours.  If you haven't read the books, you may definitely have some questions or holes when seeing the movie.  Those who are HG fans will probably appreciate some of the details brought to life.  I definitely need to see it again to take it all in.

Last week I wore the banded lace skirt from Anthropologie and "summerized" it for the 80 degree day by pairing it with some black sandals and a short sleeve shirt.  I think this skirt will definitely be one that I can wear year-round!

No Rest for the Weary

You're probably wondering how the Hunger Games premier was.  Unfortunately, I am writing this BEFORE the midnight showing.  That's right. Arriving home around 3am, followed by an 8 am work meeting means I need to crawl right into bed and leave little time for playing around on these internets.  Early tomorrow morning I am heading to NYC with my cousin Emily for the weekend, and to see Newsies on Broadway!  Stay tuned next week for details on our adventures as well as Hunger Games info.  I promise I'll have some updates then.

For now, here is an outfit of the day- with HUGE hair:


Four Petal Cardi, Anthropologie 2010
Shirt and shoes: Banana Republic
Headband: Lou Lou Boutiques



Basil Chicken a la Jen and Amy

The other day, I bought all the ingredients to make Chicken in Basil-Mustard Sauce; a recipe that is quick, easy, and very tasty.  I make it frequently.  I realized after I was done cooking and eating that something wasn't quite right. It was then that it dawned on me that I forgot to add both the basil and the pesto the the sauce.  So, basically I was having chicken in mustard sauce.  The next day, I had plans to hang out with my friend, Jen.  Generally we talk turns cooking dinner.  I emailed her and asked, "What can we make with chicken, basil, and pesto?"  I was determined to avoid the basil and pesto from spoiling and going to waste.  She replied that she was certain we could come up with something.

So, I packed up the unused ingredients and headed her way after work.  We seared the chicken, made a pasta, and then tossed in all in pesto before adding tomatoes, chickpeas, and of course, the fresh basil.  We actually came up with a delightful dish!  The chicken pasta ended up being very tasty and we decided it was worth remembering to make again.  Check out our concoction below!

First, here's the outfit of the day:

Dress: Secret Treasures, Anthropologie
Necklace: O'Keefe Necklace, Anthropologie
Belt: Tea Rose, Anthropologie
Shoes: J. Crew

The yummy pasta dish!