No one in Washington has air conditioning. That means for three weeks during summer I’m miserable and mean. Heat makes me a very bad person, guys. We’re officially past the 95 degree hump in my corner of the PNW and I can officially stop walking around naked and angry. This sweatshirt I picked up from AG is comfortable and still works in hot weather. I found a couple of more affordable options for you. And since summer is almost over this will float into your fall wardrobe. Hope you’re enjoying your weekend.
Shorts That Lie
Washington abounds in cute little towns. During the summer Josh and I try to take the kids to as many new places as possible. The goal when we get there is to eat. We are food people. Also both Ryder and I are mean as hell if we’re hungry. I’m not talking about general grouchiness either, Josh stuffs string cheese in his pockets before we leave the house. If we start being verbally abusive, we get a cheese. If we yell, we get a cheese. If we cry, we get a cheese. I like cheese so this works well for me. Anyway, after we arrive wherever we’re going we find the food. Then we walk around and see the local charm. We always find a bookstore. I make Scarlet and Ryder use their own allowance to buy toys, but I will always pay for books. Their little faces still light up at the idea of new books and I hope it always stays that way.
This was my weekender outfit.
I found three dupe bags that are almost identical to my Chanel cross-body! They’re under twenty dollars! I also listed the dupes to my red sunglasses. And though it looks like I’m wearing a skirt they are actually shorts. I love them. The feminine appeal of a skirt with the practicality of shorts. And they’re on SALE. So check them out.
Cool Mom
“I’m not a regular mom, I’m a cool mom.”
HOLLA!!!
Okay, I’ve been eyeing the shredded mom jeans for a long time. But I am a mom, so can I wear mom jeans? Do mom jeans make moms even mommier? The answer is….
I don’t know.
They’re very high waisted, so that’s a plus. They contain mom stomach, eliminating the muffin top. I felt sexy wearing them.
So I have travelled all over Europe and found that the most fashionable women reside in Italy. Last time I was there I noticed that women were wearing sneakers with everything. Everything. I was in awe. How do you make sneakers look glamorous? They do. So I came back and started buying sneakers, which is unusual for me. I’ve always associated sneakers with fashion laziness or athletics. Now, while I won’t confess to how many pairs of shoes I own I will say that I spent a year collecting sneakers. And out of all the sneakers gathering dust in my closet these Adidas are by far my favorite. They are comfortable AF, and they slip on easily. They also look good with everything from dresses, to shorts, to jeans. If you want a bomb ass pair of sneakers buy the Adidas. So worth it. I throw mine in the washing machine when they get dirty and they come out looking brand new.
What I’m reading! I loved this one. If you’re a psychological thriller girl, read this! I couldn’t put it down.
Splash of Heels
I don’t wear stiletto type heels very often. Seattle has too many hills and I am a notorious tripper. On my first date with Josh I was in Detroit and we were crossing a street to go to a sushi restaurant. I had heels on and I tripped in the middle of the street. He caught me before I hit the ground (like literally and figuratively), but that was his first experience with Tarry-falls-down. The very next day I wore heels again, and we were walking around downtown when my heel snagged a crack in the sidewalk and down I went again. Only this time I rolled…literally rolled down the street. When he hauled me to my feet I had a new rip in my jeans and a bloody knee. Anyway, why am I telling you all of this while posting a pair of heels that I think you should buy? I don’t know. When you fall off a horse get right back on? Er…they’re pretty?
Happy tripping
Droopy
I feel droopy lately. Spirit and body. Writer life doesn’t allow for a lot of soul and body nurturing. My typical day includes getting up to get the kids ready, school drop off, cleaning up the breakfast mess, writing. Then I pick them up from school, do homework, make dinner, play, get them bathed and try to spend some time with Josh. Then it starts all over again the next day. Monotony and exhaustion, right? Let’s not even talk about all the things in the middle like laundry, and school events, and bad behavior from little people. Teaching moments and discipline are time consuming and tiring. You can relate right? We get droopy. We run ourselves into the ground just trying to keep up. Then one day it catches up, doesn’t it? And you feel…hopeless.
I don’t have a solution for these times, but I know you have try. Try to eat healthier, try to slip some exercise in, try to do something for yourself every once in a while, try to slow down and enjoy parenting rather than rushing through it. I came outside today and I’m just sitting in the sun, taking deep breaths and reading a little. Below is what I’m wearing and reading.
Jumpsuits are great. You can argue that they make you feel larger, lumpy or dumpy, but t-shirts do that too, and I feel like we all spend way too much time in t-shirts. This is a fun and comfortable alternative to your regular casual wear. And have I told you guys about Ringly? It’s like a Fitbit but in ring form. You can keep track of your steps by wearing a Ringly and there’s an app that keeps you updated and motivated. I’m loving mine. Hope you have a really fabulous weekend.
What I’m reading!
Dusters For All
So here’s the thing, dusters are slimming. They streamline your figure something fierce, and if you’re wearing either a shirt or pants that you feel reveals too many of your lady lumps and bumps, a long duster is a good solution. I mean, you can stuff yourself into Spanx, suck in all day…or hide underneath a flowy duster. It also makes you look badass. So, there’s that. Anyway, I included plus size in this post so scroll to see all of the options. And though I had reservations about wearing a choker (you know since I wore them when I was seventeen) I quite enjoyed wearing this one.
Vacation Comfy
When I’m not wearing boots I wear ugly statement shoes. I think I’m revolting against spring or whatever this shit is. Warm weather is bullshit. My sneakers are called Himalayan Campers. They’ve been discontinued, probably due to their sheer ugliness, but you can find them on E-bay. Also, love em’ or hate em’ you’ll never find a shoe that makes people’s heads whip around like these. They’re also crazy comfortable and I’ve gone hiking in mine. The rest of everything is listed below. Today we are in Bern, Switzerland. I’ve seen quite a lot of the world at this point and I can confidently say it’s one of the most enchanting places I’ve visited. I read that it is one of the top ten cities of the world for quality of life. That sort of baffles me since we paid $29 for a late night McDonalds snack. If you ever come to Switzerland know that everything is mad expensive and the average restaurant check for two people is around $80 without alcohol. Yikes. What really drew me here is my hero, Albert Einstein. He had a flat here and the number of his flat is my lucky number. We’re going to find it tomorrow so I can lick the front door.
Rose All Day
Hey guys!
So here I am in Switzerland and I loooove it. We rented a car because we’re going to drive to Bern and Lucerne and take pictures of all the things. It’s one of the trickier places we’ve been because the language is German and alas, we do not speak German. What did people do before GPS? Also I am overcome with a writing bug. I cannot stop writing. And it’s not even the book I’m supposed to be working on. This is how it goes, I’ll be in the bathroom blow drying my hair, or walking down a street, and all of a sudden (completely out of the blue) words will hit me. Not just any words, it’s the words you as readers underline, tattoo on your bodies, and assert are you favorite quotes. It’s the good shit, guys. They hit me when I’m busy and I can hear them in my head so clearly, but if I don’t hurry, if I don’t get them down as fast as I can-they leave me. Josh is used to me sprinting across rooms, rushing toward my computer with a strange look on my face. He knows not to speak to me when I’m like that. If he speaks to me I could lose the words. Do you know what this means? It means that a lot of the time I look like a crazy person. I have shoved him out of the way a time or two, and all to get to my computer. Life with an artist, eh?
Anyway, here is my outfit post. I purchased my suede, blush moto in London earlier this year with the intent of wearing it on my honeymoon. I found a dupe jacket since mine is on the pricier side. The dupe is under sixty bucks! I also included plus size options for the moto and the tights. My shoes! They are legit the ugliest things I have ever seen. There are pearls inside of silver grommets and the whole thing reminds me of a skin disease. I love them for this reason. Anyway, I’ll update soon…and hopefully finish my book. Fingers crossed for me!
Easter Feaster
Okay, I didn’t wear a dress on Easter. I didn’t even eat ham. There was no egg hunt, or excited children come Easter morning rushing out of their rooms. I didn’t buy baskets and fill them with treats. My children’s father had them this year. That’s the life of a divorced mom with children. Sometimes it’s sad, but mostly I’m happy that my ex husband and I have such a healthy relationship, and that our children have never seen fighting or contention. We live five minutes apart and we parent well together. We are friends and I’ll be honest, it was a long hard road to cultivate that. He sent me pictures of them hunting for eggs, and at church. And that’s okay. Because they are loved, and they are the center of both of our worlds. We divvy up holidays without a parenting plan, or mediator. We don’t have a custody arrangement. We just work at it. It’s hard but doable. It’s a matter of forgiveness and kindness-often of humility. I did send him a text midday that said, Fourth of July is mine MOTHERFUCKER! In good humor, of course.
So, my Easter was part of the first two days my new husband and I had alone. He went back to work right after the wedding, and since our honeymoon isn’t until May we haven’t seen much of each other during our first week of marriage. I was depressed about it. I miss him always, but especially with this shiny commitment band on my ring finger. On Easter we dressed casually and went to a chain restaurant for lunch. Then we made-out and snuggled on the couch for the rest of the day. Side-note: I rarely sit down never-mind cuddle on the couch. I’m a Go! GO! Go! person. So, it was nice and out of routine for busy ol’ me. I’ll do a blog soon on how I try to do everything without help (Bad idea). Don’t do that. I’m learning to ask for help. Anyway, here is my Easter outfit. I recognize that half of America is in temperatures that reach the eighties, and half of us are still wearing sweaters. It’s a hard time for fashion blogging. So, take what you will from this post, but I hope you take encouragement if you’re divorced, and if you’re just here for the clothes take JOGGERS. Casual joggers, sophisticated joggers. They’re my favorite. I included a plus size pair as well. Also, my sneakers. I either get the side eye for wearing them, or lots of compliments. You’ll love them if you’re a weirdo like me. Scroll right for more options.
T
Girl Gang
I thought we needed this today.