sneak peek!

And here's what we've been up to lately...

... more to come!

America's Next Short Model

Someone hook me up with Tyra!

I recently got a new poppy red-orange skirt.  I am absolutely in love with it!  I couldn't wait to bust it out, so here it is in all it's glory.  At 4'10", I know I'd need to grow at least a foot and lose a few pounds before I'd ever be model material, so that's why I'd like to be referred to America's Next SHORT Model.

Don't you all agree?

In reality, there was a lot of THAT going on, and my husband was yelling in the background, "work it baby!  WORK THAT!"

... so I worked it.  I worked it hard.

And here is my inspiration version:

Whaddya think?

outfit inspiration & reality

I used Polyvore to come up with an outfit inspiration...  here is the Polyvore version:

And here is my real life version using things I had in my closet (plus a new scarf I got at GAP for $7!).

I forgot to put on my tortoise shell watch, but I am carrying a similar yellow bag.  I thought it was pretty close to the inspiration!

outfit post: 6-12-12

Wore this to work today... hope it's not too windy!

I was originally going to wear something else today (a colorful dress), but it has one of those complicated linings and I couldn't get it on correctly...  so off it went and I threw something together.

Had a long and crazy weekend, so I'm still trying to catch up from that!  Bella had to go to the vet yesterday afternoon as well (nothing serious, just reactions to her shots!) so I've got a little bit of work to catch up on.  I'll stop by later...  have a beautiful day!

chopped off legs, busted booty, lame foot: fallin' apart over here.

Since I've discovered Instagram and PicMonkey (I am so behind the times!), I've had a lot of fun playing around with some pictures.

So at 9:15 last night, I asked my husband to take a couple outfit pictures.  He sweetly obliged...  and somehow we ended up with 10 or 15 pictures!  Most of them were pretty dorky (no, really...) so I picked my Top 3.

So this is what I looked like at 9:15 last night, after a long day at work, cooking dinner and cleaning the house.  If I look a little frazzled...  well, I was!  I cleaned and cooked from 4:30 PM until 9:15 PM when we took these pictures.  I hate it when the house isn't in order... I feel really flustered and it makes me grumpy.  I'm happy to announce that the house is looking much better, and we have clean laundry this morning!  Huzzah!

Also, my poor tailbone is really sore today.  I guess I pushed myself really hard last night while cleaning and cooking.  I think today I'll take it easy.

someone remind this girl about good posture... sheesh!

I realize that I cut my legs off in the bottom picture, but I couldn't figure out how to resize in PicMonkey.  Any tips?

And look!   There's Bella-Bug, my little cutie pie.  Awkward family photo, anyone? 

My outfit probably isn't very exciting! creative! blog-worthy! to most of you, but let's be real.  I'm excited that I matched and didn't have to iron on a Monday morning.  And notice my heeled sandals... definitely not my favorite, but since I'm limited on shoes I can wear, you gotta work what you've got.

Speaking of which... I have an appointment in a couple weeks to get my foot surgery scheduled.  Eep!  Definitely nervous because I remember the awful recovery, but I know it'll be such a relief to have it over with soon.  My heels and flats beckon me!  I hear them calling my name, begging to be worn again.  That, and I'd like to walk normally in shoes.  Now, won't that be nice?

In other news, my garden is starting to give off mini harvests!  Check this out!

We get that much broccoli several times a week.  We have lots of strawberries that are turning pink, so they'll be ready very soon.  They really pack a punch!  So concentrated, they make store-bought strawberries taste like water...  so good.  Also included is a handful of green beans and a tiny bell pepper.  It's good to pick often because it encourages the plant to produce more.  Like I said (I think!  I can't remember...), I lost a few plants due to all the hail storms we've been having, so I need to get those replanted quickly.

Squash, peppers, and tomatoes all coming soon!

oh, hai!

Not much to say today...  at least, nothing of any importance.

So far today I've stuck with making good choices for food.  I've had a lot, but I'm not going to worry about that...  I'm mainly trying to break the sugar cycle I've got going on!

Not that exciting, but here goes...

Breakfast:  egg + egg white, english muffin with whipped butter, black coffee.
Pre-Lunch Snack:  medium nectarine
Lunch 1:  Mexighetti bake and an orange
Lunch 2:  Salad (arugula/spinach/mixed lettuce), boiled egg, 1/2 oz goat cheese, balsamic dressing, 1/8 c. walnut halves, Fiber One brownie.
Post-Lunch Snack:  2 apricots, ~35 pistachios

I might have a small snackie before dinner, but since I have to eat early tonight (before piano lessons), I may not.  Dinner will be thin crust pulled pork veggie pizza.

I took a small walk, and I plan on doing quite a bit of cardio intervals tonight.  Exciting, huh?

So now that we've got all that out of the way, let's talk something fun...  like, summer style!

Memorial weekend is coming up, and I've seen all kinds of sales pop up in my email inbox.  Since my hubs and I are on a budget, I probably won't go buy anything new... but it's fun to see what I already have in my (limited) closet and copy-cat some of my favorite new styles!  I guess we'll see what I come up with this weekend.

http://thatkindofwoman.tumblr.com

Polyvore

Anthropologie

fun color combination!  from Polyvore.

from wwdzw.com

I'm outta here...  chat at ya later!

some days, I just wear PJs.

I think we all agree that sometimes, it's hard to feel good about our appearance.  Maybe it's weight gain, or weight loss...  or pregnancy...  or having just popped out a baby...  new job...  health problems...  yada, yada, yada.  We've all got a reason!

I've been struggling with feeling confident about how other people perceive me for two big reasons:

     1.  Post-wedding weight gain.  Yep.  I have it.  About 10 lbs difference, but on such a small frame (~4'10"), it really shows.  And most of my favorite clothes are a little too snug for comfort.  Trying to lose that weight has been a struggle, and I'm still fighting it.  I've lost some motivation ("will I EVER fit back into that cute pencil skirt?") and I'm trying desperately to get it back.  I admit, it's mostly vanity pounds...  but I also want to stay in the habit of a healthy lifestyle.  I don't want to let weight gain and unhealthy habits creep up on me, until they've taken over.  So it starts NOW.

     2.  I've got a foot problem.  I've got bone spurs ("pump bump" FTW!) on the back of my ankles.  Five years ago, I had the biggest one on my right foot removed.  It was a long and grueling recovery.  Usually, I'd be exaggerating by using "grueling"... but in all honesty, that's the truth.  Now the one on my left foot is bothering me so much that I can only wear flat boots (um, not in THIS summer heat!) and flat sandals for any extended amount of time.  Funnily, heels bother me LESS than flats do; currently, flats are almost unbearable.  Now flat sandals are cute, and I'm lucky it's summer and I can get away with it at work.  But sometimes, I want to wear heels or really cute flats... and I can't.  I feel extra-stifled when it comes to my fashion choices:  I can only wear half my clothes (see #1) and I can only wear certain shoes.  That really narrows things down!

See this example:

oh, hi!  welcome to my bathroom.  we have renegade flies, hence the flyswatter behind me.  I'll try to move it out of the picture next time.  :)  actually, how about I find a better location...?

My clothes actually kind of match today!  Normally, I would wear this skirt with heels and a dressier shirt.  But, I'm limited to flat sandals, so that also limits the outfit...  I feel like I have to dress it down.

But I don't want to dress EVERYTHING down!

Anyway, I guess I said all that to say this:  There has been a lack of outfit posts because of reasons 1 and 2 (and also because I have a cruddy iPhone and bathroom mirror for taking pictures).  I haven't felt like I have anything to share.  I am wearing the same stuff, just mixing and matching... it's like I'm caught up in a bad cycle of 30 for 30... FOREVER.  And then I just wear PJs.  Because who doesn't feel good in a pair of comfy PJs?

Oh, is that just me? 

So, I'm going to have to be a little more honest here.  I'd like to start updating my workouts (and when I skip them, more importantly) and all the snackies that happen during the day...  Accountability.  I need motivation and encouragement!

Am I being superficial?  Maybe a little...  But it's more than just looking hot.  It's about learning to love and respect your body.  I am NOT respecting my body or loving myself by constantly gorging on brownies or gelato or nommy Jalapeno Kettle Corn chips.  I'm not loving myself by skipping workouts or berating myself for it.  I'm just not.  And that, in turn, makes me feel very un-confident.  And that's just not cool, folks.  NOT COOL AT ALL.

Also, I'm looking into getting the same surgery done on my left foot this winter.  It's getting hard to walk, which is so much more frustrating than my limited shoe collection.  A little somewhat scared out of my mind to have it done again, but I guess I gotta be a big girl and just DO IT.

That's become my motto, I guess.  Scared of a bundt pan?  Need to finish a home improvement project?  Gotta get healthy?

No fear, no regrets: JUST DO IT.

credit: http://elembee.com

a well-armed home.

Our casita is very well-armed.

You see, we got an alarm system put in a couple weeks ago.  It works great.  In fact, we can't help setting it off ourselves half the time!  Let me clue you in to some of the madness that takes place in our little home.

Tuesday morning, I set out the crockpot to make some crockpot buffalo chicken.  I left in such a hurry, I forgot to turn it on.  Luckily, my dad was still at his house about to leave for work.  My house is on the way to work, so I texted and asked if he would stop by and turn on the crockpot for me. 

I explained how to turn the alarm off three or four times.  I figured it was pretty simple; my dad is a smart guy, no way he will screw this up.

I know that you know where this is going...

A few minutes later, I get a frantic call from my dad.  I hear the alarm blaring in the background, and he's all sorts of upset because he can't figure out to OPEN the dang alarm pad.  After a few seconds (but it seems like half an hour), he gets it open and then can't remember the code to turn it off.  While I'm on the phone with him trying to "defuse" the situation, the alarm company calls me and leaves a message.  I guess they called my husband immediately following that, because my desk phone starts ringing.  I answer and my husband has no idea what's going on, so I just let him know it's my dad that set off the alarm.  He tells the alarm company it's all clear for me.  My dad gets back on the phone and lets me know the crockpot is on and he's leaving the house.

Obviously, the alarm is a little tricky.

That's only Day One. 

In the mornings, I usually take care of little Bella.  I feed her and then let her out.  I've been sticking a Post-It note to the back door in the mornings to remind myself to turn off the alarm before I let her outside.  Wednesday morning, I was in such a sleepy state, that I completely ignored the Post-It note and opened the door.  The alarm starts blaring and scared me half to death!  I jumped and screamed, and my husband jumped out of bed half-asleep.  I run to the alarm pad to turn it off, and then my cell phone starts ringing.  I answer and let the alarm company know everything is OK. 

I stuck another Post-It note to the door.  I will NOT be doing that again!

And then Thursday.  Blessed Thursday.  We were doing so well.  The alarm had not been set off accidentally all day.  I thought we were through with that mess.  It's 10:30 PM and I'm laying in bed trying to sleep.  My husband has his lamp on and is reading something on his iPad.  I looked over and saw a bug on the wall.  I asked him to kill the bug... no way I can sleep peacefully knowing there's a nasty bug crawling on the walls of my bedroom.

In my mind, the bug looked like this:

monster insect:  credit to http://apocryphist.blogspot.com/

In reality, it looked like this:

real-life insect:  credit to http://www.freshbrainz.com/

My husband, God bless the brave man, picked up a shoe and SMACKED the wall with it.  As soon as he hit the wall, the alarm starts blaring.

Yes, my husband set off our house alarm by killing an insect on the wall with a shoe.  Try explaining that to the alarm company when they call and keeping a straight face.

I think I will be on a first-name basis with the employees at the alarm company at this rate.  And I think they kind of enjoy our explanations for setting off the alarm...  at least we're original.  We set off the alarm with style.

Let's recap.
1.  Tuesday:  Dad can't figure out how to open the keypad.
2.  Wednesday:  Wife ignores helpful Post-It note reminding her to turn off the alarm.  At 6 in the morning.
3.  Thursday:  Husband kills enormous insect on the wall and sets off the window alarms.

It can only get better from here on out...  right?

To sign off, I'll leave you with an outfit post for the day.  Sorry it's blurry, but I was using my iPhone to get it.  Also, pretty-please excuse the bathroom-mirror picture...  My husband had left for work so it was all up to me to get this photo taken. 

 Have a lovely Friday!