Casual Friday??

Not really.  I have to give an interview today, so no casual Friday for me.  Of course, this is one Friday I would've really enjoyed being casual.

*Sweater - Express, Shirt - Vera for Kohls, Skirt - Jcrew, Belt - Target, Shoes - Jessica Simpson (old)

Goals Update: September

I can't believe 9 months of the "Year of Megan" has passed.  I feel really great about what I have accomplished in a few areas and am a little disappointed in others.  I guess it ends up balancing out, right?  Hopefully some big things will finally happen in the last few months of this year...  


Anyways, on with the goals!


1. SAVE MONEY, REDUCE DEBT: Um, better.  Definitely better.  I have a decent chunk of money in my savings.  Not sure how long that will last with all the house stuff going on and the upcoming Hawaii trip, but it's there.  And that's more than I could say at this time last year.  Still paying off my debt... one payment at a time.

2. GET BACK IN SHAPE:  This is getting better.  I decided I need a new running goal so I can get back on the horse with the running.  I miss it as an alternative exercise.  This week I have run three times (hopefully four counting tonight).  They aren't long runs, but it's a start.  I also started up the Jillian Michaels' routine again.  It's boring with a capital B, but it's the best form of training I have right now.  My eating has also been better now that I'm there alone.  I eat smaller meals (meaning more normal sized portions) and they are heavy on the veggies.  I think this has been one of the goals I've been focusing on because it's something completely under my control.  With all the stress and craziness with the other things going on in my life, this one is manageable.

3. STEP OUT OF MY COMFORT ZONE:  Still nada.  Hopefully, getting this house stuff figured out, I will have the opportunity to do things and have a social life again.  I want to feel that sweet feel of relief when I am no longer stuck in AND with the house and can fully move on... for good.  Some day.


I also realize I probably should do a few more things on my 101 list.  I'll probably take a look at some things I can accomplish this weekend.

Ankle Length Pants

This is a look I've been dying to try.  I think it would appease my distaste for "dress pants" and accurately show off my shoes.  :)

I found a few photos of what I was looking for.  Just need to find the right pants.  I tried the GAP ankle length pants and found their fabric to be too spandexy (yes, that's a word).

Any good suggestions?

From This Time Tomorrow

From 9to5Chic

From See Jane

Spring/Summer 2012

In my usual fashion blog browsing, I've been getting a good peak at a lot of fashion shows from NY Fashion Week that took place just recently.  While checking out eat.sleep.wear, I saw some of the JCrew Spring/Summer 2012 Line.  Two pictures in particular popped out at me.  You know how much I love JCrew.

You can read/see her full post here.

Check out that dress in the background of the photo on the left.  Love it.

And then there is sequins.... LOTS of sequins.  I am definitely going to want one of those skirts.

Photos from eat.sleep.wear

BaubleBar

Lately I've been wanting to really beef up my accessories stash.  Big chunky rings, big chunky necklaces and stacks of bracelets are so in right now.   Honestly, I have a few of each, but not enough... I'm bored with them.

So the other day, I was cruising through all my fashion blogs and I noticed that not one, but TWO bloggers were talking about this new site, BaubleBar.

BaubleBar is not like those other sites where you get a "closet" to view each month and choose from.  It's a simple shopping site.  I took a look at a few things and love them!  And they are reasonably priced.  The best thing... Free shipping on all orders (and returns).

They also offer a loyalty program, The Vault, where you earn credits with every purchase, and by referring others to the site. Free jewelry can be earned with as few as five credits.

You can click this link for a sign-up referral from me: Join the Vault at BaubleBar

I think this one might be my first purchase.

How cute is this for $24!

** UPDATE**
I just bought this necklace with my $10 off new customer coupon.  It should arrive in a few days and I'll let you know!

The Leak - Identified

So, after a $120 to the contractor to identify the problem leak and $175 to the plumber today, the leak is officially fixed. Woo hoo!

The plumber's origin assessment was that it was because of the crappy installation of the shower in the bathroom.  I use "crappy" as my own interpretation because I know he was just trying to be nice.  Finally, we stopped down to the other bathroom so I could show him the soften spot in the wall.  He gave me the option to open the wall now or wait until I repaired the shower upstairs.  Um, ok.... I gambled.  He opened the wall and TADA... leak.

Lesson for all future home owners:

ALWAYS CHECK YOUR BATHROOM WALLS FOR PIPES BEFORE HANGING SHELVES OR PICTURES.

Apparently, a common mistake.  Either that or the plumber was just making me feel better.

So he repaired the leak, tested it, and gave me follow up instructions.

Now I need to get the contractor to repair the drywall and decide what to do with the basement.  I'm purposely not posting pictures of the basement because it is terrible.  Terrible isn't even the right word.  It's horrendous.

Score one for a bit of good luck, right?

Fall

I really love fall... and not because of football (like most people tend to say), but because it's a welcome change from summer (which I also love for it's own reasons)...  plus, the colors that you can wear in the fall are just so much fun!

I got this sweater from Target last weekend after I had seen in there a few weeks ago.  I purposely avoided all the Missoni stuff... that's just not my style.

Sorry for the short post.  I have an interview to give today and I drove in traffic down to the office for a total of 4 hours before I have to drive back to meet the plumber at the house.

*sweater & belt - Target, skirt - Jcrew, shoes - Nine west

Also, I painted my nails last night.. on  Monday.  I had forgotten how much time I had on my hands when I live the life of solitude.  The color is "sew psyched" from Essie.  I love it because its like an army green color.

The craziest of crazy weeks

On top of being stressed last week, I just had a lot of stuff going on.

A lot happened house wise last week that sort of blew up in my face.  After what I will now call the "emailing fiasco of September 2011", I had a pretty frank conversation with my ex on the phone.  It's the first time I've spoken to him on the phone since I first asked back in January if Melissa and Justin could live in the house.  It was tremendous progress on my part that I remained composed for the whole conversation.  The end result was that we were moving forward with getting our short sale application to the bank.  To make a long story short, the conversation I had with the bank was totally contradictory to what we had both heard previous about how the short sale process should work.  So while he is in charge of submitting our financial information, I am moving forward with putting the house on the market.  I am working now on setting up a meeting with a realtor to get the ball rolling.

Then, while this was going on, Justin and I finally got around to tearing up the carpet in the basement.  You remember the leak, right?  Well, it turns out it was WAY worse than I originally thought.  So I added "contacting the home insurance" to my list of things to do the next day.  Here's how that played out:

1. Call said home insurance.
2. Insurance tells me I'm calling the wrong company.  Gives me new company and contact information.
3. Cal second insurance company.  They tell me it's the wrong company.  Gives me new company and contact information.
4. Call third insurance company.  They tell me that only property managers (from the HOA) can make claims.
5. Track down property manager.  Finally reach them, schedule a visit with a contractor to find out the source of the leak.  Also find out that my home insurance deductible is $5,000.  WHAT?  Yeah, five-fricking-thousand dollars.

So I flew out of work in time to get home and walk Samson before 4pm so I would be home to meet the contractor.  6:30 rolls around and the contractor FINALLY shows up.  Turns out it's my neighbor.  After an hour, we find out that the leak is coming from my shower, six floors above the basement.

Now I have an appointment with a plumber tomorrow afternoon.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the fix will be fairly easy and hopefully not too expensive.  I think I know about where the leak is happening, so we'll see.

So, yeah... busy.  I have the house stuff, the leak stuff, the work stuff (because remember, I'm down a staff member) and now I feel like I am formally managing the process of this housing dilemma.  And it's exhausting. 

Winter Whites

*This post was actually written over a week ago.  I'll write an actual post later today or tomorrow.

*skirt - Jcrew, Sweater - F21, Belt - Target, Shoes - DSW (old)

So I bought this skirt on sale as a summer option.  As fall is creeping closer, I'm realizing that it's pretty close to a winter white option.  Though, I am not typically a winter white person.  I'm going to have to start searching for inspiration on Pinterest.

Also, here's a shoe close up.  I love these shoes but don't wear them very often.  I find that I don't wear creme colors very often so I struggle to find outfits that these shoes work with.

And then there was one

This past Monday, Melissa and Kayla started their move to Chicago.  I admit that I got teary eyed saying goodbye.  While things at my house were tight and at times a little tense (come on, we were on top of each other... and we're family... what else would you expect?), I will really miss having them around.

On Saturday, Justin tries to pack up what's left at the house and heads out to Chicago to meet them.

Then it will just be Samson and I.

Over the last month I have found myself in a pretty emotional state.  I've been feeling unstable...Probably the most emotional I've been since way back in December-January after the break up.  I attribute most of this to stress and a little bit to the realization that I'm going to be out here all by myself.  As a self-proclaimed "family person", I have always been close to my family.  This will be the first time I will live away from them.

I'm ready for a life vacation.  This has definitely been a high stress year so far.  While I've been trying my best to take everything as best as possible, it's been really difficult.  I'm looking forward to being able to put this stuff past me and move on.  I can't believe it's taken this long, so hopefully the end is near.

tiny interruption

I'm wearing my favorite skirt today in hopes of lightening my mood.  I went more casual today with the simple black t-shirt and black flats.  Comfy.

Also, I really miss my sister and this little peanut.  And it's only been 3 days.

a break

I have a lot of stuff going on right now.  Most of it I don't want to blog about.  So for a little while, I am taking a blog break.  Hopefully it will just be a few days.

Friday Ramblings

I have a handful of things this morning, so I'm just going to make a bulleted list.  Ever so popular on blogs when you have too many things to say and they don't see the go together.  So here we go...

• After my post about my new boots, I got an IM from Amanda informing me that we were "boot twins".  She went on to say that she uses just about any excuse (slight chance of rain) to wear them.  Taking her lead (and thank you Melissa for putting this thought in my head last weekend), I wore my new boots today.  It was 40 when I was walking Samson this morning, with a high of 65.  I figured no better time than now, right?

• My mom is coming here on Sunday night to drive back to Chicago with Melissa and Kayla.  I'm excited to see my mom (even if it will only be for a few hours), but sad that this officially means that the end is near.  My roommates will be officially moved out by next weekend.  I have mixed feelings about this.  I am happy that they are finally on their way out of the "land of limbo" and moving on with their next steps.  I am sad because I will miss seeing them daily and having that company.  I will also miss getting to see Kayla every day.  It was so much fun to watch her develop while she lived with me.  From the time she was two months old until now, almost 8 months old.  She may not ever remember this time in her life when she lived at Aunt Megan's house, but I certainly will.
• It appears, after as much avoidance as possible on my part, that I officially have a problem in my basement.  Long story short, there is some sort of leak and it has made the carpet in front of the washer and dryer wet - for extended periods of time.  I didn't really notice the full extent of the damage until the Hales moved their dresser out last weekend.  As you can see, I have mold.  So with Justin's help, I will be pulling up that carpet this weekend.  Health issues are no joke.  Ironically enough, when we first moved into the house, I pushed to remove the carpet in the first place.  It is DISGUSTING and I thought it would be better to just paint the concrete and get a rug for down there.  Somewhere, in a not so far off place, I want to rub his face in it.  Because I was right.

It seriously looks even grosser in this picture - especially enlarged!

• Speaking of which, no news is bad news.  It's been over a month since the last time I heard from him and just as long since I heard back from his parents.  I think the issue with the carpet in the basement pushed my parents over the edge, as they are now involved.  I have mixed feelings on this.  I, of course, am relieved to feel like I do not have to continue this uphill battle myself.  Not that they were not completely supportive the entire time.  But I had asked them to not get involved, so it was just me, making all the pleas and demands.  I am frustrated that it had to come to this.  Mostly because I feel like I am almost 30 and I should be able to take care of my problems myself.  We'll see if this course of action does anything different (I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't).  I feel regardless of their course of action, the end is near....  maybe not the best end, but an end.  And I feel a tiny weight off my shoulders already.

Color Blocking

I prefer solid colors over prints.  Most of the time.  So this whole "color blocking" concept is perfect for me.  Besides, it gives me an excuse to be able to wear shoes I don't wear very often.  Who doesn't love that?

*Skirt & Belt - Express, Shirt - VS, Shoes - BGBC Girl

Is it just me or has this week gone by really quickly?

The Jardin Skirt

So way back when... in the early summer... Jcrew touted a new skirt for their fall collection,  the Jardin skirt.  I don't think I need to tell you how excited I was about this.  Considering I actually pinned it... twice.  So as soon as I had the money for it, I ordered it right away.  Of course, it was back ordered pretty much from the get go.  Guess it pays for Jcrew to advertise things so much earlier than they actually become available for purchase.

Well, as luck would have it, my package finally arrived yesterday!  I couldn't wait to tear into the bag and try it on.  Seeing as how I order from Jcrew a lot, I'm pretty good about knowing what sizes I need to order in what, so I wasn't really concerned about that.  What I was mostly concerned about was if it would be in that weird midi length that is so popular for the fall.  Mid calf length is just NOT flattering on me.  It looks like I'm wearing something that is either too big or something that shrunk.  I was actually pleasantly surprised to see that it was a great length AND that I probably could've ordered a size down.  This may be something I look at getting tailored because the waist is too loose to wear without a belt.

You can imagine how excited I was yesterday to wear it to work today.  It's honestly amazing how much a good outfit helps your mood.  I even made the effort to do my hair and put on make up.  Look Amanda - LIPSTICK!

 *skirt - Jcrew, top and sweater - Express, shoes - Steve Madden (old)

It should be abundantly clear to anyone that knows me why exactly I love this skirt so much.  I may even love it more than my favorite summer skirt.  I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and list my top two favorite reasons.

1. It is so very reminiscent of a 50's circle skirt.  Aside from my LOVE of all things from that era, that particular style is very flattering for me (given my larger thighs).

2. It has pockets!  Honestly, thank you to the individual that started the pockets in skirts and dresses trend.  I heart you... Big time!

I love this skirt so much that I want to buy it in the dark pewter color as soon as possible.  *Notice in the background how excited Samson is.  Thrilled.

Did you notice something else from the photos?????

I'm wearing my new sweater clips!

A great skirt and sequins.  A great outfit in my book!  Happy Wednesday!

Old Friends

Yesterday ended up being a weird nostalgic kind of day. It started with a string of chatting on facebook between 5 of us that were good friends in grade school. Discussion that brought up so many things I had forgotten that I caught myself laughing out loud a few times.  This string is actually continuing (and growing with participants) today.  Now the talks are of having a 15 year reunion gathering with my grade school friends.  15 years.... yikes.

Then, I had a random text chat with my old high school boyfriend, whom I hadn't spoken to since around Christmas time when he drunk dialed me after seeing my mom at her work.  It was a brief conversation, but I felt better heading to bed.

It's a weird feeling having all these same conversations on one day. How I wished that I had lived closer and gotten the opportunities to stay in touch with these people.  Facebook has been nice in that there is still a way to communicate with these people, but it's not the same as sitting down face-to-face and chatting.  And often, I wish that I could do so.

A funny revelation considering one of the major reasons for me moving out to DC in the first place was because I was tired of running into people I knew all the time.  I specifically remember being in a Kohl's across the street from my high school with some of my family.  I saw one of my grade school friend's parents at the check out line and I actually hid from them.  I ducked below the clothes so they wouldn't see me, JUST so that I didn't have to have a conversation with them.  It was at that point (as well as seeing on facebook that some people from high school were hanging out at the same bars in Chicago that I had been out to).  Something about all of this made me feel a little claustrophobic.  I couldn't imagine having to deal with this daily.  So when the opportunity came up to move out of the area, I jumped on it.


I look back now, not completely regretting my decision, but seeing some of these people still have good relationships (apparent via facebook chats) and I am envious.  It begs the question... what type of relationship do I want with friends from my past?

A lot of Rambling

This weekend was busy, so of course, I had a lot I wanted to remember to write about.  In true blogger fashion, I forgot half by Sunday.  Oh well.

This past weekend was busy.  Dave and Jill came up to visit and to help Melissa and Justin move some of their things to their POD in preparation for their trek to Chicago.  It was fun to see them and have a change of pace for the weekend.

Saturday afternoon I went to mass.  The topic for the mass was all about forgiveness.  I'm sure a lot of this had to do with the anniversary of 9/11.  It also felt very personal since this past week and through the weekend I was dealing with a lot of internal issues with the ex.  True to his fashion, I haven't heard anything from him regarding the house (or anything else for that matter) in a month.  I also hadn't heard back from his parents.  I was giving them time figuring they would follow up, but I swallowed my pride and emailed them on Saturday morning.  Still no word.  If I don't hear from them by the end of this week, I will have to write the ex.  It's not going to be a nice conversation, which of course, drives me to avoid it even more.

Sunday was pretty low key.  We went out to breakfast before Dave and Jill left and then Melissa and I made a run to Target.  She also convinced me to stop at the mall with her... which really, she didn't have to twist my arm.  I was dying to try on a pair of Hunter rain boots.  Considering all the rain this summer, I was getting tired of paying $15 every 6 months or so to buy a cheap pair of boots from Target.  While they worked their purpose, I have spent close to the $125 it cost for the Hunter rain boots and I don't even like the Target ones enough to wear them with regular clothes.  They are my "I had no choice, it's really wet out" boots.  So I treated myself to a pair.  I'm considering them an investment.  Especially since I can buy some fleece socks to wear them with and they are functional in the snow as well.  Win - win in my opinion.  Of course, after much debate on the color, I decided on the hunter green.  Shocker, I know.  Here they are...just waiting for the first wear.

Speaking of wearing.  Here is my outfit for the day and my new nail color for the week.  I took a small break for a couple of weeks while I was sick of doing my nails.  It gave me time to recover but now I am ready for all the fun fall colors.  Every time we go to Target, Melissa asks if I am going to look at nail polish.  Yesterday, I only left with one.  Now THAT is an accomplishment!

*sweater - Target, belt & Skirt - Jcrew, shoes - Nine West

It's called "let's talk" by Sinful.

P.S.  Did anyone else through themselves into the emotional turmoil that was the 9/11 historical coverage?  Because I certainly did.  I saw a fascinatingly-terrifying documentary on the Smithsonian Channel as well as a documentary on the building of the memorial on the History Channel.

Truly Casual Friday

*sweater - Jcrew, jeans - Express, shoes - Nine West

Stripes are right up there on my list of favorite patterns.  Second only to polka dots.  So when this sweater came up on the super sale at Jcrew, it was hard to resist.  It's super light weight, so perfect for this odd post-summer, pre-fall weather.

Today I am spending half of my work day visiting with an office furniture company (long story) and the other half trying to figure out how I am going to do my job and the job of the kid that used to work for me.  Yesterday was his last day and his responsibilities are now my responsibilities until we hire someone new.  Fun!

The Hales are coming up to visit and help Justin and Melissa pack up this weekend.  Going to be crowded but fun at my house this weekend.  Dave should be relieved... I found my small coffee maker, so he does not have to go without this time! :)

Happy Friday!

How short is too short?

*dress & sweater - Jcrew, necklace - Banana Republic, shoes - target

I bought this dress at the beginning of the summer on sale at Jcrew.  I liked the neckline (it has short sleeves also which you can't see) and the fact that it was grey and figured I would get a lot of wear out of it.  Boy was I wrong.

I kept finding that I felt uncomfortable wearing it to work because it is the length that is really skirting the line with too short for the office.  I figured, well, I can wear it in the winter with tights.  Because tights ALWAYS helps the short issue.

This morning I guess I was feeling a little gutsy and hit that point where I was scanning my closet willing something new and fun to pup out at me.  So I decided to give this dress a try.  I wore flats to help balance the length out.  I still like it, though the length is making me a little self conscious.  However, I now know that I will be wearing this dress in the fall and winter with colored tights... because you know how much I love colored tights! :) 

Outfit Repeat...mostly

It's gloomy here.  Rainy and gloomy and kind of cold.  While physically I am ready for the cool down.  I'm tired of sweating every time I step outside.  Mentally, I am NOT prepared.

I struggled this morning finding that in between outfit.  You know the ones... the outfits that are not quite fall and not really summer either.  It's hard.

This is the best I could come up with.  Which is a dress... hence the outfit repeat.  You can't really change much about a dress.  Besides your shoes and accessories.  Which I did change.  :)  I'm counting this a win.

*Dress - BCBG, shoes - Nine West

The best Tuesday news of all Tuesdays

overly dramatic title?  Maybe.  Totally worth it?  YES!

I just received an email that my favorite online shoe obsessions, Kurt Geiger, is now shipping to the USA.

No longer do I have to sit there and stare at the shoes, devising a plan to make a friend in the UK so they could buy and ship shoes to me.  Now I can do it myself.

Man, this could be bad news for my budget. :)

* shoes previously posted here.

The Recovery Weekend

This weekend was all about doing nothing for me.  Sure, I had plans to do other things... clean, fix some stuff around the house.  Then I got sick last week and the last thing I wanted to do was be productive.

So I was the antithesis of productive.  I watched TV.  I played with Kayla.  I walked Samson.  I napped.

It was nice and I am finally feeling close to 100% again.

Sunday we had a few impromptu visits with friends.  Dana stopped by the house on the way to visit her relatives to say hi to everyone and see how big Kayla is now.  It was a short visit, but good to catch up.  Then Melissa, Justin, Kayla and I hopped in the car to drive up to Frederick to visit the Claneys.  We got to meet their youngest for the first time and had a great time eating and catching up.

These are friends that I made through my relationship and the Claneys are some of my all-time favorite people. I'm so happy that we have been able to remain friends, because I really would've missed them.

I have a busy week this week with work, so posting might be light, but here's an outfit post to tied you over.  I'm doing my best to transition this floral pencil skirt to fall.... with closed toe shoes and neutrals.

*Outfit by Jcrew. :)  Shoes from nine west

Sweater Clips

Remember a week or so ago when I told you that I won a giveaway on another blog?

Well, yesterday I came home (after an over two hour drive home.... I love my commute) to a box in the kitchen.  My prize had arrived!

It wasn't the sweater clip I was expecting, but I love it.  Here's a picture.

I'm not very good with flowers, I think that's an iris?  or lily?  Who knows, but it's pretty nice.  Now to find the right outfit to wear/use it.

Thanks again Vintage Envy!!!

that little feeling

I feel weird today.  Weird like there is something I want to talk about, or something that is bugging me, and I just can't pin what it is.

It's not bad.  It might not necessarily be good.  But I can't figure it out.  Has this ever happened to anyone else before?

Maybe later today I will figure it out, or it will just magically come to me.

How's this for being obscure? :)