The Ocho (the eight)

Today marks Aaron and my eighth anniversary of wedded bliss.
I admit there is no true " ....and they lived happily ever after" as every marriage has its ebbs and flows.
But I'm gonna take a wild stab at this broad, sweeping statement by saying we are still pretty flippin' happy with each other.
In this day and age I'm super proud to say that I still look forward to coming home and seeing my Aaron after a long day away.
I know , I know... I'm somewhat of a "smug married."
Anyway, this quote made me think of our marriage and the for better and worse (but mostly better) parts of it.

So with all of that being said, I just had to say "Happy Anniversary Aaron!"
Love you (English accent used here) and I'm excited to see what this year holds for us!

My outfit Monday

It appears there is a week missing from this blog.

I could say that I have a really good reason for my abscence.

The computer deleted it.

I deleted it. 

Anything.

But I don't even have enough creativity cards stored in my wee little brain to make up a legit reason.

I flat out don't have one other than I did nothing of interest and was thus uninspired.

There! Are you happy now?

But I did get dressed....so I have that to start this week off right.

Cardigan: Gap; striped shirt: Old Navy;
orange tank: Maurices
Locket: gift
Skirt: Target; Boots: Bass Outlet

Day 25...

And I'm feelin' good

It has almost been a month since I started the no shopping challenge and so far I haven't been so tempted that I've found the need to talk myself off the ledge.

Of course it helps that I've hid my only remaining credit card so well that I can't even remember where it is.

But I can't take all of the credit.

And I shan't.

I get by with the help of my friends too!

You see, my dear friend Amy bought me the locket that almost killed me  for an anniversary gift..all without me even knowing it.

So that softened the blow of never thinking I could own another piece of new jewelry a bit.

I'm so excited about it!

I love it by the way and will be incorporating it into many an outfit.

Maybe all of them

(but not with my scrubs....ewww).

Also I have planned a celebratory day of shopping with a few girlfriends - to be done a few days after the challenge is complete.

The date is set.  Plans are set.  There is nothing I can do to alter the course now.

I just have to continue to not shop another 75 days and stay occupied in other  ways.

My outfit Monday

If you've been around here for a while, you may recognize this skirt from the other challenge.

I've had this skirt for quite some time and still like it a whole lot.



Cardigan: Loft; Shell: Eileen Fisher- thrift; Scarf: Fred Meyer
Skirt: Calvin Klein- Ross; Tights?; Shoes: Born



The last time I wore this skirt was in the summer.  I've always worn it in colder weather because of the colors.  This is the Fall/Winter way I wear this skirt with a few new additions to the mix.

That's all I have to say about that....

Sing-a-long Saturday

One of my guilty pleasures?

This song:

When I hear it, I just can't help myself.

My head nods to the beat and all my attention is directed to the song.

What can I say? Us older girls who look 12 have to stick together.



Put a scarf on it!

Previous outfit posts have been from a couple of my "dressed up" days.

But the outfit that follows is my typical go-to outfit: T-shirt, jeans and a smirk.

What can I say? I live in a very small town where there is little need to dress up all the time.

However, I've seen enough fashion blogs to know that I could do a bit better with my usual outfit with the help of some accessories.

AND...since no new shopping will be done for a couple of months I figured I should dive deep into my closet and see what I could pull out to make a pretty boring outfit just a little more interesting.

So step one was to add a scarf to the mix.  In fact this has become my number one rule: When in doubt, just put a scarf on it and it will make the outfit look way more pulled together.  As a result I own at least 20 different scarves and really do love every one of them.

Earrings: Local shop; T shirt: K mart; Vest: Eddie Bauer;
Scarf: Made by me; Jeans: JCP and Shoes: Converse

Then I added my "all purpose" vest and a pair of turquoise earrings for contrast.

And voila! - The epitome of dressy casual for a small town girl.

Day 16 and loving (hating) it

I know all five of you who regularly read this blog are dying to know how I'm doing on my

"no shopping"detox.

True to the title of this post, it's only day 16.  Upon finding that out I cried out loud " I can't believe it's only day 16. WHAT?!"

After my initial meltdown after realizing I will most likely not own a watch-necklace I've been coveting, I've done well.  Until today.

You see, I just got the new Spring 2012 Boden magazine in the mail and decided to flip through it for "fun."

Little did I know that my idea of fun would flip into my version of torture.

There are so many cute things in this catalog that I love.  I mean pretty much every stinkin' page contains at least one item I want.

Here's a super cute blouse that wants to live in my closet:



via Boden



But to be honest, the cost of many of the items is far beyond what I'm willing to spend anyway.

So at least I have that, right?