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Caveman Monday

April 3, 2017

Lurking in the forefront of my mind is the memory of photos snapped on Saturday [obviously I can’t come up with anything else to post]
After looking through the multitude of pictures taken this past weekend by my sweet LB, there is no question that I need to LOSE WEIGHT!

I’ve been toying with this for a year now and its time to get serious.

I’m sure you are aware that a desk job can have detrimental effects on your physical condition. I am experiencing this first hand as I have been sitting in a desk chair staring at a monitor for the past 5 ½ years now. It has crept up and now I find myself needing to shed at least 6 pounds; 10 would be great. It sounds so simple, but if you’ve ever found yourself in this position, you know that it is anything but.

Cavewomen Don’t Get Fat: The Paleo Chic Diet for Rapid Results by Ester Blum is my diet of choice. Already downloaded to the Kindle app on my iPad and I have begun today to follow the plan.

It was introduced [to me] on the Today show and I purchased it from Amazon. There is a 2 week “paleo reset” chapter that will help with a quick start to weight loss, and I’m following it for the most part, but counting calories as well. It is 7 PM now and I’ve consumed a total of 507 calories and 8 cups of water.

I began this morning with a spinach omelet, made with one egg, ½ tsp of butter, diced peppers & onions, and spinach, of course.

Tonight for dinner will be homemade tomato soup. As unsavory as it sounds, it is made by blending canned tomato and adding various spices. It is actually quite palatable and is very low in calories. Add a bit of heavy cream and Parmesan and it would be delectable. Stop it.

Starting a diet is so easy. Day one is a breeze. Fingers crossed for day two. Wish me luck!

I almost forgot… Here is what I wore

Look No. 234 from my Stylebook

Strolling down St George Street

April 2, 2017

Starting at H. W. Davis, we began perusing through the shops on the iconic St George Street in ‘Old Town’ St Augustine.

This shop is filled with clothing and shoes, and features Brighton, Joseph Ribkoff, and Vera Bradley items. The window display always showcases something I’d love to have. If I’m lucky, I’ll get it for my birthday (hint).

Fresh Produce is a shop that does not offer fruit and veg, but you can find fun clothes and accessories for women and children, including this cute little bracelet that was only $15

Go Fish Clothing & Jewelry Co. offers a variety of items that have been handcrafted by artisans from around the world. In addition to clothing and jewelry, there are items for the home like these confetti glasses that are on my wish list

And I found this adorable ‘Lydia-sized’ dress

The Red Pineapple Boutique houses clothing, jewelry, and a variety of entertaining items.

You’ll find direction for your life in this little shop

I have great faith in fools

April 1, 2017

… self-confidence, my friends call it. ~Edgar Allan Poe

April Fool’s Day is here… a day that conjures images of a court jester or some goofball with a woopee cushion. Whether you’ve been the victim of an April Fool’s Day Jokester or you prefer to hide in the house till it’s over, you’re likely to witness some bit of foolishness in honor of the day.

There is no question that I won’t be hiding in the house today… it is a beautiful Saturday. The high today is 77 and slightly breezy. LB and I have decided to spend the weekend in St Augustine… one of our go-to places that is always bustling with tourists. From home it is only a 30 minute drive, it is an easy day trip if you’re looking to get away.

Starting at H. W. Davis, we began perusing through the shops on the iconic St George Street in ‘Old Town’.

In addition to the shops, there are other sites such as the oldest schoolhouse

restaurants

and street entertainers, like this guy dressed as a fortune-teller ‘juggling’ a crystal ball

Spending the day in St Augustine means ending the day at the San Sebastian Winery. The Cellar Upstairs is a favorite place for Saturday night as there is always great entertainment and excellent food. I love the wedge salad and order it every time.

And apparently I had a lot to say about it.

Recently LB has discovered the Caesar salad and prefers this because “it isn’t as salty”

The featured band tonight is a group of guys who call themselves “Oh No”

And of course, there is the opportunity to dance; and since we are fools whether we dance or not… might as well

We’re fools whether we dance or not, so we might as well dance. ~Japanese Proverb

Fashion Fail Friday

March 31, 2017

As he walked through the kitchen in an early morning funk, LB announced sleepily “well baby, it’s the last day of fall”. I looked at him and replied, “I don’t even know what you just said.”

Well baby… its the last day of March!

Today I jumped in with my eyes closed and for the first time I posted to Jo Lynne Shane’s [famous] Fashion Friday.

I attached my 50 Shades of Red post because I thought it was a pretty good ‘over 40 fashion blog’ post for someone who doesn’t really know what she’s doing in the world of BLOG. Only I cut my head off. How sad is that? My LB exclaimed “OH NO” when I showed him. I felt like a failure.

Apparently I’m resilient.

Today I helped [at least] 2 people. One little old fella (and I say that because he did) who couldn’t figure out a problem. And one lady who just wanted someone to care, and attempt to fix her problem. And I Will fix her problem. I don’t feel like a failure.

As a side note, I looked pretty today. This is what I wore:

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It is Friday night and I am happy to be home for the weekend and enjoying little pizzas with my LB!

Five Favorites

March 30, 2017

Today I’m styling a few of my favorites. This is Look No. 204 from my Stylebook

Orange top from Shein.com, jeans from Venus.com, sandals from Target; the handbag pictured is not the one I carried today. The one I actually carried is my Michael Kor’s tiger print handbag. This tote is the perfect size for me. It has one zipper compartment on the side and 4 pockets (2 on each side). I can carry my wallet, makeup bag, brush, iPad, glasses case and sunglasses case. It will also hold a notebook and sometimes a thermal coffee cup. In addition to it’s usefulness, it is cute and goes with so many different outfits. It is one of my favorites.

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Speaking of favorites, I’ll take a moment to mention some of mine. Here are 5

I’ve already mentioned my tote

Venus skinny jeans. I wear them all the time and have them in 8 colors

The color Orange. And orange isn’t just orange. It comes in beautiful shades such as coral, salmon, rust, vermillion, and the list goes on (really I can’t think of any more). I have orange tops, orange handbags, orange sandals, orange pants and shorts. Love it!

Hoops. If I’m not wearing hoop earrings, I feel weird. My latest pair are

Black wedge sandals by XOXO. I’m on my second pair.

You’ll probably see these again and again as I continue to post!

Shopping Spree

March 29, 2017

Happy Wednesday to all you worker bees (aka people who do all of the hard work but get none of the credit)…. we have made it to the half way mark… which reminds me of a song:

Everybody’s working for the weekend
Everybody wants a little romance
Everybody’s goin’ off the deep end
Everybody needs a second chance, oh
You want a piece of my heart
You better start from start
You wanna be in the show
Come on baby lets go

Thank you Loverboy!

As I mentioned in my Monday Post, my job can be the cause of HIGH levels of stress and I find myself looking forward to Friday as early as the prior Sunday night.

It is sometimes a challenge, but I am thankful for the job, as it enables me to do all the things I need/like to do… pay bills, venture out with LB, and SHOP!!! Which brings me to a new favorite bad habit I’ve developed. Every 3 or 4 months I like to go to shein.com and allow myself a $100 shopping spree. My last indulgence was in February. I took about a week to collect items in my shopping bag so I can think about what I really want to purchase. Here’s what I ordered last:

Hot Pink Cold Shoulder Ruffle Sleeves Shift Dress

This is a contender for my Easter 2017 dress

Black Crochet Trim Chiffon Halter Top

vest170223101_2 Saving this cute top for shorts this summer

Pink Open Shoulder Raglan Sleeve Top

blouse160923708_2 I bought this with my ivory Forever21 skirt in mind

Floral Print Off The Shoulder Ruffle Sheath Dress dress160808506_1 This is an adorable dress, looks really cute on, and I have no idea when/where I will wear it

Red Cold Shoulder Tie Cuff BlouseLooks cute with skinny jeans (blue or white) and will pair nicely with my white shorts this summer

Multicolor Half Sleeve Cold Shoulder Stripe Blouse

I styled this recently on a trip to St Simon’s Island with white skinny jeans

Burgundy Open Shoulder Blouse

blouse170221101_2 This looks good with my grey skinny jeans

This was an enjoyable shopping spree. I think I’ll do it again soon!

What I Wore

March 28, 2017

This is what I wore:

Look No. 202 from my Stylebook.

It has only been 17 days since my very first post and I am learning that so far I have done pretty much everything wrong. From content and word count to plug-ins and efficient code… it’s overwhelming. Instead of writing a fun and meaningful post about what I am styling today, I spent my free time researching successful blogging. There is a lot of information to explain the who, what, where, why, and how to have a successful blog, how to provide meaningful content, how to make money blogging, etc. Overwhelming

Since I work full time, and commute to another city, I run out of time for extra activities during the week. I’m sure many of you can identify. Some days I come home feeling like this:

I’m having a good time. This is a lifestyle blog, and my posts are about my life. I enjoy shopping and putting cute outfits together. It is fun to share where I go, how I feel, and what I wore. I may never be a “successful” blogger, but I’m going to keep on pecking away, researching, changing things up, and I’m not going to let it stress me out… There’s enough of that at the office.

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