Does this dress make me look fat? (Correct answer: Actually yes. Yes it does.)

 Sorry about yesterday's lack of post. No, really. I'm sorry. Mostly sorry for myself, though, because now I have to actually figure out today's date (previously, the date = my 30x30 number). My poor brain. Hey, don't roll your eyes at me. These little things add up, people.

 shoes: union bay brand. tights & jewelry: don't recall. leg warmers: amazon. dress: gap. belt: thrifted. cardigan: j.crew.

This week I'm grateful for:

- paint rollers.

- beautiful blue sky peeking through the snow-laden branches of barren trees.

- a 2-year-old's trying to find her sister and calling out: "wheh IS you?"

- windows from which I can watch my children playing in the snow. Should I have been out there playing with them? Probably. But I'm the one who kicked them out into the "fresh air" in the first place, so I'll score myself a half-a-point in the Mothering Department. And anyways, we all enjoyed some hot cocoa afterward, so that gives me another half-a-point...right?

- the children's book Olivia. Don't think I could get sick of reading that one to the kiddos. And believe you me, I would've been sick of it by now.

- a mr.-fix-it husband. Who would vehemently deny the title. But it's true.

- our home.

- snickerdoodles.

- family & friends. Sounds totally cliche, doesn't it? Like, you're probably skimming by now and are thinking, "blah blah, family friends big whoop reeeeal original." Or, actually, you're probably not even giving it that much thought. Regardless of how stale it sounds, I couldn't mean it more genuinely.

- my cell phone.

- simple things.
- smiling to myself at the irony of almost ending this list with "my cell phone" and "simple things."

Happy Sunday! 

Want this look? Or do you, like me, feel it makes the wearer look chunky & stumpy and will therefore pass on copying it? Don't blame you at all...but either way, here are similar pieces below:

More J.Crew...

Saturday brevity

shoes: union bay brand. jeans: american eagle outfitters. shirt & belt: forever21. jacket: kohl's. necklace & flower clip: gifted. bracelet: don't recall. earrings: hawaii.

I love it when Pocket goes shopping. He gets stuff like oranges and pnut m&ms and a kinect for the xbox 360. Which is why today's post is so short. I'm off to make my body into the controller and exhibit the reflexes of a cat. A nearly-dead bedraggled on-its-8th-life alleycat feline. But a cat nonetheless.

Happy Saturday!

Want this look? Check out the stuff below...

More Jessica Simpson...

"A" my name is Anonymous...

 boots: target. jeans: kohl's. shirt: gap. sweater: american eagle outfitters. watch: citizen brand. necklace: don't recall. belt: Pocket's.

Dear Anonymous from Yesterday's Comments,

Thank you! I've been hoping that my blog has a happy-energetic vibe, because that's the way I try to live my life. Mmmm...for the most part, anyway. I'll admit to some slothful tendencies at night, when all I want to do is veg in front of some sort of screen within arm's reach of unhealthy snacks and pnut m&ms. (Those have protein, so I consider them a health food...I'm sure you'd agree.) 

As for your begging about my not doing the numbers: I know, right? They do seem a little juvenile and...well, odd. And, at this point, we've seen pretty much all the variation of numeral-contortion that my rickety old body can produce, so it's nothing new. I'd love to stop doing them. More than anybody. But I'm cursed with a stubborn streak that, once I start something, I tend to finish it. Dang it.

But, my dear Anonymous friend, I promise you this: if and when I participate in a 30x30 again, I won't do the numbers. Then you can keep visiting this energetic blog and not be annoyed. Have we got ourselves a deal? It seems like a win-win to me.

Love, Brittney

p.s. Is it hard to go through life with a name like "Anonymous"? Poor thing. That's okay, though...my older brothers called me "Tank" for the first few years of my life. So, y'know, it could be worse for you.

Everyone else: Happy Thursday!

Want these clothes but not the poses? You got it...check out the cute stuff below:

More Old Navy...

ready, set, be funny...

Use your imaginations, kids. There's a "10" in there somewhere.

boots: target. tights: don't recall.  slip: a slip shop. skirt: gap. shirt: banana republic. cardigan: rue21. necklace: gifted. belt: forever21.

May I have a re-do of yesterday's post? Pretty please? I meant it to be light-hearted and optimistic; I'm afraid it read as a somber prelude to depression. So let's lighten the mood, shall we? With some wit. And humor. Real soon, I'm going to write something funny. Hilarious, even. Useful for humorous ice-breaking fodder at your next party. Wait for it. Waiiiiiit for iiiiiittttttttt.... 

Dang. I got nothin.

My roommates in college (the same ones responsible for Item #1 here. tsk tsk. such bad influences on poor innocent bystanding me...) were all hilarious. All of them. Well, okay, MOST of them. And the ones who weren't funny (i.e., me) usually laughed so hard we turned purple and couldn't breathe and were thereafter dubbed "Purps." But we most assuredly drew the line at peeing our pants. Maybe.

ANYways. Sometimes if things got too serious or quiet or boring, one of us would turn to someone at random and demand, "be funny!" The person then had to do/say/be something funny. Which is virtually impossible to do on-the-spot. It's like when people say, "what's your most embarrassing moment?" or "think of two truths and a lie" or "what's your kid's name?" Can NEVER think of a response right then, but give me about 15 hours, and I'll come up with something sweet. Something hilarious and clever and repeatable.

[Editor's note: Actually, I can remember all my kids' names. I was just kidding about that. It was more of a lighthearted jab directed at Pocket, who, after the delivery of our third child, couldn't remember her name to save his life. Or his good-standing with my dad, who was waiting patiently on the other end of the phone for his newest granddaughter's name and deets. Those poor husbands, man. Poor poor little dears. So exhausted after watching their wives give birth... :) ]

On a completely unrelated note, remember this fabulous slip from A Slip Shop? It always makes me want to break out in some sort of dance in that day's photo shoot, and I won't even apologize because, frankly, it's not my fault. The slip just makes me so happy! You should all get yourselves one, too.

Then you could dance in front of your camera and post the pics for all the world to see. Your mother, like mine, will be so proud of your feminine dignity. Right mom?...mom?... Hmmm...she must've stepped out for a sec. But trust me, guys. She's way proud and not embarrassed of me at all.

Happy Thursday!

p.s. This skirt that I'm wearing today? Same as this one. Do YOU have a magic skirt?
p.p.s. Another product review coming up this weekend from Kosher Casual! You guys, I couldn't be more excited about it. The skirt they kindly sent me is cuuuuute.

Want a look that makes you dance? Check out the stuff below AND Kaity's shop...

More Enzo Angiolini...

dress for success...which, fortunately, is all relative...

I belted the jacket in the picture above so my number three could be streamlined. It seems as though some of you are worried for me as the numbers increase in complexity. But in the words of Donald Sutherland, "Have a little faith, baby. Have a little faith." (Kelly's Heroes. One of my fave movies.)

boots & watch: target. socks: smiths marketplace. tights: gift. skirt: j.crew. belt: Pocket's. shirt: gap. blazer: thrifted (the limited). necklace: downeast outfitters.

Sometimes my hair is longer than I think. So I try a new hairdo that I didn't think would work and viola! It totally works. Then I move my head and the 'do comes tumbling out, and I realize, nope. Totally doesn't work.

I don't think I could successfully go through an airport security scanner with all the metal fasteners, barrettes, bobbies, and other junk in my hair to try to keep this side braid in. And then it would probably take me too long to pull them all out so I wouldn't be able to go on my trip. Which would be fine if I were flying somewhere lame like Iceland in the dead of winter. Or my backyard in the dead of winter, for that matter. Frigid-temps samesies.

Speaking of coldness: my 2- and 4-year-olds are officially sick. I had wanted to get some stuff done (i.e., grocery shopping, car & house cleaned, m&m supply restocked, etc.) before Pocket gets home tomorrow (!!!!!), but it looks like the more important things we'll be doing today involve hanging out in the rocking chair. And reading Brown Bear Brown Bear on endless repeat. And watching Angelina Ballerina. And wiping noses. And guzzling medicine. And snuggling.

[Editor's note: I suppose some could say I'm a tad overdressed for just such an itinerary. But I didn't realize just how sick the kiddos were until after I was dressed. My girls think I look pretty, though, so I didn't want to change.]

I guess when it comes down to it, who really needs groceries? We're living on love around here. Love and cough syrup. Probably in equal proportions.

Happy Thursday.

How I last wore these pieces: purple tights, denim pencil skirt, tuxedo shirt

Want this look? Click on the stuff below...

More Charlotte Russe...

a newsie & a pape...

 shoes: american eagle outfitters. boyfriend watch & purse: target. everything else: thrifted/vintage.

Although these sweet pants are not as high-waisted as I would've hoped, they still have oodles of potential. As long as I'm shooting to become a magazine salesman. Or newspaper delivery girl. Or waif on the street earning m'self a nickel to buy a moldy crust of bread to take home to my family. Like I said. Oodles of potential.

Actually, I was inspired by many of you in your thrifting endeavors and decided to embark upon my own thrift-store adventure over the weekend. I found this red woven three-piece number amongst the dresses. Sad, lonely, and crying for someone--anyone--to take them home. Not typically drawn to orphaned things, I couldn't resist these guys. I think it was the pleats in the pants. And the $5-takes-all tag.

In the future, I'll probably split the ensemble up a bit, but since it's the last day before 30 for 30, and since these aren't going to make the cut this go-round, I just had to pull a trifecta of homemade newsieness. And fast.

[Editor's note: Did any of you see that movie years ago? Newsies? I pretty much had the thing memorized and never got over how badly I wanted to live on the streets on and around New York or Brooklyn at the time. Because I'm pretty sure the movie was absolutely positively non-fiction, based-on-the-truth-the-whole-truth-and-nothing-but. Especially where they broke out into choreographed song & dance every 2 seconds. Yep. I guess that's just how things were back then.]

So. Pants, shirt, vest, cap. Everything matches. Which is kind of a no-no in my book, but I couldn't resist. Just this once. Throw on an oversized gold watch (real gold, guys. Totally. Amazing what you can get at Target for $12.99) (okay, FINE, not real. at all. but still. It's spray-painted something fierce.) and a subtle necklace just because I wanted to think that I contributed SOMEthing. 

Welp, that's me today. I'm off to sell some papes. Or eat some cakes. One of the two. But don't worry. The promised 30 for 30 post is coming tonight. [Editor's note: Does it seem like I'm procrastinating? How intuitive of you. I'm still having a hard time committing fully and absolutely on a couple of pieces. Ahh! The pressure!]

Happy Monday. 

More Rugby...

a stay-at-home mom's take on "casual friday"

View the following photos with this song running through your hot little heads:

Most of these things are not like the others.

Most of these things just do-on't belong.

Can you tell which things are not like the others

By the time I finish this song?

shoes: converse all-stars. pants: gap. long-sleeved tee: american eagle outfitters. tee: old navy. belt: downeast outfitters. watch: target. necklace: gifted. awesome poses: one-of-a-kind original discontinued vintage. sorry.

 Today is totally Casual Friday at my house. Today is also the day where the words "casual" and "completely random" are synonymous. But...frankly? I love today's ensemble. Which is probably alarming to most of you. In fact, I'm seeing in my minds-eye a hasty retreat to thousands hundreds tens upon tens of computers' "back" buttons. Fair enough.

But for those of you still here (gold stars for you all):

Hi, I'm Brittney. I'm a stay-at-home mom of young kids, and I sometimes get my days mixed up. Mondays become Thursdays and Tuesdays are often dead-ringers for Wednesdays. This hasn't really been a problem until the past year or two, with my son now in school...he's probably the only kid in 1st grade who regularly shows up to gym class with his library book. (Remember my Mother of the Year plaque? It hasn't come yet, but I'm confident it will...)

But Fridays, my friends, are never mixed up. Fridays shine like a beacon in the night of the weekday...um...nights. A glowing lighthouse for all troubled waters to see.

Wow, you're saying to yourselves. She waxes poetic. Odd for someone who wears long-sleeved tees under graphic tees and pairs them both with plaid trousers. Or, probably you're actually saying to yourselves, What should I make for dinner? or It's true!! 'E' really DOES equal 'MC-squared'! [Editor's note: If your thoughts fall along the latter option, I'll quietly walk away right now, no questions asked, and I'll never trouble your superior mind again.]

Today's jumping-off point: Guess. Seriously, go back, look at the photos, and take a stab at what my jumping-off point was today. Anyone guess these pants? You win. Which is strange to me, because these pants are totally preppy/workwear (wide cuff and everything), whereas the layered tees are exactly opposite. What would you call today's look, anyway? Would you call it: Preppy-lawyers'-kid-who-excels-in-math-and-classic-violin-recitals-but-secretly-plays-the-bass-in-a-garage-band-while-her-boxer-puppy-lays-on-some-carpet-remnants-in-the-corner? No way! That's exactly what I thought, too! What are the odds? Because, really, that's pretty specific...

Anyway. The plaid in the pants is neutral enough that I paired them with a mid-scale graphic tee (long-sleeved under is strictly for warmth, but I like the color it adds). I love the fatty gold boyfriend watch with all this, as well as the blue Converse--a little Unexpected & Maybe Awesome. Overall, despite lots going on, this ensemble's colors are chunky and muted. 'Cept the belt. It adds a bit of whimsy, a pop of color, and a bit of a "huh?" factor. Triple dip.

Happy happy Friday!

Want this look? plaid pants  graphic tee  boyfriend watch  blue converse  yellow belt

More Puma...

on husbands and boyfriends (and stealing their clothes...)

 shoes: steve madden. jeans: american eagle outfitters. shirt: Pocket's. bracelets: f21, target, kohls. necklace: gifted.

Brittany asked me to participate in a style-a-basic-white-tee thing (which is absolutely the technical title of the event, if you're wondering), upcoming on her blog. (Ohp! Spoiler Alert. TOTally forgot to prep you all...sorry. But, really, now you know how I felt when my sister spilled the beans about what happened in the last Twilight book. Actually, that's not a good comparison at all, because I probably spent 14 hours of my life begging her TO spoil it because I was too lazy to read it. Not like she busted out-of-thin-air the inside info about the baby...I had to WORK for that, guys.)

ANYways. I'm always usually on-rare-occasions-and-involving-bribes up for a challenge, so I told her I'd be happy to do it. But my brain is too tired to come up with three separate outfit ideas starring a white tee AND another outfit for today. So, even though you all get a sneak peek at one of the white tee outfits (lucky dogs), there are still two more secret and awesome looks coming up on her blog next week. So. This totally isn't cheating. I'm pretty sure. Hopefully.

Also not cheating (right?) is the fact that I stole Pocket's basic white tee because I own none of my own. And, bonus!, his was fairly new and therefore didn't have the sweat stains that inevitably befall his t-shirts. [Editor's note: Not that my husband is sweaty or gross. He's absolutely not. He is athletic and active, though, so over the course of time and thousands of bball games, his tees tend to get...ummm...well-used.] 

So, since I was using his tee anyway, I thought I'd strike up a theme here and pair it with some boyfriendish jeans. Check-check on the masculine components. Now I just needed to girlify a bit. Knot the tee, cuff the sleeves, add some enormous bright chunky jewelry, and don the infamous heeled booties of which my entire shoe collection are currently jealous. At first I was going to just pull back my hair to pretend I'm athletic, too ("pretend" being the optimum word), but with the tee's crew neck, that wasn't going to work. Crew necklines aren't the most flattering on a girl with broad shoulders. And I'm just such a girl.

So, with the hair: curl it up buttercup. Done and done. I'm liking the balanced juxtaposition of this ensemble. Yin and yang. Salt and pepper. Knock-knock jokes and something actually funny. Mullets and all other hairstyles. You get the idea...

Happy Wednesday!

Want this look? boyfriend jeans  white tee  boyfriend watch  booties  crochet necklace

More Newport News...

a gifted slip. a dance of joy.

It's not a huge secret that I've been eying the slips at A Slip Shop for awhile. Which is a totally true statement if you just replace the words "eying" and "awhile" with "ogling & drooling over" and "forever." Seriously, have you checked them out? You'll die. They are So. Awesome.

That being said, you can imagine my sheer and utter delight when my friend Kaity contacted me about doing a product review of a slip. I thought one of two things was happening: (a) I had died and gone to a heaven where everyone wore adorable slips and ate chocolate chip pumpkin bread (that last part has nothing to do with the slips...it's just an integral part of my version of heaven...), OR (b) she had ESP (in which case I have a list of a few minds I'd like her to read...). Either scenario was fine with me, as long as I got to try out one of her slips!

Kaity was awesome to work with. You wouldn't believe the customized options available for these puppies. Seriously. I gave her the measurements she needed, asked her opinion on a few things (sooo hard to choose, but she had great advice), talked about style/color/length/fulness options (I went with the black pleated organza in a slight a-line), and viola. Got the package in the mail yesterday. Lightning fast. And lightning awesome.

shoes: head over heels. slip: a slip shop. skirt: thrifted. v-neck tee: gap. cardigan: j.crew. belt: kohl's (came with other skirt). necklace: don't recall. hairthing: f21.

[Editor's note: As for the rest of today's somewhat funky ensemble, feel free to take it or leave it. Me? I think it's great. I woke up feeling extremely lighthearted, so these clothes just kind of flung themselves onto my body in a free-spirited frenzy of...ah...free spirits. But the slip, my friends, don't mess with the slip. That is perfection.]

Not to beat a dead horse, but I can't even tell you how much I love this slip. And I'm not saying that because Kaity's my friend and I know she'll be reading this. (Hi Kaity!) It. Is. Fabulous! Such a feminine detail, it adds so much to a skirt-look. Annnnd I have some skirts that are borderline too shorty-short, so a chic skirt-lengthener is perfect. I have a zillion other ensemble ideas that I can't wait to bust out with this little number.

One thing I'd recommend for anyone who orders one is to go longer than you might think. On mine, Kaity recommended I go an inch longer than I thought I'd need, thank goodness, because if it were any shorter than what it is, my legs would hit the organza (as opposed to the slippery slip part) while walking, and the slip would probably ride up. 

So, in summary: I adore this slip. I can't wait to buy some of the other ones Kaity & I talked about, too. Wearing it makes me want to do the charleston as a dance of joy. 'Cept I don't really know how to do the charleston. But even that fairly significant detail didn't stop me from attempting it anyway and posting pics for your viewing entertainment. I am just that joyful.

Go check out A Slip Shop, you guys. I'm not kidding. You'll want everything. PLUS, if you got one, it would make my dance moves make sense. So.

Happy Wednesday.

Want this look? slip   pencil skirt   cardigan   black patterned tights

More J.Crew...