1 shirt, 3 ways

A few months back I wrote a post on the denim trend. It turned into a trend that I ended up really liking. I found a cute, American Eagle, denim shirt, and loved the look of it.

However, this kind of shirt people would recognize if I wore it every week, like I wanted to, so I spaced it out, tried to get creative and this is what I came up with.

August
September

October

It's honestly hard to pick my favorite look. I feel like each look is very suiting for the month that I wore it in. Here is how I plan to wear it in December:

I'm heading home tonight to chill with my parents. Both of my sisters won't be home so I get them all to myself. I'm really looking forward to catching up, drinking good wine, heading to movies, and seeing my adorable pup.


Have a great weekend!

Weekly Wardrobe Round Up

cole haan boots, citizen's of humanity jeans, and a tj.maxx sweater

This was the outfit I wore on the plane to and from South Carolina. I always try and look as fashionable as possible. Airports are a great place for people watching, and plenty of people are watching you, so you may as well look as pulled together as possible.

TB revas, gap skinnies, target sweater, jcrew belt, nordstrom's tank top

I love all the different shades of purple. I should have saved this outfit for yesterday - anti-bullying awareness - groups were encouraging supporters to wear purple for the cause.

payless boots, ann taylor leggings, f21 top

Debated in the work bathroom for a good ten minutes if I should, or shouldn't wear the belt.

I wore the belt.

Born flats, Paige Premium Jeans, Gap button down, Ann Taylor top

Greenville

Greenville, South Carolina is like the perfect mini-city. Everything was picture perfect - cobblestone streets, trees with white lights all year round, historic buildings, sidewalk cafe's, old candy stores. It reminded me of the southern version of Star's Hallow (*gilmore girl reference...anyone, anyone??).

We flew in Thursday so the boys could catch the bachelor party just in time. It left me all by my lonesome, so when we got to the hotel at 11pm, after a full day of work and travel, I changed right into my comfy pajamas, called room service to have them bring me up their biggest glass of cabernet, and melted into the fluffy bed with Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. PERFECTION.

Friday, we explored the city and popped into all of the cute shops downtown, including a dog bakery. All of those goodies are dog treats, I mean, how stinkin' cute!

The weather was just about perfect the whole weekend. No clouds in the sky, and a breezy 75 degrees.

Friday night a few friends met Joel and I for a fabulous dinner at Larkin's on the River. If you are ever in Greenville it is a must go.

2 french martini's, a cup of crab soup, smoked salmon with a risotto cake, and some creme brulee later.....I was pretty much rolled out to meet our friends.

There was a cupcake/cocktail hour after the rehearsal dinner on Friday where we were able to met up with the wedding party, bride and groom, and everyone else that had flown in.

This group has been friends since high school, and since I've dated Joel they've made me part of their tight knit circle. I couldn't be more blessed to call them some of my best friends.

Saturday was wedding day! We took a 2 hour bus ride up the mountains in North Carolina which ride was not a pleasant one.

A tour bus + narrow mountain roads = TessShouldHaveTakenDramamine

...but we got to the top, walked into a tiny chapel without walls, and were presented with this view:
Completely worth the drive. And this picture doesn't even do it justice.

Kathy was the most stunning bride and the entire ceremony was beautiful and touching. Of course, I couldn't stop the water works.



We had a great time and danced the night away. It was the most perfect mini-vacay I've had in a long time.




And now it's back to the real world. I would tell you all about what the real world has in store for me this week (laundry,cleaning,errands,shopping,party planning, etc) but Joel needs to pick his fantasy basketball team.

So with that - Cheers!
XO

South Carolina! C'mon and raise up!

Bags are packed, we're 24 hours away, and then we are off to South Carolina!

thankful

Even though I stayed home from work today with an ugly cold, I wanted to take a second and think about what I'm thankful for. It is really easy to notice the annoying, negative things in the day to day life, but the more you focus on the bad, the worse things get. Don't fret - the same goes if you focus on the positive! That's the cool part, the more you give thanks for all of your daily blessings, the more you notice all of the good things that fill our days.


1. I am SO thankful for the good health that I have and that my loved ones have. This is by far my number one blessing right now. I am so blessed to have all of myself, my family members, friends, and Joel, healthy and kicking.

2. I am thankful that Joel is going to stop at Einstein's Bagels on the way home from work to pick me up some soup.

3. I am thankful that I finished my book today from the comfort of my couch. By Invitation Only was a really cute, Hampton's based book and I would highly recommend it - especially good for a honeymoon beach read!

4. [with the book theme...] I am thankful that I was able to order new books from Amazon, and got 2 books for $16.00 buckaroos!

5. I am thankful that I was able to stay home from work today. I am really thankful that my boss is totally understanding and encouraged me to rest up. I am also thankful that staying home has allowed me to feel better and made me to see that I really like work. I missed being at the office today, which is a great realization.

6. I am thankful for the people in my life that checked in on me today. I have really great friends.

7. I am thankful that we get to go to South Carolina this weekend. I am so excited to travel, tackle a new city, and be with friends.

8. I am thankful that I found a dress in my closet that I can wear to the wedding and don't have to buy a new one.

9. I am thankful that I have DVR. This morning I really wanted to catch Hoda and Kathy Lee but I couldn't keep my eyes open. dvr to the rescue.

10. I am thankful that I bought kleenx last time I went to the grocery store.


What are you thankful for today?

Outfit menu

Yo.

I reallllllly hope you feel better than I do.

I made it through work today but it was a struggle. My cold has pretty much moved its way into my chest, making me congested and weak. It will be a slow going week but I'm determined to be in tip-top shape for South Carolina. [Which, by the way, I still don't have a dress for the wedding on Saturday]


I've broken off from my menu last week because, let's be honest, a veggie stir fry is not the kind of meal you want when you are sick on the couch. So instead, I had pretzels and grilled cheese, which fit much better.


In lieu of a food forecast, I will present you with what I wore last week.

Pretty much head to toe in Ann Taylor with a Burberry jacket

Head to Toe J.Crew

And this was for casual friday --- My office doesn't have a dress code but I personally let myself be a little extra casual come Friday's

Citizen's jeans, F21 cardi, TB Revas

Fall Fever

I got home from work with fall fever. I headed straight to Target to load up on all sorts of goodies to fall-ify our apartment. I had wanted to make a trip to an apple orchard, but the closest was a good 2 hours away so that dream quickly fell by the wayside.

For fifty bucks I grabbed lots of cute decorations and all of the supplies we would need to decorate cookies and paint pumpkins. I warned Joel to not make any plans for Saturday morning since I had our agenda packed in with lots of fun activities. Joel did not necessarily share in my pure excitement, but knows better than to not come in the way of my love for all holiday traditions.


Literally the second I got home from Target I walked in the door and felt like crap. Now I literally had a fall fever (clever, huh??) . My throat was scratchy, my head was clogged, and I felt weak all over. I loaded up on NyQuil, determined not to let this upset my plans, and went to bed before 9.

I woke up feeling worse, but tried to push forward. We went to Jewel to grab apples, pumpkins, and lots of cough drops. We were able to have a pretty good morning decorating cookies, painting pumpkins, decorating the apartment, and watching Tennessee sadly get their butts kicked by Georgia.






Saturday night was my cousin Liz's bachelorette party. I was able to get dressed (couldn't stand long enough to straighten my hair, but, I honestly couldn't have cared less) and headed over to her new home, and was able to stay for most of the activities. Her bridesmaid's had planned to go to a karaoke bar but I bowed out before they left because with every passing minute it was getting harder and harder to fake it. Plus, I highly doubt belting out Sir-Mix-A-Lot jams would have done much for my overall health. I slept for a good 10 hours but I'm still feeling pretty under the weather this morning.

I may go see Life As We Know It with a girlfriend but I plan to just take it easy tonight. Hopefully by tomorrow morning this cold will be on its way out.

I will say that I am thankful this cold showed its ugly face this weekend as opposed to next, since we are 4 days out from our South Carolina vacation!!

Wisdom Wednesday

“The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good.” -Samuel Johnson

Wish vs. Find

Wish #1: Long black North Face puff coat $298.00



Find #1: Long black Michael Kors puff coat $49.00 at TJmaxx




Wish #2: Knee high Jill Sander leather boots with silver detail $960.00

Find #2: Knee high Payless faux leather boots with silver detail $40.oo






How do you think I did? I mean, not bad when you figure I just saved myself a measly 1,000 buckaroos!

2 week goal

Woohoo! We all made it through the first Monday in October!

My Monday went surprisingly well. Work trucked by rather quickly, I found a pair of black leather boots for a steal, and made it out for a for a 30 minutes jog after work.

If you've been reading, you know Joel and I are taking a mini-vacay to South Carolina in two weeks. We are heading to Greenville for a wedding and are going to try and squeeze as much out of it as we can!


Until our vacation we have sworn off all restaurants.

Lately all we do is go out to eat and drink. Not only is this becoming an expensive habit, I can't afford the extra calories that a restaurant meal packs in. So, while we are on this two week break from restaurants, I'm also making some minor changes to my diet.

Hopefully the few pounds I've put on recently from our "Food Tour of Chicago" will melt away before we head outta dodge.

One of my biggest problem areas during my day is right after work. I eat a healthy lunch at noon and when I come home at 5 I am STARVED. Normally, because I've waited so long to eat, I go straight for the carbs. Toast, chips, bars, pretzels....anything I can get my hands on.

How am I planning on fixing this?

Well, I have decided to pack an after work snack the night before that will be waiting for me when I get home. That way, I still allow myself to eat, but it's previously thought out (in my health conscious state of mind, not my "I'mgoingtodieifidonteatrightthissecond" mind.) Today's snack was almonds, carrots, and strawberries.

My other change that I will be making is limiting my after dinner chocolates. I switched from Milk Chocolate to Dark Chocolate (unfortunately didn't save any calories there but it's a lot better for you) and I am only going to allow myself two a night. Sometimes, when I'm being really naughty....I'll have up to six! That is just not a good idea.


Hopefully with these changes, and some added runs, I will be back to normal, and can maybe even lose some extra. Little changes all the time is the only way I can tackle things. It doesn't overwhelm me and I feel like I can really take control of those few things at a time. To completely revamp everything I do would just be way too much to handle.

----

Here is our menu for the week

Monday: Roasted Chicken with Cooked Spinach and Garlic Bread
Tuesday: Spaghetti Squash with ground turkey and vodka sauce
Wednesday: Chicken Quesadillas with a side of Corn Salsa
Thursday: Tuna Melts
Friday: Homemade whole wheat pizza
Saturday: *we are going out -but not to a restaurant!
Sunday: Shrimp Paella
Monday:
Tuesday: Veggie and Brown Rice Stir Fry
Wednesday: Chicken Ceaser salad with raisins and walnuts
Thursday: SOUTH CAROLINA!

Hawkeye Nation

When I first decided to go to the University of Iowa, almost 6 years ago to the day, I never imagined that I would meet the kind of life long friends I've made and have the kind of bond that I have to the school. There is something about going back to your roots and cheering for a team that the entire state is behind. It helps too that we dominated Penn State, 24-3!

The weekend was packed full of junk food, beer, and teenage dreams. ;)

my college roommates (except for Jessica)

My girls

My sisters!
Hannah (on right) is a Junior at Iowa and Nellie came to visit too.

I do have to say that I am happy college only lasts four years. This weekend has done a number on me and I'm glad to be back to my home, where things are a little more calm and clean. Joel and I are heading to South Carolina for a friends wedding next Thursday and until then are going to try hard to tighten our belts (literally, and figuratively). Chicago is due for a gorgeous week of weather and hopefully that will motivate me to get my butt outside for a run after work this week.

I hope you had an equally fabulous weekend - and go enjoy the last few hours. I plan to take a bubble bath, have a big salad, and catch up on all my shows from last week.

XO

Happy October 1st

Bags are packed, beer is chilling, and the second I get through this work day I'm off to the University of Iowa!

-----

PrettyinPinkMegan wrote a helpful post yesterday about how to dress for this weird transition weather. Chicago is the class example of bizarre weather. Example: Right now it's 47 degrees, with a high of 71. I mean, come on....how do you dress for that?!

Apparently this week, I've been in a blue mood.





In Chicago I have found that for this transition period when it's hot and cold you need the following:

• light scarves
• cardigans
• flats
• short-sleeve sweaters
  
• leggings
• button downs

If you have the following, I think you can look chic, stay warm, and beat the heat all in one swoop!

Have a great weekend everybody!