Black Weekend

Hi pals!
     Anyone else want their very soul and wallet and 2 hours waiting in line on Friday back? Just me? Ok. Well, sadly enough, I had to work extra excessive hours this whole week. It was grueling and ugly and exhausting. Which was probably a blessing in disguise--it kept me away from spending my life savings at Anthro.

     Except for that early morning Friday, that is. All those pretty sale items were just needing a HOME.

     Work was so nasty and stressful, I am toying with the idea of really cutting back from traditional "work."
     Especially since I want so much to spend time with Avery, and even though I had my amazing in-laws babysitting, I MISSED AVERY'S FIRST STEPS.
 
     I'm totally devastated. It's such a cliche (cue "Cat's in the Cradle" background music). I missed my baby's first steps because I was working (thank goodness she didn't walk while I was at Anthro--I REALLY would have fallen into a shame spiral).

     I know it's not that rare for working mothers everywhere to miss milestones. But is it worth it if you can avoid it somehow? The exchange of financial security and personal development for the loss of witnessing key moments of my child's life? Don't know. Still thinking. And maybe buying lotto tickets.

xoxo

p.s. fyi, this blog may soon be known as walmartlife. thanks. cheers.

Lately on my Pinterest

Their logo should be:

Pinterest--The way to spend that extra 2 hours a day you didn't think you had...or
Pinterest--Why bother with people on Facebook, when you can look at pictures of beautiful things...or
Pinterest--Who knew you could live on 5 hours of sleep a night.

It's so insanely addictive.

Speaking of addictive and Edward Cullen, did anyone else see Breaking Dawn this weekend? With their husband or boyfriend?

You know, the husband who pretended not to love it, but you KNOW he did by how tightly he gripped your hand during the thrilling werewolf fight.

Wanna follow my Pinterest page? Link at top of page.

Of Hearth and Home

Lately, I've been 

1. making applesauce (which is delicious and easy, as long as you have a Vitamix or a really tireless chopper)

2. Hung out and drank peppermint espressos with my dear friend Aimee, who is so photogenic and poised, unlike Clawhand on the left. 

Cheers to that!

3. Taught the baby how to do the wave. Here she is, practicing for the next big game.

4. Made her a very frilly headband from pantyhose, fabric scraps and a flowery shirt.

No, she doesn't know where Carmen San Diego is.

5. Threw her in the Ergo and took her outside in her pajamas to water the plants every morning this week. We're both morning people--she does most of her correspondence (esp email) before noon.

6. Witnessed the power of chicken manure. Check out how my withering, pathetic tomatoes came roaring back. This is on the same plant.

7. Quick peek at the rest of the garden: Broccoli

One lone, brave eggplant.

Navel oranges from our little sapling.

And my favorite--a new blueberry plant, which I'm babysitting for my little friend, Carter. He always comes over and loves picking our blueberries, so I decided to get him one.

I love taking in all the sights and smells of our garden! 'Course, I just started a compost heap, so that could change.

Also, Chris doesn't reeeeally know about it yet, but I'm hoping that I've buried the scraps deep enough. If not, it will either jeopardize our marriage or our neighbors will start letting the air out of our tires. Maybe both. Will keep you posted! Cheers!

Hope you get to spend some time outdoors this weekend, even as it gets chilly. In all honesty, I think it's really restorative and necessary to human happiness.

Note about the weather: Here in southbay/LA, it's always, even in mid/late November, about 55-60 degrees. No, I'm not bragging. Unless you mean by bragging, gloating and giving myself shoulder rubs and a big thumbs up. 'Course, we still have the horrific, grinding traffic and a generally ruder population prone to violence and car-burning...Don't be jealous. It all evens out.

Nerd Alert! Oh, Gwen Stefani...

You sure know how to design a mean tutu. I LOVE the new Harajuku Mini collection at Target. I snatched up this rosebud flecked tutu, as well as the red "Nerd Alert!" tee shirt (on the back), which just cracked me up.

This tutu is a size 4T, but as you can see, it's hanging on (albeit barely!) to an active, crawling 10.5 month baby. It was the only one left at my local Target, and I would guess that they are going fast nationwide. SO cute!

 

The collection is moderately priced. This tutu is $17, the Nerd alert tee is $10, I also saw some other items I would love--the black/white jacket, and the plaid schoolgirl suit. 

Reasonable price points for the brand and hip factor, and so much more interesting than their usual designers, Missoni included.

But really, you had me at "Nerd Alert." Just wish there was one for us bigger nerds.

Birthday Haul: Doily Rug

First off, I'd like to thank those who buy things and then return them so I can have them half off. Not sure why, but this Doily Rug was 50% off in my local store, even though it's still full price online.

The moment I saw it's fancy-dancy swirls and cool greyness, I snatched it up (or pseudo-staggered under its heft and handed it over to the SA).

It's surprisingly easy to clean so far, and I love the color and design, which kind of goes with everything.

And with all my birthday Anthro gift cards and items that didn't fit (size or taste), I nabbed this sucker for about 55 bucks (about $170 in store). Whoohoo!

Of course, you will notice that it's pinned firmly under something dark and ominous--it's a farmhouse table that we bought a few weeks ago, after searching over a year at many a furniture store/outlet/estate sale.

We love it--it's rustic, hefty, organic--course, Chris almost broke his back lifting it so I could slip the rug underneath. But he's recovering nicely and the C-collar goes nicely with some of his overcoats. HA! kidding.

It's also covered in Halloween candy and baby toys, so we'll have to show it to you later.

One last happy birthday gift, from my man. A new iphone! with a much much better camera.

Before: Above (iPhone 3GS)

After: Above (iPhone 4S)
Sheesh. What a difference. And it has a FLASH?! I know I'm late to the party, but I'm still excited to be here. Whaddya mean fire's been discovered?!
 
Today, I'm going to spend the morning with my good friend, Aimee. My mom's here to babysit, Avery is standing on her own (!!) and is such a sweet girl, despite a little cold. She's finally growing into her enormous pumpkinhead.

Aimee and I are going to go on a brisk walk, eat homemade applesauce, and gab about work, married life, politics, our gardens and oh, so many things.

Enjoy your day! xo

Runway Lapel Coat; Anthro Comes Roaring Back

OK, FINE!! Anthro isn't ALL matronly, boxy, and excessively reminiscent of the worst of the 80's. This coat had me at its AWESOME lapel. Something even Tim Gunn would love. I am happy and relieved to be a believer. Again.

I did begrudgingly enjoy the latest catalog (now that they've deigned to send them to me again--that was a very rough 6 months). A lot more of the more graceful and feminine silhouettes that we've all loved instead of whatever mannish great-aunt's closet they've been raiding lately.

Just in time for the holidays. Yay!

Fitting Room Reviews: Ruched Marigold Coat, Adelie Blouse

Hi girls! Did anyone else pick up some housewares today? I luckily scored on a rug last week, but will have to show you at a later post.

Well, I finally found the Adelie blouse and tried it on the other day. Tried on the size 0 and 2, and found the 0 fit just as well. Would size down since the peplum/pleatage adds bulk anyway. But as adorable as I found the print online a few weeks ago, I wasn't sure how I could incorporate the look into my closet. So maybe come sale day. Otherwise, the march of the penguins will go on without me.

I also tried on this Maeve top, which I could not find online. It was about 112 or so, sorry--my preggo brain still is in full effect, and I didn't remember to take pics of the tag. I loved the colorful, almost art-like print, the rustly, light feel of the silk, and the waist tie. Oh, Anthro...maybe I will come back to you more than once a month.

 I was further wooed back to Anthro when I saw they had my FAVORITE book in stock, and in pink, no less. I'm an AOGG freak. I would probably be better qualified to have a blog about Anne-with-an-E, although she doesn't really have new merchandise to talk about every few weeks. But she was a huge, happy part of my childhood, and seeing her decked out on Anthro's shelves brought a little shock of joy.

 Of course, my local Anthro's visual team also rocked it with their tent? teepee? canvas rainbow? Loved it. Even more impressive in person.

 Chris doesn't know yet, but I intend to build one of these in our living room. Just over the fireplace. Shhhh...it's a surprise!

At the last minute, while checking out at the register, this flash of gold caught my eye, and lo and behold--there was the Ruched Marigold coat that had been snatched away by fate and by more attentive shoppers than myself. Well, guess what is widely available at the Del Amo Anthro in Torrance, CA?

 I wanted so much to love it. I raced over and snatched it off the hanger, and threw it on. But looking at myself in the mirror, I felt overwhelmed by the sleeves, the ruching, the color. It just felt excessive to me. And even the very nice, new SA shook her head and wrinkled her nose. Well, dear SA: Thank you for your candor. As much as it stung. As much as I want to believe that everything magically looks great on me. You saved me buyer's remorse, possible humility, and 250 bucks.

However. They are available at the store, still, and almost sold out online. Only smalls available. So if anyone else is vibing for one, give them a jingle.
We just got back from Ohio last night--we were there for faux Thanksgiving, our early Thanksgiving celebration with Chris' family. So much fun, so much food, so much trampolining and baby giggles and happy, panting dogs, and lovely moments with family. Hope everyone else had a wonderful weekend.