Insta-Love

A surprise gift from my Valentine! 

Bracelet: Kate Spade, Top: Joe Fresh, Shoes: Forever 21, Nails: Essie

Hot pink for spring! The perfect satchel.

Bag: Michael Kors 

Waiting for the snow to melt so I can wear these new slip ons! Also, I wear this sweater almost every day. I'm not kidding.

Shoes: Forever 21, Sweater: BB Dakota, Watch: Michael Kors

Is there anything better than pale pink, white & gold combos?

iPhone Case: Kate Spade / Watch: Michael Kors / Nails: Fiji by Essie

Fresh kicks - can't wait to be able to take these guys outside.

Sneakers: Converse 

Happy Monday, friends! I hope you all had fun weekend times - mine was a nice mix of fun, productive, and lazy, just as weekends should be!

Today I'm just bringing you a little round up of what's been happening on my instagram lately & some of my favorite new pieces for spring that I am dying to wear if we ever see green grass again. As we were getting ready for work this morning, the fella said "Is it cold out today?" and I said "No, it's super warm, I was just out to start the car and it's -5" - So yes, "warm" these days is -5. But compared to -30, it IS warm. And it gives me just the slightest bit of hope for spring!

Honey, I'm Home!

Ahh, you guys, what an amazing couple of weeks it has been! I had a few pre-scheduled posts while I was gone, so maybe ya didn't even notice I was away, but I spent the last 10 days on a west coast trip to Washington & Oregon with my fella. 

It's funny how things work out sometimes - Washington and Oregon sounded like a very random choice for a vacation, but it was based on the idea of going to Sasquatch Festival. The Gorge was a venue that my guy really wanted to see, and the lineup was really great this year, so we decided to make it happen. We weren't totally sure what else we'd end up doing while out there, but it ended up being one of the most beautiful places I could imagine! 

We truly did a bit of everything. We flew into Seattle and spent a couple days being super touristy. We went up in the space needle, visited the EMP museum, Pike's Market, etc. We poked around our neighborhood & ate some good food. We then rented a car and drove down to Portland, which was a very quick visit and consisted mostly only of eating Sizzle Pie pizza, drinking at a local brew pub and popping into Kate Spade. 

We decided to forego more time in the city and head for the ocean! It was so beautiful, and I had never been to the pacific before. So we walked along the beach and of course dipped our toes in the water! Then we drove 5 hours in the other direction, through the mountains to the desert, which was the prettiest drive I could ever imagine!

We camped for a night in Smith Rock, and did a huge hike there the next morning - I may have almost thrown up a few times trying to reach the top, but it was so, so worth it. The view was insanely beautiful, and there's nothing like it here on the east coast!

Then it was time to head to the main event, Sasquatch Festival! We opted not to stay at the free campground thanks to advice from a friend who had been before, and stayed at an amazing campground called Wildhorse. The Gorge was the perfect venue for the festival - so incredibly pretty! Band highlights include Foals, Queens of the Stone Age, Elbow and MIA. There were lots of great bands though, but those were the stand outs for me! 

After the festival, we drove back to spend our last couple days in Seattle. We took in a ball game, ate the best meal of the whole trip, and did a bit of shopping. Also, my lovely blogger friends Alicia and Melissa drove down from Vancouver to have brunch with us on our last day there! It was so sweet of them to make the drive just to visit and I was so happy to see them!

All in all, an amazing, relaxing, fun and beer filled vacation. I've been back at work for 2 days now and already want to go back! ;)  

Now that I'm back I'll be posting on the regular again so stay tuned for new outfit posts! 

Discovering Your Why

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This post stems from my Resolution Update post a little bit, and I actually only started typing this out for myself, with no intention to share it, but rather just to sort out my own thoughts. But then I thought I'd try something a little different share it with you all!

I read an article recently about discovering your "why" when it comes to losing weight/getting fit. That if you can determine why you're doing it, it helps you stay on track. People often give vague answers like "to be healthier" which yes, is incredibly important, but if you have specific goals or motivators in mind, it will help you stay committed. 

And while this post may seem a little off topic, it does relate to personal style, because there are things I feel like I can't wear or a lot of shapes and silhouettes I stick to because they cover up the parts of me I'm a little insecure about. A lot of these sound silly, I realize this, and obviously our overall health is the most important reason for any of us to exercise & eat right, but just for fun, here are a few of my other (more superficial) why's that help keep me motivated:

1. To wear bright/fun yoga pants. (Like these!) I stick to black and it's because I'm self conscious. My hot yoga classes are filled with girls wearing super fun printed yoga pants and I want to be one of them.

2. To thoroughly enjoy being at the beach. To say yes to any invite to go swimming/tubing/beaching this summer without worrying who might be there to see me in my swim suit.

3. To wear shorts in the summer without feeling like my thighs are exploding out of the bottom. I want to feel comfortable wearing a pair of denim cut offs on a hot summer day. 

4. To wear white/light colored denim - something I currently love but is one of my biggest fitting room cringe-inducers.

5. To fit back into the large number of beautiful items I have hanging in my closet that don't quite fit anymore. My wardrobe will literally double if I can shed this extra weight, without even having to buy anything new! 

So there you have it. This post is certainly not meant to be a downer post about my insecurities, but more just for fun and to give some insight as to what is keeping me on track with my goals! I think most girls, regardless of size, shape, weight or fitness level, have things they're insecure about or frivolous little goals like these in the back of their minds. 

So this is what I'm going to think about on those days I feel like giving up! Feel free to share what motivates you in the comments! I'd love to hear!

Resolution Update

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We're into the second week of February, and it seems like this is the time when all of those resolutions we made start drifting away - we lose our motivation, we get frustrated, we get distracted by life, and the things that felt so important at the beginning of the year feel less so now. So I thought it was the perfect time to do a resolution update of sorts, and while I hope it motivates you to keep up with whatever resolutions you made, I'm doing it mostly as a reminder to myself to keep going, as I'm feeling a little defeated this morning.

I mentioned a few of my resolutions in my 2013 re-cap post but hadn't really organized my thoughts at that point. Essentially, my resolutions revolve around taking a look at all of those little things that bother me and fixing what I can, and accepting what I cannot. Maybe it's life after 30, but I had noticed over the last couple years various things that I hadn't had to deal with before - bad skin, breaking hair, and more than a few extra pounds.

So what have I accomplished in the last 6 weeks? I've upped my hot yoga and discovered barre class, and between the two have been going 3-4 times per week. I love barre and I can thank Grace for the inspiration to finally try it. It definitely emphasizes that I am not the most graceful person in the world - a ballerina, I am not  - but the burn I feel in my legs and butt afterwards is worth any awkwardness. Have I seen any results yet? To be honest, not really - BUT, I am almost 32 years old, and things just don't happen as quickly as they used to. I keep reminding myself that these things take time, and if I keep at it, my body and the scale will reflect my efforts in time.

I've been bringing my lunch to work for the most part, and any days that I do not, I have been getting turkey wraps or spinach salads from a local deli rather than the heavy cafeteria or food court food I was consuming before. I've been trying to make good decisions every day. They're not always perfect, but they're better. 

A few of you have giggled over my eyebrow resolution, but after treating myself to an eyebrow wax before the holidays, the girl told me I had a great natural arch but had ruined it with plucking! I decided then to commit to at least 5 appointments. I just had my 3rd, and I must say I'm pretty happy with the results.

Skin! Oh, skin. It's been giving me trouble this past year, with little red bumps all over my cheeks. I thought maybe this was some form of adult acne, but I went to my doctor and we confirmed that I have rosacea so I'm currently on an antibiotic treatment to get it under control. It can take up to two months to work and so far I've only noticed minor improvements, but this is something I am committed to getting under control.

Hair wasn't on my original list of resolutions, but after noticing yet another chunk of hair had broken off on one side of my head, I decided it was time to tackle that as well. I'm naturally fair haired but have been getting mega blonde highlights for years, and it, along with flat irons, curling irons, etc, have taken their tole. I also noticed most of the breakage was happening on the side that I sleep on every night. So, I opted for a subtle ombre last time I got my hair done to let some of my natural color grow in and to give it a break from the bleach. I got some better shampoo & conditioner, and recently picked up a satin pillowcase which is supposed to help a lot with breakage through the night. I'm still deciding on a treatment of some sort, but plan to pick one up soon. 

So there you have it! 6 weeks in and still going strong on all accounts. Am I (extremely) frustrated that the scale hasn't budged and I still have red bumps on my cheeks? Heck yes. But I'm going to keep going. Small steps every day.

What resolutions did you make? Which have you stuck to? Which have fallen to the wayside? And more importantly, what are you gonna do about it?

A Glimpse, A Glance

Ever since upgrading to an iphone, I've become increasingly addicted to Istagram! So every weekend I plan on giving you a little glimpse into my week through the instagram photos I've collected! Hope you're all having a fantastic weekend! xo.

01  A hot & sunny September day.

02  A perfectly pristine lipstick c/o Lise Watier

03  Squeal-inducing package that arrived from LOVE.

04  The city of eternal fog.

05  Pretty new purchases flecked with gold.

06  My lap at the Brunswick Square fashion show.

07  My pretty pal Candice and myself.

Weekend Indulgence

Saturday I finally cuddled in with a few September issues, and had a perfect little candlelit evening sipping on a new-to-me but incredibly delicious Nova Scotia wine courtesy of my sister, and couldn't resist picking up this carrot cake that was begging me to take it home from the little market down the street.I also traded in my peachy orange nails for a deep burgundy, which felt like a definite step towards fall. 

How did you all spend your weekends? I hope they were equally lovely!