Favorite Things Giveaway!

Hello Monday, you sure snuck up on me! We had a really great weekend over here. And soon enough, I'll be sharing all sorts of details. But for now, let's have a little fun!

Let's start this week off on the right foot shall we? How about a giveaway?! And a pretty awesome giveaway at that! 

*up to $70

Today I'm joining Lindsey and Jaime for the very first Favorite Things Giveaway! We, along with 4 other awesome bloggers, are giving away your choice of jewelry from the Kendra Scott Color Bar, worth up to $70.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Best of luck! If you win, what would you pick? I'm pretty smitten with those Chalcedony earrings and Cara ring above!

If you are interested in co-hosting next month's giveaway, you can get more information here!

Happy Monday friends!

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Fun Fact Friday

So cliche, but I have to say....thank goodness it's Friday!

1. It's been a whirlwind week for me. Work has been crazy busy. Like nonstop until I just have to get up and leave already. Pro? Absolutely no time for snacking. None. Which is great because I definitely snack for no reason at times. But my company is officially sold and in a much better place now. We celebrated with Champagne in the office Tuesday and everyone is getting a Patagonia jacket with the new company name. Sweet!

2. Sooo....in other big news, we did it. We decided to put our condo on the market. We kept thinking we'd hold onto it and go for rental income but the market is insane right now. So we've decided to cash out now and make the profit that would take us quite a few years to make. Cross your fingers it sells at this weekends open house! Monday's home decor post just may include a tour of our place finally. Here's my favorite pic from the listing though...can you see why??

3. If you're looking for a good spring cleaning list - here ya go

4. 1 more week until Florida. I really really need that sunshine and heat. It's still 50 here in Boston. And rain all day today. Unbelievable. (2012 and 2011 recaps).

5. If you don't read Pure Style Home, you are really missing out. Lauren is so incredibly talented. Check out her latest client before and after. I absolutely love her style. As much as bright color and chevron and gray is in right now, every time I see one of her rooms I am sooo drawn to it! Her neutral, natural palate is so soothing and clean to me. I may have to attempt it in our next home.

This just might be the shortest Fun Fact Friday I've done to date! Lot's on the mind these days. And hopefully more big news to share next week (no I'm not pregnant).

Have a great weekend! Any plans? 

We'll be heading south to J's parents for the weekend. Professional cleaners here Saturday and open house Sunday! Gotta keep Tucker out of the condo....though he just might be able to sell it (see above)!

WIWW: Casino Style

What I Wore Wednesday -

If you've been to a casino, you know they tend to be a bit chilly. They've got to keep you awake! A few years ago, I didn't consider this when I wore a cute dress. This time, I knew better. I knew right away that I'd be incorporating a blazer or cardigan.

Birthday celebration, night out, casino fun....my hot pink blazer was practically begging me to wear it!

And the leopard print wedges were a must too. Yes, definite must.

Blazer: Zara (via eBay)

Tank top: Ann Taylor

Black Skinnies: Ann Taylor (old)

Sandals: Ettiene Aigner (via TJ Maxx)

I don't get to wear this blazer too often, it's a little bright for work. But man do I love it. Especially in this outfit. It adds the perfect amount of color in a less traditional way. Here's another way I've worn it.

What's your favorite, bold piece of clothing? The minute I saw this hot pink blazer, I just knew I had to have it. 

If you like this post please let me know by leaving a comment or liking my Facebook page. You can also follow along on Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Let's stay in touch!

Highrollers

I've been meaning to share these photos for far too long. How has a week already flown by. Whoops.

I may have mentioned this before, but one of my brother-in-laws turned 30 at the end of March. And what better way to celebrate than a night out at the casino? We happened to go on Good Friday which I happened to have off as a holiday. Thank you very much Wall Street (and Jesus).

J and I took our time getting ready, brought Tucker down to the burbs for a sleepover, had lunch with my wonderful in-laws, got my nails and toes did, and then headed on south to Foxwoods.

Even though we may not have had luck on the tables this time, we had sooo much fun! If you've never gone bowling at Highrollers at Foxwoods, I highly recommend it. Yes, its pretty pricey for bowling but its endless food and bottomless beer and wine.

The birthday boy and his lovely wife, the hostess!

Siblings.

More siblings. (in-law :) )

A view of the venue. Bowling alley with chandeliers, yes please.

Help yourself to drinks, yes please.

Celebrate with these fellas

Family.

Hubs showing off his stellar bowling skills

 Back off, he's mine. ;)

Once we left bowling, I turned my camera off. No pictures when gambling. I don't think J would have been happy with a distracting flash. The lack of clocks and cool air always get me at the casino. And the fact that there are so many people up it just never seems as late as it really is.

So we stayed up to the wee hours of the morning night and ended up staying up even later chatting and having an awesome life/our future conversation. And then we woke up way too early of course. I seriously felt like the walking dead the next day. No idea how my eyes stayed open! Very thankful for iced coffee, sunglasses, and a later nap. Much needed.

I hope you had a great birthday Dan! We had so much fun celebrating. And don't worry, 30 is the new 20, right? ;)

How do You Instagram?

I stumbled upon this Instagram data and knew I needed to share it. I don't know about you but I really enjoy Instagram. It reminds me of facebook back in the day when you could click photos on the sidebar and see what photos friends had recently uploaded (and not see all those BS statuses people post and repost....oops did I say that outloud?). I'm certainly guilty a FB statuses myself but I love how Instagram is just pictures. That's what I really enjoy, photos of what's going on in people lives. 

So which filter do you use? And what does it say about you? Lately I've enjoyed using the Low-Fi filter which of course is not mentioned below - The Hyper Hue?

via

If you use Instagram, what's your favorite filter?

Happy Monday!

If you like this post please let me know by leaving a comment or liking my Facebook page. You can also follow along on Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Let's stay in touch!

A Little Late to the Party...

Although mentally I am in Spring mode, there's one area where I just can't seem to beat Mother Nature. Fitness. She is killing me! I kept procrastinating signing up for Tina's Best Body Bootcamp because I thought for sure the weather would warm up and I'd want to run outside. So not the case. Ugh.

Last year at this time, I was starting to seriously train for the half-marathon and J and I were loving running outside in the morning. Nowadays, I check my phone at night to see what the weather will be at 6 am, hoping we'll be able to get out there and run. And this is what I see...

And that's warm compared to most mornings this week...28 degrees has been what I typically see at 6 am. No thanks! And then what do I do? Hit snooze for another hour. 

So something needs to change. Quick too. So I did it. I signed myself up for Tina's Best Body Bootcamp which actually started this past Monday. Thankfully, Tina's allowing people to sign up late for an extra $10. I'll take it! $35 total is still such a deal.

via

I finally got myself to the gym last night too. Between being out of shape AND a gym that's about 80 degrees some nights, I was dying. Proof.

Woof. Hello sweaty betty. (love my new TNF tank!)

So it's happening. This girl is going to get her act together and toning up. The thought that my Spring and Summer clothes could be a little tight is certainly motivation!

Oh and another way we're getting healthy over here...my Vitamix! Oh my gosh, I am soo on board with every other Vitamix owner now. Totally worth it. Yes my blender and magic bullet were fine for simple smoothies but how about adding raw oats, carrots, almonds, or whole apples? Can't even tell! We are definitely taking in more servings of fruits and veggies daily thanks to the best birthday present ever!

Post-workout smoothie: Almond milk, water, banana, peanut butter, spinach, oatmeal, chia seeds, vanilla protein powder. 

What's your motivation to get in shape? Beyond just staying healthy, I gotta say...knowing my arms and legs will be much more visible once the weather warms up definitely gets me moving!

If you like this post please let me know by leaving a comment or liking my Facebook page. You can also follow along on Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Let's stay in touch!

Spring Style

As nice as this weekend was, even Monday, yesterday was frigid! Come on Spring! Either way, my mind is officially in Spring mode. Time to get out the Spring clothes! Or buy some....

I realized that there are many styles I find myself drawn to, but haven't been working them in to my own wardrobe. And I can't say it's because I haven't been shopping (I have), because many times its just a matter of layering the right pieces I already own together.

I've been making a conscious effort lately to upgrade my style. Get all the right pieces together, including accessories. I am horrible at accessorizing! On a regular basis, in my half-awake state, I leave for work without earrings, a necklace, or my watch, and even have left without my wedding rings! I know, I just don't think about it and then I get to work and it's too late. (Wedding rings very rarely happen. I know some of you never take yours off, but I just have to when I shower. Have to).

Anyways, if you follow me on Instagram, you may have caught a few recent outfits. I don't know about you, but I love instagram. And I've found some super stylish gals to follow for outfit inspiration. I don't know how people can look so incredibly put together every single day, but I'm working on it! Blogging about it = accountability!

Some additional looks I'd like to add to my Spring/Summer style:

Neutrals, brights, prints. Who doesn't love polka dots? And this is a great example of something I'd be able to piece together from items I already own I'm sure.

via: Pinterest

Original Source: Glam Things 

 What about mixing two different prints and colors? Definitely bold, but also fun.

via: Pinterest

Original Source: unknown

I am totally on the peplum train. It's such a great cut on most women. And I really love this look paired with colored jeans and a chunky necklace. I am trying to do a much better job of wearing all of the fun statement necklaces and bracelets I've started purchasing (see above and here).

via: Pinterest

Original Source: Polyvore

Ah, the preppy chic look. I always find myself drawn to the collared shirt, cardigan, and perfectly paired accessories look. But hardly every wear it! Well, that's changing starting now. I had a lot of fun putting together my Easter outfit (top left photo) and layering some pieces I already own.

via: Pinterest

Original Source: unknown

Let's be honest, who doesn't love a good casual look? I've been eyeing the Vineyard Vines quarter-zip sweatshirt for quite a while now. At one point they had a seersucker shoulders option and I have been waiting for it to come back. I've been told they change the options up each season so I will continue to wait patiently!

via: Pinterest

Original Source: Polyvore

Lastly, I'm kinda loving that pastels are in this Spring. When I went for a manicure last Friday, I knew I couldn't get pink since I was wearing a pink blazer that night and didn't want to clash, so I was thinking purple. Well, they had every red ever made by OPI but the Essie choices were slim. Thankfully, my future sister-in-law had her nails done in Essie Bikini-so-Teeny last summer and I remember loving it. So I went for it! What do you think?

And I'm excited to try a few of these pastel shades soon.

via

What's on your Spring style list? 

If you like this post please let me know by leaving a comment or liking my Facebook page. You can also follow along on Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram. Let's stay in touch!