spring breakinista

Ian and I are headed to Florida in just a couple days!

Over 10 days we will be spending some time with my grandparents* and on a short cruise to Cozumel and back to Florida.

*these cool folks

Photo by Lucy Hewett

This is my first vacation in 2 years and I'm SO ready. (beyond ready. wish i was leaving right this minute.) 

I am excited for 10 days full of sun, sand, ocean, reading, my grandparents, good food and quality husbandry time. (I also will not be blogging! If I get antsy, I might start researching some projects that I am planning for this summer :) )

As soon as our flights and cruise tickets were booked, my pre-spring break Maxxinista vibes sent me directly to TJ MAXX (of course). In Spring Breakinista fashion, I picked up these beauties in anticipation for our vacation. 

$98.00 BCBG shoes for $39.99. Not too shabby.

Generally, when I have a trip coming up, I head straight to the store(s) and stock up on lots of cheap trendy clothes. Instead of the usual impulsive vacation buy, I only bought these shoes and bowed out of TJ Maxx gracefully without apparel. (My accelerating rate of maturity is impressive, I know.) 

I have some heels and some flats, but these are:
1. not too tall
2. not too short
3. look fairly comfortable (time will tell)
4. can dress up or dress casual

Each of us are only taking a carry on suitcase for 10 days, so multi-functional outfits will be imperative.

I decided to check my closet before I made any unnecessary clothing purchases. I've gained some weight since last summer (probably because I eat too much pulled pork as explained here), so I was a little worried. I tore my closet apart and tried on all my warm weather clothes and dresses. I was impressed on what I found, what still fit, and the fun outfits I created out of clothes that I forgot about! (It's amazing how 6 months of cold weather can freeze your memory.)

When it was all said and done, I ended up purchasing some basic items that will hopefully transcend trends, and be wearable for a few years. These can all be paired up with my trendier closet clothes!

1. full length black maxi dress/bathing suit cover up $19.99 (orig. $40)

2. white short sleeve henley top $14.99 

3. restocked my basic black and white tank tops $12.99

4. comfy calvin klein cargo capris $19.99 (orig. $59)

5. nuetral long sleeve light weight cardigan $17.99 (orig. $70)

My entire spring breakinista purchases were under $140. I should be all set for spring and summer this year!

What is your favorite find this spring?

happy spring! xo
*I'll be back to blogging the first week of May. Hopefully, with some awesome pictures!

raw

I've been scared of raw meat my whole life.

Mostly likely this fear stems from my guilt of slaughtering and eating helpless animals.

Preparing raw meat is one thing. Ordering cooked meat is another. It's not so real when its fried and dipped in ranch.

#1 fear - raw meat. I'd rather change four diapers then handle 1 hunk of meat. Hopefully, that ratio paints a picture for you.

#2 fear - the dark. I've pin pointed where my fear of dark comes from (a prank my parents played on me in elementary school). I'll save that for another day.

I've stayed away from raw meat my entire life. Even the step of cutting the meat after it's cooked grossed me out for years. This is why my parents cut my steak/chicken/pork for me until I went to college (then let's be honest, I probably lived off of breadsticks, pizza, and beer the next four years). Feel free to judge.

But in my defense, I was a good kid. The least my parents could do is (provide me with a roof over my head, love me, care for me) serve me steak in perfect - no fat - high maintenance- bites, right?

10 years later I'm cutting my own meat. (Baby steps.) Yes, cutting meat is not a problem any longer. And somehow, I have only had to touch raw meat about 5 times in the last 4 years. I'm really not sure how I have managed this impeccable statistic.

Even better, I have found myself in a very delightful position of having dinner cooked for me 6 nights a week. Commuting 100 miles a day is pretty awful, but it sure is nice coming home to a hot meal!

Ian and I plan our meals for the week on Saturday or Sunday, and then go to the grocery together to pick up the ingredients. Ian cooks 4 nights a week, we go out 1 night a week, we both cook dinner together 1 night a week (I would do it myself, but it is "his" kitchen after all, and he has a hard time letting me takeover :), and depending on if we are in Indy or Defiance, a set of parents cook for us one night a week.

Here is our weekly menu board we update.

That week doesn't look particularly healthy to the naked eye, but I have elaborated below:

Tilapia & Steamed Broccoli.
Grilled Chicken Salad
Burgers (no bun & mine was turkey burger) with vinegar based Coleslaw (not mayo)
Pizza (this was out "night out". Piper had surgery so we wanted to stay home with her.)
Tacos & Beer  (Ok, this night was a little unhealthy. This was actually pulled pork tacos which I made!)

I have been obsessed with pulled pork since I have moved to Defiance. A new discovery in this town full of surprises. Now get this, I can get a pulled pork burrito at an Italian restaurant on their Mexican night (got that?). It's delicious. I also get a pulled pork wrap with Cashman's Barbecue sauce at a restaurant called Scotties that used to be called Cashmans. (got that?)

This brings me to when I touched raw meat this year.
I touched raw meat on Good Friday. (I'm not Catholic! So it's OK.)

I had the day off from work, so I planned ahead to make pulled pork (& take care of Piper post surgery). Earlier in the week we picked up a crock pot at Kohl's for less than $20 (with a coupon & on sale). I sang at church in the morning, and then headed home to prepare the big meal...on my own...for the first time in a really long time.

I started by looking in one of the cookbooks I got for my wedding. I got REALLY impatient (surprised?), and decided to google "pulled pork". I went with the first pulled pork recipe that didn't require me to use any pan other than my crockpot. This way, I only had to touch the big hunk of meat once.

(cookbook: 0, computer: 1)

I used a 4 pound pork shoulder (butt) and followed this recipe here, Slow Cooker Texas Pulled Pork, except for the Worcestershire sauce because we didn't have any. The transfer of the pork from the package to the crockpot was a bit traumatic, but I survived.

I used a local barbecue sauce (same as the used at the restaurant I talked about above).

I cooked it from noon to 5pm, and after stirring it (and picking out the fat) randomly for the last hour, it shredded itself into the perfect consistency.

I also didn't use the bun the recipe calls for. It was taco night!

And what's taco night without these ingredients?

All and all, my taco night was a success, and we had a ton of pork leftover that we froze for another meal or two. I survived raw meat, and I'm looking forward to touching it again next year.

cheers! xo

country classic

Country classic. This is how (TJ MAXX) HomeGoods has defined my home style.

I never thought country would define me. This scared me a little bit. (Defiance, OH, What have you done to me!)

Until I read further... I realized they must have somehow found a way to peer into my home.

Savanna, You Are A COUNTRY CLASSIC

You have a naturally refined sensibility with an appreciation for tradition and history. 
(I do!!! I love things that I can connect to our family history. Or just something awesome from the antique store.)

You value beauty, craftsmanship, and family heirlooms, but you like to open things up with pretty, easy-going pieces like painted wood or distressed furniture, lovely florals and other patterns, and bunches of fresh flowers that give your home a breezy, relaxed feeling (hello! just wait until my peonies bloom. peony heaven in my home). You love unique finds, have a thrifty, creative side, and can make these things work together.

You value creativity. You are stylish and fun loving, and can be an inspiration to others. You have a natural sense of drama, and you know you have to be willing to take risks—whether with colors, finishes, furniture choices, or ideas—for your home to stand out. Your home can be happy and lively and the place all of your friends want to be.

I knew I loved TJ Maxx.
(I swear I'm not being paid to say that.  . . yet)
HomeGoods, their sister store, is even more amazing.

What style are you? Take the quiz here.

happy home! xo

*all photos are from our home, taken by me.

asymmetry

I like asymmetry in clothing. It's sexy and well...sexy.

It's been around for a while now in this form:

{image from here}

But what I am really digging these days is the asymmetry in this form:

{image from April 2nd US weekly magazine}

Asymmetric cut and sew with sheer polka dots. (Hello, wonderful!)

1 - Polka dots have been around forever and are timeless (duh)
2 - Sheer polka dots have been back in the spotlight since this past fall.
3 - But sheer polka dots combined with sexy-but-modest, stunning-for-all-ages cut and sew?
Can you say, LOVE at first site?

I happened to see that my sassy & hip younger cousin Allie was struttin' a version of this out in London recently (she studied abroad this past winter/spring and just got back!)

{image from facebook}


Allie, where did you get that and how much did it cost?!
Update: Allie got this from Primark for 10 pounds ~ $15.00. aka not in the states and I checked and there is no online store. sad.

I also saw this cut and sew asymmetry all over the media too.
I hate it.


{image from here}

Poor Leann Rimes. Her body image is awful and her taste in clothes is even more horrible. I'm hoping some other designer can take this trend to the next.... better level.

That was a downer. Let's get back polka dots, they make me so happy (well almost as happy as buying a pair of $7.99 orange jeans discussed here).

Hop on the polka dot train... [it's taking off!]... I have to remind you about these polka dot jeans from Anthropologie that I talked about here. These are $218. Not happening.

I am still on the hunt for a cheaper pair if anyone knows of a place? [Still no TJ MAXX siting!]



{image from here}

I'm thinking about turning one of my colored jeans into polka dot jeans in early May!

Can't buy it? Make it! Anybody have any advise on what type of bleach or clothing paint to use???

polka pants! xo

the things kids say

This post is written in jealousy.

Yes, I am jealous of my husband. Him, right there.

Photo by Lucy Hewett

Yes, he is handsome (if I do say so myself). And he is very tall (that is just a fact). The attention he gets is unreal. He doesn't want it, but he gets it.

#1 reason for attention - his height. (he is 6'6")

#2 reason for attention - his hair. (it is in abundance and has a nice flow & wave)

#3 reason for attention - I have no idea, but for some reason kids really dig Ian. He is not overly nice to kids. He doesn't seek their attention. But they gravitate to him like he is a character out of the Pirates of the Caribbean. I will get back to this point in a minute.





I adore kids. When I am around them, I do seek their attention.

I started babysitting when I was a kid. At the age of 10, I begged our neighbors to babysit their kids. Finally, they agreed and went to dinner, leaving us for a two hour experiment (can this little girl take care of our kids!? yes maam!) I succeeded! From that age to about 14 years old sometimes my mom would stop by and bring me over leftovers from dinner (and probably to check in on her baby watching babies). I then continued to babysit, in addition to other jobs, through middle school, high school and college (during school breaks and on the weekends). The money was great, and the company was even greater.

I just find kids and their curiosity amazing. I love their perspective and ... the things they say.

In addition to babysitting, of course my little sisters were a blast.

Shelby, the youngest, was a very serious baby. She rarely smiled and if she could have talked in full sentences, it always seemed she was looking at you like, "you dummy. i am so much smarter than you think." In fact, she probably was. I know I'm bragging a lot (but this is my soapbox people!) but Shelby, now in the 5th grade recently tested into a much, much higher grade level. Ah, to have her brains!

Anyways, my favorite game with Shelby was the "my mommy" game. I would give my mom a hug and say "my mommy." Then Shelby would get really mad and cling to my mom and say, "no, my mommy!!!!." I know, that was sort of mean, but even with 16 years difference in age, teasing siblings a little bit is a necessity.

Sydney on the other hand was a bubbly and smiley baby and toddler. One day, when she was about 6- 8 months of age, she was sitting in her car seat and I was playing with her. I thought for some reason that she could catch a squishy soft ball (the size of a tennis ball but made of a soft foam-like substance). Well, I threw the ball at her and she did not catch it (I'm sure you are surprised). It hit her (softly) in the head and she looked at me like, "girl, you crazy." Then she proceeded to laugh so hard and for so long (this was my first time hearing her laugh in this capacity) that I'm pretty sure she peed her pants. Understandable.

Another fond memory I have of Sydney is somewhere between the age of 1 and 2 where she looked at me one day and said, "sh*t - butt." How in the world did this little blue-eye babe regurgitate the two worst words she knew and combine them for greater impact? Amazing.

Back to my main point, Ian has had two notable run-ins with kids recently.

1 - Ian taught a Junior Achievement program at Defiance Elementary School. One of the kids asked him if he was "the godfather." (What?!)

2 -  Ian was at the bank, standing in line, when he overheard a young boy tell his mom the man standing next to him (Ian) was a "real life billionaire." (I wish!)

3- Ok, this next story isn't about a kid.

For New Year's Eve we went to one of those over-priced parties in downtown Chicago. (I had to try it once! Lesson learned - not worth it!) When Ian left me to get a second helping at the buffet, I was already ready to leave. My feet hurt (I hadn't worn heels that long since my wedding & the flashing lights were making me dizzy.)

Apparently, at these events, the rings on your left hand are invisible. As soon as Ian left my side, I got a nice visitor that asked me if I wanted a drink. I pointed to my full glass, tried to flash my diamond ring, and said,"no thanks." He didn't get the hint until I did a complete lap around the floor to lose him. It worked, and then Ian found me and told me that some girls asked him if he was a "CEO". (Yes, ladies, my 27 year-old husband in his first 5 months of practicing law is a CEO. NOT! stupid - gold digging - losers. Sorry, that's mean. But I was so ready to leave at this point, and I think we had been there for less then 2 hours... and it was 10pm.) Ian and I stayed as long as we could and decided to leave and watch the ball drop from our hotel room TV. Much better.

I guess the moral of this story is. . . er. . . kids think Ian is pretty cool. So do I.

happy wife! xo

dear 10 year-old me

As a follow up to my post here, my first "Dear Me" post!

Dear 10 year-old me,

I know you are terrified of moving to Indianapolis and having to make new friends, but you will find some great ones that will be by your side for a very long time. Also, being closer to your grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins will be something you will cherish forever. 

You will get your first (and last) "D" and it will be frightening, but let it be a lesson to you that you have to work hard for the things you want. 

Stop worrying about the kids calling you "spaz-anna". It hurts now, but some day you will wonder how in the world 10 year-olds could be so observant. Unfortunately, it won't be the worst thing you are called either.

A boy will "ask you out" for the first time. You will say no, because you don't know what in the world "going out" means. Good job! You will have plenty of years in the future to think about boys. 

Stop teasing and fighting with your younger brother! Love him and support him. I know you won't believe this, but someday you will actually like hanging out with him. 


Also, get excited. The next few years are about to get interesting... (hint hint)

Love,
 your much older and wiser version of yourself

happy hunting

Easter eggs, that is :) 


Here are some photos I took around my yard in celebration of Easter, love, gardens, God, spring, family, sunshine, sandals, hope and bunnies that hide eggs.

Happy hunting! xo

oh dear me

When my oldest-younger sister, Sydney, turned 13 (aka a teenager) in March, the alarms of worry sounded within me.

I panicked. 

I was in Indy around her birthday and decided I needed to have a talk with her about life (Because hers is speeding by me like a high speed train! This needs to happen now!). 

Sydney was in her room, so I let myself in and told her that we needed to have a talk.

She asked me, "Why? Dad already gave me the talk?"

I proceeded to very tactfully tell her that, "it's scary out there. . . and that sex can cause cancer."

(Wow, Savanna. Good job, you just jumped straight to sex and freaked your sister out. She will never call you for advice about anything.

A bit extreme, but I didn't make this STD up. The sexual transmitted desease is called HPV and has been advertised heavily due to the gardasil vaccine. You can learn more about HPV here.)

Then I said, that we could finish the conversation later, and that if she ever needed anything she could call me anytime. (I haven't received any phone calls yet.)

Since I live 2 hours away, (and can only stalk the 13-year-old on facebook) I've decided that if I can't get them on the phone (or communicate is a non-abrasive manner), maybe some self-reflection via social media will get their attention? And perhaps . . . allow them to learn from some of my experiences and feelings growing up.

This self-reflection will be in a series of "dear me" posts to my blog.
(I was considering doing a whole blog around this theme, but getting me to focus on one topic is well.... about as crazy as getting me to move to a town of only 17,000 people. Oh, wait, bad example.)

These "dear me" posts are inspired by the following (nope, I'm not that good):

1 - A Facebook viral video (not a bad virus!) called "Dear 16-year-old-me", that I watched in January. Dear 16-year-old-me focuses on skin cancer and prevention.

2 - This website , http://www.dearme.org/ is pretty neat too. There is a book you can buy on the site that is a collection of well known people and their letters to their younger selves. There are also some excerpts on the website, including J.K Rowling's forward to the book, where she says, "The overwhelming message of this body of letters seems to be: Be yourself. Be easier on yourself. Become yourself, as fully as possible.

3 - A link a friend shared on Facebook (thanks Meri!) that was about reflecting on your twenties here.

& lastly . . .

my sweet sisters.

Sydney is 13 (7th grade) and Shelby is 11 (5th grade). Since I can't handcuff myself to them in difficult situations, I will resort to this... because it's the decisions and experiences over the next five to ten years that will shape their whole life.

photo by Lucy Hewett

Let me be clear - I trust them. My sisters are both so incredibly special (ya, ya, I'm sure your kids and siblings are too). Sydney is insanely creative, and Shelby is a genius.

But, I'm a worrier. Those ages in my own life hold some of my most vivid memories and experiences...

1- Some of my experiences were great, like winning student of the year in 7th grade (whoops, did I mention that already here?)

2- Some were nerve racking, like being dared to kiss a boy (sorry dad) and singing a Mariah Carey duet in front of a large audience (Hero).

3- Some were awful, like being made fun of ALL of middle school for not having boobs.

In case you are worried, I will not stop all actual human - face to face - verbal - communication with my sisters. This is simply a starting point, and an aid.

Stay tuned for the first, "dear me." xo

hairful what you wish for

Circa Summer 2010, while watching the show 90210, I became obsessed with Annie's (aka Shenae Grimes) hair.

Such magnificent color.

From light to dark.

From dark to light.

 Annie your hair is so beautiful. 

As I have gotten older, I have been on the conservative side when it comes to my hair.

I spent about 5 years of my earlier life as a blonde (crazy, right!?)
Here is a sort-of-blonde picture of me from New Years 2006. (I'm on the left)

But for a very long time now, I have been a very boring 1-color-brunette, like this below. (Here is my hair getting beautified for my wedding. A photo my good friend Lucy Hewett took.)

When I moved to Defiance, and found a hair dresser (the same one Ian goes to, but let's not go there), I decided to try and mimic "Annie" and got some very contrasting blonde highlights on the underneath part of my hair. Then with wedding planning in full swing, I chickened out and opted for solid brunette to and through the wedding. 

Once the wedding was over... and the fall faded into winter... I was ready to beat those winter blues with a party (in my hair)!!!

I joined Pinterest and my obsession with this hair color trend continued....let's call it "ombre" for easy reference.

This past December, my hair stylist and I talked through this ombre look again, and she attempted this look based on a photo I brought her. She had not been trained on this technique yet.
(Scary, right? I'm so brave.)

It worked out pretty well, but because the undertones of my brunette hair were red, the "ombre" turned out to be blackish-brown to golden (orange). I didn't love it, but it was headed in the right direction. We could have stayed longer and worked on it some more, but I don't prefer to be at the salon for a bazillion hours. She left it open for me to come back and work on it some more if I wanted, so I decided I needed to sleep on it (no pun intended :) hehe).

Well, I decided to sleep on it for a couple months, until my next appointment. I wore my hair straight a lot and really the "ombre" wasn't very noticeable.

At my next appointment in February, my hairdresser still hadn't been trained on this technique specifically, but she said this look was a "buzz" around the salon. Instead of doing anything dramatic, we decided to just "go with it" and pull some blonde through the bottom to add some more depth.

It actually turned out pretty cool!

It might not be your thing. But it's kind of fun to try something new! There are many versions of this "ombre" out there right now.

If you are interested in some version of this "ombre," my friend at work, who is a licensed hair dresser (Hi Leslie!) told me she did research she found the technique to be called "melting".

I went to a hair appointment last week, and my hairdresser said that they taught this technique at her week long training event (for Rusk) in Chicago after my last appointment!!!
(Of course! My timing is impeccable.).

(I actually plan on trying to do an allover lighter version of this in May. So last week I didn't get any color put on. I'm going to let my dark fade some more. But I did let her try some new "circle cut" she learned in Chicago. It's basically a bunch of long and short layers under my hair to add volume and it added some pizazz to my already colored hair. The photos below are my new cut and curls with a clip less curling iron) 

Now for inquiring minds...yes, Piper copied off of me. (OK, I copied off of her.)

happy hair! xo

PS. My blog post title really doesn't go with the post. I just "went with it"! :)

fancy pants

My first trend alert!!!

Actually, it's not an alert. I'm about 3 - 4 months behind on this. But hello, I just started blogging!

This spring is all about bright colors. They are everywhere!!!


I've incorporated into my nail polish collection. . . and other accessories.

But most exciting of all, this season is about colorful denim on those hot legs! Three months ago began the excitement around bright denim, and now the focus is shifting to pastels for the summer.


















You can get this pair of jeans for a measly $125 from J.Crew.

OR you can shop smart like I do and have a whole closet full of colorful denim for less than $90.

    (from right to left)

1. Teal purchased from Forever 21 in 2010 (I'm so ahead of the trends, it isn't funny :).
    Cost: I can't remember, but probably less than $30.

2. Burgundy purchased from Kohl's in Fall 2011.
    Cost: crap. I can't remember exactly, but I think it was less than $30, on sale & with a coupon.

3. Blue purchased from TJ MAXX in January 2012.
    Cost: $19.99.

4. Orange purchased from TJ MAXX on clearance in January 2012.
    Cost: $7.99.

J.Crew quality might "out-wear" these, but that's not a concern of mine because I doubt the trend will last long enough. OR I'll be on to another color palette by next Spring!

Now, for the fun part of this leg trend! 

Please welcome back, Kelly. She will re-introduce us to floral jeans!

 this guy beat me to this trend and posted about it in February. (Gr. I'm so behind!)

Here is Jenna Dewan wearing them in that article:


If you are nervous about how to wear these, don't worry, Cosmo is offering some advice here.



Now, where can you pick up a pair? Looking at Polyvore, it seems only the high-end brands have them right now. I haven't seen these beauties in TJ MAXX yet. (I'll let you know the second I do!) Have you seen them anywhere for less than $50?!


Don't like the flowers? Anthropologie has polka-dot denim here!


If the denim part of this trend scares you, it looks like stretch cotton pants in all sorts of flowers and patterns are here for the summer too. H&M has a pair for $14.95! Stella McCartney has a silk pair for only $1,165.00. Hurry, though they are running low on inventory! :)

shop smart! xo

i make things

Fashion and trends have been important to me.
For as long as I can remember actually...

Like in 2nd grade when I wore a head-to-toe orange fruit outfit. (Be nice, it was the 90's.)

Or here in third grade when I wore a sequin floral dress. (Open your eyes Savanna! you look gorgeous!)

And just a typical Sunday at grandmas, playing dress up with my brother and cousins! (Do I look too old to be playing dress-up?)

Back to fashion and trends, this is related to what I do and have done now for almost 5 years. (A job that I drive 100 miles everyday to do!)

What I do is never an easy explanation for some reason.

My answer usually is, "well I make things" (ok, maybe not that. well maybe once. i'm so awkward).

I think I usually say, "I'm a merchandiser. I make hats and accessories. Well I don't make them, but we work with designers to create them, and we source them for well known brands."

Then I receive a nod (of confusion) and a look like this...


(hi kelly!)

(pssst. kelly is will be featured in my first trend alert post, coming soon)

My mom didn't "get it" either until after two years on the job, I finally took her into a Dick's Sporting Goods (my last company) and handed her a hat and said... 

Me: "I did this."

Mom: "You did this?"

Me: "Yes, mom... and this one, and this one and this one.

I am a merchandiser (aka product developer/account manager) of hats and coldweather accessories. 

I am a behind the scenes in the retail industry, a dynamic industry that is very fast paced, very analytical, (exhausting at times), creative, and yes, we are mind readers. Here is a quick lesson for you:

Retail Merchandising 101:
1: Products don't magically appear in the store. We work almost a year or more in advance, using past related sales information, and the mind reading skills of designers trend and color projections to create products.
2: Then once products are created, they need to be sourced. Pricing is negotiated with suppliers and suppliers are chosen.
3: At the same time, before the total quantities are ordered, buyers and planners come up with the budget based on (that's right!) more analysis. They also decide what the initial price will be, tentatively plan what/when the sale or marked down price will be (this is flexible depending on sales trends once the goods hit the store).
4: Next, there is lots of work and coordination to get the product produced right, and within compliance guidelines. Once complete, goods are shipped and transported to a distribution center.
5: Once at the distribution center, analysts send products to each stores in specific quantities based on.... analysis. (i know, sorry)
6: Before the goods even get to the store, a whole different team of people already decided where the goods are placed in the store and the signage next to it. (also, based on analysis & some creative minds)
7: Once product is at the store, inventory and sales are analyzed very frequently and decisions are made around on whether to make the price lower,  move it somewhere else in the store, update signage, ect.

That's a lot isn't it!? I've been on the buying side in apparel, but my first job role and my current job fits into points 1, 2 and 4.

I haven't really put much thought into how I ended up in retail merchandising as a career until my aunt Heidi reminded me that I used to coordinate outfits for my cousins and I during family vacations. . .

And maybe I'm so good at retail math because when I was younger, if I wanted my mom to buy me something in a store, I had to correctly calculate (without a calculator) the final price with the discount. (ok, it's really not that hard, but at tween age it was just a tad bit annoying!)

I may not appear 100% put-together-trendy all the time, because in the balance of life, how i look isn't always the priority. And if I could wear the brands I really wanted to wear all the time, I would need a very large pay increase. So, when there's room for me in the budget, I spend quite a significant amount of that money at TJ Maxx hunting for great deals for our home, discounted brand-name shoes/bags, and cheap, but trendy "no-brand" apparel (that will last as long as the trend will last.)

My goal in future posts related to is to share trends, and where to get them for a steal! Stay tuned!