Cara Box

This month's Cara Box with Wifessionals was a little different. We were paired up based on our age group and status, meaning I got paired with other 30 something year olds with kids. I thought that was fun since we would all definitely have something in common. 

I got paired with Kim from my crazy beautiful life (who I sent to) and Sybil from peace it all together (who I received from). Kim is a fairly new blogger and so I was really relying on our email exchanges to get to know more about her. I really enjoy our e-mail exchanges, I can tell that she is one of those people that can hold a good conversation.
Sybil is so sweet and I have really been enjoying reading about her son (who is fairly close in age to my son) and of course the rest of her family too. She sent me the best cara box (no offence to all the other cara boxes), I seriously feel so spoiled by her.

A scarf, a clutch, pretty polishes and bracelets!! And the colors of everything... so pretty and so perfect. It's almost as if she was my best friend and knew exactly what I would like. I cannot thank her enough for everything she sent me.  I can't wait to see what everyone else got.

 

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back to school night... mustard & geo

Can I tell you how excited I was last night to attend babe's first back to school night ever! It's so silly, but I had butterflies in my stomach. I got to the school at 5:30 to attend a sort of assembly, it ended at 6:00 and then I waited 30 minutes for my husband to arrive so we can go into the classroom. We sat in tiny toddler chairs and listened to the 2 pre-K teachers talk for 20 minutes, discussing schedules, volunteering, meals, homework, etc. I wanted to take advantage of the "any questions" moments... yes... I'm one of those moms...lol..

top, necklace & skirt: forever 21 // purse: target

 

I wanted to wear something cute, not boring, not overdone... but I don't think it would have mattered what I wore since I interacted with the teachers as much as they would allow me to.

Did you know I have an obsession with purse's?! Yeah, if you don't know me, you would probably never guess it, but purse's are my accessory weakness. I got this one on clearance for $6! It was literally hiding in the back of some clearance cups and pitchers in the kitchen department and I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw a $6 tag. I love Target clearance.

what is the best clearance item you have scored lately?

 

linking up with the pleated poppy and style elixir

 

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simple salad recipe

As much as I love all the foods that taste SO good but aren't so good for you (French Fries, Pizza, Burgers, you know)..... I have to admit that I am a huge salad lover. One of my favorite salad recipe's is also the easiest ever... I promise. Especially when you are making a salad for one person. It sucks making a salad for one person and you have to spend 10 minutes just cutting everything. I originally got the idea from Stone Oven. They have a Goat Cheese Chicken salad that is so yummy (btw, I just noticed on their menu this salad now comes with bacon instead of cranberries, kind of a bummer because the cranberries are part of what makes it so good).

you will need:

• lettuce (any kind you like) I prefer iceberg and spinach
• dried cranberries
• cashews
• goat cheese
• balsamic vinaigrette

one or both of the following:

• granny smith apple - sliced (optional)
• chicken breast (optional)

Place as much lettuce as you can eat in a bowl and sprinkle with as much dried cranberries, cashews and goat cheese as you like. Drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette. And top with either some sliced granny smith apples or chicken..... or if you have a bigger appetite, Both! Enjoy!

do any of you have any super simple salad recipe's to share?

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craving... a vacation

Way back in January I had mentioned that I really wanted to take a REAL vacation this year. The last time my husband and I took at least a week long vacation was before babe was born. And since he has been born, the only REAL vacation we took was about 3 years ago to North Carolina and he was with us. We have taken a few small trip that last 2 or 3 days but I am craving a serious getaway!

I want to leave work behind for days and not think about it, not once. I want to lounge on a beach all day without having to worry about cleaning the house or cooking dinner when I get home. I want to dress up for dinner's just because I'm on vacation. I want to stay up late and not have to worry about getting babe his last cup of milk, or brushing his teeth, or snuggling him till he falls asleep (not that I don't love snuggles!)

This past weekend we celebrated our 6 year anniversary. And it was just another reminder of how much we need time alone. We didn't do anything too exciting since we are still patiently waiting for our Hawaii trip (soon hopefully) but we did go to a cute little bakery nearby and shared some fancy dessert. I had the yummiest cappuccino and my husband had tea.

Is anyone else planning any last summer vacation trips?

 

Also... Do you think it's weird that as a blogger I didn't dedicate a whole post to my anniversary? I think I read an anniversary post every day this week. Maybe I'll remember next year.

 

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low waisted

I have been wanting a low waisted dress for a while and was so excited when I scored this one from h&m super cheap. I'm already thinking of so many ways to wear it during the fall and winter. But since we're still in summer temps I'm keeping it simple with a necklace and cute flats.

dress and shoes: h&m // necklace: forever 21

 

 

Is there a particular item you are looking forward to wearing this fall?

 

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a few favorites

*Kohls has an insane amount of clearance items and I actually had a chance to look through it all. I picked up jeans, a top and 2 bandeau's for $7.40! (I also used a $10 coupon that came in the mail)

*This week Laura from Roots and Feathers shared the Wanderlust lookbook. Every page is so beautiful and dreamy. And the pieces she created are amazing as usual.
 
*I'm loving this song by Drake - Hold on we're going home

*Babe started Pre-K this past Tuesday, and although it wasn't a very happy day it's still a huge milestone and worth mentioning and sharing.

linking up with style elixir and katie did what

 

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babe lately... Pre-K edition

Tuesday August 13, we had been waiting MONTHS for this day to arrive. Babe was excited, I was excited.... and when the day finally arrived, we both ended up in tears.

I imagined the first day of Pre-K would be full of smiles, hugs, kisses and lots of pictures. In reality, it was the complete opposite. I stayed up Monday night making a cute little chalkboard sign that read "Pre-K" with babe's name, age and the date. On Tuesday morning he woke up, ate a good breakfast, helped pick out an outfit and picked a 2 pocket folder with a sheltie puppy on it. As my husband got the car ready I asked babe if I can take a picture of him holding the sign I made... he said "I don't want to, I don't like it. I don't want to go to school". And the sadness began.

As we walked towards the gate, my husband and I holding each of babe's hands, he started whimpering and sometimes crying, saying he didn't want to go. He had the saddest look on his face and I had to not stare at him in order not to cry. At one point I remembered I had a mini Snickers in my purse. I put it in his shirt pocket and told him he could eat it when we picked him up. We continued walking and got to the classroom. We were the first one's there and had to wait about 10 minutes to be let in.

When they finally opened the door a teacher's assistant gave instruction's that every morning the kids will need to be in a line, and then started handing out name tags (just until they know every one's name). Babe was the last one called and when we tried to put the name tag on he pulled it off his neck and cried, we tried a few times and failed. He started crying more, resisting our attempts to get him in line. All the kids were in the classroom and as the teacher was about to close the door I had to point out that my kid was still not in the room. She walked over to my husband and grabbed babe away, saying "I got him", she instructed me to throw his name tag in the room and proceeded to close the door... but not before babe reached out one little arm and screamed "MOM!", I tried to give a quick wave but the second the door shut I literally felt my heart drop and started crying.

We went home and waited 2.5 of the longest hours of my life. I couldn't wait to see his little face... they were like 5 minutes late opening the door when we went to pick him up. When he finally walked out of the classroom he did not look happy. The teacher said he cried for about 20 minutes but then was fine. He still ignored our camera's and didn't want to talk to us, but was quick to point at his pocket indicating that he wanted his Snickers... unfortunately it was squished flat. We told him we wanted to take him somewhere or buy him something to celebrate his 1st day of school... boba, yogurt land, his pick... but he said he didn't want "special things" and just wanted to stay home. It made me sad.

He eventually said he wanted boba and told me that he ate fishy crackers at school and learned how to "clean up" his mess. Everyday he says "mom, I don't want to go to school", with the saddest look on his face. I'm looking forward to the days when he says "mom, this is what I did at school"...

a bird dress

If you know me, you know I love birds. I'm a sucker for a pretty bird print and when I saw this dress at Target, I fell in love. I didn't, however, love the $25 price tag. I tried it on anyway and noticed one of the waist strings was missing, so I thought "maybe they will give me a discount"... doesn't hurt to ask right. So I take it to the register and the super nice cashier says she can take off 10%... awesome! and it was on sale for $20 AND I had a $3 coupon.... so final price ... $15!! sold!

 dress and sandals: Target // necklace: forever21

 

How adorable is the heart cutout in the back... so in love.

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i'm still here

Oh Hi! Can you believe it's been a whole week since I posted anything... literally ANYTHING... no blog, no FB, no Instagram.
So this is what happened:
last weekend we went camping at the lake right, of course there is no WiFi but then we get home on Sunday and discover we had no internet. I remember being pretty bummed that I wouldn't be able to post my camping pictures right away but it would only be a 24 hour wait for the cable guy to come out and see what the problem was. Monday rolls around and first thing babe does when he wakes up is puke all over himself. I head to work (I have no choice) and check in with my husband every hour all day but babe is still sick. I get home and we have internet so I take care of babe and post a few pics from our trip. Tuesday after work I take this picture in preparation for a Wed. outfit post and less than 2 hours afterwards... I get sick!!

 

I was up all night and puking every hour till 5:00 am on wed. I spent most of Wednesday on the couch feeling like crap and stayed home Thursday as well. But come Friday I was back at work, and as soon as work was over I was in baby shower mode for my cousin. We cooked, baked, decorated and had a successful party on Saturday. This past week was crazy, and I'm looking forward to getting back to my normal schedule.

a little weekend getaway at the lake

This past weekend we took a quick camping trip at Buena Vista. Babe had so much fun swimming, riding on the boats and sleeping in a tent. As much as I don't enjoy the thought of "camping", I can't wait to do it again. 

 

a few favorites

Besides the fact that I am leaving work at noon today here are a few favorite's this week.

*Did you hear?!... You can now shop ON-LINE at h&m!! AND they have a home department! If you subscribe to their newsletter you can get free shipping on your first order.

*I am so loving these songs: Lorde - Royals and Zedd - Clarity (feat. Foxes) (btw, my husband just informed me that he played this song at my b-day party which was way back in Feb. and he is asking why I'm JUST now loving it. "Sorry I'm not cool like you... gosh")

*I actually saw this post last week but since I didn't write a favorites post last week I will share it with you now. Janssen from  Everyday Reading wrote the sweetest post about an umbrella she bought years ago for her brother. I don't want to give the story away so you should definitely check it out... you might need a tissue, just a warning.

 

And soon we will be off to enjoy some time at the lake

(summer 2011 at the lake)

 

I hope you all have something fun planned this weekend!

 

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