the 2 mimosa diet

Today can probably end now.
I've done everything I want to do for the day, can't it just be time for bed?


I  "accidentally" woke up to watch the Royal Wedding - it was an accident because I only wanted to turn the TV on at 4am so I could just open my eyes and check on things throughout the rest of my night. yea right. I was hooked. So basically I have been awake since 4am this morning, watched the Royal Wedding twice (once at home and then once with friends at 9:30am), been on 2 conference calls, sat in one meeting and re-designed a full page ad. All before 5pm. That people is what I would like to call a successful day.

Red Bull call me, I could be your newest sponsor. 

So was it just me, or did Pippa kinda outshine her newly crowned Princess sister? I've officially decided that all my bridesmaids have to look super ugly at my (never going to happen) wedding. On the bright-side, trash bags are cheap ladies :) 


But alas, I still have drinks to drink, friends from out of town to hang out with and I need to feed myself (apparently my 2 mimosa breakfast is not a sufficient enough diet for us early risers).


If you want to vote on some of the Royal Wedding's craziest outfits/hats and of course the most famous wedding dress in the world ... head on over to Outfitchec.com!


Here is a (rather blurry thanks to the mimosas) picture of the Royal Wedding watching party - enjoy!

maxi love affair

Dress: Anthropologie

Sweater: Nordstrom Rack

Belt / Shoes: Target

Does anyone know the legal way to change your first name?
I'm thinking I may want to make it official and change my name from Maggie to Maxi.I figure since maxi dresses are my absolute favorite article of clothing on the planet, I might as well pay tribute and change my name to honor the greatest item of clothing ever made. I really think I would have loved living back in the olden days where women wore long dresses because they were expected to - I wish someone would expect me to so I could get away with wearing these gems everyday of my life. I fear that until a time machine is invented, if I were to wear my maxis everyday I would just be considered weird. 


Weird but (hella) comfortable. I think this type of decision involves a pros/cons list and a legit game of rock-paper-scissors with John (who will obviously be playing on the side of weirdness).


I got all caught up explaining my Kmart adventures yesterday, that I forgot to mention that I lost Remy! More like Remy is an idiot and lost himself, but non the less, he was lost. in my house. Let me remind you that I live in a midget mansion and the chances of me loosing my dog in these cramped quarters are about the same as me loosing John in here. not a chance.


Normally I leave Rem-Rod in his crate, but because I only planned to be gone for a few minutes I left him out and locked the front door. When I got home, I unlocked the door, no Remy. very weird.
I opened every shower curtain, called for him, looked under the beds - nothing. not even a whimper or a cry for help. WTF. At this point I was ready to call the cops and file a report saying someone had stole Lil Rem right out of my house. 15 minutes of terror later I opened the last closed door in my house. my closet. There is he was, all 30 pounds of him, on the other side of my laundry basket just chillin'.


stupid dog. 


On the subject of stupid - check out this gem my mom brought back from Europe for John. He's always the lucky one.

i love k _ _ _ _ ?

Shirt: Gap

Tank: Target

Pants: Gap

Shoes: Nine West

I bought this shirt a few weeks ago at the Gap when all their tops were 50% off AND I had a $20 dollar off Gap rewards card. Basically, the Gap got robbed that day. I was able to walk out with this $50 shirt for a cool $6 bucks. bring it on Gap.


A very weird thing happened today. I think some would even consider what happened a revelation of sorts. An epiphany might be pushing the envelope a little much, but none the less I came to a realization.


Kmart is cool. It dawned on me as I was roaming the aisles looking for a slip (finally) .... that I could actually see myself wearing some of the clothing in their womens and juniors sections. Yes, I did ask myself if my one glass of wine had somehow gotten my drunk, if my cheapness had reached an all new low, and if maybe I had walked into the wrong store? 
Answers: No, maybe, and no.
I was very surprised to see magazine worthy maxi dresses, Jcrew(ish) looking bathing suits, super cute bathing suit cover-ups, and more importantly .... CHEAP slips!
Once you get over the fact that you are shopping in Kmart - there is an endless world of clothing possibilities. 


Who knows what's next... Wal Mart? Crazier things have happened.

Here's a few of my Kmart favorites - eat your heart out Anthropologie. you've got some stiff competition.


(You can weigh in and rate these kmart gems over at Outfitchec.com)

the white truth

Shirt: Gap 

Jeans: Gap

Shoes: Payless

I think it's also pretty lame (of me) that I have worn this shirt COUNTLESS times ... in fact this may very well be one of my favorite tops ... and ya'll have never had the (wonderful) opportunity to see it! I'm not sure why whenever I wear this top I forget to take outfit pictures, but I'm pretty sure it's because subconciously I don't really want you to know how much I actually wear this gem. 


I have a question for you - how do we feel about white denim? In all honesty? Gap, Jcrew, and LOFT are saturating their websites with these questionable clothing items and I'm just not sure which side of the fence I fall on when it comes to these purely whites.  
I posted them to my website, Outfitchec.com this evening, but the jury is still out. Log on and rate them!

Today is the day ... drum roll please ... THE VOICE!! 
I fell victim to NBC's relentless advertising and actually found myself re-arranging my Tuesday night TV schedule to see see what all the hype was about. I'll just go ahead and admit it: I'm lame. 


In other news, I had a WONDERFUL meeting today with a fellow Orlando blogger and a lover of all things pretty, Miss Mary, the creator of the beautiful design blog Olivet. Together we have brainstormed some pretty big ideas that  I think ya'll are really going to like :) No beans are spilling out of my bag .. you will just have to keep checking in to see what we have up our (always adorable) sleeves!

i just wanna party

Dress: Anthropologie

Shoes: Tory Burch

This outfit is a direct result of forgetting to (again) press start on the dryer. As much as I love the accessibility of this dress, it is just another reminder that I need to buy a nude slip! Today I also learned how to be lazier about doing my hair: 

1: shower

2: blow dry

3: only straighten your bangs

My fun filled weekend was indeed - fun. What my body didn't get in sleep it made up for in wine. Easter Sunday came early ... 6am early, for sunrise service on Vilano beach. As much as I hate waking up early, I am reminded once a year that 6am has its perks - shown mainly in the form of beautiful sunrises. It was even pretty with my sunglasses on - early mornings, bright sun and wine hangovers don't marry very well. Easter also marked the end of lent - Frozen yogurt is back on the menu with a vengeance! 

 Remy (sans beard) on Easter Sunday.

 

This would be my sister. Sound asleep. At church.

A beautiful Easter morning St. Augustine Sunrise

I recently stumbled across this blog, these women, and this shop. I am green with envy that these lucky ladies get to do what they LOVE every single day of their life.  I am obsessed with their attention to every detail and the mixture of soft and hard textures that these beautiful ladies incorporate into each display they craft. Being the event planner that I am - I want to plan an party worthy of having the ladies of Conservatorie design centerpieces, showcase every white flower they can think of, and transform my small little midget mansion into a mini Anthropologie. but I don't want that party to be a wedding. I repeat: No Wedding. Is it at all possible for me to just have a party where flowers, handmade invitations and dressing up is allowed? The aforementioned party will also have live banjo music, sweet tea (and beer) served in mason jars, burlap table clothes, a homemade photo booth, white curtains and hanging candles. Now will someone please just give me a reason to throw a party?!

Congratulations to Danica for graduating!!! 

I had such a WONDERFUL time celebrating if you and your family :

FYIF: For Your Information Fridays

FYIF (For your information Friday): Spray tans look best on the 3rd day. 


I've managed to travel through 3 different time zones (and then back), spend a total of 11 hours on a plane, 2 nights in a (bad ass) hotel room, eat a $61 dollar breakfast, and get a facial massage. I think it's safe to say the past 3 days have been busy - so please pardon my absence from the blogosphere. 


Needless to say, I am home safely, on my couch, drinking water by the Brita pitcher full trying to get back to east coast time as quick as possible while watching a caveman (John) devour prime rib as if it were the last piece of meat on the planet. This weekend is jam-packed FULL of all my favorite things: BFF's graduation (HOLLA!!!), family, Easter, grandparents, and Reggae Sunday (my reason for living). Basically, drum roll please....lots and lots of day drinking!


While I have your attention, I would like to return to the topic of my bad-ass hotel room. If by chance you are in Beverly Hills, you are rich, and you like mirrors, I have found your mother ship: SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills. This hotel just to happens to also be the place where Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odem lived after they were married and where Christina Aguilera had her birthday party last year. It's pretty freakin cool. The rooms are dimly, let me repeat DIMLY lit, there are smokey mirrors covering 99% of the walls the room, and a foux mink throw on every bed. I can only imagine this to be every porn stars idea of heaven. The hotel is an experience all on its own, and definitely worth stopping in to check out if you are ever in the area. It's like Allison in Worderland meets the Sopranos in a Hunting Lodge: Oversized masculine furniture mixed with clean whites, illuminated deer busts, and lots and lots of mirrors. Monkeys play a huge role in the decor of the space and can be spotted everywhere you look throughout the building including the pictures on the walls and on the (super cute) coffee mugs. The hotel uses the letters SLS as an acroynim to spell out the cutest sayings on everything from the beverage napkins to your room check-out statement. Ex: Sip Light Sustenance and See Life Sideways. The vibe of the hotel fits the quirkiness of the decor and the hip, trendy, funky feeling of the space. Please do yourself a favor, find a boyfriend,a lover or get a husband and go experience the sexiness of the SLS.

nautical, notary nights

Dress: Lilly Pulitzer

Shoes: Nine West

While it may not be raining today, it is April in Florida and soon enough the rain (more like hurricanes) will be gracing us with their presence ... everyday. I've referenced my need for non-offensive (no-print) rain boots in a previous post and well my friends they are still needed. Apparently my red-crocs are stunting my fashion growth, my style reputation, and ruin even the cutest of outfits. 


This little blogging fashionista has found the missing piece to my rain wardrobe puzzle .. thank you Kelsey (check out her blog, Snappy Casual:). 

I am obsessed with her yellow rain boots and will be begging the Easter bunny to cram these tall wellies into my 23 year old Easter basket (yes, my Mom still uses our ORIGINAL) and then hide it in Seattle where I can get lots and lots of use out of these footwear gems. 


On the subject of being nautical, I leave tomorrow morning for a work event in Los Angeles. In an effort to not look stuffy, old, boring, old, over-dressed and old, I have found the cutest of all dresses (in a 2 block radius of my house) and will be wearing this darling little number to the event. I am excited to not be wearing a suit, to be comfortable, and looking a bit more my age in a room full of older people (not including our work intern - who is only one year younger than me). I'm obsessed with these nude pumps. I would like to return to their Nine-West mother ship and adopt a few more pairs in anticipation of my current shoes one day becoming unwearable.


AND ... I got another spray tan today. I technically should have gotten a month of free tanning as my winning from a previous bet I had with John (yes, our relationship is FULL of bets, rock-paper-scissors, hot/cold, and bribery. it's super healthy). John bet that if I submitted his resume online for a new job and he got it that he would buy me a month of unlimited spray tanning (which would result with me looking like Snooki). Needless to say I learned my lesson and will be adding notarized contracts to our bet making, since apparently I did not preface by saying that he had to get the job and then TAKE the job for me to win. 


Does anyone know a good notary?

chore chart

 

Dress: Target

Sweater: Target

Belt: Banana Republic

Shoes: Cole Haan

I'm blogging right now as a distraction from cooking dinner. 
URGH I cooked 4 times last week, shouldn't that mean I'm off the hook for at least a month?? Apparently that's not the case and John is not a student of my school of thought. 


In an effort to distract John from being lazy on his morning off, I woke up early (and by early I mean 3 minutes earlier than normal) and wrote up a chore chart. Genius. When I came home from lunch it was as if tiny little Mr. Clean angels had invaded my tiny midget mansion and had worked magic. Shelves that had not been dusted in months had been returned to their original Ikea woodgrain color. Dishes that had taken up residence in my dishwasher, were unloaded, and last but not least, my once broken vacuum was fixed and sucking up carpet crap like it was brand new. 


John may claim to "hate" the chore chart and complain that he's "to old to be told what to do".... but that baby is here to stay. My future children better come out holding Windex and a mop or stay where they are if they know what's good for them. 


I know how to make a chore chart and I'm not afraid to put your name on it.

popcorn intervention

Dress: Target

Sweater: Jcrew

Shoes: Target

I guess it's probably time to let you in on a little secret. 
I'm addicted to popcorn. 
100 calorie, microwaveable, popcorn. I swear to you, I don't think there is anything better in the world. Sprinkle with a little kosher salt, fresh ground pepper and grated parmesean cheese - and there you have it, my weakness in a bowl. I'm literally obsessed. I probably go through 2 boxes a week and sometimes find myself "grocery shopping" and coming home with ONLY popcorn. John does not share my same affinity for popcorn - so when I have to explain the numerous popcorn bowls in the sink and the reason we are ALWAYS out of parmesean cheese, he threatens a popcorn intervention. While I'm not entirely sure there is such thing as a food intervention - I usually try and tone down the popcorn-ing for a day or 2 and limit myself to popping only while he's at work, or sleeping, or in the shower, or not paying attention. Today is one of those days.


Last night John and I had "date night" - how is this different than any other night of the week, you might ask? Well my friends, we went to a movie. 
Explanation: I normally HATE going to movies. John and I have been to a grand total of 3 movies in our entire relationship and watched even less than that from the comfort of our couch. Reason being - I have horrible ADHD. John HATES this - he is a total movie watching junkie. Going/watching a movie is like pure torture for me, just the thought of sitting in one spot for longer than 10 minutes makes me break into hives. So last night at dinner, after a long day of doing whatever I want (as usual), John brought up the "brilliant" idea to go see a movie. He usually does this every few months, I always say no, life goes on.
Not the case last night. John must have been crafting a book of ways to counter all my excuses over the past 3 years and decided to debut his little masterpiece last night at dinner, naming all the reasons why we SHOULD go to a movie: 
Reason number 1: popcorn. 
Reason number 2: We could see Soul Surfer. I hate surprises, so going to see a movie where I already know what the ending will be didn't take me too far out of my comfort zone 
Reason number 3: he would pay.


Last night my friends, John and I saw movie number 4 of our 3 year relationship and I only went to the bathroom twice. 

dog park

Dress: Banana Republic

Sweater: Nordstrom Rack

Shoes: Tory Burch 

My moms dog left the other day and ever since he went back home, Lil Rem just hasn't been the same. Moping around with his head down, sleeping all the time, not being annoying ... If I didn't know any better (or I was a vet) I would say that Mr. Rem has a giant case of doggy depression. Not even the dog park can cure it. believe me. Yesterday I lowered my (not so high) standards, put my big girl panties on went against every moral bone in my body and took Rem to the sneak peak of hell - aka: the dog park. 

It was like walking into the High School cafeteria and your the new kid, and you forgot to wear pants, and you have outrageous acne and you have a retainer head-piece on. It sucked.

Remy on the other hand, loved it. stupid dog.

I love it when out of town work friends come to visit - it's basically the best way ever to make doing nothing look like work. lots and lots and lots of work. yup, that's what happened today - my friend that I met in Vegas on a work trip came to visit me! (yes, I realize that usually people go to Vegas and come back with STDs, lots of money / no money, or with with a husband. I however, came back with a friend). Her visit managed to eat up a whole bunch of my work day and I wouldn't have had it any other way. 

vodka to the maxi

Dress: Target

Belt: Banana Republic

Sweater: Ann Taylor LOFT

Shoes: Target

Just for your information, if you would like to noticed / have a billion people comment on your outfit, wear a maxi dress OR wear "taxi-cab yellow".  I can't put my finger on what exactly makes this (long) number a crowd pleaser but I think it has something to do with the fact that its' not your normal, run of the mill, office attire. which in my book, is a good thing.

I mean, what exactly are you supposed to wear when you meet your new boss? I'm pretty sure something would catch fire if someone were to wear a suit anywhere within 50 feet of our building, a bathing suit was out of the question (the AC is on the fritz) and my full length sequined one-sie didn't seem to convey the "I'm young, professional, laid back, kinda serious" look I was trying to pull off. 

Next best thing: the maxi dress. The same maxi dress I slept in, spilled vodka-soda and ice cream on, and may or may not have worn for 3 consecutive days on a wild Bahamian adventure 2 years ago. ahh...those were  the days of waitress money, day drinking and tropical vacations. It's totally depressing to think that the time of my life consisted of pouring sweet tea, cheap beer, and a uniform - but the money was SO good.

Sorry maxi dress - My closet is now your retirement home, filled with good memories and more importantly all my other fun-time clothes that have just as many stories as you. all involving vodka.

I just wanted to show you the stupid stuff i get to wake up to. daily.

what rules?

quickie post: i technically did not loose the secret bet. My mom came into town today and took me to dinner. I did not pay. In fact, I didn't even bring my purse with me. We will eat our boring chicken tomorrow night. Fingers crossed inspiration strikes between then and now.


It was sunny. then windy. then cloudy. then rainy. then dark. Somewhere between rainy and dark I changed into pjs and completely forgot to take outfit pictures. eh.


yup. i'm breaking my number one cardinal rule of blogging: always blog with pictures. 


Rules were made to be broken. and i'm a rebel. 

chicken, it's whats for dinner

Dress: Anthropologie

Shoes: Target

I'm switching things up folks. After days and weeks and months of careful style blog creeping, I have come to the conclusion that in order for me to be an"official style blogger" I need to post my pictures before my jabber. why you ask? because that's what everyone else does. And yes, if you told me to jump off a bridge because everyone else was doing it, I would probably do it too.  What can I say, I'm a sucker for a good (or bad) trend.


So John doesn't know it yet .. but we have a bet going on. I'm secretly betting him that I can cook dinner using ONLY what we have on the shelves of our pantry and fridge for one whole week. Yup, I'm boycotting the grocery store to prove to John that we don't have to grocery shop for every meal and that we don't have to go out just because there may not be an obvious meal choice sitting right in front of us. BUT what IS sitting right in front of us is CHICKEN. an entire jumbo, Costco sized bag of chicken. Bonappetit! PS: By "whole week" I mean Sunday-Thursday. "Cooking on Friday night" is not a magazine a subscribe to/work for.


Don't let my summer-esque outfit fool you .. nope.. i didn't wear it to work. This little number went on a field trip outside the closet to an AFTER work farewell party for my aunt, who is leaving us (for a ONE week) to visit Ireland. I kindly requested a picture of her making out with the Blarney Stone as a souvenir. I'll keep you posted. 

excessive duplication

Yes people. I am OBSESSED with this shirt. 

A few weeks ago I was told by someone that they love to read my blog, but squeezed in the fact that my outfits all kind of look the same. 

great ... someone actually verbalized my biggest fear. I have been found out. i DO wear the same stuff all.the.time. 

But why switch things up when you know they work? Is there really a problem with repeating outfits?

I try to wear a variety of styles, my closet practically throws up on me every morning, begging me to pull stuff out of the archives and give it a go... but it all comes down to the basic facts that I am a curvy girl that tries very hard to excentuate the small, minimize the large and find a happy (diverse) medium between the two. it's a challenge.

But believe me when I say that I completely understand that I am not the only girl that experiences body insecurities. Growing up in a house with all sisters and my mom (my dad was there too, but lets face it, he was out numbered from the start) body issues were just as normal a conversation as who got voted off Dancing With The Stars. Let me just put it out there: my sisters and I could not look less alike if we tired. People always wanted to know why we didn't fit the normal sister "look-alike" profile. Fortunately because of these experiences and growing up with my "non-look-alike" sisters, I learned from an early age that just because we may think that someone has a desirable body-type doesn't mean that they feel the same way about themselves. 

Long story short (well i guess it's already long..sorry) body image has been a huge struggle for me throughout my life. Finding clothing that not only fits me, but that I feel comfortable, and pretty in is always a challenge. So when I succeed, I duplicate. Maybe in excess. I apologize.

With (all) that said, todays outfit is a perfect example of excessive duplication. eh. I love it anyway.

My sisters and I on my graduation day

Oh.. and John sent Friday Flowers to my work today ;)

Shirt: Gap

Jeans: Gap

Belt: Target

Shoes: Cole Haan

bright funerals

My outfit today was totally un-interesting and a total repeat of the black and brown (surprise, surprise) ensemble I wore last week. BUT in my defense I had completely legit reason to be repeating this "blah" get-up. Today was a day of funerals. I didn't actually attend any funerals, but I did find my way downstairs to a funeral memorial, which is definitely the only form of a funeral I don't mind attending - obviously because of the alcohol. This funeral memorial however was not for a human, but for an event that will no longer be taking place - which is unfortunate since a giant portion of the event was dedicated to excessive drinking, VIP suites and wild parties. So drinking in honor of the dead event was what it would have wanted (we read its will, it definitely wanted lots of drinking).


Side note: I'm beginning to think a lot of what I write on this blog makes me sound like a consistently mad alcoholic. I'm not. I promise.


Moving on, as I explained above - I wore black today. So obviously the outfit pictured below is NOT what I actually wore today. The dress pictured below is what I wore yesterday and bright reminder of how much yesterday sucked. I'm a total believer in luck, and when things suck, I look down at what I'm wearing and try and find the "odd-ball" (the piece of clothing that I don't wear all that often) and I vow never to wear it again. All I can say is that my fingers are crossed that the un-lucky item in that outfit was my underwear. That dress was way too expensive (and cute) to be unlucky. I'll keep you posted. 

Dress: Lilly Pulitzer

Shoes: Cole Haan