See you there!

shirt, pants, necklace: J. Crew
shoes: Kork-Ease

I really surprised that I ended up wearing pants on the second day of school. I think I maybe wore pants five times last year, emphasis on maybe. It’s quite possible that I’m overestimating! I go in waves; when I first started teaching I wore nothing but pants. And Birkenstocks. Seven pairs. And turtleneck sweaters. Are you cringing yet?! You’re going to have to trust me when I tell you that I lived in the mountains and while my wardrobe wasn’t even slightly fashionable, I fit in. And I was comfortable! After we moved I started to unconsciously gravitate towards more skirts and heels. The school I moved to (and am still at) is slightly dressier than the one I left so my wardrobe changes make sense. Looking forward, I’m hoping to strike a better balance this year between skirts/dresses and pants. They both have their place and it gives my looks more variety.

To be honest, I didn’t buy the pants because I wanted a well-rounded closet. That sounds good, but I bought them because the looked nice on and were $8.50. At J. Crew. Of course at that price I got a khaki pair too. So selecting these pants was less of a conscious decision and more of a happy accident. I’m going to enjoy them either way!

tank: Romeo & Juliet
sweater: J. Crew
skirt: J. Crew
belt: Target
shoes: J. Crew
(Obviously, I did some school shopping at J. Crew.)

I survived the first day of school! 180 more to go. Not that I’m counting or anything…

I felt comfortable/like me in this outfit (always important on the first day of school) and it came together quickly thankgoodness; I’ve been known to stand in front of my closet for hours the night before school starts with a blank look on my face. Actually, I’ve been known to do that on other occasions too. They’re not my finest moments. Lets move on.

And in reference to the wardrobe workhorses post from yesterday, I’m wearing all three: pencil skirt, cardigan, and belt. Very me. The belt kept slipping around though (no belt loops on the skirt) so I had to adjust it quite a bit during the day. I like the look but I’m not sure I’ll wear it again, maybe with double-sided tape…

Honestly, it took very little time to narrow down my wardrobe workhorses. There are a few things in my closet that I just couldn’t live without or really, really don’t want to; if you took these things away from me, my wardrobe would be dramatically different and less pleasing to me. The go-to items that I consider workhorses are: pencil skirts, belts, and cardigans. At any given time [during the school year] I’m wearing at least one of those items and probably more than one.

Honorable Mention (although these, perhaps, are less vital to my wardrobe and more vital to me feeling like *me*) goes to: The color gray. pockets, and my watch. Picking a color might be stretching it, but I couldn’t live without that color. It’s my neutral of choice and it makes me sad to think of my world without gray! Likewise, I need pockets. I can’t function without a place to put the keys for my classroom and also a place to stick my hands. Outfits without pockets seem like they’re missing something and I’m always excited when I find dresses with hidden pockets! And watches, they keep me sane. If I’m not wearing a watch I spend most of my time wondering what time it is. The solution is, of course, to wear a watch which I do at all times. I’ve been this way since high school and truly have trouble functioning without one. I sometimes take it off for pictures (false advertising?) or when I’m in the sun (hello, awesome tan line) but that’s about it. If I accidentally leave the house without it I either suffer from a meltdown or, if at all possible, turn around it get it. I’m addicted.

We took a last-minute break from real life and hit the Outer Banks a few weeks ago.  I’m not normally a spur-of-the-moment type person but the spirit moved me and my husband wasn’t about to say no to a camping trip in the Aztek (I’m not usually much of a camper) or the beach!  The weather was gorgeous and even the heat was tolerable.  The campground, Frisco Woods, was awesome as was the view from our campsite.  We were a bit wary of staying somewhere without a website or personal recommendation but it turned out to be much better than most of the alternatives in the area and we’re planning to go back again later this summer. I love it when things just come together!

This was my first trip to the Outer Banks as an adult and I really enjoyed it. I grew up going to the Jersey shore so I do miss having a boardwalk to explore but the warmer ocean temperature in North Carolina almost made up for that. Compared to Va Beach, our “local” beach, I’d take the Outer Banks anyday. We went there for a few days last summer and I was not impressed and have no desire to go back. Live and learn.

1. I’m a terrible blogger in the summer; I have way too much free time and nothing I really want to say! Maybe that explains my lack of posts? I think about posting often but just don’t get around to it. I’d promise to do better but honestly, I wouldn’t even believe me!

2. I don’t love being a teacher. I don’t even really like it most days – it’s a paycheck. I do love summer vacation though! No alarm clocks going off at 5:30am, no parent-teacher conferences, no grading (or procrastinating on the grading). By the time September rolls around, I’ll actually be ready to get back to the classroom. Maybe.

3. My students did awesome on their AP test! I was concerned because, as great as I am (no false modesty here!), this was the first year that I taught AP Environmental Science and I was working from scratch. Scores came out on Monday and I was floored – I had a 63% pass rate! That doesn’t sound great, but the national average is 50%. Yay them, and yay me!

4. One month until our big summer vacation. 8 days on St. John in the USVI. I can’t wait. Too bad it will also mean that summer is coming to an end. I’m not going to think about that though. Nope, not at all.

5. I’m amazed by how nicely all the fashion bloggers look over the summer. I’m ecstatic to have my summers off but my fashion sense seems to take a nosedive when I don’t have to look nice. I look decent when I go out, but much of my time is spent working on the house or in the backyard. My usual uniform is shorts or a jean skirt and a t-shirt with flip-flops. Functional, but nothing noteworthy.

6. The Birkenstocks I posted about last month? They’re awesome! I like to think they’re a step above flip-flops but even more comfortable. I think I need another pair but I can’t decide between brown and black. Both? That seems excessive… But would I let that stop me?

7. This heat is killing me.

8.  Because of said heat, Zach and I have been ingesting entirely too much homemade ice cream.  I try to fool myself into thinking that the homemade version is more natural (it is) and therefore healthier (maybe) but the quantities are definitely not.  Flavors tried thus far:  Sour Cream (much better than it sounds), Lager (eh), Stout (pretty good), and Smores (the mix-ins didn’t mix in so well).  Which leads me to my next thought…

8. P90X. I’m pretty sure the P stands for painful. My husband and I are working through it together and wow… It’s pretty intense. We both felt that we were looking a little soft this summer and I’ve always had a soft spot for crazy infomercial exercise programs; at least this one is better than Richard Simmons. I think might be in a little over my head.

I know that fashion bloggers hate them and think that they shouldn’t be seen outside of the locker room. I thought long and hard about them after reading a recent blog post that tried to put them in their place. I even felt guilty for wearing them for a few days but I’ve decided that I’m comfortable with their place in my wardrobe. I wear heels for most of the school year so when summer rolls around I want to be casual. I even like the way they look! They’re colorful and cheap and you can hose them off after playing in wet grass. In an attempt to diversify my summer footwear, I recently purchased these. Birkenstocks. I love Birks but recognize that most people don’t. Those people are wrong, obviously, but they exist in large numbers. Are these as bad as flip flops? Probably to people in the know they’re worse. But I’m happy and so are my feet.

shirt: lapis
tank top: from Marshalls
jeans: J. Crew
shoes: Bronx
belt: from Target

blazer: J. Crew
dress: Liz Claiborne
belt: Target
shoes: Old Navy

I’m a little late posting last Friday’s pictures but better late than never, or so I’ve heard. I love this blazer! It’s made out of sweatshirt material and is oh-so comfortable. I’m going to have to resist the urge to wear it every day, it’s that good. Every summer I end up with a jacket/cardigan/somethingwarm that’s my go-to item for any situation that involves air conditioning and I’m pretty sure that this blazer is my “it” piece.

Back later with a Memorial Day recap.

dress: Nine West
jacket: Ralph Lauren
[invisible] shoes: Old Navy

Monday’s pictures were against a yellow background and today I’m wearing a yellow dress; I obviously have yellow on the brain. If you ask me what my favorite color is, I’ll usually say yellow. I’m not sure it really is my favorite color, but my miniature golf game is best when I play with a yellow ball so that’s what I go with. It’s sunny and fun and makes me smile. Sounds like a good reason to call it my fav.

Today’s dress is new. I love that it has a retro feel and I also love the price I paid: $10. It was on clearance at Ross (by far my favorite store, I worked there all through college). I’m ridiculously cheap so shopping for clothing anywhere other than a discount store just feels wrong. Ross, Marshalls, TJ Maxx, Rugged Wearhouse and Gabriel Brothers are my main haunts. I just can’t justify paying full price for most items of clothing. I’ve tried, oh how I’ve tried, but it just ends up making me feel guilty. I wish I was better at thrifting. I love thrifted furniture and books but don’t have much luck finding clothing. I’m slightly jealous of the bloggers who find amazing pieces. Not that I need any more clothing in my closet…