A Sunday Shower!

So this weekend, I'm in Maryland for my bhabhi's (my cousin's wife) baby shower! We spend the night at my uncle's house and stayed up late catch I g up and joking around since it's been so long since we were all together!

I went to my parents' house Friday after work and then we all drove up from there Saturday morning. No lie, it literally took us 8 hours for a drive that is usually 5 hours.  We were so exhausted by the time we reached Maryland but glad we made it in one piece/safely with all the traffic!!

Today, we were up super early to get ready,especially in a house filled with Indians and limited bathroom space hah! My cousin was nice enough to drive me to a local Starbucks so I could feed my skinny vanilla iced latte addiction and get some coffee for my other cousins too!

We were on India time hahah so everything was about an hour behind schedule but the baby shower was still fun and all of the cultural ceremonies were done. A few games and dancing later, it was time for dinner! We had some great food options and I think for the first time in forever I ate everything in my plate!!

We're headed back to my parents' house and then whatever time it may be, I'll be on my way to my house since I have work tomorrow!! It's been a crazy 48hours but I'm glad I made it for my cousin's wife!
Here are some fun pictures from today!

Casual Friday!

Here we are again, another Casual Friday has come and gone! Again, I will never get used to wearing jeans to the office but I thought this dress was pretty fun and yet professional at the same time! I love this dress- I originally got it way back during one of the end of summer sales August 2010 and I was floored that the dress still fit so naturally I had to wear it again! I love when some favorite work clothes fit again and feel so great! Again, sorry for the massive mess in my bedroom background-- I am the middle of my 2 weeks of living out of a suitcase!

• Dress: LOFT Petites
• Cardigan: Target
• Necklace: law school graduation present
• Rings: VT Class Ring & David Yurman Petite Albion Ring in Garnet
• Bangles: Malani Jewelers
• Earrings: Diamond hoops from Malani Jewelers
• Watch: Rolex law school graduation present
• Shoes: Etienne Aigner via Marshall's

I love how this outfit came together! I had a meeting Friday at work with people I don't normally see in the office since I only deal with family law and I got a TON of compliments on this outfit and my shoes/rings! Definitely know how to make a girl feel special :)

I tried some pink lip gloss (whoppin' watermelon clinique chubby stick) with today's outfit instead of using my usual Black Honey.  I felt that this looked totally fun but I don't know how I feel about the light pink haha! I felt so good this morning too because I finally was able to get in to meet with my threading lady for a full face threading! My eyebrows look normal again and even though my face has been slightly irritated all day, it definitely is worth the trip every 4 weeks to my threading lady! (She had Drake Takeover on tv this morning when I got to her salon and all day I've had his songs in my head!)

My sweet Rusty this morning on our way to the vet since he's being boarded this weekend! I am headed to Maryland for my cousin's wife's baby shower and it just killed me taking this little guy to board.  He was so happy in the car so I tried to be the strong one and not such a neurotic dog mom (ughhh I fail at that!).

AH I finally got my Princess Posse SparkleSkirt.  I know I look like a highlighter but I love it (ugh I hate the rolls but I literally chugged a bottle of water right before I took this pic)! The facebook group I was a member of for the 2013 PHM became a pretty close group/friends with the owner of SparkleSkirts and she offered to make a unique, special skirt for all of the members of the group! I helped choose this print (I was hoping for another one but I LOVE this one as our skirt) and I knew so many different colors would go with this running skirt.  I wore it today on my run when I got home from work and I KNEW my Detroit in Training tank would go perfect with the skirt.  Little did I know, my running shoes matched perfectly with this skirt! I am definitely bringing both next weekend during our trip Detroit for all my runs there!

What do you wear when you workout? Do you like skirts for running?

OOTD Thursday!

I feel like all I do anymore is wear shades red, black, and grey! Bright red is actually one of my favorite colors to wear in life and makes me feel good so I figured with all the crazy mornings I've had feeling down and depressed (UGH I have to board Rusty again this weekend and basically all next week too), this top would be PERFECT. WELL, I was wrong.  Let me just be honest, the worst part of losing weight is all your favorite/cute work clothes are FAR too large.  My top and skirt are like swimming on me so that was fun today.. If I could've changed one thing about today's outfit- I would have added a belt or something so it wouldn't look so bag-lady like!

• Top: Ann Taylor
• Skirt: Liz Claiborne via jcp
• Cardigan: Ann Taylor
• Shoes: Nine West via DSW (I really need to find some other comfortable footwear since I wear these every day)
• Necklace & Earrings: Black pearls from Hawaii
• Rings: David Yurman Petite Albion Ring in Garnet and VT Class Ring
• Watch: Rolex via law school grad present

And just because I'm so happy to be reunited with the love of my life, here are some pictures of the my Rusty from our drive home today:

so happy!

mom, why you take so many pictures/???

I have the best momma ever!

Do you have any colors that you enjoy wearing in many different shades? How do you deal with clothes after losing weight?

OOTD Wednesday!

Don't you hate those days where you wake up in the morning feeling like emotional crap? Well, that was Wednesday for me so I knew the perfect pick-me-up would be my outfit! I managed to pick out one article of clothing that always makes me feel happy and confident and tailored the rest of my outfit with that top! I chose my favorite berry/cranberry colored ruffle shell and found the perfect suit in my closet to go with it! I love this suit! I wanted to be a little more formal on Wednesday since I had a couple client meetings so I knew this was the perfect suit to go with my top!

(forgive me for the mess in the background- I haven't really unpacked from my NYC trip haha and I just get things from my suitcase when I need them since I'm living out of a suitcase the next 2 wks!)

• Top: Target years ago!
• Suit: Kasper
• Shoes: Nine West via DSW (not pictured)
• Pearls: first strand from my mom when I was in college
• Earrings: Birthday Present from momma
• Rings: David Yurman Petite Albion Ring in Garnet & VT Class Ring
• Watch: Rolex from law school graduation

ANYways. I love this suit- the skirt is a little different than usual and not your typical suit.  It has a little flippy part at the bottom that flips out when I walk and I love it! It's a pretty modern suit and doesn't make me feel like a stuffy old lady hah! I love how the suit jacket has a scalloped edge (I don't think you can see it here) as well and looks great with or without the jacket on!

What do you wear when you wake up feeling less than peppy/self-confident?

 

 

Playlist Wednesday/Thursday

Ahh, I feel like my night blogging methods are failing me again! I always fall asleep while blogging and wake up praying I didn't post anything while delirious!!! This week has been pretty good run-wise! I got back from the NYC trip (more on that later) super late Monday night (Tuesday morning?) Here is what got me through my runs on Tuesday, Wednesday, and hopefully will get me through the rest of this week's runs!

• In a World Like This- Backstreet Boys
• OMG I am SO excited about new BSB music!! I listened to this on Live with Kelly & Michael and I am obsessed! Anyone who knows me knows my love of BSB! Download it from iTunes and enjoy all their amazingness! ILY nick carter 4EVER.
• Run this Town- Jay-Z
• THis has got to be one of my all time favorite jay-z songs on my running playlist! Yeah, it is definitely pretty old but I don't care.  This song never fails to get me going whenever I'm in a slump during a short or even long run!
• Put It On Me- Ja Rule
• Ahhhh Ja Rule. WHY couldn't you pay your taxes and be a productive member of society?? OR at the very least you could stop playing with guns. COME ON. This was probably one of my favorite rap songs when I was in high school that I always had on my playlists  and is ridiculous enough that I can't not listen!
• Fantasy (Remix)- Mariah Carey & Ol' Dirty Bastard
• Another favorite of mine! My law school bff Becky and I would sing this on the regular and it was pretty amazing! Listening to this song/rapping along with it was one of my favorite middle school life moments so it has been a regular on my playlists for years!!
• Shake It Off- Mariah Carey
• Oh my. This song is appropriate on SO many levels right now in life. I remember when my freshman year chem lab (I know you're thinking, I took chemistry?!?!!!) partner in college made me listen to MC's new cd The Emancipation of Mimi and I was addicted! I love that album so much I literally listen to it all the time! I particularly love the message of this song ("Boy I gotta shake, shake it off, Gotta do what's best for me, Baby and that means, I gotta shake you off"). Along those lines, my BFF told me to re-watch Aladdin the other night to restore my faith in man so I did just that and seriously Jasmine, I feel the same!

this is how I feel after this past week filled with total dick moves by people..

 

Coming soon: recaps of my NYC weekend when my brother proposed to his girlfriend!

What are you listening to this week?

Sunday Recipe! Veggie Nachos!

Ahhhh the long awaited return of Recipe Sunday! I haven't really been cooking much since I mean, I hate cooking for just me and then having leftovers for like a week but today I made an exception. For Father's Day, I offered to take my dad out to lunch wherever he wants, on me, and if he wanted I would make something too.  We went to lunch and before I left town, I made him some of my nachos that my whole family loves! I did make some alterations as to how I usually make them but he loved it nonetheless!

Here's the ingredient list, method, and some pictures I snapped today!

Veggie Nachos

Ingredients

• Your favorite tortilla chips (my dad loves On the Border)
• 1 can light red kidney beans (as prepared HERE)
• 2 roma tomatoes, diced
• ½ large or 1 small/medium white onion, diced
• 2 fresh jalapeños, diced
• small handful cilantro, chopped
• Pace Picante Sauce (Medium)
• Hot Sauce (Cholua all day every day!)
• ½ jar Pace Queso con Salsa
• handful shredded cheddar cheese
• (Other items I didn't use but you might like- sour cream, pickled jalapeños, black olives, etc.--I usually add shredded lettuce too but my dad doesn't like it so I didn't add it today)

Method

1. Preheat the oven for 400 deg F
2. Spread tortilla chips on a non-stick cookie sheet
3. Prepare the kidney beans like I did for the Mexican Pizza recipe HERE
4. Spread the kidney bean mixture on the tortilla chips
    
5. Spread the queso con salsa over the tortilla chips (be conservative here because more cheese is coming later)
    
6. Sprinkle the tomatoes, onions, and jalapeños evenly over the entire tray 
    
7. Add in any other veggies or spreads you like!
8. Add the Cholua hot sauce and picante sauce LIBERALLY over the veggies!
9. Sprinkle the shredded cheddar cheese over all your veggies and toppings 
10. Finally, add the chopped cilantro on top of the cheese 
     
11. Bake Nachos for 6 minutes or until cheese and toppings are all bubbly and yummy
12. STUFF YOUR FACE AND ENJOY!
     

My dad LOVED these nachos! If I were making this just in general (UM YES SUMMER FIESTA) I would have added shredded lettuce, not used the queso con salsa, and more tomatoes, onions, and cilantro! 

BONUS PICS FROM SATURDAY

He loves me!

a hot Saturday morning!

 

Did you make anything special for your dad this Father's Day??

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all the dads, stepdads, & grandfathers!!!

I came to Danville for the day to spend some time with my dad, especially since my siblings are working so I'm the only kid left! My dad and I don't always see eye to eye on a lot of life's issues (he called me his argumentative child once haha but now I take that as a compliment) but we do have one major thing in common- how we feel about our family.  He cares very deeply for his brothers and sisters and us and so I think I definitely got that gene from him (and my mom duh) in that I care very deeply for my close family members.

Daddy & I on his 60th birthday in August 2010

I think what I love most about my dad is how much he loves my Rusty! He is the typical grandpa and spoils Rusty so much whenever he's in Danville.  He always sneaks Rusty treats and gives him the longest belly rubs! True story: he asked to make sure Rusty would be coming this weekend, not me haha!

I hope all the dads (and dog dads), grandpas, etc have a wonderful day! I'll be spending the day with mine and hope everyone gets a chance to tell their dad how much they mean to them!

Casual Friday!

Oh hey Casual Friday!

Every Friday is a dress down day in the office where I work and so I thought, why not take advantage of that option this week?! I definitely don't dress super casual (ugh jeans I hate pants) but I still wanted to be comfortable! I picked out some of my favorite pieces to assemble today's comfy and cool outfit since it was pretty hot today! I've been feeling kind of down so I definitely wanted to wear some of my favorite pieces and colors.  What girl doesn't get happy with a bright pink top & black?!?!

• Cardigan & Shell: Ann Taylor
• Linen Skirt: H&M
• Watch: Rolex (law school graduation present)
• Necklace: Pearls from Hawaii
• Rings: VT Class Ring & David Yurman Petite Albion Ring in Garnet
• Bangles & Earrings (white gold/diamond hoops you can't see in this picture): Malani Jewelers
• Shoes: Etienne Aigner via Marshall's (not pictured)

I loved this outfit and even though I have some casual pieces, I still looked put together and professional.  I super straightened my hair so I didn't have any of that frizzy mess today!!

Does your work have casual dress down days?

Potpourri for $1000

I both love & hate that Potpourri category on Jeopardy since I'm just like HOW do you prepare for that?? Anyways, I figure this week I would try a Potpourri post with a round-up of random musings from my crazy week! Enjoy!

Rusty and I did NOT enjoy the random rainstorm yesterday. 

Happy it's finally summer!

My all time favorite coffee for my keurig!

My current favorite/obsession on the Pandora 90s R&B station!

WTF at this facebook page suggestion on my news feed?!

I hate math. srsly. 

I've been watching a lot of old episodes of The Office on netflix to keep my mind occupied this week..
SO much happening in the next few weeks!

Forever favorite.

Hahaha I love Tom Haverford.

Sweet Rusty watching the squirrels play!

My thought every single damn day this week.

Happy Friday!

Any fun weekend plans??