Mr. Sun

Dress:  Secondhand

Shirt: Colin's (originally from J. Crew)

Stockings: Beverly Hills Hosiery

Boots: Secondhand

Purse: Flea market find

Hair ribbon: Homemade

Spring has sprung!  The sun decided to come out today and boy did it shine.  It was so warm today, and not the kind of subtle read-in-the-sun sort of warm, but the kind that elicits a massive makeup meltdown and challenges my natural deodorant to the extreme.  (I think the deodorant passed the test, though I have yet to get a second opinion).  Needless to say, the stockings didn't last long.  

Tonight's agenda: recover the energy lost due to the blazing rays with a little Mad Men and some Taco Bell, extra mild sauce.

These days...

obsessing over Betty Friedan's Feminine Mystique

helping out at the Library

watching Stoic Mabes, Squirly Pearly, and Spit-Bubble Beels at the dog park

cuddling up in my grandma robe with Grandma Z while watching... 

a whole lot of Pushing Daisies 

*All images that aren't mine via weheartit

Neither here nor there

Footage by Pacific Coast Skydiving

Here it is, as promised, the footage I'm sure to be blackmailed with at some point in the future by at least one of my family members.  The music--except for Over the Rainbow--was chosen by Colin, and is an especially ridiculous compilation of songs.  It pretty much sums up the whole experience itself, which was riddled with intense pangs of varied emotions that ultimately left me confused and inexplicably lethargic (I immediately passed out in the car on the way home after the whole ordeal).  

To maximize your entertainment experience, keep an eye out for a couple of things:

1. My diving buddy gave me a laundry list of instructions right before the big jump that I immediately forgot after our sudden evacuation; watch me frantically grab for him as we leave the plane.  I was specifically instructed not to do this.

2. Colin's landing.  It's hilarious.  He was scared that he'd mess up his ankle (he injured it about a year ago and it has yet to fully recover) so he stuck his legs out in front of him as he landed; he ended up in a bush just off the landing path and got prickles all over his hands because of it.  

**Thanks for being so patient this week while I was sick!  I've vowed to religiously take my allergy medication when I know I'll need it most, so hopefully that won't happen again anytime soon.

Out of sorts

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I should have you know, I haven't been away from the blog because of injuries suffered from skydiving on Friday.  I made it back to Earth in one piece with only minor chafing and a bruised psyche to speak of.  Instead, my absence can largely be attributed to a debilitating case of allergies that I hope will subside once pollen levels fall to tolerable heights.  My allergy prescription: piping hot baths, snuggle sessions with Mabes, and chamomile tea with lemon.

As soon as I muster enough energy to learn to convert my skydiving footage to readable files, I'll post the achingly embarrassing film.  I don't think my tandem instructor obliged when I pleaded with him to "get my good side." 

Pinch Me

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Happy St. Patrick's Day!

If I were a kid, I'd be looking forward to tonight's green dyed dinner, a tradition my sisters and I had long perpetuated every St. Patrick's Day.  We always made sure to have milk with our meal as the green coloring looked especially vibrant in it.  

It's funny how magical we thought colors were.  We'd look forward to installing different colored bulbs in our bedroom when the old colored ones would burn out; everything always looked so different in technicolor.

Riding pants: American Apparel

Blouse: Thrifted (Banana Republic)

Cardigan: Stolen from Colin's closet (J. Crew)

Sneakers: keds.com

Purse: Thrifted

Scarf: Thrifted

Pearl was especially needy during today's photo sesh and managed to get in all of the photographs in some way or another.  Colin and I have been grilling her on the "sit" command as part of the girls' obedience training so she's started sitting at my feet whenever I stand in one place for too long.  It's some progress at least!  We're still working on the "lie down," but neither of them have been making any headway; I'm afraid we won't have any success with that before our next class on Sunday.  So far we've only managed to train a third of the commands we've been asked to work on...  

Colin and I will be celebrating our Sixth year together tomorrow by skydiving.  I'm a little nervous to say the least, but have always wanted to try it.  I just hope I don't pee myself with the instructor attached to me; that would be horrifying!  

Tonight we're going out for tapas, one of my favorite meals to eat (besides sushi, of course)!  I plan to thrift today for a new outfit to wear; hopefully I'll have some success!!

Behind books as big as themselves

T shirt: FIDM's Scholarship Store

Sweater: Thrifted

Capris: Thrifted

Flannel: Thrifted

Hair ribbon: Hand crafted

Boots: Secondhand

I started volunteering at the public library last week and I can't get enough of it!  I'm fortunate to be working in the children's section and I love helping out with the reading enrichment programs.  One of my favorite things in the world is seeing kids absorbed in books; they're so enthusiastic about the stories they read.  I'll be volunteering at a new branch today for a couple of hours and I can't wait to get started!

I thought I'd include photographs of some of the random trinkets we've accumulated since moving into our apartment.  We can't afford to give up any more room in our tiny place, but they're such happy little additions!

I hope you're Wednesday is as relaxing as theirs:

Happy hump day!

I'll be Bobcat today (or Saturday)

Dress: Thrifted (Liz Claiborne)

Flannel shirt: Stolen from Colin's closet (J. Crew)

Stockings: Beverly Hills Hosiery

Loafers: Thrifted

Bag: Thrifted (Coach)

Phew!  I made it without blogging for a little over two days.  If you can imagine, the feeling was somewhat similar to holding your breath while driving underneath a bridge.  You know you'll come out the other end in one piece, but your fate still seems to hinge on whether or not you can hold your breath long enough.  (If you couldn't tell already, I have some extremely neurotic tendencies... )

Colin and I began our Photoshop tutorial on Saturday.  We've made it our mission to master the program, and will be watching an online tutorial we've subscribed to every Saturday morning until we feel we can sufficiently comprehend it.  We should be digitally altering photographs with ease in no time...!  

(Tea, toast, and fresh fruit are obvious necessities when attempting to master such a complicated task!)

In other news, I've added more items to The Betties!!  I think I'm making progress in the self-determination department as I've managed not to keep yet another batch of clothing meant for the shop.  :)

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Lastly, my parting gift to you for the night:

Finally, someone who shares my love of Fridays!   :)

We are currently experiencing technical difficulties

Silly me.  

I didn't even think that you could max out of space on a blog.  The Internet's supposed to be one endless sea of space, right?  Well, I did.  1 GB came and went.  So photo uploading won't happen until I figure out why Google hasn't received my last payment for more gigs of space, which will hopefully be later tonight, but I'm not counting on it... (if payment didn't go through the first time I don't see why it'd go through the second time, all things being equal).    

So don't fret (I'm not fretting, really, everything's okay, NOBODY'S FRETTING HERE!!), everything will go back to normal as soon as Google and I make amends.  

...Now I need to teach myself how to live blog-free.  Is it even possible?  I think I've forgotten out to breathe properly.  Inhale... exhale...

Blackbird

Romper: Thrifted

Leotard: American Apparel

Belt: Thrifted

Socks: American Apparel

Mary Janes: secondhand

Purse: Flea market

Sweater: Thrifted

Beret: Secondhand

I spent all of today feverishly photographing The Betties merchandise and had decided that this romper would be the last item I'd photograph.  Fortunately for me, it turns out the zipper of the fly is broken so it's mine to keep for now!  It seems I'm always making excuses to keep clothing meant for the shop... 

I've got a hankering to eat out with Colin tonight and sushi seems like just the thing I need.  Hopefully I don't indulge myself too much, but the plum wine is pretty hard to resist...!

New shop items will likely be added on Monday, so I'll post a sneak preview on Sunday. (!!)

Don't you just love Fridays?  

In spirit

Shirt: Thrifted (bought yesterday!!)

Jeans: Hand-me-downs from older sister

Shoes: _____ (I'm sure you can fill in the blank! It's practically summer time, time to awaken them from their hibernation)

Scarf: Given to me by a shop owner in downtown L.A.; he felt bad that I had to spend the day with Colin and his friends who were ransacking the place, and gave it to me--free of charge--as a token of his sympathy

Purse: Flea market find

Sunglasses: Vintage clothing store in Savannah

Necklace: Gift from Colin

The Keds are back!  I'm sure you missed them terribly.  It was scorching today so a thin cotton shirt was very much in order, as were the Keds (obviously).  Today's outfit harkened memories of my Opa (german for grandfather) who used to garden in worn cotton shirts that all too often looked as though he'd purchased them from the women's section (he was a brilliant man, but lacked the knowhow to handle anything that wasn't plant related).  If this shirt hadn't been previously owned by him at some point, I'm sure it would have eventually found its way into his closet.

Isn't Pearl the cutest?  She's gnawing on her dino, a most coveted dog chew among the Ellana/Colin household.  She and Mabel were fighting over it when Pearl swiped it and took off to the couch, where she knows Mabel can't get to it (unlike Pearl, Mabel lacks the ability to jump on the couch... her efforts to fling herself high enough to reach it are something worth seeing).  Pearl is also a camera hog (unlike Mabes whom I have to drag from bed to get her to take pictures with me) and made sure to include herself in almost all the photographs today.  

As I write, the pups are begging to take their nightly walk to the bay, and I'm afraid I must oblige.  I had to skip the walk yesterday, and definitely paid for it last night.  The girls tore it up like there was no tomorrow...

Oh boy...!

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I was feeling pretty bold today and decided to sign up for a Chictopia account.  And...

I made it to the front page!!!  

[I was aiming to express my excitement in a more humble, tasteful manner, but I can't.  I'm beaming!]

I've been staring at Chictopia's site for at least ten minutes, refreshing the screen almost every minute.  Lame, I know, but I'd like to think that you'd do the same??  (But please don't tell me otherwise!) 

I've also developed an unhealthy crush on the Chictopia users.  What a supremely supportive bunch!

Ego's hungry

I may have forgotten about lookbook... or may have chosen to forget it after failing miserably with my last look...but have nonetheless decided to give it another shot.  Please feed my ego and "hype" my look?

Monkeying around

Overalls: Thrifted

Blouse: Banana Republic (thrifted)

Cardigan: Inherited from grandfather

Leggings: American Apparel

Boots: Secondhand

Purse: Coach (thrifted)

Hair ribbon: homemade

Necklace: Gift from Colin (Tiffany)

[I can't remember if I've posted this outfit before or not... I've worn it a few times.  It's just so comfortable!]

Colin and I have the good fortune of babysitting Pearl (above), Mabel's sister, for about a month while my parents feverishly work to get through this year's tax season.  And I've decided that I'm not going to give her back.  !  (Only kidding).  She is so adorable; she's awake most of the day (unlike Mabes) and she gets excited when Colin and I get home (unlike Mabes)--she's actually fond of us!  And the two sisters love each other dearly, though that love tends to manifest itself in aggression; Pearl will jump from the couch onto Mabes below when they're playing, it's hilarious.  She's quite the little monkey.

Today I'll be volunteering for the first time at the library where I'll be helping the kids in the children's section make friendship bracelets.  I hope they like me!

I thought I'd include a photo of the flowers Colin brought home for me yesterday after work.  Aren't they perdy?

Happy hump day!