Happy V-Day!

I know, I haven't blogged here in about a month now. Things have been rather chaotic, between starting school back up (I'm enrolled in a local community college towards a certificate in Web publishing), work and just life! But I'm coming back, I promise!


Since last I blogged, I did a MAJOR closet cleaning, including my insanely large jewelry collection. I've either donated or sold quite a bit, and I still have more to do. But I'm loving my newly-shrunken closet...it's so much easier to put outfits together in the morning! And the clean-out has also helped me realize what I'm missing in my wardrobe and I've been working on fixing that.

For now, I'm going to say Happy Valentine's Day! Check out the awesome dinner my hubby made me tonight. It was almost too cute to eat...almost. :)

Nice and Comfy

This past weekend I went out shopping with a mission -- to find a comfy long cardigan that looked flattering on, fit me well and was very comfy. Going through my wardrobe, I realized this was a piece was missing and I needed, based on my "quality versus quantity" promise this year.

I'm happy to report my shopping mission was extremely successful...I scored a fabulous long cardigan from Ann Taylor Loft that is very comfortable and fits me great. The waist tie is built-in and cinches the waist, which is a look I always go for. Plus it was on sale plus 40% off -- even better!

I had also scored these black pants on sale at New York & Company with an additional 30% off. Another item I needed...they fit me great and have a slight sheen to them, which I really like! It's very subtle and not over-the-top sparkly at all. 

I apologize for the crappy picture...my camera battery died right after I took this shot, so this is all I've got for today!

Cardigan: Ann Taylor Loft

Pants: New York & Company

Top: JC Penney

Boots: Payless

Bag: Isabella Fiore

Necklace & Earrings: Vintage

Watch: Anne Klein

Feelin' Sassy

This skirt always makes me feel sassy...it's a bit shorter than I normally wear my skirts and dresses. And it poofs out and just makes me feel...sassy. LOL

Skirt: Ann Taylor Loft

Sweater, Tights and Shoes: Target

Bag: Cole Haan

Necklace: Vintage

Watch: Anne Klein

New Year's Promises

New Year's Resolutions are a strange pasttime. I mean, have you ever kept one? Do you know anyone who's ever really kept one?

Because of the "no" that normally follows both those questions, I never do them. However, because of things I've learned and done in 2009, I've realized I don't necessarily want to make "resolutions," as they have an automatically "never gonna happen" vibe to them.

Rather I'm going to make "promises" to myself for 2010. These are personal promises that will help me stay on track, whether it be fitness, shopping, whatever. These are for me and I'm going to try my hardest to stick to them. And the best part is this blog will help me stick to them! :) 

So, my 2010 Promises to myself are:

• Continue to work hard and further commit myself to my fitness goals for ME
  

I started working with my personal trainer in October 2009 and I've done amazingly well since. I've come to love being in the gym and pushing my body farther than I ever thought was possible. Now I need to push myself further, especially when it comes to my diet. 

•  When it comes to shopping, go for quality and need over quantity.

I pride myself on my awesome shopping skills. However, I've got way more than I need to have and it honestly makes for a headache when it comes to putting outfits together. Over this year, I plan to streamline my wardrobe with great pieces that all go together and will make it easy for me to put together great outfits that fit my style. Oh, and this also goes for my make-up and jewelry collections as well!

• Get out there and meet new people.

I've got some great, great friends. But I don't have really any close friends that share a lot of my interests. So help with this I've been joining some groups on Meetup.com and I hope to meet some others with similar interests of mine, plus get my husband involved in some of the couples groups I've joined. We'll see what happens!

• Be all I can be.

No, I'm not joining the Army. :) This is in terms of my education. In 2009, I decided to go back to school at a local college to go for a Certificate in Web Publishing. At my current job, I oversee about seven Web sites. I had to self-teach myself HTML and other things to do so. And I love it! So hopefully through this process I'll learn what I need to know for not only this job, but eventually design my own Web sites. In addition, I've also been working to pursue my CAE (certified association executive) designation. In 2011 I'll be able to take the exam for the CAE, so in 2010 I plan to learn as much as I can and start preparing for the exam.

Later, 2009....Hello 2010!

Happy New Year!

I can't believe 2009 has come and gone already! But being in my line of work I'm always working ahead of myself, I've been writing 2010 since October, so I'm ready for it!

Being my hubby and I had off today, and it's quite yucky and rainy out, we decided to go to a casino about an hour away. Was a nice drive and I came home $120 richer! Not bad for a day's work! :)

Jacket: Ann Taylor Loft

Blouse: Target

Jeans: Old Navy

Sneakers: Payless

Bag: Elliott Lucca

Necklace: Vintage from eBay