All my plants are dead

The month of July has been a busy one.  It's taken it's toll on all of us.

Case in point: once upon a time, we had an herb garden.

July

maurices cardigan, target top, express skirt, target wedges.

Holy crap where did June go?  Actually....where did the first half of 2013 go?

I guess I can't complain too much - I just got a promotion, which is exciting.  I can't believe I've been working at my firm for almost two years now.  (Seriously, didn't I just graduate?)

Also, it's a 3-day work week and we're visiting my best friend from high school this weekend.  I'm a little nervous to leave our pups behind (this is our first time boarding them), but I'm definitely excited to get out of town and get away from the heat!

Worrier

target top (here), target skirt, payless wedges.

I know he's cute, but don't let the little guy in the top picture fool you.  He's been freaking out lately every time we see other people or dogs on our walks, and we have to take him to the vet this weekend and a kennel over the 4th of July, and I'm terrified that he will be the worst-behaved dog anyone has ever seen and we'll somehow get turned away and/or viewed as the worst puppy parents ever.

Have I mentioned I'm kind of a worrier?  Anyway he's the sweetest little guy with Darryl & I and he loves his buddy Turk, he's just not a huge fan of the rest of the world (don't even get me started on cats).

Anyway, I guess I should say something about my outfit.  This is one of those tops where I'm trying to hold back ordering in every color.  Also, I promise I own an iron - I'll blame my wrinkled skirt on sitting at a desk all day.

Weekend

So I had a pretty uneventful weekend after being out of town (LA and Chicago) for about a week and a half.  That meant catching up on laundry (which unfortunately doesn't do itself), getting groceries, and cleaning out our fridge (seriously, you don't want to know).  And we saw World War Z, which is definitely worth watching even though it's nothing like the book.  Because zombies*.

We also went to our first bridal show!  And we found a wedding venue!  We are so cool.

Anyway, I'm trying to get back into a routine this week (blogging and otherwise), so we'll see how that goes.   How was your weekend?

*Also, Brad Pitt.

Chicago

Last week I went to Chicago!



And this week I'm in LA, because my life is so exciting and I'm such a world traveler.  (Or maybe I just have two weeks in a row of training.  I'll let you decide).

Anyway, I mostly just wanted to share that I had the most awesome roommate ever, and also we like to match.

Polka dots

[target dress (here), target wedges, von eshna necklace]

This dress is a recent purchase from Target and I love it!  It's a great business shape but a lightweight fabric - and I love dresses that I can just throw on and not worry too much about accessorizing.  Although (especially when it cools down), I'm looking forward to finding different ways to style it!

Also please excuse the dog hair on that close-up picture.  I've just come to accept the fact that no matter how much we vacuum or use the lint roller, everything we own is covered in dog hair.

Summer uniform

express top, target skirt (here), thrifted belt, payless flats.

I need to make this my summer uniform at work.  Basic tee, pencil skirt, and minimal accessories, because guys, it is way too hot for anything else.

In other news - I'm going to Chicago this week!  And as I'm typing this, half my closet is poured out on my bed because I am the world's slowest packer.  I'm trying to plan out all my outfits for the week but I'm having commitment issues.  Like I've gotten a lot of new pencil skirts lately and I just want to bring ALL of them.  And I'm purposely using a small suitcase so I that don't go overboard, but I just might crack and use the bigger one or else I'll be up all night trying to narrow it down.

On planning a wedding

Source (Photo by Nick Scott for British Cosmo Bride)

Darryl & I got engaged a year and three months ago.  I'll give you that whole story at a later date, but we pretty much immediately started planning for a Fall 2013 wedding.  We went to venue open houses, met officiants, and picked out invitations.  I was obsessed with The Knot, and at least a dozen wedding blogs.  My pinterest boards were out of control.

Anyway, so about a year ago, literally the night before we were going to put down a deposit for a venue....I kind of panicked.

First let me get one thing clear: I have no doubts about wanting to marry Darryl.  I want to be with that man for-evah, no question.

But...planning a wedding?  The average cost of a wedding is something like $27,000.  (That's excluding the honeymoon).  I would never spend $800 on any single item of clothing, ever, but that's how much the wedding dresses I was trying on cost.  On any other day I would never pay to take a huge group of my friends out to dinner at $50 / plate but that's how much the caterers we looked at were charging.

I just have a hard time justifying it all.  I mean, Darryl isn't buying me from my father for two goats and some silver - all of the traditions just seem a little silly to me to still be doing in 2013.  I don't feel a need to feel like a princess for a day either.

So...we stopped planning for a whole year.  No rush anyway, right?  Unfortunately, Arizona isn't a common law state (trust me, I checked), so we have to do something.  And we've definitely considered eloping, but that didn't feel quite right either.

The more that time passes though, I think I'm actually starting to figure out what it is I really want out of this whole wedding thing.

1. To sign whatever piece of paper that gets me married 
2. To have all my friends and family there to watch
3. To have a big party afterwards (dancing, drinking, etc)

(I'd also like to wear a pretty dress, while I'm at it.)

I guess I say all of this to say...we started up the planning again.  Save the date...for Fall 2014 (tentatively).  Crossing my fingers for as little money (and stress) as possible.  And I'm inviting you on this adventure too!

Long sleeves

 j.crew cardigan, tank, & jeans; target wedges; ily couture necklace.

In case you were wondering, yes it is way too hot in Phoenix to still be wearing cardigans.  My closet is in desperate need of short-sleeve tops.  I have no idea how I've managed to live here for almost two years with a closet 80% full of long-sleeve shirts.

Any suggestions on what to wear to work when it's too hot to layer?

Also in case you were wondering, yes I have three of the exact same necklace.  They were on sale....please tell me I'm not the only one who's done this.

Black on black

express top, ily couture necklace, thrifted belt, express pants, sam edelman flats.

I know these bubble necklaces are a bit overdone but I love how they spice up an otherwise plain outfit.  I love a classic black on black look, but I just can't help adding a few pops of color.

In other news, three day weekends go by way too fast.  Darryl & I have been doing a (mostly) paleo diet this past month so we made some new recipes this weekend, watched a lot of The Walking Dead, and I got a new tattoo because I'm hardcore (obviously).

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Only Wednesday

Today I tried to convince JD to take pictures with me but he was not having it.

h&m top, target skirt, report heels.

I know it's only Wednesday but my brain is absolutely fried.  At work we have this amazing program starting this week through Labor Day where we can leave at 3 pm on Fridays.  Thank goodness because I think I'm going to need a nap before starting my weekend.

In other news, today was a pretty good hair day so let's celebrate that, yes?

Two years

Happy Anniversary to my favorite person in the world.  And many, many, many more.

Seeing Red

[target t-shirt, ily couture necklace, j.crew skirt, payless heels]

Welcome to my first outfit post!  Also, my patio.

Today was my first day back at work after a whole week off.  Whenever I come back to work after a break (or let's face it, the weekend), I don't want to think too hard about what I'm wearing.  A pencil skirt and a t-shirt is so easy, and the big necklace makes it look like I put in some effort.

What I've been up to lately.

So in case you didn't know, I used to have a blog.  For my last year or so in college, I'd post pictures of what I wore that day.  I don't have much talent in the photography department, but it was fun, and I made a lot of amazing friends in the blogging community.

I stopped for a couple reasons.

I moved to Arizona and got busy.  Like working 60-70 hour weeks busy while trying to finish the CPA exam and also planning a wedding.  Excuses, excuses, I know.

Well, I'm finally done with my exams.  And we've taken a break from wedding planning (more on that later).  I'm finding myself with all this free time and I'm sick of wasting time on pinterest and reddit.  I miss blogging.

So I'm still debating what it is I actually want to do with this blog.  The outfit posts were a lot of fun (and I feel like I will have a lot to contribute now that I'm in a more professional environment).  But I also want to show more of me and what else is going on in my life other than just what I'm wearing.  Hence the new title, Lydia in real life.

I can't really think of a good way to end this so here's a picture of my dog.