Buckle Boots

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I’m soooo excited to be wearing booties again!! Don’t get me wrong, I love sandals, but not having to paint my toenails is a total win 😉Love the fun pleating on this sweater! Looking for crabs and jellyfish 🙂 LOVE!! On me…

Sweater- Theory (thrifted, similar here)

Jeans-7FAM (old, similar here)

Boots- El Naturalista Duna N528 (thrifted for $7!!)

On Maya…

Jacket- Osh Kosh (thrifted, but similar here)

Dress- Crewcuts (thrifted, but love this here)

Leggings- Crewcuts (thrifted, but similar here)

Boots- Xhiliration (thrifted, but similar here)

Keeping it Real…

Her face…hahahaha. Not feeling the hug, I guess 😉

(all pictures taken with a self timer and tripod, except ones of Maya :))

Indian summer days on the beach…

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I sooooo needed this day on the beach. Maya’s school schedule in the afternoon is great, because that means we can go to the gym in the morning. But…our play time has been significantly been cut, because after going to the gym in the morning and then school in the afternoon. She’s wiped out. Sadly, not wiped out enough to still nap 😉

But…on Thursday, she goes in the morning, so we had all afternoon to run errands, and then head down to beach. We’ve been having amazing weather in the afternoon, so it was perfect! Me- “Maya, do you think I can balance on this log?”

NO!…

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A flip gone wrong haha, but still cute 😉 Looooove this next one! OMG…LOVE HER!Serious concentration…. and honestly, totally impressed!! This was in no way a stable log! 🙂Seriously, DYING!!! She thought it was so funny to just DIVE off this log. Most times she did a total belly flop on the sand, yet came up laughing! And…then did it again 🙂On me…

Top- Velvet by Lily Aldridge Dani Tee (ebay)

Jeans- Current Elliott “The Skinny Crop” (Thrifted, similar here)

Shoes- Superga (thrifted)

On Maya…

Dress- Hanna Andersson (thrifted)

Leggings- Hanna Andersson (thrifted, but similar here)

Shoes- Saucony Jazz (thrifted)

Keeping it Real…

Really…she couldn’t be bothered by me for the most part 😦

This totally cracked me up! She really was SO good at balancing and jumping, but…there were a few not so graceful falls haha 😉

(all pictures taken with a self timer and tripod, except ones of Maya :))

Black + Denim + Booties…always safe.

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We only had a few minutes before dinner to go run some errands and…play at the neighborhood middle school 🙂

I don’t know why, but lately I’ve been in a clothing funk. I have more clothes than anyone in their right mind should have, but I still walk into my closet and my brain shuts down.

I think it’s partly do to the changing of the season. I’m a little tired of all my summer clothes, yet it’s not quite consistently cold enough to wear fall clothing.

It’s also that I’m slammed at work, and my brain is running on empty. All that to say. My safe fall back is always black + denim. Throw in a cute new pair of booties I thrifted for $7 (just found out they retailed for $260!!!), and I had a little pep back in my step! 🙂 On me…

Top- Free People (sold out, loving this long sleeve one here)

Jeans- Citizens of Humanity “Carlton Retro High Rise” (thrifted, sold out, similar here)

Boots- El Naturalista Duna N528 (thrifted for $7!!)

On Maya…

Dress- Garnet Hill (thrifted)

Leggings- Hanna Andersson (thrifted, but similar here)

Shoes- Saucony Jazz (thrifted)

Keeping it Real…

The downside to self timer shots….spinning right out of the shot haha-whoops!

(all pictures taken with a self timer and tripod, except ones of Maya :))

Pink Tulle for End of Summer

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“Bear Hunts”, puddle jumping and running through the woods.. that’s what end of summer is all about! 🙂

So I’m working on a photo book that follows the theme of “We’re Going on a Bear Hunt“. This is the kids’ favorite book right now, so much so that I know every word by heart. Even after the lights are out and I’m getting the kids settled, I will sometimes sing or narrate the story. Despite the somewhat wild dash at the end of the book, it settles them right down..

Anyway, we’ve been out and about enjoying the last days of summer doing our photoshoot and of course what better to wear than pink tulle for a Bear Hunt!?

Thanks to my very patient husband who took the pictures!

Time for a snack!

Love the early fall colors in the background!

Trying not to fall off the log!

Good thing we brought a change of clothes!

My obsession with tulle actually started a few years ago when I saw this beautiful pink tulle skirt on Pinterest. It was paired with a black knit turtle neck and I thought “Oh that looks totally gorgeous, totally easy, and I can totally make that..” It was NOT easy, but it IS doable! Tulle is actually somewhat forgiving when you’re working with it. I found this DIY Tulle Skirt pattern which is a great guide. Don’t want to make one? No problem.. do a search on Amazon or other online retailer – there are plenty of cheap options out there!

For some reason my tulle skirt turned out super poofy (at first) and I had to adjust the slip underneath to lay flatter by removing some fabric instead of doing a full circle.. I’ll call it a success though because even if I did not achieve the original look I was going for; it was fun, we had a lot of laughs and Ava was happy that we could have matching skirts. Plus, who doesn’t like a little pink tulle now and then.. perfect with rain boots and for a “bear hunt”! 🙂

On me

DIY tulle skirt DIY Tulle Skirt pattern
Dalmatian Boots from JCrew (5+ years old)
Gray shirt from Banana Republic (3+ years old)

On Ava

White knit sweater with fake pearl buttons (saved from my wardrobe, 30 years old)
T-shirt with lavender print flowers
Mini tulle skirt from Carter’s
Pink rubber boots

On Anders

Blue button down shirt
Cargo shorts
Rain boots

Sometimes you just wear what you can…

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Oddly, this “shoot” was a hot mess. It was a gorgeous day, so I thought that we really should get out there and take pics! SO many days go by where I just enjoy the day (and my non showered self!!), but this was not one of those days.

It was one of those days where I had no idea what I was going to wear. I was so sick of the basic items I normally just throw on. So I threw a few things that I’ve been wanting to wear, and honestly, they DON’T GO TOGETHER-UGH!! I wish I could say that I wear what I want to wear most days, but that would be a lie. Most days I veto outfits for a myriad of reasons. It’s not practical, I can’t chase after her in those heels, what if I have to bend over, WHY DOESN’T THIS FIT/WHY IS IT SO TIGHT (damn all that wine I drank!!!!)

I do the same with Maya, except most of her reasons are wanting to just wear the same dresses over and over again that she can twirl in. 😉 BUT….that is life most days, no? As much as I want to wear all the amazing things I have, I usually throw in the towel and end up wearing something that when I look in the mirror, (or on the blog!!!), I end up thinking “WTF???!”

Add into the mix that I’m so unbelievabley slammed with work, and it seems silly to spend time on this blog. That in itself is silly, because I LOVE taking pics of us. And more importantly, this blog is what gets me AWAY from my computer and playing with Maya a lot of the time, so WIN!

If only I could add a few more hours to the day… Omg, her face in this next one hahaha. As with most fall days. It’s windy and cold one minute, and then HOT the next… “Maaaaaybe, I’ll get back to wearing some fun things I want to wear from my closet, but until then…

On me… (don’t have time for all the links, sorry!)

Shirt- BlankNYC “Fitted Military Shirt” (eBay, similar here)

Top- Zara (on sale)

Jeans- Joe’s Jeans “Chelsea Fit”

Shoes- Vans (thrifted)

On Maya…

Sweatshirt- Crewcuts (thrifted)

Top- Little Boogaweezin (tee here)

Jeans- Joe’s Jeans (thrifted

Shoes- Converse (thrifted)

Keeping it Real…

I think my rant above was “keepin it real” enough hahaha

(all pictures taken with a self timer and tripod, except ones of Maya :))

Sweaters and BOOTS!!!

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I know, I know. Everyone is talking about how excited they are for fall. Sweaters, boots, and pumpkin EVERYTHING haha. I’m ready 🙂 I am soooooooo going to miss the evening walks though ;(

On me…

Sweater- Heather by Bourdeaux (thrifted, similar here)

Jeans- Vince (thrifted, similar here)

Boots- Cafe Noire (thrifted, but similar here)

On Maya…

Dress- Tea Collection (thrifted, but similar here)

Leggings- Gapkids (thrifted, but similar here)

Boots- Faded Glory (thrifted, but similar here)

Keeping it Real…

She really is a total cuddle bug, but every once in a while she wants nothing to do with me haha.

(all pictures taken with a self timer and tripod, except ones of Maya :))

Jalapeno Poppers

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These are delicious! I mean how could they not be? Cheese filled jalapeno peppers wrapped in bacon and baked to crispy perfection! These must be a total crowd pleaser – an awesome app for any season! Enjoy. 🙂

Ingredients

12 jalapeno peppers, halved and seeds removed (keep a few seeds if you like spicy – as the seeds hold the heat!). And a note of caution – don’t touch your eyes while chopping. The oil from the seeds is very hot!
1 8oz block of cream cheese
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
6 strips of bacon, halved

Directions

Mix cream and cheddar cheeses
Fill jalapeno pepper half with cheese mixture and put on the other half
Wrap in bacon
Bake at 400 for 20 minutes or until bacon is crispy (use broiler for a few minutes at end for extra crispiness if needed!)

Maya’s First day of school!

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We’ve both been anxiously awaiting school to start. That sounds bad, but it’s only 3 hours in the afternoon, so we get all the rest of the day to still play 🙂

Oddly, now that she’s in school, I feel like the summer flew by, and we didn’t do half of what I wanted to do!! Oh, well. Next year…

The day was a little rushed, so we just took a few quick pics outside of our house before school. DYING!!!!Then after school, we played outside with our neighbors and the bubbles that they got in their class!On me…

Top- StyleMint (old, similar here)

Jeans- DL1961 “Nolita Boyfriend Jeans Rockport”

Shoes- Converse (thrifted, similar here)

On Maya…

Top- The LB Brand (sold out, tee available here)

Skirt- Hanna Andersson (thrifted, but similar here)

Leggings- Naartjie (thrifted)

Shoes- Converse (thrifted)

Keeping it Real…

Trying to take pictures of us while Maya’s neighbor boy friends are out playing too…

Challenging, at best. 🙂

And….got a few really cute ones, but in my rush I messed up the focus GRRRR!

(all pictures taken with a self timer and tripod, except ones of Maya :))

Banana Ice Cream Sundays with Figs Almonds and Honey

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Need I say more haha?

I’ve been dying to make a dessert with figs! I’d love to say that it’s because of their flavor, but sadly…no, it’s because of how beautiful they are. YES, I’M THAT WEIRD!! But in my mind…if they look that beautiful, and they are THAT EXPENSIVE (!!!), they have to be delicious too, right??

Truthfully…I’m glad I got some (thank to my parents splitting the Costco batch with me!), but…you could easily just top this with any fruit that is in season and it would be just as yummy! They ARE pretty though, right??!Banana Ice Cream

Frozen Bananas (I cut mine into 1-2 inch pieces and then freeze) amount varies on how many servings you want. I used two, and it was enough to feed 3.
1/2 Cup Almond Milk (or any kind of milk)

Toppings

Figs
Almonds (diced)
Unsweetened Coconut
Drizzle of Raw Honey

What to do

I a blender, mix all the Ice Cream ingredients until smooth and creamy. It helps to let the frozen bananas sit out for about 5 minutes.
Scoop into little bowls and top with whatever you have on hand! Really, the possibilities are endless on how you can vary this! And…I DO! 🙂

And this is what happens when you try and take pictures of a dessert with a hungry toddler haha. ENJOY!!

Dresses in the golden hour…

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I’ve been wanting to play around with sun flare for a while. I don’t have as much freedom to shoot where and how I want to when I’m using the tripod to take the pics of me and M…but the park we went to last night was perfect. I love that you can manipulate an image using the sun (or blocking it) just by moving one foot… Yes, I’m getting a little more creative in my “haven’t washed my hair in a few days” look 😉 These shots were taken at the same time, but I moved the camera forward a foot into the shade for the second shot. For all the photo geeks like myself… 😉And then I moved it back even more to get this one. LOVE this next one! She’s totally been into jumping and spinning. I think she’s got a serious future in figure skating 🙂 On me…