Scandal & Stitch Fix

Happy Sunday everyone!

I hope you had a very productive weekend.

I sure did.

I finally got on the Scandal bandwagon.

And watched seasons 1, 2, & 3.  Episode after episode after episode....I spent my Friday night, Saturday and part of Sunday all strung out over this show.  I couldn't get enough.  I'm not sure if I even drank any water yesterday.  I know I didn't shower, comb my hair or change out of my sweats.  

So, here I sit, thinking I'm Olivia Pope.

I have a Scandal hangover.  

Anyway, great show.  Watch it.  Can't wait for next season.  I'm not sure how I am going to handle watching weekly episodes like a regular person.

Side note:  I want one I each of everything from her closet!!  I am still questioning when she has time to shop or get manicures with her busy schedule making out with the President and solving problems.   In all 40 some consecutive episodes that I watched, she didn't go shopping once and managed to keep her nails perfect.  She also apparently has a closet full of ball gowns just in case she has a formal event to attend....a woman after my own heart.

Ok, enough about Scandal, I could talk about it for days....on to the next thing....just watch it.  

Stitch Fix

My Stitch Fix came in yesterday!!  If you go to www.stitchfix.com you can see the details.

Basically you sign up to get a shipment of clothing once a month customized just for you.  You have to take an online survey so the stylists at Stitch Fix know your style.  (It's easy an quick). 

You don't have to keep everything and your monthly membership of $20 goes towards your purchases.  Whatever you do not want, you package up in a pre-paid envelope, drop it in a US mailbox and send it back.

It was pretty fun to get everything and try them all on.  I ended up getting a pair of black leggings and a red blouse.

 

I was surprised that I liked the leggings, I'm not a 'leggings' type of person....but they were a really nice fabric and didn't show my ass imperfections.  (hail damage). They fit really nice and will look good with boots this winter or flats this summer.

 

The stylists even send you a little card with each piece, giving you outfit ideas. (Sort of like all of those pins you see on Pinterest)

The items that I didn't go with were a navy blue and black dress....

 

I really wanted it to work, I was just a touch too short and I was too tall for it.  The tie sat just below my boobs, so it looked odd.  

A navy blue blouse with a jeweled neckline.  Again, really cute, but didn't fit right.  My linebacker shoulders were a little too wide for it.  I did like the style though.

Finally a super cute polka dot sweater.  I'm really into polka dots right now, so the  style match was right on....but it was way too tight in the boobs!! You could see my bra right through it.  Which is good for the club, but not the office.

Everything that I didn't keep, I wrote a review online of why I didn't like or keep it.  In general, everything ran pretty small in size.  That was disappointing to my self-esteem.  I thought getting strung out over a TV drama and forgetting to eat over the weekend would help the clothes fit a little better...but to my disappointment....it didn't work. ;)

Anyway, all if the reviews I read said that when you give some feedback on the pieces, your next 'fix' will be much better.  So I signed up for another in January.  I'll let you know how it goes, I'm sure you'll be on the edge of your seats.

The other neat thing that I forgot to mention is that the stylist sends you a personal note that tells why they selecte the styles for you.  It's pretty neat and similar to having your own personal stylist.  (I bet Olivia Pope has a personal stylist)

Overall, it was fun, pricing wasn't much different than my regular shopping habits, the style matched mine and it was easy.  Definitely worth giving it a try if you like to shop.

Enjoy your week!!  I will be spending the week detoxing from Scandal and crying myself to sleep at night because I have to wait for next season.  

Other than that, cheers to a fantastic week ahead!!

Side note:  all views and opinions expressed in this post are my own.  This is not sponsored by ABC or Stitch fix.  ;)

Apple Cider Vinegar and other Pinterest Wins!

Happy Sunday Y'all!

I hope everyone had a great weekend! Mine was great, we had an ugly sweater and 'as seen on TV' gift exchange party with some of my coworkers.  It was great!

I'm quite sure that made the most awesome veggie tray ever.

 Pinterest Success!!!

It was really good and fun to make!  I highly suggest showcasing your artistic talents this holiday season and whip one of these bad boys up.  

There's one of those green crafty cones underneath it and you simply just poke toothpicks with veggies into it.  

Next on my list of Pinterest wins is learning the benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar.  

Pinterest can be such a time-suck, but so educational at the same time.  ;)

I'll admit, when I first saw a few pins about it....I was drawn to the "weight loss" part....you know I'm a sucker for a weight loss gimmick...but have since read more about all of the benefits and thought I'd give it a try.

The benefits listed above are all over articles on the www.  WebMD has a good overview about it and they seem pretty legit.  http://www.m.webmd.com/diet/apple-cider-vinegar

I'm sure happy that Al Gore invented the internet, it has opened my eyes to so many new things!!  Research is at my fingertips and every single thing on there is 100% true I'm sure of it.

I'm on my second bottle and have been taking a shot every morning before I walk out the door.  It's not that great, but I figure I've taken much harsher shots at the bar, so suck it up.  (You can also dilute it with water and sip on it throughout the day)

I like Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar, with the mother. The mother are the fine chunks of Apple that are in the bottom of the bottle.  Shake well!!  Here is their website if you are interested in learning more:

http://bragg.com/books/acv_excerpt.html

Bonus: You can get it at any grocery store and don't have to make a trip to an expensive specialty store. 

Give it a try, it's good for you!  I feel great and am excited to keep taking it and reaping the benefits.

Cheers to ugly sweaters healthy shots and Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas!

Positivity on a Tuesday

Oh my. 

I am going to have to start this post out with a few positive selfies.....

This is me this morning on my way to work. 

I'm all about the cardi.  I could easily say I sport some sort of gramma cardigan at least 3 days a week during the winter.  This morning I was feeling especially good about rocking this cougar print cardi.  I've only done animal print accents before and never full on animal.  Growl. 

Today was my day. 

This is me after work on my way to the gym.  (Just in case you don't get enough selfies of me) I'm keeping up with my 'mile a day every day I'm December' challenge and got another 3.1 mi in today. Whoop whoop.  I'm rocking my cute official NY Yankees-straight from Yankee stadium hoodie because the 3 steps I have to take between my apartment and the gym are colder n' shit this time of year.

Plus, I was super excited today that I can finally get my hair in a high pony tail!! Growing hair out takes forever-it's the small victories that I love...

So much for happy selfies. 

The next pics disturbed me.

So much in fact, it inspired me to write about it.

I bought these jeans online about 4-5 months ago.  They cost more than my first car, so dang it, I want them to fit!  Do you ever keep something that doesn't fit as an incentive? Yah, I never do either. ;)

I keep trying them on and hoping that I will magically lose about 10 el bees and they will look great.  It hasn't happened yet.

Here's the front view...

Not horrible, pretty snug in the thighs, but overall not bad. (I've mastered sucking in)

After my sweet sister snapped the next picture, she kindly said: "I don't think you want to see this, let me take another.  Do you want your muffin top in it?"  "Let me get a better angle."

Ass roll much?

Should the pockets go that low to my thighs? Or are they just so tight that I can't pull them up more?  Do they even fit right?

Moral of the story:  This is why I go I the gym and am hoping that this is my 'before' picture.

...Also, never think that just because jeans cost an arm and a leg, they will instantly give you a nice arse.  Or that your normal size will fit!  My experience has been...the fancier, more high-end the clothing, the smaller they run.  Size up, size up!!! 

...Also, take a broadsided picture of your backside once in a while, I might do it with all my jeans. (or not)

Onto arms.  I mentioned in the last post that I am going to start working on my arms...here are a couple if workouts that I am going to try this week. Feel free to join me in the next few months as I work to get my upper arms to stop waving back!

 

I hope you week is going great and you are making the most of what life has to offer!

Cheers to before pictures!

Back in Action

This could be trouble...I figured out how to post my blog on my iPhone or iPad with the Blogger App.  I only knew how to blog before on my computer, so I really had to think about my posts before I wrote them....not anymore! Now you are going to have to deal with my shitty thumb-typing skills and all of the typos that come with that.

(I am also hoping that I won't do any blogging during my drunken wine benders...but....you've been warned)

I'm sitting here in the Denver Airport on my way back to #omahasomewhereinmiddleamerica feeling quite pudgy after 3 Thanksgiving dinners and numerous desserts.  I exercised every day (almost) that I was on vacation, but I still managed to pack on a few lbs based on how my jeans feel.  Is it a sign that your jeans are too tight when you can barely sit down without blowing out the back pockets??!!  No?  I didn't think so either.

This was Thanksgiving dinner #1 with part of my awesome family!  Love these good people so much! 

Dinner #2 was with my hunney's family and I just love spending time with them, good people (and great cooks!). I'm blessed to have them in my life.

#3 was with my Dad and Sister and Grandparents.  Dad turned 60 yesterday (I didn't know he was 60 already, he's been telling me he is 29 for so long..) Gramma cooked up a fantastic dinner and we got to sit around her table that I have so many memories of since I was little.  Thankful to have such great Grandparents in my life.

I also made bourbon chocolate pecan pie. It was so good!!  (don't tell anyone, but I might have added a few extra tablespoons of bourbon to the pies) it was my first time making pecan pie and it's really tough to tell when it's done.

I also might have had a little bourbon for myself too....it's the holidays, isn't it?

My little cousins, sister and I made a really cool turkey inspired veggie platter.  It turned out great and was a lot of fun to make!

Tomorrow, it's back to the grind.  I joined a 'mile a day' challenge for the month.  You have to run at least a mile a day every day in December. (Except, I just realized that it's December 1st and I didn't run today.  Oops, tomorrow, I promise will be better)

I've been tracking all of my non-treadmill miles since August and am up to 171 miles!

I'm excited to see where I'll be after December!  I've NEVER tracked my miles before and just started in August when I got the nike Running App and was training for the half marathon. Its awesome and really motivating to see how far you've come.

I also decided that I need to do something about my old-lady-bus-driver arms.  Man, they are getting a little jiggly. I will be dilligently on Pinterest searching for an arm challenge.  I will post pictures and measurements this week. It's important that I start getting ready for tank top season at least 6-7 months early, I have a lot of work to do.

I was also thinking about a cleanse again to kickstart - but I might be taking on too much at once.  Thoughts?

It might be too much.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  Enjoy the week ahead and you can bet your ass I'll be online shopping until I drop tomorrow for cyber Monday!

Cheers to starting new/over and making the most of every day!