Today!

 I have been putting off posting for a number of reasons, and a lot has happened since my last post. Of course it has. It's life, right? Some things I can talk about, and some things are far too profound to discuss on a blog about not shopping.

First of all, the day I finished my job as a long term first grade substitute teacher, I came down with strep. Of course, I did not know that I had strep until four days into my illness, but it was strep, and it was horrible. It started when I was cleaning up five months of papers and lessons and other stuff that had ended up on my desk. I had not wanted to clean up, as my last day had been so emotional, but I needed to move my stuff because the other teacher was coming in on the weekend, and she needed a clean slate.

As I was filing papers, and replacing staples, and moving all about the classroom, I started to feel wonky. At first I tried to dismiss it, but by the time I gathered the boys and got into the car, I was positively feverish. Luckily, my mom and my aunt were at my house with HaHa, so after I made dinner I took a burning hot bath and crawled into bed.

I stayed there the whole weekend, lost six pounds from sweating, and only got out of bed on Monday because I knew that the pain in my throat was too horrible to be anything but strep, even though Richard was mocking me and calling me dramatic.

At any rate, being sick and missing my class were just two of the things that derailed my follow up posts.

I still have not bought any clothes in retail, and I have not been Goodwill shopping since my first couple of trips.  I went to a clothing swap where I got rid of over a dozen items, and brought home only two.

I did but a new pair of Earth sandals because I wanted a walking shoe. I lost one of my Fit Flops. These Earth shoes are pretty ugly, but now that my daily posting is over, and I'm a full-time SAHM , I don't need to look my best. I can go back to my mom jeans and bon-bons!

Today's Outfit:

Yellow sweater and green scarf : Fresh friend hand-me-down from last weekend. As I have said many times before, I am very lucky to have stylish and generous friends!

Grey sweater: Clothing swap!

Jeans: Goodwill.

Shoes: My new Earth monstrosities!

The shirt in the photo with the kids was also a newly handed down item! This was a few days post strep and I had a giant cold sore which is why I'm making a weird expression.

P.S. Forgive my shaky composition, it's been awhile.

P.S.S. This post is dedicated to the lovely Pollyanna, my posting coach!

Blog-Drawl!

So I have gone one full week without posting! It feels very strange. For the first few days after my last post I felt as if I had a phantom limb that had been lost at sea... (Does that image make sense?) Coming home after work, and not taking photos of my outfits was surreal. It was also otherworldly not getting dressed without thinking about repeating. It still feels weird sometimes.

I also went shopping for the first time in a year! At Goodwill! My Fresh friend gave me a Christmas gift o' cash in order to go shopping at the G.W., so, of course, I had to go. However, I Still haven't bought clothing in retail.

I got four things:
           A creme sweater with metallic thread.
           A cap-sleeve jacket that also has metallic thread.
           A pair of black cargo pants.
           A navy mock-turtleneck long-sleeved shirt with gold  sequins!

I wore the sweater with the jacket on my first day back to school, and I wore the sequin shirt with the cargo pants on another day. I also broke into the garment bag so generously bestowed upon me by my lovely friend's mother! I made an outfit from her hand-me-downs, including an awesome belt, that I thought was very cute! I did wear my own sweater with it though! I am thinking of maybe doing a "Garment bag" series of outfits.  I have included a few photos of the aforementioned outfits. You can tell me if they're cool or drool! There's also a photo of HaHa in a handed-down cape-let, and plastic heels she got for Christmas! So cute!

I hope the first week of January went swimmingly for you all!

Here's to a happy second week!

"Hi MOM!"

HaHa has started calling me mom. It's a bit strange for me because she is little, and "mama" seems much more appropriate. Furthermore, when she says "Hi, Mom!", she says it with such verve, she  really sounds like a teenager.

Another current HaHa favorite phrase is: "Bah-bah dees one"(Bah-bah this one). She is still completely interested in nursing despite the fact that I am completely not interested in it. I feel done. I nursed Charlie until he was 15 months old. I was six months pregnant at the time, and I remember him coming toward my boobuses. I said a firm "No!" and pushed him away. I felt really guilty, but it was as if my body had had as much as it could take. I was growing a baby, nursing a toddler, and working full-time as a teacher.  I had reached my limit.

Leo was 18 months when he finally weaned, and that was prompted by his introduction to day care when I returned to work. It wasn't immediate, but it happened pretty seamlessly. I had been hoping HaHa would follow in his footsteps. I guess it's only been two days, so I'll try to be a bit more patient.

On a more serious and very sad note, I learned today that one of my very dear friends lost her brother last night. It was unexpected, and he was only 44 years old. He leaves behind two young daughters, a wife, and a family that I can only imagine is devastated. As my friend so eloquently put it, "the enormity of their loss has no words to describe it".
My heart goes out to them.

Outfit:

I did not sleep very much last night, so I was going for comfort over everything else today.

Shirt: Street vendor in NYC many years ago.

Sweater: Hand me down from Fresh friend. H& M.

Pants: These were given to me by my cousin who has a new One Green Wedding blog! She got pants these at EMS. They are biking pants!

Shoes: American Eagle. Red shoes rock!!!

Two A.M.!

I'm back. I'm tired. I'm just hangin' up the phone after an-hour-and-a-half conversation with my Fresh friend, and it's 1:20 in the morning! She has to go to work in a few hours. And go to workout... What is she thinking?!

Actually, what am I thinking? I have to drive my mom to the airport in 4 hours. Okay. Maybe I need to get my pictures up and call it a day. Why am I such a procrastinator? Why? Why? Why?

Since I'm pressed for time, I will simply put up a few pictures from the last two New York days. One day soon, I promise to write a decent post!

Outfit:

Lace top: Hand me down from friend. I'm wearing it backwards for the second time.

Grey Tank: Urban Outfitters. It's at least 15 years old. I think I'll need a new one next year. It's starting to fray.

Jeans: Hand me down from cousin. Gap.

Shoes: Goodwill. Kensie Girl.
I love the woman's face above HaHa...  (Top Photo)                   

HaHa with my good friend Khaled. (Middle photo)

HaHa being the social butterfly that she appears to be. In the bottom picture she was saying"Hi" to the woman hawking sunglasses at the airport! The woman loved her. Of course!

Comic-Con!

Wow! This Comic-Con is one amazing event! Costumes, characters, merch and sub-cultures, all milling about aisle upon aisle of convention center mania! Working at my friend's
I Heart Guts! booth was a gateway to a host of interesting folks.

Some of the people I talked to today included:

A renowned OB/GYN who has seen 12,000 patients this year. He also has a twin brother and a very sweet family.

A man who received a kidney from his mother 6 years ago, and is doing swell!

Another man who had both a kidney and pancreas transplant nine years ago. He is getting married next fall.

A girl who's mother is a sex-ed teacher. Said mother greatly embarrassed her daughter when she dropped a bunch of abstinence videos in front of a boy that was over who the girl liked. Her mother thought it would be funny. Said boy thought the mother was crazy!

An actor from HUNG. Not the title character.

Some girls wearing cat ears. And tails.

A boy with a tribble, and many, many others...

Outfit:

I have to wear a gutsy tee of course! Luckily I have a few of these to sport this weekend!

T-Shirt: I Heart Guts.

Jeans: Goodwill. Gap.

Shoes: Fit Flops.

Sweater: Hand me down from  FRESH  friend. H & M. It was pretty chilly here today, especially in the convention center!

Procrastination!

Why am I so good at procrastination? I don't know. I can't say I was born with this particular talent because, in truth, I was two months premature. I should have been born a Gemini.
Thank goodness I popped out early! Geminis are so complicated.

Just kidding! I don't really know that much about Geminis. I am sure they are no more or less complicated than their astrological brethren. But they are weird. Kidding again. If you are a Gemini, please don't leave me any angry comments...

So, procrastination. A skill I have cultivated and nurtured over the years. Always, always, waiting 'til the last moment. To start. To leave. To finish. To plan. I actually was very worried there was something pathological about my behavior until I heard a lecture by a neurologist who said that procrastination was the norm. I was so relieved. Soooo relieved. I was normal!

And now, I don't worry about it so much. And everything always gets done.

Unless, of course, I forget... But that's another story...


Outfit:

Tie: I pulled out this tie for Leo last week to wear at his culmination, but he said "No thanks". After I found it again, I wanted to wear it. But, I have learned that I have no button down shirts that I can wear ties with. Actually I have one classic collared shirt, but it is dark brown and has some detail on the front that wouldn't work with this tie. So I decided to wear it without a collared shirt. I'm going to start looking weirder and weirder as the days go on, so why not start now?
It was given to me by a friend.  It is vintage and was hand painted. I really love it and I'm glad I've kept it all these years.

Shirt: Hanes.

Sweater: Hand me down from my FRESH friend. H&M.

Skirt: George. I got this at Walmart when I was visiting my mother. I don't usually shop at Walmart for clothing, but, if you visit my mother, you will find that it is one of the only stores close to her town. So when I'm there I go to Walmart, and I find myself perusing the clothing. I was working in admissions at the time I bought this.

Leggings: Don't know where these came from, but I've had them forever. Probably about 17 years.

Shoes: Miz Moos.