Trendy Tights

That's it. It's over. I've jumped onto the crazy train. I haven't worn colored tights since I was a child, but at a clearance price of $3.50 at Target, who could resist? Not this girl.
I'm nutty for the colors that you'd find in a peacock's feathers, so these tights just weren't hard to be tempted by. And, living in Cali somehow makes me feel free to try out some trends that would've never crossed my mind in Georgia.
Today I knew I'd be working my part-time job and heading to a church service tonight, so I had to dress it up a tad. My outfit felt refreshing and fun and the gals at work LOVED it!
Another winner! Woohoo!

Breakdown:
Shirt: Papaya
Skirt: Gap
Tights: Target
Boots: Banana Republic
Purse: JCPenney

Subtle Spots

I'm doing it again. Posting pictures of myself. In blue jeans. And leopard spots. And I'm not sorry.

I just can't resist. It's kind of fun getting dressed for the day, but knowing that you better make it rock because you're also planning a mini photo shoot...for the world to see.

You know, today started out rough. Our morning routine was unexpectedly altered, I decided to take a deep look at our finances, and then I had a very challenging homeschooling morning. So, I pressed on, felt grumpy and decided that during the kids' lunch break, I'd take a mom break. It's amazing what a shower, shaved legs, styled hair and a fair amount of bright pink lipstick will do for a girl! So here's my outfit info for today...since you're all just DYING to know what Danielle is wearing right now!

Today I'll be picking up my kids from school, going out for a quick mall coffee break with a good friend, heading with hubby and 4 of our 5 kids to a BBQ dinner party and then coming home to host a meeting with another couple. Today had to be comfy, nice enough not to look like the yucky person at the mall, stylish enough to make a good Cali first impression while meeting lots of new families at dinner, and casual enough to host in my home afterward without looking overdressed.

I feel that I accomplished that, and I feel good about it.

I just got these cute shoes and belt (can't find the belt online) at Target last weekend and today is the perfect day to throw in some subtle leopard spots and feel pulled together.

So here's the breakdown:

Shoes, belt, skinny jeans: Target

V-neck: Gap

Knotted Shrug: Studio I

All jewelry: Gifted

Nail Polish: Tauped by Sonia Kashuk (also Target)

It's All About Me.

No, seriously. Well, ok, it's not ALL about me, but this particular post is. Something is happening to me. I'm not sure if it's because my kids are getting a little older (as in...no more diapers, no more potty training, no more purses full of snacks, diapers, sippy cups, and a tiny change of clothes...you get my drift, right?), but I've started caring what I look like. Now, don't get me wrong, I've always wanted to look nice, but when you've spent as many years as I have just being thankful for a clean pair of jeans and a lukewarm cup of coffee, there's not always been the time to coordinate an outfit and feel confident that it's not stained by spit up or tiny muddy hands.
I have this great friend back in Georgia, Lanie Beth Sinclair, who yes, has only 1 baby so far, but yet manages to look put together and oh so classy at all times (I know she will beg to differ, but this is my story and I'm sticking to it). Due to the "she has 1 kid, I have 5 kids" thing, she's been able to make the time to put together a fashion e-book and hosts many fashion posts on her blog. I follow that blog like white on rice and let me tell ya, it's worth every read.
And, because she's a personal friend of mine (be jealous, y'all), I have the privilege of sending her pictures of the outfits I'm considering, building, wearing, etc. and she's gracious enough to cheer me on and encourage me to try something new.
Thus, today's post regarding today's outfit. Last night, my gorgeous daughter, Rachel, and I went to Target and pulled out my iPhone. I headed straight for my Pinterest app, went to my "Wear It" board, randomly selected a challenge outfit, and we went to work. It's an adventure for us to try to get as close as we can to one of the sample outfits that I've pinned and recreate it for my own closet. We even got to share the idea of what we were doing with a fellow shopper who told us that we were "quite clever". (Thank you, ma'am.)

Here are my parts and pieces that led to me feeling ready for my day...the whole day. Please understand that it meant that the outfit had to be suitable for church this morning, some down time at the house this afternoon, and a barbeque with friends this evening. That can be a tall order when you need stylish to coincide with comfy! (But we did it.)

Here's another spot where versatile style came in handy today...I curled my hair this morning, but then had a perky ponytail for the afternoon.

I'll go ahead and give some shout-outs to some brands here.
Jeans: Banana Republic.
White Wrap Tee, Black Blazer, Pink Belt, Pink Shoes, Turquoise Watch and Oilcloth Floral Purse: Target.
Nail Polish: Tauped by Sonia Kashuk (also by Target).
All Other Jewelry: Gifted.

Photo credits to my 11 year old, Isaac, and an iPhone camera. (Give me some grace...we're new at this!)

He said WHAT??? Part 2

[Then I paused to listen close so that I'd know exactly the moment when God started to snicker too. Maybe he'd even just belt out a big BAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!!! Oh, that would just be SO epic.]

And then, wouldn't you know it. God only whispered to me. And, it wasn't even a laugh!

He actually said to me, "Trust your husband."

I'm lucky that my chair didn't fall over backward and dump me out, because that's how it felt on the inside. I quickly let God know that trusting my husband is not something I prefer to do...on the big stuff. Jeff has lead our family through many "adventures" in our nearly 13 years of marriage. I trusted that each "shiny" thing would be the one that would lead to us settling down, having a steady life, enjoying the same friends 'til we were 95 years old, etc. I'm a homebody at heart. I love being in my home, I love having friends over, I love knowing my surroundings and just being with my family. Did I mention that I'm my mother's ONLY child, thereby indicating that my 5 children are her ONLY grandchildren, and that I've never lived more than 5 minutes away from her. I love home. It's IN me. Jeff...not so much. For years I grew more frustrated with feeling that he was just chasing dreams and that each new thing would be his next "big break". We toyed with the idea of Nashville and felt certain that it was pretty much the only place that God would want us to be. After all, it's Music City, USA.
I'll spare you all the details, but God just wouldn't stop repeating that phrase to me. It was like He shut down on me, because I shut down on Him. When I'd pray about other things, I'd get silence from God. SILENCE! God was giving me the silent treatment!!! I literally got no answers from Him at all, except that nasty little phrase..."Trust your husband". (BTW, God didn't say it in a nasty way, but my ears have a way of translating the tone on things I don't want to hear...blame the ears.)
It took weeks, an utter breakdown on the bathroom floor, chest pains, the whole deal, but I had to do it. I had to (gulp) trust. my. husband. I soul-searched a lot about why THAT had to be the particular phrase that God continued to whisper in my ears. He finally began to reveal more to me.

He was teaching me to trust Jeff because HE was teaching Jeff to trust Him.

Oh the works He has been doing in both of us! You can't imagine the number of whispers Jeff and I have both been hearing, guiding us down this road. All the while, we've watched God's provision in every area. We're living in a beautiful home, overlooking mountains and the most fabulous sunsets you've ever seen. We have room enough for our friends, a playground in the backyard, sunny windows and a huge kitchen (which I bake in almost daily). We have amazing new friends (who will last until we're 95), a school perfectly fitted to our kids and a city with 40 shopping centers.
There's still a lot that I'm working on emotionally and spiritually, but day by day, I'm still hearing that same whisper, and it's still the only thing that I'm really needing to hear.

He said WHAT??? Part 1

Stagnant. I've been feeling absolutely stagnant, spiritually. Truthfully, I've been angry at God, angry at my husband, angry at anyone who agreed that we should make this hugely life-altering move to California. For heaven's sake, I was born in the great state of Texas, moved to Georgia when I was 6, and stayed firmly planted there until at age 34, my husband informed me that he feels quite at peace with the decision to move to California. I not-so-sweetly informed him that he was quite mistaken and that he "feels at peace" whenever something "shiny" is presented to him. That's what I call it, anyway. Shiny.
You see, Jeff is a musician and a very gifted one, at that. He loves music of all forms, singing, instruments, concerts, lights, cameras, worship, and every opportunity to be a part of them. He put keyboards, guitars, drumsticks, ukeleles, microphones, plastic flutes, and anything else that made noise into our 5 children's hands as soon as they could grip something. You read that right, as well. 5 children. That gave me 5 more reasons to inform my husband of his mistaken "peace" and "shiny" desires. Me? Movin' 5 kids across the country? Ain't. No. Way.
So, what did I do? I went to God. Don't think me holy or humble at this point. I went with specific intentions. I was not going to Him to ask that He share that same peace with me. I didn't go to tell Him how much I loved the idea of a new adventure that was bigger than me, higher than me, more than I could ask or think. No. I went to tattle. I gave God an earful of my husband's shortcomings, of reasons the whole idea was ridiculous, of how crazy we would look to all of our friends and family, etc. I knew deep in my heart that God and I would sit back and snicker and roll our eyes at that wild-eyed, "shiny-seeker" husband of mine. I went ahead and sat back and began my inner snicker...I even let it grow to a light chuckle. Then I paused to listen close so that I'd know exactly the moment when God started to snicker too. Maybe he'd even just belt out a big BAHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!!! Oh, that would just be SO epic.

To be continued...