A Little Touch of Gold

Look at these! I got them a few months ago, but haven't worn them until now. But, now that I've finally worn them, I think I'll be wearing these beauties more often. They're unique, but not too flashy. Just my style.

The sweatshirt, which you can't see, says PRO-KEDS. I found it in Japan, while I was on my mission, at a thrift store. Want to know how much I paid for it? Ten cents. Yes, you read that right. And yes, I typed that correctly. I bought my first pair of Keds almost six years ago, and I've been in love ever since (you don't even want to know how many pairs of white Keds I have gone through). How could I not buy a vintage Keds sweatshirt, especially at that price. 

At the time of my first Keds purchase, years and years ago, I was NOT the biggest fan of modest dressing. I loved my little skirts and tiny dresses. But now look at me! My skirt goes to my knees and I felt like a million bucks all day. I was SO proud of my outfit and I felt so pretty and confident in it. I wan't even sure it would turn out. I mean, a sweatshirt with a fancy tulle skirt AND metallic Keds... It was a risk. But, I'm so glad I took it. 

jean jacket here - similar skirt here - Keds here

Pretty cute, right?

An Outfit with a Side of Inspiration

This vest is amazing. I realize I say that about a lot of my clothing. I just get excited about clothes. And, if I didn't think every piece in my closet was amazing then, I probably shouldn't have bought it right? But, back to the vest. Does it remind you of a very popular and very expensive vest? That's 'cus it's a knock off from Wish. Wish is a pretty cool site. You can buy cheap stuff, for ridiculously low prices that, generally, are pretty good quality. I've only had one item come that was junk and the company refunded me immediately. I highly suggest them. Maybe I will do a post about all my great finds from Wish.

Are you ready for a story? Once upon a time there was a girl (me) who fell in love with a herringbone vest she found on Pinterest. She searched far and wide for the vest and eventually discovered that it was from J. Crew. But, alas, by the time she found this out, she could no longer order the vest from said store. So, she looked else where and found what she thought was the same vest from J. Crew Factory. It turned out that it was completely different. Reports of it being cheaply made circulated, and upon further investigation the girl realized that the herringbone pattern was printed on a nylon fabric.  That wasn't ok. So, with a heavy heart the girl continued her search, checking on e-bay and other places where jackets could be sold second hand. There was a lot of dishonesty going on with second hand sellers ( a lot of people try to pass of factory clothing as the real thing) and with a bit of skepticism the girl finally ordered a vest from e-bay. She waited and waited for it's arrival, and upon reviving it was disappointed to find that she had ordered a piece of junk. Months passed, and after many pleasant experiences with Wish, decided to order one from the site. It finally came the other day, and the girl could not be happier with it. the herringbone is stitched and textured, the zipper works and does not pucker, it doesn't smell, and it is really well stuffed. 

And so, the vest and the girl lived happily ever after. Just in time for Fall. 

The End. 

similar shirt here - vest here - jeans here - shoes here

I'm not perfect. Here's proof. 

It was windy. Really, really windy. 

And now for some promised inspiration. I wish there was a magic potion we could all take that would help us each realize our true potential. But, I guess for now, you are just stuck with my little reminders. Don't ever forget how much worth you have! You have unlimited potential to be greater than you could ever imagine.

Karma- It Really Does Work

On Monday I had great plans to take outfit pictures. Needless to say, it didn't happen. On my way to take pictures, I found a husky wandering around in the streets. I'm pretty sure I'd stop for any animal, but huskies have been my favorite kind of dog since...well, forever. When I was little, I had great plans to move to Alaska, with my 13 huskies, and run the Iditarod. But then I got a little older and realized I hated the cold. A lot.

Anyway, I spent way too much time following the dog around, knocking on doors, and eventually just leaving the dog in the yard I was pretty sure he belonged to. All the time I had allotted for taking photos was now used up. Oops. 

Later I went to DI and found two chairs for our living room! One of the chairs fit perfectly into our car. But, there was no way we could fit another chair into our back seat, so we had to come back for the second chair. That evening, Blake went back to get the chair. Butttttt, it didn't fit in our car. Luckily, there was a nice man, who looked like Santa Clause (I'm pretty sure he could be Santa) who was willing to take the chair to our house! He went way out of his way to drop it off. What a Saint.

As he was leaving he told me "you know, I believe in karma." I told him I did too, and as I was struggling to carry our new-to-us over sized chair, thinking of ways I could pay it forward, and sending good thoughts to the Karma gods for Santa's twin, I realized maybe he was my good karma. Chasing that dog around ended up being totally worth it! 

Now, without further ado, my outfit of today! It was cold. Fall is officially here. Ahhh! Before we know it, it's gonna be winter. I love this dress! It is super versatile, and comfy. I have all sorts of plans for outfits with it. And don't worry, I'll be sure to share them with all of you.

Similar dress here - Sweater here - shoes here

Daughters in My Kingdom

So from here on out, Sunday will be my day to share a talk I love and some thoughts about it. There are SO many hidden gems out there that we somehow forget or they just get lost in the mix of all the other amazing talks that are given. On my mission, I would set aside time to study for our friends and those we met with, who were interested in learning about the gospel, and a time for me to study for myself and fill my spiritual reservoir. A quick note to future missionaries: studying for yourself is NOT selfish. Regardless of what the culture of your future mission may be, studying for yourself, whether it is reading something you are interested in, or studying a principle or topic you want to understand more deeply, is essential to your spiritual survival while on a mission. 

Ok, back to the talk... I discovered this little gold nugget a week or two ago. "Daughters in my Kingdom: The History and Work of Relief Society," from General Conference back in October of 2010, was given by Julie B. Beck. You can read it here. It's really good, even though the title is a little daunting. You won't regret reading it. I promise. 

Sister Beck throws down in this talk! She warns us against becoming "silly women," as they are spoken of in the scriptures, and to beware of new forms of idolatry. When we stop doing the essentials, that is, when we get caught up in the world and mistake myths and the world's lies for truth. She reminds us that we are loved, that Heavenly Father knows each of us, and that He has a specific mission for every one of His daughters here on Earth. It's funny, this talk was given 6 years ago, but it is still ever so relevant now. And, I feel as though Sister Beck is calling us to action. Satan wants us to get caught up in the world and its lies. When we start believing that we are not important, or that the Church is placing us as unequal to our male counterparts, we have not become wise, nor have we become "forward thinkers." Chances are, we have lost sight of what is most important, and have either stopped praying, or studying the gospel, or have become lackadaisical in the practice of those essentials.

 I get so excited when ever I think or talk about how each of us has something that God sent us here to do. How special is that?! We are each so important, and have roles to fill, lives to touch, and waves to make.  When I get lazy, and stop studying everyday or my prays get a little insincere ( 'cus let's be honest, it happens to us all) I usually scare myself back into good habits by the thought of missing out on fulfilling my own personal mission. 

Imagine, if we all stopped focusing on the garbage the world had to offer and instead worked on the good, each in our own little spheres of influence, how much good we could really do. Each of us has been blessed with the ability to do that, so we can not fail. How exciting is that??

Well...I'm in Utah

We made it to Utah. Yippee...I guess. The drive was ridiculous. We went from New York, to Illinois and then to Utah. I don't even know how long it ended up being. Somehow, when you drive a U-haul the estimated time of arrival gets pushed back farther, and farther, and farther, until suddenly the eight and a half hour leg of your trip becomes thirteen hours!

I don't know if I can say the trip was worth it (I ended up in Utah) but, there were a few parts of the journey I did enjoy. We made a few pit- stops in Illinois that I was oh so grateful for. We spent the first night of our trip, and the following day, at my childhood best friend's new home. That day, we went out onto the lake, that is basically in her back yard, and spent hours floating along, and getting ridiculous tan lines I had, up until that point, successfully avoided getting this summer.

Then, the next day we were off, like a herd of racing turtles, leaving way later than anticipated, and took a detour to Carthage and Nauvoo. I had high expectations for Carthage, and honestly, they weren't met. For those of you who don't know, Carthage, Illinois was where the prophet Joseph Smith was imprisoned, and then murdered. The LDS church owns the property where the jail, in which Joseph died, is located. Anyone is welcome to come visit the site, and see where the prophet was martyred. Because of the sacred nature of the site, I expected to have an extremely spiritual experience. You know, one those of those moments where you just feel the spirit so strongly, and the truth of what you are hearing or seeing or feeling is manifested and confirmed. It didn't happen. And I left feeling slightly disappointed.

Nauvoo was completely different. It was so peaceful and beautiful. The spirit of the place was almost tangible. Walking around the temple and looking out onto the Mississippi River filled me with so much happiness. I found myself hoping we could stay the night there. I just didn't want to leave. I can't imagine how the early members of the church must have felt, when, once again, they were being asked to leave their homes and move. I, after only having been there a small while, didn't want to go. They, after building a beautiful temple, and creating homes and memories, and building the kingdom of God along side their beloved prophet for the last time, must have been heart broken.
It's in simple moments like that one, walking around the temple grounds, where I'm reminded how much I love the gospel and am able to feel the truth of it all being testified in the quite, stillness of the place.

That night the trek continued, and we slowly made our way out West. Finally, late Friday night we made it to Utah, and the next morning we moved into our new apartment. It needs a lot of work. But, I'm so grateful we found a place and that Blake and I are finally reunited, with no prospects of being separated again in the near or distant future.

So, I really don't want all my postings to be about my life. I can't imagine it is going to be a very exciting one for now. Blake has work and school, we can now categorize ourselves as poor married college students, and I...well, I still haven't found a job, and as long as I don't have a job, I can't exactly afford to have hobbies. So...I've got nothing. But, I've been feeling that me not having found a job yet is not the most terrible thing in the world. It may, in fact, be a blessing in disguise. And that, my friends, is why I am writing this blog post. I actually have time to write!! And for whatever reason, I feel that I need to have an intro post to the rest of my future blogging. I think I need to be writing. Not about my life, or the sad inconsequential happenings of my day, but about things that matter. We have a work to do, a world to change, confident lives to create, build and empower, and, of course, cute clothing to be worn while doing it.

Stay tuned for more, I've (finally) got the time to dig into what I believe beauty really is. And hopefully together, we can become more confident in ourselves, realize our potential, and a lift a few (or maybe a couple hundred) others up while we are at it.