Hi folks! Sorry I’ve been so silent lately. I decided I needed to take a little time away from the blog to privately revel in the excitement and realities of being pregnant…and I also simply was not feeling very inspired to write anything and I didn’t want to write posts that were half-hearted or boring to read. Truthfully, I often struggle internally with the commercialism and hype that blogging lends itself to about always buying new clothes, home decor items, etc. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE shopping of all kinds, but in reality most of us don’t have the resources to be able to always have the newest things. I’ve been trying to figure out how to do fashion/decorating posts without featuring brand new items. That makes it hard though because sometimes the things I want to share are either vintage or have been in my closet for 10 years. Since leaving the Army I’ve had to cut my spending budget down like crazy. I haven’t bought much in the way of clothes or home accessories lately, which puts me in a weird position when I compare myself to other bloggers. It seems like lots of the folks I follow in instagram are always sharing the latest and greatest things they’ve acquired, and while it’s fun to look at, I don’t want to be like that and quite frankly, my bank account can’t afford it! Finding balance is hard. I’m trying though, and I hope you’ll bear with me!
Ok, now that that’s off my chest, on to the good stuff…here are a few things that have been on my mind lately.
1. Lilly for Target.
(Here I go writing about buying new things after saying I haven’t shopped much lately…Sorry! This is different since it was a one time thing and it was at Target, right??) Did you all get involved in the Lilly madness? I was in Columbia, SC last Sunday during the launch because we drove down to see Tom’s daughter Audrey perform in a high school play (she was Lucy in You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown and she was fantastic!). I knew I should have gotten to Target really early, but when my alarm went off at 5-something I turned it off and went back to sleep. I’m not really a morning person and that has gotten even worse since being pregnant. (I’m honestly still mad at myself for not waking up earlier.) My mom was there with us so she woke up with me and we went together. We ended up getting to Target before 8, but the line was already CRAZY long. Once we got inside all of the women’s clothing was gone (mom snagged us each some flip-flops though), and there wasn’t anything left in the home goods section except for hammock and umbrella bases (although my mom did find a set of the gold strand lights). I must confess something though…I did buy some baby girl clothes. I don’t even know if I’m having a boy or girl yet, but I could not pass up the opportunity to buy affordable Lilly clothing! I mean, what if I have a girl? I would have kicked myself for not buying anything, right? They are all random sizes (2T, 3T, 5T), so I told Tom that if we have a girl we must go on a tropical vacation if she ends up fitting into them in the wintertime because by golly, she’s going to wear them. If we have a boy I’ll just pack them away and maybe I’ll get to use them on baby #2. We drove back up to Maryland later that day…and stopped at a few Targets along I-95. I was able to find some champagne glasses, drink stirrers, wine charms and another strand of lights. I went to Target here in Maryland on Wednesday looking for a maternity swimsuit (no luck), and asked the dressing room attendant if there was any Lilly that needed to be put back. There was! I was hoping for something to wear myself (next summer when I don’t have a belly), but all she had was a baby shift dress (so I bought it, of course). I won’t get into the whole Lilly for Target on eBay thing…except to say that it’s crappy. If people are willing to buy it though, can you really blame the people selling it? Not much of an incentive not to do it, other than not wanting to look like a big, selfish jerk.
I recently had my car windshield replace because I got a massive crack in it. They didn’t seal it well so I had to go back in (twice) because water was leaking in when it rained. You know what that means? Sitting in a waiting room looking at old magazines. I skimmed a Redbook from last summer and found this fun, easy, cheap and colorful DIY by Emily Henderson. I’ve never really been a fan of yarn, but this makes me want to go buy some so I can make one of these myself!
Yesterday was Tom’s birthday, and when I asked him what kind of cake he wanted he immediately told me he’d like red velvet cake. I decided to make it entirely from scratch, and it turned out perfectly! I used this recipe from Southern Living, so if you’ve been on the hunt for a great red velvet cake recipe then you’ve gotta try this one!
Now that the weather is getting warmer all I want to do is sit outside all day. Our little balcony (or lanai as I like to call it after my years in Hawaii) is tiny so the possibilities are fairly limited, but how fun is this outdoor room by Kristin Jackson of the Hunted Interior?
Have you checked out my Etsy shop lately? I recently added 2 fun items (this 5 piece candlestick set included), and dropped the prices on everything else! I’ve hit a bit of a lull when it comes to finding more good things to list, but hopefully that’ll pick back up soon!
Love your blog! This is sort of a random thing, but have you considered increasing the line spacing for your text? On my computer, the lines are so close together that sometimes I find it hard to read.
I don't blame you for getting baby Lilly stuff! I would've done the same thing (I have no kids and I'm not even pregnant!). And, ohhhhh, red velvet cake is my favorite. I'm such a weirdo that I make it for myself on my birthday, because I like the way I make it. Ha!
I am so with you — I would love to see more bloggers share how to be stylish or spruce up your home without constantly spending money or having the latest everything. Like you say, it's fun to look at everyone's shiny new outfits, home decor items, etc., but that level of consumerism can be unrealistic (even unhealthy). And, as a reader, you never know the full story, or what another person's financial picture looks like behind the scenes of the blog/Instagram. Maybe they're buying shoes instead of saving for retirement…you just never know. I think you can absolutely have a successful blog without constantly buying stuff (one that comes to mind: Unfancy, by Caroline Rector). And, using what you already have can lend itself to more creativity and ingenuity anyway. 🙂
Hannah
April 27, 2015 / 12:53 pm
Thanks for your comments about commercialism. It can be disheartening to read so many blogs that always link to the newest and greatest trend, so many of which are way out of the average person's budget. I don't have a solution for you, and I understand that "new" is so much easier to work with, but just wanted to say thanks for keeping it real!
Such cute Lilly stuff! I hope you have a girl! 🙂 I was amused to read about the blogs and twitter wars over the LP Collaboration, but it is sad when you consider the people behind the nonsense.
Good for you for realizing that style and happiness does NOT come from having the newest stuff. That said, please keep blogging!
Love your blog! This is sort of a random thing, but have you considered increasing the line spacing for your text? On my computer, the lines are so close together that sometimes I find it hard to read.
Thanks!!
I don't blame you for getting baby Lilly stuff! I would've done the same thing (I have no kids and I'm not even pregnant!). And, ohhhhh, red velvet cake is my favorite. I'm such a weirdo that I make it for myself on my birthday, because I like the way I make it. Ha!
I am so with you — I would love to see more bloggers share how to be stylish or spruce up your home without constantly spending money or having the latest everything. Like you say, it's fun to look at everyone's shiny new outfits, home decor items, etc., but that level of consumerism can be unrealistic (even unhealthy). And, as a reader, you never know the full story, or what another person's financial picture looks like behind the scenes of the blog/Instagram. Maybe they're buying shoes instead of saving for retirement…you just never know. I think you can absolutely have a successful blog without constantly buying stuff (one that comes to mind: Unfancy, by Caroline Rector). And, using what you already have can lend itself to more creativity and ingenuity anyway. 🙂
Thanks for your comments about commercialism. It can be disheartening to read so many blogs that always link to the newest and greatest trend, so many of which are way out of the average person's budget. I don't have a solution for you, and I understand that "new" is so much easier to work with, but just wanted to say thanks for keeping it real!
Such cute Lilly stuff! I hope you have a girl! 🙂 I was amused to read about the blogs and twitter wars over the LP Collaboration, but it is sad when you consider the people behind the nonsense.