Blogger ABCs

The 'blogger ABCs' posts have been showing up all over the place in my reader this week so I decided to jump on that bandwagon and do one of my own.  It has been a long time since I did a post like this but it is fun to see random similarities with other bloggers so thought I would join in!  And because I rarely if ever post a pic of myself... here is a blurry one to start off my ABCs!

A. Age - 32

B. Bed size - Queen

C. Chore you hate - Putting away clean laundry, hand washing dishes.

D. Dogs - Always.

E. Essential start to your day - A cup of coffee and a warm shower.

F. Favorite color - Varies frequently but often seen are ocean or sky blues, pink (either a saturated or a pale, never the middle shades), grass or pistachio green 

G. Gold or silver - Silver

H. Height - 5'2"

I. Instruments - Flute and oboe but not since high school

J. Job title - Senior Marketing Manager

K. Kids - Yes, someday

L. Live - Two-flat, Roscoe Village, Chicago

M. Mom’s name - Marcia

N. Nicknames - T, Tara-bera

O. Overnight hospital stays - Never

P. Pet peeve - Don't have one.  Just kidding!   People who walk in a herd on the sidewalk and don't fall inline to share the path with others (you can see people coming towards you even if you are a huge group!), people who cross the street on a green left turn arrow (especially bad on Michigan Ave), people who stop at the entrance of a revolving door thus causing a traffic jam... (yikes, too many?)

Q. Quote from a movie - Every since watching Family Man during the holidays the quote in my house has been "What about my mary janes?" (but only at home!)

R. Right or left handed - Right

S. Siblings - Two older sisters and a younger brother

T. Time you wake up - During the week my alarm goes off at 6:01 and I am up at 6:19

U. Underwear - Always

V. Vegetables you dislike - Brussel sprouts... and raw celery

W. What makes you run late - Trying to do too much in the alloted time

X. X-Rays you’ve had - Teeth

Y. Yummy food you make - Banana cake

 
Z. Zoo - favorite animal - Animals in zoos make me sad.  But I love the ones that swim (penguins, otters, dolphins...) and the monkeys. 

A New Trench for These Rainy Days

I know that I don't even need to go there about the weather we are having this spring.  It has been such a slow spring, right?  The funny thing for me is that I usually kind of enjoy spring showers.  But the gray dismal tones of this spring have got to move on!  Bring on the sun!

One of the things that I have been needing forever is a new staple spring/fall jacket.  It may (or may not) surprise you, but I hardly ever shop and sometimes take forever to replace things in my wardrobe.  I would kind of rather save for a new lens!  But anyways, I absolutely had to get a new jacket. I could no longer make due with wearing the current one, the one where the lining was ripping out. 

Raincoats & Trenchcoats by MICHAEL Michael Kors
Pumps by KORS

After a little hunting I landed on this Michael Kors one from Bluefly.  And I love it.  The shape is good- not to structured for this shorty with curves but not so loose it is shapeless.  The single buttons work for me (double-breasted is not always flattering on my shape).  I like the stitching detail and the color is right (not too light!).  Success! 

This April has been chilly so I am all about the summer weight scarves right now... and loving black patent pumps. 

*MICHAEL Michael Kors trench from Bluefly
*Voile Pintuck Scarf from Landsend Canvas
*Michael Kors Marley Pump
*Kate Spade jet drop earrings at Saks
*Shred Metro Houndstooth umbrella at Neiman Marcus

Prints!

I have added a petite collection of prints to the shop!  For now I have added prints of photographs taken of pretty naturey things that I spotted during our family walks, those that I would hang on my own walls (some do in fact hang on the walls in my apartment).  You guys should have seen how long it took me last night to post these... so if there is a spelling error please don't tell me! :D

And in other news, I spent most of April hunting for a new trench coat that could fit my requirements... I tested the winning jacket this morning while commuting in this April shower... love it. More on the trench coat hunt tomorrow.

Spring Blossoms

If April showers bring May flowers, Chicago is going to have a gorgeous, blossom filled May.

I am so ready for having big huge bunches of blossoms on trees and blue skies with puffy clouds... and if it isn't asking too much, temps that allow for sandals would be fantastic.  The pretty little white blossoms in the photo above are the only ones I found in my walks this past weekend, they were in someone's front yard so I was quick to grab a shot and move on!

While I wait for the pretty side of spring to arrive, I have been eating copious amounts of Haagen-Dazs pistachio ice cream and dreaming up some new photography projects. 

Our Planet is Such a Pretty Little Home

Happy Earth Day!  Our little home in the galaxy is such a pretty one.  I do hope that we can keep it that way.  And it is such a rainy, dreary day here in Chicago that I hope that the earth day community and school events are able to be as productive as they planned. 

I think that over the past year Dan and I have become much more earth-friendly in our lifestyle.  We have finally finally been able to remember to take our reusable bags for shopping trips- very late to that party, I know.  Our diet changed pretty significantly... the effort to cut out processed foods as much as possible has led to a serious decline in the amount of trash we put out from food packaging. We are very conscious about purchasing locally produced options whenever possible- the obvious farmers market and also little things like in the grocery store we go for the locally produced tortillas or beer over the 'big brand' ones shipped in.  Cutting back on my caffeine habit has resulted in my tossing next to zero paper coffee cups. Among other little things like these.

The little incremental changes are not quite as flashy as making a bold statement to say I can shower in 2 minutes flat in cold water (not happening).  But I feel good about the fact that we try to not be wasteful in our daily lives and are thoughtful about trying to be more environmentally friendly.  I love the beauty of nature and hope that I can reflect that through my lifestyle... which is always a work in progress. :) 

Have a happy weekend!