Comfy Week Nights and Weekends

No matter what I am up to, my friends always mention how busy I am and that I need to slow down. And you know what? Most of the time I agree with them. And because of that I am always looking for ways to unwind in comfort after a long week or even a long work day. My favorite way lately? Coming home, throwing my hair up, changing into some Cuddl Duds, and playing with the pup.

Full Outfit: Cuddl Duds from Kohl's

You all know about hair up and a cute pup, but have you heard of Cuddl Duds?! Oh man... if you don't you need to. They are the perfect layering apparel to live life in comfort. I have friends that layer them under their snow gear, some wear them for pajamas, and some wear them for busy errand days - because no matter what you will be living easy in comfort. I am all about swapping into them after a full day of office wear. Plus, they are light enough that as the weather cools off I can just toss on another layer or two. I am a big fan. #GoComfy with Cuddl Duds at Kohl’s for the latest styles and color choices! When you're comfortable, everything is possible.

This post is sponsored by Cuddl Duds and Kohl’s, but my love to #GoComfy is all my own!

How We Wore It: Fall Sweaters

It’s back! With my blog break there was also a break for How We Wore It! But I am excited to introduce it back to the blogging world today. In case you need a refresher, this is how it works. All of us were given the same “inspiration outfit” and we were asked to create our own take on it once we let our creative juices flow. Any outfit can be inspired by the colors, the patterns, the pieces, or the textures is fine.  So our how we wore it is coming from the inspiration side – with things we already have! Because not many people have the luxury to just go buy a new outfit based on what they see on Pinterest, so you have to work with what you have. First up is the look we used for our inspiration.

via Diary of a Debutante

I picked out this outfit because I thought it was the perfect way to introduce fall while reintroducing How We Wore It. The outfit was simple enough that it could be taken to any inspiration direction. And now that the weather is finally cooling down I cannot wait to pull out all the sweaters and cardigans in my home. Here is my take on the look.

So when I originally was thinking of this outfit I had a really great idea in mind with the navy blue cardigan I have that is chunky and oversized… but then I remembered I have it to D.I. so I was out of luck. So I decided to go with another fun sweater in my closet. I swapper the dark on top, light on bottom for a light sweater on top and dark leggings. Then I still paired the look with brown boots and accessories.

Want to see more Diary of a Debutante inspired outfits? Check out how all these babes styled their look –  Kyla from FordOlogy / Paige from The Happy Flammily / Alyssa from Impractical Composition / Jessica from Flint Flair / Amber from amber nicole blogs / Jen from Real Life, On Purpose / Autumn from Stay gold Autumn / Rebekah from These are the Days / Tessa from Tessa Marie / Aubrey from Aubrey Zaruba / Emilie from Burke Does / Susan from Sue’s News / Madeline from CaseyLand / Sierra from Sierra’s View / Justine from Little Dove Creations / Jessica from Mason Jars and Lemon Bars / Kiana from Glitter and Donuts. Want to be one of the 15 How We Wore It stylists next month? Don’t forget to sign up!

Color By Amber

There is a 75% chance I will buy something if it is going to a good cause. It makes me feel like I am shopping for a good reason – you know, like my money is going somewhere great? And that is why when I was introduced to Color by Amber I was hooked. To the point that I even signed up to sell it for a bit before deciding my life was a little to crazy. I loved the message behind the jewelry and I loved that it benefited more than just a girl trying to look fashionable.

Necklace: Color by Amber
Dress: Sister Missionary Mall
Shoes: Nordstrom Rack

Color by Amber is made of recycled content, they don’t send a single thing to the landfill, their products are BPA and chemical free. Basically everything is created around re-usability, recycling, and safety. And then to boot they help women world wide by creating Full Circle products that give back to women and children worldwide. Things like solar projects, education, and employing women to help create the beautiful products. So who said looking good has to be just for you? It can be for much more than that with products that give and give. And that is why I am a sucker for products like this.

Time Will Tell

Sometimes I really feel like I am on top of things and like I can rule the world… and then sometimes I feel like I am drowning in my own sea of life. For about half the year I live alone, because my husband travels for his job. And to avoid feeling lonely, I fill my time with a million other items. I work, I volunteer, I teach, I blog, I watch shows, and I try to spend time with friends. I try to do a lot of things so I never am on my own. And so I don’t let myself fall into a pity party. But then when my husband is home I still have all those things that I was previously used to doing PLUS one of the most important things in my life. All of that plus regular emotions and mental states, I have finally come to a point in my life that I realize the importance of prioritizing and cutting out what I can do without.

Watch: Arvo

Top: Eleventh Avenue

Hat: Aro & Co

Jeans: Old Navy

Shoes: Target

And the older I get the more I realize my priorities have shifted. My priorities used to be husband, friends, blog, social life, and so on – and then everything else was great too so I didn’t want to cut it. I wanted to do everything and anything I could. Because I liked feeling busy. But now I am realizing my priorities lie in my family, church, and personal well-being. Well being is the key one in there – because before I would load up my plate so full that I never had time for myself to just say nope, I am going to do me today. That is why I made sure to blog when I was too busy to even see straight, spent time commenting and scrolling on IG and Twitter, made sure to always volunteer for things – I don’t know. I was crazy! That is the only way to describe it. But I am putting myself first and really evaluating where I am at. And that is why I disappeared from here for a bit. With life and all I had going on, blogging just because I was “supposed to” didn’t feel right. So I took a break. I stopped spending so much time on social media. I said no to things, and man… did that feel good! So what are my priorities going to be tomorrow? Or next year? Or in five years? I couldn’t tell you…. things shift. Feelings change. And only time will be able to tell where I am landing.

Live Happy

Something that I have come to realize in the last couple years is that it is really easy to get down. To let yourself not be happy. To find the negative in life. To just get in a rut. I have done it more times than I would care to admit. I feel like I have good reason to be a grumps lots of the time, but I have made a conscious decision to not be. I have made a choice to live happy. Because really, that is your choice. You decide whether to be happy or to be mad. You decide whether life is handing your a billion sugar cookies or rotten eggs. Anything can be wonderful with the right mind frame. And so this shirt has become my new motto. Live happy.

Shirt: Ivy City Co. c/o

Jeans: Old Navy

Sneakers: DSW

I have decided to live happy. I have decided to figure out the positive spin on everything. This past weekend I have had literally the worst luck in the world. I lost my ESA pass for Slider, had a full on emotional breakdown on the air plane, almost burned my eye out, got stuck in traffic for an hour, blew out a tire on one car, killed the other car... luckily that is about where the list stops. And while I wanted to be angry and upset and all of the above - I wasn't. I wasn't because I made the choice. To live happy. I got to see my husband. I got to be in Arizona where I could wear shorts. I got to see good friends. I got to eat caramel apples that my mother in law made for me. I got to be on vacation. I got to have a nice meal with my parents. I got a lot of wonderful things. And my negative attitude would have only clouded over all the good things. Live happy my friends, because when you smile. The whole world smiles with you. Who wants to join me? Who promises to join the happy movement and live happy?