Wendy as Peter Pan

Ah, Thursday.  Here you are again!  All sunny and happy.  But your are only toying with me, as the weather outside is -35 with windchill and there is ANOTHER snowstorm coming tomorrow.  Sigh... 

I will probably go get groceries today so I can be ready with wine and chocolates tomorrow.  But you know the old saying: Life gives you snow, make snow angels!

I noticed an ad on TV today that Disney's Peter Pan was recently released for the "first time ever" on Hi-Def/Blu-Ray DVD on February 5th.

It can be no surprise to you all that I am a fan of Peter Pan.  I was named after THE Wendy after all.  It was my Dad's favourite book when he was a kid.

The story about the boy who doesn't want to grow up has been around for over one hundred years.  Authored by Scotsman James M. Barrie, it has been performed as much on stage as on film.  It was beloved by my mother's mother as well, who named her son Barry James after the illustrious author.

When I was in London, of course I had to go visit Peter's statue in Kensington Gardens, which thrilled my father, who had visited it himself in the 1950s:

I bought the paperback version myself at university as I loved the illustration, although I am partial to the version below that includes a certain "other name" in the title:

Over the years, I have received the odd doll:

And I loved the film about James Barrie starring Johnny Depp, Finding Neverland

As you may know, the name Wendy first appeared in print (or anywhere else) in Peter Pan.  According to Wikipedia:

This play introduced audiences to the name Wendy, which was inspired by a young girl, Margaret Henley, who called Barrie 'Friendy', but could not pronounce her Rs very well and so it came out as 'Fwendy'

But what made me think of Peter Pan this fine winter day, besides the Disney commercial I saw?

Well, my outfit of the day, actually.  I got up this morning and felt like wearing something I normally wear in a dressier way in a way that is more comfortable.  I typically wear the dress in this picture with nice dark hose and high heels and a blazer.  It is a lovely silk chiffon dress from Alice + Olivia that I bought a couple of years ago.  Today, I wore it with a pair of leggings and one of my Tippi cardigans.  When I went out, I wore it with my black boots.  In the house, just plain old loafers and an apron when I did the odd picking up.

And a close-up of the leggings, which I have had for awhile as well - I like the details (embellished chic - remember?)

Worn with legggings, this little dress seemed kind of Peter Pan like, almost like a little tunic. 

So I felt quite like me all day and was glad to be able to repurpose a work outfit for use at home!
So happy Thursday: Do you Believe?

Stay Safe Out There!

Style Question Wednesday: Packing Light

Hello All!

It is Wednesday (already!) and thus time for me to seek your advice once again!  Today's topic was actually suggested by my friend GetFresh, who knows I need some help!

As you likely know, we are heading to NYC for 4 nights on March 2nd.  While there, we will visit museums, hit a broadway show (or two), do a little shopping and go out for some nice meals.

But here is the rub: we are driving to Maine to catch an early morning flight.  There will six of us travelling in a minivan (children are each taking an adult friend) together to get to the airport and we will not have a car-top carrier.  We have all agreed to take a purse (well the women have!) and a small carry-on bag and that is it!  We won't be able to fit any more in the van!

Typically, this is how I pack:

But since that is not possible, I need some help/advice!  Or as my dad used to say when we would go away: "I tried to pack myself in a suitcase.  I could hardly contain myself."

Right now, I have a nightie and underwear on my list (we plan to buy soap and shampoo/conditioner there).  That's it.  I need some help!  I am contemplating bringing just one pair of boots, since the weather will not be good for shoes anyway the first week of March,

What do you think? 

I need to be minimalist, but chic!

So please, please, please help me!  I need all kind of good advice to fit it all in!  WHat would you pack to take with you to NYC if that's all the space you had???

Have a happy Wednesday and stay safe out there!

Six Degrees of WMM

Okay - you all have been so good to me this past week, it has gotten me thinking about connections...

We all make connections in our lives; there are some people that you meet (in person or virtually) that you almost instantaneously bond with, other people who barely make a dent.  I never understand why it is I absolutely love some folks and am "meh" about others.  It typically isn't because someone is nicer than someone else, or better looking, or smarter, it is usually more nebulous than that.

What I have discovered, the older that I get, is that I appreciate when those friendships arise.  By now I know that you can lose people all kinds of ways - people move away, they grow apart, they die, they get really busy - and that you have to appreciate people for as long as they are in your life and not take them for granted!

The internet is making those connections for us in weird and wonderful ways.  You meet people from such different walks of life and from such different geographic areas.  You would never find those people in "real" life.  Well, mostly you might never find them.  And yet... And yet, we are all so close adn if you only ask the question, you can find out that the separation is virtually non-existent.  Where I come from, the Martimes in Canada, the most important thing you do when you meet someone new is to establish "who their people are" or what friends you might have in common. As we like to say so eloquently: "Who's yer farther???"

Now I won't make you go through that, but for those of you who, like me, always wanted to be on "The Price is Right" or "Let's Make a Deal!" it's time to play:

SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

cue game show music of choice...

Oh - you know how this game works!  The theory is, to quote the fount of all knowledge, Wikipedia:

"everyone is six or fewer steps away, by way of introduction, from any other person in the world, so that a chain of "a friend of a friend" statements can be made to connect any two people in a maximum of six steps."

And of course, I have always been intrigued by this fame, having had a huge crush on Kevin Bacon (hello - Footloose!), and the theory that every actor in Hollywood can be connected to Kevin Bacon via no more than six other people.

Now, you know i am enthusiastic by nature, but even I know that we can't all sit together online and figure out how many degrees of separation are between us, much as I would like to be able to do that with you over a glass of wine.

But I know you KNOW people.  So I thought it would be fun to see how many degrees we were all separated from the following famous and infamous people.  So here are my random people (this is purely stream of conciousness here!):

1) Queen Elizabeth II

2) Dolly Parton

3) Barack Obama

Your connections do not have to know these people directly,  they just have to have been in a situation where they have met them and the person would know who they were (i.e. you can't say one degree of separation from Dolly because you you went to her concert once!  However if you have a friend that went backstage and was presented to Dolly, well that would be one degree of separation).

Feel free to NOT play along - things just get into my head and I can't resist just speaking them out loud!
Okay, I will go first...

1) I have an acquaintance who received an order of merit from QE II.  One degree (jeepers creepers!) of separation!
2) this one is hard... hmm...my mother knew Donald Sutherland.  Donald Sutherland was in a movie with Nicole Kidman (Cold Mountain) and Nicole is married to Keith Urbain, who I am guessing knows Dolly Parton (man - that took me a few moments!).  Four degrees of separation (or is that 5 - I am mixing myself up now - GF!!!! help!!!).
3) this was easiest, because once you know QEII, you KNOW she knows Barack.  Two Degrees of Separation!

How about you?  You don't even have to stick with these three!  Anyone you want to try to make a connection to?  GetFresh and I discovered after chatting that we have a mutual friend from my hometown.  One degree of separation!  I just love hearing about people's lives, so if you have cool connections (without getting personal - won't make you do that!) would love to know!!!

Happy Tuesday, game players and may the odds be ever in your favour!

Stay Safe Out There!  (and yes, I should go back to work pretty soon!)

Weighing In on Style and Weight Gain/Loss

Happy Monday!
For those of you, who like me, watched yesterday's Superbowl game - wasn't it great?  I thought it would be a blowout, but nope, was a nailbiter in the end!

And Miss Beyonce.  All I can say is Hater's Can't Hate (this is what my daughter says - not sure of its cultural references!)  I am not sure you can find  a more talented, exhausting-to-watch, sexy performer today.  If she had any more left in her gas tank after that performance all I can say is "I want what she's having!"

 

  

Of course, she's doing a lot of hard work to have that boday.  My daughter told me the other day that Tim McGraw is doing 4 to 6 hours a day of exercise to get and maintain his 8 pack. 

And such a good segue to today's topic related to my style and shopping conundrums these days!

Yesterday, I wrote of realizing that the disconnect between my current style satisfactions (or dissatsfactions) were that I was at times riding trends, but those trends, styled by others, did not truly reflect my style as represented by other ways that I was decorating myself.

And as you know, this is partially due to my recent milestone birthday and my desire to move into my 50s "owning" my own style and realizing I do not have the body or mind of a 25 year old.

But there is something else - I have gained 15 pounds in the last two years, due in main to high stress, somewhat to less exercise time, and also I believe, to hormonal changes.

So the dressing for comfort is also related to this weight gain!  Abby asked me yesterday about how those of us who go up and down in weight regularly learn to dress for that.

I went back and found Fabulous Florida Mommy's great post on this issue, called Dressing for the Size You are Now.    It was really helpful to me at the time.

I actually wanted some more comfy pants for the house while I work on losing some of this weight gain, and have chosen fabrics with stretch in them - ponte knit pants, slightly larger button ups.  But I refuse to try and shop for two sizes of clothes, especially since I do hope to lose some of this weight now that I am not stressed, and am eating and exercising better.  But I also know it won't happen overnight.  So I actually went out the other day and bought a very inexpensive pair of boyfriends jeans to help me get through around the house and be able to breathe. 

I am typically a size 6 in Joe Fresh, though I had a size 8 in the arsenal.  This time, I went slightly bigger to a 10.  These are actually too big on me, but the 8 were tight, and when the 10s are belted they are very comfortable and great for doing things around the house.  I just could not justify buying expensive pants that I would only wear (I hope for a month or two).  Places like Joe Fresh or Forever 21 are good spots to buy cheap fashionable styles that you don't feel badly about abandoning!

Having said all of that, even with everything, I may never be my old size again, since by the time I get there again, my body will have changed in other ways.  So the 4s and 6s I might have worn 5 or 6 years ago are probably not going to work for me anyway.  And I can see the importance now of building a wardrobe that has forgiveness for 5 or 6 pounds either way and will be taking that into account as I shop on a go-forward basis.

Right now, my closet looks positively bare - all of the work-related items i am not currently wearing have been relegated to a back closet, as are the things that are too tight right now.  I don't like seeing them there in my closet and so have chosen to move them out. They feel depressing and I don't like to feel depressed when I look at my clothes.  But I don't want to get rid of those things I really love - I will hang on to them for a few months longer in hopes that I will fit back into them.

The funny thing is, I really like this small closet of clothes - it makes me feel very zen-like.  I am less confused dressing in the morning. 

Okay - it isn't quite like this, but I would love to get there!

But how about you?  How do you accommodate those weight fluctuations?  Do you have two sets of sizes?  Anyone else carrying an extra "friend" around with them these days?

Happy Monday and Stay Safe out there!

An A-HA Style Moment & Superbowl Sunday

Well, well, well, I never cease to be amazed at how helpful and thoughtful you all are, both in giving me advice and support, but also to each other, such as all the great advice on a nice cardigan for Margaret.  You are all really bright spots in my day!

Yesterday, you helped remind me that while a cheeky purse is just that, it is not necessarily worth spending 1/3 of my spring/summer clothing budget on!  Now, if it suddenly falls out of the air at a significantly cheaper price, that is an altogether different matter! 

But one thing in particular really got me thinking yesterday.  In her comments, A Well Styled Life (she of the wonderful blog!) said:

I think you choose the creative accessories because they are fun, like your personality and part of your personal style. You mention wanting to dress more elegantly. That's great if you resonate with that style, but we each have a unique combination of styles that make up our personal style and if you only purchase the safe and elegant you may become bored quickly. Your lifestyle seems to lend itself to casual, sportiness (not sweats) and done in an elegant way is terrific with a touch of creative
That being said...I'm long winded... Dollar for dollar, the place to sink your money would not be a creative $300 bag, but key, quality pieces that make up the back bone of your wardrobe, and the creative pieces at a lower price point.
The shoes you loved this week were also creative. Your hair is creative in its curlyiness and colour.
Behold your bio picture, a gold crown...that's creative!!
If you hide your creative side...you'll hate it and splurge for the cheap thrill of it. I've been there.

"Hmm," I thought.  "Hmm."

And then I had an epiphany (I know - a long time in coming but I am a slow learner and in my defense was too busy in the corporate world to pay attention!): I need to treat my wardrobe like I treat my house!  A Well Styled Life's comments reminded me that what I have done successfully (in my opinion) in furnishing and decorating my house in a style that truly reflects me is that same thing I need to do in decorating myself!!! 

In my own home, I have either purchased or fortunately inherited quality pieces and then added my own panache to them in how I accessorized them, through either colour or little pieces that spoke to me along the journey.    To be honest, I have never thought of my wardrobe this way!

So this morning, I walked around my house withe a cup of coffee and started to feel where the dischord might be.

  For example, my dining is quite formal with my great-grandparents dining room set, but that is balanced by personal finds along the way - the huge painting by my friend Jan,

or little assemblages of plates and wine and old painting, an eiffel tower, an antique clock.

But there must be comfort:

The same in my bathroom:

formal marble floors, but all kinds of flea market finds and an old antique chair, but for fun, a black and white photo of the Rat Pack over the toilet.

My kitchen is a mix of old and new, but the compliments I get the most are about the cupboards being two different colours, that I have two massive old cupboards to store things as my pantry

and the details, like 1960s toy kitchen or

other assemblages in the open cabinets.

My house doesn't look like anyone else's house.  It is built on solid pieces and decorated with less expensive accessories, as I noted above.  My friends say it is so me.  So why am I building a wardrobe that is so derivative and is trying to take its quirkiness from others (i.e. the infamous Gayle?).  I realized that I got so used to wearing boring suits to the office that I am suddenly finding myself, at this age, building a new wardrobe that is me and I was simply adapting looks from others, not from myself!

So I need to start not only shopping my own closet, but also my own accessories, accessories that I had all but forgotten about because chunky vintage pieces were not appropriate to where i worked or weren't office-y enough.

Like my house, my wardrobe must reflect me fully, not a company nor an age cohort.  It has to be timeless, but it also means that you have to add the odd paint, and keep moving the furniture around!

I would say that in the last year, these were the outfits that were "really" me

So as I shop this spring/summer, I am going to be looking for lovely quality basics that are not over the top, which also have a "little something extra" like these nougat london, ralph lauren, looks (I must say I was surprised that only two JC items appear in these pictures).  I am going to rely on my jewellry and my shoes.  I am not shopping trends.  When I look at everything above I realized that none (save the pink shoes!) were trends, they were pieces that would not go in and out of style on a whim.  These outfits look like the gal who lives in this house.  SO thank you, Miss Jennifer of A Well Styled Life!  You really got me thinking and you really helped!

So this spring, the clothes will go through the following gauntlet (which by the way, I am putting on a piece of paper and putting in my wallet with me for when I go to NYC!):

1) is it comfortable?
2) is it the best quality I can afford?
3) does it look like Wendy (and I have even coined a new term for this elusively styled Wendy: "embellished chic") and would she want her picture taken it (!)

So tell me - is anyone else going through this kind of wardrobe transition, or am I just really and truly a late bloomer?

********************

Now to change topics dramatically, it is Superbowl Sunday!

That means two things to me:

1) Moosehead beer, chicken wings and carrot sticks (I know, weird combo!)
2) Beyonce!

I am not a huge football fan, but I will tuned in for the spectacle!!!

How about you - any Sunday plans?

Have a great day and stay safe out there!

Saturday Musings : on whimsy, cards, a great book, and Groundhog Day

Happy Groundhog Day!!

I actually have a groundhog living under my Gazebo.  We call him Brownie.  He is quite cheeky; last summer I caught him up on the deck eating parsley out of a pot, just as daintily as the little fellow above.  Another time, I caught him eating one of my echinacea flowers.  While I am well aware of their healing powers, I wonder what they do for groundhogs?  I didn't see him for a few days afterwards...

And when I think of Groundhog Day, I immediately think about the movie with Bill Murray, where a weatherman is forced to revisit the same day over and over again:

Dearest friends, I AM that man when it comes to the things that make my heart sing fashion-wise.  I want to be refined (well not really refined per se), more elegant.  I want to choose the tasteful bag or shoes.  And typically more and more I do.  But, in a moment identical to the moment I had last fall, I had a good set of the gimmees over the following, completely unnecessary, item: The Kate Spade Radio Samira:

You remember last fall?  When I lusted after the obscenely expensive clutch shaped like an old station wagon?  No - well you can revisit THAT post in all its glory here.  Oh I never got it in the end - if you recall I went for the longer-lusted-after "I Married Adventure" book clutch, and I almost snatched the wagon clutch up during the sales, but the $50 delivery charge is brutal!  But I would be lying to you if I said I never "stopped by" the sale section now and then and called it home, like the little boy calling to Shane at the end of that movie "Come Back little clutch, come back.." 

 But enough of what could have been!  Must buck up and get back on topic!

Oh yeah - we were talking about a clutch shaped like a transister radio.  With the clever name of Samira, derived, I believe, from the Arabic word for evening conversation.  Clever Kate! 

As soon as I saw this clutch, I was immeditately transported back to my junior high years, where I would lay in bed for hours listening to WQDY radio ("The Voice of the Valley"), especially on Monday nights, which was dedication night, where I hoped that someone would dedicate Captain and Tenille's Love will Keep us Together.  Sounds like the 50s huh?  Well small town New Brunswick was still in the 1950s in the early 1970s!  Radio was King in our town - the only other source of enternatinment was a movie theatre and a billiard hall across the river in Maine.  To quote Queen:

 I'd sit alone and watch your light
My only friend through teenage nights
And everything I had to know
I heard it on my radio

Kate describes it thusly:  inspired by old-fashioned handheld radios, our designers took to their sketchpads and dreamed up this darling patent leather handbag—a gorgeous gadget indeed, and sure to be a conversation starter at your next cocktail hour.

It even has a long gold metallic strap to make it easier to carry.  Sorry the picture is so small for this one.

It appears from the site that a pink one will be coming soon.  But my heart is with the turquoise blue.

But the price - $298!!!!  Plus shipping and duty!  That would be a third of my Jan to June clothing budget!   And wouldn't it be more sensible to get a purse like this:

The Catherine Street Pippa gives one the same colour, plus is more refined.

Don't worry - I am not going to buy the transistor clutch.  Not yet, anyway.  But there will be a sale... and i will be in NYC....and the stars may align...Or I will just made do with a pop of colour from this little newly released bracelet:

But tell me, why oh why am I always attracted to the whimsical accessories in Kate Spade????

House of Cards

To change the topic dramatically, DH and I watched the first two episodes of House of Cards last night.  For those of you who don't know, this is a 13 episode series, commission by Netflix, directed by David Fincher and starring one of my favourite actors, Kevin Spacey.  What I have seen thus far is rivetting.  The series is based on a much-lauded 1990 British series, which I believe I may have seen when I started reading about this version, but can recall no real details about.

 From what I can see, the series is getting good reviews (we personally loved what we have seen thus far) but the greatest debate has been about how people will watch it, since Netflix released the entire series on the same day.  Will they binge watch, or will be they be like Barry and I, doling it out one or two episodes at a time to make it last?  Has anyone else watched it yet?  What did you think?

The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris by David McCullough

I may have mentioned this book before, and I think Dani was the one who recommended it, but I am abolutely loving this history of the generations of Americans who went to Paris and then returned to the U.S. and how they shaped the history of both countries in so doing.  I am only up to the 1840s, but have decided that David McCullough, who is turning 80 this year, should have written the history of EVERYTHING (and I think for your Americans he very nearly has!) because his writing is so good and you actually feel as if you are there walking the streets of Paris with these great men in women and when you move on to the next era, you are said to let them go.  I felt like weeping when one of the characters dies of fever.  That is good storytelling and I wish I had read this before I went to Paris last summer, although it will make it all the more interesting when I go again!

So how is your Saturday going?  Has your groundhog seen its shadow?  Anyone else pining for a transistor radio purse or perhaps a real one?  Seen House of Cards or reading any good books?  Do tell!!!

And as a parting gift today, I am dedicating the song Radio Gaga to you all, sung by one of the all-time greats, Freddy Mercury

Have a wonderful day and stay safe out there!



Miller Time Friday: Wardrobe Wakeup, the perfect vneck cardi for Margaret and Foreveruary!

Happy Friday!

I find the weeks just fly by.  I would like to say this is because I am so busy.  But really, I am not that busy.  I just seem to, well, fill up my days.  I do feel like I am getting re-aquainted with the real world again, have discovered how disorganized and dirty my house was despite cleaning ladies (all those organizing books about an overly cluttered house being emblematic of an overly cluttered mind, well they are right.  Oh I don't mind clutter - i love my stuff - but if you are holding on to 20 year old christmas mugs that no one has used in 20 years, well you just gotta let them go.  They are not going to increase in value...)

But it is February.  Or as my friend Brian has aptly renamed it: FOREVERUARY.  The longest short month of the year.  I am hoping that getting my trip to NYC planned and working on our family room will make the time fly by!

But that is not a worry for us today, since it is Miller Time Friday.  What will it be today?  Well it is February now, so it should be the month of the pink or red drinks.  So I will go first - how about a Strawberry daiquiri?  And when I drink stawberry daiquiris, which is typically only about once a year in July, I like to have a nice tart cheese.  I will let you decide which one Dani! 

So many things to discuss today - must get right at it.

First - we need to help Margaret find a short-ish vneck cardigan!

Margaret wrote the following yesterday in response to my "Mind the Gap" post on Wednesday:

This is a great thread of comments! I have recently identified one specific gap based on the fact I am always trying to reach for such an item but own few: v neck cardigans which are not long. I want them to go over dresses and other outfits and let the outfit peek out, hence a v neck, not jewel neck. I have several long cardigans (hello JCrew) with v necks but not shorter ones. This is a super specific gap and now I am looking for that. Funny how I shop (and buy) all the time but when I am looking for a specific item, very hard to find!

I don't want her question to be only answered by me since you are all so much better than I at knowing where such things can be acquired, so thought I would re-ask her question today (hope you don't mind, Margaret!).  I suggested Brora (I am a convert!) but know there are lots of other places where they can be gotten, so do you folks want to jump in and help?

And this question segues nicely into my next topic: a book that I read this week called The Wardrobe Wakeup

It was only recently published and I must say, this is the best book I have ever read on figuring how to reinvigorate one's style, though it is really witten for people over 40 and mostly over the age of 50.  So I cannot recommend it fully to anyone under 40 - I think you would not enjoy it.  And who wants to read about sagging and wrinkles well in advance?  Of course, I could be wrong, and often am!

But for those of us women of a certain age - this is a fabulous book.  The chapters:

CHAPTER 1: SAME OLD CLOTHES...GET MORE OUT OF THEM. 10x the fashion power and less worry about body issues- honest.

CHAPTER 2: MONEY CHANGES EVERYTHING...style for less though you might yearn for more. How to downsize without losing your fashion mojo.

CHAPTER 3: I WANNA BE ME... stick with your own look but get fresher, hipper, hotter.

CHAPTER 4: AGELESS VS. ADULT style choices for tricky times... what's too young, too dumb, too bare, too boring, too mumsy. Why body language is crucial after 40 and how to dress when dating again after divorce or widowhood, public speaking, going to court

CHAPTER 5: TO WORK OR NOT TO WORK...like it or not, it's a younger, dress casual world. how to dress when your boss and colleagues are half your age, you go from commuting to working "invisibly" at home, when you're interviewing for jobs and the competition is 32?

CHAPTER 6: SO WHAT NOW? Special situations after 40 require pro advice. You're getting married at 45? Married again at 50? You're mother-of-the bride and don't want to look like one, you're moving to Arizona and hate your hot weather clothes.

CHAPTER 7: FASHIONABLY FURIOUS...the style taboos and clothes dilemma we're dying to talk about

CHAPTER 8: CRACKING THE FASHION CODE...how to shop smarter after 40. Women say they have spent thousands on clothes they can't wear or wish they never bought. Lois explains why clothes look different in magazines and on retail sites than in real life ( and how not to get fooled ), the reason why some trends keep cycling back and why they're never really the same(so don't save for a come-back), why some items are just for show

I must say - I learned so much from this book and will probably have to read it several times to glean it all.  She has some great stylist tricks that would benefit anyone, but especially someone going through an age/life/body transition (I was surprised she hadn't dedicated the book to me and my belly).  There are great pictures and great advice throughout.  And the author, Lois Joy Johnson, used to be fashion editor of More Magazine.  She is a funky cool woman who is holding her own.  Our Gayle could benefit from a little Lois in her styling.

If you get it, let me know what you think!

Homestyle, part deux:

Trying again.  Today was pink and brown day.  Not sure how successful I am.  Underneath the pink cardi is a heather brown tshirt I found in my dresser drawer with the tag still on.  Not proud of that fact.  The trousers are unlined wool trousers from Judith and Charles I got in the fall and have only worn once or twice.  They are lovely trousers, but I think they should have been lined...A wee itchy.  So they do not pass the scratch and sniff test for comfortable-wear-around-the-house trousers.  Oh it is a cruel world.  They now go sit in purgatory with the dressy work clothes, unable to cut it in the small league!  As an aside, I think the colour of my daughter' wall is such a nice colour to stand in front of and you are welcome to use it whenever you like, but you must pass through the realm called CLOTHES-ON-THE-FLOOR and pass the scrutiny of SHE-WHO-WILL-NOT-SMILE-BEFORE-NOON.  It is a perilous journey and many have perished along the way, thrown up against the rocks of You-are-so-uncool.  And still I smile.  Move over Mother Theresa, I am coming!

So besides my daiquiris at Dani's with the rest of you, I do not have any big plans for the weekend.  Maybe a movie?  How about you, what fun activities are you up to this first weekend of Foreveruary?

Have a happy Friday and stay safe out there!