• fashion,  summer

    Thrifted Dress: Perfect for Any Occasion

    When I found this dress late April, I knew right away that the style would be versatile and perfect for any type of occasion. Think birthday party, baptism, wedding, graduation and even on a simple Sunday. The only thing you need to change to create some diversity and maybe dress it up a little more for one occasion or another is change your accessories. A purse, a shoe, your jewelry will instantly create a new look. Of course for colder days, you can also add a top layer like a denim jacket or a moto jacket. I think this is one of those dresses that can be worn year round.…

  • food,  travel

    Enjoying Food in the Republic of Georgia

    First of all, let me preface that one of my favorite things about vacations abroad is the variety and freshness of foods as well as the act of not having to cook any meals! Today’s post is full of colorful pictures of food: one of my favorite things in the republic of Georgia is the food: the recipes are heavy with spices, walnuts and fresh ingredients. “Fast food” items are freshly baked in these little kiosks or small holes in the wall and rich in beans, cheese or sausage. Meals are a love affair and rich in traditions especially dinner: it usually will include wine and toasting. You can also…

  • budget,  travel

    Traveling to the Republic of Georgia: some Insights

    I am back! We just returned on Monday from our 2 weeks in the republic of Georgia and I have quite a few blog posts planned to share our trip with you. Today, I thought I would share some insights on why we chose to return to Georgia for the 3rd time and some quirks and tips about traveling there. The pictures I am sharing in this post are of fun cat murals found in Old Tbilisi where we stayed for most of your trip. The first question I am answering is the choice of our destination. Yes, this is the 3rd time we have traveled to the republic of…

  • fashion,  summer

    Tropical Dress for Celebrating

    I have worn this dress a few times in the past, usually trying to tone it down a little for church since I do not live at the beach or a tropical destination. Here it is for my birthday blog post where I paired it with sneakers and a navy jacket and here I wore it on its own off the shoulder and on one shoulder. For this past Mother’s day, I wore it with a tan jacket and accessories and the restaurant we ate at had a beautiful mural that was perfect for pictures. Here I am with my mom whose 79th birthday was 2 days later. We took…

  • Runners Spolight

    Runner’s Spotlight: Beth

    What Beth forgot to mention is that she gets up and run bright and early several times a week to run with a friend: is 4:30 early? Yes, it is and it takes dedication to get up to run that early. I tried it a couple years ago with my 2 friends and I made it a few times before deciding that I would rather sleep. Beth was also training for a half marathon and steadily increased her mileage. She completed the half couple of weeks ago. How and when did you start running? I started running when my husband John signed us up for a 12 mile Tough Mudder…

  • budget,  fashion,  spring

    Another Thrift Haul: Making Smart Choices

    I recently shared my finds from thrifting with Jodie in Arizona. Now as you may have noticed, I use the term haul loosely: in my case, I typically do not come home from the thrift store with a car full of things. I usually probably find 5 or so items and if I have been to several stores, maybe closer to 10 items. A week after the trip to Arizona, I decided to stop by Revive in Woodstock and check out their selection. To my happy surprise, they had a great spring selection of skirts, dresses and tops. I was looking for spring colors and hoping to find some prints.…

  • budget,  fashion,  spring,  summer

    Thrifted Find Looks from Arizona

    Today is my son’s high school graduation! I more than likely won’t be spending much time on my computer. Tears will be shed tonight, hopefully, I will think to add some tissues to my purse. I am also very excited! I wrote this post a while back after wearing all of my finds from my trip to Arizona to visit Jodie. It sure is fun shopping with friends and thrifted is such a fun way to shop as not it is not only budget friendly but quite a treasure hunt. Lemon Clutch The disadvantage of shopping with thrifters like Jodie and Cathie is that they have a great eye for…

  • Runners Spolight

    Half Marathon Recap

    I ran my 2nd half marathon on May 18th and wanted to share a few pictures and thoughts. This is the same half I did last year and while it was slightly cooler this year and it was overcast, it still was pretty humid. I really think that if I want to do another half, I will choose one earlier in the year next year. I will say the medals were really cool this year, the middle circle part swings around. These are my two friends with whom I run fairly often. I also walk with Gretchen (in blue) several times a week. Having a friend to run with makes…

  • budget,  fashion,  spring

    Sari Skirt Style: 5 Ways

    There are more than 5 ways to style your reversible sari Skirt (Jodie printed me a list of 14 ways), but these are the ones I have tried so far. I am just loving the versatility of this skirt as well as the print. It is a lot of fun to wear and to surprise my friends by saying that “yes, it’s the same skirt! This skirt is from a boutique based in Arizona called Just Be You Tiful. You can find her on Facebook. Right Side Up This is the first time I wore the skirt. It was a cooler day, so I was able to wear my crochet…

  • ageless style link up,  fashion,  spring

    Summer Totes with the Ageless Style Link Up

    Summer and totes… I have several summer totes that I love, three of which are from France and Spain and a couple of totes from Amazon. So for today’s post, I had many to choose from. I settled on my most recent purchase (in March) because I have found it very practical for traveling and because I plan to take it on our next trip. It is foldable, and is a great size as a purse (I can add a book if I have an appointment, and I can stuff many things in it if I need to). I had packed this tote in my suitcase for my trip to…