Outfit of the Day

This weather has really thrown me for a loop. I don't know whether to unearth my spring clothes or continue wearing sweaters....put away my snow boots? start wearing sandles? make up your mind, mother nature!

This weather phenomenon is the reason that I have not been posting very much {Outfit of the Day} excitement. Because well...I'm not excited about the things I've been wearing. My winter wardrobe is becoming boring and drab and I am ready to wear my skirts and bright colors! 

But because our weather isn't consistent, I must make due with what I have. Here is my outfit from Tuesday (the high was 37 degrees....today...its 68....)

yep...those are poodles on my cardigan. 

Worksheets

I miss homework. Is that wrong of me to say? I don't believe I miss being graded on my work, but I miss the responsibility of having to complete something. I miss that feeling of accomplishment when I could look at an assignment and know I kicked it's ass.

In order to fulfill this assignment-completing-void in my life, I'm giving myself homework. If you read my earlier post about budgeting, you already know that I need to get my finances together. So I've found a few worksheets online that I am hoping will help me to focus on my finances and give me the ability to lay it all out in front of me and determine where I can cut some costs. This should be exciting!....and scary....

Check out www.budgetworksheets.org (original, I know..)

If you like to work your finances online, you can also check out www.mint.com. I plan to spend more time on this as my good friend recommended it and it's also recommended by CNN Money.

Ooohhhh a feature!

I'm being featured on www.katherinehschneider.com today! Check out Kathy's blog to learn 5 fun things about me...and do some browsing on her blog while you're there too. Kathy has a great sense of humor and I love that she totally embraces her nerdy personality. 

Thank you, Kathy for the feature! I'm anxious to see if I gain a few more followers....because if I don't, I'll probably stop blogging....I'm kidding, but seriously....

Budgeting...

After establishing my need for a disposable income, I thought it would be appropriate to take a moment to talk about budgeting...

Budgeting is boring...budgeting sucks...and apparently budgeting is a necessary part of being in your twenties. At the beginning of each month, I take a look at my bank account and realize that I did not do a good job of watching my spending in the last month. This is a sad, and pathetic realization that happens to me 12 times a year. 

I get paid on the 1st and 15th of each month...

....and each month on the 1st, I feel poor,

....and each month on the 15th I feel a little richer,

....and then the 1st comes around again and I'm back to being poor.

Its a vicious cycle.

So on the first of each month I take a few minutes, and a piece of scrap paper and try to figure out my finances..

total in bank account

- rent (i hate rent)

- approx. $$ for groceries before next check

- credit card payment #1

+ 15th payment

- cable bill

- water bill 

- electric bill

- gas bill

- approx. $$ for groceries before next check

- credit card payment #2

= 

broke

Oh and did I mention that my boyfriend and I are trying to save money for a down payment on a condo/first home? Yeah...that's happening. So obviously I need to come up with a serious budget and stick to it. And the first thing I am cutting out is eating lunch in the cafeteria at work. If I ate lunch in the cafeteria everyday for a month, and spent an average of $5 each time, I would spend $25 a week = $100 a month = $1200 a year....are you f'ing kidding me?! So long cafeteria lunch...hello left overs...

If anyone has any good budgeting tips they have discovered and would like to share, I would love for you to email me or leave them in the comments. 

Disposable Income...

I need a disposable income....plain and simple....

I need a disposable income so I can stop pinning all of these amazing outfits on pinterest and start hanging them in my closet!

When I used to work at the Big Fancy I thought I needed to buy high quality, brand name, designer merchandise..and now that I don't get a discount, I have changed my way of thinking. Beautiful clothing doesn't always come with a name like Marc Jacobs, or Rag and Bone, or Helmet Lang....at least not when you're a twenty something with a "paycheck to paycheck" way of living.

Therefore, what money may fall into my disposable income will now only be spent on disposable clothing....at stores like Forever 21, H&M, and various other online retailers who offer a bargain. 

In fact, I would like to blame the Big Fancy and my irresponsible college years for my credit card debt, my lack of savings, and my paycheck to paycheck style of living....thanks a lot, ya assholes.

Oh and look at this little beauty I just snagged for an upcoming wedding 

$34.00 = steal-of-a-deal

Style Tip:

I'm going to wear this with a great statement necklace, add a few stacked bangles, and nude pumps...divine.

I need a vacation after vacation..

I need a vacation after returning from vacation....

I got back last Wednesday from a much needed getaway with my family. Most people look at a family vacation as quite a bore, but my family doesn't consist of "most people." I've got two amazing parents who just celebrated the 29th wedding anniversary this last Sunday {Congrats, Mom and Dad!}, an older brother (13 years older to be exact) who doesn't mind waking me up at 1:00am to watch It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (It was "The Nightman Cometh" episode...you can't say no to that!), another brother and sister-in-law who are always willing to enjoy a nice strong Captain and Diet with me, and who also have blessed me with the most amazing and adorable niece that an Auntie could ask for. So for me, family vacation is pretty awesome! And I had a wonderful time visiting with them.

Aside from being with my family, the best part about vacation was shopping before vacation. I discovered my new obsession with color and stripes. Here are a few of my favorites from the trip...

Dress:

 French Connection (and it was a steal from Marshalls)

All other items: 

Forever 21

**sorry this is a little out of date now...have had a lot going in the past few weeks...but don't worry there is more to come**

Outfit of the Day

Happy Monday, Everyone.....maybe it's not happy because..well..it's Monday...so perhaps..."Happy-one-day-closer-to-this-weekend-Day!" Yes, that's better.

Here is my first {Outfit of the Day} post as requested by my good friend Katie. Today's outfit isn't that exciting....because its Monday...and because I'm still recovering from the weekend..."damn you vodka tonics! damn you!"

I love scarves. All scarves...big ones, little ones, fat ones, thin ones.....if I think my outfit is boring I put on a scarf. In the middle of summer, I wear scarves. Scarf with my bathing suit...sure! wait.....no. I have a ton of scarves. An entire bin full actually....I even have Ed Hardy scarves.....that's embarrassing...I need to get rid of those. 

The Breakdown: Manic Monday

Ralph Lauren Polo Button down

Scarf

Citizens Denim

Frye Boots