Author: Big Mama

Quickest Fashion Friday ever! I was in Dallas last night and spoke at Gracepoint Church in Coppell and then got to spend some time with Jamie and Jen so Fashion Friday took a backseat.

But now I’m back home and there are plenty of good things to be found this week. I’m assuming the sale codes I’ve included are still good, but you may want to double check the sites to make sure and see if there are new discount offers and codes.

1. project social t fleece pullover

This super soft, super cute pullover that I put on my teen gift guide is now on sale for $23.40. It’s perfect to run around or wear as a pj top.

2. diamond pattern woven cardigan

Love this and it’s on sale for $29.90

3. j.crew factory flannel pj pants

I can’t find the picture of these but J.Crew has all manner of darling flannel pj pants in various patterns on sale for $21. Perfect gift!

4. hetty coat

I adore this and it’s on sale for $119.95 with an extra 30% off with code XTRA30 at checkout.

5. long sleeve tunic

This comes in eight different colors and is great for layering under sweater coats and jackets or even by itself. It’s $39.

6. eternal winter print trapeze dress

This is festive and perfect for this time of year. And you could wear it with leggings if it’s shorter than you normally wear.

7. button cowl neck poncho

Well. This is just about perfect. Love the colors.

8. fringed sweater jacket

I want to copy this exact outfit immediately. Plus the Loft is offering 40% off with code SNAILMAIL and free shipping.

9. michael kors bracelet watch

I already own a watch that’s similar to this but mine doesn’t have a blue face and that’s my cross to bear. This is so pretty. And on sale for 50%.

10. fashionABLE mamuye tote

You know what’s better than these totes? Nothing. Except for the fact that when you buy them you are actually giving back to a great cause. I’ve seen these in person and they are even better than the Madewell Transport tote. Buttery soft and just gorgeous.

That’s it for today.

Have a great Friday.

Piper looked at the calendar and she can’t believe Christmas is only 15 days away.

There is still so much to do and she has no idea how she’s going to get it all done.

Meanwhile, Mabel took one look at Piper and felt inspired to write several haikus.

Antlers on a dog
With a Christmas scarf to boot
I’m very jealous

Sister is stressed out
It’s just a festive costume
Some dogs are high strung

Simmer down, Piper
Accessories aren’t all bad
Christmas is for fun

Jolly St. Piper
Ha ha you have on a scarf
Better you than me

Your eyes look crazy
Might I suggest a Xanax?
Dude. Seriously. Calm down.

I can’t remember if I mentioned that we went Christmas tree shopping last week. We went on Wednesday evening and picked out a tree with just about as little stress as we’ve ever had in that process over eighteen years of marriage.

When we first arrived at the lot, I was a little concerned because P uttered the same words he says every year. “Remember that last year we got a smaller tree and agreed it looked better.”

Um. No. I don’t remember it that way at all.

But we made our way through the lot as I headed back to the trees in the 8-9 foot range because I don’t want a tree that isn’t significantly taller than me. That’s when we saw the absolute perfect tree specimen. It just looked like a Christmas tree standing right there in the lot and, frankly, put all the other trees to shame. We all agreed it was the one, brought it home, and then discovered that while it is the perfect height, it’s just a tad too wide for our room. And by a tad too wide, I mean that you can no longer see the T.V. when you sit on the right side of the couch. Whatever. It’s a minor detail.

I left for Houston on Thursday morning and P spent most of Friday putting up our outdoor lights. Caroline requested the we really go all out this year and so I was thrilled to come home to a house that is now fully illuminated on the outside. She wanted icicle lights and he wanted colored lights and I really didn’t care as long as there was lighting of some kind and I think he came up with a lighting design that makes us all happy, although we’re already talking about what we could do differently next year. It’s hard to figure out the optimal decorative lighting situation while standing in the aisle at Lowes. I started to get so stressed about it that I had to talk myself down and remind myself that it’s just Christmas lights, not something super important like new boots.

I think I really wanted the lights to be good because it mattered to Caroline and Christmas time is a little different with a kid who’s on the brink of being a teenager. She’s still excited about a lot of our yearly traditions and in some ways it’s much more relaxing to drink hot chocolate and decorate a tree with breakable ornaments and watch Christmas movies with a kid who’s old enough to not melt down from too much sugar and staying up too late. But as I put out the old pictures of her sitting on Santa’s lap over the years, I realized that we don’t have a picture from last year and there’s no way she’s doing it this year.

And while our elf, Smiley, is still making daily appearances, she hasn’t paid any attention to where he is or what he’s doing. In some ways, it’s easier because in years past I thought we might have to resort to one of these scenarios I’ve seen on Pinterest.

I actually thought earlier today that maybe Smiley needed to leave a message spelled out in M&Ms that reads, “I WON’T BE IGNORED”. But I think when your elf starts to sound like Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction, it might be time to take a few steps back and reevaluate life.

So here’s what we did this past weekend.

That’s Caroline playing soccer in case you can’t tell from that high quality photo.

She had a soccer tournament in Austin on Saturday and Sunday that – wait for it – meant we had to leave our house at 6 a.m. on Saturday morning. As we made the drive to Austin, I remarked that the sunrise was really pretty and P informed me it does that every morning. And I am so happy for the people who are up to see it each day, but I do not plan to be one of them on a regular basis. Give me one sunrise about every six months and I’m good.

She played two games on Saturday but they were spread out enough that we didn’t get home until almost twelve hours later. It didn’t help that P wanted to stop at Cabela’s on the way home. He ended up getting a few hunting necessities while I milled around like a stranger in a strange land. On the upside, I bought a fresh squeezed lemonade and some kettle corn at a stand set up in front of the store. I’ve noticed that they have the same set up at Bass Pro Shops so I can only assume the hunting and fishing crowd are also big consumers of kettle corn and lemonade to which I say well done. I may not understand all the various gadgets and scents and camouflage paraphernalia, but I understand a bag of kettle corn.

Then Sunday morning, P stayed home to speak at Community Worship while Caroline and I made the drive back to Austin for more soccer. And now soccer season is over for a bit and I’m a little bit glad for the break. This fall has been one of the busiest I can remember and it’s nice to think we’re just two weeks away from Christmas break and the chance to take a deep breath.

On a completely different note, I was sad to learn yesterday that Texas A&M field manager, Leo Goertz, passed away suddenly. I first met Leo back in my days as a Diamond Darling. He was part big brother/part counselor/part dad to all of us. Part of our job as Diamond Darlings was to groom the field in between games which included driving a tractor to make the infield smooth and it takes a special man to let a bunch of college girls loose with a tractor on a pristine baseball field.

Gulley, Jen and I ended up renting a duplex right behind his house one year and we’d call him to come over to do everything from killing a bug to fixing our air-conditioning. This was way beyond his job description but he’d do it with a smile on his face and some words of wisdom before he left. I called him the poet laureate of Olsen Field because he had a million phrases and sayings that he was always ready to share. And I’ll never forget one summer when I was going through an especially hard time and he let me meet him at Kyle Field to paint the “Texas A&M” in the end zone. It was such a small thing but it meant so much to me that he trusted me to paint those letters on his “baby”. He was one of the best in the business and even all these years later Gulley and I will comment on what a great job Leo has done with the field when it’s looking especially spectacular, but like so many of the greats he did it quietly and faithfully, always content to be behind the scenes.

Over the years we’d try to go visit him whenever we made it back to Aggie baseball games and our kids knew that Leo always had candy (and sometimes a couple of extra baseballs) waiting in his office and they’d beg to go see him in his hideout under the first base side. He was a part of what makes Texas A&M great and he’ll be missed.

(Jen, me, Leo, Gulley and Tiff circa 1991)

*Edited to add that you don’t want to miss this giveaway from Sheaffer and Shay.

You can find all the details to enter to win a $1,000 gift card from Nordstrom here.

Hello.

As the title suggests, I am in Houston and it is late. And I’m a little tired. I drove in Thursday morning in time to meet a friend for lunch and then went to my hotel to check in only to discover that I had no so conveniently made my hotel reservation for next Thursday. Welcome to the state of my brain right now.

Fortunately, they had a room available and I am now tucked into my bed in said room and very happy about it. And I spoke earlier this evening at First Baptist Houston and had a delightful time with everyone there.

But my almost-missed-it-by-a-week bed awaits and so here are some cute things I found this week:

1. convertible plaid wrap

I believe my love of plaid is well-documented by now, but let’s confirm it once again with this wrap. I love that this is versatile and can be a wrap or a scarf depending on your accessory needs.

2. long sleeve striped gray dress

Speaking of versatile, this is a dress that would look great with a scarf and boots now and then paired with Converse or sandals in the spring. And you can always wear it over leggings if it’s a little shorter than you may like.

3. tahari wool blend belted wrap coat

I think this coat is absolutely gorgeous. And I personally love it in this maroon color. But it does come in a few other colors although sizes are fairly limited since apparently a lot of other people love it too and it’s on sale.

4. free people denim and knit jacket

This denim jacket with the knit sleeves is so cute and casual and it’s on sale.

5. iona long belted cardigan

I know I’m not supposed to have favorites on Fashion Friday (that’s not really true) but this is my favorite. I’m more than a little in love with it.

6. sequin leggings

I’ve been eyeing sequin leggings because I think they would be so fun for a Christmas party and you could make them dressy with a long, black sweater and jewelry or just make them casual fun with a long black tee and a denim jacket.

7. lush button front knit tunic

I wouldn’t have fallen in love with this based on this picture, but I tried it on and it’s really cute. You definitely need something under it but I love that it can double as a tunic or as a lightweight cardigan. It’s on sale for $22.80 and comes in a couple of other colors.

8. side zip tunic sweater

I had a sweater like this last winter that I loved because it was so comfortable and looked so great with leggings. And then I accidentally put it in the dryer and it was sad times. This comes in a few other colors and I love the side zip detail.

9. cowl neck cable knit sweater cape

Maybe it’s because it’s the week after Thanksgiving, but I’m loving a cape/poncho/anything that doesn’t fit tight right now. Love the cable knit detail of this and think it would look so great thrown over an all-black outfit. Or with a pair of jeans and tall brown boots.

10. vince camuto mixed media poncho

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I fell in love with this poncho but it was sold out on Nordstrom. Then I found it on sale for $59.40. I think it’s great because the colors could carry you through spring with a pair of white jeans. I love stuff that you can wear now and later on.

And before I go, I wanted to show you a couple of really cute Stella & Dot jewelry pieces that my college roommate, Meredith, emailed me today that would make great Christmas gifts or great ideas for Christmas gifts that you could subtly suggest to your significant other. And by subtle, I mean you might need to say, “Hey, I want this necklace for Christmas.”

I love this gold fringe statement necklace.

And this engravable disc necklace is such a great piece to wear every day.

Plus there are tons of other cute things and you can find them all here.

That’s it for today.

Have a good Friday.

I mentioned yesterday that I managed to get a lot of my Christmas shopping finished while I sat on the couch in my pajamas over Thanksgiving break. And so I thought I’d share some ideas for those of you who may also have a teen-ish age girl in your life that you might need to buy for this year.

Some of you also asked about the wooden Texas sign in my kitchen. I bought it last year from the Harbor and Home store on Etsy and love it so much. She makes other states in addition to Texas and you can find them all here.

I’m planning to get P to help me with a gift guide for men by next week. So stay tuned for that unless the men in your life are more the smoking jacket/velvet slippers/ascot type of guy in which case P’s gift guide will be of absolutely no use to you.

Here are some ideas. I will neither confirm nor deny that Caroline may be receiving some of these.

1. slumber party flannel pj pants

We went to Nordstrom the other day and as we were walking out Caroline saw these pj pants folded on a table and declared them “the softest thing ever”. I felt them too and completely agree with her.

2. dot monogram flameless candle

Caroline loves to have a candle in her room and I’m all about that except for the part that is, you know, on actual fire. These flameless monogram candles are both cute and practical.

3. LED marquee letter light

You are going to see a pattern here that involves things with a name or an initial. These are fun to spell out a name or a monogram or just a favorite word.

4. adult coloring book

We have a couple of these and it’s a fun thing to do every now and then. I’ve also learned that it’s easy to talk about all kinds of stuff while you’re busy coloring at the same time.

5. prismacolor premier soft colored pencils

We don’t have these colored pencils but they come highly recommended. This would be a great stocking stuffer.

6. monogram fleece pullover

You can’t go wrong with a monogram fleece. I think it’s practically a required uniform for girls everywhere.

7. project social t fleece pullover

Speaking of fleece, this pullover is so soft. We bought it for Caroline last week and she has worn it about sixteen times already.

8. sweet salutation travel mug

Anthropologie has these really cute travel mugs.

9. polaroid zip mobile phone printer

I’m going to tell you what’s a lost art. Photos that are actually printed out instead of just on your phone. I kind of want one of these just because it’ll take me back to the days of the Polaroid cameras where you had to shake the picture for it to show up.

10. one in a million initial pendant necklace

I’ve loved this necklace for a long time. It’s a great gift idea and it’s on sale right now.

You can also check out last year’s gift guide for more ideas.

Happy shopping!