Other

It’s true. The internet in my hotel room is free, which is great. Except for the fact that it’s not really very reliable and it’s taken me a sweet forever to get all this together. I was about to give up but then thought is that what Rachel Zoe would do? And maybe it is. I don’t know what she would do because she doesn’t have her own T.V. show anymore and that makes me sad.

The point is that this is going to be quick.

1. cowl neck sweater

I loved this sweater when I saw it during the anniversary sale. But it sold out before I could buy one and then it was back in stock but for full price. And so I didn’t order it because it was my penance for being dumb and not ordering it when I first saw it.

But now it’s back on sale for $27.90 and so of course I have ordered it. You can’t really beat that price and I can always wear a t-shirt under it if it’s itchy.

2. stripe open front cardigan

Every time I’ve walked in Nordstrom lately, I see this and am so tempted by it. Except I don’t really need anything else like this. But I love it because it’s soft and perfect to throw on over workout clothes or a t-shirt and jeans. And it’s $38.

3. preppy in plaid shirt

How cute is this shirt? It also comes in some other color combinations but I am a sucker for that ruffle back.

4. whistle while you workshop poncho

This is the year of the drapey/poncho/oversized/cape sweater type thing. They are everywhere in the stores right now.

5. drapey crepe blouse

This is so pretty in person and I love blouses like this because they are just so easy. Plus this is 35% off with code START and also comes in red and ivory.

6. gap printed leggings

I discovered these last year and they quickly became my favorite pj pants ever. They are so soft and look so cute on and come in a bunch of different colors and patterns. And they’re 40% off with code START at checkout.

And I also love this marled shirttail pullover sweater to wear with them. It comes in a few different colors and is super soft.

7. toms lunata suede booties

I tried these on this week and they are so comfortable that I would have bought them on the spot except I needed an 8 1/2 instead of a 9 and they were sold out.

8. plaid b.p. top

Love this plaid top because it’s longer and could be worn with leggings and boots. It also comes in a few different color combinations but I’m going with red and black because I loved Kliff Kingsbury this week after Tech beat Arkansas.

9. stripe hooded henley top

This is the perfect top to throw on with jeans and a pair of Converse. Cute and casual.

10. arctic zone kimono

You know I’m a sucker for anything maroon, especially this time of year. This would be so cute for November game days provided that it actually cools off at some point.

That’s it for today.

Have a great Friday.

Monday was my day of errands as Mondays often tend to be. It took me a while to get motivated to get out of the house because I hadn’t had a chance all weekend to just sit on the couch and drink coffee while catching up on current events. And by current events, I mean what people wore to the Emmy Awards on Sunday night and watching the video clip of Jon Hamm rolling onto the stage about eleven different times.

But we are in the midst of a big project in our backyard and so once the power tools got fired up, I was motivated to get out of the house and be anywhere that didn’t involve loud noises. My first stop was a little boutique in town because I had to pick up a couple of tops for a friend and that led to me trying on a couple of things for myself. I ended up buying a really soft oversize sweater thing that I know I will live in if the temperatures ever decide to cooperate.

And then I was going to head to the grocery store next, but P called and needed me to run by City Hall to get the permit for the aforementioned backyard project. So I spent some time on that process and ended up going to the post office afterwards because there were some things I needed to mail off. Then, since I happened to be right next door to the car wash, I decided it was a good time to do something about my car. Dirty doesn’t even begin to cover the state it was in. Between driving Caroline to and from soccer four different times a week, the fact that our backyard is currently a dirt pit, and chauffeuring around Piper and Mabel, my car was where cleanliness and sanitation had gone to die.

At that point I decided to put off the grocery store just a little bit longer and ran in Ulta because I was inspired by all of your recommendations on last week’s post about beauty products. I bought three new makeup brushes because I’m ashamed to admit that the makeup brushes I was using were from a Bare Escentuals purchase I made years and years ago. It’s safe to say they had long ago fulfilled their duties. And to celebrate my new brushes, I bought some loose powder that’s supposed to make me look poreless and that feels like a move in the right direction. Then the new powder needed a new lipstick and also some new lotion because if you give a mouse a cookie and some new makeup brushes he’s going to walk out of Ulta with way more stuff than he’d planned.

I finally made it to HEB and stocked up on the essentials like wine, cheese, and York peppermint patties. Then I picked Caroline up from school, drove her to Jamba Juice for a smoothie, set the DVR to record that new show called Blind Spot (I haven’t watched it yet but it has promise to be a show P and I might both like and those shows are as elusive as Reese Witherspoon’s bangs), and then drove Caroline to soccer practice.

And now I’m back on my couch telling you about my day in excruciating detail. I can’t apologize enough.

Also I have to say that in regard to yesterday’s post about Princess Kate’s bangs, I applaud all of you who can wear bangs. I meant no disrespect to the bang wearers of the world and I am the first to believe they are a delightful alternative to Botox. It’s just that some of us (me) repeatedly think we want bangs and forget we have an unfortunate cowlick on the left side of our forehead that will make us rue the day we tried bangs for the 84th time.

I wish you all a lovely Tuesday.

So last week I noticed something happened that basically felt like confirmation of all that I am and all the delusions I’ve ever experienced.

Princess Kate cut some bangs.

In my mind I like to think that she’d been up all night with a crying Charlotte the night before and William offered to watch the kids while she went to get a pedicure. And while she was in the pedicure chair, she picked up an old US Weekly from 2011 and saw this picture of Reese Witherspoon.

The potent cocktail of hormones and bang utopia was too much, even for Princess Kate. And she drove home, grabbed a pair of scissors out her junk drawer and decided that her life would be richer and fuller if only she had bangs.

It’s happened to all of us, Kate. We’ve all been there. And we’ve all lived to regret it and google things like “How do you grow out bangs quickly?”

The problem is that Reese Witherspoon’s 2011 bangs are more elusive than a yeti. Stylists will claim that they have seen them work out perfectly, but no one has ever seen them out in the wild.

In reality, I’m sure that some high paid royal stylist cut Kate’s bangs for her but I’d say that, based on the pictures I’ve seen, it happened about a month ago and Kate immediately regretted her decision. As have all of us who have ever done the same.

Based on my extensive scientific research, it is a proven fact that bangs look great for exactly three hours on the day you first get them cut. After that, the party’s over and it’s time to break out the bobby pins.

In other news, we had a nice weekend around here. Jen and Linc came to visit and so it was great to get to spend time with them. Gulley and I continue to laugh about how much he is like Jen. The first night he was at Gulley’s house, he grabbed the bottle of Topo Chico she was drinking off the end table and said, “OH! I HAVE GOT TO HAVE SOME OF THIS!” which is exactly what Jen would do and has done to us for the last twenty-five years.

On Friday night we all went to go watch Caroline’s soccer game and then had pizza at Gulley’s house afterwards. I had to make it kind of an early night because I had a speaking thing on Saturday morning. Fortunately, my girls know my love language and so they recorded the Aggie game that started at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday morning so we could all watch it together. I didn’t get to Gulley’s until almost 1:00, but it’s amazing how fast you can catch up on a football game when you can fast forward through all the commercials and replays.

We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves even though we agreed the Aggies looked a little sloppy at times and we are a little concerned about our offensive line. But the game was never stressful to the point that it kept us from covering forty-nine other subjects while we watched. And I was so glad I remembered to get one picture of the kids before Jen and Linc headed back to Dallas.

We agreed that’s a lot of legs in that photo.

After Jen left, Caroline and I headed back to our house to meet P for dinner. We picked up Chinese food for dinner because I wasn’t hungry and that’s an optimal time to get Chinese because they love it and I’m not really a fan. And then we watched all the college football craziness that ensued throughout the evening.

On Sunday we had our Community Worship Service and then we all came back home, put on our pjs and did a whole lot of nothing. Which is really the best way to spend a Sunday.

And certainly better than deciding to cut your bangs.

I have to say that I’m always glad when it’s Friday, but I might be especially glad it’s Friday today. It’s been a long week. Caroline missed two days of school because she was sick and the whole thing has just felt a little disjointed.

Blah, blah, blah.

Anyway, here are a few things I found this week while I was home with a sick child spending time on the internet.

1. woven heart open pattern geo cardigan

I love cardigan type things like this for the fall and winter because they’re easy to throw on over a t-shirt with a pair of jeans.

2. textured knit stripe tunic

This falls in the same category. I had something like this last year and wore the heck out of it because it looked great with jeans and was long enough to wear with leggings when I really wanted to feel like I was basically in pajamas. This also comes in some other color combinations.

3. ezri pullover

Okay. I love this so much that I nearly paid full price for it last week at Anthro before it was on sale. It’s so soft and has a really cute cut. And now it’s on sale for $29.95. It also comes in blue.

4. bp trolley bootie

I really want a pair of cognac booties and that led me to these. They basically come in a ton of colors and are really cute.

5. sabine maxi dress

I’ve had my eye on this maxi dress all summer long and now it’s finally on sale. I realize it’s a little out of season right now, but it’s the kind of thing your future springtime self will thank you for having the foresight to buy.

6. long form v-neck

I nearly bought one of these last year and didn’t because it was already past long sleeve weather. But now I’m sold. The reviews are unbelievable and I love that it’s long enough to wear with leggings. It also comes in more colors.

7. hooded drawstring utility jacket

I’ve been on the search for a jacket like this and this one is a great price if you think you want one but aren’t sure how much you’d wear it.

8. casablanca embellished tunic

Every now and then I think maybe I’m done with Free People because it all starts to look the same. And then I see something like this shirt and change my mind. It’s so pretty.

9. madewell transport tote

I adore this tote. And it smells like mahogany and leather. And it also comes in black and wine.

10. 3/4 sleeve lightweight sweater

I always love seeing what Heidi has in stock at The Ikat Elephant and LOVE this sweater. It’s lightweight and fits kind of like a poncho, but with 3/4 sleeves. It looks great with jeans and booties. And you can get 10% off entire purchase with code BIGMAMA10 at checkout from now through Sunday.

That’s it for today.

Have a good Friday.

Apparently we still have a bit of an email dilemma. Those of you who weren’t receiving emails began receiving them again and, meanwhile, those of you who were doing just fine with your emails didn’t receive them anymore. We’ve launched a full investigation and it turns out that the problem lies with the flux capacitor.

Or maybe it’s something about the cache and the feed burner, but I just read the updates on the situation and think, “Huh? Well, I hope they fix it.” That’s pretty much the beginning and the end of my technical capabilities.

Anyway, one of these days it will all be okay again and that’s the important thing. This is called having your glass half full.

The truth is there isn’t much going on around here this week other than the usual. I haven’t felt great because I have a cold or allergies and attempted to run a few errands on Monday after eating breakfast with a friend and ended up feeling so run down that I walked in Target, returned a previous purchase and walked right back out without being sucked in. I don’t know that I’ve ever done that before because there is always something to look at in Target. I just didn’t have the energy.

And so given all the nothing I have to write about right now, here’s a topic for you to discuss amongst yourselves in the comments. Jen and I had this conversation when I was in Dallas last week and I’ve thought about it a couple of times since then. It’s very deep so just be prepared for that.

Here it is: When buying new makeup items, what things do you buy from a drugstore and what items do you splurge on and buy at a department store? We got on the subject because she asked if I thought my new Tarte BB cream is better than the Garnier BB cream and I really do. However, I’ve tried almost every fancy mascara and keep going back to L’Oreal. And I haven’t tried a fancy lipstick yet that seems that much better than something I can get at the grocery store. Am I doing something wrong? Have I just not tried that right things?

What are your must have makeup items both fancy and cheap? And, for extra credit and deeper discussion, do you believe good makeup brushes make a big difference?