#44 Final Days of Summer

DRESS Mint Skater Dress, H&M | NECKLACE Cobalt Silver/Gold Statement Necklace, Urban Outfitters | RING Oversized Black Gem Ring, H&M | SHOES Faux Suede Black Tassel Sandals, H&M

It's starting to get cooler and cooler, and I might say that this will be my last "summer outfit" I'll post for 2012. So sad, yet I can't deny how much I am looking forward to cooler weather, leather jackets, warm apple cider, jewel tones (especially cobalt and raspberry), boots and booties, Halloween, thick socks, trees changing colors, patterned scarves, and layered sweaters and collared shirts. I really need to get a tripod so I can take some pictures of my latest fall wear for you!

I'm also looking forward to when September is over. Don't get me wrong: I *LOVE* my school so much and the kids are absolutely amazing. However, every day in September we are required to attend daily meetings after school to help solve problems and work on logistical issues. I work at an extended day charter school, which means we already get out around 5pm, plus evening meetings... it's a long day to say the least. I'm looking forward to having a little more free time, a little more sleep, and lots more availability to take pictures and write blog posts. In the mean time, thanks for your patience! What are you looking forward to this fall?

#43 Short & Sweet

Labor Day weekend is always a busy time. There are always events, anniversaries, weddings, and cookouts. It's also the last "hurrah" for me because I teach, and Labor Day weekend always signifies the end of summer and the beginning of a new school year. So bittersweet. Labor Day has a lot of meaning for me-- my sister and brother-in-law were married over 16 years ago on Labor Day. My father was remarried to a wonderful woman on Labor Day exactly one year ago. And my brother plans on getting married on Labor Day of 2013. This Labor Day, however, my first cousin Zach married his beautiful bride, Katie!

It was an overcast and humid day, but I really enjoyed spending time with my family and especially, my adorable and amazing niece and nephews. To accommodate for the extreme heat, I wore a short and sweet neon yellow lace dress, lost my thick glasses, but mistakenly straightened my hair. You'll rarely see me with straight hair, as although I consider myself a fashionista, I'm pretty low maintenance and refuse to waste 90 minutes of my time straightening my hair! However, with some down time in the hotel, I figured, why not?

The beautiful bride and groom.

They were married at the bride's farm home, and there are lakes and cattails everywhere.



They had these totally creative place cards with origami swans on them. Love it.

Long hair, don't care.



Yellow on yellow.

I love my cage wedges! They are so crazy comfortable.

Extreme close up!

DRESS Neon Yellow Shift Dress, H&M (current) | BELT Braided Yellow Belt, Target | SHOES Stone Cage Wedges, Guess | BRACELET "Diamond" Rhinestone Bracelet, The Limited | BAG Dalmatian Cross-Body Satchel, H&M (current)

I really like the dual shades of yellow working together. I really think it looks gorgeous to have a bright color and pair it with accessories that are just a few shades off. Is that a form of color-blocking? Who knows... that term gets thrown around so much lately, it no longer has meaning.

Also, I highly recommend you run down to your local H&M and do a little browsing. The clothes are always hit or miss for me, especially in terms of sizing, but I snagged this little yellow number for only $15, plus the current accessories are amazing. My dalmatian print bag is my new favorite. I also bought some red and black plaid sneakers, bright yellow flats (to go with my neon yellow dress, of course), and patent black oxfords. Can't wait to show these off in the next outfit post! Happy belated Labor Day!

#42 A Tourist's Experience: Chicago

Over Spring Break last year, my boyfriend and I got to take a really fun vacation-- we spent half the time in Hocking Hills, Ohio in a little cabin (future entry) and the other half in Chicago (this entry)! My boyfriend currently lives in Germany, and feeling a little blue, I decided to perk up my spirits by reliving some of my favorite moments together during this trip, as April was the last time I saw him. I can't believe it's already been over 4 months now. I know I *just* posted about being in Chicago, but I realized I hadn't posted any pictures from our trip, and wanted to post some for you now!

Cherry trees in the park

Buckingham Fountain. Strangely empty on this cloudy day.

Casual outfit for the day, paired with my favorite tan platform sneakers from ALDO.

Ugliest sweater ever. I love it!

Beautiful bib necklace by ALDO. Dig the straight lines of the cut outs paired with the curve of the bib.

My satchel in my favorite color.

Incredible fields of tulips near S Lakeshore Drive.

Cloudy horizon on the waterfront.

No photoshop here! The water of Lake Michigan was actually this beautiful turquoise. Crazy!

It had to be done-- the bean!

We got a good deal on the Hilton on Michigan Avenue. The interior was really breathtaking-- very ornate and vintage looking.

We also went to the top of the Sears Tower. I refuse to call it Willis Tower-- lame! Look at that water!

We had to go to in the Skydeck boxes, of course.

Even though your rational brain knows it's quite safe, the experience is still somewhat terrifying! But so cool to look down and see the street below you.

Beautiful sunny skyline on our way to the Shedd Aquarium, which while expensive, is a must for any animal/ocean lover like me and was the highlight of my trip.

Beautiful blue poison dart frogs! One of my favorite animals. It took me forever to get this shot because there were so many frogs and they were hopping around so much!

Pretty insane looking spider crab.

Color-blocked shrimp :)

We paid extra for the jellyfish exhibit-- aren't they gorgeous?

Look at these cuties! Yet another of my favorite animals.

SWEATER Aztec Shawl Sweater, Forever 21+ | SHIRT White V-neck Tee, Forever 21+ | JEANS Dark skinnies, Eloquii | SHOES Tan Wedge Sneakers, ALDO | BAG Green Satchel, H&M | NECKLACE Geometric Black & Gold Bib Necklace, ALDO

Overall, although I had a blast, I was a bit unsatisfied with what I saw of Chicago. I feel like we did a lot of touristy things and the areas we visited seemed deserted. I wished we could have had more of a locals experience and see where hip Chicagoans hang out. We stayed pretty much in the touristy areas and the city seemed so large and spread out, it was difficult to decide where to go and explore in such a short time period. But I know next time, I'll do a lot more research. And for sure, go to the Field Museum. One of my favorite bloggers, Chaplin from Mini Penny (who also happens to be from my town in Ohio), LOVES Chicago and always has amazing posts about her experiences in Chicago, events she is invited to, amazing outfit photos, and lots of ideas about where to explore in the city. If you ever go there, I highly suggest you check out her blog!

#37 A Fresh Start

"Living at risk is jumping off the cliff and building your wings on the way down." - Ray Bradbury

This quote means a lot to me these days. My first official day of my new job (I'm a teacher at a school in Harlem) began this Wednesday and it has been a rollercoaster of a week. I've had this dream for so long to move to New York City and it's all finally coming together: the apartment, the neighborhood, the city, the job. But to be real, it hasn't all been sunshine and roses.

It's a hard transition moving across states where you are essentially alone, beginning a new job-- albeit, an amazing job-- and feeling like you're starting from scratch both professionally and personally. I am really glad I'm here, but my passion for New York and for teaching hasn't stopped this from being one of the most challenging things I've ever gone through. Ultimately, it's essential to take risks in life to feel like you're really living, and to give yourself a chance to experience something new. You feel fear, feel excitement, question EVERYTHING, miss stability yet appreciate a new world, experience the heartache of loss and loneliness, see things in a completely different light. And in New York you walk around with your jaw dragging on the sidewalk, in awe of everything and everyone all around you, your eyes ever-gazing upward. It's up and down and up and down and so on. I wouldn't change it for the world, but damn-- it's hard and it hurts sometimes.

A few pictures from my first day at work at our retreat at Long Beach, NJ. Bonfires and the ocean always make me very introspective.

As shallow as it may seem, in times where I feel insecure, I sometimes turn to fashion to help lift my spirits and give me confidence. Something about knowing I look my very best, especially when starting a new job, helps me feel like I can do this, I can conquer my fears and the world! Anyone who has ever worn towering high heels knows this feeling well. Retail therapy, indeed.

Today was a big day because not only did I get to meet the CEO and founder of our network of schools, but I also got to meet several hundred other teachers who teach at my school and our sister schools! Looking my best was key, especially with such an intelligent, youthful, talented, and intimidatingly fashionable group of educators! We were told to dress casual, but for me business casual or even professional is what helps me feel my best and I prefer to err on the side of overdressed rather than under.

Yes, shamefully in the bathroom. But I was feeling positive and loving my outfit.

After some inspiring speeches, feeling a renewed sense of positivity.

Not so fresh after a happy hour, walking in 90 degree heat, and 8 hours of profesh development.

Every teacher should have an apple necklace!

TOP Grey Cowl Neck Top, Banana Republic | SKIRT Textured Neon Yellow Pencil Skirt, Eloquii | NECKLACE Apple Pendant, H&M | SHOES Green Suede Flats, J Crew

I was honestly going to give away this top because it shrunk in the wash and looks ridiculous with pants, but I discovered this brand new outfit rushing to work this morning and threw it all together really fast. Has that ever happened to you? Somehow I feel impressed with myself for putting together a fierce outfit in record time.

Also, I had to comment on Eloquii's Holiday 2012 Lookbook that has been released on a few blogs in the past few weeks. WOW! Eloquii just keeps getting better and better, and it's such a great option for those of us who have to wear business professional every day, not to mention how impressed I've been with the quality of the clothing.

There are a ton of basics that I can add my own eclectic pieces and accessories to so that they are uniquely me, and also a ton of beautiful pieces that really stand out and work on their own. This collection is really making me drool, and also lament my four-figure rent in New York. Gold sequin skirts with blush blouses, new colored skinnies, and how about that gray dress with the leather look panels? I cannot wait to rock it all as soon as its released! I have preemptively purchased ramen in preparation of this dent in my bank account...

#33 Amagansett, East Hampton

Happy Monday, dear readers! I was lucky enough this weekend to spend some time at a family friend's beautiful home in Amagansett, which is an area of East Hampton, New York. It was certainly a luxurious and relaxing experience and I was so grateful for the opportunity to see this area of New York which I have heard so much about.

My friend Ellie, my brother and his fiancee, and I all took a train from Penn Station on Saturday morning and spent the day at the beach with my family, grilling out at the patio, and relaxing together. Ellie and I were even able to get a quick pedicure nearby-- I am now the proud owner of some royal blue toes! The next morning we spent some time in the pool and sadly bid adieu to our generous family friend and his beautiful home. Of course, I couldn't spend the entire weekend without capturing the beauty and charm of this place on film.

We ate lunch at a place called, well, "Lunch."

My tasty tuna roll. For some reason, I'm not a huge fan of lobster.

A beautiful hibiscus flower.

A view from the road in Amagansett.

You can see the ocean from our family friend's patio.

The lovely lower deck, hot tub, and pool.

The outdoor dinner table!

'

The pool is outside, but is also halfway underneath a sun roof. So perfect.

Make-up free in the sunshine!

Trying to look fierce...

DRESS Braided Strap Orange Maxi Dress, Lane Bryant | SHOES Black Tassel Flat Sandals, H&M

A simple outfit for a simple day of relaxation. Perfection! In retrospect, I would have accessorized a lot more with this really bright orange dress, but the heat makes my skin react from cheap jewelry, which sadly is most of the jewelry I own. Does anyone know of any good places to get inexpensive jewelry that's good for sensitive skin?

If you ever have the opportunity to go to the Hamptons, even just for 24 hours like I did, I highly recommend it. I hope someday to be back, and also to head even further east, the most eastern point of the USA: Montauk. Of course, one of my favorite parts of the trip was the conductor of our train who announced the Montauk stop with the most perfect New York/Brooklyn accent. So far, I am loving NYC so much-- thank you to everyone who has been so supportive of my move!