My Fall Style

This is a new side of me that I would like to share.

 Even thought I am a stay-at-home mom of a budget, I still fantasize and dream about my love of fashion. 

Like my mom used to say I've got "Champagne taste with beer money!" 

Some day I'll ask the universe to send me a thousand dollar jacket and four hundred dollar shoes. For now I'm happy to window shop, and play with my new favorite "toy." Polyvore!!!!!!!!

 Besides, do you know what I would do if I had an extra, guilt free $1,000 bucks.  I wouldn't buy a blue velvet jacket, that's for sure. Instead Polyvore!

Polyvore is a website that lets you play dress up or buy the items your playing with. 

The Fall is my favorite time of year its just so festive.

I love navy for the Fall. 

My day is a navy veteran so military colors just feel like perfection.

This milatary style jacket in blue velvet just feels so luxurious yet sleek, warm and comfy. 

The gold accent buttons are just the sparkle on top. 

The tall boots are genius, again with the gold accent buttons. 

The fedora is my go to fall accessory along with scarves. 

I just love layering it all together. 

I love navy for the Fall. 

My dad is a navy veteran so military colors just feel like smart wear, perfection.

This military style jacket in blue velvet. It just feels so luxurious yet sleek, warm and comfy. 

The gold accent buttons are just the sparkle on top. 

The tall boots are genius. Again with the gold accent buttons I'm just connecting the look. 

The fedora is my go-to for fall accessory along with scarves. 

I just love layering it all together. 

The accent jewelry feels like kisses connecting all the pieces together. 

For me the look is total school bus stop chic, or "dare devil mommy swag"for a trip to the pumpkin patch. For a few hours of Pumpkin picking.

And last but not least, don't forget to Breath.
Especially with the Holidays fast approaching.
Yeah, Thanksgiving is next week!!!

My Fall Style by yelenaj featuring tall boots

Alexander McQueen military style jacket
£1,395 - brownsfashion.com

Rachel Zoe tall boots
$425 - nordstrom.com

Sydney Evan diamond necklace
$1,035 - ylang23.com

Miss Selfridge flower ring
£8.50 - missselfridge.com

Dorothy Perkins stud earrings
£7.50 - dorothyperkins.com

Pin brooch
girlprops.com

Catarzi straw fedora
$44 - asos.com

Trouve brown shawl
$62 - nordstrom.com

Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon When You Take the North "Poll" + GIVEAWAY

Christmas is coming!


What should I get my girls for Christmas?

They love arts and crafts projects.

They love pretend play. 
Especially when we pretend be have our own bakery and cook up a storm.

They can play for hours. I think independent play is a good thing at our house. 

Alivia wants to do anything and everything she sees me do. I've been busy baking cupcakes and so has she!

Alivia loves the Bake and Decorate cupcakes and  the Slice and Bake cookies from 
Melissa & Doug. 

Amaya is my artist. She can sit for long periods of time carefully laying down brush stroke after stroke, paying great attention to detail. Arts and crafts are her thing. 

Amaya really enjoyed the Decorate your own Wooden Heart Box from Melissa and Doug.

I'm thinking about getting the little girls these. 

The Decorate your own Cupcake Bank for Amaya and the Felt Play Food Sandwich Kit.

As you can see we are big fans of Melissa and Doug.

 They understand how children play and their toys encourage creativity. 

What's your favorite Melissa and Doug Toy?

Melissa & Doug want you to tell them which of their educational toys you think is the best! 

Just click on the image below to place your vote in the North "Poll!"

 You'll Get a Melissa & Doug 25% Off Coupon** to use at MelissaAndDoug.com just for voting!

UPDATE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Every person who votes will automatically be entered to WIN the toy she voted for as her favorite. On 11/21/11 Melissa & Doug will randomly choose 1 winner from all voters who came from this blog. Only 1 entry per voter allowed. 
ENTER NOW BY TAKING THE NORTH "POLL" 
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I received compensation for this blog post. All opinions expressed are my own.

Food for Thought

My Dad sent this to me a on my birthday as part of a conversation we were having.

I stumbled on it today and thought I would share it since Gratitude is the practice that can bring you closer to Faith, Love and Hope. Seeing this helps me identify where Hope, Faith, and Love are in my life. But you alone must learn to balance those three things in your life in order to be truly happy. I struggle with Faith, and so this reminds me when I am obsessing and off base.


FAITH, LOVE, AND HOPE

Faith of consciousness is freedom

Faith of feeling is weakness

Faith of body is stupidity

Love of consciousness evokes the same in response

Love of feeling evokes the opposite

Love of body depends only on type and polarity

Hope of consciousness is strength

Hope of feeling is slavery

Hope of body is disease

Thanks Dad! 

This is me and my Dad when we lived in Oklahoma. I was 3 or 4. He took me to see Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus. That trip began my personal obsession with becoming a professional clown. Which ended around 4th or 5th grade when I saw the Stephen King movie IT, oh and I saw Killer Clowns the movie around the same time. I never saw clowns in the same way. Clowns totally creep me out! Whole other story! 

But I love this picture! 

Lots of really great memories there!

#Mydadsthebest!

Who Do You Want to be Next Year?

I don't want to stress anyone out! 

But have you notice the leaves are all changing, and it's getting colder outside.

Last week I had snow!!!

I'm sorry but the Holidays are coming!

Which is why I wanted to start talking about the Holidays now!

And I want to be really honest. 

Ready?

 The Gift Giving season makes me uncomfortable.

Don't misunderstand me, I love giving gifts! LOVE IT! 

I just don't expect anything in return. 

It's the receiving part that makes me squirm! 

I physically feel uncomfortable accepting gifts. 

I've tried to think about why I feel this way.

I think the reason is.......

I'm CRAZY!!

Just kidding, truthfully I spend so much time thinking of gifts for everyone else I never take the time to think about something for myself.
I don't value my own wants. 

Even the idea of WANTING something, feels wrong. 

I just don't think in those terms. 

Am I the only one?

I'm guessing probably not!

If your a busy mom like me your probably the same way. Or if your like my husband who rarely takes a moment for himself. 

Which ever you are, we gottta start thinking about a special gift for our selves.

We've got about two months to think about this, and I've got a plan.

This Holiday Season could be a Trans-formative Experience for us.

Don't just think about a gift for yourself.

Think about who you are, and who you want to be next year!

It's time to visualize your dreams and ask Santa for the tools you will need to make your dreams a reality.

We have to make a conscious effort to be a little self centered, if just for a few minutes a day.

Here are a few things that may help you, try using a journal or a blank piece of paper to write out your thoughts.

Consider:

WHO AM I?

WHAT IS MY PASSION?

WHAT IS STANDING IN MY WAY?

WHAT DO I NEED FOR MY JOURNEY?

Try thinking about theses things and use Cerra's "Worry to Action" Moment to add COURAGE and guide you through this process. It's free!

I really hope this inspires you to get started on your life, or just remember your passions.

The more thought we give to the things we want to achieve the more achievable they become.

Pumpkin Picking and Family Traditions

The fall is a very nostalgic time of year for me. I have so many memories of upstate NY, from apple picking to watching the leaves turn. I just love all of the excitement around the Holidays and Fall marks the beginning of it all.

Since moving to Pennsylvania I have really enjoyed all the fun happening in my area during fall.
As part of a class trip Amaya and I went Pumpkin picking at Byler's Farm in Slatedale, PA.

She picked the cutest little pumpkins for us to take home.

There was a straw maze, and a dried corn table. 

Amaya's favorite thing was milking a dairy cow! 

She has been talking about that for weeks.

 

I was just happy to spend a morning with my 3 year old just the two of us, without her siblings. Having children is such a wonderful feeling. With three children it's hard to spend individual time with each of them. So I am grateful for the time I was able to spend with my second born. She is becoming such a young lady, and I really enjoyed hearing only her voice.  

What Family Traditions do you and your family have that happen in the fall?

How do you spend one on one time with your children?

My Halloween Party

I have always loved Halloween especially Halloween Parties!! It's becoming a tradition. Me and the hubby have had a party for the last two years. Most everyone wears a costume which is so much fun for me. I just love seeing all the creative stuff my friends come up with!
I especially love decorating the house. The decorations seem to be getting bigger and bigger!

Really parties are my favorite way to socialize. I like a crowd, that's just me!

I love to cook and entertain, the more the merry. 

I kept the menu really simple too.

BBQ Pulled pork with a baked during the day before the party and then shredded with a fork and tossed with BBQ sauce. For ease of presentation I served the pork in the crock pot with really great Hawaiian rolls so everyone can make their own mini pulled pork sliders!

I also made Macaroni and Cheese which is a family recipe that's super easy and always gets lots of compliments. 

Then I just served finger foods. Salsa, guacamole, and chips. 

Another plus is that my friends are all such great cooks so they all brought a dish as well.

Here's me, I was going for a Ring Master, not sure if i accomplished that, but I pulled my costume together in a few days with things I had in my closet, and that vest I got a the good will for $2 bucks. I borrowed my 6 year olds tutu, and splurged on a pair of fist net stockings, and loud red lipstick from Target $10 bucks.

I love the sign Nudist on Strike, and the beautiful Senorita! 

Doesn't every Halloween party need a pimp, I think so! Check out the 3 finger ring, classic!! 

Leah made this cookie cake! It was/is so good! I'm still nibbling the remnants a week later. I have a cookie stash, shhh don't tell!

Here's Katie Perry (Jen), Arabian Mistresses (Leah), and me. 

 I was going for a Ring Master, not sure if I pulled it off. I pulled my costume together in a few days with things I had in my closet, and that vest I got at the good will for $2 bucks. I borrowed my 6 year olds tutu, and splurged on a pair of fist net stockings, and loud red lipstick from Target $10 bucks. I made my whip using  one of the girls jump ropes and some black electrical tape I found at the dollar store $1. So my costume costs about $13 dollars. 

Aren't these great costumes!


How was your Halloween?
Do you like to dress up?
What are the craziest costume you've ever worn?

NEW FAVORITE THINGS! HEX BUGS!!!

Recently we were invited to a party hosted by my friend Karon.
 Her blog, Mama's Cool Things had a Hex Bug Party.
Not being familiar with Hex Bugs I had no idea what to expect.
My daughters are very girly we play with babies, not bugs.
Except these Hex Bugs ended up being a show stopper!
I have to say I enjoyed the Hex Bugs more than the kids.
Karon was nice enough to let us take a few things home and I've been having a ball along with the kids.
In fact I've gone quite mad over the Hex Bugs.

I built their track in a bunch of different configurations. I love to change it and rebuild it. The kids are a little sick of me rebuilding and rearranging the track. Then we let all the Hex Bugs run around the track and the girls and I open and close the little gates.
The girls and I thought it would be cool if they made the Hex Bugs in "girly colors," like pink and yellow and purple with flowers and polka dots. We've even started calling the "Hexy Bugs" to girl them up.

We take the Hex Bugs with us when we go out because the tracks are so easy to put together and travel with. We took them with us to an event where I sold cupcakes.
The HexBugs were such a hit with the kids who visited my table.

I just can't get over how these simple little bugs can be so much entertainment. But they are, we play with them for hours. Watching them scurry around, and sometimes escape from their tracks. Then we have to be really quiet and keep still and listen for them, to track them down. Under a chair or inside one of the girls shoes. The only sad part is when the batteries die. :(

No big deal thought, just a small time out. 

The batteries are easily replaced and we're off and playing again!

I even put the Hex Bugs out at a "grown up" party and you should have seen all the "big kids" jump right in and play with the Hex Bugs. My adult friends all want to know where to bug the Hex Bugs... for themselves.  Hex Bugs would be awesome set up at the bar.
Which I'm sure is totally inappropriate but totally awesome too.
Hex Bugs are my new favorite thing for the kids but mostly for me!!
I can't wait to try out some of the other bug!
Thanks Karen for hipping me to Mama's Cool Things!

How about you, when was the last time you enjoyed playing with a kid's toy?

Something NEW! Cerra!

 This is CERRA! 

I came across it totally by accident, but I'm truly blown away!

 I think Cerra is a great place to find something extra for yourself. 

We all work hard, we all want to be the best at what we do. 

We all fail sometimes.

In the middle of a bad day wouldn't it be nice to have a place to regain your composure. 

Wouldn't have your day go a little more smooth if you took 5 minutes for yourself? 

So I found Cerra and this website is filled with all sorts of tools to help me live my essential life. 

The life I visualize when your kids are crying, or late at night while I'm washing the dishes alone.

Their Mantra "be aware. act. reflect." is how I have learned to live my life. 

It feels as thought this website was made for me!

It's just so organic in design! 

Sorry for all of the exclamation but I'm excited folks!!!!

Cerra also features a concept called, "the seven intentions." 

The first intention talks about, "the roots of your mood. 

All human beings need to feel Grounded in a secure base in order to grow." www.Cerra.com

The second intention is creative energy which, "Once the mind becomes accustomed to producing creative energy, personal growth is abundant." www.Cerra.com

Say no more I'm blown away, this website is just the thing that us women need to help us further our journeys in life and become the people we dream of becoming. 

The third intention my favorite is GRATITUDE!! 

This is what Cerra says about Gratitude.

"Gratitude comes from the recognition of this abundance. Like a tree that flowers and fruits each year, Gratitude becomes the ritual of recognizing our contentment and finding value in all that surrounds us. From this deep satisfaction springs Loving Kindness. This is the sap of the tree and the lifeblood of our potential." www.Cerra.com

Now can you see why I'm so excited about Cerra! 

Sorry I need more exclamations!!!  Just for kicks go ahead and click on the highlighted Gratitude, or don't.

Let me just show you what you will find. 

They offer you more thoughts about gratitude and recommendations for fragrance notes. For me scent is very powerful. 

Scent connects me with some of my most powerful life moments. 

So a fragrance recommendation to help me connect with more gratitude in my life just makes perfect sense. 

Don't you think?

The other equally important intentions are Loving Kindness, Courage, Wisdom, and Inspiration. 

Now don't you just feel the potential for personal growth growing inside you?

I do!

Cerra also offers guided "Moments" for those 5 minutes of quiet we're supposed to be setting aside for our selves each day. 

The Cerra moments play music from your computer for you to meditate with or pray, or just sit quietly while you listen. The "Moments" are great for clearing your head.

I just can't tell you how excited I am about using Cerra.com. 

They even have products!!! 

Which I'll have to talk more about later.  

I can't wait to have a "7 intentions Party" with my MomSquad and use the "dissolving notes!" 

More to come!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Right now, I have to just say thank you!!!

Finally there is a place for all of us to use as a neutral resource, for any of our personal needs as we learn about our selves and gain strength, visualize our dreams, and make it all a reality!

Have you heard of Cerra?

What will you use Cerra for in your daily life.

This was no a pain post. I received no compensation or product for this post an wrote simply out of my own excitement  Can't you tell!!!!!!!!!!!!!