Friday, December 28, 2018

All The Frills: Ongoing Decorating

So I got some new pictures for Eleanor’s room … and a faux ostrich feather and some swan ornaments. At some point I’m sure I’ll stop tinkering with the décor in her bedroom, but that day is not now.




Weekend Reading:


Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Holiday Glitz

So I recently battled a bad stomach bug (seriously, I had a solid half day of projectile vomiting every 45 minutes and it was three full days before I could think about eating anything other than saltines and Gatorade) and, in my fevered delirium, I invested in a $40 sequin bomber jacket I found on Amazon. And you know what? I regret nothing, feel like a total boss in it, and got multiple compliments when I wore it out to dinner.


jacket: Amazon / dress: thrifted via Vallue Village

Friday, December 21, 2018

All the Frills: It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Now that Eleanor is more or less mobile and into everything, I scaled back a bit on my Festivus décor, but it’s just not me to not do a measure of decorating. I’m weirdly not a big Christmas person (I find the holidays more stressful than anything else) but I am a fan of its decorations. This year I invested in a smaller tree (much smaller than my usual 7 foot one) and a new set of all plastic ornaments – it’s about as Eleanor-proof as I can get it.




Weekend Reading:

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

At Least I Was Cozy?

First off, thank you for all the thoughtful and kind comments on my last post. It felt really good for me to be able to get that junk off my chest and I appreciate hearing from others about it all. And now, onwards and upwards!

I love this sweater so so much. It has an icy vibe to it that makes it perfect for winter weather, plus it’s pretty comfy and cozy, so that’s a plus. I wore it recently for a full day of fighting the crowds to Christmas shop (my least favourite activity) and I was, at least, comfortable for the day ... even as I seethed with rage over the awfulness of holiday gift shopping on a Saturday at the mall.


sweater: Simons / necklace: Stella and Dot / leggings: ModCloth / boots: Camper

Monday, December 17, 2018

Torturing Myself With Thoughts of What Might Have Been

I really need to get more capes into my closet. Maybe that will be my New Years resolution this year?

I need a fun and easy to attain one because, in all truth, the last couple of days have been rough.

As many readers may know, I have a PhD in British history. While I was earning said PhD and in the few years immediately following my graduation, I very much wanted to enter academia and be a professor (or at least I thought I did - 8 years of grad school has a way of brainwashing you a bit). The problem was and is that there are almost no jobs opening with any regularity in my particular field and there are literally 300-500 other people with PhDs applying for each opportunity that does come up - and every year another 500ish people graduate and add to that number exponentially. I dedicated myself to the process for a couple of years and had some offers for 1-2 year postdoctoral and visiting professorship jobs (and that’s normal and the way it works for most people in my field – you do a few short term contracts, get more teaching and publishing and researching experience under your belt, live an itinerant lifestyle for a few years as you move all across the country for different jobs, etc) but it was frustrating and demoralizing and I was in my mid-30s and married by that time and wanted some career stability and to do things like afford to travel and buy a house and have a kid.

And then an opportunity for a non-academic job that complemented my skill set, had opportunities for advancement, was close to family and in a place where my husband could also work (getting a work visa for your non-academic spouse so they can work abroad is actually really tricky, meaning you’re often on one income if you are married to a non-resident), that had great compensation that would allow me to have a lot of financial security and freedom, and that seemed challenging but also fun came about. And I went for it. And I loved it and love it still and succeeded at it. And I was happy. I even kept up with academic stuff. I taught part time a little and wrote and published a book and published an article and did 2-3 conference talks each year. But, gradually, I got further and further away from academia and focused more on the new career I had and on growing my family.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t regret those things for a second. But throwing myself wholeheartedly into them was a bit easier when I looked at the job listings for historians of Britain and the jobs just simply didn’t exist. But over the past few weeks, a couple of jobs in that field have opened up (one of them at the University in my city where I did part-time teaching) and it threw me into a pretty huge crisis of confidence as I tortured myself with thoughts of what could have been if I had just stuck with it, been patient for longer, waited a few years to have Eleanor, etc etc. Ugh. I’m slowly digging myself out of it but it’s been a wild ride. I have to say though, I feel a lot better for just putting that out there and exorcising it from myself.

leggings: ASOS / sweater: Simons / cape: BB Dakota

Friday, December 14, 2018

All the Frills: Twinkle Lights All Year Round

I originally bought these little lamps as Halloween decorations but they were just too cute not to leave up all year round. Plus, paired with my giant crocodile skull and my sabre tooth tiger skull, they let me keep a little bit of Halloween going all year. I'm also finding that they now pair really well with my Festivus decorations.




Weekend Reading:


Thursday, December 13, 2018

When an Impulse Buy Works Out

I remain smitten with the pattern on this dress – it was an impulse buy to wear to a Thanksgiving dinner a couple of years ago (and normally I try really hard to avoid impulse buys) and I honestly didn’t think I’d wear it a lot because I’m not much for patterns, but it has become a staple for sure.


dress: Zara / jacket: New Look / boots: Target

Tuesday, December 11, 2018

Lazy

This is me at my absolute laziest. Feeling gross as I recover from a head cold, cranky from lack of sleep because Eleanor has her molars coming in and is not a happy baby, and feeling like I was stumbling through the day. Funny, looking at these photos I by no means look great but I definitely don’t look as bad as I felt that day.


leggings: ModCloth / shirt: Target / sweater: Simons

Friday, December 7, 2018

All the Frills: She'll Wear Them Eventually, Right?

I know Eleanor won’t actually fit into these dresses for a while but I just couldn’t resist buying them. I mean they are soooo cute!




Weekend Reading:


Wednesday, December 5, 2018

Before We Settle In To Winter

It’s gotten too cold out now for me to wear this jacket for all but the shortest jaunts outside but I’m glad I got one more wear of it in, especially paired with this lace dress, which I am ridiculous fond of. It’s just so perfectly witchy!


dress: Elie Tahari / boots: Camper / jacket: YMI

Tuesday, December 4, 2018

Snow Day

Worn for a wintery day at the park with Eleanor (who, FYI, looks beyond adorable in her little boots and snow suit). Nothing beats an oversized, cozy sweater for time outdoors and this cheneille number fits the bill perfectly.


sweater: Simons / leggings: Target / coat: The Bay / boots: Primark