Thursday, April 30, 2009

You're a Winner!


Laura E. Huse @ Classic Twist


YAY! Laura ...please go to beSmartbeGreen.com, choose which bag you want and email me at lovemaegan@gmail.com with your choice and I'll get it to ya asap!


******

For everyone else ...if you're not a follower yet, do so to be entered in my monthly eco-tote bag give-away {see upper right for more info} ...Twitter followers are also entered.

Good Luck
...next month it could be you!




Completely Gratuitous Outfit Post








{small image via iMac photo booth ~ click to enlarge}












What I'm Wearing
J Brand Skinny jeans in indigo
Pink Blouse: Forever 21 ...seen here
Brown herringbone blazer: Vintage Ralph Lauren ...seen here with same jeans
Pearls: two long strands, tied. Vintage, grandma's
Peep Toe Pumps: Marc by Marc Jacobs
Sunglasses: Tom Ford
Handbag: Marc by Marc Jacobs

Every time I watch The Hills I think the following . . .
1. Heidi looks NOTHING like she used to and Spencer is the biggest douche on the planet.
2. Why doesn't Lauren do something about her mustache? I mean, seriously, I don't like waxing either {so I usually tweeze} but I'M NOT ON TELEVISION!!! Wax it girl.
3. Brody is getting hotter
4. I don't hate LO as much
5. Why do they wear SO MUCH MAKEUP? ...it makes their faces look splotchy and dirty.

So last night I was complaining to my husband about my skin breaking out and he says to me "You look better without all that makeup on your face" .. I said .. "But I can't wear eye makeup and not face makeup ...it doesn't blend well, I don't like the way it looks" ...to which he replied "Well, it looks dirty" ...um, what? ...I look dirty like those Hills girls and I don't even know it? ...no. I think he's wrong. lol. But I do think it's time to wash my brushes.


Wednesday, April 29, 2009

White T and Jeans... Burberry Trench Coat












What I'm Wearing
Burberry Trench ....I was kinda going for THIS LOOK ...from the 2009 Burberry ad campaign
Husband's White V-neck
Antik Denim Jeans
Pour La Victoire platform pumps ...seen here
Necklace ...vintage, grandma's ...found it at my mom's last week ...and actually it's more of a choker ...I hooked it onto the long chain to give it that Burberry feel though ...I did a similar thing here
Sunglasses: Tom Ford
Handbag: Marc by Marc Jacobs
Hair ....did this

ADDED: Lizzy wanted to know about my Tom Ford sunglasses ...Hi Lizzy! Here's the info: They are Yvette 0089 and I found them HERE and HERE for UK shoppers and they are also at Bag Borrow or Steal if you just want to rent them for a while. {I originally got them at Bloomingdales a little over a year ago ...or maybe two. I dunno, but I still love them!} clearly :)


Tuesday, April 28, 2009

David La Chapelle: Beyond Reality


As I've mentioned time and time before I am not only enamored by photographers but have an insane amount of respect for them as well. My first camera was made by Fisher Price. I must have been about 8 when I got it for my birthday ...or was it Christmas? I can't remember but I do recall many of my first shots were outside in the sun and my birthday is June and since I didn't really get gifts other than Christmas or my birthday, I'll go with my birthday. ...all of which is irrelevant.

I distinctly remember wasting my first roll of film on a party my parents were throwing in the backyard ..hell, maybe it was my birthday. I remember setting up the shots, thinking they were going to come out SO GREAT only to be let down when I picked up the film ...blankly staring at legs ...bodies without heads ...cake.

They were horrible. What I saw in my head visually I could not recreate in photo form. I was disappointed in my creations but didn't stop taking photos. I knew, however, that my future was not that of a photographer.

I did learn how to manipulate photos digitally though in ways that I could never get through just the lens which were more fantastical to me because they were beyond reality ...they were better!

And this is what Photographer David La Chapelle creates ...a fantastical reality. He did dabble in digitally retouching much of his early 90's work but now prefers to create visually stimulating surreal and many times humorous sets with a team of artists to help him capture anything in his vividly imaginative mind. Many don't consider him an artist but I do ...and I am truly inspired by his mind.

Here are some of my favorites . . . {although, really ...I love them all}





















...more here


Making Me Smile




My Cala Lily finally sprouted!


Lemons in my hair = Summer


Crispy lemon hair and bikinis and tanning


Dove chocolate wrappers


husband and I at Bro & Sis' beach wedding


Bebop the Pug


Mom's vintage pool


The way my husband is looking at me in this photo. Love



Monday, April 27, 2009

Making Lemonade ...instead of babies.


A couple months ago as I was going through my daily blogs, I read that Stacy @ The Best Life Ever was pregnant with her first baby and not only that, her sister was pregnant too! I thought to myself, how fun! Getting to share those 9 months together, having same age kids, there were just so many positives that sounded so appealing.

I don't have a sister, but I do have a brother and a sister in law, who I adore, and I decided after reading about Stacy's exciting story, that I too wanted to share those moments with my SIL.

The next day I got a phone call from my brother and after a bit of chit chat, I could tell through the phone he was wearing a smile . .. and then he said it. MORGAN'S PREGNANT! ...and although I was insanely excited for them ...I couldn't help thinking that my new plans were shattered ...and as soon as I hung up the phone I started sobbing. {I wrote this post looking for inspiration the day after}

As you know, if you've been reading for a while, husband and I have been trying to get pregnant on and off for about two years now but we had put ourselves on a baby making hiatus to just take our minds off of it and the pressures that not getting pregnant were putting on us ...mostly me. But now with this new and exciting news, we decided to make getting knocked-up a priority again.

I got the pee sticks, the clear blue fertility monitor, the basal thermometer, the vitamins ...everything. And husband got as healthy as I've ever seen him get. We were both trying really hard at working towards this goal and hopefully being pregnant NOW.

...and then I didn't ovulate the first month. And then I didn't ovulate AGAIN ...and then we realized that we had put so much pressure on ourselves that we were not having fun anymore and decided to call it all off. Indefinitely.

You see, the longer I don't get pregnant, the more I think actually being pregnant is not for me. It's just so weird to experience those feelings because being pregnant was something I always looked forward to experiencing and being a mom is something I always thought I wanted. It was always in the back of my mind, always how I saw my future.

One of the reasons I started drifting away from my ex was because when the time came to start talking about children {I was 26 at the time} he wanted nothing to do with it. I had no idea then that I might actually feel the same way at some point. I had no idea then that I would have any difficulty getting pregnant at all. And I had no idea then that I would ever question something I thought and said I had always wanted.

I often wonder how my life choices led me to the place I am now. I sometimes think "Why didn't I get what I wanted? ...did I not want it badly enough?" ...but I think I had made this decision about my life when I was very young, let's just say 12, and when I think about my 12 year old's version of my future life there is no possible way I could ever live up to those standards.

What did my 12 year old self know about life? Even a 12 year old who had already lived a challenging life wouldn't grasp the reality of her 22 or even 32 year old self. But after I made the decision early in life, it's clear that until now, I never questioned it or reevaluated it like I had so many other decisions I had made for myself.

All that in mind, looking back at the choices I have made in my life, in my late teens and 20's, I can see that the decisions I made on how to live my life completely contradicted everything I ever thought I wanted. If I had gotten pregnant right away, I would never have questioned any of it. But I didn't. And here I am now. Here we are now. ...but now what?

Our decision is to not have kids at this point. And to be completely realistic, um I'm not getting pregnant and that is partially deciding for us ...if it happens, it happens but it's more likely that we will adopt in our late 30's ...or maybe not. One minute I'm completely fine with this decision then next, I question my own motives. I didn't plan a life with no kids. I don't like my "career" enough to do it for the rest of my life ...so what am I going to do? Sometimes I'm excited by this question; the opportunities limitless. But on my less than confident days, I am confused and lost and really just want to get back in bed and sleep the day away.

I always saw children as an adventure to make my life more fulfilling rather than a point where my life ended and became solely about the kids. I just don't know if that's a realistic point of view or another dreamy idea of my 12 year old self.

Regardless of all this nonsense, I am so excited that I get to be an aunt to a little boy or a little girl in October 2009. I am overwhelmed with joy for my bro and sis and I get to see her belly progression every Wednesday when they come over to watch LOST with us. All I want to do is talk about that thing that's growing inside of her because it blows my mind so much. I've always been in such awe of that miracle of humans and nature and while {on some days} I'm a bit sad that I don't get to experience it first hand, it doesn't make me any less excited that it is happening to my favorite people in the world!

So I guess, instead of making babies, we're making lemonade ...but hopefully it will be the best lemonade we've ever tasted ...I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Shopping Online: Aztec Dress Love




I just bought this dress ...I am so in love ...find it here at Ruche ...who I found via Lola B's ...and who also has a blog who just so happened to post this dress today ...which I found after I bought it. I am so in love ...thinking about all the different ways I can wear it. oh and it's $52 dollars. whaaaat!?!?!? amazing.

WOOHOO!!! A coupon for my readers at Ruche . Just type in coupon code "lovemaegan" for 10% off until the end of May.



Handmade Wood Circles Table




how sick is this table?!?!?! it's handmade! ....love it.

found in this etsy shop

{I am so jonesing for a house to decorate it's mind botttttttling ...lol}


psst....go lakers.