day Twenty-Eight.

day 28: favorite places to shop

Well thrift stores as I've mentioned before.

But also the following are frequented (this excludes the usuals of Target, Costco, Sprouts, etc. - which I do love):

- Ross dress for less (always a good go-to for home goods)
- Old Navy (awesome sales - sometimes not even just clearance)
- Urban Outfitters (only if they're having their 50% off clearance sale)
- Michaels (for all those unfinished craft projects...)

day Twenty-Seven.

day 27: a talent of yours

I'd say I have a knack for crafts/DIYing. There's hardly a time I pay for something that I know can be done at home SO easily.

..whether or not it actually gets made is a whole 'nother subject.

day Twenty-Six.

day 26: favorite books

Remember when I started this? And then I got pregnant and never finished it? Well let's try this again.

So day 26.

Favorite books, I'm going to put a disclaimer that the BOM is a given. Other than that here are some others I find myself thinking about a lot, so that means I loved it I guess.

 "Marie Antoinette: The Journey" by Antonia Fraser.
As you can see in the circle it says "the book that inspired the film" so after seeing that I had to read it because I love love love that movie. And it didn't disappoint. It gave such a great in depth biography of Marie Antoinette from birth to death. I had so many questions about her and I feel like I got a lot answered. I think I need to read it again though.

"Pride & Prejudice" by Jane Austen.
Yeah, yeah, surprise, surprise. I can't deny that P&P is by far my favorite Jane Austen novel. But something not so normal about Jane Austen lovers is that Jane Bennet (think emmaJANE) is actually my favorite female Jane Austen character - as opposed to Elizabeth, though I do appreciate the complexity and boldness (for that era) of her personality. But overall Mr. Darcy wins by a landslide, I mean how do you deny someone who uses words like "ardently" in describing love? ((swoon))

from afar.

I think it's so interesting to find out what you look like day-to-day. I think we all know what we look like when we pose for pictures, when we smile, how we look right after we apply makeup...but I really love those candid shots. Sometimes it's depressing (like the time a picture of my booty ended up in the background of a picture on a friend's blog) and sometimes its just interesting to see how everyone else sees you.
The above picture is a perfect example of that. While I had no idea Robert was snapping a picture with my wet nappy head of hair (from being drizzled on) it was an extra little surprise to see my own little munchkin smiling back at her dad as I carried her away.
Is she seriously mine forever? Because this is the funnest thing I've ever done.

Look at the bully of a cousin thinking it's the funniest thing ever that she's holding a baby's hand while her poor little cousin cries her eyes out. I mean seriously she's our house clown.

previously owned.

So I have this thing, or serious addiction as Robert sometimes calls it, where I love good deals. Like REALLY good ones. This thing coincides for my love of the past (cue degree in Art History). Which also coincides with my love of pretty things.
Combine all these and we have the thrift store. Also not discounting garage sales.
I want to say it was my brother Trevor who first got me interested in shopping at thrift stores around the age of 16 or so (when I was so cool and punk rock and just went in hopes of finding the perfectly disheveled vintage tee), little did he know what kind of fire he was fueling!
By the time I was 21 I had a shelf in my room dedicated to vintage dishware.
When I married Robert at 23, not only could I now use said dishware, but I had room for more and more!
Factor in that I was working a part-time job after having graduated and therefore had a routine of hitting a different thrift store almost daily. yes, daily.

Now, I'm not confessing all of this because I feel I need to be cured of this...quite the contrary (which means I'm really sick), I'm here to brag and convince you all of the wonders of shopping for things at the thrift store first.
Here are some examples of my greatest successes all thanks to my weekly (sometimes now bi-weekly) thrifting addiction:
- 10 ft mid-century modern couch - $90
- yellow mid-century modern side chair (in perfect condition no less) - $50
- Mirror dating to 1915 - $2 (pictured above)
- cream shabby chic table + 4 chairs - $20 (found by my mother)
- all my dishware - no one piece over $1
- all decorations for EmmaJane's nursery - totaling $10
- 75% of my wardrobe
- basic around the house items like baskets, fabric, ribbon, tape, shelf-lining, paper, buttons, etc.
- the list goes on and on...

You see? All my scavenging for good deals has really paid off a lot. And no, I don't ONLY look for cool vintage things, I often end up leaving thrift stores with items that are newer (often still in their packaging), such as the aforementioned paper and tape.

And finally some tips:
- Goodwill gets all of Targets previously opened items, clearanced items they couldn't sell (including all the "designer" stuff nobody buys because it's overpriced - I got shirt that I had been eyeing at target for $4 at Goodwill - originally $30).
- Shop "no-name" thrift stores more often. Goodwill is by far the most expensive thrift store in SoCal.
- Keep hand-sanitizer in your purse, it just feels better when you leave.
- Shop on Saturdays! A lot of the time thrift stores have "50% off everything" type of sales on the weekend, especially holiday weekends!
- Learn how to take in clothes simply (stretchy knit tops are the easiest), it opens up your spectrum of clothes you can purchase.
- finally, if you're looking for particular items, go often. I could go to the same thrift store 3 times in one day with only an hour in between and find new stuff every time.

Bon chance!

muh-mah.

I sat a few round tables away from a friend. Her 8 week old baby was being held by somebody else and he had just started to fuss so she was getting up to take him from her. And as soon as she did, he stopped crying. She held him no differently than the person before her, but there he was happy for a moment (before it was time to eat at least).
Across the table from them was another friend, this time with a 3 month old baby girl who was chomping away at her hand and sitting so happily on her mom's lap, giving smiles to everyone whoso inclined.

Just a couple moments that built my testimony on motherhood and how it truly is the greatest thing I've ever done.
Sometimes I get lucky enough to hold a baby and try to parent my baby daughter at the same time, so I get the teeniest-tiniest glimpse as to what it will be like SOMEDAY when we take the plunge into having another one.

Anyways, EmmaJane is done pooping so I better change her diaper and put her down for her nap.
My life is so interesting!!