Currently 04.22.2018

Reading
The Girl with Nine Wigs - Sophie Van Der Stap
This was the book I read at work. It was a funny memoir about a girl who was diagnosed with cancer in her early 20s.
Nutshell - Ian McEwan
Weird! The narrator was a fetus. Worth the read though, as I had to know what happened at the end.
The Sun and her Flowers - Rupi Kaur
I loved Milk and Honey and this poetry collection was almost as good.
Immediate Fiction - Jerry Cleaver
I've had this book for probably five years and finally read it. It had some valuable tips on writing.

Writing
I’ve been working on an outline for some fiction. Not much down on paper yet, but I hope to use some of the principles from Immediate Fiction and aim to write at least five minutes every single day for one month once I start the actual writing. I haven’t been blogging as much at all because of the other stuff I’m working on. Maybe the change in weather will inspire me to do some new outfit posts.

Watching
Blockers (movie) - This was as funny as I expected it to be and actually got funnier as the movie went on.
As far as series go, I started Master of None, finished Season 5 of OITNB, have been watching Grey’s weekly (loving this season), as well as Modern Family, The Arrangement, and The Royals.

Clicking
I did a bunch of online shopping earlier this month. Been lurking (but not so active) on all the usual social media. Still addicted to Word Cookies on my phone.

Hearing
Starbucks chatter. I’m at the busier location on Lacewood today rather than my usual one on Chain Lake Dr.

Seeing
So many tiny 8 year old cheerleaders who are wearing about five times as much makeup as I have ever had on in my life. There must be a competition close by today. I'm also staring at my nails... I had my shellac taken off yesterday and they look pretty sad. I love shellac, but hate what it does to my nails.

On staycation, at The Old Apothecary, with my shellac nails. They lasted three weeks (from Remedy Spa).

Peggy's Cove 

Smelling
Remnants of my iced chai latte..... yum

Eating
Burger week was so great. I ended up trying three - Rinaldo’s, Vandal, and Cheese Curds. All three were amazing but the one from Vandal was probably the best burger I’ve ever had in my life. They made it part of the regular menu and I need it again soon. We did another Hello Fresh order recently, choosing the larger family box. We can get six meals out of each dish so we have some in the freezer. I started tracking calories/exercise last week on My Plate. It's helpful as I have a really baaaaad snacking habit. The only way I control it is to keep track. I've been sticking to my goal so far and have been doing BeachBody On Demand. I love the variety of workouts.

Drinking
Starbucks, DAVIDsTEA, not enough water, wine (white and red....)

Wearing
Zara jeans, H&M tee, H&M hoodie, Adidas Stan Smiths.

Feeling
Happy today

Anticipating
Hearing news of which home my bestie is going to choose to live in! My vote is the one down the road from me. July can not come fast enough, then I can hold her whenever I want to! I’m also looking forward to this week, which The Weather Network tells me will be the first week of actual spring-like weather. Yay! We're also partway through some house renos. The downstairs shower got tiled and the bathroom floor is in. We're also getting living room built ins done in the next few weeks.

Fur niece

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

March 2018 Purchases

Every month, I break down my clothing expenses and share them. My quarterly budget is $550. This amount can be rolled into the next quarter if it's not all spent. My goal is to keep my out of pocket expenses within $2200 a year. Gifts and gift cards don't count towards my budget. Since I've been keeping a budget, I'm much more careful with what I buy, and I will return stuff at the end of the month if I'm not crazy about it after hanging it in my closet.

I feel like I added lots to the closet this month. There was a helpful injection of a bit of birthday money ($60) - the remainder was spent on a new purple Swiss Gear large suitcase and a Bath & Body Works haul. I had $208 of my own money to use plus the birthday money. The Dynamite items were a perk from their renovated store opening at HSC - I scored a $50 gift card - yay!

Boots: Zara (no longer available on-line)
Reg $75, on sale for $13
These were a really random purchase but I'm pleasantly surprised at how comfortable they are. They certainly generate a lot of comments when I wear them.

Pants: Zara
Reg $50, on sale for $26
Work pants, but I think I could wear them outside of work as well.

Shirt: Gap
Reg $40, on sale for $15
A basic, plain, comfy top to wear with some of my patterned pants. I like the sleeve details.

Hoodie: Gap (no longer available on-line)
Reg $55, on sale for $5
I couldn't leave this on the rack for $5! I love the longer length.

Sweater: Gap
Reg $75, on sale for $12
This won't get wear until next fall/winter but how nice to have a brand new sweater waiting for me next season.

Pants: Banana Republic
Reg $110, on sale for $40
Sadly, my red work pants haven't fit me for a while and it was finally time to replace them. They're on sale in other colors too... tempting.

Necklace: Banana Republic (no longer available on-line)
Reg $50, on sale for $15
A little penguin that sparkles! Of course I bought him.

Sneakers: Puma (similar from Browns)
Reg $120, on sale for $31
My biggest weakness... sneakers. Great price and a little bit of platform gives me a few extra inches.

Shirt: H&M
Reg $20, used conscious coupon and paid $15
I love orange for spring and summer. This will get a lot of wear.

Skirt: H&M
Reg $40, used conscious coupon and paid $35
This looks nice with the above top. It runs really small though. H&M sizes normally do, but I had to size up even further with this skirt.

Tee: H&M (no longer available on-line)
Reg $15, on sale for $5
I love me a cute slogan tee. This will be cute under a blazer or denim jacket.

Original value of items: $650
Price I paid: $212 plus $10 I had to add to the Dynamite items (see below).... $222
I saved 68%


Dynamite
Top: Reg $ 45, on sale for $25
I love the length and fit of this top. The bottom part seems a bit thin... we'll see how it washes.

Dynamite
Skirt: Reg $35
I can picture wearing this a lot of different ways, and it's the type of piece that can be worn all year round.

I'm rolling $46 ahead to next quarter. I tend to wait til June to buy things for summer, as our weather doesn't allow for shorts and stuff until then anyway, and that's when summer clothing goes on sale. I do have a few things on my radar though. I'm eyeing a longer style denim jacket on the Forever 21 site as well as a few bodysuits on Zara. Bodysuits and me don't usually get along due to my long torso though...

XOXO
Glitterary Girl