My Intro To Glam: Rachel Zoe Style

A couple of weeks ago, I featured the lovely Rachel Zoe on my list of best dressed celebrity moms.  I love her style, I love how she never leaves the house without being styled, and I love that she continues to be a style icon even while she's a mom.  Little did I know then, even as much as I loved her look, how much I would absolutely love everything she stands for.

And the woman stands for glamour.  And living it up.  Because to her, they are one and the same.

There is not an event on this earth that does not warrant some sort of uber rich appearance, in her eyes, and it's already rubbing off on me at chapter three.  I'm even half looking forward to my husband deploying to Dubai just so he can buy me an authentic Indian caftan to wear glamourously around the house.  Only joking a little bit, here.

Style: A to Zoe is a great read, filled with inspirational quotes, especially if you've ever talked yourself out of wearing an amazing outfit because the situation or destination didn't necessarily demand you dress up.  

If you show up looking a bit more glam than the rest, what's the worst case scenario?  You look the best in the room? 

I know that it has happened to me.  I'll never forget a cookout I attended with my husband.  It was one of the first get togethers we went to, as a part of his new work crew, and I took a lot of time choosing the perfect outfit (as I'm known to do).  I settled on a casual ensemble of shorts, tank top, flowy vest, and wedge sandals.  Nothing over the top, but definitely put together.  I was meeting new people and wasn't keen on presenting myself as a slob.

When we arrived, it became incredibly apparent, incredibly quickly, that I was the only one who had put any thought into my attire.  Think women in sweats and their hubby's old ratty tees.  It might not have been that sloppy, time has a way of exaggerating the truth, but there was definitely no flash or pizazz or effort.  The key word there, is effort.  Nadda.  I'm not one to judge (okay, I do a little bit but I don't think less of a person for wearing crap so much as I assume a person just does not know what a beautiful outfit can do for them...and it makes me want to help.  I'm so generous like that.), but clearly they were one to judge.  I was accosted by female eyes sizing me up and mentally spitting me out. 

Do you know barely a word was spoken to me by any of the six or seven females that were there?  

I spent the entire afternoon wishing that I hadn't worn heels or that I'd chosen a less interesting necklace...wishing that I hadn't inadvertently set myself apart from the crowd so drastically...but how could I have known?  And looking back on it now, I'm glad that I dressed up and presented myself as exactly who I was.  The truth is, I could have shown up in yoga pants but I no more would have felt true to myself as I would have fit into their crowd anyways.  

Honestly, I love when I meet up with friends and they tell me that they were going to just wear sweats or leggings, but reassessed their outfit because they were going to see me and they knew I'd be dolled up.  It's happened more than once, and I take it as a compliment.  It makes me proud to know that when people think of me, they think of style.  They perceive me as put together.  They feel as though I set the bar for dress.  It's not that they are intimated by it, and it doesn't mean that I think I'm better (or that they think I'm better), they just recognize it as "my thing".  It's an area that I excel in.

On the other end of the spectrum, I just recently had a "friend" tell me (maybe not in so many words...but, yea...kind of in so many words) that it was hard to be my friend because I was pretty and in shape and put together, able to "do it all", and she wasn't feeling so good about herself lately.  And just like that, she dumped me for being, at least style wise, successful.  I'm sure there's more to it, there is always more to it, but this was a reason listed.  A year ago I may have apologized, I may have wanted to tone it down when I was around her, just to appease her and make her feel more comfortable...but what would that accomplish?  I wouldn't be being me.  And I wouldn't be happy being less than my best dressed.  It's my one and only life to live, and I want to live it up.  I will never, and especially now, apologize for wanting to infuse an element of glamour into my every day life.

I never understood how some people could not care less about whether things are beautiful or not.  Even less, those who tell others to stop dreaming...

Boyfriend Jeans and Kitten Heels

What started out as a fad years ago quickly became a classic closet staple... the boyfriend jean.  Everyone and their mother has a pair.  

If you are into fashion, you are into them.

They're as versatile as your favorite pair of blue skinny jeans, yet infinitely more comfortable.  And the best way to wear them?  In an ensemble of contradictions:

My ultimate look, when it comes to this style, is to wear this loose fitting denim with my most feminine heels.  The daintier, the better, if you ask me.




It's masculine meets feminine, in an outfit where hipster meets safari.  




It's entirely casual cool.  There is nothing you can't do in an outfit like this.

These particular heels of mine are kitten heels.  A tiny two inch heel (if that) means I can comfortably run errands or shop at the mall.  Yet it's perfectly put together, so I wouldn't look too grungey to meet for brunch!  Headed to the park with your little one?  Just bring flats to switch into, easy!




The zebra print heel, mixed with the olive green of my hat, takes this look straight off the street and directly into the wilderness.  Rawr.

I kept my add ons in neutral earth tones, an extension of the safari vibe...but chose a printed hipster tee to top off the outfit.  




It only felt right to mix in another element of "I did not see that coming" into this outfit.




Of course, when you look all around you...and you pick up inspiration from every available source...it's plain to see how I came up with this completely deliberate, seemingly pared down look.  It's as prevalent now as the white button down, ballet flats of yesterday seemed to be, when this denim style first gained popularity.




By the way, bargain hunters, I found this hat at Target for a mere $9.99.  There will be no more fearing bad hair days for me!

And because when you're outfit is this fierce, who can resist the tough girl pose...in black and white, no less.




Alas, as much as I love these jeans, I am on the hunt for a new perfect pair.  These bad boys aren't going anywhere, but I need a fresh, modern take.  I'm thinking darker wash, excessively destroyed.  Point me in the right direction, won't you?  




How do you wear your boyfriend jeans?  Where did you find your favorite pair?

Twenty Seven & A Half

 This post is wordy, don't say you weren't warned.

Today is my half birthday.  In six short months, I will be 28.  Which puts me six months closer to thirty, which is just two years away from my (and everyone else's) 28th birthday.  This freaks me out a little lot!

If you've already celebrated your thirtieth birthday, don't hate on me too badly.  Maybe you can relate to the feelings of trepidation?  Or maybe you accepted your age with grace, and you can help me come to terms with mine?  I'm at the age where I'm on the fence between being flattered when people can't believe "how old" I am, and being offended that I'm considered "how old".  Looking young has it's perks, until you have to admit that the baby face (or maybe it's more so the miniature size) is a facade.  

Someone hand me a walker and a plastic rain cap.

So anyways, as the dreaded "dirty thirty" nears, I've been thinking about all that I've accomplished in my twenties.  The phrase "you're only twenty for ten years" scares the living crap out of me, for some illogical reason, and I am frantically wracking my brain for things that I meant to do, but haven't yet done, in my twenties.  How dare this birthday hang over my head, with two and a half years between us, and make me feel inadequately twenty seven and a half!

What have I come up with?

Sure I have a list of things I'd like to do, but I don't know if it's fair to say that they have to be done in my twenties.  If I do say it, I am inadvertently marking them with a sense of urgency that may not be truly how I feel.  I'd like to sky dive.  But if I don't sky dive by the time I'm thirty, I would still like to do it.  And I will.  It doesn't have to be done by any particular milestone.

What does need to get done, lest it never get it done at all?

The very first thing, to which I don't mind placing a red flag emergency tag on, is my novel idea.  My idea for a novel, that is.  I'd like to have a rough draft written by the end of next year.  And I'd really like it to be published by my thirtieth birthday.  That seems like a legit and noble endeavor, no?

I'd like to be a homeowner, and plan to be by the end of this year.  Because I would really like to try my hand at, and hone my currently non existing skills at, interior decorating.  It's a natural extension from my love of fashion and photography.  I like things to be beautiful, intentional, and purposeful.  And I'd really love to have the sort of home into which people walk and are impressed by it's cohesiveness and originality.

For my own purposes, and to the chagrin of my child and future children, I intend to take photography classes and become pretty good with the camera.  I'm already doing my own research and playing around with the editing process, and I do like to think I have an eye for style, so this could be a hobby that I can really benefit, and garner a lot of joy, from.

Lastly, I would hope that I am deemed a successful blogger...by my own standards.  I don't expect to ever get my own television show or to write a "how to" for blogger wanna be's, but if I can consider it a job...if I'm being paid to write, in a sense, than I will consider myself a success.  As it stands, my payment comes in the form of the different items I've been privileged to review and write about...and I am extremely happy with it for right now.  But to make High Heeled Mama a brand, of sorts, to further my writing career in any way shape or form, is the ultimate goal.  And to have it all by thirty doesn't seem like a "too over-eager" aspiration!

More importantly, however, is a simple rephrasing of the question.  Maybe I should start to look at it not as "What do I want to accomplish by thirty", but instead "What do I need to do in my twenties"?  Perhaps a list of fun things, to challenge myself with more than anything, would make turning thirty less scary.  Certain books to read, for example, or places to visit.  Small daily challenges that I can tackle with or without someone (not saying any names, Raegan) attached to my hip.

What do I need to do in my twenties?

Find myself.  I'm already working on that, and have already made enormous amounts of progress, so I am fairly certain that I'll have a handle on myself by the time the big three oh rolls into town.  But it's a noble quest.  Something, I realize, that can't be finished in your twenties...or thirties...or ever.  I can know who I was, and understand why I am who I am...but I can never know who I am becoming.  Not entirely.  How fun does that make growing older seem?  Like a mystery you work your whole life to solve, a secret you wait your whole life to reveal?  The anticipation is killing me!  (Whoa, tell me that's not the best "wrap your head around it pun" you've ever read...and it was so unintentional that I totally want to own it.)

Learn how to be an amazing military wife.  Travis will be deploying for nearly my entire 28th year (if everything goes according to schedule, and why wouldn't it...it's the Navy for goodness sakes...if you're not good at recognizing sarcasm, that was it.)  Which means I'll be a single parent to my nearest and dearest, a long distance lover to my heart's desire, and a woman keen on NOT losing her mind.  Being twenty something sure isn't the reckless, careless, ball of fun it's cracked up to be.  I wouldn't change a thing (okay, if I could arrange for Travis to never deploy in his entire 8 year military career, I would totally change that!)...life is all about the challenges.  It's about growing and recognizing your growth.  It's about being able to depend on yourself because other people depend on you, too.  I can do this because I have to do this.  Period.

Let bygones be bygones, the past be the past, my twenties be my twenties...it is what it is what it is...nothing more, nothing less.  I can analyze to death all the stupid mistakes I made in my early twenties, I can fill a shame-o-meter from all the crap I hope Raegan never discovers about me, I can write for days a list of things that I didn't accomplish.  But I won't.  When thirty comes around, heck, when 28 comes around, I'm going to be prepared to be positive.  I will smile, I will welcome the number with open arms, I will thank my lucky stars that I get to see an age denied to so many, and I will recite the phrase "onward and upward"...because wisdom, experience, confidence, and humility come with age...and those are things I can really look forward to!

But if I do ever get around to writing the ever popular "thirty things to do before I turn thirty" list, you'll be the first to know.

What is/was on your short list of things to accomplish by 30?

I Heart Jewelery

A long time ago, someone told men that women love to receive jewelery as gifts.  And then there was a whole movement (I don't want to blame it on the feminists but...) that jewelery was too frivolous for today's women.  No, today's women wanted electronic gadgets or tools or hunting gear (seriously, hunting gear?), or any other item formerly meant for a man.  

As if receiving jewelery was beneath them.

Pah-lease.  Take me back to the good old days!

I love receiving jewelery from my husband.  Not because I love when he spends money on me (oh, but I do enjoy that!) or because I love to be dripping in diamonds (really, I'm not all about diamonds...I won't say no to them either, though...), but because I'm such a sentimental sap that I become attached to each individual piece.  So much so, that I feel closer to him (or whoever gave me that special item) when I wear them.

Like a good luck charm.  Or an invisible cloak of protection.

I'm being dramatic.

But I do love pretty gold jewelery.  

Eight pieces that I consider the jewelery of my heart...

1.)  My pearls.  Gifted to me by my loving husband one week before we wed, on Valentine's Day.  It was a set with a necklace and bracelet, and it meant so much to me because he knew how badly I wanted to wear pearls on my wedding day!  It was a life long vision of mine, and finding some to borrow was a futile effort!

2.)  My signature necklace.  Gifted to me by my best friend in all the world, Suzanna.  A replica of sorts of the one my fashion idol wore all over NYC...talking about Carrie Bradshaw, of course!  I think of my bff every time I put it on, and I feel confident and powerful like Carrie!  Weird that I idolize a fictional character?  I am so not alone!

3.)  My infinite love ring.  Gifted to me by my handsome hubby and sweet baby girl for my first Mother's Day.  This ring means so much to me, on so many levels, and stands for the infinite love I have for my family.

4.)  My engagement ring and wedding band.  Of course, this speaks for itself.  It is the symbol of the love, fidelity, and support I share with my soul mate.  It is a forever and ever kind of love.

5.)  My initial necklace.  Again, my thoughtful husband gifted this to me for our four year anniversary (this past February!).  "T" for Travis, "R" for Raegan...he knows that I am obsessed with the initial fad and obsessed with my family.  He really hit the nail on the head with this one, I wear it almost every day!

 

6.)  My emerald and diamond studs.  These were a Christmas present (there's also a small pendant necklace with this set) from my sweet mother-in-love, taken from her own jewelery box.  I teared up when I opened them, and every time I see them or wear them, I am reminded of how open and accepting she has been to me from the first time we met.  She trusts me with her son's heart, is there any better feeling?

 

7.)  My diamond studs.  The handsome man in my life came through when I needed him the most, hours post delivery of our amazing little girl.  They were my push present.  Even though I had to ultimately deliver via c-section, he insisted that the three hours I did push totally warranted the phrase and the gift.  He believes in and supports me, and these diamonds symbolize that!

8.)  My baby gift.  Travis T, my perfectly generous and thoughtful man, brought this home to me the very day we found out we were expecting.  He went to work with the knowledge of a single positive pregnancy test, and came home beaming.  I love him.  And I love this bracelet.  I wear it every time I fly without him, it makes me feel safe and protected by his love.  Aren't I a ball of mush?  Geez...

This is why I cringe when women say that they don't like to be given jewelery, or that it's too typical or unoriginal...what's more original than a gift that carries special meaning, and that has the ability to remain with you for the rest of your life?  The memory of that salon trip will fade, that massage will stop feeling good the minute it ends, and those electronic gadgets will break and become useless.  But I'll be wearing my special gifts until the day I die!  

Call me old fashioned, but I love to receive jewelery...and this is why!
Do you?

Happy Daddy's Day!

Father's Day used to be for my father only.  He was the only guy in my life who truly mattered, he was the only dad in my life.  I loved him then and I love him now...

Four years ago I gained another father...my father-in-love, Jim.  He is an amazing person whom I feel so blessed to know, who's family I'm so grateful to be a part of.

Two years ago, I saw a Father appear right before my eyes.  A man I knew better than I knew myself became someone I had never before seen...I thought I couldn't love him more, and then I saw him love our daughter...there is no one I think of more highly, no one I respect more nor admire more, no one I love more...

A daddy is born...

 

"A father...one who knows long before she, that whichever boy she brings home won't be good enough for her."

 "I never knew how much I loved your daddy, until I saw how much he loved you."

"Some people don't believe in heroes, but they haven't met my daddy."

"The greatest thing a father can do for his daughter is to love her mother."

"Any man can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a daddy."

"Father...a daughter's first love..."

"Father...someone who puts pictures in his wallet where his money used to be."

"I found my prince charming, his name is daddy."

Happiest Father's Day to all of the amazing, selfless, supportive, and loving fathers in my life...especially the man I'm lucky enough to be married to!

I pity the man who tries, in taking Raegan's hand, to fill his shoes someday...

Weekly Wrap Up #13

In lieu of Father's Day tomorrow, I decided to present the weekly wrap up one day early so that I could dedicate tomorrow's post to the greatest man in my life!  It works out well, though, because I feel like this week has been jam packed.  I'm pretty sure that has a lot to do with the enormous boost in activity with my blog, twitter, and face book...really with all of my social media outlets...and I feel like I can't keep up with all of the great stuff going on!  It's a happy, welcome, sort of business...and I love it!

So, if you're new around here, this is usually a Sunday ritual.  And if you're not new around here, well, than you know the drill...I'm about to bombard you with Raegan pictures galore!

Tuesday, I had the fantastical idea to go to the beach in the evening...to bring a picnic dinner and enjoy a little afternoon sun.  Travis had the fantastical idea to bring a fishing pole.  We both had the fantastical idea to invite some friends along on this spur of the moment get together.  It turned out to be a pretty fun night.  After the black clouds came rolling over us, bringing with them torrent sheets of rain, we hightailed it off the beach and to the nearest frozen yogurt parlor...it was a soaking wet good time, and you can see from Raegan's tell tale chocolate face, she thought so too!

This has got to be one of my new favorite Raegan pictures.  It's one of those "this is soooo Raegan", though I can't fully explain why I feel it captures her personality so well.  Maybe it's because we have to play the "kiss through the shower liner game" fifty times a bath?  Every bath?  Maybe it's because it has become a family ritual to sort of shower off together after the beach...and you can see daddy's outline in the background?  All I know is that this has captured a moment in time I never want to forget!  And isn't that what pictures are for, really?

I swear, sometimes I forget how good I've got it until I go back through my pictures of the week.  My views aren't half bad most of the time, eh?

Rae insisted on wearing her winter beanie for a trip to walmart...shame on me for still having it somewhere that she could get to it, but far be it for me to keep her from wearing whatever she chooses.  And so it begins...

 

I'm pretty sure it isn't the playdough that's making her this happy, I'm pretty sure she's just a cheeseball.  But playdough has been a fun new rainy day boredom buster...and I've decided a tube of the green stuff will be flying with us next month.  Anything that keeps her occupied and smiling this big...

 

And, last but not least, Raegan celebrated her 17 month "birthday" on Wednesday by having her very first french fry...ever!  Travis and I decided, before she was even born, that she wouldn't be given any sort of fried junk until we were sure it wouldn't spoil her appetite for healthy options.  We felt confident that we'd established healthy eating habits, so, we put a couple of fries on her plate along with some diced tomatoes.  Can you believe she reached for the tomatoes first?  That's our girl!  But she did discover the joy that is a cheese fry, and she did like it!  And afterward?  Daddy bought his spoiled girl some new heart shades...which she happily rocked the whole way home.

It has been a week of awesomeness, here.  Which is good, we'll need these pictures to get us through the dreaded seven day streak of Travis' overnight schedule.  Things can get grumpy bumpy around here before the end of this shift...so good weeks, and great memories, come in handy!

Was your week super fab or are you just glad it's over?

Fantasy Music Festival

Just for fun, let's pretend for a second that I'm headed to some sort of fantasy music festival.  Some place warm.  And sunny.  And worthy of this boho ensemble.




Let's also pretend that the shorts I'm rocking, the ones from AE that I just bought with the crochet pocket detail peeking out of the bottom, aren't entirely too short.




Because they are.  Too short.  And the only place I'll ever feel comfortable wearing them is to a fantasy music festival...




...or maybe the beach.

I totally tried them on, but it was hasty, and I guess I wasn't paying attention to the fit of the bum as much as I was to the fit in the waist.  It's always the waist I have issues with...I take for granted that the backside will figure itself out.




One very uncomfortable trip to the grocery store later, I realized my bum area wasn't figuring its way out...it was fighting it's way out... of the bottom of my shorts.




Seriously, how many times do I need to be asked if I'm "finding everything okay" while standing in front of the oranges in the produce section.  Yes.  I am, thanks.  I'm looking for oranges.  If I wasn't looking for oranges, I would move on down the line.  But thanks, fellas, thanks for making sure.

So, yea, these are strictly beach shorts now.  Which is a total bummer (pun kind of intended) because they're so blasted cute.




I'll get my money's worth out of them though (you know I got them on sale anyways), because me and the beach have many hot dates lined up this summer...




Have you ever inadvertently suffered through a fashion faux pas in public?  Embarrassing!  Leave your stories below! 

Last chance to enter the Yak Pak giveaway!  Drawing ends at midnight tonight!!

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Today I Rock

What can I say?  Lately, I've been using recycled pieces of last week's outfits to make this week's ensembles...hey, I'm a normal girl on a normal budget!  I can't go out and buy a new outfit every time I'm photographed in it!

Oh, but if I could...

...but I can't.  So, I turned the cheetah print shorts from last weeks somewhat sophisticated look into this week's rocker chic...

I find it's really easy to go "grunge" with these shorts for a couple of reasons...one, they're too big.  So they look perfectly loose, as if I could care less about fit.  My husband doesn't like that they don't hug my bum bum but that's beside the point...




And two, they're faded...on purpose...but still, they look like they've seen more than the one summer I've had them.  So that helps.




Paired with my Rolling Stones tee from Kohl's, how can I go wrong?

I decided to further my careless attitude by tying a scarf onto my over sized bag; a cheetah print scarf, that is.




Because who else would mix cheetah prints besides some grunge rocker type who just doesn't give a flying fudgesicle about anything?




Am I pulling off this uber-cool-charade?

Lately, I am obsessing over bracelets.  Well, it isn't entirely just lately...it's pretty much always.  I've happily added some arm candy to my collection, and here I have on a brass cuff (I like to wear half way up my forearm), and some beads.





I also thought that the gold wing earrings really upped the concert-tee-ante.

I have to say, though, nothing makes me feel more super-cool-groupie than sporting these platinum locks.  I can't wait to take it to the next level next month when I'm back in NY and back in the chair of a stylist I can't get out of my head no matter how far I travel or how long it's been since she's taken her shears to my head.  It's kind of a love affair.  And I can't wait!




Oh, and of course my Steve Maddens complete the look.  




But they really speak for themselves.




How do you rock? 





Also, I just wanted to say how thrilled I am with all of the love shown to my little bloggy and facebook page through the celebration in yesterday's post!  It was just the boost I needed to get my behind in gear and really make a push these last few months before I'm celebrating my own blogiversary!  Thanks for joining, all, I hope you'll feel inspired to leave as many comments, questions, or as much advice, as you wish!  Love hearing from each of you!!

Celebrate and Win Big!

Aside from the obvious therapeutic outlet blogging provides, the best thing about it is meeting new people...through your words alone.  Even though I haven't physically met, nor will I probably ever physically meet, these "friends" of mine, that doesn't discount their impact on my life.  It's a wonderful journey following along with one another, and growing new friendships every day!

One of those favorites of mine is Lanaya,  author of Raising Reagan, an uber successful wife, mother, blogger, and entrepreneur!  She can do it, and does it, all!  And, she's celebrating her one year Blogiversary by rewarding those who follow along...I was so happy to be a part of it and help her celebrate! 

Join me, won't you?

I CAN NOT believe it's been a year since I started my blog! You always remember the first birthday right? Happy blogiversary to me! To remember my day just a little more I have come together with some AMAZING sponsors to give you $300 in CASH!

Say what? Yep, cash baby!!

PLEASE, thank these amazing friends and supporters of Raising Reagan and enter below!

From Top Left {clockwise}:

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Please also stop by and thank these lovely supporters and friends of mine as well ... I couldn't have brought you this amazing giveaway without them!

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It's a $300 CASH blogiversary giveaway!

Giveaway open worldwide | Winner MUST HAVE a PayPal account | Entries WILL BE verified

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