huffington post feature

image via stylelist home

hope you're all having a great weekend. It's pretty rainy and cool here but I can't complain because we just had a super nice week so I am just hoping the weather will turn around again soon.

i am just dropping in quickly to let you guys know how excited i am to be featured as a pinner to watch, over at the Huffington Post's Stylelist Home blog today!! i am so honored that they picked out my painted jar candle diy project from among thousands of wonderful pinterest pins :)

see what they had to say here.
you can also follow me on pinterest here.

insecurities

sweater: f21(old), tshirt: old navy, shorts: RL i cut off and folded, heels: old navy (old) 

so after editing these pictures and really not feeling too happy about my legs in those shorts this post somehow turned into a post on body issues. oh boy!

then i decided that i didn't really want to complain and whine so I deleted it all. now i'm left with no post at all but the realization that i need to stop criticizing my body and focus on the positive. above all else, i am healthy and i can do the things i want to do. i'm not perfect but comparing myself to others isn't going to change anything, so i'm trying hard to remind myself of that every day.

how do you deal with insecurities?

being spontaneous and living in the moment

this post has been stuck in the notes on my phone for a while... one of those early morning, can't go back to sleep because my thoughts are racing kind of posts.

i like to plan things. on paper or simply in my head. i like to have control of any given situation and pretty much plan out all of the possible scenarios and outcomes in my head beforehand. i overanalyze and i am a pessimist trying hard to get to the other side. i guess you could call it controlling or obsessing but i think it's mostly me being afraid of what i don't know. sometimes i let this get in the way of enjoying the moment or even doing something at all. sometimes, if i don't get a little (or big) nudge from someone to just let go and jump, i miss out.

in the end, i am grateful for the people that convince me to just do it, no matter what reasons against it all i have come up with in that crazy head of mine. having a baby has made it even easier to just stay behind, with a baby you always have a good excuse not to do something. i personally think about things like, will he be good? hungry? get sick? where can i change him? will he get tired? fuss? scream? well, you get the point. then i start worrying about myself and whether i will make a fool of myself in a situation i've never been in before. 

if something comes up that goes well beyond his bedtime i usually automatically decline. i am finally starting to be more flexible when it comes to our routine. routine has worked great for us and has blessed us with uninterrupted sleep most nights, since he was about 6 months. 

this time however, with just a tiny little nudge and a little bit of fear to disappoint someone else, i let go of all my objections and just went for it. and guess what? surprise, surprise, it worked out great.

yes, bed time was involved but once again the mister rose to the occasion when he decided it was ok to just fall asleep on mama's chest. last time that happened he was still in the infant stage. these days sleeping requires a crib and a darkened room. 

so of course everything worked out great. no major catastrophes happened and no one made a fool of themselves. i am glad the little mister and i are both learning to go with the flow together. in the end he is teaching his mama a thing or two about live, again and again, every day. 

{style files} neon striped scarf and hunter boots

sweater: old navy, jacket: mango, scarf: nine west, jeans: ae, boots: hunter

thankful for

my awesome family, every single one of them

road trips that come to an end

a little man who sleeps through the night, every night!

starbucks frappucinos on a very warm april day

neighbors who we consider good friends 

the sound of crickets and thunderstorms rolling in

the roof over our heads

a friendly wal mart cashier 

connecting with old and new bloggy friends on instagram 

instagram sunday on monday

so sorry i've been gone friends! my dad and little brother came to visit and i didn't feel like wasting a second with them... i gotta get back into the grove of blogging and i haven't really been feeling any outfits lately so i need to work on that. 

for now i leave you with some pics from last week. i'd love it if you followed me on instagram. 

i'm @theforgestyle 

last week we...

drove into the city quite a lot

drove to the airport quite a lot as well

got stuck in traffic of course

loved family time

got a ton of clothes from zara for the little guy that my dad brought from germany

went out for ribs

shopped until we dropped more than once

got our first wet, open mouth kiss from the mister

realized the lettuce has sprouted and got real excited

had opa teach the mister his first word (the german word for hot) 

pushed our own stroller

used a spoon to eat, umm or maybe just to make a mess

realized there is a magazine hoarder living among us

rode on opa's shoulders 

enjoyed lots of sunshine

what did you do? 

{style files} neon color block clutch

sweater: old navy, shirt: f21, jeans: ae, watch: michael kors, clutch: the forge

i totally love the neon trend and color blocking right now, as long as it's not too crazy or 80's looking, that is. i am proud to say i made that clutch myself. it is lined turquoise on the inside as well and hand painted and sewn by yours truly. it's a great size and can hold a ton of stuff or even a small laptop. i don't have the diy ready yet but it's coming. i am thinking about doing a giveaway soon and this may just be the item for it. what do you think? would you love to have this clutch? 

By the way, I made my instagram public last night so come on over and follow me there. I'm @theforgestyle  :) 

{style files} a little edgy casual

striped shirt: local store, white tee: h&m, pants: hydraulic denim, sunglasses: no name cheapos $3.99, shoes: old navy (last year), watch: michael kors

i love these old navy espandrille wedges from last year. i'd love them even more if they didn't rub my two small toes so bad that i get blisters. i have weird feet. seriously. i can't really wear flats because i get blisters on my heels and it's the same with most other shoes. i have tried with more expensive shoes as well and it doesn't make a difference. so i just suffer for beauty and try to place precautionary band-aids :)