Inspiring moments, words, & treasures
I took our “dress-down Friday” as the perfect opportunity to try out my new “boyfriend jeans,” (From Express, a lot cheaper than the celebrity favored Current/Elliott in “Super Love Destroyed”) though I really think they are just glorified cropped jeans that look old. This is my attempt to try the trend…maybe I’ll ease myself more into it with some heels on an evening out!
We came upon this turtle on our way home from a tee ball game in Waynesboro. It was so monstrous that Ben turned the car around and we went back to try to get a better look and try to move him from the middle of the road. Ben finally got him going and it was hilarious to see him take his sweet time getting across…I wish I would’ve gotten it on video!
We missed Henry, but enjoyed a very relaxing two days at Smith Mountain Lake! Thanks to the Harmon’s for your hospitality!
I love this picture of Liz and Oakley
I wanted to go with something understated, and “teacher-esque.” The kids said I looked very 1950′s which I hope is somewhat of a compliment?! I got the Calvin Klein dress at Ross last fall. The shoes are some of my favorite gold wedges from TJ Maxx (I think Steve Madden?).
The jewelry is all VINTAGE from Staunton Antique Market.
Soprano dress from T.J. Maxx, this season.
Look how TALL it makes me look!
black, leather flats from Gap (2 seasons ago)
Love the ceramic earrings from jewelry by Pam Unger.
Some of my more fashionable students convinced me that it was perfectly fine to wear a maxi dress to work. Because it was the Thursday before a 4-day weekend, I went for it! Here are some of the comments I have received so far:
1. Wow, I love your dress, it’s beautiful! (cute, very stylish 11th grade girl)
2. Why are you dressed like a nun? (“favorite” boy in my English 10 class)
3. I love your dress….you look like an Indian! (cafeteria lady)
4. Is that a new outfit, Mrs. Halterman? Did you buy that for your husband’s birthday? (Principal, who thinks I buy new clothes for every occasion)
5. I told you it’d be cute! (best student ever!)
So, for every serious post, I must do something a bit more lighthearted and superficial. That is me: a very complicated dichotomy between deep thinker and fashion lover…just kidding. But, as I ponder the fifty meaningful things I believe in, I can’t help but wonder….is one of them boyfriend jeans?
(Yes, that is how my brain works.)
So, what do others think? To quote my fashion muse (and basically life-coach) sister, Tori, they are, “Hideous on Katie Holmes, but cute on some.”
Side-note: What I love about the relationship I have with my sister is that I can randomly text her for her take on everything from budding jean trends, to pop musicians, and I will get extremely insightful and serious responses that always amaze me.
Exhibit A: After being disappointed in one dressing room after another, I finally asked Tori, “What is the hype on skinny jeans? No matter how many I try on, they are just not appealing on me.” She responded with, “I like skinny, but apparently guys don’t think they are flattering. Boyfriends think their girls gain 20 lbs. when they wear them!”
(Point taken! Why be fashionable, when it’s just not cute?)
Exhibit B: I have been known to sing along to overplayed radio songs, like “I’m Yours,” only to catch myself needing Tori’s sensibility to reel me back in. When I asked for her take on Jason Mraz, I got, “He’s okay, but he needs to lose the fedora and some of the skatting.”
(Hey, that’s exactly what I was thinking!)
Exhibit C: While inadequately trying to tease my hair one evening, I wrote her asking, “How do you achieve the perfect bouffant?” I immediately received, “Stick with the crown of your head to avoid Winehouse, scrunch and tousle to avoid Palin (hers is too neat) and tease small sections with short strokes for perfection.”
(Pure GENIUS!)
Tori: she is the Rachel Zoe to my Nicole Ritchie (pre the raisin-face name-calling), the Edie Sedgewick to my Andy Warhol, the Marianne Faithful to my Mick Jagger.
She may be my “little sister,” but she continuously keeps me grounded and I will always look up to her.
But, back to the jeans—here is the sloppy, tight-rolled, almost “Hammer-pants” version that we don’t like:
And here is what I am considering…the AG, ex-boyfriend jean.
Now that I think about it, I may have been a bit before my time when I cut off my favorite early-high school, thrift-store Levi’s (see similar example below). When I tried to wear them post college (yes, they fit MUCH differently at that point!)Ben informed me that they had transformed into “mom jeans” because of the 9-inch zipper (again, see below). (I guess they didn’t make “low-riders” in the seventies, but that’s what makes them vintage!) I am sure they are still packed away in some under-bed crevice of our home, though I am not sure I’d be able to squeeze one leg into them at this point in my life. 
Maybe that means it’s time to update my boyfriend jeans collection.
So, ladies, what about the rest of you? To believe or not to believe in the jean?
After reveling in all of my sister’s previous advice, I say:
GO ASK YOUR BOYFRIENDS!
1. All people are basically good
2. Life is too short for uncomfortable underwear
3. Odd numbers are evil
4. Expensive jeans are worth the price if they make you feel good
5. God works in mysterious ways
6. Pink makes people happy
7. In the element of surprise
8. We’re all little kids just dying for some playtime
9. In the power of prayer
10. McDonald’s sweet tea and/or French fries cures everything
11. Smiling makes everyone beautiful
12. In angels
13. In being held accountable
14. No one is normal
15. In making an effort
16. In giving people the benefit of the doubt (most of the time)
17. In going to the bathroom in pairs
18. In the process
19. Addiction ruins lives
20. Laughter is invigorating
21. I can fly!
22. Live music is freeing
23. Love is the answer to everything
24. Teachers should get paid more
25. In the power of positive thinking
26. To have dignity is to have worth. (Dr. Heller)
27. Pets make life better
28. In miracles
29. Writing is healing
30. There is a fine line between cockiness and confidence
31. Good manners will take you far
32. We must be our own before we can be another’s (Emerson)
33. In myself
34. I am not my hair, but I am much happier when my hair is happy
35. In the power of retail therapy
36. A good pair of shoes can change everything
37. Old things are often better than new
38. Music is the great equalizer
39. It’s easier to smile and nod sometimes
40. In love at first sight
41. In over the rainbow
42. If you do what you love, others will love you for it
43. Worrying about the worst possible scenario will probably make it happen
44. Your heart will always make itself known through your words
45. Mediocrity is not okay
46. Things should be solved peacefully
47. More people are afraid of success than failure
48. Bad things happen to good people
49. Not all those who wander are lost (Tolkein)
50. In small joys
1. All people are basically good
2. Life is too short for uncomfortable underwear
3. Odd numbers are evil
4. Expensive jeans are worth the price if they make you feel good
5. God works in mysterious ways
6. Pink makes people happy
7. In the element of surprise
8. We’re all little kids just dying for some playtime
9. In the power of prayer
10. McDonald’s sweet tea and/or French fries cures everything
11. Smiling makes everyone beautiful
12. In angels
13. In being held accountable
14. No one is normal
15. In making an effort
16. In giving people the benefit of the doubt (most of the time)
17. In going to the bathroom in pairs
18. In the process
19. Addiction ruins lives
20. Laughter is invigorating
21. I can fly!
22. Live music is freeing
23. Love is the answer to everything
24. Teachers should get paid more
25. In the power of positive thinking
26. To have dignity is to have worth. (Dr. Heller)
27. Pets make life better
28. In miracles
29. Writing is healing
30. There is a fine line between cockiness and confidence
31. Good manners will take you far
32. We must be our own before we can be another’s (Emerson)
33. In myself
34. I am not my hair, but I am much happier when my hair is happy
35. In the power of retail therapy
36. A good pair of shoes can change everything
37. Old things are often better than new
38. Music is the great equalizer
39. It’s easier to smile and nod sometimes
40. In love at first sight
41. In over the rainbow
42. If you do what you love, others will love you for it
43. Worrying about the worst possible scenario will probably make it happen
44. Your heart will always make itself known through your words
45. Mediocrity is not okay
46. Things should be solved peacefully
47. More people are afraid of success than failure
48. Bad things happen to good people
49. Not all those who wander are lost (Tolkein)
50. In small joys
