Weekend Happenings: Husband & Lulu's Birthdays!

It's Sunday evening and I've just now had a chance to sit down and get to some blogging.  My H and I were at his parent's house all weekend because we were celebrating my father-in-law's birthday, Lulu's birthday (he just turned 7!) and my H's birthday, which was today (the big 35!).  Happy birthday to my wonderful husband!

I usually plan a fun party for my H, but this year he wanted to just relax and have a really laid-back weekend.  We started our Saturday with an hour and a half long workout and then we got into our pool gear and drove up to his parent's home.  We spent a few hours at the gorgeous country club pool and had lunch in our cabana. It was SO hot though...like you either had to be in the pool or in the shade hot.

Here's what I wore:

Hat- Ann Taylor (outlet)
Cover Up- Target
Bikini- Victoria's Secret
Sunglasses- Marc by Marc Jacobs
On Nails: Essie's "Lilacism"
On cheeks- Bobbi Brown "peony" blush

We celebrated birthdays that evening with a family dinner at one of our favorite local restaurants and when we got home we sang to Lulu and gave him his cake:

Oh, and here's what we had for dessert (cupcakes, from Houston's Sugarbabies):

Let's just say it was a huge eating weekend for us!  Lulu LOVED his cake (from Jackson's Place)

We had such a great, laid-back weekend. It's just what we needed!  For those wondering, we got my H an iPad for his birthday but he's had it for over a month now because we got it early.  We both really enjoy using it!

I also wanted to give a quick update on my Pandora bracelet.  Candice got me a charm for my birthday, and here is what my bracelet looks like now:

Hope everyone had a weekend as great as mine!

xoxo,

Veronika.

A Friday Shopping Trip- Why Buy Anything At Full Price?

Fridays aren't typically shopping days for me, but this Friday was different because tomorrow is my husband's birthday and last-minute shopping is my specialty!  (I already got him one of his gifts, but he got it early- a pair of TOMS shoes.) I also had to pick something up for my father-in-law (for father's day and his birthday which was also this week) so I decided to make a Friday post-work trip to the Galleria and it was surprisingly uncluttered (thank goodness!)

I'll keep those gifts a surprise...but I'll reveal what I got for the house and for myself.

Bath & Body Works is having a MAJOR sale right now. Like 75% off of $20.00 candles kind of sales. I picked up 3 candles and 2 wallflowers (all wallflowers are $5, down from their original $12.50 price tag.)

As you can see, I got some yummy summer scents including White Citrus, Brilliant Citrus and Mango Mint!  I love citrusy tastes and smells. I'm always the one all for the yellow and orange Skittles.

I also got a Sephora VIB coupon for a free smashbox mini-palette of liners and brow liners plus the a sample of their primer, so I bought another bottle of my holy grail, tried and true self tanner (for the face) Clarins SPF 6 Tanning Milk:

The palette is super mini-size. I wish I would have taken a photo of the inside, the samples are teeny-tiny, not even the size of a dime each...but they are all pretty neutrals so very use-able.  The primer was a great size.  As you all know, I'm not a fan of primer, but I'll keep it on hand if I ever get an inkling to try it again.

Now for the exciting part of my shopping trip. I read online today that LOFT was having an extra 40% off of items that were already on sale so I thought I'd stop in to check out the clothes.

I'm so very glad I did!

I got a gorgeous pencil skirt and a pretty summery dress for less than what one of the garments cost at regular price...and not only did I get 40% off, I also got another $15 off of my entire purchase for spending $75 or more. My total was $81 for both pieces!

This skirt looks incredible on. It has hints of a metallic sort of sheen. I don't own anything like it so it's a great addition to my wardrobe. I can even see this being gorgeous as a winter white piece. I got this in a size 6.

Then there's this dress, which is admittedly out of my color comfort zone...but there was something so great about it when I put it on that I couldn't leave it (especially because of the heavily discounted price!) I knew I'd regret not purchasing it. I can't wait to show you ladies what it looks like ON.  The sizing on this dress is very off, as I had to get a size 2.  

It's perfect in length too (and we all know how hard it is to find a dress that's a good length for work when you're 5'10.)

I can't wait to wear this dress!  

My last purchase (also with a discount) was this dress from Express:

It was originally $69.50 and it was on sale for 30% off in the store, plus I had another $15 off coupon that I used bringing the total to about $36. I own this exact dress in black with small white polka-dots on the skirt part and it's so comfy! Perfect for work with a cardigan over it.  I love the floral pattern on this one! I got a size 4.

Thank you everyone for reading, and more to come tomorrow!

Oh, and before I go, today is our baby Lulu's 6th birthday! Happy birthday LULU!  Here are some vintage Lulu photos:

I always thought he looked like a little baby ewok
when he was a puppy!

He was so teeny-tiny! (bad webcam pic)

 (

My two favorite guys <3

xoxo,

Veronika.

Phases

I don't know if it's because I've been reading too much Twilight, but lately, I've been thinking about phases.

Just like Jacob transforms from a human to a wolf, I feel like I'm sort of always "phasing" in one direction or another (when it comes to shopping, not transforming into another life form, of course.)

For example, for the last few months, I've been on a makeup and product binge. I hardly bought any clothes or accessories during that "phase."

Lately, I've found myself buying clothes like crazy (though I always find deals and sales.)

It might just be because I've found many Holy Grail products so I'm not tempted to buy a ton of new stuff, or maybe it's just because my somewhat clothes shopping hiatus left me craving some new items. Or it could just be that around the holidays there are so many sparkles and ruffles to choose from that I simply can't resist.

Do you ever go through phases in your shopping, or is it pretty even across the board when it comes to your fashion, beauty and products spending?

Let me know in the comments below!

and because I can't possibly leave a post without a picture, here are some photos of our cutie, Lulu from last Christmas:

xoxo,

Veronika.