Shopping...

 As I sit here looking out the window at another snowy gray winter day, I decided to lift my mood and do a bit of online shopping for my trip next week to Bora Bora. One of my favorite retailers in Athleta. They have fabulous workout and easy travel resort wear and I have enjoyed everything I have purchased from them online. I also love the fact that if you do decide to return something, they cover the return shipping! So here are a few of my new favorite outfits that I have just personally purchased!

Shadow Skirt $69 and Double Play Tank $44

This will be perfect for cruising around the islands and a casual dinner. I can easily see wearing my bathing suit all day and slipping this on over it.

Equally versatile is the Sonata Skirt. At $49 this was a must have and right now I am just loving the berry color. Bye bye winter blues!

Finally, I just fell in love with this gorgeous linen Flash Sweater for $89 and their Ananda Capri $56 pictured below. I think this outfit will be just perfect for morning yoga on the beach! I think the slit detailing of the capris and the off the shoulder look  of the sweater add sexy detailing while covering all  the right places.

Paybacks Are Heaven!

I am not above a bit of whining, begging, or cashing in an overdue IOU from my husband to get what I want! I learned very quickly that my husband was not the sort of man to remind me of his unwavering love for me by gracing me with flowers and gifts on the special occasions in our lives. When our first anniversary came along, he took his now pregnant wife to a dinner at our favorite restaurant and paid with a gift card he received from a colleague. No card, no flowers, and definitely no nice little couples massage.

Apparently he didn't get the memo on monumental occasions in a woman's life, because on my 40th birthday he me a card.  I opened it excitedly! Was there a gift card in it for a day of pampering or a shopping spree? Well, not quite. The card had a Chihuahua on the front with the caption "It's your birthday..." and on the inside read "Duh!!!". What woman in her right mind could appreciate a card like that on her big 4-0? That night I began to question my own decision to settle down with this man. However, I knew deep in my heart that he loved me deeply and I hoped he could still be "trained". After failing once again on our 5th anniversary, to say I was disappointed would clearly be a huge understatement. I hadn't expected anything over the top...perhaps just some flowers and a more appropriate card, along with my "gift card" dinner.

On the way home that evening the tears ran down my face and it was now clear that a smidge of guilt was beginning to set in for him. Suddenly I announced, "You really owe me! For our 10th anniversary I want to go to Bora Bora and stay in the bungalows over the water!". He of course said nothing that night, but I will say he began to get better as far as remembering those special days. I continued to tease him when he slipped up and found it even fun to tell him that it was completely fine, because I would just go out and buy myself something for that trip in a few years.

This year we celebrated our 9th anniversary and I again reminded him that the next one was Bora Bora. He came up with several reasons he didn't think he possibly could do this yet, but several days later he called me while at work and asked if I would be willing to celebrate our 10th early. He had just received an email about a great deal to Bora Bora with an upgrade to an over the water luxury bungalow. Um..."Duh!!!" 

In one month I will be checking off one of my big dreams and yup, those tears were definitely worth it!

Book #1 - Women and the Sea

I am a beach girl through and through! Living in the midwest now, one of my big goals is to return to living by the sea myself. I find a balance by the ocean that I have never known anywhere else. However, my husband is a dentist and selling his successful practice and taking a state dental board exam again just to start new is not on his immediate to do list no matter how hard the children and I encourage this adventure. So it seemed only fitting that my first book of 50 be near and dear to my heart. I am not much of a fictional reader and love anything inspirational that encourages me to grow or that I can identify with.

"Women and the Sea" by Claire Murray is a lovely coffee table sort of book with gorgeous seaside photography and several beautiful stories of creative women pursuing their passions. All of the women featured have been inspired by the call of the sea and I found great comfort from my land locked position reading each soulful story. "Women and the Sea" is not available in bookstores, but can be purchased online at http://www.clairemurray.com/.