Taking Off

As much as I would love that little quote up there to be true, my bags are most definitely not packed, which means no, I am not ready to go. I'm all about waiting until the last minute, then throwing random articles of clothing into a suitcase while my boyfriend hovers and reminds me that it's definitely time to go and we'll most likely miss our flight if we don't leave. right. now.

 Yeah, it's kind of my thing.

We're heading to warmer pastures for a little bit, and the timing could hardly be better. It just got all cold and wintry up in this state.  And I have not one iota of sadness about missing it at all.

See you in a couple weeks!

Later, Alligator...

Oh, Las Vegas. My old friend. I'll be seeing you soon. And Grand Canyon, this time it won't be too cold and snowy to hike you. In case you haven't guessed, I'm leaving for a little jaunt to Nevada. Again. Because apparently two vacations, a total of 14 days spent there, and many many visits to all-you-can-eat buffets were not enough. What can I say; I just love Paris, New York, and Italy this time of year.

.::. See you in a little while! .::.

Buffalove.

You may remember me mentioning that I took a little trip to Buffalo over the July 4th weekend. And even though some may say that a vacation that happened almost a month ago is old news, I'm going to call balderdash and poppycock, and regale you with photos of it anyway.

We spent the day in downtown Buffalo at a 4th of July festival along the waterfront of the Erie Canal.

My sister & me in a Buffalo in Buffalo....trippy.

It didn't take us very long to find the beer tent.

There were free concerts all day long. We boogied pretty hard.

Colorful kites being flown higher than any kites we'd ever seen flown before.

 

Hanging out by the fire with family - always a good time...until one of your cousins flings his flaming marshmallow around instead of blowing on it and burns his own hand while at the very same moment striking unbridled terror in everyone nearby. (I'm looking at you, Darren).

We all guessed the sex of my cousin's soon-to-be-born baby, then found out the result by eating cupcakes filled with blue frosting.

We enjoy a good face melting blaze.

There were so many other family members and good times that I didn't take pictures of. Sometimes when you're having fun, you just don't think about picking up the camera. In fact, this was the motto of our weekend:

Word.

Plane & Simple

jeans: exact

top: c/o chicwish

booties: c/o chicwish

purse: francesca's option 1, 2

necklace: c/o chicwish

sunnies: similar 1, 2

__________________________

Just like the title says, I'm keeping it plain and simple.  This is the easy outfit I wore for my flight (see what I did there with the title?)  

(Excessive amount of luggage not pictured.)

Please note - this is a pre-scheduled post.  I'll respond to comments when I return.  See you soon!
Linking here today.

Montreal

{view from Mont Royal, the mountain that Montreal is named after}

Last week my boyfriend and I went to Montreal to celebrate our 6 year anniversary.  It was our first time there and we both sort of fell in love with the entire city.  It's artsy with colorful graffiti almost everywhere; has lots of quaint cobblestone roads; it's friendly, hip, diverse, and just a fantastic time!  We spent a few days there enjoying delicious food, practicing our French with the friendly & patient (and thankfully also English-speaking) people, stopping at cafes to sit outside for a drink or bite to eat on pedestrian-only streets, and oh yeah, wandering around a huge week-long music festival that happened to be taking place 2 blocks from our hotel!

Island Dreamin'

This post brought to you by Aruba Tourism Authority. All opinions are 100% mine.

The weather finally seems to be warming up a bit, and while I am loving every moment of spring, I'm also beginning to think about summer vacation.  Recently, my honey and I were given the generous offer from a family member to borrow his timeshare in Aruba for a week.  Just as I began daydreaming about the clear blue waters and white fluffy beaches, I was approached to do a little research and write a post about Aruba travel!  Kismet?  I think so.

When I imagine Aruba, beautiful images of pristine beaches and calm waters pop into my head.  Much like this gorgeous scene.

But after reading a bit more about it, I learned that there's all kinds of things to do there besides relaxing, reading, and basking in the sun (because as much as I love to lounge around on vacation...or anywhere really, I also reluctantly enjoy a little exercise every now and again.  Especially if what I'm doing is so awesome that I forget it's exercise.)

There's a national park - perfect for hiking and exploring the island by foot.  And then there's kyaking to take in the sights by water.   And of course, calm, clear waters make for great snorkeling.  Plus, there are these great natural land bridges that I would be in heaven just being near.

Just look at this gorgeousness!

If you want some more information, check out the video below and be sure to visit Aruba travel.

Now...to begin saving up for that flight to Aruba....

Las Vegas Suitcase

This is what's in my suitcase, more or less.  

For this vacation I was determined to get away with only a carry on, something that I would have scoffed at and called impossible for a 7 day vacation mere months ago.  

It wasn't as easy as packing normally is, but then again, I normally just pull pretty things out of the closet and throw them into the suitcase without much thought as to whether I'll actually be able to create stylish outfits with them (I usually can't, and I usually exceed the airline's luggage weight limit, too).

This time I spent a little longer in the planning phase, complete with an excel spreadsheet mapping out all of the remixing possibilities.  (I'm a nerd).

But I think it paid off.

I may not look terribly flashy or colorful, but I will look put-together.  Besides, I'm in Vegas, baby!  It has enough sparkle for the both of us.

p.s. - this is a pre-scheduled post because I will be away until Sunday.  I'll answer comments when I get back!

Jet Setter

{cardi: joyce leslie  //  t shirt & leggings: target  //  scarf: h&m  //  boots: payless}

Remember a few days ago when I said I was going to wear this on my plane ride?

Well, I lied because this is what I'm actually wearing during the flight.

The other outfit was comfortable, but I realized that most of those pieces don't go with the rest of the items I decided to bring.  And on this vacation, I'm all about the carry-on which means packing light and lots of creative remixing*.  

*Stay tuned for tomorrow's post to see what I'm remixing in Vegas.

Test Run

{cardi: joyce leslie  //  tee: 5below  //  jeggings: old navy  //  scarf: mandee  //  boots: ??}

I'm pretty excited because in just a week my boyfriend and I will be in Las Vegas!  We've never been there before and we're looking forward to exploring all of the fun, man made artificiality that Vegas has to offer - lights, sparkles, The Amazing Johnathan, dancing fountains, roller coasters, the Hoover dam.  And I'll feel so international visiting both Paris and Italy in one day.

I imagine it's like a Disneyland for adults.

As always, I want to be comfortable on the plane but now that I'm a style blogger, I don't think my standard yoga pants & hoodie will quite cut it.  So I tried out this outfit for a day to see if it would prove just as comfy as my old stand-by.  

Stretchy jeggings, a soft tee, a warm worn-in cardi, and cushy boots - I think it hit just the right note.

Now, if only I could be this proactive about packing.  However, old habits die hard so I'll probably wind up frantically throwing random items in my bag an hour before we leave for the airport.

But, opening my suitcase in the hotel to find 13 t-shirts, a bikini top, a pair of snowboarding pants, a tube of toothpaste minus the toothbrush, and mismatched shoes is half the fun of the vacation, right?