Waiting for the Frankenstorm

This weekend will be full of Halloween activities; a spooky walk today, a Halloween party tonight, and tomorrow will bring a corn maze and trick or treating in the neighborhood park. At some point we need to carry all our garden furniture to the storage before the impending storm hits on Monday, and squeeze in some exercise to burn off some Halloween-goody calories...

Anyway, yesterday was still warm and balmy, and we had been invited to an extended family dinner to my sister-in-law's place.

I wore my new Michael Kors dress, which my husband brought for me, and which I probably would never have bought myself for the fear of appearing too "cougar-like", but was weirdly happy that I was pushed out of my comfort zone. Accessorized with JC necklace, Bottega Veneta bag, Brooks Brothers cashmere cardigan/jacket, Nine West boots.

Bling Bling

I love necklaces and I'm really happy whenever statement necklaces are in fashion. I recently got a couple of big ones from H&M. For some reason I don't shop there much, but whenever I go, I always find something that I really like.. Anyhoo, statement necklaces are the perfect accessory for me. I am a big girl, so a dainty little necklace looks ridiculous, and I've never been big into bracelets. I've only recently started wearing them at all, and still it's a bit of a struggle. Big earrings are really not my thing at all. I somehow feel that since I wear glasses, it's too much to wear something else in the same head.. I do wear earrings, but usually just small ones. So necklaces are my thing; and a statement necklace is also perfect for drawing the eye up and away from some of my more problematic areas...

Wednesday's Office Outfit

It is a dreary day in NYC today. The view from my office is foggy, and I feel like the weather, a bit off. The girls in the family have a cold, and yesterday we all took a sick day and napped and cuddled together, ate some chicken soup and gave ourselves some rest. Today, with the help of some meds, it's back to business, but wearing an easy, stretchy comfort outfit. Vince Camuto jersey pencil skirt, Loft merino wool sweater, Gucci wedges and Juicy Couture necklace. I plan to have a cup of green tea attached to my hand today, and have to, at my lunch break, make my way to the health store to get some Reishi mushroom tea (according to Dr. Oz, it's wonderful for the immune system, and I need a boost right now..). Hopefully this cold will give me some antibodies for the rest of the season!

Today's Instagram Pictures

I wore my new red cords today, and snapped some Instagram photos from New York City...the city of dreams.

The Beginning of the Fall Foliage

I love the fall foliage and the beauty of the reds and yellows. The park of the Nassau County Art Museum already had some pretty colors today, which were glowing even in the rainy weather. I love dropping my daughter off to her art class there - the grounds are so pretty, anytime of the year, rain or shine.

Funny Families

When I was little I loved the card game funny families. My daughter loves to take these funny pictures with her cell phone camwow app..and they reminded me of the funny families game... I should look if I could find those playing cards somewhere. These funny pictures of our family have given us so many laughs. Isn't this one good-looking bunch?

Act Your Age

When I turned forty, one of the best fashion and style advice I heard was by Teri Agins who writes at the Wall Street Journal on style and fashion. She said that as we get older and want to update our look, the goal should be a "better version of you".  This hit home for me. You don't need to change your style and all of a sudden start dressing up very seriously, lady like or whatever it is you think older ladies should look like. You really don't have to, should not, become anything you're not. Just make sure that your clothes fit well and don't look like they are 100% polyester from Forever21 (even if they are). I have found that as I've gotten older, following trends gets a little trickier, so it's best to focus on style rather than trends. I am not saying that older women should not be trendy, but I am saying that older women should not look like they are trying hard to be trendy. Trendiness should be something that sort of just happens and fits with your own personal style. An 18-year old can mix ten trends in one outfit, an older lady should go with mostly a couple of trendy items at once.

Another thing that is more important the older we get is good grooming. Chipped nail polish is not so dangerous when you're 20, but it looks gross when you're 40. Accessories should also grow up when the lady grows up. Not in size perhaps, but in stature. It's ok to wear fake diamonds, but after a certain age, a woman should wear the kind of fake diamonds that only she knows are fake. Costume jewelry is ok as long as it still looks "expensive". An inexpensive fun cocktail ring looks great on the finger of the under 30 set, but not so much if you're over forty. And the really weird thing is, that the cheap huge cocktail ring will make you look older! Better to stick with one good quality ring. 

One rule that I've heard, and I don't agree with, is that a mother should never wear the same things as her daughter does. In this day and age, I don't think that rule holds true anymore. It all depends how you wear it. The mother can wear the mini skirt or the shorts, as long as the rest of the outfit acts your age...

Luckily style is something that evolves. We change, fashions change, our style evolves, but love of dressing up stays.

Sisterly love

My daughter sent me this picture a few days ago with the words "sisterly love". My heart just melted at this. I always tell my daughters to be nice to each other and to be each other's friends, because they will always be family. Blood is thicker than water. I don't have a sister and I am so happy that my daughters have each other and get along (for the most part - of course they have their moments too..and we're nowhere close to the teenage years yet, thank goodness!).

Note to Self

You are enough.
You have enough.
You do enough.

When Daddy Came Home With a Mercedes

For the kids, that is! Imagine the joy! It was like Christmas came early. My hubby stopped by at a Tag Sale on Saturday and snagged the cutest electric toy car ever.. No pink Barbie car for these little fashionistas..oh no..they'll be driving around in style in their black Mercedes Benz!! The 4 year old was the happiest of the bunch. The car was like made for her. The 2 year old was a bit challenged, but will master driving it with little practice. The 9 year old was too big for this toy, and was a bit disappointed she didn't get to drive.. The 40 year old was happy to see the joy in the kids' faces while running frantically behind the car to make sure no crashes took place...

You Decide

One of the mottos for the upcoming presidential elections is You Decide (as if!). On a side note, it seems to be getting harder and harder the closer Romney is getting to Obama's positions, if you believe a word he says at this point, that is. (How many times can a politician change their views before time out?)

Anyway, we have many mucho important decisions to make every day. For example which bag to wear with an outfit... Yesterday I was faced with the tough decision between my Nancy Gonzalez and Louis Vuitton... You Decide! (And the winner was LV!)

Beautiful Moments

Life is all about those little moments when everything is perfect in your world. I am so thankful that I am learning to notice and appreciate those moments and I make myself stop and enjoy them, like this gorgeous sunset last night...

Vested

It's finally a little cooler in New York, and perfect weather for wearing a vest. This one is by Ralph Lauren (RLX). BR jeans, JCrew sweater, Bianco Footwear high heel sneakers, Nancy Gonzalez bag.

International Day of the Girl

Today is the first annual International Day of the Girl. A perfect day to speak about the brave girl Malala, and her fight for girls' right for education.

In America the word hero is being very much over used, but when I heard that the 14 year old Pakistani girl Malala Yousafzai had been shot by the Taliban for standing up for the Taliban ban for girls going to school, the word that first sprang to my mind was hero.

The Guardian:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/09/taliban-pakistan-shoot-girl-malala-yousafzai?fb=optOut

The New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/11/opinion/kristof-her-crime-was-loving-schools.html?hp

I pray that Malala recovers and can continue going to school and her pursuit of equal rights for girls to get an education.

With three daughters of my own, the oldest being a fifth grader who loves to go to school and came home today so proud for acing her tests, I can't even imagine how life would be if girls were not allowed to go to school. Unfortunately, this is the reality in many places in the world. Furthermore, I can't imagine how my life would have turned out, had I not received the education I have. Thanks to my graduate degree (MBA) I have been able to have a sustainable career and provide for my family.

We should not take it for granted that girls around the world have these rights. We need to recognize they don't and support change. Mr. Kristof's article for New York Times names two organizations that build schools in Pakistan and provide education for underprivileged children. We can begin by supporting these organizations and the work they do.

Developments in Literacy: http://dil.org/

The Citizens Foundation: http://tcfusa.org/

This Week's Office Outfits

This was an unusual week in the sense that I worked 5 full days. I usually work Monday through Thursday. But this week was a great reminder how lucky I am to have that extra day for me and my family. Here are this week's outfits Monday thru Thursday. By Friday I was so tired I did not even remember to take a picture anymore...

STOP (and happy birthday)

I want to push the pause button and tell the universe to stop, or at least slow down.

My baby turned two today and I am scared that I will all of a sudden wake up ten years from now and realize that all three of my girls are tweens and teens. They are so heartbreakingly cute right now that I want to slow down and take my time enjoying them.

I guess turning forty made me really deeply realize how fleeting every stage is. Better late than never, and I am so happy and so lucky that I still have one baby to really enjoy in the toddler stage.

I mean, I did enjoy the other two too, but now it's more deeply felt as I've realized my own age and limitations. Why are we so impatient when we're younger?

I am really re-thinking this aging thing...and going through this summer's mini-midlife-crisis now seems like a very necessary thing as it forced me to think this through and grow up. I never enjoyed my life and its little everyday moments this much when I was younger. I lived for the highlights then. Now I want to enjoy the trip too, not only destination.. I want to be present and aware, and appreciative and grateful for the good I have. I'm getting so much better at that, and am much happier as a result.

Happy Birthday my precious child! Thank you for being in my life and giving us so much love and happiness.
Oh, and by the way, the next time you have a melt-down, I promise to take a deep breath and remember how you say "Aiti, I waw you" out of the blue, making my heart skip. You and your sisters are my everything.