What I Wore

Hi Everyone!

I've had a difficult time getting dressed this week :-(.

It's been gloomy & rainy & cold for June, and I haven't really wanted to try.  

But I did (a little), and I definitely felt better than if I had been wearing sweats all day.

So here goes...

I purchased these purple shorts way back in December.  

I pulled them out for the first time and decided navy stripes would be a good fit.  

Shorts: J. Crew Factory / Shirt: Gap / Shoes: Havaianas

 More stripes...and my trusty coral jeans.

Sweater: Loft / Jeans: Gap / T-shirt, Purse, Shoes: Target

 Just another rainy Spring day!

Jacket: American Eagle / T-shirt: Old Navy / Jeans: Gap / Boots: Burberry

 I think the rain was getting to me as I pulled this outfit together...blah :-)

Denim shirt: Chico's / T-shirt, skirt: Old Navy / Shoes: Steve Madden

I'm hoping to add a little more color this week!  

And maybe add some more shorts into rotation - if the sun comes out :-)
Have a great week!!!

For tons more fashion inspiration, visit The Pleated Poppy!

Preschool End-of-Year Program

Erik & Tripp celebrated the end of preschool with a little program a couple of weeks ago!

They were both called on stage to accept certificates of achievement and memory books.

And then Erik got to participate in a little performance/concert.  It was so adorable!!!

For the first part of the program, the 2-year olds got to walk to the front of the stage and accept their certificates as their names were called out.  Some of the 2-year olds walked themselves, but since Tripp is a monkey and escape artist, I carried him :-).

Here he is accepting his certificate from his teacher.  

 Next, all the 3 & 4-year olds walked onstage to perform a few songs.

This is pretty much what Erik looked like throughout the performance.  Adorable but quiet.  Ha!  

 He did get into one song toward the end of the performance :-).

I think it was 'Slippery Fish.'

 Here he is accepting his goodies from his awesome teacher.  So proud!

 Erik and his teacher!

 Grandma & Grandpa came too!  

They were so great to stay while ALL the preschoolers were called up for their certificates.  

A quick family shot at the end of the program.

Finally, we celebrated with a parking lot picnic! 

It was a beautiful day and daddy got to play hookie for a few hours.  

Dane eventually joined us when he got off the bus. 

It was a great way to say goodbye to preschool for the summer! 

What I Wore Wednesday

Hi Everyone!

It's been a fun week for us so far - Dane graduated from Kindergarten!!!

(And my mom and I are half way through Season 2 of Downton Abbey :-)

Here's what I wore to Dane's Kindergarten graduation.  

It was a special night, which called for a special skirt!

Skirt: Target / T-shirt: J. Crew Factory / Sweater: Old Navy / Shoes: Banana Republic

I wore this running around town.  I love blue & green together.

Skirt: Target / Shirt: J. Crew Factory / Shoes: Steve Madden

My mom bought me this outfit to wear while traveling this summer.  

I love the fun (and comfortable) leggings!

Entire outfit: Heartbreaker / Shoes: Havaianas

I haven't been doing much shopping lately, but if I were, I'd be shopping at J. Crew Factory.  

I purchased a few summer items back in December, and I have really loved them.  

The quality and fit of the items have been great.  And they have lots of sales.  

So if you're in the mood to shop....click here.

Linking up with The Pleated Poppy for WIWW!!!

Have a great week!

A Birthday Party!

Mr. Erik had his 4th birthday party last weekend!

And based on the weather forecast, it should not have taken place outside like planned.

But God came through with beautiful weather!!!

The party started at 11am, and we watched the clouds roll in right around 1pm.

Perfect timing!!!

Erik invited his family and two friends to the party.  

This is Erik welcoming his first friend!  He's just a little excited :-).

He looks so big here.  Waiting patiently for mom to find the candles :-).

This picture makes Matt & me smile because it's SO Erik.  He shows his excitement with body language - he makes cute faces, claps and sort of shakes when he gets excited - so this is classic!

We had such a difficult time keeping his candles lit.  Uncle Josh finally took over and managed to keep them lit while we sang.  But I'm pretty sure the wind blew 3 out of 4 out.  

Oh well, E didn't seem to mind! 

This is another classic Erik picture....trying hard to keep his fingers clean.  He can't stand dirty/sticky hands!

Cousin Benton enjoying the cake!

Tripp confused fiesta with siesta :-)

This is what happens when you interrupt cupcake time for a picture.  

Working hard to open presents.  Isn't the concentration on their faces adorable??

Cutie, cutie.

Ash and I snapped a rare pic together!  We matched too!

Another rare picture!  Left to right: Teri, Ashley, Benton, me, Jodie

The birthday boy!
(don't worry, I bought him some chapstick :-).

Papa, Nana & Pepper came for the party too!!!  

They drove over 8 hours for a quick, 2.5 day trip.  We were so blessed by their visit!!!

A pic of Papa & Nana with their Minnesota grandkids!  

As you can see, it was quite challenging keeping the boys still.  We even let Tripp keep his mag-lite...still wouldn't sit still or look at the camera.  Oh well, capturing the moment is what counts!

We had such a fun weekend!  We are truly blessed to have lots of loving family & friends.  Our cup runneth over!!!  

What I Wore Wednesday

Hi Everyone!

I mentioned this last week, but May is one busy month!

There have been tons of events to get dressed for, which is the reason I have six outfits this week.  

I'm pretty positive that's a record for me.  

I wore this for Erik's last day of preschool. 

I'm finding that v-neck t-shirts work really well under jackets for a casual look.  

Jacket: CAbi / T-shirt: Old Navy / Jeans: Gap / Shoes: Target

 I wore this to Erik & Tripp's end-of-year preschool program.  

It was the cutest thing ever and I'll share pics of it soon!

Denim Jacket: American Eagle / Dress, Purse & Sandals: Target

 I wore this running errands.  I've been sporting my red shoes a lot lately.  

I think this would look great with some neon yellow shoes too :-).

 My friend, Nancy, and I took our oldest boys to see the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra at the Ordway.  

Target was putting on a free family music concert, and we thought the boys would like it because they are into music. 

And they did.  For the first 15 minutes.  

Sweater: Forever 21 / Jeans: Vigoss via Nordstrom BP / Shoes: Tory Burch via Nordstrom
Necklace: H&M

I wore this on a date with my 4 year old!  I guess tweed jackets are in right now.  I picked this one up at Kohl's for ~$15.  Tweed jackets can look fancy and ladylike, so I put a v-neck underneath to make it more casual.

(The amazing Lilly actually taught me this...see her post here).

Jacket: Kohl's / T-shirt: Old Navy / Pants: Paige via Nordstrom Rack / Shoes: Tory Burch

 Finally, I wore this on Memorial Day.  Nothing like red, white & blue!

Sweater: Land's End Canvas / Jeans & Shoes: Old Navy

That's it!  

Have a great week and check out The Pleated Poppy for more fashion inspiration!

Happy 4th Birthday Erik!!!

Today is Erik's 4th birthday!!!!  

He wanted powdered sugar donuts for breakfast...

...and a lunch date with dad...  

...and a play date with his cousins.  

It's going to be a great day!!!

We love you so much Erik.  

You are a complete joy to parent.  

And we're excited to celebrate YOU today!!!

One Thousand Gifts & Instagram

I recently finished a book titled One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp (given to me by my dear friend Nicole - thanks Nic!).

Photo from onethousandgifts.com

In short, Ann details her journey toward discovering God in the every day.  She started finding him after giving thanks.  She would notice something little....a beautiful bubble in her kitchen sink....a full moon on a Fall night...the sweet laugh of her youngest daughter...she would notice the little things and then give thanks to God for it.  And almost immediately she would feel more connected to God...sort of like by accepting His gifts, she was more present and able to both love and trust Him more fully.  Her words are MUCH better than mine.  But she basically writes that giving thanks always preceeds the miracle.  "The miracle" can be different but it always involves drawing nearer to God.

She began keeping a list of all the "gifts" God gave her each day.  She kept a journal with her at all times and jotted them down.  Ann has a gift with words, so it made sense for her to do this.  Well, while reading the book, I decided to give it a try.  I placed a notepad on my kitchen island and began writing down all the little gifts God gave me.  There were several the first day....a few less the next day....and even fewer over the following weeks.  It wasn't that God was giving me fewer gifts, I just wasn't taking the time to write them down.  Go figure.  Life is busy.

But it dawned on me today that I DO document God's gifts!  I just do it in a different way.  I do it through pictures.  I must snap at least 10 pictures every day on my iPhone.  And it's almost always the little things.  A pretty flower, a cute smile, a date night, a family picnic, etc.  Taking pictures is my way of noticing and giving thanks to God for His gifts!

All of this is to say that I added an Instagram feed to my blog :-).  Instagram is where I post most of my iPhone pics.  If you want to follow me on Instagram....just search @shellyzitz and you'll find me!

And if you're already on Instagram, let me know your username and I'll follow you back...we can enjoy God's gifts together!