My good friend and fellow blogger Tara of the Geeky Hostess threw a “Galentine’s Day” party this past weekend – a day to celebrate your favorite gals, wear pink, eat waffles and exchange presents. It’s also a day to remember how great of a show Parks and Rec is, as Leslie Knope first coined the idea for this kind of a party.

We did a secret gift exchange (I got Pinkie Pie heart shaped mints and earrings and a big floppy pink bow), caught up on girl talk with “Table Talk” conversation starters, drank mimosas and rocked a little impromptu photo shoot on the photo wall Tara provided.

It was a fun and relaxing morning with great gals and I just wish we made time to do stuff like this more often! I highly encourage you to make time for the important females in your life this Valentine’s Day.

I wore a hot pink dress I found at Ross for $6, polka dot socks and pink tights from Target and my favorite heeled boots from Cathy Jean.

There’s a lot of really great improv companies around Seattle, so I frequently get the opportunity to check them out. It’s a completely different kind of live performance, and my favorite types of improv shows to see are the long-form ones based on a larger theme. I’ve seen a Final Fantasy show, I’ve seen one that emulated being inside a video game with movement tracking “game screens” behind the actors, I’ve seen one that took place on a doomed space mission – but this most recent one (by the Seattle Experimental Theatre) was Doctor Who themed. I wasn’t really sure what that was going to entail, but my friends and I of course bought tickets to see it together, making it a perfect Friday night outing.

The skirt is brand new; I got it from Forever 21 a few weeks ago. I didn’t want to look too fancy (especially since my dang ‘whoops I didn’t shower today’ sock bun really makes a person look dressed up!) so I paired the maxi skirt with a simple D&D t-shirt I absolutely love. Then I threw on my bronze Cathy Jean boots and a black hoodie and that was that! I’ve been playing around a lot with dressing up t-shirts, so this was an interesting study doing the opposite – dressing down a skirt and hairstyle.

The show was interesting. I had a good time, and a couple of my friends were in it, so that is always an added bonus. The premise was that there was an actor that played the Doctor, and a companion. The rest of the cast became either the good guys or the villains. They asked the audience for a location on Earth (we chose Paris) and a problem (lice). Then they made a Doctor Who episode out of it.

The best part of the show was the full sized beautiful Tardis they had on stage. The Doctor ran in and out of it all night (obviously) and waved a sonic screwdriver around and made all sorts of references to the show while still creating something new and unique out of the story. I think we might have been there on an off night, because there were quite a few things that didn’t pan out or didn’t make sense or were totally abandoned, but overall, it was still a very enjoyable experience. Improv is hard. I have no idea how those actors come up with all that stuff so quickly, night after night. I have the utmost respect for talented improvisers.

 

Unfortunately the show is now over, but if you ever see a themed long form improv show in your area, especially one based on something nerdy and fun, go check it out! They’re a lot of fun, especially if you can make it to multiple nights of the same show. I love seeing how different the shows turn out on various nights.

Have you been to any of these types of improv shows? What did you see? Let me know in the comments!

 

Mine and Joe’s birthdays are less than a month apart, so we decided to find a way to celebrate them both (with each other) around the same time, creating two fun-filled days of nonstop celebrating. It started with a surprise bloody mary and brunch early on Tuesday, organized by Joe. I used the outing as an excuse to wear my brand new dress from Forever21 and my favorite Bandmate Bootie in Red from ModCloth. Also pictured is my brand new iPhone case, which I love, from DandyCase on Amazon. 

Joe knows me so well – I saved Tuesday night for whatever he had planned, but he told me to leave the morning open instead (because he knew I’d love breakfast food and bloody marys even more). He was right.

His birthday party was next (which I put together) and it included a homemade game he pretended to roll his eyes at but I think he secretly loved it. I was quite proud of my creation.

My only regret is that I didn’t take an “after” picture. Not a single person even got close. It was a facial hair travesty, believe me. Overall it was a relatively low-key birthday, but I think everyone had a really great time. Good friends, good food, games, and music – sometimes the best parties are simply the ones where all of your favorite people end up in the same room. I’m so thankful to have the friends I do and I’m glad I have Joe to share these important moments with.

 

A couple of friends of mine decided to throw a Disney themed birthday party, and I’ll admit – they gave us ample time to work on costumes. We’re talking somewhere in the two month range here. But naturally, nobody started working one their costumes until the morning of the party.

Hence, pretty much everyone decided to Disneybound. I headed to the mall that morning with not a single idea about what I wanted to do, but almost instantly upon walking into Forever21, I found this amazing floor length teal green skirt. I knew what I had to do.

 

I scoured the store for a purple crop top (again, nailed it) and then called up Joe. “Do you have blue jeans, a white button down and some sort of red thing to put around your waste?” I asked him. “Umm.. yes?” he responded in his Kristina is scheming again so I probably shouldn’t argue with her voice. “Great. You can be my Prince Eric.”

I went to every jewelry store in the mall on the hunt for some kind of shell-related accessory, but apparently Seattle in the winter isn’t the place for nautical apparel. Actually, I take that back – there were anchors flippin’ everywhere. But not a shell necklace/earring/bracelet to be seen. I couldn’t even find any sort of generic fish. I found goldfish earrings at one store, but those were a bit of a stretch. I ended up with the starfish earrings pictured above (not my first choice by any means but they would have to  do) and a purple bow I already owned.

I had to pull it together with the makeup, then, since jewelry shopping had failed me. I used the brightest green and purple from my actual Ariel palette from Sephora – as well as pulling off my very first winged eyeliner attempt! Also, I must admit, Joe looked quite dashing as Prince Eric. I can’t wait to look on Etsy for a REAL shell necklace so I can try this Disneybound out for real at the park someday.

The outfit of the day portion of this blog post is coming, I promise. It’s a journey we’ll take together, this time.

So last week Thursday, my good friend and roommate Liz Leo and I set out on the most ambitious roadtrip we’ve ever taken, just the two of us. The trip was for NaNoWriMo and the Night of Writing Dangerously, which we’ve each done successfully for the past 8 years (7 for Liz) but never been to the huge write-a-thon party held in San Francisco each year. We powered down to Springfield, OR, stayed the night, then made our way all the way to Stockton on Friday. There was a lot of music listening, switching off who’s driving and who’s writing (we’re hardcore), appreciating how beautiful our corner of the country is, and hunting down the best roadside places to eat.

Then finally, on Saturday… we made it!! San Francisco is a crazy place, and man it feels good driving across the Bay bridge and knowing you earned being there, after 2 straight days in the car. Traffic or no traffic, we had arrived at our destination.

Of course the first thing Liz and I agreed to do was go to the Walt Disney Family Museum. I really didn’t know much about it, and we thought we’d just stop by and poke around for an hour or so… What really ended up happening was over three hours whizzing by without us even realizing it. The museum is FANTASTIC. I really enjoyed myself and I’m so glad we remembered to check it out.

The weather was beautiful in the city that day; sunny and clear but crisp in temperature, perfect for sweaters without jackets. I wore my brand new floral sweater and black skirt from Forever21, my red ankle boots from ModCloth, and coral colored socks I got from a cute little independent shop on the Ave by UW. It was a perfect outfit for traveling – comfortable enough for a long ride in the car, but fun enough for tourist pictures! I also bought myself some goodies in the museum gift shop, including a few gifts for people, so I wont be sharing those quite yet. If you ever get a chance to check this museum out, please do! It was wonderful.

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The rest of my New York trip was even more fun that the first day – plus I realized I needed to start dressing warmer, which immediately upped the quality of my trip. This was my outfit on Friday; with a brand new sweater from Forever21, one of my favorite patterned scarves (also from Forever21), a mustard yellow basic tank and matching yellow backpack (the backpack is an old favorite from Urban Outfitters), black leggings, grey knee socks and my same bronze Cathy Jean boots. But the important part of this outfit, as I’m sure you noticed, are the gloves and earmuffs.

I always keep a pair of gloves handy – I have a pair in my purse, in my car, in various coat pockets… I never want to be caught un-gloved! But the earmuffs were a new purchase. I saw them at one of those seasonal outdoor booths in NY and I just instantly knew I had to have them. My travel buddies teased me a bit, but let me tell you – my ears were toasty warm. No regrets. I plan to wear them all winter, regardless of what anyone thinks.

Moving on from clothing – one of the highlights of the second day of my trip was visiting the giant Nintendo Store!

 

Not only did I get to totally geek out over all the Pokémon stuff they have out right now, I also got SO MANY STREET PASSES. It was glorious. Also, when I was purchasing a gift for my fellow Team Hypercube channel members, the person working at the register told me, “this is our phone number at the top of your receipt here; call us if you need anything. Even if you’re just stuck in a game. We can help.”

What! So awesome! I had a great time perusing the store and knowing everyone around me totally understood the fangirl tendencies coming out.

 

My favorite part of the store was that upstairs there’s this exhibit area that changes based on what game just released a new version… obviously the exhibit was Pokémon themed for my visit, and walking through the “Pokémon Through The Ages” and getting to both reminisce and also be slightly embarrassed by just how many Pokémon things I’ve owned since I was 11 was just brilliant.

I also got to eat at a whole bunch of great restaurants and meander through Central Park and finally experience Alice’s Tea Cup first hand. And to top it off, we closed out our trip by seeing “Once” with Arthur Darvill and not only were our “partial view” seats ridiculously amazing and close to the stage, the show was simply perfect. I enjoyed myself so much.

It was five whirlwind days of a trip I will never forget, one I desperately needed. I adore cons and shows and business trips but I think people really need a true vacation every now and then, and this one lived up to my every expectation. I can’t wait to go back.

Disclosure

This past week I had the pleasure of visiting New York City purely for fun – usually my trips to this bustling metropolis involve work of some kind (whether that be playing a concert, attending a convention, etc.) but this trip granted me three full days of unplanned, unscheduled exploration of a place I never seen to have enough time in.

My dear friend Eia Waltzer accompanied me on this trip, a friend I’ve traveled to many places with (including Rome, Paris, the Bahamas, and more). I think a good travel buddy is an important thing to find in life, truly. Eia and I have very similar priorities when it comes to exploring new places, which is a key element in traveling with the right person.

This first day of our trip was rainy, which didn’t lend itself very well to the outfit you see above. I wore a lacy pink dress from Papaya, magenta patterned tights from Nordstrom Rack, peach Volcom socks and a gold bow necklace. Paired with a black peacoat and my bronze boots from Cathy Jean, I felt stylish but not particularly warm. I had no idea how cold and windy NYC can be in November, so the follies of this outfit influenced how I dressed for the rest of the trip.

On our first day we ate at Chevy’s (because it was the nearest place with a roof and a happy hour once it started raining), did a fair amount of shopping and then saw Matilda on Broadway. I adored the show; the songs are catchy and fun, the lyrics are brilliant, the dancing was masterful and the kids were just utterly adorable and amazing. It was a fantastic first day to an already exceptional adventure of a trip. More to come in tomorrow’s post – be sure to check back!

Portland is just a hop, skip and a jump away from Seattle – so when Joe asked if I would drive down with him for an audition he got, I really couldn’t say no. It’s always a pleasure to spend a day in a funky city like Portland, so off we went. Portland is the city of weird, so I decided not to try too hard with my outfit. Comfy driving clothes, sunglasses to help against those final traces of sun, and a scarf and jacket combo for the bite of the cool autumn air. Tan boots, mauve tank and maroon jacket are all from Forever 21. Floral scarf is from ModCloth, and the sunglasses are a pair I picked up at a street vendor at a fair. Leggings are standard black ones I got a looong, long time ago at a shop in London.

I worked in a coffee shop while Joe auditioned, and afterward, we decided to check out Portland’s famed food trucks. I’m a huge fan of foodtrucks, so rather than picking just one and ordering a full meal, we grabbed a few different items here and there to make the rounds and try multiple trucks.

The favorite of ours by far was Brunchbox, where we ordered a Cheeseasaurus Rex:
The guy working the truck said we could make them battle. It made me smile. This truck also had a breakfast sandwich called the “OMG” that consisted of fried egg, bacon, ham and spam. I will return and try it one day, just wait. I dream of that day.

The day also consisted of a short lap around Powell’s, shopping in various vintage clothing and toy shops, and dinner at a phenomenal German place we were still too full from food trucks to really enjoy. But on the plus side, we brought home GREAT leftovers.

 

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I guess it’s still technically summer, but lately when I’ve been going outside – it doesn’t feel like it. I love the sun and the beach and short denim cutoffs as much as the next girl, and I’m really not ready to let summer go… but I won’t pretend there isn’t a little growing excitement to pull out my scarves and legwarmers and sweaters and pumpkin spice candles. Come on. I can feel it in the air… can’t you?

 

This was the first outfit I’ve worn this year that I felt was decidedly fall. It wasn’t for any specific occasion… just for the anticipation of things to come. I’m wearing a red leather jacket I picked up at Forever 21, a lacy crop top and floral pants from Target, and my yellow Tieks. The headband is from Claire’s, of all places. Hey – don’t knock good accessories!

I can feel summer projects winding down and fall projects picking up. My Extra Life sense are tingling, my NaNoWriMo fingers are itchy, and my Project 4 Awesome muscle wants flexing.The air of festivities is upon us, and I can’t wait for Halloween parties and Thanksgiving gatherings and holiday celebrations – and of course, most of all: the very best festivals in World of Warcraft.

I thought I would mourn the loss of summer a bit more, especially with how little time I was actually able to spend in the sun this year because of Job Hunters, but this time of year makes me feel so alive that I really just feel happy and anticipatory and ready to spend some quality time with my friends and family and everyone in between.

What do you most look forward to about fall/winter? Which holiday is your favorite? Which party makes you the most excited? Let me know!

This post is a bit past due, but better late than never, right? Last week one day, two my roommates and I myself decided to play hooky and head down to our local water park. It’s a good forty minutes away, so it can be really easy to go a whole summer without making it down there. But with how busy we’ve all been with Job Hunters (and how little I’ve been allowed in the sun to keep continuity for the season) I think it’s really important to make time for spontaneous trips to really appreciate beautiful summer weather.

I spent most of the day in my bikini, but before that, here’s what I was wearing. Fun bright yellow shorts from Target that I rarely find reason to wear, a blue tourist tank I bought on my family trip to Puerto Vallarta back in February, and brand new right-out-of-the-box sandals from Modcloth.

We spent the day lounging in beach chairs, playing in the wave pool and alternating between all of the best water slides. I brought my GoPro along as well, which was altogether too much fun for a video nerd like myself. There really isn’t much more to say about the day, aside from wanting to reiterate how important summer sunshine outings are, especially when shared with friends. This was the most relaxing and fun day I’d had in a long time, and appreciated Eia and Justin coming along with me so, so much.

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