I Never Thought I'd Say This...

Maternity shopping is now a highlight of my life. Hangs head in shame. Who am I? Believe me, I'm shaking my head at the excitement it gave me, but it's true. A BIG part of our trip to Mobile, and maybe even the best part was that Will took me Maternity shopping.

Luckily, I didn't go too crazy because a lot of maternity stuff is either super outdated or it won't even fit me when I'm nine months. It's like it's all made for Amazon women or something. I mean, c'mon... I'm 5'3 {and a half} and the petite pants still don't fit. Get it together maternity designers {If we can even call them that}, you have ONE job.

I think I covered the basics, though. Tank tops, tunic tops, maxi dresses, pants, workout tops, BeBands, and most importantly- brasiers and bra extenders. I didn't need the extenders for the Maternity bras, but I wanted to get one or two cute ones from Victoria's Secret and the only way to get them to fit cup and rib width was with an extender. Not sure how I've never known about this miraculous little invention, but boy am I thankful I do now.

I've already surpassed the above 'bump' pictures, but I was just excited to wear some of my maternity items. I still can't wear the pants without them sliding off me yet, but I'm getting there. I'm sure I will be complaining about feeling 'huge' soon, so I guess I shouldn't rush it.

I'm sure all of this seems silly to all you non-preggers out there, since I would have thought a post about maternity clothes was skipable, but oh how the tables have turned.

Some Things...

TGI-M.Effin'-F! I'm so proud of myself that I turned down a volunteer meeting this morning, because I know I'm burnt out. No matter how bad I am at saying no, even I can't deny that sometimes it's just too much. Instead, I am kicking off our St. Patty's weekend by getting ready at a leisurely pace and I may even take the day off from working out. I'll be more rested for the 5K, and we've been eating so good this week, so I deserve it.

+ We have no clue when we are moving or if at all, since staying at Fort Rucker is now an option for us, but I've started packing anyways. I don't know how much is realistic to pack, but I've already packed two boxes of clothes I can't wear and that helped us break down the closet room. We are also purging along the way, so hopefully we will be able to fit everything in the truck when we move including an entire room of baby furniture we've never had before. Either way, I don't want to spend my life packing when I'd rather be playing with our newborn.

+ Check out those sweet new Ariat Boots I told you I ordered. I WON a free pair from Erika, a former high school classmate and now fashion blogger. I'm not gonna lie, it was super hard to narrow down which style I wanted and I had problems with finding the colors I wanted that actually fit me, but now that they are here it was worth the agony. I even think I want to have them monogrammed, hello, that's what we do in the South, but not sure what color I would do it. Milk chocolate, Ivory, Mustard, thoughts?

+ My hormones went hokey this week, so I'm now breaking out a bit. I know I can't complain in the grand scheme of things, and yet I am. I'm just thankful my dermatologist gave me topical Finacea, which is a more natural product to use during pregnancy. I can only imagine how bad it would be if I wasn't prepared.

Well, I hope you all have a lovely weekend. Our 5K may be in the rain, but I don't think that will stop us! At least it will be warm and rainy if anything, and the highlight of my weekend is the Brunch we are going to on Sunday. Bring on the all you can eat BUFFET, and I will be going full on 'eat for two' or three that day. No shame ;)

The Year That Was 2014

You just can't finish out a year without a good round up, am I right or am I right? Usually it takes me all of fifteen minutes to pick my favorite shenanigans to share and call it a day, however, this past year turned out to be a doozy. It just goes to show, you never know where life is going to take you if you are open to experience it.

January || Had us packing up all of our household goods, saying goodbye to breathtaking Colorado, and retiring my orange shorts. All in all, it was a pretty big month for us full of many changes that were exciting and scary at the same time.

February || Moved to Enterprise, Alabama! Actually more exciting than it sounded, and now we never want to leave. We want to find out what Will is going to fly and chill here.

March || We ran the McGuire's 5K {mostly for the free booze}, and I was able to spend two glorious weeks at home with family and witness my niece's baptism.

April || Was my proudest month as Will graduated from WOCS and became a Warrant Officer, the first step on the journey to becoming an Army helicopter pilot. Mmmm mmmm....I love my man in uniform!

May || With warm weather came lots of outdoor activities, and our new favorite was by far tubing. The beach was fun, but you really can't beat hopping in a river on a whim and heading down your own Redneck Riviera.

June || I got to see my baby brother graduate from High School. Ten years my junior, I begged my mom to let me do anything and everything for that sweet baby, so it seems so surreal that he's an 'adult'. Eh...he's still a baby to me!

July || Will was safe in my arms after three weeks of zero communication while he was in Survival School, and I got turned away from a bar for my 'fake id' in Destin, Fl. Oh, and I shotgunned a beer like I was 21 again.

August || I painted a lot of owls.

September || We soaked up the last bit of summer in Panama City for Labor Day.

October || Man, oh man...if I had to pick a favorite, it would probably be October. We spent the month planning our big Halloween/Haunted House party {that I still haven't blogged about}, attended the good ol' Ten Year Reunion, got new ink done, had a blast with all of our besties in Jacksonville, actually had my husband WITH me for my big day, and possibly had the best Birthday month of my life. I never wanted it to end.

November || Celebrated Veterans and raised $1,000's for Charity {$23,000 to be exact}, which still makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.

December || We took a leap and started the home buying process. We area learning the ups and downs and waiting to see if our house goes through {inspections on top of inspections}, and trying to remember to enjoy the process. We are learning, we are growing, and embracing this adventure...at least we are in it together!

If we didn't have all this fun stuff to look back on, I wouldn't believe 2014 even happened. It went by WAY too fast, which I say every year, but that doesn't make it any less true. I don't know what 2015 is going to bring us or if it can hold a candle to 2014, but I am most definitely looking forward to enjoying the South while we are here, Will graduating, and BOTH of us turning 30 this year. I guess that means I'll be leaving the 'Twenty-Something' blogger club soon. Oh well, I ain't scurred. Age before beauty ;)

Peace Out 2014...It's been real!

Mustard and Plum

I know everyone has been all "Pumpkin spice this, and apple cider that...", but somehow Fall still snuck up on me. Other than a 10 degree difference during the twilight hours, it's a far cry from the beautiful Colorado change of season that I'll always miss.

However...I am not complaining that I got to kick off the first day of fall in a sleeveless top, while some states have already gotten snow. I think it will be some time before I actually miss the snow. Maybe by the time a sweltering Southern Christmas shows up, I'll be retracting that.

It's funny, I found that top in an antique market and my dad looked at me like I was crazy when I just had to have it. Little did he know, I would get compliments on it all day! I think Mustard really is an amazing, versatile color, and I have a feeling you will be seeing a lot of it from me.

What are your go-to colors for fall? Would you rock mustard?

Happy Fall!

I Don't Pay Full Price, Like EVER

I can picture Will reading this now... He's going to question why I didn't unveil my latest project {the one he demanded I post about today}, but unfortunately, that got a little labor intensive around midnight, so you are all just going to have to wait a little longer to see my newest masterpiece. Sleep is my friend, people.

Instead, I'm going to brag about the little shopping spree I went on yesterday. You see, Will and I give each other an allowance each month of 'fun money' to blow, and I have a hard time spending the money. Sure, I always like new clothes and what not, but the amount of clothes I already have is not conducive to Military moves. However, I have been trying to update my wardrobe to a wider variety of age appropriate and/or conservative items, which totally happened today, and it happened on CLEARANCE!

Up until yesterday, I didn't actually know that Altar'd State had physical stores, but boy was I happy with their Buy One, Get One 50% off Sale merchandise AND a 15% Military Discount! I walked out with four dresses and three rings for $130, when I would have spent $400+ full retail. On top of that, we stopped at Tar-Jay, and I picked up another four shirts on clearance, paying $40 for what would have been $110.This is why I DON'T pay full price people! 

Now let's talk about these rings. I had seen Midi rings, but had no clue what they were.  Let's just say name or no name, I'm obsessed. I think they are super fun, and I told Will that the arrow is the one that Cupid shot into my heart. Hey, you gotta love super cheesy reasoning for buying jewelry. I love any reason to buy jewelry.

So what do you think? Would you wear them? And more importantly...do you pay full price?

Now that I'm officially WAY past my bedtime, hope everyone has a fantabulous week, and come back Wednesday for the reveal! Promise this time.

Pomp And Circumstance: WOCS Graduation!

I almost forgot that it was Military Spouse Appreciation Day, but I just have to send out a big hug to all my fellow Military Spouses! Each and every one of you has helped me or given me inspiration at some point whether you know it or not, and I'm forever grateful ;)

Now that I've been a Warrant Officer's wife for two weeks winkwink, it's time for the WOCS Graduation recap! This is going to be one of the biggest events of our history as 'The Bogerts' and our military career, and as if I haven't already been proud of my soldier, I'll just brag a little bit more share what continues to makes me so proud.

Perhaps I would have been nervous on the day of graduation, but eShakti was nice enough to save me the trouble of finding the PERFECT dress for the occasion, I was surrounded by family, and I knew that this was the only thing standing between me and my soldier coming home. Will was impatiently waiting for us at the museum too, and it was seriously adorable.

Sidenote: This might be my favorite picture of all time because these are the only three people in the entire world that love every fiber of me and have been there no matter what. They are also the three people I feel most blessed to know and to look up to.

With a few minutes to spare at the museum, we walked through the history of the new world we are entering into, and I felt my heart float in my chest with anticipation. The families were abuzz, the Army band was filling the whole place with good vibes, and the graduates were grinning from ear to ear. The day was here.

This ceremony was similar to other graduations and promotions we have attended, only this time, they brought in a General as the speaker, the prestige was evident, and Will was the superstar. Honestly, every time they said his name throughout the ceremony, it gave me chills. I don't even think he knew how important the Distinguished Leader Award was, but it was most certainly evident during the ceremony.

The general events of the ceremony were the speaker, awards, 'Pinning' the new rank on the soldier, and the installation of the new Warrant Officers. My MIL and I each got to pin on one side of his shoulder boards, and the good news is that I didn't trip! I pinned my sexy man in uniform, and then I was the one grinning from ear to ear.

I think the most significant thing for him, was receiving his first real salute from his Mother, the Senior Master Sergeant. My MIL has served twenty-two years in the armed services, and it might have been the epitome of her career, as well. I can only imagine the significance of saluting your own son. She created him having hope that he would grow up healthy and happy, and he's overcome every obstacle, thrived during any struggle, and surpassed all of her dreams. She might be the only person in the world that's more proud of him than me.

For those of you interested, I created a video with footage of all the graduation events to share with our family that couldn't be there. I get chills when I watch it, because I still can't believe that we went through all of this just a short time ago, and we have even more to look forward to. If you watch it, pay attention to my mad editing skills. I had to get pretty creative to squeeze hours worth of footage into fifteen minutes. You're welcome.

I would like to thank eShakti for introducing me to their amazing dresses, my friend Serge from Nuyoka & Co for helping me fine tune the video, thankful our family that traveled to be with us, and most of all...I'm grateful for my amazing hubby and real life Prince Charming.

But seriously...isn't this dress so cute? The print was totally out of my comfort zone, but now I wouldn't change a thing about the dress. As with all of their clothes, it's feminine, classy, well-made, and beyond reasonable priced. Did you notice the pockets? I flippin' love pockets.
Can't wait to order more for dress season!

Super heroes don't wear capes, they wear combat boots.

**Merchandise was provided by eShakti, but opinions are my own. No other compensation was rendered.**

I Think I Really Found My Calling This Time

Considering I don't have a job, I'm far too excited for it to be Friday. In my defense, I've been blogging, working on a video of graduation week, cooking, cleaning, working out, and attending two Fort Rucker events, but sheesh...where are my bonbons and mimosas? We did have Mint Julep's at the FRSC luncheon, but ssshhh... That was supposed to be a business luncheon, and by business, I mean Derby themed par-tay. Some of you may have seen the hat I made for the occasion, but here it is!

Apparently, I was a hat designer in another life, because I had no clue I had that in me. Who knew at twenty-eight I'd be discovering hidden talents. At least I have some, I guess?

There was a contest for best hat, but alas I didn't win. Not that I needed any confirmation that my hat was bomb.com and was the best, because well- duh! I still had a lot of fun, and was offered the position of Secretary on the executive board. It must have been the hat; It screams "I'm a great typer." Yes, I know typer isn't a word.

Dress H&M Here, Still Available in Black

All I can say is thank goodness it's time to take a break. We are heading home for the weekend, and if I don't make it to the beach this time, heads will roll. We are dropping Weiser off  to be pampered this weekend, and then it's time for 'us' time... Well, actually I wish I meant that.... Instead of the romantic getaway I was hoping for, we will be attending a birthday, visiting family, studying, and attending an anniversary brunch. So yeah...It's going to be the longest short weekend ever. Next week. Next week, I'll take a break....

Cheers to the freakin' weekend. I'll drink to that! Yeah-eah.
Now you have that song stuck in your head. You're welcome.

You Know What's Super Awesome?

+ I got to see Will at church yesterday!

I can't go into too many details yet, but I will be getting to see him on Sundays. Thank you, Candace, for letting us in on that little secret. It was the first time that I've ever seen my husband and not gotten to kiss those amazing lips, but just being near him gave me butterflies. I kept trying to say 'I love you', and my eyes would well up. I had to wait until everyone was singing so that I wouldn't make a scene. It was AWESOME.

+ I got to dress up for church yesterday!

This particular dress is sold out, but you can find a similar cut here, and it's an extra 50% off!

+ Thirty days until Will graduates and thirty-one days until our Anniversary!

Unfortunately we will have family in town for his graduation, so we won't be celebrating right away. I'm happy that they are coming to support him, and I wouldn't have it any other way, except I kinda would...I want to be selfish and have him all to myself. He's too amazing to share, so really it's his fault I feel this way. {Momma and Fonzi if you are reading this, you KNOW we are excited to see you, so don't read into this ;} Maybe he and I can do something that weekend, since he's already mentioned it. I'd love to go to Panama City for a little getaway, but I guess we will have to wait and see.

I do know one thing we get to do! Before I left Colorado, one of my favoritist regulars ever gave us an Anniversary card, and we have been impatiently waiting to open it. Let me tell you, holding onto a card for three months through a cross-country move is hard. Usually I would just open it and pretend to be surprised later, but I waited because Dan told us too and he's the best. If you read this, Hi Dan!

+ Seeing as I have no job and no hubby to take care of, I can take off for Pensacola!

I've packed up two weeks worth of clothes and dog food, and we are heading home. I could try to cover it up for creepers reading the blog, but it's pretty hard to hide via all my forms of social media. Damn you social media! I will be back and forth, so no one will know when I'm really gone and I have people checking on the house. If you try to creep while I'm there, I'll just shoot you, and if you break in while I'm gone, make sure you take EVERYTHING because we have really great renters insurance. I kid I kid. Sort of.

I'm going to try to catch a few hours rest, but I probably won't sleep. I'm quite excitable right before travel. I'm just glad that I've gotten all my ducks in a row, I think. Considering I tend to finish packing five minutes after I'm supposed to leave, I already feel ahead of the game. Mr. Weiser and I are off to Florida for some fun in the sun. Ciao bella!

DIY Fringe Boots, Groovy Baby

What do you do when a friend is PCS'ing to Hawaii?

Have a Luau 60's theme party!

{PCS=military move}

I originally thought that the hippie theme wouldn't work, but everyone seriously embraced it. The best part, was that I already had everything but the fringe boots, which I made myself! More on that in a bit...

You may not know this, but Will and I were born in the wrong generation. We lust over everything vintage, think/act like we were raised in the 50's, and now we look like we lived in the 60's. He even picked that shirt himself. H-O-T-T, HOT! As were my girls...

I'm very happy to say, that it was one of my favorite nights after three years in Colorado. I love anytime I can dress up, Will and I both drank without any trouble, and some great memories were made. It's actually sad to think it may be the last big night out for us here. *Tear* Only one month to go.

But enough of that, the night was still young! 

After the party, it's the after party...

Oooh lawd, and this is where I admit that we are too old for after parties. Don't get me wrong, it was super duper fun, but drinking until 4AM just ain't supposed to happen anymore. Luckily, I have the best husband EVER, and he took care of me for the next two days. He even brought me McDonald's AND pizza in bed. My hero...like for serious.

But let's get to the real reason we are here...may I repeat, I MADE those fringe boots. I wasn't about to buy fringe boots for the party {who are we kidding, I just couldn't find ones that I liked}, so I made fringe to go with a pair of boots I already had!

#1 Pick out the boots you want to transform, and match them with fringe and coordinating ribbon. In my case I only had one fringe color option, so I just made sure that the beaded ribbon I chose brought the two colors together.**

#2 I put on nude knee length socks, scrunched them to where I wanted them on my calf, and cut the ribbon to fit. Leave a little extra to overlap, and hem the edge if it is likely to fray.

#3 Sew the fringe to the bottom of the ribbon. Use a sewing machine if you are so inclined, but a hand stitch is just fine.

#4 Now, you could sew it to the socks, but I wanted to be able to transfer the fringe to other socks, and I felt the need to be able to wash the socks after without ruining the fringe. Instead, I simply used safety pins from the inside to attach the ribbon to the socks {while I was wearing them so they were stretched out}, and continued to wrap the fringe to cover the top of the boots, pinning a few spots to keep it in place. Done son.

Can we just agree that if duct tape had a little sister, it would be safety pins? Easy Peasy, and finished in less than an hour. All in all, I spent $15 dollars on the whole outfit by using things I already had and downloading the Joann Fabric app to get access to all their coupons. ** Do it now if you haven't already, and Michaels/Hobby Lobby while you are at it. It just makes me realize that I really need to utilize my DIY skills more often, and I am totally patting myself on the back right now.

Now that I've had a week to recuperate from my hangover, I'm off to Fort Lauderdale for a long weekend. It's going to be a fun girls weekend, but I already know I will be missing Will. I just keep reminding myself it's only four days! Hopefully I'll be able to check in on Monday, but I make no promises. Helloooo warm weather and sandy beaches, oh how I have missed you! 

Peace and love, groovy babes.

I Can Admit When I'm Wrong

With only one week left, I am in the Christmas Spirit! We've decorated the house, finished sending out gifts and cards, and attended the Broadmoor White Lighting Ceremony, all of which have me feeling festive.

The lighting wasn't as amazing as the first time we saw it, but their decor still takes my breath away. They really pay attention to every detail, and you can't help but feel the warmth which could have been the Fireball we snuck in, but that's neither here nor there.

And then there's this...Le sigh...

That makes me feel all kinds'a spirited, if you know what I'm sayin'.

From there we went to dinner, and it's a good thing I had my glasses because the mood lighting at The Cliff House had me whipping out my new glasses! {You know you like that transition} I'm going to go ahead and count them as my first present this year, because they were free are so fancy. Technically, the $100 gift card that paid for dinner was my first gift {thanks Brian!}, but that's off topic.

In case you can't tell how flippin' cute they are, here's a closeup:

I have two other pairs of Firmoo glasses, but these? I'm OBSESSED. 

Aaaaannnnd I guess I should admit that the last pair was the wrong prescription, so I haven't been able to wear them... The worst part, was that it was my own fault. I switched the (+) and the (-), which just goes to show you how savvy I am. WHOOPS!

When they contacted me the third time, I was apprehensive because I was worried about screwing up again, and I really didn't want to have to go through ALL the glasses. I loved looking through them the first time, and using their super sweet try on feature, but it took forever to find ones that fit my oddly shaped face, so I ended up apologizing to Firmoo, and declining the new glasses based on my apprehension. Good thing they didn't take no for an answer or throw my mistake back in my face, and instead, pointed me to a specific page where you could order based on Pupillary Distance. I never new how important that little PD# was until it narrowed down my search immensely.

If you need your own new pair, bloggers can join their cooperation with a review, or even easier, tell me of your interest and I will be sharing a $30 voucher towards the Classic Series {my faves}. Now that I know how easy this is, I will NEVER pay hundreds of dollars for glasses again, and I may even start ordering sunglasses through them. I have problems getting those to fit too, so perhaps I will have more luck.

Have you tried Firmoo? Anyone tried their sunnies?