Lost and Found

My New Year's Day was spend with these dogs.  Please note that
I'm still a style blogger so I coordinated the dogs to the sweater and
the sweater to the couch.  

2015 was a hard year for me.  It was a year of loss.  My beloved pug died after 16 years of being my daily companion.  I adopted another dog, Toro, and he was a bad fit for me and Widget.  And, as I mentioned in my previous post, I got divorced.  It was a hard, hard year.  On top of the big losses, I had myriad little ones.  All the little things I haven’t been able to find since my move.  Treasured Christmas ornaments that didn’t seem to make it into my boxes.  Things that were fairly distributed to my ex-husband, but the absence of those things still stings.  Such is life. 

In spite of the losses, large and small, I feel like I am starting 2016 richer.  I found a home.  I’ve worked very hard and made it mine.  I have two dogs who love me and each other. 

This evening I finally sorted through my jewelry chest.  It was heavily jostled in the move, and everything was tangled and out of place.  I knew it would be an ordeal- and it was- and that’s why I had put it off for the nearly 10 months.  I’ve been wearing the same half-dozen or so pairs of earrings for nearly a year. That had to end!  I found so many treasures buried in the clutter of those drawers.  I found trinkets from my travels, family mementos, and things that touched my eye or my heart for various reasons.  I also found a lot of junk.  I found things I don’t like.  There were gifts I’ll never wear again.  Things that were cheap, unsentimental impulse purchases.  The things that didn’t bring me joy had to go.  I sorted through and dumped handfuls of beaded confection into a gallon Ziploc bag.  When I was done, all I could see were the things I love. 

I lost a lot in 2015, but I found so much more.  I found strength that I didn’t know I had, love and support I didn’t feel I deserved, and I found the will to let go of the parts of my life that don’t bring me joy. 

Life is good for me and Ursa today.  Ursa's life would be even better
if I would just share my waffles. 

I am going to post more this year.  My life is good, and I want to share it. You can expect to hear some about loss, but much more about finding my place. 

Happy New Year. 

Queen of All Media

I'm officially on Twitter.  For real this time.  My dogs have been on Twitter for a while.  Because that's how I roll, apparently.  Follow me if you dare @DreamJeanneBlog.  And Instagram... @DreamofJeanne.  And, while you're at it, Pinterest- Jeanne @ I Dream of Jeanne.

I'm going to try to integrate these other media into my existing blog to add some content that may be fun but isn't worth a full post.

You can see all my links and badges over in the sidebar.  Who have I become?

Friday Four

I have many reasons to be ecstatic about life right now.  In brief, here are four things that are making me happy today.

Friends.

1. Stephen and I booked a trip to the Dominican Republic with some of our closest friends for later this year.  Time with my hubby and our friends Joe and Angie = score!
2. I am going to be a model and personal shopper for fashion show tonight at the Salvation Army Thrift Store.  That is so completely up my alley.  (Hence the not-too-subtle clue earlier today.)

3. 

   Fun nails.

   Sally Hansen Salon Effects nail polish strips continue to rock my world.  This time around I tried the Laced Up pattern.  It will probably jinx me to type this, but I have not broken a nail since I tried these the first time.  I think they might be reinforcing my natural nails because usually by the time my nails get this long I start breaking them right and left.
4. I was a little bored last night, so I converted a child's dress into a fun market bag.  Yay sewing!

Before: dress

After: bag

Mightier than the Sword

Yes, I seriously ordered this pen with my blog name and tagline on it.  Actually, I ordered two.  Hopfully it makes note taking and work more fun.

Lookin' Good, Feeling Bloggy

I am now a blogger.  It's official.  I have giggled every time I looked at this outfit on the hanger this week.  Five months and 200+ posts in, and I'm finally mixing stripes and dots.  I'm so edgy.  I got both the cardigan and the skirt at Goodwill with my mom last weekend.  She has a really nice Goodwill right by her new house.  It's a sign!

 

Blogging has encouraged me to try new things, and, while I might have worn this outfit before I started blogging, I probably wouldn't have enjoyed it as much as I am today.  The stripes!  The anchor-embellished buttons!  The dots!  The flowers!

 

Cardigan, thrifted; tank, thrifted; skirt, Southern Lady, thrifted; shoes, Dexter, Payless Shoes; earrings, etsy; necklace, handmade and gifted (thanks Chenille!).

I love that the brand on this skirt is Southern Lady.  Not surprisingly I had never seen this brand in the North, but I see it all the time at Goodwill here.  

Today is Thursday and Thursdays are for Thrifters, and I'm thrifting all week!  Click to see all the thrifted gems I found last weekend.

In other news, the Everybody, Everywear theme for May is Nautical.  I'm excited to try out some sea-worthy looks!

May: Because I'm Worth It

This is not a post about L'Oreal (though I love L'Oreal Infallible LipColour).  This is a post about how I haven't been taking care of myself.  It is a long post, and if you're only interested in the style component of this blog, check out some of my favorites.

“Out of our beliefs are born deeds; out of our deeds we form habits; out of our habits grows our character; and on our character we build our destiny.”~Henry Hancock 

As I alluded yesterday, I've been thinking a lot about the way habits drive my life.  I am not satisfied with the destiny I have been building, so the time has come to re-examine the deeds and habits that are shaping my path.

For me, the basis of any habit is planning (or lack thereof).  This may be is letting my geek flag fly, but I enjoy planning.  I feel more secure when I have a plan.  As Stephen recently pointed out, I even like planning about planning.  I like it when my life is sorted into lists and schedules.  I don't like things being up in the air.  

The problem with life for the past couple years is that it has laughed at my planning.  I have gone from a regimented single gal who got up every morning at 5 to lift weights, to engaged, planning a wedding, getting married, moving across country, family crises, health problems and more.  Eventually (probably about a year ago), I threw up my hands and stopped trying to plan.  This was bad for me.  I need a new way to plan.  

Part of this is about weight.  I have gained around 60 pounds in the past three years.  I hate admitting it to myself, so I'm not sure why I'm telling the interwebs.  It doesn't affect my value as a person, but it has affected the way I experience the world.  

Image Credit:
Amazon.com

I am tackling the terrible D word: diet.  I have dabbled here and there in the past couple years, but I haven't devoted myself to it.  Now is that time.  I don't give particular credence to named diets, but I am going to try The South Beach Diet Supercharged.  Not because I think it is magical or the only way, but because I want something to help me break out of my sugar/carb comfort food rut, I don't feel like counting anything and I like structure and rules .  (Geek flag still flying.)  This way the "rules" are already set and all I have to do is follow them.

The next step is exercise.  I know I love exercise.  I really do, but since I haven't been doing much lately I am starting small.  My friend Beth recently completed a 30 days of biking challenge, and I am using her as inspiration for my own 30 days of walking challenge.  Walking is about the easiest form of exercise there is, and it is as portable as my own two feet.  Check the Daily Mile widget in the sidebar to the right to check my progress.  

“First we make our habits, then our habits make us.” ~Charles C. Noble

My notebook: where the magic happens.

So here is my planning plan:  I have a handy notebook that will be my primary planning repository.  I have a sheet at the beginning of each week where I will put to do lists for the week.  They are categorized as high priority, low priority, and @ some point.  Pretty much everything goes on a list: from diet and exercise to transferring my old 401k to making appointments to crafting and reading.  I like writing things down.  I like checking things off.  That's just how much mind functions best.  I have tried various apps for my phone, but they just don't work as well for me as pen and paper.

This isn't going to become a diet blog or a fitness blog, but I am continuing the mission expressed in my blog manifesto:

Challenge Yourself.  Live Beautifully.  Love Your Life.

I will have some updates about my challenge progress interspersed with my regular style and creative posts.

At the end of the month I hope (and plan) to be on a firmer footing.  I plan to be feeling better, be more organized and be ready to take the next steps on this journey called existence.  Wish me luck.

News & Narcissism

Special (adorable) visitors.

This is already my 200th post.  I must be very self-involved to have posted 200 times in about 150 days.  Ha ha.  Funny because it's true.

I've learned more than I expected by posting about my life and style every day.  Probably the most important thing I've learned is that it doesn't really matter what I wear or look like on any given day.  I always have the next day to try again when things don't go according to plan.  I suppose that translates to more than just fashion.  I can try again tomorrow with just about anything.

The exciting news that I alluded to last week is officially barreling down the highway towards me.  My mom is moving to Georgia.  She will be living just a few minutes away.  That is wonderful since she was living an 18 hour drive/ expensive flight away.  Mom, Gypsy the cat and Dixie the dog (the latter two pictured above) will be staying at our house for at least the next few days and possibly a few weeks until their house is ready to move into.  It's nice that we are so close, so she can do any work she wants to on the house before she has to move in.  She will be here tomorrow.  Yippee!

Welcome to Georgia, Mom!

11 Things...

I can't tell you how excited I was that the fabulous Gracey at Fashion for Giants tagged me in her 11 Things, 11 Questions post yesterday. I had some wicked insomnia last night, so this post is brought to you by sleep deprivation.


Here is the scoop:

There are five rules:

1. Post these rules.

2. Post a photo of yourself and 11 random things.

3. Answer the questions set for you in the original post.

4. Create 11 new questions and tag people to answer them.

5. Go to their blog/twitter and tell them you’ve tagged them.

My Photo:

Leopard+Leopard+Leopard+Lion Belt+
Pepper Necklace= Bad Ass

My Random Things:

1. I could repost nine and a half of the eleven things that Gracey posted. I am not terrified of heights, and I am not going to wait until I'm old to be crochety wear a plethora of caftans, turbans and necklaces all together. I am way ahead of the curve on those. Crocheting is the first step to being crochety, right? Carpe diem.
2. I wear size 11 women's shoes. It is the same size my husband wears (but he doesn't wear women's shoes).
3. I wear animal print. A lot of animal print.
4. I am attempting to do away with the word "should" in my life. It only makes me feel guilty. I am replacing it with "could." All the possibility, none of the negativity.
5. Feeling guilty is a second language for me. Or maybe it's a third language and sarcasm is my second.
6. I have also studied French and Serbo-Croatian.
7. I have six piercings and one tattoo. I would like to add at least one more of each.
8. I wish I was in Cozumel, Mexico right now.
9. I have one sister. She lives in Portland, OR. I miss her. (Mom, when you read this post I miss you too.)
10. My favorite craft project of the past year is my lion belt.

    

    Lion belt.

    
    
11. I hate migraine headaches, insomnia and vacuuming. Migraines hurt my brain. Insomnia hurts my sanity. Vacuuming hurts my ears.

Gracey's Questions:

1. What is your guilty pleasure?

As I mentioned above, everything makes me feel guilty. That being said, I don't really have any guilty pleasures. I like what I like and I don't feel any more guilty about it than I do about anything else.

2. What place would you most like to visit?

Cozumel. Well, other than Cozumel, North Africa and the Middle East, but not right now.

3. If money was no object and you weren’t opposed to spending ridiculous amounts of money of fashion, which designer would you wear?

Easy. I would wear Louboutin. Solely because of these shoes. (Ha ha. Solely. Shoes. I crack myself up.) I don't follow designers that much. I like Goodwill. Even if I had ridiculous money I think I would still shop at Goodwill.

Freaking lion foot shoes make your feet look like
lions' feet.

4. Fur. Yeah or nay?

In between. I would feel guilty about buying fur new, because I would feel like that animal had been murdered to satisfy my capitalist gluttony. I would probably buy vintage/second hand fur because then the animal would have died for someone else's capitalist gluttony.

5. Do you prefer the mountains or the ocean?

Ocean. Mountains are nice too, but I love snokeling.

6. What are you most looking forward to in 2012?

I am looking forward to travel We have a trip to Las Vegas in the works and one to Portland to see my sister a little later in the year. Hopefully we will also manage to squeeze in a trip to Cozumel.

7. What are your thoughts on zombies?

My thoughts on zombies are multi-faceted and complex. I started reading the Forest of Hands and Teeth series a few years ago, and I really loved it. (I know it's Young Adult fic. What of it? I'm not an old adult.) Since then I have read a few more books about zombies. I have enjoyed them too. On the other hand, zombies feature pretty regularly in my episodes of parasomnia, and there is nothing like running across the house in the middle of the night to "escape zombies" to endear me to my husband. I definitely don't want to become a zombie, because I heart free will. Also, I like the song Zombie by the Cranberries. And I bought six bags of cranberries to freeze before they went out of season. In conclusion, zombies are great in books but not in my dreams and cranberries are delicious and a good band that makes me feel 12 again.

8. What is the worst book you’ve ever read and how far did you get before giving up?

I can't remember the last time I didn't finish a book. Once I start it I feel like I have to finish even when I'm not really liking it. Also, over the years I have developed a pretty good idea of what I'll like so I don't start ones that I'll really hate.

9. Momentarily forgetting the lesson we learned in “Midnight in Paris,” if you could live during any era, what era would it be?

I think there is a lot to be said for the present day. It is far from perfect, but it has antibiotics, indoor plumbing, contraception, great communications technology and, in this country anyway, an unprecedented amount of personal freedom. If I had moved 1,000+ miles from my family 100 or 150 years ago, there is a fair chance I would never see or talk to them again. That being said, we as a country must guard those freedoms. Complacency is the enemy of liberty. I just made that up. I think. A quick Googling didn't show that I am subliminally plagiarizing. Sounds pretty profound, doesn't it. I think it means speak up. And vote! Also, I can wear whatever the hell I want, listen to whatever music I want and read whatever I want, so I will experience other other eras in those and other present-day ways.

10. What’s one thing you wish you could do better?
I wish I could be better at loving myself because, in the immortal words of RuPaul, "If you can't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else?" Can I get an amen? I am working on it.

11. What is your “signature dish?” (And will you share the recipe?)

I am tooting my own horn, but I am a pretty good cook. I am going to post three signature dishes because I am so stinking full of myself. Only one of them is new to the blog though. But one of them is related to zombies. In that it is related to cranberries. Are you still with me?
Pecan Crusted Chicken (adapted from the America's Test Kitchen)

This recipe is so good that Stephen didn't share any with Wonton. This is rather unheard of these days since he has decided that she is his dog. Ingredients:
1 c. pecans, ground into a coarse meal
1 1/2 c. panko bread crumbs
3 T. butter
1/2 onion minced
1 c. flour
2 eggs
Dijon mustardsalt and peppercayenne pepper
zest of 1 lime4 chicken breasts (about 6 oz each)
Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Melt butter in a skillet until it just begins to brown and smells nice and buttery. Add the onion and 1/2 tsp salt and saute until it just begins to brown. Add the panko and pecans. Saute until panko and pecans are medium golden brown. Remove from heat, pour mixture into a shallow dish and add lime zest and 1/4 tsp cayenne or to taste. (You will have plenty of crumbs to reserve some for another use such as sprinkling a little on a salad or over some cottage cheese. They are very tasty.)
2. Scramble eggs in a second shallow dish along with 1/2 tsp mustard and a sprinkle of black pepper. Place flour into a third shallow dish.
3. One by one, dredge chicken breasts lightly in flour, then egg, then in nut mixture, pressing the nut mixture lightly to coat. Place chicken breasts on a wire rack on a baking sheet.
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the temperature in the thickest part of the breast is 160. Let rest for 5 minutes then serve with lime wedges. Or use the lime wedges in your margarita.

** Bonus margarita service announcement: When making a strawberry margarita, use frozen strawberries instead of ice. When I make strawberry margaritas I use frozen strawberries, lime juice, triple sec, tequila and love. It is like a wonderful smoothie that makes you buzzed.**

Other recipes:
Chicken Soup: Not necessarily the best thing I ever made, but I make it a lot and it is incredibly easy, inexpensive, and no fuss.
Cranberry raisin or cranberry kumquat goo: Mmmm. Delicious goo.


My Questions:
What is your name?
What is your quest?
What is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?
Just kidding. Those are the questions from Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

1. What is your signature cocktail (or mocktail or what do you drink to quench your thirst)?
2. To steal a question from Monty Python, what is your quest?
3. What fashion rule or rules were made to be broken?
4. When do you feel beautiful?
5. Who is your fashion icon?
6. What do you want to listen to when you first wake up?
7. What do you want to listen to on a quiet evening?
8. What do you do when you can't sleep?
9. When was the last time you stepped out of your comfort zone?
10. What was your last adventure?
11. Who inspires you in real life?

Unfortunately I'm rather new to the blogosphere and I haven't connected with many other bloggers yet. I'm going to fish around and see if I can get some folks to answer my questions. I'll keep you updated. I'm not going to call anyone out because I don't want to exert undue pressure.


If you would like to answer my questions, leave me a comment!

Thank you, Gracey, for tagging me! This was fun and I am so flattered because you are terrific!

Reviews and Recommendations

I must think I'm a big fancy pants blogger now because I added an Amazon product widget.  Why?  Because I want to make untold piles of money off my 3 blog readers.  Because I want an easy way to link to the things I talk about on this blog.  Want to make your own lion knocker belt?  The knobs are in the widget.  Do you want some chocolate hazelnut or pumpkin spice tea?  Find it in the widget.  Have I incited a lust to read the Song of Ice and Fire series?  The paper and Kindle editions are in the widget.

You can also just click on the arrows and watch the little pictures swirl around.  Whee!

Let me know if you hate having commercial links on this blog and I may consider changing it.  I'm new at this.  Cut me some slack.

Week Blog-o-versary

Much like middle school girls who track every week anniversary in their short-lived, pubescent relationships, I am celebrating my first week on the interwebs.

For the few people who currently have access to this blog, what do you like about it?  What should I change?

I reserve the right to disregard your suggestions, as is my narcissistic way, but I do appreciate you taking time to peek in on my corner of the universe.

If you know anyone who might enjoy this blog, just let me know and I will add them.  I'm not ready for a public blog yet, but I do want to open it up to more friends and interested parties.

Thanks for reading!

What is in a Name?

I think this blog may need a different name.  I was originally thinking of a play on I Dream of Jeannie, but then it gets confusing because my name is pronounced like Jean.

Also, the current name makes me sound like an even bigger narcissist because it sounds like I am dreaming about myself.

I will continue navel gazing and may try out some different names.  At this point this is a private blog, so I am mostly talking to myself.  And a few friends.  And my dear husband.  And my mom.  Hi Mom!