Out Sick

sweetdisarray — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 05:14:15 +0000

I just wanted to say that I haven’t abandoned the blog, I’ve just been sick. I’ve promised myself that I’ll get the flu shot next year and every year thereafter because NEVER AGAIN! I can’t even remember how many times I’ve gotten sick this winter, and I can’t go through this again. I usually get pretty seriously ill about once a year, partly because I tend to not take care of myself especially if there are other, more pressing demands (children, school, work) and partly because my immune system sucks and it hates me. Last year, I ended up in the ER from dehydration after a particularly intense bout of stomach flu. This year, I’ve managed to stay out of range of medical professionals, but I can’t seem to shake these 4 or 5 day colds and flu. I’ll get sick for about a week, spend another week with lingering congestion or a cough, and then – if I’m lucky – have another week of blessed health during which I go around telling everyone how GREAT I feel and how WONDERFUL it is to be healthy again, and then I’ll promptly get knocked down with something else by the end of the week.

It so seriously sucks, but by next week hopefully I’ll be up and running again.

The Borrowed Closet

sweetdisarray — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 22:13:48 +0000

When I was younger, I always wanted a sister. I imagined a playmate that would share my enthusiasm for dolls and dress-up and all things girly that my brothers vehemently eschewed. I imagined a confidante who would stay up late with me in a neighboring bed sharing giggles and gossip. And I imagined somebody who I could fight with over a shared wardrobe, just like sisters always seemed to do on television. Alas, ’twas not to be.

By the time I was in high school, however, I realized I didn’t really need a sister.

I had my mom instead.

I know that parents who try to be friends with their children rather than authority figures is kind of a cultural flashpoint, but my mama really has always unequivocally been both my mother (I definitely did not call her by her first name) and my best friend. And now that I’m an adult and can understand so much more of who she is as a person, I feel even closer to her and depend upon her advice and wisdom that much more.

One of the great side benefits of having such an awesome mom is that there is a lot of overlap in our aesthetics and sense of style, and she’s always happy to let me raid her closet.

This weekend Yubo was out of town for work so the kids and I spent most of the weekend at my parents’ house, and my mama was kind enough to let me borrow this chic Carolina Herrera coat, her favorite Marni purse, and this black cashmere turtleneck. I feel really lucky to be able to wear such nice things, most of which would be out of my reach otherwise, and I know my mama likes to see me wearing her clothes. That’s the nice thing about borrowing from your mom rather than your sister. My mama never resents me for borrowing her clothes, and – at least on TV – sisters seem to get mad about that sort of thing.

My poor dad, on the other hand, always goes a little bug-eyed when he sees me making off with something of my mom’s. I think he worries I won’t come back with it, but I really always do!

Anyway, I wore this outfit to work today and then to pick up the children from school. It was really cold in the morning and looked like it was going to rain, but by the time I left work it was hot and sunny. I was kind of dying in the jacket and turtleneck while taking these pictures.

At work today I taught my students how to respond to other people’s ideas in a persuasive essay and how to transition from other people’s ideas to your own and from one topic to another. I created a handout on responding and then wrote a sample paragraph on health care reform. They were asked to break apart the paragraph, identifying transition words and phrases and labeling different parts of the paragraph (i.e. topic sentence, analysis, counter-argument, etc.). Then they were given time to work on their own essays (while hopefully practicing some of these transitioning skills). I was really kind of proud of the whole lesson, and from the questions I was getting while the students were working on their papers, I felt like they were getting what I was trying to teach them.

So that was fun!

I find that I really, really enjoy teaching. I guess even though I always wanted to teach in some capacity, I didn’t really know if I would like it or be good at it. It’s nice to finally be doing something that feels like it fits.

Coat: Carolina Herrera navy wool and cashmere peacoat (from my mama’s closet)
Top: Neiman Marcus black cashmere turtleneck (from my mama’s closet)
Vest: Moyna lace vest from Anthropologie (old)
Jeans: Pilcro skinny jeans from Anthropologie (old)
Shoes: Modcloth wedges
Purse: Marni (from my mama’s closet)
Accessories: pearl necklace (gift from grandmother), dogeared heart necklace
Nail Polish: essie licorice and deborah lippmann shake your groove thing
Lipstick: Cle de Peau Lipstick 16 and Chanel Gossimer Wild Rose (119)

sweet disarray

Out Sick

The Borrowed Closet