I'm Free to be Me // Daily Outfit + Accepting Ourselves

In my pre-teen/early teen years I remember that there were two things I was really self-conscious of: the first was my height, and the second my humongous overbite. (No, seriously, it's almost a centimeter in length.) I thought that I couldn't wear any heels over three inches tall because I was already 5' 8" - even though my favorite look was four inches and above, and I thought I looked like a gopher when I smiled, so I wouldn't ever post any photos online of me smiling "with teeth."

Over the past couple of years, though, I've come to appreciate myself for what I am. I'm tall, and I like heels that make me at least six feet high - so what? Does that mean that I should stop wearing them? Absolutely not! I love big heels and I'm tall - that's just who I am!

And as for my overbite, it actually kind of fits my personality. I'm not elegant and I'm not graceful. I am, to be honest, I'm a lot like Anne Shirley - especially with the getting into trouble doing stupid things. (I would totally chase a cow across a muddy field in my nice dress if need be!) I'm pretty crazy, I talk loudly,  and my teeth aren't perfect, and that's ok. I kind of like that about myself, because it's what makes me unique. It's like my mom says: I've got the personality of a dwarf with the looks of an elf - which means that I got the best of both worlds! (Come on! You *know* you were at least a little irritated when the elves wouldn't even help the dwarves get everyone out of Erebor in the Hobbit.) And when my photos turn out a little silly looking, that's ok, because that's just how I am. I'm actually starting to enjoy posting the crazy ones - all the neat and proper ones are all well and good, but that's definitely not all there is to me, and I'm starting to like showing the crazy side!

So what I'm trying to say is: if there's something about you that you don't like, instead of hiding it and trying to pretend it doesn't exist, try to find a way to rock it. Because it's our "imperfections" that make us unique. There are thousands of Victoria Secret's Angels out there, but what makes the characters were love in books so much so loved is their imperfections - just like with us. ♥

♥ ♥ ♥       

dress: borrowed from Molly

JC Litas: Urban Outfitters

belt: Pitaya

bracelet: vintage

jacket: Old Navy via Ebay

title: Summer Day Dreams by Breanne Duren

Mother's Day // Daily Outfit + Little Adventures

On Mother's Day my family has a tradition of making my mom brunch, and then going antiquing in some of the little towns out west of us. This year was no exception, except that it was bitterly cold! (Ok, "bitterly" might be a bit of an exageration, but low fifties in the middle of May is pretty stinkin' cold for Chicago land!) There's an ice cream stand that offers free ice cream to mothers on Mother's Day out in one of the little towns, so we always go there for ice cream, and this year we got hot dogs and fries as well - it was delicious!

The night before I had a mini-fit because I had no idea what to wear (sometimes I take things like clothes a little too seriously) but I ended up deciding on my little shop-printed dress, since it seemed apropriate. *winks* I even added my Gettin' Hot Rod in Here necklace from ModCloth, so there's a car to drive on the roads! I know, I know, I'm really lame, but I don't care.

Mother's Day is one of my favorite holidays. We get to spend a lot of good, family time together, and show my mom how special she is to us. It's been an especially special holiday to me the last couple years, since I've realised just how much I owe to her. I honestly wouldn't be the person I am today without my mom. I love you, mom!

P.S. Check out my FaceBook page to see what my littlest sister did while my mom was taking my outfit photos!

xo,
Katie

♥ ♥ ♥       

dress: made by Molly

belt: Plato's Closet
JC Litas: Urban Outfitters

cardigan: Maurice's

necklace: ModCloth

tote bag: ModCloth
jacket: Old Navy via Ebay

Lately {Food + Shopping in Chicago}

1. Salted caramel mocha frappuccino = delicious.

2. Cinnamon roll french toast + sausage + a fruit cup for breakfast

3. A Jolly Rancher someone gave me at work (it's a long story)

4. Maddie getting her makeup done at Mojo Spa

5. Gorgeous dresser + record player at Mojo Spa

6. This vintage camera canteen at Urban Outfitters reminded me of my friend Ethan.

7. Apparently UO also sells crickets - like to eat! G-R-O-S-S.

8. I wear suspenders now. Suspenders are cool.

9. My shopping haul from Sunday: two eye shadows, an indie dress and suspenders from UO.

1. Speed of Love // Owl City

2. Hot N' Cold (Clean Version) // Katy Perry

3. Akbar // Jeffery Dallas

4. Good Time // Owl City & Carly Rae Jepsen

5. Get Back // Demi Lovato

1. This is yet another song from The Midsummer Station so of course it's on my playlist! Not one of my favorite favorite songs but still utterly fantastic!
2. I'm a little ashamed to admit that the clean version of this song has been a guilty pleasure of mine for a couple years. It's. Just. So. Catchy!
3. This is all Maddie's doing. She loves this song and bought it off iTunes so now we can listen to it whenever we're in the car. The good news is that the grandma's only line in this song is so hillarious is makes up for everything else. *winks*
4. Yep! This song is back on my playlist again! What can I say? It's a great song to listen to on the way to work. Trust me.
5. This was one of my favorite songs a few years ago, and it's finally resurfaced! Demi Lovato is so talented and I just adore her style while she worked with Disney! This music video is so fantastic - still easily one of my favorites ever!

1. Downton Abbey

2. Doctor Who Season 7

1. We finally finished the first two seasons of Downton Abbey! It's such a fantastic show and I highly recommend it! I cannot wait for season three! Anyone know when it starts?? (Pst! The first season is on Netflix instant and you all should totes watch it!)

2. On Saturday we watched the second episode of season seven of Doctor Who and I was very pleasantly surprised! I thought the second episode was a lot more fun than the first! But I'm starting to wonder if I'm the only who thought that... :-/