MILWAUKEE DATE NIGHT

Good morning Knuckles!

I apologize for the seriously long absence.  I recently started a new job (same company, different brand) and I've been spending a lot of time getting up to speed.

BUT!  Mr. Brass Knuckles and I took a well-needed mini-vacation this weekend.  We drove up to surprisingly scenic and adorable Milwaukee, WI for 36 hours of date action.  It was our first evening alone together in over three years.  We left on Friday morning and by brunch on Saturday, I had the same lovesick butterflies in my stomach that I had at our first brunch (I was also considerably less hung-over this time).

On the way back home, we stopped at the outlets where I picked up this gorgeous silk printed BCBG blouse and fun Aldo boots:

(Sunnies, Target; top, BCBG; skirt, H&M; boots, Aldo; bag, Elliott Lucca; bracelets, Alex+Ani; necklaces, MyNameNecklace,com and PersonalizedBoutique.com)

I love these new boots!  They are super comfortable, and they remind me of Jeffrey Campbell Lita's but less crazy.  

Also, I jazzed up this look with blue hair chalk, which you can barely see in the photos but adds a touch of temporary fun.  I bought the chalk at the big Walgreens on the Las Vegas strip and even though it's really messy, I love it because it reminds me of a time when I used to have blue hair (more on that in a different post). 

Have a great week, Knuckles!

WE RUN THE WORLD

Good morning Knuckles!

On Wednesday I spent the evening with three inspirational women.

Beyonce played the United Center, and she was amazing.  FLOTUS and her daughters sat a few boxes down from us.  Her handlers asked us not to take any photos but said we could "take her in," which I gladly did.  And last but not least, I got to spend some quality time with my work BFF.

(Here I am awkwardly posing against the wall, and yes I have a dozen bug bites on my legs.  CAN'T STOP SCRATCHING.  Sunnies, Target (recently I've lost/destroyed two beloved pairs of fancy sunglasses so I've decided I do not deserve expensive sunglasses this summer); watch, Casio; earrings, Anna Sheffield for Target; necklaces, MyNameBoutique, PersonalizedBoutique; jacket and skirt, H&M; bustier, F21; shoes, Asos; purse, Elliott Lucca.  The women at this show were DRESSED UP!  Slinky jumpsuits, sexy dresses, sequined shorts, all paired with sky-high heels.  I honestly felt like a mini-Shrek in my googly-eyed flats).

What did I learn from these amazing women?

1) As L. observed, Beyonce owns the "swimsuit as eveningwear" look.  I would like to embark on a butt-toning adventure this summer so I, too, can pull off swimsuits as eveningwear, or at least give the seams on my skinny jeans a break.

2)  FLOTUS was wearing a patterned green peplum blouse, with a metallic belt and matching green pants.  It was the exact outfit I would like to wear when I grow up: classy yet on-trend and all-around gorgeous.

3) I love living vicariously through L.  She is living proof that you can be foxy and successful in a corporate environment.  She never wears pants and basically taught me how to wear skirts again. 

Have a great weekend, Knuckles!  I hope you spend it surrounded by successful, talented, beautiful, and inspirational women!

VACATION, ALL I EVER WANTED, VACATION, HAPPY TO GET AWAY

Hello Knuckles!

I haven't posted in almost a month due to traveling and vacations.  I'm finally home today and am pretty bummed to be back, especially because Mr. Brass Knuckles is still away through next week!  Lucky!

I had so much fun this past month, and even learned a few things:

10) "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" is incredibly difficult to sing.  Don't ever pick this during karaoke -- you won't nail it.  I got an "E" for "Extra Fancy Dance Moves" to compensate for my off-pitch warbling.

9) Meat wins!  I had dinner with a couple of dear friends who've been vegetarians for as long as I can remember, and one of them ordered a pork tenderloin and my eyes nearly fell out of their sockets as my head calmly exploded.

8) It is possible to eat two buffet meals in one day, but only just barely, and you must be in Las Vegas, and the earlier one must include unlimited champagne and the later one must include ginger ale and an elastic waistband extender.

7) Watching fireworks while lying on a blanket in the middle of a baseball diamond and listening to Celine Dion versions of patriotic standards is surprisingly moving.  Murrica! (tears)

6) I am very thankful for Mr. Brass Knuckles, who put in a lot of daddy overtime these past few weeks.

5) It is possible to go to a nightclub alone, particularly if your friends are still playing blackjack and someone hands you free drink tickets.  It is not possible to look cool, however, enthusiastically dancing to Tupac's "California Love" which was your college jam but for everyone else in the room it's like Elvis or Beethoven.

4) Any evening that includes voluntarily ordering an over-priced frothy pink martini is bound to be memorable.

3) Seeing old friends is the best. 

2) A man on the street may ask to take a photo of you and your girlfriends and claim it's because he likes your outfits, but in reality it's probably for some kind of "Cougars of New York" blog.

1) Vacations are never long enough!  (Plus, you are more-than-slightly afraid of your Outlook inbox).

Have a wonderful weekend, Knuckles!

BEST WEEK EVER

Good morning Knuckles!

I'm going to have the BEST WEEK EVER; I've got my coffee, my power pants and I'm ready to kick this week in the balls:

(Sunnies, Target; blouse, J.Crew; pants, Line+Dot, on sale now at Piperlime; shoes, Sam Edelman; purse, Elliott Lucca; bracelets, Asos, Alex+Ani, F21)

Particularly because it's a short week!  On Friday I meet two of my closest friends, Ms. Howdy and Ms. Pear-in-your-Pocket, in Las Vegas to celebrate Ms. Howdy's birthday.  We already have a burlesque show and some dinner rezzies cued up.  If anyone has a good dinner/brunch recommendation, please let me know!

Have a great week, Knuckles!

CUPCAKES AND TEA

Hello Knuckles!

The littlest Knuckles abandoned their toys during naptime, so Mr. Brass Knuckles and I had our own little tea party:

(Truly, the unmanicured toes of the working mother).

(Nom nom nom!  Sunnies, Target; shirt, J.Crew; skirt, Nanette Lepore; shoes, Miu Miu; bracelets, vintage, F21)

As parents you have to have fun wherever and whenever you find it!  Before kids it was all rock shows, late brunches, and lazy Sunday matinees.  Now our idea of a great night is 16oz. PBRs smuggled into Star Trek and drinks afterwards at the local townie bar (where, I should add, the people-watching is equally if not more entertaining than people-watching in Brooklyn.  Hello too-tan blond ladies, Blackhawks jersey guys, REALLY old dude, accountant swinger couple, and DIY Pac-Man t-shirt-wearing bassist).

It seems like all my friends have kids these days.  Parents, how do you manage to have fun now that kids are a part of your life? 

Have a great weekend, Knuckles!

KNUCKLES ON TOP OF THE WORLD

Hello Knuckles!

A few weekends ago we hosted family and school friends at the Chicago Treehouse to celebrate CoStar's 5th birthday.  

Borrowing a friend's idea, this year in lieu of gifts we asked everyone to bring a package of diapers to donate to The Bundle Of Joy diaper bank.  I love this idea!  Not only does it teach sharing and compassion, but it also eliminates the tyranny of more toys (sometimes I'm a little overwhelmed by all our dolls, puzzles, books, ride-on's, blocks and Legos).

Not gonna lie, it took a little convincing but CoStar agreed to the plan.  So last Sunday we took a field trip into the city to drop off the diapers.  Mr. Brass Knuckles and I tried to make it a big deal so she'd know how proud we were.  As promised, we had ice cream afterwards to celebrate.


(I think we ended up donating almost a thousand diapers)

Then we took an impromptu trip to the top of the Willis (nee Sears) Tower.  There was absolutely no line and the whole family enjoyed it.

(Floating!)

Incredibly, that day we had breakfast with my family, dropped of the diapers, ate ice cream cones, toured the tallest building in Chicago, and were back at home eating hot dogs at our kitchen table by 12:30pm.  Ah, sleep -- when will I know ye again?

Have a happy Thursday, Knuckles!   

LIONS AND TIGERS AND BEARS, OH MY!

Good morning Knuckles!

This weekend we took advantage of the warmer weather and took the kids to the Lincoln Park Zoo.

(Sunnies, Target; jacket, Hong Kong high street; skirt, F21; leggings, American Apparel; studded booties, Asos; scarf, a gift)

The zoo is one of Mr. Brass Knuckles' and my favorite places.  We love the fresh air, the beer at the cafeteria, and the fact that the kids can run around like crazy and tire themselves out so when we finally get home they take like a three hour nap.  

The little ones love it too:

I hope you have an energizing week, Knuckles!  Cheers for springtime in Chicago!

SAVED BY THE BELL!

Hello Knuckles! 

Apologies for the extended absence.  Did your heart grow fonder, cuz mine did! :)

Anyhow, last weekend I had a fun, dressy work event.  I love seeing co-workers break free from the tyranny of business casual.  Sometimes the transformations are really dramatic, especially for women.  Nine times out of ten though the men just end up looking like Mr. Belding from Saved By The Bell. 

I love this silk jumper, but since it's backless and a little too fancy, I paired it with a simple denim shirt:

(See?  Pants!)

(Sunnies, Chanel; shirt, H&M; silk jumper, BCBG; shoes, Style&Co.; purse, Marc by Marc Jacobs; earrings, Kate Spade; bracelets, H&M, Alex+Ani, Asos; necklaces, PersonalizedBoutique.com, MyNameNecklace.com)

Okay you guys on February 27th I finally reached my milestone:  ONE YEAR without spending money on clothes!  I will provide a full retrospective on this experience later but for now please marinate on this feat.  MARINATE. 

Have a great afternoon, Knuckles!

CONQUERING THE WORLD IN AN OLD COAT FULL OF MEMORIES

Hello Knuckles!

There was a great article in the Sunday New York Times Magazine about how we are more likely to remember events from our 20's than from other periods in our lives.  That certainly rings true with me!  I have so many rich, hilarious, sad, scary, and awesome memories from my 20's.  But I also have a ton of very mundane memories, like the time I bought this coat.

I had just started working at an internet start-up which was located on Bryant Park.  After work I loved to walk along 5th Avenue.  The weather was getting colder and in the Prada store I noticed the fall coats had arrived, and after trying a few on I ended up buying the one below.  It was a WP (Whole Paycheck) purchase but I loved this coat, and even though it's super old and I've worn it a ton, it still looks and feels like new.

(Sunnies, Chanel; coat, Prada; sweater, H&M; jeans, Chip+Pepper; purse, Orlany; boots, Miss Sixty)

Until this weekend I hadn't worn this coat in forever, but I brushed it off for a trip to the Children's Museum:

(These two are going to rule the world one day).

Have a great weekend, Knuckles!

ART IS CHAOTIC, BUT THE SWEATER IS TOASTY

Hi Knuckles! 

Last year we took the kids to the Art Institute, and boy was that a mistake!  CoStar was too young to appreciate anything and I was still nursing the little man, which was impossible in a crowded museum with communal benches.  

This weekend we figured the kids might be old enough so we tried the Art Institute again; it was only marginally more successful.  At least I had on a comfy sweater:

(Sunnies, YSL; sweater, Vince; shirt, J.Crew; liquid leggings, Silence+Noise; boots, Chinese Laundry; purse, Elliott Lucca; bracelets, Alex+Ani, Banana Republic; name necklaces, PersonalizedBoutique.com, MyNameNecklace.com; watch, Casio). 

Nothing too exciting about this outfit's provenance, except that this sweater is one of my favorites because it is incredibly warm and does not pill very much (which is a huge sweater pet peeve of mine).  I wore it while walking across the Williamsburg Bridge during the NYC subway strike in the winter of 2005.  It was a freezing cold morning and then-boyfriend Brass Knuckles and I were walking to work, and I distinctly remember thinking "Man this sweater's warm!"

Anyhow, the Littlest Knuckles thought the art museum had too many rules: no touching, climbing, running, or snacking, all 4 of which we got called out on by the guards.  Screw rules, man!

Hope you are having a great week, Knuckles!

STEALING AWAY TO CREEPY SPACES

Last weekend I got to attend a fundraising event hosted by my gorgeous friend Linda who, like me, is not buying clothes for a year.  The evening was lovely, and afterwards Mr. Brass Knuckles and I went exploring and found ourselves on an empty floor that reminded me of something out of The Shining.

 (Jacket, F21; dress, Diane Von Furstenberg; shoes, Prada.  This carpet is mad crazy yo!).

I bought this dress to wear to my friend Heidi's wedding several years back.  Mr. Brass Knuckles (then boyfriend Brass Knuckles) was my date, and it was one of the first times he visited my family home in Chicago.  Paris Hilton was spotted in the same dress that very weekend!

Isn't Linda just dreamy?  She's my work crush!

Have a great week, Knuckles!

HAPPY DAY BEFORE YOUR DAY OFF!

Today is one of the best kinds of days, because I have tomorrow off and I'm already looking forward to sneaking out of here a little early and grabbing some cocktails with Mr. Brass Knuckles!  So enjoy it friends, cuz if you're like me you'll be back at it on Thursday.

We had a ton of events on our plate this weekend but due to various snafus ended up at none of them.  It's funny, when you have kids the littlest things like unexpected traffic or running out of milk or a nap cut short by a few minutes can throw the entire day off.  That's what happened on Saturday so we were determined to make Sunday more eventful.

We started off the day at my parents' annual community picnic, where CoStar experienced the joy of water balloons and the little guy kept trying to run into oncoming traffic on the bike path:

(My best granny pose.  Dress and shoes, Target; polka dot top, thrifted; belt, H&M).

Mr. Brass Knuckles and CoStar bought me this pink dress for my birthday two years ago.  I had just given birth and told them not to get me anything, since I'd recently upgraded to an iPhone.  But since Mr. Brass Knuckles doesn't follow the no-gifts rule, he let CoStar select a few items for me at Target, which included the dress, a purple hoodie, and purple sweatpants.  Everything was stuffed into an old recycled gift bag, and I was feeling unattractive and ragged with a week-old baby and wasn't expecting anything, and when they presented me with the gift along with a card... well it was one of those "I'm such a lucky gal" moments.  And though I don't normally wear pink and purple, I make an exception for anything picked out by 3 year olds!

After the picnic we drove to the Museum of Science and Industry, one of the entire family's favorite places.  Here is CoStar showing off her climbing skills:

And we topped off the evening with dinner at one of our favorite hamburger places, the Butcher and the Burger in Lincoln Park:

Mr. Brass Knuckles and I are obsessed with delicious hamburgers.  If we were fictional characters we would be Hamburglars:  

Mr. Brass Knuckles said his love affair with fancy hamburgers began with his first bite at Dumont Burger in Brooklyn.  When Dumont Burger first opened we went there all the time, and the hamburger partytimes continue to this day.

 Hope your day off is awesome, little Knuckles!  Embrace the magic of summertime!

RE-CREATION TUESDAYS: MEETING A BEST FRIEND, WEARING HANES

Today is my best friend's birthday!  I've now known this extraordinary woman almost as long as I haven't known her.  She's a successful attorney, an amazing aunt, a marathon runner (she ran a half on Saturday), dead-fish dancer, sometime competitive eater (and champion, I might add), and all-around amazing supporter and human being.  If you're reading this Ms. Howdy, please know that I wish we lived closer to one another and expect my call tonight.

In honor of Ms. Howdy, and for this episode of Re-Creation Tuesdays, I've re-created what I was wearing when she and I met. 

It was the very first day of college, and my parents were moving me into Soto room 203 in Wilbur Hall at Stanford University.

I was wearing:

a white Hanes T-shirt onto which I had puffy-painted the name of an old noise punk band called Picasso Trigger:

(Hanes t-shirt, ya you can buy these anywhere)

a pair of jeans (don't remember the make, probably The Gap):

(Kaylie boot cut jeans, 7 for All Mankind, Shopbop, $225)

black Converse sneakers, with fashion duct-tape:

(Chuck Taylors, Zappos, $45)

and a cotton velcro Split wallet with wallet chain, buahahaha!:

(Mine was navy blue with the logo embroidered in white.  Levitt wallet, Split)

I remember walking into our dorm room and meeting Ms. Howdy, who was probably wearing baggy jeans, a t-shirt, and an oversized plaid flannel.  We nervously talked about jazz music (the only musical common ground we shared between country and punk) while I surreptitiously eyeballed her stuff.

On paper, ours is not a likely friendship but over the years Ms. Howdy and I have shared everything with one another.  There's not much about me she doesn't know, and I'm sure she will continue to show up on this blog many times.  

Don't you just love best friends? 

Speaking of Hanes t-shirts, to this day I love them and basically live in white crewnecks during lazy summer weekends, for several reasons:

1) There is a seemingly endless supply in Mr. Brass Knuckles's underwear drawer

2) They're super comfy and go with everything 

3) Even after washing, they smell vaguely of Mr. Brass Knuckles's deodorant (OLD SPICE).  

Scents have a really powerful effect on me.  A guy I work with wears Old Spice and whenever we are working together in close quarters I smell the Old Spice and it instantly reminds me of Mr. Brass Knuckles and launches me into the kind of glossy-eyed reverie that can only be broken by a "And what do YOU think we should do about the excess inventory, Brass Knuckles?"

On Saturday we took the kiddies to the beach!  Both kids had a great time,and both parents had a great time taking pictures of kids having a great time:

(Shorts, cut from full-length jeans, Old Navy; swimsuit, Target; sunglasses, Carerra; earrings, Claire's.  My mother-in-law bought this swimsuit for me shortly after CoStar was born.  That winter break we all took a ski trip up to New Hampshire and I didn't pack a swimsuit, thinking there'd be no need.  Lo and behold the place had a hot tub so she quickly went out and bought one for me on Christmas Eve.  Lo and behold when we got to the hot tub it was closed).  

We topped off our day at the beach with dinner and cheese fries:

On Sunday we took the kids to a great local park that has fountains you can run through (perfect for hot, sunny days):

(On CoStar: dress, Baby Gap.  Her swimsuit fell out of my bag on the way there, silly Mommy, so she got drenched in her dress instead.  Oh well, at least we had an extra change of clothes)

a shady swing:

(Speaking of Hanes, t-shirt, Hanes; bloomer-style shorts, Tracey Feith for Target; jelly gladiator sandals, Old Navy)

and lots of room to play hide-and-seek:

Have a great week, Knuckles!