My first Conference at work has come and gone. All I’ve heard about since I started was the ominous “Conference” and how if I can make it through that, I can make it through anything. Well, I made it, I LOVED it and I lived to talk about it. And post photos.:)

Co-worker Jayna and I.

Me dancing with Connie at the Auction.

Getting dressed up for the Banquet!

Me taking photos.

And while I was HARD at work, Taylor was in Spokane playing in a 3-on-3 tournament, HOOPFEST!, with my brother and two cousins.

One of which may or may not have ended up in an oxygen mask.

We had a great weekend and are headed up to Priest Lake for the fourth for another great weekend with my family! What have you been up to strangers?

I am not usually an avid American Eagle shopper. I am in between sizes in their jeans and often the prints and cuts of the clothes seem a little young for me. But after seeing one of their dresses in my most recent InStyle, I can’t help but love some of the dresses they have in stock right now! See for yourself!

I’ve talked a lot lately about trying to figure out who I am, what I want to do with my life and if what I am currently doing is the right thing. Well, I still don’t KNOW. But lately I have been feeling content where I am at. After all, it seems like things have fallen into place for me to be here and when I really stop worrying about it all, I realize that I am quite happy.

The fact that I can work for 12-13 hours and still not want to leave the office makes me feel like I am where I’m supposed to be. Being with people who think the same way you do, laugh at the same things you do and generally lift your spirits, feels pretty darn good. All of the things I like to do: be creative, design, read, write, blog, draw, organize, watch movies, decorate and shop; I’m getting to do. I’m having a blast living with my best friend/husband who has been SO PATIENT with me as I have life crises about once per week. We are within 15 minutes of a huge, wonderful, loving family who takes wonderful care of us. I get to talk to my family whenever I want and my brother will be playing at least 5 games per year in Oregon next year. We are debt-free, have a great apartment and can afford to eat. I even have my very own closet.:)

I guess when it gets down to it, all I’ve really wanted to “be” when I grow up is happy. And I think I am.

It was a very productive, relaxing weekend at the TlovesK home. We watched our NetFlix movies (Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Pippi Longstocking…what:)?), did laundry, cleaned the apartment and spent some time at Brent and Kelly’s awesome new house!

The last couple weekends I have been working to turn our guest bedroom/my closet room, into an office/get-a-way for myself. With my awesome new work laptop in place and speakers ‘a blarin‘ I created my own little sanctuary. It’s great! Don’t mind the cords, I’ll take care of those.

We also tried to rearrange the living room. I moved every piece of furniture (sans heavy bookshelves) around the room to no avail, and everything ended up in the exact same place besides the couch. I think we’ve figured it out for now, but Taylor was ready to wring my neck. Heehee.
I also spent a great deal of time trying to put up the decal Taylor got me on his trip to Ohio last week. See the below photo. Apparently he approves. It’s pretty cute and goes well with the colors in our room. My boy has good taste.Oh, and I shaved Taylor’s head, basically. I tried to give him a normal haircut and botched it up pretty good, so we took a Level 3 comb to it (whatever that means). I LOVE it! I think he looks like Justin Timberlake.;) What did you do this weekend?

I almost forgot! We’re doing a photoshoot with our awesome wedding photographer, Boone, today in Salem. Can’t wait! Photos and gushing on Boone’s talents to come!

Today’s Fashion Friday is going to be a “Look for Less” type deal. This look, worn by Jessica Biel, is a cool, summery way to dress up for a night out. Or even for an evening wedding. We have like 9 weddings so far this summer, so I’m always looking for inspiration on what to wear. Lord knows you can’t wear the same outfit to two weddings! Heaven forbid!

To get a look like Jessica’s, try this top from Forever 21, $10.80.

Pair with this pencil skirt from Banana Republic, $35.40.

To get a statement necklace similar to Jessica’s, try this necklace from Forever 21, $5.80.And finally, finish off the look with these shoes from Target, $26.99.

I grew up in Spokane, Washington. Our idea of a vintage shop is Value Village. With a scanty mall selection and serious lack of boutiques, I grew up missing out on all that is vintage shopping. Which really stinks because I would have loved to have some more unique pieces in high school. Oh well.

I also don’t have a whole lot of time to spend traveling about Portland digging through racks and/or bins these days, so I have found the perfect solution! Etsy offers a WIDE selection of vintage clothes and housewares online! This is really perfect for me since I already spend at least 15 minutes a day browsing their site.

Some treasures I have my eye on:

This awesome Navy trench coat, only $65.00.
And this adorable white summer dress, only $38.00.

I often have epiphanies on airplanes. So, naturally, as we were flying home from my brother’s high school graduation last night, and since I’ve been re-reading the Harry Potter series, I got to thinking about the fictional objects I wish I owned.

1. An Ollivander’s wand (Harry Potter).
I don’t feel like this one needs a lot of explaining. It’s a wand, you can do magic.

2. Edward Cullen (Twilight).
So he’s not an object per say, but he would be lovely to have around just the same.

3. One-eyed-Willie’s treasure (Goonies).
So I can shop, duh! And maybe buy a house in the Boondocks.

4. Rory’s (Gilmore Girls) book collection.
She has everything from classic to modern Lit and a few thousand biographies in between.

5. Monica’s Apartment (Friends).
It’s just the cutest apartment ever.

6. Pixie Dust (Peter Pan, duh).
I mean, who doesn’t? To fly, to fly to Neverland. Awesome.

7. Rubber Abs (Batman).
Nothing sexier than a good set of rubber abs. And they’d come in real handy on a fat day.

8. Magic Carpet (Aladdin).
Travel in style and save on airfare.

9. Ruby Red Slippers (Wizard of Oz).
Aside from their magical function, they would round out the wardrobe quite nicely.

10. A Lightsaber (Star Wars).
This one is obviously Taylor’s because I would obviously not need a sword made of light. I would settle for Han Solo though.

***

In other news, we attended Chase’s graduation Saturday in Spokane. The trip was quick, and I was recovering from the PLAGUE that I had last week, but it’s always great to see my family. Wish we were closer to them. We also had a chance to lunch with some of my friends from high school on Sunday. It was great to catch up, I haven’t seen them for a long while.

The next couple weeks should prove to be quite crazy as we gear up for our national Conference at work, so if you don’t hear from me too much, don’t fret. I’ll be back. After all, BlogHer is nearing!

I have always, against my better judgment, believed that there are certain things we are “supposed” to do. When I met Taylor, I felt SO STRONGLY that he was “the one.” Despite the fact that before that I had never really believed in “the one,” or “love at first sight” for that matter, I got both. This really messed up a lot of my theories on life.

If there really was one person I was supposed to be with, does that mean there is one job I’m supposed to have, one place I’m supposed to live, one person I’m supposed to be?

As I was watching an episode of Sex and the City last night- don’t judge me please, the clothes are just too fabulous to resist- I saw that Carrie was asking some of the same questions in one of her columns. “When are we going to stop waiting for ‘the one’ and start making the best of where we’re at?”

I am ALWAYS evaluating the things that I’m doing, wondering if it’s the “right” thing to be doing at the moment. Always analyzing and re-analyzing and over-analyzing my choices and decisions and wondering if they are what I’m “supposed” to be doing. And sometimes I wonder if this just isn’t causing me unnecessary discontent.

Isn’t it true that if God had a different plan for my life right now, He would make sure that I was doing that? If I believe that He is the one with the plan for my life, why should I worry so much about whether or not I’m following it? Wouldn’t He be handling that?

I think so. I’m really working on being content where I’m at right in this moment, this month, this summer and not worrying so much about where I’ll be next year.

Ah the wisdom of Carrie.:)

As one of two of the names in the title, I have come to realize that I’m not pulling my weight. Everything from the blog design, to the flickr photos, to the articles themselves, screams Kaleigha, Kaleigha, Kaleigha! Nothing save the first word of the title and maybe a few posts really has anything to do with me. I’m really not complaining, because it is really all my fault. However, I’ve decided that until my lovely wife of mine kicks me out (which, let’s face it, probably will happen pretty soon if I change her blog too much), I need start making my presence known.