anthropologie: a love story.

dear anthropologie top, 

i have been so, so, so good about keeping to my budget, but you are making it very hard not to reach for my credit card. i just thought you should know that.

love,

megan

p.s. please go on sale?

the weekend + committing to...

good morning, good morning! happy monday! how were your weekends? i had a fantastic weekend baking, celebrating my friend k.'s 30th birthday, and generally relaxing, and now i'm 100 percent ready for a new week. the last one was filled with so much good--so much unexpected good--that i can't wait to see what this one has in store.

and before i get into this week's "committing to...," i just wanted to share these two quotes with you. i'm pretty much a sucker for any words that make me teary, gasp, or think about them for more than the few seconds it takes to read them, and these next two thoughts made me do all three. i hope you enjoy them as much as i do:

"is it some kind of evolutionary code, written into the instruction manual of our instincts, that being near a body of water is superior to anywhere else?"

{ written my little brother. so proud of him for that line; especially applicable after k.'s birthday dinner on the bay. thanks, p. }

"the dream was always running ahead. 

to catch up with it, to live for a moment in unison with it,

that was the miracle."

{ anais nin, one of my favorite writers ever. }

and now, without further ado, here's my little list of weekly goals:

+ catching up, living for a moment in unison, realizing the miracle.

+ spending as much time near the water as possible.

+ run, run, running--it's quickly becoming my favorite form of exercise. i love spinning, but there is nothing like the sound of your feet pounding on concrete and good music pounding in your ears.

+ continuing the no-gossiping resolution. i did really well last week, and i felt 100 times better. 

+ smiling as often as i can.

and you? please share! xoxo, i hope you had wonderful weekends and that your weeks are getting off to a fantastic start.

{ totally awesome photo via here. we all know i can't resist a cute cat picture. }

what are you doing this weekend? (i'm going to a birthday party!)

happy weekend, everyone! are you so happy it's friday? i've had a really crazy week--one of those super-feelingy ones--but like i said yesterday, i feel like there's some kind of positive shift happening in the universe right now. it's good.

and speaking of positive things, one of my favorite people in the whole wide world, my friend k., is turning 30 today, so i'm going to make sure she celebrates her birthday in style at her party on saturday! i'm whipping up my famous coconut cake, and we're going to have a wonderful dinner, with lots of wine, at her mom's house, outside on the water. i can't wait.

what are you doing this weekend? please share, and i'll see you back here on monday! xoxo!

{ image via lissy elle }

spring things.

sorry for the silence yesterday, guys--it's been an insane week! i really feel like something is shifting, though; i'm crazy busy but it's all extremely positive. there's a centering, or something, happening.

this post has nothing to do with that. nope, tonight i'm going to talk about one of my favorite things: beauty products! i haven't done a makeup-related post in awhile, and even though i have a fairly simple daily routine (foundation, blush, mascara, lipgloss), i love talking about this stuff. so here are the items i'm swearing by right now:

{ aveeno positively radiant foaming cleanser. gentle enough for my sensitive skin, but cleans thoroughly. }

{ aveeno positively radiant daily moisturizer, spf 15. moisturizing without being greasy, and again--perfect for my sensitive skin. }

{ bare minerals foundation. i'm the palest person known to man, so i wear the lightest shade, but this is like miracle makeup for me. it covers without drying me out, and it doesn't feel like i'm ever wearing makeup. }

{ bare minerals blush in lovely. a perfect pop of color for the cheeks. }

{ maybelline define-a-lash mascara. i'm not a mascara fanatic, but i do like this one. and the green packaging is nice and cheerful. }

{ neutrogena moistureshine lipgloss. i use a shade called "hooked on pink" that i think has been discontinued, but i love the brand--great, saturated color that's a little thicker than your average gloss but still shiny. and of course, i'll always love my cherry chapstick. }

{ organix coconut milk shampoo and conditioner. you guys, i am obsessed with coconut. i love the smell, i love the flavor--and this stuff smells like the real deal, not that plastic-y, faux-coconut scent. yum. }

{ moroccan oil, a.k.a. miracle serum. i first discovered this stuff via emily's blog, and then went home to visit my parents and found a bottle in my mom's medicine cabinet. it's fabulous--it smooths my wavy, humidity-loving hair instantly and it smells fabulous, especially on top of the coconut shampoo. }

so, those are my top beauty picks right now. what are yours? please share--you seriously have no idea how much i love this stuff!

old soul, new heart.

i've been wanting to post about old soul, new heart for awhile, because it's a website i click to often. run by shea (who is the model in these photographs--how gorgeous is she? i need to copy that makeup look) and her mother, tamara, old soul, new heart focuses on one-off pieces that feel both sweetly vintage and decidedly modern. even better, shea and tamara make each item by hand, so you know you're getting something entirely unique. pretty awesome, i think.

{ images via old soul, new heart }

happy monday! + committing to...

happy monday, everyone! did you have great weekends? mine was super great: after recovering (ahem) from thursday's shenanigans, i road-tripped to jacksonville on saturday for my friend m.'s wedding, making a stop to see my family on the way there, and also on the way back to sarasota. it was a really lovely celebration--wonderful people, perfect weather, a beautiful beachside setting, delicious food, a whole lot of love. just what a wedding should be, right?

and now here we are at monday again, and it's time for me to lay out my little goals for the week. before i do, though, what are your commitments this week? any goals you're working toward? anything you'll be celebrating? please share!

and without further ado, here's my list of things i'm committing to:

+ baking a version of this cake for my lovely friend k.'s 30th birthday celebration on saturday. yum.
+ eating clean (speaking of food). this is pretty much always a goal of mine, but i was really bad last week and need to get back to healthy food (particularly the made-by-me variety).
+ getting back on a good sleep schedule--i got really off this past weekend, and not enough sleep basically renders me a non-functioning shell of a human. not good. need to fix.
+ not talking about other people behind their backs. this is a big one for me, because lately i've let myself be pulled into this weird whirlpool of gossip, and i really don't like it. here's to focusing on the good in others, not the bad/strange/scandalous.
+ embracing new people, new experience, new flavors, new things. after all, spring is a time of rebirth, right?

have a wonderful monday, and i'll see you back here tomorrow. xoxo!

{ photo via inspired by love }

what are you doing this weekend? (i'm going to a wedding!)

happy weekend, friends! how are you? as i type this, i am recovering from an evening of shenanigans last night (yikes--remember that whole pay-my-taxes-have-a-drink thing? um, i did!) and preparing to head up to jacksonville for a friend's wedding tomorrow. (i also get to see my parents, brother and dogs.)  it should be a beautiful celebration; i'll try to remember to take pictures and share some with you here next week. 

what are you up to over the next few days? are you celebrating anything? are you staying home? are you travelling? please share, and i'll see you back here on monday! 

thank you, as always, for being so wonderful. xoxo

{ image by jackie rueda, via holly }

beach bum.

feeling light on words today, so i thought i'd post these pretty, pink-lit photos i took at the beach recently. sometimes i think sarasota is the most beautiful place in the world. it's nice to feel that way about where you live, no?

xoxo

just keep swimming.

this is the cutest thing i have ever, ever seen. seriously. it brought tears to my eyes. what a brave little sea turtle.

{ spotted on nikole's twitter }

glee!

i am a huge glee fan. huge. i think the show is smart, funny, well-written, and just all-around great--and it also showcases my dream of being able to burst into song at random times throughout the day. (i guess i could make that dream a reality, but i think i may be sent to the loony bin if i did.) the show comes back tonight after american idol, and i can't wait. i want to throw a little glee party (complete with slushies)!

do you love the show as much as i do? and how fun are these videos? i think lea michele sounds pretty amazing in both! 

here comes the sun ( + committing to...)

happy monday, everyone--how were your weekends? mine was very, very low-key, just as i hoped it would be. i had sushi with two of my favorite gal pals on friday night; ran errands with another one of my favorites, k., on saturday afternoon; spent time with my friend m., her cousin and his friend on saturday night; then slept for, oh, about 10 hours straight into sunday morning.

i also rediscovered the glory that is the 2005 movie version of pride & prejudice. i'm a total jane austen lover (see: here), and i know some austen purists take issue with this adaptation of the book, but i personally think it's beautiful, and i get goosebumps every time matthew-mcfadyen-as-mr.-darcy tells keira-knightley-as-elizabeth-bennet that he loves her "most ardently." swoon. (where's my mr. darcy, by the way?)

and now here we are again, at the beginning of a new week. how were your weekends? what do the next five days look like for you? are they busy? are you going on vacation? do you have lots of work projects? are you making big life changes? please tell me--i'd love to hear!

here's what i'm committing to over the course of the week:

+ paying my taxes. (gulp. this is going to hurt. maybe i should commit to a large alcoholic beverage after i make that payment!)
+ smiling more.
+ wearing bright lipstick/gloss every day. it's amazing what a pick-me-up that can be.
+ straightening up my apartment every night before i go to bed. i've been really bad about this lately, and a clean house makes me feel so much better.
+ continuing working on the whole positive attitude thing--and not just on the surface.
+ living by this quote:

"do not anticipate trouble, or worry about what may never happen. keep in the sunlight."  

(benjamin franklin)

here's to keeping in the sunlight. xoxo


{ lovely photograph via miss mary ruffle. of course. i love balloons. }

what are you doing this weekend?

happy, happy, happy friday, everyone! are you so glad it's the weekend? i have had a really random, funny week thanks to my wonderful coworkers (i really wish i had sound bytes of some of the conversations i've had to share with you), and i managed to spend tons of time outside, too, which is always delightful in the spring.

what are you up to over the next couple of days? i'm trying out a new restaurant with my girlfriends tonight, hopefully farmers market-ing and hitting a spin class at some point, and probably just laying low the rest of the time. it should be good.

i hope you have a wonderful few days, and i'll see you back here on monday! xoxo.

p.s. happy 16th (!) birthday to my wonderful cousin, emma. i remember when she was born--now she's 16. gosh.

{ image via the very lovely tiny paper heart. isn't it warm-weather perfect? }

i know why the caged bird sings.

totally and completely swooning over this photo by alice b. gardens. so pretty--like something you would see in an anthropologie catalogue.

p.s.: more goodness by this talented lady here, here, and here.

french braids.

my aunt linn was a ballet dancer. she owns a successful dance studio now, in pennsylvania, and she has all of those qualities that ballerinas seem to possess en masse: long, thin limbs; impeccable posture; a beautiful plie; and the ability to do a perfect french braid. aunt linn is my father's only sister, and she and my uncle never had any children of their own, so in a way, i was the daughter she never had. we were very close. in fact, we still are.

one of my favorite childhood memories is sitting cross-legged on the wood-planked floor of my grandparents' whitewashed porch in the summer, enjoying the warmth of the sun on my face and the sweet smell of summer flowers in the air as my aunt crossed strands of my hair over and over each other. i have always been a sucker for people who play with my hair, and i'm fairly certain it stems from my aunt and her french braids. it's been years since she's braided my hair, and i am pretty inept at doing it myself, but little memories like those are the ones i cherish most.

needless to say, when i saw this amazing photo by sandra frej on the ban.do blog, it took me right back to those summer afternoons. love it, completely. you too, yes?

xoxo

keep calm, carry on.

loving these calm photos of the sky just before twilight by grebex. perfect for a tuesday morning. (do you find that tuesdays are the craziest day of the week? for me, they absolutely are--i feel like monday is the day i get everything organized and ready to go, and tuesday is the day i actually have to execute it. eek. i have a feeling i'm going to keep coming back to these pretties today.)

eight days a week.

sorry for the late post, everyone--it's been a busy monday! how were your weekends? mine was filled with jelly beans, peeps, good food, good friends, the beach, and a lot of sunshine.

anyway, i don't have a lot of time to write tonight--i'm baking cookies for a friend whose dad passed away last week, and i got in very late and didn't sleep well last night--but i wanted to post my usual monday "committing to..." tell me, what are your goals for the week? and did you have good weekends, too? i hope so!

here's what i'm comitting to:

+ a positive attitude. and more importantly, not being influenced by others' negativity.
+ making good choices (mentally and physically).
+ powering through work projects.
+ being there for the aforementioned friend
+ spending as much time outside as possible
+ really being aware of the present moment
+ trying to add a little more joy to the world--whether through pretty pictures on this blog or a kind word to someone else.

see you back here tomorrow! xoxo

{ lovely yellow (my fave!) print via eight hour day }

what are you doing this weekend?

i love abby's "five senses" posts, so i'm taking a page from her delightful book and doing my own. ready? here goes!

{ tasting }


cupcakes from magnolia bakery's "more from magnolia" cookbook. i'm baking them this weekend to take to an easter celebration with some friends, and topping them with jelly beans to make them especially festive.


{ hearing }


don't laugh. but taio cruz and ludacris' "break your heart" has become my go-to workout song. and dance-party-in-the-car song. other than that, still sanders bohlke. (talk about opposite ends of the spectrum.)


{ smelling }


the scent of florida in the spring. orange blossoms, honeysuckle, roses, the ocean. it's an amazing potpourri.


{ feeling }


happy and content--moreso than i have in awhile. i like that.


{ seeing }

blue skies, yellow rays, white sand, blue ocean. i'm going to copy thie girl in this photograph and dip my toes in the ocean this week, i think.

what are you doing this weekend? happy easter if you celebrate; if you don't, i hope you get to spend time outside with people you love. xoxo!

{ photo via little girl blue }

chase this light.

karey posted this photo a few days ago, and i? well, i gasped when i saw it. and then knew i had to post it here, for you, too. i love photographs that make me feel full of possibility, and this one absolutely, one hundred percent does. i mean, my gosh, that light. 

plus, looking at it makes me remember that sometimes you just have to close your eyes, feel the wind in your hair, start pedaling, and let yourself fly.