You know how life sometimes sucks you in, and you don’t even notice what you’ve been missing? That’s what I feel has happened over the last few months.  No excuses, but now I am even more motivated to blog because I have lots of stuff to blog about!

I guess I can do a brief re-cap of what I’ve been up to, and will post more details in the coming weeks.

Since my last post, I:

celebrated my Birthday with some close friends, while being spoiled rotten with presents (hello new Kobo!)

disguised myself as Waldo for Halloween

Bought a brand new (to me) car!!!

Went to the most amazing Feist concert

Watched my friends get married!

And had a quiet family Christmas (where I was again spoiled with presents)

A lot has happened in my life, and I can’t wait to share it on this blog. I will also be changing the look of the blog, because as nice as it is, its not really me. Look forward to that and more regular (hopefully) posts!

I have been lusting over these lace TOMS the entire summer…

I really like the pink leather this Fossil wallet is made of, or any Fossil wallet for that matter…

Polaroid has come out with a new instant camera and film! Similar in size and shape to the Fuji Film Instax cameras, but this one comes in red! I am so close to buying this right now………

I’ve also been interested in an “e-reader”. It would be handy to have multiple books in your bag at one time, as I usually have a book or two on the go at once…

A girl can dream big, can’t she?

I recently finished Divergent by Veronica Roth, and I already can’t wait for the next book in the trilogy! It in a similar genre to The Hunger Games, which I thoroughly enjoyed (and am now awaiting the movie). Yet, it’s a very different story. Many times when I find a book or a series I like, people suggest a similar book but it can never quite grab me as much as the first one. Divergent hooked me from the beginning, and it’s a new series I am in love with and highly recommend everyone read. I don’t think it would matter which trilogy I read first, but in this case I’m glad I read The Hunger Games because all three books are published. Divergent was just recently published, with the next two books on their way. Maybe I will have another book to line up for at midnight after all!

I will let my photos speak for themselves, here is a glance at our fabulous long weekend…….

I hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend wherever they were. It looks like September is going to be just as nice, so hopefully I can continue to wear dresses and shorts and other cute warm weather outfits

I hope we get a cozy little compartment like this for our morning train ride

never travel without a good scarf!

Don’t forget a good book or magazine to occupy those long hours…….

…..and a cute boy to cuddle up with

(all photos from Pinterest)

Seattle here we come!!

]]> http://karent.wordpress.com/2011/08/31/all-aboard/feed/ 0 Pink Bliss train interior train outfit_1 train relaxing train nap seattle city seattle pike place market http://karent.wordpress.com/2011/08/29/book-club-2/ http://karent.wordpress.com/2011/08/29/book-club-2/#comments Mon, 29 Aug 2011 23:17:56 +0000 Karen Elizabeth http://karent.wordpress.com/?p=768 ]]> (Photo via Pinterest)

For the past year, I have not only been part of a book club,but I have made time again for one of my favorite pass times; reading a good book!

I read a lot when I was younger, preferring novels over textbooks even. However as my career took over, and I started making more time for friends, I kind of abandoned reading. Then a good friend of mine invited me to a book club. It was fairly casual, meeting up with other girls over wine and snacks, chatting about the book and anything we felt like. At first I was unsure how I could fit reading a novel into my daily routine, but it was surprisingly easy.

A good book hooks you, and you never want to put it down. Over the last year, I was reading books on my break, when I got home from work, on planes, and I even found myself reading while my boyfriend watched tv (hello, it was the Hunger Games, I couldn’t put that series down!). I can’t believe it’s already been a year, but I’m so glad my friend invited me. I couldn’t imagine not having a book in my purse at all times now!

I’m also glad that I joined this book club, because I read some really great books I may not have picked up on my own. They range from gripping teen fiction, to autobiographies, and some hard hitting subjects. If you’re interested, I’ve created a list of our books:

“How I live now” by Meg Rosoff

“The Middle Place”  by Kelly Corrigan

“Infidel” by Ayaan hirsi ali

“The Giver” by Lois Lowry

“The Hunger Games” by Suzzanne Collins

“The Lovely Bones”by Alice Sebold

“Freakonomics” by Steven D. Levitt

“The Poisonwood Bible” by Barbara Kingsolver

“My stroke of insight” by Jill Bolt Taylor

“Anna and the French Kiss” by stephanie perkins

“Intensity” by Dean Koontz

“The Help” by Kathryn Stockett

The next book we are reading is “Divergent” by Veronica Roth. If you want to join along with our book club, I would love to hear your comments about the books! Even if you are just looking for a good book to read, pick one off the list. I guarantee you will be ale to find a book that interests you!

Photo via Pinterest

Do you ever find yourself cruising around the web, and all of a sudden you go off on tangents that lead to the most amazing discoveries?

I have to admit, I find most of my inspiration these days on the web. I thought I’d share with you my latest web obsessions, and who knows maybe they will become your as well!

Such as…..

These amazing photo books from Blurb. I’m so tempted to make some as Christmas presents.

Or Missoni’s collection for Target. That bike is seriously calling my name!!

One of my new favorite street style blogs is I Want To Be Her!

As always, Etsy has amazing handmade goods. Like these super cute cards to send out to your friends. I miss getting snail mail!

Finally, along with a Twitter account, Tumblr account, and countless fashion blogs I check, I now have a Pinterst account. It’s a fun and easy way to make an online scrap-book like inspiration board. This way you can organize what inspires you, and find more inspiration from others with similar interests.

What has been inspiring you these days? I hope you enjoy these links, and find your own little gems this week on the web.

Photo by my friend Kath Bell Photography

Pink is my favorite color, there’s no doubt. It always looks good! From either extremely hot pink to pale soft pink, it’s always gorgeous. Pink floral prints, pink polka dots, there’s not comparison.  Needless to say, there is a lot of pink in my wardrobe.

I love how these nail strips turned out. They are fun, but easy to pair with outfits. It’s just the right hint of color.

Wearing Forever21 Shirt, H&M Scarf and Jeans

My outfit was comfortable, but cute in its own way. I love this scarf, but sadly don’t wear it that often. The pink flowers are what draws me to it, and paired with a loose top they work perfectly with sleepy mornings. Oh, how I am ready for the weekend!!

And just for fun, here’s an out-take when my cat became interested….

I love nail art, and since I don’t have time to do something so intricate myself, I’ve resorted to nail strips! They are easy, and quite fun! They also come in as many colors and patterns as you can imagine. Perfect for the girl that changes her mind all the time.

Now I can match my nails to my outfits! Dorky I know, but it’s such a simple pleasure and a way to treat myself every time I glance at my nails.

Check back soon to see how I styled them!