Family Cruise (Circa Summer 2019)

Family Cruise (Circa Summer 2019)

Wednesday, August 5, 2020

Dress: Modcloth  |  Shoes: Ross  |  Headband: Wallmart  |  Earrings: Walmart

Dress: Homemade  |  Wrap: Charming Charlie's  |  Shoes: Goodwill (Chaps)  |  Purse: Marshalls

Swimsuit: Shein  |  Headband: Target  |  Sunglasses: Five Below (similar on Amazon) 

Dress: Papaya  |  Shoes: Target  |  Earrings: Sugar Fix (Target)

First Port: Cozumel

Swimsuit: Rey Swimwear (old) 

Dress: Homemade  |  Shoes: Ross 

Second Port: Grand Cayman

Third Port: Jamaica

This post is definitely very LATE in coming, but apparently the trend here on my blog is writing/blogging about a trip a YEAR after it happens....LOL! 

However, with all that being said, I thought I would take some time to share about our family cruise we took last summer (summer 2019). This was our first cruise and it was THE BEST VACATION EVER!!! We seriously had soooo much fun and made so many memories that we still talk about to this day!

We planned our Cruise about 6 months in advance and booked our 7 day Cruise with Royal Caribbean along with the help of a travel agent. This was actually a trip that I didn't have a lot of hands on experience planning, since my mom took care of most of it, but the great thing about a cruise is so much is included. 

Our cruise was 7 days and we stopped at 3 different ports: Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and Jamaica. In each port we planned excursions with a private excursion company who offered more options than Royal Caribbean. There is truly soooo much to share about our Cruise so I am going to share some of my FAVORITE things about it and what we did in each port. You can also watch my Vlog which details every days adventures. 

FAVORITE THINGS:

1) All you can eat food 24/7..... for breakfast and lunch we ate from the buffet which always had so much to choose from and for dinner we had the fancy sit down where you get to choose from the nights menu (and it was all delicious). They also had a pizza parlor that served pizza all day long!!

2) We loved the different shows and entertainment that were offered every night. Our favorite was probably the British Piano player in the jazz lounge who would play any song you suggested. We also went to a comedy show, a dance performance, and a musical and all were fantastic. 

3) Relaxing & reading at the pool! There is nothing quite like sitting on a lounge chair and looking out at a never ending ocean. 

4) I loved dressing up for dinner every night! While dinner was "fancy" attire and one night was formal dress, you can easily stay within the "dressy" category and be fine. 

5) I loved all of the ports that we stopped at and the excursions we had planned (see below)

6) If you like "People Watching" a cruise is definitely your "cup of tea"!

7) Dancing at the night clubs! Ever night they had "nigh clubs" in different areas of the shop and I went to them on two of the nights with my brother and sister and had a lot of fun...definitely not my ideal atmosphere, but it was still a lot of fun :)

PORTS & EXCURSIONS:

Cozumel - Cozumel definitely stole my heart and I cannot wait to go back! I have a whole new appreciation for the ocean after my experience in Cozumel. My mom booked us a private snorkeling excursion in Cozumel and it was amazing! We took a boat out into the middle of the ocean and got to snorkel in the crystal blue water. The crazy thing is that I hardly ever go in the ocean because I don't like not knowing what is around me, but it's so different when the water is clear all the way to the bottom. We got to hold starfish, swim with fish, and it was just amazing! 

After our snorkeling adventure my brother and sister got to swim with dolphins at the local aquarium, and that was super cool. 

Grand Cayman - Our Grand Cayman excursion was definitely an adventure! We booked an jet ski excursion where we all got to ride jet ski's out into the middle of the ocean to a place called "Sting Ray City" which is essentially a sand bar where Sting Rays congregate and we all got to hold a Sting Ray (see picture above). Taking Jet Ski's into the middle of the ocean was a bit nerve wracking, but it was also exciting :)

Jamaica - In Jamaica we booked an excursion to Duns River Falls. We loaded up on a bus with other families from our cruise ship and rode about 45 minutes to the Falls. While the bus ride was long, it gave us a chance to see a lot of Jamaica and hear about its history from our Tour Guide...I have a completely different perspective and appreciate for Jamaica now! Once we arrived at the falls, we got to climb the giant waterfall. After the Falls we had a traditional Jamaican lunch at a local restaurant and got to experience "Jerk Chicken" which is their version of barbecue and it was delicious. 

We are counting down the days until we can go on another cruise, but for now I will continue reliving it in pictures! 

Have you ever been on a cruise?

Have you visited Cozumel, Grand Cayman, or Jamaica?

- Madison 

Thrift Flip: I Turned a Skirt Into a Dress

Thrift Flip: I Turned a Skirt Into a Dress

Friday, July 24, 2020

Dress: Goodwill Thrift Flip  |  Shoes: Wallmart (old)  |  Jacket: c/o Madewell  |  Purse: Thrifted (Fossil)

I made a dress out of a skirt!!! This project was seriously soooo much fun and I am so happy with how it turned out. If you know me, you know that I LOVE thrifting and that most of what I wear is thrifted, but recently I have been trying to stretch myself creatively, especially when it comes to thrifting and so I have decided to start doing "Thrift Flip" projects!

Basically a "Thrift Flip" project is thrifting a piece and then flipping it to be something else or a different style (I have a swimsuit thrift flip coming soon). I decided to start with an easy project after finding this skirt (see "before" above) at Goodwill (see my Thrift Haul HERE). I got this skirt because I loved how unique it was, it reminded me of something that I would find at Anthropologie or Freepeople and because it was 3 sizes larger than my typical size, I knew I would have plenty of fabric to work with and decided to turn it into a dress. 

The design process was super easy, I just removed a section of the skirt, while making sure to leave enough fabric to sill fit my waist for the skirt, and then turned the removed section into the bodice and straps. I filmed the whole design/thrift flip process so if you want to see how I did it or try a project like this for yourself, you can check it out on my YouTube & watch below:

Have you ever Thrift Flipped something?

- Madison

Thoughts On My First Week of Teaching

Thoughts On My First Week of Teaching

Tuesday, August 28, 2018

Dress: Thrifted (Vintage) | Shoes: Thrifted | Purse: c/o Gamiss | Earrings: Target

Well, I survived my first week of school as a teacher!!! To be honest I don't think it really hit me till Tuesday, then Wednesday I hit a wall of tiredness and Friday was officially the shortest day ever! Needless to say, my first week in the classroom as a teacher was nothing like I expected it to be and everything I hoped it would be:)

For two weeks I had been counting down the days till the first day of school when I would finally get to meet my students, and the Thursday before the first day (when I got my class rosters) it all started to get a little more real because I could put names to my classes. 

The first day seemed like a whirlwind! All my class periods went by so fast and it was all I could do to take in all the many faces, names, personalities, and abilities that walked through my door. After Monday I got into more of a routine as I got used to the daily schedule and slowly got to know each class better and each student more specifically. 

Within our school district we are always encouraged to take the first week to build relationships, so my first week of teaching was spent getting to know my students, doing icebreakers, practicing teamwork, and getting to know different aspects of my students and each one of my classes. 

What I learned and realized:

I've always heard teachers say that when you start teaching you will be the tiredest you have ever been, and apart from many other things, I can definitely agree that is true! While I might wake up at 4:45 am every morning its not necessarily the early mornings that get me (I have become more of a morning person), but rather the busy schedule and 24/7 energy! My personality and personality weaknesses as an Introvert have definitely been challenged since starting my job and I think it is more so my "Introverted" personality that causes me to feel EXHAUSTED when I get home every day....it's not that I am necessarily tired, but more so that I feel drained (which is understandable considering the environment that I work in). But I've heard it gets better so here's to pressing forward! 

I've never drank this much coffee every day (well except for when I was student teaching). I now have two cups of coffee before 7:20 am every morning and some days make another cup around 10:00 am with the Keurig I have in my classroom:)

I don't think I have ever talked this much in my life!!! I went from talking maybe 2 hours total a day to talking close to 6 hours every day... that has been something to get used to. I don't mind talking in front of my classes, in fact I become a completely different person when placed in a teaching role (very animated and loud) and I haven't actually felt myself start to shrink into my "Introvert Shell" while teaching (now when I am with other co-workers that can be a different story). 

Building relationships with your students is soooo important! While I have definitely only skimmed the surface of each of my students personalities, I can see, going into the second week, just how vital everything I did the first week was in creating the class atmospheres that exist currently. I also love that I had my students create their own class values, because they have actually started to keep each other accountable to behaving well in class, so I am curious to see how that continues to go:) 

High Schoolers are awesome, crazy, & at times a mystery but I love the variety of personalities I have in my class every day and the variety of students ranging from athletes, band members, color guard, student council and more! 

I can without a doubt say that my first week of teaching was probably one of the most CHALLENGING things I have done in my life (even more than my RA job in college), probably because it's just me & my students and I am in charge and the go to person.  However, despite all of the craziness and at times overwhelming "to do" list it has been amazing! At times it still seems like a dream and at other times it seems like I am simply doing what I was always meant to do, but whatever my daily feeling I can't wait to see what else this adventure has in store!

Outfit Details: 

So this isn't an outfit that I taught in, but a fun summer outfit a wore a few weeks back. I picked up this dress at the thrift store because it reminded me of Jessica Day from New Girl, which considering she is a teacher, and at times an unconventional one at that I can't help but look to her for "teacher style" inspiration:) 

- Madison

Staying Cool & Cute in Summer Humidity

Staying Cool & Cute in Summer Humidity

Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Top: Made | Shorts: Thrifted DIY | Sandals: Marshalls | Purse: Thrifted 

Earrings: Five Below | Sunglasses: Urban Outfitters

Here in Texas we are in full swing of the 100 degree days....though with the humidity here it often feels ten degrees hotter than it really is. Thankfully I am not all to affected by heat as some people, sure I will feel hot and sweat, but I will never feel unbearable (thankfully). Nevertheless, with the sweltering heat that us Texans struggle with I have learned over the years what works and what doesn't work to wear outside and be the most comfortable and cool!

With that here is a list of my tips and tricks for staying cool and cute in the summer:

1. Less Layers - I am one of those people who always wears and tank top under most shirts and a slip or shorts (or both) under many dresses and skirts. However, in the summer this isn't possible. I have started grabbing pieces from my closet that don't require me to wear a tanktop underneath or a slip under a skirt. The less layers laying against your body makes you so much cooler!
2. Pay Attention To Your Fabrics - As a slight "textile nerd" (thanks to that textile class I took in college) I have always paid attention to my fabrics in the summer. Many synthetic fabrics that our clothes can be made of are not breathable and make us quite hot. Thus, choosing more natural fibers is your best bet. I often reach for cotton pieces or cotton blends because they are very breathable in the heat. I especially LOVE wearing Rayon (which is actually synthetic) in the summer because it absorbs more liquid than cotton and tends to stay cool in humid weather. I actually wore a cotton skirt and rayon top when we were in Alabama (in this post here) and was outside for 3 straight hours and felt perfectly comfortable.  
3. Loose Fit - Loose fabrics and styles of clothes are so much cooler than fitted pieces! I have a ton of dresses that I love to wear in the summer but many of them have fitted bodices and often can be quite hot. However, when I wear loose dresses or tops, like the top above in this post (which is also cotton) I am always very comfortable and cool. 
4. Sleeveless - I am not one to wear spaghetti strap tops, but I don't mind straps that are two inches or more and often make many of my summer dresses without sleeves. Sleeves are restrictive in the heat, thus removing them not only makes your feel more comfortable and mobile, but also lets your arms breath. 
5. Light Colors - Don't wear black or dark colors! I like to wear neutral colors in the summer sometimes, but I have found that when I wear darker colors they absorb more heat and thus make me feel hot. I often times wear white shirts and blouses frequently in the summer because white reflects more light and keeps me cool. After all, summer in the perfect time to wear your bright and light colors so why not take advantage of it. 
6. It's Okay To Wear Shorts - I am the person who would avoid shorts at most costs because I don't always think they fit my style very well, unlike skirts that encompass who I am. However, when I know that the day will be hot and I will be outside for a good amount of time I give in and pull out my shorts (that I always DIY from thrifted jeans). Now mind you, I don't pull out "short shorts"..... the length won't affect your coolness much so no need sacrificing modestly for comfort. 
7. Hair Up - I hate wearing my hair up....like I really hate it (I don't like how it looks). At home I wear my hair up only because I am always in "comfy clothes" but when I go out I always like to wear my hair down or half up. However, with my hair now growing out it can be quite hot wearing it down in the summer time. Thus, I sometimes give in and put my hair up in a pony tail, braids, or my new favorite bubble braid. Having your hair off your neck truly makes all the difference. 
8. Open Toed Shoes - You know in the summer when you have to sleep with your feet peaking out of your comforter so that you can be cooler to sleep? The same idea/theory goes into play when going out in the heat, letting your feet breath in sandals or open toes shoes keeps you cool. When we cover our feet it warms our body (like putting on socks in the winter), thus keeping them open to the air is our bodies air conditioning in the summer (kind of).

Do you utilize any of these cool strategies in the summer?

What summer dressing strategies work to keep you cool?

-Madison