sparkles and sundresses

lilly pulitzer spring 2011...i. DIE!!

2011-02-16T03:02:00.000-08:00

oh lordy...

officially cannot wait for summer.

blossom dress printed, $178

dolly dress embroidered, $268

emma dress eyelet, $268

jacqueline dress embroidered, $268

jacqueline dress novelty lace, $268

keetan dress printed, $198

shauna dress embroidered, $278

teresa dress eyelet, $398

tiernan dress printed, $298

I KNOW. you don't have to tell me, you're dying, too.

it may be february, but i'm quickly approaching spring fever!

xx,

alanna

short summer sundresses...you know you love!!

2011-02-10T02:25:00.000-08:00

so obviously, it's the dead of winter in Newport, R.I., and I should be studying.

instead, i've been clued into the fact that Abercrombie has some pretty darn cute summer dresses out!

i mention it to a friend, and she says, "who shops at Abercrombie anymore?"

obviously, i remind her that i do.

and that she quite recently made a comment on a facebook photo deMANDing to borrow a dress (which, clearly, she didn't know was Abercrombie).

i rest my case.

that being said, i clearly have no problem heading over to Abercrombie's less-popular, lesser known little sister: Hollister.

and, as per usual, i fall in love:

here's where you see my economical craftiness - look @ their big sisters from A + F:

now honestly, the prices are comparable - ranging from $39.50 to $68, so you know i'll probably order a majority of the dresses and ship back the ones i don't like/are too short, but for now, i just need to blog about them and covet, covet, covet!

especially because you know in newport, we're all wearing this:

xx,
alanna

Operation: Not the Fat Friend (ONTFF)

2011-01-19T09:40:00.000-08:00

so, occasionally my girlfriends and i go on the crazy-person type diet and workout plans. none of us are super overweight (in my opinion) but living in San Diego, it's hard not to feel insecure sometimes!

Thus, we developed ONTFF -

Operation Not the Fat Friend

ONTFF propelled me through deployment, encouraging me not to succumb to the temptations of the Wardroom (Officers' dining room), vending machines or ship's store.

ONTFF helped me beat out post-breakup blues and get more fit instead.

Now, I'm calling on ONTFF to keep me from sitting here and binging on Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches during these two months in freezing Rhode Island, and to instead inspire me to start a sick 2011 workout plan.

"thin" spiration?

these pictures:


What I Currently Look Like - New Year's Eve 2010. Definitely not the worst I've ever been, but pretty unacceptable. I mean, I'm 24! Why aren't I enjoying the last time in my life my body will actively respond to diet and exercise?


What I looked like when I returned from deployment - April 2010. Certainly an acceptable weight for my body, but I was still self-conscious in some outfits.

Goal Weight! What I looked like prior to deployment, in Las Vegas - slender, toned, and HAPPY!


Goal Weight again! Clearly I've been eating - not too skinny, but much more toned!

jersey shore & skins...and life as we know it

2011-01-17T19:52:00.000-08:00

so people may disagree with me, but i love me some jersey shore. i know it's embarrassing and not something i should admit, but everyone is so down to earth and real that you can't help but admire the audacity.

let's be serious.

the reason i actually love jersey shore so much is the animal print and big hair.

it's EVERYWHERE.

it was totally the inspiration for my new haircut!

AND

for the fact that i went out with one of my friends last night, and we were talking about our love for animal print. she was like, i'm wearing zebra print undies!

WELL

I WAS TOO! we were wearing the same flipping underwear! i'm telling you, jersey shore is a phenomenon!

[disclaimer: trip, stop reading this]

i'm also currently watching Skins, the new show on MTV, and it. is. ridiculous. think gossip girl, but wayyy trashier. i don't know if i'll keep watching it because unlike gg, i have no urge to emulate annnything these people are doing. annnd their lead character is no chace crawford, seriously. he's definitely cute but his baby face doesn't make his power over women nearly as convincing...give him a few years, i guess.

(he's the shirtless kid in the front)

see my point?

xx,

alanna

yay-I JUST BOUGHT MY FIRST HOME!

2011-01-12T10:04:00.000-08:00

i know! the day has finally come and i have finally closed on my first home - a condo in a beautiful gated complex right next to the river and the trolley tracks and between two fantastic malls! i couldn't be happier!

stats:

2br/2ba

1 car garage

balcony

fireplace

...i could go on and on! so excited! click to enlarge any of the photos if you so desire :)

so happy....for San Diego, this condo was a steal! it's also newer and i bought it before April, so I get the 8k tax credit!
p.s. because I am military and deployed during a certain period, it is extended till April 2011 in case anyone was wondering :)
p.p.s. this is the staged furniture, it is not mine...and i am going to repaint the red in the master bedroom because i don't do red haha

xx,

alanna

2011 has the BEST music!

2011-01-11T21:01:00.000-08:00

so bummed that i haven't been posting in the past few months...it's been a whirlwind, with Vegas for Thanksgiving,

- elevator photos on the way to a fully comped dinner @ Beso - DEFINITELY eat there if you get the chance, and get their macaroni and cheese and bread pudding!-

- the whole group, on the way to the bank @ bellagio - comped table for the girls! -

- trip and I on the way to see LOVE, the Cirque du Soleil show! -

the free VH1 Diva's Present Salute the Troops Concert with Katy Perry, Keri Hilson, Niki Minaj, etc.

- She definitely sings live! It was interesting to see what songs the Divas sang twice because it was being recorded for TV -

Skiing in Utah for Christmas with the family + Trip + friends...one whole week, all those people and no injuries!

- isn't it STUNNING? this is Powder Mountain, Utah -

and spending New Year's in Northern VA with my friends from high school and my fab boyfriend

- amazing group of friends still in the area from high school! -

- midnight shots with friends and the boyfriend...look at what a wimp he is! -

- the happy couple! -

now I'm in Rhode Island for school until March, and it's FREEZING!

fortunately, I have the amazing Britney Spears' Hold it Against Me:

Avril Lavigne's What the Hell:

and Rihanna's S&M to keep me warm during the snow day tomorrow!

xx,
alanna

25% off Stella + Dot? It IS a Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-25T18:15:00.000-08:00

happy thanksgiving, my little turkeys!

so glad to be able to offer you guys this opportunity - just visit www.stelladot.com/alannastrei

order whatever strikes your fancy,

and the most expensive item will be 25% off!

xx,

seasonally appropriate indian princess alanna

p.s. what i'm thankful for?
my fellow service-members, underway, overseas and standing duty!

halloween and cashmere

2010-11-03T14:07:00.000-07:00

Halloween was, of course, fun. Friday night we went bowling downtown for a friend of a friend's surprise party. We went to a large party at the VFW (it was just as classy as it sounds) on Saturday night and then I Lilly'ed on Sunday, so Trip and I went to see that Katherine Heigl/Josh Duhamel movie - 'life as we know it', I believe. It was pretty good! Definitely a romantic comedy, so pretty predictable, but very heartwarming :) It's our 6 month anniversary on Sunday but I have duty, so we have a busy/romantic Saturday planned! Yay!

Halloween: Me, Becky and Christina as german beer girls

Today, I decided to replace my windshield wiper blades as I haven't had any in months (fortunately, in San Diego, you can do that...not bragging, just saying. okay, I am bragging. it's 88 and sunny today, Nov. 3...of course, McDonalds is more expensive than anywhere in the country and it costs 11.25 to see a movie, so I think I'm paying for all this sunshine somehow...). Anyways, unfortunately, while I could remove the old blades, I cannot figure out how to put the new ones on. Score: Wiperblades: 1, Alanna: 0. Hopefully it doesn't decide to start raining :/

As a shocking aside, I have not lost any weight and am still hovering around that stupid effing 150 mark I've been hovering around for months. I don't want to be content with it but Trip is a foodie too and we are always going new places and ordering amazing things...Bloody Mary brunch at Crabcatcher's and then dinner at the Melting Pot is sure not to help my case on Saturday - but at least we are going kayaking in La Jolla Cove beforehand!

I'm totally crushing on this Lilly Pulitzer Katherine cashmere cableknit sweater for this winter (we got samples in the store before resort came out and it's delightfully long with a fairly deep v-neck so I really liked it). The sample was in lavender and I loved it, so I know I'll be getting that one. Unfortunately, they also have three shades of blue and I don't know which I want - turquoise, skye blue, or shorely blue! Halp!!

Lavender - already definitely getting it...it's almost like periwinkle, so pretty!

From left to right: Turquoise, Shorely Blue, Skye Blue

How am I supposed to choose?!

I'm also considering getting a Babs...our manager, Sami, has one in black, and she wears it tossed over her shoulder and it looks so elegant! You know me though...I'd go for this one:

and the most important thing I've done recently?

I cut up one of my credit cards!

Wooo, on the road to debt free living!

xx,

alanna

denise richards-srsly!?, lilly resort 2011!!! and Cabo

2010-10-28T13:17:00.000-07:00

First things first...we all made it back from Cabo alive and well!

We didn't get particularly tan as we spent every port visit drinking, but c'est la vie. Especially because if you look at the Denise Richards photos below you'll see that the power of botox far outweighs the power of a good tan.

Becky and I - the original two!

the staff of Billygan's and the four winners of a free round of drinks, and then, courtesy of Rachel and her booty-shaking bikini contest abilities, a free round of shots!

Christina, myself and Rachel!

Okay, back to my botox/Denise Richards reference:

[images courtesy of http://www.thesuperficial.com/]

how the hell is this humanly possible?! she looks freaking amazing! Yes she looks botoxed, but SUCH a good job...booking next appointment in 3...2...1....

Finallllly, Lilly Pulitzer Resort 2011 first shipment is at Lilly Pulitzer Fashion Valley! Some of it is SO cute and while all of the cuts aren't particularly my thing, the prints are DEFINITELY gorgeous so I'm going to end up with a few pieces...probably for sure the new Adelson in this gorgeous coral-y pink, a Cassie Slub (or 3!) and another one of those "Large Tote" bags that I use ALL the time. My current one is the Sea and Be Seen Large Tote, which is on sale right now at Zappos! I really like mine!

The one I currently have is on the left; the new resort one I will soon own is trimmed with gold sparkly handles and is super cute as well!

And now, via C. Orrico who have kindly already put up their Resort 2010 first shipment photos, here are just a few of the pretty pieces I'm looking forward to:

[all images courtesy of www.corrico.com]

From Left to Right - Cassie Slub, Adelson, Connie, Jillie, Adalie
Cassie Slub - I am minorly obsessed with. Imagine the belt/shoe possibilities - skinny belt, wide belt, heels, wedged boots, over the knee boots...
Adelson - They're making it in a coral-y pink that's just stunning. As my co-worker said (she was not as pleased about this as I was), it's "a little bit neon". yAy!
Connie - We'll see when we can try it on...but I like that print.
Jillie - Hopefully it doesn't actually look like a maternity dress and it's just because the model is so thin! The dress looks beautiful and like it has *so* much potential.
Adalie - my always favorite...the best wrap dress ever that I blogged about only a few months ago. I don't really like that print (at. all.) but I'm sure they'll be doing it in others.

Check out their site for more images as they're added!

Finally, a few more pics from the Sophie Pyle Style Blog and the amazing new Lilly Pulitzer Furniture Line:

Can't wait! Happy Halloween!

xx,

alanna

Lilly FURNITURE!! ...and stupid halloween candy

2010-10-18T16:50:00.000-07:00

one fun-sized snickers has 72 calories. seventy. two.

that doesn't sound so fun anymore, does it?

looking forward to fall and winter now - going on a cruise on friday, las vegas for thanksgiving, and skiing with the family (and trip!) for christmas. i *WISH* i could show you girls all the new Lilly things for resort - they. are. amazing. first shipment is on the 25th!

instead i leave you with these images of the new Lilly Pulitzer FURNITURE line from the Sophie Pyle Style Blog...SO excited!

Sooo...OBSSESSED with that kitchen table and the bed! The green and white striped couch is UBER cute as well...and the inside of that media display? I die...

It's all a little like the amazing Coastal Living furniture, and probably at the same price point :-/

I will probably be starting a Lilly Pulitzer Fashion Valley blog for the store soon, with updates and news flashes and getting to know you's and opportunities for people to participate by sending in photos of you loving your Lilly! So psyched!

an ode to things I love...this may get mushy.

2010-09-17T10:25:00.000-07:00

I can't get over how much I genuinely love things when I love them. I write them love sonnets in my head, think about them before I go to sleep or while I'm driving or having a conversation with someone boring. I think about them when I'm doing something that's a subpar subsitute for whatever it is I love, I think about them while I'm with/doing/eating other things I love...basically, once you worm your way into my heart, you're there for good. That being said, here comes the list:

I love:

1) Pretzel M+M's

they're sweet. they're salty. you can crunch them or you can suck on them till you get the pretzel. the bags are plastic-y, not paper-y, and oh by the way...a whole bag is only 150 calories!!

2) Lean Cuisines

Image Courtesy of: http://www.notmike.com

Okay, so this isn't my freezer (it basically was in college!). Mine has one half filled with frozen dinners, and the other half filled with bags of frozen vegetables. I love LC's for a million reasons: the assorted varieties (there are SO. MANY. and there are always new ones!), the ease and convenience, the pre-portioned calorie count-ability, and most importantly, the FLAVOR! i feel like i'm going out to eat at every single meal, because I can eat exactly what I would order at a restaurant but not feel too full. My only gripe with them used to be the price, which brings me to my next love:

3) The COMMISSARY

image courtesy of: http://cache.daylife.com

No, that's not me, and I'm not even sure if it's my Commissary, but that is a great example of the ridiculous size and scope of the Commissary. I wish I had thought to save my last receipt and scan it for you, but the prices are ludicrously low. Bags of frozen vegetables go on sale for 2 for $5 at Ralph's, a local grocery store. At the Commissary, they are always around $1.37. Why do I know the exact price? BECAUSE THE COMMISSARY DOESN'T CHARGE TAX. i rest my case.

4) My car

It's a white 2007 VW Jetta Wolfsburg Edition...meaning it has everything I want in a car with the insurance of a much less well equipped vehicle. Heated light-colored (a must in sunny San Diego!) leather seats, sunroof, huuuuge trunk space...this car could not make me happier if it tried.

5) Crystal Light Individual Packets + my Camelbak Water Bottle

I know it says to mix them with a 16 oz. bottle of water, but my Camelbak is 24 oz. and those things are still crazy potent. I drink more water (and consequently use the bathroom more - I consider it fair given how long people's smoke breaks take) than anyone I know. I have been at work for less than three hours and I'm on my 3rd bottle. I have four Camelbaks (in different colors, obvi) because I have ones that I don't mind carrying around in uniform (navy blue and kind of a slate gray) and ones that are way more fun for the gym and Lilly (pink and green, of course). SO happy!

6) My Boyfriend!

Can you blame me?

xx,

alanna

Disney Princess Half-Marathon/Lilly RESORT 2011!

2010-09-14T12:58:00.000-07:00

I cannot even tell you which I'm more excited for. We got the Lilly Pulitzer Resort 2011 linebook in yesterday and I spent a SOLID three hours flipping through. Every single delivery is full of GORGEOUS pieces, from dresses to Murfee scarves to wedges! the prints are just beautiful - so many aquas and turquoises, and, of course...pink! i can't wait until the first shipment comes in...fall, i'm so over you and it's only halfway through September!

And now, onto the Disney Princess Half Marathon...

competition begins in: 163 days, 12 hours and 20 minutes. I, personally, have only ever completed a 5k, and that was on a treadmill, during deployment. Regardless, I think that I can do this, especially with Trip leaving for Pakistan for a year and my work schedule being less taxing than it used to be. therefore, i can be...this:

photo credit: http://www.disneyprincesshalfmarathon.com/

So using my trusty 'how to run a half-marathon' guide from Self magazine, I've started my 'training'. Fortunately, it starts with 'how to run a 5k', which, frankly, is just what I need. The good thing is that there's all sorts of different work outs - some days, it's strength training, some days, it's a Speed 1 workout (warm up for a mile, sprint half a mile, walk half a mile, sprint half a mile, cool down half a mile), and some days, it's my favorite: rest!

photo credit: http://www.nataliedee.com/

on an entirely more boring and unrelated note, i haven't lost any weight and in fact, gained two pounds because of Trip and I's Cabo vacation. Fabulous. Hopefully this training will help that out, because Lord knows that my coming to terms with the fact that I am really really loving this whole eating meat while sober and in front of people thing, combined with the fact that Trip has decided (get this) he is going to eat everything he may possibly miss while he is in Pakistan, I have had wayyy too much access to delicious food.

I'm not going to post my weight, but suffice it to say that I'm getting kind of close to not being able to ride my dream water vehicle anymore:

photo credit: www.skymall.com

the SkyMall Children's Inflatable Sea Doo.

The closest I will probably get to owning a jet-ski, this puppy maxes out at 155 pounds, but at only $199, it's a reasonable investment for a San Diego resident, concur?

speaking of reasonable investments, I've finally learned to accept the fact that there is no employee discount for this desirable land-transporter:

photo credit: www.lillypulitzer.com

Looks like it's a good thing I'm working on my running, since I won't be able to get around any other way!

jessica simpson, no0o0o0o0o... + lilly pulitzer fall

2010-09-13T11:14:00.000-07:00

i know, i've been MIA for entirely too long. way too much vacation + new job at public affairs + less income = less blogging. but fear not, y'all, cause trip is leaving for pakistan and i am going to have entirely too much time on my hands very soon.

first things first:

jessica simpson?

photo credit: http://www.wwtdd.com/

why?? and yes, i understand the other photos in the article do show off that her legs are still very toned, but that dress? with her curves? i don't think i've seen a worse fashion misstep since...lady gaga's meat dress:

sick.

i'm sorry i did that to your eyes. to make up for it, i offer you my personal, full, must-buy recommendation from lilly pulitzer fall:

the adalie wrap dress.

if they made this dress in one million prints, i would buy every. single. one. and at only $148, i wouldn't even be in serious debt! i am not lying, this FLEW out of our store so quickly that some of the girls that work there didn't get one! i have worn this to an interview, to a rehearsal dinner, AND to a hail and farewell...talk about versatile!

i also picked up this adorable (and very reasonably priced) shift:

but this is what i'm really excited for:

the shauna tunic engineered...i just looove dresses with sleeves for winter, and this one is still really fun. we're not getting it at fashion valley, so we'll have to see if my dedication leads me to order it from another store...

Rihanna, drinking for thirty years and shopping for 23

2010-07-28T15:39:00.000-07:00

hey girls! (and boys, although i think that probably only applies to trip)

it's been a whirlwind last two weeks. two of my best friends from high school flew out to visit, so you know i had to show them a good time, right? we drank our way through thirty years, hitting up an '80's bar crawl, a "'90's house party" (at a bar) and, of course, going out in normal clothes ONCE just so we encompassed the '00's. we lost one of my best friends the second night, and waking up in the morning, i called the bar where we last saw her, but i was still pretty out of it so my message sounded a little like this:

"uh, hi! this is alanna! we lost my best friend last night?

[giggles]

her name is judy! she is 4'11 and she was wearing '80's gear!!

[giggles for about two minutes]

call me if you find her!! she is very nice so maybe she is still there!! see you in a few hours!"

appropriate, given the severity of the situation, huh? well, we of course checked facebook and little judy had managed to get online and message me to tell me that her phone was lost, her purse was soaked as she had decided to mermaid it up in the pacific ocean, and her side pony was just all out of wack. we picked her up from her new location (seriously thirty minutes away...girl must have been on some adventures) and proceeded to make our 1115 champagne brunch reservations...

oh, that's '80's and '00's, you ask? [and yes, the second photo is 00's...despite the psychedelic pattern, it's a Trina Turk '10 swimsuit coverup that happens to make a fab sundress] what happened to '90's? obviously judy forgot her camera cord and she can't upload them!! that's what 96 hours straight of drinking through 30 years of clothing does to you!

i also wanted to update y'all on my couch...SO, after it wouldn't fit (see last post) and i listed it on craigslist, i came home to find the entire structure of it gone. fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it) i still had the cushions in my apartment. thus, i give you, the uncouch-couch:

hilarious, eh?

other than that, things have been going well.

Rihanna and the rest of the big stars for the new movie Battleship made a visit to the USS Stockdale yesterday and a couple guys from my office got to go photograph it - having seen the 'before' photos (unretouched), Rihanna is really. freaking. pretty. girl has no blemishes whatsoever, and her skin naturally looks airbrushed.

becky (http://www.happinessisaprivateship.blogspot.com/) gets back on friday so i'm looking forward to another antics filled weekend!

xoxo!

P.S.
there's a $50 Chili's Gift Card giveaway at http://www.theundomesticmomma.com/ !

frickin' couch. and lilly with kkg!

2010-07-12T12:07:00.000-07:00

my couch:

is currently stuck somewhere in my apartment complex. after acting like a friends episode and trying to get it up the stairs, in the elevator, over the balcony, and through the roof (ok, the last two were suggested by a drunk guy walking by), i finally just listed the poor thing on ebay. $1599 (BEFORE TAX) and nothing to show for it but a year's worth of storage unit bills, i'm finally giving up.

on a better note, Trip and I booked a trip to Mexico! we'll be staying at an all-inclusive resort in the end of August, prior to his sister's wedding!

finally, and the best news - here's the flier for the new Lilly Pulitzer Kappa Kappa Gamma gear, coming out for fall:

love it!

also, after personally drinking what added up to two bottles of wine yesterday, i am ~~proud~~ ~~disappointed~~ okay with saying that my Monday morning weigh in was the exact same as last week's. now that i have a big, sexy vacation to plan for, though, i think it'll be easier to stay on plan!

have a fab week, y'all!

WW steals, Brazilian Blowout and Wine Tasting

2010-07-07T12:04:00.000-07:00

First things first...after one week on Weight Watchers, I lost four pounds. Kind of scary to realize how much I had to be eating before, huh? Since then we've had a major holiday weekend (including a wine tasting trip), and because I didn't have to go into work on Monday, I didn't get a chance to weigh myself. This past week could have been detrimental, but hopefully it was more like a maintenance week.

For those of you who made sweet Weight Watchers comments, thank you! BUT I will show you exACTLY why i'm back on the WW:

the gut!!!!!

that did not used to be there, and now it's out of control, even when i'm sucking in!

off topic break: speaking of which, that's an example of some post Brazilian Blowout hair...the significant part about the BB is that I expected to have Nicole Richie/Lindsay Lohan loose ringlets in shiny hair when I was all done [just air dried], and that is NOT the case. The good part about it [that I'm extremely glad about] is that it takes SO much less time to blow dry and I don't need to flat iron it anymore. I still can, and then it looks just amazing, but i can also spend just 15-20 minutes blowing it out and look like I spent my normal hour flat-ironing and blow drying! //end of off topic break

The good thing is, at my new job, there aren't a lot of opportunities to snack unless you bring your own food. when I was on the ship, the vending machines were always stocked, I had drawers of granola bars and popcorn, and there was always cereal, donuts and other snackies down in the Wardroom (kind of like a communal kitchen/dining area for Officers). Here, I get to experiment with my own bring snackies with no alternative temptations! hence, i give you:

Alanna's Greatest Weight Watchers Finds

(so far)

Flatout Multigrain Wraps = 1 point. Amazing microwaved, toasted, room temperature, wrapped around lettuce, spread with a Laughing Cow Light Cheese Wedge, filled with roasted peppers...pick your favorites and fill it, or broil it in the oven, coat with spray butter and crushed garlic and enjoy your pita chips! With 8 grams of fiber, it's crazy filling, too!
Kraft Singles 2% Reduced Fat Pepper Jack Cheese = 1 point. I know I've already told y'all about this, but I am OBSESSED with this stupid cheese! It is so incredibly flavorful!
Gardenburger Sun-Dried Tomato and Basil Veggie Burgers = 1 point. Just as good as they sound, and there's cheese pieces inside that melt out and keep the patty from getting too dry in the microwave.

i combined all of the above with romaine lettuce and spring mix, two roasted yellow pepper slices (they're ~5-15 calories each depending on the brand, I get mine from Trader Joe's) and a few spritzes of Balsamic Vinagrette spray salad dressing for a THREE POINT MEAL that was INCREDIBLY filling!

now, back to the list:

Raita. At 25 calories for a 2 tbsp. serving, it is one of the best dips/dressings/spreads I've found, especially because it is creamy and delicious, not runny and gross like some of those other low calorie dips. I get mine at Trader Joe's and love to dip baby carrots and sugar snap peas in it!
Thomas's 100 calorie English Muffins = 1 point. Once again, I've already extolled their virtues and you know it, but really, seriously? Get the cheese from 3 bullets up, split the muffin, spray with I Can't Believe It's Not Butter and nuke for 20 seconds. You. Will. Die.

Alanna's Most Disappointing Weight Watchers Find:

(thus far)

Pirate's Booty = 3 points for a 1 oz. serving! So disappointing, because 1 oz. is only 140 calories, so i thought I was fine until I entered the nutrition facts into my handy little point calculator. No luck, my friends - because of it's relatively high fat content and zero grams of fiber, Pirate's Booty is a Weight Watchers letdown.

I'll leave y'all with a group photo of us wine tasting - I'm standing [bending over] in front of Trip (we think he may have been tickling/grabbing me, or that I was trying to get out of the way of Barnyard, the guy in the wig behind me). I'm in the Lilly Bowen I told y'all I wanted - I know, I know, I haven't lost the ten pounds, but what other opportunity to legitimately wear intense Lilly's in public is better than wine tasting? I'll probably be wearing one to Opening Day at Del Mar as well!

ETA: here's my submission for pink and green thursday!!

over on pink preppy lilly lover! i know it's supposed to be pastels but...i couldn't resist!

weight watchers and margaritaville

2010-06-22T22:45:00.000-07:00

so after reading this inspiring post over on Puttin' On The Grits, i decided to go back to my good old friend...Weight Watchers. i've never been very good at doing WW, but since you guys know that i'm moving into my own place now i really need to branch out with ways that i keep myself entertained, and one of these may just be COOKING. i know, i know...my success with burning down microwaves (melted two in one year...le sigh) does not bode well for the future of my apartment complex. regardless. i think a great thing about both joining weight watchers and living alone will be that i will have a lot more reason to cook and fewer reasons to depend on processed/frozen foods like i usually do. based on the height and weight that i entered in (which are from my last weigh in, and i said my height was 5'7 even though i keep measuring in at 5'8 during weigh ins at work) i get 22 points a day and 35 extra (flex points) a week. today, i ate:

breakfast: my delicious english muffin and one slice of kraft 2% reduced fat cheese = 2.25 points (calculated as one englsih muffin is 1 point and two slices of cheese are 2.5 points. during the day i consumed two slices of cheese on two separate english muffins, hence the quarter point possibility)

snack: another one. ha. they're irresistable. = 2.25 points

lunch: smart ones english muffin sandwich = 4 points

morningstar farms asian veggie pattie = 2 points

snack: clif mojo trail mix bar = 4 points (this was unfortunately a fairly poor choice because the high fat content means that a 180 calorie bar has as many points as something else a lot larger/more filling)

dinner: rubio's roasted veggie salad (i had them put the dressing on the side and only dipped my fork into it as opposed to actually dressing it...i also subbed shrimp for chicken but assume the calorie/points value is fairly similar) = 6 points

100 calorie pack of popcorn = 1 point

dessert: mcdonald's ice cream cone! = 3 points

so! this puts me at 22 points plus 2.5 flex points for the day, and i'm *so* full!

and also, quite honestly, another inspiration for this cooking obsession (i was obviously at work all day so i couldn't cook at all unfortunately) has partially been my best friend and old roommate (well, 'old' come july 1), becky! her blog is full of exciting recipe experiments and she's a recent vegan, so they're all very healthy.

guess what i got!!!!!!!!!!!!

the key west margaritaville margarita maker!! it can make 1, 2, or 3 servings, and because the ice is shaved, not chopped (like a blender), it makes beYOND restaurant quality beverages!! I WAS SO EXCITED I BOUGHT TWO!! i got the bahamas margaritaville margarita maker for my parents as a christmas present, but i was so freaking excited i couldn't resist calling my mom and telling her and insisting that she and dadsy accept an early gift. after all, who wants a margarita maker in December?!

best news ever - my brazilian blowout appointment is for 4pm tomorrow, so i should be able to post pictures and a review by thursday or friday! i think i'll wait till friday because i close at lilly on thursday and i really want to find out which sororities are doing the totes and scarves so i can tell y'all!

i have a super fun rest of the week planned - hair appointment at four tomorrow, trainer appointment at 630 (i wonder if bob will be mad when i clearly don't have any interest in sweating?), lilly on thursday, boyf's work party on friday afternoon, saturday we'll probably go to the san diego fair (free tickets!) with his friends, sunday pool day at the new complex with the girls...love san diego summer! can't wait to take pics of my new place btw - y'all will LOVE!

xoxo!

kate spade, letterpress, and lilly

2010-06-15T14:51:00.000-07:00

first things first, i'm still fat. seriously tyra banks style, "dear diary, i'm fat. sparkles!".

that being said, i am starting to realize that while i have these great diet plans i'm REALLY not following them, especially when i drink. [cue taco bell fourth meal on sunday night. really? i'm surprised i'm not losing weight? really?] other problem, of course, is that i don't actually hate the way (i just typed weigh...this is definitely on my mind) i look, i just hate the numbers on the scale - i know, i could stop weighing myself, but that's how i get into these gradual weight gain messes. ANYWAYS, it's June 15th and i live in San Diego. i'm going to have to stop avoiding bikini season sometime, so i think ten pounds by Independence Day is reasonable, non?

okay, all that is out of the way (have i ever posted NOT regarding weight? i don't think so)...

i'm so excited because i've decided to get my own little one bedroom apartment! this means not only will i be spending buckets of money on clothing (because obviously i'll lose those ten pounds now that i've given myself a timeline, right? ha.) i'll be spending money on HOME GOODS!! i can't wait to share!

speaking of which, i've been looking at some art for my little apartment and i'm really fixated on letterpress things off Etsy...check these out:

(1) la vie en rose by sycamorestreetpress

(2) champagne by dearcolleen

(3) sunshine by inkpetals

the problem is, of course, that they're all so distinctly different and with such unique styles, and my color palette is definitely seaglass blues and greens, not pinks and yellows. if anything my kitchen palette has the brightest colors but i just don't think the sunshine and the champagne print belong on the same wall, and with so few walls i'd hate to pick one over the other! obviously this will take serious contemplation and the purchase of multiple other images i like "almost" as much until i finally suck it up, buy both of them and figure out how to make them work.

don't worry girls, i'll get that lilly answer on the sororities (i know delta delta delta is another one, i remember that one because it's my best friend emma's sorority) as soon as we get back from this ammunition offload we're doing (should be this weekend) - can't wait to tell y'all and sneak you some early pics if i get any!

outfits i haven't been able to resist (since you know i haven't been buying dresses..fortunately skirts and tops don't count). i wore the avery skirt smaller, tighter and shorter over a white tank top and chunky wood Michael Kors heels and i wore the roe top over white ankle length capris with spaghetti strap mckims:

and yes, i bought both of them in white do the wave...definitely one of my favorite prints for the summer.

and lastly, i started cleaning out the cupboards in preparation for my big move and remembered i had these cans of soup and snack bars:

review? campbell's select harvest full cans are only 100 calories! i don't know about you but an entire can of soup for 100 calories is such a pleasant surprise. the soups are totally delicious and filling (i've done the southwestern style vegetable and the italian vegetable).

fullbars, on the other hand...

seriously, they taste like cardboard. and i LIKE things that taste like styrofoam (Pirate's Booty, anyone?) but these things genuinely taste like chewy cardboard. the problem? they work. i had one at 1130 because i was starting to get hungry and had a bottle of water (they recommend 8 oz., i went with 24...God bless you, camelbak water bottle) at the same time, and i seriously did not THINK about food until twenty minutes ago (about 230), when i decided to eat my soup.

so unfortunately, given their TERRIBLE grade for mouth feel, i think these may become a new staple.

don't forget to check out the kate spade sample sale, btw! not as good as last time jewelry wise, in my opinion, but there are quite a few bags.

i am booking my brazilian blowout for next week - can't wait to show you before and after pictures!

Lilly goes Greek and Boatman Geller Tent Sale!

2010-06-08T16:26:00.000-07:00

heyyyy guys,

so still iPad-less, which is annoying. but more excitingly, here is a cutie photo of trip and i - yesterday was our one month anniversary and he magically happened to get me my favorite flowers (which he didn't even know)! see?! i told you he was a keeper ;)

SO anways, now that we have that out of the way...

there is a freaking BOATMAN GELLER tent sale on stationary right now! remember my love for BG from this post?

yes, amazing...race on over there (there's a link on my sidebar) and partake in the madness!

and so excited...i just planned my stella and dot launch party for July 1!

if you live in the san diego area, comment me for an invite!

so P.S., still seriously thinking about the Brazilian Blowout, and with all y'all's supportive and helpful comments i think it's gonna be a go - just gonna have to wait for my first Lilly paycheck! speaking of which, you guys would die if you saw all the stuff i've bought to avoid my "can't buy a dress till i'm back to normal weight" rule! although good news...five pounds down, five pounds to go!

Finally, i'm not sure if this is supposed to be a surprise or not, but guess what Lilly Pulitzer is doing for Fall?

SORORITY SCARVES AND TOTES!

YES. there will be a Kappa Kappa Gamma tote and scarf adorning every single one of my sisters if i have anything to do with it! They're doing five other sororities as well - if you're interested i can write down which ones and post them! SO. EXCITED!

xx!

YOU read my blog?! OH. no.

2010-05-31T10:38:00.000-07:00

so don't worry, this will be a photo filled post eventually. BUT first, MAJOR. DISASTER. so trip and i are at pbsc, drinking these:

and hanging out with our buds. meanwhile, i am wearing this:

(if you're interested in stealing my style, that's the Stella and Dot Palm Necklace with Starfish, Lilly Pulitzer Olette Top and Stella and Dot Starfish Earrings - click on any to order, or call Lilly Pulitzer Fashion Valley and ask for Alanna - free shipping!), and i turned to trip and said, i know i'm really matchy-matchy right now! and he said, that's okay, i know you've been trying to accessorize more...

does this sound familiar!? ya, maybe because of THIS POST from over a month ago! so i said, how did you know that? i didn't tell anyone that...and he said, well, i, well, maybe...HE'S BEEN READING MY BLOG SINCE JANUARY! (hi, hun.) SINCE. JANUARY. that means not only does he know HOW much i weigh, he's been getting WEEKLY UPDATES!

so. speaking of which, after drinking three of these yesterday:

(they were good but a little too sweet)

it's time to get back on the "around" 1200 calorie a day diet. thus, i give you today's plan:

breakfast: (210c.) Weigh Watcher's Smart Ones Egg and Cheese English Muffin Sandwich - SO good and a staple in my diet - they're better than the ones from McDonald's!

snack: (70c.) container of blackberries - six oz. and a (60c.) Frigo Cheese Heads Light String Cheese

lunch: (60c.) Granny Smith Apple w/ (35c.) Light Laughing Cow Cheese Wedge and (100c.) Thomas' Better Start High Fiber English Muffin with a slice of (45c.) Kraft Singles 2% Milk Pepper Jack Cheese - as previously mentioned, tastes like delicious and incredible grilled cheese.

snack: (90c.) 2 slices of Sara Lee De-Lightful bread w/ I Can't Believe It's Not Butter Spray and Garlic Salt - basically the only low calorie way to eat 'garlic bread'

dinner: (115c.) Steam Fresh Frozen Vegetables-Cauliflower and Broccoli w/ (40c.) 4 tbsp. of Mango Salsa

dessert/dinner extended: (250c.) 10oz. fat-free frozen yogurt from Fiji Yogurt

with this menu, I still have 125 calories to play around with before i hit 1200 - so if i want a FiberOne Bar or maybe a FullBar, no big deal! ETA: Okay, ate the extra 125 calories at lunch...definitely had half of a chocolate frosted cake donut (180c.) and some cauliflower (53c.). i would say oops, but...that's life - sounds like i'll only be getting 8 oz of frozen yogurt, and no cheese with my apple now! Now, as always, let's see if I actually stick to this...i really want to start buying these:

[all images courtesy of Lilly Pulitzer]

so that means that i need to stop doing this:

P.S. I am waitlisted for the iPad - I'll tell y'all if it ever shows up!

P.P.S. has anyone heard of Brazilian Blowout / does anyone know anyone who's gotten it? I'm tempted but at $275 a hit I don't know if it's worth it...

Glamour Brazilian Blowout Article

Studio 33 Week by Week Comparison

and here's a fun glass straw giveaway @ Fashion Meets Food:
http://www.fashionmeetsfood.com/2010/05/glassdharma-giveaway.html
and a Cid Pear card giveaway at Kitchen Belleicious:
http://kitchenbelleicious.blogspot.com/2010/05/giveaway-you-wont-believe-your-eyes.html
and Southern Living: Preppy Style's Kate Puck Jewelry Giveaway:
http://www.slpreppystyle.com/2010/05/lallie-and-kate-puck-jewelry-giveway.html

yummy diet foods on a 1200c./day diet, la-la-la-lilly and my groupon obsession

2010-05-26T11:20:00.000-07:00

so i don't know if y'all have groupon in your area, but if you do you should DEFINITELY check it out. here's the link for the San Diego Groupon - i seriously buy gift certificates to restaurants at least once a week. they have lots of other discounts as well but i'm a total foodie, hence the post-deployment weight gain and subsequent weight loss missive.

SPEAKING of which i've decided to put my foot (i just spelled foot 'fut' and had to erase it...why would that happen? at what point in my life did i decide to speak german? anyways.) down when it comes to this post-deployment weight gain thing. HOW, you ask? i, alanna, will NOT buy one new dress until i have lost my post deployment weight. this means that today, i woke up after drinking three full camelbak sippy bottles of water instead of what everyone else was drinking, delicious wine...all while watching my beloved Bachelorette.

yay me, and yay Crystal Light (and on a slightly more embarassing note, yay Kool-Aid 5 calorie packets as well). That being said, I woke up this morning at 149.2. As you all may remember, that is not at my highest (159 during deployment, 152 post-deployment) and certainly nowhere near my lowest (129 while sick, 133 while dieting & working out) and unfortunately, still nowhere near my pre-post-deployment weight gain (142). Thus, I have devised a 1200 c. a day plan with delicious little substitutions that, so far, feel quite indulgent.
Breakfast: (100cal) English Muffin w/ I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray butter + a slice of (45cal) 2% Kraft Singles Pepper Jack Cheese, microwaved for 20 seconds. Results? tasted like a delicious and seriously indulgent grilled cheese.
Snack: (50cal) Fiber One Yogurt, Vanilla + (37cal) 3 oz. Blackberries (don't worry, I didn't measure, I just grabbed half the container). Results? the Fiber One yogurt was surprisingly thick and creamy, and really good - I'll buy it again. obviously the blackberries were delish!
Lunch: Lean Cuisine Tortilla Crusted Fish with Rice, Poblano Peppers and Corn in a Sour Cream Sauce (290cal) + a (60cal) Frigo Cheese Heads Mozzarella String Cheese
Snack: 2 servings of Baby Carrots (so about 2/5ths of the bag, 70cal total) tossed with Roasted Garlic and Red Pepper seasoning
Dinner: (270cal) Lean Cuisine Shrimp Alfredo + (115cal) SteamFresh Vegetables, Cauliflower and Broccoli (tossed together so LC sauce gets all over my veggies, yum!)
Dessert: (180cal) Peach Cobbler LOFTHOUSE COOKIE! I love any diet plan that I can make where I can STILL EAT LOFTHOUSE COOKIES!

seriously scrumptious!
So, if all goes according to plan, in only a few short weeks (hopefully a week and a half) seven and a half pounds will be gone, and i will be looking gorgeous in what will be my first Lilly of the 2010 summer:
Daphne Dress Jacquard (don't the stones look like candy!?)

but you guys know me...i didn't manage to survive my first shift at Lilly without picking up a little something - the Katia wrap top! I've worn it twice already - it's UBER cute and SO versatile:

love it!
and now finally, the bachelorette...le sigh. so we LOVED Kasey (first photo), despite his clear and distracting speech impediment - he's SO cute! totally bummed to find out in the preview of the season that he's evidently NUTS. my pick for overall winner is Chris H. (second photo) - who doesn't want a Ryan Reynolds look alike next to them every morning? and personally, i also like Jesse (last photo)...how about y'all?

as a final P.S., my girlfriend has a SATC2 segment on the CW tomorrow morning as she's a personal stylist, and she just invited me (the token redhead) to be her Miranda - while I have a work commitment so I can't attend, you know what else is keeping me? my weight. definitely time to do something about it!

and check out Pink Preppy Lilly Lover's Murfee Scarf Giveaway - amazing and so generous!
and Confessions of a Law School Dropout's newest Emily Giffin book giveaway!

promotion and the BACHELORETTE!

2010-05-24T09:51:00.000-07:00

so 1) despite my chronic claims to not actually be a fan of any television besides 'The Real Housewives of [insert any city in America here-if they made a Real Housewives of Tuscaloosa I'd probably watch it...although in reality I am a little disappointed they haven't done a Houston or Dallas as I could get great hair tips]', I did, in fact, get suckered into watching a few episodes of the Bachelor and the Bachelorette here and there, usually because I was in the room when Becky had it on. Thus, I am now on the hook for their weekly girls' night viewing of this upcoming season of the Bachelorette. For some reason unbeknownst to me, my best friends developed the habit during my absence of getting together weekly for their favorite TiVo'd shows and copious amounts of wine. I, for one, do not see any point in drinking if not to get drunk, so while I wholeheartedly commit myself when I imbibe, I'm a little quizzical about the calorical benefits of weeknight drinking for the purpose of watching a television show that would, hopefully, be interesting enough without alcohol. Now, being the sweet girls they are, they're waiting until Tuesday to watch the Bachelorette with me (since I work - first night, yay - at Lilly tonight!), so while I'll definitely be there, I think I'll skip my requisite two bottles of white wine. Speaking of which, C forced me to start drinking wine (and by forced I mean went out of her way to get Diet Sprite for me to mix into it, thus trying to baby step my way into what I'm sure will be a lifetime of overindulgence), and I've found that I actually like some of it. Not so sure about the alleged worst hangover ever that correlates, but still...it's kind of fun to drink. Still don't understand why people drink red, though - have these people never done mirror checks afterward and realized what color their teeth have turned?!

2) today is PROMOTION DAY! that means a balla raise and some new respect, just based on my uniform devices. check out the bling:

woot woot! and i got slated into my next job, which will be in Pascagoula, Mississippi, at least until the new ship is built - then it's back to San Diego! Which I'm toootally psyched for because it means I can really commit to house hunting. I have to say...I'm not too pleased with what $350k buys these days!

3) One of my pet peeves...when you start reading a blog that you love and you want to comment, but at the same time you realize that the person may know you, or may know people who know you, and you kind of don't want to lead the way back to your little blog with all of it's honesty, rambling and admissions to shopping for homegoods at TJ Maxx, despite having to take it directly to the storage unit afterward (which, might i add, is looking quite like a little living room - what with my full sized couch, scrapbooking stuff, kitchen table, piano keyboard and 42" TV - if only they didn't have those pesky laws about not actually living in your storage unit, I could hang out there all the time).

What I really need to do today:

buy groceries (a euphemism for buy diet food so i lose this effing post-deployment weight...hoping that working at lilly and wanting to look adorable in my work clothes will be good initiative)
buy iPad (I keep not making it to the mall, which is probably for the better as we're all aware. also, Trip (the boyf) convinced me to get 3G...as he logically pointed out, in a month when you're sitting somewhere without WiFi, you're going to really wish you got it...you're not going to be sitting there in your hungover stupor and thank your lucky stars you saved that extra hundred bucks for the bar last night. obviously he didn't say lucky stars, but you get the picture)
go to work at LILLY! so psyched!
go over to Trip's to watch Millions...if you haven't seen this, drop everything and put it at the top of your Netflix queue STAT - it is SO. GOOD. here is the Rotten Tomatoes review:
Synopsis: It is rare that a family film is both visually sophisticated and emotionally nuanced. MILLIONS, the fantastical tale of two British brothers and the large sack of cash literally dropped onto them from the sky, is just that--a multi-layered, majestic feast for both the eyes and the mind. Young brothers Anthony and Damian Cunninham, whose initial response to their unexpected fortune is a Robin Hood-esque spree of charity, have only one week to spend their 265,000 British pounds before their nation switches over to the Euro. Though the premise may seem trite or predictable, unexpected details--including Damian's ability to see visions of saints and the recent death of the boys' beloved mother--add complexity to the story. As the 7- and 9-year-old Cunningham brothers, lead actors Alex Etel and Lewis McGibbon prove to be those exceptional child actors who are appealing without being precious and their understated, mature performances add gravity to a largely whimsical film. Danny Boyle, the director best known for stylishly violent films TRAINSPOTTING and 28 DAYS LATER, might seem an odd man to helm this comparatively innocent movie. However, Boyle's visual and narrative gifts turn out to be perfectly suited to this modern day fable, adding much-needed flavor to a genre that is all too often ignored by cinematic talents
and here, more importantly, is the ADORABLE star [complete with British accent - if you're a fan of Charlie Bit Me then you'll be just as obsessed with this movie as I am]:

and i leave you with promises of boyf & i photos...eventually. assuming i ever buy that stupid Ipad.

ETA:
Have y'all heard of the Sinless Margarita? Has anyone tried it? I'm seriously considering ordering a case, given that it was recommended by my favorite diet foodie, Lisa @ www.Hungry-Girl.com
and check out my girl Jen @ A Girl in Pearls and a Boy with Toys' Kickoff to Summer Giveaway - feel free to tell her Alanna @ Sparkles and Sundresses sent you!

my NEW JOB!! yayaya!

2010-05-20T13:04:00.000-07:00

first things first...i am so sorry i have been doing such a terrible job commenting since i've gotten back from deployment! i occasionally surfed over and caught up with everyone, but i unfortunately dropped my laptop (yes, the cute hot pink dell one) the third day after i got back so i've only been surfing at work (every fourth day when i had to go in) and on my blackberry. not conducive to blogging at all!

-anyways-

we're back to a normal work schedule (although hopefully i'll be getting off earlier because there is only truly so much paperwork to do, haha) and thus i have decided to pick up a little extra cash by working at..

lilly pulitzer! [again]

so beyond excited...i start my first shift on monday night after i get off work and canNOT wait to get my booty into the summer 2010 stuff. it's SERIOUSLY gorgeous.

and btw, since i dropped my poor laptop i'm thinking about picking up an iPad instead. anyone have one? thoughts? i think they're totally baller and since i do all of my 'work' at work, i don't really need things like MS Word or Powerpoint.

also...definitely news on the boyfriend front...i want to wait till i have a photo or two to show you, and photos of the wedding...y'all will be so excited!

finally, check out the undomestic mama (formerly jimmy choos and a baby, too) for a great
sTuck in the Coop giveaway!

stella + dot & country concerts - the best!!

2010-04-27T13:19:00.000-07:00

stagecoach was amazing - sugarland was SO good! and notice my cute stella and dot necklace? i'm trying to make an effort to wear jewelry every single day and it's actually really fun!!

i saw the bounty hunter last week [with jennifer aniston] and 1) her body is crazy bangin'! and 2) she looks beautiful throughout the movie, and it's really funny. tonight, i'm going to see kickass (obviously with a guy, yay haha) and i'm nottttt really looking forward to it. i was supposed to go see the backup plan last night but ended up going to the casino instead...i made $13, woot woot! this past weekend was HORRIBLE for operation not the fat friend btw...oh well, a new week, a new time to get skinny!!

also do you see the cute necklace? i love it and it was so simple and pretty and easy to wear! it seriously looked great with all of my outfits - . you can buy it here

besides that, am i horrible for admitting that i have spent all morning watching jerseylicious, basketball wives, true life: i'm a compulsive shopper (haha this one hit close to home), and what not to wear?

also date last night went well, didn't even make it to the movies, decided to go out and have drinks instead and keep having that talk about how it's weird that i've only been back ten days and we've already hung out so much!! it's totally a good thing though - i really like him :) it was funny too because last night he had asked if i would be hungry, and i was like i don't know, maybe? well it turns out he actually was cooking dinner, like he grilled salmon and made a citrus salsa verde...i, of course, had already eaten so i felt terrible! oops...

so other sidenote, want to see something crazy? the length of my hair in college and the length of my hair now:

waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!? haha that is crazy person hair! but it used to be super short so i think i'm preferring this.

annnnyways has anyone see pretty wild yet? it's on E or Bravo or one of those and honestly, i kind of really like it! they seem like really nice girls, although they do seem a little entitled/overpriveleged. i like that they pray :) and YAY just got invited out on another date tonight...yay! hahaha remember my post a couple of months ago that i was thinking i should get a boyfriend when i get back? things may be working in my faaaaavor!!! yaya!

dear diary, i'm fat. sparkles!

2010-04-22T13:00:00.000-07:00

so being back has been AMAZING! thank you all so much for all of your support and encouragement - in response to datin' kait (who along with masked mckenna writes a totally adorable female mormon dating blog [you'll see it's way more chaste then my loves at mormon bachelor pad...also can you tell that i'm obsessed with mormon people now? my other fav mormon blog is the boob nazi]), i decided to join the military because my parents encouraged me to (my dad is retired), it was a full scholarship to a $40k/yr. university, i have a stellar job and i get to work with amazing people from all walks of life. it's also basically the best leadership opportunity you could ask for - how many other fresh out of college people are handed fifteen people and told to have them 'do their work' despite the fact that you have no clue what that is (i had a communications degree and was placed down in engineering)? it's a great job, honestly.

annnyways, y'all will die...LOOK at what i came home to:

my incredible best friends wrapped every. single. thing. i ordered in pink wrapping paper, filled my room with pink balloons, rose petals and a "welcome home princess alanna" sign! aren't they so sweet?!

all this was after spending a fab few days with my mama, daddy, little bro and little sis in hawaii:

haha as you can tell, my hair had gotten CREEPY long over deployment! so when i got back i went to a cutie new stylist who i developed a total girl crush on and we cut off four inches. thank baby Jesus, so necessary!

but the best part about getting back? remember my amaze friend tim that i've talked about, the totally handsome helo pilot who made my time before i left so fun? well he couldn't make it to the pier to say hi, and he couldn't make it to our little lunch afterward, so here's what he sent in his absence:

a huge, gorgeous, all-pink bouquet. is that not the sweetest thing you've ever heard of!? it was in the back room and they pulled it out when we got there! that's my best friend becky on my left, my old roommate [and good friend] rachel as the other brunette, and my best friend christina on the right. p.s. do you recognize that adorable abercrombie dress? SO fun I wore it twice!

so i've been celebrating after i got back, nonstop. reunion dinners, baseball games, going out every night...my girlfriend joined us for a sunday funday brunch and she looked fantastic, and told me she was doing spin classes at 24 Hour Fitness. i love 24 hour, it's SO convenient to be able to go whenever, so i had planned on rejoining when i got back anyways. well i get there and the guy sells me on a personal trainer. fine. i'd wanted one of those anyways.

so yesterday i go in for my first meeting, and we have to do weigh ins. i'm embarassed to tell y'all how much i've gained since i got back. i weighed in at 149. 149! i wasn't even in the fit section of their little body chart, i was in the 'acceptable' section! i'm like i'm supposed to be having the best summer of my life and i'm scared of the scale!? absolutely not!

so i'm motivating myself right now - watching the 40 biggest celebrity slim downs while i finish this long awaited post and getting ready to go to the gym and finish my first assignments! haha hence the blog title...one of the comedians was teasing about tyra banks having a food diary and said,

"what does she write? dear diary, i'm fat! sparkles!"

i also picked up some great new sneaks yesterday at nordstrom rack [love] and got some gorgeous new Pumas and a pair of Nike's with that Nike + in it...does anyone use it? i'm tempted to buy the whole kit thingy! so i'll be back to blogging, back to serious dieting, and hopefully back to goal weight (which we've established as 133...my trainer thinks i can do it, and it'll be a good weight for me with my build) in no time flat! love you girls and can't wait to catch up with you! sidenote: i'm aiming for about 1400 calories a day, so it's 1:20 and i've eaten a weight watchers egg mcmuffin (210c.), an alternative bagel (100c.) with a laughing cow light cheese wedge (35c.) and a large banana (120c.).

is it just me or should fruit have no calories?!

and can't wait to let y'all know about Stagecoach [this weekend]...and the fact that i'm going to be someone's date to a weddingggg...not only my second wedding ever, but the first one i've ever gone to as a date! haha i can't wait to start shopping for an outfit! can we just add that i still haven't OPENED all those damn boxes so i also can't wait to post about the great giveaways i've won from our fellow bloggers!?

xx!

HOME FROM DEPLOYMENT!

2010-04-13T22:38:00.000-07:00

so after seven. entire. months. [literally. we left in mid september] of this:

i got to see my amazing and adorable family, who met me in Hawaii for less than forty-eight hours of shopping (of course, right? i'll show you pics when i wear them, y'all will die...strapless, ruffles, mini, nautical...i got them all!! I EVEN GOT A ROMPER!), dining and drinking.

amaze, right? ya...except that, tomorrow morning, i get to see THIS:

san diego!

i know, y'all are just as excited as i am! finally, no more boring posts about deployment, right?

and hopefully no more embarassing online shopping posts. speaking of which, my debit card and i may or may not have had a last hurrah on the vickie's website...i will soon be the proud owner of this adorable dress:

in navy, bright melon, beach blue, diamond blue, tropical turquoise, white, black and tropical pink!

they were only $29 each...so economical, right? and inevitably i'll return a couple if they're too close in color (those blues all looked pretty similar)...haha those colors look hideous in the text format!

and i wanted to thank sweet College Prepster...i won her Kiel James Patrick giveaway, and y'all know how i love me some KJP!

and thank you to Desperately Seeking Seersucker, who gave me the awesome love your blog award:

Rules: post 10 things you love and share with 10 people!

i love...

1. sparkles

2. dresses (all types, although i'm totes partial to sundresses)

3. flirting

4. shimmer (as opposed to sparkles, obviously)

5. meeting new people

6. cocktails!

7. heels

8. being happy

9. compliments (giving and getting)

10. giveaways!! [especially winning them, but that's neither here nor there]
ten of my MANY happy blog girlies:
in this wonderful life, her southern charm, college prepster, smart and sassy with sprinkles, dreams do come true, fashion meets food, mrs. in training, shopaholic in alabama, summer in newport, and think classy

...sooo, speaking of giveaways, you HAVE to check out shopaholic in alabama...she's doing ten days of mother's day giveaways, featuring:

A Lilly Pulitzer Large Agenda

Kiel James Patrick

At the Blue Barn

Lilly Pulitzer Headbands

Social Climbers

PeaceLoveLipgloss

i'm sorry i've been such a poor commenter recently - as i always complain, right before we pull into a port is one of my busiest times! i can't wait to catch up with y'all, and don't forget to enter those giveaways! i can't wait to update you guys with the embaaaaarassing debauchery i manage to put myself through during my first few days back in San Diego!

OMG SPA WEEK!! and homecoming ;)

2010-04-03T14:42:00.000-07:00

amazing things about this week:

1) so i had a totally bummed out couple of days...went through the whole, "i am so fat, how will i fit in with my friends when i get home and we go out and i am alone and unwanted?" and i started

operation not the fat friend

during which i worked out twice a day and counted calories. this lasted for four days, until i worked out one time one day, and the next day not at all, and now i'm back on to once a day (with only one day off, yay!) but we are unfortunately out of

fresh fruits and vegetables!

have you ever had canned asparagus? don't.

but i got over my PMS-y hatred of myself, slapped on some sunless tanner and did some squats (immediate qud definition, right?!) and white strips and feel back to my lusty self.

2) discovered mormon bachelor pad. google it. i have NEVER read a funnier blog because it is so. dang. honest. they're totally anonymous so they write about what actually happens with the ladies they date.
eta: for clarification, these guys are assholes, immature and probably poor examples of Mormon men. I don't know any other Mormons (except the Boob Nazi) but the way they talk about and objectify women is truly in poor taste. regardless, they're funny.

3) fewer than 11 days until i'm home in san diego, and even fewer than that until i'm reunited with my family in hawaii! so excited!

4) spa.

week.

[click me]

incredible. found out about it via prior fat girl because she got some free treatment (nice!! haha if only my blog were that successful....), but holy moly am i glad. TONS of treatments are available from local spas for only $50 between the 12th and the 18th of April. IT'S LIKE GOD KNEW I WAS RETURNING FROM DEPLOYMENT JUST IN TIME!

my momma and i are already getting the pineapple and kiwi wrap at the Catamaran Spa...i'm just nervous about getting any massages or facials because i don't know how well a massage goes with a hangover, and i don't want to break out from an unnecessary facial, you know? but is any facial really unnecessary heh? example of what a STEAL this is, though? that wrap is normally $115 and i'm only paying $50/person!

and i'm going to get a deep conditioning treatment and blow out at Gregorie's Spa in Del Mar . . . here's my logic behind this one: my appointment? 10:30. Early enough in the day so it doesn't interfere with my plans, late enough in the day so it doesn't interfere with my hangover, and...

I DON'T HAVE TO WASH OR STYLE MY OWN HAIR ALL WEEKEND! hahahah!

5) and now for my most recent purchases...i would say "oops", but we all know by now it's not an oops. it's an addiction. hopefully it goes away when i get home and am embarassed by my consumerism.

1) Guess gold stilettos...I think these will be perfect for all of my longer little sundresses.

2) BB Dakota ruffled v-neck tunic-length tank...you know i love ruffles!

3) jack by BB Dakota ivory shift dress...

and i'm currently bidding on//hoping to win this adorable mock-two piece BB Dakota dress and BB Dakota halter dress! i just can't ever get over how reasonably priced their clothes are for the cuteness level!

SO in response to all of you sweet beautiful AMAZING bloggers,

I am going to be home in less than two weeks! MUCH LESS! I AM SO EXCITED I CAN BARELY CONTAIN MYSELF! MY TOES ARE SERIOUSLY CURLING WITH ANTICIPATION!

but is it okay to admit that I'm a teensie bit nervous?

headbands and shoes for summer

2010-03-25T02:48:00.000-07:00

"my headbands are the source of my power."

- Blair Waldorf, Gossip Girl

so, i may or may not have gone on a little headband spree last night on eBay. oops. i got these sweet little things in just about every color they made (these are examples of the different styles i went crazy on). perfect to sweeten up a little dress, or to add some class to an updo...i think summer 2010 will be the summer of the headband! (at least for me).

yes, there are more. yes, i am crazy. CRAZY FOR HEADBANDS! bahahah :)

speaking of eBay, i realized i may have a problem...these two dresses look very similar, don't they?

i think you can have too many little black dresses, after all. oops.

and a little eBay find i didn't even know i needed? ADORABLE 'safety pin' earrings! mine are cubic zirconia, but the biggest pic i could find to share had un-adorned safety pins...look! look!

so cute, right?

and some other fun eBay things i'm looking forward to opening when i get home...

abercrombie sleeveless sweater dress:

a perfect midweight dress for those in between San Diego spring or fall days!

Lilly Pulitzer Shift:

what's that? i need something adorable to throw on on my way to Costco/grocery store/etc.? oh how simple and easy and glorious with a fab spray tan!

and currently bidding on these adorable Steve Maddens...i think they'd look perfect with this Abercrombie dress (that sits in its little baggie on my bed [and by bed i mean rack in my stateroom on the ship, inside the box that it shipped in...i seriously bury my feet under the box when i sleep. storage is a commodity around here.] anxiously waiting to be worn)

so YAY for fewer then three weeks until i'm home

YAY for eBay

YAY for shopping

hrm. oh! YAY for extra 25% off kate spade sale!

getting maced, b/c i love to love you baby...

2010-03-24T04:50:00.001-07:00

things i'm loving right now...

a) i got OC sprayed today and i survived.

what's OC spray, you ask? according to Wikipedia,

"Pepper spray, also known as OC spray (from "Oleoresin Capsicum"), is a lachrymatory agent used in riot control, crowd control, and personal self-defense, including defense against dogs and bears. Although considered a less lethal agent, it may be deadly in rare cases. The effects of pepper spray include temporary blindness which last from 15-30 minutes, a burning sensation of the skin which last from 45 to 60 minutes, upper body spasms which force a person to bend forward and uncontrollable coughing making it difficult to breathe or speak for between 3 to 15 minutes."

so after getting sprayed directly in the eyes, you then have to go through a course that involves putting people into armholds and battling them with batons (padded, given that this is for 'training' purposes)

lovely, right? i don't think i've sobbed that hard since the end of bride wars.
eta: for clarification, the concept behind us getting pepper sprayed is so if/when we need to use it as a form of self defense (during an anti-terrorism/force protection event, or in the case of riot control (think protestors gone crazy), which has the potential to be a problem in foreign ports, or in situations where someone may be trying to storm your post, etc.) you need to know exactly how 'down' your attacker will be after being sprayed with pepper spray, one of your forms of hard control. all of my fellow officers who carry weapons have been pepper sprayed in the past two days.

b) i qualified 9mm! small picture because i know guns probably scare some of y'all, but yay! i have to either carry a gun when i'm on watch or someone else has to carry it for me, and it's always been a sensitive point what a bad shot i was...not anymore!

and now, the good, non-work related stuff

c) alexis bittar! i am SO loving lucite right now and i am DYING over these:

sherbet colors, rhinestones? amaze. both available at Nordstrom!
d) the supportive commenter award from my love, previously plump!

to pass on to ten people who give me supportive comments? gosh, everyone who comments is incredibly sweet and appreciated! i could seriously go through my last dozen posts and pull out the most frequent commenters, but i think it's pretty obvious because i have great back and forth dialogue with most of y'all! love my blog friends!!
e) fornash. why had no one told me about this website before? everything is even reasonably priced!

gecko bangle:

starfish bangle and cluster necklace:

enamel ring and starfish ring:

f) Sally over at Everything is Better Pink tagged me with this fabulous Socialite Tag:

Lord is it long, though, so no pressure if you skip this part ;)

rules: Repost the button on your blog, answer the questions, and pass onto 10 bloggers you love!

1. Who is your style icon? Blake Lively and Lauren Conrad always look STUNNING in reality, but on TV? you know I love Blair Waldorf, maintainable or not. i just love lots of LEGS!

2. What is your favorite socialite lit book? obvi Social Climbers shoutout (because Beth is a sweetie), but i really love anything fairly vapid and trashy. is that bad to admit? i think the bada$sness of letters a) and b) cancel it out, oui?

3. Favorite party theme? JUNGLE! or business guys and trophy wives...yes, i enjoy many a themed barcrawl.

4. Go to Halloween costume? german beer girl! hahah i think it's been four years running?

5. Extravagance you cannot live without? makeup. doesn't sound extravagant unless you're a girl on deployment, in which case everyone thinks you're crazy. um, helLO...in the 'real' business world, would any of you show up bare faced? no! that's like an episode of What Not To Wear waiting to happen!

6. Living person you admire? my momma and daddy! 27 years in april and they STILL smack each other's bums when they're cooking dinner!

and my best friends becky and christina - becky because she showed me that it's very okay to be a makeup loving, stylish girly-girl while in the military, and christina because she showed me that it is very okay to be stunning, put together, accomplished (with a private practice, masters degree, and a LOUIS!) and happy, all completely independent of having a boyfriend.

7. Greatest Fear? bahaha getting OC sprayed again?

8. Trait you deplore in yourself? i love gossip...and i can be quite catty if provoked. i like to attribute it to my biting wit and sharp sense of humor, but let's face it...sometimes i'm just a b!tch.

9. Which talent would you most like to have? i wish i could SING! the one thing money can't buy...

10. Greatest Achievement? i like to think it hasn't happened yet :)

I am passing this fun tag onto the following socialites...

virginia belle

tori and chad

the pink washingtoniette

southern living: preppy style

peach bellini bride

little miss southern
smart and sassy with sprinkles
miss kriss
canadian prep
if i can't wear heels...i don't want to go!

g) white. watches. mother f. i cannot even DECIDE which one to buy, so, SHOCKINGLY, i am restraining myself until i get back from deployment so i can try these on! they're all available at Nordstrom!

or i could go with the always traditional (for me):

1) dkny crystal bezel jelly watch . $95

2) adidas cambridge watch . $75

3) ak anne klein square case watch . $55

4) marc by marc jacobs 'amy' watch . $125

5) swatch color codes watch . $50

less then two weeks until hawaii, and i ate my feelings (they were pain, pain and more pain) today, so tomorrow? back to the diet! speaking of which, my final current love...

h) muscle milk light! it is like a chocolate milkshake! a legit chocolate milkshake, not a watery slimfast. SO good, 195 calories a serving (two scoops) and definitely filling. now i just need to start working out again. gag.
i) preppy girl meet's world's lilly pulitzer luggage tag giveaway! if you venture over there, please let her know i (alanna @ sparkles and sundresses) sent you!

j) nautical by nature's lavender sachel giveaway

the price of beauty [seriously. it's expensive.]

2010-03-19T23:04:00.000-07:00

please visit ben and tay over at the undomestic momma and offer your love and prayers - truly heartbreaking.

- - -

so in honor of my beloved jessica simpson...

and her new tv show, the price of beauty, i've decided to ask myself (and you guys, bahaha, my captive audience) exactly what is inappropriate to risk for beauty (even if it's only your budget)?

xtreme lashes eyelash enhancers - incredible, hand applied by 'licensed' stylist individual lashes that give people crazy beautiful, natural looking lashes (by natural i mean that girl in class who you'd stare at sideways, jealously admiring the thick dark lashes that nearly swept her eyebrows).

downside: EXPENSIVE and fairly high maintenance (about $200 for the first application, monthly upkeep between $50 and $100/mo.)

latisse - prescription eyelash formula, proven to make eyelashes grow naturally thicker, longer and darker with repeated use. brooke shields is spokeswoman (if you've seen her ads in magazines)

downside: may [albeit rarely] have side effects like darkening of the lid (not permanent, said to go away if you stop use) or actual iris (evidently permanent)

rodial glamotox - according to the description:

Active daily moisturizer with muscle relaxing peptides with pomegranate ellagic tannin cell protection.

Glamotox™ combines daily hydration with wrinkle plumping agents and vitamins and it is a non-invasive alternative to surgery.

Micro-injected spheres fill the wrinkles, peptides relax expression lines, myrrh extract plumps up fat cells and vitamin C reduces age spots and hyperpigmentation.

according to Whitney Port and Lauren Conrad's makeup artist, Amy Nadine (click to check out her AMAZING, tip-filled blog...can't remember whose blog told me about it but it's AMAZINGly helpful), glamotox is "a cult favorite moisturizer that super hydrates and plumps up the skin, diminishing any fine lines." ...to have skin like Whitney and Lauren's? may be worth it...

downside: $125 and may not actually work at all.

- - -

i've also been thinking of investing in a sweet digital SLR camera for my return to san diego - talk about the ultimate way to improve your looks, buy a freaking better camera!! ...any suggestions? currently looking at

the canon eos rebel XSi - my little sister, an uber talented photographer, is trying to sell me on this one...it's crazy expensive but seems like an investment, you know? and i may need to try and get her eye, too, before i make any major camera purchases - can you believe she's only 18? she just got into VCU's art program - #1 art program in the country!

- - -

you know what? maybe the best things in life are free.

like blog giveaways:

iva messy's my little eyes blossom ring giveaway

kitchen belleicious's red letter word giveaway

fashion meets food's easter goodies giveaway

bonbon rose's shabby apple giveaway

good luck cuppy cakes!! only a little more time left in japan, and then we're off to sweet, sweet san diego! but first a pit stop in...guess where:

summer steals, pop tarts, peanuts and doublebooking...

2010-03-18T04:39:00.000-07:00

i slept for sixteen hours last night. i'd worry that there was something wrong with me, but it was AMAZING! and i drank four four diet cokes in the last six hours, so i am EXCITED about all of that sleep! haha given how awake i'm feeling now i'll never be able to sleep again, though...which means i went on a mad commenting spree, so check all of your blogs and old posts because i have been sitting at the computer for oh...five straight hours now? hence having eaten only peanuts and pop tarts today. while thinking about working out (thinking counts, right?)

SO i've decided to center my blog around Texts From Last Night...i know, this site is a little much for most of my preppy blog friends, but i LOVE it!

(704): Wearing these hooker shoes was a mistake

Nordstrom BP Lacie Pump

SO CUTE, right? and it's like $34.90 or something ridiculous like that! please note that the sides are actually lacie! why am i even looking at nordstrom.com right now when i get home in less then a month? because i have a problem. everyone knows that, so whatever. and besides, it's TRIPLE REWARDS POINTS TIME!! until the 21st!

i mean...i could just try it all on and return it, couldn't i?

1) echo stripe one shoulder dress in turquoise

2) lush empire waist dress in black ($19.90)

3) lush empire waist dress in charcoal ($19.90)

(305): I like waking up with a slight hangover cause I'm dehydrated and it makes me feel thinner.

ty to tori from tori and chad for the best part of waking up award!

The guidelines are: "The best part of waking up..." award is awarded to the 5 bloggers that you're most excited to see have posted when you log into your dashboard/google reader/ whatever. Yes, only 5! If you're always checking someone's blog to see if they've posted, they deserve this award!"

ohmygosh, this is too difficult and i'm too amped to be decisive right now. basically, if i comment on your posts psychotically, it's either because a) you post WAY too much and are always at the top of my dashboard (ha!..kind of) or 2) you and i are basically long lost sisters and kindred spirits (the majority of y'all, and especially tori...she knows because i go NUTS on her blog and comment on everything....wayyy too much). so steal the award if you like and put it on your blog - without you guys and your posts i wouldn't have anything else to distract me at work!

(847): Women are like Alzheimer's patients. You can compliment them a million times in a day, but the next day is always a wash, you have to start all over.

true. hence the problem of a 'fat day'. you can't actually be that much fatter then you were the day before, but Lord it feels like it. which is why i've decided to adopt Fashion Meets Food's rule:

.no more eating in front of tv or computer.

so if you think i'm snacking while i comment on your post? you'd better message me ASAP and tell me to stop! i need accountability, people! (uhhh the pop tarts and peanuts??)

and btw, she's doing an AMAZE giveaway for her birthday, so check out her blog - she's also very cute and funny!

(517): On my way home from Vegas. Just realized my pants are inside out

oops. so our return date got pushed back by five days, meaning i'd return the wednesday before my trip to las vegas with becky and christina. [have i mentioned it yet? ummm, lazy river @ mandalay bay for three days? yeah...]

BUT it turns out my family had made plans to stay for five days after meeting me at the pier! that was their original plan, but when got pushed back, i figured there was no way we could do it. unfortunately, they thought that i was well aware they were committed to spending five extra day with me no matter what the US Navy had to say about it! so i am ecstatic they'll be staying with me - i haven't seen any of them in seven months, my baby sis is about to go to college, and my little brothers are growing up like crazy. and really?

i need someone to help move my things from my storage unit.

shameless, shameless, shameless. bahaha did i mention free dinners?

of course this is a joke, there's nothing i can't wait for more then a hug from my mommy (and a 'good job' from my daddy...and air kisses from my besties...) so becky and christina were sweet enough to understandingly resched our trip. thank you!! and i get to see my family in less then 30 days!!

(773): so I'm never txting u again after today...
(248): y?
(773): cuz i don't wanna see it on blogspot :)
(248): ha...too late

finalllllllly, check out these blog contests:

taylor @ the undomestic momma is having a stella & dot giveaway - as a stella and dot independent stylist myself, i'm always a fan of supporting other stella and dot girls!

southern momma is having a 100th post giveaway

proof that it's worth entering all of these contest? i won the jade earrings!

thank you to amy @ our journey...together...

eta: NO thanks to shopaholic in alabama, i just bought this ADORABLE bracelet from kjp . . . which i'd never heard of but am currently obsessed with (doesn't help that the designer is gorgeous. probably gay, but still gorgeous):

with the $5 off coupon code you get for signing up for the email list? only $30! and i got to personalize it - my size, with my own pink button! yay!

www.kieljamespatrick.com

hot for home...and summer...and forever....

2010-03-16T22:36:00.000-07:00

so i had this brilliant plan to be terribly thin and absolutely gorgeous by the time i got home from deployment...now that there are less than thirty days left, i think i'm just going to have to stick with absolutely gorgeous and give up on terribly thin. and by absolutely, i mean 'artificially' gorgeous. we're in Japan, land of the crazy beauty treatments and but instead of going shopping for things to use, i can barely move. seriously, it's cold enough for a little bit of this:

unfortunately, as i'm single and on the longest work trip ever, there will be none of that. thus, i have to prepare for my return (hopefully guaranteeing at least some of that), and SO, i'm stuck with what i brought onboard. so far i've put the following into my repertoire:

1) redken all soft heavy conditioner - haven't noticed a difference but it does smell nice - i style my hair approximately once a month though so i'm not sure i even would notice a difference.

2) jergen's natural glow daily moisturizer - um, i like it on my arms, never notice it on my upper body, and find that it can streak or leave weird wear marks from working out etc. on my legs.

3 & 4) latisse - so excited, i've been using it for about 12 days now, expect (hope) to see results in about a month...becky and christina both used it and their lashes are BEYOND phenomenal

5) listerine whitening vibrant rinse pre-brush rinse - okay, this is weird, but the first time i used it, i noticed my gums were really sore after about three days and eventually they started bleeding (gross, i know!! sorry!). well i went to the dentist, who logically suggested i stop using it and switch to a soft brush. now, months later, still using a soft brush and decided to reincorporate the rinse...love it! no teeth pain! i can only think that a medium brush exacerbated the effects and forced it into my gums or something intense like that...

6) crest premium plus whitestrips - these need no introduction. they're probably the best beauty introduction since their invention. i firmly believe that extremely white teeth are one of the best assets someone can have, and can serve to improve someone's appearance dramatically. if you don't believe me, PLEASE just bleach your teeth once and you'll see!

am i missing anything? i'm looking forward to stocking up on a little VS Love Spell when i get home, and i'm thinking of picking out a new signature scent that guys. love. so far love spell is the only one that consistently gets compliments from EVERYONE. any other suggestions? any other getting ready for summer things y'all do that i should pick up before my return to the states?

also, got my abercrombie order...YAY everything FITS! the bad part?

THIS

was a HORRIBLE mistake. i thought i'd take a chance because i love bows, but WOW it is WEIRD!

and if anyone else is ordering from A&F or Hollister as per my last few posts...warning, their clothes are JUST as short as they look. now i'm pretty tall (5'8) and all legs, but i think that means if i had a longer torso they'd be even shorter since they'd have my whole torso to cover! now there's just tons of leg showing...i don't mind, but i would have liked to know that i'd need to invest in a couple pairs of full coverage boyshorts beforehand.

xox from freezing Japan!

OMG island style! haha prettiest blog post ever :)

2010-03-11T07:40:00.000-08:00

[cue ariel little mermaid noise]

ahhh-ahhhhhh-ah

(okay, it looks more like screaming. anyways.)

SPRING is here which means SUMMER is coming which means I DIE @ all current advertising campaigns! seriously my dream job? editor at Coastal Living magazine. sigh.

- Victoria's Secret bikinis i can't wait to get my hands on...although i may have to get my hands off the pringles first (um, the barbecue ones from foreign countries are INCREDIBLE. they don't taste like barbecue sauce, they taste like straight up delicious shish kebabs!)

[sidenote, looking at all of those perfect tan tummies reminded me...head over to The Stonekings to congratulate one of my favorite bloggers on her new pregnancy!! she still looks like a vicki's model!]

sooo anyways, back to the summer fun:

- Coastal Living's incredible February 2010 spread (and some photos from previous issues)
[annnnd now you see why i want to work at Coastal Living. can you imagine being surrounded by this stuff all day?!]

- Boatman Gellar's uber-cute spring/summer color combos

- Jules Reid's incredible Spring 2010 collection (www.julesreid.com)

- my newest eBay lilly pulitzer wins

annnd remember the abercrombie incident that resulted in like nine new dresses? well i may or may not have surfed over to hollister co. (bahaha, get it? surfed? since they're so socal?) and these puppies may or may not be on their way to becky's as we speak:

also, thank you to Fashion Nicotine - I won her $50 CSN Stores gift card giveaway!! y'all should check out her blog - she is foreign and very fashionable :) here's what i decided to spend the gift card on (CSN has a crazy amount of choices, so it took forever to decide!):
le Creuset baking cups in kiwi and citrus:

trend lab paisley park two piece picture frame set (yes, it's for children. whatever.):

if you've gotten all the way down to this part of the post, i commend you!! bahaha...i also leave you with these horribly appropriate Lily Allen lyrics:
"and i am a weapon of massive consumption
it's not my fault it's how i'm programmed to function..."

eta: annd because i can't NOT feature someone's giveaway:
Our Journey Together's Jade Cluster Earrings Giveaway

giveaways and social climbers and top 2 tuesday!

2010-03-09T06:04:00.000-08:00

First things first: I recently received Beth Dunn's Social Climbers in the mail and couldn't wait to sit down and devour it. I literally would eat in my room so I'd be able to read while I ate! This book is so heartwarming and full of cute, charming anecdotes (not to mention great Essie color recommendations!). It is also a great look into the Philadelphia/New Jersey preppy culture - having spent my formative years in Virginia, it's interesting to see the differences above and below the Mason-Dixon line! If you're interested in grabbing a copy of your own, please check out Beth's blog - Social Climbers !

annnd for a little personal content, FYI to everyone - i have received another message from both becky and christina, my besties, this time telling me that my room back home looks like a post office. my thoughts on this?

every time i'm sad or homesick, every time i'm lonely and there's no one on the ship i feel like i can relate to, i go shopping online.

i buy cute summer dresses, pretty shimmery (and totally work inappropriate) makeup, and killer heels. i order movies and frothy books and headbands and mascara (did you know they won't ship mascara to fpo/ap's ? isn't that strange?) and i do so without basically any guilt, because i am SO lonely sometimes. it got to the point where my boss called me into his office and asked why i hadn't been my normal, obnoxiously perky self recently, and i was so bummed that i was completely honest. i said, "i hate it here. i hate everyone. i miss my best friends and i can't wait to go home." i realize i may have sounded like a whiny b*, but sometimes you have to pull the honesty card!

SO, while i doubt any of y'all were judging, to the people who may think that my spending is a little bit extensive, please remember the reason that i have money to spend...because i LIVE (quite literally) at my job.

p.s. this isn't a dig at my besties - they're the people and times i'm thinking of when i'm buying these things-remembering our times together and looking forward to the times to come...and besides, they're taking good care of my packages for me :)

p.p.s. i seriously do have a shopping problem...have you seen the new Gap nautical collection? i don't even like Gap! not to mention the fact that i'm drooling @ Hollister right now...there's NO way i'd fit into that stuff...right??

and for my top two tuesday - baby names? the funny thing is that i haven't played this little game with myself in FOREVER! shows how long it's been since i've had a boyfriend, huh? bahahah ;)

girl: kylie, kelly, kayla, kaely, brooke

boy: brett, kyle, jackson

And now for the giveaways:

Semi Slacker Mom's Sew Girlie Personalized Bucket Giveaway

Sweetie Pie Pumpkin Noodle's Pretty Smitten Notecard Giveaway

Hoity Toity Baby's Lucky Bluebird Art Giveaway

Tart Paperie's Sweettart Giveaway

Sweetie Pie Pumpkin Noodle's K Voss Designs Giveaway

Sweetie Pie Pumpkin Noodle's West Third Candle in Garden Freesia Scent
Sweetie Pie Pumpkin Noodle's Live Oaks Pouch

Sweetie Pie Pumpkin Noodle's Pretty Chic Giveaway

Hoity Toity Baby's Finch and Hawk Giveaway

The Entertaining House's Cheese Basket Giveaway

Think Happy Thought's Wise Impressions Giveaway

Hoity Toity Baby's Penny Lane Designs Giveaway

The Life of a Suburban Princess's Lilly Pulitzer Pendant Giveaway

Hoity Toity Baby's Swanky Bakes Giveaway

How Could You Nott's Let Me Natalya Jewelry Giveaway

Preppy Little Dress's Lilly Pulitzer Giveaway

Hoity Toity Baby's Ink Obsession Giveaway

y'all should really enter all of them!! look at what i've won recently:

Huephoria Wine Glass, courtesy of KAG:

Fondue Set, courtesy of Little Miss Southern:

just thought about becky having to put a fondue pot on the pile in my room - done with the bummed! now get to entering those posts and grab a copy of Social Climbers!

when i grow up, i want to be barbie!

2010-03-06T09:00:00.000-08:00

sigh, we're leaving phuket and while i did spend some money (that baller hotel room was not cheap!) i still have more left over then i bargained for...that and when i woke up this morning (albeit very hungover), i weighed in at...wait for it...wait for it...

137.5!!!!

that is a total loss of 21.5 pounds!!! now unfortunately i stress ate today so i'm sure i'll be back up to 143 by tomorrow morning, but still...amaze, no??

so anyways, i have been watching this fab show that got pulled off the air (unfortunately) after only like six episodes (maybe eight...i could get up and check but i'm entirely too lazy). lipstick jungle was put on the air right around the same time as cashmere mafia (whose name i prefer), but evidently neither of them were good enough to last. while lipstick jungle is funny, some of the writing isn't very good and a lot of the sex scenes are just weird - way more 'serious' then the silly SATC ones. the reason i kept watching, though? okay, there were two:

1) robert. buckley.

O. M. F. G. can you imagine waking up to that every morning? i would die!

and 2) Lindsay Price (who play's Victory Ford)'s INCREDIBLE wardrobe and styling - it's like a grown up version of Blair Waldorf:

oh? what's that? another shirtless picture of robert buckley snuck in? i wonder how that happened...no but seriously, i like nico's outfit in the last one.

i scored lipstick jungle on amazon for like 16.99...totally worth the money, i recommend :)

and before i forget, two amazing giveaways to check out:

Theta Mom's Milkdot Stoh Tote Giveaway

Smart and Sassy with Sprinkles' Kate Spade Big Apple Zippered Chrissy Giveaway

omyg congrats and phuket!

2010-03-04T06:09:00.000-08:00

congratulations to juliana @ a blonde walks into a blog for winning the stella + dot giveaway!

i love being an independent stylist for stella + dot and am so glad to introduce y'all to their jewelry!

AND thank you to KAG - i was the winner of her huephoria wine glass giveaway and am so excited to receive it in the mail!

now, my real question...katharine mcphee:

she is absolutely gorgeous and so talented - i don't really like her first CD because i'm not really into R&B but you can still tell how incredible her voice is - why did she never become super popular? she also has a ridiculously good figure, and she used to have beautiful long brown hair (although they've cropped it and bleached it for her new CD)...weiiiiiiiiird, i wonder if this CD will help her blow up more?

anyways!! i have been MIA for so long (i have a ridiculous amount of posts to catch up on!!) because we have been in phuket, thailand!

last night, we visited a strip club that involved balloons and darts in the show...seriously. and our hotel is incredible - three pools, private jacuzzi that opens up to the pool with a swim up pool bar, just amazing! only thing...there is one king sized bed. it's me and three guys.

ha! now get your mind out of the gutter...our time so far has involved them getting into flexing fights in front of the mirror, racking up what i can only imagine will be thousands of dollars on the bar tab, and accidentally matching...with the only clothes they brought off the ship.

and before i forget, i wanted to say a HUGE thanks to Beth @ Social Climbers and Jennifer @ Southern Living: Preppy Style - they both sent books to me on the ship because they were doing a book exchange and i couldn't participate (our library is full of military history and weird sci-fi) so i was SO excited when we received mail and i got some amazing girly books to read!!

ok, have to get back to watching more lipstick jungle (finished all of gossip girl season 2 - AMAZING!) and working out...i was told yesterday during the hours of drinking and pooling that while my legs were 'great, [you] just need to tighten up your core'. men.

DUMPED: top 2 tues, best dresses EVER and texts from last night...

2010-02-23T14:44:00.000-08:00

first, go enter my gorgeous earrings giveaway!
now:
i seriously just dumped my lulu's shopping cart.

emptied it out and closed the tab.

why, you ask? because i'm having a mother freaking love affair.

courtesy of my bff from HS, emma, comes...

where are all of these GORGEOUS gorgeous dresses from?

you will absolutely never guess.

abercrombie and fitch.

not lying.

what? you couldn't read that? that little acknowledgment of me still adoring the place i shopped in HIGH SCHOOL? six years ago?! what's wrong with me?! fine! i will admit it!

ABERCROMBIE AND EFFING FITCH HAS STOLEN MY HEART AND WOULDN'T GIVE IT BACK FOR LESS THAN [A LOT LOT LOT] OF MONEY!

ahem. before i go and feel too badly for myself, look at this text from last night (www.textsfromlastnight.com) that my friend sent me: (860): You are possibly the most enthusiastic, likable bad influence I've ever met. i know, so cute that you die, i die, rachel zoe dies...what a fan-freaking-tastic post this has been!! haha only 45 days until i'm back being a bad influence in san diego all over again!

oh almost forgot, top two tuesday a la:

tv shows!

1) anything real housewives...yes, it's trashy, but they are SO GOOD! my fav is real housewives of atlanta :D

2) MILLIONAIRE MATCHMAKER

and can i have a cheat?

3) addicted to beauty [thank you undomestic chica for the save - i can't believe i put the name wrong! ...you know you've been away from reality TV too long when...] - LOVE gary!! love this catty, plastic surgery obsessed, la jolla based tv show! i think it's on oxygen, and if you haven't gotten a chance to watch it, PLEASE do...if you love trashy, non-sex based reality tv (still very vapid), this is the show for you!!

finally, check out this delish looking Uncle Bob's BBQ Sauce Giveaway @ Jimmy Choos and A Baby, Too!
a store i hadn't heard of (sadly!) until now - CSN Stores $50 gift card giveaway @ Fashion Nicotine!
AND via one of my very very very favorite bloggers, Mrs. Stoneking @ Meet the Stonekings:

!!whew!!

happy half birthday to meeee

2010-02-22T01:59:00.000-08:00

happy half birthday to me!

happy half birthday to me-e-e-e

happy half birthday to me!!

...ahem, and check out/enter my beautiful earring giveaway if you haven't had a chance!

so in honor of my half birthday i went shopping on lulu's...i like to fill up my shopping cart with beautiful dresses, but i still haven't ordered anything because their return policy stipulates it must be returned within 30 days, and lord knows it takes 30 days to even GET anything out on this ship, much less return it! without further ado, i give you my half birthday wishlist:

i can't wait to get back and wear beautiful teenie little dresses all the time!!! from first to last, these are:

buttercup baby dress

coast is clear dress (also love in purple)

lemon meringue

little sparkler

printed matters

most likely to succeed (front and back)

and although i love my giveaway the best (what can i say? i'm understandably biased), here are some other superfab prizes you can win:

KAG's Huephoria Wine Glass Giveaway

Kitchen Belleicious' Lisa Leonard Jewelry Giveaway

Shopaholic in Alabama's A. Tierney Cuff Giveaway
Everything is Better Pink's All Modern Tote Giveaway
Sarah Elizabeth's The Pretty Pearl Monogrammed Hangar Giveaway
Little Miss Southern's Rival Fondue Pot Set Giveaway

and i can't weigh myself because we're rocking so much - good thing = i don't want to eat because i'm seasick, bad thing is i won't know what i weigh until we pull in to our next port! i can't handle not knowing!!!

100+ followers = my first GIVEAWAY!!!

2010-02-21T03:14:00.000-08:00

om freaking f g.

i am so so so beyond psyched to see that i have more than 100 followers...

...so psyched that i am going to host my very first giveaway!!! yaaaay!

the winner will receive her choice, either:

grace pearl earrings or starfish earrings - both beautiful and perfect for spring and summer! one's classic, one's so preppy and cute, i wanted to let the winner make her own choice!

to get entries:

leave individual comments (because i'm lazy and am going to use the random number generator) for each of the following:

1) comment and tell me your favorite thing on www.stellanddot.com/alannastrei and why (1 entry)

2) link back to this giveaway in a blog post and link me to your post (1 entry)

3) become a follower! (or comment to let me know if you already are one) (1 entry)

yay!! this is really dorky, but as soon as i hit like 79 followers i was like 'sweet jesus, if you ever bless me with 100 people who are willing to read my mindless blathering about being stuck on a FREAKING SHIP [i went on in this prayer, a lot more about being stuck on the ship, then i complained about not being able to lose these last 10 pounds, then i prayed for luck getting a boyfriend...i kind of got a little off topic, but then i finished finally and prayed...] I WILL HOST AN AMAZING GIVEAWAY!'

and other sidenote: becky has convinced christina that we're going to go to vegas when i get back from deployment. THANK YOU BABY JESUS, YOU WERE LISTENING!

eta: giveaway will end at 1159pm 28feb10...my time. and given that we're transiting back toward SD and shifting clocks constantly, i have no idea technically what time that will be...it's a myyyyystery!!

top 2 tuesday, giveaways, and if i am dead tomorrow, this is why...

2010-02-16T07:20:00.000-08:00

so, when we have trouble making water onboard the ship (reminiscent of the whole "water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink" thing), they'll shut off hot water so people take faster showers. i put off washing my hair as long as i could, but i finally had to and honestly, it was too freaking cold to get back in and rinse out my conditioner, so if y'all just check back in a couple of days i'll be able to tell you whether there really is a difference between leaving in Redken All Soft Heavy Cream for five minutes or two whole days. i'm hoping i end up with incredible, super soft model hair. more likely it'll just be kind of dull and dirty looking. oh well, can't win 'em all.

...annnnd i came back to finish this entry this afternoon, and there is no more water available on board. four diet cokes later, i'm pretty sure i'm getting more dehydrated, not less. unfortunately, i may or may not have eaten half a slice of cheesecake at dinner (what?! these are stressful times!) so i have to do jillian michaels again.

so.

if i die tonight of dehydration, just know that i loved you all, my blog friends, and more importantly, that i was trying to burn that sinful cheesecake right off my not-so bikini ready hips. death before dishonor, right?

top 2 tuesday a la jimmy choos and a bab y, too:
top two dream vacations:
all expenses paid resort -
my fam always does celebrity cruises, which are amazing, but i'd like to switch it up a little
greek island cruise -
i went to italy and greece for vacation when i was younger, spent a summer a few years back studying in southern france, and have now been out and about in the middle east...i may have a bit of the travel bug, but i am not really the 'real' bugs and camping type. so maybe a resort in the greek islands? greek island cruise? basically anywhere surrounded by those beautiful blue domes:

perfect place to sport these Lilly Pulitzer McKims I found on sale (only $91!) at zappos:

here are some amaaaaazing giveaways that y'all should check out:

kristen @ kristen's palace's cookbook giveaway!
and thank you so much to Shopaholic in Alabama - I won her Mardi Gras giveaway!!
(the first giveaway I've ever won!)

p. freaking. s.

i totally forgot - the most exciting that's happened all week -

Kassim Osgood? gorgeous San Diego Chargers Player?

well...i see him tagged in this photo and he's wearing a pacific beach shore club drinking glove (and y'all know my love for pbsc) so i comment on it and say 'hot before, even hotter now with the pbsc glove!' or something like that, and,

he.

writes.

me.

a message.

kassim osgood, professional NFL football player, takes the time out of his day to message me personally on facebook and say,

"thank you prettylady"

so...y'all are all invited to the wedding.

aaand a romanceless valentine's day...sweet.

2010-02-13T05:19:00.000-08:00

i just realized the saddest. thing. ever. this will be my first valentine's day in as long as i can remember (literally since i had my first kiss) that i won't kiss anyone on valentine's day! what has my life become!?!? you all make out with your boyfriends/lovers/husbands extra hard in honor of the poor people who can't!! (heh that is kind of gross, please do not actually think of us while you're doing it)

my depression is further compounded by the fact that i made a budget today - if i save 20% of what i earn pre-taxes, pay my bills and my taxes, i'll only have [$xxxx] a month to LIVE on! how will i eat?! how will i go out!?! (i'm not posting the number because i think it might be kind of rude and there are obviously people in the economy who are struggling much more than i am, but it is still going to take an ADJUSTMENT!) i think i will either have to get a boyfriend (still part of my brilliant plan) or stop going out as much. or pregame more. or start smuggling alcohol into bars. i did that once in a water bottle, horrible idea because when you're trying to subtly pour it under the table you tend to spike your own drink. i was smashed.

annnyways, y'all have to check out becca's (lovely yellow ribbons) zazzle store. she hand draws everything, and she's crazy talented (she doesn't know i'm posting this, it's just that i just looked @ her store again and i'm obsessing).

so, speaking of my romantic history (we were, weren't we? especially in honor of the lack thereof that will occur tomorrow?), i was looking for this quote:

"When it comes down to it, I let them think what they want. If they care enough to bother with what I do, then I'm already better than them." - marilyn monroe

to post on My Brunette Reality's comment section because she'd been having some trouble with rude people, and it reminded me of something that happened to me this summer. i was going to a school for work, and i was gone for like three weeks. i knew two girls who had met their now-husbands there, so i was like, great, i'm going to meet my future husband (i always think i'm going to meet my future husband, keep in mind...and we have to have a cute story of how we met so i always take mental notes during first meetings with guys), so i'm having a great time, going out and meeting people in class and at get togethers and so forth (this is in newport, RI for anyone familiar with the military). i come back, after three weeks, future husband-free (although i did meet a gorgeous, super tall officer dentist who's messaged me a couple times over deployment - we only hung out once before i left because his residency hours were so restrictive), and i hear a rumor that i was hooking up with one of the instructors! what the f!? i wish! when i first became single (after aforementioned abusive horrible boyfriend), i also heard rumors that i was enlisted (enlisted and officers can't date) and guys would be nervous to talk to me because they didn't want to get in trouble. so MBR, i feel you - who are the girls that plot these things and think them up and spread them!? so. weird.

lastly, tomorrow is your last day to have 20% of the net profits from your purchase on www.stellanddot.com/alannastrei go to benefit Save the Children's Haiti Relief Fund!

annnnnd the real last best part?!!?
i weighed in at 141!

liberty is RESTRICTED!

2010-02-12T03:01:00.000-08:00

my parents encouraged me to apply for an ROTC scholarship when i was applying to colleges (primarily because University of San Diego was $40k++ a year), and when i got the scholarship, they said, why not take it? you can always drop it after a year, with no obligation.

nearly six years later, here i am. fully obligated. which means when we've been underway for 48 days straight (with 300 of our closest friends...and by friends i mean coworkers...and by coworkers i mean those people that you would really prefer to see a lot less than you actually do), we've finally pulled into a port, and, shockingly, people got drunk and hooked up. unfortunately, these same people did this hooking up on the ship. so, there goes our liberty.

good things about not being able to get off the ship even though we're in port:
1) can't spend money on alcohol.
2) can't spend money on pretty much anything. excluding my online shopping habit, but that's a problem underway, too.
3) don't have to spend money on a hotel room.
4) i don't have to 'waste' a cute outfit...

...okay, that cute outfit one? now i'm really reaching. i am sooo annoyed that we are stuck on the ship (and i'm running out of food! i'm down to my last easy mac!)! ugh! why would people hook up ON A SHIP when we're in a port, you ask? because not everyone is allowed to stay out overnight. oh, those poor, sex-starved people. crappy that we're all getting punished for it.

anyyyyways, more exciting news: Stella + Dot spotted on Real Housewives of Orange County last night! looove it! please remember, if you're ordering Stella + Dot jewelry, to order it through my Independent Stylist site, www.stellanddot.com/alannastrei , as opposed to going to the corporate site, so I can track it for my Save the Children Haiti Relief Fund donations!

in final amazing news, check out the lineup for stagecoach this year:

i hope that we make it back in time!! keep your fingers crossed for me!
oh btw, it looks like we won't get extended after all - so if you live in san diego, open up your calendar to come to a stella + dot trunk show, or to host one of your own - it's free, and you can earn free jewelry!

finally, thank you so much for these two awards i just received:
And thank you to the super sweet (and funny!) JM at The Tale of a Southern Belle who gave me the:

"The Sunshine Award is given to bloggers whose positivity and creativity inspire others in the blog world. I am now going to pass along the sunshine and present this award to some of my favorite bloggers who make my day "A Sunshine Day!"
1. Meet the Stonekings

2. Confessions of a + Size Girl

3. Everything is Better Pink

4. Hot Pink Leopard and Pearls

5. Previously Plump

"This award means you're really going places, Baby. You'll still be blogging about your great adventures 10 years from now, and I'll still be reading them."

The Rules: * Link back to the blogger who sent you this award

* Post where you would like to be in 10 years

* Pass it on to 5 other special bloggers!

Thank you to Becky @ Meet The Stonekings - she is the cutest and totally someone i would be friends with in real life!

hmm...10 years from now...

wow, this time two years ago, i would have had an entirely different answer-i was living with an emotionally abusive, controlling boyfriend, about to graduate from college and join the navy. i am in such a different place now, and so grateful for that (even though it was quite a messy breakup - police called twice, my parents flying out to move me out - every tacky, COPS/white trash style scenario possible. still so embarrassed that i made such an amazingly poor judgment of character).

but now! now, i am so, so blessed! i have two incredible best friends, i have no debt and healthy savings, i am fully qualified in my job (yay!) with a promotion and big raise in may, and i am happily, joyfully single. in 10 years, i'll be 33, and hopefully my life will be amazing. i'll have linked up to a junior officer recruiter (unless i picked up lateral transfer to public affairs officer!) and will be working in the big, bad corporate world (with REAL CLOTHES, no more uniforms!! yay!!), i'll hopefully be in a serious relationship, i'll be fit and un-sundamaged, and i will look back fondly on my twenties...which means i need to get back to san diego and start living them!

Your turn! this award goes to:

1. Destined for Royalty

2. Nautical By Nature

3. Preppy 50 and Loving Lilly

4. Pink Champagne

5. Sarah Elizabeth

now tell me, does anyone want any souvenirs from thailand? it's allegedly on our port visit list (a little place called phuket!), and i would love to send you a postcard! just comment with your email, and i'll get your address!

peanut butter, leopard new balances, top 2 tuesday...

2010-02-09T13:08:00.000-08:00

i know exactly why i'm single...it's things like what i'm doing right now:
eating crunchy peanut butter out of the jar.
with my finger.
and it's the bottom of the jar so my whole hand is peanut buttery.
...wait, it gets better:
it's my roommate's peanut butter.

ok, now that i've gotten that confession out of my system, are you ready to die rachel zoe style? [i definitely just got peanut butter on the keyboard. sh!t. now she'll be able to smell it [or sense it or something] when she gets back...i should have been more crafty about this]

LEOPARD PRINT SNEAKERS!!!! NINE WEST AND NEW BALANCE TEAMED UP FOR 2009 (yes, i'm behind the curve...forgive me, i LIVE ON A WARSHIP!) to develop amaaaaaazingly cute sneakers!! must. own. immediately!!

speaking of must own immediately, looking at everyone's wintery snow pictures reminded me that it is still winter, which had me looking at some winter weather jewelry, and i am really, really, really considering this gorgeous bib necklace - it's been in instyle, people, etc...

stella + dot natasha bib necklace

and it's soo pretty and versatile and inevitably timeless...

and speaking of snow-envy, i decided to participate - here's my poor, northern virginian snow-bound home:

and that was before the 10-20" they were expecting today!!

before i forget, i want to add that the caveat to my peanut butter eating is that we're finally in a port, so i can replace my roommate's jar tomorrow and she'll never be the wiser! i am not of the 'steal food and don't replace it' variety, don't worry :D speaking of being in port, i hung out with these two hoodlums last night (and a third hoodlum, not pictured, in case you're keeping track):

i hear this morning someone making fun of one of them for getting in a fight...let's all laugh at the fact that i don't even remember said fight, and i was THERE! it's like my drunk memories are stored in a different part of my brain...

ok, so my top two tuesday (jobs), a la Jimmy Choos and A Baby, Too:

realistically: i would love to laterally transfer and become a public affairs officer (possible now that i got my SWO pin!!)

not-feasibly: i would love to be a waitress!! i used to be a server at morgan run country club in rancho sante fe, and i loved it! i love working in food service - you can fix every problem and there is always a way to make the customer happy! the only problem is that with a paycheck like that, i was experiencing way too much "champagne tastes on a beer budget"

sidenote: got care packages today from my mom and cousin, very very thoughtful and if you know a girl on deployment, send her MAGAZINES! they are a hot commodity out here...the other most popular thing i received in my care package? bacon salt! yes!!!!! thank you mom! slogan? "everything should taste like bacon". i wholeheartedly agree, bacon salt maker people. and i'm a vegetarian.

and finally, have y'all noticed everyone on facebook has a celeb pic up instead of themselves? i was like oh, lame trend, so dumb, blah blah...and then my best friends turned into britney spears and tara reid. thus, i give you my drunken celebrity doppelganger (this is so sadly accurate that my mother sent me a facebook message that said, and this is a direct quote: "stop drinking. you look terrible." - very supportive, mom. also you don't even recognize your own daughter?!!? or your own 'not' daughter?!)

and besides, i would never post such a hoochie bra showing picture if it was really me!! i tell ya!

annnyways, i also wanted to thank sweet darling Kitchen Belleicious for my first award of February!

thank you thank you thank you! i am going to pass this award on to six lovely bloggettes:

lovely yellow ribbons

essential luxuries

lola's journey to and from

peach bellini bride

the pink washingtoniette

sparkles of life

(she and i are both named alanna, and we both have the sparkles in our blog titles...it's a sign!)

some of them have very small fan bases so far, so please check out all of their blogs - they're amazing and hilarious and i read them religiously, and they're totally over the top! (in the good way, obviously)

finally, check out these two giveaways:

short southern mama's lydia and pugs giveaway

miss kriss's thomas paul tote giveaway

enjoy!!

2010-02-07T07:46:00.000-08:00

so i know i'm supposed to be kind, and generous, and benevolent and magnificent and all those sweet words, right? well right now i'm seasick, so i'm feeling kind of grouchy and fairly mean.

thus:

isn't it the WORST when you find this girl that you totally hated in college (and you don't hate very many people because you're generally a nice person and can't really be bothered to put negative energy out into the universe, especially when there are so many cute boys to meet and great clothes to buy, but this girl is a royal b and you really haven't liked her ever since you met her, and you had always heard she wasn't very nice and then when you finally had to work with her you realized the rumors were true? and then you're just doing some normal feeling sorry for yourself facebook stalking while the ship pitches and ROLLS back and forth and you realize that she's MARRIED and she's lost like those last 10 pounds where you go from normal girl pretty to famous girl pretty and she just looks freaking ridiculously great? and you're throwing up!?!? and her husband actually looks like a fairly nice guy and she's actually prettier then he is cute but not in that oh what was she thinking way?

ugh.

anyways, on a happier note:

Kate Spade is currently running a Don't Fret promotion (I can't remember whose blog first posted this, but thank you!) . . . use code DONTFRET for 20% off your total purchase, including sale. thus, i give you "i'm not married and i haven't lost 15 pounds and i'm not little, teenie and blonde but in fact tall and redheaded and i'm seasick and you're probably snuggling with your husband" shopping list:

Kate Spade Key Fob

Kate Spade Centro Mikkel Tunic

said tunic will go very well with my favorite Stella + Dot Palm Beach Collection accessories:

Boca Necklace with Bee Broach - Gold

Palm Necklace with Starfish - Silver

Boca Chic Necklace - Coral

blah, time for more dramamine! and no more stalking - i guess we all end up on different paths...or something. right?

diet coke, kappa kappa gamma and giveaways!

2010-02-06T00:30:00.000-08:00

soo, the stress from my board last night (details to come, i know you're waiting on pins and needles) and my poor stress management skills means that i weighed in this morning at 143.4 ... oops. i have to get back on the wagon - we're pulling in to port soon so it means i won't get to wear my super trendy romper (aka mechanic-style coveralls) anymore and i'm going to have to fit back into my Sevens!

annd about my board...well, neither of us passed. we have to do a half dozen 'look ups' and then report back to the Commanding Officer, and then we get our pins. good news? we should be pinned by tomorrow, and i only know 1 person that didn't have to do look ups before he got his pin. so, kind of yay? i can't decide if i deserve the reward dress quite yet...i'm thinking that i may have to hold off and see if i like something when we pull into port as opposed to rewarding myself just yet.

and finally, bummer of all bummers, i have had a horrible revelation. i'm ADDICTED to caffeine. addicted!!! i had the WORST headache this morning and i tried everything - a nap, bottles of water, a zone bar, music, no music, laying in the dark, everything...it wasn't until i gave up and decided to face the day, drinking a diet coke, that my headache disappeared!! i guess there are worse things to be addicted to?

finally, thanks to Eileen, my first international stella + dot customer! i'm so amazed at how much support i've gotten from the blogging community about my Save the Children Haiti Relief Fund fundraising efforts - y'all are so supportive! feel free to send your bfs and hubbys over - we'll take good care of them and donate 20% of net profits to Save the Children.

happy valentine's day, y'all...i think i'm going to figure out a way to tuck the Uma flower into my uniform to celebrate the big day!

i am seriously counting down the days till we get home - LESS THAN SIXTY - because i can't wait to see everyone again. i got another group facebook message from some college friends about celebrating a birthday, and i realized that none of us have started to do that group getting married thing...i hear that everyone starts getting married at once and i'll end up going to millions of weddings a year! fortunately i was a
kappa kappa gamma

so i know all of the weddings will be beautiful!

now, to work out, so i hopefully fit into my jeans (although i'd better fit into them given they were the pair i wore onboard back in my 158 days!)

lastly, check out these fab giveaways:

Semi Slacker Mom's Valentine's Day Giveaway

Decal Monogram's Easter Giveaway

eta:

okay, so remember my recent rachel pally jersey knit obsession?? (see the dresses in the last couple of posts) ...i was thinking to myself, why have i not become a devoted rachel pally fan? so i started googling, shopping, etc...and this is what shopbop had to offer in the way of rachel pally:

oh. my. g.

that's all i have to say. rachel pally, you are hit or miss.

dress disaster :(

2010-02-04T03:36:00.000-08:00

...okay, disaster may have been a little dramatic, but still...SO bummed! my favorite dress? the Rachel Pally one with the little flowers? THE LAST ONE SOLD RIGHT OUT OF MY SHOPPING CART! that is the last time i am patient and wait to buy something instead of just buying it when i want it! this could have disastrous effects on my bank account, but i can't handle this heart ache ever again!

consequently i will be be buying this sucker immediately:

Lilly Pulitzer Petula Dress in Limeade Coral Me Crazy

pink and green, coral, jersey knit...it's like it belongs in my closet :)

Under the Palm Tree is running a great promotion where if you buy 3 full priced items, they're all 50% off - for some reason their site won't load for me, so their amazing customer service is answering all of my questions via email while I fill up a shopping cart!

in a totally different direction, i think i'm going to pick up this jewelry today -

Stella + Dot St. Tropez Statement Cuff

It's so tough yet delicate, and I love the color - it will be gorgeous with my Mystic Tan when I get back!! Hahaha this sympathy shopping I'm doing for myself because I missed out on an adorable dress is almost as fun as having the 'dream' dress. I think I'll still get the one shoulder one if I pass my board tomorrow, though.

also, i've found that i'm super productive in reference to everything else (I'm in charge of my ship's Public Affairs and Morale, Welfare and Recreation) - i've published 11 photos this morning alone and planned the tours and hotel bookings for our upcoming port visit, two things i was putting off until i realized that there was something scarier (my board!) to put off!

Perfect Spring/Summer Dresses + My Style Monday + ...

2010-02-02T04:54:00.000-08:00

I can't help it...when I'm nervous about something, I shop or I eat. I'm a huge procrastinator, and I also have unhealthy coping mechanisms! It's true! Why can't I be one of those people who doesn't eat when they're nervous? Although all things considered that would probably add to my shopping problem...annnyways, I have a huge board coming up on Friday, for a huge / important qualification at work (called a SWO - Surface Warrior Officer - pin). SO, I have been working really hard, staying up really late, and ... shopping.

And here are the fruits of my labor, one of which which (maybe two, if i don't spend that much money in our next port) will be en route to moi if I pass my board...

www.tobi.com
T-Bags Printed Short Rope Shoulder Dress ($~~196.00~~ $62.00 )
Velvet Orxy Dress ($~~207.00~~ $78.00)

www.revolveclothing.com

Rachel Pally Athena Mini Dress in Sorbet

Rachel Pally Kayla Dress in Hibiscus

Rachel Pally Classic Halter Dress in Garden

...I think the last Rachel Pally is my #1 choice...soooo sweet with the little flowers!

And I've been talking about my new And(semi-unhealthy) obsession with B.B. Dakota for a while now, right? Look at this article I just found! Who knew it was all over Twilight??

Finally, my contributions to My Style Monday, as started by Short Southern Mama (check out her blog - SO cute!)...my five home styling requirements, in photo form (these are from photos already stored on my computer, so excuse the quality if need be) :

First and Foremost, my couch. Z Gallerie Palisade Couch - the first purchase I made as soon as I started getting a steady paycheck, it's incredible and beautiful and so soft and down filled - I actually slept on it fo r about four months because I COULDN'T AFFORD A BED since i bought the couch...hahaha and you see now why i get so excited for clothes on sale! Secondly, I love artwork and frames and monograms...I think i stole this from Preppy Bride at 2365, who was showing how to make our own! Thirdly, this beautiful, enormous hutch - i love white, and i love beadboard. Fourthly (??), plantation shutters! and more white, haha. and FINALLY, Christmas time! don't worry, I am not a year round Christmas decorator, but I am psycho about our trees...at home I reorganize all of the gifts so they're aesthetically pleasing - I'm talking limit my family members to coordinating paper, rewrap poorly wrap gifts and hide ugly ornaments reorganization.

Aw, that was depressing...I obviously have no home to put those things in (although you know my pink sleeping bag matches my pink work out mat matches my pink iPod matches my pink sneakers matches my pink water bottle...I could go on forever. it's kind of embarrassing).

Finally, look - perfect for dressing up all of my delicate spring dresses -
collette necklace - love stella + dot!

omg fashion EMERGENCY!

2010-01-31T10:43:00.000-08:00

...in the best way humanly possible, obviously!

after a fabulous weigh in of 141.8 this morning (hooray!) i was patiently googling BB Dakota (after realizing that my last two successful and beautiful dress finds were from their website) and came upon these two adorable numbers from www.chickdowntown.com , which i had seen full page ads for in a lot of magazines but never bothered to visit:

BB Dakota Coral Pink Crawford Dress + BB Dakota Coral Pink Samantha Top

Now get ready for the prices: $74 and $31, respectively. A steal, right? IT. GETS. BETTER.

SO I am surfing around their site because i might as well since i'm paying for shipping, and I discover - 70% OFF RETAIL PRICES

with the code CD70

not even freaking lying, i feel like i have died and gone to heaven. originally, my cart had over $2300 worth of beautiful, beautiful clothing in it, until i realized i couldn't use more than one code at a time (i had sale stuff in there). thus, i give you my full priced (and now 70% off) cart:

Product: BB DAKOTA Black Lovely Dress
Product: BB DAKOTA Eggshell Collins Lace Long Sleeve Tunic Tops
Product: BLACK ORCHID Gemma Cuffed Shorts Shorts
Product: BB DAKOTA Katharine Shirt in Beach Blue Tops
Product: CITIZENS OF HUMANITY Santorini Kelly Bootcut Jeans
Product: CITIZENS OF HUMANITY La Jolla Kelly Bootcut Jeans
Product: JOE'S JEANS Ludlow Socialite Kicker Jeans
Product: BB DAKOTA Coral Pink Samantha Top
Product: BB DAKOTA Coral Pink Crawford Dress Dresses
Product: RACHEL LEIGH Hinge Bow Bangle

and now...
the final reveal...

Sub Total: $885.00
Shipping: $10.00
Sales Tax: $0.00
Discount (CD70): -$619.50
TOTAL: $275.50

THAT AVERAGES OUT TO $27 AN ITEM, INCLUDING SHIPPING! FOR CITIZENS OF HUMANITY AND JOE'S!

and that concludes my fashion emergency. whew.

please stay tuned for your regularly scheduled blogging, including my usual plug for www.stellanddot.com/alannastrei (i canNOT. WAIT. to wear my jewelry with my new clothes!! april and home, please come soon!!) and our donations of 20% of the profits from all purchases to save the children's help for haiti campaign, and the following contests for you to visit:

http://www.letshaveacocktail.com/2010/01/jimmy-choo-and-cocktails-too.html

http://sonjaaislynne.blogspot.com/2010/01/sprinkles-giveaway.html

http://whaleflipflops.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2010-01-09T11%3A51%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=7

http://www.terenceandbecky.com/2010/01/giveawayfor-my-pretties.html

yay!

january 30th is basically spring when it comes to shopping, right?

2010-01-30T05:16:00.000-08:00

...i mean, there's no reason i shouldn't start obsessing over beautiful dresses right now, right?

[note, i'm aware that i'm delusional about the weather, but i won't be getting back to dress wearing until april (and if we get extended, may/june) anyway]

BB Dakota Double V Voile Dress, $80, South Moon Under

Okay, looking back at my post from last week, i think i must have a thing for coral this year (probably to balance out all of the turquoise, obviously), which is odd, given that i look horrible in coral since i have red hair. this will look fab with the following jewelry i have purchased (yes, i sell stella + dot because i can't stop buying it and get a great discount. thank god)

[sidenote: we just tested one of our weapons systems and i nearly had a heart attack...hearing high powered rounds fired out with no warning is definitely not anxiety-reducing]

anyways, back to shopping...i have another lip gloss recommendation (i know, personally in the summer i'm more inclined to do sheer gloss and then just use bronzer and blush, but since i'm soo crazy fair right now (especially without the help of misting every week and sunless tanner) i like to add color to mah lips, and this stuff looks like i've been eating a cherry popsicle (it also smells like it...i walked up behind someone in the engine room this morning, and he turned around and saw me and said, "i thought i smelled something good!" - this is obviously a good thing as it means that i am associated with good smells evidently, but also a bad thing if it means that i could stand close enough to him that he could SMELL me before he noticed me...what if someone was plotting to kill him?? the guy has to up his observance level!)

so, without further ado, this is from the discontinued jessica simpson 'dessert' line - jessica simpson dessert lip gloss in 'slip' . . . this is don't go out of the lines vibrant, but so flattering and berry-like once it's on. i personally find it spectacular and apply it nonstop.

annnnnd finally, the best news is i weighed 142 this morning! i drink a bottle of water (24 oz) every night before bed, so i know that the weight loss isn't just water weight :) we pull into our next port in about a week and a half, and i'd really like to break 140...wish me luck! a lot of the guys have nothing better to do then work out when we're underway (obviously in addition to our taxing work and watch schedules, haha) so they're ridiculously fit...i, on the other hand, consider all of that free time to be time for eating! j/k...it's more like time for shopping...and blogging...hahaha what have i become?

check out these awesome valentine's day giveaways:

http://bisforbrown.blogspot.com/2010/01/hearts-and-feathers-giveaway.html

http://miss-kriss.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-mine-benign-valentines-day-giveaway.html

http://kristenlawlor.blogspot.com/2010/01/be-my-love-bird.html

http://southerncinderella.blogspot.com/2010/01/giveaway-time.html

http://missyclarabelle.blogspot.com/2010/01/shell-bracelet-giveaway.html

and as always, please visit www.stellanddot.com/alannastrei , where 20% of net profits until Valentine's Day are donated to Save the Children's Haiti Relief Fund!

ETA: i'm ordering that large Lilly 2010 Planner...hopefully it gets to me before i get back from deployment, bahaha...also WHO are those random people who friend you on facebook? like those ones that you have literally no one in common with?! where do they come from?! how do they get my name?!

barbie lip colors + abs inspiration

2010-01-28T08:18:00.000-08:00

yesterday was such an exciting day! we were so lucky to have the Baltimore Ravens Cheerleaders fly out and do a performance for us

and yes, they really do look like that in person...definitely totally toned and super slender and tan...they were incredibly sweet but they also made me say, 'hey! if these girls can have full time jobs or go to school full time and maintain those figures, then i'm only cheating myself by not trying to do it to!' ...so0o0o, maybe jillian michaels' 30 day shred will make it back out of the DVD case. probably not. but maybe. haha i'll probably start with denise richards hit the spot pilates, do three of the segments, get exhausted, and swear off exercising altogether. i think maybe i'll wait until my board is over (it's on the fourth of february - it's like a promotion board).

and, i was digging up some photos for my mom of me in uniform, so i thought i'd share with you guys our different types of uniforms (i only have two shared here, there are LOTS more):

The dark blue one piece is a pair of coveralls - it's like wearing pajamas every day! for clarification, my hair is out of regulations because it's showing from underneath the brim of my ballcap...oops! hahaha i have a very firm stance against hairsprays and gels in uniform - until someone else is going to pay to get my hair fixed after it's all dried out from being pasted to my head every day, i am going to just rely on the help of bobby pins, and Lord knows bobby pins are useless on naturally big hair. c'est la vie. the second picture is me and my daddy! at my commissioning ceremony (that's when i officially became an officer). SO exciting!

AND!! Remember how I said my goal was to get a boyfriend when I got back for the summer? Well, here is my legwork in advance:

From: "S****, Alanna ENS USN LSD47" 
To: Rebecca P*****; christina o***
Sent: Tue, January 26, 2010 10:58:25 PM
Subject: my bridal shower
Since you know it will happen (although it may not be for another 10-20 years), here is what I’d like my bridal shower to look like:

(#1, ohmyg, RIGHT?!)

-----Original Message-----
 From: Rebecca P*****  

 Sent: Wednesday, January 27, 2010 6:08 PM

 To: S****, Alanna ENS USN LSD47
Subject: Re: my bridal shower

noted. i suppose we'll cross that bridge when we come to it? :) i hear that the groom is sounding a lot like [mutual guy friend]?? hehehe

yes! This means my plans are working!! i am manifesting a boyfriend without even being home!! there is seriously no justification for why he is still holding a candle for me, but good for him...i can totally get used to the sweet drunken facebook messages i get from him every weekend :) oh, early 20s romance...

until then, i have the BEST find to share!! i just discovered the most beautiful, work appropriate Barbie pink lipcolor! I am obssessed with MAC Dazzle Glass in Extra Amps, but it's a bit much in uniform (even for me, haha), so I was SO happy to discover Estee Lauder Pure Color lipstick (i KNOW, lipstick...not even exaggerating, it's a pleasure to put on - great scent, so smooth and, obviously, the best color known to man...BARBIE PINK!!) in Pink Light...it looks lighter in the picture than the actual stick does - the stick looks like cotton candy. On your lips, though? PERFECTION!!!
I'm on the right, wearing my MAC Dazzleglass in our first port visit - Guam!

and that is an AWFUL picture of the pink light lipstick - if you try googling the gloss, you'll see what shade it is, but i didn't want to post a pic since i haven't tried the gloss, and it's the stick that i'm seriously psyched about :)

finally, please don't forget to visit www.stellanddot.com/alannastrei, and pick out a valentine's gift for yourself, grab a mother's day gift for your mom, sister or friend, or even a gift for yourself - until Feb. 14, 20% of net profits will be donated to Save the Children's Haiti Relief Efforts!