If you give a girl a scarf..

My name is Lori and I am a shopaholic.

Retail therapy is the best therapy. You see, when you're angry, shopping makes you smile. When you're nervous, shopping can calm you. The best retail therapy happens when you're sad, too. It not only gives you instant gratification, but it makes you feel just as good the next day because you're wearing something new. And not only can I shop, I can rationalize just about anything.

Well... Mommy dearest gave me a scarf. She bought it because scarves are the "in" thing. But she didn't like it, so she gave it to me. However, it's not really in my color scheme (I wear black, grey, white, and more black) and I just needed something to wear with it. I had the perfect outfit picked out-- crisp white button down and striking khaki's. Sounds good, right? Except the khaki's I was thinking about don't exist anymore. They were a casualty of the life of a teacher. They were washed with colored paper that bled all over the load.

What's a girl to do when she doesn't have what she wants to wear the next day? Shop. Duh.

So, if you give a girl a scarf, chances are, she's going to have to shop for new khaki's. When the store doesn't have her khaki's, she'll need a second choice. When the second choice involves a different cami, chances are she'll have to find a new one. When she finds the top she's looking for, she'll look for a new scarf to go with it. The new scarf will be in the coat section. If she heads to the coat section, she'll probably find a new coat that she just has to have because her old coat is black and her beloved Zoey is white. And of course, the coat will just make her want a new scarf.

I still need those khaki's. Damn.

I've Been Busy...

Today has been a busy, busy day!

What started out as just a quick trip to Michael's turned into a full fledged shopping spree! You see, the Michael's by my house didn't have what I needed. So I had to run to the next town over to check out their selection. Well, that store happens to be right next to a Linens 'n Things which is going out of business (read-- HUGE sales) and I just had to stop in.

Here's a run down of my purchases.

Two dining room chairs. Original price? $99.99 each. Sale price? $49.99. Actual price? $24.99

While they didn't have a complete set, I'm cool with it because I figure we can find a set of 4 chairs that compliment them and use the two of these on the end.

New bedspread, pillow shams, and decorative pillows. Original price? $99.99. Sale price? $49.99

What a deal! And it matches perfectly with the room.

(Notice Big Dog in the middle of the bed- she loves to destroy make the bed) And no, that's not an inappropriate bedroom toy in the bed with her, it's her bone that just happens to look like a sex toy. Hubby and I make fun of it every time we see the dogs playing with it.

And, another view. I can't ever decide if I like the curtains opened or closed. What do you think?

I did make it to Michael's to get the canning jars to make homemade hot cocoa mix as gifts. I'm pretty excited about how they turned out. I'll post pictures of them later.

Hubby LOVES the new bedroom set as much as I do. We both crawled in bed and invited the dogs to have a little middle of the afternoon slumber party! I'm actually pretty excited to go to sleep tonight. There's nothing like clean sheets and a new bedroom set.

Weekend Recap...

Saturday hubby and I met up with some of my work friends in Annapolis. We had a good time hanging out, watching football, and drinking. The bar we were at has a special shot, the Oyster Shot. It definitely is a raw oyster with cocktail sauce and vodka, chased with a shot of beer. Because I never turn down a dare, you know I totally tried that. It was gross. It won't be something I try again.

After that we headed to meet up with one of hubby's co-workers. It was a total couples date. I don't always do well meeting new people and was not terribly excited for this, but it turned out great and I'm really hoping that she had as good of a time as I did. I know it sounds lame, but sometimes there just aren't enough good couples friends out there and when you find a good set, you really don't want to let them go!

Today we ran a bunch of errands and did some shopping. Now we're just watching football, eating nachos, and drinking beer. Seriously, what could be better than that?

Bargain shopping

Okay, I'll be the first to admit-- I'm a bit of a clothes snob. My mother made me this way. We shop because we like it, not because we have to. We go to the trendy stores. We love name brands. We're brats like that.

However, once you get married and start living on your own... sometimes things have to change. So I've started shopping around a bit. Grab a cute Target shirt here, a pair of Payless Shoes there, a little Old Navy on top, and throw in a Gap or two just to round it out.

I've met my match. Feline's Basement! LOVE it. I normally hate bargain stores. They never have my size, I can't find the color I like, and most of all-- I actually have to look for things. The instant gratification part of me hates it, but the bargain shopper in me loves finding a good deal!

So far I've purchased a dress, pair of dress pants, two pairs of dress capris, a pair of shoes, and a top and I've been pleased with what I've gotten. The dress fit like a gem. The capris were a size smaller than I normally wear (woo hoo!) and the pants were half off and I didn't even know it! I'm not particularly impressed with their shoe section, but that's okay because DSW is in the same complex and I can use the exercise to walk the 100 yards to it.

Anyone else out there know of any places to find a good bargain?

And... for dinner tonight? Vegetable lasagna. DELISH. And the bonus? The recipe actually is doubled, so you instantly make an extra pan of it and freeze it. That means two dinners with the hassle of one. If you haven't gotten "Taste of Home" or "Simple and Delicious", you don't know what you're missing. The magazines are full of recipes that are quick and easy and we LOVE everything we've made from it. Plus, they are like $10 for a year. Go do it. Now.