Hello, all!  Dana here.  If you know me at all, you know I have a very curious mind.  You may also know that I often will venture out on my own to discover my own answers.  What's that you say?  The answers for why or how to do pretty much anything probably already exists on that amazing place we call the Internet?  Super-duper!  I will now ignore all that and embark on my own journey of discovery.  That's just how my brain works.  I have to see it for myself, much to the chagrin of those around me.

Dana here.  Lemme cut right to the chase.

Hi guys!

I'm reviewing a super flirty and girly tank today, and I'm super excited to share it, because for once I  have semi-proper pictures!

I got the hubs to take the pictures of me. How about those apples?

So the shirt is a simplicity number that is super versatile and fun. I can't tell you how quick and easy this top went together. The biggest pain, was probably the hem, because I picked chiffon. Stupid chiffon. Chiffon likes to fray, so I serged the cut edges as soon as I could, but that still didn't help some parts.

I made view C, which is the top larger picture and the bottom left corner picture. It's got a contrast front center panel, with sheer sides and back. I don't actually care for the look with the sleeves. I think it makes the top look a bit dowdy.

I will say I wasn't prepared to have to alter the armholes after cutting out the pattern, but I understand why the guide sheet instructs you to. The pattern is made for sleeves, so in order to properly finish off the edge of the armhole edge for the sleeveless versions, you need to cut an additional 1/4" off the edge. With the polyester I used as my contrast that was no big deal. It's got the body to handle that trimming, but the chiffon. That bloody chiffon. I ended up basting in a line 1/4" from the edge and snipping that off. That was just easier for me.

The whole shirt doesn't take much to sew up. The front center is made up of 4 pieces, and then there are 2 side pieces and the back piece. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy. You finish off the neck and armholes with bias tape, and then hem it.

I think it took me two afternoons, simply because of someone's napping schedule, but in reality, if Baby Girl had taken one of her oh-so-lovely 4 hour naps, then I could've easily gotten the shirt done and browsed Pinterest for a bit.


I love that this top is so versatile. It can be dressed up or down, and is colorful enough to carry through almost 3 seasons. I don't know that I'd wear in November, but there are certainly warm enough days to pull it off in October. I actually ended up wearing a light cardigan with the top, because Saturday was a bit on the brisk side, and the sweater looked fine with the top.

Have a terrific day everyone!

Spring Break was amazing and terrible at the same time.

I'm totally slacking today. I haven't gotten any of my projects done, or blog posts written like I had been doing. Spring Break is really messing with me, but luckily there's always something I can pull from the archives.

My sister, Dana, shared these two great greek yogurt recipes years ago on the old blog, and today I'm bringing them back!

Hey all! I'm reviewing another exercise pattern by McCall's today.

This one is a jacket, and I am in love with it.

The pattern is fairly straightforward, until you get to the back of the jacket. The back is what sold me on this pattern.

Look at those ruffles! Look at the lace! Just look. What's not to love?

I ended up finding a really nice mid-weight stable knit fabric for this jacket, and it worked so well. I wouldn't go with something that doesn't have any body. The jacket needs the structure. The stretch lace was a bit of a pain, but when is it not?

For the overlay and ruffle a lighter weight knit would be fine. You could go crazy here.

This week was a very exciting week.

I got to break in my new shoes!

I'm a dork. I know it, but I can't help it. I get excited about new stuff.

The overall week wasn't great, I let crappy weather keep me inside. At church though, the pastor said something that spoke to me. He equated faith with not quitting. It made me think of how faithful I'd been to my running. I've never quitted, but I have gotten lazy and complacent, which in some respects is just as bad. I need to refocus. Part of my issue is that I've decided not to try and PR RnR Nashville. I'm going to run the 5k with my sister, and then immediately head into the half marathon. It'll be further than I've ever run, but given that it's the longest distance I've run, I'm not going to go for the PR. I'll PR the distance.

So now that some of the gushing is out of the way, let's get to the meat and potatoes of the post.

I put off making this pattern for a few reasons.

 - Exercise clothes are scary.
 - They have a tough job.
 - Knits can be a pain in the rear. 

I'm back with another version of my overnight oats. I decided on this combination, as I was making the oats.

What I love about this recipe is that the base is always going to be the same. It also helps that the base recipe is 1:1:1. 1/3 of everything.

You really can't get simpler than that.

So here's how I started my day on Saturday.

Or Ilvermorny for that matter. ;p Bonus points if you've been keeping up with your HP lore and know what that is.  So what's one of the most famous edibles to come out of the Harry Potter universe?

 Anyone?

 Correct!  Butterbeer!

10 points to Hufflepuff!  Let's be honest; you know the Hufflepuffs are cooking for one another all day.

 And what is the latest Starbucks promotional drink?  Excellent!  15 points to Ravenclaw!

That would be the so-called smoked butterscotch latte and frappucino.

Final question...through what date was that promotion supposed to run?  That's right!  March 21st.  15 more points to Hufflepuff house!

According to the Internet, which never lies and is my font of fandom-y entertainment, the smoked butterscotch drink is supposed to be a real life version of butterbeer.  So exciting for an ardent fan like me!

Happy Race Season!

Saturday was the first race of 2016, and it was amazing! Rock 'N Roll DC is definitely a fun race! I still can't stop gushing about it. It's been 2 days.

So let me get to the clean and concise bit, and then we'll jump into the meat of the post.

The short of it is I will absolutely be doing this race again, because it's just that dang awesome.

The long involves more gushing, fun, and excitement.

So let me start from the beginning because otherwise I'll be bouncing all over the place.

Last week was a wonderful week. I didn't get all my workouts in, but the ones I did were awesome. The week also ended with me running the Rock 'N Roll DC half. It was also amazing, but that's tomorrow's post. So without too much ado, here's the recap!

So during our respective 10k's on Sunday, Dana and I were talking about weird things that happen during or after our workouts, and one of the things we talked about was a chemically smell in our noses after a workout.

So a few weeks ago, we updated Small Fry's room {HERE}, and he decided that he wanted a Rock 'N Roll themed room.

Hello all!

I'm sharing another pillow post today, and it's one of my favorite pillows. I still use this pillow on my bed almost 6 years later, and it still looks good as new.

Welcome everyone!

You know what's funny? Rituals. Rituals are sometimes funny.

Example - I'm running 12 miles on Sunday, and I've run 12 miles before. I've run further than that, yet, because this is the first time I've run 12 miles this year, I'm a bit of a head case.

I don't know why. It's really quite stupid. I know I can run 12 miles.

This is where micro goals come into play. Micro goals are small goals that you can set for yourself to motivate you or help through a tough spot in your training. I use them all the time. I've used them for my entire journey.

Hello, my name is Dana, and I am a Disney kid.  I unabashedly love Disney, and I don't care who knows it!  One of my many favorites is The Princess and the Frog.  Besides all the great characters and highly quotable lines--I am Naveen, Prince of Maldonia, and she is Tiana, the waitress...do not kiss her!--I really love that Disney used this film to emphasize the need to work for your dream.  I just think that's such a great message.  What else can this fantastic film teach us?  That if you're on a hunt for a man, you need some man-catching beignets!!!