tote-ally prepped!

longchamp in pink!

my beach weekend has me thinking

about packing up and getting the car ready for the beach.

i am fortunate to leave work early on fridays during the summer,
so all i have to do is pick up muffy and head right to the shore,
and the car is always packed with totes of towels, suits and sand toys.

pottery barn kids madras diaper bags (forget the diapers!)

But what tote to pack? These are all sooo cute!vineyard vines

llbean -- in mini or adult-size!
bean bags have gotten seriously cute!

another llbean bag with lobsters & crabs... oh my!

tory-terrific!

kate...the other side says spade -- so cute!

lilly -- of course!

Le SportSac for Lilly

way too many to restrict to the beach...that's why i'm such a bag lady!
what's your favorite tote?

weekend getaway

we are back from a wonderful weekend getaway at the chatham bars inn on cape cod
what a gorgeous resort--i highly recommend it!

the grand lobby by day -- coffee was served here each morning

a champagne toast to my parents' 40th in our cottage suite

muffy and her mimi -- in pink and green of course!

the only weekend disappointment -- in the pink (the lilly store) was CLOSED!

but boatloads of flowers were blooming -- isn't this window"boat" adorable?

and muffy found an abandoned boat on the beach

and of course we stopped at The Black Dog for souvies --
even though we live less than 2 hours away!

a toast to...

my parents, married 40 years this week!

wedding day, march 21, 1970 -- mom was 19, dad, 23

we are off on a grand celebratory weekend to the
lovely chatham bars inn on cape cod,
with 10 family members flying in to join us for the event!

i'm hoping for yet another unseasonably warm new england spring weekend
as we stay, play, walk the beaches and shop...

we're staying in the cottages, aren't they adorable?
i've planned a small party for saturday night to toast the happy couple
with coffees, teas, punch, champagne and red velvet cupcakes...
and lots of pictures from the last 40 years!

have a wonderful weekend .... sending you a bit of new england's sea and shore!

on the bright side

what do you wear to perk up?

i find that wearing color ALWAYS puts me in a better mood, and puts a smile on the faces of others.

we seem to get caught up in a sea of black, greys and browns in the office,
so infusing color into the corporate setting is a must!

i wore this lilly on monday, hoping to offer a bit of spring color
into my corporate environment.

but then, disaster struck, or should i say: the flu!
i was home sick yesterday, and not feeling a bit like putting on color,
so i took comfort in my black fleece top and black lounge pants. (totally NOT me)
and when muffy got home from school she said,
"mama, I know you're sick if you're not wearing ANY pink!" -- bless her heart!

i'm on the mend, but still in black today -- albeit a long cashmere cardigan
(doesn't cashmere count as medicine? it's like chicken soup to me!)
looking on the bright side of the weekend, i'll be heading to the cape to do a little shopping at the fabulous in the pink store in chatham!

here's to brighter days!

in the (preppy) mob

since i am a new blogger,
(loving it! thanks to you for commenting, following and making me feel loved!)
i was very psyched to be included in
THE PREPPY MAFIA's tag and being crowned a socialite!

with this honor, i promise to uphold all things preppy and proper,
and take my role very seriously (as a former pageant girl, i know the drill!)
in doing so, and according to the rules, i must answer a few questions...
and what better way to get to know each other than this?

1. Who is your style icon? just one? Jackie & Audrey of course,
Reese Witherspoon (as Elle Woods) for right now
2. What is your favorite socialite lit book? One Fifth Avenue
3. Favorite party theme? pink & princessy for muffy's parties
but, i'm planning my first "up-north" derby party right now!
4. Go to Halloween costume? classic audrey in a lbd, triple strand of pearls and dark sunglasses -- getting too old for the cheerleader!
5. Extravagance you cannot live without? housekeeper, although she does not come often enough; chilled champagne; annual lilly pulitzer spree
6. Living person you admire? Lilly Pulitzer & my father
7. Greatest Fear? muffy getting sick (BAD sick, you know what i mean...)
8. Trait you deplore in yourself? no patience whatsoever!
9. Which talent would you most like to have? to sing & act, naturally of course!
10. Greatest Achievement? being an award-winning writer, in both newspaper and magazines...now, to start on a book!

feeling beachy

happy sunny sunday!

this gorgeous "spring tease" has me feeling beachy...and ready for a trip to the shore.

but what shore to choose?

what is YOUR favorite beach?

my brother, muffy and me in naragansett, rhode island last august

there's the beach just an hour and a half south of us in rhode island

muffy loved it

martha's vineyard

another favorite of ours where we spent a lot of our time
when mr prep and i were dating...and pre-muffy

muffy in chatham, massachusetts, cape cod

another beautiful, nearby beach

a childhood favorite: gulf shores, alabama

growing up in alabama, gulf shores and pensacola, fl were a short drive...and i long for the sugary snow-white sand and the wrm gulf water.

so here's the debate: i'm ready to get away NOW and go play in the gulf. mr prep wants to wait and stay closer to home, but delay the beach till summer.

so tell me, what's your favorite beach...and should i stay or should i go NOW?

cupcake, cupcake!

one of my favorite vera bradley patterns is the cupcake pattern
(pink AND green) from last year's spring collection.

so when i found out the pleated totes in older colors were on special for $35 earlier this week,
i had to make yet another purchase...
(if you're counting, that's TWO in one week--do i have a problem?!)

my pleated tote in cupcake pink

it matches muffy's little "hannah" bag she got for Christmas muffy's hannah bag

so, as the weather gets warm, muffy and i will be all set
for our spring shopping adventures carrying our cupcakes!
pretty and sweet, without the calories!

ladybugs, ladybugs

my little ladybug is obsessed...with ladybugs,
and as they all start to arrive she is more intent on playing with them
(not a good idea, they are quite fragile!),
caring for them, naming them...and praying for them.

i love ladybugs, in fact, my grandmother has always called me ladybug,
(grandpa called me queenie--go figure!)
but i'm not so sure my house is set up
to house the amounts of ladybugs muffy would like.


i would much rather have a collection of skirts, dresses and accessories
of ladybugs like this from lilly...rather than picking up the little beetles
that are clinging to my curtains and creeping up the walls.

oh well, they're good luck, so i'll keep them around for awhile,
they make me --and muffy -- smile!

deal of the (yester)day

vera bradley hipster in pinwheel pink

i love a good deal (that should go without saying, right?)
and i have a bit of a collection of vera bradley going...

so when i got the message that select colors of the hipster-style bags
were $19 (YES! $19!) i had to have one!

since pinwheel pink is the closest vera has done to a lilly pattern, this little cutie is on its way to me.

oh, and i had a coupon code, too --

i feel that the luck of the irish smiled upon me!

green day

my little leprechaun, muffy

st. patrick's day is quite the holiday for little ones... mine certainly loves looking for leprechauns, pots of gold and rainbows, and we were up early searching in our house this morning!
in fact, muffy was sure that magnolia, our dog, had seen one running up the stairs!

as a child, my father and i would always search together for leprechauns and come up with elaborate plans on how to spend the gold and wishes we were sure to be granted.

so, as i carry on this tradition with muffy, she looks forward to the hunt every year.

i think i'll stop and pick her up a shamrock shake from mcdonald's on my way home from work today -- a sweet little treat that, like leprechauns, is only around this time of year!

happy st. patrick's day -- hope you don't get pinched!

rain, rain... go away

as the rain continues to fall and the wind keeps whipping here in new england,
muffy and i have been wearing our wellies.
if this not-so-splendid weather means spring is on its way, we will endure,
and do it stylishly in pink polka dots!

saturdays are for shopping

is there a better way to spend a saturday than shopping?
since shopping is my hobby, my sport of choice, i think not....
and since i like nothing more than shopping for lilly on my saturdays,
THIS shopping saturday, march 13th, just got sweeter!
oh, i long to be a lady who lunches, but i'll settle for a trip to lilly HQ
(my own personal mecca!) to lunch with the lilly girls.
happy shopping, prepsters.... the new spring line is fantastic!

fabulous friday find

i just stumbled along the cutest site where sweet gifts are all just $25 and under....
i'm always on the lookout for cute, preppy, pink gifts, and this site totally fits the bill, and the budget!
how cute are these?
adorable sterling silver starfish studs just $15

and this adorable monogrammed necklace
for $20

and this sweet diaper bag
for $25

visit bellaofcapecod.com and stock up for spring giving...
think easter baskets!

mad for madras

As any preppy knows, madras is a must! And pottery barn kids has gotten into the game for spring. Isn't this the cutest, pink & preppy set? I love that it's paired with liberty-esque printed sheets. Perfect for my little Muffy's room. (There is a boy's version of this in nautical blues, but since I have a girl, I chose this one...)

Super cute. Super springy. I'm ready to re-decorate!
Check it out at potterybarnkids.com