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I love cute accessories, so when I scrounged through my jewelry box and discovered some old pins from my childhood, I decided they needed to come out for some air!

The childhood pins I mention are the cute ballet girls at the top of the photo! In elementary school, I wore pins on my shirts almost daily. Why not wear them as an adult?! I feel like I’m keeping in touch with my inner child, and that’s a source I always like to draw inspiration from. I don’t know; it always makes me feel happier! 💖

The red strawberry clips are from Etsy and the bunny and strawberry clips were a gift from my sister from Temu (which is apparently a happenin’ website these days, I hear!).

Fun fun fun!!! You know what’s also fun? Going to Sonic and getting myself a Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Blast. 🚀

So, don’t forget to have a blast when the opportunity arises. Whatever that may be: in my case, it’s hanging out in my car and having a blast while eating a Sonic Blast, and donning inner-child-approved accessories!

I’ll cheers to that! 🥤

What can I say? I LOVE SPRING!!! 🌸🌸🌸

So here’s some lovely shots of pink blossoms (my favorite!) that I recently took on a leisurely trail walk. I love how my dress, with its tiny white flowers, blends with the blossom trees, and of course, my blossom hair clips!

🌸 Happy Spring!!! 🌸 Ain’t it a hoot? 🦉

(Yes, that’s a reference to my owl socks!)

Aren’t these shoes just so darn cute?!?! I got them for a bargain deal from Dolls Kill, and couldn’t be happier with them! They paired so well with these lime-printed socks. 💚🖤💛 I felt like a cool robot in these shoes! 🤖

I know it’s not spring yet, but the dismal rainy days we’ve been having have me dreaming of warm sunshine and springy Easter goodies. So these Peep rings felt like the perfect accessory to add to my outfits!

And you can’t go wrong with cat and/or unicorn hair clips!!! I mean, it just adds so much quirk. 😺 And my cage choker from SHEIN, featured in the second outfit, made me feel like a machine or something, LOL! Further adding to the robot vibes!

So, here’s to those end-of-winter days that almost feel like spring, and have you daydreaming of Peeps and Cadbury eggs (my personal favorite!)

On that note, the sun is supposed to be out today, and after being at home the last few days, you’ll find me (where else?) sitting on a Starbucks patio, enjoying the sunny day one iced mocha sip at a time. 💖💻☕️ Wearing the second outfit, above!

These shoes really are the cat’s meow. 😺

By now, you all know I’m a big Scream fan, ever since my first time seeing the original as a 9-year-old in 1996, being scared as I watched Drew Barrymore being stalked on the phone by Ghostface. So when I found out that Scream VI was coming out this March, I knew I’d follow tradition by going to see it by myself, first showing of the morning of opening day! 🍿😎

But first, here’s the outfit I wore! 😱💜

Now, to discuss the movie experience!!!

In Scream VI, we’re taken away from quaint Woodsboro, CA to bustling New York City. It definitely had a grittier atmosphere that made the film feel darker. Oh, and I was pretty shocked by the level of gore that has gone up in the Scream franchise! But, I realized that I may be experiencing a little something called…getting older! As I was watching the film, watching the younger generation of actors lead the way in the new franchise (with a few legacy characters still part of it, like Courtney Cox’s Gale Weathers, Skeet Ulrich’s Billy Loomis (in hallucination form, that is!), and Hayden Panettiere’s Kirby Reed characters), I realized that the new era of Scream is far more brutal than the originals in the ’90s, but hey – times change, I know.

Nonetheless, I’ll always continue to follow the Ghostface legacy, and I’m glad they’re keeping it alive! So having said that, besides the eeek gore factor in Scream VI, the scary factor was off the charts! I don’t think I’ve ever been so on-the-edge-of-my-seat-holding-my-breath nervous in a Scream film. That’s something that has leveled up, and also, the whodunit factor. I literally couldn’t figure out who was behind the mask, and they did a great job leaving you to wonder.

It was a real thriller, and downright terrifying at times! Without giving anything away to those who see it, I’ll just say that the subway scene and the liquor store scene were the two that terrified me the most. Instantly unforgettable! 👀

So here’s to keeping legacies alive, even if it’s a crazed killer in a Ghostface mask. Scream is the first scary film I ever saw, and I’ve never gone without seeing a new film they’ve produced since. And although things change, it still feels like it’s somehow keeping the ’90s – and my childhood! – alive. And you can’t beat that!

By the way, that popcorn was AMAZING. 🍿

When I was a kid, I had an obsession with a particular book that I discovered in my 5th grade reading textbook, which was a compilation of dozens of stories. It was called The Wreck of the Zephyr by Chris Van Allsburg (who also penned and illustrated the more well-known Jumanji). The story centers around the fantastical concept of flying boats!

What captivated me most, besides the obvious nautical theme interest that’s been with me my whole life, was the ILLUSTRATIONS. The artwork has forever haunted me since; for me, it’s some of the most beautiful illustrations I’ve ever seen. It’s lush and vivid, yet mysterious (you never see the full face of the characters). I totally get why I would always flip to this particular story in that 5th grade textbook; it was a dreamy maritime landscape I wanted to mentally escape to, and often would, much to my own inner-world comfort. 🥰 I’d daydream about it, wondering if somewhere on earth there was a seaside village that looked just like it.

As an adult, I purchased the actual book!! It remains my favorite childhood story. Here are some of my favorite illustrations from it:

Keeping with the theme of boats here, this Talbots skirt I recently purchased secondhand on Poshmark (for a great bargain!) says it all; I love the nautical aesthetic so much that I just HAD to have a skirt with nautical flags printed on it!!! 

So if you love something, don’t be afraid to wear it. Let your freak flag fly, or in this case, your nautical flag fly. Hoist it up!!! 🚩

I don’t know about you, but I actually really enjoy Mondays!! It’s the first day of a new week, and since I work from home, it gives me structure and a time to shine through my work ethic by hitting the ground running with productivity. And on this Monday, while I got stuff done for work, I thought I’d start off the week with some bright green Keroppi hair clips to brighten up this rainy day at home!

Isn’t this little Sanrio frog guy just the cutest? This is my first time wearing these hair clips, and they really brightened up my dark floral ensemble!!

Because, while I can definitely be business-minded when I need to be, I like to wear fun little accessories to remind myself to be silly. 💚💛

I’m a very silly person, but I do enjoy serious reads from time to time, such as my current one, Saint Augustine Confessions, written between AD 397 and 400! Thankfully, it’s been translated into simpler terms a modern reader such as myself can understand.

I normally go for military nonfiction reads, but I actually have a big interest in autobiographies written by long ago religious figures who wrote about their spiritual journey. It’s pretty fascinating and I always learn something enlightening from these kinds of reads!

And it always amazes me how relatable these autobiographies can be, surprisingly enough. I suppose it comes down to the simple fact that we’re all humans, at the end of the day.

Although, I can’t imagine Saint Augustine donning Keroppi hair clips. But I’m sure he’d be happy knowing someone in 2023 is reading his works, and learning something from it! 😉

Not that I’m calling myself a Spanish rose, mind you! Although yes, it’s a nod to part of my ancestry and all, I’d never refer to myself as a rose. That’s considerably waaaay too elegant for me; I feel more like a goofy flower that grows unexpectedly out of a crack in the sidewalk, which may or may not be smashed by someone’s foot.

Alas!!!!!!!!!!! This is still a Spanish rose inspired look, and these stunning little crocheted roses were made just for me by my very own sister! ❤️ She’s quite talented at crocheting, and I’m amazed by it.

BYEEEEEE 🌹

Sometimes, a book surprises me. And that’s definitely what the case has been with Parachute Infantry by David Kenyon Webster!!!

This book was given to me as a gift from my mom, probably from at least a year ago. I was probably already involved with another book at the time it was gifted, so it has since sat idly on my bookshelf until now, when I abruptly remembered I had it.

I’ve read many books about D-Day and paratroopers. However, while those books I already found amazing, as they were told from the third person by authors who had extensively researched and interviewed people involved in the event, this one took me by surprise once I realized it was written in the first person and was a firsthand account of all that went down.

Whoa.

Five hundred feet below, spread out for miles on the moonlit sea, were scores and scores of landing barges, destroyers, cruisers, and attack transports. They were bearing the infantry slowly east, like a flood of lava, to a dawn assault on the shingle shore of Normandy.

My shoulders swung away from the window. I stared at the men opposite me in the racketing, vibrating, oil-reeking, vomit-scented darkness. “Isn’t it great?” I said. “Those guys are going in!”

Webster, pg. 41

Webster’s vivid account of the war around him, even the amusing small moments in-between the fighting, deliver a story with a humble, easygoing tone that makes this account of D-Day unlike any other I’ve read; one moment, he’s describing the nail-biting action on the field, the next, he’s describing the dreamy, fairytale-like landscape of England and the Netherlands in-between the action. Which makes this book a page-turner that’s incredibly hard to put down (I’ve never read a book so fast – I’m actually a very slow reader.)

It goes without saying that I’ve quite simply fallen in love with this book, and I didn’t expect it! There are times when I purchase a book with high hopes, and it wasn’t entirely what I had hoped. Then there are times, like with this one, where I had no expectations and it sweeps me off my feet, much to my own surprise.

Outfit: Rockin’ a floral Kuromi look!!! 💜 I loved matching my Kuromi ring (a gift from my sister) with my Kuromi hair clips. Just a casual outfit I wore to go get coffee in today.

For Valentine’s Day this year, I made handmade Valentine’s for my mom and sister (they’re always my Valentines!) and I loved the look of them. ❤️ And, check out these cute bows from Etsy that I wore with these two Valentine’s looks!!!

Eugene (my ventriloquist doll) wanted to make a cameo in this post. He’s my sweetheart any day! 💖

Fun fact: in both of these outfits, I added my own little sewing touch!!! The pink skirt – I sewed on the pockets and buttons, and in this next pinstripe romper outfit, I sewed on the red buttons and heart patches. ❤️

This is the outfit I’m wearing on this official Valentine’s Day:

So Happy Valentine’s Day to you all, and I hope you get to treat yourself with lots of goodies. As for me, I’m now going to spend the day eating an assortment of chocolate and making myself a homemade iced mocha, right here in the comfort of home. 💘

In other words – a perfect Valentine’s Day for me!!! 💖

I wanted to show my new laptop canvas bag I bought on Redbubble!! Siamese Dream by the Smashing Pumpkins (1993) is one of my favorite albums ever, and so is the album cover itself. Just seeing the cover evokes so much nostalgia for me, hence why I wanted it on my laptop bag. 💗

With that, I give you a monochromatic Valentine’s-inspired outfit! (Well, monochromatic with some little pops of color – red and pink, of course). 💘❤️💘

Also, the pink teddy bear is something I’m totally loving lately! It’s called Star Belly Dream Lites, and if you press the star button, it shines starry images on your ceiling when you’re lying down at night. I have zero shame in admitting that yes, I’m a 35-year-old woman who happily sleeps with a stuffed animal!

The starry, rotating images it projects onto the ceiling easily lulls me to sleep! ✨😴

So keep on dreaming, keep on discovering things you love, and keep on rocking to good music. ☁️🎶