Wednesday, August 31, 2011

What I Wore Wednesday

Another successful week!

A couple things to note:
*We've been having some beautiful weather and although it's practically September, I'm hoping we haven't seen the last of it for this year.
*I got a question last week on my new background and it's actually just a backdrop my husband created for his love of photography and I am just lucky enough to get to use it for my outfit shots as well!
*I have to admit, I love looking back at my week's worth of outfits and knowing that I bargain hunted for most of these items. Makes me feel good :)
*And lastly, I'm linking up with The Pleated Poppy!

{top: Anthropologie, shorts: Abercrombie, sandals: Clarks}

{tee: Anthropologie, shorts: J.Crew, sandals: Kohls}

{tee + tank: Downeast Basics, jeans: Banana Republic outlet, wedges: TOMS}

{sunglasses: Coach, dress: Anthropologie, sandals: Reefs}

Friday, August 26, 2011

My First eBook + #BlogHerBookClub

I'm not new to BlogHer's {awesome} Book Club, however I hadn't read a book on an eReader until I read Rules of Civility by Amor Towles. And what a good book to get me hooked on the eBook phenomenon! You can read my review about the book here.

Happy Friday!

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Remembering My Skin



Every since I can remember, I've been told how lucky I am to have my great skin. However, being my biggest critic, I tend to see things a little different. While I don't spend to long on my makeup routine every morning {read: usually none}, I do remember to find time to take care of my skin each and every morning by simply spending time cleansing first, followed by moisturizing. Doesn't matter if I'm rushed or have all the time in the world, these two steps allow me to continue to give the allusion of great skin that others notice without much work at all.

Do you have a secret to remembering to take care of your skin when you have zero "me" time?

Let me know in the comments and be sure to check out some more great secrets from busy women out there.

And as an added bonus, if you share your best Life Well Lived Moment with BlogHer, you can also be entered to win $250 gift card!

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

What I Wore Wednesday

This week I stuck to my word and tried to not slack on taking my pictures. See, I do get out of my pajamas most days, but it's remembering to photograph is the hard part. But I'll keep trying! :)

Here are a few outfits from the last week:


{sweater + top: Anthropologie, jeans: Banana Republic outlet, sandals: Clarks}


{top: Anthropologie, tank: Downeast Basics, shorts: Abercrombie, sandals: Clarks}


{necklace: Allora Handmade, top: Macy's, jeans: Banana Republic outlet, sandals: Clarks}


{tee: Gap outlet, jeans: Anthropologie, sandals: Clarks}

And one last photo from someone who isn't new to Grable Tales... Kristi!


{dress: Nine West, belt: Old Navy, boots: Target}


Linking up with The Pleated Poppy!

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Sunday Randoms

Last week, we had the Weathers over for dinner + games and Kristi and I gave the guys a run for their money by getting '100 aces' while playing Pinochle. It was a great moment for us!




I attended a two-day work training up in Portland this week, which resulted in a change in my commute from less than 10 minutes to over an hour+. While I gained a lot of knowledge and information, I can definitely do without all that traffic every day!

A few posts back, I mentioned I was finding my crafty side again. And while my first project wasn't anything too complicated, it was the perfect gift for a teacher's classroom. {thank you Pinterest for great ideas!}




I've heard the praises of Chipotle for a while now, but never tried it until a couple weeks ago. And this weekend I introduced Sam to their delicious food. I think we'll be going back again really soon!




This summer hasn't been a very warm one up until this last month. Now we're experiencing 80*+ days and I hope it sticks around a while. We took advantage of it today by walking around the neighborhood a bit.

Here's to another week of friends, food, and good weather!

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

What I Wore Wednesday

What is my problem lately?

I could blame it on Sam leaving for work before the sun is up {and I am not the slightest bit ready}, but in all honestly I could set up the camera and take my own picture, right? So it's my fault. Sorry.

While I work on getting my act together for next week, please enjoy this {one} outfit...

Top + Tank: Downeast Basics
Jeans: Gap
Sandals: Kohls

Linking up to The Pleated Poppy!

Monday, August 15, 2011

Because it's Monday...

And apparently I haven't posted for almost two weeks {oops!}, so today I bring you some random thoughts to catch you up a bit.


  • Last weekend, we hosted Sam's family at our house as a little staycation. In addition to his immediate family coming down, we also had his aunt & uncle+ their children. The main reason for the trip was to get a visit to the beach in this year, but we also had our share of relaxing around the house {read: taking turns holding my niece :)}.

  • Speaking of my niece, it's so fun to see her smile & recognize you. I'm not lying when I say I could just stare at her for hours!

  • Lately, I've been blessed with some quality time with friends and have become thankful for the relationships that are growing all around me. Now if only I could spend my days hanging out with these friends instead of working :)

  • Other than time with family & friends, I have also reunited with my crafty side and spent some time with my sewing machine {mainly just alterations}, as well as trying some ideas I have bookmarked on Pinterest. Maybe if some of them turn out, they'll make an appearance on here soon...

  • We recently purchased an iPad and are both really enjoying all that it has to offer. Especially when it comes to reading books {for me}. Over the last couple years, I've found that reading isn't as boring as I once thought, but that with the right story, I can really enjoy reading. Well enter the iPad + it's many book apps and I can pretty much read anything I want without the burden of carrying a ton of books around with me. I'm a fan!

  • With the end of the summer approaching, Sam & I have begun to think about some of the projects/goals we want to complete by next summer, which ultimately means that we need to start saving as much as we can. Hold me!

So I apologize for the silence here at Grable Tales and hope that things get back to normal here soon.


Happy Monday!

Friday, August 5, 2011

Love: Gabe Dixon Band



You might be wondering "who is Gabe Dixon", but if you've seen the movie The Proposal, then you've heard Gabe Dixon before (hint: first song in the movie is his). And prior to last Monday night, I hadn't heard much more than that, but after the concert*, I can now say I am a fan!


Best part of the night though? Definitely getting to meet him after the show! Thanks Gabe!




*I'm not usually one who attends a lot of concerts {I could probably count all that I've seen on one hand}, but I love hanging out with the two lovely ladies above and will gladly tag along to any concert they're going to!

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

What I Wore Wednesday

Just a couple outfits this week {due to laziness, I suppose}, who depict the two extremes of my closet. I'd usually classify myself as a jeans + tee girl, which I mentioned before, but occasionally, I don't want to wear anything but a dress and due to the rise in temperatures we've seen lately, the dress side of my closet saw some use this weekend. Sometimes I just forget how easy it is to just put on a dress and then I remember what Kristi always says, {something along the lines of...} "a dress is the easiest outfit", which is so true!

Linking up with The Pleated Poppy as usual.

Necklace: bridesmaid gift from Kelly
Tee: Gap outlet
Jeans: J.Crew
Sandals: Forever 21

Dress: Anthropologie
Wedges: Toms