5 friday favorites.

i’ve been bitten by the spring fever bug, so here are your 5 friday favorites spring style!

1. neon, neon — while i do love the song written by john mayer, it’s not exactly what i mean. lately there has been a new trend involving bright neon colored clothes. and i mean highlighter neon bright. i remember walking into the gap in albuquerque feeling like i had to squint it was so bright in there! i almost feel like you’d glow in the dark. i guess it’d be great for a black light dance party! anyway, even though i’m not 100% sold on dressing my self in highlighter yellow, i do think you can dip your toe into this new fad without diving in head first. neon nail polish and accessories would be a great and less blinding way to get your feet wet, without the full commitment of the entire ensemble. what are your feelings about this new neon trend? i’d love to hear them!

2. al fresco dining — in west texas, there is a short window of time between the winter and summer months when the weather is actually pleasant. most of our springs are accompanied by blowing dirt, sporadic snowfalls and even days around 90 degrees. but when the weather has goldie locks’ approval and it’s “just right,” i love to dine outside. as summer draws near and the days grow longer & warmer, i truly believe it does our cooped up winter bodies some good when we sit out on the patio and enjoy a nice relaxed meal or beverage. call me a sap, but there’s something kinda romantic about it, don’t ya think? unfortunately, we haven’t been able to do this in a long time without our 3 ill-mannered children climbing into our laps thinking they are teacup yorkies. hopefully that dog run will be up sooner rather than later!

3. sunflowers — i’d have to say these are my favorite flower. growing up, i remember my mother would line our back fence with soaring 14-footer sunflowers. i think they are so cheerful. i look forward to one day doing the same thing in our backyard. and if we get the giant ones, i’m sure my sunflower-seed-loving hubby will be thrilled to have his own personal stash. however, i’ll probably have to concoct something that resembles his favorite spitz bbq seasoning recipe.

4. shorts — “who wears short shorts?” just kidding. i used to, and i don’t know WHAT i was thinking. why in the world would my parents let me out of the house!? eesh. bad, bad, bad, BAD decision on my part. anyway, i’m ready to bust out some more modest cuffed boyfriend shorts and give my translucent legs some sun! but i might have to start out in the privacy of my own backyard so i don’t scare anybody with my extreme paleness. i’m loving these polka dot shorts from jcrew!

5. hats — oh, how i LOVE a good fedora. my bff molly and i probably have enough hats between the two of us to open up our own hat store. just as scarves are my go to accessory for the fall & winter months–and some can be worn year round!–a cute fedora completes that spring/summer outfit hands down. and it may or may not be the perfect excuse to hide my laziness of not wanting to do my hair on a particular day. hehe. check out target or urban outfitters for fashionable & reasonably priced hats!

happy friday everyone!

p.s. to all you guys out there, hang tight because next week i’ll have a dude’s 5 friday favorites brought to you by my hus-band!

h2o.

as the local news anchor highlighted the topics of the day, the importance of water conservation doesn’t seem to be taken seriously by a lot of the folks around here. and to be honest, it bothers me a little.

we’ve gone down to watering two days a week — something we should have done a long time ago– and yet, as i go for my morning run, even though some yards hold signs that blatantly state “water well in use,” i think some people seem to forget that even their well might eventually run dry.

don’t abuse it! your grass can survive just fine with a good soaking once a week. no need for everyday!

so, join me in saying:

click for credit

conserve water, folks!

green thumb.

out in this west texas dirt, the expectations (and more so maintenance) of a lush middle-tennessean-looking backyard are pretty much hopeless if you don’t want to increase your water bill x 1000. it’s probably a rough estimate, but in all seriousness, we live in a desert people!

in lieu of the up-and-coming watering restrictions that should have been in place years ago, i’d like to invite you to consider the beauties and benefits of using native plants to our area and still gain the effect of an intriguing yard.

my hus-BAND (yes, that is the proper pronunciation in our house)  and i have been rigorously working in our front yard, pulling up oddly overgrown shrubs and half-dead groundcover, all in hopes of discovering the joys of desert-scaping.