Self-care Saturday
Rian and I went to Avery Island this afternoon. I wanted to get some stuff to put in the post-Christmas gift package I'm sending sirena73, and Rian's hardly left the house the entire month he's been here (he leaves on Tuesday). I feel kind of bad about it, but with the holidays being on a Monday, and not having the entire week between Christmas and New Year's off, there just wasn't any time for excursions. And he didn't even get to go to Dauphin Island this year, since the condo was rented.
Anyway, at least he got to do that, and I treated him to lunch in the cafeteria. We got to gossip about the Galbreath family; I feel like our father's family doesn't come up much, because Dad has been dead for so long, and they were never one for keeping in touch. There's one cousin (Dad's younger sister's daughter) who has kept in touch with Rian and I on Facebook, but after Mom and Dad got divorced we only saw our aunts, other cousins, and grandmother a handful of times. (Our paternal grandfather died when I was very young and I only ever met him once, when I was about 3 1/2, so I don't remember him at all. Mom says he was an extremely nice and gentle man, and nothing like the dour, judgmental woman that he married.)
I treated myself to this "coatigan" (coat+cardigan) from Torrid:
This is what passes for winter outerwear in south Louisiana. (I'll also wear it in the summer, indoors, as protection against the glacial blast of a/c set to "Uruguayan rugby team crashed in the Andes".) Currently I have a long chenille cardigan that I use for that, but this is the 6th year I've had it and it's starting to wear a bit thin. It's doing it weirdly unevenly, too; like the right sleeve is still mostly intact, while the left sleeve is noticeably more worn. I couldn't find anything on either Target or Modcloth that I liked; Torrid was a long shot as I find them overpriced (Modcloth too, frankly, but you can usually find coupon codes). It was 30% off $109--I figured winter stuff would probably be on sale after Christmas, which is why I didn't look before the holidays. I found a 40% coupon code; alas, it couldn't be applied to the sale price, but still, 40% off $109 is better than 30% off $109.
Funny how tastes change, I would have run a mile from this color scheme up until 10-ish years ago. But I gained a late-in-life appreciation for pink--truly a universally flattering color--and while just pink and lilac would have been a bit sickly, the little bit of light brown in there saves it. Plus, the Hey Dude shoes I wear most days are pink, so since this will match with them, I should be able to wear it with most of my clothes without clashing too hard. (Although being super matchy-matchy is also something I care a lot less about now that I'm almost 50.)
I finished my first paint by numbers last night and I think I'll light one of my new scented candles from Vieux Carre tonight.
I'm peopled out from the holidays and even though Rian's here for a couple more days I'm getting back into my routine of going back upstairs once supper is done and the kitchen cleaned and I've taken the dog out and made sure the 'rents have what they need. That couple hours to myself--to read, to do do cross stitch or paint, to stream something, or to just put on an eye mask and listen to music--is pretty vital to my emotional well-being, and I never realize it more than when I'm forced to give it up for a couple of weeks during the holidays.
Carnival season starts today and we got a king cake at Rouses' on the way home.
Anyway, at least he got to do that, and I treated him to lunch in the cafeteria. We got to gossip about the Galbreath family; I feel like our father's family doesn't come up much, because Dad has been dead for so long, and they were never one for keeping in touch. There's one cousin (Dad's younger sister's daughter) who has kept in touch with Rian and I on Facebook, but after Mom and Dad got divorced we only saw our aunts, other cousins, and grandmother a handful of times. (Our paternal grandfather died when I was very young and I only ever met him once, when I was about 3 1/2, so I don't remember him at all. Mom says he was an extremely nice and gentle man, and nothing like the dour, judgmental woman that he married.)
I treated myself to this "coatigan" (coat+cardigan) from Torrid:
This is what passes for winter outerwear in south Louisiana. (I'll also wear it in the summer, indoors, as protection against the glacial blast of a/c set to "Uruguayan rugby team crashed in the Andes".) Currently I have a long chenille cardigan that I use for that, but this is the 6th year I've had it and it's starting to wear a bit thin. It's doing it weirdly unevenly, too; like the right sleeve is still mostly intact, while the left sleeve is noticeably more worn. I couldn't find anything on either Target or Modcloth that I liked; Torrid was a long shot as I find them overpriced (Modcloth too, frankly, but you can usually find coupon codes). It was 30% off $109--I figured winter stuff would probably be on sale after Christmas, which is why I didn't look before the holidays. I found a 40% coupon code; alas, it couldn't be applied to the sale price, but still, 40% off $109 is better than 30% off $109.
Funny how tastes change, I would have run a mile from this color scheme up until 10-ish years ago. But I gained a late-in-life appreciation for pink--truly a universally flattering color--and while just pink and lilac would have been a bit sickly, the little bit of light brown in there saves it. Plus, the Hey Dude shoes I wear most days are pink, so since this will match with them, I should be able to wear it with most of my clothes without clashing too hard. (Although being super matchy-matchy is also something I care a lot less about now that I'm almost 50.)
I finished my first paint by numbers last night and I think I'll light one of my new scented candles from Vieux Carre tonight.
I'm peopled out from the holidays and even though Rian's here for a couple more days I'm getting back into my routine of going back upstairs once supper is done and the kitchen cleaned and I've taken the dog out and made sure the 'rents have what they need. That couple hours to myself--to read, to do do cross stitch or paint, to stream something, or to just put on an eye mask and listen to music--is pretty vital to my emotional well-being, and I never realize it more than when I'm forced to give it up for a couple of weeks during the holidays.
Carnival season starts today and we got a king cake at Rouses' on the way home.