Spring Is In The Air

We had dinner with friends this spring-like Sunday evening.

It was wonderful to wear only a lightweight navy linen jacket from Appleseed's with a white tank top and khaki zip ankle pants from Chico's. The sunglasses are by Kenneth Cole Reaction from T.J. Maxx. I found the Anne Klein Sport sandals at T.J.Maxx. The bag is by Coach from their outlet in Blowing Rock, North Carolina.

Vegetarian Valentine's Day Dinner

A home-cooked meal is our Valentine's Day tradition.

We go out to eat at least once a week all year long, so when a big holiday such as Valentine's Day comes around, I prefer to prepare a lovely meal to leisurely enjoy at home.

We dress for dinner, I set the table in the formal dining room, we light candles, and have a special wine with classical music playing in the background.

Mr. Mickey had just arrived, so he was still wearing his scarf. Doesn't he look handsome?

The dinner menu included crudites as a starter. I cut up fresh baby heirloom tomatoes and served them with olives, garlic I roasted earlier in the day, and rosemary Asiago cheese slices. Sometimes the combination of fresh, delicious items presented simply on their own is the best choice.

I also added some of the roasted garlic and unsalted butter to Rudis Seeded organic bread before lightly toasting it in the oven.

The pasta dish includes Gluten Free Brown Rice Spaghetti from Hodgson Mill. The meatless sauce is the same recipe I told you about here. The leftover sauce will be served over another piece of the yummy Rudis bread as a sloppy Joe lunch with a kale salad on the following day. This sauce could be used in any dish requiring ground beef. (Even the meat lovers who tasted this the first time I made it could not tell there was no meat in it!)

Our wine was 14 Hands 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon.

Mr. Mickey brought freshly dipped chocolate-covered strawberries for dessert, cards, and flowers. He is a Prince!

I wore a rayon three-quarter sleeve black and tan blouse from Coldwater Creek from a couple of years ago. The black Traverlers pants from Chico's are about eight years old. I paired them with my Anne Klein black high heeled shoes.

Later in the evening, as we relaxed in front of the fire, I tried out some of my new reading glasses from Readers.com. Which statement style do you like best? I liked them all! When you need glasses only for reading, it's great to have a stylish pair like these near every chair and in every handbag.

This style is called The Ivy in the brown fade.

This style is The Dolly.

The Maryann comes in several colors, and each has its own matching case.

The Opera Coat

Season tickets to the Johnson City Symphony are one of the gifts I give Mr. Mickey each Christmas.

It is a long-standing tradition for us to have an early dinner at our favorite restaurant before attending the concert. This performance featured the beautiful guest artist Chee-Yun from Seoul. Her first public performance was at age 8! On this night, she played the Stradivarius "Ex-Strauss" (Cremona, 1708).

I wore items from Chico's, including a silver cardigan and tank with a long double strand crystal and silver necklace. The skirt is a straight black knit pencil style. The Assets hose/tights are from Target. The Anne Klein shoes are at least eight years old.

I bought this velvet and faux fur trimmed Erté inspired coat from one of my sales reps in 1990 when she also represented my jewelry line. I call it my opera coat because it has a rhinestone encrusted closure, and it has a theatrical shape and texture. On the rare occasions when I wear it, I feel like I have stepped out of the Art Nouveau-inspired 1920s.

Thank you for joining me on this fun journey through midlife and beyond.

No Shave November Event

Last evening Mr. Mickey and I attended a No Shave November cocktail party to raise money for the American Cancer Society. 

The silver sweater, long sleeve tee, and necklace are from Chico's. The black pants are old from Stein Mart. The shoes are old by Anne Klein.

The invitation read, "Come as your favorite bearded celebrity."  Mr. Mickey is representing his favorite bearded celebrity.

Some of the fun costumes included a mullet-wearing NASCAR race fan and the crazy gynecologist, as well as one of the fellows from Duck Dynasty. Thank you to the Blackthorn Club staff, who also contributed and participated in the bearded Celebrity contest.

Santa is sad that he lost the contest for best costume to Dr. Seymour Bush, the crazy Gynecologist.

Our club has several of these beautiful fireplaces. I was happy to stand by this one for a while.

It was great to see my sweet friend Nita again. She and her husband (The crazy gynecologist) had just returned from Colorado a few hours earlier to attend the event. We always have so much fun visiting with them.

The Calvin Klein coat was from Dillard's.

“No-Shave November” and “Movember” are concepts created to bring awareness to cancer concerns in men, such as testicular and prostate cancer.  The “general premise” of each of these programs is to grow facial hair throughout November. Some choose to grow just a mustache, some choose to grow a well-trimmed beard and mustache, and some choose not to shave their faces at all. Regardless of the method that each individual chooses, the purpose is the same – To bring and raise awareness to cancer in general and in particular to bring and raise specific awareness to prostate and testicular cancer.