Matching Pinterest is harder than you think...

How many times have I scrolled through Facebook and laughed at the Pinterest fails?  Let's just say a lot.  I love looking at the disillusioned few who attempt some of the crazy cool masterpieces you can find when searching for kids birthday cakes, makeup tricks, or (in my case) cute outfits to teach in.

I still attempted it!  Fortunately outfits can be taken off quite easily, so the clean-up from my own ridiculous attempts was done before others could see.  Steve was a good sport and sat diligently on the bed trying to help.  Does my husband have better fashion sense than I do...darn right he does!  He still wishes he hadn't asked me to "possibly dress more like a girl" when we first started dating.  Oh, Steve, how expensive that comment would become. 

If I had a lot of money and time to shop, then I might have had better luck.  Unfortunately, teachers do not pull-in the big bucks.  I still wonder why not, but that is a rant for another day.  I managed to put together a week full of Pinterest inspired outfits.  Did I remember to take a picture of them all?  Nope.  I only had the heart to ask Steve to take pictures of two of the outfits in one night.  The other was taken by my dear friend at school.  She doesn't think I'm as weird for wanting a picture.  Steve, still thinks this whole blogging this is ridiculously odd.  He's most likely right.

So, without further ado, here are three of my successful outfits!

Outfit one I switched out jeans for slacks but could not for the life of me find a decent cardigan to go over it.  So I just stuck with it otherwise!

Outfit two, once again I failed on the cardigan.  I switched the light under and color on top.  It was what I had, so I went with it.  Like I said, these were inspired...not matched...obviously.

Outfit three I stayed a bit more true to the original Pinterest pin.  Fortunately I have a friend who sells beautiful skirts, so I had a lot to choose from!

What did I learn from this exercise?  Well, I learned I can try new things.  Always a plus.  I also learned that even though real people post things on Pinterest, I am not ANY of those real people.  Props to the ladies who look lovely and fashion-magazine worthy every day.  I am in awe.

Next time, well, I'm taking a look at what I put IN my body since I tried some new things on the outside.  I may try another round of Pinterest outfits for summer later...if I am brave.

And then I realized...

Those who know me won't deny it, I'm a Type A personality.  This means I enjoy planning, control, all the good things in life.  I plan everything.  I love lists.  And yet, I teach.  This means I have to sometimes go with the flow and work towards more of an A- personality. 

This week has been one of those weeks.  It's been one with a few realizations.

1. No matter how much I plan, my body won't always do what I ask.  I slipped a disc in my back.  Doing what you ask?  Nothing, absolutely nothing.  While beginning my training for my next half marathon, this was not what I had in mind.  It made me feel old and slightly decrepit.  When one student asked, "Why are you walking like my grandma?"  I knew I was in trouble.  I managed to get in a few of my daily exercises before my body revolted.  P.S. asking your husband to take pictures of you doing calf raises while making lunches and squats while straightening your hair...well, he thinks I'm nuts.

2. Your class doesn't always go as planned.  I love the pictures that say, "Keep calm and pretend it was on the lesson plan."  This, despite my Type A personality, is one of the things I love most about teaching.  The kids can change your day and surprise you at every turn.  Sometimes it's a turn you never expected and turns into one of the best lessons of the year.  Other times it's simply the fact that their lives have so much more going on than you could ever imagine.  I worry about big issues, but I have a lot of experience to help.  For many, they have huge curveballs (death, homelessness, parents leaving).  They push your buttons because their sad, angry, hungry.  Really, though, they push your buttons simply so you'll love them.

3. What you put in your body matter far more now that you're closer to 40 than you are to 20.  I'll talk more about this in later posts, but I've had to drastically change what choices I make and how I eat.  This week, with my back in loads of pain, I made terrible choices.  I could feel every french-fry, bag of chips (and by bag I mean family bag), and brownie.  Why can't we just eat like we did in high school?  Yep, feeling old once again.


4. The last thing I realized is actually kind of fun and fits perfectly fits with my Type A desire to plan.  Pintrest can actually be useful!  I've decided to make 5 outfits next week based on Pintrest pictures.  So, look for that in my next post!!!