Hello Again!

You knew this day would come, didn't you?

I am so happy to be here again and greet you all, dear friends and readers!

I received so, so many warm, wonderful words from you - please know that I was very touched by your kindness and the interest you expressed in my blog. I must say that it was overwhelming, in the most positive way. Thank you!!

I don't know what happened. For the first few weeks of non-blogging, I felt happy and content with my life. I got really busy with other projects, worked on publishing my books, and of course spent lots of time with my family. Justin and I had our little trips, and since taking photos and writing about our discoveries was a huge part of our life for many years, regardless of blogging, we have never stopped doing it. But I missed sharing little style and shopping stories with you, and lately, literally in the last few days, I started really missing my blog. Maybe I just needed a nice long break to feel refreshed? All I know is this (and Justin really helped me to come to this conclusion). Life is too short to regret our decisions. Ultimately, nothing in life is completely irreversible, we can change our mind about pretty much anything, and if something that helps us feel better is missing from our life, then it's OK to re-decide. I don't know (and I can't know, can I?) where it's all going, but for now, writing my blog makes me feel happy. I am all for feeling happy. I know that you are too. So hello again! :)

We had a wonderful family Thanksgiving, the way I love it, and I took my beloved ones to make family pictures which is becoming our tradition on this day of the year. For these special photographs, I wore a new dress from eShakti. I again picked the option to customize the style, and I am so happy I did! The original style of this dress was sleeveless and short, and it looked beautiful that way too, but I wanted to add length and sleeves for a more autumnal feel.

This cotton dress has a gorgeous red lining, and all in all a very uplifting festive spirit. And it twirls! I think it'll be great for the holiday season, though when I was purchasing it, I thought it was a straightforward Autumn dress. I might even wear it to a Christmas/New Year party, if we decide to go this year.

Anna is into neutral colors these days. We bought this cozy (for our mild winters) coat at Nordstrom Rack after trying on a few different ones. I'm happy she loves wearing it - November was unusually cold (it's mild here again now), and I just couldn't get Anna to wear her red plaid coat, which she adored last year. Everything changes - we change, and our tastes and preferences do as well. Justin is as colorful as ever though, in his beloved Cabela's finds and a hand-knitted scarf which was a gift from a friend years ago. He went for long hair for a while, but recently cut it again and receives so many compliments on his new haircut (I must take pictures of him!).

I have so many outfits and stories to share with you, but let's take it one step at a time, shall we? I've missed you! :)

Dress - eShakti

Faux fur coat - Lane Bryant (available online - look up their sale section)

Earrings - Chico's (last year)

Tights - Spanx via Lane Bryant

Boots - Ecco via Nordstrom Rack (last year)

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