April 2016 Stitch Fix

Alice Blue Simona Henley Blouse

In light of scheduling my third (and please, final) ankle surgery, I decided to sign up for my first Stitch Fix. I'd actually registered for an account like two years ago, but had never pulled the trigger, but really needed an emotional boost and hoped that some cute new clothes would help.

Here's how Stitch Fix works. At its most basic, you pay a $20 styling fee, get matched with a stylist, let them know your style, and they send you five pieces whenever you request a fix based on your profile. If you buy any of those pieces, your styling fee gets refunded. Pretty simple, right?

What I'm Wearing to Disney: January 2016 Edition

We're heading back to Walt Disney World on Tuesday (eek!) and once again I did my best to put together fun outfits based off of some of my favorite characters for each of our days in the park. The weather, as is usual in Florida in January, is going to range quite a bit. With the exception of Tuesday we're looking at anywhere from low 60's to mid 70's for the high, and at night, it is getting down into the 40's.

Here's what I'm packing:

Tuesday: Travel & Magic Kingdom

My whole family all together in Walt Disney World? Talk about BEST DAY EVER! I absolutely adore this t-shirt, which I got from the Etsy shop Happily Ever Tees. The shirt itself is super comfortable, plus I think it is the perfect fit for our first day in the park. 

All American Surgery: Nine & Ten Month Recovery

I think that, at this stage in my recovery, it is easy to forget how far I've come. In the last two months, I went to and danced at a friend's wedding, I spent an entire day walking around the Adirondack Museum with a friend, and as you'll see below I'm even rocking walking tours at work. I no longer have to plan my schedule around my ankle, and that is amazing. It still hurts, it still definitely gets tired at the end of the day. My left hip aches quite a bit, largely because of my stride. But, I have come SUCH a long way from where I was even three months ago, and I'd be remiss if I get into the grumbling about not moving fast enough without mentioning that fact.

I'll probably give one year its own post, but the last two months have blown by so quickly and change at this stage is slow and incremental, so I didn't feel like each month warranted its own post. Sorry those of you who were waiting on baited breath!

What I Would Have Done Differently - Been More Consisent
Unfortunately some of this was out of my hands. I managed to get a really nasty sinus infection that is still sticking around, even post-antibiotics, and it has slowed me down a bit. But, most weeks I am making it to the gym twice a week, huzzah! It still isn't a habit yet, which is my next goal for sure.

What I'm Wearing to Disney

In honor of today being the 60th anniversary of the opening of Disneyland, I thought I'd share with you my outfits for my own upcoming Disney trip next month. Although we're heading to the Florida park, not California, I figure in August there won't be much of a difference between the two. 

My big goals for these outfits was to be comfortable, drawn from things I either already had or could buy without breaking the bank, and to be sneaky about paying homage to a different Disney character. My in-laws flat out laugh at people who wear Disney paraphernalia (why!??!) so I thought this could be my subtle way of still going about it. 

Ready? Alright, here's my starting lineup:

Kim Possible: August 2015 by zerotodisney

Day 1: Travel & Epcot
I want something cool enough to handle being out in the parks, but with the sweater for the plane ride. They've replaced the Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure with Phineas & Ferb, so I'm calling this a throwback.

Buzz Lightyear: August 2015 by zerotodisney

Day Two: Magic Kingdom
Starting off with breakfast, we're spending the majority of the day in my favorite park. Ugh that's tough. Tied for favorite with Epcot. As an homage to one of my family's favorite rides, I've got my Buzz Lightyear of Star Command outfit all ready to go!

Minnie Mouse: August 2015 by zerotodisney

Day Three: Disney Hollywood Studios
When you're talking movies, there are so many options in terms of characters. Do you go Muppets? Indiana Jones? Old Hollywood? I figured since it all started with a man and a mouse, I'd stick with the classics. The mouse's sweetheart (Girlfriend? Wife? They had separate houses in Toon Town...) is about as classic as you get. 

Dory: August 2015 by zerotodisney

Day Four: Animal Kingdom
One of my favorite movies is Finding Nemo, and spending most of the day in Animal Kingdmo (and seeing the Finding Nemo show) makes Dory a good pick. I've also found Animal Kingdom to be the warmest of the parks, so hopefully this will help me stay cool!

Aladdin: August 2015 by zerotodisney featuring a crossbody purse

Day Five: Epcot & Travel
All good things must come to an end. We're spending our last day in Florida running around Epcot, and although the story of Aladdin is NOT set in Morocco, you'll often find the characters there. The World Showcase is one of my favorite places in the whole world, and inspired me to study other cultures and languages so I thought that this outfit would be fitting.

I will definitely try to make sure I get a good photo each day so you can see how it turned out. The shoes may change as we get closer too. I'm eyeing the new Vans line, and might go ahead and grab something there. Or, I'll end up in just regular tennis shoes and pretend like the shoes don't matter to the outfit as a whole.

So what do you think? Do you have a favorite? Which characters inspire your outfits?

What To Wear With a Foot Cast or Walking Boot

I am a very firm believer in wearing what makes you comfortable. Now, I should specify here that comfort doesn't actually have to be physical comfort. There is also emotional comfort, and any woman who has slipped into her favorite dress will tell you all about it. Personally, I am not really one to lounge around in sweatpants and a t-shirt for more than about a day. Right after the surgery, I did for a bit, but as soon as we started having company come visit I was wearing jeans and a nice top. Several people remarked on this, but honestly getting dressed made me emotionally feel a lot better.

Now, what you wear will depend on a lot of things. The season, your own personal style, how you're feeling, and what you've actually got going on at the end of your foot. As an FYI, most of my clothes are from some combination of The Limited, Express, Gap Outlet, and Target, and I tried to get as close as possible to what I actually wear in the outfits I made below. Here's what worked for me at the different stages I went through post-surgery.

Foot Cast
I primarily stuck with bootcut jeans, wide legged sweatpants, and occasionally shorts although I had my surgery in December in Upstate NY so those never made it out of the apartment. What I found was that I had to work with pants whose legs were wide enough to fit over top of my cast. I also found that knit Christmas stockings made great toe covers!

Walking Boot & iWalk 2.0
During the period of time when I was in the walking boot but non-weight bearing, depending on my trusty iWalk 2.0 pegleg to get around, I relied on long pants that could be tucked into my boot. The boot is big enough that, although I can fit sweatpants over it, the bootcut jeans I'd used with the cast wouldn't go over the top. I pulled out my straight or skinny jeans, and primarily wore those. Because the pegleg fastened around my thigh, I avoided wearing leggings with tunics, dresses, or skirts, anything that would look awkward with the handle and strap. The above outfit is one I wore out for dinner for a friend's birthday.

Walking Boot & Going Back to Work
Tuesday next week (YAY!) I will finally be returning to work, but I will still be in my walking boot for probably another month. I'm planning outfits for dressing professionally with my walking boot still hooked onto the end of my foot. Luckily, my office is very easygoing, with only one other full-time staff member, so if I need to put my foot up on my desk with some ice packs, it isn't a huge deal.

PS #1 - You might notice that the shoes here are the same. This is actually intentional. You'll need to find what shoes you own work for you. This is especially important once you are weight bearing in your walking boot. You want something comfortable, but also tall enough that your hips are lined up. I made the mistake of wearing flatter shoes one day, and that night my hip ached so badly I couldn't sleep. Don't make the same mistake I did!

PS #2 - If you're surgery takes place over the winter, and you chose to use an iWalk 2.0 (which I HIGHLY recommend) you'll also have to be a little selective about what coat you use. I have a gorgeous trench sort of winter coat that I love, but it comes down to my knees and the handle of the iWalk 2.0 got in the way. Luckily I also have a nice and warm puffy coat, which is great on days like today when it is supposed to get down to -10, and ends at my hips so doesn't bother my pegleg!

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