There's a princess in all of us

"Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's the fairest of them all?" Snow White

I am admittedly a sucker for holidays. They bring so much joy to my life. I try not to play favorites, but Halloween undoubtedly falls in the top tier.

It's only logical that I love it...
  1. I love everything scary
  2. I love candy
  3. I love carving pumpkins
  4. Most importantly: I love (lovelove) costumes
Dressing up on Halloween is the opportunity to wear something you wouldn't normally allow yourself to spend money on. For example these are absolutely essential to a Kelly Kapowski costume (if only I'd had them last year when I was Kelly!).

Really, Halloween is an annual extension of our childhood. For one night, it's OK to put on something ridiculous and feel fabulous. Last year, some of my friends dressed as Lego's (speaking of acting like children). And they looked adorable.
Halloween gives us the same confidence that we had when we played dress up as kids. I remember playing Pretty, Pretty, Princess and feeling so beautiful when I finally had the chance to wear the crown - especially when I already had the earrings, necklace, and bracelets on. It didn't matter that it was plastic jewelry, it made you feel like a princess.
In an attempt to extend the joyous activity and fulfill our childhood dreams of becoming a princess, Disney unveiled a line of engagement rings.
The rings and bands were each inspired by one of the six princesses: Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine, Ariel and Belle. The line is an addition to Disney's current Couture and Wedding collections.
Between the gowns, bridal party dresses, and rings, it really is possible to have a fairy tale wedding. There's nothing closer to feeling like Cinderella than wearing a gown and ring modeled after her; it's the ultimate game of dress up. If only it were as cheap as the jewels in the Pretty, Pretty, Princess box...

Adventures in Jim's bathroom...

Though it was more for myself than it was for Jim, this weekend I decided to be a proactive girlfriend and clean his bathroom. So, while he was at work on Friday, I scrubbed away. I give him credit, as the floor and toilet were relatively clean. The shower and the sink, however, were disastrous.

The shower was basically similar to the showers I've seen in frat houses. Before I got in, I considered putting on my flip flops.

It was the sink, however, that was especially painful.

Jim lives in a lovely apartment with all granite countertops. The bathroom sink is tan with brown speckles, designed to hide stains. I quickly found the countertop was hiding quite a lot.

The first swipe of the sponge (a brand new sponge, mind you) made me gag. It was covered in tiny hairs. Apparently over the last six months, Jim and Paul have been shaving their beards over the sink and washing it out like good little roommates. However, they disregarded the fact that not all of the hairs made it into the sink, but instead landed on the surrounding countertops.

I gagged again when I realized the toothbrush I've had in their apartment since May has been resting on the countertop.

Because I really wanted to brush my teeth, had no car to get a new toothbrush, and couldn't imagine Jim's was any cleaner, I decided to boil it.

While I was standing there boiling the toothbrush (for a long time) I remembered an old middle school trend. All the girls in my class (anyone who was anyone) bought children's toothbrushes to boil, melt, and turn into bracelets. Mine was the Little Mermaid.
We all thought we were super hot eighth graders walking around with bent Disney toothbrushes on our wrists.

And I wish I could tell you this was the worst of the trends. But that's thing about middle school. It's awkward for everyone, even for those who didn't suffer genetically. It's this phase of life where girls are so uncertain about their bodies and style that they just copy one another.

You end up with everyone trying to wear the same type of skirt, when the skirt was really only made for a specific body and style.

This month in Glamour, Heidi Klum explains the key to her look. She writes, "Know yourself. Don't follow the trends; follow your instincts...some people are naturally flamboyant, and some are quieter; don't try to be the opposite of what you are -embrace your body and your spirit..."

Klum's insight truly is the key to a woman looking and feeling her best.

The majority of Glamour's November issue is dedicated to helping girls feel more confident in their own skin. With advice from experts, such as Klum, as well as devoting pages to "real" women, Glamour aims at giving every woman confidence.

And while I certainly applaud the magazine for shifting away from tiny models, I'm not sure they're exactly on target. No, cover after cover shouldn't feature only double zeros. But Glamour immediately jumped from zeros and twos to plus size models. What about all the women in the middle?
It's true, being too thin isn't healthy, nor does it serve as a perfect model for young girls. But, with so many Americans overweight, is it really necessary to applaud women who are categorized as having unhealthy BMI's? Does the shift have to be so extreme?

Of course, Glamour's editor, Cindi Lieve, does write, "To be clear, I'm not advocating a 'real women have curves' mentality, which implies that all skinny women are obsessive dieters and not 'real women'...But the bottom line is this: In the real world, women of all body types- whether pixie-ish...or curvy...have sex appeal, full, fabulous lives, and men drooling all over them...This is not a magazine for small women or large women, for size zeros or size 20s. It is a magazine for all women."

Lieve absolutely has it right. Magazines should applaud and be relatable for all healthy women. Unfortunately, though, the November issue displays only the extremes. And for the change to truly take place, editors can't forget the women in the middle.

FYI: Due to the concerned comments, please note that the toothbrush in Jim's bathroom was not my primary toothbrush all summer. I only used it on rare occasions, such as when I visited him this month. However, I vow never to keep a toothbrush that long again. I also think it should be known that I regularly change my primary toothbrush (minimum once a month). I know you were all concerned... :)

ah to be young again...


It would be safe to say that I lack even the most basic understanding of football. However, I believe that tonight, even if I understood what a carry and a curl and a cover were (I found these terms here, fyi), I still would have been impressed.

I was babysitting and we decided to play flag football. Drew, who is six and who I would be comfortable calling the next Tiger or Oudin (major prodigy potential), knew so much about football. He was trying, patiently, to teach Tessa and I the rules of the game. After he legitimately scored on us - a team of two - three times, Tessa and I got a little competitive. It was zero to 21.

So, Drew kicked us the ball, which Tessa caught and threw down the yard to me, and I scored. However, although I still don't understand why, Drew explained that we weren't allowed to pass it yet.

Tessa, four years his senior, said, "Drew, I really think we can..."
Drew replied, "No, Tess, not in high school, not in college, not in pros."

And then he let us redo it, like a true gentleman.

However, after hearing him spout off the terminology and rules and plays, I started thinking about how much easier it is for kids to learn new things.

Everyone always talks about the importance of learning a language at a young age, but it's applicable to everything.

Part of me thinks it's just because their spongey brains have a lot more space to absorb it all.

However, another part of me thinks it's because they're so excited to learn something new and passion is an essential tool for successful learning.

Drew didn't memorize plays because his coach or his dad told him he had to, he just loves football.

It's also because they have no fear of failing. If Drew forgets something when he's playing, no team is counting on him or expecting to live up to what he did the game before.

It must be such a happy way to learn. You learn it because you love it and you've not yet started to put the pressure of perfectionism on yourself.

And although sports and passion are too often miles apart, Tavi Gevinson boasts the same strengths. She's a much talked about blogger who was invited to multiple shows during Fashion Week last month. She was given front row seats and treated as a very important critic. She's also 13.

...And she knows so much.

But it's what she loves. It's all she wants to do. It's not her job. Her career doesn't depend upon it. No one expected her to be incredible. And she is.

And with the signature short hair and oversized glasses, it seems Tavi has already begun channeling Anna Wintour. But if someone were kind enough to say I had the skills to be the next Anna Wintour, I think I'd dress the part too. Let's just hope there's no Devil Where's Prada for her. Meryl Streep might not be able to do a thirteen year old.