I met one of my besties of 20+ years for lunch today and we laughed for hours. I’m pretty sure I got a few extra laugh lines but they were totally worth it. There is nothing better than having a friend that you can not see for months but then just pick up right where you left off! Am I right?

P.S. This dress has a deep v-neck that usually drapes well but apparently not while posing for pictures…no wonder I felt a breeze…lol.

Outfit Details:
Silk Faux Wrap Dress c/o Three Dots
Oversized Sunglasses c/o Sunglass Warehouse
Jessica Simpson Wedges
Thrifted Belt
Taylor Bracelet c/o Towne & Reese

It’s day three of Blogtember: “Pass on some useful advice or information you learned and always remembered”.

“If you want something done right, do it yourself”! Ain’t THAT the truth? The older I get…the truer that statement is. I’ve always been a “the glass is half empty” kind of gal (learning all sorts of things about me through this challenge, huh?) but I’ve gotten even worse with age. For the record, I like to think I’m a “realist” not a “pessimist”! But when I was little, I used to think that quote/motto was just a ploy from  my grandparents/parents to get me to do more work. Oh, how right they were!

We are getting ready for #Croctober with a fun giveaway!!! I’ve teamed up with Crocs for a FUN video campaign and YOU get to be the star! Create a video about Crocs using Vine or Instagram (both are super easy & videos are only seconds long) and you can win a free pair of your choice! The video can be about anything…funny, silly, stylish, etc.! Email a link to your video to getsocial@crocs.com with THE STYLISH HOUSEWIFE in the subject line. Then in October, Crocs will share one of the winning videos a day on their social media channels!  Can’t wait to see what you guys come up with!!!

For more Crocstyle Insider inspiration (and to see all of my Crocs videos), click here.

It has been RIDICULOUSLY hot & humid for the past week and it looks like it’s going to continue for the rest of the week! I don’t know how I will keep up with outfit posts because seriously…my hair is a disaster and I am sweating as soon as I step away from the fan. Thankfully Swirl Boutique gave me this little cotton number to keep me cool. Who’s ready for a five ways to wear series because I may not take this off until it cools down around here! =) But in all seriousness, Swirl Boutique has their own in-house clothing line called “Simply Swirl” and all items are made with organic materials in good ol’ Los Angeles!

Outfit Details:
Simply Swirl Organic Cotton Drop Waist Dress c/o Swirl Boutique (to order, call 760-753-0870)
Simply Swirl Organic Coton Three Strap Bandeau Top c/o Swirl Boutique (to order, call 760-753-0870)
Mia Gladiator Sandals
Pendant Necklace c/o Julie Vos
Michael Kors Runway Watch
LOFT Clutch

And to continue on with Blogtember…here is the Q&A for day two:

“If you could take three months off from your current life and do anything in the world, what would you do”?

images via here, here, here and here.

If money were no object, I would take my whole family to Bora Bora. And I would wear this dress…lol. It matches these pics too well! But seriously, it would be my DREAM vacay. And I would leave all electronics at home. I would like to sleep for eight hours a night and read books and play in the ocean all day. And I don’t even like the ocean. Seriously, why can’t the water be this clear where I live?!?! Oh, and I would never get a sunburn or a hangover. =)

One of the hardest things for me when it comes to blogging is actually coming up with something to write about. So I’ve decided to participate in Story of my Life’s “Blogtember“. I wanted to participate last time but I knew I would be setting myself up for failure if I promised to blog EVERY day. This time around it is only M-F which I already do, so I thought I would just incorporate my answers into my usual posts. I hope you don’t mind!

“Describe where or what you come from. The people, the places, and/or the factors that make up who you are”.

I was born in San Clemente at “General Hospital”. It is now called something else but when I was little, I thought it was SO cool that I was born at the hospital that my mom watched on TV. Not really…but for any of you who are old enough to remember “Luke & Laura”…you know what I’m talking about! We moved (my mom & I) when I was almost five years old and she met and married my stepdad when I was six. My parents have been happily married for 32 years now. But the life changing moment for me came when my parents bought a new home and I had to change schools districts in the 6th grade. I was NOT happy about it. I eventually adjusted and made new friends. But then when I was a freshman in high school, I got bullied by one girl in particular. Being terrified of a girl who was like a professional kickboxer at 16 years old (seriously….wth) and being scared to go to school every day was horrible. I convinced my parents to enroll me in a private school for a year before finally being granted an inter-district transfer to go back to my previous school district. By this time of course all of my elementary school besties (and I) had changed and I ended up meeting my group of girlfriends that I am still best friends with to this day. My parents still say that if they had known then how much changing schools at that time in my life would have affected me, they would have fought to keep me in the same school. I definitely developed a MUCH thicker skin and even became known as a bit of a tough girl myself after going through that. It’s weird how something that happens when you are so young can really mold you into the person you are as adult. Obviously, there are SO many people, places & things that have made me who I am today but this was the first thing that came to mind.

Outfit Details:
Wildfox Raglan Tee c/o Swirl Boutique ($79, If you’re not local, you can call 760-753-0870 to order)
Vegan Leather Track Shorts c/o Swirl Boutique ($41, If you’re not local, you can call 760-753-0870 to order)
Topshop Heels

I can NOT believe that my little baby was only 4mo old when I started this blog and now he is almost THREE. He will also be starting preschool in a little over a week! OMG. Only a couple hours a day for two days a week BUT STILL. So when Ross Dress for Less asked me to go check out their back to school new arrivals, I brought my little guy with me and let him do the picking out! He’s never even seen Batman or any marvel comics really yet but when he saw the cape on the back of this sweatshirt, it was all over! I have had to hide it so he won’t put it on while it has been 876876867657 degrees out this past week! Of course I ended up coming home with a little something for myself too (coming to the blog soon)!

Ross Dress for Less also wants YOU to check out their new arrivals so we are giving away a $25 gift card! Which as you know, goes a long way at Ross. Enter using the rafflecopter app below as many or few ways as you want. Thanks for reading. xoxo

a Rafflecopter giveaway

P.S. You can also stop by the Ross Dress for Less Facebook page to enter their “Back to School Fashion Face Off” for a chance to win a $125 gift card!

Disclaimer: I was provided with a gift card to shop.