Happy Sunday! Welcome back to my weekend series where I attempt to put you in a good mood and set a positive note to the coming week by serenading you with songs I can’t get out of my head and showing some happy highlights from the past week.

This Sunday’s serenade is Addicted by Morgan Page featuring Greg Laswell. I don’t really know much about either artist except that Greg Laswell has collaborated with Sara Bareilles (my #2 favorite female artist of all time) on a song called Come Back Down (google it!). Anyway, I was checking out some of the curated playlists on Spotify when I came across this song and recognized the artist. I really like the beat of this one so I listen to it a lot while I’m editing documents at work. I dare you to listen to it without humming along.

Top 5 Awesome Things:

1.  Voting. The NC primary is March 15, but Nick and I voted early so we missed the lines and the crowd. When I was younger, I didn’t care for or understand politics but as I’ve gotten older I realize how important it is to elect representatives that will make policies for your state (and our nation) that will lift people up instead of tearing them down. If you’re 18 or over, register and vote! It’s your civic responsibility.

2. Spring. I’m so excited for Spring! Since I’ve been trying to put more effort into my health, I started taking 15-minute walks around the block where I work each day. Not only is it good for your body to get up and walk around, but it helps clear my head so I can regain focus on my work when I get back to my desk. The weather has been gorgeous for my walks this past week, and I snapped this one because of the beautiful sky and bright daffodils. Yay, spring!

3. Date night. Spring weather means patio dinners on date night. This was a newer restaurant that we’re just now getting around to trying called Juju Asian Tapas, and as you might have guessed, they serve small plates of asian-style food. It was really good but we were more excited about sitting outside on the patio by the fire. I love date nights!

4. Chico. I love this baby boy and this picture looks like it could be a painting so I wanted to share. <3

5. Selfie. Nothing wrong with a little self-love and a cute picture!

That’s it. I hope enjoyed my serenade and have a lovely week!

-Nikki

I work for a nonprofit organization and I love it. It wasn’t something I set out to do but, once it happened, I was hooked. I’ve always wanted to spend my life doing something meaningful that helped people, and health is my jam. So it’s only natural that I ended up at an organization that specializes in women’s health and rights. My current role is grant writing so I’m responsible for writing and editing donor documents to raise and sustain funds needed to operate our programs. AND I get to work with our colleagues in Latin America. But I’m not here to give you my LinkedIn profile. I want to talk a little bit about what it’s like to work for a nonprofit.  Of course, every nonprofit is different but here a few of the things that I like most about mine:

Office Attire

As you can probably imagine, my office environment is very casual, so my work outfits seriously range from jeans and a t-shirt to a suit. Just kidding, I’ve never actually worn a suit to work – not even when I interviewed for both positions I’ve had there – but I could if I wanted! I do try to keep it business casual, though, so I usually try to include a blazer or trousers or nice blouse in each outfit. I do appreciate that on the mornings when I struggle to find my motivation, it is totally acceptable to throw on jeans and a sweatshirt. 

You’ll usually find me sitting at my desk in something like this:

Or this:

Overheard conversation from yesterday:

Coworker 1: “Look at you in your fancy dress and fancy shoes. What are you all dressed up for?”
Coworker 2: “Because it’s Tuesday!”

And she really was looking super cute in a floral shirt dress and thrifted mules!

Everyone Cares about the Same Thing

We’re very mission-driven and we’re all there to do our parts to make the world a better place. That doesn’t mean we don’t have our different (and sometimes clashing) personalities, difficult meetings, and office politics but we do have a common goal that reaches way beyond making money. It’s a great feeling to be surrounded by like-minded, intelligent people who are willing to fight the same fight that you are, and it’s comforting to know you’re doing it together.

We save lives, people!

Big Cubicles

My cube has actually shrunk recently, but I’ve had pretty big spaces up until now. BUT I get a window with lots of natural light. It doesn’t get much better than that!

I’ve since added a small bookcase so my space is super cozy and did I mention I get to sit next to a window? I almost forgot to mention that getting a cube next to a window is coveted by everyone who doesn’t sit near a window (except maybe those with offices and the higher ups who have offices WITH windows) and is a pretty big deal.

The Other Perks

Aside from saving and improving lives, I’m incredibly lucky to work for an organization that provides pretty good benefits. Health and dental insurance; a full kitchen that makes preparing lunch a breeze; 4 hours per month of time off that you can use for running errands, doctors appointments, or just going home early to nap; a committee that shows documentaries related to our cause once a month during lunch. It really is the best.

I know there are plenty of for-profit companies that offer all of these things and more. Nick’s company gives employees amazing incentives like hockey tickets, lunches, and other cool things. But I get the satisfaction of knowing I’m making a difference! To be honest, I’m still not sure what my calling is in life but I do know I’ll find it in a nonprofit.

Linking up with The Pleated Poppy | Flashback Fashion Fridays

Good morning, friends. It’s the return of Sunday Morning Serenade! A while back I wrote a series where every Sunday I would feature a song I just couldn’t get out of my head that week, as well as some happy highlights from my life that would help set a positive note to the coming week. It was my little serenade to my readers. I’m not sure why, but it sort of fell by the wayside – as do many things in my life – but I’ve decided to bring it back. So grab a cup of coffee and take this little musical journey with me.

The song I’ve had stuck in my head all week is “Sound and Color” by Alabama Shakes. I jumped on this train a little late. I heard a few songs and read a few interviews with Alabama Shakes when they were first making their way on the music scene but I didn’t pay them the attention they deserved. Then I heard this song in a commercial and it ignited my obsession. Now, I can’t get enough of Brittany Howard’s voice and how she can flawlessly belt out any blues or rock tune. I hope you enjoy this beautifully soulful song.

 This Week’s Top 5 Awesome Things

1. Coffee and books on cold mornings. This was taken on one of our last cold days of the winter. I woke up on my day off to freezing rain and frigid temperatures, and I decided to sit in front of the fireplace and enjoy two of my loves, coffee and reading. I’m currently reading The Secret Thoughts of Successful Women: Why Capable People Suffer from the Impostor Syndrome and How to Thrive in Spite of It by Valerie Young. I might do a review on it when I’m finished but if you haven’t heard of impostor syndrome, take a few minutes to google it; it’s fascinating. 

2. Clear, blue skies. In contrast to the above, we’ve recently had clear, sunny skies – a true sign that Spring is almost here. As much as I love fall and winter, I am definitely looking forward to sunshine and warm breezes.  I can’t wait to pull out my tank tops, sandals, and light jackets.

3. Bottle shops. On Saturday, Nick and I went to the little bottle shop where he used to work to have a drink and enjoy the day. Bottle shops – little stores that sell beer by the bottle, as well as by the tap – is a trend that is popping up all over NC. They’re a lot of fun because you can drink a beer while shopping for beer, but what I like most about them is the sense of community they instill in the regular customers. It’s like a little bar, but better!

4. Farmers’ markets. Sure, the Farmer’s Market is open all year long, but I really enjoy them when the weather is nice and the bounty is aplenty. We’re lucky enough to have several farmer’s markets in the triangle so we can venture down to Central Park for Durham’s market or, if we’re craving fresh NC seafood, we’ll make the journey to Raleigh to their farmer’s market where we can eat fried shrimp and clams at the NC Seafood Restaurant. It’s truly one of the best things in life.

5. Haircuts. I’ve been really indecisive with my hair lately. I get the urge to cut it and when I do, I wish I hadn’t so I set out on a long journey to let it grow it again. I’m loving this new haircut, though. It’s a true lob (long bob) and it looks great straight or curled.

That’s it for my serenade. If you’re new the blog, I hope you enjoyed it, and be sure to check out some of my past serenades. You just might discover from good music and new facts about yours truly.

Have a great week, y’all!

Linking up with Hello Monday | Let it Shine | Start the Week Stylish | Confident Twosday | What I Wore

This is the most comfortable outfit I’ve ever worn in my entire life. And I’ve worn it for everything: Christmas with my family; a surprise birthday house party for my friend where I swapped the boots for pumps and then to the club later that night; on my birthday to travel to DC, have dinner with friends, and then attend another house party; and I’ve worn it to work on several occasions. A funny coincidence is that I’ve seen Star Wars: The Force Awakens three times (thanks, nerdy husband) and it just so happened that each time I saw it, it was raining AND I wore this outfit. So that leads me to believe that the outfit is perfect for rainy weather, and for watching Star Wars in the theater. But, really, it’s just my new favorite outfit!

Cute story: this knit hat was the first thing Nick ever bought me when we started dating. He went to New York on New Year’s Eve, which was my 19th birthday, and brought back this hat, a matching scarf, and some confetti. I still have all three, and wear this hat mostly to walk the dogs on cold mornings. It means so much to me that I’ll never let it go!

Sweater and Blouse: Banana Republic | Leggings: BB Dakota via Le Tote | Ankle Boots: Old Navy | Scarf: Banana Republic | Necklace: Old Navy | Hat: Gap (really old)

Linking up with Flashback Fashion Friday

Now that I have my general life resolutions all set for 2016, it’s time to think about my style & blog resolutions. I recently read an interesting article by Kristy Ellington for ModCloth, featured on PopSugar Fashion titled I Let a Fashion Editor Dress Me For a Week, and Here’s What Happened. I figured it would be the typical I-was-pushed-outside-of-my-comfort-zone story, and it was, but what really struck me was the author’s realization that her fear of stepping outside of her fashion comfort zone was creeping into how she viewed her everyday life. The entire article is worth reading, but here’s where it really gets good:

“And it was there, in this unlikely outfit on a random Thursday, I realized something very important: “I could never pull that off” was creeping into how I thought about other things in my life and totally holding me back. […] Not being able to “pull that off” was becoming my excuse, my crutch, my limitation to avoid failure. But it was also keeping me from growing and learning new things. So I made a promise to myself to stop trying not to “pull things off” and just do it.”

Whoa, you guys, that’s deep. Especially when I’ve heard tale of so many ladies feeling like fashion is frivolous and unimportant and that they can’t “pull it off.” But I can definitely relate because not only have I said I can’t pull off some cool fashion trend, but I’ve also said I can’t pull off some aspect of my life. Like, I could never pull off that job because so I won’t even apply or I don’t know how to network so I could never pull off that event. Taking a cue from this astute view of “just do it,” I’ve decided to make some style resolutions for 2016. As for the blog, I resolve to post 3-4 times per week. I’d like to incorporate more life and writing posts along with my outfits, and I’m going to work on my photography skills.

Style Resolutions

1. Determine my style. I’ve tried a few trends over the last few years and some of them worked and some didn’t, and that’s okay. But somewhere along the way I lost track of what makes me feel like me, so I’m going to figure it out this year. I think this will require a full closet clean-out but I’m up for the challenge.

Getting my jewelry organized has already been a huge help in achieving my style goals for this year!

2. Invest in pieces I love. Once I’ve determined my style, I’m going to only purchase pieces I really love and can see myself wearing over and over. I’m ashamed to admit that on more than one occasion I’ve bought pieces simply because I didn’t have anything in that color or because I thought I needed it but it didn’t fit quite right or something else was off about it so I only wore it once and left it sitting in the back of my closet. Well, I will do that no more!

Now it’s time to organize my closet, starting with these sweaters.

3. Only wear high-quality shoes. Look, we all know that shoes are awesome and it’s exciting when they’re super cheap because you can buy so many pairs. But then they fall apart or cause your knees to ache because they don’t offer enough joint support (that’s a thing, right? or did I make it up?). So, to determine my style and invest in pieces I love will include buying high quality shoes with lots of support.

It’s not that my current shoes are bad, but they could be better. I’m not going to complain about a closet full of shoes 😉

4. Get better at dressing for my age. I stopped shopping in the Junior’s department years ago but I want to get better at dressing for my age. I’m 31 years old with an awesome career at a sweet nonprofit. I’ve resolved to start acting like it, and now my wardrobe needs to reflect it, as well. The good news is we don’t have a dress code, but keeping my age and lifestyle in mind will ultimately help me really determine my style.

5. Wear more lipstick. If I see a lipstick I like, I’m going for it. Until recently, I rarely ever wore lipstick because, you guessed it, I didn’t think I could pull it off. I always notice how polished it looks on other women and wished I could wear it, too. This year, I’m just going to do it.

Stick with me and find out how I do. Happy New Year!