The Great American Brewery Tour

Nothing says summer like AB Brewery Tours. (Is it odd that I think that?)

A couple of months ago, I did the beer school at the brewery and last Friday afternoon I took a friend on her first ever tour of the Anheuser-Busch Brewery - can you believe she grew up in St. Louis and had never been?!

The gates of heaven?

Such a pretty house... for horses.

STL Brick.

Prettiest industrial plant ever.

Beer thirty

Where my Grandpa's office was

free beer! (and pretzels)

Backlog

These are actually from last week. It feels so long ago that I don't even know what to say about them.... Except that I was also lazy and refused to go out in the heat to take pictures, resorting once again to the dreaded mirror pic.

Bad style blogger, bad.

Work + Muny Night (no scarf for the Muny, of course)

dress, belt, sandals from Target. also, gifted locket that you can't see. 

Friday Funday: Work + Lunch + Brewery Tour

top from Gap. jeans, sandals from Target. gifted locket. belt was found buried in the trunk of my car.... no idea where it is from. 

[PS: I changed into white shorts later to go see Harry Potter]

[PPS: These might be two of my new favorite outfits.]

Weekend Adventures: Fishing at Meramec State Park

Last Sunday, I headed down to Meramec State Park near Sullivan, Mo., to do a little fishing.

Yep. Me. Fishing. Hard to believe.

I'll be honest, at first it was terrible. I had to lead Maverick through brush down to the river, all the while carrying a cooler and chairs and fishing poles. And then got my shoes and socks all wet walking through a creek. And then there were spiders everywhere and I hate spiders. Oh, and did I mention it was like 100 degrees outside? Yep, that first beer was much appreciated.

But after a little while, I actually started to enjoy myself. And I caught a fish. Which was pretty freakin' awesome.






And why yes, that is a pink fishing pole. I got it at Walmart for $11.96.

Knights of Badassdom

Yes, that is the actual movie title.

Dinklage. Zahn. Kwanten. Pudi. And LARPing.
I love everything about this.

New Favorites. Desk Edition.

My Park Avenue Coffee iced coffee cup. My Ollie Twitter bird. My weekly post-it note pad.  

(And yes, that is a headless John Locke in the background....)

Farm Wear

In case you wanted to know what I wore to the Tower Grove Farmers Market on Saturday.

dress from Old Navy. sandals, purse from Target. sungalsses from Claire's. locket, gifted. 

New Obsession: Tower Grove Farmers Market

I've always liked the idea of farmers markets. But getting someone to go with me, getting cash to pay and getting up that early on the weekend.... that's a different story.

Saturday, I actually dragged my butt up and made it down the street for the Tower Grove Farmers Market and it changed.my.life. I'll be getting up every Saturday possible from now one.

Reasons why it is awesome:

• Lots of local food. Not just fruits and veggies. And nothing with stickers posing as the real thing. There were the typical fruits, veggies, spreads, jarred goodies but also chocolate, coffee, tea, even meat! 
• Live music brought to you by KDHX
• wading pools/fountains for kids (and adults?) to play in
• a playground (with swings!)
• lots of food to buy and eat on the spot, including, but not limited to tacos and crepes! Umm, breakfast and lunch plans? Check!

Pictures to prove it:

Tents in a row & the Holy Crepe truck

Playing in fountains

Peach, goat cheese, honey, arugula crepe and banana nutella pop from Holy Crepe.

Relaxing in the grass with my goodies. 

Black and Blue

Too busy to put together a coherent blog post right now. Mondays are rough. Just know this...

• I obviously found a new awkward blogger pose. 
• It's too hot in St. Louis to be 'stylish' beyond a T-shirt and cropped jeans. 
• This marks two days in a row I'm wearing a tee from Walmart. How thrifty. 
• Black and blue must be my new color combo right now. See Exhibit A. See Exhibit B. This would be C, of course. 
• Every time I think of 'black and blue' my mind immediately jumps to Backstreet Boys and middle school. Is that normal?

jeans, sandals from Target. top from Walmart. assorted bracelets. 

Home Wine Kitchen

Friday night I had a little girls night outing to Home Wine Kitchen and it.was.awesome.

Home Wine Kitchen is the newest addition to 'that strip' in Maplewood. You know the one. Schlafly Bottleworks and Acero on one end. Monarch and the now closed Jive n' Wail on the other. Boogaloo, Post and Las Palmas in the middle. Plenty of parking in the Shop n' Save or whatever across the street...

Anyway, Home Wine Kitchen is awesome. It's a little hard to find since they don't have the name above the storefront like everyone else (instead, look for a little cabin icon), but worth the trip. They keep it simple there. Inside is cozy and rustic. Dinner menu is short and simple with a few options for apps, a few entrees and a few sides. All bottles of wine are $30. Wines by the glass are listed on a chalkboard behind the bar. And the staff is as friendly as can be.

Riesling. Refreshing. 

Pork Chop. Delicious. (And Monica's got the Tomato Confit in the background.)

My only complaint (and it isn't really their fault) is that it wasn't crowded at dinnertime on a Friday night. There might have been one or two other parties there besides us. That worries me. This place is great and I do not want it to close. Come on, STL foodies. Get off your butts and go to Home Wine Kitchen!


PS: See what I wore there!

Get Fancy

Friday night, I had a little girls night at Home Wine Kitchen in Maplewood. It was a welcome relief to get dressed up and wear heels. I bet you all were beginning to think I didn't own any, huh? Anywho... apologies for the return of the awkward mirror picture. My friend actually took a picture of me outside the restaurant before dinner, but the more I looked at it, the more beauty pageanty it looked. I snapped this one after we got home.

I got this orange top from Exit 248... my first ever thrifted purchase! Does it still count as thrifting if I bought it online?

top, thrifted from Exit 248. skirt from Express. heels by Chinese Laundry. assorted bracelets. nail color: French Affair by Essie on hands, Geranium by Essie on toes. 

A Guide

Thank goodness for my 'getting dressed' board on Pinterest. I copied this almost exactly. Printed scarf + white tank + gray cardi with flats + jeans? Done. Should have gotten a picture with my slouchy purse and sunglasses to really finish off the look!

And this braid. Sigh. I try. I'm still not sure if the pictures I take of my hair look better or worse than it does in real life. PS: Sorry it is flying in my face in that one picture. There's actually a breeze today. 

tank and cardigan from Old Navy. jeans and flats from Target. scarf from Van Heusen. 

Meet Me At The Muny

I've been going to the Muny for years.

(Non-STL reader disclaimer: The Muny is an outdoor amphitheater - the oldest and largest in the U.S. - that was built in Forest Park for the 1904 World's Fair and plays hosts to musicals every summer. They aren't travelling tours of the shows though, they are all produced right here in the city. Watching the sunset behind the stage before showtime - like this picture- is the best.)

It started off with random shows when I was a kid. In middle school, my Mom, Sister and I started a tradition of getting Mom's Deli and sitting in the free seats in the back. And then, Mom bucked up and started getting season tickets every year.

Blame it on my love of musicals or my dance background or that theater criticism class I took in college, but my sister and I always spent the car ride home dissecting the show we just saw. The costumes. The acting. The singing. The set. And usually most of all, the dance numbers.

Now that Kristin is in DC and my Mom drives home to South County after the show, I've got no one to rant (or rave) with. People ask me how the show was and I know damn well they are looking for a good/bad response, not my answer of how it compares with past shows or why that actor wasn't right for the part.

Good thing I have a blog, eh? We're already three shows in this season, so here goes:

Legally Blonde:
Let's get this straight. I'm not a big fan of the 'modern musical.' The kind where they sing pretty much all the dialogue. The kind where the music sounds more like a pop record than a stage production. I'm just not a fan.

LB is that kind of musical.

That being said, it was funny, enjoyable, but didn't blow me away. The set design was lackluster (maybe because it was all pink?). There wasn't enough of the cute dog(s). Most of all, I didn't think it was appropriate as an opening production. LB is a bit, well, adult. I get that they wanted a big blockbuster musical to open with, but I would have saved this for mid season where they usually put the big kid shows (you know - the Miss Saigon's, the Hairsprays. Maybe it was complicated because they are also showing Little Shop of Horrors this year?).

Kiss Me Kate:
There's nothing much to say. It isn't The Muny's fault - this show was just bad. Plays within a play are always annoying, but this takes the cake. I love you, Cole Porter, but no.

Little Mermaid:
Every year, the Muny hosts a big, family friendly show to run for two weeks. Of course, Mermaid was that show (in its first off Broadway production!).

I was worried this would look like the shows I've seen at Disney..... a girl dressed as a mermaid sitting on a rock the whole time, being pushed around the stage (read: lame), but it wasn't. Everyone walked around - Flounder, Ariel, the mermaids (and mermen), Ursula, Sebastian. That whole 'suspension of belief' thing really came into play here. I have a feeling if you had never seen Disney's animated Mermaid, you would have no idea what these brightly colored creatures were supposed to be.

Casting gets an 'A.' Anything with Ken Page and Francis Jue usually gets high marks from me, but adding Paul Vogt as Ursula?! Yes, please. And that little girl as Flounder (and her real life Dad as Scuttle)? Well done. But the real star was the set design. It was gorgeous. Big. Creative. Colorful. Exactly what productions like this call for. (Maybe they took some of Legally Blonde's budget....)

That's it. So far. Coming up next (one of my favorites) - Singin' in the Rain! 

Bridesmaids, Take 2

Call it the Kristen Wiig effect. All I want to wear nowadays are girly dresses with blazers.

PS: Here's my first take on a Wiig Worthy look.

dress, blazer, sandals from Target. assorted braceletes and ring. 

Just Barely.

grey tee, black skinny jeans, yellow belt and tan sandals all from Target. 

Just barely made it out of bed this morning, so appropriate that I'm just barely wearing yellow for Everybody Everywear.

Let's break it down.

The outfit. Like I said, barely yellow, but it'll do. I consider yellow one of my favorite colors, yet have very little of it in my closet. I've got a yellow tunic and, of course, my mustard cardigan, but that's it. And considering it is a blistering 200 degrees outside today (just barely an exaggeration), long sleeves just weren't going to do.

The inspiration. Saw this on Dash Dot Dotty and pinned it immediately so I could recreate it myself. Ah, the joys of following too many style blogs.

The nails. Please note my new mint green nails, but please ignore the chips. They need a touch-up. Bad. The color is actually Sally Hansen's Mint Sorbet but this color is everywhere right now. You can probably find something similar with any brand.

The hair. I've been sporting 'the blogger bun' every day after work and all day on the weekends, but have yet to wear it like this to work. I still can't tell if it looks like I just came from the gym or if it looks legit. Your opinion is desired.

That Time I Saw A Shuttle Launch

All this talk of the shuttle launch today brought back some great memories (and made me really wish I was at the Science Center's Planetarium...).

In November 2009, I was down in Florida with my parents and got to see the Atlantis shuttle launch and it was seriously, without question, one of the coolest things I have ever seen in my life (I may or may not have even teared up a bit watching...).

Pictures can never do something like this justice... but here ya go anyway.

Now that there are no more shuttle launches left, it is even cooler to think I got to see one. Sigh.

Yesterday

my new Bindy wrap bracelet (thanks to Swirl). watch from Target. 

Time To Vent

In the last month,

• my car has broken down and needed to be towed from in front of my house. Then took three days at the garage to get fixed (and I don't even think it is 100%). 
• my basement has flooded (twice now actually. It happened again last night.)
• my electricity went out, and not during a storm, but when it was bright, beautiful and hot outside. Perfect time to go without AC. 
• I went to get my car licensed (or titled?) and was missing paperwork from the bank that they still haven't gotten for me. 

And now, there is a mouse in my house. 

I thought Maverick was crazy. He kept perking his ears up and looking around. He kept jumping down off the bed and running over the the closet/dresser/dirty clothes hamper (usually right as I was starting to fall asleep. Awesome). He kept walking around sniffing everything, very suspicious-like. 

But this morning, I saw him. 

A little (really cute actually) brown mouse. I 'eeeeeee'd like a little girl, waving my hands in the air just like you see people girls do in movies and TV. I pointed to him and whispered, 'Over there, Maverick! He's right there!' I got the blank stare back. Why don't dogs speak English?!

I guess I need to buy some traps or something. But how the hell am I going to pick up a dead mouse to throw it out? 

Twofer

Today, you get two-for-one. Two days of me. Two days of purple prints. Two days of curly hair. Two day of awkward poses. Aren't you lucky?

Tuesday: work + Florence and the Machine concert at the Pageant

top by Tucker for Target. cardigan by Tommy Hilfiger. jeans, sandals, necklace from Target. 


Wednesday: work + The Little Mermaid at the Muny

dress, sandals and belt from Target. cardigan by Eddie Bauer. necklace gifted. 

Scenes from My Fourth

Doesn't get more American than that.