And the winner is...

I found it! I found the dress for graduation... It took a little longer than expected, too close for comfort actually. I bought a few dresses that didn't work and they will be returned shortly, but 3 days shy of graduation I have made a decision. And of course, it's polka dots! I have to tell you, it was hard to make a decision. I mean, I will be looking at this dress in pictures for the rest of my life! So without further ado... the winner is...

Let me tell you the reasons why this dress is perfect -
a) It's cap sleeved so I don't have to feel weird about wearing spaghetti straps nor do I have to search for the perfect sweater to go over.
b) It's a wrap with a great tie - as Stacy and Clinton say, it's best to accentuate the smallest part of your body, which on most of us is our waist.
c) I love polka dots.
d) It was on sale!
e) It comes with a slip that is not attached, therefore I can use it for other things in which I may need a slip.

Next, I needed shoes for the ensemble. The dress is Navy (although it may look black in the photo), and the graduation gown is black - therefore I could not wear blue shoes. So I decided my options were red or green.

While searching for shoes Ashley (Pike) said to me, "Amber on Friday you will be walking into a new chapter of your life!" To which I said, "And I want to walk into that chapter in the perfect shoes!" We laughed, but I was serious so here are the shoes I will be wearing...

So I am thinking red accessories and the outfit is complete. Man! If I knew I would be able to do this much shopping just looking for a graduation dress, I would graduate everyday!

Has anyone ever told you that you look like Jennifer Love Hewitt?

Yes, the answer is yes, and when did you see my backside in a bikini? (If you have kept up J-love 'fat' scandal then you got that joke. If not, the answer is just yes.) I have been asked this every once and a while for the last couple years, since I have consistently kept my hair dark. But, no kidding this last couple weeks I have been asked this 6 times! To be honest, I don't see the resemblance. Yes, we both have dark hair and eyes and we have bangs, but other than that? I mean, I do wish I had her gorgeous hair...



OK, so here is the situation... you are having a conversation with a friend, a complete stranger who you have watching stare at you for the last 10 minutes walks up to you, interrupts your conversation and says, has anyone ever told you that you look like Jennifer Love Hewitt? What is the proper response?? Typically I follow that question up with, yes, thank you. And leave it at that... I mean, I am not sure why a stranger would feel inclined to tell me this in the first place after they have obviously concluded that I am not her, do they want an autograph? Not to mention that I don't know this stranger so I am not sure what their stance on J-Love is. For all I know they think she is the ugliest person alive and has just paid me the highest insult in the book and I said thank you!

So, even though I don't see the resemblance, I think she is very pretty and I will take it as a compliment, whether or not a compliment is intended. I mean, if that is the worst thing I have to complain about I am not doing so bad.

And as for the J-Love getting fat situation, (this is a complete side note, but it's my blog and I can side note if I want), I think she looks great. Yes, she may have gained a couple pounds since she was a teenager, but who hasn't?!? Plus, the last thing I would ever want is someone showing up at the beach, taking pictures of me in a bikini and then selling them to People magazine. For heaven sakes, what has this world come to when we make judgements of someone else's beach body while we sit on our butts and read People magazine. Anyway, rock on J-Love, I think you look great! And thanks to all you strange little strangers for the completely awkward moment and the compliment.

Reflection...

It's the last few weeks of the last semester of my college career (as long as I don't decide to go to graduate school, for now we'll just say last). This semester has been, by far, the most time consuming to the point where a lot of other things were pushed out of my life... like shopping! As I finish my final everything I can't help but think back on all the time that I have spent as a student. I started my education at SUU where I finished my first 2 years as a biology student. When I made the choice to move to Salt Lake it wasn't long until I was offered a great job that in tandem slowed down my education. I have always been grateful for my job and the opportunities that it has given me. They have paid for my education, offered me travel opportunities, taught me professional etiquette, opened up worlds of experience and expertise. Oftentimes I found myself working 50 - 60 hours a week and since I began it seemed that I allowed my job to come before school and although I never stopped going to school I took classes at night or during a lunch hour when it would fit in my schedule. This last semester I couldn't take my classes at night, as they weren't offered, and I had to do a morning internship. After some pursuasion I was allowed to work part time (30 hours a week) so I could take classes during the day and do an internship in the morning. For the first couple months of the semester I was still working 40+ hours a week as people settled into the new schedule. However, as things started falling into their places, school for the first time became my first priority. That was very exciting! Now, that I look back, I loved every second of it. Even the moments when I wanted to pull my hair out cause I didn't have enough time to finish something or when I wanted to cry when my hard drive crashed. I have learned from so many people and have loved them for taking time to teach me. Now it is time to take in the goodness and sit back and relax. At least for a weekend!

Yay for graduation! Yay for taking time to relax and reflect! And a special YAYAYAYAY for the search for the PERFECT graduation dress!