Yesterday I met my siblings in Ligonier for a long awaited gift exchange. Sara and I texted each other on when a perfect day to meet up would be. If not for my work schedule and the snow, it would have been last week. We agreed on yesterday and it couldn’t have been any more perfect.

We had lunch at the Wicked Googly. I met Rob, Sara, and Rae at Noon for lunch just as we had planned. Rob and Sara had their gift ready for me and I had mine for them. I’ll get Rae’s to her soon. Maybe I can talk her into Acapulco for dinner some night. I found their booth where they were sitting and we all greeted each other.

We ordered our food and then we exchanged gifts. I gave Sara and Rob theirs first and they loved what I got them. Sara was more than happy that I got her some Burt’s Bees 🐝 and I figured Rob would love The Office page-a-day calendar (they’re big Office fans).

I opened my gifts next. I loved the gift tag Sara put on the top present so much that I took a picture of it. It was a travel case from ULTA that I could take makeup in, with Woody and Buzz from Toy Story (they teamed up with Pixar). The next gift was a gel mask from ULTA. See where I’m going with this? The last gift was a beauty box with many different eye shadows, lip gloss, blush, eye pencils, and bronzers. You might say it was an ULTAMATE gift exchange.

While we were at lunch, I looked some outfit ideas for Spring from Old Navy and Target. I showed my sisters some dresses I’m interested in purchasing as well as couple of blouses, and even a beret. James in Paris.

We checked out the ice sculptures, got some pictures in front of the gazebo, and ordered some Ice Fest coffee from Abigail’s. We didn’t stay in Ligonier too long after lunch and decided to make our way up to Johnstown. Sara asked me if I wanted to have tacos for dinner with her and Rae. I wasn’t doing anything at home anyways so I took the offer and ended up having a great time.

We watched Stepbrothers on Netflix. They’ve got that movie down pat and had me quoting it by the end. We were were like three girls looking at old high school yearbooks as we swooned over Harry Styles. (Sara and I both love Harry and he’s inspired me in my gender nonconformity journey). I think Rob felt like the only actual male at the table yesterday.

I’m a completely different person around my “sisters” and that person really comes out and is not afraid to be themselves. We were chatting up a storm in the kitchen and at lunch as well. I wish I could be more like this at home and that my family could be more accepting of who I am.

The tacos were amazing. Sara made them with chick peas, cauliflower, and tofu as she is vegetarian. We had a emotional moment while she was preparing dinner when she and Rae told me how proud they were of me for being confident and finding myself. I’m blessed to call them my sisters.

We all tried to fix my purse as my scarf got stuck in the zipper. Rob tried to fix it, Sara tried using her tweezers, no luck. I borrowed some scissors from Christmas and that did the trick. I had to cut a few holes in my cheetah scarf but you hardly notice them. I’d have rather lost the scarf than ruin a beautiful Coach purse. By the way I ordered my Lauren Conrad purses on kohls.com.

After watching some Jane the Virgin together for the first time, I headed out around 9. We’re making some future plans to talk on FaceTime once a week so we’re visiting each other every few months. We’re not just siblings, we’re twins. We’re going to do a Galentines Day get together in the Spring and a Phipps visit as well as Tekko in the Summer.

Yesterday definitely made up for the miserable Christmas I had.

I just finished One Day at a Time tonight. There’s a fourth season which aired on PopTv but ended quickly due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The show was officially cancelled soon after.

I was inspired to check out this show after seeing two of its stars in recurring roles on Jane the Virgin. Justina Machado stars as Penelope Alvarez, a single mom and former U.S. Army Nurse Corps veteran who suffers from PTSD. She goes to therapy to deal with her anxiety and depression. Rita Moreno is Penelope’s old school mother, Lydia. She always talks about her days living in Cuba and being a dancer and performer. She fled the country after Fidel Castro seized power.

Here are five reasons why you’ll like the show.

It’s a progressive show that tackles major issues that Latin families deal with. I can relate to some of those issues (mental health, gender identity).

Norman Lear created it. He’s still got it even in his late 90s. I hope he lives to see his 100th this year since Betty White didn’t. Lear also brought us Sanford and Son, Maude, Good Times, the original One Day at a Time, The Jeffersons, and of course All in the Family. They covered a lot of social issues on All in the Family and that’s what made it so popular in its heyday.

The cast is amazing and plays well off of each other. Rita Moreno looks very youthful for her age. The actor who plays Schneider (Todd Grinnell) is hilarious. Justina Machado does the starring role justice and brings a lot of emotion to it as well. Elena is probably my favorite though and the one I can relate to the most.

The guest stars on the show are easily recognizable. Dr. B’s female friend is Alba from Jane the Virgin. Lydia’s sisters are Gloria Estefan and Liz Torres. Estefan sings the theme song to the show. Two of the other family members are Stephanie Beatriz and Melissa Fumero from Brooklyn Nine Nine. Mackenzie Phillips has a recurring role as the PTSD counselor, Pam. She was in the original show. Glenn Scarpelli was the hotel receptionist in one of the episodes when Elena and Syd wanted to plan a getaway. He too was in the original series later in its run.

I loved how Penelope treated Schneider like a member of the family. He was a second father to the kids as Penelope’s ex was never in the picture, plus he accepted Elena for who she was. The episode where Lydia and Schneider become American citizens was one of my favorites, as was the funeral episode.

If you’re looking for a great Netflix show that will make you laugh but also feel emotional, check out this one.

For those of you reading this when I post it, Monday is Betty White’s 100th birthday.

The iconic actress passed away on New Year’s Eve, breaking many hearts when they saw the news. I saw it posted on Facebook and didn’t think it was real. Then I went online and saw the news for myself. It was revealed on January 10 that she passed away after suffering a stroke, according to CNN.

We all thought she would live to be 100 on January 17. Despite the fact she’s not here physically, I think everyone should celebrate. Watch your favorite Golden Girls episode or find clips of her best Rose Nylund moments on YouTube. I’m sure there’s a great St. Olaf story that will make you laugh.

I know, Betty White did more than just Golden Girls. Most of us may remember her from the Mary Tyler Moore show as the host of The Happy Homemaker Sue Ann Nivens. Some of us may remember her from The Family sketches (and even the early run of Mama’s Family) as Mama’s hoity toity, snobbish daughter Ellen, or even her starring role in TVLand’s Hot in Cleveland.

Betty White loved her husband of 18 years, Allen Ludden. He passed away in 1981 and is best known as the host of various reincarnations of Password. White was a regular on Password and many other game shows such as Match Game, To Tell the Truth, and $25000 Pyramid. Ludden and White met on Password, and proposed to her twice before she accepted. They appeared in a couple of theatre productions before they were married in June of 1963.

While Betty White was off the radar for a white, she regained popularity after appearing in The Proposal in 2009 with Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock. Ryan Reynolds honored Betty White with an emotional tweet. Here is that tweet.

“The world looks different now. She was great at defying expectation. She managed to grow very old and somehow, not old enough. We’ll miss you, Betty. Now you know the secret.”

The last line of Reynolds’ tweet is a throwback to a moment in an interview where White shared a quote from her mother about death. It’s enough to make you tear up, so if you’ve managed to dry your eyes by now — grab some more tissues.

“My mother had the most wonderful approach … we know almost everything in the world, but we don’t know what happens in that moment … so whenever we lose somebody, she’d say ‘now he knows the secret.’”

Tomorrow I will watch some of the best Rose episodes from Golden Girls, in honor of Betty White’s 100th birthday. Maybe I’ll have have a slice of cheesecake and tell some crazy St. Olaf story that bores everyone. Or, I’ll post pictures of dogs and cats in honor of her love of animals, which is another blog post for another day.

Happy 💯 in heaven. Betty White.

Thank you for being a friend.

Tuesday afternoon, I drove up to JCPenney to pick up my new bag I purchased with my JCP gift card. It’s a cute little crossbody in hot pink. I have two totes from Coach plus a satchel, and this one from Juicy Couture. Lauren Conrad is still on my list but I don’t know if it’ll be a crossbody or a tote. Kohl’s has a great selection too, especially online. I’m leaning on a brown or light pink colored bag.

I had my first taste of a Jersey Mike’s sub from the new location in Greensburg. They’re in the same plaza as Five Guys 🍔 and Chipotle 🌶. I ordered a Philly cheesesteak without the onions (I know, sacrilege right) and it was good. I still got the peppers 🫑 on it (what’s a Cheesesteak sandwich without them). My order was ready for me when I arrived, it tasted good, and it was worth the price. You get what you pay for at Jersey Mike’s (better quality than the Subway that used to occupy that plaza). They get an A in my book for their service.

Here’s my new Juicy Couture bag with a few scenarios attached.

It’s a mild Spring day, but not to the point where you can lose the jacket quite yet. My friend and meet up for coffee. I show up in black jeans with a warm colored top and a pastel colored jacket with my Juicy crossbody. The bag makes a nice fashion statement and I get a nice compliments from my friends and the staff who work there. I blog about the experience and give the business a nice shoutout. If you’re interested to know where we went, it was the Kentlee.

The next scenario has me and a couple of friends meeting up at Sheetz just past the mall. We’re going to order some lunch to take on our picnic at Twin Lakes. I get my wallet out of my Juicy bag to pay for our subs. I’m wearing the same outfit I wore for my coffee date at the Kentlee but with a pair of sandals this time around. I’m rocking the slides on this warm Spring day and a pair of fashionable sunglasses.

The final scenario has me making the most of a great day on the Diamond in my little Stars Hollow. We just stopped into the Creamery to indulge in sundaes and we are enjoying ourselves watching people walk on by. We get some pictures of each other. My friends get some really nice shots of me with my Juicy bag visible. We call it a day and my pics are uploaded to my phone. I never looked more fabulous than I did here. Slay🔥 🔥 🔥.

I work hard so I like to look good when I’m out and about. I have amazing fashion sense and my adopted momma will be coming for me when she wants to pick out a great outfit. I hope you found these scenarios enjoyable and my blog post fashionable.

I attended my final Laurel Highlands Toastmasters meeting this evening… as a guest. Before we started our program, founding club president Sharon Joseph addressed all our guests who were attending in person and virtually. She praised me for my personality and my blog and was excited about me joining very soon.

Sharon discussed the “Mission of a Toastmasters Club” and introduced the Toastmaster of tonight’s meeting, club secretary Lisa Shorter. Tonight was Lisa’s first go-round performing that meeting role. She went over the agenda for tonight’s meeting. It looked like it would be a great one with three speakers and a fun Table Topics session.

Nick Cecchetti, Laurel Highlands Tech Master, gave us the word of the day, which was fellowship. Ryan Jacobs gave us the invocation and it tied in with the theme of the meeting. He also paid homage to the late Betty White. Andrea Michaux made us laugh with the joke of the day, which was what the difference was between bird flu and swine flu.

Judy Eans, Chuck Hubbell, and Sharon Joseph were the three speakers for the night. Judy’s speech was about friendship. She talked about the best way to make friends. She also told us that not all friends are worth keeping. She also explained the different groups of friends we make. The message I took from this was to choose your friends wisely.

Chuck was the second speaker of the night. I met him in person at the red carpet event in November, with his red hat and red jacket. He talked to us in his speech about where the magic is. He told us never to quit, to find something you love doing, and to get paid for that.

Sharon capped off the speaking portion of the meeting by giving us a halftime report. She highlighted what Laurel Highlands is doing right and how they can improve. It takes the same energy to go back as it does to go forward. The takeaways I picked up from her speech were to be humble and teachable, and to be a good friend.

Janet Fraser was our Table Topics master, and her topics centered around Betty White. We had three speakers and all of them gave great answers. They honored the great legacy Betty White left for us, and that’s what the people of St. Olaf would have wanted. It gave me the inspo for a future blog honoring two great television icons, Betty White and Bob Saget.

Ryan Jacobs was our general evaluator and for the sake of the guests, explained what the GE does. We also got to meet his daughter, the youngest guest in the history of Toastmasters. Our evaluators all provided great feedback and gave great pointers for future speeches. I hope to have Andrea evaluate me when I give a speech in the future at Laurel Highlands. Ryan gave great feedback for the meeting and I took away a lot from my visit.

Contest season is here. Laurel Highlands Toastmasters will hold their contest at the their next meeting on January 25, and Area 23/24 will have a joint contest on February 19. Not sure on the location for that upcoming contest but I’ll let you know when I hear more. For now I know all contests in person as it will be easier to switch from in person to virtual if need be.

My Target haul arrived on Thursday morning. One package came from UPS and the other from FedEx. It took me until evening to realize that my package was sitting on the steps of my front porch (which we never use because the door is caulked shut to keep out the cold air).

When I opened my package from FedEx I saw my leather leggings were in there and intact. I opened my V-neck package earlier in the day. I tried both pieces of clothing on and they fit well. It would be cool to use my friend’s deck to pose in these outfits but we’re not in Johnstown so my studio will have to do for now.

I tried on my leather leggings first and I paired them with my Stars Hollow sweatshirt. I can put these two pieces together and spend some time sitting around the house working on my blog, attending a virtual Toastmasters meeting, or indulging in a good read. Also, I can grab your favorite go-to tote bag (my Target or Coach bag) and go on a Target run or meet friends for breakfast or brunch. I can swap the faux leather for my regular leggings too.

I also paired the faux leather leggings with a pair of suede boots. You can also try a pair of Bearpaws or Uggs or a cute pair of heels. A red blouse with matching stilettos 👠 would be a perfect combo.

The leggings are definitely worth the money.

Don’t judge. I like to tuck my sweaters in or crop them where I see fit. I like to high risemy jeans because 1) I’m self conscious about my appearance and 2) I like the way it looks.

I did post a few pictures of the teal V-neck sweater on Thursday but I took some much improved selfies this evening. I like this look a lot and it would be perfect with a leather jacket and/or an infinity scarf and hat. I think the accessories are key to making this V-neck look great. I love the jeans I paired this sweater with as well. I wore these to Friendsgiving with a red blouse and cheetah scarf.

Any pair would be perfect with this sweater. I’m definitely buying another Vneck sweater and Target is definitely my new go-to place for amazing fashionwear. But don’t count out Old Navy, either.

I bought some charms to put on my Coach bags, one being the cherries that I had my eye on since November. I posed with my bags and those new accessories this morning. They looked so pretty and Sara and her mom were impressed when they saw the pictures this morning.

Here’s what Sara said in the comments about my cherry 🍒 charm.

“ I always think of you when I see cherries now.” Well, I know when and where that all started.

Have a great week everyone. Stay warm. ❤️ you.

Last month I learned about a Table Topics session that Cranberry High Noon was holding virtually on the Zoom platform. I commented that I would be interested in attending when I had some free time, hopefully in January. When I saw my schedule for this week I knew I was going to be able to check this event out.

CHN Vice President Education Maha reached out to me on Messenger yesterday morning because she knew I was interested in attending based on what I said last month. It didn’t take me long to accept the invitation for this morning’s Table Topics session. I was looking forward to learning a lot from this meeting.

I logged on at five minutes to ten this morning and talked with the host of the meeting Jyoti. As we waited for people to come we socialized via Zoom. We had a couple of guests attend who didn’t take part in the session but just sat in and saw how Table Topics are done.

Jyoti came up with a wheel with our names on it to see who would participate. We also evaluated each other’s answers to the topic and gave feedback in the chat. Jyoti came up with some great questions. Sometimes when you get a question you have to improvise and that’s what happened.

Sarah evaluated me and I evaluated Jyoti. Ale acted as our timer for the meeting and to see how much time we had we could pin her on our device. When the meeting was nearing its end, Maha made an announcement about the next meeting on February 12. I hope to attend but with my new job sometimes that’s not possible. We shall see but I’d love to attend again.

In one of the Table Topics questions, Sarah talked about seeing Mamma Mia the musical at the local theatre in Cranberry Township. I was smiling because I knew her passion for disco dancing and the band ABBA.

I think I got a lot of this morning’s hourlong session. My Toastmasters fire and gender nonconformity fire are starting to burn again, slowly but surely.

Laurel Highlands Toastmasters meeting Tuesday night. Looking forward to submitting my application for membership and being a part of this great new Toastmasters chapter.

Ok. This title is somewhat misleading. I’m only going to highlight the first few months of the new year and what’s coming up.

Next week I will visiting Laurel Highlands Toastmasters and joining their club as a member. I will be in touch with Sharon, the club president, about joining. I will be 50/50 when it comes to club attendance. That means it’ll be in person or virtually on Zoom. It’s a better idea to attend online this time of year because of the weather and, I can also get another’s perspective on virtual presentations.

Club contests are in full force right now and run through the end of the month. Greensburg’s will be held on January 19 at the Courthouse. I’m reaching out to Laurel Highlands for help with judging the contest. It would be nice to have outside clubs attending the contest too. I did that last year with Cranberry High Noon.

2020 was the year of following small businesses and it became really crucial as COVID hit. I went back on it in 2021 as I focused on other events in my life. I plan to continue supporting small businesses through shoutouts on Instagram and sharing posts on Facebook.

I came across an article about Slippery Rock’s Rock Life program on TribLive.com. The daughter of the owners of Sun Dawg and El Diablo attends the university and takes part in the program. As a graduate of Slippery Rock, I felt like I really could have used this program when I was a student. I’ll have a blog up at the end of the month.

Look for my Stylish and Hungry blog posts this month as I visit Lupi and Leo’s as well as the Kentlee (Some Instagrammers and I are trying to plan a meet up there as well). I also plan on eating at El Diablo and doing a review there in February.

It’s great to be back after a week off. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. I’m ready to do big things with the blog once again in 2022.

The first blog post of the new year is a look back at this past holiday season. Once again COVID was a big part of it (not for me thankfully). It was a different Christmas for me to say the least.

I started my new job the Monday after Thanksgiving and immediately took very well to it. My first night I felt like I didn’t miss a beat. I already felt like I was getting good reviews from the team leaders and was one of the best new hires that had recently started.

I went Christmas shopping early in the month. Instead of being local, I made my way out to Pittsburgh and visited Robinson Township. I checked out the Market District of Market Districts in Settlers Ridge. It is really big inside that store. I shopped at Kohl’s and then made my way to the Mall at Robinson where I made some purchases at JCPenney. Afterwards I spent some time in the mall and had some Starbucks coffee. It was really beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the Mall in Robinson. I wrapped up the night and my Christmas shopping experience by visiting the Target down the road in the Pointe at North Fayette.

Last year while visiting Aunt Sue and Benny at their hotel just above Gabes, we took a trip out past Westmoreland County Community College. We saw the beautiful light display that is Larry’s Lights. Because of COVID, we stayed in our car and viewed it from the road. I went down there again this holiday and saw it in person this time. These people go out of their way to make this display look great and it’s for a great cause. I talked about my experience in my blog post on Larry’s Lights which you can find on my website.

I did my top ten of 2021 throughout the month of December. I had a fantastic four put together with one weekend that gets honorable mention and wasn’t even a top ten event but should’ve been. Check out my website for those top ten events from the past year.

I kept busy at Giant Eagle throughout the holiday season. The week leading up to Christmas Eve was one of the biggest weeks for us. Especially Thursday night when we had just about everything to stock, especially in frozen foods. Part of my Christmas shopping was buying gift cards at my Giant Eagle (I didn’t have to but it was convenient for me). It’s a blessing being five minutes from home too.

It was a wet Christmas and sure didn’t feel like one that was memorable. I’m grateful for the new job and yesterday officially ended my longtime employment with WIS. I feel like I’m getting established there. I had to put my gender nonconformity on the back burner and after laying low, I’m back.

Coming up… I have a new sweater and leather leggings coming soon from Target so there will be a try on blog coming soon. I also have a new Juicy Couture purse that I bought with my JCPenney gift card. Look for that in the blog as well as some pictures.

Also, look for a preview of what’s coming in 2022.

Well we did it! This will be my 300th blog post on Stylish and Trendy. I’m so happy to have achieved this goal. Even as November came up short I told myself that I would get here and I did.

I just finished week four at Giant Eagle and it was a crazy one. Busy nights every day of the week with Christmas coming up. Last night was the busiest of them all. But so far I feel I’m in a good place. It’s a lot different than WIS was on many levels. I think I’m happy to continue on with this adventure for now.

I look back on past Christmas Eves and remember as a kid visiting Aunt Lotte’s house in North Versailles. Those was fun times. Especially the last Christmas Eve there. But I won’t get into detail on that one.

Aunt Lotte always bought us the nicest gifts every Christmas. One year it was Spirograph, another year it was a light up frisbee. It was Aunt Lotte who started the Turkey ball tradition in the mid 1980s. She also made that alcoholic punch with the strawberries in it. I wish we would have had more Christmases there that I could remember. Sadly, Aunt Lotte passed away just a few weeks after Christmas 1996. We’ve held down the tradition since 1998.

Mom makes a lot of food for Christmas and we’ve honored Grandma by having roast beef and sausage. She used to make her broccoli crab bisque every holiday but not this year. My aunt from Centre County started that tradition. We still have lebkuchen at Christmas, a favorite of my Gram’s over the years. Gramma Gaffron also had the Endless Gaffron Christmas tradition when everyone came to visit and celebrate the holidays. That usually ran until just before the New Year.

Mom also makes a ton of Christmas cookies. I was enjoying waking up every day to the smells coming from the oven. She’s made devil’s food, peanut butter cup, chocolate chip, and thumbprint cookies. She also makes her brickle which is amazing every year.

I tend to feed on the most annoying Christmas songs and that includes “All I Want For Christmas Is You.” I’ve long been a fan of 98 Degrees’ This Christmas and NSync’s “Merry Christmas Happy Holiday”. It was that generation I grew up with. I think Wham’s “Last Christmas” is the most annoying Christmas song of all time. Sorry Mariah haters.

“The Christmas Waltz” by Frank Sinatra was always one of Gram’s favorites and she played it every Christmas Eve when they would decorate the tree. We just got the Frank Sinatra Christmas album on vinyl and it plays well. My mom fell in love with the artwork on the back and it reminded her of those Christmases past.

Time to close off the blog and close off 2021 with my stats over the last two years. These are my blog posts over that period. It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.

Merry Christmas. ❤️ you.