Happy Monday, Penny Darlings!

Hmm, blah, blah, blah, – check me out on Instagram here! I also started a Twitter account! Find that here! Follow Preston’s brand new fashion Instagram here! I also have a selling Instagram page where I sell some of my old clothes/styles so that I don’t drown in my own wardrobe. I just listed a few new things – so check that out!

I hope everyone is staying warm and prepping for Valentine’s Day!

This past weekend, Preston & I celebrated Valentine’s day!

As we are into our craziest season (lots of travel, work, huge projects, etc.) – V-Day can definitely be crazy! We had some adorably fun times having a little V-Day picnic, but I wanted to give Preston a special Valentine’s Day surprise!

And for those of you (like my mom) who are saying, “It’s not Valentine’s Day yet.” – I knew we were going to have the opportunity on Saturday, and I knew he had rehearsal on Wednesday, so we went out over the weekend!

 

So let me tell you a little story,

Well, before I start, a little back story might help!

In September of 2015, I lost my job. I got laid off from a job I loved. It was my very first job out of college and I felt like my heart just kind of fell apart. I doubted every skill I had, I became paranoid (because I’m usually hyper-aware and I didn’t see it coming).

In the course of more than a year, I applied to HUNDREDS and HUNDREDS of jobs. I worked temp jobs and substitute taught and was constantly running out of money. I felt hopeless. I cried CONSTANTLY.  I would get rejection e-mails and burst into tears. The first eighteen rejections hurt, but the ones that I interviewed for and REALLY wanted made me so depressed.

I doubted myself constantly. I could never get out of my head. A lot of times, I couldn’t do anything except fix my resume and my LinkedIn page and scroll through the Indeed app. It felt like I had failed SO quickly and suddenly with NO plan at all. I was devastated.

Shortly after this, I remember getting a rejection letter from a job that I really wanted. In my delicate state, this immediately sent me into buckets of tears and a panic attack.

Was I not good enough? Was I stupid? Was I too fat? Did I talk too much? Was I THAT underqualified, as the #GIRLBOSS I knew I was? Was I destined to live at my parents’ house forever? I teetered on the edge of depression.

Why couldn’t I seem to land a job? I’ve always been a career oriented person and I felt like I was drowning and Preston was one of the things that kept me afloat in the darkest times and the saddest moments.

That night, after a huge sobbing fit and a lot of self doubt, Preston said he wanted to cheer me up and that I needed to have something to eat.

He told me to get dressed and do my make-up (which at that moment, I hadn’t really done in a day or two) and said he knew a place he wanted to go for dinner. (For anyone who knows Preston, he is NOT a great decider – so it was a big deal that he just picked a place and didn’t tell me where we were going.)

Preston took me to a place called Black and Bleu and he bought dinner because I had NO money and no job and felt hopeless. He told me that I was wonderful and that I was beautiful and talented and that I would figure everything out and that he would stand by me while I did. He told me he was proud of my drive and impressed by my tenacity. He said that people like me don’t end up stuck for too long.

He told me that I would succeed because it wasn’t in me to fail. He reassured me that it was unlikely that it was me and that it was just a tough market.

He said everything right.

And even though, he made half as much money then as he does now, he paid for dinner and we got two apps and a drink! It felt like a feast to my BROKE 23 year old self.

It got me out of my funk and two weeks later, I would start my blog. And less than two years after that, I would be able to leave my job to blog full time. I haven’t gone to an office in almost five months.

He also helped support me and get me through when blog times were tight and when things were scary and I wasn’t sure that I was making the right choice.

Everytime we drive by Black & Bleu, I think about that night. I wondered if he remembered how delightful and happy and inspired and in love with him that night made me. In the tough times, I remember that dinner. In the tough times, I often would keep myself going by saying, “You have to buy Preston dinner. That’s how you’ll know you made it.”

So, for Valentine’s Day, I decided to take him out to dinner at Black & Bleu and buy him dinner with money that my blog earned me. I couldn’t have done any of it without him.

So I drove him to the restaurant blindfolded and got to give him a nice speech about how I couldn’t do anything without him!

It was so wonderful and nice to be able to show him how much I appreciate him!

And, as this is a plus sized fashion blog first and foremost, I wanted to talk about my outfit deets! This is the perfect outfit for a casual Valentine’s Day at the office, a Galentine’s day brunch, a V-Day dinner date & a movie, or even lounging at home!

I styled this out from one of my fave plus size stops: Avenue  and am absolutely obsessed! Check them out on Facebook & Instagram for different styling tips from other fab bloggers!

You can score these AMAZINGLY soft & stretchy ponte knit jeans (kind of like a better jegging!) from Avenue up to size 32! Check out the size 14-26 here and the 28-32 here! Bonus: they come in a bunch of colors & they are on saaaaale right meow!

And you still have time to snag this AMAZING sequin jersey top, which is perfect for Valentine’s Day, but will be CUTE AF all year long! Snag this top here!

 

*This post in sponsored by Avenue and the items used were gifted to me, however all thoughts & opinions are my own! *

SO HERE’S THE “END OF BLOG” SPIEL!

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Thank you for all that you do. You are truly extraordinary.

Love all you wonderful ladies (and gents!) out there!

How Very,

Abby