we started the week remembering Thanksgiving with a guest post from my daughter-in-law Kelly. my oldest son remembered Christmas. what an outpouring of love we’ve received: you’ve made both Kelly and my oldest feel most welcome over here on the blog. we end our holiday memory week with New Year’s holiday memories as told by, well, me.

we’re bringing you a new addition of fashion flash this week. make sure to check it out above and leave a comment telling us what you’re favorite outfit is.

outfit of the day

i’ve saved my most fun outfit this week for today. how cute are these plaid ankle pants paired with this turtleneck sweater? i’ve paired them with two pairs of shoes today, starting with these pumps from Banana Republic. i’ve shown off several faux suede moto jackets this fall.

make sure to catch our latest episode of the list to catch up on the top fall and winter coats this year.

New Year’s holiday memories

well, when you reach the age of 61, there are lots of memories floating around in your mind. some are crystal clear. and some need to be dusted off. but new year’s eve memories are fresh in mind and for well over twenty years went something like this. you see mr. style was in the hospitality industry for forty years.

and running a hotel, whether it’s 1,000 rooms or 300, is somewhat akin to running a family. the size really doesn’t matter. and when you’re in charge, there’s a responsibility to make certain everything runs smoothly.

so mr. style’s new year’s eve was always booked as he wandered the hallways, kitchens, ballrooms, and specialty restaurants making certain his staff and guests were happy campers. every year the boys and i would pack a suitcase and traipse along to the hotel with mr. style. sometimes we headed straight to the presidential suite, ordered room service, and movies and settled down for the evening.

if my mother was in town for a visit she’d tag along and order a vodka tonic or two. i always brought along a stack of magazines to flip through. mostly home decor magazines because january was always the time of year to refresh my home. but other times we would join mr. style for a delightful dinner then head up to the presidential suite for what was certain to be a quiet evening.

when we lived in Guam, there was always a fireworks show at the stroke of midnight on Tumon Bay with the ocean as the backdrop. other hotels had live bands playing, or dj’s spinning their tunes, and the new year would be ushered in the traditional way with auld lang syne playing in the background. but no matter if we lived stateside or overseas i always looked forward to the low key djalali new year’s eve tradition.

tomorrow i’ll dust off a memory and share how i celebrated new year’s day while growing up. since i lived in cornhusker country, it always involved football!

paint it plaid

for those of you that have been following closely the past few weeks, i’ve modeled these lug-sole loafers several times. i’ve said it before, and i’ll say it again, they’re comfortable and go with just about anything. make sure to pick up a pair.

headed into the holidays

we’re heading straight into the holidays. Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and before you know it, we’ll be welcoming in a new decade. how quickly time passes. (i wonder what New Year’s 1919 felt like.)

we hope you’ve enjoyed our tour through the holidays and my new year’s holiday memories. how are you celebrating the holidays this year? let us know in the comments below.