Like most of you, I spent this weekend with a heavy heart after hearing of the tragedy that took place at Sandy Hook Elementary on Friday. I kept thinking about how exciting Christmas was back in elementary school–writing letters to Santa, having our school holiday party, and getting excited for Christmas break. When all those precious little kids and heroic teachers left for school on Friday morning, they had no idea the horrific events that would unfold that. My heart truly breaks for the parents and families of those beautiful little kids as I cannot even begin to imagine the immense pain of losing a child, particularly at this time of year. My heart also goes out to the family and friends of the brave teachers who died protecting their students, along with the entire community of Newtown, CT who is suffering right now. As weekend unfolded and the names and photos of the victims began to surface, I couldn’t help but burst into tears multiple times over the past few days hearing the stories of those innocent lives that were lost. It’s so incredibly sad and impossible to understand.
I’ve been seeing lots of posts about what happened, but no amount of words can come close to making sense of these terrible events or healing the pain. So all I really want to say is that my heart goes out to everyone involved and I will be praying for Newtown, CT this holiday season and in the days to come. I also plan on participating in the blogger day of silence tomorrow, and I’ve included the details at the bottom of this post.
In light of what’s happened, the rest of this post seems rather trivial. However, as it was I planned to talk about for weeks I decided to go ahead and share it as it is something I am very excited about!
Earlier this fall, I was contacted by Online Shoes to take part in their Monthly Blogger Shoe Styling Contest! I love shoes (I mean, what girl doesn’t?) so I was more than happy to participate. However, I was particularly excited when I found out that this month’s contest would be for Sorel boots! For those of you that aren’t familiar, Sorel makes really high quality outdoor boots that will hold up in the toughest of conditions. The great thing is that in addition to being extremely functional, they’re also a great fashion statement and they have so many cute styles for women. Back when we were living in Colorado last year, I saw tons of girls wearing all different styles of Sorel boots with trendy outfits and they just looked adorable. It motivated me to buy a pair of my own last Christmas and I have loved wearing them this past year in Tahoe. That’s why I was so pumped when I found out I’d be getting another pair of Sorel boots as part of this contest as they truly are awesome!
Online Shoes was kind enough to send me a pair of the Sorel Conquest Carly Boots and I absolutely love them! They’re very mountain chic and would go really well with all the adorable sweaters/cozy winter styles perfect for this time of year. They’ve got great details and would pair nicely with so many different outfits. Plus, they’re really well-made, super comfortable, and waterproof to keep your feet warm. Looking cute + dry feet in the snow? Definitely a win win in my book! I’ve been wearing them all the time since receiving them and they are absolutely perfect for Tahoe.
I am totally not a fashion blogger so styling an outfit/photographing it isn’t something I’m skilled at, but I still had a lot of fun! I decided to keep it simple and pair the boots with something I’d wear everyday–black legging pants, a chambray shirt, and a big scarf. Here’s how it turned out:
I would SO appreciate if you would vote for me!
Voting is super easy (seriously, all you have to do is just click a button under my photo…that’s it!) and it would mean the world to me for you to have your support! The contest runs until December 28th, so please feel free to share the word with friends/family/on your blog before then as I definitely have some stiff competition!
And the best part is that you can win your own pair of Sorel Conquest Carly Boots just for voting! These boots are really versatile, super cute, and perfect for winter. I would love for one of my readers to win a pair, so please vote! {Plus, then we can be twinsies!}
Thanks in advance!! Xoxo
And lastly, here’s the info about tomorrow’s blogger day of silence. Please read it and consider passing it along.
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To the Blog World and Anyone Else who Wants to Help,
Last Friday, tragedy struck so many of us in ways we did not foresee. An
elementary school and small town in Connecticut was shattered by a mass
shooting. We knew we wanted to help and we came up with this:
On Tuesday, December 18th, there will be a blogger day of silence.
We will post the button and that’s it. Please try to not post anything else that day if possible.
We are also raising money that will go to an organization in the memory of this tragedy. The organization is called The Newtown Family Youth and Family Services.
Here is the official description of the support service we are donating to:
“Newtown Youth and Family Services, Inc. is a licensed, non-profit, mental health clinic
and youth services bureau dedicated to helping children and families achieve their
highest potential. NYFS provides programs, services, activities, counseling, support
groups and education throughout the Greater Newtown area.
ANY DONATIONS MADE TO NEWTOWN YOUTH AND FAMILY SERVICES WILL BE
DONATED DIRECTLY TO THOSE EFFECTED BY THE SANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
SHOOTING.”
We can’t imagine how they must be feeling, especially this close to the
holidays. We would love for you to spread the word on your own blog,
Facebook, Twitter, etc. Let’s make a difference and use blogging in a
positive way.
Thank you in advance for participating.
Love,
The Blog World