As some of you may have seen or heard I have recently joined the full-time working world! I started a one year contract doing marketing at Google in September, and wanted to share some thoughts/experiences both so that I can look back on this time in my life (and probably laugh) and also because I'm sure a lot of you can relate.

So here are some random thoughts about working full-time from someone who had never worked 40 hours a week up until six weeks ago! 

1. Sitting still is hard! You would think that after 17 years of school I would be used to sitting all day, but that was nothing like a desk job. I miss how walking from class to class would break up the day nicely. Thankfully my desk height can be electronically adjusted so I usually try to stand for at least two hours a day. And there are the Google bikes of course ;)

2. I know I'd heard it before from friends and family, but it's so true that time really does fly and one week just blends into the next. I know all of you who have been in the working world for a while are probably thinking, "LOL Catherine, welcome to the rest of your life!" It really has been an adjustment though not to have midterms and finals and projects to measure time with. 

3. Casual work environments are the best work environments! For the longest time in high school and early on in college I thought I wanted to work somewhere where I would get to wear "business clothes." How weird is that? I definitely romanticized it. I love being able to wear outfits like the one above every day. I do feel a little over dressed if I wear heels or a nice dress though, but it makes me happy so I don't really care :)

4. Waking up early every single day is actually the worst. I think we all already knew that though. It's week seven of working and I'm still struggling with this. I don't drink coffee and I'm not really into tea either, so I don't have the powers of caffeine on my side. Hopefully it'll just get better with time? Would love to hear your experiences with this!

5. I feel like I need to maximize every minute that I'm not working. I'm not used to only having a few hours of free time every night, so every night I feel a kind of panic that I need to get everything done and still take time to relax and unwind. Hello #TypeA. 

6. Being employed is awesome. I talked about it a bit here on the blog, but I had a hard time with job hunting. It was exhausting, time-consuming, and wreaked emotional havoc. I am so lucky to have a job that I genuinely enjoy at an awesome company. When I finally accepted my offer after four months of job hunting I literally wanted to run around yelling "I'm employed!" It really is the best feeling. 

Transitioning from full-time student, to full-time job seeker, to full-time employee in the span of four months was kind of insane, but I'm so happy with where I'm at now. Can't wait to see where the working world leads me!

Have a great weekend!

xo Catherine

Sweater: The Limited. Booties: Sole Society. Jeans: Gap. Purse: Tory Burch. Necklace: BaubleBar. 

This sleeveless turtleneck has turned out to be a lot more versatile than one might think. It's great for layering because it doesn't add bulk! Also, these booties are everything. I'd been searching for the perfect pair of dressier everyday booties (re: heeled) and really wanted this pair but they were sold out. I was determined and kept checking back on Nordstrom's website and eventually they were back in my size for a day and I ordered them right away! This outfit is the perfect example of one I might wear to work: pulled together but casual.

Phew how is it Wednesday already? I missed my Monday post because Mark wasn't here over the weekend to take pictures! He was home seeing his new nephew :) so I spent the weekend watching all the shows and movies he doesn't like. Does anyone else do this?? 

Hope your week is going well!

xo Catherine

Jeans: J. Crew Factory (similar). Sweater: J. Crew (similar). Shoes: BC Footwear. Purse: Topshop (similar). Scarf: Zara. Top: Loft (similar). 

I wouldn't consider myself to be a "trendy" person. I know that's a bit taboo to say as a style blogger, but it's true. It usually takes me a while to warm up to trends or decide whether I like them and want to implement them into my closet or not. However, one trend that didn't take any warming up to was burgundy mixed with blush. I love it - can't get enough. I've been pairing all of my burgundy and blush pieces together all season! It's a fun and fresh way to do fall. It works because blush is such a subtle shade of pink that it's basically a neutral. It wouldn't go with burgundy if it were say bubblegum pink or fuchsia. 

So far I don't have much planned for the weekend. I'm having lunch with a girlfriend, and I haven't been to Krispy Kreme in a while, so I may need to remedy that ;) any fun plans?

xo Catherine 

*Keeping it real: and yes, I did tuck my hair into my scarf because it was the end of the day and I didn't want to redo my hair :)

Chocolate milk purse// Floral trousers// Pink Hunters// Turquoise pom pom// Sequin top// Sequin pumps// Pom pom shoes// Lace embroidered dress// Stone necklace// Leopard booties// Faux fur scarf

Here's a little roundup of some whimsical, fun, and maybe not so practical items. But that's okay because sometimes you just need to buy something that makes you happy, even if it's not the most practical! My favorites are the wine colored pom pom shoes and the chocolate milk purse :)

xo Catherine