A Few Women Who Make Me Smile

Ahh, summer reading! I should be reading more books, yet I find myself mindlessly gazing at the pages of People, Star, Life & Style or some rag. I absolutely adore seeing what celebs wear and the latest trends, but these magazines can get cruel, too. Pointing out cellulite, the is it a "baby bump/big meal/gaining weight" insanity and glamorizing crumbling marriages to sell more mags. Boo!

Let's take a minute to remember that these are real women.

Yes, they're making gazillions of bucks (must be nice) but many are not crazy pap-seekers.
They're just trying to live their life under a microscope that I'm not sure I'd like to be under.

Think about the same with friends and female acquaintances, and all the little conversations and gossip that takes place about them. Drop it, unless it's a compliment. Just take them for what they are...
another gal just trying living her life, trying to be the best version of her.

Here are a few classy celebs whose smile makes me smile!

Happy Friday, friends!

 and, of course....

Outfit: Ocean Views, Venus & Whole Lotta Yumminess

What a fun week over here! 

Had two date nights with the hubs, great quality time with my girl, very fun dinner dates with friends and their girls that we don't see often enough... plus had a few celeb encounters!

On Tuesday, I was the hubs' "+1" for a cocktail reception/open house for a massive condo over-looking the ocean in Boca Raton. Where the celeb factor comes in: it's being listed by realtors from the popular HGTV reality show, "Selling New York," which we totally adore. The place was a total scene, with at least 500+ peeps around the 10,000-sq.-ft. space.

(keep scrolling for more pics, including one of me with Venus Williams!)

Outfit: The attire called for "Boca Chic," which is typically anything black (so many New York transplants here!), but as nerdy as this is -- I just had to coordinate around my new Louis Vuitton speedy, which the hubs gifted me for my birthday! Major sqqeeeeelll!!! I've wanted this for years and years... guess I wore him down! Ha. We usually stay around the $100 range for gifts so this was a major splurge! I paired my new hottie with a Calypso silk dress that has pockets (yay!!). Now if only it had an exposed zipper...

Party: Wowza! If you like seafood, be jealous: shrimp the size of lobster tails, stone crab, lobster, caviar, a sushi bar and more. Serendipity, the popular NYC spot known for their hot chocolates, had a dessert bar also known to me as temptation city! Ha, I tried not to linger too long... after indulging, of course.

We saw the film crews for the show, met some of its super sweet "stars," and had a fab chance encounter with Venus Williams. Does she make me look like a little pip-squeak or what (note where her belt is and you can't even see mine!). For real though: she was so, so nice and it was awesome of her to take this pic with me. Overall: Majorly fantastic evening with the hubs (and 500+ of our non-closest friends! lol).

dress: calypso st. barth

belt: american eagle

earrings: dianne yang via gilt group

wedges: madden girl via loehmanns

jacket: french connection via loehmanns

leather wrap bracelet: tory burch

bag: the new louis vuitton!

Do it: Twitter

Do you tweet? Are you a member of the Twitter-verse?

I've been on Twitter for nearly two years though at first it was simply because of my job (I'm in public relations in my "real life"). But now, my personal self just loves it. While yes, it's another thing to keep up with, it's easy and totally worth it. I know most of my friends keep just to Facebook when talking social media but if you're not on Twitter, you're seriously missing out... in more ways than one.

First: mindless rants of celebs. Follow Lea Michelle from Glee, Kim Kardashian, Ellen DeGeneres, chef Bobby Flay, Alyson Hannigan and soooo many more! If you have someone in mind, chances on they're on Twitter. You can't read the latest crazy happenings of Kanye West on your Facebook account. The easiest way to find someone is to search on Twitter or even do a Google search (person's name, twitter). Trust me, it's fun to read what they're up on a daily basis. Makes everyone much more accessible. I tweet to Bethenney from the Real Housewives of NYC, the editor of Glamour magazine and more.

Second, want faster customer service? Tweet! Most big companies are on Twitter (ATT, Starbucks, Southwest, etc) so if you're not getting what you need send them a tweet with your complaint.  If you don't know they're name, no worries. Most companies also monitor Twitter for keywords and respond. I always get instant responses rom the big names.

Third, discounts! A newer trend, we've noticed companies are starting to provide discounts on Twitter. Check out Tiny Prints -- a fabulous modern stationary web site -- because when you become a 'fan' they respond with a coupon for $15 off $50 or more. Great deal. Plus, many companies like airlines, restaurants, etc offer Twitter-only discounts. I'm also among the first to know when a store is having a sale just because others are filling me in.

Fourth, instant news.... mixed in with the fun. Follow CNN Breaking News, USA Today, your local daily newspaper and your favorite news sites (they're all on Twitter, promise) for the latest news.

Fifth: I'm on there! Find me at @avggirlsguide. Best reason of all, right? :) That's why I saved the best for last.


And, that's just how it works. You put the @ symbol before someone's name when writing or responding to them and if you want to forward what you're reading about someone you simply stick a RT (re-tweet) in front of it. Want to send a personal message to someone? Just put a DM (direct message) in front of it. DMs are not especially common, though; most engage in a few back and forths in the twittersphere where everyone can see. And, remember that everything you write is limited to 140 characters. Really gets you focused on what you want to say! No blathering on and on.... and on and on....