Southern Belle in Training

Fashion, Travel & Lifestyle Blog || Est. 2012 || Virginia Beach, VA

October 15, 2018

If You Told Me 5 Years Ago...

    Today's outfit is about as classic and preppy for fall as you can get! I'm excited to share it with you. Also in today's post I'm talking about some of the ways that I've noticed myself change on certain things in the last five years- it's always fun to do some self-reflecting. 











Photography by Meredith Sledge


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Sweater {similar} // Shirt {similar} // Jeans // Shoes {sold out, similar here} // Necklace // Purse // Bracelet // Lip Gloss // 




     I am loving this combination of a white cable sweater paired with a gingham oxford shirt! It's an ideal fall look. You could pair it with a pencil skirt for work or any business casual occasion, and I love pairing it with skinny jeans and metallic mules for this casual look. I also want to make a quick note about my necklace! It's a classic J. Crew Factory piece. I asked for it for Christmas a few years ago, and I remember being so excited to find it in my stocking. To this day, I still wear it at least once a week. It's the most versatile piece of jewelry, and can really elevate an outfit! Do any of you also have this necklace?


     I thought it would be fun in today's post to do some reflecting! My 24th birthday was in September, but I feel like it really hit me the other day that I'm 24. Like... I've been an adult for a few years now, and I'm well out of college! When I'm by myself, I often think I feel a lot younger than I am. I feel some days liked I blinked and college was over! Anyways, the more that I thought about my recent birthday, the more I realized that I have changed and matured more as a person in the last five years than I realized. I thought I'd share a bit of that on the blog!! Five years ago, I was entering my sophomore year of college and had recently turned 19. I had been blogging for just over a year! I had just moved to Charlotte and transferred colleges. Here are some things that 19 year old Annaliese wouldn't believe about 24 year old Annaliese:


     *I'll become a morning person: True story- I was one of the biggest night owls ever until January 2017! During all four years of college, I think I can count on one hand the number of times that I went to bed before midnight. I remember that I had 8 am classes for most of my senior year and it felt like torture! 
     In early 2017, I began a three month long morning radio internship (I needed to complete it to graduate from broadcasting school). I had to wake up at 3:15 each morning to arrive there on time! I remember how rough the first week was, but I adjusted better than I thought I would to the schedule. I moved to Vermont pretty soon after the internship ended, and the whole morning person thing stuck when I started my first job. I wasn't waking up at a time as drastic as 3:15 anymore, but I began to love waking up early and being productive before work.

     *I'll still be driving the same car: This is just a funny one! I truly believed well into my college years that as soon as I graduated college and had my first job, I'd be able to lease or buy a new vehicle. HAHA! Naive little Annaliese wasn't considering things like a low entry level salary, and having to pay for rent and student loans. I'm still driving the same car I had in high school, and probably will be until whenever it kicks the bucket.

     *I'd move to Vermont for a year: Oh goodness if you told me at 19 that I'd move to Vermont for a year, I would have laughed in your face! I grew up vacationing in a rural part of Vermont with my parents (about two hours away from where I ended up living in Burlington area), and my only associations of the state were memories of staying at a very rustic bed and breakfast on family vacations! At 19, I was still pretty new to living in the South, and so obsessed with Southern culture. I did end up moving North for a year, but thankfully my obsession with the South stuck around, and now here I am in Virginia!

     *I'd still be single: Not going to go into a ton of detail on this one since I share more thoughts about being a single woman in my Relationship Monday blog post series- but let's just say at 19 I definitely wouldn't have believed that I'd still be riding solo. I also wouldn't have believed that as a single 24 year old, I'd actually be content

     *I'd still be blogging, and I'd have so many exciting opportunities come from it: My 1st blogiversary was on my 19th birthday, and at that point in time I was trying to squeeze in blog posts when I could with my busy college schedule. If I had the opportunity to receive a product for free to do a blog post about, I'd be over the moon! I never would have imagined that I'd stick with blogging long enough to make a decent side hustle income from it, and even get cool opportunities like attending a blogging conference and do travel writing opportunities

     *I wouldn't be allergic to cats anymore: This one is still so exciting to me! In high school (after volunteering weekly at the local animal shelter in the cat rooms), I developed severe cat allergies. After college I ended up outgrowing them, and this summer I had allergy tests to prove it. I'm now a new cat mom to my Delilah! 

     *I'd still have the same hairstyle: At the end of my freshman year of college, I cut about nine inches off my hair. It went from being very long to falling just above my shoulders. I started hating the haircut pretty soon after, and I became determined to grow my hair out long again. I've kept it long ever since then! I still don't dye it either. For now, I'm still very happy with my long brunette locks!

    *I'd grow to be proud of being a Mainer: I was so excited when I moved South for college and got to experience a different type of culture. I'd had such rough high school years that for a long time, I associated that with everything to do with Maine. It took making peace with the past and truly appreciating the beauty of my home state to finally say that I'm proud to be a Mainer. (Still glad I reside in the South though😉)

    *I'd enjoy reading thrillers: I was very sensitive to anything scary when I was growing up. To this day, I still hate horror films! For years, I really only read books for fun that were chick-lit, romance, or uplifting. Lat year I picked up my first thriller from the library, and I was hooked! The creepier and more mysterious the plot, the better. Joy Fielding is currently my favorite author for the genre. 

     *I'd love country music, and love working in country radio even more: During my freshman year of college I went through a slight country music phase (The prime moment was seeing Florida Georgia Line play at a bar before they made it big!), but when I transferred colleges at the start of sophomore year and moved to Charlotte, that phase quickly died. I was all about Top 40 and urban music for the rest of college. Last year in Vermont, I found myself starting to enjoy listening to the local country radio stations when I was outside of work, and realized how much I enjoyed the music! When I decided to look for new jobs, I specifically searched for ones in country radio. Now I adore country music and love my job as well! 



     Have you noticed any things about yourself that have changed in the last five years? Let me know in the comments if we share any in common! Or let me know if you also love a classic and preppy fall outfit. 😊






     God Bless,



     xoxo Annaliese
     


     

  
     
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22 comments

  1. What a fun post! Makes me ponder where I thought I would be 5 years from now. Blogging certainly wasn't even a thought in my head. lol

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  2. The amount of things that change in just 5 years!

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  3. It's so fun to see how we evolve and grow over the years. I still can't read or watch thrillers at age 26...I get such bad nightmares and like you I still feel so much younger than I imagined I would feel at my age.

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  4. It's always so interesting to look back and see how things have changed. Five years ago I had just moved to the city. It's a very different lifestyle than from where I grew up in an rural, small town environment. At 28, I feel like I'm exactly where I expected myself to be.

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  5. ohh i love this idea for a post! I honestly would have to think about some of mine... maybe I'll save this for when I turn 30 to see how much has changed! I feel like 24/25 was so transformative and there were so many things happening in my life that my 19 y.o self would've never known!

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  6. This is such a great post and an insight into your head! Also love the outfit! Gorg!

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  7. What a fun idea for a post! I drove the same car for almost 8 years and than another car for 6! Such a cute outfit!

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  8. I love reflecting back and seeing how much we've changed. I still have the same car I had in high school - I'm 32 :) However, my husband and I don't drive it really anymore. But we still do have it for a back up! Btw, I love your outfit, especially your bag!

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  9. I'm planning on wearing an outfit just like this tomorrow! Great minds haha.

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  10. I love this outfit! The metallic shoes are such a fun touch. I also loved reading about where you were versus where you are. Happy belated birthday, and happy belated blogiversary!

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  11. Haha I remember a few years ago you used to not like country so I was super surprised when you started working at a country station.

    Also, I am still 100% a night owl and don't know how to break the cycle haha.

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  12. This post gives me hope that one day I'll be a morning person! At 22, I am still not there yet. But my partner works nights so it's kind of impossible for us to be morning people without getting zero sleep, so hopefully once he gets a daytime job, I'll enjoy waking up early!

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  13. My favorite parts of this outfit are the gold loafers. I would definitely wear those!

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  14. This outfit is so you! I love the peek of gingham.

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  15. Such a great outfit! Oh goodness, there are so many things that have changed in the last five years!

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  16. This was such a cute post. A lot changes in 5 years!
    Also, I really like this classic look! Your bag is my favorite!

    xo Deborah
    Coffee, Prose, and Pretty Clothes

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  17. I feel like I wouldn't be as brave as I am if I knew what my life today would be like 6 years ago... sometimes it's nice NOT knowing haha!

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  18. I love your outfit babe. I had no idea that I would like thrillers also. I just finished reading All The Missing Girls and LOVED it :)

    -xo, Azanique | www.lotsofsass.com

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  19. Aw I love this! It's always fun to do some reflecting - I became a morning person as I got older too! Love that outfit also!

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  20. This was such a fun post to read. I love how you reflected on so many things in your life. So glad that you're content with where you're at in life and totally loving your job.

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  21. I love this type of post! It's so fun looking back at our past selves and what we would have thought about our current lives! Also loved learning a bit more about you in the process!

    xo
    Sami
    The Classic Brunette

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