Five Years. New Items. And a Giveaway.

Well, look at that...five years of blogging.  I am still amazed that I have kept this personal style/OMG I love Boden/J. Crew/SAHM craziness blog up for all this time.  If it were April Fool's Day I would totally tell you all that I was shuttering the doors to My Superfluities, but since it isn't, I will just take this opportunity to thank you all for coming here and reading/commenting/supporting me and mine throughout the years.  It has been a process and I cannot believe how much of a difference putting myself "out there" has made in my life.  I will probably write down the "five things I have learned from five years of blogging" post sometime soon, but for now I think I will focus on the most tangible difference, that of personal confidence.  I may still have days of worry and doubt and insecurity, but for the most part I wake up every morning feeling so much better about myself, my situation, and the future of my family than I would have five years ago.  I may have gotten there on my own, without this blog, since I am in my thirties, and most women gain self-confidence in their thirties, but I cannot deny that this blog helped my evolution.

Anyhow, I will blather on about all of this when I have more time, but for now, I wanted to share with you all two separate things...

1. I received a HUGE package of Boden/mini Boden in the mail today.  I took photos of the Boden items and can give you a very brief overview of the clothing, but do expect more information in the next Boden Weekly Review Roundup which I desperately need to do already.  I must say that receiving the package on the birthday of this blog seemed like perfect timing, so yay for that.  ;-)

2. Because I love celebrating the years of blogging with a giveaway, I will be giving away a $50 gift card to Boden.  To enter you will need to leave a comment below with your name and e-mail, plus one item that you just LOVE from the Boden spring rollout.  I can give this gift card to anyone, so international friends, don't hesitate to enter, either!

In order to enter, I would appreciate you following this blog in some format or another.  Bloglovin' seems to be the favorite, but I know that many of you follow (or can follow) through other formats, so go ahead and mention how you follow, if you wouldn't mind.  I don't need huge numbers of followers, but it is nice to see an uptick as the years go on and on...

The giveaway will be on January 30, so you have fifteen days to enter!  Usually I end them after a week, but feel like this will allow more folks to enter. 

I am paying for this giveaway out of pocket, btw.  Boden knows I love them, but they don't make it a habit of giving me gift cards to giveaway.  I just felt like I should make that clear since in the fall they *did* partner with some (much bigger and more established) bloggers to host giveaways, which did include those bloggers giving away a gift card from them, that Boden did pay for and not the bloggers who hosted the giveaway.  Being clear about this is important, since I am a Boden affiliate, as you all know, which means Boden works with me through an affiliate program.  That means I can offer you all some yummy coupons and codes and in turn Boden pays me a % when purchases are made.  They do all of this through an affiliate program which means I have *very little* interaction with Boden.

Okay, so onto the yummy goodies that I received in the mail!

L to R, clockwise order: Button Back Sweater, Must Have Tee, Sophia Sweater, Penny Loafers, and Bistro Short.

I will discuss the four clothing items below, but I didn't take a separate photo of the loafers and want to give a big huge thumbs up to the folks at Boden for making these in half sizes, since these are a 40.5 and fit my narrow 9.5 feet perfectly.  As many of you know, I have struggled in Boden shoes for years since it would often be that the size 40 would fit well width-wise, but not in length, but the 41 would be too wide and the right length.  The 40.5 is exactly what I needed, and these shoes confirm that. 

Button Back Sweater.  Size 6.  Fits well, just long enough, in a very soft, lightweight cotton/merino wool blend.  But all that aside, look at the pretty pretty print, swoon!

Must Have Tee. Size 6.  Runs ginormous, but because it is viscose (the stretchy knit type), I know that eventually it will shrink, even with careful washing and line drying, so I will keep the larger size with that in mind.  If I only planned to wear it for a year, I would buy the 4 and sell it when it got to short and narrow.

Bistro Short.  Size 10 L.  Perfection in all ways, length, fit, comfort, etc.  As per usual, the waist is a bit big since my waist is technically a 6 or 8 by Boden standards, but the bonus of buying up is I can wear the waist lower, which in turn makes the length a touch longer.  I need that with my height, so I am not complaining.  The print is so gorgeous, too, and made me smile.  I can't wait for warm weather.

Sophia Sweater.  Size 6.  This sweater (or jumper, for you British readers) runs really long.  Like it is "almost a tunic" on me long.  It's not something that looks bad, but I was expecting it to be a bit shorter.  I won't be able to wear it with shorts, but this will look adorable with the J. Crew minnies and a pair of ballet flats.

Okay, so don't forget to look around Boden so you can tell me what you would grab from the Spring rollout when you enter the giveaway.