A Practical Mom Outfit

One of the only drawbacks about nursing is how it limits your wardrobe options. I miss being able to wear all my dresses. I've been grabbing my jean skirt a lot lately as an alternative.

Speaking of skirts, I'm on the lookout at my local thrift stores for a natural waist full midi skirt (which I will more than likely hem to my knee for a more flattering look), but so far haven't had any luck. You would think such a classic item would be easy to thrift.

I might just have to double up coupons and rewards and see what Gap has to offer in the skirt department.

We have been having such a fun summer. I've been full of energy lately and am determined to plan every free day with some sort of summer outing. After the severe winter we had, I'm taking every advantage of this nice weather. I wish summer would never end. 

T-shirt - Gap - $1

Cardigan - LOFT via Goodwill - $2

Skirt - Gap - $17

Espadrilles - Nine West - gifted

Summertime Uniform

I always find it difficult to keep outfit posts coming in the summer because I tend to gravitate towards practical shorts, tees, and flip flops for beating the heat and chasing kiddos. Nothing too exciting or interesting, especially when I'm wearing the same version of that everyday. I used to wear a lot of dresses, but finding a dress I can nurse in, isn't always easy.

However, it can't just be any pair of shorts or flip flops. I like genuine leather flips that wear well and look more polished than beach ready Havaianas styles. 

Then there are the accessories. Lately I've been wearing minimal accessories due to my daughter breaking so much of what I used to wear. I've been sticking to my silver Bulova watch, and today I added the silver bouquet necklace to bring out the silver in my shoes and watch. Hopefully Capri won't destroy this one!

Now on to tops. I've been wearing mostly sleeveless knit tees, some have embellishment, some are high low, and some are just classic v-necks. If I'm not wearing a tee, I'm wearing this jean shirt. Then the trick is to figure out if it should be untucked, half tucked, or completely tucked. my favorite is completely untucked since I have such a short torso and still have a belly from my pregnancies, but I tried all three ways for the pictures in this post.

Shorts also have to be just the right length. Too long, and I feel like my legs look like two little stumps. Too short, and I feel like I'm pushing the limit of what is appropriate for a mom of three in her thirties to wear. Enter J.Crew shorts that come in every length possible. My favorite length is the 5", which I'm wearing here.

What's your summer uniform? Do you have any tips for great dresses that are cool and easy to nurse in?

Top - Goodwill - $3

Shorts - J.Crew - $15

Flip flops - Gap - $4

Warm Days and Blooming Lilacs

Our lilac trees finally bloomed, prettying up our yard and making everything smell beautiful. They always arrive right in time for Mother's Day so I can make a pretty bouquet for the table centerpiece (see Monday's post) and feel that much more special. The roses are from my boys and looked particularly beautiful alongside the lavender lilacs.

I picked up this dress at a Goodwill while on vacation in Florida last year. It's from Ann Taylor LOFT, and was brand new with the tags still on for only $8. I wore it when I was 20-23 weeks pregnant, last seen here. 

It's a great summer sundress that is easy to wear. I'm looking forward to pulling it out for hot summer days.

I wore my Seychelles hand-me-down heel sandals with the dress for church, and then switched in to flat sandals for the afternoon at home.

My New Shoes

My sister-in-law-to-be gave me these cute sandals on Easter. She bought them at a thrift store to wear for her rehearsal dinner, and decided to test them out on Easter Sunday. They were too uncomfortable for her, so she passed them on to me. When it comes to shoes, the last thing I care about is comfort. She is now my new favorite sister-in-law-to-be. I love these shoes!

Shoes - Seychelles - hand-me-down

Top - J.Crew via Goodwill - $3

Jeans - H&M - $2.50

Scarf - Goodwill - $.50

Trench coat - Zara - $69

Sunnies - Banana Republic - $17

And I'm getting bigger . . .

No, I'm not due tomorrow. Not even in two weeks. I'm not due till October. I still have two months. Two whole long months. As in 9 weeks. As in FOREVER!!!

 

I think I can, I think I can, I think I can . . .

 

Yesterday was a long day at the fair. I wore this, I just looked quite a bit bigger in it than I did before. One sweet old man in a wheelchair kept staring at my shoes while I was working the booth. I was sitting down and he asked me if I could turn my shoe so he could see how tall they actually were. I stood up to give him the full effect of the 4 inches the wedges give me. I was still only slightly taller than he was sitting in his wheelchair. He giggled and just said "God bless you."

 

Today was spent taking a walk downtown for coffee and then lunch with my hubby (free of kids - they were at VBS - woohoo!). Then hubs worked outside on the yard and cleaning the cars all afternoon, and I stayed in baking all day. Two batches of zucchini bread, zucchini spice bars, zucchini chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting, and a zucchini quiche. Umm yes. We got a lot of zucchinis in our CSA this week.

 

Hope your Saturday went well!

 

Tank - JCPenney - $3

Shorts - Target - $5

Gladiators - Cynthia Vincent - $60



Outfit Post: Venice

Ah Venice! It was so beautiful!

The dress is from Modcloth. My sister bought it for me for my Birthday and I've been saving it to wear to Venice. I'm so glad my bag arrived so I could actually wear it! 

Outfit Post: Rome

I decided to check my bag while we were on our long layover in Berlin on the last leg of our flight to Rome so that I wouldn't have to drag my carry-on all over the city of Berlin. Big mistake. The luggage went straight to Dublin instead of Rome. So all the "amazing" outfits I had planned for the first five days of my trip didn't happen. Thankfully, I had grabbed from my carry-on a second white t-shirt and a second pair of underwear for in case my luggage didn't come. I also had a pair of flat sandals for walking in my purse, plus all my make-up and a toothbrush...so at least my face was always done up and I had some walking shoes even if I was wearing the same outfit each day! lol!

For my first full day in Rome, I wore the same t-shirt (that I had hand washed the night before) and borrowed my friend's shorts.

These sandals I'm wearing are AMAZING. My feet felt great even though we walked entire days every day we were in Italy. The sandals held up through rain, cobblestones, dirt, stairs, dirty feet, and looked great with every thing I wore from dresses and shorts, to jeans. My feet never hurt at all! Now I spent quite a bit of money on them (for me). They were normally $260 and I got them on sale for $59 from Endless. They are Cynthia Vincent sandals, so the quality is top notch. Leather upper and lined and high quality grommets for the buckles.

My brother (in the Brazil t-shirt), best friend, and of course my husband were all with me for the trip. It was INCREDIBLE! I hope we get to go back some day.

On the Hunt for Walking Sandals

Why can't comfort and style go hand in hand? I see it advertised everywhere, but I'm not a believer. I'm looking for a flat sandal that I can walk in for 8 hours when I go to vacation in Europe this year.

My criteria is no thong. Stylish. Slimming. Can be worn with shorts or dresses. Brown. Genuine leather. And under $50. Preferrably under $30. The first three are my favorites, but they are over my budget, and don't look like they would be very comfortable.

I have this last pair ordered and on their way. They are Patagonia's, which are known for their comfort and durability. My only concern is that there is no ankle strap. Will that flapping on the back get to me after hours of walking?

Outfit Post: Breakfast with friends

I would like to try to keep things interesting here while Nic is resting before the baby arrives. I would have posted all winter, but because I live in Florida, my outfits are much different than most everywhere else. Now that the weather is coming back around, what I wear everyday is more relevant.

Here goes....

I went out to breakfast with friends this morning. It felt like a Spring morning (even in Florida), so I dressed accordingly.

I do not like the fit of the capris, because I feel like they make my calves look larger than I'd like, but they were the only "in between" that went with this outfit.

Cardigan - New York & Co. - $20

Top - Plato's Closet - $3

Capris - ? - gifted

Sandals - Target - gifted

Outfit Post: Summertime...when the living is easy...

I have the short man's syndrome. You may have never heard of it before, but it's as real as you and me...yeah, it *is* me. Lots of short people do all sorts of crazy things to compensate for their lack of height. I do the expected thing. I wear heels. Even two inches makes a world of difference when you're just barely five feet tall. Trust me. It can enable me to reach the sink to wash my hands! And frankly, I just can't bear to wear flats...that is except today...and even then, I feel I have to be on my tiptoes all day to be noticed. See, you just noticed me tiptoeing for this picture now, right?
Of course, I don't just overcompensate for my height by wearing heels - I also show off to the world that I'm so short I fit just right in a kiddie pool...
Or better yet, I'm so short, I could dive into a kiddie pool...
But on the whole, apart from wearing heels, I just try to compensate for my lack of height by being really really ridiculously good looking and taking pictures of myself every day...because I just look that good. Don't hate me because I'm short and beautiful.

T-shirt - Gap - $3
Shorts - J.Crew (via Ebay) - $4
T-strap rhinestone encrusted sandals - Ann Taylor Loft - $9
Hoop earrings - Premier Jewelry - $21

Outfit Post: Rainy Day

Today is a dark, rainy day, so I felt like "spicing" it up a bit with my bright red shirt. I'm not sure about the length of the skirt though.

Here's a close-up of my sandals.

This is my bright red shirt! The ruffles are so fun!

Shirt - NY&C - $10

White Cami - JC Penney

Skirt - Target

Belt - Pacsun - gifted

Bracelet - World Market - gifted

Necklace - gifted

Shoes - Wet Seal - $10