I’ve been blogging for several years now — even thought it certainly doesn’t feel like it’s been that long — and I was curious as to just how much my style has changed over those years, especially now that I’m pregnant. It was really interesting to go back through the blog to see my outfits and the way I’ve evolved from year to year.

Reflections: I see consistent uses of a completer piece and denim. As much as I want to have a well-rounded wardrobe of jeans, dresses, and skirts, and non-denim bottoms, I always find myself reaching for the denim because it’s quick and easy to style. Also, I went through a phase, mostly when I was consistently working in an office, of wearing blazers ALL. THE. TIME. I still love blazers but it seems as though today’s style trends have started to move toward a more casual look, and blazers don’t feel that casual to me. I’m more interested in vests and sweater cardigans these days. Perhaps if I find another office job, I’ll be more likely to bust out my blazers. The biggest change I see is that my style and outfit formulas have gotten slightly more simple, which I think is a trend we’re seeing everywhere.  I don’t have a ton of time to plan what I’m going to wear so keeping it simple will also keep me sane! Do you think about your style evolution? Is it different or similar to what you were wearing 4 years ago?

2017 Original Post: Tee + Jeans + Boots

I wore this outfit to my doctor’s appointment and learned that I should be eating more peanut butter, avocados, loaded baked potatoes, ICE CREAM AND COOK OUT MILKSHAKES.

2016 Original Post: Girls’ Day Out

A couple of my grad school friends came to visit me and we had a wonderful girls’ day out. We started with brunch & margaritas, then went to a wine tasting, then shopping, had “hipster” coffee, and ended the night at the best sushi place in town. And this is what I wore.

2015 Original Post: Distressed Denim and New Loafers

Flats in the winter because it felt like spring. NC just can’t make up it’s mind on whether or not we have seasons!

2014 Original Post: Winter Pink

This was a January day when NC decided it actually was winter and gave us 20-degree weather. Some of you might laugh at me because you regularly deal with negative temps in the winter but this was really cold for us!

Yesterday I talked about how my go-to formula lately has been sweater (top) + jeans + boots. Here’s another example of how well that works. It was almost 70 degrees so I got to wear a tee under the cardigan and I’m not complaining.

I wore this outfit to my doctor’s appointment the other morning and I told my midwife I was concerned that I’m not gaining enough weight. She said my belly and Baby S are measuring just fine, BUT I should start eating more peanut butter, avocados, loaded baked potatoes, ICE CREAM AND COOK OUT MILKSHAKES. Pretty much all of my favorite things… and it’s doctor’s orders! This pregnancy thing isn’t so bad 😉

It was totally warm enough to not wear the cardigan but it wasn’t too warm that I was uncomfortable in it, so I mostly left it on.

You can see the tip of my sock, which I think is cute. I hate the advice I’ve seen some bloggers give that your socks should never be visible but there really isn’t anyone looking down my shoe so I see no reason to worry about it. Plus, it could give a nice, unexpected pop of color.

Tee: Gap | Sweater Cardigan: Loft Outlet | Jeans: Liz Lange Maternity via Target | Boots: BP Trolley via Nordstrom | Necklace: via Le Tote

My fall and winter maternity formula has been sweater + jeans + boots. Completer pieces may vary.

Even though I don’t have an office to go to anymore, I feel that I’m more productive if I actually get dressed instead of staying in my pajamas all day. I wore this to run to the UPS store and to grab a quick lunch. It saw very little daylight but it did see me do some laundry, get some freelance work done, and prepare for a job interview, so I’d call it a win. Plus, I liked it enough to want to share it. I’ll be putting it on repeat for the next few weeks, at least until the sweater doesn’t fit over the bump anymore. You can see in some of the photos that I’m not too far from that. Also, I debated whether to wear this necklace because you can barely see it in the photos but in real life I think it looks nice, so no regrets.

Here’s the evidence (below) that my bump is almost too big for this sweater. See how my tank top is showing underneath because it’s longer/fits over the bump better than the sweater? I won’t be able to wear it much longer. Le sigh.

The weather has been very spring-like lately so it hasn’t even been that cold. If this keeps up, I might have to change up my formula to cute top + jeans + boots/flats sooner than expected. But, really, who am I to complain about beautiful sunshine and 60-degree weather?

Sweater: J. Crew Outlet | Vest: Banana Republic | Necklace: Old Navy | Jeans: Liz Lange Maternity via Target | Boots: Steve Madden | Sunglasses: Target

I haven’t been able to get many good photos the past few weeks with my camera because of being busy and not feeling well, but I have shared some good stuff on Instagram. Here’s a round up of what’s been going on this week in the life of NCsquared as seen through Instagram filters.

Last week started out cold and snowy. This picture is exactly what I was talking about in this Thankful Thursday post. As I mentioned there, I often enjoy venturing out in the crisp air or snow on a sunny winter day and getting to bundle up in cute hats and scarves and coats. These are the days when the bright, winter sun glitters in the snow and everything is quiet and calm. Can’t you just feel the calm in this photo?

It started to warm up a bit and all I needed was a sweater, button-up, and puffer vest to stay warm. I wore this to one of our Centering Pregnancy classes where we talked to a labor and delivery nurse from the hospital where I’ll be delivering Baby S. I left feeling very lucky that our hospital is so accommodating to women in childbirth. The nurse kept saying that everything is a conversation, from what kind of pain management you want to how you make your room more comfortable to where you actually give birth (lying in the bed, squatting in the floor, etc.) which I think is SUPER important to creating a positive birthing experience!

Sweater & Button-up: Banana Republic | Puffer Vest: Gap | Jeans: Liz Lange Maternity via Target | Boots: BP Trolley via Nordstrom

As it started to warm up even more and the snow slowly melted, the hazy fog rolled in. Look at this beautiful morning. It was so stunning that it almost took my breath away. It gave me renewed energy for the week and made me feel like everything was going to be all right.

By Friday, it was in the 70s! Only in North Carolina does the week begin with Winter and end with Spring. I wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to take advantage of the weather, so I threw on a floral top and canvas shoes to run errands. I won’t really be pregnant in the spring, as Baby S’s due date is a few days after the official first day of spring this year so it was nice to not have to bundle up the bump when I ventured outside.

This photo was taken just a few nights ago. It may not look like it, but the bump continues to grow and that means making myself comfortable is getting increasingly difficult. I have a pair of maternity pajamas and I wear them almost every night but on laundry nights or nights that it’s a bit colder in the house, I’ll wear Nick’s clothes. And I’ve discovered that there’s no piece of maternity clothing that is as comfortable as his t-shirts!

That’s it, lovelies. I hope you all had a great week. I will try my best to be back next week with better photos, I promise! Until then, stay warm or cool and be happy.

How cute is this top? I liked it so much that I bought it in two colors, this one (“silver sash brown”) and fuchsia/purple, and it didn’t hurt that they were on sale. While available in maternity sizes, I opted for the regular size because you can do that when you’re as small as I am! Just one more pro to standing in at five feet tall. I think the best part about being able to wear regular sizes while pregnant is that they will still fit after pregnancy. A two-for-one deal, really. These coated denim jeans aren’t maternity either so I’ve turned to my trusty belly band. I could have worn dark denim but I feel like I wear those ALL. THE. TIME. so I wanted to change it up a little bit.

I started out in heels but quickly changed my mind, mostly because I don’t really like these heels. They’re uncomfortable and surprisingly hard to walk in — and I don’t usually have trouble walking in heels. I wanted so much to love them and I’ve tried very hard to make them work but I think I’m going to have to replace them. For the purpose of this outfit, which was to have lunch with Nick and run to the grocery store for some juice and cookies (yay pregnancy), I think I like the flats better anyway. What do you think?

Also, I’m sorry not sorry about holding my belly in these pics because pre-pregnancy, when I thought I didn’t want kids at all, I would see women holding their pregnant bellies and all I could think was, ‘okay, we get it. you’re pregnant’ but now that I’m pregnant, I finally get it — at least for me, it’s to show that I am growing a human and not just bloated from a burrito. But, haters gonna hate and I sincerely apologize for my past ignorance.

Chiffon-Hem Top: Old Navy | Necklace: Old Navy | Coated Denim Jeans: Banana Republic | Heels: via Payless | Flats: Old Navy | Rings: Old Navy

Linking up with What I Wore to Work | On the Edge