Y’all, with all of this snowy winter weather, I have been in full-on hibernation mode. Where I live, it started sleeting on Friday evening which turned to snow that didn’t let up until Saturday evening, resulting in about 2 inches of beautiful fluffy snow on top of an inch of pure ice. I had every intention of taking fun outfit pictures in the snow, but when it came right down to it, it was just too cold! The low on Sunday was in the single digits. That’s rare for these parts of NC so Nick, the dog, and I stayed bundled up indoors. Luckily, I got some mirror photos/selfies of a few past outfits that I’ll share with you instead. As usual, apologies for the quality but it was the best I could do under the circumstances.

Gingham shirt: Target | Vest: Old Navy | Pants: Loft | Shoes: Old Navy 

I wore this gingham/vest combo on Thursday (and then again on Friday) to run errands before the wintery bottom dropped out of the sky. It’s been on my list to wear for a while but I was afraid the pants would be uncomfortable since they’re not maternity, but I was pleasantly surprised how well they held up with just a belly band. The shirt is struggling a bit against the belly, though, so I might have to retire this one until after the baby arrives.

Sweater: Banana Republic | Skirt: Target | Boots: Old Navy | Scarf: Target

I wore this cute little sweater/skirt combo to meet with my career coach to learn how to improve my resume. She gave me some really good tips that I’m hoping will land me a job sooner rather than later. This was taken when I was only about 6 months along (so about 1.5 months ago) and the career coach had no idea I was pregnant until I told her. Looking at this photo now, I can understand why. Tiny little bump!

Sweater and Tank: Banana Republic | Jeans: Target (Liz Lange Maternity) | Boots: BP Trolley via Nordstrom | Necklace: via Le Tote

I wear this outfit all. the. time. Seriously, it has become my go-to outfit for everything from errands to doctor appointments to hanging out to whatever. I love the layered look and it’s really comfortable and the boots make it feel even more stylish. I don’t really know what else to say about it except that I love it.

Sweater: J. Crew Outlet | Vest and Jeans: Banana Republic | Boots: Old Navy | Necklace: via Francesca’s

So, this was a really cute outfit but an example of one that didn’t quite work so I had to change it up a bit. These are not maternity jeans and they did not hold up well with the belly band. I wore this outfit to do some shopping and after my first stop I came home to change because I was literally pulling my pants up every 3 seconds. Very uncomfortable. The purple sweater/vest/purple boots combo, however, is on point so all I did was change into a pair of light washed, distressed maternity jeans and got the same effect.

 Anyway, I hope you’re all having a happy Friday and not tucked up in bed bed all day to avoid the back luck that is thought to come on Friday the 13th! Did you know that there are TWO Friday the 13ths in 2017?  January 13th (today) and October 13. Everyone beware, mwah-ha-ha! 😀

Here lately I don’t really have anywhere to go so getting dressed means throwing on something comfortable to wear around the house. My bump is finally getting big enough that full-panel maternity pants are more comfortable than my belly band, so I finally threw in the towel and purchased a few new pairs, this pair being one of them. I now have 4 pairs of maternity pants that should last through the next 3 months. Also, it’s been cold and/or rainy for the last few days so apologies for the not-so-great photos from my phone, but it was honestly the only way I was going to get to document this outfit.

I love the mustard and black combination. I think it’s my favorite way to wear the dark yellow color. And I chose this pattern in these pants because it’s somewhat different and because they were on sale for 40% off! I was pleasantly surprised by how comfortable they are so they’re going to get plenty of wear.

The baby bump isn’t looking as big as it feels these days but my doctor says I’m right where I’m supposed to be, growth-wise, so I’m not too worried about it.

Sweater: ModCloth | Pants: Old Navy (these are available in maternity & regular) | Shoes: Old Navy

Blanket scarfs are so cozy, aren’t they? They’re also huge so I almost passed up on this trend because I thought it would weigh me down. Jean from Extra Petite convinced me to give it a try, though, when she posted her video showing a few different ways to style to it. She’s actually about an inch shorter than me (while her style sense is miles above mine) so I figured if she can make it work then so could I. Her video is really helpful so even if you’re not a shorty like me, I would recommend it. I’ve found that the trick is not only in the fold (fold it in half first) but also in rolling it a few times so it isn’t quite as long. All that folding and rolling does leave it feeling a bit bulky so I usually save the blanket scarf for those really cold days when I need the extra warmth.

I love reading random things about the bloggers that I follow so I thought you might enjoy reading some about me. I think it’s a nice way to get to know someone a little better.

1. I’ve never had any surgeries in my life. How I managed that, I have no idea but my dentist has been fussing at me to have my wisdom teeth removed for years and I’m just like, “Nah, I’m good.” That makes me really nervous about the possibility of having to have a c-section at the end of this pregnancy. The plan is to have a medication-free labor and delivery but I understand that you don’t really know what’s going to happen until it’s going down. I’m keeping those fingers crossed, though!
2. My secret favorite dinner is party foods: charcuterie, chips, dips, bite-sized anything really. When I moved into my very first apartment in undergrad, I ate a lot of “party foods” for dinner because I could! Wavy chips and french onion dip, little sausages in thick sauces, bite-sized pizzas, sausage balls, etc. My other/more acceptable favorite dinner is sushi. Who am I kidding, I just love to eat.
3. I love the idea of reading non-fiction but I prefer good fiction. Sometimes reading about real life is just too depressing for me and I often read for an escape. While I think non-fiction is really important and I read it from time to time, I gravitate toward something that is made up and sucks me in. However, I’m currently reading Bossy Pants by Tina Fey. Yes, I’m way behind on the times.

4. I’ve always wanted to be a writer. In elementary school, we had career day and I was upset because I didn’t know how to dress up as an author so I dressed up as a doctor instead. I won a story-telling contest in 5th grade for a story I wrote called Rumpelstiltskin Continued, as well as an adaptation of Little Red Riding Hood that was told from the wolf’s perspective.
5. I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up. I love being in the field of public health but I feel like I still haven’t found my calling, so I just do all kind of things and have become somewhat of a jack-of-all-trades. I think that works for me, for now.

On to the outfit: sometimes I take too much time getting ready because I overthink things. Do I have the right completer piece? What is the best necklace to wear? Which shoes look best? But I’m learning it’s easy to keep it simple and still look good. Sweater, jeans, cute shoes, and a necklace. Doesn’t get much more simple than that, except maybe sweatpants or pajamas. I suppose you could wear sweatpants to the grocery store but this simple casual outfit is better and it didn’t even take that much to put together. As the weather gets colder, I’ll add a vest or cardigan as my completer piece but for now, this is just fine.

Sweater: Old Navy | Jeans: Liz Lange maternity @ Target | Shoes: Target | Necklace: Claire’s (old)

*this is a long one but hopefully worth the read*

I took a six-month blogging break so I could figure out what blogging meant for me. Am I even a blogger? I like writing but what do I want to write about? And would anyone else care about what I had to say? These were the things I thought about and even consulted with some of my friends. There were plenty of times I thought I was ready to start back up. A post idea would come to me and I’d start writing it in my head but the post never made it to paper/screen. Before I could sit myself down to write it all out, I would have talked myself out of it. I’d tell myself that it was a stupid idea and that no one would care about it. Or I would put together a super cute outfit and get tons of compliments on it and think, ‘this should go on the blog,’ but then I’d hear that voice telling me that sure, it’s a cute outfit for me, but it would never stand up to some of the outfits being displayed by the more popular bloggers — even though I had all the same elements.

I’m writing this post because I recently had an epiphany. Okay, maybe epiphany is too strong of a word. But I realized that I first started my blog because, although I was still learning how to be fashionable myself, I really liked my style and was getting a lot of inspiration from other bloggers, and I wanted to share my new knowledge with others like me, average girls who wanted to feel pretty and stylish. I came to understand that everyone who has a blog does so because they just put their stuff out there and that stuff makes its way to people who like reading it, whether that’s an outfit, a story, travel tips, life hacks, etc. I know that’s very simplistic, but in a nutshell that’s all blogging is.

Now, I’ve hated telling people about my blog because I haven’t felt like a real blogger. I’m just someone who puts words and pictures on a screen and then sends those words and pictures out into the ether of the internet. Even now, I mostly put together my outfits based on inspiration I’ve gotten from other bloggers and what I see on Pinterest. My google searches often start with, “How to wear…” so that makes me feel like I don’t know enough about fashion to be a “fashion blogger.” But one time, at a party, I showed my friend the trick for wearing non-skinny jeans with tall boots and she told me that I just had to put that on my blog. At the time I resisted because it was already on someone else’s blog but now I know that while I may not have come up with that idea, I did help spread it to a new audience. Isn’t that what the internet is even for?!

So, yes, I look to Pinterest, other bloggers, and the styled mannequins at clothing stores for outfit inspiration, but I’m pretty good at putting my own spin on whatever I put together. In high school, I proudly wore purple pleather pants, dammit. I’m going to continue to wear what I like, write about things that interest me, and share it all with you in case you like it, too. Maybe it’ll help you. Maybe it’ll entertain you. Maybe you’ll find it educational. But that’s what blogging is to me and it’s what I’ll continue to do!

 Sweater: J. Crew Outlet | Hat: Old Navy | Necklace: Stitch Fix | Denim: Banana Republic | Shoes: Target