Here’s the next outfit in my Work From Home Wardrobe Series where I display the cute outfits I’m wearing while working from home during the coronavirus pandemic.

It was slightly chilly out when I wore this outfit, hence the light sweater. It’s another outfit I would probably wear to the office with some cute little flats or sandals, and it was great for being at home. My projects these last few weeks have involved writing two newsletters for my program, working on a progress report, and working on a literature review. Lots of sitting, writing, and reading!

Sweater: Charter School Sweater by ModCloth | Chinos: J. Crew

I know this is supposed to be an outfit post, but let’s take a moment to chat about that straight hair! I didn’t have a whole lot going on this day–no video calls or chats for work–so I didn’t bother curling it. My hair is actually pretty cute straight as well as curled but I often choose to curl it because Nick once said I look more “reserved and serious” with straight hair. I used to straighten it all the time. I’m thinking I might have to start doing it more often.

Here’s the next outfit in my Work From Home Wardrobe Series where I display the cute outfits I’m wearing while working from home during the coronavirus pandemic.

Even though this is an outfit that I would totally wear to the office, it’s comfortable enough to wear at home, too! The jeans are stretchy, the blouse is very light, and the cardigan is perfect for a blasting air conditioner (both at the office and at home – yes, it gets cold here in the summer when Nick gets his way). Sometimes I like to feel dressed up at home. This was another day where I had several video meetings so I fixed up my hair and make up a little bit. Not a bad look for home!

Blouse: Loft | Cardigan: Old Navy | Jeans: Wit & Wisdom | Shoes: Old Navy

I took this photo after returning from a walk with the dogs, that’s why I have shoes on. Otherwise, I prefer barefeet or slippers.

Hi, everyone! These last few weeks (months?) have been a bit of a whirlwind with lots of changes and new routines to get used to. I’m here with an update on all of the newness in our lives including a new job, Invisalign, new daycares, and a new furbaby!

Beauty

I cut my hair and I started Invisalign!

You can’t even see them!

In middle school, I wore braces for two and a half years. Over these last few years I could tell that my teeth have been shifting. I was becoming increasingly unhappy with my smile and finally decided to do something about it – Invisalign! I started mid-November and wear a special set of trays for one week and then change to the next special set. Each set applies the right amount of force to move my teeth to where they need to be. I’ll be wearing them for about 9 months, which is a piece of cake compared to the years I spent in metal braces. I’m slowly acclimating to them but the best part is I’ll be done before you know it!

Work

In November, I started a new job at Duke University as a program coordinator for the Center for AIDS Research and I’m housed within the Department of Population Health Sciences. I coordinate the social and behavioral sciences program for investigators who research HIV/AIDS, so I’m still working in the field of sexual health – my passion – but in a slightly different capacity. I’ve been with this job for a little over a month now and I’m loving it so far. My team is amazing, my office is bright and happy, and I really like the work I’m doing it. It was a much needed change of pace and a great step up in my career.

My sweet digs at the new office.

Home & Family

As if a new job and new teeth (sort of) weren’t enough, we decided to move Sebastian to a new daycare and then we adopted another dog!

New School

Santa visited Sebastian at his new school. He was so excited! He told Santa he wanted cars for Christmas.

Seb’s new daycare is about 10 minutes from my new office and I like being so close by in case anything happens. It’s located farther away from our house than his previous daycare (about 20 mins vs. 7 minutes) so we’ve had to create a new morning routine to make sure we’re ready and out the door without being late. It has been worth it, though, because in the short time that he’s been at this new daycare he has flourished! He’s happier, speaking more, and singing songs. At his old daycare, he was having a bathroom “accident” almost every day but at this new daycare he hasn’t had a single one. I had had some suspicions about his former teachers not paying enough attention to the kids and this kind of confirms it. But the important thing is that he’s thriving now!

New Puppy

Meet Milo, our new puppy!

Milo Pilo

He’s a 1.5-year-old Chihuahua mix, and he’s quite the snuggle bug. We adopted him at the beginning of December and fell in love immediately. He’s such a sweet, wiggly little guy and we’re so happy to have him. We had a few early hiccups but he’s settling in quite nicely! We chose his name because we thought it sounded good with our other dog, Mia. Mia and Milo… kind of rolls off the tongue! His full name is Milo Pilo with ‘Pilo’ being a subtle nod to Nick’s and my favorite TV show in the whole world, Parks and Recreation per the clip below…

…and also because we make our dogs’ names rhyme! Chico Antonio, Mia Sophia, and Milo Pilo. It’s just what we do 🙂 I mean, look at how cute they are!

Mia & Milo

Anyway, I think that’s it for now. With the holidays coming up, we’ll be even busier but I have a few things in the works for the new year so I hope you’ll stick with me. Wishing you all the best!

Xo, Nicole

It’s time for this week’s Friday Four, a fun survey I’m doing so that my readers can get to know me a little better. This week it’s Four Places I Have Lived. This may get a little boring because I’ve only ever lived in North Carolina, but here goes.

1) Wilkesboro, NC. I was lucky enough to grow up in western North Carolina, surrounded by mountains and beautiful lakes and friendly folks. It’s a small town and I couldn’t wait to get out when I was a teenager, but now I cherish every holiday and weekend trip back to visit family. Even though I will never live there again, it will always be my home.

2) Greenville, NC. Home of the East Carolina Pirates, arrghh! G’Vegas (as the college students lovingly refer to it) is THE quintessential college town. During football season, everything turns purple and gold from restaurants to grocery stores to local businesses. That is one of the things I truly loved and will miss about Greenville. Other than that, I was also happy to leave after undergrad.

3 & 4) The Triangle. I’m lumping 3 & 4 together because they’re basically the same thing, just different cities. I’ve lived all over the Triangle, from Morrisville to Raleigh to my current location in Durham. The Triangle, which gets its name from the Research Triangle Park and its anchor universities (NC State, Duke, and UNC-Chapel Hill, which form a triangle when you connect them on a map), is where my heart is and where I will probably live for the rest of my life. There is so much to do here that it’s the perfect place to live, and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else!

Of course, home is where my family is so it doesn’t matter where I live as long as I’m with them!

*All photos by me except for the bottom right, which was taken by 2+3 Photography.

My Neighborhood

This is my street and it’s been home-sweet-home for the past year. We’re slowly getting to know our neighbors and I have to admit that having Mia has helped. We walk her along this sidewalk, which is on the opposite side of the street from our house, 2 – 3 times a day and she loves people so much that when the neighbors are out, she runs up to them and they think she’s just the sweetest thing!  We’re lucky they’re dog people. One neighbor toward the end and her dog, Andrea and Foster, are usually out in the evenings and look forward to their visits with us; Andrea always has treats! There’s also the lady  that has the really nice yard – the grass is lusciously green in the summer, her mulch is perfect and she has beautiful flowers, shrubs and trees – who loves petting Mia in the mornings.  We’ve seen lots of other dogs in the street but we haven’t met all of them yet. Everyone else has been really nice but we’re still getting to know each other and we have plenty of time.