Dress: Market & Spruce via Stitch Fix | Wedges: J. Crew Factory | Sunnies: Target

On Wednesday, Nick and I took the day off of work to celebrate his upcoming birthday. We decided we would go to a fancy spa nearby and pamper ourselves with couple’s massages, relaxation, and a fancy lunch. This cute little Market & Spruce dress I got from my latest Stitch Fix is what I wore. The spa day sounded great in theory but, what I didn’t expect when I got there was just how out of my element I would feel in that setting. You see, I’m from a working class family where I was taught that your work ethic should be strong and the little luxuries were buying the name-brand cereal. Taking a whole day (or even half a day) to sit around in fancy robes and sip citrus water elixirs while harps played in the background was unheard of.

Finally, an outfit post!

I’ve written about how my lifestyle has outgrown a lot of my clothes, so I’m working hard to clear my closet of any item that doesn’t make me feel like a million bucks every time I wear it. I’m also trying to live a more minimal life to focus more on experiences than material things. It’s harder than it should be due to the emotional value I place on things. I’m working on that, as well. I don’t think I’m quite ready for a capsule (or minimalist) wardrobe yet, but I might be moving more toward that direction.

I know I’m a little late with this post but better late than never. Before the baby came along, we spent the Fourth of July watching baseball, eating hot dogs, and watching fireworks.  It’s what we’ve done ever since we moved to Durham, and I love it. Baseball is my favorite, hot dogs are delicious, and fireworks are fun! It’s a win-win.

Durham Bulls

Are you wearing red?

I hope so because today is National Wear Red Day in order to raise awareness of heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases that affect women. According to the website, “cardiovascular disease in the U.S. kills  approximately one woman every 80 seconds. The good news is that 80 percent of cardiac events may be prevented with education and lifestyle changes. Go Red For Women advocates for more research and swifter action for women’s heart health.”

photo source

The whole month of February is Heart Health Month. In the past, I didn’t give this topic much thought, being a young and healthy woman. This year, as you might imagine, it holds a much deeper meaning for me. You see, I am a heart attack survivor.

I don’t have heart disease and I had no other risk factors except pregnancy. However, I made it a point to know the warning signs (I can thank my anxiety for that) and it really did save my life. So, I encourage all of you to take a minute to think about what you’re doing for your heart and then take a few steps to do better.  If you don’t know how, a good place to start is the NC Division of Public Health’s website. And while you’re there, you can read the interview I did with them.

Sebastian and Mommy wearing red to show our support for heart health.

Today I’m wearing red for myself and for my son, Sebastian. I’m lucky to still be here to love him and to take care of him. He’s the best reason I need to take care of my heart. So,  please take care of your heart so it can take care of you.

Why do you wear red?

I bought these pants at Zara last July on my trip to Los Angeles to visit my best friend so I call them my “LA pants.” On the day I got them, we had planned to go hiking in Griffith Park while Nick played golf but when K told me there was a Zara in the mall, I begged her to take me there instead. I wanted to be able to say I went shopping at Zara. Why this was a big deal to me, I still have no idea, but I went and ended up with these awesome pants. I only got to wear them a few times because I knew that I was pregnant and pretty soon they wouldn’t fit. So now I’m making up for lost time. I wore this outfit to work last week and received a few compliments. Not bad.

I like that the floral pattern has a lot of different colors; they’re pretty easy to match with different tops. I chose red for this outfit but I’ll probably go with pink next time and mustard after that. The possibilities are pretty much endless. I also really like the straight leg. While I think skinny jeans/pants look nice and are comfortable, I’m also a fan of the larger leg opening of straight and boot cut jeans because I think they can be just as flattering. And they make me look a little taller than I am!

Cardigan: ModCloth | Blouse: Le Tote | Trousers: Zara | Shoes: Banana Republic | Sunnies: Target

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