We still have about two months before our actual family vacation, which is a beach trip scheduled for the end of August, but when I got dressed this morning for the start of our three-day weekend, I was definitely feeling those vacation vibes. Especially from this outfit!

Tank: Loft Outlet | Shorts & Espadrilles: Old Navy | Kimono: Spiritual Gangster via FabFitFun | Sunnies: Target

I’m not a brave pattern mixer, but I’m really digging the kimono + espadrille look and these are the only ones I had so I put them together and rolled with it. I think it looks pretty good, especially once you add the hat (bottom photo). We don’t have a whole lot planned this 4th of July, since everything is closed or cancelled, so we’ll probably just grill some hamburgers and hot dogs and play in the awesome inflatable pool we picked up for Sebastian. We’ll also be finishing up our packing since the move to our new house happens early next week. I’ll probably live in this outfit all weekend and I’m really okay with that!

I hope you all have a safe and happy weekend!

Summer is in the air! Even though it doesn’t officially start for a few more weeks, it’s already hot as a dickens outside and I find myself reaching for my shorts, sleeveless tops, and hats. I’ve put away sweaters, scarves, and boots and I’m ready to sit poolside in my swimming suit, sipping mojitos. In the meantime, I’ll have to settle for running errands, grabbing lunch, and going for walks in these cute green shorts.

In Durham, where I live, breweries and bottle shops are very dog and family friendly. Most of the breweries have areas separate from the bar where parents can gather with their friends and kids to have a beer and play a few board games. Some of them even have nice outdoor spaces where kids can run around while parents hang out with their pals. I’m thankful for this because it allows Nick and me to go out for a drink last-minute without having to find a babysitter. And after a ridiculously long week, that’s exactly what we did. We headed to a small bottle shop near our house with Sebastian in tow. And this is the outfit I wore!

Regardless of how family friendly it was, I still felt a little like this:

via GIPHY

We weren’t out for very long, maybe an hour at most. I had one glass of wine, and Sebastian slept most of the time so I don’t feel bad about it. But I did want to feel like I was actually going out instead of having a drink at home in my pajamas so I grabbed this new pair of jeans I got from a recent Stitch Fix. I wasn’t sure how I would feel about the frayed hemline of these jeans but I slowly warmed up to them. While these may not be the first pair of jeans I reach for, I definitely wear them a bunch. And I will probably wear them even more now that the weather is starting to cool down ever so slightly.

A few weeks after Nick, Sebastian, and I went to the bottle shop together, we met up at the bottle shop with our neighbors who have a kid who is slightly older than Sebastian. It was a fun time all around. I’m sure the bottle shop won’t be the last crazy place we take our baby.

True story:

via GIPHY

Where’s the craziest place you’ve taken your baby?

Shirt: via Le Tote | Jeans: via Stitch Fix | Shoes: Banana Republic | Necklace: Old Navy | Watch: Target | Clutch: Nordstrom

I’m taking a break from the rain and gloom of today by sharing with you an outfit that I wore last week when we still had some beautiful sunshine. I picked up this faux wrap dress from Target as the Mossimo brand is being fizzled out. It has a satin weave and a breezy silhouette, giving it a style that is perfect to take me from a casual day or the office to fancy formal events. If it were the weekend, I would’ve kept it simple by pairing it with sandals, but since I wore it to the office, I decided to dress it up by slipping on my new open-toe booties.

I love the pink and olive colors. For some reason, the colors, pattern and style of this dress reminds me of Miami. I’ve only been there once and I wasn’t really paying much attention to what folks were wearing, but it’s definitely what I picture Miami ladies wearing. Maybe I’m just imagining things!

Real talk: I had this dress altered for a better fit. I asked to shorten both the shoulders and the bottom hem of the dress and I think it turned out pretty well. However, there is a snap in the front that allows you to choose how deep you want the front V to go. I love this feature but since having the shoulders altered, it’s very easy to snap open with even the slightest pull so I have to be careful, especially while at work! Next time I’ll wear a thin cami underneath, just in case.

Dress: Target | Cardigan: Banana Republic (old) | Shoes: via Rack Room | Necklace: Old Navy | Watch: Target

NCsquared at the Food Truck Rodeo

I hope everyone had a wonderful Labor Day weekend! We celebrated the unofficial end of summer by eating delicious food at Durham’s Food Truck Rodeo and having a night in with our neighbors on Sunday and by watching a lot of Netflix on Monday. It was pretty awesome. Luckily the weather was great all weekend because we had to turn off our air conditioner yesterday due to a possible freon leak — the house started to smell like band-aids every time the air would kick on, so weird — and the techs are coming out this afternoon to check things out. Other than that, we had a pretty uneventful weekend.

But this is my end-of-summer outfit. Warm enough for a sleeveless blouse and close enough to Fall for cute open-toe booties. Wearing boots in the summer can be super stylish, but I’m just now getting comfortable wearing them in warm weather. It actually took me a while to come around to wearing booties at all, which is silly because they *are* so stylish. They’ve become one of my go-to shoe choices.

On Monday morning, while Nick and Sebastian slept, I drank my coffee on our back deck. The air was crisp and the morning dew lightly coated the patio table and chairs. The birds chirped and playfully hopped through the branches in the trees. The sun peered through the clouds, creating a sweet halo of light around the yard, and it was pure bliss. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it before but this is my favorite time of year. While I am very ready for Autumn, I’m glad we still have several weeks of warm weather here in NC. I don’t have to put up my tanks and tees just yet, but I can break out the comfy sweater cardis. I really love those things! And I love those beautiful, cool mornings!

Coffee on the deck, enjoying the beautifully cool morning

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed your four-day work week. I know I’ve already started counting down for this weekend when I can relax all over again 🙂

Blouse: Old Navy | Jeans: Gap | Shoes: Madden Girl | Jewelry: Old Navy | Watch: Target

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