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

While everything I wear is a reflection of the style I like, this outfit is one of those that feels so quintessentially me. The cute top, the comfortable pants, mostly neutral with a pop of color in the shoes… these are the things that make me feel happy and confident in an outfit. Of course, happy and confident are the main feelings I try to achieve with any outfit (as well as comfortable!) but this one really hits the mark.

For all of my adult career, I’ve enjoyed dressing business casual. I’ve never really been the jeans and tee kind of girl because that’s just me. Once, in middle school, my gym/health teacher asked me why I was always so dressed up. I think I told him I just liked to look nice. Nothing wrong with that! And this outfit looks really nice. It’s simple yet elegant. The only thing missing in this whole ensemble is some color on my lips!

I mentioned in one of my posts last week that Target is retiring its Mossimo and Merona brands but will continue with its Who What Wear line (along with several new lines). This shirt is from that line and one of the reasons I ain’t mad about Target’s decision. It’s a great shirt! It’s cute and interesting, it can be dressed up (like here, or with a skirt) or down (with jeans), and it can be worn with just about any other color. That’s a win in my book.

Top: Who What Wear via Target | Trousers: Banana Republic | Shoes: Old Navy | Sunnies & Watch: Target

What outfit combinations or qualities make you feel happy and confident?

Linkup: Spread the Kindness Linkup | Confident Twosday | Trend Spin Linkup

When I say that these are the perfect shorts, I mean it. They’re stylish (I can pair them with just about every shirt in my closet), they’re comfortable (not too short), and they don’t look too bad all wrinkled! I used to hate wearing shorts in the summer because they always felt too short so I’m getting a lot of use out of these. I love them so much that I have to make myself not reach for them every time I leave the house in the evenings/on weekends.

How cute is this necklace? It was my very first Mother’s Day gift from Nick and he did a really good job, even though I picked it out 😉 I wish the chain was slightly shorter so I’ve been looking for a new one without much luck. I often have that problem with necklaces: instead of an extender, I need a shortener. Such are the perils of being a short person.

I tied my t-shirt to give the outfit a little more visual interest. I think I like tying my shirts more than doing the half tuck because the tie seems to look better on me, with the short torso and all.

Shorts: Target | Tee: Old Navy | Shoes: via Rack Room | Sunnies: Target | Necklace: Etsy

For the majority of my career, I’ve worked for nonprofit organizations. I love the work and I love that I feel good about what I do because I know we’re making a difference in the community. I also appreciate that I’ve never really had a hard dress code. Mostly, it’s always been wear whatever you want as long as you didn’t sleep in it (you know, pajamas). My current office is business casual which roughly translates to “anything but regular blue jeans” except on casual Fridays. And I really like this because it forces me to put some thought into my work wear without having to follow guidelines that are too rigid. Some days I feel like dressing up a little more than others and our business casual allows for that.

In my office, it’s not uncommon to see anything from skirt/pant suits to pretty skirts to chinos and a nice blouse. And I’ve worn them all. This is an outfit I work to work last week and it fit quite nicely. It could easily be a drab gray and white number but all of the little details take it up a notch. The tied belt and pleats add visual interest to the trousers while the sparkle of the shoe adds a little pep in my step 🙂

Who says you can’t look cute and fun even when you sit at a desk, entering data?! Now I just have to do something about that hair.

Top: Belk, I think | Trousers: Banana Republic | Shoes: Fioni via Payless | Necklace: Old Navy | Watch & Sunnies: Target

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