Stripes, polka-dots, bubblegum pink purse

Stripes and polka dots -- Why not? Let's do it. My two favorite patterns together in one outfit.

I bought this necklace on eBay as that is my thing these days, and it's sharp little points dig into my skin. It's a little more than I bargained for, but at least it looks classic cute.

The polka-dot dress and striped sweater were both thrifted (and actually so were my ballet flats now that I think about it). The purse was eBay years and years ago. I actually think it was my very first eBay purchase.

Bubblegum pink, faux-snakeskin, it is my party purse. Or my theater purse. Or my hanging out on a sunny day by a fountain purse.

It was so sunny and lovely, I didn't wear leggings or boots, and I even took off my sweater. And to think just days earlier, there had been sleet... what a wackadoodle winter this has been! Maybe spring will be more sane.

Maternity chic

I wore my birthday dress for the second time this week for a Friday night out on the town. We hit a Thai restaurant we'd been trying to go to for a million years, and it was deee-licious. Happy belated birthday to me! (On my actual birthday, I was too exhausted to go out so Robert ran out for take out and we ate in watching television -- also exciting!) Then we went to "Evita," which I've never seen and thought was pretty great. I have zero ambition to be a dictator's wife. That's what I've learned from that show. Also: I should own more gorgeous, silk robes. Evita rocked those like nobody's business!

Heart

 I heart this sweater. (Hardy-har-har.)

And I heart the striped dress under it. It's my new favorite dress. No offense, wordy dress. These things, they happen. The heart, it can be fickle.

Fickle and super cute.

In like a lion...

Wind, rain and even a little fleeting ice... March is coming in like a lion!

Rumor has it, it'll go out like a lamb. But that's just a rumor. I don't have a reliable source for it or anything.

So I wasn't intentionally this insanely blue. I just wanted to wear my new dress my mom bought me for my birthday. (Happy birthday to me!) And I like wearing my blue coat when it's raining because it has a convenient hood. Although, who really needs a hood when you have an excellent bubble umbrella, am I right? Look at that umbrella! It's so bubbly! Bubble umbrellas -- one of the best things about a rainy day.

Goodbye house, hello hat

 My parents are moving out of my childhood home and into a new one that is closer to their granchildren and future grandchild (that bun who is currently in the oven). I am happy they will be closer, but I went to say goodbye to the house this weekend, and I felt so many feelings.

I try really hard to be present, and that's the way to go in general, but I also don't mind being totally consumed with nostalgia every once in a while. I lived in that house from ages 7 to 18, and I've been back to visit regularly cause, you know, my parents live there. I have so many memories! Staring out windows, playing in creeks, riding bikes, taking cranky teenage walks with my best friends...

I did a last "walk through" of the house to make sure my parents weren't purging anything I wanted. Mostly, I left with some of my mom's clothes. That hat? That's my mom's hat. She bought it for a wedding many, many years ago, and I pretty much love it.

I paired it with a maxi-skirt, brown cardigan and flats in a look I like to describe as "late winter staring at spring." The daffodils are out, people! It is happening! Eventually!

And by the time spring is sincerely here, my parents will be in their new home, and we'll start making new memories. I know so many people who are moving and getting married and changing their lives in dramatic ways. And, hey, we're having a baby so that's going to totally explode our lives too! Change is upon us. Might as well move forward.

Style Icon: Jem

Glamour and glitter, fashion and fun, Jem is truly outrageous! (You can't argue with that logic.)

She had pink hair way before Gwen Stefani. She's a rockstar. She wears all pink. She has an alter-ego (or I guess, Jem is the alter-ego). She has a hottie boyfriend.

She is so '80s in all the best ways (Big hair! Big heels! Fringe! Shine!).

As a child of the '80s, I loved the cartoon Jem and the Holograms so so much. What a fabulous, glamorous world it was!



And, as stated early, she is truly, truly, truly outrageous. Not to mention the fact her music's contagious.

Optical Illusion

Where's the bump?

Little secret: Back before I was pregnant, I had a bit of a belly, and I loved the above shirt because it 100 percent hid it. Best. Shirt. Ever. It's a thrifted maternity shirt, and the pattern and cut creates an optical illusion of a relatively flat stomach. It even works on my almost-five-months pregnant belly. (But some people tell me I don't look pregnant at all. And then other people (okay just one person) say I look *at least* six months. And I'm all like "Stop body policing me people!").

Anyway, this is a really good shirt, preggers or not preggers. An excellent, time-tested thrifted find.