What I Wore Wednesday at 34 Weeks

Let's be honest: I haven't been posting outfit posts, because nothing is comfortable any more. I'm outgrowing maternity clothes, wear a lot of sweats and pjs and just throw on whatever is big enough to be covered. And, when I do actually put on something cute (usually for church on Sunday or to visit the midwife), I never remember to grab the camera. Pants are getting less comfortable, jeans, no matter what size. This guy is getting big! Skirts and leggings are more comfortable, but seem ridiculous to wear around the house. This outfit was to take Kalaya to see Santa, because I suspected I may end up in the picture too. (I was right, more about that later) This was taken at 34 weeks.

Sweater: Hand me down (Motherhood)
Skirt: Thrifted (Motherhood)
Leggings, boots: Kohl's
Snowflake Pin: Target

And the belly to go with it....

What I (We) Wore Wednesday 9/21

So, this last weekend marked a family tradition; The Pendleton Round Up! Basically, it's a big rodeo in a town near where my dad grew up. Many generations of my (dad's) family and friends have been going to it over the years. (this was the 101st year of it) Actually, past family members used to BE in the rodeo itself.

Nelson and I have gone several times. One trip was actually when we got engaged, though not at the rodeo itself. We went last year for the 100th and this year we went because my brother and niece were in town. After this, we are taking a several year break. It's not the best/easiest place to have a toddler, and with 2 coming along, we'll probably start going again when our kids are in elementary school.

It's funny. We are SO not rodeo people, but we have a good time. I look past the sexism (sorry, but there aren't too many girl events), the potential cruelty animals (I don't actually think this is the case, but....) and the lack of diversity and such (referring to 'Indians' and there are a LOT of white people in one place that day....) and just enjoy the experience.

Of course, a rodeo requires certain clothing. My Wranglers just wouldn't work with the belly (I actually got them on AND buttoned, but wouldn't have been able to sit, drink or eat anything that day....), so I adapted a little bit. Everyone else is in gear too, I especially love all the kids outfits!!

My outfit:
Hat, Belt: Hamley's (western store in Pendleton)
Shirt and Boots: D&B Supply (same)

Tank: Forever 21

Mat Jeans: Motherhood
Buckle: street vendor

I am linking with That Kind of Mom.

What I Wore Wednesday 8/17

Confession: I still watch Kate Plus 8 every week, even though their family went a little crazy. She's about the go off the air soon, which I definitely think it's time for, but I still like watching the kids. I am forever connected to that show, because I discovered it at the end of my first pregnancy and while I was nursing a baby late at night. The early episodes were sweet and I miss it and it will always be in my heart. : )

What that has to do with fashion is this: on Monday's episode, she made a statement that literally made me say "AMEN!" and clap for her out loud. "Mother's get a window until their youngest child is 5, where they are allowed to look frumpy, wear old clothes, tshirts, etc, because they're changing their clothes from messes ten times a day anyway!!!" (or something like that) While I applaud women who dress cute every day, it isn't for me. Heck, it wasn't even for me at the time in my life when I felt the most pressure to dress a certain way; high school. I wore what I felt like a lot of the time and that often meant super comfy and casual. If we leave the house, I usually try to at least get out of sweats, but not always. Nelson jokes that we often look homeless at the grocery store together. : ) I love my husband.

The last few weeks have looked like the pics below pretty much every day. I have had some cute looks, but was too busy to grab the camera. The good news is, these clothes are evidence of two MAJOR things: CLEANING and PACKING!!! I have been working on getting things ready to take to our NEW HOUSE, so these types of outfits are a beautiful thing!

(not that you care, but...)
shirt: Youth Group Mission Trip Summer 2010
shorts: Westview (my high school) Football shorts, stolen from my brother (shhhh...)

And, there's a belly pic, just for fun. : ) 16 weeks

As always, I am linking with That Kind of Mom

What I Wore Wed 8/3

Finally, I remembered to keep my camera near the mirror! It's been wonderful, perfect summer weather in the Northwest, so we've been outside a lot and enjoying the sun! I have realized I don't have a lot of summer maternity clothes (I didn't need them last pregnancy), so I have some mixes of maternity and non pieces this week. I'll mark those that are not. I'll also mark items purchased this year, incase someone out there just loves something! : )

Shirt: Motherhood (hand me down)
Shorts: Old Navy (hand me down)
Tank* and Bella Band* (not shown): Motherhood outlet

Shirt*, shorts*: Ross

This skirt is possibly the most comfortable piece of maternity clothing I've ever owned!! (my husband thinks it's hideous, but I don't care! : )

Shirt: Costco**
Skirt: Old Navy*

*Shirt**, *Dress**: Target
Shorts*: Ross

Shirt*: Old Navy
Tank*: Motherhood Outlet
*Shorts**: Old Navy
Necklace: Forever 21 accessory store

*Purchased this season
**Non-Maternity

The following outfit is proof of daily accomplishment. It means that I, as a pregnant mother of a toddler, was able to take a shower. It means my body, hair and teeth are cleaned. And THAT is beautiful every day!!!

One last thing that helps me feel better is a pedicure. I go very infrequently and it's the only pampering I really do for myself. (I am not exaggerating. I get my hair cut as Great Clips and only with a coupon!!) It always feels so nice afterwards!

I am linking up with That Kind of Mom.

What I Wore Wednesday 7/27

I am so proud of one of my all time best friends for passing along the 'What I Wore Wednesday' posts and adding her on twist. You can link to her below!

If you are new to my blog, welcome! What I Wore Wednesday has recently started changing for me, since I'm pregnant with my second child! I actually really like a lot of the maternity clothes that I have from my first pregnancy and have already picked up a few new pieces.

I love the search for inexpensive maternity clothes. I have gotten some great stuff handed down to me and I love going to Goodwill to find more. It's so great, because thrifted maternity clothes tend to still be in GREAT shape, since they only get worn for a few months! I find lots of brand names, my favorite being Motherhood, but pay SO much less than the prices in their stores. I also find pieces at Ross, Target and Old Navy.

The most important thing for me with all of my clothes, whether pregnant or not, is comfort. I have been surprised over the years to discover some trendy clothes that actually are pretty comfortable. I know a lot of pregnant women need to fit in their pre-pregnancy clothes as long as possible and as soon as possible after their baby is born. That didn't bother me with my first pregnancy and it hasn't with this one. A large part of that is because I think that maternity clothes these days are really cute! And there are so many styles to choose from of all types of clothing. Some stuff does look baggy for awhile (though that ends all too soon), because they do fit differently in more areas than just the waist (aka, most jeans), but there are lots of other options. With my last pregnancy, it was late fall through spring (in Oregon), so I mainly wore cool weather clothing. This pregnancy, I'm pregnant in the summer, so I've had to get some new things. Plus, I started showing about 30 seconds after I got pregnant, so I've needed things sooner this time!

I found this dress at Goodwill for less than 7 bucks and I love it. It's super comfortable and really versitle. I wore it out for our 5th anniversary and plan to wear it to a wedding in a few weeks. It's not too dressy though, I can wear it just about any where, just have to change shoes and accessories. This may be one of my last time with the wedges though, my balance felt a little off with the extra weight in front!

Dress: Goodwill (originally Motherhood)
Shoes: Nordstrom Rack
Purse: Ross
Necklace: Some boutique in Spain, 2005

I am linking with That Kind of Mom.

WIWW 7/20

Well, now that the word is out, I can explain my lack of blogging, particularly ‘What I Wore Wednesday”. I haven’t been taking pictures of my outfits for 2 reasons. (1) All of my clothes are already maternity (mostly), and we were not announcing the pregnancy yet, so I didn’t want to post about it! (2) I have slipped into Mommy-mode clothes more often than not because yoga pants and sweats have elastic waists and all of my ‘cute’ pre-pregnancy clothes no longer fit. I’ve definitely been wearing old t-shirts with comfy pants more days than not. And, I’m certainly not ashamed of it, but haven’t taken pictures. : ) I’ll start doing ‘What I Wore Wednesday, The Maternity Months’ soon, hopefully by next week.

I want to take a minute to send you to the blog of one of my favorite people and best friends in the whole world: That Kind of Mom She is an amazing person, wonderful mom and I just love her! Her blog is so awesome and today’s post is no exception. She is very brave and honest in today’s post and I just love her for all that she does. We’ve known each other since we were 8!!!

Just for fun, here’s a special outfit for WIWW. Last Thursday was (I hope you all know!) the premiere of the final Harry Potter movie. As for every other, I went to the midnight showing, in costume of course!! I didn’t take a picture that night, but here is a pic of me last Halloween (along with my beautiful family) in the same outfit. I am so sad that the movies are done being released, because all of my friends know that I am one of those crazy fans!!! I made most of my outfit myself, back in college, for the premiere of the 3rd movie. I embroidered the Gryffindor colors on the vest and sewed on the patch to my robes myself. (Nelson's costume is from Goodwill, Kalaya's from Babies R Us)

Gryffindor Scarf and patch: Ebay

Vest, graduation robe: Goodwill

Black Skirt: Buffalo Exchange

White shirt, red tie: no idea, borrowed from my husband

Black Knee socks (yup!): Ross

Black Flats: Payless Shoe Source

I am linking with That Kind of Mom

What I Wore Wednesday

Just a couple of pics this week. I swear, I'm wearing outfits cuter than sweats more days than I post, but I don't always get around to grabbing my camera. The first outfit shirt and shoes are new. I wanted to try the wedge shoes (which, by the way, make me TOWER over my husband) but didn't want to pay very much. I found a really cute pair this week that were $60 and I do NOT pay that much for shoes. So, I searched the clearance bin and found these marked down 65% (love that!) for only $13!!! Couldn't pass that up!

Shirt: Ross

Jeans: Target
Shoes: Nordstrom Rack

Yup, it is still chilly here. I can get away with these tall boots that I love and cost me next to nothing, because I bought them with Kohl's Cash and birthday money in November!!!

Sweater, T, Jeans: Target
Boots: Kohl's
Necklace: Forever 21 Accessory Store

The family picture shows my dress I wore to church for Easter. I LOVE this dress. Last summer I wanted to get a new summer print to wear to events such as weddings, etc. I absolutely love the 50s housewife-type dresses. I tried on several and made a point not to read the price tag, because I wanted to buy something that made me feel good, not just because it was inexpensive. I tried this dress on and fell in love with it (it even has housewife pockets!!) and when I checked the price tag afterward, discovered it was $100. : ( I couldn't remember if it was on a sale rack or not, because it was the last one, so I decided to brave it and go up the the cash register. And, get this???? IT WAS 75% off!!! 25 bucks!! It made it even more awesome. I love it. I may wear it to my 10 year reunion this summer. And, of course, every good house wife has to wear pearls. : )

Dress: JC Penney
Shoes (not pictured): Ross
Necklace (fake): K Mart

(Tomorrow's 'Small Style' will include a detailed description of Kalaya's Easter outfit!)

What I Wore Wednesday

I was very, very lazy this week about WIWW. I was PMSing big time and lived in sweats all of the last week. I did manage to wear a couple of outfits, but then forgot to take pictures. The only pic I have of myself is from our mommy group egg hunt, so here it is. I really like the navy and red combination. I had a red cardigan with this as well, but wasn't photographed in it. Everything I am wearing is from Target, except for the necklace, which was from Claire's several years ago.

What I Wore Wednesday

I actually managed to take pictures of 4 of my outfits last week, but I actually made an effort to put 6 cute outfits together, but didn't take pictures of the ones on the weekends. Still, I feel proud of myself for not wearing sweats every day!!

This is a pretty typical outfit for me. I've been on a plaid, button-up shirt kick this winter, probably inspired a LOT by Claire on Modern Family. (LOVE that show!)

Plaid Shirt, jeans: Target
Flats: Payless Shoe Source

This outfit was a big step for me. I love t-shirts and this is my all time favorite one. But, it's hard (for me) to make a t-shirt look stylish. I usually just throw it on with sweat pants or jeans and a hoodie over it. I thought the cardigan, flats and earrings made it more fun!

Ramona shirt: Portland Public Library
Cardigan, jeans, flats: Target
Earrings: The Icing

Ramona is one of my all time favorite characters EVER!

It is still really chilly here most days, even when it's sunny. I'm enjoying wearing my sweaters and boots for a little while longer, plus almost all of my summer clothes (and shoes!) are in storage.

Hooded Sweater: Victoria's Secret
Jeans, long sleeve tee: Target
Boots: Payless Shoe Source
Necklace: Forever 21 accessory store

Cardigan: thrifted
T-shirt, jeans, flats: Target
Earrings: The Icing

I'm discovering that while I enjoy using cute, 'stylish' (I'm not sure WHAT that is) pieces, the most important thing to me is comfort. I also tend to wear something not totally feminine to balance things out. (I've never been a total girly girl) I also like color!

My First What I Wore Wednesday

I have several mom blogs that I read who participate in "What I Wore Wednesday". The idea (I think) started with a mom who wanted to stop being so 'mommy' about fashion (i.e. sweats, pjs, the first thing you find that's not filthy in the morning) and start focusing on embracing the mommy body and styling it it fun and cute.

Having a baby changed how I felt about my body. I've never been a person who thought she was all that attractive, but I realized I had a lot more confidence pre-baby than I realized. Not that I think I'm fat, ugly, etc. It's just that your body changes and becomes something so different while being pregnant and after becoming a mom. The last thing I felt was sexy, pretty, or as though people want to look at me. (Plus, really, everyone looks at my kid now anyway!) Plus, in our family situation, I rarely leave the house during the week. Nelson takes the (only) car to work and we don't go many places. Why dress up to sit around the house, cleaning up messes, doing chores, cooking, etc? But, the truth is, I feel better when I wear more than just sweats. (though not always as comfortable.)

This past November, for my birthday, I decided I wanted to update my wardrobe a little bit. I went on a shopping spree and actually tried on clothes that weren't: sweats, 2 sizes too big, maternity, and some were actually form fitting, including my first pair of skinny jeans. I ended up feeling great and was surprised to find out that I could still feel attractive and enjoy wearing clothes. I decided to embrace my new body, rather than hide it. I had the same mind set a couple of weeks ago when I went to buy clothes for spring. I even bought a pair of jeggings, which I still can't believe and I love them!

Some of my other friends who participate in this post have several outfits each week. I don't know if I'm at that point yet. Maybe when we start going out and about more. Maybe when I'm back in school or something similar. For now, it's going to be when I have the car or on weekends. I'll probably only post 1-2 outfits per week. But, it's something!!! I'm kicking myself, because I wore lots of cute (spring!) outfits on my trip and only took one picture that shows my outfit. And, now it's too cold in Oregon to wear those clothes. However, here's my first official What I Wore Wednesday:

Shirt & jeggings: Target
Flats: Payless Shoe Source
Necklace: Forever 21 accessory store

I am linking with That Kind of Mom and Mama Loves Papa