The Sack Dress, Cuter Than A Bathrobe

This is the type of outfit I wouldn't normally blog about.  It's essentially a t-shirt, only long enough that I don't have to wear pants with it.  It's essentially a sack, a few steps up from a garbage bag (see the saggy diaper butt after a day of wearing it??)  But it's a cute garbage bag.  It's cool and easy - perfect for a poolside cover-up, quick enough for oversleeping or last minute errands first thing in the morning, and cuter than your bathrobe.

Dress: Banana Republic Factory (got it on sale for $21, although it retails for $49.99) (similar here)

Scarf: Forever21 (similar here)

Bracelets: Banana Republic Factory and JCrew (similar here and here)

Sandals: Candies (similar here)

Clutch: Coach (similar here)

Sunglasses: Nordstrom

So why am I letting you see this dress?  Believe it or not, I have received more compliments on this dress than anything else in my closet this summer.  One evening, the Mr and I were lounging on the couch watching   the television (somewhat aimlessly) when he turned to me and said, "Hey, I wanted to tell you something."  Like a bunny, my ears perked up, alert to the sound of an impending, ominous conversation.

"I really like you in that dress."

"WHAT??"

"I don't know, maybe it's the way I can grab your butt......"

My head still hurts from what may very well be the world's most exaggerated eye roll.

And I thought, "Out of all the things I wear, this is what you like??"

p.s. I'm linking up with The Pleated Poppy and Transatlantic Blonde for WIWW.

Comtemporary, Retro, or Classic?

I don't have to tell you it's summer because, well.....I would be stating the obvious.  However, it is summer, and as much as I love to put together outfits that look better than sweatsuits, that becomes increasingly more difficult.  Mornings are spent in gym clothes at the gym, afternoons are spent in swimwear and cover-ups and the evenings we just try to stay as cool as possible (in as little as possible!)

Though my pre-baby body says yes! to this:

Swimsuit and hat: Old Navy.

My post-baby body says thank you! to this:

Swimsuit, sunglasses, sandals, and swim trunks: Old Navy

Bag: Forever21

*aren't those little trunks cute.....matching swimsuits make it a lot easier to find them in the endless sea of children (pun completely intended.)

My sons and I are planning a trip in July, to the East Coast for some well-deserved beach time.  The beach is my favorite spot to vacation (but I have to give a shout-out to the Mountains, which come in at a very very close second.)  There is something about the air (literally, the air you breathe,) the atmosphere, and the sound of waves crashing to the shore.  It's as if it changes us.  Whining all the way to beach, my children are suddenly subdued, happy to calmly play in the surf or build sand castles.  It's the one time they are near water that I can just sit there and watch them play, getting in my own much-needed relaxation time.  As excited as I am for them to be self-entertained, I'm also excited about the kaftans that are trending right now (wait.....when are kaftans not trending??)  Kaftans - like an ethnic bathrobe, really!

Kaftan: DVF

Buy inexpensive swimsuit and splurge on the cover-up?  I think so.

Ah, to sit by the beach in a comfortable kaftan while the boys play in the ocean surf.....

Thank you again to Old Navy for sponsoring my post. I was compensated for this post as a member of Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all my own.

Candy Stripes Part II

Remember this jacket?  

Top: Ralph Lauren (similar here and here)

Necklaces: Target (similar here)

Skirt: Old Navy

Bracelet: Target

Clutch: Loeffler Randall for Target (similar here)

Shoes: Daisy Fuentes (similar here)

Are you still wearing Polo shirts?  Do you think polos are in, or are they out?

p.s. I've got a great giveaway coming to the blog Thursday, April 19! 

Pastel + Peplum

Why is it that when you try on an article of clothing/accessory/shoe in a store, you fall in love with it and think it looks great?  Then you get home, put it on and notice all of its' flaws and unflattering ways?

Is the high of a new purchase (or the excitement of a possible new purchase) akin to the beer goggle effect when drinking alcohol??

(you know it's bad when this was the best picture.....)

Jacket, Kohls. Denim, Kohls.  Shoes, Old Navy.   

I am not even kidding when I say that I nearly giggled when I tried this jacket on in the store.  I thought it was perfect.  I loved it.  I loved peplum.  I loved......the magical endorphins that must have been coursing through my veins as I looked into that store mirror. 

Mirrors lie.  Apparently my own eyes prefer to decieve me.  But photographs; not only can they speak a thousand words, they never lie (unless, you know, altered by Photoshop.)

The Instagram (@_TripleP) version of this outfit:

(not any better, huh.)

And before I forget, this post is brought to you in part by: