Working Mom

Today, I am suppose to work from home but unfortunately an emergency hearing came up so I'm up early to prep and drive to the courthouse.  This is a new me that prefers to be at home.  Of course, being home means being with my baby but before Lucas, I did not like staying home during the day.  My husband used to ask me if I won the lottery would I quit my job and stay at home.  I staunchly would reply that I would never quit my job and that I had worked too hard to fulfill my lifelong dream of being an attorney.  Well, fast forward to the absolute happiness of taking care of my baby and now, I can honestly say that if I won the lottery, I would choose to only work two days.  I really do love my job so I don't think I could ever say that I would completely quit.  Plus, I don't play the lottery.  I think working and being a mom are going to take some time to get used to but, right now, life is good.  Going to the gym will have to wait ;-)

Sweater: J Crew  /  Shirt: Banana Republic  /  Skirt: Loft  /  Shoes: DSW  

 'L' Necklace: Very Jane (similar)

Double Trouble Stripes

It's now been a week since I've been back at work and I'm still heartbroken.  I work from home on Mondays which makes things a little easier but I definitely had a loooong ugly cry Monday evening as I started preparing things for the morning.  Once I am at the office, it is not so bad.  Luckily, I've literally been in court every day this week which makes the day go by quicker.  My mom sends my lots of pictures and videos throughout the day and that helps as well.  Hopefully, once we get into more of a routine, I won't feel like such a monster when I drop him off at my parent's house in the morning.  Once thing is for sure, this weekend will be spent snuggling lots and lots with my little guy...and maybe checking out the Phillip Lim collection at Target ;-)

Shirt: Old Navy  /  Pants: Loft  /  Shoes: Nine West  /  Jewelry: David Yurman, Pandora, Groopdealz necklace, Tiffanys, Lorenzo

Quick Update

Just a quick blog update today to say that I am alive and made it through my first day back at the office (not without lots of tears of course!)  Time-wise, it's been nuts so I haven't had the time to prepare proper posts but outfit posts will finally be back!  I'm wearing real clothes now and not pajamas.  In the meantime, a gratuitous picture of Lucas called for the occasion :-)

Maternity Clothes Must Haves

I work an 8-5 (or longer) Monday through Friday job so wearing yoga pants my entire pregnancy was out of the question so maternity clothes were a must.  Most days, I still had to wear a suit or something resembling suit separates.  However, I told myself that I wouldn't buy too many maternity clothes and I stuck to this promise.  My belly popped out very early so I learned that with a few key pieces and using some pre-pregnancy clothes, I was able to dress myself professionally every day and get through my pregnancy with some style.  Below are just some pieces that were able to get me through the week and weekend while pregnant.  You do not have to spend a lot of money to get through pregnancy in style!  Some of my favorite places to shop for bargain pregnancy clothes were Target, Old Navy, and the sale sections of Gap and Loft.  Motherhood Maternity also has great pencil skirts.  Below is what worked for me but I'd love to know and read any of your suggestions on your preggo style :-)

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I kept it simple by only purchasing basic pieces and accessorizing with what I already owned.  Most of the time, I wore dresses with a cardigan then belting the dress to emphasize the bump.  You know, reminding people that there was a baby in there and not 10 burritos.  Statement necklaces are also great to break up an otherwise simple outfit.  Heels were a no go for me so I wore the heck out of my black ballerina flats.  If you only buy a few maternity work items, I definitely recommend the above picks as those are what got me by and I literally worked right up to the day I was induced for labor.  I've updated my Outfits page for more maternity work clothes ideas using pieces similar to those above.

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Now, most of the time I spent in lounge clothes but if I had to leave the house, my uniform was either a simple dress or shorts and a tee.  My shoes of the summer were definitely the Target Lavada sandals.  Comfort was key for me and especially in my third trimester, the less fuss the better.  I've updated my Outfits page for more ideas on weekend wear.

I hope these suggestions help any preggo mommas out there!

Royal Thanks

These pictures are by no means blog-worthy but there's a reason I'm putting my messy hair, no makeup face, grainy photos on the internet land.  There's also a reason I'm thanking Kate Middleton for inspiring this mommy outfit and helping keep my sanity.  Humor me and allow me to have a little fan moment here.  Dutchess Catherine gave birth a couple days after me.  When she left the hospital with millions of cameras on her, I was sitting in my recliner watching in my pjs, messy hair, undereye circles, and holding a crying newborn.  She was the epitome of grace and just looked so beautiful and at peace.  For a moment, I thought there was something wrong with me.  Here she was hours from giving birth looking amazing and I had been a crying mess looking all kinds of cray cray.  Then I noticed her bump.  I so loved that she didn't wear something that covered her postpartum bump.  Seeing her sport her bump and look graceful gave me hope.  Call me crazy but at that moment, I needed a boost.

It's been weeks of firsts for me and as I mentally prepare myself to return to work next week, crying my eyes out of course, I can't believe how happy and rich my life feels.  Below is just a small fraction of my firsts with Lucas.  I'm looking forward to many more first moments with our new little family!

Sweater: Loft  /  Jeans: AE  /  Shoes: Target  /  Bag: Louis Vuitton  /  Jewelry: Very Jane, David Yurman

First time seeing Lucas at the NICU

First kisses

First feeding

First night home...love my dark circles and red nose from crying!

First bath

First eye contact

First outing without him

First time in his swing

Down, Set, Hike!

Don't worry because this cute little football did not get spiked.  It was his first Gator football game, though!  Hence my super glamorous get up.  I've never been the girl to dress up or look put together for football games but I envy those girls that do.  Lucas slept through most of the game but we liked to pretend and say that he was watching the whole time.  

The night of the game, my sister and parents kept Lucas for the night.  I thought I would be okay and had plans to do a little shopping in the evening then have dinner with my husband but my hormones had different plans.  I was a crying mess and had to take a Tylenol PM.  Seriously.  I'm a mess though Lucas, I hear, had a great time and slept a lot.  The only thing that kept me from going to pick Lucas up (which by the way was just a mile away from me) was realizing that my husband and I really needed just one good night of sleep.  We got the sleep and then rushed to pick up our baby early Sunday morning.  How I will ever go back to work and not cry all day is a mystery to me.  Any advice is much appreciated!

Shirt: Gap {Similar}  /  Shorts: Loft  /  Shoes: Converse  /  Necklace: Mynamenecklace.com