FM Gem: Heeeey, Baby. There ain't No Easy Way Out.

Jeans: Sonoma, Kohl's

Bag: Betsey Johnson, Modcloth

Shoes: A New Day, Target; Socks: Style & Co., Macy's

Headband: INC, Macy's

Night Sky Necklace

Sweater: On 34th, Macy's

Jacket: Worthington, JCPenney

Top: My Michelle, Kohl's

Bag: Nine West, Kohl's; Shoes: Chinese Laundry, Zulily

Fifi Phoenix Necklace

Top: Nicole Miller New York, Marshalls

Flowers at my parents' house.

Skirt: Candie's, Kohl's

Boots: Wild Fable, Target

Bag: INC, Macy's

Hair clip and dickey: SHEIN

Primary Princess Necklace

Dress: Macy's

Bag: Dolls Kill

Bright Brown Bird Necklace

Hair clip: So, Kohl's

Top: Nine West, Kohl's

Truer words were never spoken, Tom Petty.  That's what I was thinking yesterday as I sang along with the radio on the way to my 32-week appointment.  Because if there's one thing you need when faced with the prospect of pushing a watermelon through a peephole, then it's a sense of humor.

Not that baby girl is a melon.  She's only 3 lbs., 5 oz. and will probably be a small but healthy 6 lbs. at birth.  And this mama, for one, is grateful.

I'm also grateful for my recent crop of necklaces and the outfits they inspired.  I'm still getting away with regular tops and dresses teamed with maternity leggings or jeans.  The last pair of jeans is actually a pair of jeggings, and an uncomfortable one at that.  But I just wore them for this pic and a short Zoom call.  For actual outings I rely on big bootcuts.  Like in the pic with the leopard coat, where I'm at the hospital for a prenatal class.  

Those classes, by the way, are no joke.  Consider this excerpt from the workbook:

"While Esmerelda is open to whatever happens, she is hoping for an unmedicated labor and birth.  She plans to give birth with the support of family, friends, and 2 doulas."

Clearly, Esmerelda and I are different people.  

Which is my way of saying, bring on the epidural.    

Cake Walk, Perp Walk: A Book Between Two Blouses

Top: Modcloth

Top: Hell Bunny, Modcloth

When Mel and Angie are invited to sell cupcakes at the Juniper Pass Rodeo, they're nervous and excited and all of the things.  Even though -- and surely you'll excuse the pun -- it's far from their first rodeo.  By which I mean that they discover yet another dead body.  Such is the sweetly sinister setup for Jenn McKinlay's Red Velvet Revenge.

But catching a rodeo clown of a killer isn't the dynamic duo's only challenge.  When their freezer goes on the fritz, they're faced with more thawed cupcakes than they can sell, forcing them to pivot to cake pops.  Ah yes, cake pops, that cutesy craze of the 2010s (this caper came out in 2012).  Needless to say, the cupcake catastrophe means that Mel and Angie's square dance card is full.  Particularly Angie's, as she juggles not only perps and pastries but the affections of two not-quite-gun-slinging suitors.  

But these two aren't the type to let men or mayhem get in the way.  And it's fun to find out just how they make -- no, bake -- their way out of this one.  

Speaking of twosomes, I couldn't help but post this pair of retro-licious blouses.  I wore the cherry one during a Zoom call, and I've never worn the heart one at all.  So I thought I'd show them off here.  Because murder mysteries remind me to make the most of the everyday.

Including always eating the cupcake. 

Call the Town Crier, It's Mullet Attire

Here it is.  The picture no one wanted or asked for.  Me in my Zoom attire, business on top, party on the bottom.  You know, if business meant a tie-dyed top, graphic tee, crazy necklace, and rat's nest bun.  Of all my shoes, the pair that gets the most wear is these pink Croc flip flops.  Perfect for trips to the bathroom, mailbox, and recycling bins, they're the last word in comfort -- if not style.

So here's to breaking the fourth wall and wearing what you want.

Because the rest, as they say, is a crock.  

The Desk Clerk's Day Off

Top: Candie's, Kohl's

Yellow flower clip: Capelli, ULTA; Coral flower clip: Kohl's

Necklace: Gifted

The Desk Clerk's Day Off sounds like a really good indie flick or a super annoying cartoon.  As with most things in life, my story probably falls somewhere in the middle.

Not long ago, I was dressed for a Zoom meeting when the husband said I looked like a Hawaii hotel clerk.  To be fair, I was behind my laptop at the time, and he followed it up by saying I looked very cute.  It was enough to make me want to capture this "throwaway" outfit -- or perhaps I should say half an outfit, because the bottom portion of my meeting attire is always pajama pants.  So after I logged off for the day, we took pics against this tranquil blue backdrop.  And yes, I'm closing my eyes in the last one to show off my not-quite-new mint e.l.f. eyeshadow: 

  

As for the hibiscus pics, they're from when we lived in Brigantine.  I must've known that I'd eventually need them for a tropical shirt shoot!

Finally, if I never know what the husband is going to say, then I definitely never know what he's going to bring home.  Check out these white plums and canary fruit he picked up yesterday:

He stylishly staged them on one of his handmade cutting boards.  Because artsy-craftsy DIY -- and self promotion -- run in this family! 

Oh man, maybe this is a cartoon after all.     

Two Plaids, Four Fads, and a Rag Bag Revisited

Coat: So, Kohl's

I'm kicking off this post with a very cheesy -- but very necessary! -- line: so many plaids, so little time.  Because I was so excited about my new pair of plaid minis that I decided to build not one but two looks around each.  

First up is this purple skirt in an outfit we'll call "funky fur."  The skirt is preppy, but the color is kooky, and that's the part I decided to run with.  More mushrooms and My Little Ponies, please!

Yellow Garden Necklace

Top: Delia's, Dolls Kill

Barrettes: Dolls Kill

Bag: Amazon

Next is the same skirt styled in a more scholarly yet fairy kei way.  Looks like "pastel prep" to me!    

Sweater: So, Kohl's

Ring: (old school) Delia's; Barrettes: Dolls Kill; Mint bangle: Decree, JCPenney; Yellow bangle: B Fabulous

Skirt: Almost Famous, Kohl's

Teddy Confetti Necklace

Sweater: Pink Republic, Macy's

And that brings us to my second skirt, this colorful flared affair from Delia's for Dolls Kill.

But first, a little tangent. 

A year or so ago, I bagged up some clothes to donate, shoved them in a closet, and promptly forgot about them.  I wasn't about to haul them off to Goodwill with COVID still surging.  But I recently went into that closet to get something else, saw the bag there, and thought, I wonder . . . 

I don't have to tell you that I was soon surrounded by a colorful sea of my so-called castoffs.  Rifling through those garments -- even the hideous ones -- gave me a lot of joy.  There were even a few pieces that were still kind of nice.  This is how hoarders get started, I thought, examining an almost brand-new pair of chocolate flats I'd once deemed too small.  I set them aside; I could make them work with pantyhose.  I also rescued a cutout black sweater that I could probably get away with over a tee shirt, a floral red button-down perfect for Zoom meetings, and, finally, the maroon, blue, and mustard sweater I'm sporting in this ensemble.  At the time, I thought the colors were too drab or collegiate.  But after fishing it out of the bag, I remembered how much I liked the fit and considered reinventing it with a bright bottom.  Enter this sunshiney plaid number!  When the husband snapped my pic in it, he said I looked like I was ready to head to Riverdale, which I loved.  Even though to me the vibe was more Mean Girls.  

Green bracelet: Parade of Shoes; Blue bracelet: Cloud Nine, Ocean City; Ring: Making Waves, Ocean City

Skirt: Delia's, Dolls Kill

Suzy Snapshot Necklace

Tights: Isadora, Zulily

Finally, I curated the same skirt in a different way, with an oversized pastel sweater and eclectic accessories.  The leopard pumps were another near-discard; they're a little big, which is why I'm rocking socks.  And then there are my crooked cobalt tights.  What is it about vertical-striped stockings, anyway?!  Sometimes the stars align and everything falls where it's supposed to.  But more often than not, no amount of twisting and untwisting can correct a configuration that's woefully catawampus, and I feel as uncoordinated as a kid who can't tie her shoes.  That's why I'm dubbing this outfit "unkempt kitsch."  It's a not-so-subtle reminder that things don't have to be perfect to be pretty.

Which is as good a mantra as any for this recovering perfectionist.

Bag: Betsey Johnson, Macy's

Flower barrette: Etsy; Bow barrette: Carole, JCPenney

Shoes: Journeys, Kohl's

Spider necklace: SHEIN; Love bangle: Boscov's; Choker: Mixit, JCPenney; Small bracelet: Cloud Nine, Ocean City; Large bracelet: Mixit, JCPenney; Barrettes: SHEIN