Style Poll: Name Your Style Today

As I'm leaving this morning, I "apologize" to H, "I'm going for the Preppy Pregnant look today." Bright pink and orange plaid collared blouse (sorta like the Motherhood Maternity one at left) and M khakis. Summery, bright, cheerful, I thought it might make me cheerful.

No luck.

So what would you call your style today? And is it helping your mood?

Packing for Greece...if I ever get to it.

Let's just say that I'm thankful I've traveled a lot. Packing happens for me in about 30 seconds. 60 if it's winter and I'm trying to stuff things into a bag.

Everyone has different packing styles. Take, for example, me and my mother-in-law. My style? I just told you. List in head for a week (or not), then pack on the fly. Invariably I end up with a few too many tops, but worse things could happen. MiL? She's been packed for a month. I kid you not. MiL's a very planned and "get it done now, so I can play later" kinda gal (dinner's often cooked by the time I get up in the morning). It's served her well. So she started packing in the spare room about a month ago. She'll be packed, then think twice, pull something out, replace it, see a weather report, change it again...

So when I left this morning, already mildly stressed about trying to get further with the aforementioned thesis-type project thingy and transition my projects to coworkers for the next two weeks, I really wasn't even considering packing. It'll happen. Someday. Our plane departs tomorrow dinnertime, so I figure I'll get it done at some point. No worries. Jae and Erwin tomorrow morning are much more important (I'll feel good, even if I have nothing to wear) than getting my crap in a bag.


[12 hours after I started this post...continued...]


But I did find 10 minutes before a meeting and again after my brain conked out on work & school to make a list of the things I think I should pack. I'll spare you all of the vitamins and face products, but here's the pre-packing clothing list.


2 Old Navy tanks (one in True Blue, one in a berry color that doesn't seem to be on the website)
orange sparkly Indian-inspired Chrome Hearts tank
INC sheer blue T
4 summery, flowy tunic-y blouses lent me by a marvelous GreekGoddess friend who just gave birth to her first daughter
an iie
blue Motherhood Maternity dress
linen Old Navy halter dress (for some reason not on the website - wish it were - it's so non "M")
a standby cami
tummy sleeves (one black, one nude)
underwear (of course)
socks (in case my feet get cold at night)
trouser socks (eew, I know, but just in case it gets cold over there - it's possible)
tights (see above comment, but without the "eew")
Old Navy rollover waist khakis (Babsie D, you were right, right, right - don't knock 'em til you try 'em - and I never want to wear anything else ever again - but also can't find these online)
Citizen standby jeans
an old standby printed Ann Taylor skirt - just in case
favorite brown merino v-neck sweater
favorite black cowl neck sweater (again, just in case it's cold)
a black cotton motorcycle jacket (Gap, 300 seasons ago, but it's still one of my favorites)
red cotton raincoat
teal silk pashmina-like shawl - perfect for the plane!


Shoes are a little extensive...but here goes
Mia stars flats - like slippers - with stars! (for some reason, 3 of the last 4 pairs of shoes I've bought have been Brasilian-born - something to look into there)
my orange flats
standby black heels (just in case)
gold strappy sandals
my favorite bought-in-Miama with BlueSuitGirl ankle wrap sandals
my new Grasshoppers
slippers (oddly enough, also with stars)


And, of course, accessories...but I haven' t decided on those yet.


MiL says that the shoe shopping in Greece is to-die-for - lots of little boutiques. I promise a full report - and I'll tell you if I actually packed any of what I listed, let alone whether or not I wore it.


See you on April 11th! I'll let you know how visiting the relatives in Athens and Chania, Crete, was!

I Did It. I Gave in to Maternity.

A long, long time ago, when I first came out about The Bean, I said I was going to try not to buy any M clothes.

Yeah, that idea didn't work. Made the first Official Maternity Purchase yesterday.

And I'm more than pleased.

Determined not to spend huge amounts of money on the M clothes that are out there, I hit Motherhood Maternity. (Isn't it amazing how lovely some of the M clothes are? I'm always walking by A Pea in the Pod and stopping in the window before I realize what store it is. It's so good to know.)

In & out, I was gonna be. With H and friend BlueSuitGirl in tow, I was determined to buy one outfit and an accessory that I'd seen on a friend - a tube top for your waist. It's designed so that you can still wear your regular pants, but don't have to do the Rubber Band Thing, and it looks just like you're wearing another cami underneath.

We ran around the store going "how cute! how cute!"

After about 8 dresses and just as many tops (I just couldn't bring myself to hit the pants yet), I walked out with one dress (top right) and two Tummy Sleeves. I would've bought another dress or two (one, bottom right), but they didn't have my size. I was thrilled, and can't wait to wear it.

The best part? $30 a dress.

My only beef with the selection was that, oddly enough, there wasn't enough room for my boobs. I know they've grown, but all of the tops I tried on were, of course, empire-style, and the bustline ran right across the middle of mine. Not attractive. Oh well. On to the next store. Just need to find another top or two (and a few camis or tanks) to wear, and I'll be set.