hippie inspired // dress up talk

I’ve been sitting on these photos for several weeks for no rhyme or reason. I have had a rough time keeping up with everything lately and as excited as I am for Christmas and family time, I’m already looking forward to the blissful nothingness that follows it. But enough about that, how fun was this hippie inspired outfit? These pants are the closest I can get to wearing pajamas in public, and they just so happened to have been on sale. Score! (Unless that’s because no one else took them seriously…oh well 😉 ) The saying, “go big or go home” comes to mind when I reflect on my decision to also pair it with a faux fur vest, chunky wedges, and giant aviators. I was a braided headband and a peace sign away from a Halloween costume, but I was unaffected by that fact when I threw it together.

I’ve already decided that my children will be allowed to dress themselves a majority of the time from whatever age they show interest. In my experience as a nanny it’s almost never a battle worth fighting for, and empowering children in the areas that you safely can is always a good thing. I nannied for a family with two little girls who went through a hardcore Snow White phase. Their parents didn’t bat an eye at this slowly transitioning into them wearing the full Snow White getup every time they left the house. I went the the grocery store with them in costume once. I can still hear the sound of their plastic high heels clomping behind me and remember the smiles from strangers watching them shuffle down the isles. My mom let my sister and I pick out our outfits from the time we were 2, and fashion ended up being one of the many creative outlets we continued to explore. Clearly I never gave up on the whole dress up thing, and am grateful that it spun into a hobby I’m passionate about. I’ve always felt confident in whatever I thought looked good (even though that’s led to looking back on some horrendous looks I put together over the years) and it’s been a positive influence on my life and self-esteem. By the way, I’m aware there is nothing more obnoxious than a person who doesn’t have kids dolling out parenting advice. I’m glad I have this in writing so I can look back and roll my eyes at my childless younger self ten years from now if I have a change of heart. 🙂

| Pants: Target | Faux Fur Vest: GUESS | T Shirt: H&M | Wedges: Chinese Laundry | Aviators: Mall Kiosk…no shame :)) |