Maternity Wear Repurposed

This dress is actually maternity wear. I bought it specifically for my witchy maternity photos (you can see those here) and I actually got it on super sale for $13. I love the dress so much and wanted to see if I could work it into my post-pregnancy wardrobe. I think it worked out pretty well, so now I have a nice little lacy cocktail dress in my closet!

dress: Thyme Maternity / shoes: ASOS

New Year, New Hair

New year, new hair! Eleanor’s really grabby with hair lately and all I ever do is wear mine back in a ponytail so I figured I may as well just chop it all off. I’ve always enjoyed shorter hair and this time is no exception. Plus it’s really nice to not have to constantly worry that a clump of it will get torn out by an excited child.

shirt: H & M / jacket: Simons / shoes: Spring / pants: Simons

All the Frills: It's Amazingly Been Seven Months

How cute is Eleanor Elizabeth Medea at 7 months?

I went back to work recently and, as nice it was to get back and to have a reason to get out every day, I definitely miss all our time together (well, not so much the cranky, crying times). She’s truly grown into such an amazing little person. She’s curious about EVERYTHING, loves meeting new people and interacting, and just spending her time either cuddling with me while we read or listen to podcasts, or working on sitting, mastering all her toys, and motoring around (she doesn't crawl so much as tug herself the floor and move backwards by doing what I swear looks like the Worm). Watching her learn and try new things is beyond amazing. I literally could just sit and do it for hours. Eleanor’s also very into trying all sorts of different foods these days. I was a bit worried introducing solids would be a process but it was incredibly easy. She just loves them. Apples, pears, and bananas are particular favourites (so far the only thing she isn’t partial to are eggs and avocados) but she more or less gobbles everything up that we put in front of her.

Now that I’m back to work the big challenge for me will be making sure I curb my pre-pregnancy habit of working late virtually every day of the week and then bringing work home. I’m committed to walking out the office door at exactly 4 pm everyday, come hell or high water. When she starts day care that will obviously be a necessity but as my helpmeet is at home now with her full-time until mid-June, it’s a bit easier for me to not watch the clock as closely as I should. I definitely need to work on that!


Weekend Reading:

• I really wish I could see this exhibit.
  
• This made me chuckle aloud.
  
• Ah, the majestic unicorn.
  
• Early modern code breaking at its finest!
  
• This story about an incredible natural formation that only a small few have ever even seen is amazing and a reminder of how much exploration of the world there is still to do.

Lighting Woes

As much as I love winter, I can't wait for the longer days of spring to arrive so I can actually venture outside to get photos (currently it's dark when my helpmeet leaves in the morning and dark again by the time he gets home). There is just no good place in my house to snap decent indoor photos.

pants: Simons / top: Zara / necklace: Aldo / bracelet: Stella and Dot / ring: Stella and Dot

All the Frills: Bathroom Redo

When we redid our townhouse a couple of years ago, I was particularly happy with how our main floor powder room came out. I still want to switch up the tile on the floor (well, in all the bathrooms really) but I love the way the new sink and mirror, countertop, light fixture, and paint job turned out. I also think the couple of framed images we’ve hung, and the little seashell accents, are nice touches. Bathrooms are such functional spaces, I always appreciate it when they’re stylish as well.

Weekend Reading

• I was reading an online article in my local newspaper recently about a local women’s march we had and I stupidly read the comments as well, which were mostly filled with arrogant idiots insisting that there was no such thing as the gender pay gap and women just took lower paying jobs for shits and giggles. My own fault for the reading the comments but it made me irate nonetheless. The gender pay gap is real. Very real.
  
• I am totally interested in buying a private island in Scotland.
  
• Kate Middleton’s gown is gorgeous. I’m pretty sure I was exactly this majestic when I was pregnant (and, no, I don’t wish to be dissuaded of that notion).
  
• Most people have seen this by now but it’s so fascinating that I couldn’t resist. One of my favourite parts of teaching the various world history classes that I’ve done was teaching about the history of the Maya and I remain intensely curious about this part of history.
  
• This guy is an ass. But I’m also a bit disappointed in Greenpeace.

Why Would You Make a Pocketless Blazer? Why?

I don’t wear this jacket all that much (mostly because it has no actual pockets and that annoys the bejesus out of me in a blazer) but I do enjoy busting it out from time to time. In this case it was to attend a once monthly evening meeting for work that I still enjoy coming to even if I am on maternity leave.

blazer: Zara / pants: Simons / shoes: Aldo / top: French Connection

Cocktails and Statement Necklaces

Worn to a work-related cocktail reception … basically the perfect opportunity to wear this jacket and necklace combo (obviously I hung up the jacket at the actual reception).

jacket: New Look / necklace: Banana Republic / shirt: Simons

All the Frills: Sweatshirts

I spent a lot of my maternity leave wearing sweatshirts. They were comfy, great in the assorted snaps of extremely cold weather we had this winter, and I never particularly cared if Eleanor spit up on them because they don’t require hand washing or dry cleaning. I’ve amassed a pretty decent collection…

Weekend Reading

• I grew up on Murphy Brown, the Golden Girls, and Designing Women. I’m excited for this!
  
• I want to visit this taxidermy whale.
  
• The dizzying tale of a support peacock denied flight boarding. And, of course, the support peacock and her owner have a fascinating backstory.
  
• I hope this woman wins her lawsuit because this is ridiculous.
  
• This story of a mummified eighteenth-century woman is fascinating. I still loathe Boris Johnson though…

Neon and Lace

I was a bit on a fence when I saw this blazer – I mean I don’t wear a lot of lace – but I’m really glad I went for it. And I busted out my neon toned necklace to off set all the black a bit (I keep forgetting I own this piece but it’s such a great accessory for a gal whose wardrobe is basically about 98% black).

leggings: ASOS / tank: Target / necklace: Target / blazer: Zara

Back in the Groove

I am absolutely loving being back at work for an afternoon or two a week. It’s so indescribably wonderful to get to dress up in actual nice clothes, take a solo car ride and listen to podcasts, and then get to interact with adults and exercise my brain a bit. Sometimes I had my doubts that I’d be able to make the arrangement work but I am beyond happy that it did.

Anyways, this is what I wore into the office for a meeting recently. I absolutely love this floral printed dress (it’s the long sleeves and the fact that it’s a pattern on black fabric) but it is very curve hugging and unforgiving. My stomach in still a bit of a disaster area (it basically looks like a deflated balloon, if I can be so bold as to plant that horrifying image in your mind) so I opted for a long jacket to give me some added coverage.

dress: Simons / jacket: Joseph Ribkoff / boots: Target

All the Frills: Books, Books, Books

I typically ask for books for Christmas gifts, which means that, post-holiday, I inevitably have to set aside some time to do shelf shifting and organizing in my home library to accommodate new volumes. You might not know it at first glance but my books are carefully organized. I keep the bulk of my fiction in my basement bookshelves so the one’s on the main floor are just some of the overall collection.

I basically have four shelving units in the living room and dining room. One is reserved for art books. Two are all my history books, internally organized into the following themes: historical and anthropological theory, non-British history (organized by country), surveys of British history, biographies (organized chronologically), and specialized Tudor and Stuart histories (organized into the categories of women’s and gender history, religious history, political history, social history, crime, witchcraft and magic, domestic culture, portraiture, and elite studies). Then I have a shelf of “nice” editions of books related to British history (some are legit rare books). And the final shelving unit has “nice” editions of classic fiction, Shakespeare and Spenser, ancient non-fiction authors (mostly Cicero, Tacitus, and Plutarch – the fiction by classical authors, like Euripides, Homer, and Aeschylus is mixed in with the rest of the fiction), Renaissance and early modern non-fiction authors (Machiavelli, etc), British history primary sources (edited editions of letters, diaries, the writings of Elizabeth I, etc), and a small section of books on mythology.

So, yeah, when I get a few new books, actually integrating them into the collection takes some time…

Weekend Reading

• I am absolutely smitten with the Guggenheim’s response to Trump’s request to borrow a Van Gogh.
  
• I can only make it through the first five or so of these victim impact statements against Larry Nassar before beginning to bitterly weep.
  
• I love this statement on the intersection between medical professionals and their religious beliefs.
  
• And, in the world of camels and beauty pageants (I imagine it’s a relatively small world).
  
• This essay on how we’re socialized to dismiss female pain as of secondary concern to male pleasure is wonderful.