the wheels on the bus

good afternoon babes! the day is halfway over which means it's almost Friday, which means, it's basically the weekend, right? I promise my logic makes sense. I'm excited for today's look because im showing you a more realistic approach to fashion. well, a more real look at how I do fashion. I feel like people always ask me, how are you wearing heels and juggling kids and making it work, and honestly you guys, I DONT!!! I really can't stress enough about how Instagram is filtered. You are seeing such a small glimpse (literally a 4x4 square) into my everyday life. I'm certainly not the mom in yoga pants and a sweatshirt, but I'm also not dressed to the nines for the carpool line. I have my kids in tow 95% of the time and the other 5 I'm still not totally alone because Mav is still my constant companion so I have to factor in a few needs when I get dressed. Is this comfortable, can I bend over, will I mind if I get one of life's wonderful bodily fluids smeared all over it, etc etc. I like to make my outfits versatile. Usually I'm in sneakers all day, and if I'm actually going somewhere, heels for night. So, this dress has already served me quite well and because of its shift style and array of colors, it's been surprisingly versatile. The short sleeves and tweed fabric are very "ladies who lunch" which is exactly the kind of event I wore it to a couple of weeks back. And for a little dose of pattern play, I slung on this leopard cross body. It's easy, and appropriate, and let's the dress shine in all its splendor. For a fresh everyday approach, I styled it up a little more, back to school cool. Personally, I think it's so fun to take a dressy look and funk it up with more casual pieces. Just because we're not in kindergarden anymore, doesn't mean we can't still take not from a toddlers approach to style, right? Right you guys! The answer is Right! Fashion is suppose to be fun, so have fun with it!!! I tied on my newest denim jacket, because, yes, I plan on continuing this style through fall and yes I NEEDed a new denim jacket #priorities. It is a darker more fall appropriate wash which is how I justified it to the hubs. I laced up my classic cons and grabbed my red backpack. I really just love a backpack and hi-top combo, they totally change the vibe of any look to a more playful/approachable feel, and you can't beat their comfort. Plus, the backpack is pretty much all the rave right now, soooo, you know I had to jump on board that train ;). and no joke, both my bags are Vera Bradley!! yes ladies, get your jaws off the floor, Vera has stepped up her handbag game to a whole new level and I for one am impressed. I couldn't really tell you which I love more, but both have definitely been on heavy rotation, because much like the perfect black tote, you can never go wrong with a little leopard and a pop of red.