boater hat – okay andie

This Family Affairs dress is probably my most go-to easy-peasy dress to wear when I don’t feel like making much of an effort. It’s just one of those dresses that doesn’t need much styling because it’s pretty dead awesome on it’s own – pair it with a fun shoe, a cute hat and you’re good to go, which is exactly what I need lately. With Gus being immobile, it’s sort of consuming my life. I now feel like I have a better understanding what it’s like to look after someone impaired or ill, which is the everyday life of my older brother and parents who look after my autistic nephew Jason. I can’t even come close to comparing my dog to Jason and the things my family goes through with him, but for most of Jason’s life I have not lived in the same city so I only see small doses of my parents/brothers life with him and the things they tell me over the phone. So I get it, but I don’t get it. Going through this with Gus and seeing how all consuming it is – worrying, wanting them to get better, having to help them with everything, keeping an eye on them at all times… it’s given me a better understanding of what my family experiences – there is just not much time to think about yourself. So, thank goodness for easy dresses and thank goodness I have Ryan around so I can step out for a bit and play hopscotch like 4yr old with no cares in the world.
Dress: Family Affairs
Hat: thrifted vintage
Shoes: Nosilla Vintage

I recently got my bike fixed (Ryan used to be a BMXer so I’ve got my own personal bike repair man right at home) and have been biking as much as possible. I told myself at the beginning of this month I would not buy myself a metro pass so as to force myself to ride to and from work everyday (weather permitting), as well as anywhere else the weekend takes me. Dressing yourself for biking can be a challenge if you are someone like me. Ideally you’d wear shorts and a light shirt – that’s a pretty standard biking outfit – but well, I like to switch it up. I’m not always a shorts and shirt kind of girl. Many things must be considered when choosing an outfit that is biking appropriate. Since I wear dresses and skirts mostly I have to be careful that the dress/skirt has some moving room (sorry to my a-line minis) and is a comfortable length so it doesn’t fly up exposing your unmentionables. Midi skirts are perfect, but I have come to realize I don’t own as many midi skirts as I thought. This dress is an ideal biking outfit (also the print on it?! right!?), – and I had almost completely forgot about it in my closet because I consider it very much a Spring/Summer dress and wear it in no other season – it checks off all the boxes for appropriate bike wear, but I cannot wear this everyday, for obvious reasons (smelly!). I was reading on the internet how I could wear my shorter skirts/dresses without worrying about them blowing up in the wind. There is this neat trick where you tie a nickle (or penny or quarter) with an elastic band underneath the bottom of your skirt and it weighs it down for the ride. I tried it out on one of my short, lightweight dresses over the weekend and it worked wonders. Problem solved! Now to figure out how to wear hats without them flying off your head.