5 summer essentials | casual mama style

the weather is warming, the sun is hanging around a little longer in the evenings, and I can smell someone in my neighborhood grilling every night of the week.  its summer!! when it comes to my wardrobe these days I'm looking for easy care items that I can throw on and feel put together but also be super comfortable and able to move around when I'm out doing activities with my kids- from the grocery store to the aquarium to a (casual) date night these are my top five mama essentials for summer!  even better- the holiday weekend has left us with a bunch of sales, so nearly all my picks are discounted!  yas!

the easy tee

I've been living in boyfriend style pocket tees.  I love the casual nature of them and how lightweight and comfortable they are for summer!  I tuck the front for a little added shape and you can totally dress them up our down, just depending on the shoes and accessories.  I'm also loving the softened shirts that button down- my third summer in a row to be breastfeeding, so I'm all about the easy access with buttons down the front!

casual bottoms

two words: boyfriend denim. I LOVE distressed denim and the boyfriend style allows me to move and bend and be comfortable without feeling like I'm going to explode after eating Sonic cheesy tots (with jalapeños!).  don't get me wrong, there is a perfect time and place for an amazing pair of skinny jeans (I have THESE in every color because they are just perfect in every way!)

but the looser fit of the boyfriend jeans also offers the ability to wear them while its 100+ degrees in Texas.  I also invested in a cute pair of joggers to wear while running errands or grabbing coffee with a girlfriend (I did this yesterday!) pair with the boyfriend pocket tee and you are totally hitting all the high marks for that athleisure style thats so popular right now.

AND overalls. yes.  100% yes.  I prefer the fitted style over the baggy boyfriend fit- I own a great pair from Pinkblush that I'm loving and wearing about once a week (and they're on sale!). but I'm hard pressed to add a pair of short overalls to the mix.  do it.

breezy dresses

my favorite "look" while sporting the bump this time around was a t-shirt dress, sneakers, and a ball cap. talk about comfort and style all wrapped into one! as the heat is rising (its literally sweltering hot today..) I appreciate the t-shirt dress for several reason- keep me cool (number one!), the variety of style it offers (with sneakers + ball cap; sandals + side ponytail; wedges + chunky necklace..), and the fact that I can take the same dress and go from daytime to evening and not have to think about changing my clothes:). these are my favorite dresses for wearing casually with sandals or sneakers.

trendy sneaks

speaking of sneakers.. they are like my new favorite guilty pleasure.  no idea WHY,  but finding ways to be able to wear them with everything I currently own in my closet is my mission.  I think a lot of it has to do with how much I'm on me feet- I need something thats comfortable.  I am not a shoe person at all whatsoever.. which is probably a good thing.  I usually purchase one great neutral pair of sandals and wear the crap out of them all summer. same for heels and wedges.. now when it comes to boots and booties all bets are off because I just loveeee me some booties.  

every color, please! but this is summer.. in Texas.. and I'll literally be filling my suede booties up with sweat if I attempted to wear them right now.. so I'll stick to sneakers:)

blush lip
blush everything is the hottest color of the season and I've found a handful of glosses and mattes that I'm loving right now.  the tarte lip paint is phenom.. I got it as a sample last month and I'm loving it so much that I went and got a couple the other day to stock up for summer.  my luck, they always discontinue my favorite makeup and I can ever find it again- I hate that!  I've learned from these tribulations and always buy more than one when shopping!
my top three makeup must haves right now..
NUMBER ONE is definitely lip gloss. number two would have to be my bronzer/highlighter combo (I am loving the tarte combo palette !), and number three is my eye brow pencil + filler (benefit gimme brow is the bomb).