High Fashion? Hardly.

When I'm out in public, I like to look good. I don't mean that I need to look like a super-model (I never will!) or that I'm always wearing make-up or dressed to the nines. I just mean that if I leave the house I like to be in clothes that match, without any major stains on them! And that's just my outfit, then I still have to dress the boy in neat and tidy clothes. Some days, with a toddler in tow, that's easier said than done. So I aim for tidy and clean, and hope for the best.

Dressing the boy is fairly easy. He's still pretty happy to wear what I pick out for him, so all I have to do is make sure that they're neat and they match. Tidy and clean aren't the only criteria though that I have to think about for my clothes though. I also have to make sure that my clothes are toddler friendly. That means I need to be able bend and talk to the boy when we're out walking, so no really short skirts. I need to be able to pick him up when he's getting tired, so out go any really fitted dress shirts. I need to be able to run after him in case he decides to walk his own path in the grocery store, so bye-bye fantastic high heeled boots (sob). I also need pockets for tissues, snacks, wrappers, and a purse with more snacks, tissues, band-aids, and toys. Looking at this list, it's amazing I get dressed and leave the house at all. This means that the times I get to dress how I want, without thinking about anything else, are real treats for me and I try and break out my best clothes, and step out of my mum persona.

However, this rarely happens. When I do go out without the boy, whether it's a volunteer meeting, or a fun girls-night out, I often find little mementos of my son, especially in my purse, that serve to remind me of my primary role as a mum! My favourite was the other day, I was dressed up, out for a night on the town, and then dug in my purse to come across half a granola bar, a mini magnetic doodle pad and a plastic rhino! Nothing is more grounding than a rhinoceros! So no matter how nice I try and look, or even if I'm out on my own, I'm still going to be a mum. Maybe I should try and convince the boy that stylish jewellery and nice accessories are really his toys and ditch the plastic rhino. Although, I think I'll still have extra tissues and snacks, so I'll always be a mum, even if there's no one around to need a rhino to stave off boredom.