You think they'd let me wear a princess dress and tiara to work? ...No?

Sometimes I still feel like a little a little girl playing dress up.

While I am happiest in pajamas and my Hello Kitty slippers, hair half secured in a pony, half sticking straight out like a ragamuffin, I also really enjoy getting dressed for work. But I think my enjoyment comes from pulling off (what I think is) a look that appears that of a grown-up: cuffed black slacks, a fashionable blouse in a modern neutral hue (a phrase that justifies my obsessions with all shades of gray), heeled Mary Janes, my beloved MK gold watch from Brover, some dangly earrings that complement but don't match my shirt (ah ha!), and clean, styled hair.

Meanwhile, every time I teeter down the hallway with my cup of coffee in hand, I am nervous that my sassy heels are going to get stuck in the sassy cuff of my sassy pants and I am going to eat the not-so-sassy gray berber carpet when I yard sale it in front of my office. (True, at least it's gray.)

But all is well, for there is a pair of fuzzy gray slippers discretely residing under my desk that like to come out and play on the regular. Bonus: I wear long enough pants that I can actually scuttle about the office in my slippers sometimes without anyone noticing. Holla!

These days I often catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror and think, 'Oh, hi, Soccer Mom.' I partially blame Banana Republic for having super comfy capri pants, though the blame for an ever-present cardigan is mine alone. But I suppose it's not completely off base; I am nearly 30, after all. (Though, to be fair, my love affair with the daytime-appropriate security blankie known as the cardigan has been a staple in my wardrobe since junior high. Yeah, cool kid. Right here.)

I'm not sure any look or outfit can really capture who we are, though. In so far as anyone can externally communicate their real self via these bodies in which we reside, we attempt to represent how we identify ourselves in relation to an established perception of style...whatever that means. So whether you're rockin' your favorite outfit and feeling like a million bucks, or cuddled up in snowman-covered pants and a Hanes v-neck feeling like a spunky kiddo again, have fun playing dress up! But let your true joy and identity reside in your heart...not in your closet.