“I’m a cool mom, not a regular mom.”

Well, that’s what I envisioned for myself before having a baby. Turns out, looking all cool and put together is not practical for my new life. At all. I’ll be honest, I’ve always had an affinity for lazy loungewear so this wasn’t a major sacrifice. Photos you’ve seen of me on social media looking all glammed up with a cute outfit on took effort on my part. A lot of it. Speaking candidly, they’ve never been a true depiction of my norm but gone are the days of faking it for the gram. This mama ain’t got time for that!

Since having a child, simply leaving the house has become a massive ordeal. Our outings require taking a collection of carefully thought out crap with us and need to be timed perfectly to fit within my daughter’s very short in-between-nap-windows. I also always try to ensure that she looks clean and freaking adorable so people outside of our four walls can see I’m doing all right! With all that in motion, I’m juggling way too much to have a minute to think about what I, me, mom am going to look… which is why I’ve spent a lot of days in a bathrobe. Ya feel me, mamas?

Let me make one thing abundantly clear, despite my leopard bathrobe appearing to have been permanently adhered to my skin for the first 8 months of my daughter’s life, I’ve never actually left the house in it. (Pause for your gasp of disbelief.) It’s true! While I often leave the house with no makeup and a mom bun sitting smack on top of my head, I have always made the effort to put on real life clothing. Granted, it’s usually minimal effort. But it gets me out of my bathrobe so… winning?

After a couple of attempts at turning to my old everyday uniform, I quickly realized that ripped skinny jeans, cute booties and nice top that showed a little skin was no longer suitable for my new “everyday” as a mom. Fun facts: Kids pick apart the rips of your jeans and when you’re not looking, any denim threads that come loose will quickly enter their mouths. Booties are very difficult to put on your feet when you are holding a baby who’s in no mood to be put down. And if your top used to show a little skin, it’s gonna show a whole lot more than you mean to when your kid is yanking and tugging at it and your arms are too full to keep your entire (very unsexy, nursing) bra from being exposed to everyone walking past. Just saying.

Enter my new favorite #momlife uniform. The one that is cozy enough to replace your bathrobe at home and cute enough to let you walk straight out the door and into the world without looking like #momlife has gotten the better of you! (Even if, that day, it has.) It’s a simple look but highly effective: Fitted sweats/leggings and a flattering hoodie in a stylish print. I’m not talking about shlumpy, frumpy mismatched sweats that you’ve had for ten years. That’s where the only effort comes in. Selecting the right sweats. The outfit I’m wearing in these photos is from Adidas but you’re sure to find loads more options on ASOS, Pretty Little Thing and other similar stores online. I’ve rounded up a few of my favorites that you can click to shop below to make your life a little easier!