Old Vests + Early Memories
Don’t forget to enter my giveaway from Glow Kouture for a great handmade bag of girly goodies!
The Outfit:
{{Plaid Shirt: Madewell
{{Chambray: JCrew Factory
{{Puffer Vest: Tommy Jeans (super old, similar)
{{Jeans: William Rast (old)
{{Shoes: Target
{{Necklace: Stella & Dot (gift)
{{Clutch: Glow Kouture (c/o) (Use code MOLLY30 for 30% off till Friday!)
{{Bracelets: GroopDealz, InPink, Kenya, Stella & Dot, ILY Couture c/o
I have had this vest for going on almost 17 years. Literally. I got it in the fall of my 5th grade year. Yeah. This is an old vest. But, for some reason I’ve hung on it to all this time.
And that got me thinking. I mean, I remember 5th grade so vividly. And then, because of the natural progression my brain takes, I started going further and further back in my memory trying to remember my earliest memory.
I am not 100% sure if this is my actually earliest memory, but it’s the one that came to mind and so I thought I’d share it with you.
I was 3-years-old. It’s my first day of preschool. Now, I was going through a “I’m Dorothy” phase. As in, I was Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. As in, I wore a gingham dress, pigtail wig, red shoes, and carried a fake Toto around with me… everywhere. Every day. Without fail. This went on for a while. I think a year. Probably two. Anyway.
It was my first day of preschool.
Now, my preschool was only a few hours in the morning, but because I wanted to be “cool” I needed to be dressed in my Dorothy garb and carry my brand new (READ: totally empty) Sesame Street lunchbox.
I knew I was the cat’s pajamas, and so I walked into that classroom, dressed as Dorothy, fake Toto and empty lunchbox in possession.
The next thing I know, the preschool teacher is bending down smiling in my face saying, “Oh! You must be Molly!”
I replied with a resounding, “NO!” *thwap!* And proceeded to hit that preschool teacher on the head with my empty lunch box and knocked her to the ground.
To this day, I have no idea why I did that. But at the time, I was NOT Molly, I… was Dorothy Gale of Kansas.
Okay, now that I’ve spilled: What’s your earliest memory? Do you still have a piece in your closet you’ve had since the 5th grade? What’s the weirdest thing you did as a kid?
BTW: Do you totally judge my crazy 3-year-old antics?
haha Kids do such weird things! I have no idea what my earliest memory is, but I do remember those puffy vests! my mom tried to buy me one as a gift and I declared that would never wear it and like the stubborn little girl I was, I didn’t. My mom ended up keeping it for herself and actually came up to visit me last weekend with it on! Funny how we keep certain things.
Jenn
With Luck
A classic American outfit with a touch of sparkle : ) LOVE.
Super cute outfit and I think it is so cool you still have a vest that you got 17 years ago.
I have bits and pieces of memories, but no full fledged recalls. I remember being six or seven and cutting my lip on a fan. It was the early eighties so it was one of those kind of open type fans. I’m not sure how to explain it, but nothing like the fans that they make today. Or believing in the Great Pumpkin and watching the Great Pumpkin for Halloween with my cousins. Those were all before the age of 8 that I remember.
As far as clothing…the oldest thing in my closet is a couple of shirts that I’ve had for about 6 years maybe? Something like that. My wardrobe has changed so much over the last year due to clothes outgrowing me, I’ve gotten rid of a lot of stuff.
I mentioned it on Instagram, but you look so pretty! I love your hair, and this outfit is so perfectly fall.
And that story is awesome! Haha!! Cracks me up that you knocked your teacher in the head with a lunchbox.
That is one of the best stories I have ever, ever, ever heard! Seriously. My husband wanted to know what I was laughing at 🙂
I remember sitting with my mom on the front porch when I was 2 1/2 or 3. We had a huge handmade wicker rocker chair. It was winter time and we had all of these old family quilts that we were bundled up in. I was sitting in her lap. We were up late waiting on my dad, and I can clearly remember looking up at the millions and millions of stars in the black sky and feeling so loved by my mom and excited to see my dad. My parents divorced when I was five so I have very few vivid memories of them when they were still married.
oh molly. this is my favorite outfit/pictures in a long time! can you tell my pacific northwest roots are coming through? nothing like the life-long tommy piece. haha, i was such a tommy girl and i definitely carried some of those jr. high/elementary pieces into college…
obsessed with this look. i want to go buy that plaid shirt.
also, the first pic of you is stunning. end of rant.
Ha ha! That was hilarious!
Bisous
Suzanne
http://bisous.typepad.com/bisous/
Lady, I am LOVING that vest!!
1. You are adorable.
2. Love that plaid shirt!
3. I just got my hair cut, but I’m thinking of going shorter to about your length. Your hair is adorable! Any surprises with it? How hard is it to take care of?
love the plaid and puffy vest combo! xo
http://allthingsprettyandlittle.blogspot.com/
I can’t get over how much I’m loving this haircut, Molly! I’m not sure if it’s my earliest memory, but I distinctly remember the day my little brother came home from the hospital–and I asked to send him back. Luckily, my parents got me my own “baby” (a doll) and I totally loved him once I could play Mommy with my baby too haha.
Alyssa
The Glossy Life
That is a hilarious story of 3-year-old Molly-Dorothy – and I def don’t judge you for your antics, as I was a completely insane child. Can’t believe you’ve had that vest 15 years – love pieces with serious longevity!
Sea and Swank
Love your vest!
Rachel’s Lookbook
Hahaha! Your poor teacher 🙂 I remember being in nursery school and playing outside in the sandbox with my nursery school boyfriend!
-Sharon
The Tiny Heart
Earrings Giveaway!
This is soooo weird. BEFORE I even read your post, I was looking at your pics and just thinking to myself, “I don’t think Molly has changed a bit since she was a tiny little girl.” Seriously, I just look at you and you have SO MUCH youthful exhuberence. For real.
Then I read your post and you were reminiscing about being a child.
Weird?? Right??
Okay, maybe I just thought that was weird. Buahahaa!
bahahahahah i wish i could have seen that!!!! my earliest memory is being 5 in kindergarten and flirting with the boys from the class next door at recess….my class went inside and I didn’t even notice….after the playground cleared 15 minutes later I was alone and scared, when I walked back in my teacher asked where i had been and I said “the denist” teheheheh. and i think you should keep that vest forever!
brooke @ what2wear
Cute outfit, Molly, those shiny loafers are so sweet! And what a funny story! Can’t believe that you’ve had this vest since the 5th grade, that’s really awesome! I don’t actually recall much of my preschool years but one thing I remember well is how I hated to get dirty with paint and glue while doing school projects. While most children probably enjoyed painting with their fingers, hands and feet, I remember I was always horrified that I had to get my hands dirty!
Jenny
http://www.jensoutfitjournal.com
Hahaha I do not judge your antics but I certainly get a chuckle out of them! I can’t remember an earliest memory offhand…interesting question, though!!
First of all, that is SO cool you have a wearable article of clothing from 5th grade. I think my fashion trend in 5th grade would have to be my lime green gel espirit sandals. These are NOT wearable now by any means.
Don’t feel bad about the teacher abuse. Although I didn’t hit my teacher, I refused to get out of the car at preschool until she called me Kelly. (my name is Rebecca, but I decided I liked the name Kelly better so I renamed myself for a short period of time). She wouldn’t call me Kelly and my little heart was crushed, so I acted like a wild woman. I’m sure at the end of the day she probably wished she had just called me Kelly 🙂 What’s wrong with a good imagination, right?
Hahah I love this story! Sometimes I think I make up memories of my childhood from hearing stories from family members. But I’d like to think that they are real memories, so just go with me here. When I was about 3, my older cousin (who was 5 at the time), wanted to see if eating ants can cause death. So he tried to get me to eat one. And I refused because I said, “I don’t want to die”. He insisted but I stood my ground. I was so proud of myself. But of course everyone in my family gave credit to my cousin, for “conducting such a smart experiment”… mostly because he told them he couldn’t eat the ants himself because if he died, he wouldn’t know it. Um, what… I totally should have gotten credit for not eating the ants!! 🙂
xo, Yi-chia
Always Maylee
Hahaha. I don’t know if I can recall my earliest memory, but I was a little bit of a naughty child. I loved running away from my parents as a toddler, and at one point they actually had one of those little kid leashes for me, but it had rainbows on it, so that makes it better, right?
I can totally see a little 3 year old Molly dressed up as Dorothy whacking her teacher on the head with a lunch pail! One of my earliest memories is a similar act of aggression: I wanted to bring my (kid size) lawn chair in from the rain and my babsitter told me no. She had good reason as it was already wet, but it made me angry so I decided to throw it as far as I possibly could. I also remember the spanking from that.
Umm… IDK if this is my earliest memory, but I was chosen to represent Korea for the girl scouts in some type of international festival. I was dressed in my traditional dress and was supposed to say something in front of an audience. When I got to the microphone, I just froze and someone had to usher me off the stage. *face palm*
That’s hilarious, Molly!! I laughed so hard.
My first memory is kind of young, I think. I remember walking through a mall, holding my mom’s hand, and I was asking her if we were going to get an orange julius. Then I asked her if she was going to get a strawberry julius (which they don’t make, I just knew that my mom liked strawberries). My mom was pregnant and she was wearing a print top with red pants (so 80’s . . . oh, wait, we wear that stuff now, too…). If she was pregnant with my brother (and it was summer time), then it was in 1986 and I was 2 1/2. So, yeah, that’s pretty crazy young. I remember telling my mom about that memory when I was a teenager and we figured out how young I was. So crazy!
Ha! This is awesome. You had your personality the minute you were born, didn’t you? 🙂 I don’t know if this is my earliest memory, but definitely a cute/funny one..I think I was 3 or 4. The town I live in now has a huge RV dealer, and my parents used to take me to an their big RV show at the local mall. You could walk through each RV…I loved it. My Mom said I would critique the decor in each one and give me approval or disdain for the color and fabric choices. 🙂
That vest looks adorable with the plaid!
Oh my goodnesssssss!!!!! Hahaha!!! Do you remember what happened after you knocked your preschool teacher to the floor??! Hah!
I can’t believe you’ve had this vest since the 5th grade. I remember my kindergarten class really well..but don’t think I remember preschool at all.
I absolutely love this outfit! The shirt and vest are bright and cheerful, and those glittery loafers are so fun!
Avec Amber
What a great idea to hang onto this red vest! I love how you can pair your glitter shoes with this! And how cool to wear 2 collar shirts – I’ve never tried that before!
Alice
http://www.happinessatmidlife.com
you are always so adorable!! love the red vest just picked up from old navy the other day along with a flannel shirt. loving your hair too in your photos
I realized over the summer that most of my memories from my early childhood are actually dreams that I had then. I’m not exactly sure how I feel about that yet.
I’m so jealous of how long you’ve had this vest. I’ve had one shirt for 6 years but that’s the oldest article of clothing I own and wear. This is a lovely outfit!
-Mary @ stylethatmoves.blogspot.com