Fragrance: Gasoline By Generator

On any given day, I can be found wearing an outfit. As a full-time cowboy, I used to wear long-sleeve shirts and Levi’s every day. Now that I’m a full-time mom and part-time writer, I usually wear dresses and sandals. Wearing a fun dress like this helps take the sting out of not wearing boots and spurs to work.

An unexpected side effect is that now I just want to twirl my skirt around, bake cookies and have more of Jim’s babies. He is totally on board with the cookie idea, but he is not enthusiastic about having another kid. Something about pregnancy weight gain, mood swings and lack of sleep. Plus, he’d have to put up with me.

Now that you know a little too much information, here are the actual facts about my outfit of this day.

Dress: Ruby Rox. You probably haven’t heard of this brand, because I purchased this dress at a Ross store during my freshman year of college. One of the buttons is yellowed with age, which is super weird because just yesterday my roommates and I were curling our hair and borrowing each others’ shoes to go to a party at the ag frat house. But, it makes me feel like Lucille Ball, so I absolutely love it. Plus, I can wear it with assurance that no one else will have it, because most people update their wardrobes more than once every 12 years.

Fragrance: Gasoline by generator. We live off the grid, so our home is powered by solar panels. Periodically, we to have run the generator for backup, and no matter how hard I try, I always spill a little gas on my hands, shoes, clothes, or all three. This is not surprising, since I hold the funnel to fill the gas tank while I simultaneously pour the gas, bat the four-year-old away from the funnel, and evasively maneuver the one-year-old away from the stream of gas.

Hair: Twist ‘n clip with hair washed yesterday. It’s my go-to face-washing style that usually winds up staying for the rest of the day.

Earrings: Absent, because I don’t yet trust the one-year-old. I like intact earlobes more than I like dangly earrings.

Right-hand ring: Leon Gage silver. Jim bought it for me at the Jordan Valley Big Loop when I was 13 weeks pregnant with our daughter, where I spent the majority of the rodeo laying in the shade beside the tipi trying not to throw up. Jim spent the majority of the rodeo doing things that really irritate a hormonal pregnant lady, like talking to his friends and breathing. The engraving is worn smooth on the bottom of the ring, because I wear it every day.

Left-hand ring: Jim bought me this 14-karat gold-and-diamond band from a pawn shop in Elko, Nevada. He put it on my finger in the front seat of our new-to-us Dodge pickup while we were parked on Idaho Street, and we eloped the next month. I put a gold band on his left hand five months later, because cowboy families have to budget like that sometimes.

Makeup: Clinique foundation with cheap mascara. Last month, a friend gave me an extensive makeup set, and I have been experimenting with colors with the glee of a kindergarten who recently discovered finger paints. I justify applying foundation every day because of its SPF properties, but I put on lipstick, blush and eye shadow because I like feeling – and – looking like a lady.

Now, if only I could justify smelling like gasoline fumes while looking like a lady.