Not Quite Summer

H&M sweater
& Other Stories skirt (similar)
Oak + Fort mules (similar)
Louis Vuitton handbag
Mango sunglasses
Keltie Leanne Designs ring (c/o) (similar)
Location: Oseredok – Winnipeg, Manitoba

It still doesn’t quite feel like summer. We’ve had a beautifully hot day here and there, I admit – the temperature climbed to thirty-five degrees Celsius for almost an entire day last week. But mostly, the sun spends half its time hidden behind clouds. And the thermometer hovers between seventeen and twenty degrees. Last year, summer arrived seemingly overnight in April and stayed until early October. After those blissful six months, to say this season has proven a disappointment would be an understatement. Despite my fondness for sweaters, I will always be a summer girl at heart. I crave the sun and warmth. There hasn’t been nearly enough of either this year.

I promised myself I wouldn’t dwell on the weather in my blog posts about five years ago. And, for the most part, I’ve made good on that promise. But talk of the glacial pace of seasonal change this year seems particularly relevant when I look back on these photos. I woke up to sun on the day we took them. The weather had been cool all week, but seeing the sun was encouraging. Maybe we would finally be able to capture my first summer outfit, I thought. I knew exactly what I wanted to wear, and began laying out the clothes.

It was only after my outfit was fully ready that I checked the temperature: three degrees. I had a few hours before I would be meeting Ian, so, determined, I left out the sleeveless top I planned to wear and watched my weather app… as the temperature climbed… slowly, so slowly, to a whopping seven degrees. It was late May. Needless to say, I was less than impressed.

But I made it work. I swapped out my sleeveless top and threw on a cosy sweater in its place. It wasn’t the outfit I planned on, but so little in life really goes according to plan – I’m starting to learn that I can’t expect anything different when it comes to my outfits.

I want to think that I’ll get a chance to wear the outfit that I originally planned at some point this season. But when I popped outside this afternoon for my after work run, the temperature was holding steady at a not-exactly-balmy seventeen. Summer still isn’t really here, but on the other hand, it’s not winter anymore. And knowing how many months of snow are just around the corner, we have to take advantage of every opportunity to enjoy even relatively good weather. Tomorrow, we’re heading off on a weekend getaway to Minneapolis to celebrate Ian’s birthday, and even if the weather isn’t as summery as I would like, we will be spending as much time outside as possible. Although summer has barely begun and I am already keenly aware of how quickly it will end.

…which is to say that whatever I’m wearing, I will definitely be indulging in all my favourite summer things on our brief trip. Gelato, I’m looking at you.

How have you all been enjoying summer so far?