Motherhood is vibrant and vulnerable. It’s not for the faint of heart. Moms need to love wholeheartedly. They need patience made of steel. They need to be nose wipers and philosophers and chocolate chip pancake makers. They need be able to hold tiny hands and little by little, let go.

There’s the thicket of day-to-day mom life. Then there’s the blooms; the moments of joy that make you think “I’m part of something wonderful.” This Mother’s Day, I’ll be pregnant with my second baby and I feel so incredulously blessed. My husband and I always look back on our daughter’s infancy with nostalgia, but we eventually made peace with the idea that our family’s baby days were behind us. Then life—quite literally—happens.

Mother’s Day might just be my favorite holiday. I picked this dress from Chaps because it’s perfect for Mother’s Day celebrations: vibrant, beautiful, and in full bloom. Bougainvillea pink makes me happy and I’ve never met a flutter sleeve I didn’t like. Not to mention it’s got stretch and it’s on sale!

There’s nothing like a dress that captures a mood (or highlights a growing baby bump.)

Share this look with a mom who loves classic, feminine style, or pick this dress up for yourself!

Happy Mother’s Day!

In collaboration with Chaps

Photos by Jessica Castro