Friday Finds

After all of our plans last weekend for Memorial Day, I'm excited to slow things down this weekend!! We're hoping to check out the rooftop at Gene's if the weather is nice, but besides that just have plans to chill :)

Here are my finds for this week:

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May Budget

Every month I post about my clothing budget. My budget per month is $350, which may seem like a lot to some and a little to others, but feels just right for me. You can read my thoughts on my 2018 budget here.

Can you tell I'm planning a summer as a stay at home mom from this budget post?? Lollll. It's the month of the sweatshirt! I even bought one more pullover that is meant to be sleepwear so I'm not including it here, but also it's the softest thing ever so I might end up wearing it out of the house haha. I've been loving all of the pullovers, front-tucked into some denim shorts they make the perfect warm weather casual look.

I also have been shopping for my brother-in-law's wedding at the beginning of July. Normally I would pull a dress out of my own closet to wear, but since we haven't had many weddings lately I decided to treat myself. I literally ordered and returned over $1,000 worth of stuff to the Nordstrom last week. Yes, you read that correctly. With the little girl it's so much easier to order a bunch of stuff to try on at home, and Nordstrom has such a great return policy that I just went with it.

Here's the damage for May: 

Eliza J Dress - $158.00. Eliza J's dresses are beautiful and come in extended sizes now, almost everything I ordered to try for this wedding was from Eliza J! I looooove this one, it's so flattering, but I also still have this dress in my possession and think it would be so fun for a July 4th wedding. It just is too low cut and I'd need to put in a hook and eye or sew the top shut or something. But I'll keep one or the other, they're both the same price.
J.Crew Colorblock Sweatshirt - originally $65.00, on sale + used rewards $40.50. One of those things I saw and needed, and it is so cute in person! Definitely size up in this one, I got an XXL. You can see it here.
Lou & Grey Striped Sweatshirt (also available here) - $39.50. I went for a quick wander by myself while my MIL was babysitting, and ended up walking out of Lou & Grey with this. It's so funny, I would never buy something full price online, but in person when I'm in a bit of a rush? Yep, happy to do it haha. I grabbed this to try on and it's so cute, the perfect light sweatshirt material for summer lounging. The sales girl said just about every girl who'd been in that afternoon walked out with one.
LOFT Striped Romper - originally $89.50, on sale $44.75. I don't usually love a romper, mostly because it's always so tricky to find one that fits your body type. This one is gorgeous though, I would love to dress it up with some pretty espadrilles and rattan earrings (would be so cute for a bachelorette if you're a bride-to-be!) and the fit is perfect with the little waist tie.
Universal Thread Slide Sandals - $19.99. I bought these in brown last month and loved them so much I snagged them in gold too! They are insanely comfortable, I've had zero issues with blisters and I wore them for a mile walk over the weekend. I love the gold for a dressier summer option.
Aerie Striped Beach Fleece - originally $44.95, on sale $31.46. I saw a few girls on Instagram talking up this shirt so I had to give it a try. The fabric definitely surprised me, I thought it would be soft fleece but really it's more like terrycloth. Not quite as soft as I thought it would be, but I'm hoping it will get softer in the wash like the reviews suggest. It's the perfect summer weight to pair with shorts when you want your skin covered when it's hot or for a cool summer night.

Total Spent: $334.20
Total Saved: $82.74

And here's what I bought that I returned:

J.Crew Striped Popover - Just not as flattering as I thought it would be. For some reason I thought this was tunic length too, and it is not.
LOFT Floral Romper - I thought this would fit just like my polka dot romper from last summer, but it's different, somehow way less flattering.
J.Crew Factory Floral Midi Dress - Not flattering around the midsection, way too much fabric at the waist.
Sanctuary Floral Jumpsuit - I had a hard time deciding on this one, sometimes I thought it was cute and flattering and sometimes not.
Lou & Grey Chambray Jumpsuit - This jumpsuit is actually pretty cute, but the back dips a little too low to wear a regular bra.
Gal Meets Glam Midi Dress - I think all of Gal Meets Glam's dresses are beautiful, but when I actually put them on they're a little too buttoned up for me. Plus this one felt like too much fabric around the waist.
Gibson Eyelet Top - The tiers on this didn't work on my bust. Too bad because it is beautiful!
LOFT Floral Dress - So cute in person but it runs small and the buttons gaped a lot.
LOFT Linen Cardigan - I hated the fabric of these, not soft enough for me.


In June, I'm on the hunt for some great nude sandals with a thick heel to wear to this outdoor wedding (hoping this pair or this pair will work! I also ordered these as a flat option.) and some more summer denim - maybe these?

Did you find anything awesome this month? Let me know!

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Friday Finds

Happy Looooong Weekend!! Jeff and I have a babysitter tomorrow because we have tickets to our first Cubs game of the season! As you and I well know, I'm into sports mainly for the food and beverages, and I cannot wait to have a hotdog and a beer and do some good outside sitting. Cross your fingers we get some good weather!

one / two / three / four / five

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10 Pretty White Tops for Summer

Top - LOFT / Jeans - Old Navy / Sandals - Target / Bag (similar) - Coach Factory / Earrings - Vineyard Vines / Sunglasses - Amazon

Every year like clockwork once the temps start to rise, I start to shop for little white tops. They're so quintessentially summer. They just make me think of fireflies, trips to the beach, barbecuing, and bonfires. Of course, have I ever told you I don't really like bonfires? It's not the fire itself, I like that. I just don't like the idea of sitting outside at night staring at a fire because it makes me think someone or something is going to sneak up behind us. I usually casually disappear inside after a few minutes. Yay, irrational fears! 

I love a pretty white top because they're so versatile. Here I'm pairing one with light wash jeans (which also feel so much more summer-y than dark wash - try switching yours out for warm weather!) but I also love them with shorts and skirts too. Or, if you're feeling really spicy, pair a white top with your white jeans, add in some bright accessories, and spend your day trying not to spill! 

While my top is old (insert crying face emoji), I went and rounded up my top ten wishlist of pretty white tops for summer: 

Top - LOFT / Jeans - Old Navy / Sandals - Target / Bag (similar) - Coach Factory / Earrings - Vineyard Vines / Sunglasses - Amazon

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Motherhood Monday: On Taking a Break

Yesterday Jeff took Mia to his parents' house, and I was all by myself. I mean, Jeff has watched Mia before, but this was literally the first time I'd been in the house without her since she was born.

I thought about just laying around, but since I have a lot of quiet time in the house already while Mia naps and since I have a hard time relaxing these days because I always feel like I need to accomplish something when I have a moment, I decided to get out by myself and hit the town.

I took myself to brunch at Gather, which normally would be impossible to walk in and get a table on a Sunday morning but since I was by myself I was sat immediately. I know a lot of people feel awkward going out by themselves, but I have always weirdly enjoyed it. I sat at the bar and sipped a bellini, did a little people watching, took my time ordering and eating, and made some progress on The Overdue Life of Amy Byler, which, coincidentally, is about a mom on "momspringa" where she takes a vacation from her regular life. I wasn't ready to go home after that, so I wandered down the street into a coffee shop and a few shops, and decided to treat my neglected nails to a mani pedi.

And you know what? The day was so nice! I missed Mia of course, but just a few hours completely to myself (that didn't revolve around a doctor's appointment) were so refreshing. I, like a lot of moms, have an issue really letting go and letting someone else be completely in charge of my kid. Even though Jeff is amazingly helpful, I'm always going, going, going when I was at home. I didn't realize how much I needed a break until I got one!

So to all of you mommas out there, remember to get yourself some me time whenever you get the chance. Just like putting on your oxygen mask before your kid's in the airplane, it's important to take care of yourself so that you can better take care of them!

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Friday Finds

Happy Friday!! This week was a bit of a doozy. After posting about our schedule on Monday I totally jinxed us, because Mia has not been happy to nap outside of her car seat at all this week, and decided for some reason she hates one of my boobs. Hmmmm. Don't worry, she doesn't have an ear infection or anything, I thought of that. 

So as you may guess, I'm pretty excited it's the weekend so Jeff will be around to help! The weather is maybe going to be nice, so we're hoping to get outside a little and maybe spend some time on our favorite patios! I've also been hoping to go to Home Depot and buy flowers to plant on our balcony this year because now I'm THAT person. 

So anyway, here are the finds for the week! Three are from LOFT, which is reminding me, did you see they have a new subscription service? So like, you get three items and can return them as often as you like to trade out for three more. I've always been pretty anti these subscriptions before, because I always want the tangible good for my money and am unsure how sizing work and worry that I'd just be wasting time and money. But, I shop so often at LOFT and I keep hearing about how terrible fast fashion is for the environment, so this is sounding like a good idea to me. I would probably just do it for spring and summer though, because I'm never as into their fall / winter clothes. Would you sign up for a subscription like this? 

one / two / three / four / five

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Weekend Mom Style

Tee (similar here and here) - J.Crew Factory / Jacket (currently on sale!) - J.Crew / Jeans - Old Navy / Bag - Madewell / Sneakers - New Balance / Sunglasses - Amazon

My "mom style" so far has leaned towards the very casual haha. Not that I expected anything less, I think I wore leggings for about 97 days straight when I was pregnant. So for me, dressing up a little for running around the neighborhood with the family means putting on an actual pair of jeans with my sneakers and wearing a fun tee shirt instead of one of the three tee shirts I rotate through at home that are nursing and allergic reaction-friendly. 

(Have I mentioned my crazy allergic reaction to you here or just on Instagram? Basically since having Mia I've been having an allergic reaction to something, and while it's much better than it was it's currently making my arms and feet itchy. Fingers crossed I'm not just allergic to having a baby.) 

It's so funny living in Chicago in the spring. In any other city, at 55 degrees people would be bundling up. In Chicago, it was a sunny and not windy 55 degrees so everyone got the eff outside. I mean, the park by our house was basically standing room only. I saw people walking around in shorts and sandals. Jeff and I decided to take the baby for a long walk through the park and around our neighborhood, and it made me so excited for the weather to actually warm up and for us to spend lots of time outside this summer. I'm even considering buying this totally necessary leather blanket for laying in the park with Mia. (Did you see that part above about my skin? Yeah we so aren't touching grass here 😂) 

Anyway, back to the outfit! I've loved the button-front jean trend from afar while I was preggo and then recovering from being preggo, and was really excited to try it out myself. Well, it turns out that to get all those buttons on the fly, your jeans basically have to be high waisted and as a short torso-ed person I am not here for that. Mid-rise jeans already manage to cover my belly button, and high rise jeans basically touch my bra. I tried on many pairs but basically chalked it up as something that would never work for me. 

But then I found this pair from Old Navy that have just an 8" rise, not 10" or 11" and you guys, they totally work! They come up just to my belly button, and the button fly holds you in a little more than a zipper making them super comfy and flattering. I also am loving the lighter wash, which feels so fresh for spring. These are definitely a stiffer denim than most of my skinny jeans though and don't have much stretch, so while they're really flattering I probably am not wearing them all day. Which works for me, as we rarely are outside of the house for more than two hours at a time, and you and I both know I'm putting on cozies as soon as I walk in the door. 

Add in a cute leather tote and my favorite jacket (which I somehow managed to cover in chai latte drips, can you tell in the photos??) and I'm basically a walking J.Crew model / basic b mom. And I am here. for. it. 

Tee (similar here and here) - J.Crew Factory / Jacket (currently on sale!) - J.Crew / Jeans - Old Navy / Bag - Madewell / Sneakers - New Balance / Sunglasses - Amazon

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Motherhood Monday: Mia's 2 Month Schedule

Check out our full nursery here

Okay, I should preface this by saying we got really lucky with this little girl. I've never functioned great when I don't get enough sleep (which for me means eight plus hours!) and usually get terrible headaches if I haven't slept enough, so I was pretty nervous about this aspect of parenting.

But it turns out, Mia LOVES sleeping. Jeff and I hesitate to tell other parents how much Mia sleeps so as not to incite violence or jinx ourselves. So I won't be telling you here ;)

That being said, she was a great napper during the day for the first month, and then when Jeff went back to work it was like a switch flipped and she wouldn't nap at all. Like, she was consistently awake for six to eight hours straight, with just short catnaps when she finished nursing until I tried to put her down. And she would get MAD by the end of the day, usually from when Jeff got home from work until she went to sleep for the night she would be super fussy and do quite a bit of screaming.

Finally in the last few weeks we seem to have figured a few things out. First is that I should be looking to put her back to sleep within two hours of her waking up. Second is that while we were swaddling at night, she really needed a swaddle for her naps too. And third is that instead of trying to lay her in her Dock-a-Tot in the living room for naptime, she really should be off in her crib instead so that my activity doesn't wake her.

So here's Mia's typical schedule - keep in mind that these times vary day-to-day. And regularly get thrown off due to explosive poops and emergency baths.

8:00 am - Wake up and eat eat eat - I grab a boppy so we can just sit in bed and watch the news.
8:30 am - Diaper change and eat eat eat some more. The pediatrician said that since she sleeps so much, she's making up the calories here.
9:00 am - Mia hang out in her lounger and stares at her favorite piece of artwork (lollll it's a terrible generic wood carving from Target) or sits in her bouncer while I get ready for the day. If I didn't manage to shower before she woke up, I'll do it now, or depending on my laziness level skip it and add on another layer of dry shampoo and deodorant.
9:30 am - Playtime on her play mat in the living room. The doctor told us that HALF of her awake time should be on her stomach, so I try to squeeze in a lot here while she's up and happy.
9:45 am - She is OVER tummy time and starting to get little grumpy, so we do a little more eating.
10:00 am - We move downstairs to her nursery, get in the swaddle, and nurse a little more until she falls asleep. Yes, nursing to sleep is bad, but the pediatrician said it's okay at this point. Then I run around like a crazy person trying to get things done around the house or on my computer while simultaneously trying to consume as many calories as possible.
12:00 pm - Wake up and eat some more, definitely not while singing some Disney songs.
12:30 pm - Diaper change and then play time on the play mat or in her bouncer. Try to put her on her tummy and try to avoid the screaming that ensues.
1:00 pm - Load up into the car seat, double check that I have the one thousand things I definitely won't but potentially could need, and make our way down four flights of stairs for an outing. If it's nice we'll go for a walk, or we might run errands or explore Target again. She stays awake for a little, and then will fall asleep.
3:00 pm - Come up and shlep Mia, the car seat, the baby bag, and whatever things I have managed to acquire while out and about back up four flights of stairs. I nervously watch her sleep in her carseat (since that's a thing babies aren't supposed to do anymore) while I put away said things I've acquired and try to cram some more food into my body.
3:15 pm - Take Mia out of her car seat as gently as possible but definitely wake her up every time, then we eat some more.
3:45 pm - More playtime and definitely no tummy time screaming.
5:00 pm - We've been (impatiently) waiting for daddy to get home from work and starting to get fussy, so we eat a little more.
5:15 pm - Head downstairs to get back into the swaddle and nurse to sleep again. Dad gets home and wonders where his child is and assumes that she must just sleep peacefully all day. We try to pull something together for dinner before Mia wakes up.
6:15 pm - This nap is usually shorter because Mia prefers to be awake as soon as we've got hot food on our plates. She eats more.
6:45 pm - Our longest awake period of the day. Mia will play with daddy, maybe get a bath or Facetime with her grandparents, hang out in her bouncer or in her swing, and maybe eat a little.
9:00 pm - We head into the bedroom to change into pajamas, do one last diaper change, put on her Owelet smart sock (so that her parents don't have to be crazy worry warts), and do lots and lots of eating (while I watch an episode or two of Schitt's Creek) before she falls asleep - usually around 10:00 pm.

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Friday Finds

Happy Friday!! We have a packed weekend ahead, between my nephew Clark's FIRST BIRTHDAY (it was Jeff's birthday this week too, so I requested he get a smash cake of his own 😂), Jeff's baby sister's baptism, and my first Mother's Day as a mommy! I requested some quiet alone time as my Mother's Day gift, so fingers crossed that actually happens.

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Blue and White for Spring

Top - LOFT / Jeans (these are old, linking a super similar pair here) - Gap / Mules (similar here, here, and here) - Nordstrom / Bag (similar) - Ann Taylor / Earrings - J.Crew Factory / Sunglasses - Amazon

White and blue are 100% my spring and summer colors. They're so pretty and fun and fresh. Perfect for getting that beach vacation vibe, whether you're actually on a beach or just hanging out in Chicago's 50 degree spring weather.

I love the look of white denim with a blue and white blouse, and have the closet to prove it. As things heat up, I'll swap out the jeans for my favorite white denim shorts or maybe even a skirt, or I'll pair the top with denim shorts and a white sweater blazer for a cool summer night.

I'm so sad that this top sold out so quickly (although as I'm writing this, I did find one size left in petite). I hate when I come on here to share something new with you guys and it's already unavailable. But, no fear, I did some searching for similar tops and found a few winners:

I've actually had these white jeans for a couple of years now and still love them. White jeans may seem scary to keep clean, but they really aren't so bad. To keep them looking fresh, I toss them in the wash with a couple of bleach packets. And, for any stubborn stains, I have a new trick - laying them in the sun! I started trying this for tomato stains and had one completely disappear off of my favorite fleece, then for baby poop stains. It's freaking incredible. Oh sun, who knew you were always the best man for the job?

Top - LOFT / Jeans (these are old, linking a super similar pair here) - Gap / Mules (similar here, here, and here) - Nordstrom / Bag (similar) - Ann Taylor / Earrings - J.Crew Factory / Sunglasses - Amazon

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