Friday Finds

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January Budget

I share my clothing budget here every month. My budget per month is $350, which may seem like a lot to some people or a little to others, but for me feels just right. I include all of my clothes, coats, shoes, and accessories in that budget, but not athletic gear, pajamas, or intimates.

Yeeks the first month of the roaring '20s is complete!! It flew by over here (don't they all?) and I felt like I hadn't bought anything, and then I checked my Pinterest board and I guess I bought kind of a lot! Jeff and I got a big Nordstrom gift card for Christmas so a couple of things came from that (along with a cake server because that's an adult thing to buy right?).

Here's what I bought in January:

Sam Edelman Mules - $119.95, used gift card $0. I've been wearing my leopard Sam Edelman mules nonstop, so I decided to get a pair in black too. It turns out Sam Edelman makes basically all of my favorite shoes, everything is so comfortable! These instantly class up any outfit I pair them with, definitely a good purchase.
Knotty Raffia Fan Earrings - $42.00, used gift card $0. I definitely didn't need another pair of statement earrings, but I couldn't resist these! They're nice and light and will be so fun once things warm up a little.
LOFT Bobble Heart Sweater - originally $59.50, on sale $29.75. I picked this up in stores when I was returning stuff after Christmas, and it was love at first sight (sorry, couldn't help myself). I literally just hopped away from writing this to leave a review on the site for it because I saw a few negative ones and I love it so much. I haven't had any issues with pilling, and it isn't itchy at all for me and I'm usually super sensitive to wool. You can see it on me here.
Freshly Picked Belt Bag - $59.00, used gift card $0. I got it in my head that I definitely needed a belt bag so I could be hands free with Mia, and ended up ordering this one which is technically a diaper belt bag. I did bring it on our trip to Florida and found it a little cumbersome for travel. I didn't really want to wear it while I was sitting, so I had to take it off and put it back on a lot. But I definitely still think it will make sense for park days and running after a toddler. The color in person is beautiful, a slightly darker tan than in the photos.
LOFT Tunic Sweater - originally $59.50, on sale $29.75. I was looking for a great basic to wear with leggings when I work from home, and this fit the bill! I actually bought this in the pale pink color, and then got home and realized I have like five pale pink sweaters now. So, I guess I'm set for spring!
Madewell Floral Dress - originally $138.00, on sale $99.99. This was 100% a post-Christmas sale impulse buy, but it was so cute when it got delivered that I had to keep it. I plan to break it out for a date night this weekend with black tights, black booties, and a long cardigan. We're headed to Bar Roma because I've basically been dreaming about their lasagna for the past year. It was one of our last dinners out before Mia was born, and I've been dying to go back!

Total spent: $159.49
Total saved: $97.51

For February, I've got my eye on some of Vineyard Vines' new arrivals, I paged through their latest catalog and everything so freaking cute! I'm hoping that since I was under budget this month I can justify an expensive purchase to myself. I also just ordered this sweater from Old Navy with a gift card from last Christmas I just found, I've been loving the "cardigan as a sweater" look so I'm excited to give it a try.

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Motherhood Monday: Our First Flight with Mia

So last week was a bit of a doozy for us - on top of our first flight with Mia, I came home and immediately turned around and flew out on a business trip the next day! But I know that's not what you're here to hear about. You want to know how that flight with Mia went.

Well, it was both better and worse than we expected. Better in that the logistics went pretty well. We had no problems checking our stuff, getting through the airport, getting our stuff on the plane, or getting Mia into the rental car. What we did have issues with was keeping Mia behaved on the plane.

We've only done one round-trip so far so we're definitely not experts, but I wanted to share what worked for us (and what didn't).

Our Tips for Flying with a Baby

1. Check what you can right away

We took an Uber to the airport (and Jeff installed our toddler travel car seat in about 5 seconds into the Uber - nice work Daddio!), got out, went directly to the United counter and checked everything we could. Our car seat went into a travel bag and got checked for free (it counts as an exception item). We also checked our travel crib and one big bag with clothes & toiletries for all three of us. We have status with United so these were also free. This left us with just a diaper bag, my purse, and the travel stroller to take through security and onto the plane.

We could have brought the travel crib on as one of our carry-on items, or gate-checked the car seat, but decided not to make it any harder on ourselves in terms of trying to carry a million things through security and around the airport (very nice since our gate got changed three times!). Both the car seat and the crib came out at baggage claim unscathed.

2. Buy travel baby accessories 

We debated back and forth on what we should buy for this and upcoming trips. Was a travel stroller worth it? Should we just rent a car seat with our rental car? Answer: yes and yes.

We ended up buying this travel stroller, which folds down to the size of a carry-on suitcase and can open and close with one hand. I can't say enough how convenient this was - between quickly getting Mia in and out of it, going through security, getting her onto the plane, carrying it up and down the stairs at our hotel, etc. Normally you would have to gate-check a stroller, but it was so nice instead to be able to bring ours onto the plane and have it immediately after we got off. The stroller was even great for going out to eat, because we could fold it up and put it under our table. I would highly recommend a travel stroller like this, and am planning on keeping it in the car now instead of having to take her giant everyday stroller in and out of our trunk for every trip.

We also decided to buy this car seat as our travel car seat option. It's really lightweight and inexpensive, and is super easy to install. Renting a car seat for the three days we were away would have been the same price as buying this car seat, so it was basically a no brainer in terms of cost since we will use it on multiple trips. I didn't even really consider bringing our expensive everyday car seat, since I would not have felt comfortable checking it, plus it is heavy and large.

As far as a travel crib goes, we had to bring ours as the B&B we were staying at did not have a crib we could borrow. I bought this one when Mia was teeny-tiny, knowing that we would use it for naps at her grandparents' house as well as for air travel. I picked it because it's lightweight and compact, but also will work for Mia as she grows. The mattress is directly on the ground so there isn't a weight limit, and the dimensions are different than a normal pack'n'play. It's longer and narrower, so hopefully should work for our 95th percentile baby for a long time. When Mia was a newborn, we used the bassinet kit, but now she's just in the regular crib.

We did not bring our travel high chair, mostly because I didn't think it was necessary to lug another item around. Everywhere we ate had a high chair, and I just brought some of these disposable placemats to put Mia's food on.

3. Consider getting baby her own seat 

With a baby under the age of 2, you can choose to buy baby her own seat, or bring her onboard as a lap baby. Our plane was small (just 2x2 seats) and the flight was only two hours, so we decided to save the money and just bring her on as a lap baby.

I felt like we did everything right in terms of getting Mia on the plane. We tried to wear her out by letting her crawl all over the airport before the flight. Mia sleeps every three-ish hours, so it was impossible for us to time things so she wouldn't need to nap, but I tried to time things out so she'd be getting tired as we got on the plane. I gave her a bottle right before take-off to help with ear pressure and to help her drift off to sleep. We sang a song like we usually do at home, and I closed the window so it would be dark. But baby girl would NOT nap. She would drift off for a minute, and then wake up screaming. We eventually gave up on the napping thing and just tried to distract her instead. She was sometimes happy and sometimes distracted by the kind passengers sitting around us, but she mostly was pretty squirmy and unhappy.

Even when she was happy and even though Jeff and I could pass her back and forth, it still was a lot to have a 10 month old on my lap in a teeny airplane seat. If I were to do it again, I would 100% buy her a seat and bring her carseat onboard for her to sit in. Mia sleeps really well in her carseat, and I think if she had her own seat she would have been happy and napped.

We have another flight coming up at the end of April, fingers crossed Mia enjoys that plane ride more!

Have you flown with a baby? Any tips for our next flight?

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Friday Finds

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Travel Bags

With all of our travel this week (we flew down to Florida for a wedding over the long weekend and I'm currently in San Francisco for work) I've got travel bags on the brain!

I'm finally feeling set in terms of suitcases and what I bring on a plane. I love my carry-on bag (I have the carry-on size) and use it whenever I travel for work. I love that the sections inside allow me to be better organized, and I always fit an amazing amount of stuff inside. I have the same bag in the checked-bag medium size, and love that for when we're going on a longer trip. These do get marked up when you check them, but I just use a magic eraser to get any marks off.

For shorter trips when we're driving, I usually use this weekender bag (also comes in a twill here) - it's so beautiful and looks way more expensive than it is. I had a crazy pattern one of these that Mia commandeered and I never loved the pattern but loved the size and functionality, so I was super excited to see it available in solids! I actually got the black color with a black monogram and it looks so chic. This is what I grab when we go for a night at the in-laws house or a roadtrip with our friends. I rarely bring this on a plane because it gets heavy to carry around on your shoulder!

I also love using my Transport Tote as my personal item on a plane. I have the zip-top version, which is clutch on a plane when you don't want all of the random things you've packed rolling all over the place. I like to alternate between reading / watching videos on my iPad mini and listening to podcasts or playing games on my phone, so I love having this little tech envelope inside of my purse so I can easily pull out all of my electronics (plus a credit card so I can buy myself a snack box ;) and leave my larger bag under the seat.

While I'm set on suitcases and totes, I'm on the hunt for some solutions for my toiletries, makeup and jewelry. The bags I use have been in rotation since I was in college and are basically falling apart. I've long admired the Truffle bags, they are such chic bags for easily getting through the TSA! I bought one for Jeff's sister last year and was so jealous when I saw it in person, I wanted to keep it for myself. But for Christmas my sister-in-law asked for a Dagne Dover bag, and having seen it in person I definitely am looking at ordering one. It has a couple mini mesh bags inside of it for keeping stuff organized, and the whole thing is waterproof and can be wiped clean. 

Here are my picks for the best travel bags:

Truffle Clarity Case / Vera Bradley Weekender Bag / Delsey Carry-On Suitcase / Truffle Clarity Clutch / Madewell Zip-Top Transport Tote / Dagne Dover Toiletry Bag / Mark & Graham Travel Organizer

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Friday Finds

Happy Friday!! Right now we are on our FIRST FLIGHT WITH MIA so wish us luck and maybe be waiting for us at arrivals with a stiff cocktail haha. I have always heard that it's easiest to fly with kids before they can walk, but Mia started standing up and has been doing lots of cruising over the past two weeks so this could get interesting.

We are headed down to Florida for a wedding over the long weekend, and I am crossing my fingers and toes we get some nice weather! Then as soon as we get home on Monday I'm repacking to head off on my first business trip since the doctor told me to stop flying when I was super pregnant at the end of 2018. Wish me lots and lots of luck.

Here are the finds this week - a few ways to make your cold weather dressing more fun!

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Some Winter Basics

Coat - J.Crew / Sweater - J.Crew Factory / Jeans - Madewell / Mules (also available here and here) - Sam Edelman / Bag - Tory Burch / Sunglasses - Amazon

An outfit post, oh my! I know, I know, I haven't been living up to the whole style blogger thing as of late. It's a whole lot harder to run outside to snap a few photos when we have to get Mia down and out too, and honestly since I mostly work from home now I'm not getting dressed a ton anyway. 

BUT. 

I had to share a few of my new favorite things with you. Because what kind of friend would I be if I didn't share? 

I've been wanting another wool winter coat, because as much as I love this one I feel a little silly with the faux fur collar in all situations, like when we dress up or when it happens to be 30 degrees in May in Chicago. I ordered and returned 5 or 6 coats this fall until I came upon this one. It's cute and simple, but the details like the gold zipper and ribbed cuffs really elevate it. I also am loving the warm camel color - I've always wanted a camel coat! As far as sizing, I'm in my normal J.Crew size in a tall. It's slightly more fitted than the Chateaux parka but still an a-line. 

Then we have the jeans. It's amazing, I get compliments on these every time I wear them. The button fly is surprisingly flattering even though I carry my weight in my mid-section. They are a 9" high rise, which for me goes right above my belly button (I have long legs and a short waist). I went down one size, and honestly could have gone down two because they stretch out easily. I am wearing a tall, and every time I wash them the ankles get a little more frayed making them a tiny bit shorter. The frayed ankles do look a little weird with booties and winter boots, but are really cute with mules, loafers and sneakers. 

And of course, that leads us to the mules. How much can one talk about loving a pair of shoes before she starts to sound a bit crazy? But really, these are one of the most comfortable pairs of shoes in my closet, and I wear them just about every chance that Chicago lets me. They go with surprisingly just about everything in my closet, and have the ability to take a basic outfit to the next level. I love them so much I'm thinking about ordering them in black too. 

Is that enough incoherent rambling about one outfit? Okay cool thanks, let's call it a day :) 

  

Coat - J.Crew / Sweater - J.Crew Factory / Jeans - Madewell / Mules (also available here and here) - Sam Edelman / Bag - Tory Burch / Sunglasses - Amazon

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