Zara I Basic Sandals

 I first talked about these shoes in this post, and since then, I've worn it all over town. I was willing to forego comfort for a little bit for this beauty, but surprisingly, they do not make my feet/ legs ache! Definitely an attention grabber, I do not think I've received so many compliments on my shoes ever before. From women and men alike. And like me, when I ran after that lady to ask about these shoes, I've had several people come huffing and puffing, asking me where I got these!

The first time I wore them, it was with a simple white button down and black pencil skirt. I figured I had to play it safe so that the orange is not so overwhelming. But I've worn it with lots of different colors, and it really can act as a neutral! Here it is with a simple purple tank top, black cardigan and black skirt.

One of these days, I will muster up the chutzpah and wear it with more vivid, brighter colors!

Covering the still there post baby bump

Mommy Project: Vase of Flowers

Spring is here!!! One of my favorite seasons (the other being Fall). I decided to add some color to our house. While I love fresh flowers, I don't always have the time to go to the store and get some, so I decided to pick up some artificial ones to always have something "blooming" in my house.

I know, I probably should plant seeds and grow some flowers, but green thumb I certainly do not have. Sadly.

But, here is a quick project I did. It was so quick and easy, I honestly don't even think it qualifies as a project per se!

Picked up some faux blooms from the Dollar Tree. They are surprisingly good quality- soft, not stiff or plasticky. I also picked up a plain garden water container and glass jar.

Total cost = $7.00 + tax. Woohoo!

Bag, Borrow, or Steal

A friend gave me a $30 rental credit to Bag, Borrow, or Steal (visit them here) and I decided to browse their website this weekend. Having reached their most popular moment when mentioned in the first Sex and the City movie, I know I am a few years behind on this. Being a handbag lover, I was pretty excited because having blown $$$ on bags that i thought I would love but later on gave away or sold, the idea of renting one to be able to try something out was pretty neat.

Since I've been thinking of getting a new work tote that would fit my huge company issued HP laptop (hello, work, have you not heard of laptops smaller than 20"?!), I decided on the Tory Burch Robinson Tote. And since it's getting warmer here in Texas, and because I'm a sucker for white bags but do not have the courage to actually buy one, renting it is the next best thing.

The Tory Burch Robinson Tote is made of Saffiano leather, and it has a very simple, clean look. The inside is extremely well thought out, with lots of pockets for organization. It reminds me a lot of the Prada Saffiano tote (which reminds me of my Chanel Executive/ Cerf Tote). The Tory Burch tote is a bit more "easy" on the pocketbook compared to the other two.

I'll road test this baby out, and post my thoughts on it and more pictures in a few days!

UPDATE: After 2 days of using this, I decided to return it early. This bag is well crafter of beautiful Saffiano leather, however, it was HEAVY! I'm not petite or slim framed, and i love me some big bags, but this baby was just a bit too heavy to carry. It did function very well as a work bag though, with all the space and little pockets inside to organize my files and personal things.

Letters to Eidan: Open wide!

My Dearest Eidan,

At your 4 month wellness check-up, the doctor gave us the go signal to start feeding you solids. I was so excited, yet sentimental at the same time. I installed your space saver high chair and started crying. Because, son, you now have your place at the family table. Just like that, my little man is no longer such a little baby. For your first time though, I put you on your Daddy's lap so you would feel more safe and familiar. We fed you Earth's Best Sweet Potatoes, and you seemed to love it!

Of course, I busted out the camera and took tons of pictures and videos! I have to have something to show you when you're older! You looked so cute, relishing the strange texture and taste. I thought you would make weird faces, but all you kept giving us were toothless, orangey smiles.

It is so rewarding to see you grow stronger, healthier, and happier each day. Your doctor told me you are so advanced for your age, rolling over, "crawling", standing up and sitting down with minimal support, and doing the "superman" when you are on your tummy. He mentioned how talkative and alert you are, and his praises made my heart sing. I don't care what percentile you are in someone's chart; all I care about is that I see you happy and developing.

I've decided to make your baby food myself. Hopefully, you will like it as much as the store bought ones! Your dad pointed out its extra work for your already work stressed and tired mom, but I don't care. It's an hour out of a day that I'm happy to give up.

Love, always and forever,

Mom

This is what's for dinner? Yummy!

I'm more interested in the bib, Mom

Come on, open wide, Eidan

Touchdown! Mmmm, yummy

All done!

** First Feeding (and pictures) dated March 13, 2012

Guilty Pleasures: Color Block sandals

I first saw this when a very stylish woman walked past me at the mall. She was wearing a very simple white tee, a black pencil skirt, and these gorgeous shoes. I held on to the stroller and ran after her!

The Zara I Basic Sandal has been sold out on their website for a few weeks now. So I started stalking the stores, and finally got a call from the SA yesterday telling me they have one my size. Score! The orange is not neon or too in your face bright. It plays very well with the tan and black straps, and I can see this working with so many outfits, giving it a pop of color, or even acting as a neutral.

Hello, gorgeous! Buy here

Trying 'em out

Here are some fun alternatives -

Nine West color block sandals
Vince Camuto Venize sandal
Ivanka Trump Meade sandal

Beauty Friday: Pastel Nails

I'm on a nail polish kick lately, it's such a fun way to add color, and as I mentioned in a previous post, my son likes looking at the colors. This week, I decided to jump on the pastel nail polish bandwagon.

Purple on the fingers and mint green on the toes

Sally Hansen No Hard Feelings (available at drugstores)

Dots nail polish (there was no name on the bottle)

I wore both without a topcoat (because I have not had the time to get  new bottle after mine ran out), and with normal activities at home and work, it has lasted a good amount of time on my nails. Neither of these 2 claim to be quick drying, but after 2 coats of both, drying time was still fairly quick. Sally Hansen has always been a good nail polish brand for me, but this was the first time I tried a store brand polish. Quite surprised at how good the color and application was for the Dots polish. Both applied very smoothly, and yielded the color  you see in the bottle after 2 coats (1 coat is streaky).

What do you think? Have you or are you planning on trying out the pastel nail polish trend?

Lady Like

 

Mommy Look of the Day
Top and Skirt (Destination Maternity)
Belt (Forever 21)
Bag (Lady Dior Medium)
Shoes (Ann Marino)

Yes, 4 months later I'm still wearing maternity clothes. Come on last 15 pounds.... work with me and disappear!

Inspiration Wednesday: Hello, Charlie Brown

One of my co-workers is a BIG Charlie Brown fan. He has miniatures all over the place, and every so often, he changes them up. Today, while walking past his desk, feeling quite down (I'll explain why in a bit), I saw this and it put a smile on my face.

I am so very blessed to have my son after waiting for him for so long. But sleepless nights and I do not get along. At all. Eidan sleeps through the night most of the time, but since he has learned how to roll over and work around, he does it in his sleep and wakes himself up several times a night. I've been feeling like such a zombie at work and yesterday, I made a big mistake with something extremely important. Luckily, my boss caught it before it went viral. But that really bummed me out. I'm such a Type A, Virgo perfectionist, I do not like making mistakes, especially not at work AND when millions of $$ are at stake!

Let's get back to my inspiration for this week. I know it's not much of a "down", me feeling this way. It was just a nice reminder that things always have a way of working out. I emailed this picture I took to a friend who just broke things off with her boyfriend of several years. And it also made me think of another friend who got laid off, divorced, and is now having to sell her home (all in a span of a year). There are so many things that happen to bring us down. But we need to look at the bright side of things. I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. We might not always understand it at the time it's happening, but one day, we will. And things will always go back up. We just need to muck through the lows, and when we get to the highs, really live it up.

Little Black Dress

The LBD- every woman has it. It's timeless, easy to wear, you can dress it up or down. My closet is full of little black dresses, and every time I see one made of comfy material, and fits right, I snatch it up. It served me well when I was pregnant and up several sizes, and those same dresses, I still wear now that Im (almost) back to my normal size.

Mommy Look of the Day
LBD (Banana Republic)
Shoes (Franco Sarto, Nordstrom Rack)
Bag (Roberta Gandolfi)

And yes, a pop of color is a must for me whenever I wear black!

On a side note... I really need to find a way to take better pictures... But its usually just with my phone, propped up against something, on a timer. My husband hates pictures or even taking them. Sigh...

4th month Doctor's visit

Today was Eidan's 4th  month check up and immunization shots. I remember the first time we took him to the pediatrician. It was a few days after we came home from the hospital. We spent a sleepless night trying to calm a crying, hysterical baby. Eric and I did not know what to do, and truth be told, I think I spent half the night not knowing what was going on as I was still on pain meds.

We got to the doctor's office that day with panicked looks on our faces and a squirming baby. Finally, we were told that Eidan was hungry! My milk hadn't fully come in yet and so my poor little man was starving!

Fast forward to today, 4 months later. Eidan and I felt like pros at the doctor's office today. We got there early, played with a few of the kids in the waiting room, then got weighed, height charted, and then seen by the doc. Great news! He is doing so many advanced things such as rolling over well both ways, holding his head and legs up when on his tummy, standing up with minimal support, and sitting down (almost) by himself. And of course, he kept talking to the doctor and laughing at the instruments that were poking and prodding him. I felt like such a proud mama! He cried for about 5 seconds when the needle pricked his skin, and then he was back to smiling and cooing at me.

We love to read!
(sorry for the dark, blurry pic)

and he's out! zzzz.....

At home after his bath, Eidan got ready for bed and I read him a new book, Mommy Hugs by Karen Katz (bought from Amazon). He knocked out pretty quickly after that, and I think I just sat there for half an hour just enjoying holding him. How fast time flies.... I cannot believe he is now 4 months old!

Mommy Look of the Day - a bit of a mish mash
Fedora - Nordstrom
White top and black cardigan (old, Forever 21)
Jeans (Old Navy)
Bag (Rebecca Minkoff MAB Mini)
Shoes (Ann Marino booties, buy here)

I was lusting after a pair of suede Bottega Veneta booties similar to this but it was no longer available.
This was a great find, AND on sale at endless.com!

A Cold Weekend



Leather Jacket (old, Neiman Marcus)
Jeans (Old Navy)
Bag (Rebecca Minkoff MAB Mini)

IT was a blustery, wet, gloomy weekend. Eric (the hubby), Eidan, the 2 dogs, and I pretty much just stayed home and enjoyed being lazy. It was lots of play time, eating cold pizza, watching movies, and playing with the puppies. We had a lazy, relaxing time celebrating Eidan's 4th month.

The sun finally came out on Sunday, even if it was still a bit chilly (chilly here in TX is anything that drops below 70'). I bundled the little man up and off to Babies 'R Us we went since I promised him we would look at jumpers/activity centers.

Eidan likes the Fisher Price Luv u Zoo

We looked at a Baby Einstein, several different models of Fisher Price, and I let him "try" them out. Some other moms were looking at me funny. But hey, I don't want to buy something that my son will not be comfy in and not like!

I'm still on the fence about which one to get... any suggestions?

Beauty Friday: Wet n Wild Fast Dry Nail Color 221C Everybody Loves Redmond

I've finally decided what to blog about on Fridays-- Beauty! As a mom to an infant, I find myself with very little time for long beauty routines. Right now, I love anything that is multiple purpose, or fast drying, quick absorbing, anything that will not be too time consuming to use.

Enter Wet n Wild's Fast Dry Nail Polish. Everybody Loves Redmond (221C) is a beautiful red with slight orange undertones. It works very well with my yellow undertoned skin, not making it look garish on my nails. Two coats was enough to get the coverage I wanted, no streaks, no bubbling, just a smooth application all throughout. Now, on to the most important thing-- how fast did it dry? 60 seconds! Granted, I didn't start scrubbing floors or working in the garden or anything like that, but it was dry and smooth to the touch in 60 seconds. I just washed my hands with soap and cold water, put on some lotion, and I was set to leave the house! I did not put on any topcoat or even a base coat but this polish lasted a good 7 days before the tips of my nails started showing some wear. I type a lot, and do housework without gloves or anything, and with no topcoat, 7 days is pretty impressive.

So, this gets my Mom Thumbs Up! It saves me time, and the bright cheerful color makes me smile. Oh, and my son loves to play with my hands when I have nailpolish on, I guess the bright color draws his eyes to it.

Mommy Look of the Day: Brights and Neutrals

I love handbags. Small ones, big ones, totes, satchels, hobos. Leather, nylon, canvas, plastic... i love them all. "Why?" my husband asked me once. "Because it doesn't matter if I'm skinny or not". A handbag will always fit me, no matter what. I don't spend a lot on clothing, preferring to stick to basics and mostly neutrals. Same with shoes. But for handbags, ahhh... that's a different story. I splurge now and then, and have no problem paying for Quality. I usually go for more classic styles, preferring to spend a little more on something I will wear for years and years to come rather than a passing fad. But ever since Eidan was born, a lot of those bags have been put in their boxes. The last thing I need is to be carrying my son AND worrying I'm scratching my bag or that I will spill milk inside or on it. Lately, I've found myself drawn to bags with bright colors. I have way too many black, beige, and gray bags already.

I picked this one up from TJMaxx (I am becoming a Maxxinista since Eidan got here). Made of sumptuous Italian leather and made in Italy, this pink Roberta Gandolfi bow bag is going to be a staple in my spring/summer rotation. The ribbons on the sides, the bright pink color, the roominess of the bag (it also comes with a cross body strap but I didn't use that today), it just brings a smile to my face. Best of all, I didn't break the bank or feel guilty that I was spending part of my son's future college fund on 1 item, hehe.

Today I paired it with neutrals and a torquoise bead necklace. I know brights on brights are on trend right now, but I have yet to muster up the courage to try a whole outfit like that!



Roberta Gandolfi (TJ Maxx, official website here)
similar style (but I paid less for mine! here)



Longsleeves and Vest (Nordstroms Rack, similar vest here, or here)
Jeans (Destination Maternity)
Shoes (old, BCBG)
Necklace (old, gift from a friend)

Inspiration Wednesday: Chicken Soup for the Soul

IN high school, I started reading the Chicken Soup for the Soul books and all its reincarnations (Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul, CS for Dads and Daughters, etc,etc...). I would stay up late at night with a flashlight under the covers long after my dad would tell me to sleep, reading and essentially, feeding my soul.

I loved all the anecdotes about life. The stories of love won, and love lost. Of triumph and challenges overcome. I read about grief, and overcoming it. I devoured these pages, and learned a lot through them. What I loved most about the books were that the stories were always filled with happiness and hope. No matter the tragic story behind something, or the agonizing decisions made. At the end of each one, I found hope.

These books, through all the collective stories, taught me sympathy and empathy. It inspired me to be a good daughter, sister, friend, girl friend, neighbor, person. It may sound silly to some, especially since they were stories of people I never met and  probably never will in this lifetime, But their words really touched my heart.

What reminded me of my love for these books was seeing one on a co-worker's desk last week. Perhaps, it's time to revisit them once again, and pick one up for Mothers!

Click here for more info about these books. Should you decide to give it a try, I hope you find them as enjoyable as I do!

Mommy Look of the Day: 1 Look 2 Ways

I was organizing my closet this weekend, and came across an old leopard spot belt from way back when. It's funny how fashion cycles. I was telling one of my friends, it's hilarious sometimes when I see how "haute" some of the 80's fashion has become again. I'm an 80's child, and boy, if I kept half the stuff I had then, I wouldn't be spending money on it now.

Anyway, back to the belt. I decided to use it for 2 outfits which, in all honesty, are a bit redundant. One is a bit dressier, and the other is what I ended up wearing since it was just a day for running errands with Eidan.



The anchor of the look: Leopard Belt (similar here, or here)



Black Dress and Cardigan (Nordstroms)
Old Leopard Belt
Shoes - Minelli patent flats
Bag - Prada

Jeans - Old Navy skinnies

These flats are so comfy!

Hanging out in the backyard!

Mommy Look of the Day: Shades of Purple

Spring is around the corner and flowers are starting to bloom everywhere. Saw a small "field" of purple flowers and used that as an inspiration to put together this Mommy Look of the Day.




Belt, Dress, and Bag - shades of purple

 


RM Quilted Swing (buy through the official RM website, or zappos.com, or endless.com)

 


Dress ,Cardigan, and belt (Nordstroms)
Bag - Rebecca Minkoff Quilted Swing (Nordstroms)
Shoes - Franco Sarto (Marshalls)



Letters to Eidan: Month 3

My dearest Eidan,

IN a few days, you will be 4 months. I cannot believe how time has flown. You've been such a motor mouth this month! You love to talk to me and tell me about your day when I'm cuddling you after I get home from work. You talk to your dad when he is giving you a bath. You talk to the puppies. It reminds me of myself when I was a baby too. Based on what your grandpa told me, he would have to say "Let's turn off the Martita Radio!"  just to get me to be quiet for a bit.

As the weather has gotten warmer, we've been going out for stroller rides around the neighborhood. Discovering how yummy your hands and toes are have brought countless hours of entertainment for you. You've started really watching and responding to Curious George, gurgling with laughter at all his antics. Tummy time is no longer a chore - you get excited whenever we put you down on your playmat. You rolled over from your back to your tummy (Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012)! It was the middle of the night, and your dad woke me up because he said you were making weird sounds. So we went to your room, and saw you smiling at us because you woke yourself up when you rolled over. We were all giddy excited at 3 a.m.!

Yummy hands!

You have been going through a growth spurt this past few days. Getting up several times a night to feed you has turned Mommy into a zombie- cranky and irritable with everyone. But one smile from you, my little peanut, erases all the fatigue and sleepless nights.

I think my favorite part of Month 3 is that we have established our bedtime routine of reading. I love to read, and I hope to share this with you as you grow up. I love sitting in the rocker, holding you and reading to you. You laugh at the different voices I use to tell you the stories, and you reach out to touch the brightly colored pages of your bedtime book. To get you ready for "night-night", I hum the same bedtime song that your Lolo Henry sang to me when I was a child.

Sometimes I think the bedtime routine takes longer than it should because I just want to sit there and hold you.

and Yummy toes!

I love you so much, Eidan. Every day is a new learning experience for both you and I. Pretty soon, I will wake up and you will be 14 years old and not want to be seen hugging your mom in public! But until then, you are my little man, and I know I can get all the hugs I need.

Love, always and forever,

Mom

Out for a walk on a beautiful day

*** March 04, 2012 - You rolled over from your back to your tummy!