1st Girls Day Out OOTD

Yesterday was my first girls day without Ellie. It was a special occasion- my sister-in-law's birthday! It was the first time I've had out with girls to just chat and enjoy ourselves. We went out and spent the whole day together while my mother-in-law watched Ellie. I missed her so much! I knew she was in good hands and I'm so happy that Matt and I have someone we can trust her with. It was the first time I was away from her for more than a few hours. Luckily, my MIL sent me a cute pic of her and texted me updates. I don't know how I'm going to deal with going back to work! I can cry just thinking about it. Enough of those thoughts though. I was gone around 7 hours and I brought my breast pump with me and an insulated lunch box with ice blocks to keep the milk fresh, but by the time I was ready to pump we were so close to being home I just sucked up the engorgement so I could nurse Ellie when I saw her. I was ready to burst though by then. I'm still trying to get this pumping thing down and it was my first time away from her for so long. Breastfeeding is no joke, it's not for the weak of heart I tell you!

For the day, I wanted to wear something fabulous and something that was comfortable. What did you think I wore? Um, Kiki La'Rue duh. The shop really is my go-to. They have the best stuff and everything I have from there is always perfection. If I ever have a question about sizing or about the product, Becka and her team respond right away. They take the guessing out of buying online, something you don't get from other shops where you have to just add to cart and pray it fits. I love that they use real models and post honestly about how it fits and what size to get.

I bought the Sweetest of Hearts Maxi a few weeks ago and have been dying to wear it. Today's celebration was the perfect opportunity. I love the bright color and the detailing at the top. It's not something I've seen in stores so I knew I wouldn't see it on every girl out there. I love having unique pieces that you can wear over and over again. Another great thing about this dress is that it's so long, I'm 5'8 and the dress grazed the floor.  It's really hard finding a dress that long enough to wear, especially if I ever want to wear it with a heel or wedge.

Isn't the detailing at the top so fun? I love the colors and patterns. Makes it fun for your lipstick options!

Sweetest of Hearts Maxi c/o available in six colors

Becka's Shades in Black c/o

Necklaces were gifts

What are your go-to maxis? Mamas, how do you deal with being away from your little ones?

Hot Man Parade

Lovely Lavender OOTD

So, I didn't end up cutting my hair into a lob. I really love the cut, but chickened out. I talked to my hair dresser and since we would be going really blonde (we've been slowly changing my hair from ombre back to my wedding day hair) it would be a big change and maybe soothe the urge I had for something drastic. She made a good point that if I still wanted the cut in a week or two I could just come back. She's genius. I love her. So I'm back to full-on blonde and I love it! I'm still getting used to seeing myself with such light hair since it's been so long since it's been this light. A year now I think!

Kiki La'Rue Piko Top

Kiki La'Rue Shades

Crystal Bee Necklace from Very Jane, the seller was Fancy Frills Boutique

Distressed Denim Cut Offs from Forever 21

Gartel Wedge

Since Ellie has been born I try to still get ready and dress cute in the few times I've gone out. I know that I'm mostly home all day, but having a bit of mascara or my hair done makes me feel better. I think it's important to still do what makes you feel good after having children and not lose that part of yourself. It's not always easy; timing your showers with their naps, deciding on whether you should blow dry your hair or eat something while it's still warm, not painting your nails because you know the minute you do they'll need to be picked up. I'm still learning to balance everything, but having a cute top and new hair make me feel great!

From my recent purchases,  I got this gorgeous necklace and I couldn't wait to wear it with my lavender Piko top. This top is one of my favorites, the fabric is so soft and I love that it's long and loose. It's perfect to wear when you want to be comfortable and cute. The necklace just really popped I thought against the color. I wish I had snagged a better/closer up shot of the two together. I guess I'll just have to wear the combo again and again!

What are your secrets mommies to feeling good and looking good?

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow?

I'm finally getting my hair done this morning! I'm so excited. I LOVE getting my hair done. Being in the salon, chatting up with my stylist, coming out a new woman, it's the best feeling ever. I've really been thinking about cutting it shorter, into a longer bob or a lob. It's one of my favorite cuts and I've always gone back to it several times since high school. I feel so cliche to cut my hair after having a baby though. Or after your wedding. It's like you keep a look for so long for something and once the event is over, there goes your hair length or color.

What I like most about the lob is that it gives you the opportunity to cut your hair without it being too short and it still can be put up in a ponytail. For me, I consider it the best of both worlds. I adore short hair, I had it all through high school and really miss it sometimes, but short hair can be such a pain. You have to do it everyday and it can take longer to style than long hair. Right now I wash my hair 1-2 times a week and curl it only every 3 days and I don't know if I could keep that up with short hair. With a lob, I can. Here are my favorite cuts on celebrities.

I love that you have so much versatility with this cut. It looks great curled, messy, straight, and it's long enough to put up. I know I sound like a broken record, but maybe it's because I'm trying to talk myself into cutting off the few inches of length I have. Maybe I'll just get my hair colored and trimmed, but not cut. Who knows.

If I could walk out with any hair I wanted, it would have to be Blake's. She has the most beautiful hair in all the land. The color, the length, the messy curls, I die. Her hair always looks good, I've never seen it look bad. Ever. It's like it was weaved from threads of gold by Rumpelstiltskin. Her hair color is perfection, I want to get as close to her color as possible.

What's your favorite cut? Do you have a signature style? What celebrity's hair do you covet?

Hot Man Parade

Dear Diary

Throughout my life, since I was 8, I've kept a journal on and off. I wish I was more diligent about writing because I think it's important to pass stories and history on through the family. I would love to read any journals from my late grandma. Every time I'm with my maternal grandma or my paternal grandpa I always ask them about their childhood, what their holidays were like, how my parents were as children, etc. I wanted to keep a journal throughout my pregnancy, but I think I only wrote in mine twice, maybe three times max. I do have all my Bumpdates, but those didn't include any personal feelings, hopes, or wishes I had for Eleanor.

1/2/3

4/5/6

A few weeks after Ellie was born I went out and bought a journal, I wanted to write directly to her. She will only be a baby and child for such a short amount of time I want to cherish every moment I can. I want to be able to remember these moments and tell her about them later, all of our struggles, laughs, little moments we share. Plus, keeping a journal where I write directly to her is so much easier than just keeping a journal in general with no specific audience. Every few days I write directly to her about milestones she's made, how I want our relationship to grow as she ages, little fun facts about her, etc. I hope to keep a journal like this throughout her life and continue with each child. I'm not sure if I'll tell her about the journal or surprise her later with it, maybe when she gets married or becomes a mother herself. I thought of this project as something our family will always cherish.

Do you keep a journal? Do you have any secrets about being consistent in writing in it?

Recent Purcases + Obsessions

Since having Ellie, I haven't really been shopping that much. A few things here and there, but no big purchases really. One thing all you preggers need to be aware of is how easy it is to shop online using your phone for those middle of the night feedings. Sometimes after you nurse you're kind of awake (who am I kidding, sometimes I shop to stay awake during these sessions) so you check stores and shops out and next thing you know you get jewelry and clothes you barely remember ordering in your mailbox. Let's just hope they're all winners right? It's so much easier to shop online then toting your baby in your stroller around and in fitting rooms. Trust me. Then some sites keep all your info on hand making it even easier to buy because you just need to "add to cart" and you're done! There no second guessing your choices while you dig around for your card info. It's a heaven sent and the devil at the same time. So here's some of my recent buys and some extras I wanted to share with everyone.

J.Crew Inspired Crystal Brulee Necklace from Simple Addiction

Designer Inspired Mint Crystal Bee Necklace from Very Jane, the seller was Fancy Frills Boutique

J.Crew Inspired Crystal Vine Statement Necklace from Very Jane, the seller was Apple of My Eye Jewelry

Distressed Denim Cut Offs from Forever 21

Special Number Bracelet from GroopDealz, the seller was Erica B Studios 

Aldo Barbara Sandals

Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Gloss in Kiss Me Coral

Floral Print Leggings from Very Jane, the seller was White Plum Boutique 

I've obviously been on a jewelry kick lately. It's an easy way to dress up the clothes I already have and I don't have to worry about how they fit me. I've lost all the weight I gained from being pregnant, but everything fits so different now. Jewelry fits just fine though! For the number bracelets, I bought Ellie's birth date- I thought these were so cute! I can't wait to get all of the jewelry pieces in. 

Here's a close up of the shorts, I love the little stud details it has. I didn't even realize they had the studs right away! I love fun surprises and details like that.

These Aldo shoes are my favorite sandals. They are so comfortable, I can wear them all day long and they go with everything. My sweet cousin and his girlfriend got them for me when I was home from the hospital. They figured I had everything I needed for Eleanor, but deserved a little something special for myself. Isn't that so sweet? I have the best family.

After raving about the Revlon Revlon Super Lustrous Lip Gloss (review here), I had to get another color. It's the best lipgloss EVER. Hands down. It's so soft and creamy, I want every shade. Instead of buying 3 or 5 of them, I  just wanted one and was torn between the Super Natural, Kiss Me Coral, and Pango Peach. I chose the Kiss Me Coral because it has a matching lipstick I already own of the same name- Kiss Me Coral (review here) which is one of my favorite colors- especially for summer!

Clothes wise I haven't bought Ellie anything in a while. She's fitting into her 3 month clothes pretty well. She's so long some of our 0-3 month footless pjs are shorts on her (some of her leggings too)! Plus, we are over flowing with summer clothes so if I do buy anything for her I get it in a size she can wear next summer. When I saw these shorts at Target, I couldn't pass them up! How cute are they?

Also, I pay so much more attention to articles that are easy for diaper changing. I bought the prettiest pj set from Nordstrom the day before our scheduled c/s and couldn't wait for Ellie to wear them, but they are a nightmare for diaper changes. You pretty much have to take it almost completely off, which is a hassle in itself because of the snap placements, and I'm not doing that at 2am. So she's worn those pjs for maybe 2 hours and that's all. I'll probably dress her in them once more just to snap a pic so they're not a complete waste.

Finally, my latest obsessions. These Lipton Tea & Honeys are delicious! I love all of these three flavors and honestly can't choose a favorite. Right now I'm loving the Dragonfruit Peach, but last week I was all about the Coconut Passionfruit. They do have caffeine- 10 mg, but that's less than a third of most sodas I figured it's no big deal. I'm very affected by caffeine because I never eat/drink it (besides chocolate) and a can of Coke can give me the shakes and raise my anxiety levels if had on an empty stomach, so I just steer clear of it altogether mostly. These teas don't affect me at all though, so I'm happy to drink them. I've never been a big water drinker, but these help gulp down an extra bottle everyday. 

Have you tried these Talenti Gelatos? OHMYHEAVENS. It's the pure joyfulness of running through sprinklers on a hot day as a child in a jar. It's so soft, it has chocolate caramel truffles, and it's delicious. My husband and I had to bought two- his and hers- on our last Target trip and want to get more. It's the best ice cream (well gelato if you want to get technical) I've ever had in my life. Run out and buy some people!

What have you been loving lately? What have you bought this summer?

Baby Must-Haves: 1 Month

One month flew right by! I can't believe that we're almost at 7 weeks already! I did a post for must-haves for the first week home here and thought it would be good to do it monthly (as well as show off some pics of Ellie! I'm taking pics of her with the bunny each month to show as a comparison in her growth). Here are some items I found to be so useful this past month and items I had to run and by a double of because we use them so much. Sometimes it's so nice and convenient to have doubles so you can wash one while using the 2nd. It makes life so much easier! I'm happy we only have one floor otherwise I'd buy more doubles to keep from going up and down stairs so much.

2 packs of Changing Table Liners: I love these because they have a plastic backing to they don't leak through to the changing table cover. I thought one 3 pack would be enough, but after some blow outs, I was running through the wash with them really quickly so I bought a second pack.

A 2nd Changing Pad Cover: I like having two so one can be in the wash while the other is on our pad. I have a solid lilac one and a pink/white polka dot one.

A 2nd Nursing Cover: I love having two covers! I keep one in my diaper bag for outings, and one at home for when we have visitors. It's so nice to not have to pack and unpack it from our diaper bag now.

 A 2nd Boppy Cover: We use our Boppy everyday all the time and bring it with us almost everywhere we go. With so much use, our covers gets dirty somewhat quickly, and just like the changing pad cover, I like being able to have it covered all the time while one cover is in the wash.

Bright Starts Chime for the car seat: Ellie is  beginning to interact and see more now and loves her butterfly chime on her car seat. The sound I think is soothing and fun for her while the bright colors catch her eyes.

Traveling Sound Machine: We keep this giraffe strapped to her car seat 24/7 and Ellie absolutely loves it! It helps block outside sounds when we're out and about keeping her asleep or just content. We use this every single day, it's awesome!

The First Years Sound Machine: When Eleanor is really upset and fussy, I turn this on and rock her in our rocking chair and it calms her down every time. It's the only time we really use this sound machine, but we may use it more once we move her to her crib.

Rock 'N Play Sleeper: Ellie sleeps in this every night in our room and we take it with us to Nana & Papa's too for naps. It's inclined for her head, folds up nice, and is light weight.

Arm & Hammer Diaper Bag Dispenser: One of my girlfriends gave this to me at my shower and said it was a life saver and she wasn't kidding! The bags are scented, eliminates odor, and are super convenient when you're out and have a dirty diaper that needs to be thrown out or soiled clothes that need to be washed when you're back home. I've had 5 dirty diapers in a bag and you couldn't smell a thing and nothing leaked. These are amazing!

A black and white Nursing Tank: These tanks are so easy to wear and provide good breast support. I wear these tanks under my regular shirt all the time. When I have to nurse outside of my home it's nice having my body still covered by these tanks even though my outside shirt is lifted up.

What are your baby must-haves? What did you find that your baby enjoyed or made life easier for you? Do you have any of these items, how did they work for you?

This is my first link-up with Kristin from Busy Bee for Baby Talk and I'm really excited to join in. If you have a baby-related post for Tuesdays, be sure to link up!

Product Review: NYX Eyeshadow Palette

Since the first time I used NYX products, I fell in love. They're such great quality and really affordable. They also have such a range of products from lip liners, primers, foundation, gloss, and shadow and within each product line they have a variety of colors and shades. Their Matte Body Bronzer is my favorite and I'm on my 3rd one. A while ago on an Ulta trip, I picked up their Love in Rio Palette in Bikini Bottoms. I had heard about the Love in Rio Palettes from Maskcara- have you checked out her site? She's amazing, absolutely amazing- and I put it on my IPhone notes and checked them out on my trip. There's 22 sets available, and I chose the Bikini Bottom because of the natural colors and thought it would be a good every day set.

NYX Eyeshadow Palette Bikini Bottoms

The colors really stood out to me, the light color is perfect as a highlighter and reminds me of MAC's Phloof, the middle shade would be good alone and combined, and the right shade is perfect for adding more definition in the crease or used along the lash line. 

So I busted this out for work (this was obviously a while ago that I started using it) and have pretty much used it almost every single day since. I even bought a replacement for it when out shopping with my family while my Dad and Grandpa were in town- that's how much I've used it. How many products do you use so often that you have to replace it in a 6 month time frame? Only your every day ones. Now let's get to the low down on my review.

PROS:

- Blends easily

- Shades are natural

- Perfect for day or night use

- Lasts all day with Urban Decay Primer Potion
- Soft, silky texture

CONS:
- The shadows are very powdery and you'll find the shadows all over the container
- Due to the texture, there's fall out when applying so I do this first before my foundation and powder
- Without using them with primer, the shadow will last you through work, but not work and happy hour

Obviously I really like these shadows or I wouldn't have bought a replacement when my first one ran out. They're so easy to use and look great with everything. Plus, it's nice to have them in a small palette and not three loose individual shadows or a large palette. So far I've liked every NYX product I've tried which is nice. I hate trying a new product and being unhappy with it.

Do you use NYX products? What are your favorites? Do you wear eyeshadow daily? What are your favorite colors?

Hot Man Parade