Hi, Friends! Happy Thursday! This one is going to be short & sweet because yesterday’s post was info overload!
We are off to Cincinnati today and have a FIVE day weekend ahead 🙂
We have started to plan the wedding in terms of securing a date and venue, but that’s it for now. We are getting married at The Transcept in Cincinnati on 11.10.17- exactly one year from today! I would say planning is not #1 priority at the moment as my little sister is getting married this weekend and we’ve been focusing so much on work & little Cal of course. Hoping to steal as many wedding tips from her as I can, LOL. I’m the first sister with a baby and the last sister married – keepin’ it classy like that! But for real, I think that the REAL reason people get married before having kids is because there’s not much free time to plan a wedding once you have a child.
I was never the girl who always dreamed of her fantasy wedding, but I am a perfectionist in certain ways and go from 0 to 100 (real quick) when I commit to things. Sooo TBD on if i’ll be chill bride or psycho bride… From here, I am planning on building our wedding timeline with budget & payment details attached.
Married friends:
What should I be doing next?
What would you change about your wedding planning process?
What would you spend more/less money on?
What else should be done at 1 year out?
Here are the photos from our mini engagement session with my photographer Henrietta – she is the bomb and we love how these turned out! Excuse our summer attire – they were taken back in Aug/Sept and I’m just now sharing!
As always, don’t forget to follow RwS by entering your email below & find me on my socials as I would love to have you!
Breaking news: I have made it out of my black pregnancy/maternity/postpartum Mom stretch suit that I’ve referenced so many times on this blog…it’s a miracle that took three months. This milestone is coming at a great time, considering I’m going back to work next Tuesday and need to look semi-presentable in a corporate setting. Also, SUMMER.
I’ll miss you, black stretch suit, but you’re still my #1.
Not only did I ditch the all-black, but I went the complete opposite to this all-white/neutral look, inspired by Memorial Day. Brave, I know. Especially with a baby. But it was time for a change.
You know what’s weird? Before pregnancy, I never really wore these pants because I didn’t feel comfortable in them, or think that they looked good on me. You’d think it would be the opposite – that I would feel uncomfortable in white pants now – but I feel like having a baby kind of empowers you. I’m a little bit more forgiving on myself and suddenly okay with how I look (for now.) I think Moms should take as much time as they need to heal and get back in their groove after baby, but then we should start feeling good about ourselves, we should feel accomplished, and proud of everything we’ve done.
In all the fashion ‘rule’ books, Memorial Day marks the weekend where it is “okay” to start wearing white again. Do you think this rule exists because people are too pale up until this point to pull it off? jk.
After finishing putting together this look, I realized that everything I’m wearing here, I’ve owned for like, a year or more. I have worn all of these pieces, but never together. This was a moment for me, a moment where I realized the sentence, “I have nothing to wear” – can officially be discarded from my vocabulary.
To me, this look is perfect for any time of day (a coffee date, brunch, lunch, going out to dinner) & the jacket is perfect to bring along to those place that blast the air so high that you’re freezing the whole time, even in the Summer – you know what I’m talking about.
I got to thinking about how we can all start wearing the clothes we own, instead of always spending time & money on NEW. As a Mom, ain’t nobody got time for that. I spend more time searching the internet for diaper deals than designer deals, and the first place I locate on trips to the mall are the bathrooms/nursing suites and nearest coffee shop.
What’s the easiest way to do this?
These 2 tips sound like common sense but honestly, just owning the right go-to’s makes getting dressed so much easier, which solves a lot of life’s problems. Am I right?
Invest in Neutrals
Statement pieces are amazing (& I’ll be talking about a statement dress next week) but investing in neutrals will get you so many more “looks” or outfits. I’m not exaggerating when I say I’ve worn this white top probably 100 times, in different ways. Buy more solids than patterns and more low key colors than vibrant, loud colors. I think doing both of these things allows for unlimited mixing & matching. My go-to neutrals are white, cream, tan & black. Now is the perfect time of year to pull out those light articles of clothing and rock ’em. Plus you can re-wear these items so much more often without people noticing 😉
Buy Universal Accessories
I especially like to invest in neutrals (solid gold or silver) for accessories. Almost all of my purses, shoes, jewelry are universal and can be worn over and over with different pieces of clothing. Keep a go-to necklace, watch, and earrings in your collection that can be worn with anything – instead of needing to find new statement jewelry for every outfit. That can get to be way too high maintenance. Summer = time to stay simple & light on the accessories.
Like I said, I had owned these items prior to this post, but I have linked similar items to shop this look below:
Calvin is also rocking the white – here he is ready for Summer in his sun hat & sandals 🙂 He basically lives in these plain white onesies – I’ve linked our favorites below.
We are off to the beach tomorrow for the day – we’re so excited to take Cal and show him both the beach & pool! What are your big MDW plans?
**Huge shout-out to all the military Men & Women who have served our country in the past, are currently serving, and who will serve in the future. Let’s not forget the real reason for this holiday weekend**
A couple of weeks ago we were so lucky to have my little sister come visit for a full week. We missed her so much! I love spending time with Audrey because she is so different than me – her soft-spoken, laid back, personality is relaxing and refreshing. She has a big heart for God, others well-being, and I can’t wait to watch her graduate college (I’m getting freaking old) in just a couple of weeks. Although, can we do without the ceremony where they call everyone one by one in a monotone voice and just have a party? JK. Kinda.
In the middle of the week we decided to hit up the Shore when we saw that it would be super nice – 75 and sunny! (PS-why was it warmer 3 weeks ago than now?) Being so close to the shore is the best thing about living in NJ and I wanted to make sure she saw it! Also I wanted her to think where we lived is kinda cool. So basically I’ll take you to the beach if you come visit me this summer: hint hint.
I chose Belmar because it is a straight shot from our house, super easy to park (out of season) and the boardwalk is super nice. Getting around with a stroller is not the easiest so this is key when taking baby. The worst thing about going to the beach out of season is that the public bathrooms are closed… no we didn’t sneak into a private beach club to go… We did, however, see some Mom’s having a “play group” at the playground on the beach – rough life 😉
On the way we drove past a cafe called Stay Gold, and decided to swing in (literally we found the most VIP of all VIP parking spots right out front) to check it out. First, off we should’ve known a place with the name “Stay Gold” was going to be bomb. The menu was full of smoothies, gourmet coffee, salads, paninis, juice bar, and all around goodness. It’s the little things, ya know? They even host live music on a small stage on the weekends.
^We got the chunky monkey (banana, chocolate, peanut butter, almond milk) + a shot of espresso – can’t visit a cafe without adding caffeine!
^our own chunky monkey
^little elf ears
Calvin slept the entire car ride, the entire time we were there, and the entire way home. He started screaming right as we pulled back in to home, so we timed it just right. Now that I think about it, the beach is actually a great place to take a baby because of the calming wind and waves sounds. I see many trips to the shore in our future this year!
So for real on the visitors thing – one of my best friends, Caitlin, is coming to visit next weekend and I am so excited. She is the down-to-earth, talk about anything with, dislike someone just because they wronged you (promise we aren’t mean girls) type of friend. We have lots of iced coffee, wine, and adventures to fit into 3 short days.
Anyone else from the East Coast: any must-do, must-see beaches for future trips this summer?
Happy Sunday, all – wishing you all rest & relaxation as you head into a new week.
Everyday Glam Guide 