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It's Amazon Prime Day! Yesterday, I shared some of my favorite Prime deals on my Instagram. I pulled all of my momma must haves. From breast pumps and wireless ear buds to baby wearers and clothing, Amazon has some amazing deals that you need to know about.
I've been pretty vocal about my breastfeeding whoas lately, in hopes that it might help someone else through their journey. If you missed it, I have the stories saved in my highlights on my Instagram.
you see, I had to formula feed my first son (which is FINE, a fed baby is a happy one) and even though I have to work at keeping up my breast milk supply this time around I am able to make it further into my BF trek than I did 4 years ago. It hasn't been easy but it was really important for me to still feel like ME while being able to provide nourishment for my little boy.
The thing that helped me this time around was the hands free pump that I invested in. My insurance did NOT cover the high cost but they did have a "healthy pregnancy" program that granted me a $500 gift card if I completed the program. I then took that money and purchased my pump. I am with Cigna but I encourage you to ask your insurance company if they have a similar program. Now I use the Willow but the Elvie did go on sale for Prime day.
The other deals I thought new moms would enjoy are apple's AirPods for those late night feedings. I used mine a ton listening to podcast and audio books while I nursed my son over night.
And don't forget tummy time! Your sweet little one holding his or her head up and rolling over is the first of many important milestones they will accomplish. Our big boy was not interested in rolling over and like most babies hated tummy time until I found this Slaphin Kids underwater activity pad! No lie with in days he was rolling over!
Finally, I found a six position baby carrier to give you hands free access while wearing your baby. This one not only has a front carrying position but also converts into a hip hammock which I LOVED when Cash got older!
I also picked this top up on Amazon! I have to admit I was a little leery of purchasing clothing on Amazon but I've gotten really lucky lately with my clothing finds. This top is perfect for fall transition. You can wear it with shorts or pants.
*** Remember you can always shop these deals by clicking the photos below****
What a crazy week! It was my first week back in the radio studio since March 9th! If you're new to the blog, my husband and I went to Barcelona on our Babymoon back at the beginning of March and you guessed it. We were there just as COVID 19 started blowing up! Now, luckily even though COVID wasn't a thing in Barcelona when we touched down, we were aware of the virus going into this trip so we were extra careful while we were out and about, just as a pregnancy precaution.
We wore masks (even though we got crazy looks) wiped EVERYTHING down with Clorox wipes (including tables), used hand sanitizer and washed our hands until our skin cracked. Oh, and took showers as wells as changed our clothes every time we returned to our hotel room. I guess you could say we were ahead of the curb.
Anyhow, when we returned home to the craziness of the global spread my office asked me to quarantine for 2 weeks before returning back to the station. They built me a makeshift studio inside my closet at home and just as I was coming up on my 14 days the United States went into a "stay at home" order. Thank god for that home studio because I spent the next three and a half months working from there before going on maternity leave.
Then, six weeks after having baby Jax ( and 5 months of being cooped up at home) I decided to cut my maternity leave short and return to the radio show via my home studio. I guess you could say I needed more of a structured routine in quarantine. Sure, I LOVE my kids and I get so much purpose from them but after MONTHS of only seeing my family, I wanted to talk to someone else! I missed spit firing current events and pop culture, while interacting with my co-hosts and our listeners.
This past week as North Carolina moved into phase 2.5 I got in my car for the first time in 6 months and took the 20 min drive uptown to join my counterparts in person. Returning to the office physically was scary as hell for me. I always battle so much anxiety when returning from maternity.
Of course, I couldn't sleep the night before. I laid in bed for hours turning things over in my mind, until finally giving up and self medicating myself to sleep. All of those thoughts of, "Will my family be okay?" "Do they have enough breastmilk to get them through?" "What do I even need to take with me?" List: pumps, headphones, laptop, mask, hand san, lunch...
Subsequently, my mind also ate away of the fear of contracting Corona after making it out of Barcelona and being in lockdown for 6 months. "Would it all have been in vain?" I have two little ones at home and I would NEVER forgive myself if I brought it home to them. Yep, mom guilt is a REAL thing.
My first day back on the show, I kept checking the baby monitors back at home. It's not that I didn't trust my husband and aupair to keep things going, I just felt guilty leaving all of my home responsibilities on their shoulders. Thats the crazy thing about being a Mom. We give 110% to everything but because we feel pulled in so many directions, we also feel like we will never give 100% to anything ever again.
I am still trying to find the balance of giving up some of the control I let my nerves own. Being a career woman, blogger, wife and a mom to two demanding little boys is tough and some days I feel like I have it all figured out and some days I feel like I wanna cry (and sometimes I do).
Moral of the story, I'm learning to take things day by day and take the little wins. First week back: CHECK! Pop the champagne! (Don't worry, I'll pump and dump.)
You can shop my office inspired look by clicking the photos below!
What to wear? What to wear? I feel like I haven't "dressed up" in months. This pandemic has really put a damper on our social schedules and wardrobe. Which is why I am so excited to pull this super cute Lilly Pulitzer pantsuit out of my closet! Well, not out of my closet exactly, out of my Rent The Runway closet! RTR has thousand of designers to choose from when it comes to casual, business savvy, or formal. Think everything from Show Me Your Mumu to Carmen Marc Valvo!
I subscribe to RTR's unlimited closet (here) but they have a bunch of options to choose from, or you can snag this pantsuit at Nordstrom for purchase by clicking here too! (Or click on the photos below to shop)
This weekend we are gearing up to "shower" baby Stutts (my girlfriend Cara is pregnant) with love. As a sign of the times, myself and 3 other women have planned a killer "drive-by" baby shower for this sweet little baby boy.
Since I will most likely be running around, set up, and breaking down during the festivities I opted not to wear a dress, but a pantsuit instead. Naturally, I chose to wear blue for our bouncing baby boy and I loved the length of this jumper as I could wear it with low heels or flats (I'm 5'7" and wearing a size 8).
I paired it with Tory Burch mules and my Kendra Scott and K. Brunini pearls.
Don't forget you can shop the photos below by clicking on them!
How is summer almost over?!? I almost lost it this weekend when I was scrolling through Insta and saw every other blogger in America pulling out fall decor and autumn content. I wanted to shout "NO WAIT! I'm not ready for summer to be over. "
I mean, I love PSL's and trips to the pumpkin patch as much as the next person but good God! You guys know, I am a Florida girl at heart and it is hard for me to "pink slip" warm weather and beach trips. Of course, the other piece of the puzzle I refuse to let go of is summer fashion. I have people ask me all the time. "So, when is it time to say goodbye to white jeans?"
The age-old answer is, that you shouldn't wear white after Labor Day. However, hailing from sunny south Florida, I have torn that page out of my book (or should we say Vogue magazine?).
Living in the south, I say it's fine to wear white after Labor Day. That old school rule (I believe) is reserved for North of the Mason Dixon line where snow and harsh drab winter weather will destroy your snow-white threads.
Here is a cute look you can rock right now if you're a Yankee and until colder weather rolls in if you're a southern belle.
Don't forget you can shop the photos below by clicking on them!
Let me start off by saying that this is by no means a complaint. We prayed and waited for this child and I am so excited to bring him into this world no matter how crazy it might be. This is just a life update and a testament to what life is like knowing the difference between pregnancy, "shortness of breath" and the Coronavirus.
Sure this all started months ago on foreign soil, but I don't think any of us thought that Covid-19 would ever make its way to the Americas, and even if it did I don't think we thought we would be living in quarantine for months on end.
Dallas and I surely didn't know that it would affect us and our travel to Barcelona Spain when we departed for our Babymoon, March 1st. When we boarded our plane in NYC there were exactly 4 cases of Corona in Spain and they were located in Madrid. We decided that Madrid was far enough away that it wouldn't affect our health or travel. Although, we did know we needed to be extra careful since we would be in a touristic city with other people from around the world. We showered and changed our clothes every single time we came back to our hotel room and I washed my hands so much that week, I had scabs on them. We also carried with us Lysol wipes, hand sanitizer, and surgical masks for when we encountered extra busy locations.
Even by the time, we left Spain to return to the states the outbreak had barely begun to grow, as far as we knew. We touched down in NYC and boarded our flight back to Charlotte when we got the news that Barcelona had developed a good amount of cases, but thankfully we felt fine.
I returned to work the following Monday as the outbreak grew, doubling and tripling its numbers in Barcelona and around Spain. After a week of being back to work, I received a call from my boss that our company would feel more comfortable if I self quarantined for the next 12 days. Little did I know March 13th would be my last day working from the office.
Luckily, Dallas and I made it out of Spain and NYC without contracting the virus but soon after we went into our self-quarantine, Covid-19 made it's way to the US. It was like this plague was following us.
As I have continued to work from home in my makeshift closet studio, the effects of pregnancy are starting to creep on me. My once strong stable demeanor is now wavering from time to time and I am reaching the phase of "uncomfortable" in my 3rd trimester. My mind is starting to wander and I am becoming more indecisive, which is not helpful when trying to choose a baby name.
Dallas and I have gone from having five names on our list to two, then back up to seven. I think I know what name I would like, but I am constantly influenced by what the people around me think, and that is NOT how I want to pick my son's name.
This is going to sound CRAZY (and maybe it is) but I have a reoccurring dream about my late father and what he thinks I should name my baby boy. Now I am sure this is my subconscious speaking since we have already decided that our little boy's middle name will be Joseph after my dad but why am I so attached to this random first name?
The other thing that I caught myself doing, is blaming myself over not having our nursery finished. With our first son Cashton, I had his nursery done by the time I hit my second trimester. I was so excited and I had a clear cut vision of what I wanted. This time around, I couldn't make my mind up about how I wanted to decorate the room. I kept changing my mind (just like the baby names). By the time I settled on a giraffe/safari themed room we were so deep into social distancing and quarantine that retailers were closed and online shopping deliveries were delayed. Then, add the fact that I was looking for rattan/jute material items and you have a perfect storm.
Most of these products are produced in other countries and shipping through customs is being held up for obvious reasons. Not to mention a lot of these factories are closed for the time being. Most of the items I was looking to purchase are on backorder until the end of July, early August, and that was the best-case scenario.
So back to the drawing board I went. I did finally decide on new pieces that are locally sourced here in the US but time is still ticking and pieces are still rolling in. I HOPE to have the room done by May 15th with a full reveal soon after. If you want to see our new plan I have another blog post complete with mood board up under our Family tab.
The last thing that keeps my mind gloomy these days, is not being able to celebrate baby #2 with our family and friends. You hear a lot of people talk about moving weddings and family gatherings but once a baby is on the way, there is no turning back! Thus, my dreams of having a baby sprinkle for this child have been derailed, and no, it's not about the registry or the gifts. It's just about commemorating a special moment with the people you love.
Now, I know, we are better safe than sorry. My plan is to possibly celebrate baby Strager once this whole coronavirus issue has settled, with a "Sip & See" in late July but my craving for human interaction with someone outside of these walls is real NOW.
Normally, pregnant women would at least have our doctor's appointments to look forward to but even those are being canceled or moved to telehealth calls. So I find myself digging into my blog again (which is a good thing). I have planned out monthly content and I am working on my own photography skills while developing a podcast with my girlfriend Barb. The Mommyhood 2 Menopause podcast is available at Kiss951.com or Soundcloud. We hope you give it a listen!
I have also been reigniting my "Try On Sessions" since I am still receiving my subscription to Rent The Runway. Every week I will be sharing my favorite maternity looks that are available to rent. Pregnant mommas, this is a GREAT option for us since we only need these pieces for a short time. However, I have used RTR far before I ever became pregnant. Whether you are looking for office wear, weekend looks, or date night little black dresses, they have been my go-to!
I loved this form-fitting LBD (above) and black and white plaid trench! Check out all they have to offer from clothing to formal wear and accessories to home goods here!
