Getting creative

So the name of the game with this whole "shop my own closet" and "no shop summer" is to get creative.  I bought this dress from someone's online shop last month (mommy brain, I seriously can't remember who - it was a blogger, so if it was you - thanks! The fact that I can't remember where I got this is more proof that it was time to stop shopping!) and after getting it, thought, shoot, I can't easily nurse in this, what was I thinking?

I figured I'd just have to wait and wear it next year after Ollie is weaned - but then I had a late breaking idea as I was getting ready for work - if I added capris, I could just treat the dress like a shirt and pull it up for him.  Besides, it's kind of a short dress anyway, so the added coverage is probably a good thing for work.

Dress - Blog shop, Jacket - White House, Black Market (thrifted)

Capris - Simply Vera (Kohls), Shoes - from cousin 

It ended up working just fine that way!  I'll have to see what other things I can get creative with in my closet! In other happy news, I found a box of sandals that I thought I had gotten rid of - it was almost like having new shoes, day = made!!

Ollie's First Vacation

I am not sure I could put the last week into words and do it justice.  So many emotions right now - this trip was a gift in so many ways.  Oliver was an awesome traveler, he experienced so many new things and he somehow grew from a baby into a little boy over the last week.  We made so many wonderful memories.  The best part - being my baby's mama 24/7 with no interruptions.  It was just such a gift to us both I feel.  It reinforces my resolve to save money without shopping this summer to see what I can do to be with him more.  I just miss too much being gone at work all day.  But, that's already been established, so I will instead move on to talking about how fun the trip was.

We made our trek down and made it in under 11 hours - pretty amazing considering we got a late start and a certain young man had two blowouts on the way down.  We visited with just Mr. Monkey's grandmother the first night and got ourselves settled in.

The next day, Ollie got to meet all of his relatives from down there - and there are a few of them - who are pretty loud and boisterous (in a good way though) and he did really well with them!  I was worried that his stranger anxiety would kick in, but he did just fine.  We had a nice brunch and then went out for dinner as well.

Monday we pretty much chilled around the house and then in the evening we went out for Oliver's first ever baseball game - in a suite no less!  The Pants Monkey's aunt works in an industry that allows her chances for good seats so she was able to score some and it was awesome.  I would go to tons of baseball games if I had the chance to do it this way more often!  Sadly, the Cardinals lost, but it was still fun.  Aunt is coming up here in August and is going to see if she can get us a similar set up for a Twins game!

Tuesday we went to the St. Louis Zoo - wow, what a zoo!  So many animals and so much to see.  I just wanted to find the elephants for Oliver as they are somehow his favorite animal.  We found them - right when he fell asleep.  I took a video and showed him later and he did seem to enjoy it!  In the evening we went and had some decent barbeque for dinner - Ollie was a little cranky at dinner but went right to sleep when we got back to the house.

Wednesday we visited the Missouri Botanical Gardens - I can't do it justice in words and I have way too many pictures to share - it's simply beautiful.  We had a lovely day there - they have a super cute Lego exhibit right now too.  It might have been one of my favorite things we did there.  In the evening we had take out Italian food from the family's favorite restaurant down there.  It was the only night Oliver had any kind of meltdown, I think he was just getting soooooo exhausted from everything!  Fortunately it was short lived and he was back to his chipper self by Thursday morning.

Thursday we got a treat - we were able to take Oliver for his first swim.  It's the only moment of the trip I didn't get pictures of, but I'm not even that sad about it - I was too busy living that moment with him.  He is a natural fish, he had so much fun splashing around and kicking his legs.  He giggled tons.  I can't wait to take him again very soon.  In the afternoon we visited a winery with some of the relatives and we had a lovely time there and of course, bought some wine to take home with us!  Because we noshed on cheese and crackers there we decided to skip dinner and instead just go straight to dessert at Ted Drewes Frozen Custard - so good, so rich and so worth it.  We always make a stop there!

Friday sadly we packed up to come home, at the last minute before we left town to go down, we found out that the Pants Monkey would be leaving for a business trip today (Sunday) so we decided he needed the extra day to get laundry and errands done for that.  Oliver was a little less happy on the trip back, but overall did very well and I have never seen him smile so big as he did when he saw our house and the kitties.  He had a fun week but he knew he was home and he was so happy to be there!

The Pants Monkey's grandmother was a very gracious hostess

It's bittersweet in a way, the first vacation is one we'll never have again - but it was everything I could have hoped for and I can't wait for future vacations to come, I know there will be many.  I also have a few blog topics for upcoming posts after our trip - so it served me well too!

It's hard to get back into the groove, especially without Mr. Monkey until Wednesday, but we're doing pretty well overall.  And now we dream of the next adventure.

Thrift Style Thursday/Throwback Thursday - Hats

I don't actually have any awesome hats that I've thrifted - but I decided to do this post in Throwback Thursday style instead - I was on a girls weekend many years ago now and we stopped at an antique store and tried on some really awesome hats - so I thought I'd share those pictures today.

My sister-in-law and I 

(yes back when I had glasses - not even my cool hipster ones either!)

 

My friend Gina and her sister Deborah and I

(I don't think I'd wear that hat I'm rocking here - maybe Gina's though, love peach!)

Sometimes it's fun to play pretend and dress up even when you're an adult!   

Be sure to check out these other Thrift Style Thursday posts at these fine blogs below!

Spoolish//Sandpaper Kisses//Sincerely Miss J//Confessions of a Refashonista//

Alligator Toe//Buttons&Birdcage//Snippets With Alex//Eclecticity//Being Zhenya//

Erika's Style Diary//Sistas from Cali//Rachel's Lookbook//

The Two Cent Chick//Lipstick And Yarn//Nuttier Than Nutella

Air Dry

What started as a joke has now been a new approach for me with my hair.  About a week ago I was getting ready for work and drying off after my shower when I heard a noise that sounded like a "splat" and I saw something out of the corner of my eye.  To my horror, at the end of the bathroom counter was a giant bug.  The kind with eighty million legs.  And I was paralyzed.  I can't stand bugs.  And maybe you'll remember me killing a bug once when I was pregnant and saying I was going to "tough up and be the mom and start doing stuff like that"?  Well sadly, I'm no longer Superwoman now that I'm not pregnant anymore apparently!

So, I stood there and watched everywhere the bug went because I was barefoot and erhm, well just standing there in a towel pretty much.  I did not want that bug coming into contact with my bare skin!  Eventually he disappeared into a crack that led to the inside of my bathroom cabinet.  Where my blow dryer resides.  I decided, it was going to be a warm day and I have short hair anyway - I'll just throw some mousse in and let it air dry.  After Mr. Monkey was awake I told him about the bug, hoping he'd go look for it and kill it.  Yeah no, he got more fun out of torturing me about it and not going after it.  So I said "well then, I'm never going to dry my hair again then!"

Shirt - The Limited (from sis-in-law), Skirt - Thrifted

Necklace - Lia Sophia, Shoes - Xhilaration (From Lori)

Throughout the rest of that weekend I kept up with my threat - I just didn't dry my hair - and while I am pretty sure the bug is long gone now (at least I hope so) I have found I actually like letting my hair air dry.  It's so short it doesn't take long and it's been softer and spikier.  In the end, maybe that bug actually did me a favor!  I'm going to keep up with it at least through the summer!

Oliver - Six Months

Well then.  We have a six month old in the house!  My baby is halfway to his first birthday - I just can't believe it!  This last month may have been my favorite yet, we are starting to get past our sleeping issues, we have been able to enjoy spring weather (finally!) and get outside more and this little guy is really coming into his own - his personality is so sweet and he is getting so expressive!

Weight - Roughly 20 pounds - we have a doctor appointment next week and we'll get more official stats then.
Length - 27"
Nicknames - Ollie, Ollie Monster, Monkey, Pumpkin, Houdini, Magician Man, Little Man, Bub, Buddy

Sleep - Happy to say this is improving each and every day - he still has night wakings, but we're past the regression, he is doing much better.  He's also getting better at falling asleep at night and naps are also starting to come around.  Everyone is much happier!

Eating - still exclusively breast fed.  He still eats pretty regularly but is starting to go longer between feeds at times.  We're trying to eat in front of him more so he gets more interested in solid food and then we'll start baby led weaning.

Diapers - Size 3 holding strong

Clothes - Pretty much into 12 month now.  Some 9 month still fits, but we're more comfortable in 12 month sizes.  Thank goodness for second hand shops and generous hand me downs!

Mood - He is really turning into a happy little guy, the only time he gets unhappy is if his mouth is bugging him (yep, still waiting on those teeth) and when it's time for bed and even then it's not too bad.  He is loving going on adventures with mommy and daddy, I think we're going to have a fun summer!

Loves - Mommy, Daddy, his auntie, Grandma, walks in the stroller, Taylor cat (still working on Pippin), visiting the zoo, bath time, jumping in the Jumperoo, walking in his walker, standing with help, people watching, being outside, trying to grab things off the kitchen table.

Dislikes - Tummy time and trying to crawl (so frustrating), sudden loud things (takes after mommy that way) didn't like his toes for a little bit but seems used to them now, getting too hot, the sun being too bright.

 

Milestones/what I want to remember - My first Mother's Day, eating outside on patios, the first time he reached out to pet Taylor with purpose, watching him learn to master things like learning to sit up or push himself around in his walker, all the new baby talk he's learning.

Dear Ollie,

This month was so much fun!  We finally have been able to spend loads of time outside and you seem to really dig that, which makes mommy and daddy so happy because we love being outside too!  Every day you are discovering more and more in the world around you and I love seeing things through your eyes.  You make my heart melt when you smile at me when I come to pick you up from grandma's and I love when you reach your arms out for me.  You are definitely mama's boy - and that will never change no matter how old you are - but I will eat up every moment of you being my sweet baby right now.  

Love,

Mama

Simplify - No Shop Summer

Remember at the beginning of this year I stated that my word for 2014 was "simplify"?  I haven't been doing too well on that front lately.  My shopping/spending has been a little out of control - even with all the thrifting I do - the problem is just that.  I do a lot of it.  It's hard for me to admit it out loud, I just shop too darn much.

Part of my problem is, I am very much an emotional shopper - if I'm having a bad day, it's so easy to just pop online or stop at the thrift store on the way to my parents or something of that nature.  And while it's gotten easier - I still miss my baby a ton when I'm at work, so sometimes my shopping is a way of coping with that.  It's hard to not be tempted by online goodies from Zulily, Amazon, Old Navy, ThreadUp, etc.

I have been thinking a lot lately about a number of things and then I saw someone on Instagram announcing they were going to do a "No Shop Summer."  I pondered this concept for myself.  I have done month long shopping bans before.  I've done Lenten shopping bans before (giving it up for Lent - 40 days).  I've never done it for this long.  The more I thought about it though, the more I realized, I really want to challenge myself to do this.  It will help me get my "simplify" goals back on track - and it may help me achieve an even bigger goal - working into a more favorable work situation to spend more time with Ollie (and if I can do that, then the whole "emotional" shopping thing would get better too).

So, starting today through August 31st, I am not shopping for myself.  No clothes, no accessories, no purses, no makeup/bath and body.  The only exceptions will be two gift cards I have to spend on myself - but gift cards do not count as they were bought as gifts for me, they weren't my own money.  I will likely save these gift cards for a rainy day when I really need them.

You may be wondering about my Stitch Fix subscription - while that was a ton of fun, I am going to put it on hold for now.  I had scheduled my next fix for July, but I am going to put it off for a bit - maybe permanently, maybe not.  For now I don't need the temptation and I won't be charged on it until I get another fix sent to me.

I'm also not counting activities in this ban - I will want to get out and experience things with Mr. Monkey and Oliver this summer, so if there are costs involved in those types of things, so be it.  I'm just truly stopping myself from shopping for anymore clothing related things for the most part and instead shopping my own closet.  This might not be too bad overall - I have a number of things I wasn't able to wear last year when I was pregnant that I will be able to pull out for the first time in a couple of years now, so that should make them almost like new again!

Is it going to be hard?  You betcha.  But I'm going to keep my eyes on the prize - this sweet boy right here is everything to me and I would give anything to have even a few more hours in the week with him - so he's my main motivation.  I'm hoping that you all will help keep me accountable too!  So here we go.