#SeeSummerBetter styled with my in home trial

If you aren't familiar with Warby Parker you can read about them in my first #SeeSummerBetter post here! I got my in home trial (you seriously have to check out this program!!) and I have finally styled them with some of my favorite summer looks!

Here I put the Raglan frames in 'Jet Black' with some of my maternity favorites. I liked these frames because they were a staple everyday wear. They were a bit small for my face but I really liked the style!

Shorts: Old Navy (on sale!) Tank: Old Navy Watch (old): similar style Wrap bracelet (old): similar- Stella & Dot

I love these Piper frames, very retro chic! The slightly go up at the sides and were super flattering! I think this is perfect for a bridal shower or afternoon event!

 Skirt: Ted Baker (a pre-bump favorite!) Faux leather sleeved top (old): similar Bag: Kate Spade (old) Lip: NARS satinlip in Yu

The Reilly lenses are a dead tie for my favorite with the beach glass, which I will get to. I love the bigger frame, and the Marzipan Tortoise is perfection! I am a sucker for Tortoise shell, but these babies were something special- definitely on my wish list! :) I paired these with a typical work day outfit because I would likely wear them every.single.day! 

Pants: Destination Maternity Necklace (a must have!): Jcrew Factory Lipgloss: YSL 370 Top: Stitch Fix- more details coming in another post!

The Crossfield frames in 'Polished Gold' are the perfect cool, summer casual outfit. In fact I wore this last weekend and loved the way it looked together! 

Dress: Target Maternity Heels: Lucky Brand - super comfy! Necklace: Jcrew (old) 

Lastly, the Jennings sunnies in 'Beach Glass' could they be any more perfect for a beach day? I loved these lenses! They are great for many face shapes, not too over sized and the color is perfection! 

Swimsuit: Target Maternity

Overall I was SUPER happy with the quality & style of my Warby Parker in home try on! I would highly recommend it to anyone. It is totally free & hassle free as well!

Wedding style with Weddington Way

I think it is fair to say that I have been a part of a fair few weddings in my day- from planning my own to being a bridesmaid a time or ten, I have a good handle on the process! However with our family and loved ones spread across the globe it can really make planning and keeping people involved a challenge. I was recently inspired by a company called Weddington Way to showcase some of their beautiful bridesmaid & special occasion dresses in a virtual show room the idea resonated with me!

A little bit about the company from them: Weddington Way is a collaborative shopping experience for wedding parties. At Weddington Way, bridal parties can browse the largest assortment of bridal party fashion available online and share and discuss products in a virtual showroom. By offering a collaborative experience, personalization, and its namesake line of ready-to-wear dresses, Weddington Way is differentiated from anything else that exists in wedding, e-commerce or retail. Our aim is to have many pictures of millennial bridal parties dressed by us in our grand wedding album. 

You can find their great selection of bridesmaid dresses here and don't forget to check out their new tuxedo rentals

Weddington way just took it one step further, now you can use the Groom Shop to style your leading man as well! Here are a two looks I put together that I just loved!

I love this combination of a traditional 3 piece Michael Kors tux paired with a soft feminine dress by Dove & Dahlia. Bonus: it has pockets- perfect place to keep that perfect YSL nude lip stain for the whole day! 

P.S. I might actually need to order this dress in navy perfect wedding guest look!

Now picture a more casual affair, maybe a beach side wedding, on the Cape or MV. The dress is elegant with a preppy undertone and your groom & his men are casual, comfortable and still chic! 

Fighting the stretch mark battle

After finding out I was pregnant I did a little research on cremes that can help with stretch marks. As you can probably imagine there are hundreds out there, all claiming to be the answer- also coming at a hefty price tag!

I know realistically no one creme or lotion is going to prevent me from having any stretch marks at all but I wanted something that would help moisturize and would make me feel good about being proactive! :) 

I got a few recommendations and finally settled on the Basq NYC skincare line and I am thrilled so far!

I went with the Intensive treatment butter and Resilient body oil. I use the oil after getting out of the shower, I love the Lavender scent and I think the oil is perfect for hydrating summer skin. I use the butter nightly, I love the rich texture, it feels very luxurious! Both of these products fall into the "a little goes a long way category" so I foresee them lasting well into the pregnancy! 

Here's the best part, the price tag on both of these items are under $40 each and available on Amazon Prime with free next day shipping! (I'll admit I am a Prime snob, if the shipping isn't free I don't buy it!)

Also how cute is this Expecting Mama's kit? This would be a fabulous gift for those pregnant ladies in your life! I may just have to get one for myself :)

Weekend madness...

And just like that it is Monday again... the weekends seem to fly by these days as they are jam packed with so many things and so little time.

We had a busy one this weekend which we kicked off with a little dinner party at our house for a few friends. It was the first time we had hosted in months so I was super excited to plan & prep! We got a vote from the group- it was unanimously decided Southern BBQ. An old favorite for us so we were happy to oblige. I snapped a couple shots of the decor and food below with links to find most of it!

Oliver made these amazing rolls with a cinnamon sugar butter for an appetizer, they were pretty incredible! 

For the decor I went with sunflowers in the absence of wild flower availability & my favorite Anthropologie napkins. As for the cocktails- I skipped my usual themed boozy drinks for non- alcoholic as all of our female guests are pregnant. I opted for Sweet Tea & Lemonade in these awesome glass bottles from Crate & Barrel- they have a subtle nod to a Southern theme! The boys had lots of local brews & ciders to keep them hydrated all evening.

Saturday was a day of cleaning and recovering. However we did make a trip to West Elm to check out a glider I've had my eye on for the nursery. I ended up skipping the West Elm piece  which felt a little modern for me and went for my original favorite Potter Barn rocker, and found a rug as well!  It was definitely a splurge but one I feel really good about!

 I posted a photo of the chair, but you'll have to wait to see the fabric choice when the room is complete :)  

After a little afternoon nap we headed out to the Zac Brown Band concert at Fenway! We ended up heading in a little early to meet up with friends before the show. It was so great to catch up and have a real night out! These days bed by 9 pm is our routine so this was definitely a treat!

Sunday was a day for cleaning, organizing and getting ready for the week. We also starting working on cleaning out the closet in the nursery. We had been using it for odds and ends, and special occasion attire. However I have been purchasing just a "few" pieces for our little one so we need more space for her ever growing wardrobe!

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Post- Vacation Monday's...

If there is one thing I can say about Monday's is they are terrible... especially when you are coming back after a few days of sun, relaxation and fun!

I got home last night from a little girls getaway and was instantly in a funk. I would love to be back sitting by the pool in the beautiful Florida sunshine, but for now I am going to have to get over it!

In the spirit of looking on he positive side here are three things that made coming home better:

1. Seeing Oliver & Clo! I sure did miss these boys while I was gone. I can't imagine how much harder being away will get once our little one arrives!

2. I was SO happy to come home to see that Oliver had moved all of the furniture out of our once spare room, into what will be the new spare room & got a jump start on the nursery! ( I may have subtly mentioned this would be a good idea while I was away- holy type A!) 

I am loving the wall color & the way the furniture looks in there, way more spacious than I envisioned! I will be on the hunt for the smaller pieces now like a rug, wall art & bedding. Here's a sneak peek of the color palette we are using to get an idea of what her room will be like- I am substituting the brass for a gold tone of course!

3. Lastly, getting my Warby Parker home try on kit in the mail.  I was hoping it would come before I left so I could style it up in FL, especially these Jennings Beach Glass shades. Stay tuned for how I #SeeSummerBetter with some new specs from WP! 

How was your weekend? What do you do to recover from the Monday Blues?

#SeeSummerBetter

Let me tell you a little bit about Warby Parker in case you're not familiar.

Warby Parker is an eye wear company founded on the simple principal that style and quality does not have to come at lofty cost and should be available for all. They really do mean ALL, for every pair of glasses purchased they give away a pair to someone in need, read more about their Buy a pair, Give a pair campaign here.

A company that can combine style, reasonable prices and philanthropy is a company I am willing to attach my name to!

So here are a few frames that I am waiting to get in the mail with WP's Home Try-On program! You can choose five pairs totally FREE and try them out for five days, keep what you like, send the rest back! Stay tuned to see how I style these frames & check things off my Summer Bucket List!

I loved these Crossfield sunnies in "polished gold" I think these are perfect for an afternoon BBQ. I would pair these with a more causal look. Think: jean shorts, loose tank & strappy sandals!

 "Jet Black" color for these Raglan frames are super chic and classic. I would wear these with a black dress, red lip & heels for outdoor patio drinks (mocktails for me!) turned into dinner somewhere fabulous in the city!  I'm channeling my DC days with these babies!

 

I love the beachy vibe I get from the Jennings very appropriately named "beach glass". If you haven't already guessed, these are my beach or pool day frames. Cute suit and lots of SPF! 

 

There are few things I love more than a vintage inspired piece, and these Piper frames speak to me! I think these would be perfect for an afternoon wedding (if you've been following along you know we have no shortage of these!) They are glamerous enough for a wedding and would be dressed perfectly with a colored lip, lots of volume for my hair & some pearls! 

 

Then there are the Reilly in Marzipan Tortoise these caught my eye from the second I landed on Warby Parker. I love a good tortoise shell- these pretties look like they belong to me. I think I am going to have a hard time not adding these to my collection, and wearing them daily! 

 

Head on over to Warby Parker to #SeeSummerBetter in some fabulous new frames!

Our Fertility Story

Before I start on our story I first want to say that unfortunately we did have trouble conceiving. It was difficult and trying, but I also know we were lucky because we were able to get pregnant in the end. I know people have had a much harder time trying to conceive and I want to be sensitive to the fact that this is a tough topic for many people. Everyone's journey is different and I am here merely to tell my own experience. 

We found out very early because we were being seen by a Reproductive Endocrinologist (aka infertility doctor). There were many mornings of blood work and ultrasounds, followed by medications and luckily only one injection, before I get ahead of myself here is how it went...

The months that led up to our good news were long, scary and filled with uncertainty. I had just started a new job, which actually turned out to be the best thing for us in this process. I was no longer working a day/ night rotating schedule and I had more flexibility in my hours. 

From the moment we met with our Doctor I knew we made the right decision. After spending over an hour with him he ultimately told us these words which were my saving grace during the process, "It is not a matter of if it is a matter of when". I could of  did hug him and thanked him profusely.

When we started our first round of treatment I did my best not to micromanage the situation, (very hard for a type A personality!!) I tried to sit back and let it all happen the way it was supposed to. I was mostly successful in this, but I won't lie there were times where it was all consuming. They told us we would know the results if it worked or not, on April 11th. When the words came out of the nurses mouth I knew it was a sign, silly of course, but I felt it in my bones it would work. 

April 11th, 2014 was the day Oliver passed his dissertation defense, essentially solidifying his work was worthy of the PhD he had worked so hard for. While we were out celebrating that night we got a call from the breeder that our boy Clovis was born and we would be taking him home in June. We had been on a wait list for months, and even when we knew there was a litter coming we were not sure we would get a puppy.

So April 11th, 2015 had to be just as lucky right? In my mind there was no doubt. Until I did the dumbest thing any woman who is undergoing fertility treatments could do, I took a home pregnancy test and it was negative. Deep down I knew it wouldn't be accurate but I cried for days upon days anyway. 

On Saturday April 11th at 7:30 am when the office opened I went for blood work.We rushed back home to set up for Clovis' first birthday brunch, yes I know he is a dog, but everyone deserves a birthday party! In the middle of brunch the office called, I could barely breathe. The nurse said "Congratulations, you are pregnant" I almost fell over. There are no words to express my happiness, gratitude and panic!

We waited several weeks, which felt like a lifetime to see our little bean on the big screen. It was our first ultrasound and at 7 weeks and 2 days there was a perfect little unrecognizable blob with the strongest heart beat I've heard. (PS I'm a cardiac nurse so that probably isn't true, but it felt that way!)

This ultrasound is from 8 weeks, I must have tucked the first one away somewhere reallyy safe because I couldn't find it while writing this post! #pregnancybrain

Just like that we jumped head first into the next phase of our life!