Category: Uncategorized

5 pieces every mom needs her in her closet

Post author By tiffany
Post date June 20, 2017

Every stage that my daughter has been in has been fun, exciting and also hard. The baby stage was quite possibly the hardest but every stage from then until now (she’s 3, almost 4) has been amazing but also tough in it’s own way. One thing that I have found that with each stage, my wardrobe has had to change as well to accomodate the lifestyle changes. I mean from having to worry about needing nursing friendly tops to now needing comfy yet stylish clothes that can take me from play dates to dinner. And since time is also hard to manage with a little one, I’ve tried to streamline my closet a bit and I’ve narrowed down the 5 pieces every mom with young kids needs in her closet!

OUTFIT #1: CARDIGAN TEE JEANS WEDGES
OUTFIT #2: TOP JEANS SHOES BAG

#1 A CARDIGAN YOU CAN TOSS OVER ANY OUTFIT: Not only does it help keep you warm, it also helps cover up any stains that your child is inevitably going to cover you with, no matter what you are doing! This chambray cardigan is my lastest fave and I can put it over jeans, shorts, dresses, whatever I need and it always looks great!

#2 A PERFECTLY SLOUCHY TEE: I do love a fitted tee occasionally but on days where I’m moving around and on the go, I can’t deal with having to either tuck in my tees or deal with adjusting them all the time so it looks cute. On the flip side, with kids you can’t have tees that are too loose as I’ve found one time that she started tugging at my shirt a little too much everyone got to see what color bra I was wearing! The perfect slouchy tee can be hard to find but this one at only $19 has become a go-to tee.

CARDIGAN TEE JEANS WEDGES

#3 JEANS THAT LOOK GOOD WITH ANY SHOES: I have always been a heels girl and even after becoming a mom I still love heels and wedges. I don’t mind the height but I do make sure that they are comfortable and that I can walk in them for hours. I am also a huge fan of the sneaker trend and have added quite a few pairs of sneakers to my wardrobe. I do keep shoes in my car since we are always out and about and our plans change easily so in one day I can go from heels to sneakers to wedges. So I always want to make sure that any jeans I have look great with any kind of shoes. Skinny jeans are my go to because they can easily be rolled up to adjust to any of your shoes!

TOP JEANS SHOES BAG

#4 STYLISH SNEAKERS: So speaking of shoes, having a pair of stylish sneakers has been a game changer for me. It used to be harder to find stylish sneakers so I ended up bringing flats with me everywhere but sometimes when you are at the playground playing in the sandbox or trying to chase my daughter up the slide (why do they love to go up the slide rather than down it?) only sneakers are going to cut it. My favorite sneakers are the and the Nike Theas (the ones I’m wearing in these photos).

#5 A BAG THAT FITS THE ESSENTIALS: I know sometimes we as moms feel like we have to carry the biggest bags possible to carry everything our kids may need but I’ve figured out that if you only bring the very basic essentials, your bag doesn’t become a black hole and the less options for my daughter to choose from, the better. I usually have one toy (that I have her choose before we leave the house), one lollipop (my last resort if I run out of snacks/entertainment), a snack and kleenex. Seriously that’s all that I need and I’ve never felt like “oh shoot why did I leave that at home.” So yes, even the Gucci bag that I’m carrying in the pics can carry all that, plus my wallet, phone, hand lotion and lipstick! One thing that I look for is versatility in carrying so that I can put it over my shoulder, as a clutch or cross body.

Moms certainly don’t have to sacrifice style for our kids. Wear what is comfortable to you, even if it is a tank top and yoga pants, do it if that’s what you feel like! I’ve definitely had those days and I’ve learned to not really care what other people think. Just work what’s best for you because I know, I have SO many other things to think about than worry about what people think about my outfit. But on most days, I dress up to keep myself sane and happy. I’ve always loved getting dressed in the mornings and feeling good in my outfits and I never wanted that to change even after I became a mom.

fashion giveaway lookbook Nordstrom Uncategorized z-10

How to wear ruffles (and look chic) + $1,000 Nordstrom Giveaway!

Post author By tiffany
Post date June 19, 2017

My two favorite tops lately involve ruffles yet they are both pretty basic tops that I think look great on everyone and can be paired with just about any outfit. I just love these two and had to share how I wear ruffles without looking (and feeling) like my toddler! Oh and hey, don’t forget to click through and scroll to the bottom for the awesome $1,000 Giveaway going on right now!)

ONE SHOULDER RUFFLE TOP || RUFFLE HEM TOP
(the rest of the outfit details below)

You may remember on my spring sale post that this was one of the tops that I got. I had been eyeing it for the longest time and so glad that I was able to get it on sale. It’s not available anymore but there are plenty that are just like it. This one is most similar. It comes in 6 colors and I’m dying over the black and white gingham. I think I need it!

TOP || JEANS || CLUTCH
SUNGLASSES || SHOES

It really is such an easy top that I can wear with white jeans, dark jeans, shorts or even tucked into a skirt. I also love that one shoulder tops are a lot easier to wear than off the shoulder tops as you don’t have to constantly adjust or worry about lifting your arms up.

ONE SHOULDER RUFFLE TOPS

I also got this top last season but it’s still available HERE in 6 colors. I just got the pink one in and I LOVE the color. It’s so bright and pretty. I really love this top, I seriously would buy it in every color if I could but I think it might be overload to have that many of the same top 🙂

RUFFLE HEM TOP || JEANS || SHOES
SUNGLASSES || BAG BAG STRAP || NECKLACE

And yes, you just saw this top in this post. I wore it with a lighter color denim. I seriously wear this top so much, it’s the first one I reach for when I don’t know what else to wear.

lookbook Nordstrom tandjdesigns Uncategorized z-10

Two cute casual looks for summer

Post author By tiffany
Post date June 16, 2017

Just a couple of simple and casual looks that I will be wearing all summer. I like to get dressed up but for the most part I stay pretty casual. I wanted to share these two looks for my favorite ways to stay casual yet stylish!

I love a cute graphic tee, especially ones with my favorite things on it! LOL. I actually don’t like pizza that much but I love prosecco. My husband, however, could eat pizza every day of the week, so I like that this tee combines our tee favorite things 🙂

TEE || JEANS || JACKET
SHOES || BAG || BAG STRAP

I’ve mentioned it before but the midi trend is so great for shorties like me! I love that I can feel like i’m wearing a maxi dress and not have to get it hemmed. This one is a fave as it’s so comfy and flattering on. And it’s on sale now for $40!

DRESS (40% off!) HAT SHOES

These high waisted jeans are a life saver on those days where you’re feeling the bloat! I wasn’t a fan before as it feels a bit funny to wear them at first but now I love them! And yes, I’ve mentioned this bag strap one too many times but I still don’t know what I’d do without it. I love it and it made me love this bag again that used to be stuffed in the back of my closet!

I know dresses are typically more dressy but I love finding comfy dresses to wear on my casual days. It’s just such an easy outfit and with a dress like this where it’s light and flowy, it’s almost like you are wearing pajamas!

More fun tees!

More midi dress love!

Accessories handbags shopping summer trends Uncategorized z-10

The only bags you’ll need this summer: Straw totes, pom poms and more!

Post author By tiffany
Post date June 13, 2017

I’m really into bags and bag accessories this season. There’s just so many fun options now!

I know I’ve talked about these bag straps already but I am obsessed! They’ve revived all my bags! I haven’t carried this Saint Laurent bag in awhile because the strap that came with it actually broke off. But now I have a brand new and even better bag strap to carry my bag. It just makes the bag so much fun and I get so many compliments on it whenever I go. It’s one of those conversation starters, where everyone wants to know where I got it from. And when I tell people it’s only $24 and on Amazon, everyone gets on their phone to order it! 🙂

TOP \\ JEANS \\ SHOES \\ BAG STRAP \\ BAG

You need a good beach/vacation tote and this is it! I jut love the bright colors and the pom poms. It carries so much stuff!

TOP\\ TOTE

I love this hat whether I’m on vacation or not! It’s really cute on and you can’t help but love the message.

HAT \\ DRESS

Another bag strap! Love the floral one but this studded one is a bit less girly and perfect for a structured bag like this.

BAG STRAP \\ BAG \\ TOP

Gotta love a pom pom bag! So obsessed with this adorable clutch.

TOP\\ JEANS \\ CLUTCH

And if you didn’t have enough of pom poms and tassels, this mini tote is SO cute! The funny thing is I brought it home and my daughter immediately claimed it for herself! She did let me know that she would share it with me. LOL. It’s adorable and even though it’s small it’s still carries a good amount!

TOTE \\ JEANS \\ SHOES

The pom pom clutch comes in 3 colors and this black one is so fun! Even though I don’t wear as much black during the warmer months, I love that this incorporates the dark with the neon.

CLUTCH \\ JEANS \\ SHOES

And lastly the Gucci bag you’ve probably seen on every blogger but I had to jump on the bandwagon and get it in this gorgeous pink color. I thought that I might regret it but I’ve been carrying it so much and with almost every outfit that I think I’ve already gotten my money’s worth!

BAG \\ SWEATER \\ JEANS \\ SHOES \\ SUNGLASSES

haul shopping Uncategorized video z-10

Quick Summer Shopping Haul Video! Nordstrom Half Yearly Sale, Amazon and T&J Designs

Post author By tiffany
Post date June 8, 2017

I’ve been trying to get on instagram stories more often as I really love being able to interact with you guys this way. I did a really quick little shopping haul of a bunch of stuff I just got in the mail. I posted it to my facebook page as well and got a lot of great feedback about it which I really appreciate! I sometimes feel like I’m blogging to nobody so it’s nice to hear from those of you reading and following along. Anyway, in case you missed it on both my instagram and facebook, I wanted to share it here as well!

And ignore the “swipe up” comments as that’s a new feature that Instagram released that allows you to shop directly from the instagram stories which is pretty darn neat! I linked to all the items I tried on below.

I have found some really great finds on Amazon fashion lately and love their new clothing lines, (they have a few that is just exclusive to them.) But make sure that you are a prime member first so that you can order them! I’ve said it a million times but prime is so good. Free 2 day shipping for so many things on Amazon. I mean I don’t know how I lived without it!

Red stripe top $34 (you must be a Prime member to be able to purchase this – Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial)

I got a few more things in from the Nordstrom Half Yearly sale but these were my favorite. I was surprised to see they were still available so get them while you can when they are on sale!

Red Bell Sleeve Top $35 (40% off! only black and white left)

Pink tie sleeve $29 (40% off – I have it in blue too, see it on me here)

We got quite a few new things in at T&J Designs. I’m loving the new tops and bombers! Check out the new arrivals here and shop this week as we are doing Friends & Family and you can get 20% – 30% off your entire order.

White Tassel top $30 (Get up to 30% off your entire purchase!)

Floral bomber jacket $48 (Get up to 30% off your entire purchase)

Another great Amazon find! I’m going to be buying more swimsuits so will report back once I have them and have tried them on!

Off the shoulder swimsuit $20 (Seriously cute and great price!)

Would love for you to follow along! You can find me on Instagram, @tiffanyish or follow me on Facebook HERE.

House Uncategorized

The Best Spring Cleaning Hacks – tips, tricks (+ FREE cleaning products)

Post author By tiffany
Post date June 6, 2017

I have a confession to make. I HATE cleaning. I love organizing and putting things away but the cleaning part, ugh, I get irritated just thinking about it. And being that my husband works full time, I own a business that keeps me busy all hours of the day and night, and we have a 3 year old + 2 dogs, you can say that our house can get quite messy. My husband is amazing and does most of the cleaning so I know I’m very lucky but of course I pitch in when I can. And even though we both feel like we clean all the time, it just seems to be a never ending battle. We decided to tackle on a full spring cleaning weekend so I prepared some lists and found some amazing hacks and tricks so I thought I’d share them with you!

First though, I came across Grove Collaborative and I was hooked from the start. Because I hate cleaning so much I’m always on the lookout for cleaning products that will make my life easier and more efficient when it comes to cleaning. I’m also a big fan of environmentally friendly products not only because I have a child that I don’t want around harsh chemicals but I also am just generally concerned about the environment and the types of chemicals and materials that are put out there. I usually buy my cleaning products at Target and Costco and Grove Collaborative carried most of the brands that I already used, plus quite a few more that I was excited to discover. Being that I am so busy, trips to Costco and Target are not that frequent so I love that these get delivered to me and I don’t have to make any “emergency trips” when I discover that we are out of something. Oh and the prices are comparable or even less expensive that what I would buy at the stores so don’t feel like you are paying premium prices for this! I would not recommend it otherwise because what’s worse than cleaning? Paying a ton of money for cleaning products!

This week only if you sign up for Grove Collaborative and place an order of at least $20 (trust me, you’ll find plenty of things to buy!) you will get the method Essential Kit for FREE! All you have to do is head HERE to sign up for Grove Collaborative and you’ll receive everything pictured above for free when you sign up and spend $20 or more on your first order. You’ll answer a few quick questions about your home that they’ll use to customize your basket. Then you’ll finalize your basket by adding or removing items to get exactly what you want. Before you check out make sure your order totals at least $20 to get the free gifts!

If you need some recommendations, here’s my favorites that I got in my first order.

Full Circle – Squeeze Cellulose Sponge Cloths ($3.99): I didn’t know I needed these in my life until I got them but I can say that I can’t live without them now! Stop wasting paper towels now and get these. They do a much better job of cleaning than paper towels and they can go straight in the dishwasher too! My husband and I love them and agree that we need more!
Ecover – Stain Remover ($4.99): When you have kids, you have stains. I need a good stain remover and this is it. I like the scrubby brush so that you can really work it into the stain.
Mrs. Meyer’s – Multi Surface Cleaner ($3.89): I already use Method (which is why the free gift is amazing!) and I have a stock of the Method Multi Surface Cleaner since I use it, literally every day, multiple times a day. But I wanted to try out Mrs. Meyer’s and it’s just as good! I love the different scents but like I said, the multi surface cleaner gets plenty of use so you can never not have enough of this. We keep one on every floor of the house so that it’s easily accessible.
Seventh Generation – Auto Dish Packs ($5.99): These make washing the dishes even easier! Just throw one in, no messes, no measuring. And it gets my dishes so clean.

Once you place your order, it gets to you pretty quickly (I think mine was less than a week). Then each month after you’ll get an e-mail reminding you to adjust your cart and choose what items you need. You really don’t need to order things every month, you can skip it and move your date to a further date. It’s not a monthly subscription where you automatically get charged and get products sent to you. It’s so great that you can pick and choose exactly what you want and then get it sent to you when you need it. I keep a running list on my phone of what cleaning essentials we are almost out of and then I adjust my order from there.

So, as I was saying, I rounded up some of the best Spring Cleaning hacks, tips and tricks to help get you (and me) motivated to do some cleaning! My husband and I are trying to attack it all in one weekend so I love this checklist. Check out the full post and download the list HERE.

{SOURCE}

It’s so easy to forget to clean your appliances like your washer. Spring cleaning time is a great time to make sure that you do! Love this quick and easy tip to clean your washer!

{SOURCE}

I love planners and lists so was excited to stumble upon these printable pages that includes a full spring cleaning checklist by room, a monthly undated calendar, a weekly cleaning schedule page, cleaning task planner stickers and a ton more! Grab them HERE, it’s only $2 for the download!

{SOURCE}

And another checklist – this time it breaks it down by the hours! I love it! It keeps you on schedule and efficient! Get the step by step break down HERE. It’s so thorough, I feel like it’s given me a good game plan to tackle on all this cleaning!

Illustration: Florie Duhau/OWN
{SOURCE}

Hopefully that gives you some motivation to do your spring cleaning. Wish me luck, I think I’m going to need it!

And don’t forget to grab your FREE Method Essentials Kit, it’s totally worth it!

food healthy eats home jen recipe subscription box Uncategorized

How to Easily Feed a Family of 5 (Bonus: It’s Healthy!) || Hello Fresh Review

Post author By Jen
Post date June 2, 2017

I’m all about making meal time easier so I thought I’d give a meal plan service a try. Here’s my honest review of Hello Fresh! (And make sure to scroll to the bottom of the post for a $70 off discount!)

Being a mom with a full-time career, kids + their extra curricular activities and staying active myself – trying to cook dinner for the family is easier said than done.

Healthy meals for the family

Cooking a HEALTHY dinner for the family is even harder. Enter: HELLO FRESH. A meal delivery service that shops, plans and delivers fresh ingredients to your doorstep with easy, step-by-step recipes so you can relax and enjoy all there is to love about cooking. And eating! With all the subscription boxes out there, this was one I HAD to try.

How it works

First you pick a plan that fits your lifestyle. We don’t cook at home every day (or have time to due to various activities and obligations) so it was important that I wasn’t locked in to ordering a whole week’s worth of meals at once.

Delivery is always free and you have the control to pause, modify or cancel your subscription at any time. Since I wasn’t sure if my kids would enjoy these meals, I decided to go with 3 meals for 2 people for my first box.

Next you get to pick your meals from a variety of different recipes each week, including preferences such as vegetarian, low-calorie diet, quick + easy, etc. so you’re sure to find something you love.

I’ve found that they typically have a variety of options for starch (rice, pasta, potatoes), protein (beef, lean protein, fish), as well as a breakfast option for most weeks which is great in case brunch on the weekends is your thing!

Unboxing the meals

I received my delivery around mid-afternoon which gave me plenty of time unbox, select and prepare my first meal.

The boxes were insulated in bubble packaging and ingredients were fresh / cold to touch. There was an additional cold pack with the protein underneath to keep them extra cold.

Our 3 recipes for the week:

Each meal came with a recipe card as well as it’s own box of ingredients, making it super easy to grab one and put the other two boxes in the fridge for another day.

Preparing and cooking

Each box comes with perfectly portioned ingredients (aside from kitchen staples like salt + pepper, oil, etc.). Preparing and cooking was super easy with the step-by-step instructions (with photos!). And all of our meals were made in 30-40 minutes!

When you get home late and don’t want to think about what to make, this is the perfect solution for a quick, healthy, homemade dinner. As an added bonus, each recipe also has a wine pairing suggestion (for those nights when you just need to decompress).

As for making the meals, you really don’t need any fancy kitchen tools, just your regular kitchen tool essentials will do!

All in all, I had a GREAT experience with Hello Fresh! The dinners were healthy, convenient and really tasty! The recipe cards that come with the box are great to keep in your recipe library for future use.

Next time, I plan on ordering 3 meals for 5 people as it was so easy and a good way for my kids to try new foods.

Easy to substitute

I will also likely substitute a couple ingredients (such as brown rice as whole wheat pita). Since I don’t eat dairy but my family does, it’s easy to omit it for myself but add it to their dinners. Overall, it’s a great way to stick with your nutrition plan as all meals are pre-portioned.

Take $70 off your first order

I love that Hello Fresh has a convenient app that you can download so you can manage your weekly menu, pause your deliveries or modify your plan right from your phone! Order now and you can get $70 off your first order of Hello Fresh!

Don’t miss these Kitchen organization tips!

If you’re cooking a lot more, head to these posts to help with organizing your kitchen!