Pottery Barn Kids Backpack / Native Shoes (Basically sandals but approved by most schools for footwear!) / J.Crew Dress (Old, newer ones linked.)
Here’s what comes to mind right now:
- My brothers are safe in New Orleans. Danny, Kim and Christopher evacuated to Alabama, and Patrick did the night shift at his hospital in Hammond, Louisiana, which is north of NOLA. I’ll admit that our family was extremely worried for a while there, and and one point chainsaws were being used to get Patrick down the road to the hospital. But thankfully everyone is safe, and Patrick’s house sustained minimal damage from the hurricane. Feeling grateful and lucky. ♥️ Please consider donating here to help those affected by Hurricane Ida.
- Emma had her first day of Kindergarten! It was great. I’ll say that Emma has had a rough entry to education with strikes and Covid… but we’re back. And Mitch and I are ridiculously proud of and excited for her. She’s thrilled to be back with her beloved teacher and friends, and there’s a twinge of normalcy in the air. My fingers are crossed for a happy, successful year. Heck, the girl you see above woke up early this morning on her own to do math and writing. GO EMMA, GO!
- Having my mom here was amazing. Oh my gosh. Guys, I’m now wallowing in the fact that she doesn’t live in Chicago. It was just so wonderful. I loved having one-on-one time with her, and she’s just such a natural with the girls; she picks up on routines immediately and has so much fun with them. Mitch and I were able to catch up on some late projects, and we also got to see our friends! Which is why…
- Mitch and I are exhausted because we attempted to go out every night. 😆 We were kind of like, “YOLO,” and went for it. We did a lot, but highlights include:
- Going out to dinner with our new friends Gretchen and James. James worked with Tom, one of our BFFs and husband of Kira from Kira David Design… and they introduced us when Gretchen and James moved to our block! It was the best. Already know they’re going to be lifelong friends!
- Staying up until 1:30 a.m. talking. It was lovely reintroducing myself to my husband and getting to know him better. Mitch, you’re one good—and hilarious—dude.
- Going on a date night with Jess and Neal. We headed over to Parlor in Wicker Park, and then went back to their place. It was the first reverse drive-by of sorts! So many laughs. So many cuddles with sweet Junebug. And some sewing. I accidentally sewed my dress together and ended up having to cut myself out of it at the end of the night. It’s fine.
- Seeing our friend and bride-to-be Gabby. She and Mitch grew up together across the street in Lincoln Park! She’s getting married at the end of September outside of San Diego, and the whole Larkin Family is going. We’re so excited. And it was truly wonderful being able to catch up before all the wedding magic begins! We love you, Gabby.
- Going boating with our Bradley and Peter’s family. Peter bought his dream boat, and took us out over the water over the weekend. (A few hours after my mom left, so it was a big family affair, haha.) SO FUN. It was my first time in the “Playpen,” which is a party area out on Lake Michigan where tons of boats anchor every weekend. We didn’t stay there for long but it was very cool to experience! Thanks, guys. What a gorgeous day and even better company. :)
- My friend Fisayo’s brand Elisamama is now available at Saks! Fisayo–also a mom of three!–is a native of Nigeria, and her primary goal with her business is to economically empower local artisans through jobs and skills training. All Elisamama products are handmade in Nigeria, and team members can support both themselves and their families on their incomes. I’m so proud of you, Girl! What a huge accomplishment.
- The girls decided on their Halloween costumes: Emma is being Wonder Woman, and Lucy is being Mickey Mouse. (Not Minnie. Had to to Mickey, so this was quite the find.) They’re both so excited! It’s absolutely adorable.
- I found the CUTEST Halloween door mat. You can also find it at West Elm.
- OMG, the Lululemon Define Jacket in Nulu fabric is back in white. BUY THIS. It’s the best activewear top/jacket I’ve ever owned. It’s buttery soft, and I know I’m going to get a ton of wear out of it in the coming months. I already do, actually! I throw it on when Mitch and I get back to the house after our bike ride every morning. Runs small, though. I wear a size 2 in J.Crew jackets and take this one in a size 6 or 8. (Both work.) It’s very fitted!
- J.Crew is offering 40 percent off most products! Use code “HELLOFALL.” I particularly love these sweater pants, this striped cable-knit sweater, this quilted barn jacket, this cashmere rollneck sweater, and this quilted puffer lady jacket. Oh! And the longer quilted cocoon puffer.
- “One Home Project Every Day” update:
- I really cleaned out Lucy’s closet. My two-year-old is wearing size 4 clothing, and I can’t keep up how quickly she’s growing out of everything! Did a deep clean, though (like I did not so long ago, haha), and getting her dressed in the morning is now a lot easier.
- I labeled all our water bottles for peewee/school. I used these labels, which I found on Amazon.
- I switched out our old living room pillows for these new ones. I LOVE the new look. Everything looks very fresh! They’ve since sold out, but there are a bunch of awesome McGee pillows still in stock!
- I washed my wool sweaters and silk tops. I use this wool & cashmere detergent and this delicate wash, both from The Laundress, because I hate going to the dry cleaners. They work like a charm and save me oodles of time and money!
- I organized the front hall closet for school. For the longest time, I’d get super discouraged with the front hall closet. It just never seemed to stay organized! But I’m realizing that I just need to do it once a quarter. No matter great an organizational system is, a high-traffic hall closet is likely going to get messy when kids have access to it. All of this is to say it’s so much more functional now!
- I got rid of some brightly colored shoes. Neutrals and simplicity for the win.
- I packed up my (overtly) summery dresses. Of course, I don’t think I’ll ever stop loving my blues and colors for summer. But as we’re on the cusp on September, they’ve retired to my drawer for the rest of the year!
- I gave some old costume jewelry to the girls. I cleaned out my jewelry box a while ago… but isn’t it funny how you often need a second round of purging to really get to it all? The last time, I had some trouble parting with a few pieces… even though I never wear them anymore. Emma and Lucy, though, are going to get lots of wear out of them during dress-up. And that makes me happy. :)
xx
