Since this is my first post, I’ll give you a little background about me. I’m Jamie, the youngest of five, mother to four, and wife to one (although some aspects of the idea of a sister wife are appealing…I wonder if they do laundry?). Growing up, I was a quiet introvert who much preferred reading to running around outside or going places with lots of people. Not much has changed…oh wait four kids later and I don’t have time to sit still much less concentrate on a whole book (I will get my book club book read sometime in 2016, I swear).

I can be found, running around my house after a crazy two year old, snuggling a sleepy infant, or feeding two (always) hungry growing girls. In the midst of all that, I have developed a new love for simplicity, whether it comes to decorating the house or dressing myself and the kids. I used to love lots of loud hues but now, I make do with a pop of color and just hope no one wipes their nose on my shirt.

I decided sometime in 2015 that I should try a capsule wardrobe a la this fashion blogger. Before I got around to making that happen, baby number four decided to make his presence known and out came the maternity bins. Since then, I’ve embraced the idea that I will probably never have a chic capsule wardrobe. That said, I don’t have to live in yoga pants (guilty) anymore either. I can look put together and still keep up with four kids. Mind you, I’m not throwing out the yoga pants (let’s not get crazy now), just trying to spice things up and keep it interesting.

I’ve recently embraced the idea that you should surround yourself with things you love and only things you love. Weeding through my closet, I’ve held onto lots of things that I “might wear” someday. I still have a few of those, but from here on out, if I haven’t worn it in five (okay who am I kidding probably ten) years, out it goes! So, here I am sharing the things I love with you (one of them being writing) and hoping you enjoy seeing how I’m trying to keep things classy while knee deep in dirty diapers and mud pies.


Today, my husband (we’ll call him J), and I had an unexpected afternoon with just our littlest minion and I decided I wanted to dress up a little for him. I’m really loving the shift dress with long sleeves style this fall and you can pretty much always find me in leggings or a pair of footless tights (yes there is a difference). My favorite parts of this outfit though? The awesome diaper bag by Budu and this long sweater coat that I found at (gasp) Target- I’m trying to keep it affordable here.

When, I got pregnant last time, I knew I had to replace my trusty fraying Vera Bradley bag and I just couldn’t find anything I liked. So, if we’re going to get to know each other you’re going to have to understand that I love big sweaters and nice bags. When I found out I was expecting another boy, the search became even more intense. It’s one thing to reuse a girly bag from big sister, but it didn’t feel quite right to pick out a super girly bag when I knew I was expecting blue. Finally, I settled on this Oemi baby bag. All was swell, until I finally emerged into the world and tried to take it somewhere. At which point, the zipper promptly broke (thank goodness for Amazon customer service). Don’t get me wrong, It’s a beautiful bag but it just wasn’t working for me for several reasons. So, back to the drawing board. That’s when I stumbled upon Budu, an Australian company that specializes in trendy baby accessories. I love it. It’s huge. It has not one, not two, but THREE zippable compartments. I was a little nervous about buying something from overseas but it is gorgeous and the customer service is outstanding. Well, I’ll let the bag speak for itself.


Even baby Hey J makes a cute accessory.


Mommy wearing:

Dress: The Loft

Shoes: Lucky Brand

Bag: Budu

Sunglasses: Guess purchased at TJMaxx – similar from Target

Sweater coat: Target/Mossimo

 

Baby wearing:

Outfit: Carter’s

Hat: Knitting Land on Etsy