Printed Navy

dress: MK (thrifted) see more options below
cardigan: Talbots
espadrille: Kate Spade (similar)
bag: Ivanka Trump
aviators: Tory Burch
watch: Fossil


As you may have heard (or maybe you haven't) Nordstrom is having its annual Anniversary Sale. The store is putting up its fresh and new fall/winter merchandise for sale for a limited time. After that, the prices will go back up until after the season is over. The internets (i.e. bloggers) are going nuts over it. Nordstrom has this early access thing for all the cardholders for about a week and later the rest of us mere mortals can shop it too. I do not own Nordstrom credit card, neither do I want to. First of all, I don't have that much money to spend on designer items that (may) sell out, and second, I can wait a few days.
Well, in case you can't wait, you can sign up for credit card (HERE) and than shop your heart out. But on Friday when the doors will be open to the public, you better make sure you have your shopping list ready, because things will go fast for sure. Come back tomorrow for my best picks from the sale (most items I pick will be under $100, including designer apparel). Let me do the digging for you so that all you have to do is shop the best items Friday. Are you ready? Get your wallet out girlfran!

Link Up: The Fashion Canvas, I do deClaire

Shop Navy Dresses

Casual Maternity Style

dress: J.Crew (cheaper version here)
jacket: Talbots old (similar)
flats: TJMaxx (similar)
bag: Tommy Hilfiger
sunglasses: Tory Burch
watch: Fossil (on sale!)
First time I styled this dress here

Managing to wear non maternity clothes that fit during pregnancy is a hard task, but it's possible! You don't have to sacrifice style for comfort either. To give you some ideas, here are my tips.

- Size Up. If you like a certain piece of clothing, buy a size (or two) larger than your pre-pregnancy size. It's easier to take it to the tailor later and have it taken in, then wear it for only a few weeks. That's exactly what I'm planning on doing with this eyelet dress.

- Jersey Dresses. Stretchy and comfy jersey fabric is easily the best things that has ever happened to my bump. I buy my normal size and have it stretch over the belly, so later I will have something to wear as well.

- Empire Waist and Boxy Fit. I knot that empire waist is not in style right now, but there are some non maternity dresses and tops that will fit the description. Also, a lot of tops right now have a very boxy and relaxed fit. I was able to find about 5-6 tops at TJMaxx the other day, that weren't maternity but fit me well (of course I couldn't buy all of them so I had to pick one).

Hope that helps your search for cute clothes for the bump. Thank you for stopping by!

Shop Eyelet Dresses

Monochromatic

dress: Talbots (similar) also love  this one
booties: Liz Clairborne (similar)
belt: Gap
clutch: DIY (similar)
watch: Fossil

I love simple black dresses because a) they are easy to style b) they go with everything. I love this wool stretchy version because after five years in  my closet I still wear it multiple times every winter. It's soft, warm and feels like you are wearing a cozy blanket while looking polished. I wore this outfit to church and decided to play around with my hair. This new rope braid seems easy at first but the secret is to keep all the hair super tight while braiding.  I loved this video tutorial but probably need to practice a bit more to make it look more polished and less messy. Today I love the messy braid look and hope you do too.

xo, Anna

The Last of It

top: H&M (similar dress, top)
skirt: Talbots (similar)
heels: Zara (similar)
clutch: old (similar)

It's Christmas time. Just kidding. Well, it surely looks like that outside my window - the entire ground is covered with white blanket! That is after sandals and pool weather on Sunday - New York weather is crazy, I tell ya. So here we are back in cold again and the last of black and white outfit for this season (don't quote me on that though). 

So what's better then a dress that can be worn as a top? Pretty much nothing. My sister was giving me the stink eye and said 'went shopping again?' in her sisterly condemnation voice. I was glad to say I did not (I think hubby sand Hallelujah at that point). The trick is to have a dress short enough that it can hide underneath the skirt's hem. Also, you want the skirt to be thick enough so that no one would be able to tell you are wearing more underneath. I love experimenting with clothes and this is just one of the ways to stretch your dollars and get more wear out of your clothes. 

Hope you have a good (non-snowy) day!

My Wild Valentine

sweater: J.Crew Factory, skirt: Talbots, shoes: Zara, necklace: H&M, clutch: DIY, belt Target

Although, love is in the air, all I can think about is my son's birthday party this weekend. Seriously, since when did Pinterest become the raining king of baby parties? I can't stop pinning and researching one awesome idea after another. It's hard to stop, really. As any Pinterest-driven mother I'm attempting a themed cake all on my own but it's not really coming out, to say the least. After two trial runs, it still looks sloppy and frosting isn't light and fluffy. I may just give up and order it from a bakery. Am I going to go into the Mother's Book of Shame for that? I hope not. Also, I'm looking for a night out from all the planning, cooking and cleaning this Friday night. Can't wait to get all dressed up and have an adult-only time with my hubby. What are your plans? Going out with the crowds or staying in?

Thank you for stopping by.

Everybody Gets The Sniffles

sweater, belt: Gap
skirt: Talbots
flats, watch: Target

It is the season for vicks and humidifiers. 

We got the sniffles in this house and I guess there is just no way of getting around it. We tried to look like it's not happening, stayed away from all the sickly people but, alas, we are here.

Runny noses and teary eyes. Mommy and baby are both sitting in the living room and planing on doing absolutely nothing today. 

There were plans and there were aspirations.

We even thought to venture out to the farmer's market today. 

Nope.

All that's happening today is lots of hugs, chest rubs, hot tea and watching chick flicks... 

Hope you have a great day! 

P.S. Stay away from sickly people. 

Not Perfect

top: H&M
skirt: Talbots
shoes: Calvin Klein
glasses: DKNY

 This may come as shock to some of you, but I'm not perfect. (sarcasm)

There are days when I honestly don't want to get out of bed, stay in my PJs all day, , forget to change my kid's diaper and don't even bother to brush my teeth (I know, gross).

We all have those days.

Behind the pictures of outfits and perfectly polished clothes, I don't want to seem fake. 

At times I have struggles and I do fail.

I struggle to keep within my monthly budget (currently considering getting in trouble with my budget to get these bad boys), have emotional meltdowns and altogether bad days. Even my perfectly worded monthly posts about Jonathan's well being sometimes don't come out that easy, especially after a long day of cranky babe and no sleep.

 It's real life and life isn't perfect. 

Sometimes, I have a hard time with the concept of imperfection.

I get into the mode and try to show this perfect image of who I am (perfectionist) and forget to be real. Of course, I try to be as honest as possible but really, who's life is perfect?

You cannot judge someone else' life by their Insta account and Facebook updates. There is just so much more to it and when we don't see the entire picture and what's going on behind the scenes, it's easy to get discouraged. But today, in my perfectly imperfect life I'm at peace with who I am and where God has me.

Thank you Lord for this imperfect life.

Winding Down

top: Talbots
skirt: Thrifted
heels: Ann Taylor
clutch: DIY
necklace: Forever 21

According to the calendar, it's almost the end of summer and New York haven't even had real summer yet. We had non-stop rain the entire month of June, then it warmed up a little. But all the rain made the humidity get out of control, so that the only possible way of survival was inside, under an air conditioner. 

By the way, a blessing I am extremely thankful for is the central air conditioning system.

 It's absolutely amazing. I'm giving props to all the people who don't have A/C. I don't know how ya'll live.

We started having gorgeous weather last few weeks and now the days are warm and nights are cool. It's really beautiful out and yesterday was one of those days. We enjoyed it mostly by going to church, staying inside and (not) taking a nap because a certain someone with cutest chubby cheeks and beautiful grin decided that he will wake up every half an hour just to keep us on our toes.

Summer is winding down, so enjoy the beautiful weather by going to the park or having a picnic under a tree, take a bike ride or a trip to the beach. I know that I'm going to take advantage of this gorgeousness. 

Thank you for stopping by.

Have a great day!