October Crushes

As we’ve previously lamented, the selection of maternity clothes on the market is truly tragic. (That is, unless you’re into jersey mumus and screen-printed t-shirts brightly proclaiming “Coming soon!”) So *of course* the chicest line of maternity clothes we’ve ever spotted had to go and launch just months after the Little Lady’s arrival. A well-edited collection of drape-y and impeccably cut separates, dresses and outerwear, Hatch by Two Birds is the kind of maternity clothing that will make a pregnant lady feel comfortable *and* cool. We especially adore the cape-like design of their gorgeous cardigan (pictured above), which while a bit spendy would surely be the MVP of any expectant mother’s winter wardrobe.

The Hus-b and I adore cooking together, but we never quite mastered the simple weeknight meal. Our typical Sunday night supper would be a three-hour affair complete with a cheese course, and the mere thought of using a store-bought sauce or salsa horrified us. Then we had a kid and had to get real: if we were going to eat (or entertain) ever again, we had to simplify our repertoire.  My dorky chef-crush on Rick Bayless led me to pick up some Frontera Taco Skillet Sauce on a whim, and even the Hus-b had to admit that it *killed* on our usual ground turkey tacos.  While we’ll probably never be especially thrilled about using such culinary shortcuts (and will continue to hide the evidence from our guests), it’s nice to know we can speed things up in the kitchen without going full Rachel Ray.

We have been far from shy about our fondness for all things monogram, so you can imagine our horror when our dear friend, Erika, scooped us on the “Create Your Own” Collection from Ralph Lauren. You can use the effortlessly simple web interface to put your kiddo’s mark on a range of layette classics like collared onesies and playsuits as well as on charming outerwear (we have our eye on the hot pink quilted coat for the Little Lady). How we ever managed to dress the Little Lady before discovering this service, we will never know.

Just as we’ve had to adjust expectations in the kitchen, we’ve also had to revise our approach to everyday dressing. Between daily strolls with the Little Lady and frantic trips to the gym during her all-too-infrequent naps, we end up spending the vast majority of our days clad in workout gear. (Thank God for Lululemon.)  And if we must wear sneakers all day, we decided that we’d prefer they not look nor feel like bricks attached to our feet. Enter the  Nike Free Run2, an almost-unbelievably weightless and comfortable sneak that approximates the feel of a Vibram FiveFingers shoe without looking amphibious. They may not be our usual pair of dainty ballerina flats, but even we can get excited about the colorful (and dare we say stylish) design of our Nike Free Runs.