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Oooh: I remember swooning over a very similar dress from Ellen Tracy a few years ago. I ordered it myself and, alas, my post-baby body didn’t love it quite as much (tiny waist, I will see you again some day!). This dress looks like it solves that problem with a nice belt detail on top of the sunburst pattern, and I like the other modifications like the notch in the neckline, the longer sleeves, and (huzzah!!!!) the simple “machine wash” instruction. I also like that it comes in four colors, sizes 2-16, regular and petite sizes. It’s $128 at Nordstrom. Ellen Tracy Embellished Pleated Jersey Sheath Dress (L-2)Sales of note for 4.18.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Ann Taylor – 50% off full-price dresses, jackets & shoes; $30 off pants & skirts; extra 50% off sale styles
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Kid/Family Sales
- Carter’s – Up to 70% off baby items; 50% off toddler & kid deals & 40% off everything else
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And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- If you’re a working parent of an infant with low sleep needs, how do you function at work when you’re in the throes of baby’s sleep regression?
- Should I cut my childcare down to 12 hours a month if I work from home?
- Will my baby have speech delays if we raise her bilingual?
- Has anyone given birth in a teaching hospital?
- My child eats everything, and my friends’ kids do not – how should I handle? In general, what is the best way to handle when your child has some skill/ability and your friend’s child doesn’t have that skill/ability?
- ADHD moms, give me your tips to help with things like behavior in the classroom, attention to detail, etc?
- I think I suffer from mom rage…
- My husband and kids are gone this weekend – how should I enjoy my free time?
- I’m struggling to be compassionate with a SAHM friend who complains she doesn’t have enough hours of childcare.
- If you exclusively formula fed, what tips do you have for in the hospital and coming home?
- Could I take my 4-yo and 8-yo on a 7-8 day trip to Paris, Lyon, and Madrid?
TK says
Do I send my kid to daycare in his *actual* Halloween costume for their party on Friday, or do I preserve it for Halloween night? My 20 month is rough on even durable, normal clothes – I’m not sure the cheap but adorable costume I have for him will survive an entire day of daycare.
FVNC says
Can you ask your teachers to change kiddo into his costume just before the party? Our daycare told parents to send kids to school in regular clothes and that they’d change them into their costumes after naptime. I was surprised, because that seems like a lot of work for the teachers, but maybe that’s an option for you? If not, I’d probably go with regular clothes — maybe a cute Halloween themed shirt, but not a full-on costume.
mascot says
At 20 months old, he probably isn’t going to notice/care/fit-pitch that he isn’t in a costume. I’d go with a halloween/character shirt and maybe a hat and call it good.
anne-on says
Can you send him in wearing a Halloween themed outfit instead? My son did NOT tolerate his costume at that age and I just gave up on trying to wrangle him into it for daycare. We went to carters and got a cheap Halloween t-shirt and orange pants and called it a day.
Famouscait says
Can anyone recommend a cover for the tub spout that will easily accommodate the kind of shower diverter that you pull down from the bottom of the spout (where the water comes out)? Everything I’m seeing on Amazon is made for a tub spout with a shower diverter that you pull up (from on top of the spout). Thanks!
anne-on says
What about this one? We have it and its totally open underneath so you should be able to access the diverter underneath the elephant trunk.
http://www.amazon.com/Puj-Snug-Ultra-Spout-Cover/dp/B008TWGMBW/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1446043986&sr=8-3&keywords=foam+spout+cover
Jdubs says
We have the skip hop moby whale spout cover – it is totally open on the bottom except for one closure piece.
JJ says
We have the same spout cover. It’s been great for 3 years – no complaints.
Famouscait says
Thanks all! I didn’t realize those would work with my tub.
Nova childcare says
Reposting from yesterday — I am about 12 weeks along and moving to Tysons/Vienna this weekend. We haven’t been able to look at daycare yet (because we didn’t even have an address down there until two weeks ago). I asked yesterday about whether looking this “late” in the game and if anyone has any recommendations for daycare centers or forums where I could quickly learn as much as possible about the options.
If you all don’t mind, I thought I would ask for additional suggestions for how we could approach this. My husband will be working from home and I’ll be working in DC a few days a week and at home the other days. My mother is in the area and may help us with childcare two days a week. Is it possible to find a part-time, in-home nanny/caretaker in that area? And what would that likely cost? Is part-time daycare a possibility?
Thanks for the advice–first time mom and due to some problems getting/staying pregnant, I’ve been hesitant to delve too deeply into some of this until we were a little further along. Now I feel like we’re really late!
anon says
For that kind of care, the best advice I can give is to get on a neighborhood parenting listserve or other local parenting listserve. I am in the DC area and the one for my town has multiple posts per day by people recommending their past nannies/babysitters, openings in home daycares, etc. It’s also a great way to meet other parents looking for a nanny share, etc. We are in the Maryland suburbs and we located an amazing home daycare just a month and a half or two months before we needed it — that seemed to be around the right time to be looking. Maryland home daycares are more regulated than Virginia, I believe, so I’m not sure what the Virginia situation is — but we definitely didn’t need to look many months in advance.
anon says
I think my friends with nannies pay around $18/hour (before taxes). Home daycares reallllly vary in price — ours is on the expensive side at $325/week for infants but we saw others ranging from $180 (yikes) to over $400, depending mostly on neighborhood.
Nova childcare says
Thanks, this is reducing my anxiety a bit. I’m trying to find the right “mom blog” in our area, so that’s probably the right tack to take. If nannies are really around $18-20/hour, that might be doable given that we can stagger our work hours and cut out commuting time (i.e. we’d probably only need someone from 9-5 rather than from 8 to 7, perhaps even less). A nanny share would be my ideal so I’ll look on those listservs/blogs. Thanks again! I should be packing but instead I’m panicking!
mascot says
You are probably too early to be looking for nannies. There may be some out there that know that they are changing families because a child starts school or something, but I get the sense that most function on a much shorter timetable. My friends who used nannies (including in the DC area) I don’t think started looking until they were on leave. The daycare search can start much earlier.
Nova childcare says
That’s great to know–thank you!
TBK says
Just saw your reply to my reply yesterday. FWIW, au pair costs are estimated at about $24k/yr, not including housing (but including food, transportation, extras, as well as program fees and stipend). That’s still more than infant care at a lot of day care centers in this area, but not a LOT more. And if your au pair stays a second year, the program fees are typically reduced. Plus of course the au pair does the baby’s laundry, cleans the nursery, prepares food and cleans up after, and is just an extra pair of hands around the house (e.g., ours empties the dishwasher, helps wash up after dinner, helps take out trash on trash night, etc.). But I’m totally in the tank for the whole au pair thing.
Nova childcare says
This sounds like it could be great, but we are only renting a two-bedroom apartment for the next year or so while we try to figure out where to buy so that won’t be a viable option for us. Still, it may be worth considering when we have a second child. Thanks for the advice. Much more affordable than I would have expected!
JEB says
We use an in-home daycare (West Alexandria/Falls Church, so not very close to your location). We found it based upon word of mouth. Four of our neighbors had either used the daycare in the past or were currently using it. Virginia has both licensed and unlicensed in-home daycares (someone said yesterday they were all unlicensed, which isn’t the case). Ours is licensed. You can check the inspection records easily online. We absolutely love our daycare.
If you’re moving into a community/neighborhood with an HOA or Condo Board, you might be able to reach out to other parents to ask which daycares they use. It seems as though that’s the best way, at least with the in-home daycare options. You may also find a nanny-share this way. DC Urban Moms is also somewhat helpful.
Anonymous says
Being “too late in the game” really only applies to commercial centers. In homes typically do not have a wait. I concur with the range in the DC area; our Bailey’s Crossroads in-home is $200/week; the house is on a street where a lower middle-class mostly immigrant neighborhood transitions into a very very upper middle-class neighborhood. They provide excellent care, and food. Daycares (in-home or commercial) often charge double the rate for part-time care than for full-time; i.e., you can pay $200 for part-time, or $200 for full-time. That’s because you’re “taking up a space” and they’d have to find another part-timer (with the same hours to meet the correct ratio) to make up for a whole space. Also something no one told me, if you’re committed to cloth diapers, many daycares won’t do that. Some people do cloth at home and disposables at daycare. I found our daycare based on word of mouth. Also agree with DC Urban Moms…somewhat helpful, though it quickly goes over the edge into not-so-helpful information. Find a good neighborhood listserv.
anon says
This isn’t quite what you’re asking for (I’m not sure if there’s even a part-time option) but we’ve been very pleased with Fun & Friends in McLean, just east of Tysons. Our baby has been there since she was four months old (she’s almost eleven months now), and she’s very happy there–she just lights up in the mornings when she sees her ladies. It’s relatively affordable too…for NOVA/DC.
Nova childcare says
Great, thanks! I’ll check them out.
Anonymous says
Not sure if you’re still checking these replies but –
I struck out looking for a neighborhood list serve in my area and thought I was out of luck. I recently learned that it’s all on Facebook (in “must get approved by a moderator” groups). So check there too! It’s a wealth of information.
NewMomAnon says
This is a totally Type A mom question, but here goes – my daughter is really, super independent and likes to do everything herself. So I’ve been letting her lead the way on almost everything and assuming that when she is ready for a task, she will take it on herself. But I have friends whose little ones of about the same age have “chores” and are learning “manners” at the kitchen table, or even potty-training or putting on their own clothes, and we aren’t doing anything like that. Does anyone know of a resource like “Wonder Weeks” or similar that might have suggestions for age-appropriate steps toward independence? I worry that I’m letting my kiddo lead too much and not doing enough active parenting.
JJ says
Generally, I think if it’s working for you, then don’t borrow troubles or worries by comparing to other families. But I also felt the same thing when I saw toddlers potty trained before my son. Toddler 411 (by the same authors as Baby 411) was a great resource for me, because it put a rough estimate on when I could expect to start working on potty training, manners, etc.
Midwest Mama says
I’m hoping for some reassurance…
I was taking BCP & had very regular 28 day cycles from age 18 until the month I turned 30 when DH and I decided to start TTC. I got pregnant the next month. I did the Depo shot when I was breastfeeding (for 15 mos) and then back to various kinds of BCP. Stopped taking them a year ago and my periods were all over the place – 42 days apart, 26 days, 32 days, etc. Had lots of unprotected s*x and didn’t conceive. Went to my dr, who ruled out any physical issues thru exams and ultrasounds and suggested going back on BCP for a few months to try to force my periods to become regular again. She essentially said that now that I’m getting older, my ovaries may be starting to “sputter” a bit, causing my irregularity. So I’ve been back on BCP for a few months and my last 2 periods have been irregular again (23 day cycle in Sept and 35 day cycle this month). DH and I were planning to start TTC #2 this month or next month with the hopes of having a fall baby next year, but I’m worried that it’s going to be very difficult to conceive given my irregularity. I have ovulation strips and the fertility friend app… But I guess I’m just looking for advice (on what’s causing my irregularity?), tips on TTC with irregular periods, and some reassurance that it can/will happen (and hopefully quickly!) Thanks for reading my novel. :)
NewMomAnon says
Hugs. The advice I’ve seen people give on here is to go to a reproductive specialist soon if you have concerns like that, especially if the advice you’re getting is that it may be age-related. I’ve had a lot of friends conceive miracle babies through RE interventions after getting wishy-washy answers from OBs.
And also – ignore friends who don’t get it, and find a friend who does get it. I now realize that I was one of those people who just didn’t get it about the whole infertility/fertility uncertainty issues, and said some pretty insensitive (but well-meaning) things.
NYCpg says
When you’re not on bcp, do your OPKs and charts suggest you’re ovulating despite the irregular cycles? If so, I bet you’ll be just fine!
That said, how old are you? If it doesn’t happen quickly, I am definitely a proponent of seeing an RE sooner rather than later. Mine was nothing short of a miracle worker!
Midwest Mama says
I’ll be 35 next month. I used the OPKs for several months last fall/winter and never got a positive. Maybe I wasn’t timing them right though because I didn’t use them every day. I was also concerned because I’ve read some reviews that say if you drink too much water your urine can be too diluted to get a positive. Maybe I should just stop taking BCP and see what happens.
CorrinaCorrina says
My cycles turned irregular after my son was born, but it didn’t vary too much. Do you remember what your cycles were like before you went on the pill? I agree with the others to see an RE as OBs really don’t seem to get it. In the meantime, use Fertility Friend to give a charting a try. An acupuncturist might also be able to help straighten you out, too.
Midwest Mama says
I don’t remember what my cycles were like when I was teen. I have been using the fertility friend app and though we weren’t officially TTC this past winter/spring, there were times where, according to the app, the timing was during my fertile time and we didn’t conceive. Often times, though, the timing would appear to be during the fertile period but then my period would not come when Fertility Friend was anticipating it too, so once the cycle was adjusted after I would actually get my period, we actually hadn’t time intercourse correctly. I suppose the answer is just to have s*x every couple of days….which I’m sure DH wouldn’t mind but it sounds exhausting to me!
NewMomAnon says
I used Fertility Friend too and found that it wasn’t perfectly accurate, but I could guess the actual fertile period based on the information in the “What to Expect Before You’re Expecting” book (but lots of other commenters recommend Taking Charge of Your Fertility). The other advice I’ve heard is to actually have s*x just before your “fertile period” because the swimmers stick around for a few days and the egg moves pretty quick, so it’s good to have the swimmers in position beforehand.
But with the irregular periods, I would see an RE. Don’t muck around with hoping BC will get you “straightened out.” The BC will probably just make it harder to figure out what is actually going on and delay TTC even longer, or make it harder to predict your due date if you do get pregnant.
anon says
At what age did you start to leave your kid(s) alone at home, and for how long? My oldest turns 7 next month, and I’m wondering when I can start leaving him at home for 30 min, 1 hr, 2 hr etc., with and without his brother (who is 4.5). He is pretty responsible for his age and knows how to use the phone to call me and 911.
oil in houston says
I was left home from what felt like a young age with my younger brother, and I must have been about 11, he would have been 7, I wouldn’t do it before
oil in houston says
I should have added that the issue was more the responsibility of my brother than my own age…
TBK says
I think I was about 9 when my mom first left me home alone. But you might want to talk with your local government (even with CPS?) to see what legal guidelines are in your area, just to make sure you don’t get in trouble.
TBK says
This could be useful http://family.findlaw.com/parental-rights-and-liability/when-can-you-leave-a-child-home-alone-.html.
Although I know that when I was 4-7, we lived in a fairly rural area and I spent most of my free time roaming alone through our (very, very large) back yard and into the neighbors’. This even though the houses backed up to woods and a neighbor’s child had disappeared in the woods a few years earlier. (I wasn’t allowed in the woods alone, of course.)
anon says
OP – thanks for the link, that’s very interesting. I feel like times have changed since I was little.
TBK says
Definitely. Looking at the guidelines for 10-11 yr olds, I was left home alone all day when I had school vacation or snow days, and at 11 I babysat (including in the evening and once all day long) for a family with four children, including a baby!
anon says
The guidelines on the site do not square with the practice in my state. Minimum age to leave a kid home alone during the day is 12, overnight 18. You can’t even leave a kid under 12 in the car for 30 seconds to return a shopping cart. Otherwise you are asking for trouble from CPS, no matter what the law says.
Lorelai Gilmore says
What state is that?
TBK says
Insanity. I’m not saying 11 yr olds should be babysitting four kids, but um I leave my baby twins in the car to run a shopping cart across the parking lot because the other option is to leave it in the middle of a parking space.
Non Mom says
I was recently told by a friend that 12 is the minimum age in NJ to leave a child home alone (his wife was waiting until their child turned 12 to return to the workforce because of this rule).
SC says
I’m pretty sure my mom left me alone for short periods of time when I was around 8. I think she started with just going to the grocery store or running other errands, but as I got older, she’d leave me alone for 2-3 hours. She usually asked if I wanted to go with her or stay home. She had a cell phone and a beeper, and I knew how to call her if I needed something and of course knew how to call 911. I don’t remember being home alone during meal times or at night until at least middle school. I also didn’t have younger siblings whom I was responsible for. And I realize that times are different.
TBK says
But they shouldn’t be. There’s less crime now than there was in the ’80s and ’90s and much less violent crime. It makes me so angry that children are being taken from their homes and good parents are getting caught up in the legal system because someone watched too much o the 24 hr news cycle.
SC says
I completely agree. But, given potential legal repercussions, I’m hesitant to suggest to an internet stranger that it’s OK to leave your kids alone.
Meg Murry says
My son is in 3rd grade, and we just started letting him stay at home when we pick up his brother from daycare or run other errands that are within 3-4 blocks and will take less than 30 minutes or so. We also have neighbors that are almost always home – one is a SAHM and another works from home, so we know he could run over there in case of emergency (or unusual situation, like the day the smoke detector was beeping because the battery was dead and he wasn’t sure if it was going off or not).
FYI, apparently off contract cell phones can make 911 calls, even if they don’t have a contract/minutes anymore. We have an ancient flip phone that we keep plugged in in case of emergency, since we don’t have a home phone line anymore.
meme says
My seriously negligent mother left me to “babysit” my younger siblings at age 7-8, and I was a latch key kid starting in 1st grade. I was a really responsible kid, but it was too young. I was afraid regularly, got locked out a few times and once wandered to a friend’s house a half mile away, it was sketchy. 7 year-old brains aren’t built to come up with solid contingency plans. I started leaving my oldest for 1/2-1 hour at a time when he was 11, just while I ran down the road to the market or similar.
Nursing Mom's Room? says
My firm will be moving to glass front offices. We’ll have a really nice nursing mom’s room (and possibly several) that will be very well-appointed and set up for doing work (laptop stations, phones, etc.). Right now, I pump in my office, with a door that locks. I expect to be done with that phase of my life by the time of the move, but trying to think of those behind me who will want to work in biglaw and pump.
So my question to the hive is – if you had the choice, would you pump in your own office or in a nice nursing mom’s room (one that had everything you could possibly want)? I have a very strong preference toward doing it in my own office, but I’m curious to hear if I’m in the minority.
Also, I realize how lucky I am to have the choice between these two great options – I know many of you have faced far worse situations, and to all of you I give you so much credit. There is no way I could have kept pumping for so long without a supportive employer.
oil in houston says
I have no choice, we have the common nursing room, but I would LOVE to do it in my own office… whenever I go to the nursing room, I go with my bag that contains some snacks, water, and hand-free bra, and many people assume I’m leaving for the day when I do it in the afternoon, which really annoys me… petty I know, but still…
sfg says
What a fantastic set up – I imagine staff members who do not have offices will be glad to have this space. I have a glass front office now and I just put up redi-shades and a do not enter sign. Not the best look but I don’t have to leave my office. But, there is also nowhere else in our office for me to pump.
Maddie Ross says
My office doesn’t have any glass (other than the exterior windows, but we’re on a high floor), but I pumped in there and would definitely, definitely prefer that. Mostly just because I had all my stuff right there at hand. And didn’t have to dissemble beyond the flanges each time. I also was what I consider to be a “flexible” pumper – I didn’t have a set schedule. Most days it would twice. Some days with the schedule I was keeping I would only manage once mid-day. In my office, I could just do it as the mood/time/engorgement struck me.
FVNC says
Office. No question.
CorrinaCorrina says
Absolutely in my office. No need to schlep everything.
EB0220 says
I have done both, and much much prefer my office. Don’t have to carry stuff around, don’t have to hunch over my laptop, don’t have to waste time walking there and setting up.
ChiLaw says
Count me in as another for strongly preferring pumping in my own office. It’s maybe a bit more of a pain to get set up — have to get stuff from the fridge, involving some badging in and out of different sections of the office — but once I’m set up I can use the phone, my computer and files are within reach… it’s just so much easier.
I’m actually moving (as part of a promotion, yay!) to a new office with a glass wall when my baby will be 11 months old. I’m seriously considering quitting pumping a month earlier than I had planned just to avoid having to either figure out shades or go to the pumping room.
KJ says
Office, for sure.
Meg Murry says
I wish I had had the option to use my office – I had to use the lactation room, as I was in cubical land (not a lawyer/not in law field).
Would it be possible to install a privacy curtain/screen in the new offices? This part stood out to me in this article:
” [She] recalls working at a company with glass-paned offices. Some of the new mothers at the firm fashioned a shower rod and curtain into a privacy screen that could be easily used when pumping at work for women who wanted to multitask in their office instead of using the designated pumping room. The curtain rod got passed around from one mother to another as needed. “In no time, when people saw the curtain they knew not to enter and when someone new needed it we would just pass it on,” ” from http://fortune.com/2015/07/30/isecret-society-executive-moms/
At my last job, our head of HR had a baby not long after I did, and after that she set up an unofficial “new parent’s mentoring network” where people going out on leave could be paired with a volunteer (one or a few) who recently came back from leave – so you had someone to ask things like “how hard is it to schedule the lactation room” or “how do you handle it when daycare is closed for a snow day?” And the men could advise each other on things like how to time paternity leave and whether it bad worked fot them to take X weeks straight or intermittent instead.
The best part about it was probably that since our lactation room was in high demand, it helped us work out schedules with new people coming back to work, instead of just leaving them with the really crappy times (nothing says welcome back to a stressed out new mom like being told the only times the LR is available is before 9 am or after 4 pm – which is what happened when we didn’t coordinate to make time for people returning).
OP says
Thanks for the input, all! Meg Murray, I like your idea – will file that away for helping future folks at my office. I do 100% agree it will be a fantastic setup for those who want to use it or who do not have offices, and I think it’s great my firm will be providing it. I just wish it was going to be a little easier to have the in-office option.
CorrinaCorrina says
Newly pregnant with #2 — yay! Anyone in DC have a doula they recommend? Bonus points if the doula has vbac experience.
JEB says
Sharon Stevenson runs Yoga Birth and Beyond in Alexandria. She’s a trained doula but no longer practices. However, she’s very tied into the birthing community in the area and would probably love to provide you some recommendations if you contacted her.