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I picked up this cozy cardigan during the NAS, and while it sold out quickly then, it’s so good I’m considering going back for more at full price. It’s super soft, machine washable, and less bathrobe-like than it’s shown online. Sure, you COULD wear it with leggings or jammies, but you could also wear it with jeans or another casual outfit to work. It’s $116 full price, available in six colors, sizes XS-XL — and there’s a plus-size version too. (Oh, and it has 216 almost-5-star reviews.) Barefoot Dreams ‘Circle’ Cardigan (L-3)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
- Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything; extra 20% off purchase
- Eloquii – 50% off select styles; 60% off swim; up to 40% off everything else
- J.Crew – Mid-Season Sale: Extra 60% off sale styles; up to 50% off spring-to-summer styles
- Lands’ End – 30% off full-price styles
- Loft – Spring Mid-Season Sale: Up to 50% off 100s of styles
- Nordstrom: Free 2-day shipping for a limited time (eligible items)
- Talbots – Spring Sale: 40% off + extra 15% off all markdowns; 30% off new T by Talbots
- Zappos – 29,000+ women’s sale items! (check out these reader-favorite workwear brands on sale, and some of our favorite kids’ shoe brands on sale)
Kid/Family Sales
- Carter’s – Up to 70% off baby items; 50% off toddler & kid deals & 40% off everything else
- Hanna Andersson – Up to 50% off spring faves; 25% off new arrivals; up to 30% off spring
- J.Crew Crewcuts – Up to 60% off sale styles; up to 50% off kids’ spring-to-summer styles
- Old Navy – 30% off your purchase; up to 75% off clearance
- Target – Car Seat Trade-In Event (ends 4/27); BOGO 25% off select skincare products; up to 40% off indoor furniture; up to 20% off laptops & printers
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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?
Nanny Advice says
Seeking nanny advice: Our current nanny, who my 22 month old son has grown to love over the last year, is about to have a baby of her own and will no longer be working for us. I found someone to take over, but my son will just not adjust to her. He is typically a very outgoing and friendly kid, and he screams when he is alone with her and has even vomited a couple times from crying so much about being with her. He acts like he is afraid to be left with her. It’s been two weeks since she started working and while I think I may sense a tiny bit of warming up, he doesn’t seem to like her much. When is it long enough to know if she is just not the right fit? She seems ok to me, I don’t love her (yet), but to be fair, I haven’t loved any nanny right at the beginning, I think there is an adjustment process. Has anyone dealt with this or have any advice? I don’t know if I should continue to wait it out or see if I can find someone else in the meantime.
mascot says
How is he around other unfamiliar adults? Does he have a similar stranger danger reaction? I think it’s pretty typical around that age as is separation anxiety when you leave.
CPA Lady says
Agreed that it might be his age/a phase. My daughter is around that same age and a few weeks ago, she would freak out at daycare drop off and cling to me crying even though it was the same class with the same teachers that she seemed so happy with before. After a couple of rough weeks, she’s now totally fine again, smiling and waving as I leave to go to work. Toddlers are so confusing.
Anons says
I would give it at least 4 to 6 weeks and then cut ties if you are not seeing improvement. Our first nanny left, and we had a wonderful temporary nanny step in for 6 weeks (referred by our nanny agency). DH and I both liked the temp nanny, but my daughter hated her and really did not seem to enjoy her time with the temp nanny. (Temp nanny was dropping major hints that she would like to join our family permanently, so it did get a bit awkward onwards the end.) Anyway, we hired a new nanny and my daughter warmed up to her in about 2 or 3 weeks. So I don’t think it is unreasonable to drop a nanny that doesn’t seem to get along with the nanny, but of course treat her fairly (give notice or severance, offer a recommendation, try to be compassionate in how you phrase it when you tell her she is no longer needed, etc.).
Anonymous says
Ladies, hit me with your best advice on setting up a home office and generally working from home. I have moved into a house where I finally have room for a real office/work station but haven’t gotten around to setting it up. (Notwithstanding the fact that we moved 8 months ago. We have a room that is empty but for my baby’s changing table, which we call his “dressing room”…). When I have a lot of work to get done, I tend to stay in the office because I am so much more productive there, and it is so hard to tear myself away from my kids before bedtime and to get geared up to log back in after dinner and actually be productive from 8-10 pm. How do you do it?? Tips for getting re-psyched and focused in the evening, as well as tips for getting the home office set-up going would be appreciated. For context, I am a big-law transactional associate. Sometimes leaving the office early and logging back in from home is not an option, but I’m realizing that often it is a constraint I put on myself.
CLMom says
I bribe myself to be productive with ice cream, my favorite show, etc.
Or, I set my timer and say that I will be productive for 20 min straight, no interruptions. By the time the alarm goes off, I have either complete a lot of work or I am so engrossed in my work that I just keep going.
Also, plan for white noise or music or something to keep you from listening to the goings on in the house.
CHL says
Perhaps this is silly, but I have a fancy scented candle that I like to light in my office. It’s a “treat” and also a ritual that it’s time to work.
NewMomAnon says
When I know I’m going to need to work from home, I try to make the home work a discrete set of tasks – like, I will review this agreement and prepare an issues list, or I will prepare these [X] number of corporate resolutions and send them off for review, or I will finish reviewing and summarizing this diligence folder in the data room.
When I’m really on my game, I try to plan my day so that “drafting,” research, and other solitary work is done from home, and the more cooperative work (negotiation, strategy meetings, check-ins with specialists or supervisors, client calls, etc) is done during the main work day. Home is a place where I can have minimal interruptions and really concentrate.
The hard part is motivating myself to actually pick up the work once I get home. I don’t have any good tips for that.
hoola hoopa says
+1 to discrete tasks.
I too organize my work day so that the tasks I do best in the office are done. I work best in the evening on specific, concrete tasks, for example. I do the abstract thinking during the day.
My husband and I usually trade off working at night, so one us works while the other does the nightly tasks (cleaning kitchen, packing lunches, etc). It helps get on the computer earlier – but if our discrete task is small enough, we try to motivate ourselves by getting done in time to watch a quick show together before going to bed. If it’s going to be a longer night, the motivation is simply getting into bed!
I don’t start to work until after the kids are in bed.
Anonymous says
So this may not be helpful, but I’ll try because I work at home 3-4 nights a week (big law litigator). Unless I have a filing, I make a point of being home by 7 for dinner and then work again when my kid goes to bed at 9. Generally, my motivation comes from the realization that I have a court deadline bearing down on me and I am going to miss it unless I knuckle down and work. I usually get myself back into work mode by putting on peppy music and bribing myself with procrastination breaks on the half hour. I also self-scold by reminding myself that if I want to get something approximating a reasonable amount of sleep, I just need to do my work.
Ally McBeal says
Things I can do from home after bedtime for my kids:
Enter my time
Respond to emails
Edit other people’s work
Send “managerial” emails
Read professional articles and journals
Things I cannot do from home after bedtime (unless there’s really a crunch):
Serious legal research
First-drafting
Document review
Basically, I do pretty well at responding to work from home, but it’s harder to self-initiate. I do better when I plan for those things to take place at home.
Also, I have a policy of working late twice a week, and getting home for dinner three times a week. I am so much more productive with a long stretch of hours between, say, 4 and 9, than I am with leaving the office and logging back on after bedtime. I have been a lot happier since I embraced this aspect of my work-life balance instead of trying to fight it. Working those two late nights means I’m much more available during the weekend, too.
Anonymous says
I’m the opposite of the other posters. I work better at night post kid-bedtime doing one bigger task, rather than doing professional housekeeping. The housekeeping stuff gives me too many opportunities to get off track. The single best things I can do are draft fact sections or affidavits, i.e., stuff I know, rather than stuff I need to think about. But once I get 20 minutes in, I can draft a brief, too. In some ways, it’s better than my standard office day because I get interrupted too much during the day to get deep thinking done.
Betty says
To the mom yesterday who asked about pumping during trial: First, what is the typical trial schedule? Some courts/judges run 9-5 with one long lunch break and a shorter break here and there. Others run 8:00-2:00 with two fifteen minute breaks. Second, once you know the standard schedule, I would see what you could do within what is already established. Chances are that you are going to need more time at some point. I would call that judge’s courtroom clerk: Be polite but don’t beat around the bush. In my experience, if you just say that you are a new mom and need more time, many will not understand what you are asking for. I would offer that you are a new mom, breastfeeding your baby and ask if one of the breaks could be extended by [X amount of time] to give you an opportunity to express breast milk. Better yet, do a bit of detective work and see if there are any new moms in the clerk’s office that you could speak with and who may be able to help. I pumped during trial breaks for several weeks. I asked for a bit more time (an extra 15 minutes to let me pump). I would recommend doing all the things that you can to make pumping faster during trial. Let me know if you need those tips!!
TK says
+1. Just be direct about what you need. I was in court 3 -4 days a week when I went back to work, I just talked with the judge’s clerk ahead of time and indicated that I would need breaks to pump breast milk at __ time and __ time. Sometimes it was in a closet, but I was always able to make something work, even if it was less than ideal.
Pro tip: pump in the car on the way to / from. But don’t wear what you’re planning to appear in court, in as car-pumped-milk has a tendency to get everywhere (ask me how I know.)
quail says
As a former law clerk who pumped at work for part of my clerkship, I second the not-beating-around-the-bush. My judge was supportive once he knew what I was talking about (which he did not from simply telling him “I will be taking three x-time breaks a day to pump”- he was like pump what?) and the clerk’s office was amazing at helping me find a non-bathroom, non-closet space. This is not a crazy request and generally, in my experience, our chambers was happy to help for these types of issues.
Batmom says
Skipped work today and went to the mom group (all stay at homes, moms wi
ANP says
Major Boden sale on sale! Any favorites for an extreme apple shape who’s slowly but surely losing the baby weight?
Huzzah! says
I just got a lovely maxidress there, along with the breton striped tunic which I plan to wear with leggings underneath all fall and winter. I also got a 3/4 sleeve knit wrap top.
I think the tunic might be good for an apple shape- it really doesn’t cling and is short enough to accent your legs. The maxi dress is great, but it depends on how it hits you – I could see it looking a bit maternity on some body types.
Everything is fantastic and was much needed as I haven’t updated my casual clothes wardrobe in WAYYY too long. I am that shameful woman who is desperately tucking in maternity shirts like nobody will notice the random ruching on the sides…
To estate plans from yesterday says
So I saw the 2 replies to yesterday’s question about estate plans and I have to chime in.
For reference DH and I did our plans with a lawyer when child 1 was 1 and child 2 was on the way. DH was 40 and I was 34, just out of grad school and entering my academic career. Between us we owned rental property, our home, 401ks, a few IRAs, and some random stocks, plus we had life insurance policies. Our attorney recommended a full suite of estate documents – way more than seemed necessary at the time but her reasoning was that we were going to be within a decade close to estate tax issues plus there is always uncertainty about tax law so best to get everything set up now rather than have to update it (or remember to update at the right time). She didn’t charge extra so it wasn’t a sales pitch – her services are flat rate which we found to be standard looking for an estate lawyer.
So we have wills, life insurance trusts, other trust, power of attorney, and a bunch of other legal docs. So happy we did it that way…doing it once was painful enough (bc who wants to think about dying right?) and it’s nice to have it done.
TL;DR if your income or assets are growing it’s a good idea to have a more complete and bullet proof plan now.
Anonymous says
You were a decade away from $11 million in assets!?!?! Because that’s what a married couple can pass down to kids w/o paying estate tax…
lucy stone says
I have this cardigan and have worn it the last week since delivering. I think the NICU nurses ID me by its. It’s too casual for anything but an office day for my biz cas office but is so soft and cozy.
ER says
Pulled the trigger based on your rec and Kat’s rec. thanks!
Anonymous says
It’s awesome for pumping in the office, too. I just leave mine in our wellness room.
Clementine says
Congrats on the baby!!! Nicu time is hard- reach out of you ever need someone to vent to!!
NOVA Anon says
+1 – I felt super alone during my LO’s NICU time, so if you need anything, just page. congrats on the birth of your baby, and good luck!