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Occasionally I’ll browse the website of a brand that skews more towards a youthful or trendy aesthetic to see if there’s anything available that can cross over to the professional workwear realm. I think this top is something that hits that mark for me. It looks like a combo of a blazer and wrap top, and I like the belted element of it. The belt, blazer collar, and color remind me a bit of that Ralph Lauren western look. If this came in another color (ahem, black), I’d definitely purchase it, but if burnt orange is your color then I say go for it! This machine-washable top is $148 at Free People and comes in sizes XS–L. Cypress Ave Top ASOS has two similar wrap styles available in plus sizes. Looking for other washable workwear? See all of our recent recommendations for washable clothes for work, or check out our roundup of the best brands for washable workwear. This post contains affiliate links and CorporetteMoms may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. For more details see here. Thank you so much for your support!Sales of note for 5.5.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
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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?
winter newborns? says
We’re having our second child this winter and I’m a bit at a loss about what she should wear those first few weeks before her umbilical chord falls off. Our first was a summer baby and we just went with kimono tees and diapers to start. How should you dress a winter newborn? thanks!
Anonymous says
We did footed zipper PJs and were just careful when zipping over the umbilical cord. It was totally fine.
buffybot says
Same! Some snap ones as well but the zipper ones were the best. Carters and Old Navy have a bunch, usually.
Anonymous says
+1
Anon says
Cloud Island Sleep n Plays from Target are THE BEST (and 3/$13, which is great). The reversible zipper is amazing.
Anonymous says
+1 and they’re so cute!
Anonymous says
Yep, pjs all the time. We had a mix of cotton/fleece and zip/snap and all were fine.
Anonymous says
We just did a onesie and a swaddle. I was worried about the stump but it was no big deal.
OP says
Thanks!
Anonymous says
The bigger issue for us was to make sure we folded down the front of the diaper. The nurses at the hospital showed us.
Anonymous says
Newborn diapers generally have a cutout, so it will only be an issue if you have a big kid who graduates to size 1 early.
Leatty says
What are your kids wearing for Halloween? I wanted to dress my 15 month old as RBG, but my husband put the kibosh on that because he doesn’t think we should use our daughter to make a political point. I see his point, but now I’m not sure what to do for her Halloween costume. Any fun suggestions?
Em says
Wonder woman?
Anonymous says
My husband and I liked different costumes in the toddler section at Target. We went back and held up both options and let our 17 mo daughter feel them both and choose one. She will be a snowy owl.
Anonymous says
When my daughter was about that age, I bought her the Carter’s astronaut costume (because I like to encourage women in STEM). Her brother was also an astronaut that year.
My daughter (with an August birthday) has been a fish, astronaut, spider girl, and wonder woman. This year she wants to be a “scary” witch. (This is the first year that my kids will not have matching costumes- sad.)
Anonymous says
My baby is wearing a zip-up Halloween footed pjs from Hanna Andersen, and my older kids are wearing whatever superheros they were inspired by at Spirit Halloween.
Anon says
If my kid was 15 months, I’d dress them up in one of the baby costumes from PBK.
https://www.potterybarnkids.com/shop/halloween/baby-halloween-costumes/?cm_type=gnav
anne-on says
+1 – but search the maker of those costumes on Amazon – they are often $5-$15 cheaper and with free prime shipping. I think we got the fireman costume on Amazon and it was the exact same one as PB Kids…just cheaper and faster to get to us.
anon says
what about political-adjacent? I’m thinking of putting my 15-month old in a black tutu and body suit with white tennis shoes- Serena Williams.
Anonymous says
Great idea, thanks!
Anonymous says
I see where your husband is coming from, but I also applaud using your child to amuse you whenever possible, as you only have a few good years for this with respect to Halloween. When my son was 18 months we dressed him up as a weight lifter. It was a hobby of my husband’s and we already had a rattle shaped like a dumbbell. Our favorite part was making a miniature version of the pound to kilogram conversion chart from a weightlifting meet my husband had attended. The meet was named in honor of someone, and the chart had the unfortunate heading “John Doe Memorial Pound to Kilogram Conversion Chart,” which both of us found hysterical. In other words, it was an inside joke that probably made sense only to us.
Anonymous says
PS – once he was able to pick his own costume he opted for “Black Mouse,” and then wore the same costume for 3 years in a row (plus all costume occasions at preschool). This year I convinced him it is too small, so he has made a really bold choice and is going to be a Blue Mouse.
Anonymous says
HA. This strikes me as really funny. Kids are a hoot.
Anonymous says
Baby shark?
Amelia Earhart – old timey googles and flight scarf and holding a toy airplane would be super cute
Jane Goodall – safari outfit and toy chimp/monkey
Enjoy picking something adorable. Once they are 2 or 3 they start having opinions on what they want to wear.
Anonymous says
I did Rosie the Riveter for my daughter’s first Halloween. I’m biased, but it was the cutest thing ever.
GCA says
My 3yo wants to be a space shuttle…so we’re taking that and running with it. Baby is an astronaut (white fleece pjs and hat), peeking out of the baby carrier; fleece carrier cover will have a couple blinky LEDs stuck to it for a constellation and husband & I are going as the night sky. One year I wore blue, put then-baby in his shark bathrobe and pirate booties, slung a stuffed horseshoe crab over one shoulder, and went as Cape Cod. I am the queen of lazy Halloween costumes. The only work I’m doing this year is papering over a couple of cardboard boxes for the space shuttle!
Anonymous says
At 15 mos mine were a pig, a chicken and a bumblebee. Other cute costumes have been dragon (2.5), oooh bear (infant), skunk (3.5), airplane (2.5).
Anony says
Last year: owl
This year: baseball player from A League of Their Own
CPA Lady says
Halloween 1 : R2-D2 onesie and hat
Halloween 2: Ladybug zip up from Carters that my mom got at Goodwill
Halloween 3: Tinkerbell
Halloween 4: Elsa (first Halloween where she was old enough to have an opinion)
This Halloween: Cinderella
On one hand, I can’t prove to other parents how woke I am while my daughter is dressed like an old-school Disney princess, but if she’s happy, then I’m happy. Plus she can wear it when we go to Disney in a few months.
SC says
Definitely enjoy these golden years where they don’t have a say in their Halloween costume!
My 3-year-old asked to be a ghost for Halloween. I posted last week asking for ghost costume suggestions, and then bought the things needed for his ghost costume. This weekend at the grocery store, Kiddo saw all the Halloween decorations and excitedly, happily asked, “I’m going to be a ghost for Halloween?!” I told him yes, and he spent the next 45 minutes telling me he doesn’t want to be a ghost. He wanted to be a race car, then a super hero, then a ghost was fine but he wanted to be a yellow ghost, then he was back to a race car. All attempts to end the conversation failed. It was exhausting. Once we got home, DH talked Kiddo into being a ghost for Halloween, at least for now.
Anonymous says
My 3 year old daughter wants to be Superman Pirate Owlette. I think that means Superman body suit, Owlette cape, and the creepy pirate skeleton mask. I plan on just letting her pick stuff out of the dress up box the day of. This will avoid tantrums when she has the WRONG COSTUME on Halloween.
SC says
Good plan. There’s a series of photos of me from maybe 6 years old where I pulled every single “girly” item from the dress-up box and was a “princess” for Halloween–poofy skirt/tutu combo, pink cape, sparkly “tiara” headband, and magic wand. I also had an unattractive bowl haircut and was missing my front tooth, so it’s all kinds of ridiculous. But I had a huge smile on my face in all the photos.
Jeffiner says
My 3yo loves the Princess in Black and wants to be a superhero princess, which is pretty easy since she already has princess dresses and superhero capes in her closet. She is super excited and cannot wait for Halloween.
However, we’re going to a comic convention a week before Halloween, and we want her to be a hobbit. My husband is going to be the Witch King of Angmar, and I’m going to be Eowyn. I’m worried my daughter will have a fit that she cannot be a superhero princess that day. I mean, I could let her do her own thing at the con if its that important to her, I was just looking forward to the family theme.
Anonymous says
My three year old wants to be purple. Totally open to how to run with that…
I’ve considered a crayon, but am only finding pink ones commercially available. And I don’t know if I am crafty enough to pull it off on my own.
Anonn says
Just buy all purple clothes and call it a day. No need to make the costume into a crayon. Otherwise, could you just use some black electrical tape to make the zig zags like a crayon wrapper on the clothes?
anon. says
Primary purple PJs and a purple tutu or purple hat. The PJs in “grape” are really purple and cute.
SG says
We expected to be able to pick our 19 month old’s costume but the minute we let her walk around the store she chose a chicken costume and refused to let it out of her grasp. My parents have back yard chickens that she adores so it’s not a surprising choice.
Pogo says
I use only hand me down costumes until kiddo demands otherwise. Last year (infant) he was a caterpillar, very cute for pictures but he was only awake in it for about 10min.
This year I have a couple options but am leaning towards a bear (similar to the PBKids linked above woodland creatures) and we can be the Three Little Bears. I think those shirts that say “mama bear” and “papa bear” are really twee, but someone gifted one to my husband and I have my choice of about 200 million different ones on Etsy.
HSAL says
My nearly-3 year old wants to be a lion (specifically Scar, despite only seeing the movie once three months ago so I got her a stuffed hyena and will draw a scar on) so my 4 month old twins are a tiger and bear. Oh my.
Anon says
My 15 month old is dressing up as where’s waldo (because she has red and white striped hanna PJs and blue jeans already – all I had to do was order a beanie off amazon for $5 I’m sure will not stay on her head more than 1.2 seconds).
Too tired to say enough says
I need to put this somewhere. I am so fed up with the unequal division of labor in my house. My husband is a SAHD and I still pay for childcare. And do at least as much, usually more, daily household work as he does– in addition to my demanding job that represents our only income. We are struggling financially and he has not shown any interest in getting a job– despite my beginning to do things like SELL MY CLOTHES. He’s had a lot of health struggles in the last year, and I probably should sit him down and say look, I am starting to hate you because you have not even considered getting a job, despite (now, once again) being an able-bodied grown up adult with the time to do it. I know I should start this conversation, but I don’t have the energy. I do not. Even the idea that I should have to have it feels like one more maddening item of work that is on me to keep us afloat. And I don’t have the energy for one more thing that drains me. My elderly parents’ dog died yesterday. My mom is having surgery next week that could easily kill her (as could the reason she’s having it). Kavanaugh got confirmed. The government is busy shipping children off to internment camps. I feel like I need to be doing SO much more than I am to deal with all of the above. I haven’t gotten my hair cut or seen a dentist in embarrassingly long amounts of time. But by the end of keeping my head above water at work, being a good parent, and keeping us from living in filth, I am unwilling to devote my shreds of “off-time” to advocating for myself. I love him, and I enjoy our relationship most of the time. But this resentment is going to kill it, and I don’t even have the energy to care enough to say so. Because it’s one more exhausting thing. I don’t even know why I’m saying this to the internet, but I needed to today.
Anonymous says
I have felt similarly in the past (and sometimes do on any given day). And, I do not have the “big” things going on in my life that you have going on in your life. In my experience, this forum will give you support when you need to blow of steam and validate your feelings so that you can go deal with these issues in a constructive way in your life. Good luck.
lawsuited says
I wouldn’t usually advocate for this approach at all, but if it’s all you have bandwidth for, maybe “You don’t work, so starting in January 2019, we’re taking X out of daycare because we need to free up that cash with just one income, and you are on full-time childcare and housekeeping duties.” would help. If he leans into the SAHD role, there should be some time and money savings there that can improve your current situation. If he decides he doesn’t want to contribute as a SAHD, he has 3 months to find a job.
Anonymous says
+1 to full-time childcare and housekeeping duties. What else is he doing if he’s not taking care of the house or the kids?
Anon says
I’ve felt similarly in the past as well. It boiled over and erupted at some point, which did not go over well and was not my finest moment. But maybe because of the intensity of the eruption, he understood that I was at my tipping point, and he made immediate and lasting changes. I don’t know what was wrong with him, and why he needed me to hit rock bottom to spur him on, and I still don’t have the energy to care. That’s for him to work out with his therapist, who ain’t me.
We developed the mantra that my life should be better because he’s in it, not worse. (And vice versa, but let’s be real here, that was never the problem.) I shouldn’t think a divorce sounds good because at least I’ll get every other weekend to myself without kids. It’s not helpful for him to do the laundry when I ask, he needs to just notice it and do it without prompting. (He can tell when it’s been too long and he needs to shave or when he needs to mow the lawn. He can do the same for laundry and dishes and groceries and dust bunnies.)
Honestly we overcorrected for a year or so, where HE did way too much of all the housework on top of his day job. He started to get impatient and burnt out, and I stepped back in. But I think that year was necessary for two reasons – 1 for him to understand just how much work it takes, and 2 for me to get over my resentment and see him as a partner again. Now we have a fairly even split and we’re both conscious to watch for signs of one person doing too much.
But man was that a rocky period. A lot of times, I wasn’t sure we were going to make it. But we did, and I’m glad we’re here now.
Anonymous says
If you’re too tired to even bring this up (which I totally get), could you literally copy and paste what you wrote here and send it to him?
He needs to help you, STAT.
Anonymous says
What happens if you just stop paying for childcare? Preschool part time, sure, but you have a SAHP. Don’t sell your clothes. Give him a job.
Anonymous says
Calling your husband a SAHD is an insult to SAHDs (and moms) who actually take care of children. You have full time child care and he does no housework!! What does he freaking do all day? My husband is a quasi-SAHD (he works part time from home), but he does about 75% of the housework, and has no childcare help. And our daughter is an infant who needs lots of attention and can’t really entertain herself.
Have a come to Jesus talk with him tonight. And tell him you’re cancelling the daycare/nanny as of next week. This isn’t a situation where you’re rich and so him sitting on his a$$ all day is just annoying. You’re struggling financially, he’s unemployed, the least he can do is take care of his own children.
Anon says
+1 My husband is a SAHD and does approximately 10% of the housework, but our daughter is A LOT and we do not have childcare help so I get it. As she gets older (and presumably less of a handful), we both expect him to do more housework.
octagon says
I was once in a similar position. My solution was to write a letter — I wanted him to have time to read it and process without being caught off guard. I was very clear in the letter about what I needed. I didn’t exactly frame it as an ultimatum, but that’s what it was. I said: I need a partner who pulls his weight, around the house and financially. I need to not shoulder the burden of this household alone. I need to not worry about whether we can continue to afford daycare, etc etc. And if nothing changes, then I will need to take drastic changes on my own because the current situation is not working for me.
I think he was so depressed he didn’t see how it was affecting me, and once he realized I was out of patience, that scared him into action.
Good luck. It’s so hard.
SC says
My husband is unemployed, and we have full-time childcare (preschool). The finances of it are hard and can be stressful at times, even though I think my husband is doing enough.
Even though Kiddo is in preschool, DH does at least 70% of the childcare outside of 7:30-5–getting Kiddo ready in the morning, picking him up, the hard part of the bedtime routine (I read books), taking care of appointments, and handling all sick days, days off school, and summers. He also takes responsibility for Kiddo for a half-day on the weekends so I can have some downtime. DH does 100% of the cooking (he’s a fabulous cook) and about 70% of the housework (he’s admittedly not a good housekeeper). We have a triplex, so he handles any tenant drama and maintenance issues and mows the lawn–he’ll keep doing that once we move. I still handle the day-to-day finances, deal with the social activities and calendar and other things that require planning (gifts, travel arrangements, moving logistics, etc), and run a majority of the household errands.
I know it’s hard, but I would describe the problem to your husband, and the impact his choices (not to work, not to provide childcare, not to take on all the housework) are having on you. Then try to take a team approach to finding solutions, and figure out what makes both of you happy, or at least keeps both of you from being miserable. But it needs to be clear to him that he can’t do nothing all day–you’re a team, and you both have to contribute your efforts to the team.
OP says
Thank you for saying this, SC. I am the only breadwinning mom with a SAHP I know, and sometimes it’s hard to not look jealously at my kid’s unkempt hair next to the adorably-outfitted other kids in her ballet class and feel like my choice to work is not failing her completely.
Kiddo’s childcare is 3 days per week preschool. H keeps her half Monday and Fridays. And he easily does that 70% of the childcare, I think. I travel and we need his ability to be present and available solo, if I”m being honest. But I get her up, dressed, and fed every day, so when H wanders out an hour later after his shower asking if she’s ready to go yet, just in time for me to hop onto work calls in my pajamas without brushing my teeth, it’s hard to not want to scream at him I DON”T KNOW IS SHE?
H does the hard part of the bedtime routine, all dropoffs/pickups from preschool, and is on point for kid dinner/bathtime, etc. I read books when I’m home. He keeps the calendar and has recently started a volunteer part-time job as a way to get ready to get back on the professional job market. Things are better than my above post sounds. I just have zero frame of reference for the gender reversal. And it affects my own thinking, oh my gosh. Jealousy of the moms who actually have a whole day during preschool to do things like decorate their houses with adorable thrifted finds and do engaging craft projects after school. Sadness that that will never be my kid’s life.
lawsuited says
OP, your kid is lucky to have you. Thrifted home decor and hairstyles don’t matter to kids at all. You are stretching yourself as far as you can to provide for her, connecting with her in the short time you have in the mornings and evenings before and after work, paying attention to your marriage and being charitable to her father. You are doing all the things that matter to her. You are also providing an example of “gender reversal” so that she will have more freedom and ease in how she organizes her work and family life one day.
Your original post was still correct that your husband needs to do more. If your kid needs to be in part-time childcare to accommodate his part-time volunteer position, he can still do the housework. No person, and certainly no gender, has any special talent for housework so he can do it just as well as you can.
SC says
I think it’s tough on anyone who is the sole breadwinner. And it can be tough to be the mom who isn’t doing the typical “mom” stuff.
I also think it’s tough to have 2 working parents. Our kid is 3.5 years old, and DH and I both worked for about 18 months of that time, I was unemployed for about 6 months, and DH has been unemployed/self-employed for about 18 months. I think there’s a tendency to think the grass is greener in what is really a tough phase for everyone.
Clearly, though, your needs aren’t being met here, and you need to find a way to communicate with your husband about that. He probably still needs to contribute more. I have told my husband that if he’s going to stay at home, he needs to treat that as a full-time job. (At first he had a tendency to do nothing all day, then start scrambling to pull some stuff together at 4 pm so I wouldn’t come home and say he hadn’t done anything all day. It drove me absolutely nuts.)
Anonymous says
With all the love (because I have BEEN THERE), if you don’t have time or energy to talk to your H about this, you don’t have time or energy for a divorce, and that’s where you’re heading.
This is a horrible paragraph so please brace yourself if you continue reading: I know that talking to your H is probably more daunting than getting a divorce because there’s no guarantee anything will change (at least with a divorce you know you’ll end up with some PEACE AND G-D QUIET, amirite?), but you have to talk to him at some point. Worst case scenario: you get a divorce without talking to him, end up being on the hook to pay him alimony and possibly child support while the children live with him full-time and see you every other weekend. This is not at all what you want. You must find the time, energy, and support crew to see you through this challenge. Send the kids to a friend’s house this Friday night and talk to your H. You got this. Really.
Anon @ 1:07 says
FWIW, I ended up with a divorce. It was the right decision, but my goodness it was difficult
OP says
Thank you. I know you are right. I’m starting to fear I have already given up. The anger I feel at having to ASK him to contribute or get a job is soul-annihilating. I don’t want to tell him. If he can’t tell he needs to get off his ass, or see how much more I’m doing, I’m married to someone who is completely and totally oblivious to my needs or what’s going on around him.
Aly says
I returned to work after a 1 year mat leave and my husband’s schedule is such that he’s home about half the time. (He has a full time job, just weird shifts) However, while I was on mat leave, I had been doing literally all the household work and 90% of baby care. I moronically tried to sustain that after returning. I think your statement that if he can’t tell, then I’m married to someone awful – well, I felt that way too. Based on advice from this site, I made a list of everything house and kid related that had to be done daily and showed him who was doing it now. In your case, I’d add “work full time aka bring in the money that keeps us from standing in line for government cheese.” Then say, okay, how are we going to divide this so that things are fair?
Aly says
Oh and to be clear – this worked really, really well. Should he have needed a list to figure this out? Gosh no. But did it make him step up and make me less resentful (because he was doing so much more)? Gosh yes.
SC says
I read an interview with Julie Morgenstern, who wrote Time to Parent. She suggested writing down every single household task on index cards and dividing them up according to whose job it is. Then look at the cards and redistribute based on what’s fair. I believe it was a tip for getting older children to visualize the work their parents do and accept chores (and maybe to get parents to see what they can ask their older children to do), but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work between adult members of a couple.
Obviously, if one parent is not employed, that parent would get a larger stack of household tasks. It’s meant to be divided fairly, which does not mean evenly.
anon says
DH and I recently both read the book How Not to Hate Your Husband After Kids and it gave us a really good framework for discussing some of these issues. It sounds to me like at least for your day to day routine that DH should be getting kiddo ready in the morning to go to preschool so that you can get ready for work.
IHeartBacon says
Solidarity, sister.
I don’t have much to add beyond what everyone has already said, but I second the recommendation on the book, How Not to Hate Your Husband After Kids. I also highly recommend Drop the Ball by Tiffany Dufu. The latter book will definitely help you with situations like the type you described above where you get your daughter ready every morning and your husband saunters out afterward asking you if your daughter is ready to go.
To maximize your time, listen to the books on audio on your commute to and from work. You can check out audiobooks for free from your public library through the Libby by OverDrive app.
Finally, I will say that I felt a manic, murderous rage at my husband for his inability to step up and do more during the first year after our little one was born. I’ve shared my frustrations on this site before and got so much support, insight, and fresh perspectives, which really made a difference. This site is also where I got the recommendation for Drop the Ball, which has really helped me shift how I see and address the issues with my husband. Before I read How Not to Hate Your Husband and Drop the Ball, I would use the words “hate,” “contempt,” “anger,” and “resentment” to describe my feelings about my husband, and those feelings were genuine. There were quite a few lines in the books that really resonated with me, and whenever I feel those old feelings bubbling up again, I repeat the lines to myself to remind myself that I have the tools to address the problem and implement those tools. One of my absolute favorite lines (I forget which book it came from) is from a story about how a husband and wife had a colicky baby. It was the husband’s turn to get up and get the baby, but he told his wife he couldn’t because he had a huge presentation in the morning. The wife said, “Well, you’ll just have to do the presentation tired.” I now say “you’ll just have to do it tired” any time my husband wants to pass off one of his chores to me for no other reason than he is just tired. I also say this line to myself when I want to do the same, which not only keeps me accountable, too, but also shows my husband that I am holding myself to the same standard. This seems to help him accept that there is no giving away chores for either of us.
More than anything else, I think the two books helped me realize my situation was not unique and that brought me a lot of comfort. It wasn’t my husband conspiring against me with these nefarious motives. Instead, it was just a common problem of new parents trying to figure out how to re-program their daily lives. Those two books gave me a few good tools to accomplish that. I ended up buying hard copies of the books after I listened to them on audio and I flip through them occasionally as a refresher.
Best of luck with however you decide to broach the subject with your husband and please keep us posted.
Clothes Return Question says
This is kind of a weird question, but does anyone have experience with what large clothing companies want you to do if an order gets lost in the mail, they give you a refund and mail you a new order, and then the original order shows up inexplicably three weeks later?
I ordered a few things from gap navy, including my first pair of maternity pants a month ago. The above happened. My new order actually had different pants than the old one, because they were out of stock in my size. Now that the original order is here, I like the original pants better and want to keep them. But it feels a little like stealing them since I didn’t pay for them. But I assume gap navy already processed them as a loss so do they even want them back? Anyone have experience with this?
Anonymous says
I would just let them know and see what they want to do. They will probably tell you to just keep it, but then you can do it with a clear conscience. This is how I handled it when something similar happened to me. I assume they have insurance covering these things (or the shipper’s insurance does).
IHeartBacon says
Ditto.
OP, the same sort of thing happened to me and I contacted the company. They told me to just keep both items, which I did, guilt-free.
rosie says
Agree to let them know and see what they want you to do, but they’ll probably tell you to keep it or donate it.
lsw says
We bought a new house with a killer finished back patio/deck, but the previous homeowners (who also had young kids, so I don’t understand this at all) included a built-in fire pit hole. The back yard is not big (urban and also tiered) so it really limits how we can arrange furniture on the patio section. It also is, obviously, a giant hole that my toddler is obsessed with climbing into. The rim of the hole is flush with the patio stone, so putting something (like boards?) over top of it would make a tripping hazard and also look bad. They left some extra patio stone but I’m not sure how we could easily just pave over it. Any suggestions of what to do? Preferably cheap and easy? Something like a sewer grate?
Anonymous says
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Catalina-Creations-40-in-Fire-Pit-Folding-Spark-Screen-AD6071/202500208?cm_mmc=Shopping%7CG%7CBase%7CD28I%7C28-26_PATIO_FURNITURE%7CNA%7CPLA%7COutdoor_Fireplace%7CFixed%7C71700000041090921%7C58700004412075465%7C92700037073776639&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIwObiuZn83QIVVVmGCh1m1gtnEAQYASABEgIHLPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CLWRzL2Z_N0CFQZHDAodS2kPDA
Anon says
I’d build a wooden cover (like a sewer cover) that sits flush with the patio, but I’m handy. You could probably get a handyman to build one.
dc anon says
Plant flowers?
Anonymous says
How deep is it? I used to have a built in fire pit, and it was only about 12 inches deep. I’m (very gently) kind of confused on why this is a big deal.
lsw says
It’s annoying because it sort of dictates where we can place furniture, so I’m mostly interested in ways I can cover it up to give us more flexibility. But also I’d like to stop my child from climbing slash falling into it. Maybe two feet deep? We won’t use the fire pit right now and I want the space.
Redux says
Take a very accurate measurement to Home Depot or another place that sells wood and tell them you want to to cut a piece of pressure-treated wood to that size (pressure treated is weather resistant; non pressure treated will warp and rot over time). They’ll sell you the wood and *probably* cut it for you, too.
lsw says
Thanks! This sounds perfect. I do like the plant flowers idea also from a decorative standpoint! But I think right now I want to cover it up where we can pretend it’s not there.
Anon says
Something like this?
https://www.oldtownhome.com/2012/5/15/Ask-OTH-What-Do-I-Do-About-This-Giant-Hole-in-my-Deck/
IHeartBacon says
Fill the hole with dirt and lay the patio stone (or a piece of wood cut to the size of the hole as recommended by Redux) on top of the dirt. Filling the hole with dirt will allow you to place furniture on top of the area.
Anonymous says
The sweater dress post on the main site made me realize that these used to be my winter staple (I’d wear them to work at least 50% of the time from November to March) and I can’t really wear them this winter because I’m pumping. Any suggestions for fun fall/winter clothes that are pumping friendly (at a mall brand price point)? I know this question is kind of vague, but I’m just feeling really blah about my closet even though I must have about 30 sweaters.
AwayEmily says
I love sweater dresses so much and I agree that they are a huge pain for pumping. What about shirt dresses? I am wearing a shirt dress at this very moment and just finished pumping. It’s from eddie bauer — the “departure” long-sleeved shirt dress (though I add my own belt instead of using the fabric one.
BPS says
For pumping, I’ve lived in shirt dresses, wrap dresses, and of course the skirt/blouse combo (using the one skirt that still fits….yikes). Dresses from Mango and Loft/Ann Taylor. I feel like they’ve been friendly to my post-baby fluctuating body, and I generally like the silhouette.
I just googled the Eddie Bauer dress – and may have to buy it! Looks like a solid wardrobe staple, pumping or not. :)
AwayEmily says
I’m really glad I bought it. It’s not the most exciting dress but I’ve already worn it a lot. It is also made of a totally wrinkle-proof fabric, so good for traveling.
rosie says
I really liked a flannel shirt dress from Old Navy when I was pumping.
AnotherAnon says
How casual is your office? Jeans/black denim, booties and a plaid shirt might be a fun, inexpensive option.
DLC says
No good solutions, but commiseration – I really really miss wearing dresses too! I didn’t realize what a staple they were in my wardrobe til I had a baby. I have one nursing friendly dress from ASOS, but I don’t think it would be gay great for pumping because you can’t easily get the pumping bra on. I do wear a lot of leggings and tunics- long enough to cover my behind, but short enough to not be a pain to lift up for pumping.
Sarabeth says
If you’re still reading – maybe splurge on a few nice skirts to make your sweaters feel more like nice outfits? In your shoes, I’d get the Cuyana wool wrap skirt. Probably more money than you’re looking to spend, but you can wear a black skirt 2-3 times a week, so I’d rather have one or two nice ones than 5 or 6 midrange dresses that I wasn’t really excited about anyway. And then next year you’d have a really lovely skirt or two to show for it.
AnotherAnon says
A little late but two questions: what was the most useful/best gift you received for your second child? And, I want to put together a basket of “food you can eat with one hand” for a friend who just had a baby. She lives in a different city so I need it delivered; does anyone do this?
Anonymous says
Best gift for #2:
– LLBean boat & tote bags w/ name of child (the small size). Actually received 1 for #1 & 1 for #2 in different colors so they are coordinated but different. As toddlers they loved playing put stuff in, take stuff out. Now they are our library books/piano lessons bags.
– Personalized name puzzle stool (fun toy w/ the puzzle, but extremely useful thing to have)
Food you can eat w/ one hand: I would be careful with this if person is at all picky. I would not eat most of the super processed stuff that would fit the bill in that case, partly because of my own preference for non-processed foods but also because a lot of that made my nurslings upset (later we learned food allergies).