Maternity Monday: Layered Nursing/Maternity Dres
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A LBD is a wardrobe must-have — here’s one for moms-to-be that goes from the office to (non-alcoholic) cocktail hour.
This sleek dress from Ripe Maternity is made from a soft, stretchy, cotton-blend fabric that stretches with your growing belly. It has a layered bodice with a nursing flap so you can wear it after baby arrives. Add a jacket for work and some sparkly jewelry for after.
Ripe Maternity’s Layered Nursing/Maternity Dress is $112 at Nordstrom. It comes in XS-XL. In addition to black, it also comes in ink (navy) and silver (a cool light gray).
Sales of note for 4/24/25
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Nordstrom – 7,710 new markdowns for women!
- Ann Taylor – Friends of Ann Event: 30% off your entire purchase, including 100s of new arrivals
- Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything + extra 25% off
- Eloquii – Spring Clearance: Up to 75% off + extra 50-60% off sale
- J.Crew – Mid-Season Sale: Up to 60% off sale styles + up to 50% off summer-ready styles
- J.Crew Factory – Extra 50% off clearance + extra 15% off $100 + extra 20% off $125
- M.M.LaFleur – 3 pieces for $198. Try code CORPORETTE15 for 15% off
- Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
- Talbots – Friends & Family Event: 30% off entire purchase, includes markdowns
Does anyone have recommendations for books or resources to teach a toddler (2.5 year old) patience? I know impatience and big feelings are normal for this age, but my daughter consistently melts down if something is not given to her the second before she asks for it, will respond by throwing things, occasionally hits or bites, will shout when asked to ask nicely (I don’t want to ASK! accompanied by dramatic throwing of whatever she’s holding). We are okay with the concepts of time outs in her crib (calmly remove her to her crib explaining she’s getting a time out because she didn’t listen, without being punitive) and that works some of the time but I don’t think she gets that time out is a negative consequence. We’d love to educate ourselves on some concrete techniques we could try. I’m not authoritarian but also not a fan of Janet Lansbury type stuff so somewhere in the middle I guess? E.g., I don’t think it’s heartless to let her cry by herself for a few minutes to blow off the steam.
I’d love advice: DS is 4.5, the boy in a set of boy/girl twins. The comparisons between him and his sister, him and anyone else are just…off the chain these days. “I didn’t get as many as you” is a refrain — I didn’t get to pick up as many toys as you, I didn’t get to go first as often, do I get to have this thing first or does my sister? He will do it with other kids too; we had a weekend away with family friends whose daughter is 7, and there were a few tantrums about fairness. He also will say: “that is fair to me,” when I present him with the question of is it fair for him to collect all the toys, have all the snacks, go first all the time, and how would his sister or his friend feel about that. The emotions are incredibly intense. He is falling in love with all the sports right now, loves practicing anything — baseball, soccer, basketball — and hates losing.
I try to respect and recognize the feelings, especially around losing — who likes to lose? But the “fairness” stuff is a mind-bender for me, especially since I don’t think he’s fully grasped the concept. ;-) Are there books on being a good loser? Books on sharing? Any tips or tricks?
First ski trip next March for our kids who will be almost 5 and 7. We’re going for six nights, how many days of ski school would you do? I was thinking 2 or 3? Should ski school be consecutive days or break it up? There are other family activities well do like Tubing, ice skating, family snow cat etc.. the times seem to be 9 to 3, no half day options?
The kids can be together or I can put my 6 year old in the 7 to 12 age range and its a little cheaper than the 4 to 6 age group. what would you do?
Also, it seems insane that there isn’t insurance or the ability to get credit to use at the ski school if my kids pick up the flu since ski school lessons are fully paid for and very $$$. Does anyone know if this type of insurance exists?
how often do your kids play with neighbors? I have a 4 and 6 year old and they get home from school around 330 and I’d rather they use this time to be with each other and we go somewhere during the week/ activities etc and save neighbor playdates for weekends but I feel like I’m being unreasonable. it’s also that sometimes the 6 year old finds a friend and the 4 year old has a total meltdown or the 4 year old does and the 6 year old is upset that they’re not including her and I can’t just cook dinner etc in peace because I feel like I need to watch the kids more when other kids are over. thoughts?? I always thought it wad the dream ti have so many kids to play with and now I find it difficult on weekdays
Anyone else have a kid with a chronic illness that flares from time-to-time? If so, how do you take care of yourself during those bouts of intensity? My oldest has Crohn’s and we have been so fortunate that he has been in remission for the last six years. It seems very likely that he is having a flare. I feel so guilty for not seeing it sooner – his signs are pretty subtle but they all clicked in my head at the end of last week. We are looking at a full GI workup and then treatment for the flare. I’m trying to stay positive and upbeat for my kids, but I feel like I just want to crawl into bed versus all the coordination and planning that needs to happen: calling a 504 meeting, coordinating with his doc for the documentation for the 504, the tests, prep for the tests, coordinating with his teachers for time out of school, treatment, changing his diet. I’m all ears for any practical tips.
How much, and how, do you push a kid to do the work for something the kid wanted to do? My 10 year old has always been really stubborn about actually *doing* well, anything. Right now, he’s been talking about wanting to be in the school play for months. They gave him a script excerpt and a song for the audition-I keep suggesting we practice it, and it’s total shutdown – resistant to doing it “right now” (anytime), barely participating when we do, big struggle, then my husband and I wind up getting frustrated at him and trying to point out that he wants to do this and this is what it will take.
I want him to have fun with it, not force him into something. A big part of me just wants to let him make the choice and accept the consequences, but I hate to see him just miss out. And honestly, I want to see him do *something*, but everything seems to wind up being a similar issue, even if he says he wants to do it.
My rising K-er is in his FEELS about all the changes. Guess the whole not-making-a-big-deal-of-it isn’t going to apply with my guy. He’s been in some type of daycare/preschool since he was 4 months old, including doing kindergarten this last year at preschool but…change is change.
We had a tearful conversation this AM about how he’s scared of having a new teacher, making new friends, having a new routine, etc. I told him me and DH would hold his hand through everything, that it was going to be new for everyone (even the teacher – new class for them!), there would be some kids who had never been in a school before, etc. I told him that he could even hold my hand the whole time at meet the teacher on Friday, that change is hard sometimes and it comes anyway – all we can do is prepare the best we can. (I also told him look kid, if we don’t send you to school, me and DH get in trouble because it’s the law, which seemed to make him stop whining and actually asking questions).
Then, I suddenly remembered how nervous I had been to start a new school in 1st grade – I recall telling my Mom the same version of things DS was telling me, including that I thought my soon-to-be teacher’s name made her sound like a monster (spoiler alert: she was great). I remember feeling supported and then loving 1st grade. I hope he looks back and feels the same, or at the very least, feels neutral.
Guess he’s inherited his Mom’s anxiety…
Recommendations for sneakers for kids who are hard on their shoes? My 2nd grader loved the New Balance Arishi fresh foams I got him, but in four months they are starting to fall apart. (Toe cap peeling; Velcro strap coming apart.) Anything that holds up longer to kids who beat up their shoes? Looking for Velcro or no-tie, too. Tying laces is still too much for rushed mornings.
I’ve noticed that my kids – 6 and 9 – always ask me or husband before they reach for a snack. Its not a norm that we set intentionally, but we would always prepare food and snacks for them when they were younger. On one hand, I think its nice that they aren’t rifling through the pantry, but I don’t love the authority i’m being given to approve/disapprove eating. I always say yes and let them know that its always ok to eat when they are hungry and that they dont need my permission to have an apple or whatever. We were on vacation recently with another family and they have a tradition of having a snack drawer filled with treats and sweets. The tradition is that anyone could have a treat at any time because its vacation. My kids asked everytime, which is polite, but made me wonder if we our too involved or too regulating. Talk me through this, please. When I was a kid the pantry was always stocked with healthy snacks and treats (hello ’90s kids!) and I just went over a helped myself anytime i wanted. That of course wasnt great either…so how does this work?
mattress recs for kids? finally getting my 5 year old twins real beds (they are still in their converted cribs).
I just got a positive pregnancy test and I can’t tell anyone IRL, so I am posting here! I have PCOS and we have been trying for nearly 18 months, so I am very excited to finally see a positive test. It’s early days so who knows if it will stick but I am very pleased to have made it to this stage.
I have my first pumping-while-traveling work trip tomorrow (second baby, but nursed the first entirely during the Covid travel restrictions so it was a non-issue).
How many sets of pump parts do people bring? I’ll be using the Medela wipes during the day. Can I get away with a single set or should I bring two?
Also, any tips for pumping on the plane? I’ll be doing it in my seat, Spectra pump with flanges, but covering up with a nursing cover.
How, and how often, do you socialize with friends?
I would say that I tend to grab coffee with a female friend once or twice a week, and go to parties maybe once or twice a month.
Paging the Anon from the Weekend Thread about tubes and adenoid removal for an older child. My daughter had her second set of tubes and an adenoidectomy at 4.5 this spring. There really wasn’t a recovery from the tubes because it’s such a simple, quick procedure. We were told to keep her from putting her head under the water in the bath tub and in lakes/rivers for a few weeks. Pools and washing hair was fine. The adenoidectomy took a solid 3 weeks. She didn’t really have much pain and what she did have was managed by Motrin and Tylenol. We had a few days where she complained of her throat hurting when she ate. She was acting normal the first day or two after, but then, she had about a week where she was lethargic and didn’t have much energy. By the end of week 2, beginning of week 3, she had bounced back some. The worst part, though, was her breath. Her breath literally smelled like death for the full 3 weeks. Once the scabs came off, her breath was 100% better, and her energy level was back to 100%.