Budget Thursday: Lightweight Ponte Sleeveless Dress
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This dress from Uniqlo comes in a dark gray, black, and a pretty rose. Note that this is not a jersey dress, and it’s a much lighter weight ponte than what you may be thinking of for a ponte dress, so keep that in mind. The reviewers say it doesn’t cling, though, which is always my primary thought when I’m considering a jersey or ponte dress. This dress is simple and classic, and it would make a great option for work. It’s machine washable, which is always nice, and it’s only $20, too. Lightweight Ponte Sleeveless Dress
Here’s a plus-size option with many color choices.
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Sales of note for 1/16:
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Nordstrom – Cashmere on sale; AllSaints, Free People, Nike, Tory Burch, and Vince up to 60%; beauty deals up to 25% off
- AllSaints – now up to 60% off (some of the best leather jackets!)
- Ann Taylor – Up to 40% off your full-price purchase; extra 50% off sale
- Banana Republic Factory – 50% off everything + extra 20% off
- Boden – 15% off new styles with code — readers love this blazer, these dresses, and their double-layer line of tees
- DeMellier – Sale now on, free shipping and returns — includes select options like Montreal, Vancouver, and Venice
- Eloquii – $29 and up select styles; extra 50% off all clearance, plus ELOQUII X kate spade new york collab just dropped
- Everlane – Sale of the year, up to 70% off — reader favorites include their scoop tee, Dream Pant, ReNew Transit backpack, silk blouses and oversized blazers! New markdowns just added
- Hannah Andersson – Up to 30% off all pajamas;
- J.Crew – Up to 40% off select styles; up to 50% off cashmere
- J.Crew Factory – 40-70% off everything
- L.K. Bennett – Archive sale, almost everything 70% off
- M.M.LaFleur – Tag sale for a limited time — jardigans and dresses $200, pants $150, tops $95, T-shirts $50
- Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
- Talbots – Semi-Annual Red Door Sale – 50% off + extra 20% off, sale on sale, plus free shipping on $150+
And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- The concept of “backup care” is so stupid…
- I need tips on managing employees in BigLaw who have to leave for daycare pickup…
- I’m thinking of leaning out to spend more time with my family – how can I find the perfect job for that?
- I’m now a SAHM and my husband needs to step up…
- How can I change my thinking to better recognize some of my husband’s contributions as important, like organizing the shed?
- What are your tips to having a good weekend with kids, especially with little kids? Do you have a set routine or plan?
I love this!
Thanks for the advice the other day on introducing formula to my 8 mo old. Happy to report he got 2 oz that night and chugged it like a champ, 1/3 bottles at daycare yesterday and another 2 oz with dad, all with no problems at all. And I didn’t have to stress that I wasn’t pumping enough! Yay!
My son just turned 3, and while he has always been a little aggressive, lately, the aggression is increasing and often coupled with explosive tantrums. He bites (and breaks skin), hits, pinches and throws things. FWIW, it is usually with people he is very comfortable with – me and my husband, our daughter and the nanny. I’ve asked about his behavior at camp and nursery school, and apparently he is as sweet as can be when he is there.
Today, he managed to bite, hit, pinch, choke and throw shoes at me in the two hour period between waking up and leaving for school. The nanny just called a few minutes ago to tell me that he was hitting and biting her because she was trying to change his diaper.
Looking for suggestions on how to handle this. I’ve tried time outs, which does not phase him. With the biting, I’ve bitten him back and he laughs. There are some other personal and work stresses I am dealing with at present, and dealing with this too makes me want to shut the door to my office and cry because I feel helpless as to what to do.
Re stroller search:
Take a look in the Facebook group “strollerqueen strollerswap.” You may be able to find a second hand one to buy locally.
Thinking about jogging to-from daycare pickups. It’s only about 1.5 m each way, and all sidewalks, so I don’t think I need some heavy-duty stroller. Does anyone have a cheap recommendation? I have been scouring craigslist off and on for a while but nothing has come up.
As a spin-off from the above thread, does anyone have advice for how to explain physical differences (other than skin/ hair/ eye color) to small children? We have explained how everyone is different, and my kids get that some people have birthmarks, etc., but my four-year-old inadvertently says rude stuff from time to time and I don’t know how to correct it without making the kid he’s talking about feel bad. For example, my son met an older kid at the playground who had a large gap between her teeth–not because of missing teeth. He said, “where’s your teeth?” and the poor girl looked crushed and covered her mouth. I felt terrible because she was clearly sensitive about it. But I didn’t want to say, “We’re all different and special” or whatever because she really didn’t seem to want to linger on the fact of her “difference” at that moment. I also didn’t want to chastise him harshly in front of her because (1) he just didn’t get it and (2) that would imply that everyone was thinking it, but he was the only one rude enough to say it. I’d love some guidance!
True confession time: My husband and I are so burnt out from work lately. Plus, I’m pregnant. When our two year old asks to watch Daniel Tiger or whatever in the evenings, we let him watch as much as he wants. It’s hard to engage when we’re both exhausted. He gets no screen time at his amazing day care, so we figure it balances out. But that doesn’t make me feel that much less awful.
Did any of you stop wearing make-up to work or significantly scaled down your routine? I feel like it is an extra thing on my to do list in the morning. I only wear concealer, mascara, eye shadow, blush. Before that I wash my face and put on eye cream and lotion. Am I becoming lazy? I wish I was one of those women who look good just with lipstick. Or is it just the way you perceive yourself?
WWYD – daycare question? I have a young 5 yr old daughter who has obvious pigmentation discoloration. No real adverse effect on her, just very noticeable to other people. Last year was her first year in a new school We worked hard with her all year to answer questions about it and to practice standing up for herself if kids were unkind about it. Lots of kids asked questions and got over it, but two kids in particular were unkind and teased her. We dealt with the two kids all year (the teachers were great about intervening, but it was definitely an ongoing issue).
We elected to keep her at the school for an extra year of Jr-K b/c the feedback from her teachers was that she wasn’t ready for K socially. Among other issues, she “shuts down” after kids ask about the defect, and avoids any kids that ask about it. Unfortunately, it means she isolates herself from basically every kid. This year, the teachers wanted to help her determine when kids are being curious but not unkind, and how to move forward and still relate to/befriend the other kids.
Anyway, halfway through last year, I found out one of the kids that teased her relentlessly would be doing a year of Jr K as well. I told the director not to place them in the same class, as I thought it would put her on the defensive immediately. She agreed. Of course, we showed up last week, and the kid is in her class. I was furious. I approached the director, and essentially, she just forgot our convo – also inadvertently made a comment that sounded like several parents asked not to be placed with this kid – I do know my daughter was not the only one he was tough on. She offered to move my daughter to the other Jr. K class.
My husband is on the fence, but is leaning towards keeping her in the current class. He thinks under the watchful eye of the teacher, maybe they can repair the relationship, instead of avoiding it and just being on the playground together. His thinking is that she’ll learn more from addressing it head on with a teacher guiding her, especially as she’ll deal with this in some capacity her whole life.
I see my husband’s point – but I think she’s 5, and the point of the year was to make her feel comfortable in her environment so she drops her defensiveness. Also, the other teacher’s personality is warm, kind, and effusive, and my daughter has repeatedly told me how much she loves the other teacher (saw her on the playground all year). Her current teacher seems lovely, but is more reserved.
I have a meeting today to discuss with the director and a behavioral specialist at the school who has promised to weigh in all year. I think that even with the teacher on board to watch her, there are other kids in the class, and honestly, I know the school/his teacher last year worked hard with this kid, and it really didn’t change his behavior. I always promised myself I’d never be the parent who has my kid change classes, and I worry this is a slippery slope. Thoughts?
For parents of older kids: what clothing items have you found are generally the kind you keep to pass along to another kid? I’m trying to decide what clothes/shoes/jackets I let my preschool-age kiddo pick out for herself, knowing that they’ll be recycling fodder when she’s done and which to choose myself in gender neutral colors so that we can save them for her little brother. Baby brother wore a lot of her baby clothes, but I’m finding that as she’s gotten older she’s rougher on her clothes (plus she wears them for longer) so they are in no shape to save/pass along. Tshirts, underwear, leggings, socks are definite recycling fodder. How about sweaters, shoes, pajamas, coats, snowsuits, boots, sneakers? Is there any category that you always buy with an eye toward multiple kids wearing the things? Are there categories that are definitely one-kid items?
Second. Britax Advocate. We’ve had Boulevards and Advocates, and they are both great, but the Advocate has some side impact protection. We’ve had 3 kids in these seats, with many vacations that involved two days of driving to get to our destination and two days back. Everyone has been safe and comfortable, and they are super easy to use.
I know solids are just for fun until kids are 1, but I’m stressed about my kid basically refusing solids. She’s 8 months now. We started at 6 months and she would try most things (and spit a lot out, but at least she’d try). Now she clamps her mouth shut for most everything except for one or two types of fruit. Any tips? Should I just feed her the fruit she likes and forget about the rest for a while so she’s at least in the practice of eating?
I know asking “what’s a good convertible carseat” is kind of an annoyingly vague question, but…we just got a second car and need a second carseat. We have a Diono Radian already and it’s fine (we got it mostly because it was one of the few that would fit in our tiny Honda Fit) but now we have a normal-sized car (Honda CRV) so we have more options.
Mostly I want something that doesn’t require Herculean strength to tighten (the Diono is difficult!) and that is reasonably comfortable (Grandma has the cheapest Britax in her car and I don’t think it would be comfy for long trips). Cost isn’t a huge deal since it will eventually be used as our second kid’s main carseat.
Any advice on carseats you have loved or hated (especially in terms of ease of use) would be very welcome!
Ugh. Meant to be a response to AwayEmily.
Thanks for responding! The genetic counselor said we had a 1/3 chance of the second NIPT being inconclusive, and we were just inside the window of doing the sequential screen instead, so we opted to first do the sequential screen. I think we will do the NIPT also if we get bad results from the sequential screen.