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I haven’t seen a blouse quite like this before for maternity and nursing, and I like it. It reminds me a bit of the popular Vince voile popover blouses, but for pregnant and nursing mamas. The nursing access is particularly unusual — I can’t think of another blouse with a zippered side access like this — but I think it looks functional and comfortable for both you and the baby. It’s also available in a leopard print and a solid navy, in sizes SML for $90. Loyal Hana ‘Carrie’ V-Neck Maternity Top
(L-2)
Sales of note for 9.10.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Ann Taylor – 30% off your purchase
- Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything + extra 20% off
- Boden – 15% off new styles
- Eloquii – $29 and up select styles; up to 50% off everything else
- J.Crew – Up to 50% off wear-to-work styles; extra 30% off sale styles
- J.Crew Factory – 40-60% off everything; extra 60% off clearance
- Lands’ End – 30% off full-price styles
- Loft – Extra 40% off sale styles
- Talbots – BOGO 50% everything, includes markdowns
- Zappos – 26,000+ 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 – Birthday sale, 40-50% off & extra 20% off select styles
- Hanna Andersson – Up to 50% off all baby; up to 40% off all Halloween
- J.Crew Crewcuts – Extra 30% off sale styles
- Old Navy – 40% off everything
- Target – BOGO 25% off select haircare, up to 25% off floor care items; up to 30% off indoor furniture up to 20% off TVs
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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?
MSJ says
Finally got my act together last night and set up 529s for my one-year-olds!
Clementine says
Dear Summer Weather: It’s not you, it’s me. I will never actually complain about you, seeing as I live in the Northeast and know how miserable months on end of snow and cold can be. I will say though, you’ve done a stellar job and now it’s time for Fall weather to take over.
Sincerely,
The pregnant lady who thought it was a good idea to make her maternity work wardrobe almost exclusively out of 3/4 sleeved dresses and has today resorted to wearing a non maternity dress wherein her pregnancy b00bs are now testing the limits of physics with this zipper.
JM says
Amen!
LC says
It’s not just the northeast! I live in SF, where it is usually freezing in the summer. I was feeling so smug about avoiding the super-hot temps while 8+ months pregnant. But we are in the middle of a horrible heat wave — and nowhere here (including my home) is air-conditioned! I’m so over it.
sfg says
It’s rotten! My kiddo is all, WTF with this heat.
Clementine says
Ewwww.
At least my house and office both have AC. I normally LOOVE the heat, but it is just not working for me right now.
I’m also a committed exerciser and even my daily walks have had to be cancelled or I’ve had to shorten just because of the heat.
POSITA says
Any suggestions for how to improve daycare drop off? I dropped my 2yo daughter off for her third day of daycare today and she was just so sad starting as soon as I parked. She didn’t protest, but had huge tears running down her face the whole walk to the classroom. I gave her a hug and she just sobbed. No fighting it, just really sad. I peeked through the window on my way out after taking care of some paperwork and she was sitting on the teacher’s lap still sobbing quietly to herself. It totally breaks my heart because she’s normally such a happy and independent kid. I really think she’ll eventually love seeing all the other kids and having so many activities during the day, but I’m not sure how to help her over this hump.
Anonymous says
This too shall pass. It’s hard, I know. But before you know it, she’ll be ditching you at the door to run and play with all her friends. To the extent she is picking up on any weird sense of foreboding from you (because you know the sobbing is about to happen), maybe start talking about daycare in a crazy optimistic way on your drive over? She may be sensing anxiety from you and responding accordingly. Good luck, mama!
NewMomAnon says
Have you talked to the teacher? We had some difficult transitions for a while, and my kiddo’s teacher helped us come up with a consistent strategy. We’ve had good mornings ever since. (And for what it’s worth – our routine includes food before driving to daycare and letting kiddo pack and carry her bag for daycare, then helping her get seated at the classroom breakfast table before we wave bye bye and leave.) Good luck. I think this ebbs and flows with the kid’s stage in life and personality.
kc esq says
Letting my kid walk from the car — I used to carry him to speed up the process — and carry a bag to his cubby has helped foster a sense of independence.
mascot says
Agree that can vary with age/stage so it may be just a bad developmental stage more than anything you are doing. Being positive at dropoff and not lingering helped us at these times.
CHJ says
Aww, this morning at dropoff there was a little girl who was in her second week of daycare, and she was so inconsolable! I felt so bad for her. She was also about 2, so probably going through what your daughter is going through.
I’ve seen many kids in DS’s class go through this, and it just takes the new kids a little while to get adjusted. There’s so much going on, with a new routine, new kids, new adults, new space… it’s overwhelming for a little while. But once they get the hang of it, all the kids seem to love daycare and have a blast all day long.
For making things easier, I’d ask if she’s started to bond with any of the teachers or kids yet, and then seek that teacher/kid out at drop off. DS is totally smiley and happy at drop off as long as I hand him to one particular teacher. Apparently another kid in his class is only happy at drop off if my son is already there and they can play together. (Side note: How sweet is that?) I’d just keep an eye on things and see what makes drop off easier for her.
Also – make sure to feed her a good breakfast before leaving the house. That always helps!
Jen says
IT GETS BETTER. My daughter was in daycare since 3 months old, and at 20 months, we moved and changed daycares. We had never had an issue with dropoff at the old place, but here we were, with her CRYING AND SAYING “NO MOMMY NO NO” as soon as we pulled into the parking lot.
I had 3 meetings with the director because i was just sick over it. My kid went from LOVING “school” at her old place to full out running away from the new place–I was hating myself for picking a bad school.
they kept telling me this was normal, and would get better, to which i said “but it didn’t happen at her old daycare! ” They also assured me she only cried for 5 min max and then was happy as a clam all day. I eventually snuck back in to see this myself.
about 1 month in, she adjusted nicely, but still had a hard time with dropoff. Now, 2.5 months later, we have our whole routine sorted out and I get a hug and the occasional “sit down and play mommy” but no more fits/tears/hiding in my skirt/protesting in the parking lot.
It really, really gets better and I think this age is hard in general. Add a big transition (or 3 like we did– no more crib, new house, new daycare! great planing on our end…) and it’s extra hard.
hoola hoopa says
Normal for only day 3. I find every transition takes about a month to settle in.
Can Dad do drop-off? That helps a ton. IME kiddos aren’t so emotional when leaving Dad.
Pigpen's Mama says
A belated thank you to the suggestions regarding travel-friendly car seats. I bought the Cosco Scenera Next. We haven’t installed it yet, but it’s shocking how light it is!
Anon says
I have a nanny that comes to my house 3.5 days a week to watch my 6 month old twin boys. I work 3 days and use one 1/2 day to run errands, meal plan, etc. I found her through a nanny placement agency (meaning that they do the hunting, background checks, reference checks, etc.). She seems to be great with my boys. But I can’t say she’s absolutely amazing will them 100% of the time because I don’t have a nanny cam and I just have to trust that she is. My initial instinct was that I shouldn’t leave my kids with someone if I feel like I need to have a camera on them. Every Sunday night and into Monday morning (this week Monday) I get a lot of anxiety about leaving them (I work M – W). But by Tuesday morning it seems like I’m into the groove of work and I feel better about it. My FIL was asking me last week about my nanny and her background and how do I know she takes good care of the kids if I’m not there??? I think that’s what put more doubt into my mind. But, she’s never done anything that’s made me go “this is a terrible idea”. Is this just normal mom anxiety?? Last night I was trying to talk to my husband about my feelings and he said, “well remember that you can stay home with them 100% of the time”. I don’t feel like staying home 100% of the time is right for me because I’m go crazy. I feel like I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place.
NewMomAnon says
It’s so hard to tell with little babies. I remember thinking that I didn’t like one of my kiddo’s teachers, and when I finally took the time to talk with her, she became one of my favorite teachers because she was predicting the next milestone and preparing my kiddo for it. One suggestion – for just this week, can you spend the half day with the nanny and the babies and see how she interacts with them? Learning to trust caregivers is so important for parents, and part of it is developing a relationship with the caregiver.
Also, I would say as far as metrics – if your boys are growing, if their diaper areas are clean after nanny does a days’ worth of diaper changes, if they are on track with developmental milestones and seem generally content when they are with you, your nanny is probably doing a good job. At six months old, babies mostly need someone who responds to their needs, keeps them safe, and is affectionate.
Anon says
My guys aren’t sleeping through the night yet so I generally sleep until 8 am (she gets to the house at 7 am). I can hear her talking to them and playing with them when I wake up in the morning. She has a background in early childhood education so she’s always talking about their milestones and how they’re right on track, etc. She’s excited to start teaching them baby sign language now that they’re 6 months. They’ve never had a hint of diaper rash in her care. They’re pretty big for their age so I know they’re growing good. She keeps track of their diaper changes, feedings and naps in an app so that I can see what’s going on with them.
I know her personally pretty well – I chat with her in the morning while I’m pumping before I get ready to go to work. She’s 27 and lives with her mom because she ran into some money issues due to health problems that are now being managed. The only thing that drives me crazy about her is she’s a chronic complainer. Her back, her arm, her head, everything hurts all the time. She also always mentions how she has counseling so she needs to leave at XX time. I feel like she wants me to ask her why she’s in counseling and quite frankly I don’t want to open that can. I know her dad died 10 years ago and that may be some of it. But just because someone is in counseling doesn’t make them unable to care for children. Tons of people are in counseling. I’ve been through counseling multiple times in my life and I’d like to think I’m pretty even now.
I like your idea of spending a half day with her and the kids, maybe I’ll do that on Friday. I just feel like if someone was going to not be a good caretaker they wouldn’t do it in front of you, ya know?
Jen says
When we had a sitter, I worked at home 1x/week and just popped downstairs randomly (coffee, lunch, get the mail, etc). For one sitter, I happened upon her on the phone, watching TV with the kid (18 months…), “watching” her while she colored all over my table (kid knows “paper only”).
Next sitter (that one was replaced), i walked down to them goofing around, building forts, playing outside , etc. I did help this sitter check diapers a little more frequently (she didn’t have a ton of experience with the diapered crowd but was otherwise fantastic) and after a few days of “hey, looks like kiddo needs a change, could you take care of that when you have a minute” we were golden. The difference between the sitters was night and day and i didn’t miss a day of work to find that out.
MSJ says
You will always find people that make you second guess yourself but try to tune them out as much as possible as it will make you crazy. A mentally stimulating 3 day/week job sounds fabulous.
It’s always difficult trusting someone else to take care of the kids but it sounds like you found a pretty good fit for your twins (not easy). I was lucky that my husband was home job hunting and had a month long overlap with our nanny at the start. We do also have a nanny cam and were upfront about that during the interviews. I never use it because it makes it harder to be at work but my husband checks in periodically.
It sounds like the complaining is annoying but not a deal breaker, so I’d suggest continuing to not engage – smile, nod, move on. Our nanny is older and overall less drama, although it does creep in at times. For us, there is more time talking on the phone than we’d like. I’ve brought it up at times but overall I’m willing to tolerate some phone time because I otherwise trust her and know she really cares for the kids.
sfg says
It is hard. For me, the biggest tell is whether my baby is happy to see our nanny each morning – aside from growth, reaching milestones, etc.
hoola hoopa says
+1
Also, it’s common for kiddos to cry when Mom walks into the room, even if they were all smiles and giggles the nanosecond before. So you can try sneaking in or peeping in the window before you enter to see how they are feeling.
Anon says
I know this has been covered before, but I’m feeling so discouraged. I have a good, non equity partner job at a small firm and equity should be in my future. The pay is not big law, but I make more than my husband and I need to keep up that income to allow us to live in our house/town. Despite the fact that I do have a future here and by all accounts am well regarded, I HATE my job with a passion. I have really never liked it, but lately am also really disliking the atmosphere and the people. My anxiety every day is palpable and I am miserable. A large part of it is not being able to see my six month old as much as I would like, and I know this. But it’s honestly so much more than that. I don’t think I can keep going on here. But I don’t know what else do to. Another litigation job does not appeal. I have been reading books and trying to see what else I am qualified to do and I feel like there is nothing for me out there. That is probably not the case, but I do laugh now at my naïve former impression that my JD would easily allow me a non legal job that would pay me 80-100k and let me work 9-5. I know it takes work to find another job, and time, and I know I am lucky to currently have my job, but for my sanity I don’t know how much longer I can go on like this. Part of this is a vent, but part of this is plea for help to hear some success stories/alternate careers that people have done where a JD has helped them, but it is a not a lawyer position per se.
anon says
Think government! They love to find litigators willing to make the switch, and higher-level positions pay decently.
I did employment litigation for a couple medium / small firms for 6 years then made the switch to being a state government hr consultant when baby was 7 months old. Pay (85k) is about the same overall (and much higher if calculated on a per-hour basis now that I only work 35-40 hours.) Great benefits, tons of paid time off, blah blah blah.
anon says
Do you mind saying what state you are in?
Also in Government says
I am in New York State and I know tons of JD’s who work in government. Many/most of them work about 40 hours a week and make 85-110k/year in JD-required jobs and 55-120 in jobs that don’t require a JD at all, but generally hire people with Master’s degrees or higher.
Depending on your line of work, are there any consulting gigs that you would be interested in? HR consulting, municipal consulting, etc? Many of these may not require a JD but would benefit from that kind of experience.
orig anon says
Midwest state gov’t (not Chicago) in a good-sized metro area.
Many others in my department are lawyers whose current jobs prefer but do not require a JD.
Since my background was in employment law, HR was a natural fit – but many state agencies would benefit from someone with a law background. DNR likes people who know something about environmental law / compliance, Dept. of Commerce loves tax attorneys, our state contracting department likes people with business litigation backgrounds to review and negotiate purchasing / service contracts, workers’ comp hires tons of attorneys … plus many of the agencies need administrative law judges to oversee disputes between gov’t and citizens (worker’s comp has a court, so does unemployment, state tax dep’t, human services (when applicants are denied for welfare benefits, or daycare licenses are being suspended, etc.) I also know the legislature has a bunch of staff attorneys on hand to review potential legal impacts of proposed legislation in all areas.
In short, tons of gov’t opportunities out there, whatever your legal background is.
anon says
I am not the OP but am in a very similar situation and would love more information on how you made this happen.
Jen says
I personally employ a JD (who has an MBA, but that’s sort of irrelevant to their role) who makes 90-100k (in a med/high COL city– not NY/Chi/anywhere in Cali high though) and works 9-5 (or the equivalent- she has fairly flexible hours and is in a time zone different from mine). She’s 35 if that helps you, and graduated law school in 2006 i think. Did a stint in a firm, then hung a shingle, then found her way into my company.
The role is as a compliance manager. FWIW, i’d have hired a non-JD just as easily as I hired this JD. Make sure your resume/skills stand out on their own aside from the text book knowledge. In this case, she came in at slightly lower than market rate (75k) knowing she’d have to be groomed. She’s been here 1.5 years and i’ve groomed her to where she’s worth 90 now, which is what i pay her.
EB0220 says
Any advice on day-weaning a 13 month old? I would like to drop my last pumping session at work. Last week, I tried to slowly dial back the length of the session (dropping about a minute each day from a maximum of 20 minutes). I ended up with plugged ducts on both sides by Thursday. Then, over the long weekend, she wanted to nurse during the day so I am feeling really full at work today. Do I just have to cut her off from nursing during the time she’d usually be at daycare (approx 9 am to 5 pm)? Any advice? I don’t mind continuing to nurse mornings/evenings/nights for a while but I really want to retire my pump.
MSJ says
When I was weaning from the pump, I avoided nursing during work hours on the weekends as well. I know plenty of people who are able to pull off nursing all day weekends, but I had a lot of milk (twins) and was prone to plugged ducts. I continued for the morning and night feed for about two months and then weaned from that, a feeding at a time.
ELL says
Just did this last week. I didn’t nurse during work hours when I was home; instead my husband put the baby down at nap time–when I would usually nurse. It took about a week to wean from the pump.