CorporetteMoms

Updated: Nov 1, 2018 73 Comments · by

Maternity Monday: 1 Button Closure Maternity Blazer

Maternity

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A woman wearing a 1 Button Closure Maternity Blazer.Ooh: there are some nice sale items (like this blazer!) and general nice sales going on over at Pea in the Pod. The blazer, for example, was $269 but is now marked to $80 (lucky size 3 only) — this is a great price. In general, you can take $50 off your purchase of $300 or more, or $125 off your purchase of $500 more — handy if you’re building your maternity wardrobe. Isabella Oliver 1 Button Closure Maternity Blazer Building a maternity wardrobe for work? Check out our page with more suggestions along both classic and trendy/seasonal lines. (L-2)

Sales of note for 9.10.24

(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)

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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Comments

  1. TK says

    Okay, time to actually deal with this …

    Kiddo turned 2 in February and still relies pretty heavily on a pacifier. We’ve limited it to bedtime / nap / car use only, but I ‘d like to start to wean him off of it completely because this weekend it found it *hilarious* to show me how he could fit the entire thing into his mouth.

    I know we should have started earlier, but he’s such a good sleeper and I didn’t want to mess with what was working. Also, in the car it really helps me to concentrate on evening traffic when he isn’t screaming “PACI!” from the backseat. But it’s time.

    Tips, or success stories to share?

    • Anonymous says

      I know quite a few people who have had success with either the ‘Paci Fairy’ or ‘giving’ their pacifiers to a new little baby. General idea- you say, ‘Whoop! Guess what? You’re so big that it’s time for the pacifiers to go to new babies. You liked that when you were a baby, but now that you’re SOOO big, those pacifiers need to go to new little babies.

      You prep him for a couple (3-4) nights, then you make a big show of packing up ALLLL the pacifiers and saying goodbye then either you leave them out for the ‘Fairy’ or you go visit someone with a new baby and give the baby all your pacis. Sometimes the paci fairy leaves you a toy or a book, sometimes you just get to know you’re a big kid who gets to help the baby.

      Man, I wish my kid would take a pacifier- I’ve got a hand sucker.

    • Anonymous says

      No success stories, as we’re nearly 3 and still taking a paci. We’re working our way up to doing the paci fairy though. We’ve talked about it the same way we talk about Santa and are making a big deal about the day the fairy comes for all her pacis and leaves her a big kid toy in their place. Fingers crossed.

    • Anonymous says

      I’m not recommending this, but I still remember my little sister’s pacifier met its end when she hid it on top of a lamp so she wouldn’t have to give it to my mom. Like right on the lightbulb. It melted, obviously, and voila! No more paci.

      I have one thumb-sucker, and one paci-sucker. It’s not a battle I feel like picking with either of them, honestly. Braces are likely in both kids’ future, regardless, so I just don’t see the point of making my life more difficult. Is that terrible? I figure the thumb-sucker will stop because of peer pressure at some point once he starts school (I sucked my thumb until I was in kindergarten). The pacifiers are only really “necessary” at bedtime and naptime, and kiddo doesn’t have any expectation of keeping them at any other time. Again, I’m counting on peer pressure to take care of naptime. If she doesn’t give it up at bedtime, too, by the time she’s 3 or 4, maybe I’ll try to develop a real plan.

    • Anonymous says

      If your kid is prone to jealousy (and what 2 year old isn’t?) you might avoid the Paci Fairy and the sense that a new baby is taking your kid’s stuff. What about cutting the paci in half and just being like, oops, it’s broken! This method has worked for us for other things we’ve weaned off of since my kid understands when things break, they go in the trash and you don’t have them anymore. She’ll still sometimes ask for the thing and then say “its broken, trash,” and hasn’t pushed the issue.

      • Anonymous says

        The paci fairy doesn’t necessarily give them to a baby in your family – it just gives them to a “new little baby” in the amorphous sense. At least that’s how it works at our house.

      • Pogo says

        +1 I know people who this has worked for – snipping the paci with scissors such that kiddo can’t even suck on it if they wanted to, and going “uhoh, looks like paci’s broken!”

    • ANP says

      Sooooo this is a war-weary mom of three talking, but this isn’t a battle I’d really REALLY want to fight. Is your kid using the biggest paci possible? I totally get the fear that comes w/kid putting the entire paci in their mouth at once (experienced it first-hand!), so I don’t have an answer for you on that. Here’s what happened with us:

      Kid 1: stopped using at 2.25 years when she lost her last one on a family walk. She’d been down to using it just at naps/nighttime (for the most part) and we knew she didn’t need it to fall asleep.

      Kid 2: he’s 3.25 and will OCCASIONALLY grab/use his little sister’s, but basically we stopped buying them at age 2.5 and he’s slowly lost them/weaned himself off them — this process was done by about age 3. It helps that he doesn’t/didn’t have them at preschool. Little dude still has an oral fixation (fingers in mouth all the time!) but he doesn’t need the paci anymore.

      Kid 3: she’s 9 months old, so jury is out.

      I was obsessed with making sure Kid 1 got rid of her paci “on time” but honestly I don’t see a big difference between her and Kid 2 in terms of what was “better” — cold turkey or gradual.

    • Anonymous says

      Is your kid in daycare or at home? Ur kid was in a daycare where they weaned all kids in the “infant 2” room and kids didn’t get them in the young toddler room. They were magicians.

      New daycare kids seemed to drop them all by older toddlers, partly because they just didn’t have time to beg for it.

      Our daughter never used one but at 2.5 still wants milk in a straw cup before bed. We are working on it but she sleeps SO WELL it’s hard to fight it. And she only ‘needs’ it for home naps as she sleeps fine at daycare. I’m sure we are terrible enablers :)

    • In House Lobbyist says

      My 2.5 year old still takes them for naps and bedtimes. She also wants “2 pas” so it’s also a lovely for her. We limited it to naps and bedtime at 2 and had hoped we would be farther down the road by now. But I’m not ready to fight that battle so I let her keep them. She loves babies so maybe giving them to a new baby might work.

  2. NewMomAnon says

    My kiddo has been struggling to sleep alone in her room at night – she wakes up repeatedly throughout the night whimpering. If I’m in the room, I can say something and she will go right back to sleep; if I’m not in the room, she’ll wake up fully and scream until I get there.

    She had been a great night time sleeper, so I think this is probably a developmental thing; separation anxiety, or fear of the dark maybe? She’s had a bit of disruption with travel and time at her dad’s the last few weeks too. Would appreciate any strategies, book recommendations, etc.

    • PinkKeyboard says

      Would a two way monitor so you can say something without getting out of bed help?

    • Carrie M says

      We had something similar happen when kid was about 20 months. After trying a few different things, we ended up putting a nightlight in her room and starting a new routine where we turned on one of those animal light/music things as we tucked her in, and showed her how to turn it on herself. We told her to turn her turtle on in the middle of the night if she woke up. She sometimes does that, but I think the nightlight has helped a lot. She’s not easily scared, but I think she was getting disoriented waking up in the middle of the night with it being so dark.

      • NewMomAnon says

        My kiddo has two nightlights she can reach from her bed, and another one stuck to the side of her crib that she can turn on. And I’ve left her Cloud b turtle in her bed before, and she throws it out.

        I’m wondering if it’s time to take the side off the crib, or if that would be even scarier.

  3. Butter says

    Hi all – I’m heading back to work later this week after mat leave and my first “day” back will be trial by fire as it involves me flying to another city for the day. It’s a short flight (~80 minutes) and in total I’ll be gone for about 12 hours while SO stays home with the butterbean. This will be my first time pumping out of the house, and right now I’m planning on taking my PISA and just trying to find a bathroom wherever I am – how glamorous! – because we’ll be changing venues every few hours. Any tips or tricks for same day trips while pumping? I’m assuming I’ll pump when I land and before I take off, and at least twice inbetween.

    • Anonymous says

      Unless you really, really have to save it, if it were me, I’d probably plan on dumping the early part of the day, just so I didn’t have to worry about it keeping it cool without refrigeration. (And honestly, not have to worry about getting it through security.) I had a spoilage issue once while traveling for work which really soured me (haha, pun intended) on coolers and ice packs while traveling by plane.

      It’ll be fine, really. My best advice is just stay calm, leave yourself plenty of time at the airport so you aren’t rushing, and don’t worry about how much time you take during the workday. Good luck!

      • NewMomAnon says

        Ok, so it’s been over a year since I pumped, but my memory was that b*milk could sit out without refrigeration for quite a while; maybe even 12 hours (but it might be more like 4-6), but has to stay refrigerated once it’s chilled. I was actually thinking how lucky it is that she could avoid the hassle of having to negotiate a fridge or freezer with a hotel.

        • Clementine says

          I go by the rule of sixes- six hours at room temp, six days in the fridge, six months in the freezer

          • Anonymous says

            Yes, that’s what I was thinking too Clementine, hence the idea to probably ditch the beginning of the day. I saw this for convenience only, given it’s her first day back and first time pumping.

      • Butter says

        Thanks! Unfortunately I’m currently treasuring every ounce, so might try to make it work with various freezer packs, but we’ll see how that goes…

    • Anonymous4 says

      Have a battery back-up for your PISA, and extra batteries. Finding an outlet in a bathroom can be a challenge, and I find the batteries on my PISA go out really quickly. The weaker the battery, the worse the suction. I also take my car adapter with me when I travel – you never know when your only option is the backseat of a car.

      Get a hands free pumping bra if you don’t have one. In bathrooms, where i’m super weird about touching anything, it was really helpful to not have to worry about slipping/dropping while pumping. Take a plastic bag for your pump parts, so you can rinse them quickly and keep them in the cooler with your milk – it will reduce clean-up time. Also have spare parts on hand in case you drop/lose something. If you’re not 100% sure on privacy you may want a Hooter Hider or other type of cover as well.

      Be sure to take TSA guidelines on flying with breastmilk. You may run into security agents who aren’t knowledgeable and may try to make you dump your milk out.

      Good luck!

      • Butter says

        Thank you! I never would have remembered to bring my hands free bra or spare parts. I can now see where there are 101 ways this could go wrong. Must bring all of the things!

    • Anonymous says

      Will you be renting a car/have a car available? If so, I’d highly suggest you get a car plug-in for your PISA. This way, you will always have a ‘milking parlor’ available.

      Bring a nursing cover (I just bring a big infinity scarf) because it’s handy.

      Don’t be overly apologetic and don’t skip sessions! Just say, ‘I need to step out for 15-20 minutes.’ If they press you as to why, you could try my technique and say, ‘I have an infant at home and need to pump.’ Doing this directly with serious eye contact makes it extra-effective.

    • Pogo says

      jeez talk about trial by fire! All I have to say is you are a CHAMP! I hate days like that even without all the pumping and missing a little one!

    • Anonymous says

      -battery backup for your pump
      -Nursing cover if you end up pumping on a bench in a public bathroom or in someone else’s office
      -hands free pumping bra
      -hand sanitizer because bathrooms are gross
      -gallon ziploc bag for clean pump parts
      -gallon ziploc bag for dirty pump parts
      -lanisoh milk bags for putting pumped milk in (i travel with two bottles to pump into and transfer the milk as I go)
      -sharpie to label the bags
      -cooler (I love my 12-pack polar bear cooler) and *hard sided* ice pack (soft sided ice packs are not TSA compliant). carry it on.
      -extra gallon ziploc bags for ice from the food court in case TSA takes away your ice pack
      -printout of TSA regs on bmilk
      -photocopy of birth certificate
      -TONS OF EXTRA TIME TO GO BACK THROUGH TSA ON THE WAY HOME. some airports could not have cared less about the milk, some treated me like i was suspicious and took foreverrrrr
      -videos of your baby on your phone to watch while you pump (helps with let down in strange environments)
      -baby blanket or something else to drape over your lap while pumping in case of spills/drips

      • Anonymous says

        PS polar bear cooler and a big igloo ice block frozen solid before you leave will in fact keep the milk cold all day.

      • Butter says

        This is spectacular, thank you! But can I ask why I need to bring a copy of my birth certificate? Is that because of TSA?

        • Sarabeth says

          Copy of your baby’s birth certificate, as proof that the milk is indeed for a human infant. I have never been asked for this, but it’s not a bad idea to have just in case.

        • JTX says

          I think she was referring to the baby’s birth certificate, presumably to prove you have an infant at home and need to transport breastmilk.

        • Anonymous says

          Yes, baby’s birth certificate. Showing that I have recently given birth to a tiny human. And thus am transporting 40+ oz of liquid with me. And NO you may not open the bags, agent man. It is my right to refuse that.

          Some TSA are MORONS to the Nth degree.

    • CHL says

      I might also bring a lot of nursing pads and a clean shirt if you can fit it in. You never know what’s going to happen:) Also, if you end up doing this a lot, I actually really liked my manual pump (in addition to real pump) for traveling. It’s kind of like a little spray bottle and it made it easy to relieve pressure or buy an extra hour to just step into a bathroom stall for a few minutes (you could keep or dump) without getting all the gear out, looking for an outlet, etc.

      • Butter says

        Great idea as I’ve carefully planned my outfit for the day. Especially since this is the first time in 10+ weeks I won’t be wearing a nursing tank and yoga pants for the day.

  4. Kat G says

    Q for the hive: do you have any tricks for sharing calendar invites with other people? I always use Google Calendar and enter a lot of information in each entry, which I then send as an “invite” to other people like my husband (iPhone, doesn’t use Gmail or Outlook regularly) or my brother (uses Outlook). Everyone tells me they can’t see the info I’ve entered on the account — even the subject line of the event (which often has things like the flight info). Anyone have any tips for this? Is it an app problem (like everyone needs to download the calendar app I use on my iPhone) or is there a better way to do it (like instead of sending invites just set up a shared calendar with the appropriate people and add the new event to the appropriate calendar)?

    • Pogo says

      Do you create the invite in a browser or in the calendar app? I haven’t had issues with someone inviting me via Google Calendar, but I’m 99% sure these people have always used the browser version to enter in all the details (which I can see on both my browser and calendar).

      It’s also possible when forwarding an invite that in Outlook the user needs to actually open the .ics file to add the event with all the details – I feel like that has happened to me before.

      We’re not a shared calendar family, but I can see the utility in that.

      • Kat G. says

        Thank you guys! I swear I’m creating them in the browser. Maybe my users need a different app… Thx!

    • meme says

      We use shared calendars. Then you don’t have to bother with invites at all.

  5. Clementine says

    Any suggestions for a good rash guard or sun suit in size 6-12 months? I’m looking for ones with long sleeves, ideally. I think I also want a zipper as I don’t want to deal with pulling a high neck over my kid’s melon – baby never rolls better or faster than when I’m trying to get a shirt over baby’s head.

    I’m also not wanting to spend a lot on this because it’s going to fit the kid for roughly 15 minutes by my calculations.

    (Also- if these shirts are stretchier than I think and I’m being ridiculous, let me know.)

    • mascot says

      I think iPlay makes a sun suit. Not sure that the sleeves are past the elbow though.
      UV Skinz sells cute hat/trunks/rashguard combos once they get older (or used to at Costco). Warning though, the shirts are way too small in the neck for kids with giant melons. Those mock-turtleneck styles are hard to get on. We’ve had better luck with Lands End, Gap and Old Navy

      • Kat G. says

        Check Gap and ON. Got a super cute one for my lil guy there. Just figured it’d be great to pop on him while wearing him if we went somewhere sunny.

    • rakma says

      We got DD’s rashguard for her first summer at Target–didn’t get much use, but was stretch enough to fit for the whole summer, giant head and all.

      This year I think I’m going for Land’s End–I like that they’ve got SPF 50 protection, and I know it’s going to get a lot of use, so I want something that should hold up.

    • Spirograph says

      No, they’re not stretchy. Definitely get ones with a zipper. I don’t have a recommendation, just that word of warning. :)

      We just used regular t shirts + swim diaper when kiddos were small, honestly. Not enough pool/beach time for specialized equipment, and it worked fine.

      • Clementine says

        I might just do a long sleeved t-shirt, but Baby Clem is very blonde and fair skinned. We also spend quite a bit of time at the Ocean/Pool/Lake so I can justify like a $20 item.

      • anon says

        We do this for the splash park, but the public pools here will not let you (even babies) wear regular clothes — only swimsuits. I think it has to do with the fibers in the fabric.

    • Syd says

      My son has always had a big head and you are not being ridiculous. I could not get the rash guards over his head! We got the i play one piece swimsuit on Amazon and its been great! I got in the 18 mo. size even though he was only 9 months the first time we used it, so the sleeves covered most of his arms. I fully expect it to last through this summer, too, so we got a lot of use out of it.

      http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D402NQM/ref=twister_B00LHHO0M4

    • Momata says

      I’ve had good luck at Baby Gap. At least for girls (haven’t looked for boys), they have a few different options for long-sleeve rashguards and bottoms.

      • mss says

        I got one at Baby Gap Factory once that had a half zipper, which was excellent for pulling over gigantic heads. But I would size up too, because for a sun shirt, bigger is better.

    • Msj says

      SwimZip. Sadly not cheap but really great and easy to use. There aren’t many options with long sleeves and pants when I was looking a few months ago

    • Anon says

      Old Navy for kiddo swimsuits. Not sure if the’ll have a zipper this year, but honestly can’t imagine spending real cash on outdoor swimsuits. They get destroyed by sand / sun / chlorine and the kid grows out of them to boot.

  6. CHJ says

    Any recommendations for healthy(ish) snacks for a toddler to eat in the car? DS is always starving at the end of the day, and my go to snacks have been Goldfish crackers, Cheerios, and granola bars. I’d like to give him something less processed but still clean enough to eat in his car seat. All I can think of so far is dried fruit. Any other good ideas?

    • Anonymous says

      You could try jerky or fruit leather (super healthy if you make your own!). Can you just hit up a Whole Foods and see what looks good?

    • Lorelai Gilmore says

      String cheese, yogurt tubes, apple slices, applesauce packets, raisins, cucumber slices, a mini-bagel with cream cheese.

    • Anonymous says

      POUCHES! My kiddo slurps them down in about 2 seconds and there’s no mess.

    • Philanthropy Girl says

      Another here for pouches – Plum Organics has the Big 4 pouches that include grains, veggies, fruit and dairy; I’ve also found Plum that have a fruit/veggie combo. We also do dried fruit (raisins, prunes, cranberries).

      Cuties are very popular, as are apple pieces. He loved SanPea Crisps, but they’re a bit high in sodium for my preferences. I’ve also considered vegetable chips or sweet potato chips – also watching sodium. Mine isn’t a big veggie eater, so I’m always looking for creative ways to get him some.

  7. #2 says

    So ladies, I was on here a few weeks (or maybe a couple months now) back lamenting the decision on whether or not to have a second. Well, turns out you can have an oops even at 36. Argh! Just found out Friday. DH thought it might have been an elaborate joke, but nope, it’s real. Advice on a surprise second?

    • Anonymous says

      Congrats!! We had a surprise second (found out when the oldest was a mere 9 months old, too…). Give yourself some time to mentally accept that you’re pregnant and having a second child. My husband was immediately thrilled…but then he didn’t have his life change dramatically in the span of 2 minutes when the + showed up.

      My kids are old enough to play together now and it’s AWESOME. They’re inseparable and entertain each other. When it seems really, really difficult with a newborn, just remember that it will get better!

    • MomAnon4This says

      I have a surprise 3rd coming in July. I’m age 36 now, will be 37 then.
      Call your good friends. I needed support to get to the point where I could talk about it without crying. I’m there now. It took awhile.
      Every emotion is OK – it won’t make you a good or bad mom to feel good or bad about this pregnancy at this moment. It’s Ok.
      Hugs.

    • Anonymous says

      I could have written MomAnon4This’ response! I’m a couple of years older than her and our little #3 surprise is coming in August. I’ve gotten more excited and happy about it as pregnancy has progressed (read: as I have started feeling less sick!) and had some reassuring ultrasounds, but I was definitely thrown for a loop and spent the first three months in denial/anger/shock/sadness/guilt (about the less than happy emotions!).

      But – 2 kids are awesome. Not so much the baby years but as they grow and develop a sibling relationship it is awesome. DH and I constantly look over and smile at each other as we see them plotting against us and just being sweet together. So, congratulations!

      • Navy Lawyer says

        Congrats! And yes, two is awesome. Once the baby could sit up, the older kid and baby “play” (peek a boo, making faces and noises, rolling a ball) which takes the pressure off us to entertain the older one.

  8. Birthday party says

    DC Moms, I need help. I’m planning my daugther’s 4th birthday party in May and I’m running out of ideas for a fun party. We’re expecting about 15-20 kids. I’m thinking of the Curiosity Zone in Ashburn or Chibis Indoor Playground. Online reviews of both places sound good, they’re relatively around the same price…I just want it to be fun, low stress, and organized. Last year, we held the party at the Gymboree Play and Music place and while it was fun, they were just disorganized and haphazard. I didn’t think it was worth the $$.

    I won’t have time to visit the places this week so any feedback any of you DC based moms have on these places would be great. (I know I’m asking a bunch of strangers online but I figure “anecdata” always helps…)

    • Navy Lawyer says

      Hope you get this – was at a birthday party this weekend at Pump it Up. It was waaaaayyy out in Manassas but it was well organized. It’s like Gymboree, but appropriate for babies through 10 years old.

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