Weekend & Family Friday: The Sling Backpack

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Coming off of Budget Thursday, we have a budget-busting backpack. At $840, this bag is way more expensive than what I usually post about here, but I saw someone recommend this in Martha Stewart Living, and immediately googled it. This is a gorgeous bag that comes in many different colored leathers. I also love how it can be a backpack and also convert to a shoulder bag without any style getting lost. I can see saving this one for a treat when you get a raise, bonus, or any other sort of milestone — or just because YOLO. The style and lack of obvious branding makes this seem timeless for me. Definitely wishlisted. The Sling Backpack by Lotuff Leather

A couple of more affordable options are from AllSaints ($398) and Nordstrom’s house brand ($199); if you’re interested in a diaper bag version, try Babymel ($90). 

Sales of note for 2/14/25 (Happy Valentine’s Day!):

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

  • Nordstrom – Winter Sale, up to 60% off! 7850 new markdowns for women
  • Ann Taylor – Up to 40% off your full-price purchase — and extra 60% off sale
  • Banana Republic Factory – 50% off everything + 15% off (readers love their suiting as well as their silky shirts like this one)
  • Boden – 15% off new season styles
  • Eloquii – 300+ styles $25 and up
  • J.Crew – 40% of your purchase – prices as marked
  • J.Crew Factory – 50% off entire site and storewide + extra 50% off clearance
  • Rothy’s – Final Few: Up to 40% off last-chance styles
  • Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
  • Talbots – Flash sale ending soon – markdowns starting from $15, extra 70% off all other markdowns (final sale)

And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interestworking mom questions asked by the commenters!

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Same. I lost my job about 3 months after we bought our house, though with severance I didn’t have any loss of income. I was still very glad we bought something that allowed me to have some freedom in finding my next gig and not feel that pressure to take the first thing that came along so we could pay the mortgage. We can carry it on one income, not super easily, but we could (DH and I are pretty close in income). We max out all tax incentive savings for retirement and I think our mortgage + tax + insurance is around 30% of our take home, maybe less by now. HCOL but we bought further out to avoid the $800K-1.5M range. Of course houses on our street sell for $800K now bc this market is bananas and inventory is low.

I know it is late in the day, but I needed to vent…Daycare just called to notify us one of the children was diagnosed with whooping cough. Now, I’m on my way to the pediatrician’s office. My one year old has had problems with febrile seizures and ear infections. Surgery is scheduled in a few weeks for tubes, and I’m enraged that this may derail that even if she isn’t sick.

I know this is a deeply personal decision but for those of you in HCOL areas with homes over $1mm, what percentage did you put down and what % of your after tax is your mortgage payment? We have the 20% down-payment but it’s making me weary to commit to a big monthly payment if it would be 40% of our take home (after maxing both of our 401ks)

What are you doing with your kids this weekend? The weather this week has been miserable and there has been a lot of indoor recess at daycare/school. I’m hoping the kids can get outside and play in the snow for a few hours, because we all have a serious case of cabin fever. (Can I say it? We’re all pretty bored with the monotony of winter.)

To the poster yesterday about belly-sleeper – have you tried putting the diaper on backwards? And the other tips worked for us too (always making sure his p was pointed down; sizing up in overnights.)

Y’all, I am not feeling social at all these days. I have a 6-month old and work 50 hour weeks,and I just want to relax with husband and baby on weekends. I am in a choir that has weekly practices, and I usually have a work event in the evening 2-3 times a month, but other than that I really don’t feel like making plans with friends… is this bad?

any tips on getting kid to eat any amount of spicy food? My 2.5 year old is a great eater and i have to modify dishes I make and put aside some for her without any spice. I’m talking heat spice NOT flavor spice like cumin etc. She’s good with that.

I’m indian and my mom says they would just dilute it and I ate it and slowly increased my tolerance, but not sure where to start at this age. Any helpful anecdotes would be helpful. I know it’s not super necessary in our culture, but a lot of cultures around the world have their children eating far spicier stuff that I’m making and I’m torn as to where to start!

TIA

Has anyone used the Slumberpod or similar products? We have a 2 year old who will not sleep at all if there is any light, and she’s also had a lot of problems sleeping if we’re in the room even if the room is pitch black (it’s “Hi Mommy! Hi Daddy!” while waving at us on repeat for hours). Normally we stick her in the bathroom when we travel and don’t have a suite, but we’re going on a trip soon where we didn’t have any say in the accommodations (long story) and the bathroom will not fit a PNP.

A friend’s husband is watching my daughter (and his kids) while friend and I go to book club tonight. I was going to bring over a tray of mini-cupcakes for the kids to have for dessert, but should I bring anything else as a thank-you specifically for the dad?

Ladies – my 3 1/2 year old’s imaginary friend is an adult bearded man. Should I be worried? We don’t have any family or friends that we leave her alone with regularly and her daycare teachers are all female so I think this person really is imaginary. BUT it’s a bit uncomfortable to hear her talk about going over to an adult male friend’s house for play dates etc.

Any recs for brands or retailers for blackout shades that are stylish and functional? We had a blind+blackout curtains setup that worked well but my toddler has transitioned to a bed so we need to reduce the hazards.