Thrifty Wife Happy Life

Helping women love what they wear on a budget

One Month Baby Update + One Month Postpartum

by Katie Haller

One month baby update
It’s hard for me to believe that an entire month has gone by since we welcomed our little Anna into the world.  In some ways, I feel like she’s been here forever and in other ways, I feel like it was just yesterday I was at the hospital giving birth.  A lot happens in those first weeks, so I just wanted to share a baby update and postpartum update. Read more

Postpartum Essentials for Mom

by Katie Haller

Postpartum Essentials for Moms
If I learned one thing from my last pregnancy, it’s that babies will come when they are ready and they don’t care if you are ready or not.  Jack was born 10 days early, which shouldn’t have been a big deal, but I was a first-time mom and I thought for sure my baby would be late.  I had nothing prepared for postpartum.  Luckily I had a lot of help.  This time around it’s just going to be me and Kevin at home with the baby for the first week or so.  I know we will be fine, but I also know that he’s not going to be wanting to run out to the store every day to buy me things like pads and granny panties.  That’s why this time around I’m trying to stock up on all my postpartum essentials ahead of time. Read more

Baby Update- 9 Months!

by Katie Haller

In my belly for 38 weeks, now in my arms for 38 weeks.  He is just as active on the outside as he was on the inside
It’s hard to believe that I already have a 9-month-old.  For the longest time, I was just thinking about him turning 6 months and how big of a milestone that would be, and now he’s already 9 months. 12 months is right around the corner.  Where did the time go?

The words to describe Jack these days are cute, loving, smart, crazy, busy, funny, cuddly, exhausting, wild, playful, determined…. those are just to name a few.  At about 6 months Jack started crawling, 7 months he started to pull himself up and by 8 months he was everywhere.  Our house is a complete mess on most days.  I find baby toys everywhere, but I love it.  We have baby proofed the living room as best we can, yet he still finds ways to get into the places he shouldn’t. 
I just recently started feeding Jack finger food and he seems to do really well with it.  Since he’s still so young, I still feed him his baby food, but I give him bits and pieces of our dinner.  He just got his first tooth the week of Halloween and a week later he had another one pop through.  I feel like he’s been teething forever, so it’s exciting to see his little teeth finally coming through.
Some of the cutest things about this age are how playful Jack is these days.  He loves it when we chase him.  He says “Uh Oh” now and “dadada”.  He also likes to wave and shake his head.  I’m trying to work on some sign language with him, but I think that will come with time.  His favorite song is the opening song to the show Dexter.  It’s funny because Kevin and I have been watching the show on Netflix now for a few months and every time we start a new episode, Jack hears the song and starts dancing and laughing.  It’s too cute, I just hope he doesn’t realize what the show is all about.
I’m still struggling to get him to sleep through the night.  That has been the most exhausting part of parenting for me.  I really don’t know what to do at this point.  I just hope and pray that one day he will stay asleep every night and I will finally get some sleep.

With each month it brings new joys and new challenges, but one thing is for sure, this little guy is very loved!  

5 Free Ways to Get in Shape After Baby!!

by Katie Haller

   
For most women, one of the hardest parts of having a new baby is getting their pre-baby body back.   It’s not easy.  Every women’s body is affected differently by pregnancy.  For me, my weight gain during my pregnancy was all in my belly.  I remember when my baby bump first started to show, I could feel all my muscles in my abdomen stretching.  There is no doubt that my baby really did a number on my abs.  On top of the stretching of my abdominal muscles, having a c-section didn’t help much.   
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not ashamed of my new mom body.  I’m actually very proud of it.  I grew a human in me for 9 months and I think that’s something to be proud of, but like most women, I’d like to lose the mom pouch as it’s called.

I’ve always been a very petite person and it never took me much to stay in shape, but things change after you have a baby.  I think it’s important to set realistic goals for yourself.  Remember that you just carried a 6 plus pound human in you.  It takes 9 months to grow a baby, so it will take time to shed that baby weight.  Don’t expect it to happen overnight.  My goal is to flatten out my belly and get some of my ab muscles back that I used to have. 

So how can new moms lose that baby weight and get back to their old pre-baby body?  For me, I don’t spend money on gym memberships or expensive classes.  I feel like there are plenty of ways to work out on your own.  Here are some ways that I’m working out for free.
Walk/Run- I’m not a runner, but I do love to go on walks.  I feel like there is no easier way to workout for free than walking or running.  All you need are a pair of tennis shoes and you’re ready to go.  It’s the perfect workout for new moms because you can include your baby.  Jack loves his weekend walks with me. 
Baby Exercises-  I love finding ways to include my baby into my workouts.  When I’m not at work, I like to spend every moment I can with Jack, that’s why including him into my workouts is a great way for us to spend time together.  I feel like there is a big movement with baby workouts right now, so it’s easy to find exercise ideas.  Here are a few great baby exercises that I’ve been trying out, here and here. 

Workout Videos- If you’re like me, you might have a few workout DVD’s laying around your house.  I like to use them to get a full-body workout from my living room.  I have a few Jillian Michaels videos that always give me a great workout.  I also like to use YouTube to search for new workouts.  There are tons of great workouts on YouTube and it’s free.

Pinterest- Using Pinterest as a resource for workouts is a great idea!  One thing for me when it comes to working out is that I feel like I have a lack of time to fit it into my day.  That’s why I love finding quick workout plans that are easy and effective.  I’ve been doing a lot of pinning of postpartum workouts you can check out on my Pinterest page (here).

Workout Apps- There is literally an app for everything.  There are lots of different apps out there that will help you diet and help you get on a fitness plan.  I’ve always used Map My Run to track the distance I go on my walks and it will also tell you how many calories you burned.  Since I’m focusing on my core, I recently downloaded an app called Abs & Core Sworkit.  It is basically like having your own personal trainer.  If you’re looking to count your calories, my favorite app for that is My Fitness Pal.  Find an app that works for you and use it.  The great thing is that most apps are free, so you can try one out and if you don’t like it, just delete it and find another. 

Those are my free ways I’m getting in shape after baby.  How did you do it? 


My Closet- Weekend Wardrobe

by Katie Haller

I’m officially back at work now.  It has taken me a while to adjust to working with a baby, but it’s been getting easier as the weeks go by.  The hardest part about being back at work for me, besides missing my baby boy, is finding the time to get all the things done that I need to do.  I feel like there is never enough time in the day to accomplish everything.  A simple task like painting my nails has to be put on hold.  I literately had to do my nails in my classroom last Monday morning.  I’m finding that it’s especially hard to keep up with documenting my outfits like I used to.  Blogging about my outfits is something that I enjoy doing, that’s why this weekend I made a point of taking pictures of my outfits to share with all of you, even if they are a day or two late.

This weekend, I decided it was time to ditch my leggings and get back into my jeans.  It’s been so long since I’ve worn most of my jeans, so I figured it was time to start wearing them again.  Besides, before I know it, the weather will be too hot for jeans.

On Friday, I had a professional development day at work.  My favorite part of these days is no kids, which means I can wear whatever I want and not worry about my kiddos messing it up. (Hopefully, no one minds the baby foot that got in the picture.)
Jeans- LC Lauren Conrad Kohl’s (similar) 
Tunic- Nordstrom Rack (similar)
Blazer- Target (similar)
Sandals- Target (similar)
Necklace- Charming Charlie (similar)
On Saturday, I decided to pull my ripped jeans out of the closet.  I haven’t worn them in a while and I forgot how comfortable they are.  This was the perfect outfit for my casual Saturday of running errands. 
Jeans- T.J. Maxx (similar)
Shirt- H&M (similar)
Cardigan- Target (similar)
Necklace- Target (similar)

On Sunday, I decided to switch it up a bit and wear my flared jeans that I haven’t worn in the longest time.  I’ve been wearing skinny jeans for so long, I forgot how much I liked a flared bottom sometimes.  It’s always nice to switch up you wardrobe when you get board of one style.

Jeans- Nordstrom (similar)

Top- Walmart (similar)
Sweater- Old Navy (similar)
Shoes- The Goodwill (similar)

Those were my outfits this week.  I promise to keep up with my daily outfits, it just might take me some time to get them posted, but I guess that’s just mom life for you. 

I hope you’re having a great week! 

What to Wear While Breastfeeding

by Katie Haller

Lately, it seems like all I can think about is breastfeeding.  It’s probably because it consumes a large part of my day.  I’m sure many new moms would feel the same way. 
Before I had Jack it wasn’t even a question if I would breastfeed or not.  I always knew I wanted to breastfeed my baby.  Why wouldn’t I?  It’s best for baby and mom.  Not to mention it’s free and formula is not.  I didn’t understand why everyone wouldn’t breastfeed their baby.  Well, now after having a baby, I completely understand why some women choose not to breastfeed.  It’s a lot of work!  I’ve had a love-hate relationship with breastfeeding since day one.  I was so happy that Jack nursed right away.  Our first time together he latched right on with no problem.  What I didn’t realize was that he was tongue-tied and developed a shallow latch which caused me a lot of pain.  I also had some difficulty when we came home from the hospital because I was in a lot of pain from the c-section.  It got so bad that I ended up having to take a break from nursing and just pump bottles while I healed.  I did that for a week or so and luckily Jack had no problems taking a bottle.  I broke all the rules and gave him a bottle when he was 3 days old.  I debated exclusively pumping but decided that seemed harder than nursing.  After I healed I slowly started to nurse him again.  With time we both got better with it.  I’ve wanted to quit so many times and just go to formula, but every time I think that I end up deciding that I still want to nurse him.  As of right now, I’ve decided that I’ll breastfeed until I’m ready to be done.  That could be in 2 weeks, a month or 6 months.  I just take it day by day. 
Breastfeeding has definitely come with a lot of challenges, but there is one dilemma that I’m faced with every day. That is the question of….what to wear?  It’s important to wear practical clothes for easy access to your breast when you’re nursing and pumping.  I don’t believe in buying clothes that you can’t wear for the long term, so I’m not buying any special nursing clothes, besides my nursing bras, which I’m sure I’ll still wear them even after I’m done breastfeeding. 
Here are some outfits that I’ve come up with to help you style yourself for those nursing and pumping months after your baby is born. 
This navy blue button-down dress from Old Navy is great if you work in an office and plan to pump at work.  Dresses are usually not practical for breastfeeding, but this style is perfect for it.  The buttons are great for easy access. 
This wrap dress that I found at Savers is a great style of dress for breastfeeding.  It’s low cut, so it’s easy to feed your baby or pump. 
Right now I prefer to dress in a two-piece, because it’s easy to lift your shirt to the nurse or pump.  When you wear a loose top with a blazer, no one would ever suspect that you’re a breastfeeding mom.  This is a great look for an evening out or a casual work environment. 
Just like the button down dress, a button down shirt is always nice for nursing as well.  Easy to unbutton and feed. 
This here is a look I’ve been wearing a lot right now.  It’s comfortable and cute.  It’s loose fitting which is nice for your post baby body.  Plus it’s also nice for nursing, because it’s in two pieces. 
I’m not that comfortable nursing in public, so I normally bottle feed if we’re out and about for convenience, but if I do nurse around other people I like to be covered up.  That’s why it’s kind of a nice option to use your outfit as a cover.  I have seen special scarves that are made to be a nursing cover, but I’ve found that any infinity scarf will do just fine.  Here’s an example of how you could use your own scarf as a cover up. 
Another clothing item you could use to cover up with is a waterfall sweater.  As long as it’s big enough, you can drape it over your baby.  It’s nice not to worry about packing a nursing apron or big blanket in your diaper bag everywhere you go. 
Those are just a few examples of some practical breastfeeding outfits.  I’m curious to know if anyone else had or has a favorite breastfeeding outfit that you wore? 

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