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Thrifty Wife Happy Life

Helping women love what they wear on a budget

Travel Outfit Ideas from a Pilot’s Wife

July 21, 2021 by Katie Haller

Travel Outfit Ideas from a Pilot's Wife

 Let’s talk about travel outfits today.  This is a topic I’ve been wanting to cover for a while.  I’ve written posts on travel outfits in the past, but today I wanted to dive deeper into the topic.  Last month my husband and I went on a trip together for our anniversary. (Read about it HERE).  It had been a while since I had last flown so I went to Pinterest for some travel outfit ideas.  I am not going to lie, I was a little disappointed in what I found.

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Filed in: Affordable Fashion, Travel • by Katie Haller • 2 Comments

What I Wore in Las Vegas: Cute Easy Vacation Outfits to Copy

June 8, 2021 by Katie Haller

 

What I wore in Las Vegas

Last week, Kevin and I snuck off to Las Vegas to celebrate our 10-year wedding anniversary.  It was our first vacation in over a year and the first time we left both kids overnight anywhere.  It was a much-needed getaway for us after this long pandemic year. Today I want to share a little about our trip and what I wore in Las Vegas!

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Filed in: Affordable Fashion, Las Vegas, outfits, Travel, What I Wore • by Katie Haller • 2 Comments

What to Pack for a Trip to Las Vegas

May 13, 2021 by Katie Haller

What to Pack for a Trip to Las Vegas

 My husband and I are going on a trip in a few weeks to celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary.  It’s something that we have been wanting to do for a while, but with the pandemic, we weren’t sure if we were going to be able to get away this year.  Luckily things are all working out for us and we have planned a trip to Las Vegas.Read more

Filed in: Affordable Fashion, Travel • by Katie Haller • 3 Comments

Travel Must Haves with Rock Flower Paper

October 15, 2018 by Katie Haller

Back before we had Jack, fall used to be my husband and I’s favorite time to go on vacation.  We always enjoyed traveling in the fall, because it’s not a time of the year when most people are going on vacation.  You can usually get low prices and do a tropical vacation for a fraction of the price of what you would pay during the high travel season.  I remember our first vacation together we went on a 4 night cruise to the Bahamas in late October and we paid under $250 per person (for everything).  That was probably the best trip ever.  Nowadays, our vacations are few and far apart.  After moving to a vacation destination a few years ago, having a baby, having a husband in and out of training with his airline and both of us having busy work schedules, when we get a little time off we mostly vacation to visit our family.  Our next trip is to Michigan in a couple weeks.  Even though it’s not a “real vacation”, it still involves traveling, which is always an adventure when you have a two-year-old.  

*This post is part of a collaboration with Rock Flower Paper.  As always my opinions are 100% my own.  It also contains affiliate links, which means by making a purchase through a link will result in a commission for this blog.  Thank you for your support!
For today’s post, I have teamed up with a store called Rock Flower Paper.  Rock Flower Paper is based out of the San Francisco Bay area and they sell unique, high-quality lifestyle goods at affordable prices.  They have everything from home goods items to clothing and accessories.  Many of their products are perfect for traveling, that’s why for today’s post, I’m going to share my 4 must-have items when traveling. 

1.) A Tote Bag–  As a mom, I can’t think of anything more useful than a giant tote bag.  The bigger, the better.  I always like to bring a tote bag as my carry on when flying because it’s like bringing an extra suitcase.  One thing that’s great about a large tote bag is that you can throw a smaller purse inside and still use the tote as your personal item when you’re flying and bringing your suitcase as a carry-on.  This bag above is from Rock Paper Flower’s Jute Tote Bag collection.  I love the whale tale print on the bag, but sadly they are sold out on this print, but they do have some other great prints worth checking out.

2.) A makeup/cosmetic bag– I always need a safe place to transport all my make up and this adorable pineapple print is the perfect travel makeup bag.  It’s large enough to fit all my makeup, brushes and then some.  I’m still debating on whether I want to keep it as my go to makeup bag or use it daily as a purse organizer.

3.) Small pouch-  I don’t know about you, but I’m always losing all my stuff in my tote bags.  Having a little pouch to organize all your important things in your purse is extremely helpful.  It’s nice to have a safe place to keep your keys, passport and credit cards.  I love this black and white wavy stripe canvas pouch.  This is now going to be something that I use daily in my purses.

4.) Comfortable Travel outfit- Lastly, but not least, I always need to have a comfortable travel outfit.  This black and white palm print kimono is perfect to wear as a comfortable travel look.  I love how it looks over leggings and a tank top.  The best part about this kimono is that it’s totally versatile.  It’s great to wear on travel days, but it also makes a great bathing suit cover up.  It would also look great layered over a dress.

Even though I plan on using all my new travel accessories now, it makes me really excited to plan our next “real vacation”.  What are some of your must have travel items?

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Filed in: Accessories, Affordable Fashion, Travel • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

A Week at the Beach with a Toddler

July 23, 2018 by Katie Haller

In my opinion, there is no better vacation than a beach vacation.  I just love being near the water.  Last week we headed to Oceanside, CA to meet up with my husband’s side of the family to celebrate his parent’s 40th wedding anniversary.  We stayed in a beautiful beach house right on the Pacific Ocean.  We couldn’t ask for a better beach setting.  I was a little nervous about the trip because this was the first time we took Jack on a long vacation, besides our Michigan visits.  Although it wasn’t as relaxing as a trip for me, it was still a lot of fun.

When I look at other people’s vacation pictures on Instagram, it always looks like they are having so much fun with their little ones.  After our trip, I’m wondering how many of those photos are real or are those stressed-out parents trying to have fun?  During our week trip, Jack had his good days and bad days.  He was extra clinging with me and wanted nothing to do with everyone else unless I wasn’t around of course.  He had a good amount of toddler tantrums over nothing.  Only a couple days after getting to the ocean, Jack got congested really bad and ended up with a bad cough, which made for a couple long nights.  I had imagined that I would be spending my days building sandcastles with Jack and taking walks along the beach collecting seashells with him, but I quickly learned that wasn’t going to happen.  Jack was terrified by the loud sounds of the waves and he hated the feeling of the sand.  I spent most of my days in a kiddy pool on the deck watching the rest of the family boogie board in the ocean.

I was extremely grateful for everyone who helped watch Jack a little so I could get a break here and there.  Kevin and I were able to go on an adult-only wine tasting trip one of the days and all the adults got to go out for dinner one night while the grandparents watched the grandkids.  That was really nice.

Overall it was a really fun family trip.  Seeing my niece and nephew enjoying themselves and remembering how my sister-in-law used to be the one with little kids staying back while everyone was having fun made me realize that it’s now my turn.  I’m the one with the little kid, so family vacations might be a little more stressful for me now, but that’s okay.  One thing that I decided to do when traveling with a toddler is to just lower my expectations of what fun is.  I know that my vacations will not be like the relaxing ones of the past, but there is a new kind of fun for me.  I enjoyed watching my little guy look out at the ocean and listening to him learn new words like “ocean animals”, “sea nettle” and “succulents”.  I loved watching his face when we got on a boat for the first time to look for dolphins.  I know one day when he’s independent and off doing his own thing, I will miss the days of when all he wanted was to be with mommy.

Here are some pictures from our trip.  Just remember these are the pictures that I am choosing to share.  I’m not sharing the pictures of Jack crying because of the sand or the 100 selfies we took together while everyone else was off doing their own thing.  But those are just the realities of vacations with a toddler.

*This post contains affiliate links, which means by clicking on and/or making a purchase through a link will result in a commission for this blog.  Thank you for your support!  

 My Bathing suit (EXACT) || Jack’s Bathing suit (EXACT) || My Hat (SIMILAR)

 Shirt and Pants (EXACT)

My view from the kiddy pool!


 Hat (SIMILAR) || Sunglasses (SIMILAR)

My little family

Filed in: Family, Living Life, Motherhood, Travel • by Katie Haller • 4 Comments

Summer Vacation Recap

July 9, 2018 by Katie Haller

Every year, the first week of July, I get a week off work.  It’s always well deserved.  We usually head back to Michigan for the week, but this year we have a big vacation planned with my husband’s side of the family this month, so we decided to postpone our Michigan trip until later in the year.  We still were looking for something fun that we could do close by that wouldn’t cost a lot of money.  We decided to spend a couple days in Mesquite, NV at the Casablanca resort.  They have a really nice pool, and that’s pretty much all we were looking for was a nice pool to relax by.  We also haven’t explored many places in Nevada outside of the Las Vegas valley, so we thought it would be fun.

This was the first time that we took a trip with Jack to an actual hotel room.  In the past we have stayed at our families houses, which makes traveling with a baby a little more comfortable.  This little trip was much harder than our trips of the past.  Jack is so used to his schedule and routine, that he was so thrown off by our trip.  It wasn’t the relaxing trip we had hoped for.  We had to take breaks by the pool because for one it was 110 degrees and if we weren’t in the pool, I worried about Jack over heating.  And also we had to get Jack down for naps mid day or we would have a nightmare on our hands by dinner time.  When Jack is not at school, the only way I can get him to take a nap is by putting him in his car seat and going for a drive, so that’s what we did.

My husband kept comparing Jack to a dog that needs lots of space to run around and play and that was the prefect comparison.  Jack brought out all of his toddler 2 year old behaviors.  He tried running away from us through a busy casino, threw stuff at us and screamed when we were eating in restaurants and he tried running off into the pool on his own.  He basically did everything he could to give his parents a heart attack.  He acted like we have never taken him out in public before.  My husband kept saying how nice it would be if we left Jack at home with someone.  Yes, it would of been nice to spend one on one time with Kevin, but we are at this stage in our lives and we just need to embrace it.  Does having a 2 year old make it hard to relax and enjoy yourself when you go out?  YES!  Do I wish it was just the 2 of us still?  NO!

Even though things are harder with a toddler, he’s adorable and funny and we love him so much.  He always makes us smile no matter what.  I know that we will one day look back on our little mini family vacation and have happy memories.  We will laugh at his two year old behavior and think it was cute (not yet, but one day).  We will miss his little words that he tries to say and the way he acts out his videos that he watches on YouTube kids.  
All I have to say is that if you are a parent, don’t let the fact that outings and trips are harder hold you back.  Yes life was easier before kids, but you do what you have to do.  Your toddler may not remember the trips you went on, but you will and it’s so worth it in the end.  Now I’m only hoping that our California trip goes a little smoother.

Filed in: Family, Happy Life, Mom Life, Motherhood, Travel • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

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Hi I'm Katie! Welcome to my blog! I am on a mission to help women build a wardrobe that they love without spending a lot of money doing it. I believe that everyone has the right to feel good in their outfit, no matter what your budget is! I am excited to have you here!
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thriftywifehappylife

Affordable everyday petite (5’1) mom style
A mix of affordable retailers + thrifted fashion
👨‍✈️Wife + Mom of 2 💙💗
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I have one month until my Caribbean cruise 🚢 va I have one month until my Caribbean cruise 🚢 vacation and I’ve been outfit planning! 

Here are some looks that I would wear while sightseeing on at the island ports! 

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What I wore this week as a 40-year old mom of 2! What I wore this week as a 40-year old mom of 2! 

Which day is your favorite? 

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A week of teacher workwear outfits! The end of t A week of teacher workwear outfits! 

The end of the school year is near, so here’s some more outfit ideas to keep you going for the next couple weeks! 

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April best sellers!! 🌷 These are the items you April best sellers!! 🌷

These are the items you have been loving during the month of April from my @shop.ltk shopping page! 

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Need some easy, cute outfits for busy summer days? Need some easy, cute outfits for busy summer days? These Amazon finds are total lifesavers—comfy, flattering, and perfect for throwing on when you’re rushing out the door with kids in tow.

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What I wore today! I love an all black base! It’ What I wore today! I love an all black base! It’s always so easy to build upon! 

🛍️ Comment LINK and I will send you the shopping link to this post! 🔗https://liketk.it/5crGE

#ootd #outfitoftoday #momoutfits #momstyleblogger #momstyleinspo #momoutfitideas #momootd
I’m loving these Amazon dress from the brand @gr I’m loving these Amazon dress from the brand @gracekarin_brand! It’s one of my favorite dress brands! 

Head over to my stories today to get a full try on with all the sizing details and also some discount codes! 

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What I wore this week as a 40-year old mom of 2! What I wore this week as a 40-year old mom of 2! 

What day is your favorite? 

🛍️ Comment OUTFITS and I will send you the shopping link to all my daily looks! 

#dailyoutfit #momlooks #momoutfits #momstyle #outfittideas #wiwtw #wiw #ootdfashion
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