Thrifty Wife Happy Life

Navy Stripes with Blush Accessories

May 18, 2017 by Katie Haller

If you have been following my blog for a long time, you know that one of my favorite fashion icons is Kate Middleton. I’ve always admired her classic, effortless, chic style. A few years back I was so inspired by a look she wore with a navy blazer and navy striped shirt. I just had to find the look myself (check out her look here).

Today I wanted to share my affordable version of a Kate Middleton inspired look. I wore my navy blazer with my navy striped swing tank top and white pants. I am really loving the blush and navy color combo right now, so I accessorized the look with a blush purse and jewelry. For shoes, I wore my nude pumps, that were inspired by the Duchess’s L.K. Bennett nude pumps.

Shop my closet
Blazer- Target (similar) || Top- Target (similar) || Shoes- Target (similar) || Purse- Ross (similar)

Who’s style are you most inspired by?

Striped Swing Dress

May 11, 2017 by Katie Haller

Did you know that May is one of my favorite months? I have so many great memories of the month of May. There are flowers blooming, great weather, Mother’s Day, Memorial Day, my wedding anniversary is in May… what’s not to love about May? That’s why today I wanted to share a look that would be perfect for any event you do this month, featuring one of my favorite dresses that I bought last Spring.

I found this adorable striped swing dress last spring at Nordstrom Rack. (original post here) I just love how lightweight and flowy this dress is. My favorite way to wear it is to layer it with my denim jacket. I swear this jacket goes with everything and I wear it all the time. I accessorized the look with my cognac purse and wedge sandals. I love accessorizing with cognac, especially with black and white stripes. People used to tell me that you can’t mix brown with black, but I think that’s such a silly fashion rule. Cognac is the perfect shade of brown to mix up with your black and white.

Here is the look. Oh yeah… did I mention that it was really windy the day I took these pictures? Even though it was hard to get good pictures with the wind, it did make for some fun photos.

*This post contains affiliate links which means by clicking on and/or making a purchase through a link, I will receive a small commission. Thank you for your support.

Shop my closet

Dress- Nordstrom Rack (similar similar) || Denim Jacket- Jessica Simpson (similar) || Purse- Last Call Neiman Marcus- (exact) || Shoes- Old Navy- Thrifted from the Goodwill- (similar similar)

I hope you have a great rest of your week!

Confessions of a First Time Mom- Pregnancy

May 8, 2017 by Katie Haller

Lately, I’ve been seeing so many people I know announce that they are pregnant with their first child. I always love seeing this, because it wasn’t long ago I was in their shoes. It brings back a lot of memories and emotions about my own experience. I was so excited for the future, yet so scared of the unknown. Today, with Mother’s Day being at the end of the week, I wanted to share my personal experience of being pregnant as a first time mom.

I had a difficult beginning to my pregnancy. I learned that I was pregnant not long after experiencing my second miscarriage. I never thought that I would go through anything like that when the time came to have a baby, so it caught me off guard and left me with a very distraught feeling that wouldn’t go away. The first time I miscarried, I was very disappointed, but also hopeful. The second time that it happened, I felt very alone. We had only been living in Las Vegas for a couple months and I hadn’t told anyone that I was pregnant. I was so saddened by the whole experience, that I was afraid to try again. It wasn’t long after that second miscarriage, that I felt like something was off. I kept waiting for my period to start, but nothing happened. I decided to take a pregnancy test and sure enough, it was true. I kept it to myself, in fear of it being too soon to tell, so I took one more test later in the week. Sure enough, it showed I was pregnant. The next morning I threw up and knew it had to be true.

18-week baby bump

My first trimester was long and miserable. I threw up almost every day. I was so tired and sick. I remember feeling so sad because I thought pregnancy was supposed to be an exciting and happy time in my life. I was worried all the time because I thought that something bad was going to happen to the baby. The one thing that saved me during this time, surprisingly, was going to work every day. As sick as I was, I never called in and I never threw up at work. It kept me busy and kept my mind off how yucky I felt. When I hit 12 weeks and was still sick I got concerned that the morning sickness would never go away. Then one day, probably around 15 or 16 weeks I didn’t throw up my breakfast. After that, I magically started to feel like a human again.

Once I got over my morning sickness, I started getting excited about my pregnancy. My ultrasound at 18 weeks was definitely a high light. I found out that I was having a boy and that everything was developing well. I was able to worry less and start to enjoy myself a little more. My belly popped out right around 20 weeks and that’s when I got really excited about styling my bump. I started my weekly maternity post on my blog which I really enjoyed. (You can check those out here) I felt good in my second trimester, for the most part. I did start to feel very uncomfortable around 22 weeks. As the baby grew, my body grew and stretched in ways it never had before, making it very uncomfortable.

28-week bump

By my third trimester, I had the perfect size bump and I felt as good as I could feel. I do remember feeling extremely anxious. I started watching people’s birth stories on youtube and reading lots of other blogger’s birth stories. I prepared myself for the worse. I was ready to get my little guy out, it didn’t matter how. Despite all my research, when the time came and I went into labor, I didn’t believe it. I had to google “water breaking” over and over again. It wasn’t until I started having strong contractions that I believed I was in labor.

It was a really weird feeling when I finally got to hold my little man in my arms. I was in awe of him and couldn’t stop thinking about the whole experience. As much as I was ready to get him out, I immediately missed feeling him inside me. I wanted to be pregnant again….if that made any sense?

Snuggling with my newborn

I would love to have another baby someday, but I’m not in a rush. I’m enjoying all the moments I can with Jack right now and our little family of 3. I do miss that feeling of being pregnant at times, and I look forward to experiencing it again one day. It makes me a little sad to think that nothing will be like the first time, but it does excite me to know that the next time I am pregnant, I will be sharing it with Jack too. I look forward to the day that I can make him a big brother.

What was your first pregnancy experience like? How was it different from your others?

Pink top- Adding Color

May 5, 2017 by Katie Haller

Believe it or not, I have a bit of a fear of wearing color. Don’t get me wrong, I love color, especially when accessorizing, but most of my closet is full of neutral colors. I rarely wear a bright colored piece of clothing. That’s why on my last shopping trip to Old Navy, I bought a few solid bright colored tees and tanks. I figured that summer is almost here and I should brighten up my wardrobe a bit.

Today, I wanted to share this look wearing the new bright pink tank top that I bought on my Old Navy shopping trip last weekend. I found it on clearance for only $7.99. I really love how lightweight this top feels. I figured it would be perfect to wear with jeans or shorts. For this look, I wore it with my white pants and nude heels. I accessorized with a turquoise necklace and wristlet clutch. I thought that this look would be perfect for a date night out with your husband or maybe drinks out with the girls…. those are both outings that are rare for me these days, but at least I have an outfit all ready to go!

*This post contains affiliate links which means by clicking on and/or making a purchase through a link, I will receive a small commission. Thank you for your support.

Shop my closet

Top- Old Navy (exact) || Pants- Target (similar) || Shoes- Target (similar) || Necklace- Kohl’s (similar) || Purse- Hand-me-down (similar)

I hope you feel inspired to add some color to your wardrobe!

Summer Wish List

May 3, 2017 by Katie Haller

Now that it’s May, summer is just around the corner. That’s why I’ve been spending time putting together a list of items to add to my summer shopping list. Since our summers here in Las Vegas are long and hot, it’s important to stock up on all the summer essentials that will help get me through those long hot summer days.

Here is a list of what I have my eye on this summer!

*Some links are affiliate links. All opinions are 100% my own.

One || Sun Hat $14.99

As I get older, I am always trying to cover up more and more in the sun, especially my head and face. That’s why sun hats are a must in my summer wardrobe. This summer, I’m really loving big floppy sun hats. Target has a great selection of them right now. I bought a very similar sun hat to the one above at Target a few weeks ago in the dollar section for only $5.

Two || Mirror Lens Sunglasses $20.00

I have been really loving mirror lens sunglasses this year. I’m kind of obsessed. I just think they are so fun and perfect for summer. These mirror lens sunglasses are from ilymix and they are absolutely the perfect pair of shades to have this summer. I can just imagine sitting buy the pool with the water and palm trees reflecting in these lenses. Plus they are very affordable starting at only $20!

Three || Black Sleeveless Sundress $15.00

Black sundresses are a staple for me in the summer months. This black Old Navy dress is already in my closet and I love it! It’s super lightweight and it can be styled however you want. If you want to see one of the ways I’ve worn this dress you can check out my post on it here.

Four || Bathing Suit Cover-Up $15.50

In the summertime, we spend a lot of time at our neighborhood pool. Swimming is the best way to keep cool when it’s really hot outside. I’m always looking for a cute way to cover up over my bathing suit. I have my eye on this white sheer bathing suit cover-up from Amazon. It comes in black and white, but I really like this white one. I find that Amazon has some great prices on bathing suit cover-ups and other summer accessories.

Five || Cut Out One Piece Bathing Suit $23.99

I’ve been looking into buying a new bathing suit this summer that’s different than all the other suits in my closet. I’ve recently fallen in love with the suits at Cupshe. They have a lot of really cute and unique bathing suits. I always find that it’s so hard to find a bathing suit I love for a good price, but at Cupshe they have amazing prices. This black cut out the bathing suit is just one of the many suits I’ve been obsessing over. I love that it’s a one-piece that still shows a little midriff.

Six || Cognac Wedge Sandals $25.00

If you’ve read some of my outfit post recently, you can see that I am loving wedge sandals right now. They are more comfortable than heals and I love the look they give my legs. I would really love a new pair of wedges in a cognac color. I love this color for accessorizing, because it goes with everything! I love these sandals from Amazon, because they are strappy and the heal on it is low, making it a little more practical for everyday use.

Seven || Distress Denim Shorts $19.99

I love distress denim, and with the warmer temperatures, I will for sure need a good pair of shorts for the summer. I have my eye on this pair from H&M. I really love the style of them and the price!

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to start shopping for summer!

What’s on your summer shopping list?

Weekday Wardrobe

April 29, 2017 by Katie Haller

I’ve been so bored with my work clothes lately. I sometimes miss getting to dress up nice and wear lots of different outfits. I love to dress casually, but sometimes it gets boring. That’s why this week I decided to challenge myself to step up my casual style by simply adding a couple accessories and styling my outfits a bit differently. Some of the little tweaks that I made with my outfit was simply tucking my shirt in a little and cuffing my pants. I also tried to accessorize my outfits with some kind of necklace to make them look a little more fun.

Here are my looks from the week…

Monday