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Thrifty Wife Happy Life

Helping women love what they wear on a budget

Shopping Finds

May 4, 2016 by Katie Haller

After having a baby, shopping is just not the same anymore.  Going to the store and leisurely shopping the way I used to is not easy.  But last weekend I decided to face my fears of shopping with an infant and just do it.  We ended up having a nice little Sunday afternoon out bargain shopping (Jack slept the entire time of course).  I ended up at my favorite store at the moment… Nordstrom Rack.  I still had $25 on a Nordstrom gift card from Christmas, and when I get a gift card, you know I’m going to make the most of it and stretch the money as far as I can.  Since I’m trying really hard to be disciplined with my spending habits, I tried to stick to my spring/summer wish list that I made a few weeks ago (post here).  This way I was able to remember the things that I really wanted and not get sidetracked. 

  

I’ve been wanting a new pair of jeans for the longest time.  This might sound crazy coming from someone with a closet full of jeans, but you can never have enough denim.  I had something specific in mind.  I wanted to find a pair of jeans with a thin stretchy material that would be nice and light for the warmer weather, and also had distress faded look to them.  I ended up settling on a pair of jeans with no holes and thicker material.  They were only $12.97 and they fit well.  I felt that I couldn’t beat the price so I bought them.  Once I got them home, I tried them on and realized I had made a mistake.  Despite the great price and fit, they were not the jeans that I was looking for.  So later in the week, I made a quick trip back to Nordstrom Rack to return them.  While I was skimming through the clearance racks I stumbled upon this pair of jeans for $13.50.  I was so excited because they weren’t there earlier in the week and they were just what I was looking for, including the price.  I was very satisfied with my exchange.

(similar)

My other Nordstrom Rack purchase was this striped swing dress that I bought for $18.97.  Now I know on my shopping list I was looking for a bright spring color dress.  I’m still searching for one, but I thought that this dress was a safe bet for me.  I love black and white and I love stripes.  I figured that I would bring some color to it with a fun necklace.  This style of dress will be perfect for the hot desert summer that we have here in Las Vegas.

(exact)

My last purchase was from Target and it came straight from my shopping list.  I was looking for a pair of braided sandals to replace the white braided sandals that I bought at Target years ago.  I ended up pretty much buying the same pair in the cognac color.  I paid full price, but they were only $15.99, so I wasn’t sad about that.  Target is one of my favorite places to buy shoes because their shoes are always affordable and they are made well for cheap shoes. I know that I will get plenty of use out of these sandals.

(exact)

Whenever I get new clothes I love to put together new outfits and share them.  So here are a couple looks I came up with.

Here I put together 2 looks with my new jeans.  On the left, I have a casual look with my new sandals.  On the right, I put together a dressier outfit with a blazer and heels.

Here are 2 outfits with my swing dress.  The first look on the left is simple and perfect for the hot summer weather.  On the right, I wore my wedge strappy sandals with my denim jacket to dress it up a bit more.

I hope you like my shopping finds.  Hopefully, you can find some great spring deals too!  Happy shopping!

Filed in: fashion, Shopping • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

Simple Sunday

May 2, 2016 by Katie Haller

I haven’t done a Simple Sunday post in a year probably, but today I felt the need to quickly reflect on my weekend.  I like to do Simple Sunday posts to reflect on the things in my life that I love so that I can emphasize on the “happy life” part of my blog.
This weekend I barely left the house, but I got to spend the weekend with my boys.  Lately, on the weekends we have been trying to get out and do something as a family, but this weekend it was just nice to be home.  Jack is changing so much every day and I love getting to spend the entire day with him.  He’s smiling and laughing all the time now.  He thinks that his daddy is hilarious and I love to watch the two of them together.  Now that I’m back at work, I appreciate every moment I get to spend with my little family. 
My Saturday outfit, accessorized with a baby.

We took a lot of baby selfies! I couldn’t help myself.

He just discovered his hands a couple weeks ago.

All smiles!

I hope you had a wonderful weekend too!!  Have a great week!

Filed in: Baby, Living Life, Motherhood • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

My Closet- Weekend Wardrobe

April 26, 2016 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! 

Filed in: Daily Outfits, My Closet, outfits, Post Baby • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

My Closet- Throwback Thursday

April 21, 2016 by Katie Haller

Since I’m so busy lately, it’s been hard to put together new outfits all the time.  That’s why this week I decided to share a throwback.  Before I got pregnant last summer, I was trying to adjust my wardrobe to the hot summer weather here in Las Vegas.  I’ve never been a big fan of shorts, but when the weather is 90 degrees or higher for 6 months out of the year, shorts start to sneak into your wardrobe whether you like it or not.  I may not like wearing shorts that much, but I do love my blazers. That’s why I put together these 2 blazers and shorts looks last summer.  I never got the chance to share these looks, because not long after I took these pictures I found out that I was pregnant.  Once the morning sickness hit me, blog posts were all put on hold and these outfits never got shared.  So here they are now, just in time for the weather to warm up. 
Blazer- Target
Shorts- The Goodwill
Blazer- LC Lauren Conrad Kohl’s 
Shorts- Forever 21

Filed in: My Closet, outfits, Throwback Thursday • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

What to Wear While Breastfeeding

April 16, 2016 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? 

Filed in: Motherhood, My Closet, Post Baby • by Katie Haller • Leave a Comment

What I Wore- Postpartum Style

March 18, 2016 by Katie Haller

 It’s been 5 weeks since I had my baby and I’m feeling really good.  Much better than a month ago, and I’m looking forward to feeling like my old self again.  Unfortunately, with a c-section, you can’t work out for 8 weeks, so as much as I’d like to start working on getting my old body back, I can’t yet.  This is why I’m still searching through my closet to find some comfortable clothes to dress my post-baby body.
I’ve been mostly wearing the same clothes that I wore while I was pregnant.  I’m sticking with loose-fitting and stretchy clothes.  I’m still afraid to wear jeans, mostly because I’m afraid of them rubbing up against my incision, but maybe I’ll be brave enough to try on a pair by next week.  For now, I’m sticking with comfy clothes.

Here are some of my looks from the week…

On Sunday, I wore this striped dress from H&M (original post) that I bought while I was pregnant.  I knew when I bought it that I’d be able to wear it while I was pregnant and well after.  It’s not great for nursing, but that’s okay because I only wore it to church.  However, it fits loosely around my belly which is really nice.
Dress- H&M
Necklace- Target
Shoes- Target
On Monday I wore this tunic top that I wore a lot while I was pregnant (older post) with leggings.  I’ve been pretty much living in my leggings lately.  We went out for dinner on Monday, so I wore my bubble necklace while we were out, but when I’m just at home I’ve been avoiding big jewelry with my little guy grabbing it all the time. 
Top- Kohl’s
Leggings- Forever 21
Sweater- Salvation Army
Shoes- DSW
Necklace- Charming Charlie
On Wednesday, I wore a casual outfit with my striped top that I wore pretty much all the time during my pregnancy because it fit perfectly.  Now it’s pretty loose, but it fits nicely over my belly band that I’m still wearing.  I also decided to pull out my pink tennis shoes to add some color.   
Denim shirt- Target
Leggings- Kohl’s 
Tank top- H&M
Shoes- Target
Necklace- Meijer 
Those are just a few of my looks from the week.  I hope you enjoyed!

Filed in: outfits, Post Baby • 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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Best Sellers from May!! 🌸 Here are the pieces Best Sellers from May!! 🌸

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What I wore then vs. what I wore now! Today I’m What I wore then vs. what I wore now!

Today I’m updating a longtime favorite look with a maxi dress that has a little more shape and structure—but still has all the things I loved about the original. Same formula (maxi + denim jacket), just a bit more refined.

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My favorite bathing suits as a 40-year old mom of My favorite bathing suits as a 40-year old mom of 2! 👙

What mom-friendly bathing suit means to me:
✔️ Good booty coverage
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Swipe to see some of my favorites!! 

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Mom-Friendly Summer Capsule Wardrobe: 20 Pieces, 9 Mom-Friendly Summer Capsule Wardrobe: 20 Pieces, 96 Outfits!! 

All the shopping details are LIVE on the blog!! Comment CAPSULE and I will send you the link to the post!! 

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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! 

The weather had been terrible this week 😩 So I basically wore my go-to comfort outfit combo all week long— thrifted jeans + cardigan/sweater + ballet flats. 

How is the weather where you live this spring?? 

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My Mom-Friendly Summer Capsule Wardrobe is LIVE on My Mom-Friendly Summer Capsule Wardrobe is LIVE on the blog! ☀️

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What I wore then vs. What I wore now I have alway What I wore then vs. What I wore now

I have always loved cardigan sweaters. Lately I’ve been wearing them buttoned up, which is an easy way to update the style and wear it in a new way! 

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If you are over spending money this school year, b If you are over spending money this school year, but still want to send in a little end of the year appreciation gift to your kid’s teacher then this $5 gift idea is a perfect! 

@walmart has these cute little faux plants for under $5! I googled these free printable tags and used some left over Christmas ribbon to make these cute little end of year teacher gifts. 🪴

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