I've always loved a good bag, and maybe even more, a good "in the bag" post - always fun to see what people have got in there! If you're like me, your poor purses have been suffering from under-use in the last 6+ months, but when they do get used, they've got some new requirements these days...
Whenever I do head out for a curbside pickup or a necessary appointment, I grab my go-to cross-body bag from its hook by the door, and these are pretty much its permanent contents, which cover my Covid-era expanded and yet limited needs:
Masks for me and for Hendrik, because one would not want to get caught out and about without a spare! These are his favorite fit, and this is mine + regular and kid-sized carbon filters to tuck inside
(Am now realizing, as I dumped out the contents of my purse, that actually one upside of not in-person shopping is that I have no receipts floating around in here!)
In the spirit of new needs for your on-the-go bag these days, I was excited to learn about Go Care, a company that sells pre-packaged PPE products for all - consumers, workers, at-risk individuals and generally anyone who wants protection while remaining active in their daily lives - including mini hand sanitizer, mask/glove kits, and even "college care package" PPE kits that include all of the above (brilliant!).
Enter below to win one of these PPE kits from Go Care, which are great for anyone to safely head out and about, not just college students:
This round of "what's in my bag" is a little different - and that's because the straw tote that I put in this month's mix & match wardrobe as a beach tote turns out to also be a great substitute for a farmer's market basket! I absolutely love walking to the great bi-weekly market that's about 3 blocks from my house and seeing what's new in season. Next week I bet I'll be getting my hands on peaches galore, but for now we have lots of good green stuff - and some hydrangeas, because I never can resist market flowers. Especially for $3.
The other bonus about this bag is that it's a steal of a deal. To illustrate that, I spent the same amount of $$ (just under 20) as this bag costs at the farmer's market and filled it up. Now you can see what that amounts to in amazing fresh Michigan produce... And actually for this price I also got an additional carton of eggs (I'm making frittatas for the masses tonight) as well as some red and orange cherry tomatoes that went missing from this little photo shoot. I've got Thai broccoli salad and Greek salad in the works too with this good stuff.
Coming up from the same mix & match wardrobe tomorrow is the perfect outfit to wear to the farmer's market! Hint: it involves super cute strawberries.
Much as I love shopping at Target, there is a period in the holiday season where I just have to avoid it entirely. The crazy parking lot and even crazier long checkout lines do not go well with either of my Target modes: run in for my essentials, or leisurely stroll around and look at/touch all the things. With the arrival of January though I got to return for a trip to do both of the above. One because we were out of pretty much every household staple by then, and two because I had $10 burning a hole in my pocket to join this month's $10 at Target linkup fun.
It was difficult to make it out of the Dollar Spot section with my $10 intact (soooo many cute Valentine's Day things!), but I'm glad I prevailed, because in the Christmas clearance section at the back of the store I happened upon an unbeatable $10 at Target find: this pillow, which was just randomly tossed on a shelf with no price sticker. I just thought I'd check it out at a price scanner, and it came up as...$2.49 (originally $24.99). I had to scan it again. Score!
With my remaining $7.51 I whittled down my loves to this pretty $5 candle and $3 push pins, which yes adds to more than $10, but then I checked out and they came up as just 30 cents. So for less than $10 (which is just as well, since I spent plenty more on toilet paper, laundry detergent, etc.), here's my Target fun in action in the living room and kitchen.
Such a fun and manageable way to treat yo'self every once in a while. Especially when its 12 degrees and snowing outside. What's your latest and greatest find?
We all know it's hard to resist the call of random things at Target (I swear I don't know how some of these cute little things end up in my cart!), but when it's a $10 at Target linkup day AND my birthday? This calls for an hour of wandering the aisles and an excuse to buy all the inexpensive fun celebratory things. Here's what came home in my [party] bag for the occasion:
For just under $10 - helped along by the dollar spot and a great clearance find on these delightful dotty cocktail napkins - I got myself a whole party setup to go with the chocolate + Oreo mousse filling cake my dad made me (which he decorated to celebrate our upcoming trip to Paris). All birthday-worthy treat yo-self kind of items, don't you think?
Last month I learned about the $10 at Target linkup from Shea, and I think it's one of the best linkup ideas ever, given that one of my very favorite of life's pleasures/stress relievers/retail therapies is wandering the aisles of Target and sometimes treating myself to inexpensive items that are pretty and practical. So I'm bringing back my in the bag series, this time not with what's in my purse (or gym bag), but with what's in my (reusable) shopping bag:
These finds all fulfilled my "want" desires for fresh and springy things, but also are all rather useful things that I actually needed (okay, except the Sharpie, but I absolutely cannot resist one of those for 75 cents on clearance!) - and I even had $1 left for a snack bar.
So fun to go in just looking for half an hour to myself for pleasure, rather than for toilet paper or bananas (though let's face it, some of these little things might have ended up in my cart anyway, even if I were there on a legitimate household mission...).
The next linkup actually isn't until April 18, but that $10 was burning a hole in my pocket as soon as I learned about it, so I'm sharing mine early - which gives you a chance to have fun with this and join in too! Let me know if you do - I'd love to check out your posts. And your stuff, next time I'm at Target...
I feel like I have been searching for the perfect gym bag solution for years... for 2 years, in fact - ever since I had Hendrik and started taking the majority of my showers at the gym after working out (in order to make sure I get them in!). And after several trials, I'm finally there with this Vera Bradley weekender.
What I love: the size - fits everything I need (which, thank goodness, no longer includes towel or hair dryer, since our new gym has a much nicer locker room!). The shape - it stands up on its own, and the way it unzips makes for easy access to the insides, reducing the need for digging around that happened with my old bag. The pockets - tons of smart-sized and well-placed storage inside and out. And bonus, the double duty - it's an awesome carry-on bag for travel (with suitcase strap and everything).
Not pictured: lady essentials + a spare pair of undies and socks (because it's a serious bummer to forget those), my change of clothes and shoes. But those fit pretty darn easily!
I love a good "in the bag post" - do you have one to share? If you enjoy them too, check out my other ones:
Now that Hendrik has entered toddler stage, that means a couple of things for what I carry around: first, we don't quite need the whole kit & kaboodle of a baby diaper bag, but I do still need some extra space for his stuff. And second, I'm working outside of the house at coffee shops way more (rather than have him banging on my office door trying to play), so I needed a good sized bag for the laptop etc. Enter the tote bag...
There are certainly upsides and downsides to a cavernous tote: you can carry pretty much everything you need, but the cavernous part can be a pain to find things in sometimes - so I try to stay organized with little pouches. That way I can take out the work stuff and stick in the mom stuff as needed, rather than have to carry all of it all the time. The things I always carry include: wallet; pouch with nail file, pen, mini altoids tin with advil etc., hair ties, lip gloss; phone, of course; pouch with coupons; and reusable shopping bag.
When I'm headed out to work at a coffee shop or the library, I add in my laptop, charger, mouse, and pouch with headphones and a little snack baggie of mixed nuts (especially on the Whole30 when options are limited for eating when out and about!).
And when I've got Hendrik with me, rather than the work gear, I instead stick in the diaper changing kit, and a pouch with some entertainment (book, crayons), snack, and wet wipes. If we're going out for dinner I'll add in a sippy cup and bib and any other food he might need, but usually just a couple of emergency things like this are all that are strictly necessary these days.
When I decided it was time for something that would do both work tote and mom bag for me, it took me a while to decide just which tote to go for - I loved the look of the Madewell one you see on all kinds of blogs, but there are tons of knockoffs and similar options out there, as you can see above, in all kinds of colors. I eventually settled on the J.Crew version in gray, when they had a sale going on. It was hard to branch out from the classic cognac, but I love the gray for a little something different that still goes with everything. It's such a rich color and I get a lot of compliments.
I decided the luxe feeling (especially in this color, and with the fabulous monogramming option - LOVE it) was worth it to me to go for a real leather version over one of the faux versions, even if the reversible colors on those ones would be nice to have. It's not the best ever laptop tote, since the straps are pretty thin and the bag itself doesn't have much structure, but I think it works well enough (especially since I'm not going in to "work" every day). My bag has been in heavy use for 6+ months at this point though, and it's holding up well. Definitely recommend a base shaper like this one (whichever fits the dimensions of your bag, as recommended by Audrey). I think that's making a big difference in the longevity of my tote.
Crazy but true, I haven't made it to the beach yet this summer. We've been to my parents' cottage, but on those trips either the weather didn't work out or it just seemed like too much to cart everything down to the beach with a baby of this age... This week, though, quality grandparent time = 2 days of pure Michigan time for us! So I've got my bag packed and ready to go with my beach day essentials:
1. towel | 2. reading material | 3. sunnies | 4. hat | 5. snack & drink | 6. sunscreen | 7. pouch with essentials (hairband, lip gloss with sunscreen, iPhone protected from sand)
My beach bag of choice is a Baggu canvas tote, which I had monogrammed at the embroidery stand in the mall for about $10. Some other great options:
Pretty much my idea of a perfect day off: sunshine, reading an entire book, and having an early happy hour with my toes in the sand. Quiet Dell is next up for one of my book clubs, and I think it'll be perfect for a vacation read - reported to be a "riveting" novel based on a real-life crime. With no mom duties, I think I'll easily get through this one in a day or so. And speaking of no mom duties... when it comes to vacation, I say beer-thirty arrives in the middle of the afternoon. This local brew is my current favorite, but I'm just as happy with any summer ale or Mike's lemonade, which tends to be well stocked at the cottage. Happy Monday!
Since having a baby I much more commonly take my shower at the gym after my workout rather than at home - because that way I make sure to actually get one. And now that our master bathroom has been torn up (takes only about 2 hours to rip apart what will take more than 2 weeks to put back together!), using the gym's facilities seems even more convenient. Carting all my stuff around sometimes doesn't feel quite so convenient though, so I recently acquired a new gym bag that has the carrying capacity and handy pockets for everything I need. Here's what fits inside:
Also inside, stuff for showering/getting ready:
10. Microfiber towel (super absorbent and lightweight, so it doesn't take up much space!)
11. Ziploc with shampoo, conditioner, razor, body wash
12. Makeup bag with all the necessaries
13. Flip flops for wearing in the shower/around the locker room
14. Travel-sized hair dryer
15. Straightener and heat resistant carrying case
16. Brush
Though what I really wanted was the Lo & Sons OG Bag - because I love the slightly smaller OMG bag that I use as a diaper bag and also think it's so stylish - I settled on the Puddle Jumper by Lug after seeing one in the locker room as it has similar qualities (nylon, lightweight, good pockets, tote shape) and though not as stylish still is pretty good looking ... at less than half the price. So far it's served me well.
p.s. to my pregnant friends... you know I loved my For Two Fitness tanks for working out during pregnancy - definitely an essential when working out for two. They're so flattering and soft and stretchy (which lasts you through to the very end, even if you have a huge basketball bump like I did!). And they're really cute. I think if you're going to lug that belly to the gym, you should just own those stares and comments that you're going to get either way.
17 weeks | 27 weeks | 37 weeks
Anyway, just thought I'd share that For Two Fitness is running a huge giveaway for their anniversary that you should definitely go enter - there are lots of amazing products including my favorite For Two Fitness tank, but also other great stuff like Kind Bars, Sarah Haley Fit DVDs, Maclaren Beginnings products, GNC prenatal vitamins, Happy Family Brands baby foods, Zensah compression leg sleeves, and a Baby K'tan baby carrier. There will be one grand prize winner, and two runners up will also receive gift bags, so go check it out!
A couple of weeks before Hendrik was born, I did a post sharing what I carry in my bag. How quickly that changed! Now I carry a whole different bag - a much bigger one - that contains only a few things that are actually mine. Here's what I'm carting around these days:
I'm pretty happy with my choice to use the Lo & Sons travel/gym bag as a diaper bag. All the travel pockets make it quite suitable for keeping all the baby gear organized nicely, and I like that it's nylon - easy to clean (not going to risk a nice leather bag around baby!) and lightweight, which is good since as you'll see, there's a whole lot of stuff adding weight inside:
front pocket (mom stuff)
1. Wallet which nicely doubles as clutch so I can just grab it if we're doing a quick errand, and leave the whole kit & kaboodle behind in the car
2. Travel-sized Purell, attached to the key clip for easy access
3. Pouch with coupons (got to save on those diapers and formula purchases!)
4. Snack & mints
5. Mom essentials that always travel in any purse: pen, chapstick, hair ties, tin with ibuprofen
That's a lot of stuff! It all fits quite well, and there often are even more (not pictured) things that I manage to cram in there, like my phone & keys, camera, and the car seat cover. And now that Hendrik's taking some formula, I'm sure there'll start to be all that bottle-related paraphernalia in there soon too.
If you're in the same bag-carrying boat as me, the Lo & Sons bag is great - it's a little pricey, but if you follow their social media channels you'll find out about the somewhat frequent sales. Plus it'll be useful for a long time because it'll be a fabulous travel bag when the diaper days are over. But here are some other diaper bags I also considered, if you're in the market.
Some days I miss my lovely and ladylike Coach bag (though when I'm out sans baby, I tend not even to use it, instead going as small as possible to compensate for usually having to lug around so much - so often I just carry my wallet with phone tucked inside), and some days I wistfully look at other pretty purses that I know I have no reason to buy because they're not practical for me right now... so instead, let me live vicariously - what cute bags are you sporting these days?
Sharing on The Circle What's in Your Bag? link up.
Last week I picked up a snazzy new wallet on sale at Target because my old one was so terribly beat up. I probably should have taken a cue from Dotty and invested in a nice one befitting my grownup handbag - after all, the purchase of this bag was part of one of my 30 before 30 goals of saving up for a few quality pieces rather than constantly replacing semi-disposable Target versions - but they get you every time with these great deals, and this one looked so good with my bag that, well...
In any case, I wanted to show off the fun wallet print, so I thought I'd empty the contents of the whole bag for you:
One thing about getting my grownup purse: I've definitely been motivated to take better care of it than the usual bag, and part of that is keeping it organized and free of all the extra junk I tend to carry around. Instead I've got everything I need organized into little pouches so it's all easy to find and doesn't clutter up the bag. (The other really nice thing about keeping everything organized in their pouches/cases is that if I decide to switch purses for a day, things are easily transferable!)
1. Mini gold pouch filled with on-the-go health/beauty essentials including hair ties, nail file, mini altoids tin with tylenol, Burt's Bees lip shimmer, tissues, and a just-in-case bandaid.
2. My iPhone, of course, which tucks safely into one of the bag's side pockets.
3. Toms sunnies in their case for protection from scratches (also better at taking care of my sunglasses now that I have nice ones!).
4. Wallet with all the usual wallet stuff of course.
5. Large bronze pouch with other things a girl might need while out and about: gum/mints, a couple of my favorite Papermate pens, and my Kindle.
So that's it! I love seeing what's in everyone else's bag - if you've done a post, leave a link...
Sharing on The Circle What's in Your Bag? link up.
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