It’s that time of year again guys— we’ve gotta stop hiding our unpedicured toes under booties and in sneaks— time to bust out our sandals! I’ve rounded up my current fave styles, all under $100– and all cool enough to update all of your spring and summer looks!

1. Raffia and suede ankle tie sandals: perfect with denim shorts and a flowy floral top, a little sundress or a denim mini and fun tee!

2. Leather braided flat sandal: simple and chic, with a cool braided detail that will pair well with everything in your summer wardrobe.

3. Suede knotted sandal: this slide also comes in a Tahoe/ tan color that I also love… just the right amount feminine and vintagey- love the vibe of these with a pretty summer dress- maybe something polka dotted…

4. Canvas rainbow stripe sandal: guys if you haven’t gotten the memo yet, ALL RAINBOW EVERYTHING is everywhere this spring and summer! Are these not a fiesta for your feet?! I’d pair them with a vintage graphic tee and denim cutoffs.

5. Striped knot sandal: these are a perf mix of preppy and fashion forward- if you’re summer style leans more toward nautical/ classic, these hit the mark.

6. Lucite jeweled sandals: these babies hit two major summer trends- lucite/ clear accessories and multi colored jewels- these add a glam touch to an otherwise simple look- think jeans and a white tee, or a simple grey or black t shirt dress- I wore a similar pair in Miami for a pool day with a red one piece as a bodysuit and black cutoff shorts!

Happy sandal weather!

xo,<3

Christine

 

 

Pineapple matching set | raffia lace up sandals | white sunnies : Dior ( old, similar here and here) | bag: Zara (Other inexpensive ones I love here and here)

As I typed out the title of this post, I had to laugh to myself — “spring break” these days looks a lot different than it did ten years ago- but I kind of love it anyway! We’ve been to Miami a number of times, both pre-Nolan and with him twice. For us, it’s a perfect “tropical” vacation spot with big city  convenience (New York spoils you); only a 2 and a half hour flight away. You can hit the beach, hang at the pool (or go to a schmancy pool party, if that’s your thing), tour the design district, do some day (ahem) drinking, shop – plus obviously, eat at some of the best restaurants in the country.

Denim shortalls | off the shoulder bodysuit (old, similar here and here) | gold mules & bag: Gucci

I shared some general travel tips for parents (particularly new/ toddler moms or dads) here, so I’ll focus more on what we did for our three night, four day stay in Miami.

We stayed at The Gale on 17th and Collins, which is kind of like the center of it all… it’s about a block from Lincoln road, which is a pretty big outdoor “mall” -like shopping center with everything from Rosa Mexicana to Zara, to J.Crew, CVS, and little Italian bistros lining the street- super convenient.  We’ve stayed at lots of places in Miami (Eden Roc, Loews, the Dream to name a few) and have loved them all for diff stages of life… really, all we really need to be happy is a pool, access to iced coffee, and a bar downstairs!

Flowy floral bodysuit | denim cutoffs| slides

So when we first arrived, we left our stuff at the hotel while they got our room ready and walked a block or so to grab salads on Lincoln road, plus shop for a few things we needed but decided to buy in Miami instead of packing (diapers, milk for Nolan, sunscreen, snacks etc).  By the time we got back to the hotel, our room was ready, and all three of us were exhausted, so we just crashed and took a nap until dinner (we got a room with a terrace, so right before the naps took place, we took these pics of me sitting on the wall— TERRIFYING- with Nolan pulling my leg saying “mama get down!” Lolol).  In the evening, we got some happy hour drinks downstairs at hotel bar and restaurant Dolce (INCREDIBLE) and then leisurely strolled along Ocean Drive taking in the Miami scene as we walked to dinner (although we hopped in an Uber halfway there bc we decided to eat at Joes Stone Crab, which is pretty much at the most southern tip of Miami Beach and it would have been past Nolan’s bedtime when we got there if we walked at his toddler pace!)

Pineapple matching set | raffia lace up sandals | white sunnies : Dior ( old, similar here and here) | bag: Zara (Other inexpensive ones I love here and here) | red sunnies

For the next two days, we rented a cabana at the pool at the Shelborne Hotel, a block away on Collins, where my sister and her boyfriend were staying ( there aren’t cabanas for rent at the Gale)… we like getting a pool cabana with the little guy bc it’s just an easy place for him to eat, chill, play and nap that’s a little more “contained”.  We basically just hung at the pool, played games, laid out, ate and drank for the two full days we were there! The second night we went to Bodega for dinner (the best streetstyle Mexican!) and hung out at their “speakeasy” style back room bar for a bit (they let us bring Nolan in bc it wasn’t super crowded yet and it was only about 8 o’clock!).

Rust colored tie front top | denim skirt| raffia and metal slides| straw bag

Red one shoulder swimsuit (similar here and here) | black cutoffs | jeweled sandals

Striped tie front dress | buckled sandals (old Rebecca Minkoff, similar here and here)

Polka dot one piece swimsuit | denim cutoffsdenim cutoffs | sandals (similar)(similar)| cat eye sunnies cat eye sunnies | Straw bag 

One of my fave daytime vacation looks is to wear a fun one piece with denim cutoffs and cute sandals as an outfit for breakfast to the pool to drinks after. I have a hard time picking out cover up dresses bc they always are too sheer or too girly or too SOMETHING for me… I prefer the tomboyish vibes of a one piece bodysuit look with shorts (or a matching set like the pineapple one from River Island above!). For our last night in Miami we ate at Prime 112, and I wore the only dress I brought with me, the striped, tie front Faithfull the Brand number above (one of my fave designers for vacay outfits).  After dinner, we would sit on our rooftop terrace and play cards and board games after Nolan went to bed— hence how I started off this post with “wow has spring break changed for me” since 10 years ago! Like I said though, I wouldn’t have it (mostly;) ) any other way!

hope you enjoyed, and that some of that Miami sunshine makes it’s way up here soon!

xo, ❤

Christine

 

 

 

One of the most common questions that I get from my readers is “how do you travel so easily with Nolan?!” Since we just got home from our last vacay in Miami last week, I figured I’d share some of the tips/ideas that I swear by after successfully completing Nolan’s 4th flight and almost 10th hotel stay before he turns 2 next month!

*Disclaimer*

As always, I am not, nor am I pretending to be any sort of supermom, parenting expert, travel guru etc (lol)… these tips are just what we’ve figured out through trial and error; what’s worked for us, making traveling an enjoyable experience for all of us.  I guess I feel the need to preface with this because, mamas out there— don’t you find the parenting “community” (moms in particular) to be super judgy over EVERYTHING!!! Anyway, here’s what we do, good, bad, whatever…

1. Pack light; buy stuff at your destination : If you’ve been following me for awhile, you know that I absolutely DESPISE packing. Add packing for another little person on top of my own stuff and I want to throw myself out a window. So what I’ve learned to do is: buy most of what Nolan will need when I get to my destination! Now, so far, he’s flown to Washington D.C., San Diego, and Miami twice, none of which are rural or undeveloped countries… so a supermarket or CVS was always around. I pack a few diapers for the plane, a few snacks and fruit/veggie pouches, and a clothes of course— but we try to just pick up a bag of diapers, wipes, food/snacks for him, cheesy toys we don’t mind “leaving behind” once we get there. And if they don’t have what he’s used to? It’s forced him (and I!) to get out of our comfort zones and eat/ play with what’s available.
2. Call ahead for a crib, even if you don’t use it: I’ve never brought a pack n play or crib from home for Nolan. Even on his first trip at 3 months, he slept in a hotel crib (I’m also not a germaphobe and trust hotel sheets— if they’re good enough for me, they’re good enough for him, right?!). Another perk of getting a crib is hotels often give you a larger room (wheelchair accessible, suite etc) if one is available to fit the crib. Extra square footage is so key for us so Nolan has at least a little room to run around in the room!
3. Flying: Not only does your stroller double as a baggage carrier (!), but if you wear your baby (we did until he was one) you don’t have to go through the extra security screening and also get to go through priority (faster!) security lines! You just check your stroller right at the gate when boarding and they bring it right back to the exit when you land. Couldn’t be easier.
4. Boarding: Airlines let “people traveling with small children” board first— I have no idea why anyone in their RIGHT MIND would ever want to be on the plane first and sit for an extra 40 minutes in a cramped space with a baby or toddler! We always board at the last possible minute and let him play/ run around at the gate for as long as we can. If you’re worried about missing out on overhead baggage space, send someone you’re traveling with in ahead to secure bag spots.
5. On the plane: we’ve gotten lucky on two flights with empty seats where Nolan could have his own seat (even though babies fly for free until 2). Otherwise he sits on our laps or in between us with the arm rest up. His longest flight was to Cali (5 hours about), and really it’s amazing how they seem to just sense that they have to sit down and not move. I mean sure, does he want to stand up on our lap and wave to everyone around him, sure. But for he most part it’s really bearable. Bring snacks, water, a stuffed animal and plenty of books and shows/ movies on the iPad- we normally are really stingy with screen time for Nolan, but flying is the exception.
6. Bedtime: so on vacay, who wants to go to bed when the little one does?! We book a room with a terrace if possible, or an adjoining room if you’re traveling with fam/friends, or even a suite so that you have a place to hang out once the baby goes to sleep. Our terrace at the Gale in Miami was awesome— we brought board games, cards and drinks out there so we could have some post bed time adult fun once Nolan was asleep.

Hope these ideas help— or at least maybe encourage any (new) parents out there who are hesitant to travel with their little one(s) to go for it!

If I left anything out, please add any additional travel tips below to share!
Xo, ❤
Christine