Being Bridget

Dress: Ann Taylor Faux Leather Pocket Shift Dress // Boots: Ann Taylor Kyle Suede Tassel Boot // Tights: Perfect Control Top Tights

It’s the start of a new year and with that I hope to start branching out a bit here on Being Bridget to offer you new verticals of content! So many of you requested ideas for what to wear to work so I teamed up with Ann Taylor, somewhere I used to shop for all my workwear clothes, and I’m thrilled to share with you my fav picks.

First up is this gorgeous faux leather dress. I absolutely love this dress – not only is it extremely comfortable, but its also something I could wear to after work drinks, to church, or to any activities on the weekend. It’s funky and fun while still being work appropriate which I love. I paired it here with these classic block heeled boots. The low heel seriously makes them comfortable enough to wear all day long and I love the little tassel feature. My fav way to style them is half zipped. They also come in this gorgeous cognac color that I am very tempted by.

Top: Ann Taylor Mixed Stripe Tie Top // Pants: Ann Taylor Sailor Flare Trousers // Shoes: Ann Taylor Eryn Suede Pump

When I previewed a few of my favorite Ann Taylor pics on my instagram stories last week, y’all voted for this look to be on the blog! I’m so glad because I’m totally in love with these pants {also love this version}. You could pair any top with them {as evident below} and they’re extremely comfortable. The little buttons up the front offer a decorative element without being too much. I’m 5’10 and was really pleased with how these fit too. The length was perfect with these suede pumps. Y’all know I love a towering heel, but if I was dressing for a work day, a kitten heel is much more realistic. This pair is comfortable and on trend with its pointed toe. It also comes in a higher heel if that is more your speed.

Tops from L to R: Blue sweater // Cheetah Top // Striped Top // Leopard Velvet Top

The best part about all of this is that everything is currently 40% off with code: WINTERCHILL. That knocks $50 off the pants, over $90 {!!!} off the boots and almost $65 off the dress. I think I jusssssst might need this dress and this heart skirt for my upcoming Valentine’s Day parties {I’m doing a Galentines with all my girlfriends + then a date night with my husband :} Plus, I just LOVE a heart.

Ok – I’m done! You get the point! 🙂 I’m obsessing over all things Ann Taylor and I’m so excited because they’re all a great deal right now. Don’t sleep on this – it ends tonight! Head to Ann Taylor and let me know in the comments what you scooped up for yourself! x

thank you to Ann Taylor for sponsoring this post

For me growing up, Valentines Day was always special because it was my dad’s birthday! We would always invite my family over, eat cake, and celebrate. My mom was always super sweet too and would pick out a pretty dress or swimsuit and surprise me with it, and of course, all the candy and excitement at school. Even when single, I never felt sad on Valentine’s Day because it’s such an easy holiday to make other plans for! One of my favorite ideas has been to host a ‘Galentines’ dinner and invite all of my best girlfriends over for a Valentines day themed white elephant. The naughty, flirty, and most likely hilarious gifts would make the night with your girlfriends so fun & funny that you almost forget the holiday is supposed to involve men!

Regardless of a significant other or special plans, I want to wear hearts all February long. It just feels so festive and fun and since my everyday uniform is typically jeans and t-shirt or sweater, I scoured the interwebs for a few fun options! This one is my absolute favorite but the price tag HURTS {ugh!} Praying it goes on sale. I also love this one {bright red is such a cheery color} and how fun are these headbands? Can’t beat the price. Above and below you can find the rest of my fav picks! Let me know in your favs in the comments 🙂

Sweater: Free People // Skirt: Anine Bing {less expensive option here} // Sunglasses: Saint Laurent // Bag: The Daily Edited // Lipstick: Chanel Lipstain // Shoes: Old, similar here

I love an oversized sweater. I wear them with skinny jeans, leggings, and even skirts! This one is so cozy and plays off the dressiness of the silk so well that its perfect for a night out. This skirt is an investment {I’ve worn it so many times already this fall + winter!} but if you want the look for less you can try this one. Almost identical for 1/5th the cost! Keeping my accessories neutral {all black} I decided it would be fun to add a pop of red on my lips. My absolute favorite lip product right now is this one from Chanel. It is a stain that does.not.budge.! I’m wearing #47 ‘daring red’ and it is the perfect true red that won’t dry out or smudge all day long.

In other news, I am starting to sleep train Henning tonight and I am feeling soooo anxious about it! I am following the Taking Cara Babies program that so many of you have sworn by, and although I’m confident it will work for Henning, I’m just nervous about getting to the end goal. One of the things Cara says is that all parents start off strong, but by 3, 4am when their baby has been crying on and off all night, they start to give up. I’m worried this will be me!!!! I hate hearing Henning cry {I totally believe God made it ingrained in mama’s for evolutionary purposes! It hurts us more than anyone else!} Anyway, send me prayers! I’m going to need them! And if you have any extra tips and tricks please leave them for me in the comments! I’m desperate for all the info! Thank you!

photos: The Retro Penguin

Henning loves bath time. So much so, that we do it every night as part of his getting-ready-for-bed routine even if we aren’t planning to actually wash him{we only use soap on him ~3x a week at this point}. There is nothing more fun than watching him play in the bath, and it only gets more fun as he gets older and more active!

With bath time comes a few products that we absolutely love, and that make the entire process feel safe and easy. With so many out there, I figure I’d share what works for us and why!

BATH TUBS

When we first brought Henning home from the hospital, we bathed him in the sink using this little foam tub. It was great for when he was so little and slippery. Gosh – I was a nervous wreck those first few baths! This little sink insert made me feel like he was safe and comfortable which is all you can ask for when bathing your newborn! I also wet one or two of these washcloths and put them onto his tummy and legs. I liked to think they made it feel like he was getting a warm hug – the weight of them had to offer some level of comfort {or so I told myself!}

From 3 to 6 months we used this tub. I borrowed it from my sister-in-law and liked it enough. It did the job, you know? My main complaint is that I sometimes felt like Henning was going to slip out of the ‘comfort cradle’ which made me nervous. I felt like I couldn’t let him out of my sight for even a second. As he got bigger, I felt like I had to hold his little bottom in place. With that being said, he never actually slipped out so maybe I was just being overly cautious/nervous/first time mom. Otherwise, I liked that I only had to fill this small tub with water vs. my entire bathtub. I also liked that it had adjustable settings. When Henning started wanting to sit up a bit more, I was able to adjust the settings and he was able to sit a little more upright which he liked. If you have a tub for this inbetween stage, let me know in the comments! Eager to find something else for next baby {especially since I borrowed it in the first place!}

Lastly, I just recently bought this inflatable bathtub for our holiday travels and I have to say, I love it. I keep joking that it’s like Henning’s very own spa. Its padded {inflated} sides are squishy and comfortable and because Henning is on the *cusp* of being able to sit up on his own, but can’t totally do it yet without leaning to the left or right, I feel good about him leaning against the soft, cushy sides. I also like that I can fill up just the little bathtub vs. the entire bath. Last but not least, it has a little ‘saddle horn’ that keeps Henning from sliding forward which makes me feel like he’s super secure.

BATHTIME ACCESSORIES

I use this little bath sponge every night, but not really in the way it is intended. I place it on the floor, on top of the bath mat, but under Henning’s bath towel. This way, when I take Henning out of the bath, I can place him on something soft and squishy vs the hard floor.

Speaking of towels, I absolutely love these little hooded towels. They’re so sweet and they’re the perfect size for baby. Every time I take Henning out of the bath I wrap him up like a little burrito. With the little animal ears on top of his head, there is no cuter sight to be seen.

I’ve mentioned it before, but this little alligator temperature gauge is the best of the best. I had bought another one off Amazon and it was a total dud. This one has been great – it gives a quick read and is always accurate. Henning has recently taken to chewing on it so I guess it also doubles as a great teething toy too! 🙂

I only recently started using this bath cup {before it was too big to scoop water out of the mini tub. It fits in the inflatable tub though, and I know it will be great once Henning is out of these minis and into the regular tub. Before this, I was just using a plastic cup from our kitchen.

Bathrooms can get drafty and cold {especially Henning’s!} in the winter so this little space heater has been great for keeping the room warm. I hate the thought of undressing my tiny little baby and having him be cold {even for a second!} but I also don’t want to blast the entire house with heat for the small amount of time we want it super warm, you know? I chose this space heater specifically because of the reviews and safety features – it has a cool-touch exterior, tip-over protection, and an automatic safety shut-off system which allows for worry free use.

Kneeling beside the tub isn’t always the most comfortable thing, but this little kneel pad does help. I have a boney butt, so I have used it every single time I’ve washed Henning and it’s great for giving you that extra little bit of cushiony comfort.

As far as toys go, we have this little baby bath book which suctions to the side of the tub. When wet, the colors appear and Henning absolutely loves it. He can spend forever just staring at the trucks and little scenes on the front and back! We also have these little boats that someone gave us. Henning loves to chew on them. This ball was also especially great when Henning was a bit younger and learning how to grasp objects. All of the holes make it super easy to hold and he had {and still has!} a lot of fun reaching for and holding it.

Last but not least, the soap we have been using and loving is this one by Earth Mama. I will be the first to admit that the products I use around my house are not all non-toxic and clean, but when it comes to my precious, pure little baby I am trying my hardest to only give him the best! This product is so clean and made without artificial fragrance, Triclosan, phthalates, parabens and sulfates. It is made with organic herbs and oils and really gentle on baby’s skin. Like I mentioned above, I only use soap on Henning ~3x a week, and this is a product I feel really great about using!

After bath time, I dry him off, put him in his pajamas {my favorite are from Kissy kissy} and a sleep sack from Kyte Baby and put him for bed! I’m still nursing him to sleep, but we are going to work on changing that soon! He’ll be 6 months this week 🙂