(Bodysuit (more colors))

Happy Friday friends! Hope you all have something fun planned for your weekend ahead… we won’t be moving, so it’s already going to be a great one! Sharing my monthly Q+A below…..
_________

1. I am looking for a cute pair of casual and neutral shoes for fall. Any recommendations? Closed toe is a must. It gets cold here in the fall. 

Casual, cute, and neutral shoes are my favorite and there are lots of cute options for fall. If you’re looking for a casual sneaker, I love this perforated option, Fitflop makes a super comfortable lace-up option (I own them in blush) + these slip-ons from Tretorn are cute. If you want an alternative to “sneakers” I love these Soludos loafers or these two piece flats (love this style!). This neutral mule is also a beautiful option.

2. Love all your band tees. Do you shop any particular place for them? 

My favorite brand is Daydreamer, but Junk Food also has some great options too!

3. Looking at staying in La Quinta over break and was wondering your opinion on staying there versus closer to Palm Springs? I have an 11 year old so I know it is further from the zoo and tramway and other kid friendly stuff so was curious about your experience and/or thoughts? 

La Quinta is one of our favorite spots in the desert… yet it is very removed from the downtown area, and takes about 25 minutes to get to Palm Springs from La Quinta. That being said if you plan on spending a lot of time in the downtown Palm Springs area I would definitely recommend staying there since that’s a lot of back and forth travel on a daily basis. I would also say that Palm Springs has a better selection of restaurants.

4. You shared a BP ribbed knit bodycon dress over on stories Wednesday and it was almost sold out. Do you have any recommendations that are very similar? 

Such a great dress (seen here). I actually own, and love, this midi ribbed knit bodycon dress from Urban Outfitters (bought it when I was pregnant, and still own it….)… as well as this identical dress.

5. How many times a week do you wash your hair and what dry shampoo do you use? 

I am lucky if I was my hair twice a week… so in between washes I use Oribé dry shampoo.

6. How did you get into running? I love your workouts/food posts and they always make me want to do better… But running is a struggle! I want to be better at it. So any tips would be awesome. 

My mom has been a runner for as long as I can remember, so that was my initial introduction to running. Yet I really started running in college. I began by run-walking. I’d run for 5 minutes, recover for a couple minutes, and repeat that until I reached my desired workout time. Once I worked up my stamina, I started to drop the walk and increase my run times. It’s also super important to pace yourself and hydrate to prevent cramping.

7. I began following you because you were a fellow Marriage + Family Therapist and also loved your content. I just moved to CA and my MFT License didn’t transfer. There would be a lot of time and money involved to get licensed here so now I’m having a “midlife crisis” situation. I’m scared if I change career paths, I’ll miss doing therapy. So how did you make that transition and is there anything you do to fill your innate therapist tank? And any advice on similar careers/jobs I could get into? Thank you!

I am so sorry to hear that, I would be so frustrated! I worked with a fairly intense population, so I was starting to feel a little burned out towards the end, and had transitioned into a case management roll for the last year before I went on maternity leave. That being said, I try to incorporate some of my “innate therapist” here on the blog. As far as career options, I think that teaching in a grad school program would be such a great option… while it’s not a therapeutic role, you can still teach + use all of your knowledge you gleaned over the years. There are jobs working in Applied Behavioral Analysis with children with Autism, but that doesn’t require much therapeutic work as it’s mainly based on behavioral interventions. My sister was a therapist (at the intern level), made a career change, and became a teacher. She absolutely loves being a teacher and uses a lot of her therapeutic knowledge in interacting with her students, mainly in writing educational/emotional goals for students. I hope that helps a little!

8. I am getting back into the swing of working out and when I get home from the gym I am ravenous. I find myself reaching for alllll the bad things bc they’re fast and easy. Can you suggest any healthy, filling, and easy snacks? I feel like I undo all my work the minute I get home. 

Totally understandable! Some of my favorite, and easy, snacks are beet chips with hummus, apple slices with cinnamon + almond butter, chia pudding (you can make this ahead, or I purchase chia pods from Whole Foods… easy to grab and go), Naturally Clean Eats bars (all super clean ingredients), + bell peppers, carrots, cucumbers + hummus, hard boiled eggs, and some almonds.

9. We are planning a trip to CA in early August and would like to do a few days of visiting wineries. Could you give me some of your favorite places that you have visited in San Luis Obispo + Paso? 

So fun! Some of our favorites include Sextant, Justin’s, Halter Ranch, Laetitia (great sparkling options too), Edna Valley, Tolosa, and Chamisal. All have beautiful grounds, great wines (especially rosé), and friendly faces.

10. I’ve followed you for some time now and I adore your posts. I also noticed that you were previously a Marriage + Family Therapist. I’m currently in the middle of a divorce and was hoping that you could give me some words of encouragement or advice. I’m looking for help in all places at this point and I would love to hear anything you have to say about this process. 

First of all, I can only imagine how difficult this time is right now, along with all the feelings you must be experiencing. Without knowing the entirety of your situation I would encourage you to practice a lot of self care right now…. show yourself some compassion, take care of yourself, and lean on those you trust and find people you can be vulnerable with and who you can share your feelings with. When I think about it, a divorce is more than just a breakup, but also the loss of what you thought your life would be. Allow yourself time to mourn that… and let yourself experience those feelings and know that it will take time.

11. Do you have a pair of white jeans you could recommend with no rips, are high waisted, and the denim is on the thicker side? 

I’ve always had great success with Madewell jeans and this pair looks super cute…. I also always love a good pair of Levi’s, and I own this style, only with distressing… and they fit great.

12. I would love your personal opinion on something! I just found out I am pregnant and I’m training for a half in October. When I’m not training I usually just run 3-4 miles. So far in my training I’ve gotten to 5 miles. Would you continue to train? Do you watch your heart rate when you run while pregnant? I’m also a nurse and I know there are conflicting views on this so I was just wondering yours? 

Congratulations! So exciting! For running, when I was pregnant with Harper, I consulted with my doctor and asked her what she thought. She told me that as long as I could carry on a conversation during my runs that I was completely fine. I pretty much followed that advice throughout my pregnancy. I’ve also known so many people who have completed a half marathon while pregnant, and I say if you have the energy, more power to you!

13. Zella or Alo leggings? What’s your preference? 

So hard! I love them both, but they fall in different price ranges. I think Zella is excellent quality and they have cute styles that often look so similar to lululemon. So many items I own are Zella. Alo runs a bit pricier, but the style, fit, and quality of the items are so good (these capris being one of my favorites).

14. What city is your new house in? Are you going to live there through construction, or do it all before you move in? 

We’re moving to North Tustin, where I was born and raised. Safe area + great schools! We’ll be staying with my parents until the construction of the house is complete. We’re doing a lot to the inside so we won’t have bathrooms and/or a kitchen… so bless my parents for taking us in!

15. What are your favorite pairs of Ray Ban sunglasses? 

I’m a huge fan of aviators…. and was so bummed when I lost two pairs this past year (#mombrain left them at a restaurant and no one turned them in….). Unfortunately they are fully sold out, but I really like this high-bar aviator as well as this beautiful gold/brown aviator.

16. What are some of your favorite dresses for fall? Casual, everyday options in neutral colors preferred! 

So many cute options for fall. I love this button up denim dress (would be cute with a chunky cardigan or suede jacket), cute little button-up black dress (pair with booties, OTK boots, or sneakers), and I love this cute little shift dress too (pair with sneakers and a cute denim jacket).

17. Can you give some jumpsuit suggestions for a growing bump please?? Not rompers, but full jumpsuits. 

Yes! There are seriously so many cute options out there right now. I’d say that avoiding a fitted jumpsuit would be best if you want to be able to wear it with a growing belly. My three recommendations (that I personally own and can see working with a growing belly) include this loose fitting button front option, this smocked top floral jumpsuit, and this polka dot jumpsuit (with the cutest back, featured here). I also think this draped jumpsuit would be super comfortable and cute!