(My Dress | Hat | Bag | Harper’s Dress | Shoes)

Little miss’ look…. the exact same feelings I have at officially 40 weeks pregnant and no signs of labor! All of that aside, it’s the Easter weekend and I’m excited to spend it celebrating with family… and I hope you have a beautiful weekend as well!

Sharing my monthly Q+A below!
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1. I’m planning a trip to the LA area… any clue on where to stay, eat, and must see?

LA is so big… so without knowing exactly the area you’re hoping to stay in it’s hard to make suggestions (restaurants can be spread out by a 30 minute card ride….). That being said, if you’re coming in the summer I highly recommend the Malibu area…. you can stay at Shutters or The Malibu Inn… and I tell everyone to visit Malibu Farm on the pier… great food, ambiance, and can’t beat the view. Sushi Nobu is also a gorgeous spot right on the water as well. If you’re looking for more of a night scene (one I’ve been removed from for years), West Hollywood is a fantastic area. While I can’t make club/bar recs, I do recommend the Mondrian Hotel, The London, and the SLS… as far as eats go, Gracias Madre, Alfred Tea House, Fig + Olive, Red O, Sugar Fish (sushi), + Au Fudge are all favorite spots.

2. Do you have any jumpsuit recommendations that can be dressed up or down? I want to be able to wear it more than once…. I’m also short! 

Such a jumpsuit fan over here! Right now Banana Republic is having 40% off and their petite section of jumpsuits is great… they can easily be worn casually with slides or dressed up with a heel…. my two favorites for spring + summer include this leopard print dress + this beige colored jumpsuit. Two other cute options include this white belted jumpsuit (you might have to get it hemmed slightly… free alterations here though) + this jersey black jumpsuit (heels + gold accessories to dress it up).

3. What are your favorite headphones or bluetooth ear pods for working out? Mine just broke! 

Oh no, such a bummer! We (TJ + I) recently purchased the Apple Ear Pods… and they’ve been great so far! TJ never takes them off… sound is fantastic as well.

4. How do you do your everyday curls?? What products do you use? 

I have an entire blog post on that here… except I recently changed to a 1″ barrel since my hair is now longer. I also changed my hair oil and use this Moroccan oil, which I’ve been very happy with!

5. Can you share where you’ve been getting Harper’s spring clothes lately??

I feel as if I haven’t seen as many cute pieces out for toddler girls lately… but recently I’ve made a few purchases at Nordstrom, Gap Kids, H&M, + Old Navy. Some of her current favorites include these bubble shorts, “sparkly” shoes (as she refers to them), casual jersey dress, leopard dress, floral dress, jelly shoes, and this white flutter sleeve top.

6. I got a new job and have three weeks to chill. I’m thinking of taking a trip to LA. Any hotels you recommend? Doesn’t have to be in LA, but somewhere in CA… I’ve never been and can use some sun and down time. Is Laguna Beach nice?? I thought I’d ask you because you live in that area! 

Congrats on the new job! Always such an exciting time. As far as LA, see question #1. I live in Orange County, which is about 35 minutes from LA, but has beautiful beaches…. and I’d recommend Laguna if you’re looking for something really laid back. My favorite hotels there are The Surf + Sand, Laguna Beach House, The Inn At Laguna, + The Montage. If you’re open to something not beach-y, Palm Springs is always a beautiful spot this time of the year…. I’d recommend The Kimpton + The Parker if you’re looking to stay in the downtown Palm Springs area!

7. Do you have any undergarment recommendations? Specifically for under dresses? I hate lines with my dresses! 

This is the pair I wear when I’m being extra cautious about VPL…. they’re super lightweight and fit nicely on the body. I also wear this fitted slip under all my dresses… just helps to smooth out all the little extra pregnancy lumps that have popped up.

8. Do you have any nursing cover recommendations? Looking for something somewhat stylish to wear when we’re out and about…. 

I just bought this stripe one + this ivory poncho… I think both are fashionable and won’t ruin an outfit!

9. Will you be doing a round-up of your favorite nursing friendly clothing??

I’ll be sharing a round-up in several weeks, and will be doing what I did throughout pregnancy… finding non-nursing items that will work for nursing…. since most nursing specific items aren’t my style. Right right now I know that this camisole,  dress, + thermal button-up will be super cute choices. I also have these striped pajamas for sleeping…. and they’re super soft!

10. Do you shower with all your gold jewelry on? I want to purchase some pieces but don’t want them turn in the shower, and I also don’t want to have to keep taking them on and off. 

I do wear most of them in the shower and haven’t had a problem with them turning. To clarify though, the necklaces that I have worn in the shower are my Gorjana pieces (only). Someone also mentioned to me that if Gorjana pieces turn you can send them back and them will re-dip them at no extra charge.

11. What exercises have you been doing during pregnancy to target your ankles?? I noticed that they haven’t gotten swollen…. any special diet that you have been following? How much weight have you gained? 

There have been multiple questions like this lately, and I think the best reminder is that every single body handles pregnancy differently…. and every pregnancy is different. I haven’t done any exercises to target my ankles, but I’ve been consistent with moderate cardio + Tone It Up strength routines (mostly the prenatal routines) throughout my entire pregnancy. I drink a ton of water throughout the day as well (probably 50-60oz since it helps to prevent cramping in my legs). As far as diet goes, I don’t follow any specific diet when pregnant (not sure if that’s even recommended….). I listen to my body + eat when I’m hungry…. if I have a craving for something I try to make it a little healthier… and for the most part have been able to stick with clean eating and bigger portion sizes. My main cravings during pregnancy are typically carbs… loaded veggie sandwiches…. and healthy fats… avocados + peanut butter. As far as weight gain goes, I really try to not focus on that….. and don’t really look at the scale when they weigh me at the doctor’s office (I figure if there is a problem, the doctor will let me know what I need to do differently). For me, I think focusing on the number will take away from listening to my body… which is really the main priority for the baby + me. I know that the weight I have gained will eventually fall off (not right away, but with time) and so I try to just let it all go.

12. What are some of your favorite bags for spring + summer?? 

There are so many cute options out there right now. A few that I am currently loving include this macrame tote, this clear tote, net bucket bag, and this blush wicker bag.

13. I saw your instagram post about Harper being a wild child + I have one too. I love her so much but it’s so hard to keep up wit her attitude + energy! Can you give us some tips on how to handle them better while supporting the way she is? I don’t want to change her, she is amazing, just want to know how I could deal with her easier without feeling completely exhausted! 

I think the fact that you want to know what you can do, instead of changing her, is such a great perspective to have! When I worked with families, it was typically the other way around… how can we change them. And we can’t change others, we can only change our perspective, or the way we interact, with others. That being said, I don’t know your daughter’s exact personality, so I’ll share a little on how I interact with Harper (most of the time… there are times that I lose my patience and have to apologize….). I firmly believe in helping Harper feel a sense of control over her environment, since that’s really what the toddler stage is all about. Given that, I give her options “You can brush your teeth now, or after you put your pajamas on” (I don’t care which option she chooses, as long as both get done…), “When-Then” + “If-Then” statements to let her know what is expected of her “When you eat your carrots then you can go and play…” “If you make your bed, then you can play with x,y,z.” I also choose to not go back and forth with her. If she keeps asking me about something, I’ll give her a “when-then/if-then” statement and continually remind her of that. I think boundaries + rules are really helpful at this stage as well. Harper knows what she can and can’t do… and therefor when she tests the limits I give her a logical consequence (throws a ball in the house… loses the ball… as opposed to a time out….)… and often we ignore negative, attention seeking behaviors and reinforce the behaviors we want to see. As far as managing energy levels, I have nothing there! Harper has so much, I just have to chug along! We do try to implement quiet time as well.

Again, I am not perfect… and I don’t always follow this perfectly. But this is the model that we use in our home and have found Harper to respond quite well to it.

14. Can you help me put together an Easter outfit? I have a lot of what you post and I just bought the loft oatmeal sweater and I don’t know what to pair it with! 

This oatmeal pullover is one of my favorite, go-to, pieces (I think it’s temporarily 40% off) and you can see it styled here. These green joggers would be adorable paired with the pullover…. or these white jeans would look clean + crisp as well (I always gravitate towards white on Easter….). It would look cute front tucked into this ribbed skirt. If you keep things casual, pairing it with white mules, boyfriend jeans, and some gold accessories (maybe a hat??), would be super chic too.

15. I know you mentioned that your family feels complete with the four of you, but are you having any feelings about the last few days (or hours) of your pregnancy? I feel like we are going to be done too but the finality of the idea of never being pregnant again already makes me sad (which is crazy because I haven’t even enjoyed it as much this time around…). 

So many different feelings at the end of pregnancy… and I’ve been fairly emotional these past few days…. I think I cried during some random scene while watching Moana with Harper. That being said, I think being able to grow life inside of you is an amazing opportunity, one I hope, and pray, that every woman who wants to can experience. So while I know we are officially done having children after this, there is some sadness in knowing that I will never be pregnant again. Yet, I think I’m filled with gratitude that I was allowed this experience it twice. TBH, it was much more challenging this time around with a little toddler running around, and I think a part of me could only imagine how exhausted I’d be if there were two of them while I was pregnant!

16. Will you ever sell your clothes? 

Yes, after our little lady arrives I plan on setting up a poshmark account. I’ll be sure to share when that happens.

17. I love your Janessa Leone Hat, but was wondering if you could share some less expensive options? 

Of course! So many great hats, that look similar. My favorite options would be this continental hat, this panama wide brimmed fedora, and this rancher hat.

18. What are your current go-to beauty products?? 

I’ll have a full round-up of everything next week, but most of what I use can be found here. I also just started using this TULA mask and have been loving the glow it gives my complexion (20% off with code Shannon20).