So we headed to the pumpkin patch yesterday… better late than never… and I had it all planned out. Harper could get her face painted, we’d go on the hay ride, take few cute photos (because, you know, you have to document the cute face painting… it was a unicorn by the way…), Harper could go to the bounce house for a little bit, and then we’d head home. That all went out the window once Harper laid her eyes on the bounce house…. $25 + 40 minutes worth of bounce house fun was all Harper wanted. And, in all honesty, it was an afternoon for her, so I rolled with it… and she certainly fell asleep tonight without any fuss….

All that to say, as a parent I think it can be so easy to get wrapped up in how things “should” look, when in reality they will always end up differently when kiddos are involved. I learned this early on, and it’s something that happens probably 80% of the time with outfits I envision for Harper (she went through a phase last winter where the only thing she wanted to wear was a dress…). Instead of fighting the battle with her, I’ve come to rely on a few strategies that seem to work now that she’s keen on the whole compromise situation….

1. If what she wears doesn’t matter at all (i.e. getting donuts on a Saturday morning) whatever she wants to wear is fine in my book. We’ve had some pretty interesting outfits as of late…..

2. If she’s picked out an outfit that she has her mind set on, but it’s not really appropriate (a dress for preschool… slides + jungle gyms don’t really work with a dress) I explain this to her and tell her it’s ok for her to wear it as long as she wears leggings or shorts underneath it. We’ve had much success with this one.

3. If we’re going somewhere and dress code does matter (there aren’t a ton of occasions for this) then I set out options… two bottoms, two tops, + two pairs of shoes and have her pick. That way she still feels as if she had control over what she wore, but both options I was completely okay with.

4. The “first this, then that” phrase. First wear this, then when we get home you can wear whatever you want. It’s worked well over the past several weeks.

But before we get to these steps, I try to buy items that she is genuinely excited about. So when I was working on buying a few new articles of clothing, for both girls, I had Harper jump in and help me. We started at Nordstrom, since their kids-wear selection is always on point with on trend, quality items. I couldn’t resist the sherpa jackets (Camille’s here) since they were so incredibly soft… and the matching bows, well, that was Harper’s request (A year ago I couldn’t get that girl to wear a bow if my life depended on it….). I was also on the hunt for a pair of shoes for Camille + these little glitter Uggs are seriously the cutest. They’re so soft on the inside + she doesn’t even attempt to kick them off (which, I guess in her world, means she likes them…).

A few other items I purchased include these glitter boots for Harper + this chunky knit cardigan, as well as this smocked bodysuit (to be worn with tights) for Camille. Annnd, as I was getting lost in all the cuteness of tiny clothing, I noticed that my favorite pajama line for Camille just released their holiday collection….. so darn adorable!! And then I had to just close my computer and walk away….

Hope you all have a great day!
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(Outfit Details || My Jeans | My Pullover | Harper’s Leggings | Harper’s Jacket | Harper’s Shoes | Girls’ Headband Bow | Camille’s Pants | Camille’s Jacket | Camille’s Shoes)

Thank you to Nordstrom for sponsoring this post